Tag: wiz khalifa

[Throwback Hip-Hop & Alternative Rap] KiD CuDi – Super Boo // Nicolay – What It Used to Be (ft. Wiz Khalifa) & More…

Check out these selections in Alternative Hip-Hop and Rap featuring Kid Cudi, 9th Wonder, RATATAT & Curren$y


[Throwback Hip-Hop]: Origins of Alternative Rap

[Chill Rap w/EDM influence]
Super Boo – KiD CuDi (produced by Scott “Kid Cudi” Mescudi)

You can be my Super Boo, oh oh
You can be my Super Boo, I need you,
to come…and chill with me
Come on, 1…, 2… Check!

[Electronic Rock/Hip-Hop]
Alive (feat. RATATAT) – KiD CuDi

[Electronic Hip-Hop]
Glock Nines (RATATAT Remix) – Beanie Sigel feat. Jay-Z

[Smooth Hip-Hop/Rap]
On G’s – Curren$y

[Indie/Underground Conscious Rap]
My Grind – I-An-I

[Dope Rap over Dope Beats]
Step Up – Busta Rhymes [prod. by J Dilla]

Today’s throwback post would be remiss if I didn’t start it off mentioning a few of the players responsible for the massive growth of alternative hip-hop through the 2000s. For those not in the know, think “rap music that you wouldn’t hear on the radio” then think about why you don’t hear it on the radio. Sure, in some cases maybe it’s not a good song, or maybe it doesn’t have the mainstream, wide-audience appeal, and that’s what makes it great.

I had the good fortune of being exposed to many of these artists that produce real hip-hop: this genre ranges from still hard-banging (just not radio friendly) Cam’Ron, Vado, Action Bronson, BIG K.R.I.T., Jay Electronica, Curren$y, Nipsey Hussle, producers Araabmuzik and J Dilla, among many more. On the lighter side of alt. rap, you’ll find the Kid Cudis, Breezepark, Two-9, Lil B “The BasedGod”, Murs & 9th Wonder, Aesop Rock, 88-Keys and more.

Some of these artists would be considered underground. Some were alternative and moved into the limelight: Wiz, Wale, Curren$y, many of the rappers featured in XXL’s Freshman lists in the past several years apply as well.

[Alternative, Conscious Hip-Hop]
What It Used to Be (feat. Wiz Khalifa) – Nicolay [produced by 9th Wonder)

The world has changed so very much, from what it used to be…

No Future – 9th Wonder & Buckshot [from The Formula]

Eyes on the future, what to do, do?
Must I feel they’ll be no future? What to do, do?

[DJ Mixes] New iLLUMiИUS Mixes ft. Major Lazer, Fetty Wap, Wiz Khalifa

New iLLUMiИUS mixes feature Fetty Wap, Major Lazer & sick remixes of Drake, Wiz.


[Club EDM, Dance & Trap DJ Mix]
Syncopation Vol. 1

[Hip-Hop/Rap DJ Mix]
Put In Werk 2015

Fresh for your listening ears are two brand mixes I’ve recorded in the past few months that I had laying around and finally got around to finishing/cleaning up. “Syncopation” and “Put In Werk” are “preview” mixes of series to come further down the pipeline, with the former being newer and featuring club style EDM.

The latter, a mix of solely hip-hop and rap music, with a little ‘chill trap’ for added flavor. “Put In Werk” is heavy with Fetty Wap appearances and is capped off by one of the sickest Drake remixes I’ve ever heard (Ain’t No Tellin’ remixed by stwo).

For now, you can download these mixes (and many others!) for FREE straight from my Soundcloud.

-Enjoy
iLLUMiИUS

[Hip-Hop/Rap Origins:] Wiz Khalifa’s more “indie & underground hits” // PRE-Celebrity Wiz // [Conscious Hip-Hop / Intelligent Rap:] Common – The Game


Keep the Conversation – Wiz Khalifa

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.

Other notable smash-underground tracks by Wiz include: Moolah and the Guap, Homicide (Remix), Still Blazin’, Won’t Land (with a Lucini sample) and Stu (feat. Juicy J)

The Game – Common

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 Forever was 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).

So Far to Go (feat. D’Angelo & J Dilla) – Common

[Relax Bounce/Hip-Hop:] Wiz Khalifa – See You Again (feat. Charlie Puth) [David Egg BOOTLEG]


After being a preview for quite some time, a free download has emerged of EDM DJ David Egg‘s Bootleg Remix of Wiz Khalifa’s hit single, “See You Again (featuring Charlie Puth)” Made popular by Fast and Furious 7, this cut dubbed as relax bounce by its remixer, is certainly very relaxed, and…well bouncy. With an incredibly danceable BPM and an interesting mix of house and hip-hop elements this remix certainly has the potential to be a summer anthem. Check out the track above and download it for free from David Egg’s Soundcloud.

How can we not talk about family when family’s all we got?
Everything I went through you were standing there by my side
And now you gonna be with me… (it’s been a long day)

-Wiz Khalifa

[New Rap/Hip-Hop] Wiz Khalifa – The Play & [Sample] Bat for Lashes // [New Album] Gucci Mane & EDM producer Diplo to create album


The Play (Music Video)

Wiz Khalifa dropped a new rap song, “The Play” today. Produced by Harry Fraud, this is (according to Hot New Hip Hop) the second song where Wiz has sampled an indie-pop/rock song (though the sample artist is really more alternative rock/electronic) Bat for Lashes “Moon and Moon”. Wiz has released 3 songs in the past 3-4 weeks on Youtube, one a freestyle over Marvin Gaye “Good For Us” and the other, a new single, “No Permission” as Wiz continues to dominate music charts this month. Below is also a notable remix of Bat for Lashes “Daniel” the artist Wiz samples for his latest track.

No Permission (Music Video)

Daniel (Abstrakt Audio Remix) – Bat for Lashes

In other news, Atlanta rapper, ice-cream man and king of “Burr!” himself, Gucci Mane will be releasing an album produced by EDM giant, and everyone’s favorite krunk white-boi, Diplo. On Twitter, Diplo mentioned that although the album was originally billed as (and promoted by Gucci) as an EDM album, it no longer will be. It will have influences from electronic but should be something completely unique and different, Diplo says. Diplo and Mr. Guwop himself expect to have the album released this year.

Notable Guwop:
Constantly (feat. Chief Keef) – Gucci Mane

Notable Diplo:
Revolution (feat. Faustix & Imanos and Kai)

Express Yourself (Technicolor’s TEKNiTrap Booty Mix):

Express Yourself (feat. Nicky Da B) – Diplo

[Throwback] [Classic Wiz] Wiz Khalifa – Hopes and Dreams


Clearing out favorite bookmarks is about a tedious task as trying to clean up your e-mail (especially when your inbox basically permanently says 1000+ new messages), but sometimes you stumble across gems you forgot you favorited 2 years ago.

Re-stumbling across a review of one of my long-time favorite rappers (at least when we was underground) Wiz Khalifa‘s third studio album, first major-label EP Rolling Papers, which released to mixed reviews in 2011. While technically more than competent, the content and lyrics of the album were a departure from Wiz’s original style he expressed in his earlier mixtapes, like Kush & OJ, the legendary P.O.T.C. tapes or even B.A.R. (Burn After Rolling).

My initial reaction to the Spin review of the album was that the author was over-hyping this musical “fail” and stuck on the ability of a big budget to make a rapper’s album sound polished and “professional.” However, when he had brought up longtime favorites that really weren’t too bad, in fact Wiz had some sleeper hits on there as well, a few I agree with the author such as with “Rooftops” featuring Curren$y, “The Race,” one of the top tracks of the album, or Roll Up (the most mainstream but catchiest single by far. There were a few other songs I give 5 stars in my iTunes here: “Top Floor” with an addictive very-experimental beat, “Hopes and Dreams,” my personal favorite of the album, and “wake Up” all do more than enough justice to Wiz’s earlier works.

The remaining tracks, while not necessarily terrible, were not anything great either. I completely disagree with the SPIN article’s author opinion of “Fly Solo,” that song. was. just. terrible. Which is why today’s highlight will highlight “Hopes and Dreams” from Pittsburgh’s own. “Star of the Show” with fellow Taylor Gang label-mate Chevy Woods is also a standout, with that “chill” vibe Wiz is known for.

[Throwback REAL Hip-Hop:] Curren$y & Alchemist – Smoke Break // [Throwback REAL Hip-Hop:] The Roots – Criminal (feat. Saigon & Truck North)

Throwback REAL hip-hop tunes to keep ya head bobbin’. Don’t sleep!


Smoke Break – Curren$y & Alchemist

You can never go wrong with Curren$y, arguably one of the best indie/underground rappers out there. I was first introduced to the Hot $pitta, formally through Wiz Khalifa in their smash-hit, critically acclaimed mixtape How Fly. However I first heard of Curren$y in the mid 2000s when he rapped alongside Remy Ma and Young Money frontrunner Lil’ Wayne on the popular single, “Where Da Cash At.”

“Smoke Break” comes from another highly praised Curren$y mixtape, Covert Coup, which was produced by famed hip-hop producer The Alchemist.

Notable lyrics:
The style done got switched up
Cause the last one got bit up,
Yeah lil homie y’all can get down,
but I bet y’all can’t keep up!

Life Under the Scope – Curren$y

“Life Under the Scope” was also one of Curren$y’s early hit songs back when he was very much still Unsigned Hype. Many think Young Spitta has stayed true to his roots, while fellow rapper he came up with, Wiz Khalifa, has largely abandoned them (Blacc Hollywood does capture some of Wiz’s early spirit, but not enough). I, like many others, are still holding out for a How Fly 2.

Criminal – The Roots, Truck North & Saigon [REAL HIP-HOP]

Our next throwback is another real hip-hop jam, this one a collab between The Roots, Truck North & Saigon. “Criminal” has a very interesting beat, lyrics and feeling to it that makes me reminisce to the beginning of Fall or cold, wintry days.

Notable lyrics:
Monday, they predict the storm,
Tuesday, they predict the bang
Wednesday they cover the crash,
And I can see it’s all about cash

They got the nerve to hunt down my ass,
and treat me like a criminal…

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