mixtape maestro (2.0)

On his Hockey-sampling and Chiddy Bang-assisted/ produced Finally Famous Vol. 3 mixtape highlight “Too Fake”, G.O.O.D. Music signee Big Sean checks off the increasingly requisite “re-tool an indie-pop fave” rap sub-genre box to relate the pleasures of living the good life. He’s rocking blinding bling, enjoying dinners made up of nothing but “lobster, shrimp and calamari” and “grabbing the fattest asses” with nary a complaint from their owners. Things couldn’t be any better right?

Maybe…if he didn’t have to deal with the constant street gab going round nailing him as some kind of sell-out just because he’s come up.

“He ain’t no hometown hero/ He on that LeBron James shit,” Sean hears them saying, heightening his own insecurities towards his newfound lifestyle (“I’m too real to be living this fake,” he moans early on). But even if their hateration cuts deep, he refuses to let them know it, shutting them up with a simple “Suck my dick then choke on a nut” before turning towards his reflection for a lil’ Stuart Smalley self-affirmation session: “The realest nigga I know is in the mirror, bro”.

Don’t let them get you down, Sean; keep doing what you do and eat your calamari proudly. We know we would.

Pick up the entire Finally Famous Vol. 3 set here. Sean’s official debut Finally Famous is slated for a September release.

Big Sean – Too Fake (feat. Chiddy Bang & Hockey)

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)

Portland, Oregon’s Moxie Black (rapper/ vocalist iLLAJ and producer Dekk) aren’t re-writing any rules as far as their post-808s & Heartbreak/ Rebirth/ The E.N.D. indie electro-hip-pop sound goes, but if one is searching for something new to soundtrack their final days of summer to, they’ll have plenty of addictive gems to choose from in the group’s new mixtape How Did This Happen?, an eleven track collection of hipster-hued, ride-friendly feel-good.

Early leak “So Much Better” reigns at the project’s finest. Based on a blog-baiting pairing of driving, new wave guitars and Auto-Tuned rap-singing, the track is insanely catchy, and quite amusing in it’s detailing of iLLAJ struggles to cope after seeing his ex-girlfriend enter the same club as him with a new dude on his arm (“I’m downing all the bottle/ Raging like full throttle/ And I never want to see her again”).

Check out the jam, alongside their remix of Phoenix’ “1901″ (re-titled “2901″), below; pick up the entirety of How Did This Happen? over at DJBooth.net.

Moxie Black – So Much Better

Moxie Black – 2901 (feat. Phoenix)

After having to sit through the endless ramblings found on last week’s underwhelming “ruff mix” leak of Kanye’s Beyonce and Charlie Wilson-aided collabo “See Me Now” (we’ll wait for the edited-down, finalized version of that one, thank you very much), it’s sooooo nice to be able to comfortably jump back on the “Yeezy is ace” bandwagon with the short and solid, track-stealing verse he brings to the mid-section of Kid Cudi‘s latest leakage, “Wylin Cause I’m Young”.

Atop an eerie lo-fi rumble of a beat that sounds like something demonic creatures of the night would two-step to, Cudi and West team up to basically relate the benefits of being debauchery-loving rock stars, boasting of globe-trotting escapades filled with endless amounts of drug and liquor and an ever present bevy of groupie chicks keeping them feeling “hunks”.

Cudi’s depiction of the wealthy, “untamed youth” lifestyle rides on (what else but) a darkly alluring moodiness (“I guess the fact my father smoke and drank/ Made it a young nigga destiny to do the exact thing”), but it’s West who ultimately takes the blue ribbon prize here, brightening things up with a humorous verse in which he confesses of “praying to a box of Mags” and Viagra that he’ll still be able to satisfy the ladies when he’s of the “Geezer…Ebenezer” age.

From the Perajok & Kanye West Presents: G.O.O.D. Ass Mixtape.

Kid Cudi – Wylin Cause I’m Young (feat. Kanye West)

What do other rappers do when a new Andre 3000 verse leaks and it’s a trillion times better than about 98.7% of the lyrical output found on one of their entire albums? Do they decide to just give up on rapping altogether? Cry? Bitch-slap the nearest person around in a frustrated fit of rage because they realize they’ll never be as great as a Three Stacks sixteen? Really, inquiring minds want to know.

3000′s latest tease, from the upcoming mixtape Limelight Exclusives and a possible future Jeezy album cut, rolls out as an extension to his female-praising, soul sample-adorned contribution to UGK’s “International Players Anthem (I Choose You)”, with Dre ready to drop to one knee and propose marriage in the middle of the club after spotting a fine honey on the floor.

“Her proud like her mother and whooo Mama sweet/ So you just know that juicy fruit ain’t gon’ fall too far from tree,” he beams in awe, in his mind already salivating over the first time he’ll get a taste of her “bleepty-bleep” and how it’ll help create a (hopefully, “nerdy”) daughter that’ll have club-goers pausing and taking notice in the year 2030.

Once again, why is it taking so damn long to get a full-on 3000 solo platter?

(via)

Andre 3000 – I Do

After scoring some major blog world love with his early Summer joint “You Are Not A Robot” (probably far more than he imagined), New York up-and-comer Hoodie Allen has switched his game plan up a little, scrapping the (admittedly enticing) idea of his forthcoming mixtape (now titled Pep Rally) being based around nothing but Marina & The Diamonds samples for the far less ambitious task of him rapping over a variety of different acts’ tracks.

Latest pre-release teaser “Words of Wisdom” utilizes Two Door Cinema Club’s “Undercover Martyn” to great effect, achieving a nicely chilled summery vibe through it’s looping of the buzzy indie pop number’s ballad-y hook, while Allen seems to go after the world record for Most Punchlines In A Verse with all the simile-enhanced doses of wit he stuffs into his sixteens.

Interesting though that “Wisdom” hits it’s peak moment when Allen stops trying to impress with his rhymes and just lets his inner pop instincts take charge: the bridge, boasting a cool drum machine riddim and pleasant half-sung vocal melodies, proves quite lovely. More of that please, Hoodie.

Words Of Wisdom (feat. Two Door Cinema Club) by HoodieAllen

BONUS DL: Two Door Cinema Club “Undercover Martyn (Passion Pit Remix)” (alt)

When most rappers choose to dish on relationships, the product is more often than not soured by either uninspired mainstream-pandering (let’s lazily sample a Quiet Storm classic and get *insert whatever current R&B or Pop hitmaker here* to sing a bland hook) or the emcee’s unwillingness to give their thug-cool a rest. However, because Wale has no shame in exposing his vulnerability and is open to really digging into why a romance does or doesn’t work, getting a record centered on the trials and tribulations of love from him is always a guaranteed winner.

On “The War”, from his new Seinfeld-themed mixtape (the unsurprisingly-better-than-last-year’s-major-label-debut) More About Nothing, Wale doesn’t disappoint, expressing the somber frustrations of being in an increasingly hopeless-seeming union and how, in the wake of it’s imminent implosion, he’ll likely turn his back on ever opening his heart to another woman again.

Atop militaristic drum rolls that stir up drama amongst some sublime and swirly acoustic backing, and supported by guest vocalist Daniel Merrweather soulfully encouraging the couple to be lovers and not fighters, Wale unleashes several striking conclusions to his predicament (“New love is so beautiful/ Time just makes it ugly”; “I just wanted to be at peace with you/ And if I gotta settle for a piece of you/ Then I gotta say ‘Peace to you’”), his avoidance at giving the record even a hint of the happy ending it seems to be driving towards making “The War” thrice as much appealing.

Probably would’ve been smarter move to have kept this away as the bankable third or fourth single from his forthcoming sophomore album, but whatevs…it’s a gem regardless.

DL: “The War” (alt)

What if, after the breakout success of The Slim Shady LP, Eminem completely switched gears on the follow-up and released a soul record that was bathed in the glorious sounds of heyday Motown (or Amy Winehouse-as-produced-by-Mark Ronson), and heavily downplayed his rapping skills for some surprisingly sturdy Smokey-smoove singing chops? Sounds insane, right?

Well it just so happens to describe the heretofore career path of British rapper Plan B, who snatched up both critical acclaim and controversy with his 2006 debut album Who Needs Actions When You Got Words‘s uncomfortably raw and violence-obsessed “Straight Outta East London” tales, only to return four years later with a sophomore project (The Defamation of Strickland Banks) that re-paints him as a retro soul crooner.

It’s a ballsy transformation that works far better than one might think, with B’s rich singing voice (a talent only hinted at in his previous rap-based works) and the disc’s finely-tuned exercises in the honey-and-velvet-toned arrangements of soul’s yesteryear completely negating the fact that this “let’s recreate the vibe of our parents’ old vinyl collection” shtick has been a bit over-played in recent years. Plus, it doesn’t hurt that Banks‘ central concept (following B’s titular character from the celebratory highs of the stage spotlight to the spirit-shattering lows of a years-long prison bid after being falsely accused of rape by a groupie), while cliched at points, would make for a nice lil’ big screen musical.

On stand-out cut (and third single) “Prayin’”, Plan B is found broken down to his knees feverishly praying for aid from a Higher Power after being involved in a prison brawl that ends with someone’s death. And while he didn’t necessarily commit the murder himself (it was a “lifer”, with “the devil in his eyes, but God is in heart”, stepping to his rescue), this fact doesn’t at all lessen the guilt that now clouds him.

A depressing tune yeah, but having his inner despair pleads caged inside a foggy billow of distant choir wails and a ringing Holland-Dozier-Holland-esque throb neatly steers it away from being a complete downer.

Catch the video below, then, as a bonus, enjoy a pairing of Plan B’s Actions single “Mama Loves A Crackhead” with Hall & Oates’ deathless jam “I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do)” (from his 2007 mixtape Paint It Blacker).

BONUS DL: Plan B (feat. Hall & Oates) “Mama Loves A Crackhead (‘Paint It Blacker’ Version)” (alt)

Just as they’ve hit the road as opening act for the American leg of Chromeo‘s Business As Casual Summer 2010 tour, NY duo Telephoned have gifted fans with another serving of their fetching not-quite-covers/ not-quite-mash-ups record re-imaginations with new mixtape Keep Their Heads Ringin’.

Doing just what the collection title promises, Ringin’ features vocalist Maggie Horn taking on everything from Rihanna’s “Rude Boy” and Led Zeppelin’s “What It Is and What Should Never Be” to a spliced-together reading of Gucci Mane’s “Lemonade” and Sleigh Bells’ “Rill Rill”, with some, like a surprisingly awesome minute-long merging of The Cure’s “Friday I’m In Love” atop Young Money’s “BedRock” instrumental, begging for lengthier treatments.

Peep out two of our favorites below, remakes of Chromeo’s “Night By Night” (set to the soul sample lushness of Big Boi’s “Shine Blockas”) and Yeasayer’s “O.N.E.” (gone reggae over Gyptian’s “Hold Yuh”), or simply grab the entire mixtape through Fools Gold.

DL: “Night By Night (Chromeo x Big Boi Cover)” (alt)

DL: “O.N.E. (Yeasayer x Gyptian Cover)” (alt)

On “You Don’t Shock Me Anymore”, Cee-Lo is captured expressing his disappointment toward today’s music scene (“I believed in magic once upon a time/ When something had to be special/ Couldn’t see it online”; “Now all the rock stars are regular people”; “The glory days are gone/ I can’t hear my heartbeat with the radio on”) and while digesting his words, it’s easy to take on a similar sunken feeling in the pit of one’s stomach.

Not necessarily because you agree with the details of Cee-Lo’s bemoans (which we do), but because “Anymore” seems to hint that by not being so inspired by his contemporaries and the current ways of the industry and public music consumption, Cee is pondering an early retirement (in the words of KC & The Sunshine Band, and later…err, Double You and KWS, “Please don’t go” Cee-Lo).

Thankfully the track, one of many highlights from the all new cuts-pimping Stray Bullets mixtape Cee quietly released last month (pick it up via OnSmash), isn’t entirely depression-inducing, thanks to a 70′s supper-club soul/ classic TV theme song breeziness that compliments his soulful pipes perfectly.

Grab the cut below, then check out the (NSFW) video to the first single from Cee-Lo’s next (and hopefully not final) album Cee Lo Green is The Lady Killer, a cover of Band of Horses’ 2007 Cease To Begin single “No One’s Gonna Love You”.

DL: “You Don’t Shock Me Anymore” (alt)