Posts Tagged ‘TDE’

ScHoolboy Q

It goes without saying I’m a big fan of Black Hippy and Top Dawg Entertainment. Depending on what mood I’m in, I have a different favorite rapper in the collective. If I want well-crafted storytelling, I’ll go vibe out to some Kendrick Lamar. If I want thought-provoking lyricism, I’ll go listen to some Ab-Soul. If I want to consume copious amounts of alcohol and smack dudes in the street, I’ll go mosh out to some ScHoolboy Q. When Kendrick dropped an indisputable classic with good kid, m.A.A.d city, he put a shit-ton of pressure on Q since he’s next up. So the question of the day is: can ScHoolboy Q make a classic album?

Now before I continue, let me say that I’m a realist. I already know Q doesn’t possess the lyrical prowess of K-Dot or Soulo, but who gives a shit. Homie’s music jams! If you can listen to “Druggys WitH Hoes Again” and not want to take several illegal substances, something is wrong with you. Q makes the music you either want to goon out or have fun to. In my eyes, he has just as many quotables as anyone else because the shit he says is entertaining as hell. As proof, go listen to the 2nd verse of “My Hatin’ Joint” and thank me later. When I’m listening to Q, I’m not looking for Pharoahe Monch-level punchlines. We didn’t expect that from 50 Cent‘s Get Rich or Die Tryin’ and you’d be a fool to say that record isn’t a classic. It’s really all about the songs and the feeling they give you. Q brings you into his world, and needless to say, I’m a cotdamn fan.

All in all, I’m hyped to hear how his Oxymoron album will turn out. He just put out the first single “Yay Yay,” and if the rest of the album sounds like that, TDE and Interscope will definitely be getting my money. Do the right thing and listen to the track below. Please be advised though: listening to this song might inspire random fits of “cooking” and gratuitous thugging in the streets. Good day.

So I saw Danny Brown, ScHoolBoy Q and Childish Gambino perform last night at SummerStage, and needless to say, I’m still amped. All 3 artists held it down, but my dude Gambino was on some other shit. Live band, DJ, projector screen, his live show was the truth! Since I’m still in my zone, I figure I’ll just post a bunch of their songs to put you in the same zone. There’s nothing else to say. It’s Tuesday and you’re probably losing your shit at work, so let’s jam out. Leggo!

So I’ve been playing the hell out of this song since Monday, so I figured, why not review it? In case you missed it, Kendrick Lamar released the first single for his upcoming album, which features none other than the elusive/lazy Dr. Dre. Sidebar, everybody calls Dre a “perfectionist” when speaking about his lack of output. Can we just call him lazy? I’m sure he’s working on music somewhere, but if he never puts it out, does it really matter? Getting back to the subject, as an unabashed K. Dot fan, I’d like to talk about all of the ways “The Recipe” is awesome.

First off, that instrumental is tough. While I’ve seen a bunch of people erroneously give the credit to Dre, the real producer of the track is Scoop DeVille. While I’ve been a fan of Scoop for a minute, his work on Snoop Dogg‘s “Life Of Da Party” made me a straight stan. Needless to say, when I saw he produced the song, I was already amped to hear it. I’m a fan of deceptively simple beats, so all you need is a dope sample, some hard drums and a few keyboard flourishes to make me happy. That’s exactly what we have here, so I’ll just shut up, open the sunroof in my car and drive down the street disturbing the peace (No Ludacris).

Second, the flow both Kendrick and Dre use on this track is stupidly good. You’d be an idiot if you didn’t realize K. Dot wrote Dre’s verses, but honestly, I’m surprised Dre had the dexterity to pull it off. Clearly he’s come a long way since “Bitches Ain’t Shit.” In addition, the hook makes me want to go to California immediately. Who doesn’t want “women, weed and weather” son? Sidebar, I’m ashamed to say I’ve never been to Cali. What the fuck is wrong with me? I need to do something about this immediately.

Honestly, I don’t know what else to say. Go listen to the song. Now. Right now! You’ll thank me. Chuuuch…

I know I’m a few days late on this, but sue me, I’ve been busy. In any case, if you know me, you know I’m a huge fan of Top Dawg Entertainment and Black Hippy. If you don’t know who Black Hippy is, it’s a group consisting of Kendrick Lamar, ScHoolBoy Q, Ab-Soul and Jay Rock. Word on the street is, their record label, which was previously independent, just signed a joint venture deal with Interscope Records. This means all future releases will have the Jimmy Iovine machine behind them. What’s most notable here, Kendrick himself is now signed through Dr. Dre‘s Aftermath Entertainment also. Needless to say, I’M FUCKING AMPED!

In honor of the new deal, I’m posting some of my current TDE jams below. Enjoy yourself.

P.S. RIP to Alori Joh. If you don’t know who that is, Google is your friend.