#i love kendrick lamar i love his chart i could talk about his art all day! that man has such an impressive chart like ???

[fixedfour]

Hi! I love your posts so much, thank you for sharing them with us! I saw you said that Amarius's stars are perfectly aligned with his position, would you mind sharing more on that? He's definitely one of my favorite rookies and I know he's got the talent to potentially go far with us! I do worry about injuries but he said in a recent interview that this latest one has taught him he needs to listen to his body more (just like Joe lol) so hopefully this is a good lesson for him!

🤧💜 please i have been dying to ask you for your moon sign but that's so intrusive of me lol!

but yes!! Amarius definitely has a chart i would point to and say, this is the man you need

he has an impressive stellium in Virgo (Mars, Mercury, and Sun, and honestly this stellium deserves a post on its own), but what really stands out in his chart to me is his Jupiter in Cancer! Jupiter is exalted here, so his Jupiter is operating at a higher level than most

take into account his sheer size, 6'7 and 340 lbs-- Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system, and his stature is truly a reflection of this Jupiterian trait. but it's not just his size that's being impacted-- it's his instinct and talent to protect.

Ketu was born in the sign of Cancer, and Ketu rules that lizard part of the brain, the primal instinct, (things you just KNOW), and just how one of Jupiter's role in the solar system is to protect earth from asteroids and any other disturbance, his exalted Jupiter really helps him excel in his position as OT.

watching him in action gives the very essence of this placement (Jupiter in Cancer). there is ease and skill when it comes to protecting. Of course everyone is coachable, but his placement definitely finds ease in this position. And on top of his Virgo placements!! Virgo has been a favorite sign to see in those of running backs, it adds agility and quickness, so despite his size, his virgo placements paired with his exalted Jupiter is truly special.

some of my favorite 'mundane' examples of Jupiter in Cancer can be found in r/DadReflexes, which i feel is such a classic example of what the role of the father (Jupiter) plays in child rearing (cancer). but most examples in this sub you see the father just.. knowing how to cushion a fall, protect his child's head, etc. that is the quality Amarius brings to the offense.

@cementcornfield 😌 thank you for the question i love talking about things like this so !!!

and absolutely no one asked for this, but my other favorite 'mundane' example of Jupiter in Cancer in play, is found in Kendrick Lamar's DUCKWORTH. and the story about Ducky who slipped extra chicken and biscuits (food, Cancer) in Anthony's order when he slid through the drive thru in order to get on his good side, and not get robbed/shot. which arguably led to one of the most amazing deliveries and testaments to the role of the father in someone's life. "20 years later, them same strangers you make them meet again, inside recording studios where they're reaping their benefits":

imagine if kendrick's father didn't slip extra food all those years ago.. now kendrick is undeniably one of the most famous rappers alive. this is the result of a choice which easily reflects an exalted Jupiter.

[blacksunscorpio]

Hey! Hope all is well. What are some indicators of rap talent in the natal chart? I’ve never seen anyone talk about rap or hip-hop in the chart

Oohhhh good one.

Indicators of Rap Talent in Astrology

Strong Mercurial Influence

This includes:

Sun in Gemini

moon in Gemini

Mercury in Gemini

Venus in Gemini

Mars in Gemini

Jupiter in Gemini

3rd House Dominant

Virgo placements

I’ve mentioned it before a few times on here but strong mercury influence in that natal chart is often found in rappers. We have to remember Mercury rules the lower mind, how we speak and communicate. It bestows on the native the “gift-of-gab” so when one has strong Mercurial influence, especially in benefic aspect one can have a way with words. This includes poetry, conciseness, and wit. A “bar” is basically a grouping of words that include all of the former. Mercury, when in harmonious aspect also gives one good rhythm, Something one needs if they’re to follow a beat well. They need to be able to go with the flow and hit every pause, break, and hook on a good beat, A good example of this would be Compton native Kendrick Lamar, whose Sun is in Gemini. Songs Like Rigarmortis, The Jig Is Up, M.A.A.D City and She Needs Me demonstrated that he has full control over his lung capacity and eloquence spitting each and every line. Christopher Wallace A.K.A the Notorious B.IG who hails from my hometown also has Mercury ruling over his Sun and he is considered one of the best rappers alive. His best friend turned Rival Tupac Shakur was also blessed by quick Silver. To this day, his metaphors resonate in songs like Changes, Hail Mary,  and Hit ‘Em Up. G Eazy is another who cannot get through one song without mentioning he’s a twin. Chris Brown is a crooner but if you’ve ever heard “Holla at Me” you’ll see the kid actually has bars. Azealia Banks, another Gemini [and rather under-developed] despite her problematic tendencies has quite a talent with words. Her song 212 is indicative of this. The Late Lisa Lef-Eye Lopes, Lauryn Hill, Naughty by Nature [all Virgo’s save for one], Ice Cube, and last but not least, one of the most polarizing people on the planet, Kanye West has his Sun and Jupiter sitting in all that airy energy. Despite his tendencies, we cannot discount his consistent hits since 2003. The man even found a way to spit verses with his mouth wired shut in “Through The Wire”. I believe the most developed influence of Mercury was presented to the world when he delivered us his Magnum Opus My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.

Leo Placements

We must not forget the nature of rap is boastful. It is not an art of humility or meekness. The nature of Leo is the very same. Apollonian energy needs to ROAR. It demands to be heard. It needs to proclaim itself “King”. As a result, you’ll find many Rappers with strong Leonine energy.

This includes: 

Sun in Leo

Mercury in Leo

Mars in Leo

Venus in Leo

Midheaven in Leo

The Late Great Ermias Asghedom A.K.A Nipsey Hussle has a stellium of solar energy with his Sun, Moon, Mercury, and Mars in Leo. The Notorious Tory Lanez also has his Sun and Mercury and Venus in Leo and his energy in most of his songs, especially Talk to Me Nice, Litty Again, Shooters and Blue Jay Season demonstrate his “IDGAF, Worship Me” vibes. I saw him in concert and that man is all about the showmanship. I was holding his legs up as he crowd surfed just so he could rap in the middle of the room. Young Thug, Stormzy Soulja Boi, Bobby Shmurda, and Lil Uzi Vert are also MC’s with Suns Steeped in Leonine energy.

Martian Placements

This includes:

Sun in Aries

Moon in Aries

Mars in Aries

Mercury in Aries

Mercury conjunct Mars

Mars Conjunct/Trine/Square Pluto

Mars Conjunct Chiron

Mars Conjunct Uranus

Mars Conjunct Jupiter

Why? Let's be frank, Rap is not a soft art. Many involved in the trade have come for very war-like backgrounds. It takes a tough individual to make their way through the game. Rap is also the art form of those who do not care to wait, they take what they feel is theirs. Such is the nature of Cardinal energy [Which Mars rules] As a result, you’ll find many Arians or those with significant Martian influence heavily involved in rap. Big Sean has his Sun in Aries as does Young MA, Ryan Lewis, Lil Nas X, and Ty Dolla Sign. Meek Mill of “Championships” and Drake Beef fame has his Mars conjunct Chiron [healing] and he has often expressed that his drive [Mars] for music has healed his wounds coming from a rough neighborhood in Philly. Lil Wayne also has Mars touching his Chiron and has expressed the same sentiments. In addition, we have Eminem with his Mars Conjunct Pluto. This is NOT a placement to be fucked with. If any of you have followed Marshall’s career over the decades, he has proven that he has not one fuck to give. This man dissed his own mother on his album. Let’s not forget how he aided in ending Ja Rule’s rap career after he roasted the man on Hailey’s revenge. This is the placement of someone who cannot wait and WILL not wait to call you out. He spent the 5 bars in Jimmy Crack Corn exposing his illicit sexual relationship with Mariah Carey. Yikes.

Plutonic Influence

This includes:

Sun in Scorpio

Mars in Scorpio

Moon in Scorpio

Venus in Scorpio

Mercury touching Pluto

Mercury in Scorpio

Why? Because Pluto is all about death, wealth, and sex. Many rappers cannot get through a song without reminding you they are either unafraid of death, unafraid of subjecting someone to said fate, reminding you about how much wealth they’ve achieved and the process in which they started from the bottom and now they’re here. Case in Point: Drake. Probably one of the most famous Phoenix’s in the rap game. Drake is steeped in plutonic energy with a stellium consisting of his Sun, Mercury, Venus, and Pluto. His drive is formidable. He boasts a Mafia-boss-Esque vibe with songs like “Going Bad” and “Mob Ties”. He’s transformed from Jimmy on Degrassi to a Multi-Platinum-selling artist. He does not stop when it comes to delivering content. Such is the nature of Pluto to forever rise/be reborn from the ashes. His buddy and favorite collab artist, Future is also a Plutonian [with a Gemini Moon]. Belcalis Almanzar whom you all know as Cardi B, though a Libra, has a Scorpio stellium with her Mercury, Venus, and Pluto sitting in Pluto’s domain. Her Moon is also in Aries [It explains so much, doesn’t it? lol]. Hip-Hop Heavy Weight Jay Z also has some Plutonic influence with his Mercury touching Pluto. He is probably the most tactical when it comes to merging his rap empire with his business ventures. The first Hip-Hop Billionaire. If that’s not Plutonic level tactics, I don’t know what is. On the same note, Sean Combs A.K.A Diddy is a November Scorpio and he’s right up there with Jay Z in regard to turning his rap game into an empire. Bad Boy is the reason we even know who Biggie is. Rapper Nas has his Venus in Scorpio as well.

Taurean Influence

This includes:

Sun in Taurus

Moon in Taurus

Mars in Taurus

Taurus MC

2nd House dominance

Taurus Mercury

Remember, Taurus Rules the throat. In addition, Venus rules the 2nd House of material possessions and what we appreciate. Again, Rap is boastful and most of the individuals involved will never let you forget who they are or what they’re capable of. Meek Mill again is a Taurus Sun as is Travis Scott. Machine Gun Kelly before he switched genres is a Taurus sun. Aubrey has his MC in Taurus and so does his arch-nemesis Pusha T [who also has his Sun in Taurus]. Let’s not forget the Story of Adidon where he outed Drake’s Secret love child with a French Erotic Model [Smh]. Ruthless. Some other honorable mentions are Llyod Banks of G-Unit, Busta Rimes, and Ghostface Killa.

Sagittarius Placements

This includes:

Sun in Sagittarius

Jupiter Dominant

Moon in Sagittarius

Mercury in Sagittarius

Mars in Sagittarius

Sag is ruled by Jupiter which is all about expansion. There can also be a touch of drama with all that fire energy going on. As a result, rappers with Sag placements make their presence known. They will not stop until they’re heard. Prime example of this is the Barb herself, Nicki Minaj. Say what you want about the Queens native, her verse on Monster was probably the best out of everyone. Objectively of course. Beyonce’s Hubby Jay Z is an archer as is Compton Native The Game, Offset, and DMX.

[peppersjam]

My Top 10 Albums of 2018

In March of 2018, Spotify released the “Smirnoff Equalizer,” a web app that analyzed the percentage of Spotify listens by non-male artists. My results were embarrassingly dude, so I decided that I needed to devote more of my ear-hours to female artists. Thanks, Smirnoff!

The results of this initiative aren’t perfectly reflected in my top 10 list because I devoted a lot of spins to albums that didn’t come out in 2018 (in an attempt to correct my blind spot). Key new-to-me non-2018 albums:

Phoebe Bridgers - "Stranger in the Alps" (2017) (My Jam: Motion Sickness)

Waxahatchee - "Ivy Trip" (2015) and "Out in the Storm" (2017) (My Jam: Recite Remorse)

Carly Rae Jepsen - "E•MO•TION" (2015) (My Jam: When I Needed You) and "Cut To The Feeling" (2017) (on repeat, forever)

Charli XCX - "Pop 2" (2017) (My Jam: Out of My Head)

Paramore - "Riot!" (2007) (My Jam: Misery Business, duh)

But, time keeps on ticking, ticking, ticking, into the future, so I have to talk about how I did with last year's list, and move on to this year's releases.

So, what's still in my current rotation from my 2017 top 10? More than half of them: Sleep Well Beast, Turn Out the Lights, Flower Boy, Ctrl, Melodrama, and DAMN. And, of couse, the Frank Ocean singles.

Runners up:

Kendrick Lamar et al. - "Black Panther: The Album" (so, so close to cracking my top 10. Sets a new standard for pop/hip-hop soundtracks. This decade's O Brother Where Art Thou soundtrack? Does that make any sense at all?)

BROCKHAMPTON - "Iridescence" (I had BROCKHAMPTON's "Saturation" trilogy on repeat this year, but their new one didn't quite do it for me. I think they're still trying to figure out how to be their best musical selves post-Ameer Vann. Oh, but: 1999 Wildfire is THE BUSINESS so I'm not worried)

Pusha T - "DAYTONA" (Good, mean. Classic Pusha)

Nils Frahm - "All Melody" (Saw him live this year; he's going to be one of those artists that I see as many times as possible, a la Andrew Bird)

Other highlights: Drake released another bloated album. I blocked Kanye on twitter and didn't listen to ye. Had frequent fits of emo obsession, like getting into American Football many years late. Listened to Frank Ocean's "Moon River" and Spotify's POLLEN playlist a bunch.

Mistakes I'm probably making: underrating Mitski. Not mentioning Soccer Mommy in this post. Sleeping on Vince Staples's FM!

10. Cardi B – Invasion of Privacy

Many people wrote many things about Cardi B this year. I have nothing original to add: she is charismatic, unique, and good at rapping. She made good rap songs and put them on a good rap album that I listened to a bunch.

9. Mac Miller – Swimming

This is the first Mac Miller album I've latched onto. It's partly because of his tragic death, but even before that, I was impressed by his effortless flow and the way the entire album meshes together. In a year where rap underwhelmed me, it was nice to see real growth from a guy that I mostly only liked before because he gave beats to Vince Staples when no one else would. Ugh. Rest in peace, Mac.

8. Arctic Monkeys – Tranquility Base Hotel + Casino

I finally realized that the reason Arctic Monkeys have such staying power (for me and for the world in general, I guess) is that their lyrics are consistently delightful:

Take it easy for a little while Come and stay with us It's such an easy flight Cute new places keep on popping up since the exodus It's all getting gentrified I put a tacqueria on the roof It was well reviewed Four stars out of five And that's unheard of

7. Mitski – Be the Cowboy

"You know how you all loved Puberty 2? What if I did that but literally every part of it was better?" – Mitski, probably.

6. Big Red Machine – Big Red Machine

It's the folktronica The National and Bon Iver mashup that I've been waiting for. This album didn't have to be good. It could've ended up more like EL VY's Return To The Moon which was fun and listenable, but ultimately a B side. But nope: these songs are excellent, and wouldn't be out of place on a The National or Bon Iver record.

(I don't mean to outright diss the EL VY record. I love that the whole Eaux Claire bunch are playing around with projects like that, and like Big Red Machine. It seems like a pragmatic way to keep the mother bands from getting stale. But, like, pragmatic in a fun way, not in a robotic, soulless way.)

5. SABA – Care for Me

Saba's a kind of parallel universe Chance the Rapper where everything is sad. I know that's not fair - Saba isn't characteristically sad; it's just a sad album (and, weirdly, it's easier for me to love overly sad albums than overly happy albums). The album is good enough that I can forgive the cloying "Logout." And I can finally forgive the occasionally tasteless skits on Bucket List Project.

4. Beach House – 7

I was out on Beach House. I saw them live when they were touring for Bloom and I was underwhelmed by their live performance. It was fine but it wasn't for me. Not only did The Fox's acoustics muddle everything, the band didn't seem to have much energy for the set. I get it. It's Beach House. There's not going to be a mosh pit.

I still listen to every new Beach House album, though, mostly because Teen Dream was an important touch point in my indie rock awakening. And I'm glad that I do, but otherwise I would have missed 7, Beach House's best album. It's like they took Teen Dream and turned the "sleepy" dial down a notch or two. *chef's kiss*

3. boygenius – boygenius

Julien shredding on "Stay Down" is probably enough to warrant a spot on this list. It's fun to see these three women -- who are generally all about the introspective/sad vibes -- rock out. I feel lucky to have seen them perform these songs, and I'm crossing my fingers for a full-length in the future.

This entry also serves as a proxy for Phoebe's "Stranger in the Alps" which (boo) came out in 2017.

2. Lucy Dacus – Historian

It's not just that the songs are expertly crafted emotional indie music; Lucy's voice is stunning, and it's even more stunning live. Seeing her perform live bumped this album up a few spots for me for sure. I know this isn't supposed to be a "good stuff I saw live" list, but seeing these songs live helped to contextualize the lyrics and helped me understand Lucy as an artist (I hadn't heard of her before they announced the boygenius tour).

1. Tierra Whack – Whack World

I haven't been as excited during a first listen of a non-Frank/Kanye/Kendrick/Vampire Weekend album as I was for Tierra Whack's brilliant debut. It's got everything you need: fun beats, memorable hooks, and creative verses. It's only fifteen minutes long, so I naturally listened to it over and over again that first day, excitedly Slacking my co-workers in the #jams channel. Like the rest of the known universe (i.e., indie rap twitter) I wish that these songs were longer, but the silver lining is I don't ever listen to any of these songs without listening to all of these songs, which is a treat. Man. Just thinking about this album makes me smile. You could've listened to the album instead of reading this post! Go!

Next year is going to be the tenth year of compiling my top ten albums! I'll definitely do something to celebrate – maybe a top ten of the decade? Maybe a retrospective of all hundred albums that made my lists? Maybe some fresh charts and graphs? Will tumblr even still exist next year? Will the United States? Stay tuned!

[thesinglesjukebox]

CHILDISH GAMBINO - THIS IS AMERICA

[6.33]

And this is your #1 single, America.

Jibril Yassin: Listening to this without the video makes you realize just how much praise we've thrown at Donald Glover for essentially remaking Mother. It's just a shame the song feels like a patchwork of different moods: the capable and effortless singing and the passable rap schemes clashing at each possible moment. It's chaos supplanted by a million Atlanta rapper adlibs featured here -- notable because his past work revelled in his outsiderdom status. Now he relishes in being a medium. What the fuck does Childish Gambino wants us to think about him? The Billboard #1 means that once again somehow Young Thug wins so I'll take that. [5]

Ryo Miyauchi: Hearing that clatter of noise ripping the seams of the Coloring Book gospel felt viscerally thrilling at first. Yet the momentum of it soon died down as Donald Glover muttered ad libs in placement of real lyrics. If this excitement and then immediate bore from violence was the point, then it relies way too much on its visuals to get that across. As pure audio, it's fragments of unfinished ideas coalesced into what barely passes as a song, and those fragments depend upon too much subtext for it to hopefully bear some meaning. [5]

Tim de Reuse: Every word of the lyrics and every frame of the music video begs to be picked apart; that's Charleston, that's Parkland, that's the way white Americans revere gun culture. It's an assault on all fronts, and despite the pull of its main sonic gimmick, an assault on all fronts cannot be incisive. So it contains no arguments or calls to action, working mainly as a mood piece for anxiety, instability, dehumanization, and dread, writhing into itself, and young Thug's haunting outro is the only place where the horrors alluded to are felt rather than just referenced or replicated. Is it effective? Well, it certainly leaves an impression, but it's not as focused as it could be, and to get any kind of solid message out of it you've got to put in just as much as you're going to get out. [6]

Alfred Soto: A compelling statement of protest that doesn't mind flirting with the exploitative and why not -- the video, that is. A fitfully compelling protest whose tonal variety compensates for its lyrical shortcomings -- that's "This is America." Like many #1s, it's a vessel for listeners. Few hits in the twenty-first century benefit from a cultural moment like Donald Glover's. This is America? No -- this is America. [7]

Will Rivitz: There isn't much I can say about "This Is America" that Doreen St. Félix hasn't already said, so let me talk about its place as an "ambiguous document" on terms in which I feel slightly more authoritative: As a nuanced, complicated, and enigmatic dissection of Black existence -- which is about as specifically as one can describe the song and its accompanying visuals, since any narrower portrayal risks an uneasily reductive summary of its purpose -- Gambino's newest is excellent, aesthetically compelling and subtly difficult in all the right ways. As a pop song that's raced to number one on the charts with the force of a "God's Plan," it's less successful, so instrumentally and allusionally dense that, aside from Gambino's chorus and ad-libs, even a dozen listens in I still have trouble tracking its structure -- and a pop song that isn't easily accessible tends to fail at providing the populist unification that the best of that ilk inflict on a club at 1 AM. As a song, period, it's also a little weak: for all its bassy bluster, its aggression is pallid compared to the distortion of a Clipping or a Death Grips, and its Yeezus-cum-TLOP blend of gospel and snarl doesn't quite reach what made both of those albums so excellent. This, as much as I do love it at times, is what makes the single-number rating system we have on this site a smidge simplistic: we're rating songs based on a singular scale with which we try to summarize all of its qualities into a one- or two-character final word. On "This is America," the ambiguity that St. Félix characterizes so well can't properly be reduced to a score, because the song succeeds and half-succeeds and half-fails on so many disparate levels that it doesn't really do the song justice. That said, I've listened to this one the past two weeks about as much as I listened to "Plug Walk" last month, and I gave that one a [7], so here we are. [7]

Stephen Eisermann: There've been more than enough think pieces and Twitter threads about on this song that I won't try analysis. Instead, I want to highlight how impotent the song is without the accompanying video: how it's a great addition to the accompanying video. This song is good, sure, but the video makes it great. [7]

Julian Axelrod: "This is America" feels like an anomaly in so many ways: It's a song that meets Donald Glover's outsize ambitions, which have previously made him feel like an auteur in search of a masterpiece. Its popularity is partly due to an eye-catching viral video that justifies the hype and amplifies its song's message rather than overshadowing it. And most impressively, it's a cultural and political statement that actually feels suited to how we live now. The song builds and buckles under its oppressively sunny tension, like a powder keg with a smiley face plastered on the front. But check that title again: While "This is America" is clearly a product of our current climate, its anger is nothing new. As long as you live in a country that refuses to let you breathe, the only true rebellion will be dancing on its feet. [8]

Jonathan Bradley: Who is Childish Gambino? This is what I ask from "This is America." Because we know Donald Glover: he's Troy from Community, he's a trash punchline rapper, he's a shockingly impressive nu-funk singer, he's Atlanta's dramedy auteur of the late 2010s. And now he's the ghost of Kendrick Lamar (because Kendrick invented political raps for the '10s the way Chuck D did for the '80s), he's Earn Marks, he's this shuckin' and jivin' shooter playing callous with life. Or has he surpassed performance; is "This is America" any black man playing the best role a white society can ask of him? "Have you seen 'This is America'," people ask of me, and I say, "no, I still have some episodes of Atlanta left to watch." As protest, aren't they as meaningful? As video, "This is America" doesn't resolve. Is this America? Well, song as shareable content is not new; pop history is articulated through tunes that capture an audience's spirit for their times. As song: the choir is lovely. [7]

Joshua Minsoo Kim: Remember when a bunch of white people thought it was OK to roll their eyes at Donald Glover for feeling "too white for Blacks, too Black for whites" on Camp? Some people dished out laundry lists of other Black people who were, in their minds, definitive proof of Glover being a fraud. Invalidating his experiences was a sure way to make him -- and other Blacks who felt similarly -- even more insecure about their identity. Here we are, seven years later, and Donald Glover's finally "made it" according to the standards set by white gatekeepers and lay internet folk (one and the same?), and it seems as if people consider the vivid depictions here as being astronomically different -- more artful, more profound -- than what was present in his earlier discography. It's been stated that "This is America" is not the lead single to the upcoming Childish Gambino album, indicating that this is a standalone product meant to be engaged with both aurally and visually. Glover knows: a video is going to be far more affecting simply because of how people approach one. Music is far more susceptible to passivity; people can hear, but they don't listen. Still, it's impossible to ignore the prevailing pernicious attitudes that lead to uniform declarations of "This is America" as a powerful political statement. Does everything need to be so painfully explicit and overt in its intentions to qualify as such? There's a sort of dysconscious racism underpinning how writers and fans are content with categorizing "This is America" and Donald Glover as political while denying such a label to the various rappers who provide ad-libs here. So let's break it down: Young Thug provided one of last year's most heartbreaking verses while mourning the murder of Keith Troup. BlocBoy JB dedicated his recent mixtape to Simi, a friend who died by gunfire. On "Work Hard," Quavo proudly declares that despite dropping out of school, he's rich enough now that his mom doesn't need to work. Slim Jxmmi says essentially the same thing on "Brxnks Truck" and unabashedly celebrates his affluence on "Growed Up." Kodak Black, who's namedropped here, explains how people don't see potential in him because he's "a project baby" on "Misunderstood," and spends another song later on Project Baby 2 sounding absolutely suicidal. And 21 Savage's "Bank Account," one of the most popular rap songs of last year, saw the rapper elegantly illustrating how being a successful Black man doesn't mean you can suddenly present yourself as vulnerable. It's funny: that everyone here is relegated to ancillary elements in the instrumentation ensures that people won't decry the presence of a less "conscious" (i.e. less "worthy," less "real") rapper. Glover understands this, and this decision is an effective middle ground between making significant impact and allowing all these other rappers to have a voice. It's moving because Glover's doing the exact opposite of what his Camp detractors did: unifying, validating, and empowering. The result is a beautiful tapestry that seems to be delivering a message hidden underneath a more obvious one. Every Black rapper is making political music. Every Black rapper is showing what it means to be Black in America. Every Black rapper deserves the attention to detail that has been poured upon this song and video. To think otherwise -- to discredit and disparage the truths of these Black people's lives -- is to disagree with the more obvious realities presented in the video. It's happening, and that is America too. [5]

[Read, comment and vote on The Singles Jukebox]

[nerdmars]

Bruno Mars’ many Grammy wins for 24K Magic was more than just a victory for the musician. It’s a victory for R&B music as a whole. The Grammy for R&B Album of the Year has often been completely segregated from the major awards. (Frequent nominees and winners include people like John Legend, Mary J. Blige, Boyz II Men and Alicia Keys.)

Winning the R&B Album of the Year Grammy rarely leads to walking up to the stage at the end of the night for the big prize — or even being nominated for it. Lauryn Hill pulled it off for The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill back in 1999. And it hasn’t happened since — until Bruno Mars’ 24K Magic brought home both awards among several others.

Does this mean the Academy now respects Black music and is recognizing its’ worth? That remains to be seen. It can be seen as a start.

Bruno Mars is doing his part to bring light to the musicians that have been an influence on pop music for decades. While collecting his Album of The Year Grammy, he gave a heart-warming speech, dedicating his award to Babyface, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and Teddy Riley. He put it plain: “This album wouldn’t exist if it wasn’t for these guys.”

With a monstrous record like this, there’s plenty you probably don’t know. Here are 24 things you didn’t know about 24K Magic.

To get started, here’s a good one: winning Record, Song and Album of the Year in one night gives a musician entry into a very small group of musicians like Simon and Garfunkel, Norah Jones and Adele. (Even Michael Jackson doesn’t belong!) 24K Magic achieved this incredible feat and Bruno is the 10th artist to hold the big three.

Here’s more…

(1) 24k Magic was born in a top-secret and, well, magical spot. Unlike most albums, 24K Magic was recorded entirely in one studio. The Glenwood Recording Studio in Burbank, California, has hosted everyone from the Black Eyed Peas to Britney Spears. But don’t look for information anywhere. Even the website has only a phone number.

(2) Yet, 24K Magic was almost not born at all. After the success of "Uptown Funk" and Bruno’s not one but two Super Bowl appearances, the singer spoke about having writer's block and not being satisfied with a lot of the early songs he recorded.

(3) Shampoo Press & Curl is part of the formula for the worldwide success of 24K Magic. The production group, originally known as The Smeezingtons, initially wrote and recorded for other artists while Bruno was still developing as a solo artist. They are credited on just about every track.

(4) 24K Magic won the big three at The 2018 Grammys but the album also scooped one of the obscure awards. In the non-televised ceremony held earlier in the afternoon, the album won for Best Engineered Album, non Classical. Tom Coyne, the master engineer on the project, passed away last year, so Bruno made sure his wife was on stage to collect the award on his behalf.

(5) Many of the songs on 24K Magic were recorded live. Not in front of an audience but performed live with instruments in the studio. The standard these days is recording in parts and then using Pro Tools. That’s if instruments are used at all. Most artists who use live music save it for the tour.

(6) The entire album is pretty short as music goes. 24K Magic clocks in at just a bit over 33 minutes. A piece of music must be at least 30 minutes in order to be considered an album and not an EP.

(7) The artwork for the album comes courtesy of Greg Gigendad Burke. Known for his innovative work with artists like Jay-Z, T.I. and Wiz Khalifa, Burke often does both artwork and design for album covers. For this album, Bruno did the art direction himself.

(8) Bruno is clearly loyal. The Stereotypes, a Los Angeles-based production team, has been in the game for over a decade. After years of hits and misses, they reconnected with Bruno. 24K Magic was already done but Mars still invited them into the studio and ended up creating “Finesse.” That late addition made the album — and became history.

(9) Outside of the remix of "Finesse" with Cardi B, there are no features on the album. It’s a rarity in this era to skip the tradition of plumping up an album with guest rappers or vocal duets for a varied audience and sound. Bruno decided to keep it simple — even though he’s known to pump up music for other artists.

(10) Bruno’s got nothing against remixes though! Official remixes for "That’s What I Like" include tracks with Gucci Mane and Party Next Door.

(11) Last year Beyoncé appeared at a Bruno Mars show with gold hoops spelling out CHUNKY, a song from Bruno’s album. The whispers started immediately. Would there be a collaboration perhaps? And then, eagle-eared listeners began insisting that Beyoncé is singing backgrounds on the song. Does it sound like it could be her? Maybe. Is that likely? No. However, there are no background vocalists credited on the song���

(12) Bruno Mars fully credits New Jack Swing pioneers like Teddy Riley and Babyface for his new work. Just in case you don’t know what New Jack Swing means: in the late '80s and '90s, a particular form of pop music borrowing heavily from hip-hop and R&B was born with acts like Bobby Brown and Guy. The name comes from early ‘80s hip-hop slang for a newcomer.

(13) The opening lines from "24K Magic"? That’s Mr. Talk Box, a musician known for his work in gospel music. And because his portion of "24K Magic" was sampled on Kendrick Lamar’s "Loyalty," the musician contributed to more than one 2017 megahit.

(14) Bruno’s album helped Cardi B. achieve yet another chart success. With “Finesse,” she becomes only the third person in history — and the first woman — to have five singles on the Top 10 at the same time.

(15) The funk that led to "Chunky" comes courtesy of Charlie Wilson and The Gap Band. One of Bruno Mars’ producing partners told him about a party he went to where everyone played the wall and stayed on their cellphones — until the DJ played "Outstanding" by The Gap Band. Bruno says hearing that inspired him to write "Chunky."

(16) There’s a wink-and-nod lyrical homage to R. Kelly’s "Seems Like You’re Ready." If you don’t know the 1993 song, you might miss it. But he literally croons out the line on his ballad "Versace on the Floor."

(17) A quick run-down on all of the hair-related terminology Bruno spits on “Perm”: He tells a woman to relax (which is another word for perm). He mentions sheen (usually used in aerosol form). There’s a tribute to pat-pat-patting your weave. And he urges us to “activate” the sexy, as in activator used for '80s-era curly hairstyles.

(18) If you’re one of the few people on earth who haven’t heard the album in its entirety, here’s a random factoid: Yes, that’s Halle Berry in a voicemail recording in the middle of the song “Calling All My Lovelies.”

(19) While working with Babyface, a song Bruno never finished began to play. Babyface said he needed to finish it that day. The song became the tearjerker “Too Good To Say Goodbye.”

(20) Music lovers began hyperventilating when photos surfaced of Missy Elliott and Bruno Mars in the studio together. Alas, they were “just hanging out.” Maybe next time.

(21) Bruno is known for keeping things old school when he’s recording. When it was time for him to allow journalists to listen to the album before release, the album was loaded on one iPod stored in a safe at his record label offices.

(22) While Bruno admits that he was nervous when he started recording, he personally put himself against his own biggest work. The title track for 24K Magic was recorded while "Uptown Funk" was still No. 1 on the charts.

(23) Ever the perfectionist, Bruno will tweak a song until he’s 100 percent happy with it. Case in point: his latest single "Finesse" had over 20 different versions.

(24) And speaking of perfectionism, the power ballad "Versace on the Floor" was completely done. Then Bruno listened and felt like he didn’t get it right vocally. He actually ended up writing the song over completely.

(25) Did you stream this album? It’s all good. But Bruno kind of wishes you had it on CD. He designed and wrote all of the inserts for the physical project and then realized that the idea of holding and reading liner notes may soon be a distant memory. He worked really hard on designing the fonts for the song titles. (No, really.)

Written by Alisa S. King

[deadcactuswalking]

REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 17/10/2020 (Headie One, D-Block Europe)

You know, I kind of expected a bigger impact from D-Block Europe given that this is their debut studio album. I guess maybe people are as sick of these guys as I am; the mixtapes they released got tracks higher on the chart than this, and that was without some of the big name features they had. Regardless, we still have nine songs to cover here, so... this week’s #1 is still “Mood” by 24kGoldn and iann dior, and welcome back to REVIEWING THE CHARTS.

Dropouts & Returning Entries

Last week had two album bombs – or at least whatever you can call “album bombs” on a chart that tries its hardest to stop those from happening – so naturally there are quite a few drop-outs and returning entries from the UK Top 75. Two of each from 21 Savage with Metro Boomin and Bryson Tiller are gone from last week, with the only songs from both albums still on the chart being the ones with a “(feat. Drake)” in the title. Typical. None of the BLACKPINK songs from last week have stayed either. Other than those six, we also have a handful of notable drop-outs like “What’s Love Got to Do with It” by Kygo and Tina Turner, “Hallucinate” by Dua Lipa and “POPSTAR” by DJ Khaled and Drake, which probably just felt the impact of dumb UK chart rules about streaming. All of these are pretty decent songs – the first two could have peaked a lot higher – so what in the returning entries is coming to replace them? Well, we have “Wishing Well” by the late Juice WRLD back at #74 and a theme of long-running hip-hop tracks like “Dinner Guest” by AJ Tracey and MoStack back at #72 and “I Dunno” by Dutchavelli featuring Tion Wayne and Stormzy at #68, all of which peaked in the top 20. The biggest gain this week was for Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams” which is in the top 40 this week and predicted to be even higher in the weeks to come, especially in the US. We usually send 40-year-old songs to #1 but the States seem to have caught up with that too. The biggest fall this week was for the debut last week, “Outta Time” by Bryson Tiller featuring Drake, plummeting from #24 to #58, which is understandable; I mean the only reason it got that high in the first place was because of Drake. Now, onto the new arrivals.

NEW ARRIVALS

#63 – ���BLM” – OFB (Bandokay and Double Lz) featuring Abra Cadabra

Produced by N2theA

Like many people, fans and artists alike, due to the recent events in America and across the world, I’ve gained a renewed interest in protest music, particularly songs about systematic racism and police brutality. Many artists, including some of the biggest out right now like Lil Baby, have made songs about this recently but really this is not an isolated incident or chain of events. Rappers, musicians and activists have discussed these issues for years and the fact that the general public is finally latching onto some of it makes me hopeful. Seriously though, if you’re looking for a great song from a couple years back protesting against the same topic, “Don’t Don’t Do It!” by N.E.R.D. featuring Kendrick Lamar is right there. OFB is a drill collective from Tottenham, and the group actually contains some genuinely massive names, like Headie One and RV, but here, we just have Bandokay and Double Lz, as well as affiliate Abra Cadabra on the chorus. There’s also a sample of Coldplay here, which actually works as a melancholy piano component of this drill beat, even if it feels like a bizarre choice at first glance. I don’t really need to talk to you about the beat, right? In a song like this, content is what matters and, yeah, it makes a pretty solid case for itself sticking up to inhumane police officers, even if some of the lyrics do feel oddly surface level at times, particularly Abra Cadabra and Double Lz, even though he does have personal anecdotes to tell, but not as much as Bandokay on the first verse where he does get pretty damn in-depth.

There’s no evidence on S but 21 years got slapped to his chest / Yo, I just want P like Diddy, police on my back ‘cah I look like Pops

Bandokay is the son of the late Mark Duggan, a 29-year-old Black man who was unlawfully shot and killed by police in Tottenham in 2011, sparking protests and riots across Britain. This feels particularly profound but also unnerving from Bandokay because he sees himself as next in line for this treatment, talking about how it still haunts him and when he finds out about a friend of his getting life in prison, he’s stressed because he feels like it could very well be him locked up in there for reasons equally unjustified or clearly at the fault of minority disenfranchisement, particularly for young Black men who are driven to the streets because of it. Both Bandokay and Abra Cadabra discuss how gang culture is seen as an excuse for police officers to shoot, with the chorus digging into how because of the violence depicted in Black art due to segregation and societal issues still present in the modern world, that gives them the justification for assault and murder of innocent Black lives. Double Lz goes a bit off-topic here but I can’t say that recall of a phone conversation he had with his friend in jail doesn’t hit hard given the context, especially in a time where we feel more distant than ever with fellow humans. I don’t think it’s as good as “The Bigger Picture” but these guys definitely get my respect for this. Check it out.

#55 – “Proud” – D-Block Europe

Produced by Mind the Gap

And now for almost the exact opposite of social commentary, serious topics and melancholy production: D-Block Europe, although this isn’t actually D-Block Europe, it’s half of the band. Young Adz has three solo songs on this stupidly long album and Dirtbike LB has two, one of which has a feature so I’m pretty sure we all know who’s the Swae Lee in this British Rae Sremmurd... especially since Young Adz’s solo song debuted this high. The song is actually quite different from their standard fare at least in terms of lyrical content, with Adz going into the gang culture and its effect on his mental health, particularly his relationship and drug addiction. His off-beat nasal crooning here is actually kind of charming under these levels of Auto-Tune and a fast-paced trap beat that actually works a lot once it kicks in a minute and a half in. The second verse, particularly, is pretty excellent, where he dedicates the verse to his daughter, who he hopes will not follow in his footsteps of “lifestyles” but also promises her wealth and a continued faith in Islam. The way he talks about how he wants his daughter to succeed even if he dies and later on his companionship with Dirtbike LB is... kind of beautiful, honestly, and does make me look past the mixing issues and... interesting delivery from Young Adz. The uncredited whispery vocals from RAYE on the outro definitely add to the feel of the track and, yeah, I like this quite a lot more than I expected but it still doesn’t make me want to check out that album.

#53 – “I Miss U” – Jax Jones and Au/Ra

Produced by Jax Jones, Mark Ralph, Cass Lowe, Alex Tepper and Tom Demac

Hey, remember Au/Ra? Well, I didn’t either until I checked her Spotify page and saw she was behind that “Panic Room” song that I loved from last year, specifically the remix from CamelPhat – seriously, I’d like to see more on the charts from those guys too. I’m not sure Jax Jones will be able to live up to the brilliantly-constructed ominous future house of that song, but this is supposed to be a silly love or break-up song so I expect a cute, vaguely tropical radio-friendly dance-pop tune with some 90s deep house influence thrown in there, like most of Jax’s stuff ends up being. Anyone else kind of sick of this stuff? I know it gets plays in the clubs which are still in the UK and much of Europe, using this type of dance music, but this robotic draining of the emotion from generic break-up tunes sang by indie-adjacent women over a four-on-the-floor beat is something I’ve heard hundreds of times before. I know this has been a British staple for decades but the new-ish style of vocal drops and generally tired production is growing pretty stale for me at least. It can work when it does, and Au/Ra isn’t a bad fit for this slick, beeping production – this is a pretty okay song all things considered – but there’s not any warmth or quality in this type of stuff anymore, let alone variation. This song is fine but I do hope it kind of underperforms for Jax just to set a precedent that this is exhausting and honestly kind of a cheap ploy for plays at this point. Is that too harsh? Probably, but after two and a half years of seeing these types of songs every other week, it gets on your nerves.

#49 – “Not a Pop Song” – Little Mix

Produced by Robin Oliver Fred, Tayla Parx and MNEK, peaked at #37 in Ireland

Does that mean I don’t have to review it? I want to like this girl group, especially after they ditched the manufactured pop image from Syco and signed to another label that I assume does not treat him as horrifically, but I feel like the music hasn’t changed or gotten any more interesting at all. In fact, this song serves as kind of a diss track to Simon Cowell, and not in any way a subtle one at that. “I don’t do what Simon says”? I mean, don’t you guys also have a talent show you executive-produced, and is airing currently on the BBC? Sigh, well, is the song any good? Well, it tries a little bit more with that guitar loop but not with the clunky trap beat, the harmonised triplet flows in the pre-chorus that sound awkward, and most importantly, the lyrics, which are otherwise fine in how they represent the music industry, a corrupt and unfriendly business, but not in a way that feels like it’s revealing any secrets or anything that really hits. Especially the chorus, where that “I don’t give a what” chant just undermines the whole message. Shouldn’t the point be that now you CAN swear on your songs? I don’t know, this is just worthless but admittedly a lot more listenable than their last record so I’ll give it to them there, even if it is out of a clear effort to be as inoffensive as possible.

#46 – “Flowers” – Chip

Produced by Dready

So, in Chip’s pretty garbage verse on “Waze” earlier this year, he took some shots at an underground artist that many assumed were shots at Stormzy, who commented on this with some subliminals on “I Dunno”. Naturally, in response to this light-hearted beef from two former good friends all based on misinterpretation, Stormzy pulled up to the guy’s house, with only Chip’s brother and sister being home. His sister even felt the need to pull out a kitchen knife to defend herself, so, yeah, I have no sympathy for Stormzy here. Unless this is based on personal drama that we don’t know of, he really unnecessarily escalated this petty dispute. Hence, Chip has two diss tracks here, this is the first of them; the other didn’t chart. To quote Chip’s manager, Ashley Rae, who is also name-dropped in the song: Stormzy pulled up unannounced to Chip’s building with three other people. The building was secure with gates and an intercom system. He didn’t knock. He came in and was posted in the car park screaming for Chip to come outside. After being told to leave twice as Chip wasn’t home, he refused and made his way to Chip’s apartment on the top floor where family were inside and it got heated. He caused a commotion so the neighbours called the police. This diss track seems to share my view of the situation; Chip even briefly brings up the political climate as he talks about how Stormzy should have expected the police to be called – after all, when people in Essex see black men shouting outside a building, regardless of their innocence, the authorities seem to get involved. In this diss track, Chip calls back to other disses he’s made, notes his disappointment in Stormzy collaborating with Ed Sheeran when he’s the one who escalated to potential violence – you’d think he’d be smarter not to risk his image – and sending some personal shots at his break-up with Maya Jama, which actually made me chuckle, particularly when he says that a throwaway track on a collaborative album seems to have incited a bigger reaction than that long-term relationship coming to an end. He goes even deeper into how he thinks Stormzy’s activism is hypocritical if he wants to incite black-on-black violence by pulling up to Chip’s house, and references the late 2Pac and Pop Smoke and... okay, he just ravages Stormzy here, and it helps that this beat is menacing, even if I don’t like Chip’s delivery or voice, as I never have. “Killer MC”, the other diss track, is a lot vaguer and with a pretty chaotic beat which Chip can barely flow on, so yeah, I’m glad this one charted. Man, a lot of aggressive, lyrically-focused songs today, huh?

#34 – “Destiny” – D-Block Europe

Produced by Jony Beats

And just like that, they appear. This is our second and last song from that D-Block Europe album debuting this week, and it’s only high because of a video anyway – that and the fact it’s the first on the album. Otherwise, this is typical D-Block Europe fare, albeit this time with a hilarious but absolutely pointless 30-second acoustic guitar intro that just consists of the guys whispering “Destined” with as much reverb as possible. Dirtbike LB is actually on the hook this time, making it even more lethargic. Young Adz is filling in empty space with ad-libs again, including his signature “SKI!”, and in his first verse here, I genuinely laughed out loud after that booming “bow-bow-bow-bow” vocal interlude coming out of nowhere. It honestly caught me off-guard. I kinda like Young Adz’s pretty energetic flow here though, and he definitely plays with the boring trap beat in a way that is pretty funny. He feels the need to say “Happy G-day” to a person in the booth with him, which shows that he’s freestyling at least some of this stuff, which is kind of impressive. He “endorses” new straps, which is just funny wording to me, as is when he says 9 Goddy “had” Norwich, like he just owned the city – although, as a fellow East Midlander, I kind of appreciate the shout out. My favourite part in the verse is probably his attempt at 2012 hashtag-rap, where he says “half a mil’, mortgage”, but the beat cuts out when he mutters a wimpy “rurr” ad-lib, and that almost forgives his weedy delivery and gross Auto-Tune. I think “Rurr, mortgage” makes up for the chorus, “Break a brick like Tetris”. Honestly, I get why people prefer Adz’s energy and funny content because the only thing to laugh at with Dirtbike LB’s bleak, almost depressing lyrics about materialism, meaningless sex and drug addiction, is how he phrases everything in a manner that is uniquely middle-class and polite, especially in this verse, and how he just seems to be accepting the dark topics he talks about in his verse with a shrug of his shoulders. It’s kind of concerning, I mean, I don’t like the music but I hope he’s okay. In conclusion, the song’s fine and honestly I kind of love the first verse but that chorus is dull and really it’s a pretty poorly-mixed trap cut. To be honest, if there’s more of this energy from Adz on the album, I might just check it out. The guy’s growing on me recently.

#29 – “Cool with Me” – Dutchavelli and M1llionz

Produced by The Fanatix

Apparently this guy is Stefflon Don’s brother, and now that she has been pretty quiet recently, I guess it’s time for Dutchavelli to step into the limelight, and he’s bringing fellow Birmingham rapper M1llions with him for a song with not much of a chorus to speak of. Instead, Dutchavelli and M1llionz trade verses and bars for three minutes over a pretty banging drill beat, with an eerie choral sample throughout and honestly pretty great verses from the two of them here. Dutchavelli sounds really aggressive here and I love the yelling in the ad-libs, even if it adds to some questionable vocal mixing throughout. M1llionz’s casual, meandering flow and cadence works really well in contrast, even if really nothing is said here other than gunplay and flexing. The beat feels like it never properly drops at all, and it just slides out abruptly by the end, but if this is an intro track to an upcoming album with a following track that drops us straight into it, I could see this working. As is, well, I’ve not got much to say about it but this is decent.

Also, I’d like to point out Dutch’s Wikipedia page, particularly the “in popular culture” section.

Dutchavelli has gained a reputation for being a hard man. This paired with his large stature has lead to a proliferation of memes relating to this within popular culture such as 'When Dutchavelli goes to a club, he asks the bouncer for ID'.

God, I love Wikipedia.

#24 – “Parlez-Vouz Anglais” – Headie One featuring Aitch

Produced by Al Hug and Ambezza

Okay, so our last two songs are both from Headie One and his overly long, 20+ track album he released last week, Edna. Do you see a trend with these British rap artists and debut albums? To be fair, I am more interested in this album, and I’ll probably listen to it after writing this. The feature list looks pretty good – I mean, it’s got Drake, Kenny Beats, Skepta and ironically, Young Adz on a song that did NOT chart this week – and I really loved “Both” from last year, so it’s probably worth checking out at least some of the songs. This song, however, was not one of those I was interested in. Man, I’m so angry I come back to this show and get back-to-back weeks with high debuts from rappers featuring this pioneer of gentrified drill music. He’s already made a song romanticising French women and high fashion as well, so it’s not like this is new territory for the guy. Admittedly, I do enjoy this cute, lounge-y elevator music sample but it feels pretty drowned-out by both the bog-standard UK drill beat and awkward flows from both, who are doing a similar thing to Dutchavelli and M1llionz did in the last song we talked about, but with more repetition to fill up time and more trading bars between the two, as well as an actual chorus, which is about as dull as bricks. Both Aitch and Headie have uninteresting flows and use awkward ad-libs to disguise a clear lack of any attempts at good wordplay or content that goes any further than worryingly blatant misogyny from Aitch and constant flexing. It’s not interesting, and it’s not good either.

#11 – “Princess Cuts” – Headie One featuring Young T & Bugsey

Produced by iO and TobyShyBoy

I’m not surprised this was the track that debuted this high. Thanks to TikTok picking up “Don’t Rush”, which is a brilliant song by the way, this group isn’t just big in the UK like most of these rappers, they are genuinely global superstars for the British hip hop scene and I love that. They made Aitch’s debut onto the charts both listenable and promising on “Strike a Pose” (It’s really a feat) and are constantly bringing smooth flows and Bugsey’s really nice voice over good production. They are more than deserving of being how British hip hop is viewed worldwide, even as they got onto the Hot 100 with Headie One earlier this year. I was surprised too. So, yeah, I’m excited to hear this new collaboration between the two artists, and, surprise, surprise, it’s really good. I love the nostalgic early-mid-2000s R&B beat especially with that slick Latin guitar and pounding bass groove. I love Young T singing on the hook over really beautiful vocodered samples and funky keys in the instrumental. I love Headie’s pretty impressive and at times smooth flow in his two verses. I love how Young T & Bugsey share a sing-songy cadence in their verse. Man, I love everything about this song sonically, and content-wise, the lyrics don’t really leave that much to be desired either. Sure, it’s pretty much just towing the line between a hook-up jam and flexing, but there’s enough funny lines and convincing delivery to make this worth checking out. I also love how Headie starts the smooth, sexy hook-up jam with “My young boy got the stick like Moses with the Israelites” in his deep, gruff tone, which is just comedy gold. Headie also takes time to praise the Lord and show his limited knowledge of geography, which is either insensitive to Asians or satirical depending on how you look at it. Either way, it works and it’s funny. This is just an incredible song and I hope it sticks around. Check it out.

Conclusion

There’s actually not much here to complain about, even with D-Block Europe’s two songs here. Little Mix take the Dishonourable Mention for “Not a Pop Song” and Worst of the Week is going to Headie One for “Parlez-Vouz Anglais” featuring Aitch but I might as well balance that out by giving the guy Best of the Week for “Princess Cuts” with Young T & Bugsey. I don’t want Stormzy to pull up to my house next, so I’ll delay on giving Chip the Honourable Mention, but that is instead going to “BLM” by Bandokay, Double Lz and Abra Cadabra for simply being necessary, although I’m scared to admit Young Adz was pretty close here. I don’t know what’ll happen next week – hopefully not that new Kanye song – but here’s the top 10 for Friday’s chart:

You can follow me @cactusinthebank for occasional political Twittage and I’ll see you next week.

[sheilacwall]

BIG K.R.I.T. – K.R.I.T. IZ HERE (Album Review)

BIG K.R.I.T. – K.R.I.T. IZ HERE (Album Review)

If GANGSTARR’s “One of the Best Yet” is album of the year for older hip hop heads, BIG K.R.I.T.’s “K.R.I.T. Iz Here” will satisfy the Kendrick Lamar generation. This is the follow up to the well received King Remembered in Time (K.R.I.T.) in 2013 and was released on 12th July, 2019.

KRIT starts up the album up with K.R.I.T. HERE, which samples The Winans Trust in God and dares other rappers to take his spot as King of Mississipi.

This album sees KRIT reach maturity with him talking about his lifelong partner and the internal struggles that all of us deal with.

“Put me in yo’ conversations, whisper ’bout me like I’m Jason Only rapper tell you go to church, keep it playa’, motivate the nation I’m a living work of art, ya’ll niggas ain’t even good at tracing I’m so throwed in the game, I’m clearing all the bases I’m so on another level, didn’t even know you made it Looking in the mirror at myself, I’m like “Hi, The Greatness” Oh, Lord, the way you blessed me, know I must be highly favored Just this one time, can’t make it easy on these haters”

Big K.R.I.T. samples Jerry Butler’s “Make It Easy on Yourself” for the next track.

“Addiction” feat Lil Wayne & Saweetie is the track that could leak onto the radio. If anyone should be on a track about addiction, for sure it’s Lil Wayne.

., which then turns as he reaches “Outerspace” and Double Cups into “Learned from Texas”. There is a brief jaunt into the Strip club on “Blue Flame Ballet”  before coming back to earth for the BBQ on “Family Matters”.

Blue Flame Ballet, ironically sounds like it would sit more comfortably in a jazz lounge than in a go go bar, but then again, I’ve never been to a strip club in Atlanta.

The album then drops into the first interlude handled by comedians, Karlous Miller & Chico Bean from Wild’n’Out.

“I Been Waiting” is the bass heavy dripping banger for your car & truck. The next track, “Make It Easy” samples Jerry Butler’s “Make It Easy on Yourself”. “Addiction” is a radio friendly track with Lil Wayne & Saweetie and has already clocked up 3m views. If you’re gonna get anyone on a track called Addiction, it’s gonna be Lil Wayne.

“Energy” and “Obvious” is a shout out to his long time partner. “I Made It” is your hateration song with Yella Beezy. “Everytime” is Big K.R.I.T.’s self affirmation record and sees him teaming up with Baby Rose and comparing himself to top athletes.

BIG K.R.I.T. reminisces on “Believe”, rapping about his old self, trying to figure out how to change things and the necessity of becoming a strong role model for the community.

“I just touched down Whippin’ on the corner with a bag in the trunk For all my niggas never having enough Like what the fuck is ever having enough? We gon’ keep keep baggin’ it up We gon’ keep keep cashin’ it up I need this here for the inner city I need Wakanda in Mississippi I need to plot it and plan it A way we could manage to stay out the penitentiary I need a chopper for all of my partners Just in case the government try to get me This is bigger than the color green This is Denzel in the last scene Of a Spike Lee joint, Malcolm X story Necessary by any means This is a mil’ on the wheel I am a four, never pour, never sip I got a dream Something like ML the King Talkin’ ’bout every day of the week”

J. Cole kills it on Prove it. BIG KRIT continues…

“I already had the record, and I knew [J. Cole] would be perfect for it. Cole was the first person that, it happened in 2012, tell me, ‘Look, work with other producers, bro. You got to. Work with other producers, so you can learn as a producer, and you’re going to be surprised by the things that you write.‘ […] We’re here and he jumps on a record that is produced by a young producer and kills it and then brings it full circle this energy that we had now.”

– Big K.R.I.T. via For The Record.

J. Cole gives a shout out to one of his biggest fans on “Prove It”…

“To shout out one of the first fans that a nigga ever had named Felicia I was brand new to the game, wasn’t used to no fame So it was unusual when I would land in a city and see you at baggage claim Come to find out you was workin’ for Delta So you got to fly for the free and that means That I was seein’ you like every show At first, it felt weird, but you was just so Casual ’bout it and not some over-the-top fan And that was just lettin’ me know “I really fuck with you, Cole” Today I saw you post some terrible news as I scroll, so This one is for you, want you to pull through I better see you on the road”

“Family Matters” sees K.R.I.T. at the BBQ, then as night turns, Krit dips into the Club with “Blue Flame Ballet” which sounds more at home at a Jazz Lounge than in a go go bar, but then again, I’ve never been to a strip club in Atlanta.

Krit then stumbles out of the strip club, double cupping into “Learned from Texas”, before reaching “Outerspace” and “High Beams”.

Now Krit’s been through the streets, found his life partner and then stumbled through the strip clubs, the Roy Ayers inspired “Life in the Sun” shows how Krit has matured as an artist.

“I spent my life in the sun Darkened complexion, I’m learning my lesson Listen today, don’t you boast when you pray Yeah, never post where you lay Jackers be robbing and plotting and killing too Batman and Robin, they villains too Jokers, they smile and they wave Colorful hair but they dodging the fade Never could surf but you riding the wave Wire your jaw just to talk like Kanye MAGA your hat just to feel like you paid Bust down a chain just to feel like you made I’m one of one like I drew in a cave Like I ran through the maze You a dope boy but it’s probably a phase ‘Til they search where you stay And your partner get jammed and he tell what you say Water for quarters, but who needs a blaze? Summer with borders like how can we play? Houses on fire, like where can we stay in the summer?”

The album culminates in the Double Bass heavy M.I.S.S.I.S.S.I.P.I. which hopefully is the new direction for his next album. You can almost feel Mississippi as you are listening to the track and makes you want to take a boat trip and roll down “Old Man River”. It really wets your appetite for the next album. Let’s hope he can drop a classic next time round.

His old sound paved the way for rappers such as Maxo Kream. This new sound builds on Mississipi Jazz greats such as Milt Hinton. It would be great to see him teaming up with some of these legends on his next album.

After 14 years in the industry, this could be some of his best work yet. This is the Evolution of Big K.R.I.T. He’s finally found his lane.

Let’s hope the album sales match and Justin gets his deserves. K.R.I.T. IZ HERE debuted at number 16 on the US charts in its first week.

You can buy the album below on Vinyl, CD or mp3.

Big K.R.I.T. is currently traveling for his From The South With Love tour. BIG K.R.I.T. will be playing Iron City in Alabama on November 13, 2019. Tickets here.

The post BIG K.R.I.T. – K.R.I.T. IZ HERE (Album Review) appeared first on Hip Hop World Music.

from Hip Hop World Music https://hiphopworldmusic.com/big-k-r-i-t-k-r-i-t-iz-here-album-review/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=big-k-r-i-t-k-r-i-t-iz-here-album-review from Hip Hop World Music https://hiphopworldmusic.tumblr.com/post/188788176993

[harryandmeghan0-blog]

2018's top pop culture moments: A journey from the royal wedding to a new Mary Poppins - The Denver Post

New Post has been published on https://harryandmeghan.xyz/2018s-top-pop-culture-moments-a-journey-from-the-royal-wedding-to-a-new-mary-poppins-the-denver-post/

2018's top pop culture moments: A journey from the royal wedding to a new Mary Poppins - The Denver Post

In this July 29, 2013, file photo, Les Moonves arrives at the CBS, CW and Showtime TCA party at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, Calif. Writer Ronan Farrow broke the explosive story of sexual misconduct on the part of the powerful CBS chief executive. Moonves resigned on Sept. 9, hours after more sexual harassment allegations involving the network’s longtime leader surfaced. On Dec. 17, it was announced that Moonves will not receive his $120 million severance package after the company’s board of directors determined he was fired “with cause” over the allegations. (Jordan Strauss, Invision/AP)

And the top pop culture moments of 2018 are … Wait. WAS there any pop culture this year? Of course there was, but you could be forgiven for forgetting, because more than ever it was politics, politics, and more politics occupying the zeitgeist and sucking the proverbial air out of the room. Still, if you wanted a break from that, there was a royal wedding with something for everyone, some groundbreaking movies, the return of Mary Poppins (to the screen) and Harry Potter (to Broadway), a goodbye to some favorite celebrities, a tale of two coats that were more than just coats, and more. Join us on a highly selective chronological journey through a year in pop culture:

JANUARY

The first awards shows reflect a changed Hollywood, only a few months after the #MeToo movement engulfed the industry. At the GOLDEN GLOBES, the red carpet becomes a sea of glittering black gowns in solidarity with victims of sexual misconduct, and OPRAH WINFREY gives a barn-burner of a speech, looking to a day “when nobody ever has to say ‘Me Too’ again!” At the GRAMMYS, stars don white roses, and singer Kesha dedicates a tearful performance of “Praying” to the #MeToo movement.

FEBRUARY

Welcome to WAKANDA: The latest Marvel hero to jump off the page into his own movie is the “BLACK PANTHER,” and RYAN COOGLER’S film is universally acclaimed. “Tell them who you are” is a catchphrase of the film, but it might as well be a pre-Oscar motto for Coogler and a starry cast including CHADWICK BOSEMAN, MICHAEL B. JORDAN, LUPITA NYONG’O and a slew of others. Ten months later the film will be nominated for a Golden Globe and generating serious Oscar buzz.

MARCH

Speaking of OSCAR, it’s that time, and we’re still talking about #MeToo, not to mention “Time’s Up!” Appearing onstage to mark the moment is a powerful trio of Harvey Weinstein’s accusers: ASHLEY JUDD, ANNABELLA SCIORRA, and SALMA HAYEK. And when FRANCES McDORMAND says she has “some things to say,” people listen: The best actress winner asks all the women nominees in the room to stand, and instructs Hollywood to tell their stories.

APRIL

Times are changing at the PULITZERS, too, where rapper KENDRICK LAMAR wins the music prize for “DAMN.” He’s the first rapper to win the prestigious laurel and the first winner who’s not a classical or jazz musician. In film, director JOHN KRASINSKI energizes the horror genre with the creepy, silent “A Quiet Place,” also starring wife EMILY BLUNT. On Broadway, the enduring magic of HARRY POTTER is conjured with the hit London transplant, “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.”

MAY

Let’s say “Do Svidaniya” to our favorite Soviet spy couple as “THE AMERICANS” ends its six-season run on FX with an elegant, surprising and moving series finale. At the annual glittery MET GALA, the theme is “Fashion and the Catholic Imagination ,” and imaginations are running rampant — we’re talking about you, KATY PERRY and your giant angel wings! But perhaps the most memorable fashion statement comes when the very American MEGHAN MARKLE weds the very British PRINCE HARRY in a refreshingly unadorned white gown. A gospel choir sings “Stand By Me,” and an American bishop, MICHAEL CURRY, almost steals the show with a spirited improvisational sermon before saying: “We gotta get y’all married!” Also this month, “THIS IS AMERICA” by CHILDISH GAMBINO, aka multi-talented DONALD GLOVER (also having a big year with “Atlanta”) opens at No. 1 on the Billboard chart, accompanied by a viral video of nonstop dancing punctuated by shocking scenes of shootings. And goodbye, ROSEANNE: The show’s reboot is canceled following her racist tweet.

JUNE

What was she thinking? MELANIA TRUMP doesn’t say, but the writing on her Zara jacket has everyone talking. “I don’t really care. Do U?” reads the garment worn by the first lady on parts of her trip to visit detained migrant children in Texas. Four months later she’ll explain it was “for the people and for the left-wing media who are criticizing me.” In music, JAY-Z and BEYONCE continue to exert their unique influence with a surprise joint album, “Everything is Love.” On a sad note, two admired celebrities are mourned after taking their own lives: global culinary chronicler ANTHONY BOURDAIN and colorful it-bag designer KATE SPADE.

JULY

Last year, it was WEINSTEIN. This year, it’s LES MOONVES, one of the most powerful men in television. Reporter RONAN FARROW breaks the explosive story of sexual misconduct on the part of the CBS chief executive; in September, with accusations escalating, Moonves will step down. And at year’s end he’ll lose his $120 million severance when CBS says it has grounds to fire him for cause, concluding he violated company policy and was uncooperative with an investigation — a claim Moonves’ attorney denies.

AUGUST

Farewell to the Queen of Soul: ARETHA FRANKLIN’s death sparks worldwide mourning, and the singer is hailed not only for her talent — the greatest of a generation — but her lifelong demand for “RESPECT,” as a woman and an African-American. She is eulogized in an epic eight-hour funeral. Another longtime great, PAUL MCCARTNEY, does carpool karaoke with JAMES CORDEN, and their visit to McCartney’s hometown of Liverpool that has many fans crying sweet tears of nostalgia.

SEPTEMBER

“Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything,” says a new NIKE ad that makes waves because of the man speaking the lines: COLIN KAEPERNICK, the former San Francisco quarterback who began a wave of protests among NFL players against police brutality and racial inequality. At the EMMYS, the awards themselves are upstaged by a surprise marriage proposal. And happy birthday, HARRY POTTER! Wow, you’re 20 years old.

OCTOBER

Usually DONALD TRUMP has the spotlight in the Oval Office, but apparently not when KANYE WEST visits. The rapper, ostensibly there to discuss prison reform, delivers a 10-minute speech about the president, politics, and of course himself. “You are tasting a fine wine,” he says, referring to, er, his truly. “It has multiple notes to it.” Onscreen, the ultimate chameleon, LADY GAGA, reinvents herself yet again with a stunning turn in BRADLEY COOPER’s acclaimed “A STAR IS BORN.” And some fine-art news: The elusive BANKSY pulls a stunt for the ages with his self-shredding painting at a Sotheby’s auction. But was that him, in the audience? Maybe.

NOVEMBER

Three broken ribs might sideline a football player, but RUTH BADER GINSBURG? Nah. Days after her injury from a fall, the 85-year-old Supreme Court justice is back on the job, capping a year in which she’s emerged as a true pop culture heroine. Already in the spotlight for “RBG,” the documentary in which she’s shown doing push-ups among other things, she’s also the subject of a popular SNL rap video, and by year’s end a new feature film, “On the Basis of Sex.” Oh, and she’s back at the gym, too.

DECEMBER

Wanna be the new Oscar host? They’re hiring! (Unless you’d prefer to be Trump’s chief of staff.) KEVIN HART is forced to step down — two days after being named — when past homophobic tweets are aired. And remember all the talk over the first lady’s Zara coat? Now it’s NANCY PELOSI’s MaxMara coat we’re discussing, a fiery red number that she wears — with Armani shades — emerging from a tense showdown with the president. The fashion label immediately reissues the discontinued garment. And speaking of cool overcoats: A stylish new MARY POPPINS is on the block, thanks to BLUNT, who proves a worthy successor to Julie Andrews in the Disney sequel. At the end of a tough year, it feels nice to indulge with just a spoonful of sugar.

Source: https://theknow.denverpost.com/2018/12/18/2018-top-pop-culture-moments/204606/

[wiremagazine]

LIGHTS, CAMERA, MUSIC - IT'S THE MTV VIDEO MUSIC AWARDS

By DJ FR8-O | Photos courtesy of MTV/Getty

One of the biggest nights in music is almost here – the MTV Video Music Awards. Now in its 33rd year, the iconic show not only celebrates the best new music from across all genres, it's become legendary for some of the most shocking moments in TV history. Who will be annihilating the Twitterverse on Sunday, August 27? With Katy Perry tapped to "swish swish" the hosting duties this year, it could be anyone's guess. In the meantime, here are the 2017 VMA nominees and my winning picks. Bon Appétit!

BEST NEW ARTIST

Khalid Kodak Black SZA Young M.A Noah Cyrus

Julia Michaels If there was a poster child for emotional dysfunction, this chick would be it. We got our first taste of her last year as a featured vocalist on Kygo's "Carry Me." Since then, she's unleashed her debut EP Nervous System featuring her top 10 single (and my new anthem) "Issues." Besides having a unique voice, her songs have a way of connecting with your heart while sticking to your brain. Qualities that could snag her even more awards next year.

BEST COLLABORATION

Calvin Harris ft. Pharrell Williams, Katy Perry & Big Sean – "Feels" The Chainsmokers ft. Halsey – "Closer" Charlie Puth ft. Selena Gomez – "We Don't Talk Anymore" D.R.A.M. ft. Lil Yachty – "Broccoli" Zayn & Taylor Swift – "I Don't Wanna Live Forever (Fifty Shades Darker)"

DJ Khaled ft. Rihanna & Bryson Tiller – "Wild Thoughts" Unlike the other categories, this was a no-brainer. Not that anything featuring Rihanna can do no wrong (well maybe), but as far as requests go, this one has by far been at the top of the list at every one of my sets. And with good reason. Not only do we get the rhythm and beats that made us fall in love with RiRi in the first place, we get a sweet nod to the legendary guitarist Santana.

BEST POP

Miley Cyrus – "Malibu" Fifth Harmony ft. Gucci Mane – "Down" Shawn Mendes – "Treat You Better" Ed Sheeran – "Shape Of You" Harry Styles – "Sign Of The Times"

Katy Perry ft. Skip Marley – "Chained To The Rhythm" Never mind how this song seems to swirl around in our heads hours after hearing it, but wouldn't want to take a spin on some of those gravity-defying rides in this video? With four nominations on deck and her VMA hosting debut, this could be a sign that Katy's rocky year is about to take a turn for the better.

BEST HIP HOP

Kendrick Lamar – "HUMBLE." Big Sean – "Bounce Back" D.R.A.M. ft. Lil Yachty – "Broccoli" Migos ft. Lil Uzi Vert – "Bad & Boujee" DJ Khaled ft. Justin Bieber, Quavo, Chance the Rapper & Lil Wayne – "I'm The One"

Chance the Rapper – "Same Drugs" There are so many reasons why his mix tape Coloring Book won a Grammy for "Best Rap Album" earlier this year, and this song is just one of them. Even the video takes a detour from the typical thong-clad hoochies twerking for their lives. Instead we get to see what Chance's guest appearance on The Muppet Show would have looked like had he been around in the late '70s. Not even Statler and Waldorf could deny the level of originality here.

BEST DANCE

Zedd and Alessia Cara – "Stay" Kygo and Selena Gomez – "It Ain't Me" Major Lazer ft. Justin Bieber and MØ – "Cold Water" Afrojack ft. Ty Dolla $ign – "Gone"

Calvin Harris – "My Way" It was his collaboration with Rihanna that first got our attention in 2011 and his underwear spread for Emporio Armani that sealed the deal in 2015. And although this particular track may not have circled our radar as much as its competition, the video definitely tops them all. The only thing that would've made it better is maybe a few scenes of Calvin in his Calvins.

BEST ROCK

Coldplay – "A Head Full Of Dreams" Twenty One Pilots – "Heavydirtysoul" Green Day – "Bang Bang" Foo Fighters – "Run"

Fall Out Boy – "Young And Menace" These guys have always been notorious for reshaping the sound of modern rock, and the same can be said for their clever music videos. Despite their woof-worthy good looks (which have only gotten better with age), they barely show their faces in this clip, leaving room for the strange yet all-too-familiar story to unfold beautifully, thanks to the brilliant directors Brendan Walter and Mel Soria.

BEST DIRECTION

Kendrick Lamar – "HUMBLE." (Directors: Dave Meyers, The Little Homies) Bruno Mars – "24K Magic" (Directors: Cameron Duddy, Bruno Mars) Alessia Cara – "Scars To Your Beautiful" (Director: Aaron A) The Weeknd – "Reminder" (Director: Glenn Michael)

Katy Perry ft. Skip Marley – "Chained To The Rhythm" (Director: Mathew Cullen) Anybody can point a camera at an artist and make them sing and dance, but creating a magical theme park in an alternate universe that's both retro and futuristic is no easy task. Director Mathew Cullen pulls this off flawlessly with eye-popping costumes, epic sets and mind-blowing visual effects that would make Walt Disney himself a little jealous.

BEST ART DIRECTION

Kendrick Lamar – "HUMBLE." (Production Designer: Spencer Graves) Bruno Mars – "24K Magic" (Production Designer: Alex Delgado) Katy Perry ft. Migos – "Bon Appetit" (Production Designer: Natalie Groce) The Weeknd – "Reminder" (Production Designers: Lamar C Taylor, Christo Anesti)

DJ Khaled ft. Rihanna & Bryson Tiller – "Wild Thoughts" (Production Designer: Damian Fyffe) Art may be in the eye of the beholder, but when this beholder watches this vid, he sees bright colors, sexy lighting, gorgeous locations, stylish costumes, steamy choreography and of course Rihanna – all elements that come together seamlessly to bring the song to life without the need for digital effects or gimmicks.  

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Kendrick Lamar – "HUMBLE." (Company: Timber/Lead: Jonah Hall) A Tribe Called Quest – "Dis Generation" (Company: Bemo/Lead: Brandon Hirzel) KYLE ft. Lil Yachty – "iSpy" (Company: Gloria FX/Leads: Max Colt & Tomash Kuzmytskyi) Harry Styles – "Sign Of The Times" (Company: ONE MORE/Lead: Cédric Nivoliez)

Katy Perry ft. Skip Marley – "Chained To The Rhythm" (Company: MIRADA) As I mentioned before: Flawless! From the flying roller coasters to the human catapults to the flaming cocktails, this vid is nothing but eye candy from start to finish. Maybe not the same flavor as Harry Styles floating across the sky, but still just as sweet.

BEST CHOREOGRAPHY

Kanye West – "Fade" (Choreographers: Teyana Taylor, Guapo, Jae Blaze, Derek 'Bentley' Watkins) Ariana Grande ft. Nicki Minaj – "Side To Side" (Choreographers: Brian & Scott Nicholson) Kendrick Lamar – "HUMBLE." (Choreographer: Dave Meyers) Fifth Harmony ft. Gucci Mane – "Down" (Choreographer: Sean Bankhead)

Sia – "The Greatest" (Choreographer: Ryan Heffington) Sia's videos have always been a choreographer's dream. And not just because of the incredibly talented Maddie Zeigler, the young platinum-wigged dancer featured in five of them. The whimsical choreography has become as much a part of Sia's "package" as the songs they were made for. This clip was even more special because it honors the 49 victims of the Pulse nightclub tragedy that shocked the LGBTQ community and the entire world.

ARTIST OF THE YEAR

Kendrick Lamar Lorde Bruno Mars Ed Sheeran The Weeknd

Ariana Grande With such an eclectic group of artists, it seems unfair to decide who's art is better than the rest. However, besides her undeniably unparalleled vocal range, Ariana has shown us that she can also make us laugh, make us cry, make us dance, and move us to give to those in need through her charitable efforts. A great vocalist can change the music charts, but a great artist can change the world.  

VIDEO OF THE YEAR

DJ Khaled ft. Rihanna & Bryson Tiller – "Wild Thoughts" Kendrick Lamar – "HUMBLE." Bruno Mars – "24K Magic" The Weeknd – "Reminder"

Alessia Cara – "Scars To Your Beautiful" While the rest of the nominees flaunt the importance of sex, money and social status in their videos, Alessia is the only contender to use her moment to shine a spotlight on the value of loving yourself – flaws and all – with the help of everyday people just like you and me. In a time when we're being divided by our differences and shamed for being "less than perfect," it's refreshing to see an artist show support for something other than the almighty dollar.

This was originally published in Wire Magazine Issue 33.2017

[djrelentless]

“2013 REWIND: DJ Relenless Talks Music, Politics, Life And The Future”

December 26, 2013 at 4:29pm

What can I say about the year that gave us "twerking" and the "Gay Lumberjack meetsHillbilly Chic" beard? The year that blatant abuse of power with a side order of racism and homophobia was the order of the day. Where Pop Divas battled for the top of the charts, but were side swiped by a smarter girl from Houston.

Yes, 2013 was a quite a year in news and for me personally.

It seems like every year Reality TV gets more and more out of control. We went from a sassy toddler beauty pageant contestant to a backwoods redneck duck calling family and suddenly became surprised that the monarch of it was homophobic and racist. And not wanting to be outdone….the Kardsahians pulled every trick out of their Prada bags to stay relevant. Too bad that not even marrying Kanye West could keep them afloat on the internet. Kanye had a moment of truth on Jimmy Kimmel when he went on to address the parody of his BBC interview. For just a second, I understood his point of view, but then he just kept on talkin'! His mouth is gonna be his biggest downfall. He has some clever twists of phrases in his lyrics, but his idea of being a super genius is what keeps everyone from taking him seriously. Poor Paris Hilton…..she's no longer  the "rotten spoiled whore darling" of media. Instead of releasing that horrible song with Lil' Wayne she should have done a sex tape with him. That would have kept her in the news for at least a month. We were continuously being bombarded with information everyday. How could anyone keep up or pay attention?

Musically, we started out the year doing the "Harlem Shake". This really funky dance featured in many Hip Hop videos got appropriated and transformed into convulsions of the masses. Great beat, but no one I saw online was doing it right. This was kinda the "Year of Appropriation" (folks basically stealing other things from other cultures…..some for music, some to shock and some just to get a laugh). Even my alter-ego, Jade Elektra found herself being appropriated by Circuit DJ/Producers who years ago would never play or admit they liked tracks like "Bitch You Look Fierce" or "Why Are You Gaggin'?", but now are stealing riffs and lyrics to make these outdated tribal tracks for shirtless steroid boys to throw their hands in the air while their drugs kick in. That's so 1998!

The word "twerk" was on everyone's lips after the 2013 MTV Music Video Awardsbecause little Hannah Montana decided that once and for all she was no longer going to be a Disney Princess. So, when Miley Cyrus bent over in front of Canada's Marvin Gaye,Robin Thicke during a mash-up of "We Can't Stop" and "Blurred Lines" the course of Pop Music history was changed forever. Online and in the media, Lady GaGa and Katy Perrywere slated to duke it out for the top of the charts by September. After that moment, no one was even thinking about an "Applause" or a "Roar". But no one could have predictedBeyonce coming around the corner in at the last moment in December with her brilliantly unannounced CD and Visual album. Finally….an artist got it right. Release more than a bunch of songs. Give your fans a complete package and they will go out and buy it in droves.

Rivalries between Chris Brown and Drake or Azealia Banks and Iggy Azalea seem to cool by summer. I think a few people found out that the internet could be a dangerous place for their careers. Bad publicity is still bad publicity. And when you are trying to sell records in this economy…..it would behoove you to sit down and shut the fuck up! I didn't get the apology that I wanted from Eminem, but I did get to hear him say that he is not a role model and that he did a lot of his early 2000's antics for publicity. But like Andrew "Dice" Clay andLisa Lampanelli, you can only go so far shocking people before it turns into hate. On top and everyone's talking about you and then poof…..you're gone. The next obnoxious thing comes along. So, I lifted my ban on him just in time for his well crafted album, "The Mashall Mathers LP 2" (produced by the legendary Rick Ruben).

Idiots like Justin Bieber and Rob Ford really found out how bad publicity travels around the world in a second. These fools spent the year just writing jokes about themselves with every move. And it's sad that the City Government in Toronto has nothing place to remove Fordfrom office after admitting he lied about smoking crack, got caught on video with some shady dealings, possible murder suspect and told a room full of reporters that he has more than enough "pussy" to eat at home. Bieber just really needs a good ass-whippin'. Punk ass bitches like him are always super tough behind bodyguards when he would bust a grape in a fruit fight (to quote Jay Z). God….please make his announcement about retiring TRUE!

It was quite the year for Macklemore & Ryan Lewis. These two have played their hand very well. I just wish that they would give thanks to Ellen DeGeneres for really launching their success by having them on to perform "Same Love" in October of 2012. And speaking of lesbians on daytime television……it has been great to see the void of Oprah filled with two dykes competing for ratings every weekday. Queen Latifah & Ellen seem to be fighting over guests and who's funnier. The only thing is one is completely out and the other dances around the subject.

But we did have some new entries into the game. The LaToya Jackson of the Braxton family, Tamar Braxton really stretched her 15 minutes into 20. Kendrick Lamar shook things up on the Hip Hop scene by just being raw on his lyrics. And thank God that damn "Royals" song by Lorde seems to be dying down! I love when they hype a new artist that they think is the next big thing. She should take a look back at Nora Jones. Praised and revered….now no one knows where she is (taco stand, maybe). At least with Macklemore & Ryan Lewis they had a few years under their belts to find their sound and message. This kid's album sounds like one song. No variations and nothing interesting. I don't wanna hear another teenage girl who sounds like the voice of a baby doll programed with the latest catch phrases…..just tired! But we'll see what happens at the Grammys.

And speaking of the Grammys…..I definitely think it's gonna be a Justin Timberlake year. I think the lawsuit by the Gaye family will hurt Robin Thicke's chances. But Pharrell Williamsshould snatch a couple awards for producing and singing the track "Happy" for "Despicable Me 2". Let's just hope there won't be any awkward performances like Lady GaGa & R. Kelly's "Do What U Want" on SNL or Miley Cyrus' "Wrecking Ball" on theAmerican Music Awards even though they both made for good television.

Apparently some other "good television" in 2013 was "Breaking Bad". Who would have thought a show about dealing meth would be one of the highest rated show? Perhaps with the state of the U.S. it's not that surprising at all. From the blatant sabotage of the government by the arrogant and racist Republicans to the dumbing down of TV programing, many didn't have much to turn o except drugs to cope. Medical marijuana has legalized pot in certain areas of the country and many are trying to find doctors who will give them a prescription for any ailment.

And the Reality TV shows just keep on a comin'! My favorite new title coming from the states is "Sex Sent Me To The E.R." (probably because I could have been on this show….but we'll save that story for my book). As a member of the Screen Actors Guild, it saddens me that good actors can't get work today while simple and common people can allow cameras to follow them around and makes millions. And talking with one of my good friends who is an excellent director, I realized that this Reality Crap has effected our actual actors in America. Now perfectly good actors are "acting" like Reality Stars to get work. This is why Australians and Brits are playing Americans better than Americans. It reminds me of when I was applying for a job at Gym Bar in Chelsea, NY back in 2009 and the owner actually asked me to not mix my sets. Mainly because the norm in the bars in Manhattan these days at some gay hangouts is a DJ who cannot mix. That is killing the art of DJ-ing and definitely killing the art of acting!

But never fear….Kevin Hart came up with one of the most brilliant ideas. "The Real Husbands Of Hollywood" has flipped the script. It's a fake reality show with real celebrities. Very funny stuff! I predict that Mr. Hart will take the place of Dave Chapelle in 2014. God knows, he's about to drop several movies at once to start the New Year off. Let's just hope he doesn't implode like Dave did.

The other disturbing trend I watched in 2013 was the Conservative Party of Canada's government borrowing pages from the U.S. Republicans' playbook. Not many realized thatFOX News opened an office in Montreal this year. That means that the Republicans have raised enough money off the puppet shows like "Family Guy", "American Idol" and "The Simpsons" to expand to another country. The very things that the Republicans hate and want to fight to keep down like gay rights, immigration, poor people's dreams, etc…are the very things they sell us on their shows to make money to continue their agenda. Their remarking of voting zones and opposing Obama tooth and nail is part of their plan to take back the White House in 2016. And don't think for a moment that the Obamacare website debacle was not a scheme by the Republicans. It's just too bad that him being the first African-American President has left him in a position where he can't call them out without them saying he's playing the "race card". These days everyone is holding their breath hoping that Hillary Clinton will run in the next election. At this moment and time, she seems to be the only threat to the Republicans. But a lot can change over the next year couple of years. Remember back in 2008 when we all thought she was a shoe-in?

But I guess the most frustrating thing to watch this year was the acts of racism and homophobia. The George Zimmerman Verdict in the murder case of Trayvon Martin really sent a message about America that polarized race relations. It gave us the new and improved "Jim Crow". It raised the question "Have we really evolved at all?" People likePaula Deen and Phil Robertson are great example of the rebranding of "Jim Crow". Celebrities like Julianna Hough dressing in "blackface" for Halloween, Steve Martintweeting a racist jokes, the attacks on Nina Davuluri for being crowned the first Miss America of Indian decent….all tell a different story about "the land of the free." Some tried to apologize while others just "stood their ground" and let their racist thoughts flow like theRiver Jordan. And even though Elisabeth Hasslebeck was finally asked to leave "The View", I think it was a little too late.

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/09/16/miss-america-2013-nina-davuluri_n_3933666.html

But I guess the most ridiculous thing I just read about recently is the "National Chick-Phil-A Day" coming up on January 21st, 2014. Supporters of Phil Robertson are planning to converge on all Chick-fil-A restaurants to show their support for him and freedom of speech. Hey…it worked when the company came out against gay rights! But in a strange move the fast food chain has quickly denounced any involvement with the movement. Probably because Robertson is not only a homophobe but also a racist. So, the company has had to pick and choose their hate. Yes…we hate homosexuals, but we love our black customers who eat chicken!

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/12/26/have-you-heard-about-the-national-chick-phil-a-day-to-support-suspended-duck-dynast-star/

http://www.tmz.com/2013/12/25/chick-fil-a-phil-robertson-facebook-group-statement/

But as for me, 2013 taught me a lot about myself and where my life is going. With the help of my husband (John Allan), Todd Klinck, Phillip Fournier and the owners of Crews & Tangos I successfully maintained a monthly fundraiser for one of the charities that is dear to my heart…..Toronto's People With AIDS Foundation. Probably because I have witnessed first hand the good work they do for people living with HIV/AIDS. I don't think that everyone realizes that all it takes is one person to start a movement or to take a stand. I hope that I have inspired a few people to live in their truth. It's the only way to live….for me at least. I've learned that it is never too late to right a wrong (especially when it comes to your family).

2013 also taught me to always stand up for what you believe in (even when it is the unpopular thing to do). Pride week in Toronto showed me how some people only see what they want to see. Supporting your friend when they have done something that is wrong or controversial does not make their actions right. It only makes you look uneducated. Opening a conversation and dialogue about different view points should not turn into a "Twlight" movie with Team This and Team That. If you don't know what it is to be discriminated against or degraded because of who or what you are, then of course you will not have the same view point as of someone who has. Social Media has turn everyone into their own little islands. And our youth suffer the most because they actually believe the hype of entitlement. A few likes or quick comments posted on a page makes them believe that they are that important when there are much bigger issues at hand.

So, even though I have lost a few friends and acquaintances behind standing up against a racist act, I have gained a few a long the way and remain proud that I said something when most didn't see what was wrong in the first place.

It weird thinking back at the movie version of George Orwell's "1984". "Big Brother" was a real threat to our lives (or at least we thought back then). The idea that someone was watching us 24/7 without our control or consent was a scary concept. Now "Big Brother" is a reality show and everyone is clammering to post their most intimate details online. I love seeing photos of people behaving badly, smoking joints and almost naked in their bathrooms. And then they wonder why they can't get a job! It would seem that "Big Brother" has figured out how to watch us with our permission and no one is the wiser.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vq-_7F9asjo

For 2014….I pray for clarity. I pray for continued good health. I pray for a common ground where we all can be heard and still respect each other. I don't have to agree with you, but that does not mean we cannot work together to make a better place for all of us.

[theworstbob]

yellin’ at songs, 4.14.2007 + 4.15.2017

the songs that debuted on the billboard chart this week and ten years ago this week. today: buttrock confessions

4.14.2007

40) "Ticks," Brad Paisley

So I watched the whole entire CMAs instead of Game 7 of the World Series and don't regret a single choice I made (the game went into extras, you don’t really have to watch baseball until the ninth inning tbh), and it struck me how much of a dorky theatre kid Brad Paisley was. He's objectively a great guitarist, like hokey as this song is and as little I know about music I think that's a dope fucking guitar line, but gosh darn, he was trying so hard the whole time at those CMAS! And that puts a song like this in perspective, because, like I said, it's hokey as fuck, but if you can just understand that Brad Paisley's sense of humor is that of someone who understands that being funny is a way to be Liked and is trying his best to be Liked, it sort of comes together and you can brush it off.

75) "We Takin' Over," DJ Khaled ft./T.I., Akon, Rick Ross, Fat Joe, Lil' Wayne, Baby

FUCK DUDE LIL' WAYNE USED TO BE GOOD. Like OK I think we all know I wanted to come here and be like "look at the humble beginnings of the meme man! He wasn't such a meme in these days!" but then there was a Lil' Wayne verse where he wasn't fucking around with Auto-tune, he was just rapping, and he was such a good fucking rapper that I'm actually angrier at the two "verses" he had on those Nicki Minaj songs a couple weeks back. It's not even one of his more notable verses, I don't think, it was just a normal 10-year-old Wayne verse, but I'm still here like, what a treat, a Lil' Wanye feature I don't mind! How lucky we were in 2007!

78) "Little Wonders," Rob Thomas

it is good to remember things that are nice! the lyric video i watched for this song ended with this message from the editor: "Believe in yourself, follow your dreams, and never, EVER give up =)." i would have much rather someone had just repeated those words over and over for three and a half minutes than listened to this song. DANNY ELFMAN?! fuck are you doing here, danny elfman? are you lost?

79) "Hey There Delilah," Plain White T's

There is nothing I could say about this song that would be worth saying.

82) "I Tried," Bone Thugs-N-Harmony ft./Akon

a'ight, see, now i feel better about bumping pink and jordan pruitt from the top 20, because it won't be some buttrock heroes what bumps 'em, it'll be a legit impressive, heartfelt song. i'm kinda surprised i don't remember this! now i just gotta contend with the fact most of both top 20s are gonna be dudes. but like most of these songs are dudes. this week is all dudes. next week is a 7:2 dude-to-lady ratio. last week was 2:1. maybe less dudes? idk, recency bias is doin' work, but at least two weeks from now, we're gonna get some dope tunes.

87) "Get Buck," Young Buck

HOLY SHIT THIS FUCKING BEAT THE TUBA HAS NEVER HAD A BETTER DAY IN ITS LIFE. OK, this is the first 2007 track I think has been unjustifiably forgotten by time. “Say OK” hit me, but I think that was just a moment for me. This is objectively a classic, this fucking beat, man. Young Buck doesn't add a ton to the proceedings, but he doesn't ruin anything, his gruff, shouty flow is perfect for the beat, and I'll admit, I got a dark chuckle out of the "I can serve Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown" line. This was fuckin' rad, y'all, the best "new to me" song I've heard so far. Seriously this beat, how have we not found a better home for it, how did no one else latch onto it. A strong silver medalist in the "Southern rap songs with the word 'buck' in the title" category.

89) "A Woman's Love," Alan Jackson

Alan Jackson, last seen walking out on Beyonce's performance at the CMAs, is here singing a jaunty tune about how one time he fucked.

91) "Love Today," MIKA

i mean it's just a good song, man, i dunno. i'm allowed to just say when a song is solid and something i can jam to, right, when i don't think i have anything to justify? it's low-rent scissor sisters. I'LL TAKE THAT ANY DAY OF THE WEEK. solid week.

95) "Forever," Papa Roach

...oh goddamnit i love this song. No, you don't... Lemme explain. I need to explain, so lemme. So, I listened to a lot of the local buttrock station in my teens, because that's what the radio at the auto shop where I worked was always tuned to, was 93X. And, I dunno, there's a lot of bullshit I forgot and a lot of shit too horrible to purge from the mind, I've heard the acoustic version of Staind's "Outside" more times than any man ever should, but there were some songs where the Stockholm Syndrome hit, and you were like, "Well, maybe Chevelle isn't ALL bad." This was definitely the point where I was like, "Hey, this is the one decent Papa Roach song!" I was legit angry when I realized this was that song, I forgot I ever loved a Papa Roach song, I was 10000% sure this was a cover because there was no way I was going to go anywhere but IN on this song, but no, this is a song I shouted in the shower at least five times. I'm so disappointed in myself right now, but... But, yeah, this is, I can’t quite place where they cribbed the verses from but they cribbed well, the chorus is shouty and fake-deep like all the great buttrock songs, and I love that ending, the “one last kiss” thing over that bass line, without reservation. We have to be true to who we were, and who we are is never fully removed from who we were. I hate this. I hate having to admit this. THE ONE PAPA ROACH SONG I FUCK WITH, AND IT HAS TO BE PART OF THIS PROJECT. I HAVE TO TALK ABOUT A KENDRICK LAMAR SONG SOON, AND HERE I AM, FUCKING WITH A PAPA ROACH SONG, THROWING MY CRITICAL AUTHORITY OUT WITH THE BATHWATER.

97) "Breath," Breaking Benjamin

I have less reservations about loving a Breaking Benjamin song, though, because Breaking Benjamin wasn't fake-deep like Papa Roach. ("My feelings for you are forever." God, that's stupid. I love a very stupid thing.) No, Breaking Benjamin was legit dark, they were a buttrock band I knew was OK because my friend who ended up going to a semi-prestigious art high school of some renown was into them. Is it the same song as "The Diary of Jane?" Yeah, kinda, there's more than a little resemblance, "THE DIARY OF JANE" IS A LEGIT GREAT SONG AND BITING THAT SONG IS A SMART MOVE.

At least Papa Roach couldn’t crack the Top 20. 2007: gaining strength! 20) "Get it Shawty," by Lloyd (3.31.2007) 19) "Break 'Em Off," by Paul Wall ft./Lil' KeKe (3.10.2007) 18) "My Oh My," by The Wreckers (1.27.2007) 17) "Mr. Jones," by Mike Jones (1.27.2007) 16) "Settlin'," by Sugarland (2.17.2007) 15) "I Tried," by Bone Thugs 'n Harmony (4.21.2007) 14) "Movin' On," by Elliott Yamin (3.17.2007) 13) "U + Ur Hand," by P!nk (1.13.2007) 12) "Doe Boy Fresh," by Three 6 Mafia ft./Chamillionaire (1.20.2007) 11) "Breath," by Breaking Benjamin (4.21.2007) 10) "Beautiful Liar," by Beyonce & Shakira (3.31.2007) 9) "Cupid's Chokehold," by Gym Class Heroes ft./Patrick Stump (1.13.2007) 8) "The River," by Good Charlotte ft./M. Shadows & Synyster Gates (2.10.2007) 7) "Say OK," by Vanessa Hudgens (2.17.2007) 6) "Alyssa Lies," by Jason Michael Carroll (1.13.2007) 5) "Get Buck," by Young Buck (4.21.2007) 4) "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going," by Jennifer Hudson (1.13.2007) 3) "Candyman," by Christina Aguilera (1.13.2007) 2) "Because of You," by Ne-Yo (3.17.2007) 1) "Dashboard," by Modest Mouse (2.17.2007)

4.15.2017

22) "The Heart Part 4," by Kendrick Lamar

I mean, with the way I do this thing, everything that's been said about this song has been said, and I'm hella late to the party, trying to get another round of Pin the Tail on the Donkey started. "You didn't have fun without me, I'm about to have fun WITH you!" No Bob! we already played that game Bob!. "BLINDFOLD ME!" I think it's vitally important that Kendrick Lamar remind everyone that he's the best MC alive right now, because he is, and gosh, he just fucking raps for four minutes. Barely a hook, just Kendrick Lamar verses and flows for a solid four minutes, and I'm really curious how many rappers could sustain a song for four (mostly) uninterrupted minutes just on their own. Minimalist production, it's just your voice and your words. I'd put Danny Brown in that category, but it'd be a bleak-ass four minutes. I want to put Killer Mike in that category, but I have to think there's a reason he works best in a duo. I'd want to listen to what four minutes of undiulted Young Thug would sound like?, but more out of curiosity than belief in his ability. And I mean Kendrick's the only one in the popular consciousness who could do it, no fuckin’ question, there's no one in the mainstream rap world anywhere NEAR his level. (Kendrick Lamar is barely mainstream, of course, and that fact is a source of much consternation on this song, like there's no way the entire Kendrick album breaks the Hot 100 like the entire Drake album did, but he was in a Tay Tay song the one time and that's enough.) Just listening to Kendrick Lamar rap is one of the most thrilling songs I've heard for YAS 2017. Honestly, I'm ranking it too low in the Top 20, but only because I have to think better things are on their way and am wary of that recency bias wave.

49) "XO Tour Lif3," by Lil Uzi Vert

Congratulations on being the modern rap song which followed "The Heart Part 4!" You were always going to suffer in comparison, and while I regret that it happened to you, I hope you understand it had to happen to someone. I mean, this is a three-minute song, and at some point I got bored enough that I forgot I was supposed to be paying attention to come up with an observation and/or a joke and did other things. Not even shit I needed to take care of, I checked Facebook and thought about getting a glass of milk until he started saying all his friends are dead, like what?, oh okay I guess that's how this song ends then, OH FUCK well prolly not worth dipping back in if I got that distracted.

61) "Speak to a Girl," by Tim McGraw & Faith Hill

So over the last four weeks, only three women have had tracks debut on the Hot 100. That's pretty cool. One of the three dudes who wrote this song, about what a girl REALLY wants from a man, was also a co-writer on Jason Derulo's "Wiggle," which is, I mean, I'm going off Wikipedia, I'm hopeful this is too awful to be true, but if it isn't, how does that dude sleep at night? What does that dude believe in? Who is his god, just, to what moral authority is our man Joe London holding himself accountable? Do Not Trust Joe London. Another of the songwriters worked with a band called Confederate Railroad. Country music is the coolest. I'm so proud to like this genre.

66) "Still Got Time," by ZAYN ft./PARTYNEXTDOOR

First of all, we need to take a minute to discuss the sheer disrespect for the concept of caps lock expressed by ZAYN and PARTYNEXTDOOR. This is a mumblecore pop song, and I must insist these dudes cease using all capital letters until they prove they're capable of expressing excitement. Other than that gripe, though, I dunno, I didn't have a bad time! I enjoyed it about as much as I did "Running Back" a few weeks ago, it didn't light this Tuesday evening on fire, but it was a chill groove, and I appreciated the B+ to which all involved contributed. Also, new favorite Wikipedia line: "Shane Lindstrom, professionally known as Murda Beatz." One, professionally known. Two, imagine ever asking someone to call you Murda. Gosh, what a stupid fucking stage name. (Stage name? Backstage name? Why do you need an alias bro you're a fucking producer, you don't get to have a fake name, the fuck makes you think you can have a fake name. Even Swizz Beatz rapped sometimes, what is your goddamned problem Murda Beatz.)

2017′s Top 20! I lowered “Run Up” again. I miss it dearly but I can’t pretend I liked it more than “Green Light.” 20) "Swalla," by Jason Derulo ft./Nicki Minaj & Ty Dolla $ign (4.8) 19) "Light," by Big Sean ft./Jeremih (2.25) 18) "Everyday," by Ariana Grande ft./Future (3.4) 17) "Draco," by Future (3.11) 16) "Guys My Age," by Hey Violet (2.11) 15) "Good Drank," by 2 Chainz ft./Gucci Mane & Quavo (2.11) 14) "Yeah Boy," Kelsea Ballerini (3.4) 13) "Selfish," by Future ft./Rihanna (3.18) 12) "Slide," by Calvin Harris ft./Frank Ocean & Migos (3.18) 11) "It Ain't Me," by Kygo x Selena Gomez (3.4) 10) "Now & Later," by Sage the Gemini (2.25) 9) "Shape of You," by Ed Sheeran (1.28) 8) "That's What I Like," by Bruno Mars (3.4) 7) "The Heart Part 4," by Kendrick Lamar (4.15) 6) "Chanel," by Frank Ocean ft./A$AP Rocky (4.1) 5) "Run Up," by Major Lazer ft./PARTYNEXTDOOR & Nicki Minaj (2.18) 4) "Green Light," by Lorde (3.18) 3) "Despacito," by Luis Fonsi ft./Daddy Yankee (2.4) 2) "Issues," by Julia Michaels (2.11) 1) "iSpy," by KYLE ft./Lil Yachty (1.14) how the fuck did “swalla” make it two weeks Also, I know there was a new Iggy Azalea song, and I’m just gonna say, if having to listen to 21 Drake songs was the price I paid to not have to hear 1 Iggy Azalea song, I will have been glad to have paid the toll. That is a reasonable trade, one I would never say no to. Boy I hope it doesn’t debut next week! Also: “iSpy” in the for-real top five! That’s so dope! I’m happy for that song!

Who won the week?

2007 had the stronger showing this week, and let’s be real, I think it’s out-paced 2017 at this point. 2007′s at the point where “Get It Shawty” is hanging on by a thread while “Grace Kelly” and “Outside Looking In” are outside looking in. 2017 needs to step its game up. We’re two weeks from “Umbrella.” Is that so much to ask, is for just one instant classic era-defining monster jam that shatters the world? Come on, 2017! 2007: 2 2017: 1

[sheilacwall]

BIG K.R.I.T. – K.R.I.T. IZ HERE (Album Review)

BIG K.R.I.T. – K.R.I.T. IZ HERE (Album Review)

If GANGSTARR’s “One of the Best Yet” is album of the year for older hip hop heads, BIG K.R.I.T.’s “K.R.I.T. Iz Here” will satisfy the Kendrick Lamar generation. This is the follow up to the well received King Remembered in Time (K.R.I.T.) in 2013 and was released on 12th July, 2019.

KRIT starts up the album up with K.R.I.T. HERE, which samples The Winans Trust in God and dares other rappers to take his spot as King of Mississipi.

This album sees KRIT reach maturity with him talking about his lifelong partner and the internal struggles that all of us deal with.

“Put me in yo’ conversations, whisper ’bout me like I’m Jason Only rapper tell you go to church, keep it playa’, motivate the nation I’m a living work of art, ya’ll niggas ain’t even good at tracing I’m so throwed in the game, I’m clearing all the bases I’m so on another level, didn’t even know you made it Looking in the mirror at myself, I’m like “Hi, The Greatness” Oh, Lord, the way you blessed me, know I must be highly favored Just this one time, can’t make it easy on these haters”

Big K.R.I.T. samples Jerry Butler’s “Make It Easy on Yourself” for the next track.

“Addiction” feat Lil Wayne & Saweetie is the track that could leak onto the radio. If anyone should be on a track about addiction, for sure it’s Lil Wayne.

., which then turns as he reaches “Outerspace” and Double Cups into “Learned from Texas”. There is a brief jaunt into the Strip club on “Blue Flame Ballet”  before coming back to earth for the BBQ on “Family Matters”.

Blue Flame Ballet, ironically sounds like it would sit more comfortably in a jazz lounge than in a go go bar, but then again, I’ve never been to a strip club in Atlanta.

The album then drops into the first interlude handled by comedians, Karlous Miller & Chico Bean from Wild’n’Out.

“I Been Waiting” is the bass heavy dripping banger for your car & truck. The next track, “Make It Easy” samples Jerry Butler’s “Make It Easy on Yourself”. “Addiction” is a radio friendly track with Lil Wayne & Saweetie and has already clocked up 3m views. If you’re gonna get anyone on a track called Addiction, it’s gonna be Lil Wayne.

“Energy” and “Obvious” is a shout out to his long time partner. “I Made It” is your hateration song with Yella Beezy. “Everytime” is Big K.R.I.T.’s self affirmation record and sees him teaming up with Baby Rose and comparing himself to top athletes.

BIG K.R.I.T. reminisces on “Believe”, rapping about his old self, trying to figure out how to change things and the necessity of becoming a strong role model for the community.

“I just touched down Whippin’ on the corner with a bag in the trunk For all my niggas never having enough Like what the fuck is ever having enough? We gon’ keep keep baggin’ it up We gon’ keep keep cashin’ it up I need this here for the inner city I need Wakanda in Mississippi I need to plot it and plan it A way we could manage to stay out the penitentiary I need a chopper for all of my partners Just in case the government try to get me This is bigger than the color green This is Denzel in the last scene Of a Spike Lee joint, Malcolm X story Necessary by any means This is a mil’ on the wheel I am a four, never pour, never sip I got a dream Something like ML the King Talkin’ ’bout every day of the week”

J. Cole kills it on Prove it. BIG KRIT continues…

“I already had the record, and I knew [J. Cole] would be perfect for it. Cole was the first person that, it happened in 2012, tell me, ‘Look, work with other producers, bro. You got to. Work with other producers, so you can learn as a producer, and you’re going to be surprised by the things that you write.‘ […] We’re here and he jumps on a record that is produced by a young producer and kills it and then brings it full circle this energy that we had now.”

– Big K.R.I.T. via For The Record.

J. Cole gives a shout out to one of his biggest fans on “Prove It”…

“To shout out one of the first fans that a nigga ever had named Felicia I was brand new to the game, wasn’t used to no fame So it was unusual when I would land in a city and see you at baggage claim Come to find out you was workin’ for Delta So you got to fly for the free and that means That I was seein’ you like every show At first, it felt weird, but you was just so Casual ’bout it and not some over-the-top fan And that was just lettin’ me know “I really fuck with you, Cole” Today I saw you post some terrible news as I scroll, so This one is for you, want you to pull through I better see you on the road”

“Family Matters” sees K.R.I.T. at the BBQ, then as night turns, Krit dips into the Club with “Blue Flame Ballet” which sounds more at home at a Jazz Lounge than in a go go bar, but then again, I’ve never been to a strip club in Atlanta.

Krit then stumbles out of the strip club, double cupping into “Learned from Texas”, before reaching “Outerspace” and “High Beams”.

Now Krit’s been through the streets, found his life partner and then stumbled through the strip clubs, the Roy Ayers inspired “Life in the Sun” shows how Krit has matured as an artist.

“I spent my life in the sun Darkened complexion, I’m learning my lesson Listen today, don’t you boast when you pray Yeah, never post where you lay Jackers be robbing and plotting and killing too Batman and Robin, they villains too Jokers, they smile and they wave Colorful hair but they dodging the fade Never could surf but you riding the wave Wire your jaw just to talk like Kanye MAGA your hat just to feel like you paid Bust down a chain just to feel like you made I’m one of one like I drew in a cave Like I ran through the maze You a dope boy but it’s probably a phase ‘Til they search where you stay And your partner get jammed and he tell what you say Water for quarters, but who needs a blaze? Summer with borders like how can we play? Houses on fire, like where can we stay in the summer?”

The album culminates in the Double Bass heavy M.I.S.S.I.S.S.I.P.I. which hopefully is the new direction for his next album. You can almost feel Mississippi as you are listening to the track and makes you want to take a boat trip and roll down “Old Man River”. It really wets your appetite for the next album. Let’s hope he can drop a classic next time round.

His old sound paved the way for rappers such as Maxo Kream. This new sound builds on Mississipi Jazz greats such as Milt Hinton. It would be great to see him teaming up with some of these legends on his next album.

After 14 years in the industry, this could be some of his best work yet. This is the Evolution of Big K.R.I.T. He’s finally found his lane.

Let’s hope the album sales match and Justin gets his deserves. K.R.I.T. IZ HERE debuted at number 16 on the US charts in its first week.

You can buy the album below on Vinyl, CD or mp3.

Big K.R.I.T. is currently traveling for his From The South With Love tour. BIG K.R.I.T. will be playing Iron City in Alabama on November 13, 2019. Tickets here.

The post BIG K.R.I.T. – K.R.I.T. IZ HERE (Album Review) appeared first on Hip Hop World Music.

from Hip Hop World Music https://hiphopworldmusic.com/big-k-r-i-t-k-r-i-t-iz-here-album-review/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=big-k-r-i-t-k-r-i-t-iz-here-album-review from Hip Hop World Music https://hiphopworldmusic.tumblr.com/post/188788176993