Saturday, October 27, 2007

Rapaholic™ Present: Jeru The Damaja - Still Rising (2007)

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Rapaholic™ Exclusive: Jay-Z - American Gangster (2007)

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Thursday, October 25, 2007

Little Brother - Get Back (2007)

Little Brother - Get Back
Label................: ABB
Genre................: Hip-Hop
Store Date...........: Oct-23-2007
Source...............: CDDA
Size.................: 58,5 MB

01. Sirens (feat. Carlitta Durand) 04:12
02. Can't Win For Losing 04:20
03. Breakin My Heart (feat. Lil' Wayne) 04:28
04. Good Clothes 04:39
05. After The Party (feat. Carlitta Durand) 04:53
06. Extrahard 04:09
07. Step It Up (feat. Dion) 03:30
08. Two Step Blues (feat. Darien Brockington) 03:42
09. That Ain't Love (feat. Jozeemo) 04:24
10. Dreams 03:47
11. When Everything Is New 06:33

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Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Cali Agents (Rasco & Planet Asia)

Cali Agents are American rap group from California made up of rappers Rasco and Planet Asia.Bringing together the talents of respected West Coast solo rappers Rasco and Planet Asia, both of whom had piled up music awards and critical praise within the hip-hop community, Cali Agents issued their debut album in 2000 with How the West Was Won. The recording, which reflected influences from both coasts, combined the strength of Rasco's powerful delivery with the fluid lyrics of Planet Asia.




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Rasco and Planet Asia, two West Coast MCs who had enjoyed mildly successful and well-respected solo careers, joined forces in 2000 to produce a group much stronger than the sum of its parts. Their individual releases, although technically sound, had been a bit monotonous at times, but as a tag team duo they complement each other perfectly. Rasco plays the part of the grumpy, serious old veteran, scolding those he doesn't approve of, while Planet Asia personifies the younger, wilder side, playing off his partner to include some fun in the mix. Together with a diverse lineup of producers, they create an incredibly simple yet effective sound, combining hard drumbeats with a violin, piano, or guitar sample in a formula heavily influenced by Gang Starr's DJ Premier. Lyrically, the duo tiptoes between pleasing an underground audience highly suspicious of the mainstream and attempting to make a living and enjoy success. Planet Asia sums up the group's approach on "This Is My Life," rhyming, "Not only do we rock fresh gear, but when it comes to hip-hop we're like a breath of fresh air, like yeah!/And just to let y'all side busters know, we rep the underground but still we're out to make dough." Cali Agents craft a surprising debut that strikes a balance between different hip-hop crowds, East and West Coast, underground and above, but manage to maintain their artistic integrity.

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A long-anticipated yet under-the-radar late-2006 release, the Cali Agents' follow-up to their excellent 2000 debut, How the West Was One, presents more decidedly dark, East Coast-flavored production over Rasco and Planet Asia's West Coast flow. Despite its lack of much press, Fire & Ice is a pretty good record, showing off the two MCs' skills on tracks like "The Science," "Bang," and the Stones Throw-esque sounding "Something New." Though California's mainstream hip-hop scene has been lacking some in the past few years, the underground has been very strong and has produced a lot of notable, important artists (Jurassic 5, Madlib, Blackalicious, Del, Ras Kass, just to name a few), and both rappers here have had impressive solo careers. And their collaboration as Cali Agents just shows how strong they, and the West Coast, really are.
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Friday, October 19, 2007

Boot Camp Clik

Boot Camp Clik is a loose congregation featuring similar-minded underground hardcore rappers like Originoo Gunn Clapaz, Cocoa Brovaz, Buckshot, Heltah Skeltah, Bucktown Juveniles, Jahdan, and Illa Noyz, all of whom are concerned about keeping the music real and on a street level. That meant much of the music on their debut, For the People, sounded a little similar; still, this is the very thing that makes Boot Camp Clik appealing to a certain audience. Their second record, The Chosen Few, appeared in 2002, and other followed: The Last Stand (2006), Still for the People (2007), and Casualties of War (2007).
Boot Camp Clik is an American hip hop supergroup from Brooklyn, New York. The group consists of Buckshot (of Black Moon), Smif-N-Wessun, also known as Cocoa Brovaz (Tek and Steele), Heltah Skeltah (Rock and Ruck, aka Sean Price) and O.G.C. (Originoo Gunn Clappaz) (Starang Wondah, Top Dog, and Louieville Sluggah). Though commercial success has largely eluded them, the Camp has gained a large following in the underground rap community. Principally known for their hardcore content, in their later years the group also began adding personal and socially conscious aspects to their lyrics, and were among the first rap acts to infuse elements of Reggae into their music. Buckshot, along with Black Moon, also helped establish the backpacker scene in underground hip hop. The Camp reached the height of their popularity in the mid-90s, with the release of four acclaimed albums, Black Moon's Enta Da Stage, Smif-N-Wessun's Dah Shinin', Heltah Skeltah's Nocturnal, and O.G.C.'s Da Storm. These albums spawned a number of underground rap hits, most notably Black Moon's "Who Got Da Props?" and "I Got Cha Opin (Remix)", Smif-N-Wessun's "Bucktown", "Sound Bwoy Bureill", and "Wrekonize", Heltah Skeltah's "Leflaur Leflah Eshkoshka", "Letha Brainz Blo" and "Operation Lock Down", and O.G.C.'s "No Fear", "Hurricane Starang", and "Danjer". Despite the acclaim of the albums and the minor success of the singles, no Boot Camp affiliated release was able to reach Gold sales status. Following the lukewarm reception for the Camp's first group album For the People, the crew's popularity began declining, eventually leading to a lengthy hiatus from the rap game. Since returning independently in 2002, the Camp has been able to regain their past popularity in underground hip hop with a number of acclaimed underground releases. Since their inception, the Boot Camp has spawned a number of affiliates. The group's earliest affiliate is the production-crew Da Beatminerz, lead by Black Moon's DJ Evil Dee and his older brother Mr. Walt. Da Beatminerz originally produced the majority of the Camp's work, but since 1997, they have taken a backseat to a number of outside producers. Other affiliates include rappers the Representativz (consisting of Supreme and Lidu Rock, the younger brother of Heltah Skeltah's Rock), Illa Noyz (the younger brother of Heltah Skeltah's Sean Price), M.S., LS, BJ Swan, The BTJ's (Bucktown Juveniles), Rustee Juxx, Doc Holiday, Thunderfoot and Lil' Hardcore, Reggae-vocalists Jahdan and Twanie Ranks and R&B-vocalist group F.L.O.W. Though Black Moon is closely connected to the group, members DJ Evil Dee and 5ft are not official members of the Boot Camp Clik.

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The Boot Camp Clik is a bit like a low-rent Wu-Tang Clan. Instead of establishing themselves as a crew before recording an album together, the rappers -- including Heltah Skeltah, Smif-N-Wessun and OGC -- each made solo albums and reunited in 1997 to make For the People. Happily, the group used the opportunity wisely, deciding to forge ahead to new sonic territory. Leaving gangsta rap and standard funk behind as the group abandons their production crew Da Beatminerz, the Boot Camp Clik has created an appealingly off-kilter sound that relies equally on wobbly rhythms, old-school synths and acoustic instruments. There are times that the mix is too dense, particularly when the group tries to get slow and soulful, but For the People is the best thing anyone in the Boot Camp Clik has yet produced.
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Five years after their first full-length, Boot Camp Clik came together again with an LP that finally delivered on the promise that'd kept hip-hop fans hoping for an album to rank with incredible singles from the collective like Black Moon's "How Many Emcees" and Smif-N-Wessun's boot-camp anthem "Bucktown." Featuring the combined talents of members of Black Moon and Cocoa Brovaz (the reincarnated Smif-N-Wessun), plus Originoo Gun Clappaz, The Chosen Few is one of the tightest rap albums of the year. Better yet, it succeeds by keeping it simple: the production, the beats, and the themes -- nearly everything except the rapping. The productions come from a parade of family members (da Beatminerz, Hi-Tek, Coptic) with nothing to prove on their own, instead simply concentrating on constructing tough beats and kinetic tracks. The crew set it off with a pair of openers, "And So" and "Let's Get Down 2 Bizness," that top anything heard on 1997's For the People. From there, Boot Camp Clik cycle through everything that fans could've asked for; a crazy party track ("That's Tough [Little Bit]"), a classic beat-down on "Whoop His Ass," and a rough-and-rugged "Bucktown" sequel ("Welcome to Bucktown U.S.A."). Considering nearly all of them have their own projects on the front burner, it may be awhile for another full LP from Boot Camp Clik, but the collective have left listeners with plenty to keep them happy.

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The Last Stand is the third group album from Hip Hop collective Boot Camp Clik, released on July 18, 2006. The group consists of Black Moon's Buckshot, Smif-N-Wessun's Tek and Steele, Heltah Skeltah's Rock and Sean Price, and O.G.C.'s Starang Wondah, Louieville Sluggah and Top Dog. The album marks the return of Rock, who had left Duck Down Records in 1999 to pursue a solo career.
Popular producers involved in the project include Pete Rock, Da Beatminerz, 9th Wonder and Large Professor.
The first track released from the project was "Trading Places", which was also the first music video from the album. The first official single released was "Yeah", which features "Trading Places" and "Let's Go" as the B-Side.
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Casualties of War is a continuation of the productivity that East Coast underground rap favorites Boot Camp Clik sparked in 2005, when they released a rash of high-quality solo projects (Sean Price's Monkey Barz, Buckshot's Chemistry, Smif-N-Wessun's Reloaded) on Duck Down Records, followed by a couple collective efforts, The Last Stand (2006) and Still for the People (2007). Casualties of War is comparable to recent efforts by the Boot Camp Clik, be they solo or collective: rugged rappers rhyming over hard-hitting beats with simple hooks, without any commercial gloss whatsoever -- no marquee-name guests, nor any hitmaking producers. Whereas The Last Stand had boasted production by classic N.Y.C. beatmakers Da Beatminerz, Pete Rock, and Large Professor, Casualties of War lists a more modest roster: 9th Wonder ("I Need More") and Marco Polo ("My World," "I Want Mine") are the most notable producers on tap this go-round, along with Coptic and Dan the Man, who get multiple credits each. The highlights of Casualties of War come during a standout four-track run that includes "What You See," "BK All Day," "My World," and "I Need More," though the album never hits a dull stretch, wrapping up after a solid 14 tracks in 45 minutes. The title track is another noteworthy highlight, graced with a heartfelt production by Marvel. Casualties of War is another respectable effort from the Boot Camp Clik, one that bodes well for the future of the collective. A dozen years after the founding of Duck Down Records, Buckshot, Sean Price, Tek, Steele, and company seem to have lost very little of their hip-hop spirit. If anything, they've grown into seasoned professionals enjoying a good, steady grind at this moment in time.


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This compilation from the Crooklyn warrior b-boy crew known as Boot Camp Clik contains a cross section of the posse's hits. BCC brought a military attitude and a rough, rumbling sound to the hip-hop table. The sound and feel is the essence of the Boot Camp, largely provided by the production team, the Beatminerz. Two members of the production squad, DJ Evil Dee and Mr. Walt, deployed missile-type beats with a signature bone-snapping snare. On the microphone, Boot Camp soldiers possess the kamikaze philosophy of infantrymen and the skills and wit of generals. Beats and flows are fashioned by the notion of Brooklyn as a treacherous abyss of warfare and gunplay, a proving ground for mental and physical toughness. Black Moon was the first out the gate with the 1993 release of Enta da Stage, an underground favorite that found mild commercial success with the remix of "I Gotcha Opin," which lifted Barry White's "Playing Your Game, Baby" effortlessly. Enta da Stage introduced the focal member and mastermind of the crew, Buckshot the B.D.I. In late 1993, the next battalion, Smif N' Wessun (later incarnated as the Cocoa Brovaz), dropped "Bucktown," the anthem for the Camp, and their blistering debut, Dah Shining, followed shortly thereafter in 1994. Heltah Skeltah and O.G.C. teamed up as the Fab Five in 1995 with "Lefleur Leflah" to take BCC into a newer, funkier direction. These two platoons followed in the footsteps of their Boot Camp predecessors laying further claim to the Brooklyn battlefield. Heltah Skeltah's debut Nocturnal and O.G.C.'s debut Da Storm took the Boot Camp back to the basement. With the heartbeat of Brooklyn beating within them, BCC is a unified collective that invented a rugged sound.
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Special Request!


Guerilla Black - God Bless The Child
Label..........: n/a
Source.........: CDDA
Genre..........: Rap
Size...........: 51,1 MB
Rip Date.......: Sep-15-2007
Artist Info....: n/a
Release Date...: Sep-18-2007
Quality........: LAME 3.97 V2

01. Genesis 02:24
02. Thank You (God Bless The Child) (feat. Janet) 04:37
03. The Streets (feat. Chris Jones) 04:34
04. Whatever 03:58
05. She Wanna Baller 03:13
06. Put Yo Hands Up 03:26
07. I Know 04:14
08. The Life (feat. Lejohn) 03:30
09. U Do U 04:05
10. Pour Me A Drank 03:08
11. Round & Round 04:06
12. Revalations 02:24
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Thursday, October 11, 2007

Bahamadia (Antonia Reed)

Bahamadia rose to prominence on the hip-hop scene as the female protégée of Gang Starr's Guru, and lent her smooth-flowing raps to a variety of projects during the late '90s, including several electronica and acid jazz artists. Born Antonia Reed in Philadelphia, Bahamadia started out DJing at local house parties in the early to mid-'80s, and soon stepped out front to prove her skill on the mic as well. She remained a presence on the Philly hip-hop scene, but didn't make her first recordings until hooking up with producer/radio personality DJ Ran, who helmed her independent 1993 single "Funk Vibe." "Funk Vibe" caught the attention of Gang Starr MC Guru, who took an interest in Bahamadia's career and helped her get a record deal with Chrysalis. Her first singles, 1994's "Total Wreck" and 1995's "Uknowhowwedu," were well-received in the underground for their jazzy flavor and laid-back raps. She also appeared on the second volume of Guru's acclaimed Jazzmatazz project. The full-length LP Kollage followed in 1996, and featured production by both Guru and DJ Premier of Gang Starr, as well as fellow Philly natives the Roots.Unfortunately, Chrysalis folded a year later, and Bahamadia chose to wait out her contract before resuming her solo career. In the meantime, she made a string of musically adventurous guest appearances that solidified her underground reputation: the Roots (Illadelph Halflife's "Push up Ya Lighter"), Sweetback (Sade's backing band), drum'n'bass auteur Roni Size (the title track of the landmark New Forms), Towa Tei, acid jazzers the Brand New Heavies, the Herbaliser, trip-hoppers Morcheeba ("Good Girl Down"), Rah Digga, Slum Village, and Talib Kweli's Reflection Eternal (their collaboration, "Chaos," appeared on the seminal Rawkus compilation Soundbombing, Vol. 2). She also hosted a hip-hop radio show in Philadelphia from 1997-1999. In 2000, she signed with the L.A.-based indie Goodvibe and released the chilled-out seven-track EP BB Queen (as in "beautiful black"), which received excellent reviews.
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Bahamadia - Kollage (Mar 19, 1996: Chrysalis)
Bahamadia's debut album, Kollage, is an underrated, jazzy affair paced by some nifty production and the MC's own dryly gentle delivery. Despite her laid-back, even deliberate flow, she has a confident, upfront presence on the mic, with strong rhyming skills and a fondness for old-school wordplay (as demonstrated on, naturally, "Wordplay"). Being a protégée of Gang Starr and a native of Philadelphia, she gets production help from the former's DJ Premier and Guru, as well as the latter's Roots. The music often recalls both of those artists, as well as the unassuming, low-key ambience of Digable Planets. But there's also often a dreamier quality than any of those groups, thanks to some spacy keyboards and fusion samples, and some R&B elements as well, most notably on the excellent single "I Confess." Other highlights include her two early singles, "Total Wreck" and "Uknowhowwedu," and the quietly shimmering "Spontaneity." Kollage isn't hugely varied, but it is fairly consistent, and fans of intellectual bohemian hip-hop will find this album very good at what it does.
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After a four-year exodus, Bahamadia couldn't have picked a more opportune time to reintroduce herself to the hip-hop masses. After all, the female MC arena changed considerably after the Philly native dropped her 1996 debut, Kollage. Injecting some much-needed class back into the female ranks, Bahamadia transcends the common denominator (sexuality and gold digging) of her scantily clad colleagues. Though she returns without the aid of DJ Premier, the hypnotic lounge music of Jay Dee's soulful apprentices Kwele and EQ enables Bahmadia's subtle flow more of an opportunity to truly flourish. Her eternal optimism is defined by the sublime "Beautiful Things," a wonderfully crafted track that reminds us to appreciate the simple things we often take for granted. Just as refreshing is the red-tag anthem, "Commonwealth (Cheap Chicks)," a track dedicated to the thrift-store honeys that try to stay with it while rocking discounted gear.
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Friday, October 05, 2007

Rapaholic™ Present Exclusive: NYGz - Welcome 2 G-Dom (2007)


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Large Professor (William Paul Mitchell)

Widely known initially for his work as a producer and MC with the rap group Main Source, Large Professor soon after became a full-time producer working with such acts as Big Daddy Kane and A Tribe Called Quest. Professor originally became involved in rap when he won a tryout held by Main Source members K-Cut and Sir Scratch in 1989. Contributing significantly to the creative direction of the group, Professor eventually broke with Main Source over creative differences . He then lent his hand to albums by some of rap's biggest names, including Eric B. & Rakim, Nas, and Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth. For his full-length solo debut, 2002's 1st Class, Large Professor called in favors from friends including Nas, Q-Tip, and Busta Rhymes.



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He was programming beats and producing records for hip-hop legends while still a teenager, but Large Professor waited nearly a decade to put out his own album. If 1st Class isn't as exciting as any of his outside productions (which are simply begging for a greatest-shots collection), it's because LP tries to handle nearly everything himself. The album's five tracks in before we finally hear a guest, and it's a long wait — Large Professor doesn't have much to say on a track like "Brand New Sound" (with his beats or his rhymes), and he repeats the title enough to make it sound more like desperation than defiance. A three-track spate of features finds him trading some tough rhymes with Nas, Akinyele, and Q-Tip, though here Q-Tip is basically reduced to freestyling over the choruses. Large Professor gets back to boasting with "Born to Ball," but he doesn't prove up to the task. Either more space for guests, or a little more time in the studio would've resulted in a better effort than this half-baked record.
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Recording Date 1992-1993. In a just world, a review of this album would have been simply about the music. Instead, this is a story riddled with tales of record-label politics, high expectations, poorly pressed bootlegs, and careers put on hold. In 1993 Large Professor made an appearance as a guest MC on A Tribe Called Quest's "Keep It Rollin'," a track he produced for their Midnight Marauders album. The last line of his verse, "buy the album when I drop it," has since become a classic of golden-era New York rap. Unfortunately, it was for the wrong reasons. As it turns out, the world would have to wait another nine years for a proper full-length solo debut, 2002's 1st Class. It wasn't for a lack of effort, though. In 1996 Geffen released two Large Professor 12" singles ("IJUSWANNACHILL" and "The Mad Scientist") in anticipation of his then-forthcoming album. After a number of delays and disagreements about the album's "outdated" vibe, Geffen dropped the project, leaving it to collect dust in the label's vaults for seven years. Fortunately, Large Professor reacquired the rights to the recordings in 2002, resulting in a limited promo-only CD pressing. Fans familiar with the singles should already know what to expect here, especially since five of the album's 12 tracks were spread among the two 12"s. From a production standpoint, the sound is similar to that heard on Pro's previous full-length, Main Source's Breaking Atoms, though in a more stripped-down and mid-'90s manner. Among the highlights are the two singles, the hazy organ loop of "Hungry," and the flat-out stunning Nas collabo, "One on One." Remember, Nas was fresh from his classic debut, Illmatic, when he recorded this track, so fans that felt a little disillusioned by his later, ghetto-fabulous leanings owe it to themselves to check this track out. All said, Large Professor was never flooded with consistently interesting lyrics — and there are some flat moments here — but they never get in the way of the consistently high-quality production. A lost treasure.

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