The Rap Grammys - You Ready?

The week we have all been waiting for - or at least I have been waiting for - has finally arrived. The 2008 Ozone Awards will finally be aired on MTV Jams. Sports fans had the Olympics. Movie fans had Batman. Now Hip Hop heads have the Ozone Awards.

Last summer, the 2007 Ozone Awards was clearly the pinnacle achievement in MTV Jams history. The production quality was mind-blowingly poor - to the point where it seemed that if you just rented out an auditorium and made up a bunch of completely meaningless awards - like Hustler of the Year - you could get all of your Southern hip hop heroes in the same building. Keep in mind this is an event that happens in real life, not in a Chappelle Show skit like the Player Haters Ball, but the Ozone Awards really happen. It's like believing in the tooth fairy and then once a year, every summer, you turn on tv and there she is, making it rain...everywhere.

On the Side: In elementary school it was comic book characters. In middle school it was wrestlers. In high school it was professional athletes. Now it's rappers. I never would've guest this as the evolution of what sorts of characters I idolized but it sort of makes sense.

Comic book characters, for the most part, are all from or live in an alternate galaxy or have some personality trait or power that removes them from the 'real' world. Well, I'd have to say wrestlers, professional athletes, and rappers are all like comic book characters in the way that they don't really experience the same world as we do - hence, we are not the same/i am a martian.

In summation: On the new T-Pain and Lil' Wayne song, Pain sings, I can't believe it/ she all on me/ like she wants me. At the end of the day, the Pain does believe it cause he lives a life somewhat removed from reality and that's why kids wish they could be Wolverine and I wish I could be T- Pain.

More On the Side: Now that comic books have officially gotten the stamp of approval from Hollywood, when are rappers, I'm talking aside from Biggie, going to get their big screen bio-pics? Would you rather see DMX in Karate Kid 6 as a cop or would you rather see The Evolution of Dark Man X - from crack pot to rap legend to crack pot? I mean it's a no brainer.

Last On the Side: I just got the new Game cd LAX. It begins with an intro from DMX. Many people have questioned this move and how Game came to this decision. I think the answer is quite obvious. Game clearly listened to the first line of X's Flesh of My Blood, Blood of My Blood, which like all good opening lines of classic albums, gets you ready for what you are about to deal with, in this case a dog-obsessed murdering necrophiliac. With no further ado: I got blood on my hands and there's no remorse/I got blood on my dick cuz I fucked a corpse. Game, in a moment of lucidity, definitely heard this and said yo, I need this dude to start my shit off right. Also, keep in mind that DMX used to be all over TRL and he still said shit like that to kick off his (multi-platinum) albums. That is not giving a fuck. Might even be Ozone Award Hustler of The Year worthy...maybe.

My favorite moment of the 2007 Ozone Awards:

- Killer Mike being so overcome with emotion after winning Street Album of the Year that it seemed all it really took was an Ozone Award to justify his last three years of independent grinding. Do yourself a favor and watch his acceptance speech GRIND TIME RAP GANG! BANG BANG BANG! Last summer we used to watch his speech over and over again before we went out drinking on weekends. This usually just resulted in the late night screaming of BANG BANG BANG! I FIRED MY BOSS AND BECAME A BOSS! For some reason, girls did not understand what we were referencing, or actually that we were even referencing anything. Also, keep in mind that I Pledge Allegiance to the Grind beat out Da Drought 3 for the award so go cop it.

Now, the Ozone Awards have already occurred and been written about but I have done my best to avoid it. Like the people who DVR'd Olympic USA Men's Basketball Games and spent the following day avoiding the water cooler and internet so that they could come home and watch the game as if it hadn't taken place at 3 AM, I have done my best to stop myself from finding out as much as I can even after learning such amazing tidbits of information like Mike Jones got punched in his face - before the show even started! - and still went on to present an award with DJ Khaled. How does one, in the aftermath of getting punched in the face, go on to stand next to DJ Khaled yelling his bullshit into a microphone and not punch him in the face? I look forward to finding out.

On the side: People always say everything in offices goes down at the water cooler. I, having not spent too much time in an office, have always assumed this is true. In one, of the two, offices I worked in, there wasn't even a water cooler because the company gave out free water bottles. Was this a move of kindness or just an attempt to nip office banter? Anyway, I sat in the back corner of my office, my cubicle next to the communal trash can. All day I would be woken up by people shooting trash in my direction only to come bend over right next to my desk, pick up a dirty wrapper or tissue and say 'I really thought that one was going in.' To which I would say, BANG BANG BANG! From then on they mostly just placed their garbage in the bin.

Summer Jam

From cold winters to hot summers...

i got the intellect and the tech

Reppin the Streets - Freeway

Here's a Freeway track that fits nicely with the feel of the summer.

Styles P - Good for more than just Good Times

Styles P is best known for Good Times.  You know, the song that starts... i get high, i get high, i get high...also known as the song Manny Ramirez used to come out of the dugout to.  Anyways, the man has a ton of other dope songs.  Let's take a look at some of the other tracks on his solo debut, one of my personal favorite albums, A Gangster and A Gentleman.

Daddy Get that Cash ft. Lil Mo

My favorite Styles song.  Probably the best song Lil Mo has ever been a part of.  The beat is ridiculous and Styles rides it perfectly.  To me, it is very important that rappers wrap up verses in recognition of the hook that is about to come.  See Tupac in I Get Around - he ends basicilly every verse with the lyric I Get Around.  Why?  Cause that is a tight way of wrapping up a verse. Anyways, Styles does a nice job here, ending verse 2 with "daddy go and get that cash"/ that's what my honey holla out every time i hit that ass.

The song tells the story of Styles hustling with a woman whom he is also romantically involved.  This tale is by no means new, see Biggie's Gimme da Loot, however, Styles version takes it a step further by discussing the dynamics of the romantic relationship of the hustlers in crime.  

1) She can sleep with another dude/ she gon' tell me where the safe at, the coke at, how to rob his mother too 

At first I thought this meant she definitely cares about Styles more than previously mentioned "other dude" but it could also mean she is just telling Styles so he'll empty the safe and fill her pockets...

2) If I kiss her than her heart will melt/ you don't understand how much work she carryin in the garder belt

Previously rapped in verse 1, this lyric proves her true feelings for Styles, yet only reveals Styles appreciation of her work ethic.  Let us continue...

3) And she said "daddy get that cash" / she knew i would but she didn't know i would skip that fast

So yes, like just about every other rapper, Styles stays too hard-bodied to fall for - or at least admit he has fallen for - his boo.  

Despite the typical ending, Daddy Get that Cash, is anything but, and is well worth a listening.

Get Paid

In the 90's you had to have kids singing the hook on at least one song - see Hard Knock Life - so keeping in line with the theme of Daddy Get that Cash, Styles puts out another dope song about getting guap, this time with kids instead of Lil' Mo on the chorus.  Either way works for me really.

Nobody Believes Me ft. Sheek Louche, Cross, J-Hood

This may be the creative triumph of the album.  Styles anthropomorphizes and has conversations with his gun, his knife, his money, and his weed.  As the story unfolds, Styles realizes despite his love for his weapons and hatred of the power money holds over him, all he wants to do is smoke and write a verse. As for me, I'm glad he did.

The Life

This song is a classic pairing of Pharoahe Monch and Styles.  Dope beat, dope rhymes, what else y'all want?

Bonus Styles tracks:

G Joint

The most divisive Styles song of all time.  You either love the beat or think it's garbage.

The Hardest

Another classic pairing.  

Use Mad Clips

Random song, I just love the beat and the simplicity of the hook.

Locked Up

Now this has to be the best Akon song of all time right?  First of all, it is about being in prison and Akon's whole essence is rooted in the fact that he is a former convict, hence the name A-kon and Konvict records.  Second of all the beat is ridiculous.  Third of all, if this isn't the best Akon song than it has to be Soul Survivor, I mean that one's got Jeezy on it, so you make the call.

Fly Society: New Orleans Native Finds Life After Lil' Wayne

Fear and Loathing in New Orleans - Curren$y

Editor's Note: Well literally the same day I posted this Curren$y dropped a new mixtape, Super Tecmo Bowl, his 5th in the last five months.  Check it out here.  I won't have an opinion on it til the end of the week. One.  

Curren$y the Hot Spitter was a longtime member of Lil' Wayne's Young Money imprint.  However, after never seeing a release date in sight nor ever capitalizing off the success of his only single, Where Da Cash At, Curren$y sought after and was granted his release.  Now on his own, the New Orleans native has created the Fear and Loathing in New Orleans mixtape series, releasing one new tape each of the last four months.  Today, we are going to take a look at the fourth installment.

First thing of note to me was the names of the tracks: Sky Barz, Lost in Transit, Stealth Technology, and Intergalactic Society.  These tracks, coupled with the title Fear and Loathing, make me wonder what effect Curren$y may have had on Lil' Wayne getting hooked on the styrofoam cup and believing he is a Martian.  What happened on that bus with Weezie that got both of these guys thinking they are other-worldly?  Who knows, but whatever the reason, it is certainly for the best.

Fear and Loathing is a solid mixtape.  I always thought Curren$y had a good smooth voice and now he has the right selection of beats, and lyrics to match.  I always appreciate humility and honesty in rap and Curren$y is the first to tell you the first verse he ever wrote was 5 minutes full of crimes he never committed and girls he never talked to.  

On the side:  Is every first verse a kid writes a run-on of braggadocio lies?  Curren$y's line reminded me of the first line of Aw Naw, my first song was like 48 bars with no hook, which in turn reminded me of the first verse I ever wrote, which was something about liking girls as much as pizza.  

Spitter goes on to rap about taking dates out in a Lambo he borrowed from a famous rapper friend but tells her not to worry, the Chevy in the drive is his, plus he'll be in his own Lambo soon.  Fear and Loathing makes me think he may be right.

On the side: The mixtape has 3 references to the Celtics.  He calls them as his prediction to win (or make? I'm not sure) the finals, he shouts out Jesus Shuttlesworth, and he says he's the truth like Paul Pierce.  Legit.

Someone should sample that...

So yesterday I got some old David Ruffin music to check if there was anything worth sampling on the record. Well turns out Kanye West (and DJ Kayslay) already beat me to it. Here is Common Man, which was turned into the Jay-Z classic Never Change - and the song Double Cross which became Double Crosser by Papoose. Lastly, we have I Believe to My Soul by Donny Hathaway which became I Got Love by Nate Dogg. Classic. Enjoy.

Never Change - Jay Z

Common Man - David Ruffin

Double Cross - David Ruffin

Double Cross - Papoose

I Believe to My Soul - Donny Hathaway

I Got Love - Nate Dogg

Bonus: Both Joell Ortiz and Papoose, amongst others, sample A Change is Gonna Come by Sam Cooke. Which beat do you think is better? I got to go with Papoose but as far as lyricism I think I got to go with Joell and Immortal Technique. What do you think?

Modern Day Slavery - Joell Ortiz ft. Immortal Technique

Change Gone Come - Papoose

A Change is Gonna Come - Sam Cooke

If you recognize any samples in any hip hop songs hit up the comment section and let me know.

Good Music that is not the Carter III

Rising Down – The Roots

While this album won’t give any Roots-haters a new reason to reevaluate the Philly crew, it does reward its fans with its ominous tone, truculent disregard of the mainstream, and lyrical dexterity. The title track, Rising Down, features guest spots from Mos Def and Styles P – both fitting in nicely and going in hard (no sasha vujacic). If you are on the border of liking the Roots but are a little put off by Black Thought, take a chance on Rising Down.



The Mixtape About Nothing – Wale

Wonderful interplay between Seinfeld sound-bites and concept related songs. My initial question when I got the mixtape was how is Wale going to address the Michael Richards situation? My second thought was can you be a fan of a character yet dislike the actor? The answers: 1) The song The Kramer begins with Richard’s infamous comedy club rant, followed by verses centering on the issue of racism and self-hatred. The mixtape, and this particular song, are well executed and definitely worth downloading. As for liking a character while discarding the actor I think you can separate the two, take the character and leave the actor. What do you think?

Speaking of self-hatred: I recently woke up ridiculously hung-over and stood brushing my teeth before my bathroom mirror. My stream of thought…this sucks, why do I do this to myself…followed by…god, I am hating on myself right now…followed by singing to my reflection – not out loud but in my head – I see you, hiiii hater! ... followed by laughing and thinking…rock bottom.

On the Side: I am not a big fan of web talk acronyms such as LOL or LMAO or SMH but I also don’t think they will lead to the demise of the English language. However, what I do think, is that the acronym SFRS – short for so fucking rock show – should be used for declaring that something or someone is rock bottom.

Example: Did you see Mike grinding on all those dumpy looking girls last night? SFRS.

The In Crowd – Kidz in the Hall

Kidz in the Hall have not only managed to avoid a sophmore slump but have actually crafted a much better album than their debut disc. The UPenn duo offers dope rhymes over dope beats and I mean that’s pretty much all you can ask for. Standouts are Paper Trail and The Pledge ft. Buckshot and Sean Price aka The Brokest Rapper You Know. The In Crowd is definitely worth downloading or buying - if you still do that.

On the Side: Do people still buy music? I haven’t bought a rap cd in a really longtime. It never even crossed my mind to buy Carter III – I’m talking over the whole two years we waited for it I always said shit, I’m going to download CIII the minute it leaks. But this Tuesday two cd’s came out that I plan on purchasing as soon as I get my new credit card – I left the old at a bar in NYC (after paying $15 a drink and being deaded by a girl for which I stupidly purchased a $15 drink I was too rock bottom to walk back inside once I realized I left my tab open. In a way I almost feel like some people subconsciously leave tabs open to avoid facing the misery of realizing how much cash you wasted on essentially nothing…anyways, back to music…) So the two cd’s I plan on purchasing are both “Indie” Rock – yes “indie” is a stupid label so it is put in quotation marks – and it got me thinking what makes people who download music choose what to download and what to buy? My initial rule when I started downloading music was if I like two cd’s I downloaded from a band/rapper I will buy the third. However, CIII made me realize I don’t stick to that rule at all. Thinking about it more I realized I am much more willing to give money to “indie” artists simply because they sell less records and need the support of their fans. Thinking about more I realized it’s not just about the artist – purchasing a cd in the digital age is more of a statement about yourself, you making your declaration that yes I like this and am paying for something that I don’t have to because I want to affiliate myself with this band/rapper product…I might be totally off with this but I think some would agree or at least see where I’m coming from. Anyways…

The title the In Crowd inherently brings to mind Lupe Fiasco’s The Cool. Both albums question what it is to be cool and why we value bullshit. In terms of hip hop’s history of determining what is cool I always hold Mobb Deep’s line -to all my killers and my $100 billers/ to all my real n—gas that ain’t got no feelings – to be the defining take on what makes a person cool.

The first line makes killing cool because it associates murder with money -think Stringer Bell’s board-meetings in the funeral home - meaning death is just part of business, and cash rules.

The second line associates being real/cool with being void of emotion.

Now, what Kidz in the Hall and Lupe deem cool is being able to not let the context of your situation define what you believe to be cool ie don’t have to be gangster in the ghetto and you don’t have to be a bookworm in a family full of scholars. Be you. While this seems pretty preachy, both Lupe and Kidz in the Hall come off as well intentioned take it or leave it this is what I think aka way less preachy than Weezie on the end of Misunderstood.

So there you have it, two good albums and a mixtape, all of which are not the Carter III. Download – or buy? – and enjoy.

What's A Goon to a Goblin? A Look at the Carter III

Next time you mention Pac, Biggie, and Jay-Z don't forget Weezy
-Lil Wayne, Mr. Carter/Carter III

This was supposed to be the album that cemented Lil Wayne’s legacy as one of the G.O.A.T.s. This was supposed to be the culmination of countless mixtapes and leaks that teased you with the idea that maybe Lil Wayne is what he says he is – this was supposed to be the coronation of a new king.

But is that what Weezie really wanted? Or was he setting out to prove he has a place at the table with rap’s mainstream giants? Regardless of what the Carter III was supposed to be, it is the worst of the Carter series while still being a thoroughly solid and marketable album.

To look at the Carter III I will give a brief overview of its major players:

50 Cent and DJ Khaled: I mentioned in a previous post about Lollipop how I reasoned it to be the result of 50 Cent challenging Lil Wayne’s ability as a song writer and potential to capture a mainstream audience. Now, in my book being a successful mainstream rapper today means taking no risks, leaving out the grime and sordidness reserved for mixtapes in favor of gimmicky simplistic hooks and vocoders. That being said – that is exactly what the Carter III is. Wayne never really goes in, never fully embraces the playfulness and hard-bodiness that set the tone of the Dedications, the Droughts, and the Carters.

As far as Khaled goes, I have become convinced that there has been a transition of the meaning of Best Rapper Alive – what was once a statement threatening every MC in the game has a completely new meaning. What Best Rapper Alive now means to Weezie – post 50 Cent’s challenge - is Best Rapper on a DJ Khaled song. Why? Those are the MC’s that matter to the radio stations and record labels, those are the MC’s that form the group Wayne so badly wanted to be a part of – successful mainstream rappers. Well guess what? When Wayne wanted to genuinely be the Best Rapper Alive – taking on the world in his mixtapes – he was. When Wayne wants to be the Best Rapper on a Khaled Song – settling for mediocrity – he is.

Note: If you are thinking - wait Wayne has gone platinum before and already was a mainstream rapper, that is not the point.  With Carter III he is aiming at superstar (which he has never been until now).  Go back to Don't Die on Like Father Like Son and I quote: "shit I guess I'm one sellout record away from being famous/shit I guess I ain't it."  Well he is now. 

The Styrofoam Cup: A lot has been made of Wayne’s drug use and justifiably so. The cup facilitated and catalyzed Wayne’s descent into the depths of his creative well resulting in some of the most clever free flowing word association verses that came to define Wayne’s style. However, when you rely on your ability to flow extemporaneously off the top you must be confident you will continue to catch lightning in a bottle every time you pull on a blunt and exhale a verse into the mic. On the Carter I and the Carter II, Wayne arguably caught that lightning every track – as for the Carter III his leather may still be so soft but he sure as hell never goes so hard.

The Vocoder: To me the vocoder is the fake tits of the rap game. Say you have a naturally pretty girl, I’m talking doesn’t even need to wear make-up if she doesn’t want to. But all of a sudden she starts noticing other girls getting what she wants. So what does she go and do? Thows some D’s on her chest and paints a mask on her face - now she looks like a pornstar and is enjoying everything she always dreamed would be hers - but at what price? Lil Wayne was that pretty young girl – where the hell am I going with this? – but as soon as he threw that vocoder on Lollipop he accepted mediocrity and all the splendors that buys you in the twisted world of the rap game.

The Leak: Over the past two years Wayne has seemingly favored quantity over quality and released countless mixtapes (whether or not he actually released the material or it was stolen still being a topic of debate). A bunch of the materialthat was initially intended for and should have been on the Carter III, ended up being released prematurely on mixtapes such as The Leak. Songs like I’m Me, I Feel Like Dying, and La La all would have been wonderful additions to the Carter III.

Mannie Fresh: Where the fuck is Mannie Fresh? The absence of Mannie Fresh on the Carter III may be the single biggest reason the album never recaptures the fire of the first and best installment of the Carter series. Now, maybe I was too hopeful to think even for a second that Mannie and Weezie would realize that they made and could make way more history together if only they could suck it up and resolve their differences. Listen to Go DJ and This is the Carter off the Carter I – this is Lil Wayne and the great Mannie Fresh at their finest -this is the foundation of the Lil Wayne movement that birthed the belief that Wayne could be one of the greats.

The production on the Carter III is solid but never able to stir the demons that lurk in Wayne’s mind – the beats never bring out the Wayne that makes you wonder if he truly may be from Mars like he claims on Phone Home.

Kanye offers up three beats – the Irreplaceable-esque “Comfortable”, the Robin Thick assisted “Tie Me Down” – which is not even close to Carter II’s Shooter – and my personal favorite Carter III track, “Let the Beat Build.” All in all, Kanye’s beats embody the essence of the Carter III – mundane yet enjoyable.

Even with all of the aforementioned critiques, the Carter III still holds up as a solid piece of work. After every listen I walk away with a new song in my head – no check that, a new hook in my head. It used to be you listened to Weezie and came away with couplets from verses that either blew you away with their intricacy or humor. Now Wayne - like the rest of the radio rappers he was so eager to join – leaves you with two bar hooks, both catchy and meaningless.

The main difference between the Carter III and its predecessors can be told from the stories of their opening tracks. Wayne set the tone of the Carter I and II with Walk In and Tha Mobb – two tracks, both with no hook, just pure lyricism set to ominous synth lines. You listen to Walk In and Tha Mobb and you are prepared to deal with a monster. You listen to 3pete and its that same old goon you will hear in the song before and after on your favorite “hip hop” radio station. So on A Millie, when Wayne asks what’s a goon to a goblin? Answer right along with him, nothing.

Highlights: In general, there is no one song that stands out to me as drastically better than the rest of em. But here are some scattered highlights of the Carter III.

Mr. Carter – solid beat, solid hook, okay Wayne, solid Jigga.

A Millie – The track most reminiscent of an old Wayne mixtape song.

Comfortable/Mrs. Officer – Two light and funny R&B songs. At first I thought Mrs. Officer was stupid but then realized the concept of literally fucking the police, in handcuffs and heals no less, is pretty funny (and so is the siren hook sung by Bobby Valentino).

Phone Home – We are not the same I am a Martian – that intro makes me think of Aesop Rock’s Mars Attacks every time. What is it with rappers and Mars? Anyhow, this is probably my least favorite track on the album but it still consistently gets stuck in my head.

Tie My Hands – I crack up with every listen of Robin Thicke’s spoken word intro – we are at war with the universe/the sky is falling/and the only thing that can save us now is sensitivity…wow. Really? I like the song but can’t take any song with that intro seriously.

Shoot Me Down – The beat reminds me of a stoned/mellowed out Takeover, mostly cause of the bass. The hook is solid and the song is a good drug song – I think it’s a drug song? – but as far as drug songs go, it’s no I Feel Like Dying. This is definitely one of the better songs on the album though.

Lollipop – Said it before, will say it again – best song all time or just of our generation? Oh, also, the remix at the end of the cd is sick but isn’t as good as the Kanye remix.

La La – Started out hustling/ended up ballin. Dope Hook.

Nothin On Me – This song is Wayne’s chance to rap with his New York friends and he doesn’t even come close to seizing the moment. Both Fab and Juelz outshine Weezie on a really solid Alchemist beat. This song could have been classic but the hook is just way too simple and uninspired.

On the Side: Fabolous references Major Payne in his verse. I feel like after a rapper or singer has already executed a pop culture reference perfectly – see R. Kelly in Make it Rain Remix, ‘I be drillin these chicks like Major Payne’ – than the reference should be retired.

Let the Beat Build – I really like Weezie rapping over “soul” loops and this might be my favorite song on the album. I feel like a remix with Bun B would be dope.

Misunderstood – the song is good but the rant at the end is amazing. Weezie says Al Sharpton is Don King with a perm and then he says some shit about sex offenders and drug users. Wayne being preachy is just funny to me.

All in all, like I said, it’s a solid album - listenable throughout, but as for legendary? No. Wayne came close to being a legend but I think it’s safe to say that day will most likely never come.

Chain of the Day

first chain with a ski mask

Of Note: Plies is not the definition of real. In fact, he isn't even a good rapper - but how amazing is it that he is probably the most (monetarily) successful MC pictured on this XXL cover from last November? For me, I have Lupe, Joell Ortiz, and Rich Boy at the top of the list and everyone else in a much lower second tier. What you think?

2008: The Year of the Hater?

As Jim Jones screamed ballllin at the top of his lungs and 50 Cent told the world I'm stanky rich, 2007 became the year of the baller. The same old flashiness and flaunting defined the rap scene, which behind closed doors was suffering from reduced sales and relying more heavily on tours.

As for 2008, a new phenomenon seems to be developing. In dealing with the backlash and jealousy that always occurs when you stunt in the face of someone who doesn't got it like that, rappers have become more aware than ever before of the hater.

Two weeks ago Haterz Everywhere We Go was the Jam of the Week. Well this week's Jam of the Week, Hi Haters by Maino, picks up right where B.O.B. left off and pushes the hater movement onward.

Looking at it closely, recognizing your own baller status or your league of haters that follow you everywhere you go, both seem to have the same underlying principle. In order to have haters one must be a baller, so therefore, in declaring you have haters you are merely declaring you are a baller.

When Shawty Lo yells BIG UPS TO ALL MY HATERS! he is really just biggin up himself for being worthy of haters. In many ways, haters is the new bling - both mean you've made it, so wear em' proudly. 2008 may be the year of the hater, but in reality it is just the same old same old.

On the Side: It is interesting to note that both BOB and Maino, the two main rappers responsible for focusing the eye of the rap world on the haters, are up and comers using haters to launch a career rather than rappers dealing with haters who are hating on their already established career. The importance of this? Either there are a number of people who are jealous of rappers simply for getting a deal or there are a number of rappers who are so overjoyed just by getting a deal that they think they've already earned the green eyes of the jealous haters. Is this a good or bad sign? I'm leaning towards bad but hey, we've got the rest of the year to find out.

Weekly Poll Wrap-Up

Fallen Off
	A term used to describe someone who inexplicably disappears from all contact. "Where's Nelly? He's fallen off"

Alright, so I've heard some complaints about the poll - mainly, what are Jay-z and Nas doing in the same category as Fifty and Nelly. Well here it is...

Jay-Z - Technically speaking, yes, Jay did fall off after Reasonable Doubt. That being said, he didn't fall too far as Blueprint and Black Album are both classics in their own right and paved the way for Jay-Z to be this week's winner - by receiving no votes - but RD was a top 10 album all-time. Can you say the same for any of his following work?

Nas- It would have been impossible for Nas to drop an Illmatic every time out and maybe he will be unfairly judged for never reaching that peak again and living up to the promise of his debut and becoming the best rapper of all time. Plain and simple that is why Nas was on the list: after Illmatic he had the chance to be the G.O.A.T. and he wasn't. Unfair? Maybe. True? No doubt.

Fifty - Get Rich or Die Tryin was ok. A B- maybe. Everything since? F -.

Nelly - Nelly beat out Fif cause he went from solid to disappearing completely and losing all credibility as an artist.

Conclusion: Y'all got it right and Nelly remains hip hop's Humpty Dumpty. Oh how the mighty have fallen...wait, he's still mad rich though right? Shiiiiiit.

r.i.P. Season Begins - A look at HNIC 2

Money is worthless


Real power is people

Real strength is in the streets
Where everybody is equal

fuck jewelry, fuck rims
Lets spend on our protection

Get Armor get cameras
Get wit it lil n***a this man sh*t.

The first hook from HNIC 2 turns out to be its most revealing. Survival – whether by getting protection or turning your back to the flossy side of the game – is something Prodigy has mastered. Staying relevant for over a decade in the rap game one must have the ability to either constantly reinvent themselves to keep with the times, or stay true to themselves, trusting their style and aura to last on the strength of their own effervescence.

In the case of Prodigy, he entered the game and took it by storm with the grimy dark sound of Mobb Deep. After beef with Jay-Z and Nas and hip hop turning into pop music, Prodigy and Havoc took the Mobb Deep name to G-Unit to try to make hits for the club. The result was immensely unsuccessful and Mobb Deep and its two cohorts seemed to have fallen off too deep to ever resurface as hip hop heavyweights.

Prodigy, realizing reinventing the Mobb Deep sound, sacrificing hardcore street lyrics for shake your ass hooks was not going to sustain the Mobb Deep franchise in the ringtone era, did what smart men do: he brought it back to what he knew and returned to the style that put him on the map in the first place.

Return of the Mac, Prodigy’s last solo and first post-G-Unit disaster disc, brought back the Prodigy we had all known and grown to love: stories of devastating drug use erecting mental cages, murder and a genuine love for his guns, as if they were his girl or kids, leading to entrapment within the revolutions of the dark-side’s vicious circle.

Well HNIC 2 offers the same Prodigy of Return of the Mac - only on HNIC 2 the 70’s funk and soul loops, masterfully put together by Alchemist on Return of the Mac, are traded in for ominous synth lines and cinematic strings.

While the highlight of the cd is clearly its opening track, Real Power is People, there are a few other moments worth noting:

1) Young Veterans – the song details the early, often too soon, forced coming of age for those growing up in streets of rage. Highlight of the song: how Prodigy says ‘boy’ on the hook. Random, I know, but trust me, it sounds dope…

2) A,B,C’s – The whole hook, with the children chanting an old (ABC) nursery rhyme – kind of like something Nelly would do, but a thousand times more gutter…who holdin down NYC, huh? Being the second highlight of the song.

3) Click Clack – HNIC 2 proves to me that Prodigy and his producers have a wonderful understanding of dynamics. In response to Prodigy’s monotone - which makes him the gangster Guru of his day – the producers of HNIC 2 surround him with beats that are all dark yet never the same and pair Prodigy with other rappers whose voices stand in complete contrast.

On Click Clack, the smoothest beat of the album, we find the disc’s first feature by Twin Gambino. Now Big Twin Pop-Off probably has one of the grimiest voices I’ve ever heard, I mean he makes MOP sound like pre-pubescent children. Putting Twin on the smoothest of the album’s beats only makes sense to someone with a great understanding of dynamic. It’s a good look.

4) 3 Stacks – On the hook of 3 Stacks we find P going all Quasimoto on us, raising the treble in his voice while killing the bass, to constantly repeat 3 stacks, 3 stacks, and a pocketful of hats. Right after the first hook and our first taste of Quasimoto P, Twin Gambino returns to hit us with the growl of his voice, which stands in striking juxtaposition to the preceding hook. Again, another great use of dynamics.

5) I Want Out – On the hook of the last song of HNIC 2, guest rapper Un Pacino notes how Havoc’s strings sound like the end of a gangster flick. He spits about if this was a movie this would be the part where he pulls his gun out because he wants out. This raises an important issue…

To me, I Want Out represents the struggle of every gangster’s inner Stringer Bell verses their inner Avon Barksdale - take the dirty money and build a clean empire or stay on the corners and do what you know.

In The Wire, Stringer tries to go legit and forego drugs for real estate and ends up getting murked by his own man – his past gets the better of him. As for Prodigy, he took the Mobb Deep dirty sound and tried to go clean with G-Unit but ends up returning to the dirt that took him to the top of the game in the first place. The last song on the album, plus Prodigy’s recent up north trip, may seem like a part of him wants to move on from the toil of his profitable past, but the first 11 songs suggest he’s comfortable back in his role as hardcore lyricist P.

On the Side: The Wire, in having Avon trump Stringer and depicting a gangster’s past to be too insurmountable to overcome, is a very depressing realization as it basically declares the war on drugs and murder in the streets to be never-ending epidemics. Ironically, in the case of Prodigy, the gangster overcoming the desire to be legit (in this case a rich G-Unit rapper) actually proves encouraging and a great sign that real music still has a place in today’s rap game.

Weekly Poll Wrap-Up

So the results are in and you chose Method Man as your first favorite MC of the Wu. I have to say I agree, Meth really did steal the show on 36 Chambers. In terms of Meth's career post-36 I'd say it was definitely much more hit than miss. His performances in How High and the Wire, his debut solo cd (Tical), his collabos with Redman (Blackout) and Mary J (All I Need) being the high points - his association with Limp Bizkit and last two solo projects being the low points. Right now it seems as if Ghostface is shining the brightest from the midst of the chaos that is the Wu, but back in the day it's pretty hard to argue the Method Man wasn't setting the bar.

Ayyy, It Must be the Monayyyyy - Nelly and the Sophomore Slump

This past week, Nelly spit a surprisingly decent "freestyle" on Rap City. I got to thinking about back when he first came on the scene, in 2000, and how if you were to do a hip hop fantasy draft you'd probably have to take him number one seeing as how Country Grammar sold 9 million fucking records - and on top of that, it was actually a decent album.

- That Being Said -

When it comes to falling off Nelly is the hip hop Humpty Dumpty. Emerging on the scene with Country Grammar, Nelly put the midwest back on the map and became 50 Cent before the world even knew 50 Cent. Nelly's style of singing hooks and bridges, coupled with the St. Louis accent, throwing rrrr's at the end of words and E.I. at the end of sentences, Country Grammar, much like Get Rich or Die Trying, was a movement that put a whole crew in the limelight and put Nelly on top of the game.

What happened after that? What happens far too many times in rap - a sophomore slump. Now Nelly didn't suffer a sophomore slump in terms of sales - neither did 50 - just in terms of quality hip hop music. To explain why sophomore slumps consistently plague hip hop artists of living up to their debut's precedent, I am going to look at three simple points:

1) Ay, It must be the money - The bulk of Nelly's debut, and several other mainstream rapper's debuts, deal with the come up - the struggle, the hustle, the joy of making it. On an artist's debut this material feels fresh and real but after an artist goes platinum (9X) an age old problem arises:
(1) now that you've made it what else are you going to rap about?
(2) if you rap about the same problems your lyrics seem played out.

So what do the bulk of rappers do? Make hits for the club, trade credibility for profit aka drop down and get their eagle on.

2) A life in utopia - Life in the garden of Eden, or any where struggle doesn't exist, is meaningless because if everything is perfect there is no room left for progress. The sophomore album of an artist whose debut album almost solely deals with the come up faces the problem of no longer being motivated by the tension that it took to make it.

3) When interviewed about the making of Reasonable Doubt, Irv Gotti, of the VH1 reality show Gotti's Way fame (he may have done some stuff before...), said that often times a rapper or any artist's debut is their best work because they have been working on it their whole life. Twenty years of emotion transformed into art will often be more powerful and meaningful than what an artist can crap out in the one year following the greatest achievement - to that day - of their lives.

Conclusion: When you got something to prove you are dangerous. You are hungry, you are motivated, you are willing to pour your heart and soul into every record. Luven Me was the last song Nelly recorded for Country Grammar. In the song he talks about all the shit he has put his family and loved ones through and how he has so much love for everyone sticking with him through the sacrifices he made to dedicate his life to this album. Think about it: he was drafted by the Cardinals and opted to stay on the streets because making music was his dream. Now, someone that puts that much on the line is going to make sure their music means something. Once that tension, that risk, is gone: rapping becomes like any other job, just something to do to cash a check.

Nelly said he cried after recording Luven Me. What do you think he did after recording Hot in Herre? Wipe his ass with a Benjamin?

Nelly's freestyle on Rap City gives me a glimmer of hope, not Obama HOPE!, but I am almost ready to start lovin Nelly again - well, only if he's got something to prove.

On the side: Country Grammar features interludes from Cedric the Entertainer. While mildly entertaining, I have to say Bernie Mac's interludes on Kanye's shit absolutely murk Cedric's - I feel like this encapsulates the difference between their whole careers as Bernie Mac has just always been a little bit better. Also, Country Grammar features a totally forgotten about guest verse from Young Post Office Weezie - back in the day when Wayne didn't get by on just mailing in verses but solely on the premise of how crazy his voice sounds.

Last thought: Somehow, athletes like Tom Brady are impervious to the sophomore slump because no matter how much they win they still feel like they have a chip on their shoulder. What rapper's have this quality? Jay? Maybe. Anyone else? I don't know. What I do know, is Nelly and 50 and all of them debut album was good then I became a sellout rapper better find it. One.

Thought after the Last Thought: The best part of Luven Me might just be the shout outs from the last verse on the song, and the album. Take a look:

My n--ga Lil' Erv, Gino and Poochie
and everybody over on Euclid and Labade
Young Big Touch, Pooh and Big Baby
Rio, J.T. and Big Money
Herky Jerk, Wezz and Pea and Cody
J.E., K-Ug and Odie
Toe-Fa, M.J., and Cowlby
And all my soldiers down at Fair Ground on Monday
My Lunatic fam, Keyjuan, Murphy Lee
City Spud, T-Love and Big Lee
Yellow Mack, Slow Down, Courtney B


Of all the names, I'm going to go ahead and say Herky Jerk takes the cake. Just imagine being like hey Tanya, these are my friends James, Matt, Liz, and Herky Jerk. I guess that would actually be kind of baller...

Do you care where a beat comes from?

So the Haterz Everywhere beat is similar to that of the Love in this Club beat. The Love in this Club beat was essentially made from two garage band sample loops. But do you care where a beat comes from? Does it matter?

I remember getting pissed off when I first heard Just Blaze's beat for Touch the Sky because it was just a simple four bar loop of Curtis Mayfield's Move on Up. But then I realized I wasn't pissed at how simple the beat was - I was pissed that I didn't make it. I think the same is true with Polow's Love in this Club - anyone could've made it, but he did. So the question we now face is does this make the song better or worse? Or even matter?

Personally, I almost feel like this makes the song even more baller cause it's a total slap in the face to anyone who owns a Mac (excuse me, I need a minute...)


Lastly, to be a good producer you have to do more than just make a beat. I'll never forget an interview in which Hi-Tek told Dr. Dre he better get credited as a producer if Aftermath artists spit on his beats. Dre's response? Than come out to Cali and produce.

Making the beat is only the first part of the puzzle. Being in the studio with the artist, guiding them like a director, and helping craft the hook and the song, is what it takes to be a good producer. What's it matter? It doesn't end with sampling a four bar loop or aligning two sample synths - that's where it begins.



As Polow said in response to the criticism he got for Love in this Club - "I made women want to fuck Usher again." Now that's called being a good producer.

Hope for the Summer?

At the begining of a music video there are only two tags that make me drop whatever I am doing to prepare for a flavor flav "wowwww" moment. The first, and best, is seeing the words "story by r. kelly" strolling across the screen. The second, which is almost as equally enticing as the first, is seeing the Jam of the Week label in the upper right hand corner of the screen.

Now, if you watch MTV Jams on a consistent basis you know a good Jam of the Week can literally Beyonce-style upgrade your whole week. In the abyss of shitty video after shitty video you will find oasis in a Jam of the Week that seemingly justifies you having not changed the channel for the last two hours, or in some cases, two years.

This week’s Jam of the Week happens to be one of those songs that renews my interest in the mainstream and not be ashamed to openly admit: yeah MTV Jams is the shit, what's it to ya?

Haterz Everywhere by B.O.B. featuring Rich Boy (originally featuring Wes Fif til the label decided to make the song a single) introduces Decatur's own B.O.B. to the masses. B.O.B.'s choppy flow perfectly fits the wobbly synth beat, similar to that of Love in this Club. The hook, while not being revolutionary in concept - when you are a baller you will have a lot of haters (i feel like this should become a tautology taught in logic classes) - pumps you up in only the way all intentionally bad singing rap hooks with shouted out background knock out counts can.

On the Side: Check out the Wes Fif version of the song. I like Rich Boy but I think it's pretty safe to say Wes Fif's verse has got 'em goin down for the count...1...2...3...

Haterz Everywhere slightly renews my hope for a solid summer but I'm not ready to be fooled into optimism just cause a bunch of MC's who are blowing up the internet - B.O.B., Wale, Wiz Khalifa, Jay Electronica, etc. - are going to blow up the rap game.

Final thought: Something about the idea of having a lot of haters is universal. I feel like anyone who listens to and likes this song will at one point or another look around a room and be like shiiit, haters everywhere we go - once a song has that impact it's got some staying power, or at the very least, Jam of the Week status.

State of the Radio

Well it has been two weeks since my last post. At first I blamed it
on being lazy, then i attributed it to my having to work the last
couple of weeks, and lastly, i blamed the radio for simply not
inspiring me. In hindsight, I can say I've always been lazy, so that
ain't it, i only worked 3 days last week and two this week, now
granted that is 5 more days than I worked in the past two months, but still, that can't be it. So it has got to be the radio's fault for
letting me down.


When I say the radio I mean Jam’n 94.5. As for last summer, Jam’n was a humongous disappointment, the song with the most staying power, that you were guaranteed to hear every hour on the hour, was the extraordinarily underwhelming, Make Me Better by FABO and Ne-Yo. The Timberland beat, stealing the strings from Raekwon's Rainy Dayz, is solid but the rest of the song is garbage.


On the Side: In Make Me Better Fabolous spits "stick with your entre
and get over your side" but keep in mind back in Can't Let You Go he tells it like it really is, "the entre aint as good without something
on the side." So? Rappers lie, nothing new. Also, wasn't Can't Let You go a much better song than Make Me Better? And why wasn't T-Pain in the music video or credited for singing the hook? What happened here?

The fact that Make Me Better was 2007's summer jam of the year is really depressing and when looking at Jammin 94.5's top 20 list right now, I'm not sure we are going to do much better in '08. So with a summer upon us, let's take a look at the state of the radio...

20. Diamond Girl - Ryan Leslie
Actually a decent song, really good beat, solid 50 Cent remix (never
thought I'd say that), and good move turning dime-piece into diamond girl.


19. With You - Chris Brown
Basically, Chris Brown's Irreplaceable in terms of acoustic guitar
heavy beat. Pretty rock bottom song but certainly helped Chris
Brown's movement to cement his status as a R&B superstar.

13. I Remember - Keisha Cole
This may be the most emo song I've ever heard on Jammin but Keisha actually has an amazing voice and looks extremely classy in the video which stands in sharp contrast to her BET reality show - I hope other people watch this show besides me...

12. Dey Know Rmx - Shawty Lo
Easily the best song on the countdown. Every once in a while a rapper comes out and has a voice so unique that the superstars of his time listen to it and go damn, I want to sound like that. In Dey Know, Jeezy and Luda, both attempt to mimic Shawty Lo's flow, but let's be honest only one man can boast "BIG UPS TO ALL MY HATERS!"

------
On the Side: The best example of superstar rappers trying to
sound-like a new-comer I could remember in pre-Dey Know days, hard to think such a time existed, was definitely What We Do by Freeway. What We Do, for me, is easily a top 3 Roc-a-Fella song all time. The beat is definitely in Just Blaze's top 5. There isn't really a hook other than the sample. What We Do introduced Freeway to the public. The first line we ever heard from Free, is also, to me, an all time best stepping-to-the-beat-pre-rap-spoken-intro in "this shit for my kid's my...". Now, Freeway's voice, like Shawty Lo's, is so powerful that Jay-Z, maybe the best rapper of our generation, and Beanie Siegel, certainly not the best rapper of all time but still prideful in his own right, try to imitate Freeway's style. That doesn't happen too often mang...
------

Dey Know certainly belongs to Shawty Lo and his verse holds its own not only with the big ups line but also with I got guns like TI, and like Kels I believe I can flizay, but young Weezie, yes, Mr. Please Say the Baby himself, Lil' Mr. I'm about to release the biggest let down of an album, takes the best line of the remix award simply for referencing a timeless video game with all my kicks fly like Liu Kang.

On the Side: Classic video game references seem to always work and for some reason, probably the large guns, Contra has recently been rap's go to video game. In Black Democrats off Da Drought 3, Juelz (whose verse tells Wayne's to go sit in the corner) boasts "still tote big guns like I was still playin Contra" Now this was easily the best Contra-reference tile Washington's DC 's Wale spit "everybody know me like the Contra code for extra men" on the Nike Boots Rmx - in which his verse also murks Weezie's.

Question: Does the referencing Contra rule-book stipulate that
you are only allowed to if you out-rap Lil' Wayne in the same song?

He Still Got It Moment: Wayne does have a maybe he still got it moment on the Nike Boots Rmx. What Wayne was known for before all the best rapper alive business was being remarkably witty and funny. On Nike Boots he spits:

naked woman rub my back
and ask me how was my night
i say bitch stay out of my business
when we fuck she say
stay out my kidneys

Comic gold while still holding up his money over bitches motto. Also, the stay out my business line really reminds me of Ross' just cause we fuck dont mean you can kiss me line. Both just truly there aint nothing personal about this lines.

6. Touch My Body - Mariah Carey
Vintage Mariah. I actually don't mind this song at all, it's pretty
catchy and I have been known to say I best not catch this flick on
YouTube but it's usually for stumbling as opposed to bagging a
superstar songstress.

5. Sexy Can I - Ray J
Have to say Trump was the first to declare this a legit song and as
far as the beat goes it certainly is. The only aspect that pisses me
off is Young Berg's swagger like he is an elite rapper and if you
ain't down to...then you can watch the tour bus go by. Now if 50 said
that fine, Young Joc, okay, I guess I could see it, but Young Berg, I
mean c'mon.

4. She Got it - 2-Pistols
Yessir.

3. What You Got - Colby Oddonis
Despised this song at first but it has grown on me, what with working 5 days out of the last two weeks and being forced to listen to Jam’n and hear it 3 times a day. I respect the song cause Colby, a
new-comer, could genuinely be pissed off by a girl playing him whereas if this came from T-Pain it would be no one plays me, I'm the shit. So I respect it, I guess...

2. Lollipop - Lil' Wayne
Like the song. Absolutely do not respect it...

1. Love in this Club - Usher ft. Jeezy

All I have to say is there needed to be an ode to not wanting to wait
til you get home or even the parking lot, to bang out. Finally we have that ode. Additionally, I think a new mandatory I Never question has been posed by Young Jeezy, cause I certainly know the next time, and every future time, I play I Never I have to ask: have you ever made love to a thug in the club with his ice on? And I want to see every girl drink.

On the side: Is keeping your ice on the rap equivalent of leaving your sox on? Or are the two unrelated?

So in conclusion, I don't have too much hope for this summer's
mainstream "urban" radio and can't really imagine any hits being more than guilty pleasures - but isn't that really what the summer is for anyhow?

Wow. Just... wow.

According to the nebulous, sometimes-unreliable-sometimes-prophetic internet, this may or may not be the album cover for Tha Carter III. I don't even have anything to say about it; it kind of speaks for itself. I'll just say that I really hope they use it, because anything else would be a crushing disappointment after laying eyes on this masterpiece.

The Everyday Epic

Does this

equal

this?

Yesterday I watched Superbad for the first time since seeing it in the theater. For whatever reason, I was left with the thought that movies like Superbad and Harold & Kumar remind me a lot of the Lord of the Rings...

The value of movies like Harold & Kumar and Superbad is how they turn real life goals (getting fast food and hooking up with girls) into journeys of epic proportions. For Harold and Kumar to reach White Castle, as well as for Seth and Even to bring alcohol to Jules' party, is the equivalent of Frodo climbing Mount Doom.

The beauty of transforming the everyday into the epic is that in real life, the completion of certain everyday tasks feels like monumental achievements. Everybody has moments in which they think that, what just happened right there, to me, in my life, could have been in a movie. Successfully journeying to get the exact food you desire at an off-hour for restaurants or obtaining and transporting a substance you are not legally of age to possess, definitely qualify as these certain everyday (epic) journeys.

On the side: This might just be me, but I constantly confuse Lord of the Rings with Harry Potter and for the longest time thought the eye in the sky was called Lord Voldemort. Just me?



Devil's Advocate: Last year, The Stage Names by Okkervil River, may have been may favorite non-hip hop cd. The first song, Our Life is Not a Movie or Maybe (lyrics posted below), stands as an attack against our ego’s tendency to self-aggrandize events in our own life to the point that we think our life could be a movie.

Basically, the song states that the everyday is in no way relatable to the epic. (but at the same time the “or Maybe” in the title of the song means they are open to the idea)

Final Thought: Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman was noted for bringing tragedy, which had been reserved solely for royal figures (ie Oedipus, Macbeth, etc.), to the common man (Willy Loman). Dare I say, Superbad and Harold & Kumar, in the vein of Death of a Salesman, have brought the epic to the everyday? Think I just did.

It’s just a life story, so there’s no climax.
No more new territory, so pull away the imax.
In the slot that you sliced through the scene there was no shyness.
In the plot that you passed through your teeth there was no pity.
No fade in, film begins on a kid in the big city.
And no cut to a costly parade (that’s for him only!)
No dissolve to a sliver of grey (that’s his new lady!)
where she glows just like grain on the flickering pane
of some great movie.
-
Our Life is Not a Movie or Maybe

Chain of the Day

Koopa Troopa

Wake up, wake up, it's the 1st of the Month

People ask me all the time how I, as a suburbanite, relate to and love rap. Well...
one of music's greatest gifts is it offers you another vantage point and opportunity to step out of your world - in many ways rap is like a trap closet door in Narnia? (Don't get too excited R. Kelly...)

Now, one of my favorite rap songs that I in no way relate to the premise of or "facts" of, has got to be 1st of The Month by Bone Thugs N Harmony.

The song is about the celebration of the first of the month because once government checks are collected the bone thugs crew be smokin', chokin', rollin' blunts, and sippin' on forty ounces, thuggin.

Now can I, or any other suburbanite, relate to waiting for the first to come around so we can collect a check? Nah. But anyone can relate to the universal aspect of the song, which is the desire for a fresh start and the feeling, no matter how temporary it lasts, of being able to take one day off to breathe life in and chill. (plus, anyone can relate to the feeling of waiting on a check, don't have to be the first)

So whatever April 1 means to you, whether it's a prank you're going to play on someone at work, whether it's one day closer to nice weather (thought it was going to be 60 today, what happened?), whether it's a chance to collect a check, or whether it's simply another day in the life, make it a good one. 100.

Droppin' Knowledge: Nietszche is one of my top five philosophers. He was a perspectivalist, meaning he believed we all look at the world with different sets of eyes, and each of our experiences are unique yet universally relatable. Conclusion? The Nietszche would have definitely fucked with the Bone Thugs Poetic, Hustlers of the Graveyard Shift.

On the side: Remember when the Crossroads video came out? Has got to be top five rap video all time.

Rick Ross Verse

Rick Ross’ Trilla debuted at Number 1 on the charts – but when you stack Trilla up against old Ross as well as similar music from his contemporaries, I’m not so sure Trilla holds its own. Now Ross is an important figure in hip hop, not solely because he can move units in the dark days of internet downloads, but also because he revived Florida after Trick Daddy took a nap (with little children?) and even found the talent that is Flo Rida (who has quite possibly conspired with Plies to strip the MI-yAyO of any credibility) Either way…here you have it… Rick Ross vs. Ross, Ross vs. Wayne, Ross vs. Jeezy, Ross vs. the world!

The Boss (ft. T-Pain/Trilla) vs. Boss(ft. Dre of Cool n' Dre/Port of Miami)


While The Boss was released as a single, most likely due to production by JR Rotem and a T-Pain feature, Boss was a completely overlooked track on Port of Miami. Listen to Boss (because not many have) - I always felt like it could be a great summer jam, whereas The Boss is just more of the same. Also, hasn't Ross explored the theme of a Boss' life enough at this point? Or is his next album going to have a song called Da Boss?

On the side: "I'm the biggest boss that you've seen thus far" - Ross. In terms of physical size, probably, but in reality, isn't Birdman probably the biggest boss we've seen thus far? He started an empire out of nothing that has lasted for over 10 years. Also, on Boss, Ross claims "I made a million dollars last year dealing weight." I'm going to have to go ahead and say shenanigans. No platinum rapper is still that heavy in the game. I honestly appreciate more honest lines like "I ain't have to touch a piece of work since 'o4" - Birdman (1st Key/Like Father Like Son). Believable? Who knows, but certainly more reasonable.

More on the side: Do you like DJ shout outs? On the beginning of The Boss you hear a JR before the first verse kicks - does this get you excited? I will say this, hearing DJ Drama yell Gangsta Grillz ya bastards! does - for whatever reason - pump me up, even though it pisses most people off. At this point, I'm pretty lukewarm hearing an MC shout out Just Blaze, but i will say it is baller to have the MC give you the shout out seeing as how bigging up the DJ was the MC's original purpose. As much as a Drama or Just shout out gets you ready for a track, how much does a Khaled We the Best! and Listennnn! make you reevaluate your whole life?

Winner: Boss

While we're on the topic...

DJ Khaled Interlude (Trilla) vs. silence

A whole 1:29 of DJ Khaled incoherent yelling? Who was like, yup, get Khaled, we need him babbling for at least a minute and a half. I will say "Rick Ross is the logo of the hustle" does make me laugh but you still got to take silence over anything DJ Khaled has to yell.


Winner: silence


Luxury Tax (ft. Lil' Wayne, Jeezy, Trick Daddy/Trilla) vs. I'm a G (ft. Lil' Wayne, Brisco/Port of Miami)

I'm a G is a very solid song. Just like Luxury Tax, Wayne spits a decent hook but the difference here is clearly the beat and the supporting casts. J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League made one hell of a beat for Luxury Tax, it reminds me of a more up-tempo December 4th and when Ross goes in it is quite a moment. Additionally, Young Jeezy and Trick Daddy vs. Brisco? Murken' em. Lyrical "gems" of the song:

Make more that the model for the mob,
Need a blowjob my model, get a model for the job.
- Rick Ross

They said I couldn't play football I was too small.
They say I couldn't play basketball I wasn't tall.
They say I couldn't play baseball at all.
And now everyday of my life I ball.
-Wayne

On the side: I just noticed Lil' Wayne references turtle in I'm a G (bulletproof car got me feelin like a turtle). He also references being like a turtle when he sips the purple in Kush (on The Leak), and i'm also pretty sure at one point he says he feels like he's racin a bunch of turtles, and keeps a bandanna on like the ninja turtles - is Weezie secretly obsessed with turtles? Should we call him Weezie F. Turtle? For those keeping score at home -

Wayne's car = Turtle
Wayne sipping purple = Turtle
All Rappers that aren't Wayne = Turtle
Wayne wearing a bandana = Turtle

So therefore (in Wayne's World)...

All rappers = Turtle

Winner: Luxury Tax



This Me (Ross/Trilla) vs. I'm Me (Lil' Wayne/The Leak)

DJ Toomp, just like J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, made a beat that fits Ross perfectly. Now as for Ross, choosing to make a song called This Me when Weezie just made a song called I'm Me is going to draw comparisons. Rap, just barely edging out emo, is clearly the most narcissistic genre of music and how well you brag is a huge factor in how well you rap. Wayne on I'm Me is emotional, creative, funny, and when he states I'm Me, Who are You? he is challenging you to be all you can be like the marines - basically, don't talk about it be about it.

The beat on I'm Me follows a trend Wayne started on Like Father, Like Son - sampling himself. While producers are complaining about the prices of clearing samples, Wayne stepped up and said fuck 'em I'll just sample myself. I told ya rap was the most narcissistic genre of music.

The game fucked up, more fucked up than it's ever been
I'm married to that bitch, call me Kevin Federlan
-Wayne

Winner: I'm Me


Speedin (ft. R. Kelly/Trilla) vs. Go Getta (Jeezy ft. R. Kelly/The Inspiration)



For me, being objective about Young Jeezy is like Jared Fogle being objective about Subway - it's not going to happen. However, for the sake of argument, I will at least try judging the songs on this one criteria - When you hear the song do you feel like 'oh shit, something, i have no idea what, but something big is about to go down'? Speedin? Uh, no. Go Getta? 'Young Jeezy and your boy Kells' ... Yes, very much, yes.

People consider Jeezy and Rick Ross to be in the same vein - mainstream down south coke rappers still strong two albums deep. But no, this is very much a misconception. The best analogies I can draw is what my friend Sam said about the difference between Lost and The Wire and what I said about watching tv.

Sam's analogy: Lost is like a fun meaningless fling, good for an hour once a week, but has no real staying power, whereas The Wire is like a steady meaningful relationship that really matters.

My analogy: Rick Ross is like watching tv and flipping through the channels (a leisure activity) while Young Jeezy is like watching something On Demand (a commitment).

So basically, Rick Ross is a one night stand, Lost, and channel changing while Jeezy is a relationship, The Wire, and On Demand.

Editor's Note: The one exception being that Rick Ross would have to be Season 2 of The Wire because most of Rick Ross (Port of Miami, etc.) and Season 2 of The Wire are mostly about drugs coming in through a port.

Winner: Go Getta



As for the rest of Trilla: Very mediocre. On no song does Trilla come close to classic whereas Port of Miami, to me, flirts with timeless on Everday I'm Hustlin, Push It, AND Blow (my personal favorite Ross song). Trilla is by no means a let down for Rick Ross because honestly, what were you expecting? Even though they aren't classic or even the best mainstream rap songs on the subjects of money, drugs, and narcissism, I'll be bumping Luxury Tax, The Boss, and This Me all summer.