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Who Is Curtis Jackson?

 Posted by at 12:14 PM  Uncategorized  1 Response »
Jul 312010
 

Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson.  Rapper? Movie Star? That dude from that song about bottles full of bub?  These days, fiddy is a lot of things.  For starters, he’s a man who can’t back up his promises.  By my count, Graduation destroyed Curtis in its opening week, a feat which Mr. Jackson claimed would signal the end of his career.  For some reason however, be it 50′s blaming of the record label or just a plain lack of knowledge about the word retirement (a common theme in the rap world, check out Dan’s post on retirement), 50 decided to release the rancid piece of garbage he called Before I Self-Destruct. Aside from the fact that it featured “gems” such as “Baby by Me”, it was really just sad to see the degree to which his ability to rap had declined since his debut and most acclaimed album, Get Rich or Die Tryin.

What Happened?

While for most rappers in this situation, the reasoning is usually just the pure fact that club bangers sell way more records than gritty tales featuring clever rhymes and vivid imagery (see: Fabolous, Cam’ron, anyone who has ever associated themselves with young money), the story for Curtis seems to be a tad different.  After watching 50′s appearance on “The View” (yes, the one with Whoopi Goldberg) in which Curtis comes out looking like Wayne Brady and proceeds to talk about how he’s distanced himself from the drug game, I realized he’s just a dude who want’s to clean up his image and become a movie star.  The facts line up; its pretty evident that ever since “Get Rich or Die Trying”, the semi-autobiographical drug filled thriller starring the big man himself, Curtis has been going Will Smith on us.  While that’s great for Curtis and all, where is the dude who said he was gonna “sell dope for a four-finger ring, one of them gold ropes” and invented the “g-g-g-g-g-g g-unit”?

Well funnily enough, it seems like there might be just a tiny bit of Curtis thats not drinking the kool-aid.  The other day a track surfaced, possibly from the Power of the Dollar days, called Talk Is Cheap, and it really served as a firm reminder of where 50 used to be as a rapper.  This song is classic, Get Rich or Die Tryin-level material.  At the same time, can’t really blame a guy for wanting to get away from the drug life and make something better for himself.  I mean hey, even Big Willie Style had to get his ass out of West Philly when shit got rough.

He Got In One Little Fight...

Anyways, it really looks like 50′s rap career is slowing to a halt, and while due to his recent music I can’t say I’m all too sad, he’s still a one of the better rappers of my generation, for better or worse.  And hey, looks like shit worked out for Will Smith, so who can blame 50.  Now all he has to do is make an iconic uber-90′s hilarious sitcom where he moves in with Alonso Ribeiro.

The Kaiser Chiefs

 Posted by at 10:37 AM  Uncategorized  No Responses »
Jul 312010
 

I want to start off by saying that I have a soft spot for British rock. Maybe it’s the accent that gets me, but I fall for it hook, line, and sinker. It is also possible that it’s just Emma Watson that gets me, but that’s a different story entirely. An English band that is surprisingly underappreciated in the U.S. is the Kaiser Chiefs, which is comprised of five members from Leeds.

The Kaiser Chiefs have released three albums so far, (“Employment”, “Yours Truly, Angry Mob”, and “Off with Their Heads”) and each album has climbed to either the first or second spot on the U.K. charts. They have, however, not had the same success in the U.S., which hurts me personally because I have two of their songs (I Predict a Riot and Ruby) on my iTunes 25 most played songs. It is not an easy feat for European bands to bridge the gap across the Atlantic Ocean. The Arctic Monkeys, for example, have fared better than the Chiefs, but even the Arctic Monkeys deserve more recognition in the U.S., and I am not even going to start talking about the respect that Muse deserves because in my head (very much intended) they are the best modern day band.

The Kaiser Chiefs integrate an electronic aspect into their music which works beautifully with their brand of guitar riffs, but what I find most interesting is that they have two lead vocalists. This creates a very unique blending effect for all of their lyrics. All three of their albums are filled with songs that have catchy beats, lyrics, and guitar solos like: Ruby, I Predict a Riot, Everything is Average Nowadays, Everyday I love you less and less, and Never miss a Beat… honestly, the majority of their songs are good. You will not be disappointed by the Kaiser Chiefs, you may even go on to buy all three of their albums, as I have while writing this post.

Hip Hop Essentials: 2Pac's Me Against The World

 Posted by at 3:21 PM  Uncategorized  No Responses »
Jul 302010
 

1995 was an interesting year for Tupac Shakur. After being shot while entering a recording studio in late 1994, and subsequently blaming Bad Boy Records for “setting him up”, ‘Pac began a prison sentence for sexual assault in February ’95. A month later, while still in jail, his third solo album Me Against The World was released. Me Against The World is clearly a landmark album for 2Pac, as it marked the beginning of the lyrical style that he has become best known for. His first two releases, 2Pacalypse Now and Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z. were both very good albums in their own right, but Me Against The World was the album to really thrust 2Pac into the conversation of the greatest MC’s of his time.

Content wise, I would describe Me Against The World in two simple words: deep and real. It’s a departure from his first two albums, where the main themes were social and political change, as here 2Pac instead sheds light on his own personal issues. Me Against The World is all about ‘Pac showing you his true colors; how he feels about life, women, money, friends, drugs, and anything else that was plaguing his mind at the time. The entire album is like a journey deep into 2Pac’s mind, with each track revealing a different part. Song themes range from women (Temptations, Can U Get Away), to family (Dear Mama), to the youth (Young Niggaz), to his love for hip hop (Old School). Me Against The World also marks the beginning of 2Pac’s infamous infatuation with death, and his accompanying paranoia (Death Around The Corner, If I Die 2Nite).

“If I could choose when a nigga die, figure I’d
take a puff on the blunt, and let my trigga fly” (Lord Knows)

Most will argue that All Eyez On Me is 2Pac’s best album, but I would have to give Me Against The World a slight edge. That’s no knock on All Eyez On Me; it’s a very close call and both would honestly be in my top 10 albums of all time, but Me Against The World is just closer to perfection. The album is really the perfect glimpse into 2Pac’s mind in arguably the most hectic time of his career, put together without any filler and full of standout tracks. If you’re a hip hop fan and have yet to explore this album for yourself, do yourself a favor and check it out. Here’s a personal favorite to get you started: Lord Knows

Fuck Off Friday

 Posted by at 11:43 AM  Uncategorized  No Responses »
Jul 302010
 

Alright so today’s fuck-off friday is inspired by legend of the game Zach “Juice” Davis, who drunkenly sang the entire German verse (along with all the others, obviously) for a large crowd of people.  As we all agreed that this is one cover that definitely trumps the original, I knew that this had to make fuck-off friday.  Anyways, enjoy this “99 Red Balloons” from everyone’s favorite one-hit wonder, Goldfinger.

A Quick Update: Cudi, Lupe, and J. Cole

 Posted by at 8:35 PM  News  No Responses »
Jul 292010
 

Alright so this is gonna be mostly just a follow up on a few earlier posts Ive written.  First up, new music from J. Cole, potentially off of his upcoming debut LP Cole World, its called “Problems” and you can download it here.  Next up is a follow up to the piece I wrote last week on the future of Kid Cudi.  Cudi dropped what is presumably going to be the next single on his now delayed (scheduled for an October release-fuck G.O.O.D. music day) second album, Man On the Moon II: The Legend Of Mr. Rager.  It’s entitled “Mojo So Dope” and it really just sounds as if the emotion is forcibly depressed.  As I usually say, there is worse stuff out there, but I definitely expect more from Cudder (check it here).  Last ups, Lupe fiasco has responded to the claims made against him by former producer Prolyfic (as I discussed in this week’s Hatin on Mondays).  The comments were shared courtesy of Hip Hop DX, and in short Lupe essentially that remarked that Prolyfic was no longer a part of his life, and therefore did not know anything about him or his album.  Again, as much as I love lupe, can’t say I side with him on this one.

On an unrelated note, this blog has really been blowing up lately and I want to thank everyone out there who’s been reading.  When Dan and I started this blog almost four weeks ago, we never could have dreamed that we would reach 250 views in a single day like we did yesterday.  Anyways, keep up the support, follow us on twitter (@allmyheadmusic) and become a fan on facebook.

Bringin Out Books: The 12th Dimension EP and the Start of Bobby Ray

 Posted by at 3:57 PM  Uncategorized  No Responses »
Jul 292010
 

Before he had a number 1 selling album, before he changed his name, before Georgia Durt became Playboy Tre, before he even had an entry on wikipedia, the only thing on the web where you could find information on the slowly rising rap star B.o.B was on his myspace.  The page looked like it belonged to some kid out of high school, but it featured a pretty lengthy description about who he was, and more importantly, in a time when everyone thought BOB stood for Bombs Over Baghdad, what BoB stood for: Bringin Out Blunts, Business Over Bitches, Bringing out Books; really, it meant whatever you wanted it to.  At the time, he only had one mixtape to his name, an EP called The 12th Dimension . 

Despite only containing 5 songs and sounding very different from The Adventures of Bobby Ray (imagine comparing The Low End Theory with Beats, Rhymes and Life), I believe that this EP is Bobby Ray’s greatest work thus far.  After seeing BoB live for the first time at Rock The Bells ’08 (the first of 3 Bobby Ray shows I’ve had the pleasure of attending) and experiencing “Cloud 9″ (see below), I knew this guy was special, and when I got home and checked out the album, I felt no differently.  Despite the fact that his music has clearly taken on a new direction (which I can understand, although I have a hard time loving it), if you are a current BoB fan or just someone who loves stoner rap (Yea, he was doing this way before Cudi and Young Khalifa Mayne), check out the EP (Download Here).

If you don’t end up singing the chorus of this next one in your head all day, then you are not human.

Kanye, Welcome Back

 Posted by at 11:58 PM  Uncategorized  No Responses »
Jul 282010
 

After a much disappointing last album in 808′s and Heartbreaks, Kanye West is back. Today our good friends at 2dopeboyz released these videos of Kanye preforming some stuff off his upcoming album set to drop August 3rd. Take a listen. You will clearly see that Kanye has brought himself together for this album and has returned to being a strong rapper and not an auto-tune fiend.

Random-Ass Indie Band To Look Out For: Freelance Whales

 Posted by at 9:19 PM  Uncategorized  No Responses »
Jul 282010
 

The first Random-Ass Indie Band To Look Out For of my career is Freelance Whales.  The five-piece band from Staten Island (go figure) makes some interesting indie pop that fits nicely into today’s underground scene.  Their first album, Weathervanes, came out at the beginning of this year and has at least a few songs that merit R-AIBTLOF recognition.

I learned a lot about these guys by checking out their website, www.freelancewhales.com.  Specifically, about how strange they are.  They claim to have recorded Weathervanes in “a dilapidated geriatric ward”.  And if you make it to the bottom of the ‘History’ page on the site, you learn that Weathervanes itself is actually a concept album.  (This is pretty ambitious for a band that has no prior releases.  I call it ‘ambitious’ because I’m not sure I can think of another band, from any time or genre, that has done the same.)  Anyway, here’s the ‘concept’, in their own words:

“a young male falls in love with the spectral young femme who haunts his childhood home. He chases her in his dreams but finds her to be mostly elusive. He imagines her alive, and wonders if someday he’ll take on her responsibilities of ghosting, or if maybe he’ll join her, elsewhere.”

I have a few questions myself about this paragraph, including: Why is it so well written? Since when is ‘ghost’ a verb? How can a ghost be ‘mostly’ elusive? Isn’t that whole plot super fucked up? and finally, Why do I give a shit?

Fortunately, I was able to answer the most important of those.  I give a shit because the music sounds great.  Freelance Whales’ sound is a collage of cool instruments that perfectly compliment the singer’s good-enough voice.  I haven’t heard a ton of new bands make a banjo, an electric guitar, a xylophone and a watering pail coexist like these guys do in “Generator (Second Floor)”.  Combine their unique sound with their even more unique lyrics (‘unique’ probably isn’t strong enough a word; in “Hannah” they rhyme ‘player-hater’ with ‘lemon Now N’ Later’) and you get yourself a real band.  Or at least, a random-ass indie band to look out for.

I'm Just Sayin..I'm Just Sayin..

 Posted by at 5:35 PM  Uncategorized  No Responses »
Jul 282010
 

Although, not done intentionally, I found the way Mick Boogie sampled Marvin Gaye and remixed Jay-Z’s song, Hello Brooklyn, profound.  The remix I am referring to (Hello Brooklyn 2.0, as seen below) is on Boogie’s mixtape titled Brooklyn Soul.   (Every song done on the mixape is an American Gangster rap done over a Marvin Gaye sample.  It is kind of cool if you want to check it out.  Click here).  This particular remix samples Marvin Gaye’s hit single, What’s Going On – a song told from the point of view of a Vietnam Veteran who comes back to America only to see that there is injustice and hatred.  After being a soldier in the war, the Vietnam veteran, or narrator of Gaye’s single, comes to the conclusion that America needs to change in a direction that is more loving and accepting.  What makes this interesting, though, is that the lyrics to Hello Brooklyn are about Jay-Z’s admiration and love for his hometown, Brooklyn.  In fact, in many places in the song he compares the love he feels for Brooklyn to the love he feels for his mother.  This juxtaposition between Jay’s, Hello Brooklyn, released in 2007 and Marvin Gaye’s 1971 single describes a difference in the attitude of musicians of these two time periods.  While many were more critical of society in America during the time of Marvin Gaye, musicians today such as Jay-Z  seem to be more focused on representing loyalty to their hometown.

Charles Hamilton: Who, What and Why?

 Posted by at 10:57 AM  News  No Responses »
Jul 282010
 

Originally, I was going to write an article on XV who just “took his talents to Warner Bros. Records” for a multi-album contract. Then, I came across some news on Charles Hamilton. It seems that the Brooklyn based rapper has checked into a mental hospital. The reason? MUSIC. To be honest, I can’t say I’m surprised. The past 2 years have been quite odd for him. Let’s backtrack.

Late 2008: Charles Hamilton’s hit single Brookyln Girls is played on an episode of Entourage. Result: He gains popularity but still is just considered a mixtape rapper.

Early 2009: Charles is named one of XXL’s Top Freshman of 2009. Result: Chuck releases a song with Asher Roth and B.o.B. entitled, Change Gone Come.

Spring 2009: Charles is caught in an altercation with an unknown woman. It gains noterierty. Result: People start to question his character.

Afterwards, Charles disappears for quite some time. He reappeared early in 2010, releasing a statement that he was “supposed” have been part of the supergroup Slaughterhouse.

Charles Hamilton on the cover of XXL magazine in 2009 with the likes of Kid Cudi, Asher Roth, B.o.b, Curren$y and Blu.

From here on out, Charles began to release mixtapes at a rapid pace and was said to be working on an album with DJ Skee. All roads pointed towards a Josh Hamilton-esque return to the game. His up and down career has come to a screeching halt as news of his admittance has surfaced. When asked about his decision he responded:

“In this hospital I can really be my natural self. Just like I am in the Industry but everyone is so content with putting up this fake imagery that feel like being yourself ruins your image. Everything I’ve done in this industry, whether it was based on outside speculation, peer pressure, or the outside feeling I was being extorted or the outside feeling I was buggin out, I remained true to me.”

What lays ahead for Charles? No one knows. We can only speculate about what could have been and what may be, but in the mean time it seems that the bright lights of New York and the hip-hop game got the best of him.

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