January 2007 Archives

What does it take to get back the old Mobb? Do we have to take them back to their late teen years, when the hunger was tough, or rewind to where New York City looked like a litter box? Maybe all of this remodeling and gentrification is getting to the best of us.

Skip the nasty NYC imagery and fast forward into the new millennium. So far it's been money, money, money. Money falling out the sky, money falling off the stripper pole. This is the kind of vibe I've been getting from the Mobb ever since they went over to Interscope and got down with 50 Cent. But what about the "official Queensbridge Murderers"?

So X-Clan dropped their album, Return from Mecca, today. And in the wake of conscious lyricism, I have to scratch my head and ask where the remainder of the entourage dwells. Where is Saigon's album? Whatever happened to that Immortal Technique and Green Lantern mixtape collaboration? Where is dead prez?

Last time I checked, Brooklyn's M-1 was exploring the solo side of things via his single, "Til We Get There," which was the backbone of his LP, Confidential. This album dropped last March, around the time "Impeach the President" rocked 'hoods everywhere.

For some reason or another, I'm feeling like hip-hop is very much alive. Maybe it's because Nas has inspired KRS, maybe it's because Q-Tip is about to make a reappearance on the hip-hop scene with a new LP, or maybe it's because I was in the car this weekend and heard this Tru Life dis blasting on Hot97. No, I haven't copped the Tru York mixtape just yet, but I plan to.

If any of you are familiar with KRS' classic dis record that finished off MC Shan and the entire Juice Crew, "The Bridge is Over," then this hilarious impersonation of the '80s classic will give you a little dose of nostalgia:

...Before he became the president of Def Jam Recordings.

Can we get Common on the remix?

As previously reported, the Wu is officially back and will be ready to release their album sometime this summer.

As previously reported, the kid Swizz is slated to drop his solo LP, One Man Band Man. The first single put into circulation, entitled "Come and Get Me," was the street single, and "It's Me Bitches" is the lead single for the album which is slated for release this spring.

That song is crazy in the club.

Ha. The hate is thick in SOHH NYC! I love it.

But we're not discussing the starving souls from the Motherland or the malnutritioned entourage that follows.

There was something that I wanted to address about the Brooklyn MC.

Between his infamous mixtape hustle and his deal with Jive Records, people have seem to become less pleased with the Bed-Stuy lyricist, and those who were never really feeling the kid seemed to have turned away even more now than ever before. Of course he has his loyal following and is still reeling in the fans little by little, but what those who have been following Pap from his debut as the alphabetical slaughterer up until now have forgotten was these very lines: "Straight out of the archives of street lyricism... It's a new era in hip-hop!...BK banga!"

… 105.1 has a Carl Blaze tribute, and Foxy’s releasing an album in a matter of weeks. What a week of news. Speaking of Foxy, I was listening to her verse on Nas’ “Affirmative Action” this weekend and the blatant, obvious, apparent ghostwriting behind those bars she was spitting was ringing my ear like an alarm.

Memphis Bleek once said something like spitting Hov’s rhymes would be the last thing he’d turn to because it wouldn’t be his success, it would be Jay’s success. Foxy should follow suit. But until then, with her on the way you can basically say we’re looking for another Jay-Z album.

So KRS 1 is coming back out with an album and he's written a tribute song to Nas, produced by Marley Marl. Hip-hop may just have a flicker of life left in her.

This is what the game needs ....

Download it here

Sohh, Jim Jones is giving back to the hood.
He and the Entertainers 4 Education Alliance (E4EA) are putting on the "Achieve Your Dreams Poetry Contest."

How fitting. Right after MLK Day.
Anyway, the student entrants will all write poems on why it’s important for them to achieve their dreams. Six of the kids who make the final round will get to read their poems to Capo.
The contest is supposed to encourage at-risk NYC kids to stay in school.

For what?

Everybody knows you don’t have to stay in school to achieve your dreams. All you gotta do is cop a wing and turn it into a bird …

New York City, are you serious about the empty comments section yesterday? You mean that NYoil joint sparked no reaction? Wooowww.

Ok, Lemme see ...

What up New York City!?

Reckless is outta the building for a few days on vacay, and I'll be holdin ya'll down for the week.

SOHH, it's MLK Day ...

I won't start with the "hip-hop is dead" hate immediately, (we do have a few more days together, after all) but I have to wonder what Martin Luther King Jr. would think about the state of the genre, were he around to see what it's become.

Big-time journalist Davey D recently sat down and spoke with one of the greatest hip-hop icons of all time, Grandmaster Flash. There were quite a few angles taken throughout this interview, but what I found to be most important was this:

After only three weeks, Nas has lived up to his hype for his third #1 LP Hip-Hop is Dead. Most of the younger crowd who heart snap, 50 Cent, and that other rap nonsense don't really understand it. But Nas' loyal following, and the supporters behind the message Nas is trying to convey to the souring hip-hop scene, has helped push 502,000 copies for the Queensbridge lyricist thus far. With a video for his new single, "Can't Forget About You," in the making, it can be assured that the boy Nas will continue to move forward on a positive note.

Congrats.

How many labels? I've lost count. Still no growth.

First and foremost-- and I'm not saying this because I can't stand 50--Mobb Deep are prime examples: Never put money before the love of hip-hop (or for the love of God for that matter). I remember when Mr. Irreverent posted a quote taken from a Prodigy freestyle:

"...50 Cent saved me, not Jesus Christ..."

Remember this?

"... when I'm getting ready to go into this project, considering that Apple is selling millions of iPods and Microsoft is coming out with competing products and Sony â€" everybody has something that encourages people to download material instead of purchasing the actual CD. The general public will still take advantage of it and say that I'm becoming less of an artist." -- 50 Cent via MTV interview 11-06

After what seemed like an endless spiral down the road of frustration, album set-backs, (ignored) dis tracks, and so on and so forth, the kid Styles P has finally been set free. It's too bad that his farewell was a flopped album. Totally unnecessary.

So what's next for Kiss?

I never really thought about it, but as I pondered the interview Ghost had with Ballerstatus, I had come to the conclusion that those who say they are, are really not; the ones that don't say a word are the ones that probably are:

The South Bronx MC from the legendary crew Funky Four Plus One is back on the map. Sha-Rock, the femme fatale that has corrected many of the misinformed that “it didn’t start with Salt-N-Pepa,” will be hosting a DC fundraiser on January 6th that will be taking place at Ladies’ Night at the Classic Hip-Hop Club.

For those who don’t know, now you know:

Swizz Beatz: Party anthem of the year thus far?

First thing's first: Saigon needs to release his album. After months and months of him saying "The Greatest Story Never Told: coming soon," the ball has dropped, the tourists have cleared out, and the street sweepers have cleared the area. And with his week-long appearance on BET's "Rap City," It can be expected that his album is in the works for release. Hopefully.

The NEW New York, also known as Lower East Side's Tru Life, needs to put his foot on the accelerator. People are already forgetting the one and only rapper to ever rep L.E.S at this moment in hip-hop. Speaking of the New York movement, Busta Rhymes can make a hard comeback if he drops his album on time instead of pushing his album back five and six times. I'm no exec but this is common sense: before you drop a record that you know is going to be a big hit ("Touch It"), make sure all is in order for the album before hand, not after.

…Or a triple disaster.

In a recent video posted by Crackspace, the “Queen of NY” said that she, FLA’s Jacki-O, and DTP’s Chicago native Shawnna have formed a group and are coming out with an album together.