Don Lu & Fetty Wap’s “One Night Only” is a smooth street trap cut, definitely worth checking out.
Ironically enough, this hip-hop/rap post features a song with the same title as my last post, but with a much different feel. For one, it’s not EDM! (lol) but an appreciable rap song with radio appeal from rapper Don Lu but with massive backup from hip-hop’s current shining star, Fetty Wap. Check out this very nice, smooth track you may have missed, released earlier this year in April.
Next, we have yet another low-key rap hit also featuring Fetty Wap coming from Big Bankhead. “Party Girl” continues the party rap, radio-ready sound that Fetty Wap and whoever else he is on the track with continue to find. Fetty delivers some top-notch catchy lyrics here, “You gon’ show me how you twerk? Or nahh, baby?!”
Check out this Origins throwback post of a great melodic-dubstep cut, “One Night Only” by dubstep act Trivecta featuring vocalist Yohamna Solange. The track is most definitely more melodious and harmonious for the dubstep genre, danceable, and uses modern slang without coming off as too cheesy (see my previous post about “Twerk (Aero Chord Remix)” by the Diamond Pistols). Both the original and the hard to find but possible (on Soundcloud) NUDr0p Extended Rework are great songs for anyone’s collection.
It looks like Ice Cube is just starting to get back into the movie game quite heavy and is bringing his son along with him for the ride. After the wildly successful debut of the music docu-music-drama “Straight Outta Compton” the rapper and actor has plans to star in a film on the riots of Los Angeles, which will also star his son. Check the link above for the full story. Thanks and credit to The Urban Daily for the lede and breaking the story.
Check out two strong progressive house tracks from superstar DJ and producer, Kaskade.
Start Again – Kaskade feat. Becky Jean Williams
Kaskade’s iconic Dynasty album helped propel him into the forefront as EDM music was coming up around 2008. With soothing vocals, calming guitar chords and brain-melting synths, “Start Again” is just one of many songs showcasing the musical depth and variety that Kaskade is well-known for. Dynasty was probably one of Kaskade’s last albums of the ’00s-’10s that had a very strong progressive house focus (Fire & Ice had a more dance-pop, dance-house feel; Dynasty seemed very trance-influenced).
Just listen to another signature track from the album, “Human Reactor” featuring Polina, which features a heavy progressive electronic/house vibe over entrancing and uplifting vocals melding seamlessly with rising synth arpeggios.
Human Reactor – Kaskade feat. Polina
And I’ve woken up to sobriety
Just another day you’re not with me
Wish I could escape reality
And drown in the beats I’m so lost in
Charles Hamilton – Writing in the Sky [Soulful Sample]
Charles Hamilton’s timeless “Writing in the Sky” was a bonus track off of his early mixtape, The Pink Lavalamp. Sampling the timeless R&B/Soul hit by The Stylists “Betcha by Golly, Wow” the song is a very calming and inspiring anthem with Charles spilling his heart out over the track. The echoing soul-filled vocals in the background sample further contribute to the chill, spacey ambiance set by the song.
Hamilton has largely been quiet in terms of releases since his short run from around 2007 to 2010. He has recently begun to re-enter into the industry, however. Hamilton was featured on the soundtrack for the break-out music-industry drama and TV-show, Empire. He raps alongside songwriter group, The Invisible Men on “New York Raining”.
Charles Hamilton with The Invisible Men – New York Raining (feat. Rita Ora)
[Indie Underground Hip-Hop | Conscious Rap:]
I-An-I – My Grind (feat. Willow Smith)
I-An-I is a little known hip-hop group introduced to me by my brother, that released a stunningly “real hip-hop” mixtape titled, Free Love around 2010. Released through I-An-I’s music group Purple Reign, the EP is chock full of “real hip-hop” beats, smart, conscious lyrics and soulful samples.In theunderground banger “My Grind” I-An-I samples Will Smith‘s daughter and pop music songstress, Willow Smith. With a very catchy hook and some quite emotional heartfelt lyrics, “My Grind” is not a song to be missed by rap enthusiasts.
“Free Love” is not Purple Reign’s only “fye” extended play, member of the group, chad. (born Chad Charles) released a similarly scorching hot, authentic underground rap album, Conquering Lions with some amazingly clever raps and one-of-a-kind beats you won’t hear anywhere else. Here are a few standout tracks from that mixtape, which can be found on DatPiff, Bandcamp and ReverbNation.
If you haven’t seen it yet, be sure to check out the music video for new artist on the scene Fetty Wap’s “679”. The track, popular on airwaves throughout the US and the world features more of Wap’s characteristic singing over a quite laid-back and chill beat predominately found in “radio rap”. Neverthelss, the song is very catchy, with Wap receiving back-up from his squad, the Remy Boyz.
Check out more from the New Jersey rapper below, including a remix of 679 featuring Meek Mill and Rick Ross:
679 [Remix feat. Meek Mill & Rick Ross]:
679 [DJ Taj Remix]:
679 [Jersey Club Remix] *DJ Friendly!!play it at 1.25x speed!
To keep the conversation light, I tell the girl a comical line…
Off of one of Wiz’s earliest mixtapes, Show and Prove, “Keep the Conversation” is a favorite with it’s smooth use of sampling and the very original, unorthodox beats that Wiz often rapped over in his days of coming up. Wiz’s production team was just as fire as the rapper himself and delivered top-quality music that would set the course for a new direction in hip-hop music that began when Wiz emerged (from 2006 onward) and ushered in an era of “unorthodox” rappers such as, Kid Cudi, Curren$y, Charles Hamilton, J. Cole, Wale and many more.
It’s global warmin’, the world is shifting watchin’ Sweet Sixteen, bitchin-ass rich kids!
The ever-classic Common is one of the rappers at the forefront of the “conscious hip-hop” movement or “intelligent hip-hop/rap” as I also call it. Music in this genre (and subsequently, in my playlist of the same name on my iPod) are focused more around the message of the lyrics, use more old-school style or soulful beats or are otherwise non-mainstream.
Common’s Finding Foreverwas a very iconic album for many reasons and some would say it was the album that jettisoned Common onto the national and international stage. It also signaled his induction into Kanye West’s G.O.O.D. music group. He collaborated on the album with British Pop/Hip-Hop songstress Lily Allen (Drivin’ Me Wild), Kanye West (Southside) R&B singer D’Angelo and the late legendary beat-maker, J Dilla (So Far to Go).
LUMiNOUS Musings 