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GAF-Hop |OT9/9/99| African Substitute Teachers Run NY

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C

CRS

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h2siRr7.png
 
IrishNinja

IrishNinja

Member
goddamn @ mudkip

Eschaton said:
Exactly, it is funny that people bag Jay for being flabby but conveniently ignore the Wu being more or less crap for a decade now.
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ehhh i see your point but again it's about expectations...Wu's best days are behind them, i don't think anyone'd argue otherwise (past LS2 but you know)
like No Said Date and OB4CL2 were fantastic in my eyes because stuff like 8 diagrams and so many solo efforts had been slippin/phoning shit in for more than a minute. Meth & Ghost are consistent for me but i can't front like much else is, also

HiResDes said:
U-God's album is very decent and Killah Priest killed it. Ghostface's Apollo Brown joint is also pretty damn dope.
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^. now Jay, jay stayed consistent for me up through the Black Album (an undeniable classic in my eyes) and one of the reasons i pick on ya boy so much is that i thought he was technically one of the best out, as far as riding a flow, and i miss the fuck out of that & im clearly bitter. sometimes shit like your Shiny Suit and that Ross Free Mason track show up & i get a glimpse of him and it kills me not to see that Jay more often, you know? i get glimpses with Wu as well but they're admittedly smaller/shorter in comparison.

Blackace said:
Fo sure... he was saying you can't be ugly and lyrical.. but Biggie and Jay kinda negate that
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true but i get his point about modern day MC's; for a minute now des, toku etc have talked about what kinda look/etc you gotta have for certain huge crossover lanes. i think it's cool to see Danny rock the crackhead look & eat like he does, but he couldn't be in say Drake's lane if he sang/ohhhhhh'd like an angel tho
 
E

Esch

Banned
IrishNinja said:
ehhh i see your point but again it's about expectations...Wu's best days are behind them, i don't think anyone'd argue otherwise (past LS2 but you know)
like No Said Date and OB4CL2 were fantastic in my eyes because stuff like 8 diagrams and so many solo efforts had been slippin/phoning shit in for more than a minute. Meth & Ghost are consistent for me but i can't front like much else is, also
Click to expand...

I agree, different expectations. Jay and the Wu have been doing it for pretty much the same period of time (insert apocrypha about Jay battling GZA infront of a mosque here). And Jay has been more prolific AND more consistent than about all of them (Ghost is about as consistent, but he was never doing anywhere near Jay's amount of features), yet he's the one who's expected to be rapping like he did on The Originators or something. But I guess that's what happens where you're the GOAT.
 
H

HiResDes

Member
Ghost has a more consistent discography than Jay. Stop right there. You've went full stan and can't seem to realize that Jay-Z hasn't made a good album since The Black Album.
 
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Esch

Banned
HiResDes said:
Ghost has a more consistent discography than Jay. Stop right there. You've went full stan and can't seem to realize that Jay-Z hasn't made a good album since The Black Album.
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Nah, not really. American Gangster is good (not great) and they have about the same number of good albums. Ghost has three truly great classics (SC, I, BPW(original)) and the rest are some good, some bad.
 
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Esch

Banned
HiResDes said:
American Gangster is pretty meh, can't even call it good.
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That's you then. I don't care for it that much personally either, but a lot of people seem to love it.

New Nas interview

I represent the art side of hip hop — because, even in its most primitive stages, hip hop as a whole is an ever-evolving masterpiece. A spectacle we can create for all to behold. A form we should honor and respect.

A young person recently said to me, “you know, there’s rap, and then there’s real rap.” So I don’t worry about the kids today; they know the shit that’s wrong and the shit that’s right. You can’t really pull kids to the side and say “that’s not real rap” because to them it’s real; they’re rapping in a style they like to rap in. They’re all developing their craft. I wouldn’t want to be the guy who comes out and tells them that what they’re all into is not real.

These days, I’m into cats like Action Bronson, J. Cole, Kendrick Lamar, Joey Bada$$, Tyler, The Creator, Meek Mill. These cats all have something to say. Fresh energy is everything — new inspiration can fuel the birth of a dynasty.

As a youth coming up in Queensbridge, I felt this sense of desperation. We were growing up so fast; I would lose friends to the streets constantly. I wanted to have a baby when I was a child — many of us did — because we felt like there was no tomorrow, that there would be no legacy for people to reflect on the day after tomorrow. That’s what happened to so many of my friends. I lost my man Niño. Drawz. And lots of good dudes who will be remembered by a chosen few, forever.

There was that saying going around: “Black kids don’t live past the age of 25.” If you think about Biggie and Pac, they were taken away from us when they were so young. It felt like there was a curse on my generation. Then again, that violence still holds true today. Look at what’s happening on the streets of Chicago — and in the Congo.

Can you imagine living so fast that you wind up planning to retire at age 24? That’s how it was. Money was gained and lives were lost. Still, throughout all of that madness, one can gain a lot of wisdom. You never lose the streets — it’s in your heart, it’s who you are no matter what — no matter who I meet, no matter where I go.

On the streets you learn who to trust and who not to trust. You learn the world’s dark secrets. Growing up where I’m from, you have to learn how to read people’s body language; you gotta learn how to almost read minds. Living in the projects takes a lot of thinking: it takes a lot of camouflaging your moves because you’re constantly being studied and, at the same time, everybody’s studying everyone else because your survival depends on it.

A lot of moves are being made around you 24/7 — major chess moves. You have to know who you’re with, and you have to know what the consequences could be being with that person or being around those kinds of situations. You have to know what you’re standing for.

You start to think fast; you realize that knowledge can be limited in the environment but that everybody’s thirsty for knowledge, everybody’s thirsty to learn something new — you’d be surprised how much kids in the street know. Those were the cats who first related to my music. I was a voice for those people — the people in the projects who masked their intelligence because they refused to let the wolves know what they were thinking.

The business of rap can be a heavy experience for the newly initiated. There’s that intense “crabs-in-a-barrel” syndrome to contend with. And it all can boil down to what new shit you’re wearing. There’s going to be a few people on the block who aren’t happy about the new freshness that you’re rockin’, that you were lookin’ extra clean that day. Fresh gear, fresh kicks, fresh haircut — really small things in the big scheme of life, but lives have been lost in the ‘hood behind even smaller things. You have this glow on you that the haters can’t resist. They’re like thirsty mosquitos hovering below a streetlight. The intelligent ones, they adjust. They learn to not shine so bright; they find ways to mute the money and status, but still represent the culture and the pride and the people to the fullest. I learned. I evolved. I am still here. I am.

And we can all shine together.

These days, it’s important to see progress in one another — especially from people from the street. I’m inspired by people doin’ new things and achieving great success. I want the youth to understand that I’m rolling with Mass Appeal something serious. I’m still with them; I’m all about them.

Let’s get over self-hate — and be excellent.

Let’s give respect and get it back.
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Kind of a boring interview but it was interesting just off the strength of Nas telling us what he listens to. Tyler the Creator tho?
 
E

Esch

Banned
I don't get these interviews Gnauze and Jay put out where all they can talk about is what they did in the streets or whatever. like, you've been in the biz and game decades now and that's what you choose to bring to the table? The shit that you were doing when you were a teenager, cmon now. Also I feel like Nas has the taste of Count Blackule or something with that list lmao. It's interesting to see that he genuinely seems to like Meek Milly.
 
H

HiResDes

Member
I mean it got rave reviews from a bunch of "fluff" publications, but many of the more high regarded ones saw it as a mostly middling affair.
 
E

Esch

Banned
HiResDes said:
I mean it got rave reviews from a bunch of "fluff" publications, but many of the more high regarded ones saw it as a mostly middling affair.
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It's pretty high on the Esch scale but lacking poignance in a lot of points. Still a solid enough album, and some of my favorite songs of his are on there. But the PEOPLE, on hip hop sites seem to still give it a solid amount of dap.
The Artful Dodger said:
Yeaaaah, I did not enjoy listening to that.
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It's that owe back taxes conspiracy struggle rap. She sounds straight up mentally ill tbh.
 
J

Jay Sosa

Member
Been browsing livemixtapes today and found this little gem. Nothing outstanding but I like it. Dude has a veeeery clean flow, production is pretty good. Well, if anyone is interested:

 
G

Grzi

Member
HiResDes said:
I mean it got rave reviews from a bunch of "fluff" publications, but many of the more high regarded ones saw it as a mostly middling affair.
Click to expand...

Which ones? I'm looking at the wiki article and it's all 4/5's, which is pretty good. It has only 2 mixed reviews on Metacritic (ok, one's from NME but whatever) so I don't see who saw it as a mostly middling affair.

(I don't like the album btw, but it was mostly a critical success, just saying)
 
D

Detox

Member
Keeping up with news is tough behind the great firewall, thanks for posting the Nas interview, seems to have been coherent or the editor is good.

Nas the only GOAT contender alive who still rides beats like it was 94.
 
P

PhoenixDark

Banned
I could see Nas owning beats from 40, T-Minus, Alchemist, and a host of other dope producers. He's probably never going to sound good on pure swag rap beats or super busy Timbaland shit...but I'm cool with that.

He has annihilated every Justice League beat he's been on, for instance. The question has never been Nas falling off IMO, it's been a problem with him being a god damn dumbass. He does best when he has some form of linear guidance. For all the acclaim he gets for Illmatic, it should be noted MC Serch is the guy who brought those producers together. IWW was Steve Stout. Stillmatic was basically a bunch of producers wanting to go to war on Nas' side. God's Son seems like perhaps the only album where Nas had full control and did the right thing. Life Is Good is basically No ID trying his hardest to move Nas out of the gutter production wise, succeeding in some ways failing in others.

Which is why I'd love for Nas to hook up with Q-Tip. He has an ear for that "stuck in the 90s" shit, but also has an obvious talent for more modern shit. His work with Kanye speaks for itself; imagine Nas on the break beat heavy That's My Bitch, he'd kill that wack Kanye vese and fit with Jay's dope verse. Give me 3-4 Q-Tip beats as the foundation, and build around that with other dope producers. Get Salaam Remi the fuck out the building. He has some dope shit on LiG but it's time to go breh. And to think this is the guy that produced most of Amy Winehouse's best songs, yet rarely provides a head knocker for Nas - probably due to Nas picking the worst of the beats.

Q-Tip exec producing, Justice League, ALCHEMIST, Oh No, T-Minus, Kanye. There's no way to fuck that up. And for those clamoring for a struggle beat from Premier...dunno, maybe an interlude type track. He couldn't fuck that.
 
P

PBY

Banned
PhoenixPause said:
I could see Nas owning beats from 40, T-Minus, Alchemist, and a host of other dope producers. He's probably never going to sound good on pure swag rap beats or super busy Timbaland shit...but I'm cool with that.

He has annihilated every Justice League beat he's been on, for instance. The question has never been Nas falling off IMO, it's been a problem with him being a god damn dumbass. He does best when he has some form of linear guidance. For all the acclaim he gets for Illmatic, it should be noted MC Serch is the guy who brought those producers together. IWW was Steve Stout. Stillmatic was basically a bunch of producers wanting to go to war on Nas' side. God's Son seems like perhaps the only album where Nas had full control and did the right thing. Life Is Good is basically No ID trying his hardest to move Nas out of the gutter production wise, succeeding in some ways failing in others.

Which is why I'd love for Nas to hook up with Q-Tip. He has an ear for that "stuck in the 90s" shit, but also has an obvious talent for more modern shit. His work with Kanye speaks for itself; imagine Nas on the break beat heavy That's My Bitch, he'd kill that wack Kanye vese and fit with Jay's dope verse. Give me 3-4 Q-Tip beats as the foundation, and build around that with other dope producers. Get Salaam Remi the fuck out the building. He has some dope shit on LiG but it's time to go breh. And to think this is the guy that produced most of Amy Winehouse's best songs, yet rarely provides a head knocker for Nas - probably due to Nas picking the worst of the beats.

Q-Tip exec producing, Justice League, ALCHEMIST, Oh No, T-Minus, Kanye. There's no way to fuck that up. And for those clamoring for a struggle beat from Premier...dunno, maybe an interlude type track. He couldn't fuck that.
Click to expand...

Nas sounds AWESOME over swag/trap beats. I always say this, NAS would drop a masterpiece if it was exec produced by...

KHALED THE GOD.

Seriously. Nas x Khaled is always, always, always fire.
 
E

Esch

Banned
I have really come around on Nights Gambit. Probably #2 of the year behind Old so far. I might like it better tbh, havent decided.

I agree PP. The moves Nas should make are easy to see for everryone but Nas. He needs an exec producer.
 
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