The video premiered last night. I think the song is pretty good although I’m a Curtis superfan so that shit will not top the original in my book. Still I am hooked on Lupe Fiasco now (according to lastfm the only artist I listen to more is Papa Reu) and this video is fun. Fuck I liked the Kanye album a lot and I haven’t listened to it in like two months so I am about spent on talking about his music, just watch the video. It is dope. I promise my next post will not link to YOUTUBE.

1 more thing: 1 More Hit, a trailer for a new doc on J-Swift and his struggles with addiction. And some real talk about ‘trap-hop’ real talk from Jeff Chang:

i don’t object to the fact that crack rap exists, nor that some of it is aesthetically, uh, dope, i object to critics or progressives praising or denouncing it like it doesn’t intersect with reality.

While it may appear that Philadelphia has absolutely no underground hip-hop scene to your random backpacker observer, this observation couldn’t be further from the truth. The “underground hip-hop” that is alive and well in Philadelphia isn’t one that congregates at random showcases and open-mikes in trendy areas of town, and you won’t see these dudes frequenting the Sage Francis and Aesop Rock concerts that pop-up every couple months. The Philadelphia underground rap scene is being dominated and documented by Freestyle DVDs that capture some of these up-coming folks on their blocks, or outside their studios, or randomly, coming out of Boston Market. Some folks have been kind enough to upload a bunch of this stuff to You Tube which is the best shit ever. Peep.

Hollow-Man
West Philly’s finest. Dude is ridiculous.
By the way, if anybody can get me in touch with this dude, holler at me

* “I see birds like I’m downtown tossin out bread“

* “You can look me in the face and tell that I’m hungry”
(about half way in… stick around for Oschino, too.)

Peedi Crakk
NP’s Puerto-Rican Allen Iverson.

* “Pussy, money and thugs what I’m talkin’ about“
(Old shit from like ’99)

* “From North Philly and you from Bumblefuck”
(Old shit from ’99 with Freeway… Freeway kills it)

Sandman
“Yeeeeaaaah Cannoooonsss…”

* “Pussy, you don’t know me“

Meek Millz
North Philly young bol.

* “Ni**a, are you kiddin? I got rhythm like a rockin’ chair“

*”Lugers, lugers and uzis to move your body left and right“

-e

“Fuck you, I found me.”

Oh you want something new?

Trae and ABN – Asshole/Storm Da South
“Who the fuck said the south ain’t got no lyricists?!”
Get it in high quality here; you can also see a video of Trae and Chingo Bling premiering their new song together on some Houston radio station. And the ‘big news’ this week is that Trae inked a deal between his G Maab Ent., Assylum and Rap-A-Lot for his album. And make sure to cop Whut It Dew 3 for more of dude’s shit.

We play on the internet posting songs and talking about how they make us feel. Usually it feels good, to talk about it and if there is one thing I love about music, especially rap music, isn’t just the challenge to my ‘musical sensibilities,’ my eternal search for new sounds; the experience of difference constantly challenges me to engage with major problems in how I look at the world and how I engage with it. How I learn about myself and about other people and race and class and gender and struggle and how power is used to control and marginalize and feel uncomfortable and sometimes voyeuristic and sometimes like I am doing the right fucking thing. And sometimes there is no right thing.

This is difficult to talk about because, whatever challenges/struggles I’ve had in my life it doesn’t compare, and you can grow up poor and live astride a giant metropolis and never understand what it’s like to live in some neighborhoods and some housing projects; you can see them, the notorious buildings standing stark against a gray backdrop and force yourself to look out the window on the brown line as you pass it by, or on the Chicago ave. bus, or walking down halsted (during the daylight of course) but you can never really understand because you don’t live there and you might meet someone who lived there, and talk, and you know the distance is far too wide, the gulf of experience too braod, and all your good intentions can’t do shit because you are, perhaps, part of the problem. It is hard to do ‘what’s right’ or know what’s right. No one is above it. You’re gliding past the Merchandise Mart and condos, then you count yr blessings and the train pulls past the reds and whites and again you see condos. I have trouble saying what I feel here, except that this is a history you don’t get in books, a history that needs to be seen. And I certainly would feel overwhelmed by this task, to document some of the last years of Cabrini’s existence. In their words and footage:

gangstacity.net

“Gangsta City is a full length, feature documentary film, filmed for over 5 years (2001-06) entirely at the Cabrini-Green housing project in Chicago, IL. The movie offers a unique perspective and in depth access into the lives of Cabrini’s residents during their final years living in the complex. In addition, the film details the entire history of Cabrini-Green, from it’s creation to it’s demise. Not just the history that you might find in a history book, but the street history you won’t find anywhere else.

Virtually the entire film has been shot by the residents themselves, and virtually the entire soundtrack has been produced and performed by the residents themselves. This is a movie that is by Cabrini, about Cabrini, and for Cabrini. Something the ex-residents can look at to remember their past. Something non-residents can look at to view a world they’ve only read about or heard about, but never seen. Something political leaders can look at to view the mistakes that past political leaders or even they themselves have made, and the results that have come from those mistakes.

The portrait this film paints is both brutal and sad, yet it is 100% reality. This film is not meant as a glorification of gangs, violence, and street life, it is meant as an education on gangs, violence, and street life. Many Americans don’t even know that places such as Cabrini-Green exist, and those that do know would just assume pretend it doesn’t exist. Yet no solution can be gained by simply ignoring the problem. America must realize that there is 3rd world violence and living conditions in their own back yard. For the last 30+ years Cabrini-Green has stood tall as the national symbol for “ghetto” America. It is considered the pinnacle of all housing projects, and was once widely considered the most dangerous place in all of America. For the first time ever, Cabrini-Green will be seen from the inside looking out. This is Cabrini-Green’s story, as told by the people that lived there.

Please note: The film is currently in post-production and should be completed by the spring of ’06. This film has been produced with virtually 0 budget and no outside backing, funding, or help. This is a true independent film. This film has been shot with a Sony VX-2000, no other equipment has been used in the making of this film… 1 camera, 1 computer.”

If I had to pick one Chicago Rapper About To Blow from the list of Chicago rappers who probably won’t, I would pick LUPE FIASCO and I thought this before the trailer to the new Kanye video feat Lupe leaked. And before Fader mag had a piece on the dude with (as usual) some great photos. I thought it because whenever I listen to his tracks he sounds profoundly confident, and it just seems so easy to imagine he’s already a superstar. OK he’s not even from my side of the Chi, but seeing as Diverse hasn’t dropped anything in a minute I’ll stick with the guy who actually has a chance to blow.

Lupe Fiasco – Pop Pop
This one is probably a non-starter outside of local shows, because as soon as those opening notes hit house aficianados will recognize Frankie Knuckles “Your Love” immediately. Here it’s clearly being used as a crowd pleaser, because the production is cool, tripping like some Young Gunz beat or something (2nd YG reference in three days!) but not amazing, a few tones you recognize to get the (Chicago) audience moving. I thought it was cool a friend of mine thought it sounded kind of like a Ma$e track, because thats the kind of music Puffy used on Harlem World – early 80s dance classics, with smooth relaxed rapping on top. Lupe’s verse: “Sent shots ten blocks, lift tops off red cops and bend blocks in Benz drops I’ve been hot now shake spot don’t take shot like hen rock my grip lock on big glocks that miss not that’ll tip yachts and flip drops so spit hot…” and I lose it there, probably got some of it wrong, but yeah he’s talented, smooth internal rhymes, fucking me UP.

Comin From Where I’m From feat. Anthony Hamilton
Hamilton is an amazing singer, and it would be hard for any rapper to sound shitty spitting real talk over this track. But I think Fiasco makes his mark anyway, emotive performance, “Gotta reap what you sow, grow what you till here, your mama reaped what you sowed, cause you was killed there / Police put cameras on poles, too many deals there, How does it feel knowin innocence was killed here?” God damn this reminds me how much I think Anthony Hamilton kicks ass. If you like this cop his album here, one of the best R&B records of the past couple years.

And yeah like most other rap bloggers have said already Fiasco is the truth etc. etc. etc.

Allhiphop.com: “Calling female rapper Charli Baltimore a soldier would be an understatement.”

Superbroker shuffle, this is outrageous.

OK maybe not but this album is great!

Global warming is my shit; its like 50+ degrees in Chicago in January, which is a serious what-the-fuck but it means semi-spring, which is perfect for Papa Reu’s warm weather thump. Dropping next week, the not-quite-smooth carribeanized vox behind “Tight Whips” awesome hook is not yr sister’s Akon. His rapping is serviceable and workmanlike but usually personal and sounds honest; the key though is his pop ear, his croon, the ragga-inflected twinge that I love about all American pseudo-carribean pop, but it’s definitely a rap release – “we’re gonna keep it a little gangsta… a little ragga ragga…” The best of the best:

Street’s Calling feat. Curren$y
Sub-Timbaland bongo double-time thump over dark-textured synths, Barrington Levy-daubed hook, asserting stick-up kid attitude, murrrrderrah bloody murrrrderah. ooh WHOA-Oh-oh. Streets’ anthem.

Mr. Goodbye
Oh and HERE is where the clouds part and the sun cuts through the cold. Bright, faintly warm sparkling cool-breeze production and Reu is Mr. Goodbye, loving and leaving, vocal hook cutting in and out a la “Oh Boy,” breezy February pop a la “No Better Love,” and Reu refuses to settle down – “I’m in and I’m out the door.” Because sometimes you just know that you don’t have anything else in mind, there is no future in that room, tugging the blankets away from her to keep warm until finally throwing them off, taking a swig of listerine spit in the sink, and he’s gone, a fresh start.

Hold On feat. YZ
Yes, that YZ!

Classic sub-Poor Righteous Teachers shows up for the CONSCIOUS REGGAE TRACK except its totally hip-hop with smooth strings and horns, real talk about AIDS and drugs and poverty and telling people to hold on – to maintain, because “they don’t care how we live up in the ghetto” – key chorus lyric.

Ridin’ Old School
I rewound this like 15 times on my way from work the other day, bouncing a little two step waiting for the EL, puffy jacket unzipped to let the cool breeze in, free from the climate-controlled recycled air and cardboard dust, fixing my hat brim to keep it straight ahead, saucony’s (Papa Reu is wearing wing tips but then he’s not taking public transportation) tapping the worn wooden platform. “You ever spend $5,000 on some shit…and when you get thru with it, its worth 80, 90, 100,000 fucking dollars?!” Smooth keyboard bounce with that smooth croon: what H-town album would be complete without a tribute to cars, and one that sounds like love rather than a laundry list of puns about how the trunk pops!

He’s All That I Want
Big bright horns, weird wacka wacka noise, and then hook girl Zoe singing about how her man is all that she wants, but he’s running the streets. If you like Akon hooks but not Akon songs this might be the album for you – existential hustler turmoil about love, the thematic flip to “Mr. Goodbye.”

Highway feat. Boo
Oh shit story time – uh so this sounds like Ak’s “Outta State” with, like, that weird sound from Daft Punk’s “Around the World”?! “There’s only one way and it’s gonna be the highway…no plane no train, I prefer it in the rain…” ever since 9/11 fucked up the airport smuggle.

Life & Music feat. Cazual
“Seventy-five alive is when I came out.” Personal where-I’m-from cut: shy kid at parties with cute small funk stabs in the chorus, talks about building from singing hooks to songs, and this is of course the key: dude isn’t just a solid rapper, but a good songwriter. I donno who does the beats on this but the hooks are all Reu, the concepts, the songs, and the production could easily have been misused and abused. Reu’s “Thug Hall” is obv a gimmick-’genre’ (really the only song that sounds like that is the uptempo regga-ish “Twist Your Cap” which is cool but not really a highlight) but his real ‘genre’ is rap, and what that means is that he can cannibalize other shit at will – R&B crooning, pop atmosphere/hooks, dancehall inflections and language, Houston culture; he’s even successful stretching out into introspective shit – “My Dog” about his best friend is so heartfelt-sounding, croaking sub-Scarface about strong bonds and loyalty. First great rap album of ’06.