If there was one inescapable 2010 summer jam entry that could retain it’s massive airplay love well into the New Year with nary a gripe from us, it would be Gyptian‘s reggae-crossover smash “Hold Yuh”. We’ve probably already heard it a billion times now already, and still, the sound of Gyptian’s patois-thick horn-dog warbles atop producer Ricky Blaze‘s rinky-dink piano-based riddim manages to bring a smile to our faces.
We’re assuming Wale feels the same way, since after months of “Hold Yuh” enjoying ubiquitous radio hit status, the rapper has just now opted on using the track’s instrumental as support for his latest top-notch freestyle freebie, this one boasting nearly two and a half minutes of non-stop, off-the-dome mic fierceness (love the “A Different World” references).
After being embraced wholeheartedly by the music blog community with his 2008 pop twist on Kanye West’s “Flashing Lights” (re-dubbed “I Want Those Flashing Lights”), it was looking like Canadian singer-songwriter-producer Colin Munroe was on the fast-track to doing big things. Following the release of the equally-adored mixtape, Colin Munroe is the Unsung Hero, later that year however, Munroe-as-solo-act faded from the scene, only popping up on occasion via guest spot gigs in the time since (including collabos with Black Milk, Slum Village, Travie McCoy and Kidz In The Hall) with little word on when his official debut project was to arrive.
This week, Munroe contacted us via e-mail to explain what the bleeping deal was: “There were some things that needed dealing with and that dealing is almost done.” A bit cryptic, but, hey, at least we know that the album is still on the way (hopefully sooner rather than later)…and look at that, he’s even opted to bring his solo hiatus to an end with an offering of a brand new cover. Of Prince’s “I Would Die 4 U”, no less.
Admittedly, it’s not as amazing as the Kanye re-do nor as dynamic as the Purple Rain original (it’s impossible to beat Prince), but Munroe’s thumping, electro-shimmered production against his plaintive, Auto-tune-tweaked croon creates a fairly pleasant ethereal allure, making it an easy-to-appreciate re-introduction to the man’s appeal.
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.
Though having names like Wale and Gucci Mane attached damn near guaranteed Attention Deficit‘s latest (but should have been first) single “Pretty Girls” would draw audiences in large waves, anyone who has been charmed by this record and given it umpteen re-spins since it’s leak-premiere last Summer knows it’s not the rappers that keep them coming back for more.
No, that honor would have to go to hook-wailer Weensey (singer of the long-running DC-area go-go act the Backyard Band) and the room-filling gloriousness of his edge-of-range croaks awe-struck by the lovely ladies surrounding him.
Sadly, this newest remix doesn’t allow Weensey a larger role, but it does feature Wale offering a new verse, as well as guest appearances from Chris Brown (still trying his best to win back public favor) and Fabolous, who’s always good for a semi-clever misogynist jewel or two (“Like a hooker in the winter/ Them hos’ cold”).
On the Rihanna-referencing Attention Deficit track “Contemplate”, Wale spent the first verse going from paranoid to anger over his girl’s inability to answer his phone call at four in the morning, leading to a decision to abruptly end their union (“She get her point across so I gotta let her be/ Im-a let her be by herself in peace”).
That same storyline thread is followed up on his newly Tweet-leaked “Breakup Song”, which fleshes out the details of her whereabouts that late night (“She got back with ol’ boy”) and finds him, after a considerable amount of time has passed, still internally struggling to come to terms with the bruising her unfaithfulness brought upon his heart and ego.
“I thought this was forever love/ Guess that was just seasonal,” he somberly reflects atop a Southern hip hop-tweaked interpolation of the Stevie Wonder classic “All I Do”; yet, despite the aching pain and bitterness still throbbing within his person, he can’t easily shrug her off, opting to seek her out to achieve some sort of closure and measure the possibility of reconciliation.
When Wale finally does catch up to her, their exchange bristles with the expected awkwardness (he pushes her for an answer on who was better in bed; she finds out he hasn’t been able to be intimate with anyone else since their break-up), but, through their conversation, he’s at least able to grasp conscience-easing comfort in realizing that their romantic partnership is best left in the past, resolving the scenario with this brilliant song-capping line: “Most times darlin’, the sequel sucks”.
Oh, how we pray that the arrival of this is leading to another great Wale mixtape sometime real soon.
Wale & Just Jack “Embers/ Good Girls (Phillip Martell Mash-Up Remix)”
For it’s first two-thirds, this mash-up concoction by ATL DJ Phillip Martell emerges quite effective in it’s enchanting blend of the acapella from Wale’s 2007 track “Good Girls” with a hyper-speed orchestral loop and sampled vocal snippets swiped from Just Jack’s ’09 UK hit “Embers”, but it’s in it’s final minute-and-a-half when the project truly blooms, thanks to Martell completely doing away with the JJ instrumental for a killer assault of electro-house pomp.
The third installment in L.A.-based producer Belief‘s on-going Aaliyah remix project finds him taking on the late singer’s 1996 classic “One In A Million”, and while nothing could really come close to topping the way-ahead-of-it’s-time Y3K sonics Timbaland cooked up for the original, we’re digging the languid, neo-soul-ish incense vibe Belief brings here.
First things first: Thomas Troelson, the main producer and lead singer dude of this Dutch dance-pop trio, looks a little bit freaky.
Once you get past his physical creepiness, though, you’ll likely be swept away by the pure ’80′s pop infectiousness on display in this single, an irresistible sugar packet of helium-voice mackadelics (“Girl take off your dress/ Let’s make this place a mess!!”), warped old-school B-boy-isms and glossy bubblegum-funk carved from the guilty pleasure-filled catalogue of Wham!.
This Detroit-born R&B newcomer‘s real-life brother Carlos “Los Da Mystro” McKinney has co-helmed some of the best The-Dream jams (“Shawty Is A 10″, “Rockin’ That Thing”, “Walkin On The Moon”, “My Love”), as well as hits for Usher (“Trading Places”), Trey Songz (“I Invented Sex”) and J. Holiday (“Bed”), so it’s only right that he would hook up his sister with a joint that’s just as smash-worthy.
Tayma’s debut single “Tipsy” oozes that signature Dream/ Mystro radio magic, from it’s light and lazy piano bounce to the quirky, echo vocal mini-hooks speckled throughout it. It’s most entertaining factor, however, lies in the humorous honesty of it lyrics’, which detail how a drunken, post-nightclub one night stand usually ends up being a regrettable moment in one’s life rather than the mind-blowing sexcapades event most R&B acts blow it up to be (“When you wake up/ It’s all fucked up”).
Drake and Nicki Minaj’s MVP mic turns and Lloyd’s candy-sweet hook on “BedRock” may provide some pleasant vocal accompaniment, but anyone with ears knows that the true star of the current Young Money smash is producer Kane Beatz.
His earworm-y, Playskool keyboard tinkerings is one of those beats that every rapper alive instantly wishes they could have had first (and one that, unfortunately, every unknown emcee and/ or singer alive looking for that big break will swipe for their bedroom-set YouTube “freestyles covers” for months come).
Of those handled by more…erm, established figures, we direct your attention to our two favorites so far: the around Christmas-leaked one from Wale (who we, somewhat sadly, enjoy a thousand-times more when he’s pushing something non-official album-associated) and a disappointingly brief turn at the bat from Twista, who, after oddly kicking things off with a “regular rap” style, makes the world right again with a quick re-adjustment to his signature, Speedy Gonzalez-like flow half-way through, landing in perfect tandem with the rapid pace of Beatz’ instrumental.
In it’s original context, Wale‘s Tribe Called Quest “Award Tour”-referencing “World Tour” manages to be a better-than-average banger, with producers Cool & Dre spinning a triumphant, modern blaxploitation beat that’s every bit as energetic as Wale’s excited rhymes about the ups and downs of being an on-the-come-up rap star. A perfect choice for a single, everything about it bristles with a “you WILL like me” infectious hunger similar to Kanye West’s early output, and having Jazmine Sullivan around doing the soul-diva hook-chick thing makes for a nice cherry on top (even if she is a bit under-utilized here).
But we would be lying if we didn’t admit to digging this slickly polished Urban Noize remix a little more. Their decision to once again thaw out The Whispers’ “And The Best Goes On” as a backing sample choice is a brilliant move, the song’s feel-good ’80′s R&B-funk a nice compliment to the globe-trotting lifestyle Wale is going on about (And don’t worry, you’re not alone if you’re moved to dorkily chant “Welcome To Miami” at least once when listening to it).
Pick up the MP3 below, as well as Urban Noize’s remix to the R. Kelly/ Keri Hilson duet, “Number One”.
Wale excitingly recreates the jubilant mood of the African parties he attended in his youth (he’s of Nigerian blood) on the recently released “My Sweetie (Spray It)”, a feel-good party jam built on a sampling of Bunny Mack’s 1979 African disco classic “My Sweety, My Sugar (Let Me Love You)” that’s definitely got us re-inspired to cop his official debut Attention: Deficit after being left slightly underwhelmed by it’s uncomfortably radio-targeting jump-off single, “Chillin’”.
“If your last name’s got thirteen letters in it-this one’s for you”, Wale rhymes over the sample’s contagiously rhythmic merriment, revealing how he keeps parties live and nabs the finest ladies with ease while armed with his trusty Guinness and Dr. Pepper blend, “more green than Whole Foods” and pocket-bulging rolls of cash money he carelessly tosses into the air to rain on the ecstatic dancing masses like confetti.
After listening to this heat (helmed by the ill Apple Juice Kid, one up-and-coming producer it would be best to keep an eye on in the future), you’ll be begging for someone to make you their “plus one” to the next one of these functions.
Peter, Bjorn & John‘s early ’09 single “Nothing To Worry About” may have lacked an irresistable whistle hook for us to endlessly dig, but what it did house (the ferocious stomp-clap drum beat, that catchy-as-hell kiddie hook) was sufficient enough to guarantee it “instant favorite” status. The only problem? That nagging feeling that the production would have worked much better supporting a rapper’s sharp sixteens, rather than the band’s non-threatening indie chirps.
That fantasy becomes reality thanks to this awesome Kickdrums remix, the first taste of a forthcoming Mick Boogie-helmed remix(tape) of PB&J’s entire Living Thing album. Totally omitting PB&J’s presence, this 2.0 version instead plants the original’s best elements alongside the rhyming team of Wale, Young Chris and Rhymefest.
Not really the hip hop dream squad we would’ve first picked, but they service the joint just fine, especially Rhymefest, whose track-stealing ending verse (“‘At parties I part seas/ These partly emcees/ Could hardly tempt me/ You entry/ Level, beginner…”) only reminds us how sad it is that he remains such an underappreciated talent after all these years.
Look for Boogie’s Re-Living Thing on a blog near you on August 1st.
As nice as it is to get free music, think of how much better your soul would feel if you purchased it the old-fashioned way.
*
Come on, use Amazon or iTunes and help support your favorite artists so they can continue to give us the great sounds we love.
*
(MP3 posts are for promotional and/ or previewing purposes only; if any artist or their representation wish to have the links removed, contact me and I will happily comply!)
If there was one inescapable 2010 summer jam entry that could retain it’s massive airplay love well into the New Year with nary a gripe from us, it would be Gyptian‘s reggae-crossover smash “Hold Yuh”. We’ve probably already heard it a billion times now already, and still, the sound of Gyptian’s patois-thick horn-dog warbles atop producer Ricky Blaze‘s rinky-dink piano-based riddim manages to bring a smile to our faces.
In it’s original context, 
Wale excitingly recreates the jubilant mood of the African parties he attended in his youth (he’s of Nigerian blood) on the recently released “My Sweetie (Spray It)”, a feel-good party jam built on a sampling of Bunny Mack’s 1979 African disco classic 
Recent Comments