JayeL Audio

I probably shouldn’t even list these as “top hip-hop tracks” because I really haven’t heard everything in the world of hip-hop this year. Drake caused every rapper to want to do a decent mixtape, or put out a song a week or whatever. There were a lot of new artists in the rap game this year. Some were covered here, but I’ve missed a lot I’m sure. These are my favorites of the mass amounts of hip-hop/rap I did hear though. Feel free to let me know what I missed (again, apologies to Brother Ali and Wale).

13. Asher Roth – As I Em
You knew Mr. Roth would get the inevitbale Marshall Mathers comparisons just by looking at him. Then you hear the similar tone of voice and multiply the correlations by 1000. Either way, “I Love College” aside, I believe Asher Roth can spit. “As I Em” addresses the elephant in the room directly with poignancy and head-nodding manner. The Chester French feature was a nice touch as well.

12. Drake – Uptown ft Bun B & Lil’ Wayne
Was there a grimier beat than this in hip-hop in ’09? I’m not sure there was. The southern bounce that emitted from “Uptown” was part Houston screw and part New Orleans bayoo, so its only fitting that Lil’ Wayne and Bun B help out newcomer Drake. Plenty of quotables here, but my favorite might be from Bun B: “I wrote this on my iPhone/so let me drop this ibomb, I palm/The game like it’s a spalding ball and take flight/From the free-throw line and slam it down like I’m the great Mike.”

11. Killer Mike – I’m A Fool
This might be a little biased based hearing this song at that start of my first summer in Atlanta. But there is something about driving thru Mid-town at night while listening to this bass heavy track. Killer Mike (or whatever hes called these days) might never be one of my favorite emcees, but he and Big Kuntry King drop slick, down south flavored rhymes on Nard & B’s grimy production.

10. Cam’Ron – I Hate My Job
I can’t believe that there will be 2 Cam’Ron appearances on this list, but my distaste for Mr. Giles was at an all time low in 2009. “I Hate My Job” showcased one of Harlem’s finest doing what he does best, spitting stories via stuttering and off the wall bars. Its kind of interesting to hear an emcee make a modern day hip-hop song for the working man. Troubles include background checks, lunch breaks and money troubles over a fitting piano-filled backing.

9. Drake – Forever ft Lil’ Wayne, Kanye West and Eminem
“Last name Greatest, first name ever”. I don’t know about that, but the best posse cut of 2009 came from Drake and co. I still say Eminem had the best verse. Why Relapse didn’t sound anything like the Marshall Mathers we heard here is beyond me.

7. Kyle Lucas & Captain Midnite – Here Today, Gone Tomorrow
Reason #5,087 that we need a Kyle Lucas solo LP. The lyrics on the most of the I Brought Dead Flowers To A Funeral EP sound heartfelt and emotion-filled, but this track might have the most pain attached. My appreciation for Captain Midnite‘s production also skyrocketed based of this song alone.

7. Mos Def – Auditorium ft Slick Rick
Its been awhile since I’ve heard anything memorable from the three parties involved: Mos Def, Slick Rick and Madlib. All three sound on point on this effort. Mos Def gives educated street poetry, while Slick Rick narrates the story of a soldier’s encounter with a local Iraqi bring two different views of the street together. Madlib’s shadow-filled beat is the perfect stage for these two artists’ wordplay.

6. Clipse – Popular Demand (Popeyes) ft Cam’ron
Its amazing how Pharrell can go from producing pop hits to some of the grittiest hip-hop tracks you’ll ever hear. Like I said before, “Popular Demand” sounds like a more polished “Grindin’”. Almost as if the accomplished hustlers came back to the block just to show that they made it. Even Cam’ron’s crazy ass gets in some slick lines with a retarded flow on this bass heavy track.

5. Royce Da 5’9″ – Shake This
DJ Premier and Royce Da 5’9″ link up again in masterful fashion. “Shake This” takes you through the rise, fall and re-birth of Mr. Nickel Nine. From birth to problems in Detroit to an unexpected jail sentence for DUI to a graphic and sometimes reflective 1st day out of the pen. Royce’s lyrcisms seems even more poignant over Preemo’s knack for digging in the soul crates.

4. Kid Cudi – Pursuit Of Happiness ft MGMT & Ratatat
When I saw “featuring MGMT and Ratatat” on the tracklisting for Man On The Moon: End of Day, I knew what would be one of my fav. songs of the year. Cudi party anthem lyrics sound celebratory on a first listen, but there is also anxious and leery words that most likely mirror his true worries about solitude with new fame. Ratatat’s moody production and brooding guitar punctuate the emotional tension of the track. There is defintely something for hip-hop and indie fans to like on this cut.

3. K-OS – 4,3,2,1
I couldn’t stop listening to “4,3,2,1″ when I first heard it. It subtly crept into my mind more times than I could count. Just uttering those numbers backward brought on the eerie voice sample, the scratching and midtempo bouncing beat. Thats not even counting K-OS’s stellar lyrics (first verse about a troubled relationship, second verse questions more violent encounters). I still don’t know why this guys hasn’t blown up worldwide.

2. Raekwon – House of Flying Daggers ft Inspectah Deck, Ghostface Killah and Method Man
Vintage Wu Tang cut that sounds like a a session from Enter the 36 Chambers. Everybody sounds focused on this JDilla produced beat (even Inspectah Deck!), but the way Ghostface destroys it sticks out in my mind.

1. Big Boi – Shine Blockas ft Gucci Mane
There is always someone who comes along and shakes up bloggers’ end of the year lists with a Q4 release. This year it was Big Boi’s turn. Much like “International Player’s Anthem” sold me on a soul-sample used to perfection in ’07, “Shine Blockas” did the same in ’09 (via Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes “I Miss You”). Now if we could just get his solo LP to drop, I’d be fine with re-organizing my best of hip-hop albums lists.

You’ll notice Kid Cudi and K’Naan made both lists, but couldn’t land the top spot here because Raekwon stuck to his hip-hop roots. As an overall album, I like Cudi’s better, but Raekwon owned this list from a hip-hop perspective.

5. Drake – So Far Gone Mixtape
Arguably one of the most successful mixtapes in the past few years, Drake earned radio play (“Best I Ever Had”) and a deal with So Far Gone. Having some high profile guests like Lil’ Wayne, Trey Songz and Bun B certainly helped, but Drake holds his own. On tracks like the grimy “Uptown” and hopeful “Successful”, I often hit rewind to dissect the many metaphors/similes Drake spits. He also has an ear for indie beats when ripping thru Santigold’s “Unstoppable” and coolly utilizes his sing/rap flow on Lykke Li’s “Little Bit”. Even bonus track “Congratulations” is worth a celebration with Coldplay sample and freestyle-eque flow.

4. Clipse – Til The Casket Drops
Grimiest twin brothers in the rap game come back with another gem of an album, no surprise there. The real surprise is Pharrell letting Clipse branch out with producers like Sean C & LV and No ID with great success (see “Kinda Like A Big Deal”, “Freedom”). Pharrell still manages to make the duo shine best on his beats though. “Popular Demand (Popeyes)” sounds like a more polished hustler’s anthem a la “Grindin’”, while “Champion” has confidence the duo have earned. They even churn out a solid party jam with the help of Ms. Keri Hilson on “All Eyes On Me”.

3. Jay-Z – The Blueprint 3
For the record, I’m a fan of Kingdom Come and American Gangster…but Blueprint 3 is the Shawn Carter I’d rather hear. There isn’t much not to love on Jay-Z’s 11th studio album: 1)Great guest appearances from Kid Cudi (“Already Home”), Alicia Keys (“Empire State of Mind”), Rihanna & Kanye (“Run This Town”). 2)Sound production from Timbaland (3 tracks), Pharell, Kanye (6 tracks) and No ID (5 tracks). 3)Typical and underappreciated wordplay (see “The Reminder”, “D.O.A”). My current favorites include the mockingly boastful “Thank You”, the elder statesman chatter over Timbo’s menacing beat on “The Reminder” and the slick “Already Home”. Its hilarious how he jabs at the “camel” reference:

Now these n-gga’s is mad, oh they call me a Camel
But I mastered the drought, what the fuck i’m an animal
Half-man half-mammal

2. Kid Cudi – Man On The Moon: The End Of Day
Like I said at the top, this album leans in all directions, not just hip-hop. Kanye West basically blew the doors off what is traditionally hip-hop with 808′s and its nice to see someone else carry the torch that might bring hip-hop in new directions. Man On The Moon: The End Of Day takes listeners on a trip through the mind of Scott Mescudi. The musical flow is about as moody as Cudi’s recent exploits, rants and indecision…in a good way. Party mode is in full effect on “Cudi Zone”, “Poke Her Face” and “Enter Galactic”, while other tracks range from menacing (“Solo Dolo”) to trippy (“Alive”) to problematic (“Soundtrack to My Life”). Ratatat has been known for crafting great instrumentals, but their production on “Alive” and “Pursuit of Happiness” truly shines. I’m not sure what you call the guitar sound their production emits, but I can’t get enough of it. The album ends on a hopeful note with the bouncy “Up Up and Away” capped with narration by Common that says “The end is never the end, a new challenge awaits”. Hopefully, Cudi’s next challenge takes shape of a new album in 2010.

1. Raekwon – Only Built For Cuban Linx II
The Chef made exactly the album that Wu Tang fans have been salivating over for years. The mafioso/hustlin’ stories and grimy, dark and cypher ready beats make Only Built For Cuban Linx II sound like it was released not long after the original. JDilla posthumously produced some of the album’s best tracks in “House of Flying Daggers” and “10 Bricks”. Many people were hoping for the much talked about Dr. Dre produced album and the lone Dre-helmed track “Catalina”, will probably have fans asking for more. Raekwon utilizes a laid-back flow that combined with Lyfe Jenning’s hook and a dark piano sounds downright epic. The Alchemist-laced “Surgical Gloves” is quickly becoming an underground favorite as Rae tells of fearless schemes and hustles amid the stuttering beat. I’d certainly like to hear those “8 million stories” he speaks of.

Top Hip Hop Albums #10 to #6

So yea, I like this song.

Back from sunny Puerto Vallarta, it looks like I have some catching up to do. I’ll be rolling out some annual “best of ’09″ lists over the next 2-3 weeks. Until then, below are a few items worth noting, before I head to frigid Michigan for a few days.

-Retro-pop band The Dutchess and Duke played at the Earl last week. They also played an in-store at Decatur CD. Check the video for the great “Back To Me”. Visuals captured by Creative Outlet Productions.

-Largehearted Boy has been busy compiling year end lists from everywhere across the internetz. My favorite is always his own “Favorite Novels of the Year” post. I’ve found a lot of great books via his site and hopefully you will too. I can thank him for turning me on to Josh Bazell’s Beat the Reaper earlier this year.

-I included Macklemore and Ryan Lewis‘ drinking anthem, “Irish Celebration” on The Nark Before Christmas. Turns out, they just released a solid EP. Download it free below.
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – The VS. EP

-I’m not sure how much more I can praise Passion Pit‘s “Sleephead”, but The Hood Internet did what they do best: pair indie pop gems that work so well with hip-hop jams. Even a Juvenile hit that I’ve been sick of since high school.
The Hood Internet – Back That Sleepyhead Up (Passion Pit vs Juvenile)

-If the only reason you watch Jimmy Fallon is to hear the best band in late night, The Roots, then you must love their jam sessions before commercial breaks. The “sandwiches” as Questlove calls them, have been compiled into a mixtape of sorts.
The Roots – Late Night W/Jimmy Fallon Sandwiches EP (via 2dopeboyz)

-Everything I’ve heard from Yeasayer‘s upcoming album, Odd Blood has sounded great. It doesn’t drop until Feb, but Jasper at Eat This City thinks you may be able to find it early. Also, the band is embarking on a tour with a $15 stop at The Masquerade on April 6th.

-I haven’t spoke enough about Detroit’s Mayer Hawthorne on this site, but he is building a solid underground following with his retro soul album A Strange Arrangement. Definitely check out the great interview Thomas Matich of Deep Cutz had with Mr. Hawthorne here.

-Also, Kyle Lucas and Simon Illa turn a Mike Posner song that I wasn’t too fond of into a remix I can support.
Mike Posner – Red Button (remix) ft Kyle Lucas

More coming soon…

Back by popular demand, a new hip-hop/rap mixtape just in time for the Holidays. This is probably the most geographically diverse Nark I’ve made to date. The South offers up some street-drama and posse cuts via Bobby Ray aka B.o.B. (“I Feed These Streets”), Spree Wilson (“WORD”), The Clipse (“Popular Demand”) and DJ Khaled w/Usher, Young Jeezy and Rick Ross (“Fed Up”). Oh and a couple Cash Money appearances (“Mo Milly”, “On Fire”). Midwest hip-hoppers including Kidz In The Hall, Chip Tha Ripper and the entire G.O.O.D. music label come with indie-rock samples (“The Grizzly Man” and “Cudderisback”), a mixtape banger (“Get Down”) and a high-powered remix (“Whatever U Want” remix). The Northeast/NYC comes thru per the usual with diversity (“All Things Go”, “Humdrum Town”, “Irish Celebration”), 2 unreleased Wale cuts and a classic DJ Premier production (“Ready”).
The West Coast probably has the best representation with some surprisingly strong Snoop Dogg tracks and welcome comeback bids by Xzibit and Game. At this point, Xzibit and Snoop might have two of the slickest beats on the entire mixtape with Scoop DeVille‘s production on “Hurt Locker” and “I Wanna Rock”.

The Nark Before Christmas http://www.sendspace.com/file/h4d6re
1. Bobby Ray aka B.o.B. – I Feed These Streets
2. The Clipse – Popular Demand ft Pharrell & Cam’Ron
3. Wale – Letter ft John Mayer
4. Snoop Dogg – I Wanna Rock
5. 50 Cent – Psycho ft Eminem
6. Chiddy Bang – All Things Go
7. Obie Trice – Got Hungry
8. Spree Wilson – WORD!
9. Chip Tha Ripper – Get Down
10. NYGz – Ready?
11. Xzibit – Hurt Locker
12. Kidz In The Hall – The Grizzly Man (samples Grizzly Bear’s “Two Weeks”)
13. DJ Khaled – Fed Up ft Lil’ Wayne, Usher, Drake, Young Jeezy & Rick Ross
14. Wale – Beast (prod. by 9th Wonder)
15. Consequence – Whatever U Want (G.O.O.D. Music remix) ft Kanye West, Common, John Legend, Kid Cudi
16. Snoop Dogg – Upside Down ft Nipsey Hu$$le and Problem
17. Birdman – Mo Milly ft Drake & Bun B
18. Lil’ Wayne – On Fire
19. Game – Turn Off The Lights
20. Kid Cudi – Cudderisback (freestyle over Vampire Weekend’s “Ottoman”)
21. Theophilus London – Humdrum Town (samples Futurecop!)
22. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – Irish Celebration
This last track could probably have ended up on the next JayeL Audio mixtape, but I didn’t want to wait.

Bonus Tracks:
Bobby Ray aka B.o.B. – Nothing On You ft Bruno Mars
Kidz In The Hall – All Night ft Marsha Ambrosius

Artwork by Logan Groulx.
Comments are welcome and appreciated below.

Well, if you haven’t downloaded these rap/hip-hop mixtapes because they were too hip-hop or ghetto, Nark Trek might be your thing.  This is probably the pop-iest (not a real word, I know) Nark, I’ve made in years.  Thats alright though, as long as summer-time music has good beats, I’ll sacrifice lyrical quality.  For better or worse, its what I’ve been listening to in hip-hop for the past 2 months.

Nark Trek is all about hip-hop/R&B/pop pairings.  Some unlikely (“She’s A Killer”, “Bang Bang”), some reunited (“I’m The Shit”, “Look Up In Da Sky”) and some we’ve waited too long for (“Kinda Like A Big Deal”).  On the white rapper front, we have one of the few The Streets tracks I like and an Eminem bonus track that is better than 90% of Relapse.  And if you didn’t catch Drake (“Uptown”, “Best I Ever Had”) awhile back, you really have no excuse now.  At least you’ll be able to say you knew he was before he had a video on MTV, right?

Download.  Enjoy.Leave a comment.

Nark Trek http://www.sendspace.com/file/rrxvzr
1. DJ Class – I’m The Shit remix ft Kanye West & Estelle
2. Playaz Circle – Big Dawg ft Lil’ Wayne
3. Chiddy Bang – Kids (MGMT remix)
4. The Streets – Trust Me
5. Drake – Best I Ever Had
6. KiD CuDi – Look Up In Da Stars ft Wale
7. The Game – Bang Along
8. Big Sean – Tomorrow
9. Fabolous – Its My Time ft Jermih
10. Ghostface Killah – She’s A Killer ft Ron Browz
11. Clipse – Kinda Like A Big Deal ft Kanye West
12. Drama – A-Town ft T.I., Young Dro, Sean Paul & Lonnie Mac
13. Wyclef – More Bottles ft Timbaland
14. Juelz Santana – Days of Our Lives
15. KiD CuDi – Poke Her Face ft Kanye West, Common & Lady Gaga
16. Fabolous – Throw It In The Bag ft The Dream
17. k’naan – Bang Bang ft Adam Levine
18. T.I. – Remember Me ft Mary J. Blige
19. Eminem – Careful What You Wish For
20. Drake – Uptown ft Bun B & Lil’ Wayne

Bonus Track: Ludacris – 285 (Drinkin’ & Drivin’) ft Young Jeezy (demo)
I couldn’t put this track on the mixtape, since its a demo, but its gonna be a solid summer song. I can’t support the topic (nor do I want to see it when I’m on I-285), but the beat is slick. Luda better hurry up and release it.

Thanks to 2DopeBoyz, Nah Right, HotNewHip-Hop & Mixtape Maestro.

“I guess I’m like the black Marshall meets Jay” – Kanye West

Of course, this dream hip-hop pairing drops while I’m at work with no headphones.  5:30 couldn’t come fast enough.  There are numerous quotables on this fiery track, not to mention the sly production by DJ Khalil.  And for those that were wondering if Kanye would drop AutoTune and get back to rapping…the answer is a emphatic yes.

Til The Casket Drops doesn’t have a release date yet (supposedly summer), but hopefully the heat this track is gonna cause will push it up.  Pardon me I must say, a “big deal” indeed.

Clipse – Kinda Like A Big Deal ft Kanye West (prod. DJ Khalil)

Thanks to 2dopeboyz as usual.

Now that 2008 is settled.  Lets move on.  One of the many tracks that caught my ear so far this year comes from New Villager.  They are a talented duo (Ben Bromley and Ross Simonini) from Brooklyn, NY/California…other than that, that’s all I can tell you.  Their label, Two Syllable Records, mentions some randomness about a mythological character transformation, but they sound like an intriguing experimental dance/electronic band to me.  Their track “Rich Doors “, enters 2009 with booming drums, a catchy hook and enough space-age sounds to make Pharrell and Chad jealous.  I foresee a Hood Internet helmed Clipse mash-up in the future.

New Villager – Rich Doors

Thanks to My Old Kentucky Blog for turning me on to another great band.

Buy New Villager – Rich Doors “7 single here