Have you ever ate food for thought off a flying saucer? Ever been beamed down by a wordplay transporter gamma ray? If you believe in UFO’s, RAP’s and 808s, Aleon Craft would love to cordially invite you to the planet of Mothership Decatur. It’s a spirited place where fun and artistic freedom run congruently in abundance. And in case you were wondering, all the girls in the yard got a “donkey kong” in the back seat. Read the rest of this entry »

Time has a not-so-funny way of passing us by. As we, TSS Crew strive to give you our earnest and admittedly, unquestionable opinions on the albums of the day, sometimes even a couple projects slip through our impenetrable reviewing hands. Take a SXSW here and a couple trips to New York there, the missed calls begin to pile up. So as we enter the quarter of our Hip-Hop fiscal year, here’s our chance to blow secondhand smoke on some of 2010′s offerings. Read the rest of this entry »

Our friends at Creative Loafing my have said it best – A3C “is not so much a revolution as it is a renaissance” and it’s one we’ve been looking forward to for month’s now. Still, there’s always a ton of work leading up to these events that drain the heck out of you, to the point where getting there means more than just arriving. It means all the labor and hard work are essentially done lol. Read the rest of this entry »

All aboard the SMKA space shuttle. Aleon Craft has crystal clear skies in his eyes as he blasts into orbit with Mick Boogie & Terry Urban for The Stargazing Soundtrack. With crew members such as Playboy Tre, Mikkey Halsted and several other literal ATLiens, to summarize this as simply a mixtape would be a crime. It’s pure aeronautics. Read the rest of this entry »

Aleon & SMKA have been putting in heavy work this summer, both in the studio and performing as a part of the Atlanta Stargazing Tour. As they’re joined by visiting friends often and throughout, we get a morsel like “A Different World” as a result. Read the rest of this entry »

“Go on, do the Stanky Legg. It’s better than talking about shooting people in the head.”

After a few years of regrouping it seems like the Nappy Roots are back on the scene to make more feel good country rap tunes for the masses to enjoy. Their latest video “Ride” is set to a laid back, acoustic guitar-centric beat that finds group member’s Fish Scales & Skinny Deville take turns riffing about life’s ups, downs and in-betweens. It looks as if the group is on their way to finding themselves as independent artists opposed to the major label successes they once were. No worries though; the sound is still authentic as it is smooth, making their re-emergence appear to be imminent. Read the rest of this entry »

In the music business, diversity is key. Rappers sing. Singers rap. Damn near everybody produces. It’s come to a point where, if all you do is spit slick sixteens, you’re SOL.

That said, Johnny Spanish should be bueno.

Holding down more styles than the fashion police, this babyfaced Kentucky thoroughbred emcee seamlessly weaves between soulful singing and effervescent emceeing with ease. And on the invigorating lead single to his upcoming release The Lip, Espanol showcases a perfect balance between his two talents over horn-heavy Chops production. He carries a tune like an urban Brother Ali, just with a better range. His bars bare resemblance to Drake, as carefree and presumptuous punchlines are delivered through both carefully placed couplets, allowing for a riddling of rapid-fire rhymes when necessary. Basically, this Louisville kid is the Total Package like Lex Luger at SummerSlam ’93 and if he can continually channel his natural creativity and confidence from here on out, 2010 could be a big year for this 21-year-old potential shining star.

Download — Johnny Spanish Feat. Nappy Roots – “Shining” (Remix)

Bonus Download — Johnny Spanish – “Been Around”

The Lip will be available for free release online in March.

I completely missed The Humdinger, but Wooden Leather still gets burn from time to time. So I’m glad they’re still around and doing their thing.  On “Ride” they continue to spit the tales of the everyman, over a beat that if I didn’t know better could almost be classified as Country music.  Thank goodness for those frenetic hand claps keeping things in perspective. Read the rest of this entry »

They gave you some hydro harmony with Aleon Craft and hit home with Yelwolf. Gave a monumental backdrop to Tanya Morgan and let Pill change the game up. By now, it’s crystal clear SMKA have the skill sets to be diverse while still allowing any given artists rest comfortably in their niche. Read the rest of this entry »

Remember 2002 when Nappy Roots & Anthony Hamilton hit the scene together with “Po’ Folks”? Then they followed it up in 2005 with Wooden Leather’s “Sick ‘N Tired.”

Sticking to the script, N.C. & Kentucky hooked up again for their second single off The Humdinger, entitled “Down ‘N Out.” A bluesy with a lightly laced harmonica, “Down ‘N Out” is a “hold on, be strong” song sparked by A.Ham’s crooning & uplifting verses by the Nappy word-slingers.

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Download — Nappy Roots Feat. Anthony Hamilton – “Down ‘N Out”

Previously Posted — “Down N’ Out” – Review Of Nappy Roots’ The Humdinger

Taking five years between albums in Hip-Hop is tantamount to career suicide. In this industry, name recognition and progression are key to long-term survival, and millions of fans are too young to remember the glory days of Nelly and Lil’ Jon & The Eastside Boyz. Not to be deterred by such truths, the Nappy Roots are back with the long-delayed The Humdinger. With a track record of great albums, hopes are high that the group can overcome any rust and stagnation to release an album worthy of their catalog.

Older albums found the Nappy Roots developing their own sound, a southern-influenced, group dynamic that set the group apart from their contemporaries. On The Humdinger, the group too often abandons that model of success, trading innovation for attempts to crossover. “Flex,” is a song aimed at the clubs, but the beat sounds recycled and the MC’ing is sloppy, either falling off beat or failing to rhyme in certain parts. “Pole Position” does not feature the lyrical trickery or humor required to make the track anything more than another tired ode to strippers. Most troubling is the fact that the crew sounds like they aren’t buying into the crossover attempts, and for a group who has blamed label troubles for the albums delays, you wonder who is pulling the strings. Read the rest of this entry »

EDIT – I know somebody was looking recently for a CDQ of this joint…

Greg Street Feat. Nappy Roots – Good Day

Greg Street Certified Worldwide is coming soon on Interscope Records.

Previously Posted — “Straight To The Cookout…” – DJ_Smallz_Greg_Street_Nappy_Roots-Cookout_Music

Swiped from MissInfo.

Straight up — Greg kicks some valid points that apply not only to JD, but a lot of these so-called execs & checkwriters. Stop signing the bullshit artists & then being upset when they crap out.

If you have no idea where it stems from Read the rest of this entry »

Since the topic yesterday was covers, these were two recent ones that caught my peepers.

This Swishahouse piece was purely seductive…

Swishahouse – Straight To Tha Room 9

This Nappy joint just hit it on the head when thinkin of what summer’s about — charcoaled hot dogs (black & crispy for me por favor), warm sun, breezes blowin through the leaves on the trees…and good music.

DJ_Smallz_Greg_Street_Nappy_Roots-Cookout_Music

If you wondered what happened to the Kentucky kinfolk Nappy Roots, then you’re in luck because the boys of “Awnaw” fame will return with a new album The Humdinger, later next month. After the 2002′s criminally slept-on Wooden Leather, they went M.I.A. but here’s a taste of some more of chicken and watermelon. Read the rest of this entry »