The 90s

I was talking with my cousin and a bunch of friends about my blog and they all noticed something. I talk about the 90s a lot. That same day, I got an email from a reader who wants to know why the 90s were so good. With that said, here it goes.

In every era of music their influences come from the artists that came before them. In hip-hop there is a shorter lists of influences than that of rock or r&b. However there are quite a few that the lyricists and DJs of today can look back on. Also, you probably would not have most of the artists of today without my dudes from the 90s. You think Nas is hot now? You never heard Illmatic which was created in the 90s. You like what D12 does? You want to be a part of the D12 world? They wouldn't even be a thought if the Wu-Tang Clan didn't create the Nation of Wu-Tang. You think that Eminem does hip hop the right way? Good because so do I. But, if Vanilla Ice didn't come in and do it all wrong, we would say Eminem is trying too hard to be black (BTW. The 90s is very very sorry for all things Vanilla Ice).

The 90s also had a lot more diversity in terms of music. And this does include within genres. With hip hop you had the party jams, the hardcore, and the lyrically savvy. Only in this decade could you find almost any party play list involving, MC Hammer, Souls of Mischief, 3rd Bass, The Fugees, Arrested Development, A Tribe Called Quest, TLC, Changing Faces, 112, Jagged Edge, Next, Boyz II Men, SWV, and Michael Jackson. Also, the 90s brought back some great songs for bboys to use today. Some of the artists that I mentioned have created some of the most popular dance anthems ever created. Saying that in a world where most songs were made in the 70s? That's one hell of an accomplishment.

I could go into more detail about this but I'll leave that for you all to do. Here's your homework. Use the Internet to look up other things besides porn. Check out iTunes and see what you have been missing. Type in any artist on YouTube and i guarantee you will love what you hear. Check out a decade of fun, controversy, and evolution. The 90s are where it's at people!!

Note: If you do not know who any of the artist or groups I mentioned in this post are, you're either young are extremely stupid. I'm betting on the latter.

Rick Ross - Deeper Than Rap

Before I start this, I would like to say that this was a request from someone. The name doesn't matter. Under any circumstances, I would not bother listening to anything Rick Ross related. But, since his album was #1 in the country for a little while, nameless person wanted my opinion. With that said, here goes nothin'.

This is the third studio album from the so-called "boss." Supposedly he is supposed to talk about more than just his "mafia" lifestyle, how much money he has and spends, and the girls he tries to get with by using his drug money. Let me just say that he accomplishes none of that. It's just another generic rap album that follows the same old formula that I can't stand. Here's how I analyzed each track

1. Mafia Music - The track that caused all the crap with 50 cent. Crappy track talking about his mafia lifestyle.
2. Maybach Music 2 ft. T-Pain, Kanye West & Lil' Wayne - The cameos are the only thing that make this track tolerable and the only one I actually listened to more than two times. It's the generic "I got more money than you" track.
3. Magnificent ft. John Legend - Refer to the last sentence in Track 2. Also, he takes about the girl he wants to f***.
4. Yacht Club ft. Magazeen - Refer to the last sentence in Track 2.
5. Usual Suspect ft. Nas - Refer to Track 1.
6. All I Really Want ft. The Dream - Talking about the girl he wants to impress with his drug money and eventually f***. It's Track 2 with and ATL R&B feel.
   
7. Rich Off Cocaine - Track 1 with and R&B spin. He's showing how proud he is of his drug money. This is the track that pisses me off the most. If I were somebody who is trying to show a positive image in the public I would never be proud of the profits I made while setting a culture back and killing off a majority of innocent people.
8. Lay Back ft. Robin Thicke - Refer to the last sentence in Track 2.
9. Murda Mami ft. Foxy Brown - Here he says that women can just as stupid as he is. It's Track 1 with a diva spin.
10. Gunplay ft. Gunplay - Refer to Track 1.
11. Bossy Lady ft. Ne-Yo - Refer to Tracks 2 & 9.
12. Face ft. Trina - Refer to Tracks 1 & 9.
13. Valley of Death - He addresses the corrections officer situation. After that, refer to Track 1.
14. In Cold Blood - Refer to Track 1.

The only thing that saves this album from being a complete disaster are the beats and cameos. I'm guessing the beats are so good because he had absolutely nothing to do with them. The cameos make the tracks worth listening to. Who really wants to hear what Ross has to say anyway? My advice on this one, skip it and then call Def Jam and tell them to drop this guy. In my eyes he's a complete waste of time and money. I would find someone who is different and positive in some way. Go back to corrections Officer Ricky!!

UNTIL NEXT ENTRY...

5 elements...the DJ

DJ Babu of Dialated People Tearin' it Up!!

Told You I Was Right!!!

Remember when I talked about why beef is only used as a marketing ploy only sell a few more records? Well, it works!! I was listening to the Hot 97 yesterday and Rick Ross decided to call in. I'm not sure on whether this is true, but his crappy rendition of an album was number 1 in the country. Upon checking several websites, this travesty turned out to be completely true In my eyes this makes absolutely no sense. However, this does prove my point. All beef is used for now is to sell a record. To further prove my point, I have this bit of information. After the whole beef situation was settled with album sales with 50, Ross turns his focus towards Eminem. For what reason, I have no f***** idea!! The real coincidence is that Eminem has his Relapse album coming out in a little while and that could be used to bring in sales for Shady. I'm not sure whether he's trying to pay back the favor for what 50 did for him or something. I'm not exactly sure, but i don't exactly care. I'm just plain sick and tired of all this crap. The difference between this potential beef and what already took place is that Eminem doesn't need to start a fake conflict to sell anything and he never did. It shows what incredible lyrics and word play can do. Too bad Rick Ross among many many others failed to realize that. Don't get in fake conflicts...just get better.

Asher Roth - Asleep in the Bread Aisle

The supposedly brand new great white hope of hip hop has arrived in the form of Asher Paul Roth. I've heard of this guy before, but I made the conscious decision not listen to his mix tapes and watch youtube videos in order to give this the fairest review possible. After all, I am the average hip hop head and this is supposed to be based solely on the mainstream music that the average music fan would ever get to purchase. With that said, here goes nothing.

Before you ever play the first song, you would probably compare this guy to Eminem. If you do that, you would automatically hate this album. In my eyes, you cannot compare one artist to another. I judge each MC based on what he or she can do on that particular album and all other artists that he or she can be compared to do not exist for the sake of the review. If you treat this as an album by another artist, i guarantee that you will enjoy every track. If you listen to the single "I Love College," then you will assume that this is the worst song on the album, and you would be absolutely. That's how I prefer it. If the the single is still a hit and it sucks compared the rest of the LP, this is a pretty good job done. I listened through the whole thing a couple of times and pointed out some tracks that stood out.

"Lark on My Go-Kart" is the first track and a great intro to the album. It's basically a two minute freestyle that shows off this kid's skills. His word play is ridiculous and somehow he connects each verse and then goes on a complete tangent and still makes it sound hot. Even established artists can't pull off what this guy did. Going from Little Miss Muffet to Mario Kart is crazy to say the least. Another track that stood out was "As I Em." It wasn't surprising that he addressed the obvious, but in the song he stood out as a separate artist from Slim Shady. The rest of the LP talks about random things like having a bad day and blunt cruzin' (if you don't know what that is, you need to find your local dealer right away).

Against all the haters saying that this guy is just a cheap copy of Eminem, you do as much resarch as Fox News. Do yourself a huge faveor and listen to some incredible skill, new material, and an overall great album from Asher Paul Roth. Right now, he'll probably be called one of the best white MCs in the game. WIth time and a little luck, he could be considered on the best MCs of all time. No race involved.

UNTIL NEXT ENTRY...

Note: Bryan, I got your email and yes I will review the new Jadakiss album. Just give some time on it. Also, I'm not gonna compare this album to his others. If you don't like that, screw you.

Up and Coming...

I talk about hip hop and what I like and do not like about it. But, I never discussed the most important aspect of the culture. That would be the five elements. If you're a true fan, you know exactly what I'm talking about. If not, just wait and see in future posts.

Comments and Contacts

Over time I've notice that nobody wants to leave comments on my blog page. The option is there for a reason and I made sure that anybody can leave a comment. You do no have to be a member of blogspot to have a voice. So, leave a comment for me and I'll respond. Furthermore. I know that people have more interests than music. I will talk about anything that I have some knowledge on. If you do not want to leave a comment on my blog, send me an email (nwaldron86@hotmail.com), or if you have an xbox live account leave a message in my inbox (OneShade 2 Dark). Three options for the masses. Use them!!!