with a child's heart, go face the worries of the day … turn each problem into play
One of my top 5 up-and-comers… yeah, he’s still up-and-coming, but has a good chance to blow up if he plays his cards right. Wale has released a number of really well done mixtapes, plus a new one this week (Back to the Feature) which I still need to listen to. I think this is the only commercially-released single he has put out, unless you count “Nike Boots” from two years ago. What do you think?
Wale – Chillin’ (f/Lady GaGa) | Allido / Interscope
Posted in music i recommend.
– 2009 June 27
Of course, this wasn’t the post I was planning to write today. I was as shocked when I heard the sad news as everyone else. So, how do I properly pay my respects to one of the greatest entertainers that ever lived? In deciding what song I thought would be appropriate, I went through all my unsung favorites, from Invincible’s “Break of Dawn” to Bad’s “Liberian Girl” to Off the Wall’s “Get on the Floor” … but then I came upon this track from 1973’s Music & Me. If you were here to help us deal with our lament, Michael, I think this is what you would say to us. This is how you went through your entire life: with a child’s heart. Your adolescent spirit caused you many personal problems, but it allowed us to enjoy a beautiful human being. For that, I thank you. And, as I wrote earlier today, I hope you are now finding the peace that eluded you so much in life.
Posted in music i recommend.
– 2009 June 26
Those of you that were lucky enough to cop it, should have grabbed Chico’s debut album in 2007, Manifest Tone Vol.1. As a part of the Antibalas crew Chico Mann has participated in creating some wonderful music, but his solo projects have given him a lot more room to play around. From what I have heard, this track may have been dropped from his still unreleased follow-up to Manifest Tone: Analog Drift. Upon hearing that, I felt it was necessary to unleash this danceable goodness into the wild…
Chico Mann – Dilo Como Yo | unreleased
Posted in music i recommend.
– 2009 June 24
I know I haven’t been keeping up these posts as often as I thought I might, but I promise to redouble my efforts! And, I also am going to start posting mixtapes that I think you should check out. So, I’m setting off this new category with a mixtape that came out earlier this year from Marsha Ambrosius, one half of Floetry. She is (was?) signed as a solo artist to the purgatory known as Aftermath. She has appeared on many of the Aftermath-related projects in recent years, to include Busta Bus and The Game. She tends to curve her r&b flavor towards the tracks with some knock in it, like old Mary J. and Zhané. In fact, all of the tracks on this mixtape are produced by Focus, who makes some pretty bangin’ stuff in his own right. You can download the mixtape here. In the meantime, here’s one of the hotter joints off the Don Cannon-hosted album…
Posted in mixtapes i recommend.
– 2009 June 22
And it’s about damn time! I was a little worried with the promo they dropped a few months ago: “Internet Connection”, a play on “Intimate Connection” by Kleeer, but with Bootsy Collins. “Back Again” is much more representative of the kind of kwelity we expect to hear from a Reflection Eternal album. Talib sounds reinvigorated and Tek sounds like he rediscovered his drum loops from the Train of Thought. I’m looking forward to Revolutions Per Minute dropping this summer…
Reflection Eternal – Back Again | Blacksmith
Posted in music i recommend.
– 2009 June 15
There is something simple and elegant about this track. It just works. And it’s not on any Game album. I’m not sure who produced it, but I just thought I should share it. Think of it as a teaser for now…
The Game – Laugh | unreleased
Posted in music i recommend.
– 2009 June 12
I haven’t posted in a few days… still getting used to this after-school life and the new schedule. I’m exhausted tonight, but I wanted to drop this jewel for you before I jet. Reef the Lost Cauze has been damaging mics for a few years now. He first jumped up onto the scene in Philly at the beginning of the decade. A few years back he took the title at EOW in New York. He has dropped a couple of albums, the latest being “The Stress Files”, a collaboration with Stress the White Boy on the boards (do I sense a late ‘00 trend?) The beat is very dope, and the delivery is smooth and clear. It reminds me a bit of early CNN around 1996…
Posted in music i recommend.
– 2009 June 11
Off the 5th album of the sometimes-10th member of Wu-Tang Clan, this track brings Cappadonna back to some of the strengths of his old flow. He actually never really lost it, it’s just that the Clan lost him. He was rumored to be driving cabs a few years ago (courtesy of himself: Ghostface Killah “9 Milli Bros.”), but he sounds like he’s sounds pretty comfortable over this nice layering of horns. I have only heard a few other tracks from the album, and this is definitely one of the stronger ones.
Cappadonna – Somebody’s Got to Go (f/Lounge Lo, Ghetto Philharmonic) | Chamber Musik
Posted in music i recommend.
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– 2009 June 2
I’m a sucker for that Chicago steppers music, that’s all I can say. This here is an unreleased track from John Legend’s last album. It’s June, I’m happy, so enjoy it with me, just like John appears to be enjoying himself in this photo…
John Legend – Casino | unreleased
Posted in music i recommend.
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– 2009 June 1
I am not sure who produced this remix, but it is better than most of the album that it is NOT taken from. (I needed a picture, sorry folks). The Q-Tip – Consequence – kanYe circle is completed here as well. I’m racking my brain and I don’t think I can remember any tracks with just the three of them together. I am sure there is a mixtape joint out there somewhere to prove me wrong though. It’s also nice to hear kanYe rapping again instead of singing. I haven’t posted in a few days… had a few big things going on, but I did finally get the chance to update the layout of the site. Let me know what you think about the changes. But for now, enjoy some good Q-Tip music [note, the songs now play in the post, just click the title]…
Q-Tip – We Fight, We Love (Remix) (f/kanYe West, Consequence) | Motown / Universal
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– 2009 May 25
