Monday, August 14, 2006

SOUNDSPOT: TANYA MORGAN
The group's name might be deceiving, but these katz are all about the hiphop. Tanya Morgan consist of Von Pea, Ilyas and Donwill (Ilwill). Von Pea is from Brooklyn, while Ilwill reside in Cincinnati, Ohio. They originally started out as two separate rap acts (Von Pea & Ilwill), but in 2003 they decided to combine forces and create Tanya Morgan. The premise for the group's name has never really been disclosed? Tanya Morgan is a ficticious person, so that eliminates assumptions of them stealing the name from their Big Moma, Baby Mama or some bitty they had a crush back in junior high school? Judging by their name, it is obviously that this group doesn't take themselves too seriously, but hiphop fans definitely should. Creative beats and rhymes that actually bring the fun back into hiphop is what Tanya Morgan is all about. Aren't you tired of rap music being in this manic-depressive state? If you are a fan of Asamove and the Justus League movement, then this group is for you? Out of all of the Justus Leaguers, Tanya Morgan has the closest vibe with Little Brother. Actually, Von Pea and Phonte have collaborated on several tracks together in the past, so they obviously have a pretty tight working relationship. Phonte has publicly co-signed Tanya Morgan's dopeness in the same fashion that Questlove (The Roots) did for Little Brother back in the day. Both groups have a carefree, yet sarcastic and sometimes silly approach to creating hiphop music, which keeps their sound fresh. It just shows that every rapper in 2006 doesn't have to be a drug-sellin', pistol carryin', candy paint drivin', 26 inch rim spinnin' thug, fresh outta jail to be a true staple in hiphop? Creativity is still existant in hiphop even though the majority of fans have lost hope??

Tanya Morgan released their slept on debut album entitled, "Moonlighting" back in April of 2006. The album is pretty solid, but with absolutely no promotion most people didn't even know it existed for the most part? I was a Von Pea fan before, which lead me to be a Tanya Morgan fan today! Moonlighting is like a coming out for Tanya Morgan. They all seem to take turns expressing their disgust with the state of hiphop over the last few years, which definitely reveals an undeniable sarcasm on tracks like, "Ha Ha Ha," "Just Because I Got Locs" and "Rough You Up." The sarcasm is pretty funny overall, because they are actually poking fun at themselves as well. Don't get it twisted though, these are not just a bunch of jokers with a microphone. They do have lyrical skills that are definitely displayed throughout the album. Put your ears on "We Bad" and "Paper Thin" to hear what I mean. Overall, I think Tanya Morgan is a solid group of MCs that deserve some recognition. Hopefully, this post will provide them with some new fans, and hopefully some more album sales??

Since, Tanya Morgan and the Justus League (Little Brother) have simularities, I decided to create a mix highlighting both crews. There is a mixture of old, new and exclusive tracks in this mix, so hopefully you will enjoy them?

TM vs. LB MIXX TRACKLIST:

1**Von Sees - Von Pea (Nicolay)
2**Life of The Party - Little Brother
3**We Bad - Tanya Morgan
4**Daily Operation - Cesar Comanche feat. Legacy & Sean Boog (Khrysis)
5**Trainspottin - Tanya Morgan
6**Keep The Bling - Big Pooh (Khrysis)
7**Golden - Tanya Morgan
8**Feels Good - Splash (9th Wonder)
9**Saturday - Tanya Morgan
10*From The Soul - Preach (Nicolay)
11*1st Date - Von Pea (Nicolay)
12*Raw Life - Phonte feat. Joe Scudda (Nicolay)
13*Tanya Morgan - Tanya Morgan
14*Run Wit It - Access (9th Wonder)
15*Paper Thin - Tanya Morgan
16*Wu-Tang Clan - Phonte
17*Rock To This - Legacy
18*What The F*** - Tanya Morgan
19*Tha Knowledge - Jean Grae feat. Edgar Allen Floe (9th Wonder)
20*Whatever You Say (Ill Smooth Mix) - Little Brother
21*SoundNexx Instroutro

DOWNLOAD THE TM VS. LB MIX HERE

Check the video!

Tanya Morgan - We Be

2 comments:

Travis said...

Moonlighting is my second favorite album of 06' so far, after "A Piece of Strange". Nice job pointing this out to people, they are getting slept on.

Anonymous said...

Big ups for this post!