Raekwon the Chef - Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...Pt. II

There are very few norms in hip hop. But one is that the nation of Wu-Tang will live never die. This time around, Raekwon a.k.a. Lou Diamonds takes his turn and puts out Cuban Linx 2. The sequel to the album that was put out way back in 1995. Let's get down to it.

If you are a Wu-Tang fan. You will feel right at home with this album. Why? It's because basically every member is on this CD. Its seems as if no matter how much these dudes fight, they will always come back together for the sake of the friendship that they all have. Money doesn't hurt either. The only ones missing are U-God, Cappadonna, Masta Killa and O.D.B. This is a Raekwon album though, so it most definitely has his flavor. If you ever listened to Chef, you know he's all about hood life, with real emphasis on the drug game. At first, I wasn't feeling it, but then you appreciate what this man has done with this LP. The only way to listen to this is to know what you are getting yourself into beforehand. If you know that, this album will become an instant classic. Would I put this on my iPod? Hell yea i would!!

In terms of favorite tracks, I really can't choose. Every track in my mind is unique enough and well produced that I have to say I love every track equally. I seriously listen to this from start to finish every single time I decide to play it in my car. For those who want specifics on tracks, I'll tell you that he dedicated a track to ODB, and he goes through the entire fish scale process from start to finish, leaving almost nothing out of his descriptions.

The real reason I reviewed this is because of the label this was released under. Ever heard of Ice Water Records? I didn't think so. What I'm getting at is that you do not have to be part of the big three labels to put out something worth listening to. Don't get me wrong. If you happen to get a release through the big three, by all means take full advantage. What I'm saying is that if you want to start your own venture and have everything go through you, by all means take that initiative and go for it. Remember, Enter the Wu was made in a basement in Shaolin. It doesn't matter how much money you have. What matters is the music. If you have that, then people will listen.

Overall, this album is an instant classic and should belong in any hip-hop fan's library. So, what are you waiting for? Go cop it!!

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Note: Blueprint 3 review coming soon.

My Thoughts on Kanye's Actions

Look, I didn't watch the VMAs, nor will I ever watch that show again until MTV decides to play more videos. But, like everybody else, I know exactly what the moment of the night was. If you've been living under a rock for a while, I'll refresh you.

About two weeks ago or so, MTV did it's annual award show celebrating all things music with the MTV Video Music awards at Radio City Music Hall. It was a normal, bland, rather uninspiring show hosted by the same no name comedian that they had last year. I can't tell you his name, but I don't really care to begin with so let's move on. Somewhere in the middle, Taylor Swift is giving her acceptance speech for winning best Female video. Then, out of nowhere, Mr. West gets on stage, grabs the mic out of Swift's hand, and then tells her and basically the entire world that she shouldn't have won!!! Needless to say that Swift, Beyonce, and the rest of the world were like, WTF JUST HAPPENED!! When I heard the news I looked it up and there it was. What people did not tell me was that when Beyonce won Video of the Year, she brought up Taylor to finish the speech that Mr. West so rudely interrupted.

First off, this act did two things. First and most obvious, it secured Kanye West as the winner of D-Bag of the Year. I know this guy is outspoken and always has to say what's on his mind at any given moment, but you do not do anything like that. Most people blame it on the alcohol, but I blame it on something on his human nature. In my eyes, Kanye did that because he needed to. Here's something that I've noticed about him. Every time he does and album and goes through the normal motions videos and touring, he goes on a short break. This is the same for most artists. During that time, most people are not talking about you, and Kanye cannot stand that. He has to be in the spotlight at all times even if he isn't doing anything relevant. With all the fame and fortune and attention he was getting, he started to define himself as a person based on that attention. I know that his industry being seen is half the job, but to West, it's more than a job. It has become his life and possibly his only reason for continuing to do what he does. He did apologize for his actions, but how much does that do? It's like someone spitting on your face and then says sorry right after. The person may be sorry but in the end your the one with spit on your cheek. A deed like that cannot be forgotten with just an apology and that's it. I don't think it can ever be resolved, at least not anytime soon.

Second, Kanye's actions made Beyonce look like a complete angel. It's almost as if she had a halo around her head at the end of the night. I think she felt sorry for what happened to Taylor. Also, she figured that she's won enough awards and given the same speech numerous times. Why not give the young gun a chance to shine? It might be her first and last. BTW, Beyonce looked good as hell!!!

In the end, MTV was grateful for what West did. It got people to watch the reruns just to see what happened. Since they're probably gonna run it over, and over, and over for the next three months everyone on earth is gonna end up seeing it. Kanye, you lost fans. Taylor, you gained millions. Beyonce, you were just damn sexy!!

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Note: I had a video for this but it was deleted and there aren't any good ones left on the net. Sorry!!

The Sophomore Curse

Many an artist have come bursting onto the music scene and taken the world by storm. They each have catchy singles and quickly gain a following big enough to warrant an album by that artist. The album does better than expected and prompts the artist to be the opening act on a marquee national and possibly a world tour. The tour is a huge success and this new artists went from nothing to something in a a little less than a year. All he/she is think is, "I'm on top of the world!!" The feeling of being somebody is so great that you would do anything to keep. So, you end up creating and promoting a brand new album. This is supposed to be the one that puts you over the top. This is what's gonna keep your name being said by the masses for generations to come!! Too bad the exact opposite happens. Your album drops and so do you. Your sales are worse than Gigli and you have nothing to show for yourself except what you just put out. In most industries, you are only as good as your last installment. Too bad your last installment will actually be your last.

There are plenty of explanations as to why the second album almost never reaches the success of the first, but I'm only going to touch on what I can remember at this point and time. Keep in mind that I am completely exhausted when writing this so it might not make much sense. I'll try to keep it as coherent as possible.

The first is the most obvious in my mind. You have to remember that the average person has a very short attention span. This means that getting people to pay attention to your debut is an achievement in itself. The second album is supposed to re-kindle a spark that just went out after they got bored and it didn't even come close to lighting. Bottom line, the public got sick of you. That's why you album didn't sell

The second is also pretty clear. The debut single for the album absolutely sucked! It's pretty obvious that if you do not have a good start, your finish is gonna be just as bad or worse. If you put out a crappy single, people will assume that the rest of your tracks are terrible. The rest of the LP is probably really good, but you don't get a second chance to make a first impression. My advice, get a few more ears to figure out a first track. Don't just trust your best friend or baby-momma's cousin. More than likely they'll just tell you what you want to hear instead of the truth.

Third is a complete lack of promotion for yourself. I know you have people to do that kind of stuff for you, but sometimes those people suck at what they do. The one thing that every person can do is talk about themselves and what they do. How do you think I get people to read this blog? I promote myself the best I can by using other sites, but it's mostly by word of mouth. (BTW, thank you to everyone who visits. It's all appreciated). You have to remember that you are the artist and you have control over what happens to you. If you want things to be successful, take charge and make it happen for yourself.

That's all I can think of right now. If you have any other reasons that I missed, drop an email my way. I promise I'll respond.

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