(Special shouts to area-indie-favorite J57 who produced one of the album’s standout tracks, “The Purple Tape,” which features Wu-brethren Raekwon and Inspectah Deck.
Fans of Meth will enjoy the Wu-Tang member’s signature flow, and even if the features get in the way a bit, most are worthy of your eartime, even if you wish there was more Meth in the lab.
ġ9 tracks, but feature-laden, The Meth Lab gets mixed reviews from the major publications, which means nothing because the ultimate judge is you. Features include Sheek Louch, Styles P, Diddy, Young Buck, Swizz Beatz, Wiz Khalifa, Jeezy, Ne-Yo, Future and Nas. Cop over on iTunes.įor his first solo project since 2009, Jadakiss invoked the phrase he is often associated with. Kiss has been nothing but consistent over the decades, and though his new project dabbles in the musical styles of the day, the LOX veteran sticks to the gruff, gritty lyrics and raspy flow that keep Jadakiss on the top five list for many, young and old. To others who grew up in Red’s era, it might feel a bit under-evolved, but either camp should find something hard-hitting to enjoy in this Muddy Waters 2 prelude nonetheless. Redman stays pretty much in the lane he’s always been in, so some might love the throwback references and enjoyable nostalgic vibe. The New Jersey rap madman returns with his signature sound and style with Mudface, a 13-track offering, his first full-length since his 2010 release, Reggie. Ushered in with the piano-and-drum-laden headnodder, “Dope Man,” the bouncy “N– Like Me,” and a blistering BET Cypher verse, Redman captured hip-hop’s attention with his witty punchlines and charismatic delivery. Now Hear This The Album by KRS-One Redman – Mudface Kris Parker tells the Chicago Sun-Times, “the lyrics are addressing the salient issues of my particular audience, who want to be inspired by music that empowers them, makes them think.” If the short-lived “diss” against fellow icon LL Cool J was entertaining to you, or if you’re one of the ones lamenting the lack of classic rap beats and rhymes in today’s landscape, do your part and support Now Hear This with a purchase. Never one for shying away from social issues, KRS tackles more than a few on the new project, promising to deliver “the unapologetic voice of the people,” along with the braggadocios, party-rocking songs he is known for dropping throughout the years. The Blastmaster returned with “Drugs Won,” a scathing analysis on the “failed war on drugs” to lead off his new album, Now Hear This. Here are a few recent releases by some of hip-hop’s elder statesmen. So, to make sure that other OGs get their due, I took a break from Thanksgiving food prep to drop a quick reminder into the universe. While the slip-of-the-freestyle-rap-tongue (and subsequent respectful backpedal) by the legendary Boogie Down Productions MC did not seem like a calculated move to bring any attention to the new release, it does point out how much more attention gets paid to an iconic artist when embroiled in drama, as opposed to an iconic artist dropping his first new album in years. In a comment thread regarding the recent minor dustup between hip-hop veteran heavyweights KRS-One and LL Cool J, someone lamented the fact that he hadn’t even heard about KRS-One’s new album until the controversy.