Just My Thoughts People

Souls of Mischief - '93 Til Infinity

I really wish ya'll could understand how much of a music junkie I am and how early it started for me.  Being from Atlanta, I didn't hear much West coast music on the radio, aside from "Nuthin But A G Thang" so I got a lot of music from video shows and once I figured out how to hook up the TV to the stereo, I was in BUSINESS!  I recorded videos to VHS and to tapes - HAHA "tapes" (but don't get it twisted, I'm not old, not even 30 yet) This song and group stands out so much to me.  They are truly what an underground group is and at the time, they were in competition with mainstream hood music.  The single and the album as well was phenomenal and I'm surprised that I don't see it on many people's top album lists.  As indicated by their Myspace page, they are still in business.  I haven't had a chance to listen to anything on their page, but here it is if you'd like to check it out for yourself. 

Other West Coast notables...

Domino - Getto Jam

Pharcyde - Passin Me By

Pharcyde - Runnin

Above the Rim was in '94, right?  We played a lot of joints from this during Freak Nik weekend!!

Kelly Rowland on KING Magazine

Something I thought all you guys out there might enjoy.  I hope this isn't her future though.  That cd of hers has been pushed back two or three times and she hasn't even released a second single.  She's more talented and more attainable than Beyonce so I truly hope she gets her due shine, but until she gets from up under the Knowles Clan, I guess this is what we'll mostly be seeing from her.

This also has me thinking, why can't there be a publication like this for us females?  There are many celebrities out there who I appreciate and occasionally fantasize about.  I imagine it would just have to focus on celebrities (Boris Kudjoe) and athletes (Reggie Bush) because i can't quite imagine how it would look if my favorite rapper was on the cover and on second thought I have to think maybe it is best left to the females...

P8ssy Power

It’s beginning to look as if the summer will be all about the ladies and I’m somewhat happy about that.  The past few years we’ve seen one, maybe two dames dominate at a time and now it seems like the usual suspects will be back.  But of course nothing will compare to when Foxy and Lil Kim were taking over.  That being said, let’s see who summers contenders are...

Foxy Brown – Black Roses finally comes out September 6^th and a mixtape is slated for a June release; Chyna Doll was my least favorite album of hers but she bounced back quick with Broken Silence so I won’t fault her too much for it.  The newest single from her, which I posted to the left, sounds like the old Fox Boog so we’ll see.  Producers include Just Blaze, Timbaland, Swizz Beatz, Kanye West, The Neptunes…

Classic Foxy Brown

Hood Scriptures

Eve – We’ve already seen and heard “Tambourine” and the more I hear it, the more I like it.  It will be interesting to see how her flow and skills have changed since her last time out in 2002.  Album due August 7^th with guest appearances by Adam Levine (Maroon 5), Gwen Stefani, and Shakira.  These are all great artists in their own right, so I can’t wait to hear the end result.

Classic Eve

Let's Talk About

Lil Kim – I haven’t seen anything about a release date or even a single, but she’s done 3 features this year so my bet is that we’ll at least have a single by summer’s end.  And with her adversary, Foxy coming back out, this would be perfect timing.  Kim is definitely in my top two so we’ll see if she remains there.

Classic Lil Kim

Queen Bitch

Trina – Not much to say about the Diamond Princess, especially after the last debacle but nonetheless she’ll be releasing hers on August 14^th and says that she has put in 150% on this one (yea for us).  The first single will be “I’m Single Again.”

Classic Trina

Nann Nigga

It would be great to see Rah Digga come out and Shawnna as well.  Damn, I really thought she had made it after last summer’s release, “Getting Some.”

Rah Digga - Imperial

Shawnna feat. Twista - RPM   

Rayful Edmond

I like documentary's and biography's so occasionally I will post something that I think you might find interesting.  If you enjoyed the American Gangster seris on BET, you should enjoy this doc as well.  Rayful Edmond is credited with introducing crack into the D.C. area.  After being convicted and incarcerated, he continued to run his business and so was convicted two more times. The message is the same as always - crime doesn't pay, people.  Parts 1-8 are below...

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Part 8

Nastradamus

I’m going to go ahead and put it out there.  I liked Nastradamus.  I remember when TRL (Carson Daly days) first debuted the lead single of the same name and I made sure no one disturbed me for the next 60 minutes.  I wanted to hear every single word the man had to say.  Let it be known that I’m a Nas fan and this is certainly subpar in comparison to Illmatic, I Am, The Lost Tapes and Stillmatic but nonetheless I listened, studied and got zoned nearly on a nightly basis listening to it.

“Put it out, first day, the whole street knew it
Bitches, hold they pussies and bop to the music
and think deep to it, now who the truest?”

“Family”

Nastradamus

Ha, that was me.  It was the cd that I played late at night or when I had a long drive to make and I did just that – thought deep to it.  I suppose for me, nearly everything Nas puts out appeals to me.  It’s the storyteller in him.  You hear more than just the beat, you hear more than just the flow, more than just the words – you listen to it, take it in, process what has just been said and appreciate him for it.  It was also a well-blended album.  Save for a few tracks, I pretty much listened to it from beginning to end.  The spoken word intro and outro were little added bonuses.

The critics were harsh to it and my male friends thought I was just another silly chick who knows nothing about real hip-hop.  That being said, he had some joints that certainly should have been omitted – “You Owe Me” for instance. But he did have some quality on there. 

Nas is a little flip-floppy at times (which I attribute to him maturing and growing up in the hip-hop world), and in no way am I stating that this is his best work.  I’m just saying I liked it more than the average population did and you can’t deny Nas his gift and his ability as a true musical poet.

Meagan Good is Copy-and-Paste

 

I finally watched that dance movie, “Stomp the Yard” this past weekend (I know, I know but my nephews were watching it so I said what the hell).  First of all, let me begin by saying I never expected this to be an academy-award winning movie, nor did I really expect to like it.  I’m not the biggest fan of crump, it just looks funny to me, and a little dangerous (back-breaking, no?).  But nonetheless, I sat and watched as me and my sis-in-law carefully critiqued.  And by ‘critiqued’ I mean roasted the hell out of it from beginning to end.  In case you haven’t seen it I’ll give you a little summary – the main character (don’t remember his name.  Forgive me, but after 5 years of living the college life, my memory is completely depleted) and his brother (played by Chris Brown) are crump-battling against some Ese’s and since they won a sh8tload of money in the Ese’s territory, they felt the need to jump chris brown and his big bro.  The brawl ends up with Chris Brown being dead and off goes big brother to Atlanta to attend Truth University where he will be mentored by his aunt and uncle.  Big brother gets drafted into a fraternity, where he will obviously incorporate his crumping skills, falls in love with Meagan blahblahblah, you get the picture.

All in all, it was a pretty hilarious movie.  It’s very dramatic with the dance moves and all.  Every time big brother and the frats break out into dance, we see every single movement in slow motion which creates the most hideous facial expressions.  That alone was the highlight for me.  And the background music for the sad, emotional or ‘moving’s scenes were straight from the movie “Beaches,” or so it seems.  But the thing that bothered me the most was Meagan Good.  I’ve seen almost all her movies, and this is by far her biggest role.  She gets a lot of air time in this and she is the 2^nd main character.  So I was expecting to see her really get her shine but I was sadly disappointed.  For as long as I’ve seen her on and off screen she always looks the exact same – same black, wavy weave, same makeup, same smile, same pose.  And even more so, she plays the same role in every movie. It’s like you can just crop her out of one movie and implant her right into the next. Why is she always some down-azz side chick?  Her acting wasn’t exactly the worst but I’ve seen much better.  Me and my sis-in-law considered sending her agent a heartfelt letter requesting that she receive broader roles.  Then I thought, maybe this is what black actresses are subjected to.  Nope, not at all.  She is undoubtedly the most typecast actress that comes to mind.  And given further thought, there really isn’t another young, black actress out there who is the down-azz side chick type so maybe she’s just holding the slot until someone else slides in there.

New Video: Eve - Tambourine

Here is Eve's new video for her single "Tambourine."  After seeing the video, I like the song a lot more.  I'm really digging how the females are bringing a lot to the table this year.  They're incorporating  more creativity, style and fashion into their videos.  This one kind of reminds me of an old Missy Elliot or Busta Rhymes vid.  Check it out...

Fox Boogie is Back

To the left I posted Foxy’s new joint, “How We Get Down.”  I believe It’s been at least 2 years since her last feature/single and six years since Broken Silence her last official album release, which by the way was pretty much overlooked in my opinion.  Broken Silence was Foxy’s walk back to the other side after attempting to find herself on Chyna Doll.  Remember the way her voice was about 5 octaves too high and her flow was a little too similar to Kim’s?  At any rate, I am supposing this is going to be on her forever upcoming release Black Roses.  But the way it’s been going the last few years, it’ll probably be on someone’s mixtape and she’ll continue to perch her ill nana on the shelf as she has been for the past eternity.  But in the case that this is the real deal, this pretty much sounds like classic Fox to me.  And in the current state of affairs, this can be a good thing or a bad thing.  Music critics like to see growth in an artist that can be detailed from album to album through their lyrics and to a degree, their image. Given her recent issues, there is no evidence that Inga has blossomed into a woman.  She’s still fu8kin with gangstas and she’s still on that

Brooklyn

sh8t.  Music fans on the other hand tend to like their artists this way.  The same thing you did to get them is the same thing you must do to keep them.  I must admit that it took me back to when her and Lil Kim were the ultimate for me and I was so proud cuz they were fly azz chicks rockin with the baddest dudes.  I like Foxy but it would be kinda nice to see her spit on a different level, but this is the first single in a while so hopefully there is more to come.

Joe Budden on XXL.com

It has been advertised for a while now on xxl.com and he's finally made his debut appearance so be sure to check out Joey's new column titled "Smoke and Mirrors."  His first post is about the current state of hip-hop and though it's what we've all been talking about for awhile now, we finally have someone from the inside who is living and breathing it so I'm sure he'll be able to provide us with a different viewpoint or manybe even reconfirm what we've already been saying.  I wrote him and asked that he speak on what he's seen and what he's been through.  Hopefully he will oblige us.  I was really into his debut joint and have been disappointed to not see anything else from him since.  Click here to read it...

T.I. vs. T.I.P vs. I’m Serious, Trap Muzik, Urban Legend and King

I’ll be the first to admit that I am a die-hard T.I. fan.  And I don’t mean a bandwagon fan (for those of you who only jumped aboard after hearing “Rubberband Man,” or “Bring ‘Em Out.”  I’m talking about since I first saw his video “I’m Serious” back in ’01 when he got his reggae on with Beanie Man!  He’s been consistent ever sense and never have I worried about TIP until I heard “Big Sh8t Poppin.”  The song isn’t terrible by far, but you must understand what true T.I.P fans are used to hearing.  Just so you get a better understanding, let’s revisit his previous debut singles so that we can get a closer look at what T.I. vs T.I.P. is up against…

I’m Serious

I’m Serious

Naturally, an artist’s debut will almost always be his best work.  There’s something forgiving yet intriguing about the pouring out of the soul, the lust you hear in the voice for that big breakthrough; and TIP does not disappoint on this one. He’s got something to prove, you can hear it in his voice – assertive and fully aware that he will be King…

“Some niggas wonder what my goal is
They think it's goin gold havin hoes sweatin me
Fuck that, I'm in it for the longevity
Picture me as one of the greatest that'll ever be
Compare me to, Tupac, B.I.G., and Jay-Z”

HA, talk about breathing life into your words

Extra:  Remember the “Dope Boyz” remix with Foxy Brown???

Trap Muzik

24’s

In 2003 this is exactly what we wanted to hear – cutie pie dope boyz makin big bank and not being shy about letting us know about it.  Another great beat; even if you don’t like him lyrically, you can’t say the production wasn’t right.

Extra:  “Rubberband Man” – this is undoubtedly when the rest of the world caught on.

Urban Legend

Bring Em Out

This may have solidified him in the pop world as well as provided him with some East coast notoriety. 

Extra:  “Motivation”,”ASAP”

King

There is no need to even discuss the stand out of this album – “What You Know” is that one hitter that will remain stained in your i-pods and hard-drives for years to come.  My man came fresh out the gate with this one.  The beat is the sickest to have been created since …idunno, since the days when Swizz and Just Blaze ruled the world?

Extra:  “I’m Talkin To You” – who didn’t play repeat a few times to see who he wasn’t talking about???

And here we have “Big Sh8t Poppin” and I’m not impressed.  Definitely not a single by his standards.  The beat doesn’t even stand out.  He gave his homeboy Kuntry the better beat (“That’s Right”) and then put out a single with Wyclef which is better than BSP but still, I’m getting a little less excited about his release.  I’m die hard so I’ll still go and get it but I’m just hoping it won’t leave me reminiscing like I just did…