50 Projects in 50 Days

5/20/2014

In efforts to broaden my horizons, and generate ideas for new music, I’ve decided to undertake the task of listening to fifty projects in fifty days. Recommend me fifty of your favorite classic projects - whether official albums, mix-tapes, EP, LP, new, old, mainstream, underground, hip-hop, alternative genres, or things that you just feel I should be familiar with – what are your top 50 projects? Five recommendations for each person.

3 Comments

Dennis C. link

5/20/2014 07:16:25 am

Random AKA Mega Ran - Language Arts Vol. 1- https://play.spotify.com/album/0uB9YAZp4PieueHseH09xj

MC Frontalot- Solved https://play.spotify.com/album/7Mm0WlrVz62qYHdl4ucqsM

Childish Gambino- Royalty http://www.datpiff.com/Childish-Gambino-Royalty-mixtape.369224.html

RZA- Bobby Digital in Stereo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U39DpcgOPdU

Wiz Khalifa- Kush & Orange Juice http://www.datpiff.com/Wiz-Khalifa-Kush-OJ-mixtape.112367.html

OMA link

7/30/2014 01:40:04 am

RZA as Bobby Digital album review

I numbered the tracks by when I could tell that there was a change in mood, rather than name/time according to the titles, so some of these numbers might be staggered. I notice that I came up 2 tracks short, so I may have misjudged some slightly...

1. Unique intro! Got me amped!

2. Nice production, different from usual WuTang tracks, very unorthodox, but what is the meaning behind RZA's words?

3. Nice production, more generic Wu. Chorus was somewhat intelligible...

4. What language is that? I like how he assesses the intellectual emcee, and how they're harassed for big word usage. Struggle of my life...

5. Love joint - chill...seems like a lot of political rap artists are Muslim...I wonder why that is? Nice parallel imagery with Mother Nature/Africa/a woman...

6. Kinda messy tbh...Just sounds like a bunch of hard rhymes. Beat threw me off...yeah, Method Man!

7. The only message I was able to decipher was violence of the world...Who's the female emcee?

8. What language is that? Why the different languages? Dope rhymes & flows. One of, if not my favorite song on the album.

9. Who are the other emcees? Dope rhymes. 2nd favorite. NY violence/life. African drums? Again, imagery comparing life to Africa possibly?

10. Cold beat. Describing the cold world. Spanish?

11. Wordy flow...nice beat. Why so sexually charged lyrics?

12? ODB is too funny! Coldest rhyme in the entire album - "Fuck her so much, you only Bust blood"

13. Language again?

14. Dope chorus and singing. Nice instrumental

15. Funny chorus...had me depressed before the first verse...you ain't shit...that shit is real...I feel for that poor man's pain...

16. Cool intro, but too short...

17. Nice beat, but the lyrics were too fast & complex...

18. Real life. Growing up in NY. Challenging social norms/ages. I think I might use this as an influence in my next project...

19. Loyalty to the crew

20. Didn't care for the beat...did he really have to repeat his name so often? Too long...but mad props for spitting a freestyle on an album...

And that's a track-by-track break down.

Overall: The entire piece was a classic piece of work, although I don't see why it was necessary for RZA to go by the alternate ego "Bobby Digital" throughout the album...I do think that the whole album had considerable amounts of comparisons between Africa, New York, and the world, and I do think that may have a lot to do with the different languages - if not, I have no clue. I think the main character in the story (RZA as Bobby Digital) was comparing his hectic New York City life growing up to the serenity of Africa, the Motherland, as well as the world as a whole, and that has to do with the contrasting sexually charged lyrics.

In all, a very solid piece of work, perhaps not knowledge in every line, but easily a classic...

OMA link

8/3/2014 07:00:23 am

Childish Gambino Royalty

Like I did with RZA's "Bobby Digital", I numbered the tracks by when I could tell that there was a change in mood, rather than name/time according to the titles, but I did do a better job at paying attention to the track names this time.

1. Cool intro

2. Got stuff to prove in life, shoutouts. Why he does what he does, the purpose of his music. Dedication. Nice flow.

3. Gangsta. Flossing. What's the purpose to this song?

4. Life struggles, black entrepreneur. Real shit.

5. Hooked from the first note. Ballin. Flossing again. Unnecessary things life.

6. Chill & amped at the same time...cool vibes...just live your life. Wanting more, always striving for more, we're all striving for the same things in life... doing the best you can

8. Keep it real. Introspective beat.

9. RZA! Can't Tell What This Songs About, But It Sounds Cool...

10. Relaxing life after all of the hard work.

10. I've heard this before. Danny Browns style is so unorthodox...possibly favorite track on the tape, at least favorite production. But what does it really mean...?

11. He he used to rap about nothing...describing his purpose now...

12. Cause & Effect in life...Chance the Rapper. Cool sample. This one's a keeper!

13. Everything people want out of life...

14. Turnip green! One of the dopest lines...ascending lifestyle...

15. Struggles, hustle in life

16. Personal struggles in life "we finally made it" says it all...

17. Side chick, but what does it have to do with the theme Royalty?

18. Flossing again. I don't think this track suits his style well, personally. Funny last part...makes me wonder...was this whole track just a parody?

Considering I wasn't a big fan of Childish Gambino initially, thinking that was was "just another mainstream rapper who raps about the usual rap stuff - green, girls, guns, drugs, etc." this project definitely left a positive impression of him with me. Probably not a classic, but I do look at his life and struggles a lot differently now, as I see the value and musicality of his work. I do like the whole theme of making something from nothing, as exemplified in this project, "Royalty", and I may even use the theme for some of my future work in "Humble Beginnings". Good stuff. Now that I see Gambino in a different light, I will definitely be looking out for his next projects...

50 Projects in 50 Days

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