Mixtape Massacre

I remember sometime between ’92 and ’93 my homeboy and DJ went to Pittsburgh to visit family for a couple of weeks, and came back with this crazy tape of these cats on some serious hood shit with this song called “Trapped in Homewood”. Apparently, they were Bloods from the Homewood neighborhood of Pittsburgh, which is just a small part of the equation. Besides them banging on wax, they jacked the “Dwyck” beat from Nice and Smooth and Gangstarr, slowed it down, put some drums on it, and sampled what I think was Tupac saying trapped for the hook with gunshots and other crazy stuff in the background. We rocked that tape to death until it mysteriously came up missing like most of the underground tapes we had.

They definitely had us in the pocket with that which is the power of the mix tape-keeping in contact with the streets. I don’t mean the streets as in every mix tape is pure gangster, but artist have the ability to relax on the industry water down and do some of the things that got them into the industry, or get noticed by the industry. The perfect example of that is 50 Cent. Some people hate him now and are sick of hearing him and some people love him like when he first came out. In the past couple of years, some of his videos and singles haven’t been my favorites, but his mix tapes stay in heavy rotation in the streets and I suppose provide decent money in between albums. French Montana was killing ‘em with the Coke Waves. It’s too bad Max B isn’t here right now to enjoy the success of it, I hope things work out for him though. The Affiliates got Atlanta poppin’ on the national mix tape seen but before that, DJ Jelly of the Oomp Camp held it down. In the Chicago you got the Drama Ward, CWall, and others that drop stuff that usually keep up their regional presence.

I just like the grit and hunger when artists are letting it out on wax for the absolute love of the music and to be appreciated by fans that don’t have Sound Scan numbers and radio play on their minds although radio has played a significant role in promoting the mix tape movement in the past few years. Prominent DJ’s like Whoo Kid, DJ Drama, K Slay, and Green Lantern not only sponsor volumes of mix tapes, but also have slots on major radio stations that keep us interested with exclusive songs, remixes and collaborations with artists that may never get a chance to work together under a label circumstance. Green Lantern put out “Pablo Doe” with Styles P, Uncle Murda, and Noreaga which is still one of my favorites. I remember riding through Newark and almost breaking my neck I was nodding so hard. It’s tidbits like those that keep my Hip Hop battery charged. We just need to make sure that the mix tape scene doesn’t get as diluted as the industry is due to the record execs attempting to cash in on what we make hot, and advise on what’s hot after the fact that they didn’t want to touch it in the beginning. That’s the same way they took over and altered Hip Hop in the first place, which has its pros and cons, but that’s another topic. I say support your favorite artists and Dj’s and pick up those mix tapes and help make some noise outside of the industry and keep things moving. And somebody please put me down on sown on some West Coast siht. As always, TELL SOMEBODY!

"Get Em Up" Actrite

I'm wildin' out this week. This is one of the illest songs that almost no one has heard. It’s on a super underground mixtape that I ran across a while back. This cat has a delivery that makes every line tie together so that it’s not just scattered thoughts being put together, it’s a conversation. He probably sat down and wrote this and knew what he wanted. It’s classic Hip Hop without the watered down hooks and lyrics. I think the cat’s name is Act Rite.

“Get your hands up sky high, like a liquor store robbery,
I’m retarded, bad with the flow, curled up and slobbery,
Decrepit in this b----, you know fu---- up in the frontal lobe, and I’m in frontin’ mode, keep flows tucked and stowed away, from spineless, snake-in-the-grass a—hole bastards like yourself, break in your room and steal the weed of your shelf,
Just to piss you off, now have a f------ up day, I don’t give a s--- what you got to say, I’m like furious an your Trey, ‘Put the mic down son’, and stay away from Dough Boy,
He got that s--- to make Cam’Ron and Jus Blaze say Oh Boy, You don’t wanna go boy,
I’ll shoot your dog wit B.B. guns and point it at your boy, see he runs, he aint that hard-
He B---- like that B---- but he only got two legs, I go to parties with white boys cause they keep them two kegs, for 22 personas and I quit f------ wit coronas, they kinda like chicks who only show tits in swimming pools and saunas,
I just want little something more fulfilling,
I’m a outfielder with no glove, I don’t catch feelings
And I aint Superman either b---- I don’t catch buildings,
Don’t dance either like Lionel Rich on ceilings,
Certain dealings and mishaps keep me leery of jibber dudes,
Niccas got 13 songs and 15 interludes, while I’m making bigger moves than Tsunami’s in Asia,
Wash out whack dudes like Tsunami’s in Asia,
I don’t think you heard me dog I’m tragic like Tsunami’s in Asia, For as many times as I said it I should have got paid son,
but NOPE, certain things that I do make me raise the,
Topic of devastation,
Cause that’s the only way to explain the,
Total lack of respect and disregard of your being,
I don’t give a f--- about you and that’s what you’re not seeing,
You’re far from original and definitely not g’ing,
We can ask your girl, your moms, your pops, and they will all be agreeing,
That you should quit early before I take drastic measures,
Mess up your life just for pleasure, I’m in to harmful endeavors,
I’m Off The Wall like Mike Jack, Jack Me like Janet Dammit,
Ain’t no button to push, no one knows of your panic,
Get ‘Em Up! -Actrite “Get ‘Em Up”

Street Cred

About a year ago, I wrote an article about the new blood of Hip Hop with Drake being the focus. I stated then that in the beginning, I was unsure of where he was coming from, but had changed my mind. My stance has not changed as this cat has been consistent; So much, that on Christmas I tweeted that I was on a 24 hour Tequila diet in reference to “Money to Blow” which, in my opinion, Baby should have never been allowed in the vicinity of the studio when that was being recorded. Sorry, I’m a fan of the classic Baby and Manny Fresh combination. Those two used to compete to be the most outlandish with the overindulgence which made for great entertainment. Who speaks of stepping out with a pair of dinosaur boots with a matching coat? The answer is no one but those two which is off subject, but has a remote place in this article as I am speaking about the Cash Money Camp. I lost the "How U Luv That" CD twice and bought it three times just to listen to those cats.

Before my digression, I was speaking of how the guy has the knack of saying fly shit which is what you do when you are an MC. Now we all know as one has success and rides their wave of success and “does them” there is always sideline chatter to the contrary. I am one to speak my opinion which is just that, my opinion and I do not discourage anyone from discussing their opinion unless their only purpose is to pour salt. Just like others, when I heard Drake was on the Nick TV show, in my head I thought “now what is this guy about”, and unfairly and unnecessarily doubting his street sense, as if it is going to make a difference if it would qualify him to make good music. As silly as it sounds, that is a real topic of criticism about a guy that admits that he knew he couldn’t come with a hard core image and doesn’t reference the tough guy-isms in his songs that people tend to believe is real lyricism because it wouldn’t work. I could hear less of the singing but women buy albums so hum away, I guess. Again, the guy just says fly shit and he’s good at it. Of course there’s braggadocio in the rhymes, but that is Hip Hop. Not to say that I don’t appreciate my fair share of tough guy antics, because there’s nothing like a round of “Lay it Down” by Eightball and MJG or “Dump” by 50 and Jadakiss in the morning; but the You Tube rap battles with guys describing how there bullets will do a ridiculous amount of damage to “ya mans and them” doesn’t assist me in my decision on who is actually the best as much as it decides who should move to Hollywood to be a screenplay writer.

There have been interviews where there were references to Drake being corny or Will Smith-ish, or not being from the streets. Don’t misunderstand me, I get it but, I personally don’t understand what being heavy in the streets has to do with the music you make if that life is not your subject matter. Hip Hop does reflect the realities of ghetto life, but there are countless factors that will decide if that will make it to the music. People decide not to incriminate themselves and others and choose not to tell those stories, and some chose to do so. Some choose to leave the past in the past, and some decide to tell the story to steer others away from the life. Many MC’s have the story to tell, but have a gift to rhyme about being the best on the mic and some are just not street. There are extremely hood people that make little mention of their real street status as well as people that didn’t live in the hood but have strong hood ties. There is a common misconception that you HAVE to be from the “hood” to spit rhymes. Yes, it started in the hood, but the realistic qualities within the music and culture has allowed it to grow. In that growth, it was received by some that are more fortunate than others and they have had their turn to share their realities. I really don’t give a damn where your upbringings are from as long as the artist stays in their lane, that shit is dope, and your message isn’t false. Drake’s reality is that he made money, had a lot of time to think of good shit to say and it worked for him. The “he ain’t hood” gibberish is an overrated topic of discussion because again, it doesn’t determine if it’s dope or not. It is a device of hate that should be locked away without a key to release it. This isn’t a pro Drake session, he just happens to be a good example of one that has been a victim if player-hate-ish acts committed by some who may well be otherwise player rule abiding individuals, so we can consider this a pro “let people do them” session. Follow me on Twiiter or Facebook using the links above and remember TELL SOMEBODY!

M.O.P. feat. Styles P - Bang Time

I've been in the mood to stay a far away from the radio as possible for the past few weeks. Unfortunately, NY radio is still on last fall's music rotation, and I've gone through all of the independant artists that follow me on Twitter (Keep it pushing!). I was in the mood for some "rah rah, rowdy, beast music". I wanted something the was almost absent of melody and absolutely unrefined, and who would be best to give it to me... M.O.P! Hell, I feel like hopping on a train with some Private Stock, earphones and a backpack right now. I might just shoot over to Coney Island for no reason. M.O.P is one of the last groups to give that uncut, non watered down Hip Hop that's now tailor made to touch the sensitive side of a man. Being a man, I don't particularly want to hear everyone's vulnerable points, relationship woes, and love interests. Sometimes, I just want raw Hip Hop. So, thank M.O.P. for me bringing this to you.

LL Got Murked

In the “Blood In The Water” post about Nicki Minaj vs. Lil’ Kim, I stated that I would get back you on this topic. Well, here it is. Did L.L. Cool J really defeat Cannibus in their 1998 battle? I am an old school L.L. fan. I’m talking about hooking the cable up to the back of the radio so I could tune in WGCI in Chicago and recording “Dear Yvette” on a cassette tape because besides “The Show”, it was my favorite song. I’m talking about drinking 40oz’s at my homeboy’s house and acting out the “I’m Bad” video.

I remember the day like it was yesterday. Chris Luva Luva (Ludacris) and Poon Daddy were on the air at (then) Hot 97 ATL and they played the Cannibus song. I had seen the video already and I knew there was a problem. This cat was hungry like four fat pregnant chicks having cravings, but I was still thinking to myself”how do you decide to battle L.L.?” But, when it came on the radio, it felt like the spotlight was on and he was ready for the show. That’s when I knew that he KILLED this cat. I thought that it was over with and that one of my Hip Hop idols had gone down in flames.

Let me sidetrack myself for a moment and philosophize for a moment. What we can’t do is base a decision on previous accomplishments, likings, and emotion. That’s where I bamboozled, hoodwinked, and sideswiped myself in regard to this battle. Even when it was obvious that Uncle L was not going to make too many songs for the original B-boy crowd, I rode the wave. In my early teens, when I first got serious about girls and one girl in particular, I rocked with “Around the way girl” because it was L.L. Cool J. What we have to do is just be in tune and real with ourselves.

Let’s get back to the story. I was speaking of L going down in flames but, it didn’t quite happen that way. Maybe a week or two later Luva Luva and Poon Daddy were back on the air with L.L.’s response. They made me wait through about two sets of commercials before they really got to it but, what are you gonna do? What they did was set it up as a battle, played the songs back to back and had people call in and vote. I’ll never forget Poon Daddy saying “You can’t go against no legend” and that’s al that I needed to change my mind about my idol. At that very moment, I believe that I was persuade to believe that L.L. was going to crush this little guy and remain undefeated in a battle. The song played, and in my heart I knew it wasn’t strong enough, but I ran with it for years until I saw an episode of “Beef” and they were interviewing Kool Moe Dee about his battle with L.L.. Kool Moe Dee basically said that more than potency, it was the intensity that got him over. When listening to the interviews of others through the years, the decision was based on legend status rather than how hard did he come. That’s when I decided to be real about the situation, (and this answers the question in the beginning of this) and said HELL NAW (yes, I said Naw) L.L. didn’t win. Cannibus WENT IN on this cat relentlessly! The references to the fan base and taking the Mic off of his arm is classic!

Did L go out without being a formidable competitor? No. Did he win? Absolutely not, and that battle didn’t hurt lessen his prestige because many won’t admit that he lost but here is the opportunity to set yourself free and say Can-I-Bus busted that ass. The video clip and archives are below, like me on Facebook, follow me on Twitter, and don't forget to TELL SOMEBODY!

Drop The Bomb Em!

Drop The Bomb Em!

Let’s just get to it. Whenever there’s a white guy that’s a MC, the comment “he straight for a white dude” is usually the first comment. I get it, sort of. In the beginning, most white people were not messing with Hip Hop, or even found it the least bit tolerable. They hated the graffiti art, had no idea what the DJ was doing, and mocked the dress and movements. You’ve seen it when they contort their faces and arms and pose like a B-Boy with cerebral damage. But with the Beastie Boys (One of the dopest groups PERIOD), white people had an entry to Hip Hop with something and someone that they could somewhat relate to. Since that introduction, many fans of Hip Hop are white so it’s only natural that generations later there are white MC’s and to me it doesn’t matter if your black, white, brown, or turquoise, dope is dope.

 What leads me to this is me and my homeboy were discussing how Eminem is probably the best MC (Not just rapper) that there is but will never get full credit because he’s white. We went into how his sales were probably increased because he’s white, and that may be true, however it comes with the territory. Because he’s white there is a resonance with Caucasians that goes deeper than music. This is the same connection that Latino and Black listeners have an inner understanding of the music an MC of their own race. This all came about because my homeboy and I were having a conversation about Emenim and how he is about the best MC (Not just rapper) that there is. I don’t care what color, nice is nice.

 The facts are that (A) He’s white (B) He breathes Hip Hop (C) He has been with black people majority of his life. Then the conversation moved into our normal frank nature that the sensitive individuals may find completely offensive. My boy said that in his eyes, he doesn’t see Em as a white dude he sees him as a quote “N Bomb”. Yes, he said “N Bomb”. We are cut from a different cloth from most so, sometimes our thoughts are deemed to be outlandish. With that being said, my homeboy said that he’s waiting for Em to drop the N Bomb on wax. I said that he will never do it and can’t do it because black people aren’t ready for that, but it wouldn’t bother me in the least. You may ask why and that is because I don’t feel that it would be in a malicious nature and I think he knows, understands, and has been a PART of black culture. In some people’s eyes that is not a pass, but I’m not easily offended. Mel Gibson didn’t piss me off and neither did George Jefferson calling people honkeys. So, the question is posed. Can Emenim drop the N Bomb? Post your comments below and TELL SOMEBODY!

Death Certificate

     Ice Cube’s “Death Certificate” was and still is one of my favorite albums. It was Ice Cube without NWA, being mentored and produced by the Chuck D and the Bomb Squad, on some everyday street isht with a positive message to it. Cube married rowdy, gangster street mentality, with Islamic ideals, common sense, and righteousness. He found a way to take one side of the album to play towards the streets who wanted to hear the gangsterism, but with that, he put it in the air that “As you listen to this, pay attention to what is being said and decide if this is what you want for your life”. The other side directly addressed the issues and plainly stated what positive changes needed to made in the Black and Hispanic communities. The two were named the “Life” and “Death” sides, a concept that was genius and allowed him to give different points of views with without being considered contradictory with songs like “Dead Homies”, Steady Mobbin’”, "A Bird In The Hand", and “Givinupthenappydugout”.


    Now let’s get to the meat of this discussion, “My Summer Vacation”. The song is FAR from “Are We There Yet?” It basically tells a story about some cats from LA spreading their love for making money by bringing dirt cheap Cocaine to St. Louis and while setting up shop, running into a few problems and converting the locals to Bloods and Crips to make the process a bit simpler. The song hit home for me because I was in St. Louis often with friends and family and had a few experiences with the gangs; some cool, some not so much. What I didn’t know until I got older is that was the real reason why every time I went to Northwest Plaza, Saints, and rode through U-City the blue and red flags were so prevalent. Ice Cube was not only giving us an oral history lesson, he was spittin’.

    It all brings back good memories of good music and good times in one of my favorite towns. Of course I have the video below, so check that out, follow me on Facebook and on Twitter @TheMarcusObrien and TELL SOMEBODY. The link to the archives are below.

Dishonorable Hip Hop Honors

Although Tony Draper of Suave House Records was snubbed when the Pioneers of Southern Hip Hop were honored last year, nearly all of the inductees to the VH1 Hip Hop Honors have been deserving that I can remember. But for the last two or three years, I've been wondering how can one of the greatest Hip Hop duos of all time has consistently been left off of the guest list. Who had one of the coldest samples of "More Bounce to the Ounce", rocked the ill fisherman caps, brought us Redman, K-Solo, Das Efx, Keith Murray, Illegal, and had one of the livest DJ's in DJ Scratch. That team would be Eric Sermon and Parrish Smith, Eric and Parrish Making Dollars or EPMD for short.

I remember when they first came out, I took the bus to the mall with my walkman and bought the "Strictly Business" cassette and rocked it the whole way home. I must've played "You Gots to Chill" a million times that night. That album went gold which was big back then. On all of their albums they maintained the "Business" themes - Strictly Business, Business as Usual, Back to Business, which was fitting since they penned their own rhymes and handled a bulk of the production. Even during a break up of the Brentwood, Long Island duo, they maintained the "Business" theme.

What VH1 should do is handle their business and give proper respects to one of the all time great Hip Hop duos. How in the hell do you honor Def Jam and only have one verse of "Crossover". People need to know that after Run DMC, there was a tag team that held it down and made a way for some of the dopest MC's that the '90's saw. Eric Sermon even helped Shaq with his first album. So, I'm thinking that until this is done, VH1 is on some bull$#!* and I'm not rockin' with them until they have sobered up from the wack juice that they have been sipping honor EPMD. I would advise all Hip Hop heads to do as I do and write them and let's see what happens. As always, TELL SOMEBODY and follow me on Twitter at @TheMarcusObrien.