After weeks of deliberation, the 2007 Rap List is finally upon us. 25 hip-hop critics were asked to pick up to 10 of their favorite ‘07 releases. Points were then awarded to the nominated albums in descending order. As you might expect, the overwhelming favorites were Graduation and American Gangster, with 22 votes apiece. And, no, Curtis didn’t make anyone’s list.
Without further ado, here are the 25 Best Rap Albums of 2007 According to Hip-Hop Critics… (more…)
Rob says he wanted to pay homage to Dilla with this remix.
A friend gave me the vocals from the American gangster album by Jay z, and I had flipped the Black album already, so I was trying to think of a way to do this record differently. So i came up with the idea to take records Dilla used on DONUTS, and flip them my own way, and apply them to the Jay Z records. I think it came out nicely. I did this record in 2 and a half days, but i believe this version takes the album on a whole new path.
This one’s from Von Pea (of Tanya Morgan fame). It has the best interpretation of “Hello Brooklyn” I’ve heard so far. And this is coming from a guy who skips the OG when listening to the album. Pea also killed it on “No Hook.” Word of advice to producers: Please leave “American Dreamin’” alone, you can’t make it better for me.
Yet another front-to-back remix of American Gangster. This one merges Jay’s lyrics with Led Zeppellin instrumentals with mixed results. My inbox is loaded with these AG remixes, so stay tuned for more.
I told you two weeks ago that the American Gangster a cappella release will prompt Danger Mouse types to come out of nowhere with their own interpretations of AG. I’ve heard a handful of these remixes, and here’s one worth checking out. I haven’t listened to the whole thing yet, so let me know if it’s consistent.
::American Gangster Acappella arrives on December 4.
What, you thought Hov would sit back and chill while Ghost and everyone else dropped albums on his birthday?
Remember when Def Jam released The Black Album acappella? It can be argued that Danger Mouse owes his career to The Grey Album, which combined The Beatles beats with Jay’s vocals. It wasn’t my favorite of the 307 Black Album remixes (I still listen to Kno’s version more than the original Black Album), but it really exposed DM to fans who didn’t know about his work with Jemini.
The next Danger Mouse is probably eating cereal and reading this right now, thinking, “This is it. December 4 can’t come sooner.”
I was hooked on “No Hook” and “American Dreamin’” for a while. Then I gave “Fallin’” another listen, Verse tres to be precise. Suddenly, I realized what has happening to me. It dawned on me that I was being transported onto diss-ney land. Then Jermaine Dupri’s voice came down from above and said: “Fallin’ is more than just a song, Rizoh”
I’ll show you what I’m blabbing about. Walk with me (more…)
After seeing the star-stuffed lineup for American Gangster — Denzel Washington, Russel Crowe, Chiwetel Ejiofor, T.I., RZA, Common, Cuba Gooding Jr., Idris Elba, etc — I walked into last night’s press screening expecting a typical blaxploitation flick. Boy, was I wrong or what? (more…)
“Scarface the Movie did more than Scarface the Rapper to me”
A lot of people criticize Jay-Z for not addressing social issues like, say, Nas or Talib. Funny thing is, he does…on his own terms. If you do your homework, you’ll realize that he has touched on those same subjects that so-called conscious MCs have rhymed about in the past. Sure, Jigga has flipped the bird to everyone from Bill O’Reilly and C Delores Tucker to racist cops and the broken justice system. In some cases, he has done so on the same tracks as our socially aware favorites, like dead prez and Kweli.
The reason people don’t give him props for waxing conscious is that he sometimes approaches serious issues with a passive demeanor. Socially conscious Jay-Z at his best tackles hot button topics with a “f*ck you, don’t blame it on me” attitude that makes it less convenient to focus on the issues at hand, as he does here on “Ignorant Sh*t.” Don Imus gets it on the newly added Verse III. Call it thug braggadocio.
Oh yeah, Beans is still a beast on the mic. A severely untamed one for that matter.
