Stay out in the scene long enough and some artists are going to stick in your life like spaghetti on a wall. Some become acquaintances, some become phone numbers in your Blackberry, some become friends. Some you’ll avoid the “So what do you think?” music conversation with, with every fiber of your being. And then some you’re a fan of the music as much as the person…
Enter: Buff1
When I met Buff he was nearing graduation from University of Michigan and he was doing shows as part of rap collective Athletic Mic League (which is still together, despite articles specifying otherwise). Since then Buff’s gone solo, released two hot-cake mixtapes and a 2007 underground diamond with his first LP, Pure. He was named “Best Solo Rapper” in Real Detroit magazine and struck a balance between aligning with Michigan Hip-Hop, and railing against an industry-wide standard to conform.
Today Buff is releasing his sophomore effort with A-Side Worldwide – There’s Only One. It’s rife with Lab Techs electro-soul and pulls the open hand of Pure into a lyrical fist. Through the raise-your-drink cuts, to the calling-all-troops tracks, to the pop-your-speakers joints, one overriding sentiment is clear — Buff is a tried and true blue Hip-Hop head. He lives it like he loves it, and their stories are one in the same.
Buff and I talked about his favorite picks for five different arenas of Hip-Hop. I asked him to expound on There’s Only One, the importance of family and being an emcee that prides himself on being a consummate showman who stays true indeed…
1. Favorite Album
You can make a strong argument for any of Outkast’s albums being their best but… from the cover art and the comic book theme, to the “You May Die” intro, to rhyming over no drums on “E.T. (Extraterrestrial)”… ATLiens is my favorite from my favorite group. It didn’t sound like anything else at the time and nothing else sounds like it today. And this album was when my favorite emcee, Andre 3000, started to really come into his own.
2. Favorite Live Act
Though Kanye’s “Glow In The Dark” show may be the best I’ve ever seen… I’m gonna have to go with The Roots because they’ve been doing it for over 15 years. On top of that, the band element always makes it a little more special to me… and Black Thought obliterates it every time — never messes up the lyrics, never loses his breath, never loses his voice, and he even freaks the lyrics different than they are on the records and does it without trippin himself up, he’s a beast! Read the rest of this entry »
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