“Bone Thugs-N-Harmony – Fixtape Volume 3: Special Delivery – released by BTNHboard.com Everyone rep the hell out of Silent Killa for getting this download online as fast as possible (which due to a number of things wasn’t as fast as we hoped).”

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OK, so here’s what happened…

I first saw an ad for Bone Thugs N Harmony in the July ‘94 issue of The Source. Didn’t think much of it, because I figured that just like every other act Eazy-E was putting out around that time, they sucked and would be nonexistent by the next year. Ruthless Records was a quickly sinking ship by then, and was mostly leaning on Eazy’s own sinking popularity. So to me, this group here was likely nothing to get amped about.

So about three months later, “Thuggish Ruggish Bone” is all over the place. Everybody at school is singin’ the shit, they’re my younger brother’s favorite group in the world, and I’m just kinda “not sure” about it. It was different from anything else I knew about back then. No other artists I listened to at the time had beats that slow or rapped that fast. I kinda liked it, but I just didn’t “get it”. Then, I caught the video and I understood their angle a lil’ more. By the end of the year, my brother let me get a copy of the Creepin’ On Ah Come Up EP, and I was fukkin’ with ‘em all day.

BTNH is one of those examples of how some artists come out and they’re so different, they stand out immediately and everyone either loves it or hates it. I knew some people who didn’t like it, and of course thought it wasn’t “real hip-hop” or whatever-have-you. But once I heard that EP, I was sold. From “Thuggish Ruggish…” to “No Surrender” to “Foe Tha Love Of $”, I rocked with the whole shit (short as it was).

Out of nowhere,  Eazy died in early-’95. That was a point at which things really coulda gone in disarray for them, but they stayed on course. They kept rollin’ with E. 1999 Eternal and videos like “1st Of Tha Month”, which was on TV every 10 minutes that summer without fail. But the video that really drove me up and down the wall was “Crossroads” when it hit in ‘96. There was a point where it would literally be coming on or going off almost every time I turned to The Box, BET, or MTV. I liked it, but it took me  a few years to really appreciate it after all that. But I guess that’s the mark of a real hit, because that shit was inescapable.

After “Crossroads”, BTNH was bigger than they’d ever been. All kinds of artists were getting signed by proxy, including a whole gang of weed carriers under the name of Mo Thugs Family. Then, there were groups inside of that also getting signed, like Poetic Hustlaz, Graveyard Shift, and II Tru. To Bone’s credit, they were just that big of a group to warrant the kind of mass production that went on. On the bad side of it, the Bone brand wore itself kinda thin with these acts, because they weren’t able to deliver music on the level of what BTNH was known for. Still, they were able to maintain their status, even as the music started changing.

When the ’90s came to a close, their popularity took a dip, but there’s a lot of people who never stopped being loyal to them and their music. My brother happened to find himself out in the Midwest by some uhh… circumstance… a few years back, and told me that there was still a BTNH fanbase that’s very much alive. Even more surprising was that they had a resurgence of sorts a couple years back with their album Strength & Loyalty. While they’ve gone through a lot of issues (departing members, label disputes, changing tastes, etc.), Bone Thugs N Harmony is still here.

Today, they’ve reunited in full (Bizzy, Krayzie, Layzie, Wish, and Flesh) and are dropping their NINTH official album in 2010. With credit to Twista and others, they were the first to really bring the Midwest style to the forefront and had everybody from Tupac to Mariah Carey feelin’ it. There was some debate as to whether or not they originated what was known as their style, but without doubt, the Bone Thugs sound influenced a lot that followed.

“Thuggish Ruggish Bone” (1994)

“Foe Tha Love Of $” (feat. Eazy-E) (1994)

“No Surrender” (1994)

“1st Of Tha Month” (1995)

“Tha Crossroads (Remix)” (1996)

“Thug Luv” (feat. 2Pac) (1997)

Notorious B.I.G. feat. Bone Thugs “Notorious Thugs” (1997)

Mariah Carey feat. Bone Thugs “Breakdown” (1997)

Bizzy Bone “Thugz Cry” (1998)

Krayzie Bone “Thug Mentality” (1999)

-D!

So I finally got around to this list. These are my top 100 songs. They aren’t influenced by any album reviews and experts’ picks – they’re just my personal favorite 100 songs.

#100: Katy Perry Hot N Cold

#99: Gabriel & Dresden Tracking Treasure Down

#98: Bone Thugs-N-Harmony Look Into My Eyes

#97: Within Temptation w/ Keith Caputo What Have You Done?

#96: Nightingale Alonely

#95: Dragonforce Through The Fire And Flames

#94: Disturbed Down With The Sickness

#93: Boston More Than A Feeling

#92: Blue Man Group w/ Gavin Rossdale The Current

#91: AudioVENT The Energy

Bone Thugs-N-Harmony ft Jay Shine & Lyfe Jennings – See me shine

Je pense que c’est le single du prochain album Uni5. Si tel est le cas le groupe aurait dû prendre un autre beat, par contre avec un vidéo et un “airplay” constant je suis certain que je vais me prendre à fredonner l’air…Damn!

1st of tha Month

Not too many artists or producers can say they were part of Prince’s entourage, got fired, and went on to do better things in their careers. Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis are two of the very few. After being ousted from The Time in ‘83, they went on about their business and ended up being one of the greatest production teams in R&B & Pop music. They’re largely credited with popularizing the use of the 808 (which is still used by producers today), and they’re also notable for changing the sound of ’80s R&B not once, but twice during their run.

Even if you don’t recognize their names, either you or your moms loves something they did. Whether it’s New Edition’s “If It Isn’t Love”, Mary J. Blige’s “Everything”, Human League’s “Human”, Cherrelle’s “Saturday Love”, Jordan Knight’s “Give It To You”, or damn near all of Janet Jackson’s hits- you’ve heard a Jam & Lewis track before. As fate would have it, so did a lot of hip-hop artists and producers. Despite having to cough up a GRIP to use the samples, a lot of ‘em just couldn’t help themselves. Here’s a few:

Bone Thugs N Harmony “Dayz Of Our Livez” (1996) sampled Force MD’s “Tender Love” (1985) AND Herb Alpert feat. Janet Jackson & Lisa Keith “Making Love In The Rain” (1987): I don’t know if this was some kinda “two for the price of one” deal or they just said “fukkit, what’s another $12,000?” but BTNH and their producer DJ U-Neek went mega-hard and sampled TWO of (in my opinion) Jam & Lewis’ best. The result was one of the best and most loved songs in the Thugs’ own catalog, so all was not lost.

The Firm “Hardcore” (1997) sampled Cheryl Lynn “Encore” (1984): If there was ever an album that looked good on paper, but was “blah” in stereo… but that’s a story for another day. Here, one of ’84’s most memorable gets lifted for one of ’97’s most forgettable, as Nas & Foxy Brown trade verses over Cheryl Lynn’s Jam & Lewis-produced hit. Meanwhile, AZ and Nature twiddle their thumbs, wondering why this Firm album is turnin’ out to be so half-assed.

Camp Lo “Coolie High” (1995) sampled Janet Jackson “Funny How Time Flies” (1986): Camp Lo, enthusiasts of all things ’70s, still took time out of their days to listen to some ’80s music. Case in point: Janet Jackson’s Control album, the one that made it happen for her. Producer Ski aspires to make it happen for the Lo by sampling the album’s closer, “Funny How Time Flies”. I still don’t really know what this song is about, but hell if it ain’t somethin’ kinda slick anyway.

Maxwell “Ascension (Remix)” (1996) sampled S.O.S. Band “No One’s Gonna Love You” (1984): Back in ‘96, I thought I was diggin’ Maxwell’s “Ascension (Don’t Ever Wonder)” already… but I hadn’t heard shit yet. With the late J Dilla on the track, Max remixes it with a sample of one of my favorite Jam & Lewis productions, “No One’s Gonna Love You”. Actually, “No One’s…” had been used a few times prior (Foxy, Spice 1, Dru Down, etc.), but this was really the only song that did it justice.

NEXT MONTH: I know I said this last time, right… but next time, The ’90s Loved The ’80s will cover all the “Between The Sheets” madness of the early-’90s.

-D!

Alright y’all, Death of Auto-tune is true, it’s all about sampling, I am feeling sampled songs.

1. Jason Derulo – Whatcha Say – Sampled Imogen Heap and Frou Frou, thats pretty ballin’

2. Bone Thugs n Harmony – Wind Blow (Fleetwood Mac Bossy-ness)

3. Jay -Z Forever Young – I know I’ve mentioned this song about 8 times, but its awesome

4. Chamillionare – Industry Groupie (Final Countdown – Europe, ITS THE FINAL COUNTDOWN!)

5. Kid Cudi – The Prayer (Band of Horses the Funeral rocks by itself)

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE SAMPLED SONGS? COMMENT BELOW

It’s time to bring some education to the masses. If you don’t know about BTNH, i suggest you take a trip back to the 90s. The Midwest legends go in over Hov’s “Death of Autotune”.

Download: Bone Thugs-N-Harmony – D.O.A.

Time for this week’s “Let’s Play Catch Up”.  New music from Lil Wayne, Bone Thugs, Add-2, J Rocwell and the list goes on. Hit the jump for your only chance to re-live the dopeness of this past week.

Add-2- August 28th

Black Milk – In the A.M.

Bone Thugs n Harmony feat Will.I.Am – Patron

Fly Union – Value Pack 2 (Mixtape)

Grynch – Bar Time

Horse Shoe Gang – Boi

J. Rockwell x Kings of Leon – Somebody

Jack Splash feat Lupe Fiasco – Flashback

Jaz-O feat The Game – Gangsta’s Ride

John Legend feat Ludacris and Estelle – All Night Long

Lil Wayne  – Soo Wop

Lil Wayne – I Get It In

Lil Wayne – Bad

Mayer Hawthorne -  Your Lovin Ain’t Pleasin Nothin

Mr Hudson – Supernova (Live with a String Quartet)

Naledge feat Jay Electronica – Cool, Relax (Original Mix)

Nero and Donny Goines – My Poetry

Really Doe – RPS

Rock City – D.O.B.  (Death of Bullshit)

Wale – My Sweetie

XV feat TiRon – To Do List

Yung Nate and Charles Hamilton – Take You To The Top

Bone Thugs is the real. E1999 is (by my standards) one of the greatest rap albums of all time. Art of War is a little softer but this track is a standout. I love the vibe it puts out. So sit back and let this thug shit clog up yo mind.

Bone Thugs – Clog Up Yo Mind

So yeah… ‘95 was a great year. YOU see the picture.

That was my old girl Aisha, a situation that ended up jumping off-and-on for the next three years. It was one of those relationships where the counterparts stay at each other’s throats, but always manage to end up cool again. We met at school in ‘93, when I was a freshman who was crazy into her, and she was a junior who couldn’t be less interested. After about a year-plus of like and dislike, we finally ended up together in late-’94. By summer ‘95, we were way into each other and GTD-ing on the regular (whenever we weren’t arguing over THEE dumbest shit).

In other news, I was 15 and flexin’ nuts. I was at the rec for the summer again, and spending blowing my money more responsibly. I had also begun DJing by this time, although I def. wasn’t ready for prime-time yet. But in the process of stepping my game up, I made a connection with DJ Base, who at the time was on WEAA’s Strictly Hip-Hop show. I used to listen to that shit faithfully, hoping one day I could parlay this connection into possibly getting a spot on the show. I stayed on my lil’ starter kit every day, fukkin’ up needles and bein’ the best Kid Capri I could try to be.

In addition to that, I was starting to venture out with my rap aspirations too. That summer, I performed on stage for the first time at a showcase held at Monique’s Comedy Club. I also made an appearance on 92Q’s “Battle of the Baltimore MCs” segment, which at the time was my first time rhyming on the radio (but not my last… wait for ‘98). Whenever I wasn’t making (turrible) mixtapes, I was making tapes of my “songs” over my favorite instrumentals. I didn’t really have my mind on “gettin’ on” at the time; I was all about findin’ an avenue to be heard first and foremost, one way or the other.

One pattern in all of these years (that even I’ve noticed while typing these entries) is that a LOT of shit I did revolved around music. I tried to get into sports and other shit, but it was never my thing. I found more enjoyment in taping videos or buying records than I did in developing my athletic skills (or lack thereof). I wasn’t gonna make it into the 3-on-3 basketball tournament or any of that… but I sure the fukk knew what day Cuban Linx was comin’ out.

The Danj! Summer Seven of 1995:

Notorious B.I.G. “One More Chance” (Stay With Me Remix): Arguably runnin’ that rap shit by this point, B.I.G.’s Debarge-sampling remix puts the official stamp on it.

Jodeci feat. Raekwon & Ghostface Killa “Freek’N You” (Remix): The “bad boys of R&B” and the Cuban Linx co-d’s connect. All day like Harry Belafonte.

Bone Thugs N Harmony “1st Of Tha Month”: Cleveland’s own BTNH rep for SSI, WIC, and all that shit with the official anthem.

Luniz “I Got 5 On It”: Messin’ with that indo weed, the Luniz fukked around and made a classic for all those who engage in the herbal practice.

Grand Puba “I Like It”: Puba continues his solo run, and the DeBarge family continues to cash them checks. The term “stinkbox” is still a lil’ disturbing, but that’s neither here nor there.

Raekwon feat. Ghostface Killah “Criminology”: Rae’s Only Built 4 Cuban Linx KILT every other album that dropped around that time (with Mobb Deep’s Infamous being a possible exception)… this being one reason why.

Mary J. Blige feat. Smif-N-Wessun “I Love You” (Remix): A favorite from MJB’s My Life album scores extra points with the addition of the Boot Camp Click’s gun clappers.

IN CASE YOU MISSED ‘EM: check out the other Summer Sevens HERE.

-D!

Sunday Classics

Release Date: March 10, 2009

Album: Back With The Thugz

Rating: ★★★★ (88 out of 100)

Review: Bizzy Bone drops a really heavy performance on “Back With The Thugz”, the latest solo album from the Bone Thugz rapper. This was an unquestionably quiet release from Bizzy Bone, almost invisible to non-BONE fans. Still, the album has some excellent beats and features from Mr. Capone-E, Mr. Criminal, Malow Mac, Snoop Dogg and Miss Lady Pink as well as the usual BONE crew. Bizzy’s rap style and versatility is on-point and this album will definitely please the old school fans because Bizzy does a great job of blending the familiar Bone Thugz sound with some new-age production. Back With The Thugz, the title track, is a laid back rap jam that features Bizzy giving you updates on the whole crew. Lets Get High is a tight joint featuring Snoop Dogg and some light auto-tune. You can tell Snoop is gonna ride on the track from the first few notes, which sound distinctively Snoop D-O double G. Women Keep Watching Us has an amazing jazz beat featuring some interesting keys and horns. Listen to End Of This World 2012, which sounds real dramatic with its suspenseful violin theme and Bizzy’s Armageddon-inspired lyrics. The bright keyboard-influenced beats continue on Is There Anything Left 2 Deal, where Bizzy Bone’s vocal ability and flow influence the feel of the track. There are two bonus tracks; listen to Bonus Track 1, with its Timbaland sounding beat and deep bass line. Overall, this album goes hard from the Columbus, Ohio native Bizzy Bone. Check out the Outro Part 2 Coming Soon for more information on upcoming Bone projects, including some other albums and a book.

http://www.orangekarmarecords.com

If you didn’t notice (thanks) we’ve been waaaay behind these passed few days so please excuse the mad excessive amount of videos and lack of audio ’cause I was just doing a little video catching up before I hit you with a fucking tsunami of music, as you might already know we hate posting music like this as some things go unlooked, but sometimes it just has to be done.. there are a couple of these that you most certainly need in your life, no excuses, so without further adieu, let the downloading begin.

Download: King Of The Jungle (Ft. Jaysaun & Termanology) – Blaq Poet
Download: Addiction (Ft. Lil Fame & Shabeeno) – Blaq Poet
Download: The Game Ain’t Ready – Bone Thugs N Harmony
Download: Creepin’ Solo (Remix) (Ft. The Game & Ludacris) – Chamillionaire
Download: Grand Royal (Snippet) (Prod. DJ Premier) – CNN
Download: Lightworks – DOOM
Download: Watchin’ You (Ft. Donny Goines) – ESSO
Download: My Foolish Heart (Remix) (Ft. Consequence) – Jazmine Sullivan
Download: Flight School – Kanye West & T-Pain
Download: ‘09 Freestyle – KiD CuDi
Download: Nah Go To Jail Again (Ft. Busy Signal) – Maino
Download: Sensibility – Mickey Factz
Download: Payback – Nipsey Hussle
Download: Just Relax (Ft. Blu) – Noah | Dan Aikido Remix
Download: Radio – Rapper Big Pooh
Download: Internet Connection (Ft. Bootsy Collins) – Reflection Eternal (Talib Kweli & Hi-Tek)
Download: Play My Music (Prod. Statik Selektah) – Reks
Download: Coming Back (Snippet) (Prod. Hi-Tek) – T.I.

Including Flesh & Bizzy Bone. I fucks with this.

Bone Thugs-N-Harmony – The Game Ain’t Ready

Spotted over at NR