Old School & Underground Hip Hop discussion thread...

[mfaith]

I've been on a bit of a rap kick lately. After finally getting all of RTJ's albums on vinyl. Now I've jumped back to my early high school days and have been listening to old Bone Thugs n Harmony.

Them, 2Pac, and Outkast were my main jams before I discovered Industrial in the late 90s

[Kramerica]

new Czarface album is cool (as always), but kinda short

The one with MF Doom is great.

Don't know how I missed that there was a new Dr. Octagon album on the way.

Kool Keith rocking that KC hat as well.

[mfaith]

[mfaith]

Cross post from the Tiny Desk Music thread

It had been nearly a decade since Rakim released new music, but that drought ended Friday when the godfather of rap lyricism and one half of the revered duo Eric B & Rakim released a new song, "King's Paradise." The track was written for Season 2 of Marvel's Luke Cage, which premiered on Netflix the same day, but it wasn't entirely new to select NPR staff; they heard it days earlier when the God MC performed at the Tiny Desk.

The New York rap icon wasn't the only legend in the building that day. Ali Shaheed Muhammad of A Tribe Called Quest — who produced and co-wrote "King's Paradise" with keyboardist Adrian Younge under their new project The Midnight Hour — played bass, and rising blues torchbearer Christone "Kingfish" Ingram sat in on guitar.

"King's Paradise" pays homage to the heroes of the Harlem Renaissance as well as its fictional superhero, the bulletproof Luke Cage. Rakim tipped his hat to Philip Payton Jr., Joe Lewis, Lena Horne, Malcolm X, Maya Angelou and Louis Armstrong, before concluding with a few bars about the comic book-inspired series.

Younge then led the nine-member backing band through two of Rakim's undeniable classics: "Paid in Full" and "Know the Ledge." For the former, drummer David Henderson rolled right in with the unmistakable breakbeat, — originally sampled from The Soul Searchers "Ashley's Roachclip." Muhammad, who's been playing bass since age 19 despite being known for his production and DJ work, provided the low end for "Know The Ledge."

Rakim released his first single 32 years ago, yet the timbre of his voice and Dali Llama aura remain strong. Let's hope this is the beginning of another renaissance.

Set List

"King's Paradise"
"Paid In Full"
"Know The Ledge"

MUSICIANS
Rakim (vocals), Adrian Younge (keys), Ali Shaheed Muhammad (bass), Jack Waterson (guitar), David Henderson (drums), Loren Oden (vocals), Saudia Mills (vocals), Angela Munoz (vocals), Stephanie Yu (violin), Bryan Hernandez-Luch (violin), DeAndre Shaifer (trumpet) , Jordan Pettay (saxophone), Joi Gilliam (vocalist), Christone Ingram (Kingfish) (guitar)

[mfaith]

[Kramerica]

[mtarail]

[finneganm]

Hip Hop Evolution on Netflix was pretty interesting. I’m no scholar by any means, so it was enlightening to see the history of modern day hip hop.

I also asked Santa for the Ed Piskor Hip Hop Family Tree collection. Because nothing says cool guy like reading a rap comic book.

[comountaingolf]

Have to admit I was pretty stoked to see Earl Sweatshirt dropping a new joint. Gonna wait 'til it gets a little cheaper ie wider distribution, but stoked nonetheless

https://earlxsweatshirt.com/products/ne ... lbum-vinyl

[deancc]

My all-time favourite hiphop album.

[mfaith]

Cross-post: Latest from the NPR Tiny Desk series

The Wu-Tang Clan gathered at the Tiny Desk to commemorate the 25 years since the release of the group's landmark album Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers). With more than 60 albums between the various members, The Clan's combined discography left them spoiled for choice when it came to narrowing down the set list for their performance. The result was an extended, 20-minute medley of songs from across the group's iconic catalog.

The retrospective mashup of Wu classics started with the posse cut "Triumph." Backed by strings (The Green Project), the performance morphed into an old-school cipher as Raekwon, Inspectah Deck and Cappadonna traded verses with Masta Killa and U-God. Young Dirty Bastard, son of original member Ol' Dirty Bastard, provided a spark of energy reminiscent of his father.

At one moment in the performance, RZA — the mastermind behind the Clan's success — omits some explicit lyrics from earlier in his Wu journey, while alluding to the #MeToo movement mid-cadence. But it's the poetic interlude, read from his phone at the close of the set, that better reflects his current state of consciousness. "Wu-Tang is for the kids!" RZA proclaims. The core of the group began as childhood pals in Staten Island in the early '90s, when the crew's creative philosophy was influenced by everything from Saturday afternoon kung-fu flicks to the spiritual wisdom of the Five-Percent Nation. As they've matured, Raekwon still describes the Wu as "superfriends." They've allowed each other to grow and form various offshoots in recent years. But when the Wu-Tang Clan comes together, they still bring a love for the culture and for their brotherhood.

[Kramerica]

This new DJ Shadow is straight fire, I can't stop moving.

[mtarail]

I was very late to the game on Shabazz Palaces. I listened to Digable Planets a real long time ago, but never followed the rappers since then. This record has been out awhile, but it's pretty great.

And since I mentioned Digable Planets. One of the best hip-hop songs of all tiiiiiiime...