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The last Bone Thugs N Harmony album was back in 2007, T.H.U.G.S., the album was decent at best.  Not their best work.  But each Layzie Bone put out a very nice solo joint, Thugz Nation, in 2008.  So here we are in 2010 and the Thugs have a new album Uni5: The Worlds Enemy.  On this album you can no doubt hear Bone’s musical maturity.  Beats are hard and what would the Bone Thugs be without the Harmony.  As they rap hardcore and harmonize on the tracks they flow lovely together.  But you can hear the beats have more musical instruments than you’re used to with Bone from back in the day.  Nice!  Guest appearances from J. Rush, Ricco Barrino and K Young.  I guess with the Bone brothers you don’t need a whole lot of Guests to make a hot album.  Stand out tracks Rebirth, Wanna Be, Everytime and Facts Don’t Lie.  Pretty good album as a whole, we’re going to give the album 84% out a 100.  Check the preview below….

Trina’s album Amazin finally dropped today, May 4th 2010.  Coming from Fla, she’s been the self proclaimed Baddest B**** in the rap game.  Until recently the weak rhyming, no style of her own, Lil Wayne female clone Nicki Minaj came out this year.  Trina’s been rocking since 1998 and came out with her first album in 2000.  Now there’s a big question today of who’s the better rapper, Nicki Minaj or Trina.  Seems like once you pass the age of like 29, you’re old in the game.  But now we’re going to find out about Trina’s album first since her album is out now and Nicki’s album isn’t out until later this year.  Listening to Amazin I got a feel of here’s more vintage Trina (I love her southern accent).  Then I listened to the song Dang A Lang featuring Lady Saw and Nicki Minaj.  This song is no doubt hot and the best verse that I ever heard from Minaj.  She sounds like Trina on this song and not Lil Wayne this time.  Hey that might work for her.  Other guest appearances on this album from Diddy, Keri Hilson, Flo-Rida, Git Fresh, Monica, Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, Lyfe Jennings and Shonie. The song Million Dollar Girl feat Diddy and Keri Hilson is straight terrible.  Sounds like a Nickelodeon version of Last Night, Diddy has been terrible lately.  Other stand out tracks on this album besides Dang A Lang are, I Want It All featuring Monica, Currency featuring Lil Wayne and Rick Ross and That’s My Attitude.  The rest of the album is like some mellow R&B music.  All in all a pretty good album, no doubt show’s the different musical styles she has.  We’ll give her a 82% out a 100.  Check out some of the tracks from the album on her Myspace music player below.

Devin the Dude has a new album out, came out on April 20th, 2010.  We all know what kind of music it’s gonna a be.  Some straight up sit back-relax-as you blaze one with your girl type music.  And as usually he delivers with some funky beats and smoothed out rhymes with his Chicago accent.  Devin the Dude is one of the best rappers to come out of Chicago in a while.  Not your normal gangsta rapper that seems to be in abundance from that area, but a chill and having fun while smoking type music.  Most of you haven’t heard of him since he’s not your pop-rapper that gets played on the radio 20 times a day.  Room 420 is almost a perfect album with almost every track a stand out track.  But most of all the stand out tracks are We Get High, Pick My Brain, I Gotta Ho and All You Need.  This album is a must have for all the smokers and playas out there in the Hip Hop world.  We’ll give this album a 88% out of 100.  Check a preview of a few of the songs off the album below from his Myspace page.

Myspace Band Player Generator

B.o.B aka Bobby Ray, rapper out of Atlanta who has created quite a buzz in the past year or so is finally coming out with his long-awaited debut album.  B.o.B. Presents: The Adventures Of Bobby Ray is the title, release date of 4.27.2010.  The album was orignally supposed to come out in May but due to his commercial success the date was pushed up.  In the past several years the south has put out a lot of music, some good a lot of garbage though.  Lately the south movement has been getting a bit tiring, the record labels have been making a mockery of the music and making a lot of clones.  Now here’s B.o.B. with a refreshing twist to the monotony of it all.  This album has a lot of REAL music on it, not just beats and rhymes.  He uses not your normal guest appearances, Bruno Mars, Lupe Fiasco, Hayley Williams of Paramore, T.I., Playboy Tre, Janelle Monae, Rivers Cuomo, Ricco Barrino and Eminem.  What?!?  That doesn’t sound like your normal guests on a Hip Hop record.  Well this is no normal Hip Hop record, sounds more like a mix of Rock, Hip Hop, Soul and Pop.  The music isn’t belligerent, not a lot of cursing and no drug dealing going on.  Wow, haven’t heard a Hip Hop album like that in a long time.  Like I said it’s refreshing to hear some happy music for a change with some good messages.  I wouldn’t mind letting my kids listen to this album.  There’s plenty of melodies and harmonies on the album, very impressed.  The only downfall of the album is it’s a bit tiring because it seems on some of the tracks he’s trying to hard to sound different and mix the genres up too much, but for the most it part it works and very well.  Did I mention the man can sing?!?  Stand out tracks 5th Dimension, Airplanes, Nothing On You and Past My Shades.  You can no doubt tell that he used to listen to Andre 3000 a lot back in his day.  All in all the album gets a nice 82% no doubt for originality!  Preview the music from his new album below…..

Another back in the day crew making a comeback.  Well actually don’t call it a comeback because they’ve been making new music non-stop since the early 90’s.  Cypress Hill, blazed the scene with How I Can Just Kill A Man and Hand On The Pump back in ‘91.  Those were Hip Hop anthems and now they are classics.  Here we are 2010 and their 9th studio albums not to mention other projects and solo releases by the members, most notable are Soul Assassins albums.

Rise up has many producers along with main Cypress Hill producer DJ Muggs and rapper B Real we also have Mike Shinoda, Jim Jonsin, Pete Rock, DJ Khalil and others.  Guest appearances by Pitbull, Everlast, Young De, Tom Morello,  Audioslave, Marc Anthony and others.  Cypress always had a rock overtone in their music as well as a dark Hip Hop feel, such a hard combination.  Rhyme styles have been hardcore and this album is no different.  The production on this album is extraordinary no doubt!  Stand out tracks like  It Ain’t Nothing and Pass The Dutch (you know they had to put a weed song in there), this album is a banger.  A nice alternative to the norm of what’s going on in Hip Hop lately.  With Rock tracks, Hip Hop tracks and Hispanic tracks, this album is no doubt worth it.  Let’s give in a good 80% out of 100.

Preview some songs from Rise Up as well as some of their classics…..

Lately the Wu Tang Clan members have been making a come back.  The only member to make any real noise was Ghostface Killah in the last several years.  Ghost’s been persistent and making some real good music.  Wu Tang is trying to change all of that by coming out with albums in consecutive months.  Can Wu make the comeback to bring them back to the glory days, let’s see.

Return Of The Wu and Friends an album by Wu Tang Clan produced my Allah Mathematics from unreleased material from 2000-2008.  This is the perfect album for Wu-heads who have been fiending for some prime Wu Tang material.  This album is produced so good, seems like he made each beat to fit the flow of the artists.  There are several stand out tracks on this album, John 3:16, Clap 2010, It Is What It Is, Keep Pace and a few others.  What really makes this album is the production by Mathematics no doubt.  The rhyming is gritty and very NYish, but as a whole this album is worth it especially if you’re a die hard Wu-head like me.  Method Man was really feeling himself on this album he seemed to take it back.  I’ll give the album a 78% out of 100 no doubt.

Wu Massacre is an album with just Meth, Ghost and Rae.  Seems like they were trying to take it back to like the original Wu bangers like Only Built For Cuban Links and Tical.  The stand out track on this album is Criminology 2.5, with an updated beat of the original Criminology but the song is too short.  I have to admit like most of the beats on this album.  Another stand out track is Our Dreams featuring Inspector Deck and Sun God, great sample, great beat lovely rhyming on the track.  A beautifully RZA produced track, seems like they were all feeling it on this on.  Only two tracks are produced by RZA, most of the other tracks are produced by Allah Mathematics and Scram Jones.  One track a piece by E. Meal, Digem Tracks Production and Ty Fyffe.  The album is only 30 mins long so watch how much you spend on it.  You can get it from Amazon for $10, fair price, click the hot new releases in the side bar on this site to check it out.  I’ll give the album 75% out of 100, mostly because of the beats and grit of the rhymes.

Erykah Badu

Erykah Badu has been Hip Hop’s sweetheart for a very long time.  Her weirdness, beauty and soulful voice is somethingwe couldn’t resist.  But Feb 2008 was a terrible year for Ms Badu.  After not coming out with any new music since Sept 2003, she comes out with the album New Amerykah, Pt. 1: 4th World War.  Until then Badu has been known for many things, making a wack album was not one of them.  But after listening to New Amerykah Pt 1 it was terrible.  Only two good songs on the whole album, not really an album more like an EP.  I was disgusted because I’m the biggest Erykah Badu fan in the world.  I even tried to listen to the album over and over to see if it would grow on me.  Nope!  But now here comes her new album New Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh out March 30th, 2010.  Ahhhh a refreshing Badu is back again with her soulful Hip Hop inspired music.  She’s sounding a little Billie Holiday-ish on the album.  Very very nice!  The first track 20 Feet Tall is like a 3 minute intro to the album.  Window Seat the second track on the album is very soulful almost jazzy.  Agitation I guess is like another intro with some hot instrumentals.  But the banger on this EP is the song Turn Me Away (Get Munny) is crazy!  With Jr Mafia’s Get Money sample with a soulful music and Erykah’s Billie Holiday-sounding self is off the chain.  The next track Gone Baby, Don’t Be Long is another hot Hip Hop inspired soulful Erykah song.   Umm Hmm is another nice Badu track, sounds very Mama’s Gun like.  Love is like a funk track, nothing special, it’s just OK.  You Loving Me (Session) is Eryka’s attempt at comedy I guess, I didn’t find it very funny, I’ll let you hear it for yourself.  Fall In Love (Your Funeral) is another great song by Badu being very honest about falling in love with her.  Another Biggie sample in here, singing “There’s gonna be some slow singing, flower bringing if her burglar alarm starts ringing.”  Yeah no doubt look at Andre and Common!  Incense Feat. Kirsten Agnesta is some soulful bugged out

New Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh

mostly instrumental high Badu song.  Out of My Mind Just In Time is a weird outro that you would expect from Badu.  All in all I give this album like an 85% out of 100.  I would’ve gotten a 95 or 100 if it was a full album.  Almost a classic like Mamas Gun but not enough, get it for only $10.  If you’re in NYC you can probably get it for like $6 or $8 in the village.  Check out her video for Window Seat, the path she walks is the path JFK got shot, the X is where he was shot at. The video was shot Guerrilla style, in one take with no extras.  So the people in the video were just chillin’, LOL!  Damn look at the fat ass on Badu, damn she’s fine than a muh fhuqua!

OK Badu said she was making a statement against “groupthink.”  Groupthink is a way of thinking, those who use the groupthinking ideology try to limit or eliminate conflict from a discussion without properly analyzing the opinions and ideas that were presented over the course of the conversation.  Boy oh boy, there’s going to be some highly mad people behind this video.

We all know Styles P flow by now.  He used to run in the shadows of Jadakiss then somewhere along the lines he just turned into a beast.  His solo efforts have been good for the most part, but now he seems to have his formula down pact.  Rhyming with production from Green Lantern he came off lovely.  With his gangsta rhymes and word play is all good.  The beats on this album are hard to death.  Guest appearances are Sheek Louch (no doubt), Tre Williams, Dwayne Collins, Jadakiss (of course), Raekwon, Noreaga, Uncle Murda, June Summers, S.I. and M.O.P.  Production from the likes of Green Lantern, Scram Jones, The Alchemist, Buckwild, Dutchez Beatz, Static Selekta, Vinny Idol, Dame Grease and Poobs.  Some of these names make you say, “Who?”  But don’t worry, big names aren’t what make this album, it’s the street style, hard rhymes and ill production going on.  Make Millions From Entertainment and Time Will Tell are stand out tracks on the album, but don’t sleep on the rest of the songs.  Drug rhymes are a little played out but there’s not as many as he usually has on his albums.  I would give this album a 8 out of 10, not quite a classic, but a great album no doubt!

I know a lot of you are, but I’m not a big Lil Wayne fan.  His rap style is a bit bland for me.  His latest album Rebirth seems exactly that.  A musical rebirth of Lil Wayne, new style of music not your average tracks, a lot of singing and rock style music.  Is that what it is now?  Sounds like a fuse or Rock and Hip Hop, well since I personally like rock music, I like the album.  It’s different, creative, he has some nice guests and it’s rock music.  So what else can I say, guilty of liking rock music.  Guest appearances by Shanell, Nicki Manaji, Kevin Rudolph, Tyga and Gudda Gudda.  Check the album out for yourself and see if you like it.  Lil Wayne is doing a lot of singing with the help of autotune on this album.  I already know most of you will because Lil Wayne can take a sh!t on a track and people would eat it up.  Even though I get a kick out of talking trash about his personal life, this right here is the realness, cop that.  Click the widget to preview and/or buy this album.

Remember Fabolous when he first came out in 2000, he had that hit. It’s a little haze but I remember the hook a bit, you know the song, “Can’t Deny It.” Yeah it was hot, the world was naming him the next so and so great rapper or whatever. Taking Jay Z’s throne, yeah it didn’t really turn out like that. As a matter of fact, since that first hit he had, it was all downhill from there. His albums kept getting wacker and wacker, with a few cool guess spots here and there that were hot. Remember Lil Mo’s “Superwoman,” yeah s**t like that. But here we are in 2009 with a come back album entiled “Loso’s Way.” From the title you would think this is going to be some straight gangsta s**t. No not at all, this album sounds like he came out the box thinking, this is what is hot right now let me sound like that. Then he just got it all wrong! Every beat sounds like some sissy stupidness that is straight wack. His rhyming is terrible on every single track, he sounds like a terrible cross of Ja Rule, T Pain and Nsync. I’m not going to go song for song on this review, every song is wack as far as rhyme style and the stupid beats that are on there. This album gets a 1% fresh because there was only one song that sounded half way decent. Don’t waste your money on this CD even if it costs a penny.

New Album after 9 years

Remember the Soul Assassins from ‘97, then again in 2000 that featured a gang of the dopest MC’s at thetime. Group created by DJ Muggs from Cypress Hill. The first album featured artists like Dre, Goodie Mob, RZA, GZA, MC Eiht, KRS 1 and more. Second album wasn’t blazing like the first but still had a bit of bang. Here’s 2009 I checked out the new joint called “Intermission.”  With the eclectic mix of MC’s from all over the map, these albums are normal interesting at worst.

1. Gangsta Shit (feat Bun B, M1) – M1 went off to a stupid fresh beat and Bun B’s country self on the hook.  They all sound dope on this track just rhyming and saying this Gangasta Shit.

2. Classical (feat Slick Jacken, Evidence) – Sounds kind of islandy mello beat.  Sounds OK but almost put me to sleep after about 2 mins.  Not a great song.

3. Gunshots (feat Chace Infinite, Alchemist) – Wow, this is a classic Alchemist beat, Chase Infinite sounds pretty good.  Hook is OK, reggae style.

4. Do It (feat La Coka Nostra) – Another phat ass beat with some hype flowing.  La Coka Nostra sounds kind of Xzibitish on the track. I like it a lot though, especially the plain old hook saying do that sh!t do it.  Lyrics are quite raw too. Nice!

5. Rep Yo Shit (feat P.C.P. aka Slick Jacken, Necro) – Wow, the beats on this album are getting sick!  The piano roll on this track are very nice.  I can’t believe the quality of production so far.  Raspy voices and cool bouncing raps are hot.

6. Good Evening Los Angeles (feat Self Scientific) – This beat is not as good as the rest.  Rock feel to it, flow is ill over the track no doubt.  Not really a hook to it, just a phat break with samples of news clips.  Kind of dark, song isn’t anything to brag about though.

7. Meet Your Maker (feat Reef The Lost Cause, Outer Space) – Really raw lyrics over a pretty nice beat.  The song almost got boring until you heard more instruments in it.  It gives the song a nice feel and the very instrumental beat is a nice touch.  This album is stricking me as a producers album as opposed to showcasing the MCs.

8. Intermission (feat RZA, Rev William Burk, Planet Asia, B-Real) – Yeah not a good song, a little boring.  Well a lot boring actually.

9. Champions (Remix) (feat Prodigy, Big Twin) – Nice come back on this one, phat beat, hardcore rhymes.  Big Twin’s raspy voice, cool!  Sounds like some on NY shit with a west flav to it.

10. Let Go (My Life) (feat Fashawn) – Weird beat with a what rapper.  Na sun!

11. Like That Y’all (feat. Planet Asia) – This is another wierd beat in a row.  So bad it gave me a headache, couldn’t really hear Planet Asia rapping but he was going off though.  Too bad about that wack ass beat.

12. World We’re In (feat Cynic) – This beat is better, like way better.  Damn Muggs is going through something.  Nice song and a strong flow going on here.  Nice, with an over sped sample this song is on.

13. Call It Like I See It (feat Chace Infinite, Krondon) – Song not so bad, not so great.

14. Matchbox (feat. Dust) – Slow jam, the beat is a pretty OK, the vocals from dust are good.

15. Figure it Out (feat Young De, Xzibit, Mykestro) (Bonus Track) – Nice track to put at the end.  Xzibit is always nice on the mic he’s teamed up with Young De and Mykestro who rip the track right along side.  Nice song, beat is strong.

Giving the album a 78.4%, I’d say like 10 good songs out of 15 is above average.  I’d no doubt say it’s worth it.  Only downfall is the bad songs on this compilation are terrible.  But the mix of all the different style rappers and the crazy hot beats make this a banger.

Now we all know about Juicy J from the Three 6 Mafia, you have to remember the group that won an Oscar for a song

Juicy J-Hustle Till I Die

about how hard it is for a pimp.  Well he’s one of the founders of the group and one of the last two remaining artists from the originals.  But that doesn’t stop them from coming out with some old crunk shit for the ‘09.  Before I review this album as I listened to it I was disturbed a bit by the content.  This brotha has been making records for over 15 years and still raps about being hood and doing hood things.  Nothing wrong I just figured after that long and Oscars and other awards there’s a growing up period.  What you can’t be grown up and gangsta at the same time?!?

1. Hustle Till I Die – Title song starts out with a police scanner and in rolls the hook, sounding very down south and crunk.  Good song to start off with.  You can hear the maturing of his rapping, very evident especially if you heard some of his earlier work.  Nice song with an errie piano riff.

2. 30 Inches feat Gucci Mane, Project Pat – Love the 70’s sample and the crunk flow on this track.  Very pimp sounding song, sounds like a radio jam no doubt.

3. Fiyayaya Weed feat Project Pat – Blazed out gangsta shit with a hook that sounds like he’s choking on some kind of illicit drug or something.  The hook with the gal saying “Got that fiyayaya weed” is hot to death.  I’m loving this song (no I don’t smoke weed) a lot.  I love the bounce flow going on!

4. North Memphis Like Me feat V Slash – Some more gangsta shit, you ain’t Nor nor nor nor Memphis like me.  Ode to his old hood no doubt and how gangsta they are out there.  Sounds good and a nice hook to go with it.

5. My Niggaz – Such a title, an ode to his crew that always rolls with him and got his back.  Not a great song, it’s a drags a bit, uh no I’m lying it drags a lot.  Not the best song so far.

6. Ghost Dope – Well here’s a difference, sounds like a song about 5 oh suspecting and/or setting him up for some drug charges.  I’m imagining since he probably doesn’t do anything like this, makes a good story up.  I likes it sounds gangsta and undaground.

7. Violent – Another gangsta joint, boring a bit, but not too bad.

8. Let’s Get High – Man I’m geeked up, talking about poppin’ pills.  LOL not your average song for a teenageer, but the beat is sick and Juicy is flowing off on the track.  Good sound, bad message.

9. Ugh Ugh Ugh feat Webbie, Project Pat – Funny sex song with another sick beat in the background.  Really raw and graphic with the lyrics.  Hmmm just like we like it huh?  Sounds a little country at times, but a really good song in the end.  I guess that country shit is in huh?  I like the part where the hook says, “I long-d!¢k her like ugh ugh ugh.”  So hot!

10. You Niggaz Pussy Feat V Slash -  Yeah here’s Juicy J in Three 6 Mafia native form calling anyone who wants some’s card.

11. Skit – Uhhh yeah it’s a skit

12. Real D Boyz – More gangsta shit, sounds pretty good.  I like the cadence of the lyrics.  After 12 songs the gangsta shit is starting to get on the nerves.

13. Purple Kush feat Gorilla Zoe,Project Pat – Oh man another illicit drug song.  What the hell, is that all the brotha does?  Still the song sounds pretty good, it must be the hooks and his gangsta flow that keeps it interesting.  But after all these years I’d be looking for more of a broader collection of tales.

14. Skit – Yeah another skit

15. That’s What A Pimp Does – OK a mello pimped out song, throwing a little different song into the mix.  Not such a great song, a little boring.  You like it at first but as the hook goes on it wears on you.

16. Sell A Lot of Thangs – Oh shit, not another song about selling drugs and being gangsta.  Song is a bit boring but not too bad.

17. You Can Get Murked – He’s crunk and gangsta and he didn’t forget to hate on the haters.  Great beat, same flow, not that it’s such a bad thing but damn sun!

18. Get Me Some Money feat Project Pat, V Slash – Getting money by robbing him a nigga.  Beat is really sick but Project Pat messed up the song with his wackness.  Nice ass song as a whole though, I have to give it to the man.  Everything except his content has matured.

19. Fuck All Yall feat Project Pat, V Slash – I love the hating on hater songs, no one ever done it better the Three 6.  Another sick beat, he really picked them on this album.  I guess he’s going for the phat beats instead of the lyrical content.  But whatever it is is working for him.

20. Pimp Outro – Yeah another skit

All in all this is a great album, this album would’ve been classic if it wasn’t for the bland lyrical content.  But hopefully Juicy J will grow up lyrically because he sure grew as far as flow and beats.  I’ll give this album a 74%, couldn’t give the full 80% just because he didn’t really take lyrical content to the next level but everything else was.  Oh yeah he smokes too much and needs to do more (or rap about more) things to do besides, smoking, shooting people and selling drugs.

Mos Def-Estatic release June 9, 2009

Mos Def’s latest effort entitled Ecstatic is his first studio effort since 2006.  As stated in a previous post with a wide range of producers for him to flow to. Search Mos Def or click his name in the tags below this post.

1. Supermagic – Pro-Black, seventies sounding song.  Starts off with him saying the main Islamic Prayer.  Song is a bit heavy on the Islam.  Even has an arab song sample in it. Nice guitar riff, song drags a bit.

2. Twilite Speedball – This song has a really hard core beat and Mos is flowing lovely over the track with his awesome anyway flow.  The horn on this beat is so raw, this is one of the best songs on the CD.

3. Auditorium feat Slick Rick – String heavy track is dope.  Mos is being Mos on this one.  Great flow as usual, but he must have thought hard about who his guest would be on this track.  Slick Rick’s flow was perfect for this particular beat.  Very nice song, another Middle Eastern inspired song.

4. Wahid – Wow, you can really hear the Mid-Eastern theme coming through in this album.  Beat isn’t so hot, especially after hearing “Twilite Speedball.”  Song is a bit boring, beat isn’t bad it just isn’t very hot.

5. Priority – Nice mello beat with great horn section.  Good rhymes and antics over the track.  Good song, nice classic Mos Def rhymes.

6. Quiet Dog Bite Hard – Starts off Pro-Black, I love it there’s not much of that left.  But when the beat comes in, OMG, so dope.  Very jungle sounding beat while Mos Def gets jungle over the tracks, no doubt makes you want to dance to this.  This is another great song so far off this album.  Club banger right here.

7. Life In Marvelous Times – Head-nodders beat, with some hypeness added to it.  Sounds like a very industry beat, but Mos doesn’t change his style up for no reason.  He killed the beat, love his lyrics, has a lot of intelligent things to say.

8. The Embassy – I guess you would call this a skit.  It starts off with a airline flight anouncement that becomes disturbing towards the end.  Then breaks into this beat that pretty much made me start seeing colors.  I don’t really know what to think of this song.

9. No Hay Nada Mas – I imagine this is an example of Mos Def’s inner Latino coming out.  Yeah I don’t get it, the song is in spanish.  The beat is wack, uh yeah that’s all I have to say about that (sound real Forest Gump-like)

10. Pistola – Pretty cool song, has a message to it.  Beat and hook leave a little to be desired.  Not bad, Mos is singing very soulfully.

11. Pretty Danger – Nice 70 samples and jazz tone to the beat.  The beat is very eclectic to a point where it’s mad hot.  Mos is flowing and going off on the track.  He gets very soulful with the melody towards the end.  Word play is pretty awesome on this song.  But his word play is great through out the whole album.

12. Workers Comp – He starts off sounding funny on this song.  Very stringy, very Premier-sounding beat.  It’s lovely, Mos Def sounds like a combination of Reggae, Soul and backpack rap.  Pretty good combination.

13. Revelations – Beat is very funky, bassline is murder!  70’s samples work wonderfully with this beat.  His flow is supreme over this beat.  The more I listen to this album the more I’m thinking the Prince of Hip Hop.  Almost everything is sounding good, but not your average Hip Hop format.  Beyond the hot 16.

14. Roses feat Georgia Anne Muldrow – Here’s some more eclectic music, with a super-soulful Georgia Anne Muldrow singing over the Jazz piano beat.  Mos is singing, not in a Jah Rule way, more like a Prince or Deangelo way.  Kind of works for this song, maybe he should look into making a strictly soul album for his next joint.

15. History feat Talib Kweli – Not a bad song feat Talib, Rhymes are OK, beat is a bit bland.

16. Casa Bey – Another funky-ass beat for that ass to get up to.  Niceness, plus his flow is moving no doubt in the right direction on this track.  I love it, it’s so 70’s and really funky.  Mos Def got mad Brooklyn with his flow.

Album as a whole, I’ll give it a 78%, he could’ve gotten higher, especially with the mix of Mid-East and 70’s sound over up to date rhymes worked except for a few weak efforts and a bit too off the wall songs.  But I would not feel bad to pay for this album.

Jay Z went off on all the rappers using the autotune plugin for Pro Tools. Autotune is a plugin that mimicks a vocordo, think Roger Troutman’s More Bounce to the Ounce with the Zapp Band. He used an actual hardware called a vocordor that makes your voice sound like that. T Pain is the pretty much the first rapper to use the style and the rest of the industry ran with it. Recently I recorded a singer from India that asked me to make his hook sound like T Pain. I’m posting the lyrics and the song for Death of Autotune so you can hear the reference Jay Z made said about T Paining it. So basically, I Jay Z feels like I do regarding this, like everyone in the industry taking his style and running with it. Pretty much playing the Autotune sound out. This song by Jay Z is so hot, the beat is crazy and the lyrics are so on point it’s ridiculous. Check out the song and let me know what you think about the song and your thoughts on the whole T Pain sound a likes out there.  He really ripped Kanye on this single also.

Download this song (don’t worry this one’s on Jay Z)