Emcee of the Month: Murs

I've been debating with myself tonight. Should I look for Murs' most recent offerings or post one of his tracks that initially caught my attention? After skimming through a few clips (all of them impressive I might add), I felt it best to post this:

I first encountered this track while doing college radio at Louisiana State University in 2005. The format of the station was primarily indie rock with a little underground hip hop thrown in for spice. During one of my normal regular-rotation shifts, this song popped up in the mix. Now, most of the hip hop the station kept in the library was familiar to me. But I had never heard Murs' stuff before and I was immediately impressed. It had been a while since I heard an emcee as direct and unapologetic as Murs is here. And in relation to many of the cultural difficulties still facing the south, this song seemed especially appropriate.

Plus, it's super-fresh.

peace.

Phonte, 9th Wonder, and The "L" Word

9th Wonder and Phonte are two-thirds of one of the most celebrated hip hop groups of the past decade, Little Brother. Here's a brilliant video of the two answering questions about love.

Where's Big Pooh!?

For a quick reference, Phonte and 9th Wonder haven't had the best of relationships lately. 9th left the group back in 2007 due to creative differences, a break that was publicized as mutual amicable for everyone involved. However, in the spring of 2010 Phonte and 9th had a very public dispute on Twitter regarding the release of a 9th Wonder produced track on Little Brother's album Leftback. For the sake of community, I'll leave it up to you to search all the particulars of the argument.

Fortunately, 9th and Phonte were able to reconcile their differences at the beginning of 2011, and seem to have renewed their friendship. They have yet to commit to any musical collaborations (although they haven't ruled them out), but rather are focused on rebuilding their personal relationship as friends and colleagues. Honestly, I feel that's much more important; good for them.

That's doesn't mean I don't want to hear another LB album! These cats are some of my favorites!

peace.

Emcee of the Month: Jean Grae

Here's Jean Grae's video for the track "Love Thirst" from her Jeanius album.

I knew I wanted to highlight one of Jean's music videos today, and in my search for an appropriate clip, I was disheartened to discover she hasn't actually done many.

It's an unfortunate reality of the music industry that artists who reside on independent labels don't have truckloads of financial backing to create projects like music videos. However, when these artists do rustle up enough resources to get a video together the result is usually quite inventive and provocative. Such is the case with "Love Thirst".

Jean's playfulness and variety in this video is quite enjoyable. I'm a fan of multiple personality-type stuff, and the play on religious contradiction at the end is a nice touch. I would have, however, liked to see her spending some time out of the cab in her various personas engaging with people on the street. I feel that would have made the video a more well rounded.

Nevertheless, it's pretty dope. I hope to see another on from her soon!

peace.

Emcee of the Month: Jean Grae

I'm excited I have an opportunity this month to discuss and highlight an artist whose work I've checked out before now. This is a track of off Jean's 2008 album Jeanius. Titled "The Time is Now", the production is handled by 9th Wonder with Phonte of Little Brother making a fantastic guest appearance.

This is my favorite jawn (Philly word!) on the Jeanius album, primarily because it exhibits Jean's sense of humor and spontaneity. Her verse on this track harnesses an energy that feels much more like free association or stream of consciousness than the more meditative lyrics she offers in other moments on the LP. But the verse doesn't seem sloppy or misshapen in any way. As the listener I'm able to follow the progression of her thoughts easily and clearly, even though the imagery makes significant shifts at times. Jean is very good at finding a balance in her writing that suggests an illusion of performing the verse for the first time while guiding us on a journey with her through the exploration of the text. And judging from the ad-libs that open and close the song, it's evident she's having a ton-o-fun.

Also, she's kickin' with the home state boys, Phonte and 9th Wonder (NC!). I'm always down with that!

peace.