The Music Thread

[[Q]]

I've had enough of Akon since Smack That came out.

add the one with Snoop on there too. I can't go on a trip in my car without hearing those 2 Akon songs

[cklitsie]

No no, not enough said. You're right when you say Jay-Z > Jeezy and R. Kelly > Akon.
It's just that their collab on Soul Survivor was an great song, better than anything I've heard off of Best of Both Worlds.

And the R. Kelly > Akon doesn't go in my opinion either. Akon sounded great doing the hook on some hiphop songs, it's just that his solo songs are too not very appealing. But I realise more people would probably not agree with me and say R. Kelly > Akon.

[Jugs]

Nas - Hip Is Dead was a good album. I feel like a nooblet saying that's the first ever Nas album I've listened to.

I also listened to Talib Kweli - Quality for the first time as well, that was good too lol.

I also listened to Fed-X - Drug War. I recommend it, it's not killer but it's okay and I liked it.

[Laxation]

listened to the new weird al cd tonight...

not many LPMs, except for Canadian Idiot and Polkarama (polka is always good for a laugh)
Worth a listen, but wouldnt pay too much for it. Running With Scissors was way better

[Dramacydal]

You're right when you say Jay-Z > Jeezy and R. Kelly > Akon.

And the R. Kelly > Akon doesn't go in my opinion either.

Huh?

Anyways, in my opinion Akon doesn't even come close to R.Kelly, period.

[Tuomas]

Nas - Hip Is Dead was a good album. I feel like a nooblet saying that's the first ever Nas album I've listened to.

Well Illmatic obviously is the next one to check out.

Checked out some 'new' records, haven't had time really lately to catch up...

Snoop's Blue Carpet Treatment : OK, not anything I'll remember 2 years from now, club hooks etc. but it some songs are ok. Esp. Crazy and Candy btw, why does everyone have to have The Game on their LP? That schmuck really has no talent and his repertoire grew old on his first cd, I'll avoid his newest if no-one convinces me otherwise.

Xzibit - Full Circle : I really like this album, the opening track and Concentrate have really tight beats, something I like and I also like how he once again relied on himself pretty much on the production, it sounds a lot like 40 Dayz & 40 Nights, another good album. But The Game delivers one of the worst lyrics I've heard in a while on On Bail, it was just horrendous, sure Death Row rhymes with Death Row

[Jugs]

Is it wrong that a guy that openly admits being a 50 Cent fan pays me out for digging 4-5 Eazy-E songs?

[cklitsie]

Huh?

You would've got my point if you read my whole post.. and the point of my post obviously wasn't 'Akon > R. Kelly'.

[Dramacydal]

^I did read your whole post, don't worry.

And to me it doesn't matter if you think Akon > Kells or not because that'd be your personal taste. I love R.Kelly's music, probably the best voice any R'N'B singer has ever had.

[Cloudy]

The 100 Best Songs of the Year
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/12769472/the_100_best_songs_of_2006

1 "Crazy"
Gnarls Barkley
In a perfect world, Al Green could still sing collard-green soul gems like this one, but Cee-Lo and Danger Mouse stepped up with an instant classic, winning this year's "Hey Ya!" award for the song nobody even pretended not to like. Everybody tried to cover it (our personal fave: the Raconteurs') -- but nobody can hit the chorus like Cee-Lo, and nobody ever will.

2 "Steady As She Goes"
The Raconteurs
The first single from Brendan Benson and Jack White's garage-glam band was a perfect dirty sundae of fuzz-box stutter, metallic zoom and pop-chorale candy. It is also a good reason to hope the Raconteurs are no one-album project.

3 "Ridin'"
Chamillionaire
The song least likely to be played in Drivers' Ed.: Chamillionaire dodges the cops, riding dirty with a car full of thugs who don't care where they're rolling or if they get there in one piece.

4 "What You Know"
T.I.
T.I. gets majestic with bass and synth strings booming like your car just flipped the corner. What you know about that? T.I. knows all about that.

5 "Vans"
The Pack
Bay Area MCs the Pack broke out with this sleek, bare-bones ode to midpriced sneakers. Words of warning: "Lace 'em past the fourth hole, you some type of sucker."

Man! Didn't expect Crazy to be the top of 100... Great song though and it's even in Live 07. Check out the entire list guys, and you in US get to listen free too.

[Oznogrd]

not really surprised here cloudy, one of the few songs i heard on EVERY station all year...

[Joe']

I'm actually kinda disgusted by the fact that 3 out of 5 songs in that Top 5 list are Rap/Hip-Hop songs

[Jugs]

Yeah and Crazy is the only good song out of the 3.

BTW, Hey Ya is the greatest song of all time.

[sdude]

Lady Sovereign
why haven't I heard about her before? quite interesting music....

[Oznogrd]

Jugs, Hey ya greatest song ever? i hope thats sarcasm. While good, you need to delve into some things made before you were born, hell made before i was born too. There's some good shit in the past and stuff today just doesnt measure up

Sdude, The chick looks like she's 12 and her music is terrible filtered pop girl power eminem wannabe rap. You worry me

[Dean]

Hes serious, loves his OutKast that kid

[Jugs]

Okay first off, I'm not an idiot and I know Hey Ya isn't THE greatest song of all time. It does not compare to any of the great songs made before the 2000's.

But Hey Ya is a pretty darn good song

[Oznogrd]

Alright i'll give ya that one. I was about to say if your an OutKast fan and Hey Ya is the greatest song i'd go through the catalog and give you 20 better.

Currently Listening: Still on a Tenacious D kick and i'm not even sure why

[shadowgrin]

Athlete-rappers weren't a modern idea after all.

Was Muhammad Ali the first rapper?

"Float like a butterfly/ Sting like a bee/ Your hands can't hit/ What your eyes can't see."

Muhammad Ali's rhymes, taunts, provocations and exclamations were an endlessly entertaining and insightful facet of his larger-than-life persona. As he once said, "I outwit them and then I outhit them."

A new book, "Ali Rap: Muhammad Ali the First Heavyweight Champion of Rap," proclaims Ali's verbal barrage was more than self-promotion, but that it sowed the seeds of hip-hop, which was born in the early `70s.

"Before there was rap ... there was Ali Rap ... a topsy-turvy, jivey jargon that only Ali could create, but a language we could all understand," writes the book's editor and designer, George Lois.

The book is not a continued analysis of this claim, but nearly 300 pages of examples, illustrated by a quote roughly every page that issued from Ali's world-class mouth. Lois, a renowned ad man and graphic designer, recently told The Associated Press he wanted to condense Ali's many sayings and memorable utterances into a "small, fat book — like a Bible or a Quran."

Lois remembers riding in a car with Ali years ago when a rap song came on the radio. Lois suggested Ali was a rapper himself, to which the boxer responded: "I'm a double rapper. First I rap them with my mouth, then I rap them in the mouth."

Presented chronologically, "Ali Rap" takes the reader from Ali's Kentucky childhood, through his historic fights against Sonny Liston, Joe Frazier and George Foreman — and finally to his current struggles with Parkinson's disease.

Even as an 89-pound 12-year-old, Ali — who as a teenager was known by some as "The Louisville Lip" or "Mighty Mouth" — had found his flow: "This guy is done. I'll stop him in one."

Ali's life story is all told through Ali's own words, in hysterical soundbites and intimate reflections. Lois, who counts himself a friend of Ali's, famously designed a 1964 Esquire magazine cover showing Ali punctured with arrows — an allusion to the criticism he received for refusing to fight in the Vietnam War, and modeled after the San Sebastian painting by Francesco Botticini.

The book's bold, catchy boast that Ali invented rap is certainly debatable. Surely, hip-hop has more to gain by the association than Ali, who has always transcended all categorization.

Writing for ESPN — which published the book with Taschen — pop culture critic Chuck Klosterman pondered, "If true, this would mean that rap did not originate (as commonly believed) in the South Bronx during the `70s; it would mean that rap was invented in Kentucky during the `60s.

"This is hard to accept because there are very few memorable rap songs about competitive horse racing and/or Rex Chapman."

But there are more than a few rappers in Ali's corner, including Public Enemy's Chuck D, a well-respected elder statesman of hip-hop. Chuck D (born Carlton Douglas Ridenhour) recently hosted an ESPN special on Ali's love of language, which also included Rakim, Ludacris, Doug E. Fresh, Fab 5 Freddy, Jermaine Dupri and MC Lyte.

"He was able to engage his social surroundings into his whole persona. That's what hip-hop was able to do — to be an antenna for social reflection," Chuck D told The AP. "He's one of the few black people to get on TV in the '60s and speak their minds — thank God — and also back up what he talked about."

Ali often spoke out about racism, Vietnam and his religion of Islam — but it was usually in a purely self-expressionist, non-confrontational way. He once said of race relations in America — speaking in almost Yogi Berra-style contradiction — "Nothing is wrong, but something ain't right."

Ali's outspokenness was unusual in the Jim Crow-era South. Oddly enough, Ali infrequently seemed to use the boxing ring to let out his frustration — instead, his outlet was a steady stream of unabashed confidence.

"Where do you think I would be if I didn't shout and holler?" he once said. "I would be poor and down in Louisville washing windows, shining shoes or running an elevator and saying `Yes suh' and `No suh,' and knowing my place."

Rap's connection to social injustice is more tenuous today, though. The well-regarded lyricist Nas is releasing an album titled "Hip Hop is Dead," suggesting the music has lost its way. So even if Ali fathered hip-hop, he might not recognize his grandkids.

"It was important to the early rap artists and DJs to understand and tie into Muhammad Ali's persona and brilliance," says Chuck D. "The further we got away from that and the further away we get from history, hip-hop and rap seemed to form its own sort of story — which is not always good to get away from the reasons you were doing it in the first place."

Another possible progeny of Ali's motormouth is the less-esteemed art of trash talking. Though it was then a little-used tactic, trash talking is a constant in today's sports.

"Most of it was done with such humor," says Lois, noting the exception when Ali "lost his cookies" to be when Floyd Patterson refused to call him Muhammad, instead repeatedly calling him by his original name, Cassius Clay. "But there's trash talk and there's trash talk. The guys who trash talk today, maybe Ali doing it gave them permission to be trash talkers, but I don't think it's his legacy."

Ali was extremely conscious of his legacy — he was, after all, "the greatest" and "shook up the world." And he wasn't ever concerned about his verbiage making it into poetry books.

"You call my poetry horrible?" he said. "I bet my poetry gets printed and quoted more than any that's been turned out by the poem writers that them critics like."

Truly, a "baaad man."

[KIG1]

If you guys haven't got The Doctor's Avocate by Game, I reccomend it.

[SkipToMy_Lou]

My best of Saigon mixtape is done if any of ya'll want to check it

http://certifiedhiphop.blogspot.com/200 ... of_20.html

Saigon & Papoose leaders of the new school

[Nick]

I don't know whether it's been discussed already or not, but has anybody here heard the new Incubus album?

My thoughts are that it's quite good. My expectations were low. As, if Crow Left Of A Murder was any indication, it was going to be pretty gay. But i was pleasently suprised.

[Jing]

I don't know whether it's been discussed already or not, but has anybody here heard the new Incubus album?

My thoughts are that it's quite good. My expectations were low. As, if Crow Left Of A Murder was any indication, it was going to be pretty gay. But i was pleasently suprised.

I've heard several songs on the album. Personally I've never listened to them before because I found their previous songs really whiny and stuff, this time it was alright. Still I only listened cause nothing else was on.

[Ruff Ryder]

Damn I despise teh merged music thread. It goes so "off-topic" you know what I mean? You try to carry on a conversation about Papoose, two posts later somene's talking about the White Stripes or something. Anyway, I've been pounding Hip Hop is Dead by Nas. There was one track that I wasn't really getting and it was "Who Killed it". I thought it would be a diss to the new school rappers but when I checked it out I was like WTF is this? Every song on this album is crack except for this one. Well, I found this posted on M2 and I thought I'd share it with anyone who didn't understand the track Who Killed It. It's originally from All Hip Hop.

" - For those that don't understand 'Who Killed it':

Copy and paste FROM SOHH:

First The LYRICS:

look here see, pretty mike shanked two face al
over some gal
find the body dead in the aisles
death by strangulation, microphone cord a dirty broad
guess theyll never play it again Sam
damn that was my jam
now she's on the lamb
she made it out wit 200 grand
what a scam
while these two compete on who's the star of the show
golden legs there makes off wit the doe
I read the paper there wit joe da butcher
he said "one glance is all it took ya, she's a real looker
they say her old mans a bootlegger
transporting in any weather and at this rate we'll never get her"
fellas think its time to call it a night
all this talk of this mystery dames gettin me tight
thought I saw her in my eyesight, right
hate to spoil the party
what are you guys havin? the same?
waiter another round for the gang
its strange how I always felt outta place
joe da butchers my ace, but in comes freckle face
so I said see you later
fore hurt him and his two ugly thumb breakers
met them in louisiana wrestling gators
and any idiot can tell there involved wit the caper
so I pulled the revolver on my waist up
between the patrol car and the grey truck behind the streetlamp was a silouhette
white gloves and a real long cigarette
whattya ya know all this time she's got me in her scope
she spoke says " the devils got you guys be the throat
your conspiracy theories won't work without evidence
that's the reason why eric b is not president"

ya see?

look here see, I know you got soul your trying to hide it
how did you kill a man out in cypress?
one eyed charlie
he only hangs with the criminal minded
says you guys did it doggystyle is he lyin?
she says " walk this way ill tell you a childrens story
we hit the bodega got her a few 40s
we jumped in my ride
we drove and she cried
twist off the cap there and opened her mouth wide
swallowed it
whole bottles half empty
drinks like a fish, now she's past tipsy
truth came out as we got to her suave house
chopped and screwed her mouth and sat me on the couch
I said its gettin late cmon give it to me straight
who's ya sponsor lady?
she says bill gates
whattya born 77? 78?
she says "nah it goes way to an earlier date, slave times
claims the slaves said rhymes but she fell in love wit some fella named clive
who?
clive campbell from sedgwick ave, the bronx
now she shows me the cash
I said who's clive? don't play wit me skirt!
she said clive campbell.....he's kool herc

Ahaaa Ahaaaaa

listen up sweetheart, now we gettin somewhere
as she's talkin she starts vanishing in thin air
but before she drops the money bag on the floor and died
she said if you really love me, ill come back alive

----------------------------------------------------
SYNOPSIS

Now lets get some things straight since its a story there's characters, setting and plot

the plot is who killed hip-hop?

the setting is 1930s the golden era; the manifestation of jazz, mobsters, bootlegging and organized crime

the characters are nas the detective and his partner joe da butcher

freckle face who is joe da butchers connection to the underworld

and hip-hop who is the girl in the story a.k.a. the gal

now what happens is pretty mike and two face al kill each other and the gal runs off with the money

pretty mike and two face al are B.I.G. & Tupac and its a psuedonym for Hip-Hop maximizing its commercialism which is why the gal runs off with the money

the murder of two face al is directly referencing tupac dying first

now this all occured at some club where the classic jams go on sung by the gal

that is why nas says damn that was my jam because she will never be singing there again

the setting is further portrayed through the uses of a microphone cord as the murder weapon and the fact the body was found in the aisle

Now, Joe Da Butchers represent the average hip-hop listener

His name simply breaks down to joe a.k.a. the average joe schmo and da butcher part is a reference to "chewing the fat" which means just kicking simple convo chillin

Now after joe mentions to nas that he realizes he's falling for her nas hits the bar a lil aggitated.

He realizes its the same scene at the bar but says **** it and drinks are on him. That represents nas going commercial and he admits it, but tries to counteract that by saying "but I always felt outta place" which means he sold out but still puts out real Hip-Hop.

The symbolism in the bar scene is that joe the da butcher is nas partner but his southern connects (freckle face and company) are involved wit this crime

joe is none the wiser a.k.a. the average listener supports southern music regardless of all this south trash talk (jeezy,ludacris,lil jon,rick ross)

nas gets a lil ticked off and heads outside and realizes the gal has been trailin him the whole time

that's basically saying that even though he didn't know it, Hip-Hop HAS been followin him for a while

next thing she steps out the shadow and he says "all this time she had me in her scope"

in her scope = interscope
nas starts the story saying "death by strangulation" but "death" = Def(Jam)

Basically he was saying that Def Jam started the "killing" (when it commercialized hip-hop) and now interscope
runs it

at this point he is saying the Crackers took control of the art hence the reference to "Conspiracy Theories" behind this "whodunit"

"that's why Eric B is not president" pretty much sums it up

so Def Jam chokeholded the game and then other labels like universal picked it up.

at this point nas has some evidence so he starts interrogating the broad

"I know you have soul quit tryin to hide it" is obviously saying that hip-hop has soul but its obscured by the commercialism

NaS uses the interrogation wisely by bringing up cypress hill and snoop dogg referencing the classics just flippin the phrases

If you can't figure this out then your pretty ****in stupid:

She (Hip-Hop) supposedly killed a man in cypress - Cypress Hill "How I could just kill a man".

(Alternate Meaning/Possible Reference: When "she" {Hip-Hop} supposedly killed a man in cypress it could also be a reference to the beginning of the The Bridge Wars and the Death of DJ Scott LaRock. The Bridge Wars was a Hip-Hop rivalry during the mid-to-late 1980s and early 1990s, that arose from a dispute over the true birthplace of hip hop music and retaliation over the rejecting of a record for airplay. The Bridge Wars originally involved The South Bronx's Boogie Down Productions, led by KRS-One, and Marley Marl's Juice Crew, hailing from Queensbridge. The rivalry resulted in DJ Scott LaRock being killed in the South Bronx, Cypress Projects....but I think there's a Cypress Projects in B.K so i'm not sure.....Nevertheless the The Bridge Wars was the beginning of the BEEF Era when Hip-Hop started gettin' Violent over lyrics)


And one eyed charlie (krs-one) who only hangs with the criminal minded (BDP) said they did it doggystyle (snoop dogg) but obviously referencing sex

at this point she puts everything in perspective for nas IN ORDER because nas was out of chronological order by mentioning 92 then 91 then 88:

so she begins by asking him to "walk this way" (run dmc) and she will tell him a childrens story (slick rick)

this is starting out raw hip-hop in the 80s

"got her a few 40s" is now referencing the west coast era domination as well hoppin in the "ride"

at this point hip-hop started losing "it" because it was being bombarded by commercial gangsterism and losing its origins

The getting "tipsy" part refers to hip-hop totally losing control and becoming almost completely pop (the bad boy era). It can also be a refference to J-Kwon and the beat he sampled which NaS is rappin' over.



"as we got to her suave house chopped and screwed her mouth" is now moving on to the south moving on in at the close of the shiny suit era and is cleverly flipped to nas getting oral sex by hip-hop he finally gave in

after he ****s her, she spills the beans and tells him that Bill Gates sponsored her to destroy hip-hop through means of downloading and extreme piracy

Remember, hip-hop's father was a bootlegger and now her sponsor is one of the largest helpers in the creation of bootlegging

at this point she just breaks down and admits she is IMMORTAL because no regular human could be alive in BOTH slave times AND the Present.

she says she came from that era and had many lovers since but her one true love was kool herc (pioneer of hip-hop, some say sole creator)

But then she obviously ****ed him over and fell to the pressure of the root of all evil, money (the 200 grand) (by the way 200 grand in 1930 is worth MILLIONS)

At this point the gig is up and she begins to fade away magically but lets NaS know it's his inner spirit that really keeps hip-hop alive.

She really didn't need the money in the End

Masterpiece.

[Jackal]

So, how bout them White Stripes?