Metacricket

The Weeknd's Gift and Curse

2011-06-03T19:26:00.002-04:00

The word I’ve seen used prevalently when describing The Weeknd is hedonist, and when listening to his stellar debut mixtape, House of Balloons, it’s hard to deny the accuracy of that assessment. The Weeknd has been a rather mysterious figure since this tape hit the internet in March, doing no interviews and only taking to Twitter to hype his next project, Thursday set to hit sometime this summer. We don’t know much about him other than he’s from Toronto and friends with Drake, but I can’t help but assume there’s a massive void in this guy’s life. Disturbingly, on House of Balloons he fills that void with every substance imaginable. This tape is rife with pills, cocaine, and girls he seems to have no substantive feelings for. He doesn’t have much shame in it all either. I legitimately worry for him when I hear him reveling in his addictions and chasing every high imaginable. Guess I should have seen it coming when two minutes into this tape he’s telling us we, “wanna be high for this.” What’s most troubling is this dude is only 20 years old. Listening to this I thank god I wasn’t the deranged, coked out, hedonist The Weeknd is, when I was his age.

While I’ve never touched most of the drugs he mentions on this tape, I also can’t make music like he can. I’m still undecided whether or not I’d live his lifestyle in exchange for his song-making ability, but one thing I’m sure of is those things come hand in hand on House of Balloons. For his sake, you’d hope he could separate the two before the drugs derail his career, but for now the world he’s created is terrifying and alluring at once.

All of this is summed up perfectly when The Weeknd sings the hook to the title track.

This is a happy house
We're happy here
In a happy house
Oh this is fun

This is far from an assured declaration, instead it’s a hopeless plea. His voice sounds strained and paranoid, desperately trying to convince listeners (and himself) that he is content with this lifestyle. It’s no wonder before this particular track ends it garbles into the murderous Glass Table Girls, in which he gives his first true admission of rampant drug use, “I heard he do drugs now, you heard wrong I been on ‘em for a minute.” After his failed plea comes the indulgence, a troubling sign.

There’s also the issue of his relationship with woman. Unlike his pal Drake’s music there aren’t many tales of lost love on here. On The After Party he’s begging a girl for a chance to prove the “feeling I could give to you.” Everything is concerned with feelings and pleasure here. Whereas Drake will literally name his past woman and make you feel for his heartbreak, I don’t think The Weeknd has ever known a girl past the next morning. Closing track The Knowing seems to hint at a prolonged relationship, but when his counterpart cheats he’s apathetic to it all, pleased even, as it gives him the chance to sleep around some more. He doesn’t seem to have any investment in actual connections. His euphoria is rooted in the temporary.

It’s no wonder this tape is titled House of Balloons. Balloons are clear indication of celebration and parties, no lack of those here, yet they’re empty, filled with nothing but air before they inevitably pop. They cannot be sustained. Neither can The Weeknd if he continues to live like this, but what makes this all so tragic is his music can.

Mmm Word Download

House of Balloons - Sickest Thing Ever

Atlantic Record's Slippery Slope of Creative Control

2011-02-02T12:21:00.003-05:00

Much has been made of the drawn out grudge match between Lupe Fiasco and Atlantic Records that caused Lasers to sit on the shelves for year(s?) before it was given a release date. It’s a tough story to tell, and no one will ever know the entire reason as to why it took so long, but I’ve had my finger on the pulse of the album’s plight ever since Lupe began to promote it in March of 09 and feel I can vaguely piece together the puzzle that is the release of Lasers.
The albums first two official singles, The Show Goes On and Words I Never Said, provide a lot of insight on what probably had to happen in order for this album to see the light of day. For his first two albums Lupe mainly used in house producers to craft his albums’ sound, only reaching out to superproducer friends Kanye West and The Neptunes for two beats on his debut Food and Liquor, so it was certainly peculiar to see Lupe hopping on beats from the flavor of the week producers, Kane Beatz (Bottoms Up, Right Above It) and Alex Da Kid(Airplanes, Love the Way You Lie, I’m Coming Home) for his first two singles on Lasers. That is where Atlantic Records comes into the picture. None of this can be said for sure and is all speculation, because all of this stuff takes place behind the scenes, but it is of common belief that these beats were somewhat forced upon Lupe by his record label. It has been reported on here that Lupe passed on Airplanes and Nothing On You as singles because he wouldn’t have owned the majority of the publishing rights and royalties for those songs since the hooks were already written. Alrighty then, fast forward 7-8 months and Lupe has two singles out in which, I’d bet my dog, that he did not write the hooks. Does that make him somewhat hypocritical? Sure it does. What I think happened was Lupe hit a breaking point. Atlantic wasn’t going to release his album unless he rapped his verses over the beats and hooks that they had chose for him. Lupe turned the first draft of this album into Atlantic in January of last year, so it is not unreasonable to believe the verses for these first two singles once existed over beats of his choice. Atlantic didn’t like the commercial potential of their sound and the album sat around for a year as they chose what beats and hooks they wanted. Perhaps Lupe fought them for a while, but eventually realized an album with a few Atlantic Records imposed songs was better than no album.
And quite frankly that imposition is a terrifying prospect. Record companies should not have any input in the artist’s creative process. Louis perfectly articulated the importance of an organic/collaborative process and relationship between rappers and producers in his J. Cole post from last year. When Lupe was allowed that freedom he came up with classic, refreshing singles like Kick Push. Now the entire presentation and sound of The Show Goes On and Words I Never Said is formulaic and rote. It should be noted that I like both of these songs, especially The Show Goes On and I stand by my initial review. The only real redeeming qualities of Words I Never Said are Lupe’s verses, whether or not you agree with all of his somewhat controversial opinions, this song will undoubtedly shed light on issues the majority of it’s listeners know nothing about. The production however is still manufactured, and this slow piano with some huge drums Alex Da Kid sound will be dated in a few months, and that’s what record companies don’t seem to care about: creating lasting music that people can listen to for years to come. Go listen to He Say She Say, the music is so lush and most importantly timeless. Put the Words I Never Said verses over the Streets On Fire beat and its classic Lupe.
(Here’s the song if you care for a listen)

B.O.B. was another victim of Atlantics wrath. Here he was an exciting up and comer who crafted a brilliant song with huge commercial appeal, I’ll Be In The Sky, yet Atlantic gave that single no push and sat on their asses for years as they sapped all of B.O.B.’s creativity out of the project, and raped the album entirely. In the end Louis had to take B.O.B. off his favorite artists on Facebook and now hates his guts. Putting artists onto the hot sound of the moment for a top ten single comes at the cost of alienating their core fanbase. Sure the artist and record company profit off its success but the artistic product continues to decline and consolidate.
What irks me about this all is how abrupt this change occurred. Perhaps Atlantic Records is the only culprit. Kanye obviously still has 100% creative control over his music. Lupe and B.O.B. certainly aren’t as popular as Kanye, but as far as I know Lupe never had any problems with releasing the type of music he wanted to on his first two albums. The Cool was a commercial success with a top ten hit in Superstar that was written, produced, and performed entirely by FNF artists. Why all of a sudden does Atlantic feel the need to have it’s fingerprints all over Lasers? Maybe it’s somewhat of a payback for Lupe refusing to sign a 360 deal, which was another factor in the hold up of the album, or maybe it’s because they only care about singles these days. The iTunes digital music culture is based around people buying $.99 singles, another direct result of the internet decreasing our attention spans at an alarming rate, but quite frankly that’s a topic for a different day and medium. I think that is the main problem. Record Labels are so intent on having the biggest singles ever they feel the need to force their artists on to the beats and songs of their choice, the rest of the album they could give two fucks about. Unfortunately, in most cases, their intrusion on the process of creating singles negates any chance of the album being a complete, cohesive, classic product of art before it even sees the light of day.

SUCK MY BALLLS MJ

2011-01-12T15:30:00.001-05:00

Onion SportsDome

Song of the Year - The Resistance

2010-12-17T21:53:00.009-05:00

Choosing The Resistance as my song of the year was a surprisingly easy decision. It’s play count has already totaled 168 on my iTunes. An astronomical amount considering it came out on June 15th in this bitch whasssuuuuppp. I tend to obsess over songs for days at a time and repeat them over and over, but The Resistance carried it’s momentum through the entire summer for me.

The entire freshmen class of ’09 has made the downside of newfound fame the most prevalent topic of discussion in their music. Cudi was apparently driven to coke addiction because of it, Wale’s More About Nothing is full of tales about losing friends (“lost a couple friends, cool, ni**a made a lot of fans”), and of course B.o.B. questioned “do you wanna be famous?” on his fucking fantastic adventures, but no one is better at articulating the negative effects that fame have had on their life than Drake. Songs like Fear, The Calm, and Say What's Real are intelligent breakdowns of how success and fame have jaded him. The Resistance is his magnum opus in this topic. What makes it so impressive is that he could easily come off as unappreciative or sick of his social status and gaudy bank accounts, but is able to stay cognizant of his revered lifestyle (“Am I wrong for making light of my situation?”). Although, he might need to work on his comprehension of the definition of irony.

What makes the song work so well is it's position within the album. Fireworks documents the effect his parent's divorce had on his childhood and view of relationships. Karaoke tells the story of losing his first loved one due to his fame ("the spotlight makes you nervous"), and the beginning of The Resistance acts as a sequel to Karaoke.

"Yesterday when we were getting high
You were invited, you woulda liked it
Uh uh nah, I know you all too well
We said that we can kiss the past goodbye
But your weren’t excited
There’s no way to fight it
You can stay shawty but here I go"

Once again targeting the same girl he speaks about in Karaoke he proclaims his desire to take her with him as he goes and sees the world, but due to a perceived change in him ("Alyssa told me that she missed the old me"), she declines. Drake sees this happening with all of his relationships. As he was blowing up he made the promise to not change, but his busy schedule prevents him from spending time with these people, proliferating the belief that he has become a different person. In turn Drake begins to fear the realization of his dreams ("what am I afraid of, this is supposed to be what dreams are made of"), which is an incredibly grounded and unselfish attitude.

The second verse is the most brutally honest of his career and this excerpt solidified The Resistance as my favorite Drake song.

"I heard they just moved my grandmother to a nursing home
And I be acting like don't know how to work a phone
But hit redial you'll see that I just called
Some chick I met at the mall
That I barely know at all
And plus this woman that I mess with unprotected
Texted saying she wished she woulda kept it"

His admission that he takes the time to call a random mall rat for a quick lay instead of his ailing grandmother gives justification to the people claiming hes changed. The story about his ex having an abortion is a snapshot into his rapidly evolving reality, but both of these instances are reasons why Drake's music is so arresting.

After the insecurity of The Resistance Drake begins Over with similar sentiments ("what am I doing?), but once those Boi-1da drums kick in, Drake has found his moment of verification. He finally realizes he is cut out for this lifestyle and hasn't become a new person entirely (" That's right I'm doing me"). It's the most triumphant fucking moment on any album since Cudi Zone, but without The Resistance it wouldn't be nearly as effective.

Songs of the Year - #2 Christian Dior Denim Flow

2010-12-15T16:49:00.008-05:00

My first song of the year post was filled with interpreting and decoding Go To Sleep's lyrics and message, CDDF doesn't require such analysis. It's all the better that way. This song is a banger of all bangers that will rattle your trunk into oblivion. It was the masterpiece of the G.O.O.D. Friday series, which is saying a whole hell of a lot considering the diverse excellence of those songs. I really wish Metacricket's mojo was active when Kanye was releasing that weekly fire. It was like constant blogging material all of at least Sick status, acting as a well deserved (not really) reward of listening pleasure, after a long week of of mowing greens, from Mr. West as I'd head up to USM to sleep on Scotty's couch. G.O.O.D. Fridays reinvigorated hip hop. At the time we all thought these were merely MBDTF throwaways, that wasn't exactly the case, but you will not hear me speak ill of G.O.O.D. Fridays, and CDDF was the best of them all.

(Holy fuck. How badly does YouTube butcher the quality of songs? Everyone sounds like they inhaled 10 gallons of helium before the recording, if this is your first listen please don't judge off of this version and mmm word download the CDQ immediately.)
The greatness of this song comes with the hook. Kanye's decision to have both John Legend and Kid Cudi sing the hook adds to the songs griminess. Their voices come together and make it sound like the fucking apocalypse. The voice effect on Kanye's verse works perfectly in the mood of the song as he spits a laundry list of models he'd like to sexually parlay with, and includes a hilarious cunnilingus reference ("I'm tryna eat out so what we going to dinner for?"). After Pusha's verse the beat slows down to a crawl enabling Ryan Leslie, Lloyd Banks, and especially Cudi to rap over it. Cudi's verse might not even rhyme, but I say its the best on the song. He has smoked a lot of blunts in his lifetime and his voice reflects that. His smoked out flow and voice meshes seamlessly with the impending doom violins. I don't really know what else to say, other than this song is fucking awesome.

Songs of the Year - #3 Go To Sleep (WHAT NOW LOUIS?!)

2010-12-15T02:14:00.008-05:00

Seeing as how the Crick has been dormant for months again I've decided to pick up the keyboard and start writing again. With Louis taking 15 classes this semester in order to graduate on time and Scotty void of a laptop I'm afraid all six of you will have to put up with my personal thoughts and opinions. With my recent move to the mile high city and no job I've been doing all kinds of introspection and could spill my deepest thoughts and inner demons to you all, but instead I'll probably just stick to talking about rap music. Considering the year is coming to a close I thought of this ingenious idea to rank the best songs that have been released within the past 12 months. Coming in at #3 is Lupe Fiasco's best offering in a long while: Go To Sleep.

Louis does not like this song, which is fine, ya dink ya donk you don't like a song. But a song riddled with such impressive wordplay and lyricism deserves to be praised and I am here to do just that. Go To Sleep is loosely based on Lupe's struggles to release meaningful and important music. He is at odds with the landscape of mainstream rap. Sick of it's perpetual mindlessness he wants to awake the listeners from the constant drivel they are subjected to. Unfortunately for him he is one step ahead of us, "baking eggs and pancakes eating that at midnight," and ends each impressive verse claiming he wont make a noise. A surrender of sorts allowing us to submerge ourselves back into the bullshit music we love so much.

What makes the song work is the fact that all three verses are rife with double entendres and slick wordplay that remind us why Lupe is one of the greatest wordsmiths rap has ever seen. The first verse contains this bit of fuego:

"But they can’t see me, I took out their eyes/I's
Replaced them with some mes, so all they see is hes
But I will never run, not even if they cry
See, I can never fall, not even down their cheek
But I will always ball/bawl, let’s see who the first to blink"

The extended theme of eyes and tears carries itself through these several bars, and may not be known to the listener after only one listen.

"Fill this bitch up with fans, you still wont blow my candle out"

"Won’t drill no door hole, I won’t make a peep, so you can go to sleep"

I'm sure you all have already caught the double meanings in those lines, and if not it's nothing Rap Genius can't explain. This is the type of lyricism that redeems the listener after repeated listens, and therefore lengthens replay value yet somewhere along the lines these writing methods have come to be considered corny or pretentious amongst some rap fans, the very ones Lupe is trying to awake. Yes, Lupe does try to hard at times to be complex, this is not one of those times. Those bars came off effortlessly within the context and flow of the song.

The third verse takes a bit of a somber turn. It contains a reference to Lupe's drug dealing past. While Lupe was never as overt as Jay-Z or 50 Cent were when it came to talking about dealing his music contains many discreet admissions of at one time being involved in the drug trade ("I'm nuts with the cain/cane, planters planters," "You see what I'm saying and I push keys/kis wonderfully"). I don't think Lupe enjoys talking about this subject in his raps anymore but he once again uses wordplay to disguise his confession.

"Close down all the opium, but I had to O-P-EN
They said they need a hero in/heroin it, so I'm back to dope again"

Many Lupe fans have been hoping for a return to his crazy lyrical ways of his early career, in other words asking for a hero. Lupe harks back to his old days ("time is all behind me, this make me feel old again") of drug references and uses heroin as a vehicle to convey the message that he is back to being a "dope" emcee. I'm not sure if he ever really fell off, but Go To Sleep is a welcome return to form.

All of this takes place over a ridiculous 1500 or Nothing beat that builds and builds in the third verse coalescing with Lupe's words to create an epic crescendo of sound and message.

New Lupe Off Lasers - The Show Goes On

2010-10-26T20:44:00.002-04:00

Alright, look this probably isn't the song Lupe had hoped to release as the lead single for Lasers. One of the sticking points for his long delayed third album was that he wasn't giving Atlantic radio friendly songs. He has certainly given into their demand with this, but that doesn't mean this song is weak by any standard. Does it have blatant billboard aspirations? Yes. Is it basically Love The Way You Lie to Right Above It's Airplanes? Yes. But the thing is this song is still more credible than 95% of the shit you hear on radio. It's a straighforward, feel good, anthem that will perform well on the charts and serve it's purpose of creating buzz for Lasers. If that's what it takes to get a release date these days then so be it.

The Show Goes On - Sooo Sick

New Home Brew - October Love

2010-10-13T14:30:00.000-04:00

Here's the newest joint from Russell Farm Records, "October Love," produced by yours truly and featuring Chagrina and J-Mac the Spitter. Enjoy.

Boner.

New Kanye - Lost In The World

2010-09-29T11:50:00.005-04:00

I don't know about you guys but after several listens I tend to think this song is not "good". The intro to this is near embarrassing. It sounds like a bunch of dudes trying to sing with peanut butter stuck to the roof of their mouths. If I wanted to listening to convoluted voices singing barely audible words I'd listen to Imogen Heap. Sure the drums are kinda cool, but isn't Kanye's next album supposed to be a return to "strictly hard beats and rhymes?" Power was a promising start but this and Runaway lead me to believe we are in store for a mere 808's redux. What makes this even more discouraging is that nearly(Runaway Love Remx?! C'mon Kanye) every song released in the Good Friday series is better than this, and those songs will presumably be left off the album, Lost In The World will not be. Oh well, at least this song has ENORMOUS potential.

Lost In The World - Pretty Shitty

Update - Pretty much every YouTube vid of this song is dead. Fret not here the mmm word download.

Sammy Adams Boston Stand Up Sammy Matty Trump SAM ADAMS Boston BOSTON'S BOY Sammy!

2010-09-28T12:50:00.003-04:00

Seriously though, Sam Adams's new mixtape, Party Records, is hot crack. I've been bumping it non-stop. Here are a few of my favorite selections:

I shall begin with the very good "No Speak Americano," which samples a song that sampled another song so it's kind of like The Bible with shit begetting other shit or some shit like that. God isn't real, otherwise this wouldn't have happened. Evenways, I love to bump this joint:

Pretty fun to hear in your ears right? Here's another banger that I quite enjoyed, where SAMMY BOSTON STAND UP SAMMY ADAMS MATTY TRUMP BOSTON I'M FROM BOSTON BOSTON SAMMY flips the very awesome and super catchy mega-smash ground-breaking-music-video-having song "I Need a Dollar," and turns it into a certified bang-sesh:

People will hate on SAAAAAAAMY ADAMS BOSTON STAND UP BOSTON I'M FROM BOSTON YEAH BOSTON WHADDAYA SAY BOSTON'S BOY WES WELKER RULES because he's white and you know like sometimes the things that he says in song-poems aren't the most insightful or cool but with gems like "I'm a mile high smokin' nuggets in a Bronco" (Get it? GET IT!?!?!?!?) you can't deny that he does at least have some talent. The bottom line is that I enjoy these songs in the same way that I enjoyed the Boston's Boy EP, and I am not ashamed of liking them because sometimes people just like stuff.
So for anyone who wants to give it a whirl, here's your mmm word download.

Party Records - Sick

Jay-Z Breaks Yankee Stadium

2010-09-14T14:40:00.002-04:00

(Why the hell did this guy leave?!?! Least he did the damn thing.)

Say what you want about dude, but Jay-Z has motherfucking presence. Like could you imagine anyone else being the first artist to perform in Yankee Stadium? No, this is where he belongs, he was meant to be there standing on stage breathing in the epic-ness of it all. No one else could capitalize and thrive in this moment like he did. You're lying to yourself if you didn't get chills when the Run This Town beat dropped.
This was part of a concert series where Eminem and Jay-Z headlined two concerts each in their respective hometowns, Detroit and NYC. An encore performance is set for tonight, which gives us about five hours. Who's in? I'm driving.

Jay-Z at Yankee Stadium - Sickest Thing Ever

Lasers Is Fucked

2010-09-08T20:58:00.003-04:00

Lupe Fiasco recently did an interview with complex.com and in it he has some very interesting and ultimately disappointing things to say about the future of his was-to-be third album, Lasers. Two weeks ago Lupe personally released a song, Go To Sleep, and stated it was for the album Food and Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album. It was certainly perplexing to see Lupe release a song for his supposed fourth album, when his third album wasn't even in stores yet. This interview sheds a lot of light on that issue, you can read it in it's entirety here, I will try and present the relevant quotes in this post. Basically, it might be time for us Lupe fans to start coming to terms with the fact that Lasers may never see the light of day.

Complex: You mentioned Japanese Cartoon being your Plan B, let’s talk about Plan A. A second ago, you said “If Lasers never comes out.” Will it not come out?

Lupe Fiasco: It could. The situation with me and my record company has gotten to the point where it’s just like…we’re really at our final straws. People could say it’s me, that “Lupe doesn’t want to make popular music” or “The label has got to have records that they can sell and Lupe is not giving them the records they want to sell” and XYZ.

Complex: You keep referring to it as Lasers, but on the Internet now people are saying the record could be called Food and Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album. Is that not a real title?

Lupe Fiasco: When I said that I was going to do an album called The Great American Rap Album, I did it. Lasers is one project on its own. It’s its own project, sitting being done, waiting to be released. Lasers is its own project, it is its own sound, its own mood. Food and Liquor II is completely different. It’s like Lasers, that’s one album that got disrupted in the business process. It’s a great album, but that album may not come out. But here’s Food and Liquor II.

Sigggghhhh, needless to say this entire situation frustrates the hell out of me. It's hard to say who's to blame but I can't help but feel Atlantic is mostly responsible. It shouldn't be this hard for an artist who, with his last album, was certified Gold in a record industry climate not exactly conducive to selling albums, to get a release date. My only theory as to why Atlantic is holding out on Lupe is because he passed on Airplanes and Nothing On You. Bobby Ray's smash hits were actually intended to be Lupe songs. Lupe didn't want them because he wouldn't have owned a major percentage of their publishing and maybe because they were pre-packaged pop songs written for 15 year old white girls. Should he be punished for that decision? Probably not, but in today's music industry where labels are looking for a couple of Billboard blockbusters instead of a cohesive 15 song album with a unifying concept, Lupe and Lasers were shelved because B.O.B. got Haley Williams to sing a hook on a song.
With that said, Lupe probably shouldn't have began hyping this album in March of 0(FUCKING!)9. We now know that he probably jumped the gun on it a little bit and gave fans some false hope, but come on Atlantic throw us a fucking bone here.
The one bright spot in all of this is that Go To Sleep, the one song he has released off Food and Liquor II, is fucking flames, and something you should all listen to.

Only another two years guys!

Lasers Being Potentially Shelved - Worst Thing of All-Time
Go To Sleep - Sooo Sick

How Does This Not Happen Every Game?!?!

2010-09-07T20:09:00.002-04:00

So in the span of two at bats in the riveting Giants vs. D-Backs game tonight two little kids were hit with a bat and a ball.

Two children have been taken to the hospital after being struck by a bat and a ball at Monday's game between the Arizona Diamondbacks and San Francisco Giants.
A 13-year-old boy seated near Arizona's dugout just beyond the start of the protective netting, was hit on the right side of the head in the fourth inning after San Francisco's Buster Posey lost the bat swinging at a pitch.
In the next at-bat, the Giants' Pablo Sandoval sent a foul ball into the upper deck, where it struck a 2-year-old girl on the forehead.

The only thing surprising about this story is that it DOESN'T HAPPEN IN EVERY BASEBALL GAME EVER. Does anyone else think this way? Every time I watch a baseball game and see a ball ripped down the third baseline and into the stands I think well that probably only killed about 4 people, but some dude with a beer in one hand somehow ends up snagging the thing coming at him at ten trillion miles an hour. Sure he may spill some of his beverage on his girlfriend or some shit, but I mean no one's perfect. This story comes only a few days after this happened.

First of all, do you think that guy was screaming like that after every single ball that was hit? I mean it's fucking BP dude pretty much every ball is gonna make it into the stands, if some dinkbox gets hit in the domepiece it ain't on you. Nevertheless, maybe these instances are just the baseball gods catching up on all the years that fans miraculously survived rock hard baseballs hurling towards their brains at light speed, but what the fuck do I know?

P.S. - Were fucking back bitchesssssssssssss, but probably not really. I might not post again for another two years. I just hope this kick starts Louis into posting again so I have more stuff to read online as I search for jobs and daydream about what city I want to move to that particular day.

Who Dat Video

2010-06-22T17:00:00.003-04:00

HEY! I've seen this before.

Nevertheless dope vid. At this point in their careers who would you rather watch move their hands around Drake or J. Cole? I'm torn.

Revofev

2010-06-17T07:58:00.002-04:00

Cudi's first single from his upcoming album "Man on the Moon: The Legend of Mr. Rager." The title is short for revolution of evolution if you haven't figured that out yet. This song has been bouncing around with live snippets etc., so it's good to finally have the studio version. And with only 2 or 3 more months until he drops MOTM 2, I am really excited to start hearing new singles and internet leaks. Anywho, enjoy Revofev. I literally just downloaded it and listened for the first time so I can't fairly place a 'crick rating on it. PLAIN PAT WHAT UP?!?

Mmm word download.

Revofev - TBD

How Sick is THIS Song?

2010-06-05T19:02:00.001-04:00

Home brew ninjas. We keep slaying.

How sick is this song?!?!?!?

2010-06-03T10:13:00.002-04:00

After only one listen I am already in love with this song!!! I can't wait to bump this in the neon SEN. No mmm word download is available yet.

Tightrope (Wondamix) - Sooo Sick

New Cudder

2010-06-03T10:07:00.003-04:00

Collabo from Kid Cudi and Chip Tha Ripper. Just what the doctor ordered.

Mmm word download

All Talk - Sick

Light Up

2010-05-27T09:33:00.003-04:00

Them evil empire guys gonna get shot for playing this record.

Mmm word download.

Light Up - Soooo Sick

Welcome Back T.I.

2010-05-27T09:21:00.003-04:00

I like these songs a lot. I realize this is the exact same ish he was doing before but hey, if it ain't broke don't fix it, right?!?

This literally sounds like every other song T.I. has ever made buuuuuuttttttt I like it.
Mmm word download.

And this brings back memories of "whatever you like" buuuuutttttt I like it.
Mmm word download.

These songs - Sick

Drake's Third Single

2010-05-25T09:29:00.003-04:00

Skittles posted the tagged unmastered version of this song when it was called "All Night Long," at which point I was pretty sure this was nothing more than a throw-away mixtape track. Little did we know this would actually become the third single off of Thank Me Later, featuring Small Dwayne Carter. Here is the mastered CD-quality track:

This was produced by Boi-1da and 40 and it is very obvious which part each of them contributed. I'm more a fan of 40's So Far Gone synth vibe because it is much higher quality. The horn sample goes hard but ultimately doesn't do it for me. Luckily Drake absolutely SLAAAAAAAAAAYS lyrically (we've discussed the "do right and kill everything" line, which I believe is actually one of the best lines written in a very long time).
I've said it before and I'll say it again: people hating on Drake is a pet peeve of mine. Like, he can fucking spit hot hot fire and then croon the hook without batting an eye and it's like REALLY THIS IS A GUY WHO SHOULDN'T BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY!?!?!?!? The man has more talent than anyone. I will admit the Blackberry Freestyle was legitimately the lamest thing I have ever seen in my entire life, but I'm not saying I want to hang out with him on the weekend, I'm just saying stop hating on his music because he's not going anywhere and the music is of the highest quality.

Mmm word download
"Miss Me" - Sooo sick

Happy Summer Ninjas!

2010-05-20T09:31:00.002-04:00

We all know it's summer now, so I spend most of my time peeling off my sunburn and therefore have very little time to blog (i.e., none). But I had to share this new joint with our readers because, well, there's nothing better than a new home brew for your listening pleasure.
Here is the official Summer 2010 Sebring Anthem, produced by yours truly and featuring Metacricket favorites SuperKnowva and J-Mac the Spitter. Enjoy, my good friends.

NOW GO GET TAN!!!

Find Your Love - Video

2010-05-11T01:02:00.003-04:00

Louis once wrote that the Empire State of Mind video was exactly what he had expected it to be. Well, I think it's safe to say that this video is the COMPLETE OPPOSITE of anything I ever would have anticipated to see when I listen to this song. Some nice looking ladies wearing minimal clothing and I would have called it a day, instead we get Jamaican gangsters blowing Drake's brains out. Perplexing.
I'm not saying it's bad by any means. Most music videos consist of a rapper standing in front of a camera moving his hands around, but hey whatchya gonna do about it?

Find Your Love Vid - Sooo Confusing

Jay-Z Murders Saturday Night Live

2010-05-09T16:26:00.001-04:00

I've already watched this performance like ten times, and holy shit I get a weird combination of goosebumps and an erection every time. It really doesn't get much better than Public Service Announcement. Jay is the King.
Unfortunately the stupid embed code isn't working so just watch the medley here.
This performance defines Departed sickness. Also where can I get a leather vest????

Jay-Z's SNL Performance - Greatest Thing of All-Time (The Departed)

Hey Hey Hey

2010-04-29T09:13:00.002-04:00

This is the new Drake single off of Gracias Luego, produced by that famous guy Kanye Opposite of East:

This beat is on some 808 shit, the drums especially. Maybe I'm old fashioned but I've been updating my resume to this song all night, mostly in my sleep. I mean here's the thing: you can't say it's a BAD song because obviously the beat and hook stay in your brain forever. "I'm more than just an option" is arguably my favorite line from any Drake song that is called "Find Your Love." (Get it?)
Evenways, I really feel like at this point Drake is just inviting the haters to tear him apart. Like, if I hated Drake (WHICH I DON'T PARTY IT UP BRO!!!) this song would be my fucking thesis about why: no substance, just stupid crooning, no actual lyrics (is there a verse in this song?), blah blah blah dar dar donker. But the thing is, I love Drake, and I LOVE THIS SONG. I mean it has its obvious shortcomings, and I was expecting a lot more when I heard Kanye + Aubrey but like srsly maybe I'm old fashioned but I fucking love it. I wish there was more going on and I wish it was 100 minutes long instead of 3 but still I like it so much and I'm sorry. Skittles expressed his disappointment to me in a textual message earlier today, and although I love him with all my heart (waaaaaaaaaay homo), sometimes I just have to disagree with him and just go update my resume to Drake. I love this song and I hope Drake finds my heart (even waaaaaaaaaayer homo) and Thank Me Later will be fabo.

Mmm word download

Find Your Love - Sooo sick

Keep Bloggin' While I'm Mind Bogglin'

2010-04-29T08:49:00.002-04:00

I honestly furrealzies cannot stop listening to this. EVERY SINGLE FUCKING LINE IS FUCKING FIRE. FIIIIIIRRRRRRREEEEEEEE. F-I-R-E.

"Flow so wet I'ma take this beat tobogganin'"
"It'll never be my chair that you own/Crown so tight that it cuts off circulation to the brain/No oxygen, other words there's no air (heir) to the throne"
"Trying to give me the finger is kinda like giving a spider the web/I'm just gonna spin it and try and use it to my advantage/I catch a fly in that bitch, you think you fly you just food/I give as much of a flying fuck as that Superman dude'

Mmm word download

Despicable - Greatest Thing of All-Time (The Departed)

BITCH I GOT THAT FLAAAAME!!!!

2010-04-27T18:39:00.004-04:00

Here we go, J. Cole's first single, "Who Dat:"

OMFFFFFFG. Seriously, this song fucking busts so hard I can't even contain myself. This is the fucking street single; just imagine how fucking hot the second single is going to be. It's impossible not to bump this song a 1.21 gigawatts and bob your head. This shit makes me get out my chair and just bounce. The beat sounds like some vintage Timbaland but with the dope Elite drums that we heard on Heartache. Elite's beats are fucking nuts and I hope he blows up. All day I've just been repeating the hook to myself in my head (rthtmimh). Also the lyrics are fucking BINOCULARS. "Anything you can do I can do better/And any chick you can screw I can get wettaaaaah." OMG!!! He does indeed got that flame. This song blew my fucking mind. As I said when I posted the live performance of this song, I've never been more excited for an album of music.

Mmm word download

Who Dat - Greatest Thing of All-Time (The Departed)

PS, Is the third verse a Drake diss????? Happy B.o.B day!!!

Lasers Is Fucked... But Awesome

2010-04-25T15:06:00.004-04:00

Ummm, these songs are incredibly awesome. The Neptunes are back on their grizzly like a bearskin rug. Lupe has said countless times Lasers is his best work, but this album is at the mercy of blogs. Lupe submitted the album to Atlantic LONG ago, yet they are fucking dinkboxes and won't give it a release date. These vids will probably be taken down soon so listen quickly.

P.S. - Dwayne Wade is good at basketball.

These Songs - Sickest Thing Ever
Atlantic Records - Really Shitty

More B.o.b.

2010-04-25T08:19:00.003-04:00

This isn't off the album, but the beat is FIYAH! B.o.b. or T.I.P. youknowhatimsayin man you be the judge...which would be the better acronym for the song? But you know what though, either way its Grand Hustle.

Mmm word download

Not Lost - sooo sick

Leak Sesh!

2010-04-20T13:39:00.005-04:00

Album leak! Expect a Biff update once he's done doing whatever he's doing with his life these days.

Mmm word download

Here's another. It's a bonus track off the album.

Mmm word download

ROFLCOPTER!!!

2010-04-19T20:31:00.001-04:00

This commercial has a very long setup, but holy shit is the punch-line worth it.

Where can I get one of these beers!??!?!

Airplanes Pt. 2 (Feat. Eminem)

2010-04-19T17:19:00.004-04:00

I can't find any videos that can be embedded so unfortunately we're going to have to take a rare step and direct traffic AWAY from the blog (NOOOO). Click here to listen to and mmm word download these flames all in one.
Eminem's verse is fucking amazing. I can't say enough just how ridiculous this album is going to be.

Airplanes Pt. 2 - Greatest Thing of All-Time (The Departed)

I'm Late on This Song BUT...

2010-04-19T16:56:00.005-04:00

...that doesn't mean it's bad. Bruno Mars on the hook, christ jesus he slays it again. I was never really into Gym Class Heroes, but people used to tell me that their songs were good, and Travie does a good job on this one so maybe I should start listening to them more.

Also I really want Bruno to come out with some solo shit, because I would be very very very interested in listening to it given how awesome he's been on every song. Also I did some research and learned that Bruno is one half of The Smeezingtons, who are a production duo that produced this song AND Nothin On You. Now I really want Bruno to make his own songs I MEAN COME ON BRO!

Mmm word download

PS BONUS ROUND!
Here's a video of Bruno and Travie doing the song live and OMFG Bruno has the voice of an angel (as I said a couple weeks ago).

Billionaire - SIckest Thing Ever

Has B.o.B Made it or Has B.o.B Made it?

2010-04-19T13:16:00.001-04:00

It's nice to know that a guy as talented as Bobby can explode as big as he has based on merit alone. Nothin on You was certified platinum last week, and it's still the only thing standing in the way of Airplanes and the number one spot on iTunes. If you haven't listened to Airplanes yet then you should because it gives me a massive 8======D.
The Adventures of Bobby Ray is going to be the album of the year. Like fucking Man on the Moon caliber. I don't see how he can even make a bad song at this point. I'm actually going to buy the album and CHRIST JESUS I CAN'T FUCKING WAIT!!

Oh BOY

2010-04-18T14:56:00.005-04:00

And now this just came out :-)

I don't really have time to listen right now but I'm really excited to later tonight.

BIFF UPDATE: I just listened to this song and was going to blog about it and maybe say it's wack but luckily Skittles was working the day shift today and HOLY MOTHER FUCK THIS SONG IS FUCKING AMAZING AND THE ADVENTURES OF BOBBY RAY IS GOING TO BE SO GOOD THAT I'MA BUY IT TWICE!

Hey Scotty, what's been up man how's your daughter?

Mmm word download
Past My Shades - SIckest Thing Ever

Drake you got 'em right?

2010-04-18T14:53:00.004-04:00

"Bills everywhere, trill everything/And Drake just stand for Do Right And Kill Everything"...so good they had to play it twice!!!

Mmm word download

All Night Long - Sick

And I Can't Forget That Tree

2010-04-16T23:19:00.005-04:00

This came out Thursday. I like it.

That Tree music video - Sick

This Song Will Be Good

2010-04-16T13:42:00.002-04:00

Lupe has been performing new songs off Lasers in all of his shows lately. Skittles and I were lucky enough attend one of those and see the above song performed live. Unfortunately it was a concert so we obviously couldn't hear shit. This is the first video that gives you an idea of how fucking awesome this song is going to be. I mean just look at Lupe's veins. Hopefully performing this live doesn't result in a pulmonary embolism for Lupe, that would be sad.

Enjoy the weekend y'all. Enjoy the concert Biff (fuck you! you fucking prick I was supposed to go!!!!!)

Ball (Still) Don't Lie?

2010-04-14T11:12:00.001-04:00

As much as I hate to give one of Bill Simmons's generally asinine opinions any credence, Sheed does suck dick at playing basketball effectively. He's shooting fucking 28 PERCENT FROM THREE. Also he is the best offensive rebounder on the other team. The Celtics are not as good as they used to be. Can't we just euthanize Sheed?

This Song Is SOOOOO Old!

2010-04-12T16:59:00.004-04:00

Only yesterday did I download Shwayze's most recent album because he will be opening the concert that I am attending on Friday, so admittedly I'm late on these jams (But if my mom heard them when they came out why wouldn't she show me? Doesn't she know how much I like rap?) that came out over the summer, but hey it's not like I just found out about Bob Dylan right?!?! Evenways, this song has been blowing up my iPod earbuds:
I love it!!!! It's a great springtime jam, and no doubt it's finna be bumping in the Sebring and on my shower playlist indefinitely. I highly recommend copping the entire album.

B.o.B - Airplanes

2010-04-12T16:38:00.001-04:00

Here's the newest jam off of The Adventures of Bobby Ray. This album is going to be dope as fuck. Every song that's been released off of it has been straight fuego. B.o.B is a talented hombre.

Why does Jon Lester suck so badly at throwing baseballs?

Airplanes - Sooo Sick

Over Video

2010-04-12T08:25:00.000-04:00

I love this song. This video was decent as well. CAN I DOOOOOOOO THAT!?!??!?!?!

Over Video - Pretty Sick

Sam Adams Is Blowing Up Whether You Like It Or Not

2010-04-10T20:31:00.002-04:00

Here he is featured on women's answer to ESPN, the E! Channel:

Even Mike Posner hasn't been on E! This is crazy bro!

J. Cole's First Single?!?!?!

2010-04-10T20:14:00.001-04:00

Here's a video of J. Cole performing what is allegedly the first single off of his upcoming album (which has been given a pre-season GTOAT rating). This shit bumps even when you listen to it with the wack live audio shit!

DAAAAAAYUM HE GOES IN!!!! I have never been more excited for an album of hip-hop music.

Who Dat - Sickest Thing Ever

Do You Think Robin Thicke Remembers This?

2010-04-08T20:40:00.001-04:00

Sick bike bro!

Cooler Than Me Single Mix

2010-04-07T12:56:00.001-04:00

This is the version of Cooler Than Me that they play on the radio and I do not like it as much as the original and I AM MAD ABOUT IT!

Cooler Than Me Single Mix - Shitty

Bruno Mars is the Best Singer Ever

2010-04-07T09:35:00.004-04:00

Obviously I haven't watched MTV Spring Break since I was like 12 and thought it was the greatest thing ever because there were tons of hot biddies in bikinis getting sloppy soup sandwiched and making out with each other. Those days are over (thanks to websites that offer that kind of material on demand and MUCH MORE GRAPHIC), but I still flip over to MTVU once in a while because it actually plays music videos (most of which suck, but sometimes you'll get a good one).
Evenways, I was lucky enough to switch over to the channel in question when they showed this live performance by B.o.B aka Bobby Ray aka Robby Bay aka B.o.Bello and Bruno Mars. Bruno kills the hook super hard on the studio version of this song, but I was pretty blown away by just how good he sounded live. Give it a listen (it's out of sync but the audio is really all that matters):

He slayed it, especially the breakdown at the end. I hope Bruno becomes the new Nate Dogg (minus the clogged arteries and borderline insanity) and just starts crooning every hook on every rap record, because christ jesus the man has the voice of an angel (way homo).

New B.O.B. - Don't Let Me Fall

2010-04-06T23:05:00.002-04:00

This is the intro to Bobby's upcoming debut. The production value on this album is going to be very high. Nothing On You, Satellite, and this are all confirmed tracks on the album, which will feature an All-Star lineup of Lupe, Eminem, and TI. The release date of April 27th can't come fast enough, aka the album will be on the internet in a weeks time or so. This song certainly makes me even more psyched for the BOB/Lupe concert I will be attending tomorrow. I excite!

Don't Let Me Fall - Sick

Vampire Weekend - Giving Up The Gun

2010-04-06T10:04:00.004-04:00

I've been jocking this song ever since VW's second (and definitely not as good) album came out, but at the time I wasn't blogging as much as I should. This video gives me mixed feelings (although RZA is in it which definitely makes it way cooler than if John Goodman had been in it, but also one of the awful Jonas Brothers is in it too so there goes the coolness), and it really seems that the Vampire Weekend guys are going out of their way to try and convince everyone that they're way too lame to be taken seriously as a band that makes actual good music. They're not fooling me. INDIE ROCK RULES!

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go smoke cigarettes and say cynical things with my pretentious friends.

I Need a Dollar Video

2010-04-05T17:16:00.001-04:00

Great song, but that video bored the fuck out of me.

Sam Adams - Driving Me Crazy Video

2010-04-05T12:26:00.003-04:00

I really don't care what anyone thinks of this dude, if you say you don't enjoy listening to this song then you're simply a liar. I get it, "Oh he's a bitch," "Oh, he's white," "Oh he sucks at rapping." Whatever. He's living the dream and it's pretty amazing that a regular white kid from Boston can blow up as big as he has. It's like if me or one of our readers got super famous. Obviously we'd all be doing the exact same thing.
Also James said Sam Adams is a bitch, and yet James is the same person who was jocking SPIZZY SPOSE(!?!?!?). That's logical. This song is irresistible; even Steve likes it (FUCK YOU STEVE!).
The video isn't the best video I've seen since breakfast, but the song is super duper good. Also he got to rub up on mad hot biddies, so I'm sure he's not mad.

HAS SEAN KINGSTON EVER MADE A BAD SONG?

2010-04-05T12:17:00.003-04:00

It doesn't hurt that JR Rotem (Whatcha Say, Replay, In My Head, every song that you've ever liked) produced this track. This is going to be bumping in the Sebring effective immediately.

Mmm word download

She Moves - Soooo sick

Gangsta Luv Instrumental

2010-03-31T14:35:00.001-04:00

This beat is amaaaaaaaazing. Seriously, I could just bump this instrumental all day.

The New Hot New Hip-Hop is SOO MUCH BETTER!!!

2010-03-31T11:27:00.003-04:00

If you read this blog but don't frequent hotnewhiphop.com, you're an idiot. Most of what we do here comes from that website and 2dopeboyz, so really all they are is our middle men. They give us the music, and we give you hilarious commentary and a cute rating system. Also you're our friends, so if you ever stopped reading this blog then we wouldn't hang out with you (I'M TALKING TO YOU STEVE, YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE! DON'T THINK I HAVEN'T NOTICED THAT YOU NEVER RESPOND TO FACEBOOK MESSAGES OR WALL POSTS. WHAT COULD YOU POSSIBLY BE DOING WITH YOUR LIFE THAT IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN KEEPING IN TOUCH WITH YOUR BEST FRIENDS!? SERIOUSLY. I WILL NOT STAND FOR THIS ANY LONGER!).
All joking about that asshole Steve aside, the new hotnewhiphop.com is so fucking sick I can't stand it. Just look at this screen grab I took of the "preview:"
Now you don't have to click on EVERY FUCKING LINK in order to listen to each song. You get all of your "hot" new rap in one place! Does it get any better? (Please don't stop reading Metacricket. We need you now more than ever.)

Hot New hotnewhiphop.com - Sickest Thing Ever

Charles Hamilton Isn't Dead!?!?!?!

2010-03-30T10:28:00.002-04:00

I thought Charles Hamilton had fallen off a cliff and died on impact, but apparently he's still alive and kicking it, but from the looks of this behind the scenes footage he's learned from his mistakes (i.e., don't talk anymore).
These are two very talented cats (even if Charles is loco you can't deny how good his songs are), and any collabo from the two of them would be more than welcome in my world.
Welllllll...

I love this song. The beat is smoother than the peanut butter my mom uses to make my PB&H sammies every morning before I leave for work at the Metacricket offices, and Bob and Charles went IN SEN!!!

Mmm word download

Paperboy - Sick

Trey Songz That I'm Currently Jocking

2010-03-28T17:54:00.002-04:00

Skittles, Filly, and I had our quasi-semi-bi-monthly church/blog meeting this morning, at which we discussed several pressing issues. The most pressing issue that we discussed is how fucking much I love this song.

As Skittles noted this may be "the dumbest song ever," but that doesn't mean that I don't love the sounds in my ears. Just another irresistible guilty pleasure r&b jam. Hey, Trey Songz, I called, and I like your new song bro.

"Say Aah" - Sooo sick

Soundtrack 2 My Life Video

2010-03-25T16:46:00.001-04:00

DatNewCudi.com: KiD CuDi - Soundtrack 2 My Life (Directed by Jason Goldwatch) from DatNewCudi / DP on Vimeo.

I don't know about this. It feels like the kind of video people make of someone who's dead. Is Kid Cudi dead!?!?!!!? (Oh, Elaine, hey. Did you hear about Newman?) Definitely not as good as Day N Nite.

S2ML Music Video - Whatever

Asher Roth - Seared Foie Gras with Quince and Cranberry

2010-03-23T11:11:00.004-04:00

Asher dropped his second mixtape this morning at 8:11 AM, and by all accounts it is even better than the first. I haven't listened to it yet because I'm not a WEIRDO (or I just haven't had any time because I just woke up and got into the Metacricket offices). Here's the artwork (very classy, if I may say so myself):
...and the back...My only complaint is that the cursive is hard to read! :-(
But at any rate, I digest. I am honestly SOOOOOO PUMPED to listen to this shit bro! It's gonna be so effin' good bro! No but yeah no yeah, I'm pretty excited about it.

Mmm word download.

"NY-Z" - An ABSOLUT Collaboration with Jay-Z

2010-03-23T10:57:00.002-04:00

This is a documentary that follows Jay-Z in the days leading up to his massive September 11 concert (which, if you haven't seen, you should view immediately, because it was Departed sick), presented by ABSOLUT Vodka. Jay-Z and a middle-shelf vodka, WHAT MORE COULD A GUY LIKE ME ASK FOR!!?!?

I like that this is only 15 minutes, because it's a manageable length that I can watch in between classes or during class. Last night I watched "Notorious BIG: Bigger Than Life," which was pretty cool, but also 18 hours long and obviously a little guy like me couldn't keep his eyes open for the whole thing because I had just had my glass of warm milk and my mom had just tucked me in.
The point is, I love Jay-Z, so anything in the world that documents his life is obviously going to provide me with a good deal of jerk-off material for the coming weeks.

FUCK ME, RIGHT?!?!

2010-03-23T06:28:00.004-04:00

This is possible bad news for everyone that was planning on attending the Lupe Fiasco featuring B.o.b. concert at the House of Blues on April 7...just read the article :(

Just Begun

2010-03-23T06:23:00.004-04:00

This song came out a month ago, but I had never heard of it until I woke up this morning at 4 a.m. and started researching and downloading all the music I could think of. Four classy artists all on one track; what more could you ask for???

Just Begun - Sick

Shut It Down Tag-less

2010-03-21T22:26:00.002-04:00

Louis was working the day shift at the Crick offices today and was all over the initial leak of this song. Unfortunately at that point the only the only version available was for sample clearance only (I think, it wasn't made very clear). Since then the album version has leaked. This song bores the fuck out of me and at this point I really don't like it. Louis is probably going to get mad at me and say that I am close-minded and only listen to Nas circa Illmatic, but I am a big fan of Drakes other Rhythm and Blues work. So Far Gone established him as a real double threat with singing (Lust for Life, Houstlantavegas) and rapping (Say What's Real, Congratulations). I am going to choose to ignore this song for the time-being and continue to rock out to another Drake sing along that leaked recently, Fall For Your Type:

The internet is telling me that this is merely a reference track (I still don't really what that means, can someone clarify?) for Jamie Foxx, but I pray it's on Thank Me Later. That beat is some serious zone out shit, and Drake's crooning is far more appealing than his whispering on Shut it Down.

Shut It Down - Pretty Shitty

Fall For Your Type - Sooo Sick

New Drake + The Dream + S-S-SAMPLES ONLY

2010-03-21T13:58:00.002-04:00

Well apparently this is a version of the song for sample clearance, so that's why they got that dude doing a great DJ Khaled imitation by talking over the whole song and totally ruining it. This is not a listenable/mmm word downloadable version of the song, but it's still a nice little preview. This has more of a So Far Gone vibe to it, as it's not the speaker-blasting horseback-riding party jam that Over was, but from what I can hear over the s-s-samples only homie it sounds pretty dope. Drake and The Dream are two of my favorite artists out right now, so I can only imagine the boner I'm going to get from this song.
I want Thank Me Later NOW!!!!

Shut It Down feat. The Dream - Rating Pending (Samples Only)

The Song That's Currently Blowing Up My Speakers

2010-03-21T13:04:00.003-04:00

Sam Adams is the most famous human being from Trinity college since that 8 foot tall Middle Eastern squash player ate the little asian one. These songs are irresistible. I've tried not to like them, but there's really no point. This song is going to bump so hard at my (legal!) house parties this summer. You should really download/purchase the Sam Adams album if you haven't already, because it's just so enjoyable. Sure, all he does is sing in auto-tune about how awesome drinking is and how he can't go to class, but really, who cares? If you like the sounds in your ears then just accept it.

"Tab Open" - Sickest Thing Ever

This is What I Did to Skittles Last Friday Night

2010-03-17T13:23:00.000-04:00

I laughed very hard at this video, and so will you!

Office Beatz!

2010-03-17T10:10:00.002-04:00

This song is irresistible. I like how they chopped up the beat.

Mmm word download

Office Musik - Pretty Sick

I Need a Dollar

2010-03-12T13:38:00.003-05:00

This is the theme music to How to Make it in America, which is a decent show if you like shows about humans. Also Kid Cudi is on it and he has some funny moments. Thanks to Chester for turning me onto this song and the show and introducing me to Kael.

After searching extensively for an mmm word download link to this song, I ultimately just bought it on the iTunes store for 99 cents, and if you don't need a dollar then you should buy it too (isn't it funny that in order to buy the song you need a dollar? ROFLCOPTER!)

I Need a Dollar - Sickest Thing Ever

Nauseating

2010-03-11T23:22:00.002-05:00

I have a paper and a presentation standing between me and spring break (which will be filled with researching my glorious and groundbreaking thesis), yet I am still dedicated to bringing our legions of readers the latest and greatest on the intergalactic spider web. Check the alternate video for Kid Cudi's Pursuit of Happiness. Biff posted the original version a while back when we were in the midst of our resurgent dominance and wasn't impressed. This is a marked improvement, if you are cool and have been tippin some brews on this Thirsty Thursday (RIGHT BRO!?!?!), be warned shit is mad topsy-turvy.

Alternate Pursuit Of Happiness Vid - Sick

2AM Club - Hurricane

2010-03-11T13:36:00.002-05:00

Last night Brundog told me that we haven't been posting enough, so I'm trying to fulfill his every fantasy and post more than 0.7 times per day (although in my defense I'm on spling bleak right now...but I'm also taking a shit).
Evenways, I've been jocking 2AM Club hard ever since I saw them open for Mike Posner in September. If you haven't heard any of their music then I highly recommend you go to their MySpace and bump their tunes. They're great. Lately my main man and co-writer of stand-up comedy Dave D Cup Liss hooked me up with the studio version of "Hurricane," which is obviously in heavy rotation in the Sebring tape deck. There isn't a studio version available on YouTube, but just listen to this shoddily recorded live version and imagine to yourself how great it would be to possess and listen to the good version.

The hook on this song is more infectious than swine flu mixed with HIV. Soooo sick bro. I love it, and once 2AM Club releases an album of material, I will listen to it and love it because their music makes me smile and sing along.
Big ups D Cup!

"Hurricane" - Sickest Thing Ever

New Kings Like Us

2010-03-08T11:22:00.002-05:00

It's been a minute since our friends from the 606 have hit us up with some new material, but this shit has been floating around the underground for a while, it's just a matter of people posting the songs on YouTube so we can embed them into our awesome blog. Here's the newest Kings Like Us jam:

I like this song so much I wanna take it behind the middle school and get it pregnant.

All I Think About - Sooo sick
There is no mmm word download for this track, but it's available upon request, so if you want it then send me a fax.

These Guys Do Not Smoke Weed

2010-03-08T10:41:00.004-05:00

This song leaked last night and is off of Cudi's upcoming album Cudder. He said his next album would be a bit more playful compared to MOTM. Cudi claimed this isn't a final mix so enjoy it for what it is. This is the second collabo between these two straight edges. The first was called "That Tree" and continues their steadfast opposition of marijuana. Both songs benefit the most from Cudi's infectious hooks. Don't listen to the always intelligent YouTube commenters, Dre did not produce this.

Mmm Word Download

I Do My Thing - Sick

LQTM

2010-03-06T12:38:00.001-05:00

New Drake Single

2010-03-05T10:22:00.003-05:00

I like this song a lot. You will too. Thank me later.

Over - Sooo sick

SNL Might Be Funny This W'kend

2010-03-04T09:52:00.001-05:00

The Amy Adams one made me LOL. Goooooooo Zick Giflinaskimpski!

Is This Caption Correct?

2010-03-03T08:42:00.006-05:00

Mmm word click.

I have three midterms due at sunset today, so I'm going to go jump down an elevator shaft. Happy Hump Day friendsicles. Go hump a sofa.

Like That Bron Bron?

2010-03-02T15:09:00.001-05:00

Daaaaaaaaaamn he got up in it!

Baseball is Coming--BASEBALL IS COMING!

2010-03-01T18:55:00.008-05:00

Our cynical, media-fighting friends over at Deadspin do still occasionally write about sports, even if it's only a contribution from the man who started it all, Will Leitch. In anticipation of the upcoming baseball season (It's coming. Ohhh praise Allah it's coming. BBQ's at my house every day!), Leitch is writing a blurb about each team every day. Today was the Red Sox's day, and his column is glowing. Here's an excerpt:

At the beginning of the last decade, the Red Sox outfield consisted of Troy O'Leary, Carl Everett and Trot Nixon, and the first baseman was Brian Daubach. Today, the Red Sox go about three guys deep at every position, leaving nothing to chance. (The Red Sox are so deep, you expect them to attempt a line change in the fourth inning.) They are an enterprise now. They manufacture championships, even when they don't. No longer is the torture and pain around. In 2000, they were Daniel Plainview, ravaging the land for oil, breaking his leg, striving, failing, hungry. In 2010, they are Daniel Plainview, alone in their castle, lost from who he once was but still searching ... but just searching in a massive mansion with a bowling alley. The Red Sox are who they always were. They just have a bigger house now. The Red Sox traded up.

One suspects the fans, the true fans, would have it no other way. The Red Sox turned into what their most diehard fans wanted them to be all along: A simple dominant team unencumbered by history, megalomania over misery. I'd make that trade. Wouldn't you?

It's pretty amazing to think about how far this team has come. That we used to think we were fielding a title team with John Valentin at third and Jeff Frye at second is pretty astounding considering how unreal the team is now. Here's the whole essay if you want to read it. I'm sure Deadspin will appreciate the increase in traffic.

Baseball season - Greatest Thing of All-Time (The Departed)

PS, The girl across from me in the library is video chatting with someone, mouthing words and gesticulating wildly at her computer--completely silently. It's pretty funny.

AdSense is Fucking Us Over

2010-03-01T14:29:00.002-05:00

This is the advertisement that is currently displayed on our blog by Google's automated content personalizer:Are you kidding me Google AdSense? We blog about fucking hip-hop and basketball and our only female reader is my made-up girlfriend. You expect us to peddle make-up for you? Come on, give us some ads that are like "FREE TICKET PACKAGE TO HIP-HOP CONCERT AND BASKETBALL GAME" or some shit. Please. How am I ever going to pay off my CentSports gambling debts if I can't even make 12 cents a day off of my blog?

Jay Electronica Gives Drake an Emphatic Co-sign

2010-03-01T14:20:00.004-05:00

I obviously re-tweeted this because it makes me happy and is awesome. People who hate on Drake are just stupid idiot jerk haters. What's funny is that most of the people who hate on Drake are the very same "hip-hop heads" who grovel for a taste of Jay Electronica's emissions (OMG HE RAPS OVER MOVIE SCORES AND HE ISN'T EVEN FAMOUS!!!). Drake isn't going anywhere, and perhaps you should listen to him RAP before judging him FOR HAVING A FUCKING HIT. God forbid a rapper should become successful. What a sell-out!
Here's a song that Drake absolutely SLAYS because he's good at rapping:

Oh yeah, that and THE ENTIRE COMEBACK SEASON MIXTAPE YOU FUCKING IGNORANT IDIOTS.
PS, Who cares how much rapping actually occurs on So Far Gone (although there is a healthy enough amount to keep the lyricists happy)? That shit is a fucking masterpiece. Listen to it from beginning to end. It's not "for the ladies." It's for people who want to hear music that is good as fuck.

Big Sean x Mr Hudson

2010-02-28T18:23:00.005-05:00

This beat is crazy. It sounds like Kanye made it for Straight No Chaser, and I do think it would sound better with Mr H scream-singing all over it, but whatever, you take what you can get. Big Sean is really nothing to write home about these days. His verses are uninspired. There's a reason he opens for Mike Posner and not the other way around. Solid track regardless, if only for the beat and the hook.

Mmm word download.
"Way Out" - Pretty Sick

PS, Big ups to Filly for teaching me how to make videos fit. Love you bro! <3 :-)

Mr Hudson - Anyone But Him (Live Lounge)

2010-02-27T15:42:00.005-05:00

This version of the song is so much better than the album version. Why did he use so much auto-tune on the album? He's a very capable singer. I don't mind auto-tune, but it just sucks because a lot of the reviews were like "OMG AUTO-TUNE IS RUINING MUSIC I JUST WANT TO LISTEN TO 107.5 FRANK FM CONTEMPORARY MUSIC SUCKS!!!! FUCK YOU MR HUDSON!!!" It's like Dwight Howard doing the dunk contest on an 8 foot hoop. Not necessary.
Evenways, great song, and I always love me a good reference to dim sum.
Also, sorry if the video doesn't fit right. The little one wasn't an option. I'm still on hold with blogger.com to try and get it fixed (NO I'M NOT *Andy Samberg face*).

The Celtics 'Get Bored'

2010-02-27T13:13:00.004-05:00

It's no secret that the Celtics have been choking on fat dicks in the second halves of games this season, and apparently it's the same reason why I struggle to keep up in class. Per Pharoah Perk:

I don’t know if that’s a bad thing but it’s just like we come into games focused and we’re not trying to lose games but you can see that sometimes maybe we do get bored with the process and we can’t do that.

Indeed Kendrick--maybe you should think about fucking keeping the ball high when you get it in the post instead of fantasizing about flooding the Nile and going to Cheesecake Factory with Jono and Karen Sexton after the game. Get it together idiots!
Mmm word read.

I Hate School

2010-02-27T13:07:00.000-05:00

I'm studying. Fart on my face.
Happy weekend hump day!

Happy Friday!

2010-02-26T12:37:00.002-05:00

Oh shit the video fits! Do you believe in miracles?

Shakira - Give It Up to Me

2010-02-25T17:14:00.005-05:00

I can't remember if I posted this song when it came out last semestray, but I really enjoy it and it's been bumping pretty hard in the Sebring lately. Also Shakira isn't not hot.

I generally just listen to Wayne's verse then skip it, but try watching the whole thing without ruining your trousers. Good stuff where.
Also Shakira is fucking 4'11" which is very strange to think about but explains why they have her and Wayne pretending to stand next to each other in front of a green screen, because she'd make him look like Kal King if they were actually standing side by side.

Wale - Pretty Girls Instrumental

2010-02-25T11:32:00.007-05:00

Filly and I have been in the arduous process of constructing the perfect beach cruising playlist, and I suggested Wale's "Pretty Girls," but ultimately it was shot down because it doesn't groove hard enough. However, I would argue that the instrumental alone is an ideal beach cruising jam. This beat is BANANAS. Why did they rap over it? Would've been better as an instrumental. The rapping just covers up all the redonkulous layers that are going on everywhere. When the beat drops around 0:19 I get a 8======D

Perhaps a 324 freestyle is in order?
Mmm word download.
PS, I know it's old, but I feel like Attention: Deficit didn't get enough love. It's really very nice and good--pretty much every song is 7/10 or better. Good stuff where.

The Making of "Hard Knock Life"

2010-02-25T11:07:00.002-05:00

The lady talking in between interviews doesn't technically speak "English," but that doesn't really stop you from comprehending everything. This is a pretty cool clip. It's amazing that 45 King bought the LP for 25 cents and then probably made 18 million times that by selling the beat which took him 8 seconds to make. Dinkin flicka.

New Lasers Song Live

2010-02-24T16:52:00.006-05:00

Lupe is currently tearing up the continent of Australia as evidenced by this concert review. He began his world tour for Lasers recently and is beginning to unveil songs off the album. Above you can hear a high quality version of a song called Beautiful Lasers. A 30 second snippet of this song leaked a while back, but this live version sounds very different. Lupe has big upped Cudi in several instances and I think his content is starting to influence Lupe. Personal insights into Lupe's mental state have been a rarity in his music so far, but maybe Lasers will represent a shift to a more first person perspective. Judging this song off of a mere snippet and live version would be premature so I will leave it un-ranked.

P.S. MJ, Louis, Steve, Scotty, Brendan, Andrew, Sean, James, BHMD, Mac, J-Flu and anyone else who reads this blog, I have something of great importance to address. The week of April 7th and April 10th is shaping up to be the greatest of greats. Lupe/B.O.B will be performing in Boston and Cudi will be performing at UConn on those respective dates. The Lupe and B.O.B. show is on a Wednesday night and Cudi the following Saturday. I realize the Lupe show might be hard for some to make as it falls in the middle of a school week, but I will take no excuses for the Cudi concert(except for the Nutters as they will be too busy playing Division III dipping contests). Boston is a mere train ride away from my prestigious University so I expect to see the Scotty's and Sean's for that one (just read the review I linked to earlier and you will get hype as fuck), but hurricanes, flying pigs, terrorist attacks, thesis papers will not stop all of us from convening at UConn for the Cudi concert. The world has seen this occurrence once before, and it nearly exploded. This is big folks, this is big. It will take extensive planning, lots of alcohol, and a team oriented mind set. I expect the best from you all, mark your calendars.

That Week's Potential - Greatest Thing of All-Time(The Departed)

Dear Atlantic Records, Fuck You

2010-02-24T13:10:00.003-05:00

"Lasers [is coming] soon," said the MC. "It's on my label Atlantic, so they have it, it's finished. I'm just waiting for them to give me a release date to put it out."
Why won't you just fucking PUT IT OUT IF IT'S FUCKING DONE AND IT WAS SUPPOSED TO COME OUT LAST YEAR!?!?! This is why Russell Farm Records is the best label ever. We make singles and then release them the day of their completion. If anyone wants to come to a good label, hit me up at metacricket@metacricket.metacricket
Lupe also said this:
"I think the 'Lupe Fiasco' show is almost coming to ... the middle. Everything from here on out will be the grand closing."
Here's the whole article if you want to read it. I just want some new music. I can only listen to So Far Gone and The Warm Up 600 times a day for so long.

Really?

2010-02-23T23:18:00.004-05:00

This is a screen grab that I took from the newest Justin Bieber music video for his song "Baby," which features Ludacris. Notice anything funny?
It seems like everyone in the industry wants to ride JB's hairless dong, which is fine, because he's a good singer and he's more famous than God. Also the fact that The Dream writes all his hits definitely piques my interest. I mean, if The Dream were singing these songs instead of a 15 year old white kid then we'd all be creaming our jeans over it. Regardless, it's funny that Drake's in this video.
Also, here's the whole video if you're 45 and have a mustache:

B.o.B x Lupe Fiasco x Gnarls Barkley x STEVIE WONDER!??!!?

2010-02-23T08:52:00.002-05:00

Apparently, according to this interview:

I don't want to be a naysayer here, but that collaboration would be sweet if it were 1966 and Stevie Wonder was still making, like, passable music. Unfortunately putting Stevie Wonder on a track these days is like trading for Shaq: he's overweight, washed up, and really won't do anything except give you 15 and 7 while clogging the lane for your stars. Don't get me wrong, Stevie is in my fave five recording artists OF ALL-TAAAHHM, but the last time I heard him on a track, all it was was a sample of a chorus he had written a long long time ago when he was, you know, thin and funky:

Meh. Doesn't make my meat loaf. It just doesn't fit.
Evenways, the good news is that B.o.B's album has been pushed FORWARD (!??!?!?!) to April 27th, which is like the first time ever in a billion years that a rap album has been pushed up. Also, B.o.B fucking loves Coldplay and MGMT, which is fine I guess, because it shows that he's got diverse taste and what not, but those bands kind of gargle my balls and B.o.B doesn't. Let's hope his album sounds more like B.o.B than Coldgay (HAHA!).
Also, did you know Rebirth came out? I didn't even realize--probably because I knew it would be the worst thing ever and it was the worst thing ever. At least Wayne went to jail on a high note.

Happy Tuesday friends!

Sean Brown - Red Button Remix

2010-02-21T11:11:00.001-05:00

Red Button is perhaps my favorite Mike P song, as Fletcher Lincecum can attest, and I quite enjoy this remix by Sean Brown, which still keeps Mike on the infectious hook that you will never get out of your head and you will say all the time even if you're asleep.

I like it.

Mmm word download.
Red Button remix - Sick

Why J. Cole is the Best, Jerry, the Best (Right Now)

2010-02-20T13:48:00.008-05:00

It's been a few minutes since I've posted anything substantive, but let's just forget all that and consider it time I've used to research pertinent blogging materials (Also when your blog blows up and you start making twelve cents a day on Google AdSense every bitch you ever meet wants to fuck you. I'll go to a party and be approached by tons of girls who are like, "Um hey are you Biff from Metacricket? Lemme finger your ass real quick." I guess the eager beaver is the collapse of the dam.)
But anyway, as I was dominating Dynasty Mode the other day on NCAA March Madness 2005 on my XBox, I was listening to J. Cole's "The Warm Up" mixtape for the 18th time, when it all became clear: J. Cole is untouchable right now (yes, even by Drake, but that's another story altogether that I will address in approximately three paragraphs). Here are the reasons Hwy:

He makes his own beats
Or as he so maturely puts it, "They say I'm like the human body/I produce my own shit." In a hip-hop/pop/R & B landscape that has become dominated by super-producers whose beats are the most recognizable element of any song (see: Neptunes, The or land, Timba), the actual art of creating a song from start to finish has fallen to the wayside. Unless the artist and the producer are very close and are working in tandem throughout the entire process (a la Drake and 40--again, we'll get to him soon enough--or Kid Cudi and Emile), what you're often left with is a stale beat (again, see Neptunes, The or land, Timba) and a rapper boasting non-sensical non-sequiturs for three and a half minutes between a hook about money, cars, clothes or hos (YUUUP). I mean, don't get me wrong, sure it's fun for Timbaland or Pharrell to cook up some stale late-90's sounding bullshit and hear Jay lambast Rush Limbaugh and Bill O'Reilly (what song am I thinking of?), but that isn't what creates lasting music. That's pop, which is short for popular, which means that one day it will be UNpopular, and it will sound stale and no one will like it because everyone is sick of it (see a, Ke$h).
But is this what I think of when I listen to the hook to "I Get Up" for the 525,600th time?

Abso-fucking-lutely NOT. This song is fucking timeless. This song is sustainable. Why? Because, for all intents and purposes, J. Cole WROTE this song. He found the sample, made the beat, and wrote the hook, all with a singular idea in mind of what this song was ultimately going to become. This organic process of song-writing is what begets quality, timeless music. Why can I still listen to "I Get Up" fifteen times a day, but after the third spin of "Tik Tok" I want to punch a baby in the head? (Don't get me wrong, "Tik Tok" is a pop masterpiece. But that's all it is. A pop masterpiece.) Why was "The College Dropout" so good? Because Kanye had saved all those beats, nay, all those songs for himself. He knew what he wanted to do musically and he executed it himself. J. Cole does the same.
Cole is as close to a songwriter as there really can be in hip-hop, and it sets his music apart from most of the other garbage to which we're subjected so often.

He's got something to say
Too often rapping today consists merely of a series of personal boasts that conveniently happen to rhyme. Lil Wayne has mastered this art, and apparently that makes him (or made him) "the best rapper alive," because he says things like "Bitch I'm me/And you are you too/But bitch I'm three." Christ jesus, he's fucking amazing huh? Suffice it to say, I think Wayne ran out of things to say a long long time ago (of course that presumes that he even had something to say in the first place, which is hard to decide).
Cole, on the other hand, isn't just barfing into a mic. He's telling us a story. Of course, that's not a new concept at all. What made "American Gangster" and both of the Cuban Linx records so good was the fact that they were telling us a story. That being said, there's only so much I can listen to about slinging dope and using burners and getting clapped up before I get bored and I also DON'T FUCKING UNDERSTAND ANY OF IT (although if you want to at least begin to understand all this street lingo, watching "The Wire" is the wisest choice you can make, because without it "Only Built For Cuban Linx II" may as well have been written in Spanish).
But J. Cole doesn't want to talk about slinging--maybe because he never did, or maybe because he recognizes that it's not as accessible or compelling as talking about, oh say, stalking the love of your life. "Dreams" is perhaps the best example of Cole's talent as an MC.

Again, I can listen to this song an infinite number of times. This is another perfect example of the way the beat, the lyrics, and the hook all come together to create a perfect song. Also, the lyrics are fucking UNBELIEVABLE. He's able to craft a linear, coherent story without sacrificing any flow or wordplay. Here is an example of what I'm talking about:

And maybe I'll just drive by occasionally
And if one day I happen to see her outside, she'll wave to me,
Imagine what she'll say to me
This ain't no time to be afraid no more
It's time for bravery

Rhyming occasionally/wave to me/say to me/bravery is quite impressive, and the fact that it all works together makes the song one of the best OF ALL-TIME (Kanye voice). Not only are these lyrics coherent and compelling, but they're accessible, which leads me to my next bold section...

He makes you think, but not too hard
Lupe Fiasco may be the smartest and most intellectual rapper alive today, but that doesn't mean I'd rather listen to his albums over " The Warm Up." (Maybe I would, but whateverrrrr) I'm just saying, it's nice to listen to a rap song and be impressed by the story and the lyricism, but also not have to stop every ten seconds to google what each line means or ask Mike which Langston Hughes poem he's referring to. I mean, I love Lupe to death, but there's a reason "Enemy of the State" was so good: I could listen to it and be like "Oh shit, good line BECAUSE I FUCKING GET THAT LINE."
J. Cole straddles the line (haha pun!) between lyricism and intellectualism quite nicely. Lines like "For that living large but mama I aint done yet/Sit back and watch your son rise/Kick back and know yo son set" are fucking AMAZING and exhibit the kind of wordplay that we value in an MC. They also don't make me feel like a fucking idiot for not paying attention when my family visited the Vietnam War Memorial in 1996.
PS, there is still no song that can touch "The Cool." And if there is, J. Cole hasn't released it yet. This is an example of what I'm talking about: Lupe created a story--an entire universe--that was accessible and understandable, and he constructed a narrative using rapping that we could understand ("Hustler for death/No heaven for a gangster"--I just got goosebumps writing that line). Unfortunately, Lupe can get a little carried away sometimes. He's a little too smart for his own good, which is why my white sister who graduated from Harvard likes him, but he can't quite get as mainstream as Jay-Z or Kanye, despite the fact that he's a more talented rapper.

Now, where does that leave Drake in all this? Here's the way I see it: the world is separated into categories. Most of us fit into these categories, except for the select few that are anomalies. Artists like Drake, Andre 3000, and Cee-Lo are anomalies, because they aren't quite rappers, and they aren't quite singers. They're ringpers. At this point, Drake has been doing a lot more auto-crooning than he has rapping. That doesn't mean I'm dismissing what he does; "So Far Gone" is on the same level as "The Warm Up," but it's really like comparing apples to mixtapes--they're just different.
Drake can write a song and a hook with the best of them, and his rapping is beyond passable--it's actually quite good. Just listen to this:

Like I said before, this is little more than a series of boasts about how good he is at rapping and getting pussy and wearing pea coats in Autumn, but it's still so compelling, simply because there's something about the sound of Drake's voice (just like Andre and Cee-Lo) that makes us want to listen. Give me "So Far Gone" and "The Warm Up" and I'll listen to them equally, and I guess we'll really just have to wait for their albums to drop to reach a conclusive resolution, but even that will be temporary.
I love them both, the same way I love cheesesteaks and watermelon vodka. Sometimes I want a cheesesteak, because it's satisfying and fills me up, but sometimes I want watermelon vodka, because it's sweet, fruity, delicious, and I just have a good time when I consume it. That doesn't make cheesesteaks any better than watermelon vodka, and vice versa, it just makes them different entities altogether.

Thanks for reading friends. Let's hope we can come up with more stuff like this in the future.

The Dream - Love King

2010-02-19T09:58:00.002-05:00

This is the first single off of his The Dream's final album, "Love King," said to drop some time in May (but we all know rap/r & b albums NEVER EVER EVER FUCKING COME OUT WHEN PEOPLE SAY THEY WILL, which is the most frustrating thing ever. Hey Lupe, how's LASERS coming? Summer 2009, huh? Great!). I digress.

The more I listen to this song the more I love it. I'm still bumping "Love vs Money" and it never gets old. Dream claims that "Love King" will be his best album ever, but let's just go ahead and wait for it to come out--although this song is a promising start.

Mmm word download.
"Love King" - Soooo Sick

This Song Is Awesome

2010-02-08T21:42:00.002-05:00

The Rain - Sooo Sick

Distant Relatives Sen!

2010-01-23T16:30:00.002-05:00

I posted about this album a good while back and needless to say was very excited. Since then the album has been pushed back and was nearly canceled, but fret not my disciples this shit is coming out, release date April 20th. The first single, As We Enter, was released today and is fucking flames.

Another song, Strong Will Continue, has also leaked. It's certainly no As We Enter, but supposedly its not the final version either.

As We Enter - Mmm Word Download
Strong Will Continue - Mmm Word Download

As We Enter - Sooo Sick
Strong Will Continue - Pretty Sick

Bloggin' Beamin'

2010-01-18T19:09:00.003-05:00

James was disappointed with the lack of blogging and threatened to sic Bearhorse on us so I am forced to post out of mere prevention of my welfare. Anywhoo I present to you the supposed intro track, I'm Beaming, off of Lupe Fiasco's upcoming album Lasers, produced by the Plutos or something like that.

The song doesn't require much analysis or breakdown. It's nice to have a grooved out laid back track after the lyrical destruction that was Enemy of the State (Enemy of da Steeaate!). Lupe's album cuts tend to be a bit more straightforward and void of the quintuple entendre head-scratchers that lace his mixtapes. He has a clear message for this album and wants it to be known. Beam through the adversity sen!

I'm Beaming - Sick

THE ACTUAL GREATEST THING OF ALL-TIME

2010-01-04T23:01:00.002-05:00

There are no words to describe this. If you don't LOL at this then you don't have a soul.

J. Cole is THE Truth

2009-12-27T11:56:00.002-05:00

Over this past holiday weekend I visited some friends down at the University of Clara Casey, and in preparation for the solitary confinement I would have to endure during my hours of vehicular transit I made sure to get some new music. I came in to the drive with hopes of listening to Chip Tha Ripper's tape, The Cleveland Show (which is dope), but came out blown away by J. Cole's The Warm Up. I can't begin to count the times I shook my head in amazement at his rapping ability. After hearing his verse on Beautiful Bliss I knew he was going to be good, but I didn't expect anything like this. I know the Warm Up is kinda old now as it was released in June, but I'm really just writing this post so that Louis will download it. I'm having a tough time choosing which song to post in order to best exemplify Cole's skills, not that I could really go wrong. Let's go with Lights Please.

Oh, and did I say he produces all his own beats?
Download This Immediately

The Warm Up- Sickest Thing Ever
Lights Please- Sooo Sick

These Are Probably The Most Blog-Worthy Videos Ever

2009-12-21T17:33:00.004-05:00

Blitzen's(Lupe) Rap

Santa's(KRS) Response:

"My sleigh be moving snow, you eating grass"
And once again these commercials subliminally promote drug use!

MVPuppets Commercials- Sooo Sick