Jay-Z - "Heart of the City (Ain't No Love)" X "Bittersweet Dirt Off Your Shoulders" w/ The Verve

Had to take a minute break from studying to post these surefire songs.  The prior is one of my favorite Jay tracks, showcasing his ability to produce lyrically potent, popular songs.  I may not like Kanye the rapper as much, but this song proves that Kanye the producer is simply untouchable.  Despite J-Hova's lyricism, it is the soulful sample of Bobby "Blue" Bland's "Ain't No Love in the Heart of the City" that makes the song.  "Heart of the City" is one of the best tracks on one of the outstanding albums of hip hop history.  Despite being on The Blueprint (2001), it took the ad campaign for American Gangster to really make this song popular in a wider audience.

The Notorious B.I.G. - "Miss U"

I've purposefully avoiding posting Christopher Wallace's songs on this blog.  It's not that I'm not a Biggie fan, but, as someone who has only experienced his music posthumously, my words cannot do justice to what he meant to hip hop.  Biggie is and always will be a legend.  He had the most crossover appeal of any rapper ever garnering critical acclaim from hip hop heads while still topping the charts.  Tomorrow will mark the 13th anniversary of Wallace's tragic death.  An emcee in his prime and on top of the game, it is impossible to know where his career would have led had he lived, but as such his record remains 2/2 with two classic albums.  Lately Biggie's name has been trampled on by people trying to make a quick dime off of his legacy, but he remains one of the most revered persons in hip hop lore (the only person on his level was Pac).

This song, featuring R&B group 112, was dedicated in the memory of some of Biggie's closest freinds who were violently robbed of their own lives.  It's the only song that I felt could really do justice to this day.  R.I.P.

Peace, Love, & Hip Hop,

WordIsBorn

The Notorious B.I.G. - "Miss U"
Previous: Jay-Z, Biggie, & Nas - "Who's The Best?"

Atmosphere - "Angelface"

Can't let her dance up on the top floor,

Been there. Done that. Whatddya think it's locked for?

I haven't posted any Atmosphere in a while, so I figured that it was time to get back to the Minneapolis duo.  This track is a hidden gem off of the nearly perfect 2005 underground album, You Can't Imagine How Much Fun We're Having.  Ant's sampling of Tyrone Davis' "I Wake Up Crying" sets the stage for Slug to do what he does best: rap about women.  It doesn't focus on his dysfunctional relationships in the way that "God Loves Ugly," and "Don't Ever Fucking Question That" do, but instead is a sweet, song that quietly evokes beautiful images of these (not quite whole) angels.  It's subtle lines like "sitting in the rain at some sidewalk cafe/ half of her wet cigarette in the ashtray" that describe these women as they are through their actions and brings the focus to who they are rather than how they look and leaves believing, as Slug states, that "angels exist, I've even seen some sleep."  Easily one of my favorite Atmosphere songs.

Peace, Love, & Atmosphere,
WordIsBorn

Atmosphere - "Angelface"
Previous: Atmosphere - "Sunshine"

That's That Mixtape, Vol. SE7EN

I've been meaning to post this for about a week or so, but midterms and papers have been piling up, which, though it's resulted in the delay, has also allowed me to refine the final playlist for about two weeks longer than the time I've spent on any other tape thus far.  The result is a mixtape that I feel is the best product that I've put out thus far.  It includes a handful of new songs by great up and coming artists, but also gives spins to some of my favorite older songs that had been gathering dust in the depths of my iPod.  The finished product mixes really well together, which is a relief after spending a tedious amount of time looking for that last song or two to blend into the album.  As much as I'd like to spend more time tooting my own horn, I'll let you get to the actual tape.  Enjoy:

Ludacris - "Runaway Love" feat. Mary J. Blige

I've never quite been sure where to place Chris "Ludacris" Bridges.  While the man brings an undeniable and presence that makes him immediately recognizable every time he steps to the microphone, for most of his career, his association with crunk and output of less than thought-provoking material ("Move Bitch," "Stand Up," "Area Codes" among others), has prevented him from being put in the same level of the Scarfaces, Jays, and Nasir Jones'.  I've always held that, for the first half of his career, Luda was consistently better on other people's material than his own.  Like nearly everyone else on The College Dropout, he dominated Kanye on his own debut album, but there are a number of songs he has been featured on that managed to slip under the radar, but he also makes Field Mob's "Georgia" and even managed to turn Asher Roth's "I Love College" into a tolerable song.

J. Cole - "Knock On Wood" X "Gladiators" w/ B.o.B

J. Cole is going to be a star.  The Fayetteville, North Carolina native and ROC Nation artist is the most talented up and coming emcee and one of the brightest new faces hip hop has seen in years.  Above is J-Dot's freestyle for XXL's Freshman Class of 2010 list and attached is his latest freestyle, the song he blessed for B.o.B's May 25th mixtape, and one of my favorite tracks off of The Warm Up (which you absolutely need to download if you have yet to).  I don't know where you've been if you're still sleeping on this future next best thing.

Peace, Love, & Hip Hop,
WordIsBorn

J. Cole - "Knock On Wood"
B.o.B - "Gladiators" (feat. J. Cole)
J. Cole - "Dollar and a Dream II"
Previous - What's In Rotation, Vol. VI

Brother Ali - "Room A View" (Prod. Ant)

I'll be the first to admit that when I think of Minnesota, crime, drug use, and poverty isn't the first thing that comes to mind (I blame Fargo).  Brother Ali paints an entirely different, disparate picture of southside Minneapolis in the first hard hitting track off his underground classic, Shadows On The Sun.  There's not much more I can say about the Brother that I didn't say in my previous post, but I wanted to give some shine to one of my favorite songs (and albums) of the past decade.  There's no argueing with the fact that Ali is a legend of the genre and there are few that are on his level in the game today.

Peace, Love, & Hip Hop,

WordIsBorn

Brother Ali - "Room A View" (Prod. Ant)