SuchFriends, have you heard "Wolf"? the production is so dope. i wasn't feeling Tyler's lyrics for the most part, though.

new Cam'ron mixtape, wow - http://www.datpiff.com/Camron-Ghetto...pe.494468.html

edit: damn Cam fell off. i love Purple Haze but this is some hot garbage.

I think that neither are exactly a masterpiece, but MC Tree definitely shouldn't have been shitted on, though Sunday School I is better than When Church Lets Out, so I can see out some critics might have found it a let down in comparison. The production quality is better on II, but I is a better record.

i was talking about "Magna Carta.." and "Nothing Was the Same" bro. Tree's mixtape is definitely better than both if you're asking me.

is it good??

i need a new Mos (errr.. "Yasiin Bey") album in my life. :(

btw - after a couple of spins, i think that lyrically XXX is still better than Old.

honestly, Doris is the only album that came out this year that made me sit down and read all the lyrics and feel impressed.. but the music felt lazy at parts. i feel like Earl should rap better than that, can't help it.

WOW! can't deny i'm excited as hell about the TDE + A$AP ones.

Slaughterhouse one should be interesting too. i'm not a fan or anything but those dudes can rap.

hold on.. Kevin Heart, Nick Cannon and Nelly?!???! hahaha what the fuck.

wish there was an OF cypher though.

aight i'm gonna listen to "My Name Is My Name". my expectations are sky high. i pray Pusha is gonna deliver and save this year just like his mentor Yeezus aka our lord and savior.

EDIT: this is incredible so far! Pusha came through.

No offense, but you're way off on both accounts. There ARE a ton of Kanye-influenced rappers out there, retreading the new-wave-positive-tip soul sound Kanye's first two albums defined. In addition, there is a whole slew of rappers who are stepping on Post-Graduation Kanye's heels, trying to pull of genre melding game changing chart-topper concept albums and "fuck you" self makeovers.

Examples of the former:
J. Cole
TREE
Big Sean
Drake

Examples of the Latter:
Wale
Kendrick (only in terms of his scope broadening, and the fact that he undertook conscious concept hip hop album that was a major critical and commercial success)
Some other rappers ... Fuck I don't know. This takes more balls, so.. Y'know.)
Aaaand Drake!

Seriously though, everybody is benefitting from something Kanye's done. He brought rap out of its coma like a shot of narcan and adrenaline to an OD victim.

Also, there were tons of Radiohead lookalikes around the beginning of the 00's. Both in Britain and in America. In fact, there were so many of them that it was hard to keep track, and "Next Radiohead" became as common a speculation for new bands (usually bland, castrated, traditional rock, MOR douchebags more influenced by Bush's sound and Blur's look) as "Next Nirvana" was back in the 90's.

Remember Travis? Starsailor? Elbow? Muse? Granddaddy?
Coldplay? Yeah, that one should ring a bell. ;)

Anyway, each was as forgettable as the last, and I've forgotten more than I remember. Radiohead hadn't even fully become Radiohead yet, and already we were looking for the "next" one.

Outkast has very few imitators as obvious as Kanye and Radiohead, but I think you're probably right that Outkast was to rap what Radiohead was to rock in the early '00s. Something new, even though both bands were already seasoned and in the middle-late eras of their respective careers.

Kanye comes from a slightly different timeline, and is different from both in that rather than expanding on a sound until it was unrecognizable and fresh, Kanye has been flipping 180's for three albums straight on his own, and peppering them with his side projects (Watch the throne, Cruel Summer). Radiohead and Outkast took their sounds to the sonic left, and then pushed them in that direction, but that's really only ONE sonic turnaround. Kanye's already been through three or four distinct and unique stages as an artist, each one a step into completely new territory.

Anyway...

Why ain't anyone discussing the new fucking Deltron album?

I have mixed feelings overall, but there are some insane moments, especially when played loud on headphones. Still, it's a bit heavy on comedy and skits and light on post-apocalyptic political allegory. And it is seriously missing the dramatic instrumentals and high profile, melancholy pop samples.

After two listens I definitely think Del's flow sounds amazing as always, but there are too many guest stars (Zach De La fuckin Rocha? Fuck no, thank you. I will never listen to that track all the way through) and the project has lost some of the original's surprisingly touching, human moments.

Btw: when did this become everyone's favorite hip hop album? I bought it the week it came out and I couldn't get it at Best Buy or any other retailer, so I had to make the rounds to the small shops. Finally I found it (one copy) at a great store that I still buy vinyl from, but I was the only one in my part of the metro area to give a fuck, and that was because Del was my then favorite emcee ever.

Then Kurt Loder said something about it on Mtv, using Damon Albarn and his "definitive" single verse as a selling point, and I think it got some play, but I had no idea it had become such a big freakin' deal. Maybe that made everyone nervous. I don't know.


You guys listen and tell me what you think.

Goddamn, MNIMN leaked? Or was it actually released? Shit, I've been searching for that every morning on TPB for weeks. Figure I'd miss the actual event.

That's one I am most definitely going to buy.

Pusha is the most promising GOOD artist, and I am looking forward to this album like crazy.

apparently, becoming an Odd Future fanboy can change your whole lifestyle/everyday activities.

there are kids out there who try and dress just like Tyler, pick up skateboarding, start producing lo-fi synth beats, rap about nonsense like "yo fuck my dad/your mom/i like kittens/unicorns", etc. that's devotion.

they probably think that immitating a black skater dude boosts their confidence and helps them getting laid.

personally, rap music doesn't affect my social life at all. i'm too old for that shit, plus my surroundings don't care, it's just my own thing. even though i've converted a bunch of people into "hip-hop believers" before.

i'm going to buy it for sure. it's an album of the year contender. Pusha blessed us.

Kendrick's BET cypher verse preview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HO4FJlExZUA

"Yeah.. and nothing’s been the same since they dropped 'Control'/ And tucked a sensitive rapper back in his Pajama Clothes/ Ha-ha jokes on you, high-five.. I'm bulletproof/ Your sh*ts a never penetrate, pin the tail on the donkey boy you been a fake".

oh shit.. Kendrick vs. Drake beef incoming.

You're going to have to have these guys in quotes saying the were inspired or influenced by Kanye because (a) I don't necessarily hear it in their records and (b) there are plenty of other conscious/neo-soul rappers out there NOT names Kanye and not necessarily influenced by Kanye. You may have to separate yourself as a Kanye fan for this one. Just because other rappers are making innovative records, doesn't inherently mean its influenced or inspired by Kanye West and what Kanye's records are doing. You may be conflating his popularity and reach with actual substantive musical influence.



I disagree with you completely, rap was never in coma, rap was never in decline, and initially on this very thread Kanye fans have argued that Kanye isn't even a rapper!!! If anything, the fact that rap has been increasingly successful has been what has directly benefited Kanye West, not the other way around ;)




Outkast took huge risks in their sound, it could have backfired, they didn't care. Radiohead could have made a bunch of records that sounded like "Creep" or "OK Computer" and yet they didn't. I think that is how we can compare them, but not necessarily in regards to range of influence. I just don't buy into the critical assertions that radiohead is an "influential" band. They are a popular band, and have made some phenomenal records which I personally consider some of the best of all time, but just didn't hear a radiohead "sound" accept for possibly in between the "Creep" single and "OK Computer" when basically ALL British college/indie rock bands sounded like that. I wouldn't say they were all influenced by radiohead, if anything, radiohead was just going with the "sound" of their era until they made a radical departure with Kid A. I've never heard Muse or Coldplay really make that kind of artistic leap, all their records essentially sound the exact same (my sister is a muse freak, I dated a coldplay fan albeit reluctantly)..


That maybe true, and I can agree that there are many rappers who want to look or sound like kanye, but I completely disagree with your premise that he revived or revolutionized rap music, rap music was fine without him, and if anything, he was revolutionized by it.

you gotta have a mouthful of huge teeth to sound like Kanye

too bad Kanye has absolutely nothing of relevance or worth to say.

sex sells. Kanye just wants sales. He claims artistic intent but the end results are pure fluff aimed at making 13 year old white kids think they are hip.

Kendrick will win. He's going for the throat. His next album is going to sell like Tha Carter III, because he is just that obviously good.

Nothing against Drake, but NWT is a mix of perfectly pleasant but entirely ordinary boom-bapping and self promo over Yeezyesque soul samples, and completely unnecessary masturbatory whining, with some of the most lugubrious instrumentals in ages. It's half Jay/Ye and half pbr&b, really (as much as I hate that phrase).

Kendrick is coming like a freight train. He's got the "real"/genuine article "only rapper that matters" vibe down so completely that everyone else sounds pretentious next to his ass, yet he's the one who's really playing the feud scene up, and challenging other rappers. Still, he's gonna play underdog to Drake's Apolllo Creed (in Rocky II).

What the fuck?

What sad for rap is this is true, but I don't think its true in the way you are asserting. True, there are plenty of conscious, substantive, and intelligent rappers and MCs out there, but they are not as relevant or mainstream. Its not the Fugees or Common were of rap like the late-1990s to early-2000s, we are in the hedonistic revival. Now, it would make Eazy E happy except for the fact that Eazy E was a sincere and genuine low-life, these ninjaz in rap today are strictly studio personas.. That whole "kenrdick diss" was the weakest shit I heard hyped in ten years. It was three lines, 25 seconds, and it wasn't even has as obnoxious as the shit talking on Odd Future records. Hit Em Up it wasn't, in fact, I had to listen to it three times to even see who was being supposedly dissed..

There isn't room for conscious rap in the mainstream, its why Killah Priest's record wasn't well received at all, even though its got 40 tracks and big names, but its to niche. Its why Kanye isn't even pretending to like he was with that Jesus Walks scheme, in Eddie Murphy terms Kanye and all the rap is out there, " "dick, swinging."

Now, THIS is a diss track http://youtu.be/tCVT7tqO-YA

Hit 'Em Up - 2Pac Shakur

have you guys heard this Lorde girl? what do you think?

i like Royals, need to check out her album.

Stuff and nonsense.

Honestly, if Kanye was only interested in selling records, he would have made three more albums that were as comfortable and radio friendly as his first three. Instead, he made freaking 808's & Heartbreak. That surprised people, and was successful because of the first three albums. He lost as many fans as he preserved, but broke even because it's obviously a great record ("Robocop," bitches). Then, when being pretentious was threatening him commercially and making him a target for a lot of bullshit, he did the most pretentious thing he's ever done ( when I first heard the title was going to be "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy," I was like, "REALLY, DUDE?" And thought that would be the end.

Nope. It's the most widely praised, and highly respected album since Kid A. Sold more than Kid A too. Didn't have a single that for anywhere on radio, but I can't imagine what a negative comment about the album would even sound like.

And Yeezus is just a deliberate attempt to weed out the pseudo fans and pitchfork hop-ons. Again, no radio, no pre-sales, and a marketing campaign that made no sense, and only made people hesitant about buying it.

Where, in all this, do you see sales-driven opportunism? Where is Kanye's Chocolate Starfish and the Hotdog flavored Water-type album, released 6-months after it's predecessor to squeeze all the dough possible out of the kids before they get wise?

Tons of legitimately negative things can be said about Kanye. Pick one of those, rather than just calling him a whore. The argument doesn't hold water. J. Cole (Kanye jr., still in his "College Dropout" phase) is almost outperforming Kanye, sales wise. So why doesn't Yet just drop another comfortable, non-threatening college rap album?

Because he thinks his music is too good to sell well, and he doesn't give a fuck what anyone, fan or otherwise, has to say about it.

But I think I should stop arguing Kanye's merits on this board. I'm starting to feel, sound, and look like a broken record. Just agree with me dammit!! ;)

Oh, and Pusha is in the year's top five. With a fucking bullet. Wow.

Never!

Lauryn Hill gets out of jail, drops a new song: https://soundcloud.com/mslaurynhill/...-consumerism-1

ok i'm digging it!

Great lyrics, terrible beat, and her voice sounds just bad. She sounds like Lil Bow Wow ;)

And I guess y'all right, she clearly wants to have that heavier sound that Kanye tried to have on Yeezus, I guess he is "influencing" people :eek:

^ agree. Lauryn's lyrics are great, but i wish she would smooth/mellow it out. give me more of that Miseducation sound.

artits that would make me "lose it" if they announced a new album today:

Frank Ocean
Kendrick
Nas
A$AP Rocky
Earl
D'Angelo

You're already ready for another Earl album? Damn we got some short ass attention spans in this thread :)

I'm still digesting Doris.

Doesn't anyone have an opinion on Event II yet? I thought you all would be bustin out of your trousers.

As for me, I need some new DOOM, some Madlib projects, and that motherfucking new Wu Tang I was promised a year ago!

New Mos Def would b nice too, though I have been revisiting his albums and finding them less awesome than I remembered.

Pusha T and Killah Priest are serious contenders for the year end list.

I can't remember why I liked Hall of Fame. Big Sean has no flow whatsoever. Maybe it just reminded me of Graduation. Whatever, still fun for a listen.

:o

that's why:

WORD!


Agreed, but that record is too long, too deep, and too complex to make a more mainstream Year's Best list. That is why it was self-released in the first place, Priest seems to be more concerned with releasing his art in his way on his terms than making it in any way a commercial success. Definitely and hands down best record (of any genre) of 2013, but it'd be a stretch to convince anyone

I'm so behind on hip hop now. :/

Last few months I haven't been keeping up.

^ gotcha.

93 'til Infinity is getting the 20th anniversary reissue treatment soon.

"Half our homies are now dead, in jail, or super thugs," Opio says. "But our response to the hood was different. We were trying to elevate and expand our minds through psychedelics and books. When we were growing up, the thugs told us that they'd kill us if we sold dope with them. They told us that we needed to be the lawyers."

LEGENDS.

So seeing as everyone is so focused on what's just come out and all that, let's go back a bit.

Most over-rated rap/hip-hop albums?

Eazy-E! and y'know.. maybe just NWA in general. i used to like them a lot when i was younger.

but now i think that their appeal was always more about the imagery than the music.

and i'd be a liar if i said that Straight Outta Compton is a straight 10/10.

influential? SURE. but they also lacked the intelligence & creativity that the Wu, Quest Tribe & KAST had.

i do like the album though. they just seem like a bunch of goons to me. except for Ice Cube.

looking back, Lupe's first two albums aren't even that great, despite having a few great songs (which i still listen to from time to time). he had a spark but never fulfilled his potential. Kendrick already shits on him.

Donuts. Dilla is one of my fav producers but i just don't get half of the tracks. i prefer his work with Slum Village, Common, ATCQ, etc. sorry.

The College Dropout is a mess.

as much as i love it, it's probably Kanye's worst album.

and of course EMINEM EMINEM EMINEM. how can anyone call him the greatest MC of all time, if even around his "prime" other rappers dropped better albums?

Life After Death is great, but it could've been much better if Biggie had the chance to finish it like he intended to.

not gonna call any of Pac's last three "overrated".

i'm done.