May 16, 2009

Please Direct Your Attention to Hip Hop

EXTRA EXTRA READ ALL ABOUT IT: Hip Hop is getting good again.


Statik Selektah calls it out on "The Thrill Is Gone", the first single from his September-due The Hangover - "I think Nas said 'Hip Hop is Dead' 'cause he couldn't see the culture in it...too many funny clothes, too many autotunes." TRUE. But some tracks have spun my way recently that give some hope.

First up is the aforemention "The Thrill Is Gone", a track that features Styles P and Talib Kweli and puts some hard verses over a chill beat. Zack's been a big fan of Statik Selektah for a while, but I'm just coming around. Happy to join the party.

Statik Selektah f. Styles P and Talib Kweli - The Thrill Is Gone (YSI) (filesavr)

The second track that is surprisingly hot comes from just those things that Selektah calls out. Clipse, fresh off of the release of their PlayCloths fashion line, team up with Captain Autotune himself, Kanye West. A weird combination and one I wouldn't have expected, but hey, don't knock it till you've tried it. I've tried it, and it's pretty hot. Clipse are their usual selves, bragging about spending cash in a recession. Kanye, on the other hand, finally spits a real verse - remember that he's actually a pretty solid rapper? Self-aware and self-depricating, he doesn't bug me on this track. Still, although I love the swagger, I hope the rest of the album is a little harder than this tune.

Clipse f. Kanye West - Kinda Like A Big Deal (YSI) (filesavr)

Finally, the latest from Mos Def, personal hero. Every time someone mentions Mos around me, my only response is "What a cool dude". Because seriously, what a cool dude. I love his flow on this track, so relaxed but fiery hot. I really dig this tune, and I'm super excited to get my hands on The Ecstatic when it drops on June 9.

Mos Def - Casa Bey (YSI) (filesavr)

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