“Listen…people be asking me all the time, ‘Yo Mos, what’s getting ready to happen with Hip-Hop?’ I tell ‘em, ‘You know what’s gonna happen with Hip-Hop? Whatever’s happening with us.’ If we smoked out, Hip-Hop is gonna be smoked out. If we doin’ alright, Hip-Hop is gonna be doin’ alright. People talk about Hip-Hop like it’s some giant living in the hillside coming down to visit the townspeople. We are Hip-Hop. Me, you, everybody, we are Hip-Hop, so Hip-Hop is going where we going. So the next time you ask yourself where Hip-Hop is going, ask yourself…where am I going? How am I doing?” –Mos Def “Fear Not Of Man” Black On Both Sides (1999)Steve RazeJoe Budden & Redman “New Jersey Drive” With that hard track produced by Ceasar, and the two illest MC’s in New Jersey, this was all a perfect combination!Illseed50 Cent “G-Unit Anthem”With this jammie, 50 Cent and G-Unit could have made a run for the Top 20 Dopest Verses ever! I mean, on the real, listen to 50 Cent assert his dominance on the track in a way that really hurt the rappers of that time. Banks and Yayo were lethal as well. **Illseed requests permission to speak.** SPEAK. “This is one of the best songs ever by G-Unit.”AquaPete Rock f/ Jim Jones & Max B “We Roll”No matter what your take on the artistic merit of Jim Jones, the dude has had a hand in some unquestionably fresh joints. Pete Rock hits a home run with this hypnotic, Moog flavored gem of a track. Max B, I ain’t mad at him. DoveYoung Jeezy “National Anthem” This is my song for the week because I’m on some “me” sh*t right now. Jeezy’s braggadocious rhyme makes me feel 10 feet tall in my seat, and he is truly an inspiration to me because of his work ethic. I can’t spend a hundred grand a year on anything, but it sure is fun to imagine. I also love the organ on this beat from CHOPS. It just sounds wavy.Martin A. Berrios
Jim Jones Featuring Dame Dash & Max B “Intro” (Harlem’s American Gangster Mixtape)
More than a simple intro. Dame gets his OG on and addresses the
snitches and the Judas’ alike. Jones gets busy over a slowed down beat
featuring some husky synthesizers and Max B on the hook. A real wavy
look here.JigsawYoung Jeezy – “National Anthem”They keep saying that Jeezy is going to go out of style real soon – maybe another album or too. That might be true, but with songs like ‘National Anthem,’ I don’t see that happening.” The only thing I hope is that he’s not really spending half a million dollars are year on Nikes and another $100,000 on white tees. Shout out to Chops on the beat.ODeiselThe Coup f/ Black Thought & Talib Kweli “My Favorite Mutiny” Bookended by two of Hip-Hop’s finest lyricists is nothing for revolutionary unsung hero Boots Riley, the best rapper you don’t know. This joint from last year, featuring Black Thought and Kweli, got lyrics and soul as well as a message that is not preachy but assertive and movement worthy. “I spit street stories until I taste the pavement, trying to stay out of the pen where we face enslavement.” If you don’t know now you do.Jamile KaroutJay-Z “Say Hello” The American Gangster album is proving to be a Blueprint type classic. Say Hello gives us a taste what a lot of die hard Jigga Man fans have been waiting for. That “if skills sold, truth be told, I’d probably be lyrically Talib Kweli” type of content. On this track Jay echoes the feelings of much of the hip hop community sending a message to Al Sharpton and making real issue of a lot of truths that need our attention. Kathy IandoliAlicia Keys “Superwoman” Alicia takes you to CHURCH on this one. Much, much, more; nothing less. I think I might like this more than “No One.”
