Royalty, Dream Chasers and mix tapes

So I'm not into giving total album break downs to mix tapes but I have to figure out some way to incorporate them because they are so important in hip-hop these days. Pretty much everyone is putting out music every six months at this point. While there are inherent problems with that, this isn't about that aspect of it, this is about the music. So let's start with the artist who has impressed me

Album Review - Nas - Life is Good

One of the most anticipated albums of 2012 is without a doubt the return of Nasty Nas. For whatever reason, there is more want for this album than a long time for Nas. Maybe it's my generation holding on and hoping one of our legends can drop a classic that will 'save hip hop'. Maybe it was the return of good Nas on the street singles "Nasty" and "The Don" which whet our appetites for one of the

Album Review- Maybach Music Group - Self Made Vol. 2

Rick Ross is one of the hottest artists in the game now and of course when you're on top you have to establish your own label and last year, Ross officially did that last year with Self- Made Volume 1. On it he officially introduced Meek Mill, added Wale into the fold and also featured Miami artist Pill as well. A new year and some slight changes have been made, Meek has an album coming up and

How do we really see women?

I'm starting to think a lot of guys either really don't respect women or don't care who they are at all. Look I understand that often times music is oversimplified but it's getting ridiculous to the point where every song that is meant for the radio that is designed to appeal to women is only about them as relation to money and how much you can give them or if they're worth a certain dollar

Saigon gets outed - for putting people on blast

Saigon who put out a vastly underrated independent album last year just made the news again for comments he made to SOHH.com about his music in compared to the nonsense that has been coming out recently. Now Sai has been long considered a critic of current hip-hop culture and the direction it has been heading in for quite a while. If you listen to the Greatest Story Never Told, it reflects his

The MMG Press Conference

I can admit it, I'm hating these dudes right now because they have shit on lock and it's Ricky Rawse. Dude is huge, every song is the same and there is no substance to his music yet it is very catchy. Funny thing is I cannot believe this is the first time someone has done something like this to announce the albums coming up. I mean I see Ciroc on the back drop so you know Puff is involved but I

Album Review- Nicki Minaj- Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded

The most impressive artist on Young Money/Cash Money is Nicki Minaj by far. Very attractive and off-beat yet still skillful, she has been intriguing since she first came out looking like Lil Kim on her first infamous promo poster. Years later, her style has switched up, she has become more popular, doing songs with Madonna and everyone else, because I mean when Madge is calling you and including

Why you should be critical too

I've been seen as too critical of a lot of artists, especially today because I think they're wack or squandering talent. One of the main reasons is that I have grown up on hip-hop and realize that to impress me it takes a lot because I have heard a lot of hip-hop. I mean all I was buying when I first started working was cd's and because the labels were putting so much money behind rap, there was

The "Boss" conundrum

Maybe it isn't as much of a conundrum as it is annoying that everyone thinks they are a boss of something now in rap. I'll give credit where it is due, Ross has certainly seemed to personify this attitude and take it to the net level, even though, just like wrestlers, it isn't what he first started out as. Much like going from a Heel to Face can make someone blow up, thus it is with rappers. Do a

That Niggas Corny

After reading up on what others thought about my boy Childish Gambino's album "Camp" and seeing the comments I felt like I needed to address something that continually cropped up, the idea that Donald Glover is 'corny' because he doesn't talk about the streets. At least thats what my assumption is, but that initial feeling can't be true because Drake and J.Cole both go against the grain and don't

Mix tapes are out of control

So you may know I'm not a big fan of the modern mix tape, especially as is treated like an album, albeit with limited distribution and no direct checks for the artists. I understand, once 50 Cent and Gip-set were able to make a huge push in the streets with them, they became the accepted way to gain publicity and create a buzz, though since then, the impact has been negated because literally

Is 2 Chainz worth an argument?

So I got into a heated twitter war with @OMG_its_Justin because he didn't like my assessment that Toty Boi aka 2 Chainz sucks. Actually the homie @8plus9 asked me if I had heard the Tru Religion mix tape. Here is what I said:


@8plus9 yo son is one of the worst rappers ever...been that way since he was tity boi-so dont tell me son is hot you trendy bastard





I was then told that I have no

Album Review- Pusha T- Fear of God II

Look I thought this was another mixtape so I didn't even look at the track list. This is the album version of the mix tape though and it shows that much of the street release was good enough to be turned into a studio album in your stores. There are minimal changes if you already have it, but it's only right to show Push some official love.

Push pulls out all of the stops, getting Diddy to bring

Album Review- Drake- Take Care

So Drake's eagerly awaited follow-up album "Take Care" has leaked and if this is indeed the album, it might just be the best r and b album of the year. That's right, this isn't a hip-hop album in the strictest sense. His first one wasn't either but it's still surprising. So here is my album review of Take Care.

Of course he starts out with singing, though it isn't his on "Over My Dead Body"

What makes a good artist- Part 1

I know that when I post and talk about hip-hop I can seem unconventional at times. I'm pretty sure some people think that I am just trying to go against convention just to be doing so but believe me I don't. Those people are just as bad as the people who never question artists who are designated by the public as the guys who are hot. People like Drake and Lil Wayne today get a pass just because

Album Review- Styles P- Master of Ceremonies

By now, Styles P is a member of Hip-hop history even though it would seem to be at odds with his street persona, he is a rapper. A throwback to a grittier era, this album is a straightforward example of NY hip-hop.

The album starts off with an ode to smoking "This is How i Fly" which features Avery Storm. It sounds like an early 00's album mid-tempo cut and that's exactly what it is. Nothing too

Album Review- Wale- Ambition

So finally, the long awaited sophomore album of DC's Wale is just about ready to drop and either solidify him as one of the brightest stars in the game or possibly drop him down to the title of also-ran. His first album was a great surprise that I gave an award to for album of the year. It was the best debut of any of the new crop of rappers that have come out in the past three years or so.

Top 55 of All Time? - Part 5

We're getting to the end now and this next set is going to get us all the way to the top 20:

29. Bizzy Bone - Look a lot of people haven't followed a lot of Bizzy's work when he isn't with the rest of his Thugs-n-Harmony brothers, but they should. When listening to Bone without Bizzy, there seems to be something lacking and that's because Bixxy is the heart and soul of the group. Some people

Luke has advice for Wayne, Drake and Ross....

So some of you who commonly peruse hip-hop blogs have probably read up about this by now. Of course, any comment that has Wayne or Drake's name in it is going to make a big splash. This tidbit I received courtesy of Mocradio.com and some excerpts from an interview they had posted. Here are the relevant quotes:


“H*ll, Forbes magazine just named Hova the highest-earning rap star. Others on the

My Thoughts on Hip-hop shenanigans at the VMAs

Okay so in between the boring parts of True Blood I caught some of the VMA's and by now I am done with award shows. I feel like they're pompous and just so the same people can have their egos stroked rather than truly awarding ingenuity and pointing out things that the masses might have missed while they were busy in their respective shells.

First thing- anyone who really like this Tyler the