Singles - Drake - Know Yourself

So it took me a little while to figure out whether Drake's latest release was a mixtape or an album? Word on the interwebs is that it's a mixtape that was released more or less like an album so Drake's record contract with Cash Money would expire. Either way, the mixtape is a slow burner with mostly subdued and passive beats that Drake rides along at a leisurely pace. "Know Yourself" initially starts out like a bedroom soliloquy then transitions to a drop that is instantaneously memorable. At first I thought it was hilarious that Drake was talking about his "woes," but apparently it means his crew and stands for "works of excellence." Whatever. I liked it more when I pictured Drake running through the streets of Toronto with a hangdog expression.

Read More

Singles - Lupe Fiasco - Mural

It's a 1,600 word, 9 minute rap song that's propelled with a beat from The Buchanans who sampled the track Chanson D'un Jour D'hiver from the album Troupeau Bleu released in 1975 by a group called Cortex.

The most amazing thing about this song is the thought that Lupe could perform it live. Baffling with his wordplay and lyrical layers.

"My rap position was black condition and activism / Ammunition for abolition, missions attacking systems / But they're not apt to listen / unless it's dropping on Activision / Are we apps or are we bodies filled with apparitions? / Operating applications, stuck inside an Apple prison / Chicken hack and download updates that lack religion / Or...are we more?"

And that's only about 4% of the lyrics from that track...

Read More

5 Faves - The Underachievers

I love to hear when artists' influences broach the wide realm of music. The Underachievers have a near and dear place to my heart because they told Complex Magazine, "We love Local Natives ridiculously," and Issa said that his favorite band of all time is Fleet Foxes and favorite artist is John Mayer!! So cool to hear that since each of those bands have been so instrumental in my love of music. 

Read More

Singles - Big K.R.I.T. - Cadillactica

 I'll never forget seeing Big K.R.I.T. perform at Austin City Limits in 2012. Within seconds of taking the stage, he just controlled the crowd. He got everyone so pumped up, singing along as he waved his towel and we jumped, hands waving to the rhythm as he viciously sprinted through his rhymes.  It was one of the best performances I've seen by a rapper. All that being said, his new album just came out. The title track is my favorite. King Remembered In Time indeed!
Read More