my raps y’all bit em up, for that now stick ‘em up

Jay-Z – Regrets

Jim Jones criticized Jigga for selling out, once stating that he used to be “the huslter’s posterchild.” although I’m not going to side with mr. baaaalllllllin’, it is true that Jay once had a very street, for lack of a better word, appeal that is nothing but a facade now (as a sidenote, I don’t think that that’s called selling out, I think it’s called the aftermath of success). In this song, the last on his arguably only classic album Reasonable Doubt, President Carter paints a picture of regrets and self-questioning in a way that isn’t corny or predictable as much of his later attempts of rehashing this would be.

Fat Pat – 25 Lighters ft. Lil Keke

it’d be hard for me to believe that in 2007, people are still doubting the south. Fat Pat (r.i.p.) was simply one of the dopest, and Lil’ Keke continues to hold it down. love it mayne!

Slum Village – 2u4u (original)

you can hear this for about 3 seconds at the beginning of the 2.0 version of this track on Fantastic Vol. II. I always loved the dirtier, rawer sounding Dilla beats.

I haven’t mentioned my mans Ghostdeini in a minute. The Struggle is a Nottz-produced gem is just classic Ghost and The Champ (original version w/ sample and different lyrics) off Fishscale was called one of, if not the best, Hip Hop record of the year by mr. Hip Hop himself, Bobbitto Garcia aka DJ Cucumber Slice, in Vibe magazine I believe.

Juelz Santana – Mic Check remix ft. Young Jeezy & Lil’ Wayne

this is one of the better remixes in recent memory, yeah I said it. it has a ‘Flavor In Ya Ear’ kind of vibe to it. Juelz actually raps and it’s actually good, Jeezy swags his way through an enjoyable verse, but then Weezy F. Baby comes in. now, to me, this is when Weezy made it known that he was a monster on the mic:

‘jack for a Mazda, come back in a Mase-

rati, like how he? why he? cuz I be,

movin’ through the city like an IV,

tryna be monogamous but I got

bitches on my dick like i’m the shit,

cuz i’m the shit’

you can’t deny D’wayne Carter as microphone fiend, but, it is very, very, very important to recognize a distinction, one that many of the people calling Weezy ‘the best rapper alive’ don’t seem to recognize. to truly be recognized as a legend in the game, on equal terms as MC’s like KRS-One, Nas, Ice Cube, Rakim, Common, and so many others, the music has to have something that speaks deeper than lyricism at the end of the day. Nas painted a very human portrait of his surroundings in ‘One Love‘ and ‘NY State of Mind,’ Rakim and KRS literally dropped knowledge, and Ice Cube rose above the simple stigma of a gangster rapper by adding a rebellious consciousness to his music that no one has done at that level to date. my point is that as dazzling and rewind-button breaking as Young Carter’s lines and flows are, at the end of the day they lack the humanity and three dimensionality of legends. the rhymes may get stuck in my head, but I never take them to heart.

P.S. Jay Electronica – Girlfriend