Diary of a Sinner: 1st Entry

It’s all rap this week.  Here comes Part 1 of a 3 part series of what I’m terming, “distinctive rappers.”  These mixes are NOT intended to be comprehensive, they’re just mixes of rappers whose voice or style is or was distinct when these records came out.  I want to make it clear that this is not a “best rappers of all time” list, before someone starts to lobby for the inclusion of 2Pac or something.

Quick disclaimer.  Once you decide to explore hip hop music outside your personal sphere, whether your sphere is Native Tongues, Beastie Boys, Rhymesayers, or those Fruity Pebbles commercials, it’s inevitable that you’re going to encounter songs featuring profanity, violence, crime, misogyny, and homophobia.  We all know this, right?  Some people respond to this by limiting their rap intake to songs where the narrator isn’t profane, violent, criminal, misogynistic, or homophobic.  This limits the hip hop songs you can actually listen to by a factor of something like a billion.  A lot of people who don’t really like rap in the first place claim the high ground by swearing off the genre altogether.  Well, that’s convenient for them, but I love rap like it’s food, so it’s not so easy for me.  The debate about “positivity” vs. “negativity” in rap music (or metal, or country, or improv, or action films, or Saturday morning cartoons, or whatever) is a complex one, and one I’m not about to get into at the moment.  If you want to mix it up in the comment section, I’m open to dialogue – always, always, always.

1.  Aceyalone – “The Guidelines” – 1998

Aceyalone is a veteran of the Project Blowed/Freestyle Fellowship/Good Life Cafe group of rappers.  Check out This Is The Life, a great new documentary, to learn more about him and the other verbose Los Angleans who chopped it up in a South Central health food store in the early 90s.

2.  Latyrx – “Balcony Beach” – 1997

This one is just Lyrics Born, who has gotten (sadly) less weird since this display of mumbling virtuosity.

3.  Raekwon – “New Wu” – 2009

Years and years after 36 Chambers, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, and Method Man take a victory lap with a kick drum and a hi-hat used as a snare.

4.  UGK – “One Day” – 1996

Too much has been said about UGK (like Dylan and Chilton in the last post).  That’s the guitarist from the Meters playing in the background.

5.  Devin the Dude – “Just Tryin’ Ta Live” – 2002

More southern rap.  Devin is definitely distinct – but he’s usually also incredibly dirty.  It was hard finding something that didn’t gross me out a little.

6.  Freeway – “Doing Anything” – 2009

From Freeway’s monsterous Month of Madness mixtape, during which he released one song a day for a whole month.  Not all of it’s great, but all of it features that great whiny flow – it’s easy to see what Jay saw in him when he recruited Freezer for Roc-A-Fella back in the day.

7.  De La Soul – “Breakadawn” – 1993

I love the third verse in particular, where Posdnuous spits free association, leaving room for the “ah 1, 2/ah 1, 2.”

8.  C.L. Smooth and Pete Rock – “They Reminisce Over You” – 1992

I can honestly say that I’ve never heard a flow as…well…smooth as C.L.  And these are some of the best written verses I’ve heard from any decade.

9.  Eric B. and Rakim – “I Know You Got Soul” – 1987

Rakim: your favorite emcee’s favorite emcee.

10.  Ultramagnetic MCs – “Ego Trippin’” – 1988

Ced G and Kool Keith before Keith took on about a billion bizarre nicknames and personas and stopped rapping quite so well (in my opinion).

11.  Organized Konfusion – “Bring It On” – 1994

Experience the utter ferocity of Pharoahe Monch in that first verse.  And then go back and experience the utter pretentiousness of that last sentence.

12.  Killer Mike – “God In The Building” – 2008

Try running on a treadmill while listening to Killer Mike.  You will run through the front of the treadmill and leave a person-shaped hole in the wall.

13.  Cam’ron – “Killa Cam” – 2004

Killa Cam is the king of the weird, kinda creepy couplet.  Or he was.  Not so much anymore.

14.  B.o.B. (a.k.a. Bobby Ray) – “Generation Lost” – 2009

B.o.B. is, like every other promising rapper, lost in negotiations with a stupid major label.  Why those things even exist anymore is beyond me.

15.  Outkast – “ATLiens” – 1996

One of my favorite songs from one of my favorite albums by two of my favorite rappers ever.  Speaking of major labels, they are to blame for the fact that we haven’t yet received Big Boi’s solo album.

More soon!  To subscribe on iTunes, click on RSS at the bottom of the page, then click on “Subscribe on iTunes” on the right hand side.  To receive email updates, look to the left of the screen.  See that?  Yeah.

Don’t get offended when I call you by that pet name” -Chad Butler (R.I.P.)

Earlier this year, the final UGK album dropped. The songs were decent enough, definitely true to the ideologies Bun-B and Pimp C have stuck to in the past. However, the best part of the album was that it didn’t try and paint the late Pimp C as some kind of profound and poetic rapper who tried to sound deeper than he actually was; his verses were just as–if not more– foul and sex & cash hungry as they ever were.

Typically, to pay tribute to the fallen, I like to suggest you do something that the deceased enjoyed doing for recreation. However, with Pimp C…I don’t suggest you do. Or, if you do, don’t blame it on me. RIP Pimp C.

UGK-International Players Anthem(feat. Outkast)

For our first full weekend in Thailand, we decided to get away. Most of our new acquaintances were heading northwest, to popular rural tourist town, Pai. We felt that joining them would be a blunder. Since we see them on a regular basis, we thought we should disembark, detox, and detour to some other remote Thai location. We wanted a place where we could experience the natural and fierce beauty of the north, a place we could be the only farang, a place away from the sound of traffic, we wanted Chiang Dao.

Now, I don’t want to give off the impression that this was a well thought out trip, an insightful choice. It was a) luck and b) just the product of being bad-asses (random success comes with the territory). We woke up Saturday morning to a knock on the door. It was Tom, our new amigo and fellow bad ass. “Get up, we are getting motorcycles” was all that was said, but it lit the fire. We packed a backpack, took a shower, and headed out. After securing motorcycles we headed to the nearest book store for inspiration and perhaps a map. Someone had a vague recollection of a particularly beautiful stretch of road that led to some picturesque villages that would be a perfect mission for our new biker gang. We hoped seeing some names on a map would help, it didn’t. So, Cengiz bought a map of the golden triangle, since it seemed to cover the immediate area north of Chiang Mai and we went to lunch, determined to figure out the itinerary while we fueled up for the day.

During lunch, we threw out the name of just about every city on the map and futilely debated over which to choose (since no one had any idea about any of them, I can’t believe this lasted as long as it did). Meanwhile, I shuffled through Gina’s Thailand guide (we were a foursome) and found mention of a “Pai without the party” (Pai is the popular “rural” get away, not too far from Chiang Mai, that now offers nightlife and any number of organized “adventures”) called Chiang Dao, directly north of Chiang Mai and situated under an impressive mountain. This sounded just as good as any other place we brainstormed and even had a recommendation to back it up, so the choice was easy, the bill was paid and we were off.

WAIT. Not quite. Cengiz just dumped the motorbike. OK, no blood or permanent damage? Now we’re off. It was tough getting out of the city. Thailand doesn’t do traffic lights very often, so there are lots of one way streets and turnarounds that make navigation difficult for a non-native. When you also add the adaptation of driving on the other side of the road and the lack of traffic laws in general, there is enough fear, adrenaline, and information thrown at a driver to freak out any first timer. So, being the overachiever that he is, Cengiz dumped it, AGAIN. This time there was blood, broken glass, and snapped metal, so we had to stop. After buying some really hilariously frivolous band aids, we were back on the road again (somehow the dangling break from the left handlebar was not a successful deterrent). To make sure the blood had as long as possible to ruin his socks and shorts, we were proceeding with extreme caution (and lack of speed), for the rest of the 3 hr. trip. To be honest, we were all a little rattled with the events (Cengiz was, after all, the only one of us to have been on a motorcycle) so the 45 km/hr cruising speed was widely accepted and actually turned out to be a great pace for cruising to the iPod speakers blaring UGK out of my cup holder.

The trip was going very well before our caravan was overcome by a true South East Asian rainstorm. As we were in the middle of nowhere when it hit, we have very few options and elected to brave the elements and press on. After about 20 minutes, the rain subsided, and we found ourselves cruising through a rain forest, rapidly drying in the wind. This is what we came for. The scenery was so beautiful that it was dangerous. It was difficult to keep your eyes on the road, which was also wet, and winding through a precipitous mountainside. Looking out over the trees, we saw mile upon mile of the lushest vegetation on the planet. At one point I found myself counting shades of greens as I scanned the canopy for monkeys. We slowed our pace to a crawl, the curves were intimidating and there was no reason to rush this stretch of road, especially once we found ourselves following a crooked river on our left.

Almost as soon as the picturesque stretch ended, we saw the signs we were looking for, so we followed with a right hand turn and enjoyed the 2 km to Chiang Dao. The city isn’t much. Which, I guess is the point. I ran into a Dutch Pirate (no joke) and he couldn’t recommend anywhere to stay or eat so we grabbed a beer at a local shop to rest our soar necks and hash out a plan for accommodations. I saw a sign for a home stay who’s name seemed familiar, so we scoured the Lonely Planet to confirm. They agreed, “Malee’s” was the place to go, 4 km back up the road we had come, situated right under the mountain.

The home stay was perfect. When we pulled in, we weren’t sure we had the right place, it seemed abandoned. Then, we were greeted by the hounds and a “receptionist.” After being showed some bungalow’s right out of a movie, we quickly payed the man for the night and got started on his refreshingly cold Chang beer collection. It was already pitch black, I could barely see Tom across the table, and after 3+ hrs en route, we were exhausted. Dinner was a distant thought, but one we thought should be heeded none the less. We hesitatingly asked if there would be dinner served that night, it was so dark we were sure it was going to be a difficult request. It was 6:00. Of course there would be dinner, if we could just wait for them to prepare the grill, it would be served within the hour.

The fresh local coals sparked like a pile of flint; the deep reds flying through the air against the pitch black were mesmorizing, like projectile magma from a personal volcano. Exhausted, the four of us faded into the dark silence, entranced by the visuals. We were broken from this moment of rest by a small creature scurrying round behind us in the dark. It jumped up and bit tom. It was a “Peter.” Now “Peters” are the rarest creature I have encountered. They resemble your standard 8 year old Germanic Thai, but they also speak French and English and are fluent in snake hissing, barking, and tiger growling. They climb with the agility of a chimp, can identify any vegetable in the garden, but particularly prefer bananas, and (as any cold blooded creature) enjoy curling up to warm bodies, specifically homestay guests. Peter was our entertainment for much of the night, biting bottles, bodies, and bananas and showing off his mastery of Muay Thai and genital crushing to anyone in his path, no matter the size. Peter’s mom, the unbelievable Malee, is unbelievably amazing. She not only speaks several languages, has a nack for decorating, runs the most efficient guest house I have ever been to, knows first aid, knows everything about the area, and makes friends with other people FOR you, she also has jokes. As she was brutally cleaning Cengiz’s wounds, she would remind him that there would be “no loving tonight, you have to stay off your knees” or that he should go to the hospital, not for medical care, but for “a sexy young nurse.”

After the wounds were cleaned up, we were served with heaping portions of pork cuts, chicken wings, fresh shrimp, squid, salad, pineapple, and a variety of magnificent, home made condiments. It was absolutely delicious. We spent the rest of the evening eating, drinking, meeting some fellow visitors, and figuring out that we should hit the sack so that we could be up and chipper for the 5:45 sunrise from Thailand’s most sacred place, the Wat atop the overshadowing mountain next to (and above) us.

Cengiz and I made it up the 500 stairs to the mountain, in pitch black, which was not easy. Most of the climbing was just keeping a rhythm. We couldn’t see the steps but knew the pace and length of each stride so as not to miss the next. Once up the steps we came to a wat, dug into the side of the rocks, with a look out tower lined with and guarded by Thai basilisks. We patiently waited for the sun to show, but were let down. The overcast skies left us with a gradual glow rather than any kind of “breaking of dawn.” However, we were alerted to the exact moment of the sunrise as we were lucky enough to hear th monk alarm clock. At exactly 5:45, when the sun started its rise, a loud high pitch sound crashed out of the jungle. Unwaveringly, it held its note as a symphony of other jungle sounds -chirps, croaks, howls, clicks- joined the note, like an orchestra tuning to the oboe. The morning went from a deafening silence, to an even more astounding roar of sound.

After taking some video and pictures, we headed back down to base camp. Tom was still struggling with the local stomach bug he picked up the evening before and Gina was playing with Peter. We mounted the bikes, loaded up some emergency TP, and took off for home. Cengiz regained his confidence so we ripped through the country side at nearly twice our previous speed. The rush was incredible and the weather couldn’t be more perfect. Along the way we randomly came upon an elephant, grazing near the side of the road. The beast’s hunger and resounding sense of power was intimidating and though it was docile and obliging to our attention, my heart was pounding and my spider senses activated to a state of hyper-alertness. After taking off again at breakneck speed, we found ourselves making ridiculously good time, good enough to warrant a detour at Shri Lanna National Park. We didn’t get to boat out into the lake to the floating house or uncover the park’s waterfalls, but it was a beautiful backdrop for some lunch and a break for our bike sore backs.

When we finally were getting into the city area, we reduces speed with the increased danger of the traffic and things stayed well… for a while. Rain once again started pounding the troupe as we were just entering the city’s center. It was uncomfortable, but we had ridden in it before so we pressed on. The city’s moat, which is now the center of the city’s main avenue, is easily the most difficult traffic for a first time rider. We cautiously entered the avenue and I made the turn to enter our final stretch before dropping the biks off. When I looked in my mirror, no one was following. I pulled over and waited for 5 minutes, hoping my comrades would be following shortly. Nothing. I assumed they took a different route, we had said “if all else fails, meet at the shop.” So, I headed there to drop my bike off and meet them. I was waiting long enough to get a table next door and order a beer. My stomach was beset with a pit the size of a watermelon- Cengiz dumped it on the wet turn and was in the hospital, I knew it. I waited for a solid 20 minutes until they finally rolled up. As Tom and Cengiz went to go settle up, Gina explained to me that Tom T-Boned a Tuk Tuk and flipped it. He was ok, and the tuk tuk driver survived with minor scrapes. A quick 1,000 baht bribe was sufficient to keep the police out of things. The damages to the two bikes cost a total of 600 baht, so financially it was no big deal. And, with everyone safe, we walked back to the hotel, laughing at the absurdity of our 50% casualty rate and enjoying the sheer sensation of relief that we made it back. Nostalgic musings about the paradise we enjoyed at “Malee’s” didn’t hinder the cloud 9 high either.

“If I made a mistake with marijuana, why am I not eligible for rehab?  I’ve been on marijuana since a teenager. I need some rehab. Jail is not rehab.”

For those who haven’t been updated on the Lil Boosie drama, here is a quick summary.  Lil Boosie, A/K/A Torrence Hatch was convicted on a third offense for marijuana possession.

However, like the trend of rappers who seem to be doing it, Boosie then violated his house arrest and was ordered to serve 2 years in prison.  At first Boosie said that jail time would be good for him and beneficial to himself in the long run.  However, the closer the jail date approaches, the less Boosie is feeling the beneficiary part of prison, and is now attempting a new approach at the situation.

Boosie has now said that he does not need jail, but needs rehab for his addiction to marijuana.  Boosie does not understand his sentence and claims that he is being judged on his rap alter ego and not the true Torrence Hatch:

“If I made a mistake with marijuana, why am I not eligible for rehab?” Boosie questioned. “I’ve been on marijuana since a teenager. I need some rehab. Jail is not rehab.”

“They’re treating me on who they think I am. They judging me on Boosie Bad Azz, not Torrence Hatch,” Boosie stated to Louisiana’s WAFB channel 9 before starting his sentence. “I had to do these two shows these last two days to feed my family.”

Boosie violated his house arrested to do two concerts for what he said “was to feed my kids.”  This is Boosie’s 4^th (yes 4^th) prison sentence, being the 3^rd for marijuana possession.   At press time, Lil Boosie is in custody at Winn Correctional Center in Louisiana, and serving his two year sentence.  Once released, he will have to complete 5 years of probation.

Ok Boosie, so you got 2 million on your neck but can’t feed your kids…maybe you need this time to yourself.

December 4, 2007 will be remembered as the last day that the world would be touched by Chad Lamont Butler, best known as rapper Pimp C, in his physical form.

Suffering from respiratory depression that was caused by an accidental overdose of prmothazine and codeine cough syrup

As the second anniversary of the rapper’s death is approaching, his widow, Chinara Butler, has created an outlet to continue his legacy by launching the first annual Chad “Pimp C” Butler Hip Hop & Health Fair.

December 4 is the date to look out for the event starting at 6 p.m.

Butler has partnered up with the CCM Foundation and the Syphilis Elimination Advisory Committee in order to present such a special occasion to honor the life of her husband.

The purpose of the fair is to raise awareness on HIV along with other STD’s which have become an epidemic to the African-American community as years have progressed.

Being held in Port Arthur, Texas, the event will feature the Port Arthur Health Department which will be providing those in attendance with free vaccinations along with other health services.

Those in attendance will also be able to show support as there will be a $5 donation at the door along with a canned food drop box.

Of course Hip Hop will also be in attendance as Bun B, Too Short, Trae the Truth, Jackie-O and others will show their support.

The music world will have yet another chance to hear Pimp’s voice once again as he is rumored to be featured on Chamillionaire’s upcoming release Venom.

I’m a little tight on time (and energy) today so I’m bringing you a quick Weekly Thursday Freebie this time. But that doesn’t make this offering weak in fact it’s a must DL for any hip-hop fan. As previously announced, producer extraordinaire Chops has dropped his 2nd out of 3 free mixtapes for download today. It’s a remix album of various artists and shouldn’t be slept on. It just goes to show Chops’ versatility behind the boards. This man’s got the golden touch. He can flip any style. There’s a lot of southern flavor in this one but I think you can find a little bit for everyone.

Tracklisting:

1. CHOPS remix Drake Kanye West Lil Wayne Eminem – Forever
2. CHOPS remix Eminem – Jimmy Crack Corn
3. CHOPS remix 50 Cent f Ne-Yo – Baby By Me
4. CHOPS remix Young Buck – Let Me In
5. CHOPS remix Akon f Styles P – Locked Up
6. CHOPS remix Jay-Z f Biggie – Brooklyns Finest
7. CHOPS remix Jay-Z – The Rulers Back
8. CHOPS remix Scarface – My Block
9. CHOPS remix SLAB f Bun B Paul Wall Z-Ro HAWK Mike D – Da Streets
10. CHOPS remix UGK – Belts To Match
11. CHOPS remix Devin The Dude – Anything
12. CHOPS remix Paul Wall – Sittin Sideways
13. CHOPS remix Birdman f Lil Wayne – Shine On
14. CHOPS remix Young Dro – Shoulder Lean
15. CHOPS remix D4L – Laffy Taffy
16. CHOPS remix Purple Ribbon All Stars f Big Boi – Kryptonite
17. CHOPS remix Outkast – Elevators

Link after the jump!

Get Best Remixes Vol. 2 HERE.

How relevant is it really to know who is the greatest if you don’t care about their inspirations???  Is it Wayne?  3000?  Em?  Esco?  Or is it still Hov?  We can argue for days and probably add a few other choice names, huh!

***Before I go to far, let me be sure to say Mr Shakur and Mr Wallace (RIP)….LOL

Is it me or does it seem that hip hop fans have become more of a casual fan and not so much a lover of it?  Do we only care about the gossip and who’s “going at who”?  Or better yet, do we only care about today??  Meaning, do we only care about what’s on the radio or in the club this weekend??

I challenge you to get out of your comfort zone if you really love hip hop and music as a whole for that matter.  If you love Drake and Wayne, go buy UGK.  And after you get that UGK, go purchase the first Geto Boys.  If you love Em, you need to get Eazy Does It and the Power album.  Not to leave anyone out, but if you love Jay or 50, you really should have Kane and BDP in your collection.

So on and so on fans!!!

YFTM

As the Holiday season gears into full swing various artists are donating their time to help those less fortunate. DJ Drama recently made headlines for his charitable endeavors with Atlanta’s Hosea Williams Feed The Hungry program while Cash Money CEOs Birdman and Slim will be hosting their 13^th annual turkey giveaway for the occasion.

Following in Hip-Hop’s philanthropic footsteps is none other than UGK’s Bun B who is stepping in to host a food drive to feed the hungry.

Bun is teaming up with Boost mobile to collect food for the Houston food bank. The phone company will also donate $5,000 to a charity he specially selected, Bethel’s place community and outreach center.

Local Houston radio station KBXX 97.9 ‘The Box’ will be onsite broadcasting live and giving people who donate five or more canned goods free tickets  to see Bun B in concert later that night at Hush nightclub.

Bun B’s food drive takes place Wednesday November 25 at the Boost Mobile in Westhill Village.

Good to see Bun giving back to the community and keeping that UGK legacy going.

UGK fo’ life. Po up.

Birdman senior recruits Drake & Bun B for Mo Milly which is set to appear on Birdmans upcoming album Priceless.

Mo Milly – Birdman Feat. Drake & Bun B