Dear Kendrick Lamar (re: 'good kid, m.A.A.d city')

40s next to the baby bottle. It's no question where you are.

I've said it time and time again, but dey don't hurr me doe: The best hip-hop albums are portraits of the time, place, and mindset of the artist behind them. They draw from experiences seen and told to the artists, incorporate the sonic memory of what that artist is experiencing, and draw the listener into a world viewed through the artists' eyes.

Nature versus nurture; it's the oldest conflict in the book of human development and interaction. Is one a product of their environment, or do the sum of those products make the environment? After listening to your debut, Kendrick Lamar, I'm convinced there needs to be an urban studies symposium or class or certificate program regarding it. Holding true to its name 

good kid, m.A.A.d city

, is a portrait of the battle between nature and nurture: a black child whose inborn 'goodness' is chipped away at by his gritty urban surroundings.

The good kid you portray is clearly a smart one, as evidenced by his constant introspection. One of the first things I noticed in the story is the push and pull relationship that comes with groupthink. You muse, "Rush a nigga quick and then we laugh about it / That's ironic 'cause I never been violent, until I'm with the homies." Throughout GKMC, you grapple with your own decision-making because though you're capable of making informed decisions, frequently decisions are made for you. Whether out of circumstance, laziness, or influence of drugs or alcohol, you more often than not seemed to be carried away with a wave of bad intentions. Even in trying to develop a mature relationship with a young lady it is obvious your appetite for sex will ultimately trump your desire for emotional comfort and security:

A fatal attraction is common, and what we have common is pain / I mean you need to hear this / Love is not just a verb and I can see power steering / Sex drive when you swerve, I want that interference / It's coherent, I can hear it... mmhmm, that's your heartbeat / It either caught me or it called me, mmhmm

Kendrick, listening to GKMC is like watching Spider-Man fall victim to the Venom symbiote. You know that the anger that fuels the symbiote will make Spider-Man stronger, but that same symbiote will kill all pure ambitions within him. It's a tough album to critique with a moral compass because the listener can interpret your descent into that m.A.A.d city ambiguously.

Speaking of ambiguity, there's another prevalent theme in this album. While you grapple with acquiescing to your nature or nurture, the ever-reaching grey area between right and wrong rears its confusing head in almost every song on GKMC. You debate whether it is better to be predator or prey in such a vicious jungle, saying "Everybody gon' respect the shooter, but the one in front of the gun lives forever." Neither is an enviable position to be in, dying a hero or living as a villain. You recant on your past trespasses, too, wondering if your present good deeds and intelligence can erase that past on 'M.A.A.D. City':

If I told you I killed a nigga at 16, would you believe me? / Or see me to be innocent Kendrick that you seen in the street / With a basketball and some Now & Laters to eat / If I'm mentioned all of my skeletons, would you jump in the seat? / Would you say my intelligence now is great relief? And it's safe to say that our next generation maybe can sleep / With dreams of being a lawyer or doctor / Instead of boy with a chopper that hold the cul de sac hostage

That imagery is ridiculous, especially in light of the rash of violence in Chicago or the Trayvon Martin killing. No matter the littered past of a teenager, who is to say that the same teen couldn't end up curing the world of epilepsy or become President? Aspirations, regardless of how attainable, seem to all be misguided in your world though, Kendrick.

The title tracks of the album, expertly placed in the middle, give way to the vices in the second half of the album. 'Sing About Me, I'm Dying of Thirst' that shows the true ill of your story: thirst. Thirst for love, thirst for fulfillment, thirst for money, and thirst for direction lead you and your compatriots astray so many times, that the prayers of an old woman couldn't possibly sway you. You can't help but quench it in 'Swimming Pools', because the holy water the woman speaks of isn't feasible in the way you would want it to be. As a good kid in that environment, the visuals of drugs, sex, violence, and crime are much more influential than that of a God whose presence you can't see. The city pulls your gaze in so many directions that it's impossible to tell what deserves attention and what is real. 'Real' details that conflict, making light of the choir of voices begging for your ear:

But what love got to do with it when I don't love myself / To the point I should hate everything I do love / Should I hate living my life inside the club / Should I hate her for watching me for that reason / Should I hate him for telling me that I'm season / Should I hate them for telling me ball out / Should I hate street credibility I'm talkin' about / Hatin' all money, power, respect in my will / I'm hatin' the fact that none of that shit make me real

Fame is a bitter medicine by your tastes, Kendrick. As a good kid from a m.A.A.d city, you're happy to have gotten yourself away from the chaos of that city, yet clubs, credibility, influence and fame aren't necessarily the antithesis to your rough upbringing. They seem more like a different part of the city, rather than an entirely different city. Maybe that's the answer to the nature versus nurture question. You can take the good kid out of that m.A.A.d city, but it's impossible to take the memory of that m.A.A.d city out of the good kid.

No matter how far you get away from that city, Kendrick, its ills, its vices, and its pitfalls all served to make you the man you are today. You're not ashamed of your city. Kendrick Lamar is a product of Compton. It was so fitting to end the album with a track titled after your hometown, featuring Dr. Dre nonetheless. Just Blaze-produced, it was a horn-laced yet hard-bodied anthem showing the bravado of a bastion of West Coast hip-hop. Though you deride the bad, you know your city is full of good kids like yourself. You would rather show off your city for what it is, 'responsible for taking Compton International', than continue to languish in hatred for the madness that it engenders. It's like I said: your album is a portrait of Compton and your experiences in that city during your formative years. You rose above that m.A.A.d city to show that you can be a product

from

your environment without being a product

of

your environment.

Dear Drake (re: Take Care)

The Midas touch?? Ehh... Debatable.

The truth is such a paradoxical concept. They say the truth sets you free, yet the truth hurts. Half a truth makes a great lie, but when you find the truth, it's more that you've found a truth. Truth is sought by the masses but attained by the few. Truth makes for great art, but only when placed in a palatable medium. Such is your issue, Drake. Your truth is a complete paradox. It has certain aspects that everyone can relate to, but make people (especially men) so uncomfortable, that they can't accept it. While you make music that embraces the whole gamut of male emotion, you are so unabashed in your portrayal during Take Care that it is impossible for the average man to listen without casting improper libel on your name, Drizzy.

Sidenote: I'm tired of people labeling any type of defamation via social media 'slander'. For you non-lexical thinkers, the proper term is libel, or defamation by written or printed words. Slander is the same, but spoken. I know it's splitting hairs, but with the way writing is going down the pooper, I had to make the disambiguation.

Take Care was named so because you supposedly rushed the production of Thank Me Later and wanted to take your time while putting your sophomore project out. Production-wise, this is a masterful album. It does not have the beautifully eclectic sound that Kanye's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy has, but centers on the sonically dark, sensuous sound that marked Thank Me Later. It is obvious that you were heavy handed in your production, taking care to make this your album again.

Content-wise, the truth you convey is anything but careful. From your verses to your features, the honesty of how (excuse my French) fucked up the industry makes the artist, is evident. Kendrick Lamar says it best when he muses about the penchant for music to beget sex:

Live the ambiance all cause the audience / One day said I would do it / So instead of a verse being read / Ima go ‘n get some head off the strength of my music

The themes of love lost and the downfall to fame are exceptionally reckless, almost reminiscent of a melancholy teenage love affair. No stone is left uncast (not a word, but it sounded hot) when dealing with the hurt of being broken hearted, whether by one's own doing or by the ills of another. It is this truth, that love does indeed hurt, that makes Take Care so off-putting to the host of caveman-esque listeners saying you're as soft as terry cloth, Drake.

Songs like 'Marvin's Room/Buried Alive' only serve to add flames to the firestorm of softness allegations, yet the candidness afforded is undeniable. What stone-hearted ogre can truly say that they've never been hurt? How is reveling and thriving in light of hatred pointed towards one's art considered 'soft'? Drake, your truth is one that is seldom seen, yet needed in this day and age. 'Lord Knows' is a positive example of this truth. For all of the flak aimed at your neck, you've got Teflon both metaphorically and on the track with Ross as you deflect criticism about your place in hip-hop history:

They take the greats from the past and compare us / I wonder if they'd ever survive in this era / In a time where it's recreation / To pull all your skeletons out the closet like Halloween decorations

It used to be a case where a rapper's dirty laundry was only aired out on wax. Now that MTO and TMZ and Necole Bitchie and whatever other gossip sites there are lend themselves to that end, that line is extremely powerful, even though it will fly over the heads of most in terms of gravity.

I have to say, Drake, that listening to Comeback Season before So Far Gone before Thank Me Later before Take Care was a HUGE mistake. The change in your style is almost ridiculous. From the rapper who idolized Phonte to the syrup-sipping YMCMB harpy, it's a bittersweet transition. Did you have to lose the socially awkward, prodigally-talented ideal that marked your earlier works in the pursuit of fame? I suppose you comment on that phenomenon on 'Underground Kings':

Live a little, cause niggas die a lot, and lie a lot / But I'm the truth -- that's right, I fucking said it / The living proof that you don't gotta die to get to heaven

Is that really the truth, Drake? Is that really your truth? I'm not sure which truth to believe from you, Drake; the tortured musician or the ballin' outta control rapper. It seems as if the latter is prevalent during this album, as with the last.

The downside to truth is that not everyone's truth is palatable to a wider audience. Drake, as much as I appreciate you discussing the plight of heartbreak, you need some other kinds of truth... Seriously. Big Ghostfase allusions aside, this album explored a whole new frontier of emotion. I wasn't ready for such a sultry ambience while listening. It honestly had me at a loss for words, especially when 'Doing it Wrong' came on. Of the 18 tracks on Take Care at least half dealt with women in some way. Really, Drake? I know they say that women drive the majority of record sales, but that doesn't mean the truth you convey should be entirely centered around the fairer sex. Jay-Z would be disappointed, as his chorus on '99 Problems' claims. 'The Real Her', was more of the same, oozing with heartbreak from the soul of a tortured musician. Yes, it's relatable, but only for a while. (see my post on Joe Budden's woman troubles) After essentially visiting the same theme on Thank Me Later, you would think you'd stop hitting industry parties and strip clubs looking for your Cinderella, Drake. Come on, son... The definition of insanity is doing the same thing and expecting different results. There's got to be a new impetus for your next musical work, or I won't be able to stomach it again.

I had to wonder why your album started to sound like a wasteful-spending broken-hearted, broken record halfway through, and I could think of one reason: Weezy F. Baby. The Clown Prince of Syrup-Influenced Music has infiltrated what little integrity the music industry leaves in most artists and destroyed it, Drake. The result of this unholy union is a track like 'Practice'. Drake, I may be classified among the rank-and-file of so-called haters, but this has to be one of the most God-awful pieces of music I've ever had the displeasure of blasting through my speakers. Never mind that you tried to turn a twerking anthem into an R&B song, or that Wayne must be paying a grills-worth in royalties to Juvenile, or that an appearance from The Lonely Island is the only thing separating this song from being a parody. This was the equivalent of sticking scalding butter knives in my ears, Drake. Hearkening back to my theme of truth, someone in that studio needed to tell you the truth about that song. Lack of truth is the reason Eminem's recent work sounds like a watered-down cocktail and why heads will never be able to accept that death in hip-hop doesn't equal martyrdom. Your sophomore offering shouldn't have suffered from the truth being withheld in your recording process. It's clear that while this album was inherently yours, there was a lot more Young Money in your Kool-Aid than most listeners would be lead to believe.

Drake, I'm conflicted in writing this letter. While I commend another good listen, with more shades of emotion being exposed for a mostly emotionless listener-base, I can't condone a lot of the songs, content and decisions made concerning Take Care. It's almost as if you don't believe a lot of the truth you're conveying. You can deflect the and hate welcome the praise, but you can't even begin to describe what got you there. You may be able to wax philosophical about the ills of trying to find love, but you probably will never get any closer to finding it. You may be a 'king' in your own mind, but are one sitting on a throne in jeopardy, mostly of your own doing. The bane of truth is not only being able to convey it, but also being able to use it to grow. I think what concerns me the most about Take Care is the lack of growth. It's as if this album had a confused take on the same truth from Thank Me Later, resulting in a melancholy, teenage hormone-laced version of what should have been the album. That's the truth; the careful, unabashed truth. You need a reality check, not only to stop you from bigging up your gun-toting henchmen, but also from letting the pain of girl problems completely stain your work. It will make for a more widely-accepted and enlightening truth on your part.

Dear J. Cole (re: Cole World)

I was beginning to think you were going to be relegated to the fate of Dr. Dre and the artist formerly known as Young Jeezy, Jermaine. No, seriously... It has been a long time coming, but finally, the kid from Fayettenam who came to the city of New York with his beat machine and a matriculation to St. John's has released his oft-delayed debut, Cole World: The Sideline Story. I'll admit, Jermaine. I was a bit reticent to give this a listen. As of late, I'd gotten disillusioned again with the direction rap was taking; valuing names and sensation over actual skills, placing novelty over quality, and deeming anything with two decent songs a 'classic'. And in your case, I'd grown bored of your 'struggle raps'. Yet, to veer from what makes you great rapper would be stupid. I eat my words at what was a precursor to a seemingly illustrious career ahead of you.

To accurately touch on Cole World, though, I have to hearken back to a line from 'Friday Night Lights' that describes your position at the moment:

To the college kids no scholarships starting your semester / unpacking your suitcases filling up your dresser / enjoy it while you got it, after that it’s God bless ya / life is your professor, you know that b*tch is gon test ya

That line exemplifies your music, Jermaine; the hardships of transitioning into true maturity. Cole, to be honest, I feel like I've become an adult listening to you over the past two years. Your music has been the soundtrack to the strife that a college student goes through, not only before, but after graduation. Embarking on my own life's journey, it's hard not to embrace your genre of 'struggle music'. If the three mixtapes were college, Cole World is definitely the culmination of an undergraduate tenure and the start of a promising life and career. As a graduate, to see you in the throes of a world tour, a successful (by today's standards) album, and a promising future, is inspiration.

Starting off with the story of your signing to Jay-Z's Roc Nation is akin to the offer letter a grad gets from the huge firm. Add 'Dollar and a Dream III' and 'Can't Get Enough', to that, and you have the perfect juxtaposition of seeing the spoils of victory arisen from the mire of hard work. The next track, 'Lights Please', a holdover from 'The Warm Up', makes the perfect transition to the 'Interlude'. Even as a successful black man, it is nearly impossible to evade the long arm of the law. The album starts out showing how many aspects there are to such a caricature, from the diligent, to the frivolous, to the pensive, to the sensual.

My favorite song is the secondary titular track 'The Sideline Story' because it brings all of those aspects into view, along with reaching for the loftiest of goals. Your assertion that 'Can't nobody tell me what I ain't gonna be no more / You thinking I'mma fall, don't be so sure' is a thumbing of the nose to a system that tries to put everyone from college graduates to rappers and everyone in between in boxes. Rather than follow a pattern or formula, you do what is in your nature, and nothing more. In that same song you say 'Some niggas ask me why Jay never shout me out like I’m supposed to give a f*ck.' That line does wonders for so many reasons. Despite the fact that Jay is a mentor to you, and is on your album (albeit on the next song), you not needing him to cosign you is the greatest sign of independence I've seen in hip-hop today. Everyone in rap is trying to be the next Jay, and here you are espousing your freedom from that delineation. You, the graduate, the next up at bat, are standing up on your own two. Rather than look to the top for guidance, you looked to yourself, something that I want to do in my own life. Much like LeBron dropping the number 23 to leave his own legacy as number 6, you are making your own path.

Cole World goes on with another titular track that sounds as grimy as its namesake. The song, while a huge pat on the back, seems a bit misplaced. I suppose when the first half is as loaded as yours, you can't help but get a little sloppy. 'In the Morning' and 'Lost Ones' pick the album back up, juxtaposing the sultriness of mid-morning lust with the pain of fathering a son out of wedlock. Frivolity versus futility, salaciousness versus subjection, Cole, you show the duality that ails the young black. It is a weighty discussion that has been in our minds since we knew what sex was, and that you explore both sides in 'Lost Ones' is exceptional.

The album hits a short a lull after this, to me, Jermaine. It seems as if the postgrad world indeed has its peaks and valleys. A lot of the subject matter you touched on in the first half is revisited, albeit in a different manner, but still rehashed. The track with Missy, while valiant, sounded sluggish aside from Missy's chorus. 'Rise and Shine' didn't really do much for me, and seemed like a filler track that could have honestly been left out, as did 'God's Gift'. 'Never Told' takes the issues of non-communication in a somewhat roundabout way, while in an ascending fashion, 'Breakdown' shows the weakness that our generation has when faced with trying situations. Yet as the Missy song implies, no one is perfect. One of the things that our generation of young adults must contend with is learning about life while living it. That means making mistakes, and letting go of old things. That second part is the theme of 'Nothing Lasts Forever', where you recant on love lost and learning to move on. For me, that was a welcome song, having a new chapter of my life to start.

Your original lead single, 'Who Dat', is the perfect way to end Cole World, as it signals a changing of the guards. Your name is a non-issue if you continue to improve and spit flames, Cole. This album had no 'certified bangers', which honestly was a high point for me. Rather than relying on a single to do your work for you, you put out something that has to be listened to. One can't passively listen to you, Jermaine, although songs like 'Work Out' and 'Can't Get Enough' are certainly radio-friendly enough to draw a buzz. Is it a turning point in hip-hop? I'm not sure. With the way that Wayne, and Ye-Z (see what I did there?) sold, we might not see the rise of a oft-called 'conscious MC' for a while. But it starts with the college kids and graduates. #occupywallstreet, Obama's election and a new youth movement are certainly examples of this shift, and your debut album can be one of the many sounds to march to. Your ideal seems to be warming up to the world, Cole.

Chiddy Bang - Guinness Flow

Chiddy Bang - Guinness Flow

Jumpy Xaphoon Jones instrumentals? Check. Chiddy spitting venom about his Guinness World Record-winning longest freestyle ever? Check. With the summer coming, there seems to be another wave of new music on the horizon, and Chiddy Bang is one of those acts that has been delivering the funk as of late. Their new project Peanut Butter & Swelly is off to a swell start, if I do say so myself. Like I said before, great production and dope lyricism are a simple combination, but make for excellent hip-hop. There's not much more you can say about it. Check out the first release from PB&S, and stay tuned. Summer is going to sound awesome...

Kendrick Lamar - HiiiPower (Music Video)

Gee golly wilikers... I know not whether to go outside, guns ablaze and start a violent revolution, or to go inside and read more books to start an intellectual revolution. Kendrick Lamar has been a mainstay in my rotation as of late, with his OverlyDedicated mixtape growing on me daily. Add to that, the J. Cole-produced banger HiiiPower??? Come on, son... K. Lamar (as reluctant as I am to claim this) might be the next to blow. Forget the West Coast that is primarily about gang-banging. This Compton representer has conscious crossover written all over him. Not to mention, his visuals have been as compelling as I've seen in the past year or so. The video for HiiiPower juxtaposes an army behind K. Lamar with a barrage of images championing the revolutions going on in the Middle East, and those that went on in our own country over half a century ago. Enough talk, though. Check the video, and be on the lookout for #Section80...

Singing Telegram: The Notorious B.I.G. - Ten Crack Commandments

What's up people? Today's Singing Telegram is a bit different from the usual. It's not an actual song, but a poetry reading of a song. As normal as it sounds, the reading is done by Adrien Brody, who, up until this point was unbeknownst to me as a Biggie fan. At the Academy of American Poets, Brody recites the late Christopher Wallace's '10 Crack Commandments', citing Biggie as one of 'the most influential poets of his generation'. I can't disagree with him, though I do question whether he did this out of genuine respect, or to see the shocked faces in the crowd. I'll tend to believe the latter, especially as '10 Crack Commandments' is one of my favorite songs, and a pretty good instruction manual when dealing in any type of business. I've taken the liberty of explicating each of Biggie's edicts in much more general terms. It might be better served than spitting them free-form in front of poetry buffs. Listen along, so you get the full effect of these powerful rules.


The Notorious B.I.G. - Ten Crack Commandments

The Ten Crack Commandments:

1. Don't let anyone know what kind of or how much money you possess. There are, at every turn, jealous crooks waiting to steal it from you, whether in courts or on corners. Broadcasting your ends also makes it easier to track and audit them. You don't want the IRS barking up your tree.

2. Keep your plans and movements to yourself. No one likes to have their grand schemes interrupted by gunfire, much less another opportunist running away with your ideas. Additionally, telling more people gives way to the plan losing its general profitability. Too many heads on the bottle makes everyone go thirsty.

3. Don't trust anyone. Anyone has the propensity to double-cross you in the chase for material wealth. Make sure the people you keep around you are trustworthy and strong-minded, so as not to compromise your operation.

4. Avoid shrinkage. Whether it's bean pies, sneakers, stocks or rocks, don't allow your business to be cut into by your vices. Business and pleasure aren't two things that should live together, especially if your business is pleasure.

5. Don't do business where you lay your head. It's a sticky situation waiting to happen if your customers or enemies see you taking showers, watching the game, and selling your wares out of the same location. Not to mention, in the event that your domus is public knowledge, you'll see a spike in how many people you have hanging around. Keep a low profile in person, and habitat.

6. Don't do credit. Cash transactions were the creation of needing a medium for when bartering just didn't do the trick. It's a quick standard that always gets the job done. Credit does nothing but complicate things, especially when it's time to collect.

7. Mixing family and business is almost never a good look. The Godfather trilogy, songs with Beyonce and Solange... the list goes on. If it must be done, keep the circle as small as possible. Think Will Smith and his clan.

8. Don't ever keep your product on you. Police, government regulators, and greedy acquaintances will always find a reason to shake you down. You'd rather not give them any reason for suspicion.

9. Stay away from police. The funny thing about the boys in blue is that they are never around when they need to be, and always around when you want them gone. Don't entertain their witty banter or war stories, much less engage them in an argument. Not only will it arouse the suspicion of your competitors, you're more likely to be implicated if you slip-up.

10. Consignment is a hard thing to juggle. If you're not well-seasoned in your business, buying without the means to pay it back is essentially systematic debt. Rather than bite off more than you can chew and risk losing it all, remember this: slow and steady wins the race. Build your empire, until you are the one people are coming to for ends.

Dear J. Cole (re: 'Disgusting')

Don't let the hype exceed the actual product.

I say it all the time in my tweets, and frequently on this blog, but it bears repeating: Novelty, quantity, exclusivity, and hype should never exceed quality, hype especially. These days, however, in our 'I want it now' / 'Did you hear that new' / 'World exclusive' media world, we tend to give credence and the benefit of the doubt to whatever is in front of our faces in that very moment. Whether it be Twitter, blog posts, news stories, that 'bad' joint you saw across the street, or those 'fresh' sneakers in the window display, people will always love the last supposedly hot thing they lay eyes on, regardless of how the quality pales in comparison to what they already know. It's not wrong. It's just human nature. Music, especially today, benefits from that phenomena, with the 'latest offering' getting all types of acclaim. This phenomena usually results in songs being bumped into the ground for 14 minutes and 59 seconds, before the next 'big thing' hits the Interwebs.

I suppose that's why I was so disappointed with your latest offering, J. Cole. Your habitual absence from the Twitterverse was interrupted by a flurry of hyped-up, happy-go-lucky tweets, usually reserved for bad mixtape DJs and shameless promotion. I'll admit, I fell victim to the hype, waiting impatiently for you to drop your new single. As fate would have it, you were on Obama-time with your release of 'Disgusting'... But also, as fate and my lately dead-on intuition would have it, 'Disgusting' was an apt title for one of the worst songs I've heard you put out.


J. Cole - Disgusting

Filled with punchlines and wordplay that Mack Maine would deem Rhodes Scholar-worthy, 'Disgusting' was more a reason for people to keep your name in their mouths. From 'disgusting' fecal matter lines to even more 'disgusting' sight gags of metaphors, the beat might have been the only thing that saved this track. Lines like "Yes, her ass clapping / so that's a round of applause" made me cringe. Really, Cole? You used more curses than thoughts and seemed more content to talk about ejaculation than anything note-worthy. Put simply, there was little if any replay-value, and after the 5th listen, the Recycle Bin had a new entry.

Cole, this was in stark contrast to the first time I heard you, on 'The Warm Up'. Today, still reeling in my disappointment, I cued up that tape and was blessed to hear a hunger and cleverness that was missing on 'Disgusting'. On the track 'Dollar and a Dream II', I was surprised to catch a metaphor that had missed me in over 2 years of bumping the tape:

Aye Sallie, I know I ain't been answering your calls / but shit, let me explain - It's because / times been hard... been runnin around trynna find a job / I hear my phone ringing in the morning, 9 o'clock / And it's you, can't even front I press ignore / I still got your letters laying in my dresser draw / You telling me about all the things you did for me / When I was broke, you sent me dough and that was big for me / See you was there every year when I needed you / And you were so quick to give, I had to be with you / Remember when I used to call you on your phone line / I knew it was official when my momma cosigned / But in no time, a nigga graduated / I hit the real world, baby girl, I'm sad to say it / But I was using you, you gave a nigga major stacks / And I know one day in my heart that I'm gonna pay you back.

Cole, I had NO IDEA that this verse was about college loans. NONE. I've never been so sad to say that a verse flew over my head than today, and it was all because of one word: Sallie. (Readers, if you don't get it, just keep reading/listening until you get the Sallie Mae metaphor) It was a mind-blower to say the least. That you went from 'nigga, rewind that!' verses like that to 'Disgusting' is a let-down. Yes, 'Disgusting' was a b-side and according to most sources won't make the album, but if this is a throwaway track, then what's the rest of the album going to sound like? I'm pretty concerned. I suppose only time will tell.

At the end of the day, I guess 'Disgusting' served its purpose: to get the naysayers about your constant album pushbacks off your back temporarily, but at what expense? Even now, looking at your Twitter page, it's obvious you won't be back on for a while. You were the one who said famously 'Get back to rapping, you niggas tweeting too much'. Having been a firm proponent of killing the hype in favor of an exceptional product, you took a hit in my eyes. Maybe I'm a harsh critic. Maybe Cole World will blow my mind as it should. Maybe it won't, and we'll be talking about another formerly underground rapper who failed to live up to expectations and hype. Few do. At the same time, we can always see it coming. We saw Drake's commercialization from a mile away, and if this is any indication of your future, let me be the first to say it was nice knowing you, Jermaine.

Dear Kardi (re: The Valedictorian)

"F*ckin Shaft music, nigga... No homo"

DOWNLOAD: Kardi - The Valedictorian

There's certain MCs that you can't help but feel. Not because they grew up around the same conditions and in the same circles as you, or because of random references that fly over the heads of most. Some MCs make you feel what they're saying. It's because of their gift for words and ability to paint a picture that draws you to their work and keeps your ears perked up and head nodding. Yesterday, I had the pleasure of listening to your sophomore offering The Valedictorian which arrived in my inbox promptly this weekend. I saw all of the blogs and websites posting it, as per usual with music nowadays, yet no one offered any perspective on it (also becoming the sad norm). Kardi, let me say this: This album made me pine for a time not long ago in time, but far far away in my mind. Being a senior in college and recanting on my time, I can't help but be nostalgic listening to The Valedictorian.

The album starts out on a melodic note, with 'Convocation' sounding off on the aspirations of a high school senior with rap as a goal, but college as a fall back. You sound so hopeful, so filled with joy that one part of your life is closing and another is set to begin. There's an air of arrogance to everything you're saying, clearly derived from being 'America's nightmare: young, black and educated'. At the same time, theres humbleness because you know there's so much more to accomplish, both in rap and school. As a freshman, the possibilities can be so distracting, but there's a main theme to this tape. In being a 'valedictorian,' you espouse focus as a tenet in your rise to the top, something no one seems to talk about. On the track 'Busy' you offer an apology to the people missing you, simply claiming the rigors of a burgeoning rap career and college tenure. It's endearing, especially for anyone who has aspirations that college classes get in the way of.

There's also a nature of duality that The Valedictorian comes with, based on that same battle between academic and non-academic success. Whether in the battle between classes and performances, or trying to keep a steady girlfriend who wants more time than you can give her, balance is necessary, not only as a freshman but as a college student in general. On tracks like 'Black Ferris Beuller' and 'Joke', you don't forget to flex your lyrical muscle, so that it's clear your talent belies your freshman status. Making light of the generation of 'swag' rappers who deem it better to copy than create, you outshine them, showing the Prep for Prep pedigree (P4P stand up!!) that helped to get you to college in the first place.

See, I'm something like a black Ferris Beuller, getting medulla from my tutor while I'm pulling Buddha

Quick bars like seem to roll off your tongue effortlessly, which was impressive. You definitely have a gift for spitting fast. Yet, at times you seemed to get ahead of yourself to the point where I had to rewind songs to catch the full gist of your statements. That's not a bad thing for heads who enjoy listening to rap, but for the untrained ear this might get laborsome. Try and slow down, and with purpose, so we can get the full benefit of hearing what you have to say.

Overall, The Valedictorian put older MCs to shame because it was reminiscent of the freshman perspective, yet showed a wisdom beyond your years. It's not the soulful kind of hip-hop J. Cole puts out. It's much more charismatic, like a freshman extending his hand during orientation. This album had a sound, a feel and a theme to it. It wasn't just a mish-mash of songs thrown together for the sake of it. Much like an undergraduate course of study, there is a plan, and it's clear you're sticking to it, Kardi. Excited for more work from you? I am. Who knows where you'll be in four years, much less one? Just make sure to enjoy the ride, because college moves fast, as do rap careers, though yours doesn't seem to be slowing down any time soon...

Fresh Daily - Say Yes (prod. by Shuko & Fonty)

Fresh Daily - Say Yes

Fresh Daily, out of Brooklyn, has been missing off the scene for over a year now, after his promising Tomorrow is Today mixtape. I suppose he's one of those rappers who works better when he takes little hiatuses from music to actually live life. No worries either way though. Dropping off the face of the earth and then coming back with heat like this is completely excuseable. 'Say Yes', laced with cacophonous, organ-y beat, is almost like a blueprint for making it. Fresh urges the listener to accept the change that life chucks in your direction, then to monkey punch that change when it tries to claw your eyes out. It's a nice way to start the spring, April showers and all. Keep a look out for Fresh Daily's The Quiet Life EP. Maybe I can delete my earlier tweets about there not being any new good music coming out...

Emilio Rojas - Breaking Point

Emilio Rojas - Breaking Point

If you want to talk about powerful music, then this might be one of the best tracks I've heard in a good minute. Emilio Rojas kind of missed me with his Life Without Shame EP, but with another EP set tro drop in June, and this being the first single, consider me excited again. 'Breaking Point' talks about how exactly Emilio got into the rap scene and why failure isn't an option for him. From trying to explain his profession to friends and family, to his own Latin brethren not accepting him, to the situation surrounding his birth, the drama pushed Emilio to his eventual 'Breaking Point'. This is what I like to call 'mood music'. Study to this. Struggle to this. Whatever you do, just feel it.

Singing Telegram: Aloe Blacc - You Make Me Smile (Take Away Show)

What's up good people! A fews days back, my boy Joshua put me on to the idea of a 'Take Away' performance, or simply a random performance in a public venue, mostly unbeknownst to the patrons of that venue. This one in particular stuck out to me, first of all because it's Aloe Blacc, but also because of how the performance came about. In an atypically organic fashion, David Patrick Neil James Wash-Lovell (Aloe Blacc's government) brings a small band of merry men together in a Parisian train station, and treats commuters to an impromptu performance of his ballad 'You Make Me Smile'. The performance also is great because of how effortless singing seems for Aloe Black. Standing off to the side, while the band plays at a soulfully rhythmic pace, Blacc saunters into the girth of the crowd to bellow out a cherubic melody that enthralls the Parisian crowd, most of whom have no clue who he is. He even breaks out into a cover of Bill Withers' 'Use Me' outside the station in the same fashion. I picked this for the Singing Telegram, finally, because you just don't see this kind of performance any more. Everything is on such a grand scale that people forget how to just enjoy the voices and the music. As simplistic as it is, Aloe Blacc's performance shows just how easily music can bring a crowd to its feet. Check out some well-placed music, and pray that Aloe Blacc finds his way to a train station near you...

eLZhi - Detroit State of Mind

Elzhi - Detroit State of Mind

It seems like everyone's favorite album is Illmatic now. The past few years, I've seen so many _______ State of Mind tracks, it's sickening... And here's another. But it's eLZhi, though. The Slum Village member has always been one of the more underrated MCs out, despite his knack for falling off the radar for months on end. I suppose prodigious talent needs time to breathe, much like Nas. For his ELmatic LP, eLZhi decided to take on the gritty instrumental that makes you want to blow cess in front of a bodega wearing fronts, tan Timbs, and an army suit. He doesn't disappoint either, delivering a performance worthy of an even more underrated Detroit rap seal. He paints a picture few could claim not to visualize. Just listen. ELmatic drops May 10th...

Chuck L.I. - Office Space (prod. by Stefan Ponce)

Chuck L.I. - Office Space (prod. by Stefan Ponce)

As a senior in college, the number one question you get every day is 'What are your plans for graduation?" The first few times it's cool, getting to toot your own horn with a quick speech on whatever plan is currently brewing up in your mind. After around December, though, you almost want to walk around with a shirt that says 'When I know what I'm doing after graduation, I'll tell you." If there's one thing I can wholeheartedly say without reservation, it's that I will LOVE anything I'll be doing. The working world is full of people who hate their jobs, and simultaneously hate their lives. This track by Chuck L.I. is for those people who don't want to get caught in the 9-5 rut... the ones who'd rather work for a passion than a paycheck... the ones who'd trade in their cubicles and generic business attire for some jeans, a t-shirt and a clean slate... the ones who want space, not office space. Chuck definitely made a fan of me with this one. Check the track out, and keep looking for your passion that hopefully provides a paycheck...

Props: Fake Shore Drive

Pusha T - My God (Music Video)

Say what you will about Fear of God (yes it was a bit of a let-down), Pusha has a way with those coke raps, and his music videos are no different. He doesn't really have to be doing much in his videos to make them hot. The younger Thornton brother recruited a children's marching band, some of his Re-Up Gang constituents, a sexy Lambo coupe, a funeral hearse, and a bad light-skinned biddie to accompany him in his video for 'My God'. The cut-scenes of church revivals and people catching the spirit line up perfectly with the lyrics detailing his dealings with fiends, and one can almost taste the juxtaposition between drug addiction and religious fervor. I'm not sure if that's what Pusha or the director Nabil Elderkin were going for here, but I suppose it's just something to marinate on for heavy thinkers such as myself. Check the video out and get hyped for the Fear of God EP.

PS: I'm tired of rappers putting out EP's of mixtapes/albums we've already heard. If Pusha doesn't switch it up a little, I will be severely disappointed...

Dear B.o.B. (re: 'No Future')

Attaway, Bobby Ray!! Point 'em out!!!


B.o.B. - No Future

BEEF is such a watered down version of what it used to be. Gone are the days when rappers would get at each other on their own tracks, like Canibus on LL's '4,3,2,1'. No longer are funny looking caricatures and long monologues using names utilized like 50 Cent in his all-front assault on Ja Rule in 2003. Rappers nowadays may devote passing lines to rivals and keep it moving. Such is the case today Bobby Ray. I woke up this morning to a new track from you entitled 'No Future', and gave it a cursory listen, as I do most music that enters my periphery. Immediately, I heard a B.o.B. that I hadn't heard in years. You sounded angry. You sounded vicious. You sounded like someone had insulted your mother, or better yet you. Then I remembered the OFWGKTA frontman Tyler's track 'Yonkers' where he famously said:

I'll crash that f*cking Airplane that f*ggot nigga B.o.B. was in

Ahhhh! Now the 'No Future' title makes sense. But then I thought more about it and realized that your retort, while lyrically dope, was reminiscent of why rap beef today is so lame. There were no names, there were no personal attacks... Just vague indicators of the nameless foe you were attacking... whom everyone already knew. That said Bobby (and any other rapper that wants to clap back), make sure you make your diss tracks clear. Seriously... It's like handing in an exam without a name on it. You might have aced it, but no one's going to know who it is for. The teacher could use elimination to decipher who it is, but the thought that a kid so smart could forget to write his name almost erases the good grade, in terms of common sense.

I'll say it again, Bobby. The track was kind of hot. You dropped that sing-songy 'I'm trying to be Eminem and talk about obstacles I've overcome' flow, and RAPPED. Too bad it was undirected and vague. If we were keeping score, Tyler would be up 10 with 2 minutes left in the 4th quarter, and I'm the furthest from an Odd Future fan. I just respect when a rapper has the cojones to put a name out there and stand by it. Hell, I'd rather you not even throw out a diss track if you were going to keep the adversary anonymous. Take a hint, Bobby. The next time someone disses you (and Tyler has since backed away from his comments), take one of two routes: Either A) Pull a 50 and call your rival out like a man, or B) Pull a Jay-Z and don't even regale the comment. Hip-hop was never about sitting on fences. Either you hop over and give your neighbor a piece of your mind, or stay on your side, lament about how his grass is greener and look up at the Airplanes...

Dear Record Companies

From West Indian block parties to underground ciphers, piracy has always been around...

via The Register:

The music industry is sticking to a self-valuation that has been rejected by various courts and has now been described as “absurd” by a New York judge.

Judge Kimba Wood has handed down an opinion in the LimeWire damages case that challenges the industry’s belief it could be owed more than the entire global GDP for one year.

After LimeWire lost the case last year, the trial moved into the damages phase, with hearings starting next May. In an opinion (pdf) [1] published ahead of the damages hearings, Judge Kimba Wood revealed that the record companies, seeking statutory damages against the music-sharing service, are seeking damages predicated on the “number of direct infringers per work” – leading to a damages claim of as much as $75 trillion dollars (according to Wikipedia, total global GDP is around $69 trillion)".

You know an industry is in the middle of a flux when it grossly overvalues itself and insists that the rest of humanity respect its inflated self-image. It just so happens that this overvaluation is a constant staple of the music industry, where fickle fans, new technology and constantly changing winds make an accurate understanding damn near impossible. The music industry continued that trend over the past two weeks when a gang of you record companies decided to hold Limewire accountable for $75 trillion over its enabling of file-sharing. I almost gagged when I saw that figure. $75 TRILLION?!?!?! Since when has the music industry been worth more than the entire world's GDP? Seriously... I like music, and I'm sure the rest of the world does too, but not that much.

And to boot, you're suing Limewire of all companies. If you guys really had your hand on the pulse of the music industry, you'd know Limewire was played out after my 9th grade year (2002, if you must know). Additionally, if you were really paying attention, you would've been up on the online music grind from jump, so that you could've had a stake in it. Torrents, sharing websites and iTunes beat you to the punch and now you're on the outside looking in, trying to bust the windows. Now that you're behind the curve, it's like you're trying to put a four-alarm fire out with a water gun. Hell, now the blogs are running the game, giving away your artists' music (at least in hip-hop; can't speak for every genre) and all you guys can do is shut down onSMASH for a couple of weeks.

If your preposterous claim against Limewire is a sign of anything, it's that the little man always has a one-up on the corporation because the corporation is too focused on the profit rather than the product. That you guys are finally getting your day in court is too little, too late, and the judge handling your case proved that when he called your claim 'absurd'. As a matter of fact, that's just the first in a long list of words I have for your general greed and lack of insight into your own business. Either way, I and the rest of the bajillion Generation-Y music fans will somehow find a way to download music around your egregious blocks to fair distribution of music. Are you going to threaten legal action against all of us? Probably. God save the poor sap who gets nabbed with that law suit. Will it work? Probably not. Maybe you should take notes on the new wave instead of trying to cram your way in after the lights have come down.

Reek DeVille - 10 Mack Commandments

Reek DeVille - 10 Mack Commandments

As far as remakes of classic songs go, remixes to Biggie's '10 Crack Commandments' come a dime a dozen. That's no knock on anyone who tries, but simply a sign of the times. That said, if you're going to make a list to BIG's rulebook to the crack game, make sure you do it well. Such is the case with Reek DeVille, formerly known as Reek da Villain. His remake, entitled the '10 Mack Commandments' is about as exhaustive a list as possible when dealing with females in this life. In fact, I think more relationships would stay the course needed if men used their heads (not that one). Reek is preparing to drop his How to Be a Player EP with OnSMASH soon, and if this is the first track, consider my ears perked up. Check it out...

Dear Lupe Fiasco

Buy Lasers HERE

It's been well over 3 years since your last album, The Cool. That album was a dedication to hip-hops obsession with... well, being cool. It painted a picture of the game and what's cool as being these destructive, yet enticing entities, that would tempt even the most righteous among us. I suppose that is one of your appealing traits as a rapper: your ability to reveal what we celebrate in this 'game' for the detriment it is. When it was revealed that Lasers would finally be released, I rejoiced, not only as a fan excited for new Lupe, but also because it would be a far cry from your usually pithy tone. No longer would the listener not be subject to the thought of how much we're losing. We're lasers, not losers! We don't have to be all melancholy about the way hip-hop is going! We can protest in front of Atlantic Records and get your album released! We don't have to let the labels decide what we have to listen to! That's what I thought Lasers would champion. It turns out we were wrong. Lasers was a disappointing reminder that no matter how much 'we' push, there's a huge chance 'we' won't get what we want. And you were the first person to learn that, Lu.

I won't get into the fact that you derided the album after it leaked or have been lambasting your own effort. That's for you and only you to live with, given the high standard of work that you usually hold yourself to. As a listener and fan, that happening is a bit disconcerting. Even if you weren't doing that, the album still doesn't live up to the height. It starts with a rousing piano solo on 'Letting Go', then delves into an abyss of half-baked choruses and muddled verses. You spoke a lot about war on this song and did a lot of introspection, but not in a palatable way. It was almost like you were writing an angry letter to yourself about everything that grinds your gears, but the letter had no direction and no point.

Lasers continues with probably the best song on the album 'Words I Never Said', a powerful political statement reminiscent of the Lupe we know and love. The song was persistent, unyielding, and unashamed, reminiscent of what I imagine you wanted the album to sound like. You definitely threw that in second so that you could get it off your chest, and then the album takes a nosedive from there. Between 'Till I Get There' and 'I Don't Wanna Care Right Now' the pop-esque instrumentals seem better suited for Flo-Rida than you. Hell, he might as well have been on one of those songs. This is clearly where Atlantic had their way with you. The Trey Songz feature couldn't have been more misplaced, and the track, 'Out of My Head', had the depth of a Jersey Shore reunion. Given how easily you tended to speak about love on your other albums, this was a huge disappointment. You rapped in circular monosyllables, all about superficial things and not the romantic minutiae that endeared you to the fan (think 'Sunshine'). I felt horrible bopping my head to the song. You and Trey could've definitely collaborated and come up with a better song, though I'm not sure Trey has the capacity to go 'deeper' anymore. Even so, 'The Show Goes On' saved Lasers from the dreaded 'halfway point pause-and-never-play-again curse'. Its uptempo vibe brought the listener in and while you didn't RIP your verses, it was hard not to like them.

After that, the album takes another nosedive. It seems like you were sleepwalking through those next two tracks featuring MDMA, and it was hard for me to keep awake during them. You talked about the future constantly, but had a flow sounding like it was stuck in the mud:

They like 'how come you don't rap that' / Cause that's a backtrack / and I ain't tryna back back

Really, Lu? We're taking it back to preschool? This is coming from the guy that wrote 'Dumb it Down'. What happened to digging deep for conceptual greatness? What happened to challenging the listener? What happened to the type of tracks that make you rewind them dozens of times just to catch one line or metaphor or punchline? It seems like you're faking the funk, or just simply f*cked the funk up. 'State Run Radio' got some brownie points back, but the irony of the track was hilarious considering the puppet strings pulling you throughout the whole album. 'Break the Chain' and 'I'll Never Forget You' were snorefests. By the time I got to 'All Black Everything', I had had enough, regardless of how good a song it was. The damage was done. You had successfully shown how 'conscious' hip-hop could have its manhood taken from it and served on a platinum plaque.

Ultimately, Lupe, Lasers failed because you failed to paint the vivid picture that your manifesto for the album did. Rather than champion 'substance in the place of popularity', you got a #1 spot on the Billboards with what was your least substantive album. Rather than 'think (your) own thoughts', Atlantic spoon-fed you 9 concepts and you choked. Lasers wasn't the revolutionary work of art you promised, and no matter how much you downplay your involvement, it's your album. I'd rather you take ownership for this and come back harder with LupEND or Friend of the People or whatever your next work is (you never know now with you, especially with your precarious label situation). To say this was a bad album is a bit much, yet I can't give this one my stamp of approval. It'd not only be going against my better judgment, but your own words. So, Lupe, enjoy your platinum plaque. Like I said, ironically your best-selling album was your worst content-wise. Lasers or losers, this album proved that it is possible to win and lose at the same time. If that's not enough reason to come back with a vengeance, then this should be your last album just like you said 2 years ago, Lupe...

Kanye West - All of The Lights (Remix) (ft. Lil' Wayne, Big Sean & Drake)

Kanye West - All of The Lights (Remix) (ft. Lil' Wayne, Big Sean & Drake)

Huge props to Karen Civil for letting this one loose, even though I had to rip the audio myself so you guys could download it. Everyone (and by everyone, I mean the internets and Twitter) said that Drake killed his verse, and now we get a chance to hear it. The remix to Kanye's 'All of The Lights' is pifftastic, splendiforous, and a bunch of other made up words for awesome. The only weird part about this track is Sean's use of onomatopoeia. He has a unique flow that works sometimes, and other times seems out of place. No worries, though. Wayne and Drake do enough heavy lifting to counteract Sean's snafu. Check out the remix and have a happy Monday, people!!

EDIT: Apparently, 'Ye has a verse lined up for the remix as well. Be on the lookout for an 'official' version...

Curren$y - Soundbombin'

Curren$y - Soundbombin'

One reason that I respect and love Curren$y's music so much is because the man is the closest thing to a lab rat in hip-hop today. Shante' (I wonder how many jokes he's gotten about his name?) is set to release 4 albums in the past 2 years. That's more albums than most rappers can even dream of. Muscle Car Chronicles probably isn't going to be a concept album, though it seems like there will be a lot of car talk, as per the usual with a Spitta release. 'Soundbombin' sounds like a bomb of sound. Funk-a-mafied guitars, angry drums and an exceptional bass undertone lace the intro from Muscle Car Chronicles. Check the rhyme, people...