"But beef for what?"

Homeboy Sandman
Peace & Love
Kool Herc: Fertile Crescent

I just can't get enough of Homeboy Sandman these days. On Sunday, he's bringing his talents to the Bean. Can't wait!

Off his most recent album this track, Peace & Love, stands out for so many reasons.

Camay - Homeboy Sandman

One late night at work 3 years ago there were only four people in the building, me, two female co-workers and the night custodian. One of my colleagues came to my classroom and asked if I was planning on leaving any time soon. I told her yes, but that the night custodian was still there. I don't remember her response but I could sense that she was still leery of being there. I didn't understand her hesitance. To me, the night custodian was harmless. Just as I was attempting to make sense of her unease, my other colleague walked into the room and was posed with the same question. Before she could even mention not wanting to be there with just the custodian the second colleague almost finished her sentence. It was like she knew exactly what she was feeling. They shared a giggle and left. I left. It took me a while to understand what they understood.

Vomitspit - C Rayz Walz

Monster (Adrenaline Mix) - Vast Aire F. Sadat X, C Rayz Walz











"My ganja, was camouflage contra
Anonymous armor, brought to you by drama
Sponsored by karma..."

This one reads awkward out of the original context. Copy, paste and listen to it.

"Boyz II Men posters, Gladys Knight fried chicken" Action Bronson

Blue Chips by Action Bronson is wonderfully written, straight spittin kind of track with an equally as impressive intro. I'm on record saying Bronson's flow in general favors Raekwon more than Ghost, however his wordplay on this joint is definitely Starks-esque. It is a fun listen.


I could not find the lyrics to this  anywhere. I am willing to sit, edit and revise lyrics for hours, however I do not have the patience to transcribe them.  Here are a few snippets.

Flow - Blu

This song could easily have a post about any of the following categories.

Wordplay 

"Blu black hearted and young"

Structure

Repeating the "Seed killer" lines at 2 different points in the song to illustrate different forms of death. Abortion and murder.

Got a Story to Tell

This is a deep, insightful narrative about his formative years. It does not flow in the way other story raps do, missing transitions and context. but his herky-jerky flow makes that lack of cohesion seem intentional.

Speaking of flow, that is precisely what drew me to this song. Blu has a myriad of flows which he employs liberally depending on the track. Here he decides to go with a hesitation, stutter step style which perfectly compliments the track as well as the aforementioned story structure.

"So dont be scared to take the Super Lu route" Lupe Fiasco

Here I was minding my own business, giddy as can be about the release of new material from Lupe Fiasco only to find out that there was a smidgen of drama around it. This was not typical Lupe release drama, but the MC reacting to a few comments from a couple of rappers (differentiation between the two terms intended). Apparently, in an interview with XXL magazine rapper Soulja Boy offered up that he planned to step up his lyrical output so as not to be taken as a "joke." Shortly thereafter he qualified his comments by adding, “I don’t want to be super-Lupe-Fiasco-lyrical and nikkas don’t know what the fuck I’m talking about.”

I am unsure if Soulja meant it as a diss, or if Lupe even  interpreted it that way. I certainly can understand Souljah's overall point though. Lupe, at times, can be a bit too cerebral, although I don't necessarily see that as bad thing. What is important here is that Wasalu heard the comments and used it as a teaching moment for young Soulja via "SLR (Super Lupe Rap)" of his mixtape Friend of the People.

"And that’s how you do it
Everything flow, everything fluid
Stupid with the raps, but the raps never stupid"

Content - Pharoahe Monch

Sometimes it is hard to look myself in the mirror and say that I have a blog dedicated to hip-hop lyricists yet I have yet to post  on some of the most well respected MC's to bless a mic. Not sure why...maybe I am a little shook to take on the task of commenting on, and writing about, some of those heavy weights. Or perhaps maybe its there is so much to pick from.

That could very well be the case with Pharaohe Monch. What to pick? His songs about promiscuous women are equally as well done as his ish about global warming. Anyway I decided on a quick two verse joint he did on a mixtape with Clinton Sparks called The Awakening.

Big Punisher

Not unlike Biggie, Big Punisher  always seemed like the kind of guy you would love to have a beer and share laughs with. He did not take him self too seriously, something that many rappers could learn from. What was dead serious was his flow, lyrics, wordplay and delivery. While he had punchlines he certainly not a punchline rapper. This verse on "John Blaze" from Fat Joe's Don Cartegena album is sprinkled with alliteration and end-rhyme goodness. 

"Soon as I chitter chatter your shit'll shatter"

What a great line that is! What a thoughtful and creative way to describe what happens to rival MCs once you begin to rhyme.

"Money is the motto, ever since I stashed bottles,

...behind the patch on my Lotto's - G. Dep

 I was watching my favorite show today and heard them mention that Dallas Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant was kicked out of a Dallas mall after him and his friends took exception to being asked by mall cops to pull their pants up.

This automatically made me think of "The Mall" by Gang Starr featuring G. Dep and Shiggy Sha. The album was dope, and so was the song, but what caught my ear was the second verse.