“Cause I’ve learned, in this life, you’ve gotta be with someone you like…”
Guys, grab your ol’ lady. Ladies, grab your man. And the both of you two step the night away to this Robert Glasper, Musiq Soulchild and Chrisette Michele number which is sure to make every anniversary playlist from here on out. It’s not everyday this type of grown and sexy music is pushed to the forefront. Read the rest of this entry »
When deliberated over its proper context, yes, there’s a possibility that every material possession imaginable brought upon by wealth can still leave one’s soul feeling hollow. Yet it remains, the majority of us reading said quote can’t easily identify with a millionaire’s daily gripes and struggles (for argument’s sake, we’re going to award them the benefit of the doubt). But the average, everyday working-class citizen, most likely can identify with a time where a jolt in monetary support allowed more legroom than usual. A lottery scratch-off, a healthy tax return or just being responsible with your savings—have all brought about that proverbial “happiness” which the infamous quote refers to. While relishing in the splendor of the moment, the general acknowledgement is probably something along the lines of “wish it was like this everyday.”
For some of our biggest Hip-Hop mainstays of the moment, the pursuit of happiness was chased vigorously in bare feet through rugged terrain but the payoff was rewarded with golden slippers to prance about as they saw fit. Now it seems Kanye West and Rick Ross have forgotten the blistering path which led them to complain about life’s luxuries.
Feverishly thrusting his fingers into a Twitter-tirade the other day, an one-on-one sitdown with Matt Lauer on The Today Show prompted Kanye to depict himself a martyr rolled up in a scapegoat blanket for being grilled about the George Bush ordeal. Nevermind critics are propelling the ratings of his new album through the roof or he’s an easy shoe-in to join the handful of artists with a platinum album in 2010. No, his newfound empathy towards the former looniest executive of all-time isn’t being respected and it’s hurting his pride. Alas, there will be no chance for reconciliation. After all, it’s a “set-up.”
No one man should have all that POWER but you do, Ye. Let’s keep it all…the…way…real. None of your core supporters give a damn about Taylor Swift or her record sales and any positive emotion towards Dubya definitely doesn’t register. Playing coy and overtly humble is a direct contradiction to the music you make and quite frankly, whining on TV & Twitter makes us all roll our eyes and actually wish for a spaz-out moment so we can applaud you for holding your ground. Money can’t buy you happiness but it can fly you away from any perceived threat that may linger in your mind.
Let the dollars set you free if the truth is delaying the process.
Aside from Trey Songz, mixtapes from R&B artists still seem odd. My preconceived ignorance continues to associate the term with Hip-Hop mainly because there’s always a new one popping up by “Lil This Guy” or “Big Rapper Dude” seemingly everyday. Then again, the line between albums, mixtapes and even genres are damn near impossible to decipher these days. Record sales Read the rest of this entry »
Rozay drops off the video for “Aston Martin Music,” which thankfully features Drake’s extended verse. Wise choice, Ricky. You just cruising around Miami was stale as hell by itself. Read the rest of this entry »
Two Rick Ross/J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League/Teflon Don/carjob posts back-to-back? You betcha. Officer Ross is so rich, he has different skin tone friends to match each whip. So while you may find the brown-skinned babies rapping in the Maybach, the light-skinned singers get to roll in the Aston Martin. Read the rest of this entry »
In addition to having one of the smoothest flows in the game, Ricky Ross is also a frontrunner for best presentation of a rap persona. Loud ass Italian clothes, Maybachs with pearl steering wheels, fourteen-story mansions used to d!ck down Chrisette Michele…etc…etc… Read the rest of this entry »
If it ain’t broke (or you can jimmy rig it) no need to fix it. You already know what it is. Rick Ross is rich, crass, arrogrant and he plans on working with every R&B artist in the industry before he dies. And he can outflow some of your favorite MCs whether you want to admit or not. There’s the kicker. Read the rest of this entry »
Perfect time for Chrisette to drop this visual for this remix off her sophomore effort Epiphany. She’s been putting in work since its release touring and promoting, so whynot coast a bit and ride on Wale’s coattails as he prepares to release Attention Defecit next week. Read the rest of this entry »
R&B music doesn’t sound like R&B anymore. At least not what my grandmother would consider R&B. I’m all for the blending and expanding of genre boundaries, but there’s a reason terms like “purists” become sub-sections within genres. People want to hear what originally endeared them to the music in the first place. As much as I can’t deny Mario’s “Break Up,” it’s better suited for Friday night escapades than Saturday morning house cleaning sessions. Read the rest of this entry »
I don’t know how many more time we can say Chrisette is the truth, but here’s more proof. First they were the one’s doing the covering & now they’re the one’s being covered. I can’t call this a guilty pleasure, but this song was (& still is) the shit back in middle school. It’s really nice to hear a jazzier voice tackle this song and this is my formal request for someone to rip this and put it in the comments.
She’ll truly be around as long as she wants and has done everything right so far. Ten years or so from now her discography is going to be a problem.
That is one thing that we must remember as consumers of the art forms we respect and love. Business in a broad sense consists of two things: Supply and demand. The only way to determine the demand of a certain product is the sales of that product in the marketplace. So it would make sense that, as consumers, we should just buy the music we enjoy right? Read the rest of this entry »
During a forty minute road trip, I was calling all of my friends and repeating that same sentence. In the day or so since then, I’ve come back to earth…but dammit this song is definitely worth some hyperbole.
The trio of Chrisette Michelle, Black Thought and Wale blend perfectly. Black gives his standard good to great verses with a catchy refrain and a nod to the forefathers of Go-Go (‘I’ll show you where my Rare Essence is at”).
Anyone who has ever been to a Roots show has been familiar with their radio mash-up segment in which they go give a few big singles the acoustic treatment. Read the rest of this entry »
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