-Cam’ron on ‘60 Minutes’
What It Was: Doing exactly what makes us love him, Cam’ron goes on ‘60 Minutes’ and makes such an ass of himself that it like, doubles back on everyone’s favorite probably-homo ambulance chaser do-gooder Anderson Cooper and makes Cam’ron look like the complicated comedic genius we know him to be. This is the proper response to “hard-hitting” stories that strive for soundbite simplicity: don’t even give them the satisfaction (“I’d probably moooovvee…”).
What It Is: Cam’s made a career of making him self look so foolish that it’s clear he doesn’t give a fuck- purple and pink, fur, rapping over lame samples, pathetic beefs- and this year, ‘60 Minutes’, that Youtube video in front of the kinda shitty pool in his boxers, and a not-bad double-CD mixtape that at the least, yielded ‘Just Us’, one of the best songs of the year…not bad. In his own crazy way, in 2007, he beat Jay and 50.
-Ed Banger’s Uffie: Inexplicably Missing from XXL’s ‘Leaders of the New School’!
What It Was: Everyone hates Uffie but loves M.I.A, explain this one. Actually don’t, you’ll only play yourself. M.I.A masquerades as a third-world revolution while wearing American Apparel leggings, Uffie’s just sort of hanging-out and quietly releasing these weird, deceptively stupid half-rap party songs. ‘Dismissed’ off ‘Ed Banger Vol. 2′ was her version of every real rapper’s hater response song, but she sells-it and takes the same attitude as Z-Ro or Scarface and calls said haters “faggots” and rather than explain herself, outrights lies by claiming: “Oh that girl is so hot, she’s never touched any glock/Bitch, if you only knew, yes I have fuckin’ popped”. “Lyrical” types should pay attention too, because that line is on the same complicated word-reversal shit as say, Chuck D’s talking about how his uzi weighs a ton, meaning his microphone but maybe meaning his uzi? Then there’s her guest-spot on the Justice album. On ‘The Party’, which has the same sense of ugly details as actual reality rap, it’s just Uffie’s reality is clubs and hotels with obnoxious hipsters friends.
What It Is: I’m the only contrarian douche taking this chick seriously and she’s set to release an album and it probably won’t be very good and will have like three good songs on it, which makes it about as good as ‘Kala’!
-Album of the Year: UGK’s ‘Underground Kingz’
What It Was: ‘Underground Kingz’ is exactly why I love rap. It’s a huge mess of songs that are offensive and brilliant and honest and political and emotional and just fucking great. The album functioned as a way of reminding listeners of the roots of all this Southern rap- terrible or great- that dominates the radio, while also looking beyond the region in a way that well, so-called “real” rappers aren’t even doing. Plenty of Southern rap legends show up to guest rap and produce, as well as surprises like Dizzee Rascal and Talib Kweli and ‘Next Up’, which although better in-theory than in execution, puts Big Daddy Kane and Kool G. Rap along with Pimp and Bun, over a beat by Marley Marl! The best example of old-ass whiny rappers putting their money where their mouth is since those really amazing ‘Where Are They Now?’ remixes by Nas (which, I regrettably forgot to write about in Pt. I of this…).
What It Is: ‘Underground Kingz’ grows even more rewarding with its purposefully-overwhelming two discs of music. The death of Pimp C turns the album from a late-career return to the finale, which is unfortunate, but there are worse ways for UGK to “end”…
-Not a Bad Year for Old Rap Nerds
What It Was: Nas’s ‘Where Are They Now’ remixes, that aforementioned Marley-Marl produced, Big Daddy Kane and Kool G. Rap featured UGK track, Percee P’s ‘Perseverance’, a new Witchdoctor album, Prodigy’s ‘Return of the Mac’, new Wu Tang, Scarface’s ‘Made’, Andre 3000’s rap return, as well as re-release type stuff like a new DVD for ‘Wild Style’ and an official release of Charlie Ahearn’s ‘The Deadly Art of Survival’, CD re-releases of Afrika Bambaataa’s ‘Death Mix’ series, J Dilla’s ‘Ruff Draft’ coming to CD and I’m sure some stuff I’m forgetting or didn’t know was around.
What It Is: With record sales getting increasingly terrible, the possibility of only appealing to niche audiences is no longer frowned-upon but sort of the future of music sales, albums by guys that shouldn’t be but are considered “old” will keep happening.
-Kanye West’s ‘Graduation’
What It Was: Yeah…for what I thought about it, check out “Kanye West Week” parts 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11.
Everything that was or is annoying about ‘Graduation’ is the stuff that reminds me of ‘Late Registration’ especially the aspect of it not really coming together as an album. But unlike, ‘Late’, there aren’t a whole lot of turds on ‘Graduation’. Other than the still not-funny or entertaining ‘Drunk N’ Hot Girls’, every song on ‘Graduation’ is good and wouldn’t sound strange on the radio, which is really quite impressive. The songs work as some weird mix of deep album cut and hit single.
What It Is: Even four months later, little sonic details and smart stuff is revealed to me when I listen to ‘Graduation’. There are these all-over-the-place synth gurgles under T-Pain’s triumphant chorus, the crazy bassline on ‘The Glory’ still kills, etc. etc. There’s also smaller shit like the connection between Kanye’s meaning of the phrase “the good life”, ‘Graduation’s vague effront to thug rap, and the more conventional use of the word “the good life” as a kind of euphemism for the criminal lifestyle, is but one more way that Kanye really is trying to reverse some of the lesser aspects of post-Puffy idiot rap (even as he takes a great deal of influence from the guy). Reading around the internet a few weeks ago, I read of how Labi Siffre, the artist sampled for ‘I Wonder’ was openly gay and of course, connected that to Kanye’s ongoing discussions of homophobia in the rap world. It’s these little details that keep ‘Graduation’ fresh…
- R.I.P Big Moe
What It Was: Big Moe is the kind of minor rapper that never wanted to and never got a lot of success and he’s the kind of guy that a lot of people didn’t know but he’s important and even crucial to a small group of devoted Southern rap and S.U.C fans. R.I.P Big Moe.
What It Is: The best way to remember Big Moe is to immediately download ‘Streets Ain’t Right Flow’ posted by Noz: R.I.P Big Moe.
Are You A Serious Comic Book Reader?
I’m speechless. This is a superb blog site and very tempting too. Fantastic work! That is now not in reality so much via an newcomer publisher like me, but it surely’s most I may only say after diving in your posts. Excellent grammar and also vocabulary. Nothing like different weblogs. You in reality know what you are speaking approximately too. Lots that you forced me to be want to investigate more. Your website has become a stepping stone for me, my friend.
Louis Vuitton Azur Canvas
29 Jun 12 at 3:31 pm
Ditto Dan. Welcome to the blog. What is your main business and what are your long term objectives?
Tashina Moser
19 Aug 13 at 6:24 pm
I read a lot of interesting posts here. Probably you spend a lot of time writing, i know
how to save you a lot of work, there is an online tool that creates readable, SEO friendly posts in seconds, just search in google – laranitas free content source
Dannielle
23 Aug 14 at 4:53 pm
I read a lot of interesting posts here. Probably you spend a
lot of time writing, i know how to save you a lot of time, there is an online tool that
creates unique, google friendly articles in seconds, just search
in google – laranitas free content source
Mia
30 Aug 14 at 12:12 pm