INVINCIBLE'S SHAPESHIFTING!

I've been meaning to do this post for a few weeks now, but it slipped my mind. It's never too late to speak on a hot emcee. Especially, a dope female emcee! Like most music lovers in America, I was watching the BET Awards Show the other night, and I was sad when I saw the nominees for the BEST FEMALE RAPPER award. Has the female rap game fallen off that much that artists like Lil' Mama, Trina and Missy Elliott are the best of the five female choices? My 3 favorite female emcees right now are Jean Grae (supposedly retired), Apani (been absent for a minute), and Invincible. Invincible has been on the come up for a minute now, but she's finally released her first album entitled "Shapeshifters!" She's been working with several local Detroit artists for years making her name around the way, but now she's finally releasing a project that will hopefully make her an household name around the world. The greatest aspects about Invincible are not just her lyrical skills or delivery, but the subject matter she spits about. She can be rap about conscious and political topics without sounding corny or preachy. That's what hip-hop is truly about. It's refreshing too! I get tired of hearing so many female rappers telling me how good their coochie is, and how fat their ass is in every song! That sh*ts played like Guess overalls and penny loafers...

Here is a little Shapeshifters album sampler you can check out to hear what Invincible's vibe is like...

INVINCIBLE - SHAPESHIFTERS SAMPLER

Purchase the album here:

www.emergencemusic.net

ANTHONY DAVID'S "ACEY DUECY"

On Tuesday while your out at the record store picking up that new Dwele album for your collection, be sure to grab a copy of Anthony David's latest project "Acey Duecy" as well. I dig Anthony's old school feel. He brings something soulfully fresh with every album release, and this new joint is no exception. Smoke one witcha boy! Now, for all you folks out there that haven't already illegally downloaded or bootlegged my dude Dwele's latest album at this point, my advice to you is to step up your illegal audio gathering abilities way up playa! Okay, I'm just seriously joking in my last statement, but that new Dwele is dope in my personal opinion. It's pretty much what I expected overall. Just solid soul music Adwele style. As they say, if it ain't broke, act like it is and fix it dammit or something like that anyway...

So, smash your pink piggy bank if you have to and show some financial support for good music.

Get at Anthony and listen to some new tracks here:

www.myspace.com/anthonydavid

THE G.O.A.T...UNCLE L-ROY!
Let me start this post off by saying that I have personally been a LL Cool J fan since his appearance in the movie Krush Groove rapping about his boom box radio! I have been supporting his music since the beginning and that's why I feel like I have the right as a true fan to sincerely ask Mr. James Todd to put the microphone on the shelf for good! When is enough, enough? Like anything you do in this world, eventually you have to leave it behind no matter how much you love it. Walk away on your own, or get pushed out. It happens to the best of them no matter how great they were in the past. It saddens me to watch some of my favorite entertainers trying to avoid their destiny. Refusing to accept the reality that their job is done and they need to find another way to make money. Personally, I think LL should try to be a CEO of some record label, so he can mold and mentor up and coming musical talent. That'll probably never happen though because he's too busy reminding everyone that he's the self-proclaimed G.O.A.T. of the rap genre.

Unlike many rappers, LL Cool J has other career options available to him, but he seems reluctant to give up rapping to explore them. His acting career is decent, plus he's a rap fitness guru as well, right? Any other business opportunities outside of actually rapping would be the move right now. Am I the only one that has noticed over the last few years that LL has released several luke-warm to mediocre albums in hopes of creating a new buzz for himself? The truth is he's not adding any new fans, but he is making it real tough for his current fans to continuously defend and debate about why he's still hanging around in 2008! Let me make this clear, age has nothing to do with my desire for LL to retire. It's about still having the ability to make music that people want to hear and care about overall no matter how old you are. For example, I would still buy a De La Soul album today if they dropped a new joint, without question! That's just me though. Yes, it's obvious that the Ladies still Love Cool J, and that's the main reason why his career hasn't taken a serious toilet spin at this point. Just when I thought LL was finished rapping, he hires a personal trainer to help himself get back into that prison body build shape, and he hasn't looked back. I think he feels that as long as he can snatch is shirt off for the ladies that he will always be relevant in the hip-hop? I beg to differ. If all his career has come down to is being half naked on stage, then why not become a male model or something? That's just a suggestion...

Now, check out LL's latest single from his upcoming 13th album called "Rockin Wit Da Goat"...GO FIGURE! Does LL still have it or not?

GET YOUR HEADPHONES READY!
It still amazes me how many dope tracks that I have in my archives. I love pulling out an oldie but goodie joint from back in the day and after the first listen you realize that it's still as dope as it was back then. Some music is timeless, no matter how many years go by. A lot of forgotten artists and one hit wonders have put out some great music over the years, and this mixx showcases some of those tracks for your listening pleasure. I call this joint the "RnB Hedphones Ready" mixx! There are definitely a few RnB gems from yesterday's past on this babie that will hopefully bring a smile to your face like it did mines. Definitely put ears on this one when you get a minute....

TRACKS:

01+he's got some ish intro
02+tlc feat. craig mack = kick your game (remix)
03+monifah feat. teddy riley = brown eyes
04+sunshine anderson = he said, she said
05+xscape feat. mc lyte = can't hang
06+teedra moses = no more tears
07+kut klose = lay my body down
08+t*boz = touch myself
09+janet jackson = like you don't love me
10+yvette michele feat. akinyele & sadat x = everyday & every night (remix)
11+lil' mo = ain't no reason
12+sista = secret admirer
13+adina howard = it's all about you (pif remix)
14+london jones = your nature
15+sunshine anderson = you do you
16+total feat. da brat = no one else
17+aaliyah = rock the boat (betty b. remix)
18+changing faces = i got somebody else
19+xscape = who do i run to (quiet remix)
20+dwele = a few reasons (truth pt. 2)
21+usher = love you gently
22+kut klose = keep on

HEDPHONES MIXX HERE!

NO, NOT THAT JACKSON!



Some people call him Otis Jackson, but most know him as Madlib The Bad Kid (for all of you Lootpack fans). He's a living legend in the game as far as I am concerned, and well respected by his peers and fans alike. The dopest thing about Madlib is that he's an anomaly in the music game. He has his hands in a little bit of everything. The man does what he wants when he wants. As soon as you've thought his accomplished just about everything a musician can do, he comes with another fresh idea for the masses. Madlib is back with his latest project under the Jackson Conti alias entitled "Sujinho," which I think means shake your rear in Spanish? The album is hot if you are into the flavor of latin music. Madlib has done several side projects over his career, but this definitely is one of my favorites. I've had this joint on rewind for several days now, and I'm still not bored with it yet! The rhythms and beats are addictive, so I can't seem to stop listening to it. You just might feel the same too when you put ears on it as well...


Check out the myspace page for some tunes:

www.myspace.com/jacksonconti

THE SOULAR ECLIPS MIXX!
If you are not aware, there's much distress going on out here in Michigan right now! We had some major tornado like storms around this piece earlier this week that knocked down trees and electrical power lines like a hobo when he starts asking me for change. Some of my peoples have been without electrical power at the crib for about 3 to 4 days now! I know all you no electrical bill paying suckaz out there know how that feels, right? Outside of having to eat cereal with warm milk and having no air conditioning in 80 degree weather, it's not being able to flush the damn toilet that would drive me crazy! Can you imagine having to look at your own logs floating in the bowl all day while you try to conserve water to wash up with? It sucks tremendously, trust me! Detroit Edison can't work fast enough to get the power up and running around these parts. Luckily, I wasn't a victim of the bad storms, so I'm sitting here drinking a tall glass of ice water in the A/C while I type this post. I still have sympathy for those without though.

That why this latest mixx entitled "Soular Eclips Mixx" is dedicated to all of the folks in Michigan still without power! Since, you folks are going through a blackout, I'm blacking out with ya'll musically. When your power finally comes back, be sure to put ears on this latest mixx when you get a chance...

Oh yeah, and all of you power having suckaz around the world should take a listen to this joint as well.

Now, let's blackout...

SOULAR PLAYLIST:

01) Tweek - Bad Apple
02) Nico - Come Alive
03) Silhouette Brown - Monday's Coming
04) Hil St. Soul - Wash Away
05) Janelle Monae - Cloud 9
06) Venus Malone - Eye On The Prize
07) HISD - Galleria Chix
08) Kindred the Family Soul feat. India Irie - Struggle No More
09) Martine Girault - Good Love
10) Soul II Soul - Back To Life (Acapella)
11) Choklate - Long Way
12) Estelle - Back In Love
13) Sy Smith - The Things I Do
14) D'Nell - This Thing
15) Jackson Conti - Berumba
16) Astrud Gilberto - Bim Bom (Psapp Remix)
17) Nicola - Best In Me (Dub Version)
18) Silhouette Brown - Looking Back Reprise
19) Roy Ayers - Everybody Loves The Sunshine (9th Remix)

GET IT HERE!

Shoutout to my sponsors...

This mixx is sponsored by Preparation H ~ "Watch those hemorrhoids run and hide with a tube of Preparation H by your behind!"

AND...

Boones Farm Wine ~ "The cheapest liquor on the planet that a homeless alcoholic wouldn't even drink for free!"

16 DAYS AND COUNTING!
Detroit stand-up!! As a fan and friend of my dude Dwele, I'm pretty hyped about Mr. Gardner dropping his official third album on June 24th! It's been long overdue in my personal opinion, but it's better late than never. Some of my other favorite soul artists haven't even made it to the point of dropping third album yet *cough* D'Angelo *sneeze, plus symotanious poot*...but, who's complaining? I enjoy good music whenever I can get it, which is fortunately all of the time. I'm definitely a lucky bastard I know, so I don't take it for granted. Anyway, a couple of years ago I had a conversation with Dwele at a show he was hosting, and I asked him about all of the music that had leaked onto the internet from some of his unreleased projects. He was definitely a little heated about the situation, but he explained that there was no real way to guard his music from eventually being leaked. He knows that technology and internet art beasts when it comes to safeguarding things.

Dwele did mentioned that he would eventually release a few of the leaked tracks at a later date. Judging by the "Sketches of a Man" track list that date will be June 24th. This time around Dwele has mixed a bunch of old unreleased and new tracks to make up his latest project. For those of you that don't have these unreleased gems, you should be smiling from ear to ear. There are defnitely some bangers on this joint! Support good music and spend some money on my dude's album. This is one kat that works hard for the money...

Peep this video too:

I'm Cheatin' (Video)


www.dwele.net

I'M SEEING FRESHNESS!

After playing this joint over the last few days, it's easy to say that this joint is fresh to def people! It's like hip-hop meets the B-52's. Yep, me and the B-52's got a thang going on. If you are some what of a Neptunes fan and you like music with a little adventurous sound with a rock edge to it, then you definitely need this joint in your collection. Personally, I digs rock-n-roll, so this "Seeing Sounds" album is a creative genius to me. It's albums like these that keeps music from getting stale. We need albums like this. We need to support albums like this, but since I'm a realist I already know how things will really go. Once so called rap/hip-hop fans find out that this album has a rock feel to it, they will immediately become uninterested in it. Then the usual suspects will start leaving hate filled comments on several blogs around the net using such phrases like "it sucks!" _ "it's wack!"_"the Neptunes have fallen off!"...yadi, yadi, yah...

Don't believe it though! Take a listen for yourself and make your own mind up about it. Here's some advice. Pick your music like you pick your friends and fruit dammit! Would you allow folks to tell you how to pick those things for yourself? Didn't think so...

That is all...

Oh, and congrats to the RED WINGS for winning the Stanley Cup last night too!

ARE MUSIC MAGS STILL RELEVANT IN 08?
Recently, I was in Borders for who knows what and I ended up over by the magazine section. Since, I refuse to spend my hard earns on a magazine that barely has two good articles that I would probably enjoy reading, I prefer to stand there in the aisle and read them. It's a perfect setting actually. The store lighting is wonderful, plus they have nice seating for us patrons that may want to stay a while. If you plan accordingly you can even purchase yourself a tasty piece of cake and a carton of ice cold skim milk and make an evening of it. So, as I was deciding on which magazine I was going to take a peek at, I ended up next to the music magazines. You know the usual suspects like Vibe, The Source, XXL, etc., so I picked up a Vibe first. After turning a few pages of ads and more ads, I found myself immediately disappointed. It wasn't just the annoying amount of ads that bothered me the most, but it was the lack of interesting compositions that were present. Vibe was not covering anything in between the covers that I didn't already know or cared about actually. I suddenly dropped the Vibe on the floor and picked up XXL. Yes, XXL was a litte more interesting actually, but again after a few minutes I was bored once again. It's ashame when the Eye Candy portion of the mag is its best feature. Before I knew it, I heard the XXL mag hit the Vibe on the floor. I almost picked up the Source, but ever since the scandals happen a few years ago I don't really F with them any more.

So, after my experience I have to ask, who is still buying music magazines and why? It really seems like a waste of money in my personal opinion. It's no secret that the World Wide Web a.k.a the INTERNET literally blows any weekly or monthly magazine out of the water. The internet provides anything you would want to know with lightning speed especially when it comes to the latest gossip, album covers, music, artists interviews, video vixens photos and anything else your interested in dammit. A paper magazine could never keep up with that type of information sharing. The internet is NOW, and the magazines are a lot LATER. The craziest thing to me is that the actual printed magazine articles and exclusive photos are eventually available for free online as well. Thinking about it even further, most of the time they hit the internet before the damn magazine even hits the shelves. So, I ask again, are music magazines still relevant in 2008? My answer is not just no, but HELL NO!

I hope someone can give me some good feedback on why they are still spending money on music magazines these days. I do like King Magazine and Black Swimsuit, but you can believe I'm not looking through those just for the articles...

IT'S THE JUICE CREW, BIDDIES!
I've been a true hip-hop fan for decades now, and I personally don't think hip-hop has lost its edge like many others. Yes, it's full of gimmicks these days, but I know you old heads remember early rap groups like The Afros and Digital Underground. Gimmicks have been a part of rap music since the beginning, and will continue to be if it makes money. I try not to get all emotional about it. It's just music folks, so keep it simple. Just listen to what you like and avoid the stuff you don't. Outside of the fans debating about what's wack or not, a lot of the older hip-hop artists are coming out of the Land of the Lost trying to make a come back using this topic as well. They're trying to resurrect what they feel is REAL hip-hop music. It's cool for me because I truly dig most of the old school rappers hitting the scene once again. I'm still waiting on Tone Loc to pick up the mic again and do "Funky Cold Medina Pt. 2" featuring Young MC and MC Hammer. While the masses wait on Carter 3 to drop, I'm waiting Mr. Loc...


I didn't see this coming actually?? The next emcee up taking a shot at reversing the ill effects of rap music in the new millennium is my dude Craig G from the original Juice Crew. If you don't know about the Juice Crew, bow your head in shame first then Google it! Knowledge is power. The Juice Crew's ring leader and HPIC is the legendary Marley Marl providing all of the production, so Craig can spit venom freely knowing that the beats are good to go. The album is called "Operation Take Back Hip-Hop" and it drops on June 17th. If you are already a fan of Craig G's style then I think this album will be right up your alley. If you are looking for some nexx level hotness, this joint may sound dated, but if you're seeking some traditional boom-bap from the 1990s era this Operation may fill that void. Marley is still putting down some solid beats, and he's very consistant on this project. I don't want to sway your opinion either way about this album, so just check out this track and hear what you think...

Craig G feat Krs-One - Rock Dis

Support good music...

PARTY GRUVS VOL. 1!
Back when I was a younger man/club hoppin' junkie I was pretty serious when it came to getting my boogie on! I was pretty good at it too, plus I wasn't one of those "drink in my hand, wall hoggin' type suckaz" either, so I stayed on the dance floor getting my groove on with many honey-bunnies. Certain clubs had deejays that knew how to keep a party jumping all night, while others were hit or miss. One crappy record and the dance floor would clear like a somebody farted. A good deejay always have a couple of those "get them back on the dancefloor" records in their stash, for just such an occasion. A couple of records that come to mind immediately from back in 1990s were two hot tracks from Crystal Waters called "Gypsy Woman" and "Makin Happy!" Those two tracks alone were guaranteed to save the night as soon as the needle hit the record. Even today both tracks sound pretty damn good...

So, that's why I have included them both in my latest mixx entitled "Party Gruvs Volume 1." This joint is full of some of my favorite party grooves, and I'm figuring a couple of yours as well. Put ears on it when you get chance, and expect atleast 60 minutes straight head bobbin' while it's playing!

I can't forget to shoutout to my sponsors:

This mixx is brought to you by Old Spice Deodorant Spray--"Keep it spicy with Old Spice!" ~ "Your great, great, great, granddaddy wore Old Spice, and you should too, plus it puts hair on your feet!"

and...

Duncan Yo-Yo--"Whoever thought watching a cheap piece of plastic go up and down a dirty string could be so much fun?" ~"Nobody, but Duncan is still going to keep making them anyway dammit!"

Now, on to the mixx details...

PARTY GRUVS PLAYLIST:

01>Crystal Waters - Makin Happy (SoundNexx Horny Mix)
02>A Taste of Honey - Boogie Oogie Oogie
03>Anita Ward - Ring My Bell
04>Lily Allen - Smile (Gutter Mix)
05>Will.i.am - Make It Funky
06>Madonna feat. Kanye West & Pharell - Beat Goes On (Remix)
07>Virgo - Apple Pie
08>Patra - Pull Up (Salaam Remix)
09>Roger & Zapp - Doo Wa Ditty
10>Zhane' - Groove Thang
11>Floetry - Floetic
12>Koffee Brown - After Party
13>Jon B - Don't Talk
14>Toni Braxton - I Belong To You (Soulpower Remix)
15>Vee - Anotha Phase
16>Reggie B - Good Love
17>Janet Jackson - Feels So Right
18>Crystal Waters - Gypsy Woman
19>Secret Weapon - Must Be The Music

GET THE GRUVS HERE!

LINK 2 HERE!

MUSIC TO THE RESCUE!

Yesterday was pretty much a bust for me in many aspects. I wasted my very good eye juice going to see that very predictable & boring Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Knumbskull movie, plus them damn Detroit Pistons lost home court while playing at home. Luckily, I had this album in my ipod and it actually saved my day overall! Phuck a superhero like Spiderman or Mighty Mouse...when your day is going terrible, put on some good music to save yourself from the misery...

ULTRA-SOULFISTICATION MIXX!
Just like most fans in the world, I have high-expectations for the product that my favorite artists release. Even though it's a little much to expect a great album to be made each and everytime, but I still do dammit! It's the nature of the beast really. Fans are picky, selfish, harsh critics and never happy most of the time with anything, but as an artist your job is to make us happy enough to by your records. The funniest thing about music fans is that they can get music for free and still get pissed when they don't like it, but that's a discussion for another time. Anyway, I was peeping out that new Usher album the other day, and I will admit my expectations were high. Probably too high actually, based off of his last release. I've listened to Here I Stand twice and it's decent, but it's definitely not moving me like some of his earlier releases. I was looking for exceptional and all I heard was plain with a mix of average. It sounded kind of OmariChrisDreamLloydish almost at times. Hopefully, Ush will remix many of those mediocre tracks and make them hits in the end??

Until then, I have a something soulful that will hopefully keep you occupied while we wait, and I call it the "Ultra-Soulfistication Mixx" just in time for the weekend. Give it a listen when you get a minute...

ULTRA PLAYLIST:

01~koushik - only dreaming intro
02~usher ft. jay~z - best thing
03~urban mystic - where were you
04~a.b. - name
05~tony hussle - she's a virgin
06~governor - on my way
07~sarina leah - free it out
08~jazztronik - listen to your love (mitsu remix)
09~calvin richardson - holla at you
10~lina - bye bye baby
11~wes felton ft. raheem devaughn & roddy rod - put in work
12~tavaris - questions
13~vinia mojica - on my way
14~nadine - tell me
15~middle child - put something in the air
16~stone mecca ft. rza - oh
17~vikter duplaix - manhood (remix)
18~wes felton - dilla glows
19~adriana evans - all for love
20~angela johnson ft. gordon chambers - get away
21~lalah hathaway - for always

GET IT HERE!

I have sponsors now, so I need to shout them out:

This mixx is brought to you by Raid Roach Motel --"They check in, but they don't check out!"
and Hostess Ho-Ho's --"It's not a cupcake unless it's a HO-HO!"

LALAH'S SELF PORTRAIT!
As urban music has changed tremendously over the years, there are still some things that have remained the same. Not "those same old biscuits" type same, but more like "I'm glad you're still making quality music" type same! It's hard to get tired of a good thing, so if it isn't broke you must have a good mechanic? Yeah, I know...but, let's keep it moving though. When I mention the name Hathaway, who normally comes to mind immediately? Unless you are 12 or younger, it's probably the music legend Donny Hathaway. Even though Donny left us entirely too soon, he did help create his daughter Lalah Hathaway who embodies a lot of her father's talent. Her voice, delivery and beauty are all top notch, and I have been a serious fan since the beginning of her career. If you love that smooth adult contemporary soul, then you definitely need some Lalah in your life. If you've been in a coma, you can your Lalah collection with any of these albums: Lalah Hathaway (1990), Night and Day (1992), A Moment (1994), The Songs Live On feat. Joe Sample (1999) and Outrun The Sky (2004)...

Put ears on this album sampler to get a wiff of what Lalah's cooking:

Outrun The Sky Sampler

Now, it's 2008 and Mrs. Hathaway is back with another hot, hot album! It's titled "Self Portrait" and I mean it when I say it's smooth as a baby's bottom minus the diaper rash. The production is amazing! This album took me back to the days of Anita Baker and Sade. Since, I know for a fact that the radio would never touch an album like this, unless it's a smooth jazz station, it's important that sites like this give it some some deserved shine. Personally, I'm a sucker for female singers with a little meat on their bones, and that's probably why I have been staring at this album cover for 5 minutes straight? It's something about those beautiful soup coolers she has and everything else about her dammit!

A private side note to Jill Scott: I'm sorry Jilly...I know what we have is special and I still luv you, and you will always have a warm spot in my musical heart. Fortunately, you are a talented and understanding woman yourself, so please make room because Lalah is moving in...

As always, support good music!

Find out more about Lalah here:

www.lalahhathaway.com/

PRODUCERS 2 WATCH 4: J RAWLS
No, his name is not Drawls playa (getcha glasses fixed), it's J-Rawls out of the mid-west reppin' Ohio. Yep, I typed it right, O-H-I-O! As you may already know, I am a huge fan of great production, so I have decided to do a few posts targeting producers that should be on your radar in 2008. Mr. Rawls (no Lou) has been doing his thing for years with the underground hip-hop group Lone Catalyst. Providing crazy beats for his crew over the years. Rawls is to Lone Catalyst what 9th Wonder was to Little Brother. Excuse me while I take a pause to shed an e-tear for the break up of LB! 9th, you talented, yet selfish and turrible-knucklehead, you're lucky that Phonte and Pooh are still making it without you or I'd fly to NC and personally eat your Fruity Loops software with some skim milk. Nah, for real though, I'm just serious! Anyway, back to my dude Rawls...the man is a master at flipping and chopping up the beat samples. The best thing about him is that he's created a sound all his own. His choices of original samples sometimes comes way out of left field at times, but he always seems make it something special in the end. Check this joint to hear what I'm saying:

WISH U LUV

Then J. Rawls has the ability to change his sound up and get jazzy with his production. It's obvious that he's a true jazz fan from the heart, because he's definitely picked some classics to flip over the years. Put ears on this jazz tribute record he did. I won't bother telling you what jazz artist Rawls is sampling for this tribute because I know you already know, right:

A TRIBUTE TO BOBBY

An that's not even it for when it comes to the diversity of J. Rawls! My dude even puts it down on the soul tip as well. Personally, I don't mind a little hiphop flavor with my soul music, but I like it even more when a producer can totally transition between the two genres. Not many have mastered that ability, but J. Rawls is one of the few that has. This joint is actually one of my favs from the J. Rawls collection. It's featuring my girl Jonell, who for some reason hasn't gotten her just-due-due yet. If this one doesn't get you head bobbin' check your pulse because your probably retarded or death:

MISS U

If you haven't heard of J. Rawls until now, it's time to get familiar. Show J. Rawls some luv on his myspace page:

www.myspace.com/jrawls

Keep your eyes and ears out for upcoming releases from the Lone Catalyst and Middle Child. You'll definitely be hearing much of their stuff in my upcoming mixxes...