mixtape maestro (2.0)

While it feels odd having so many grown folks go nuts in anticipation of the musical output of a fifteen-year-old, heavily hyped rap tyke Diggy Simmons (son of hip hop royalty, Run DMC’s Reverend Run) does deserve some of the praise being tossed his way: his mic skills register far more impressive than many rappers five and ten years his senior, especially considering the fact that his lyrics stay age-appropriately clean-cut.

On the spacey, sludge-crunk of “Oh Yeah”, an early preview of upcoming mixtape Airborne, Dig even manages to hold his own against, and, to a certain extent, slightly steal the spotlight from, trackmate heavyweights Lupe Fiasco and (a back in rapper mode!!) Pharrell, constructing a strikingly hypnotic call-and-response hook alongside ghoulish backing titular chants before ripping through the track’s final verse in a masterful juggling of rapid-fire pacing and clever, cutting swipes aimed at those either unconvinced or just intimidated by his abilities (“If I am such an amateur/ When I come around, what you panic for?”, “I know you think Lupe’s writing right?/ No, I’m this nice/ Foolish thoughts”).

Is it bad that we’re actually looking forward to having some doofus try to challenge this kid on wax, just so we can hear them get embarrassed by a young’n?

Diggy – Oh Yeah (feat. Lupe Fiasco & Pharrell)

It’s obvious that what Ne-Yo was attempting on new single “Beautiful Monster” was a sort-of “to the next level” take on “Closer”, his 2008 dip into Euro-house-meets-R&B sonic templates and obsessions with mysteriously sexy/ spooky seductresses, but wheras “Closer” can come on the radio today and immediately get us all pumped and excited for the near-four minutes of clubby euphoria about to envelop our ears, “Monster” just makes us angry every time we happen to catch it.

Why? Well, for starters, it’s just not all that catchy, with verses that just seem to meander on and on forever, lacking the specific lyrical finesse and melodic hookiness Ne-Yo usually employs so well. Then when the beat FINALLY drops on the chorus we’ve waited eons for, we’re subjected to anti-climactic, and quite awkward, repeatings of this woman being a “beautiful monster” (with nary a wink to GaGa, no less).

All that being said, there is a certain attraction in the hook’s driving dance thump and Ne-Yo’s cycling whines of “I don’t mind/ I don’t-I don’t mind” (which remind us of the similar repetitive aural pleasantness of his #1 mentor Michael Jackson on those otherworldly rounds of “eh-eh-eh-eh” at the tail-end of The Jacksons’ “Show You The Way To Go”), as well as the accompanying video’s Inception-meets-Mortal Kombat visuals, but a few seconds of goodness and a slick, big budget music video does not a great song make.

On the other hand, we can’t get enough of “Champagne Life”, the other single Ne-Yo has chosen to lead off his next album Libra Scale.

Another one of those Ne-Yo tunes seemingly tailor-made for the MJ album he sadly never got to helm (sigh), “Life”‘s ultra-smoove, solo-Pharrell-esque R&B flutterings fit his high-pitched tenor and the lyric’s cheery detailing of “good-life living” (“We don’t even clap the same when we living that champagne life”) like a glove.

Check out the videos for both, as well as a Rick Ross-laced remix of “Champagne” below.

Libra Scale drops September 21st.

DL: Ne-Yo featuring Rick Ross “Champagne Life (Remix)” (alt)

When last referring to N.E.R.D.‘s latest single “Hot N Fun”, we called out the record’s “hypnotizing bassline” as it’s greatest asset, with the so-so vocal work from band members Pharrell & Shay and featured guest Nelly Furtado feeling like unnecessary distractions.

So credit must be thrown Asher Roth‘s way for helping bring some lyric-based worthwhile to the track on this remix, in which he provides an amusing sixteen about some randy under-the-table shenanigans with a frisky “blonde bombshell”.

Check it out, alongside a kooky “Hot N Fun” re-tooling by Yeasayer, below.

N.E.R.D.’s Nothing has been pushed back for a September release; pick up Asher’s Seared Foie Gras with Quince and Cranberry mixtape here.

DL: “Hot N Fun (Asher Roth Remix)” (alt)

BONUS DL: “Hot N Fun (Yeasayer Remix)” (alt)

With all the major Top 40 noise the union of Timberlake & Timbaland have crafted in the past decade (through tracks either incredibly awesome or just so-so), one would be forgiven in somehow forgetting that the Virginia beat maestro isn’t the only A-list producer Justin shares amazing musical chemistry with.

Sure, JT’s debut solo album Justified blew up off of the Timbaland-helmed “Cry Me A River”, but the album garnered the most praise through its teaming of Justin and The Neptunes, the merging of the former ‘Nsync frontman’s slinky falsetto with Pharrell & Chad’s posh, modernized updates on ’70′s soul-pop, funk and disco being what ultimately sold the public on Timberlake’s “future new MJ”-like promise.

That magic rears it’s irresistible head again on the newly leaked Game jam “Ain’t No Doubt About It” (it’s the first single from his forthcoming The R.E.D. Album) and basically has the rapper registering as an afterthought on his own record as Game’s two contributed verses, featuring forgettable mutterings about licorice-colored sports cars and “haters” being like “swine flu” (“You’re killing me”), prove no match for the pleasure in hearing Justin and Pharrell trade off honey-coated R&B lines in admiration of the sexy ladies atop a burbling, bloops-and-bleeps funk groove that’s reminiscent of the Neptunes’ early ’00′s hit output.

Look for The R.E.D. Album to drop on June 15th; in the meanwhile, pick up Game’s mixtape/ pre-album teaser The Red Room, with featured guests Lil’ Wayne, Jadakiss and Fabolous among others, over at XXL.

DL: “Ain’t No Doubt About It” (Tagged) (alt)

When it comes to “Hot N’ Fun”, the first single from N.E.R.D.’s June-set fourth release Nothing, it’s all about the record’s “hypnotizing bassline”.

The perfect getting-ready-to-go-out accompanier, it’s one of those naughty, low-rumbling grooves that makes you feel a thousand times more confident and sexy when you hear it, filling your head with the notion that once you hit the door of your nightspot destination, all attention will instantly snap your way with everyone racking their brains trying to figure out why the Maker chose to bless you with such a superior dose of hotness.

Yeah, the record also includes a guest stint from Nelly Furtado and N.E.R.D. members Pharrell and Shad doing their signature mumble-rap thing, but once “Hot N Fun” has faded off your speakers, it’s the funky bass that’ll be the only element truly imprinted on your brain.

While nothing could match the heights that Snoop Dogg scaled when his lackadaisical delivery was paired with Dr. Dre’s G-funk beat terrains, in his late-career excursions, it’s been The Neptunes who have consistently provided the Doggfather with the material needed to remain just as commercially relevant as he nears closer and closer to age 40 and his twentieth year in the game, whether it’s through digitized updatings of the rapper’s old hood-boy bop (“From The Chuuuch To Da Palace”, “Drop It Like It’s Hot”) or radio-friendly ditties that paid tribute to his undying adoration for summertime soul (“Beautiful”) and sleek, ’80′s-era disco-funk (“Let’s Get Blown”, “Signs”).

For “Special”, the Neptunes’ lone offering to Snoop’s tenth album Malice N Wonderland, that hit-making chemistry is kept afire with the Virginian production duo lacing Snoop’s eased flow and Valentine’s Day promises with another one of their purrty, keyboard-dominant arrangements while Pharrell and (a suddenly everywhere) Brandy blissfully croon sweet nothings back and forth on the hook.

It’s a blatant “Beautiful” re-write and far away from the aggressive, undercover cop-spooking lyricism that Snoop became a household figure with so long ago, but of all the various ’90 hip hop sub-genre detours Snoop (sometimes awkwardly) skips through throughout Malice, “Special” is the one where he fits in the most comfortably, not only because you could totally envision Snoop giddily vibing with the instrumental on loop as he rides through the streets of Cali, but the “grown man” way he praises Wifey (“I’m puttin out the blunt cause I see/ That I need you more in my life than I need a bag of weed”) carries this endearing grasp of authenticity and intimacy, sounding like something that could have actually been in his vows during his 1997 wedding (or 2008 vow renewal) to high school sweetheart Shante.

“Special”:

BONUS DL: Snoop Dogg featuring Justin Timberlake & Charlie Wilson “Signs (Siik Remix)” (alt)

So…did Clipse think that the only reason why folks weren’t all that madly in love over their ill-fitting feel-good summer jam “I’m Good’ was because of their initial lyrical contribution, the video, and the lack of guest stars?

Or that re-releasing the same damn single with the same damn beat and Pharrell-featured hook, but a brand new video clip, a so-so Rick Ross cameo and entirely different lyrics would change people’s minds about the record?

Beyond the nice-to-know FYI that as far as drug dealer code words for cocaine go, Taylor Swift is the “new” Christina Aguilera, the point of giving us an “Im Good 2.0″ that’s just as needless as the original has us perplexed. Why can’t they just do like 50 Cent did when each one of his fifty or so Before I Self Destruct lead singles failed to click with audiences: act like “I”m Good” never happened, and move on with the release of a totally new single?

Our love for both cover songs and “She-Wolf” knows no bounds, so when our inbox was blessed with this awesomely goofy re-take of the Shakira single by the boys in Chester French, we couldn’t download it fast enough.

To anyone who’s ever dared to sing along to a Shakira record, mimicking her every strange vocal tic along the way, they would know it’s no simple feat. So props to singer Andrew “D.A.” Wallach for making “She-Wolf” sound so karoake-able (and double props to bassist Omar for submitting a wolf howl that’s more convincing than the original).

Catch the clip and MP3 below, than head on over to CF’s blog to vote on next week’s cover choice (We picked Taylor Swift!!).

DL: “She-Wolf (Shakira Cover)” (alt)

It’s funny how after all the stunned reactions arising from the news that The Neptunes wouldn’t be the sole beatsmiths on Clipse‘s upcoming Till The Casket Drops, out of the three tracks leaked over the last couple months, the one not helmed by the ‘Tunes team has ended up the most appreciated.

“Kinda Like A Big Deal” may have lacked some truly solid verses or a sturdy enough hook (and remarkably saw them outshined by guest star Kanye), but hearing Pusha T and Malice atop DJ Khalil’s hard-knock tumble just felt right, this sinister combination that excitingly hinted that Casket was going to be something special (and maybe…perhaps…hopefully produce the “Grindin” Pt. 2 we had pathetically been anticipating for so damn long).

Then arrived the worrying “I’m Gone”, a summery track swimming in slippery glossy synths, Pharrell soul-boy chirps and materialistic focus, that even when gifted with a couple oh-so-Clipse-y lines failed to really register as an actual Clipse cut for the first four or five listens.

On the latest Casket drip “Eyes On Me”, the Virginia duo unfortunately give off a similar “what the hell is going on with this album” impression. A blatant aim at commercial/ club attention (which the duo have always seemed to only be able to achieve by accident, or at least attain without losing their street grip), “Eyes” gets it’s coke-rap rhymes out early (“I’m talking cooking up that slumdog millionaire” goes one opening line) before shifting it’s entire heart during the last three-quarters at admiring the name brand-fixated vixens who love the boys’ bottomless bank accounts.

Further solidifying the record as a ladies’ anthem of sorts is a poppy boom-bap shuffle more fitting for a pop tart’s sex purr, Pharrell’s hook boast of “getting dressed like I belong on TV” and a random Keri Hilson cameo that lasts no longer than sixteen seconds. All elements that would have felt perfectly fine if this was a Pussycat Doll/ Britney Spears creation, but when placed as a backdrop for the Clipse, disappoint in it’s bid for Top 40 love.

We’ll try not to come down too hard on the duo for trying to earn some mainstream money (they did go on about blowing through “a hundred thou in a recession” on “Deal” and might just be playing things smart), but let’s hope that after this and “I’m Good”, the whole of what’s left of Casket delivers nothing but the oft-kilter production menace and clever drug-lord rhymes we’ve been yearning for.

Till The Casket Drops is set for a September release.

DL: “Eyes On Me” (alt)

For months, it’s been difficult to escape the hyping of alt-pop-meets-hip hop, Harvard grad duo Chester French. From the endless “ones to watch” music press/ blog shout-outs to the high-profile support of A-list hip hop figures like Kanye West and eventual label boss Pharrell Williams, we’ve been damn near brainwashed into becoming fans of these cats.

Thankfully, the bits of Chester French music we’ve actually heard (the ’60′s-washed first single, “She Loves Everybody”; that insanely catchy Common collabo, “What A World”; their surprisingly neat remix of Jay Z’s “Excuse Me Miss”) has helped in justifying all this early praise.

Hoping to build up an even stronger buzz for debut album Love The Future (while further highlighting their cool circle of friends), the team of Maxwell Drummey and D.A. Wallach recently dropped the pre-official release mixtape, Jacque Jams, Vol. 1 – Endurance, which tracks the on-the-rise trek of their previous six years through material both old and new, some amusing skits, and the “exclusive” inclusion of a self-produced Lady Gaga remix, not to mention a laundry list of cameo appearances that includes Diddy, Jadakiss, Bun B, Solange, Talib Kweli and Cassie amongst others.

Preview a couple of MM’s faves below:

It’s kind of sad that Janelle Monae still hasn’t quite set the world on fire with her brilliant sci-fi-soul sound (you NEED to pick up Metropolis The Chase Suite like right now), but nevertheless she makes for a great duet partner on the geeky puppy love ode “Nerd Girl”, a prance-y mix of Beatles vocal creaminess and ’80′s synth-pop tenderness.

“I wear tiny suits and bowties, some might call me strange,” she coos. Oh Miss Monae, that’s hardly a bad thing.

DL: “Nerd Girl” (alt)

Meanwhile, “Life In LA” details guest stars Pharrell Williams and Jermaine Dupri’s wild and crazy sexcapades with the City of Angels’ bottomless well of overly worked on, coke-sniffing Barbie Dolls atop old school rap drum clatter and space-age ambiance. Unfortunately, the good times are all over for the French boys, who’ve partied all their dough away and now must leave all the fun and sun behind.

DL: “Life In LA” (alt)

You can pick up the entire entertaining collection here; Love The Future, drops April 21st.