The Liberator Magazine | Blog

I Self Devine / The Upliftment Struggle {ep/mix}

2012-05-21T05:02:00.000-04:00

Check for: "Up Aboves", "Fetti On Max", "Street Lights", "I Don't Know", "Temptation Is Evident", "Moment In Time" f. Budah Tye, Halph Duzn, & M.anifest, and "Dreaming, Sleeping & Dying".

The Upliftment Struggle (download)

I Self Devine / Reports From the Field: In the Trenches {ep/mix}

2012-05-21T05:01:00.000-04:00

Check for: "Oblivious" f. Muja Messiah, "Twizzled" f. Soulution, "Pretty Sickness" f. Ak-Rite, "Nation Time", "Chips And Gravy", and "Urgency".

Reports From the Field: In the Trenches (download)

Groove De Lá {ep/mix}

2012-05-05T14:05:00.001-04:00

Info: "DJ, music researcher, and collector of vinyl, Ju Salty began her advances in sound at the end of 2006 and from then to now has spun alternative in the best houses of Sao Paulo. Black music of the world are her influences: From seeds collected from African musicality that spread to the rest of the world, from jazz to samba, funk to soul, Latin music to Candomblé, everything coalesces in the same pot in their sound..."

Groove De Lá (download)

01.Manu Dibango – New Bell (Camarões)
02.The S.A. Move – Skophom (Africa do Sul)
03.Albino – Jing Bong Wah (EUA)
04.Lafayette Afro Rock – The Gap (EUA e França)
05.Orlando Julius – Afro Instrumental (Nigéria)
06.Marijata - Bualc Through (Gana)
07.Fanga – Crache La Douleur (França)
08.Antibalas – Who Is This America Dem Speak Of Today? (EUA)
09.The Boogoos – Theme For Issac Kirya (Alemanha)
10.Mahotella Queens– Wozani Mahipi (Africa do Sul)
11.Ebo Taylor – Victory (Gana)
12.3rd Generation Band – Obiye Saa Wui (Togo)
13.The Daktaris – Musicawi Silt (EUA)
14.Rob – Read The Bible (Gana)
15.The Mebusas – Son Of Me Bull Dog (Nigéria)
16.Osibisa – Somaja (Inglaterra)
17.Tony Allen & Jimi Tenor – Against The Wall (Nigeria e Finlandia)
18.Mulatu Astatke & Heliocentrics – Cha Chá (Etiopia e Inglaterra)

Stalley / Savage Journey to the American Dream {ep/mix}

2012-04-01T05:00:00.000-04:00

Savage Journey to the American Dream (download)

Info: "What role is Rick Ross playing in your life right now? ... "He’s like a big brother, a mentor, a friend. He’s just someone who believes in me like I believe in myself. And just to have him being the hottest artist in the game right now and having the best label in the game right now. For me to be the new guy, and the new artist that nobody really knows about — even Meek [Mill] and Wale had some sort of history where people knew who they were even before MMG. But me, I’m kinda out of nowhere like, “Who is this guy?” So for him to believe in me and see that is just a beautiful thing. He plays that role of just believing, and that’s all I ever needed.… It’s all about that opportunity, that’s like when you play ball. It’s like, ‘put me in the game coach, I’m ready to play.’ And if they see you, they know you on the team, they see you do the warm-ups, and they see that you got a little game, but they don’t know until you get out on the court. So now, March 30 is my time to get out on the court. And when I’m out there, people gonna see me shining. That’s all I need. I don’t need no handouts, I don’t need no help, just put me in front of the people and they’ll believe."" (source)

Big KRIT / 4eva N a Day {ep/mix}

2012-03-19T04:00:00.000-04:00

4eva N a Day (download)

Info: "Before we get into the album, tell us about your new mixtape. What were some of the concepts and ideas you had in mind prior to creating this mixtape?

My album was originally supposed to come out September 27 last year and now we’ve changed it to June. So in between then, I wanted to create a body of music. Hence, I didn’t want it to just be a gang of songs and that’s it, you know? I wanted it to be a conceptual mixtape of A day in the life of Big K.R.I.T. because there’s not a lot of footage of me out there, so I wanted people to get to know me.

A very personal project it seems.

I decided to put my whole life on wax for this mixtape and the story unfolds as you listen to each track. You’ll even notice the artwork ties in with this vision. There’s different standpoints that depict what one goes through in a day and the choices and decisions you make whether good or bad. The titles are traditionally in the hook, but these titles reflect more of the emotions and actions. Cohesively, from the songs, artwork, track listing, titles, it's all relative.

You said your put your “whole life on wax this for this mixtape,” are there certain songs we should look out for?

There were a couple, “Yesterday,” “Me and My Old School,” “1986” since that was my birth year, “Handwriting” and last but not least, “Down & Out.” These songs came all came from a special place and I’m hoping there are people that can relate to it so it helps them." (source)

King / The Story [ep/mix]

2012-02-20T05:00:00.000-05:00

Creative statement: "THE STORY began on an August afternoon in Los Angeles, or in a winter rehearsal session in Boston, or in April 1986 in Minneapolis, depending on how you define destiny. Twins Paris and Amber Strother began their musical journey by listening to favorites of their parents together from the crib, and once they were able to crawl found their way to the piano. Amber nurtured her gift for singing by absorbing everything musical around her, and in turn developed an intricate, magical tone and one-of-a-kind voice, as well as a unique skill for composition and songwriting. Through exploring a melting pot of artists, genres, musical ideas and movements, Paris found her own personal voice for the keys. The twins spent years unknowingly ripening their craft of writing together until they parted ways and left Minneapolis, with Amber to pursue studies in Chicago and Paris to enroll at music school in Boston where…

A chance meeting with a young woman with a golden voice and incredible ear changed her life. Los Angeles native Anita Bias had fallen in love with music and art as a young girl, and spent years cultivating her voice, imaginative and vivid songwriting, and creative styling. Their Boston encounter stayed fresh in the minds of both, and when fate brought Paris to California and reunited them years later at a club in Los Angeles, they knew it was the start of something special. During Amber's first trip to LA and the living room session that followed, the three realized that they were born to create together. At the first show of the unofficial and then-unnamed band, they, along with the audience, were said to have seen fireworks in the air. The unique blend of voices, engaging harmony, and detailed songwriting the group exhibited came completely naturally to them. Amber, who had been since moved back to Minneapolis, sent for her belongings. KING was born. THE STORY EP is KING's debut project, wherein all songs are written by Paris, Amber, and Anita, and fully produced by Paris. THE STORY, SUPERNATURAL, and HEY are the result of a year's worth of loving and learning, experiencing and experimenting, and ultimately finding the music within themselves."

The Story EP

Robert Glasper Experiment / "Move Love" f. King

I Self Devine / LA State of Mind [ep/mix]

2012-01-31T05:00:00.000-05:00

One of those artists who will always be on our radar, I Self Devine recently dropped his free LA State of Mind mixtape and video for the new track Sweat Equity. "Justice" and "Thingz" are among our favorites.

LA State of Mind (soundcloud download)

"Sweat Equity"

Related Videos:

"Officer Down"

"I Can't Say Nothing Wrong"

"Michael Jordan dun gon back down ta Carolina and the countdown to the 2020 census" / The Michael Jordan Theory EP

2011-12-26T09:01:00.000-05:00

Miami's Ghostwridah delivers some holiday cheer to a music inbox, quite honestly, often filled with mediocrity. With the free Michael Jordan Theory EP, Ghost speaks the same triumphant energy Ross, T.I., Kanye, Jay-Z, and Jeezy are pushing, but he avoids cliche by using one of the greatest historical icons of his lifetime as his muse for the entire EP. Full of nostalgic 90s memories of the great one built over some bangers, this concise 5-track project is creative, refreshing, and damn good. If the Third Great Migration (see below) is real, this project, speaking volumes to his ability to inspire and lead, might place Big Carolina-to-Chicago-to-Carolina Mike ("I was a anti-Carolina guy") firmly in the Washingtonian legacy.

The Michael Jordan Theory EP (download)

Buzzer Beater

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The United Center Intro

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Third Great Migration Might be in Progress: African-Americans return to their Southern roots
(SOURCE: VOA)

Now there's a massive reverse migration of blacks back to ... "their Southern roots." Between 2000 and 2010, for instance, Florida’s African-American population grew by 587,000, Georgia’s by 579,000, and North Carolina’s by 297,000. [...] "It’s all about quality of life," Mike Morton told USA Today. "When I visit New York now, it’s culture shock. I don’t hear car horns down here. As soon as you get to New York, you’re hearing thousands of them." [...] Some African-Americans tell interviewers that they moved back - or to the South for the first time - for warmer weather, to distance themselves from high urban crime, to reunite with southern relatives or to take advantage of lower home prices and taxes. (source)

Related
» Blacks Heading South, Leaving The City

For the Love of the Cuff [ep] / Live from Planet Earth volume 1.1

2011-12-21T10:01:00.001-05:00

{liberatormagazine.com exclusive feature}

For the Love of the Cuff EP / Live from Planet Earth volume 1.1
by Nia I’man Smith

Brothas and Sistas, It is with great sadness that I report the cold pimp slap of winter is officially upon us. Between landlords that lock up the thermostat because your adjusting it “makes the gas bill go up” and the shame that comes with trying to weatherproof your windows using saran wrap, winter is surely the season that finds most folks looking for alternate sources of heat. So while I personally maintain a strict "anti-cuff" policy, in the spirit of realizing that everybody isn’t satisfied with just their degrees keeping them warm on these cold ass nights, we present to you the For the Love of the Cuff EP: Live from Planet Earth volume 1.1.

Guaranteed to get you and your seasonal boo hotter than a good space heater, we've carefully compiled over TWO hours of the best Cognac fueled old school and bump and grind new school slow jams for all your cuffing needs. So download the A-Side and the B-Side, stuff that comforter in the back of the closet, pull out the bearskin rug, and if you end up going half on a baby as a result of some Tyrone Davis or Tiombe Lockhart, just promise that you’ll name her (or him) Nia. It's only fair.

A-Side (download)

01. Ain’t Nothin I can Do: Tyrone Davis
02. Butterfly: Herbie Hancock
03. Creepin: Stevie Wonder
04. Devika [Goddess Chant}: Lonnie Liston Smith & the Cosmic Echoes
05. Do It Again: New Birth
06. Everlasting Love: Rufus featuring Chaka Khan
07. Getting It On: Leroy Hutson
08. Gimme a Little Action: Sylvia
09. Holiday: Leon Ware
10. I Love You More and More: Tom Brock
11. I Too Am Wanting: Syreeta
12. It’s Your Love: Ethel Beatty
13. I Want More, More, and Then Some : Nina Simone
14. It's Your Love: Ethel Beatty
15. Let Me Love You: Michael Henderson
16. Let Me Ride: Windy City
17. Listen to My Song: Darondo
18. Raunchy Rita: Elvin Jones and Richard Davis
19. That’s All Right With Me: Esther Phillips
20. Tunji: John Coltrane
21. When I Found You: Patrice Rushen
22. Wild and Peaceful: Kool & The Gang

B-Side (download)

01. Alone With An Angel: Georgia Anne Muldrow
02. Bass Head Jazz: Cee-Lo Green
03. Billie Jean: Aloe Blacc & The Grand Scheme
04. Day: Quadron
05. DIRTYLAPDANCER: The Mag-Nif
06. Electric Man : Prince
07. Everyday: Jamiroqui
08. Finer Things: J*Davey
09. Gloria (Zodiac Lovers): Adrian Younge
10. Hey: King
11. I Said: Full Crate &Mar
12. Love Song #1: Me’Shell N’degeOcello
13. Off The Late Night: Diamond District
14. The Panties: Mara Hruby
15. Return of the Caribbean Cowboy: Nicky Lars
16. Seconds: Little Dragon (Syd The Kid Remix)
17. Sex (I’m A): Lovage
18. She Needs Me: Jamie Lidell
19. Sexy Suzy on a Sunday: Tiombe Lockhart
20. Sweat: Peter Hadar
21. Take You High: Glenn Lewis
22. The Girl of My Dreams: Coultrain
23. Wait: The Tao Of Slick

ACME / Why Not? [ep/mix]

2011-09-08T12:01:00.000-04:00

Why Not? (download)

Last Friday night, I ventured out to a house party to see live music and party like the 19-year-old I am decidedly not. I also had an ulterior motive; mainly to see a certain boy who did turn out to be there but that is not the point of this post. No, I'm here to tell you about the creative high I got from seeing the band ACME perform that night. The whole performance was very The Doors. Soulful. Loud. Dark. Sweaty. Exhilarating. The lead singer and guitarist, Cheakaity Brown, had the crowd in his thrall and watching them perform "We Got The Love" with the speakers turned to 11 was a real treat (their performance literally blew out the speakers. If you can, buy their album so they can pay for a new set.) You won't regret this download.

All Along In Love
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We Got The Love
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Be Thankful
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Bosco / Pacer [ep/mix]

2011-08-30T09:01:00.000-04:00

Atlanta-based singer, songwriter, and all-around artist Bosco (formerly known by her full name Brittany Bosco), has just released a new free EP, Pacer, that has been in constant rotation on my iPod. The electronic, distorted sound (she collaborated with Dog Bite who works with Washed Out) is a departure from her previous release, Spectrum, but I love the laidback, hypnotic feel to this short, but sweet selection of songs. Be sure to check out the flipbook that comes with the download; it's full of hidden gems.

Pacer EP (download)

Kid Cudi [audios]

2011-08-16T13:01:00.002-04:00

After he discovered and declared that "hell does have an exit, and i found it," it was time for us to give Cudi a proper feature (previously: The Moon Man). After starting his career off with "The Prayer," "ready for the funeral," and then stoning and raging in the "Pursuit Of Happiness," he ended up being one of the quickest reform stories in 21st-century Hip-Hop.

Dat Kid From Cleveland (download)

A Kid Named Cudi (download)

Perfect Is The Word

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Hyyerr

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Cudi Zone

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The End

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All Along

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Switchin Lanes

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Cleveland Is The Reason

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Man On The Moon (The Anthem)

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The Prayer

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Rare & Bizarre Vol. 4 [ep/mix]

2011-08-10T13:01:00.002-04:00

Volume 4 of this series retains and builds on the standard. A classic compilation series (Vols. One, Two & Three).

Rare & Bizarre Vol. 4 (download)

Sweet Summer

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Justine

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Sales Talk

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Bossa Antique

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Giuggi

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Altalena Party

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Kendrick Lamar [audios]

2011-07-28T12:01:00.002-04:00

Compton's Kendrick Lamar dropped two solid projects on the scene with his 2009 EP "The Kendrick Lamar EP" and his 2010 mixtape "O(verly) D(edicated)". He also appeared on Jhene Aiko's Sailing Soul(s) EP, like recently featured Frank Ocean. But it was this year's "Section 80" album that has proven he can consistently deliver quality craftsmanship for broader audiences. If Blu (Liberatormag 7.1) is committed to introspection for now, Lamar is proudly grabbing the reins of the left coast -- his single "Hiiipower" is a loud and clear manifesto.

The Kendrick Lamar EP (download)

O(verly) D(edicated) (download)

Alien Girl (Today w/ Her)

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Keisha's Song (Her Pain)

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H.O.C.

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The Heart Pt. 2

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Hiiipower

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Ronald Reagan Era

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Average Joe

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Miguel [audios]

2011-07-14T12:57:00.004-04:00

It's his track "Sure Thing" (Youtube video below) that's undeniable, but singer/songwriter Miguel has been doing this for a while. Earlier this year he was on Jhene Aiko's Sailing Soul(s) project. In 2008, he released the Mischief mixtape with jeweled joints like "Strawberry Amazing" on it. And in 2007 he was featured on Blu (Liberator 7.1) and Exile's now classic debut album, Below The Heavens. Here's to even more success.

Strawberry Amazing

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All I Want Is You f. J. Cole

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Teach Me

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Girls Like You

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Cold Hearted f. Blu

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Frank Ocean [audios]

2011-06-30T15:01:00.001-04:00

Perhaps the most easily digestible item on the Odd Future buffet, here's Frank Ocean's instant underground classic, "Nostalgia, Ultra" for those who have been missing out.

Nostalgia, Ultra (*)

Strawberry Swing

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Soul Calibur

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Novacane

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We All Try

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Nature Feels

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Sweatshop Union / The Bill Murray EP

2011-06-22T15:01:00.000-04:00

Canada's Sweatshop Union has been around for over a decade. Long-term underground hustlers, they hit their stride with The Bill Murray EP. They seem to have taken a cue from Shabazz Palaces with a widening of their sound. The two tracks below are great examples of the group's reach for an infinite tone.

Sunburn

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Nuclear Family

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&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;lt;a href="http://sweatshopunionpresents.bandcamp.com/album/the-bill-murray-ep"&amp;amp;gt;The Bill Murray (EP) by Sweatshop Union Presents&amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;

Jhene Aiko / Sailing Soul(s) [ep/mix]

2011-05-17T12:01:00.015-04:00

According to her wiki, Jhene Aiko has sailed under the radar as a B2K affiliate since 2002, opening for the group on tour and mothering a child with Omarion's brother. Nearly ten years later, her first solo project is already a mixtape of the year candidate. Frankly, far beyond the promotional, it sets a respectable bar for any type of project, challenging artists to solve seeming personal paradoxes of becoming more relevant, more vulnerable and more intimate.

Sailing Soul(s) (zip)

Higher

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Growing Apart Too f. Kendrick Lamar & HOPE

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Space Jam

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Do Better Blues f. HOPE

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My Mine

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Big KRIT / Return of 4eva [ep/mix]

2011-04-29T12:01:00.039-04:00

Third coast giant, Mississippi's Big KRIT returns with a return to forever with Return of 4eva. This is unheard of in our current moment of fool's gold promo mixtapes and the degradation of the term "EP"; a cohesive, quality, original project distributed as a free release. If you are going to wish you took a moment to download anything in 2011, here's the moment.

Return of 4eva (download)

Rotation

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King's Blues

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Another (N)aive (I)ndividual (G)lorifying (G)reed and (E)ncouraging (R)acism

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Player's Ballad f. Raheem DeVaughn

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American Rapstar

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Jay Electronica / Pre-Act II rumblings: Greatest Hits & Bonus Tracks [ep/mix]

2011-04-21T12:01:00.002-04:00

In the past few months, Jay Electronica has been releasing little snippets of what's to come from his anticipated Act II and other side projects including a collaboration with Lil B and Lupe Fiasco. Below is the mixtape he released in February, as well as a short video released featuring LaTonya Givens (aka Tone Treasure), apparently recorded during sessions in South Africa.

Jay Electronica: Pre-Act II (*)

Shiny Suit Theory ft. Jay Z

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@FatBellyBella (Ruff Song Missed Act II Final Cut)

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Departure

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Jazzmatazz (Guru Tribute) f. Tone Treasure

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RELATED:
Jay-Z signs Jay Electronica to Roc Nation

Stalley [audios]

2011-04-11T12:01:00.012-04:00

"Take that monkey shit off, you embarrassing us!"
-Pimp C (Three 6 Mafia / "Sippin On Some Syrup")

"They told me not to break out the skeletons in these rooms, but these children are doomed/ with these fake ass rappers lying about what they do/ And these record execs overlook the rhyme, to put you in chains and give you a little shine/ lock up your mind, slave master mentality/ own every nigga that sign, so I decline with a freedoma mind ... No leaders in the game, just a bunch of monkeys tryna hang in packs and do the same thing/ bunch of followers lost in clouds of smoke/ and you wonder why the white folks call us joke, and never take us seriously."
-Stalley ("Monkey Ish / R.I.P. Pimp C")

Last seen here on our mention of Curren$y ("Address"), Stalley (as in Mad Stallion) has since emerged from his and Ski Beatz ("Taxi" f. Mos Def) shadow with a strong individual presence. Here's his true opening salvo.

Lincoln Way Nights (Intelligent Trunk Music) (*)

Hard

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Lincoln Way Nights

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Monkey Ish (R.I.P. Pimp C)

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Hercules

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"Evil Christian Cop" / J*Davey [ep/mix]

2011-04-01T12:01:00.007-04:00

After vigorous listening analysis, we can say with all certainty that Miss Jack Davey and Brook D'Leau's Evil Christian Cop is a must-have. It also goes nice with a side of Boudoir Synema; also a part of the Great Mistapes series.

Evil Christian Cop (*)

Trans

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Raincheck

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Artist statement: "Evil Christian Cop was inspired by the dark undercurrents that exist in the phrase "To protect and serve." As producer Brook D'Leau explains, "Why should we rely on an evil stranger to protect and serve when you have the power to protect and serve yourself?" The EP features co-production by Greg Wells ("Teen Spirit"), GB ("Lazy Daze"), and LA-based lyricist DefSound. Full of synths, alluring vocals, and distinct production, the seductive twosome provide a dreamy soundscape for listeners to lose themselves in. Jack Davey and Brook leave all interpretations up to the listener. "We cannot provide the message, we simply provide the mental playground for the listeners' minds to go wild upon," says Brook."

Happy 2 Year / A love letter from Seattle's Malice & Mario Sweet [ep/mix]

2011-03-23T12:01:00.042-04:00

Seattle's Malice & Mario Sweet describe themselves as "very harmonious and light ... promoting self-empowerment and love minus the cheesiness". Our favorites, "Speed of Light" is a schizoid blend of super fast, spasming snares and floaty vocals, with some levitating breaks to help you digest it all, while "Malice" is a Foreign Exchange sounding copy-in-a-good-way -- you know, like what "Oh Sheila" is to Prince lovers.

Happy 2 Year (download)

Speed of Light

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Malice

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Dilla / All the Way to Heaven [ep/mix]

2011-01-26T12:01:00.016-05:00

There are several tributes to the late, great James "Jay Dee"/"J Dilla" Yancey floating around, but All the Way to Heaven is one of the best I've heard.

Produced by Theory, one-third of the DC-based hip-hop group The Package, All the Way to Heaven revisits and reconstructs the original songs Dilla sampled for his most famous hits, including The Pharcyde's "Runnin'" and Slum Village's "Get Dis Money."

Still Runnin

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Blue Collar

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The result is a lovingly crafted letter to J Dilla, a person who had a major impact on a generation of hip-hop producers, MCs and aficionados alike.

All the Way to Heaven (download)

Eagle Nebula drop Love Bomb [ep/mix]

2010-12-12T12:01:00.026-05:00

One of the dope things about Yoga and Tai Chi is how the practices go about capturing maneuvers in proverb. I love it. A process really becomes a meditation; memory is treated delicately, supported, and offered constant training. This can be a process that's proven trustworthy to you, or a phenomena that is simply moving in itself upon first experience.

One thing is certain in this collection of songs here; if Eagle Nebula (Live From Planet Earth alum) does anything well, well, Eagle-Nebula-drop-Love-Bomb. And Nebula's doing good Kung-Fu with this maneuver here; fluid and focused.

LoveBomb EP (download)

Unbreakable

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Waiting...

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Phantom Lover: Mauve [ep/mix]

2010-12-05T12:01:00.021-05:00

Every song on this EP is purely memorable. Plus, it features some of our favorite vocalists in Sarah White (The Liberator Magazine 5.1 / Live From Planet Earth alum), Nicholas Ryan Gant (The Liberator Magazine 9.1 / Live From Planet Earth alum), Jesse Boykins III, and Fatima ("Lil Girl" w/ Shafiq Husayn). Producer Phantom Lover (aka Hayden) laces these beautiful vocals fittingly, with beautiful gems, or vice versa too. Please: listen.

Mauve EP (download)

Faith f. Sarah White

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Change (Show Me How) f. Nicholas Ryan Gant

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Beaucoup Papa f. Fatima

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Subtle f. Jesse Boykins III

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Phantom Lover also put us on to the late Harry Whitaker's Black Renissance recently:

Brokn.Englsh x The ARE [ep/mix]

2010-10-29T12:01:00.001-04:00

Brokn.Englsh's Live From Planet Earth set was probably one of the best ever. They love the music with a ridiculous passion, it shows, and people love that they love so hard (reminiscent of De La Soul in their prime). Only thing is, folks always sayin the underground's production is its weak link. But hook B.E. up with production dynamo The ARE (Keyshia Cole, Lil Kim, Nicki Minaj, Canibus, and the Manipulated Marauders project) -- and you have an underground-head's fantasy, and B.E.'s strongest catalyst yet.

The ARE & B.E (download)

Midnight Trkd

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This Way

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Spell It Out

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M.anifest x KruKid [ep/mp3s]

2010-09-14T12:01:00.001-04:00

Ghana's M.anifest (Liberator 9.1) and Uganda's Krukid -- together known as A.R.M. -- have put in serious work this past year and stepped up to a new level. Their latest EP Two Africans And A Jew with Slug of Atmosphere is out now, and M.anifest released his The Birds & The Beats EP for free a while back. Here is some of their best.

Walk Away f. Sarah White

(mp3)

The Birds & The Beats (download)

/////"I’m happy to liberate the Full Album/Mixtape, The Birds And The Beats, for free today, which happens to be my born day as well. Being from the mother of all motherlands, I thought this would be a useful opportunity to promote a cause as well: “Young Entrepreneurs Africa,” (YE,A) – a nonprofit giving tools and skills for African Youth to get theirs the entrepreneurship route and not have to rely on charity. I work with some incredible musicians who dedicated massive amounts of time and talent to make this happen so I couldn’t take full credit for this release. The download includes liner notes which is a first for free digital releases as far as I know. We give thanks."
-M.anifest/////

How I Used To Be

(mp3)

Ghana 52

(mp3)

A.R.M. Boogie

(mp3)

Blame My Ego

(mp3)

Can't Rush Love

(mp3)

Tomorrow's Not Promised

(mp3)

Dolphin: Happiest Revolution [ep]

2010-09-07T12:01:00.000-04:00

Dolphin is too slept on. He's consistently producing smooth tunes. Catch up by getting his Mono vs. Stereo project, then grab this one as fast as you can.

The Happiest Revolution EP (rightclick/download)

Rare & Bizarre Vol. 2 [ep/mix]

2010-08-30T12:01:00.000-04:00

The Rare & Bizarre series of projects is a favorite. This is volume 2. Enjoy.
{via Revival Blog}

Rare & Bizarre Vol. 2 (download it)

Maquillage de Tiwa

Danube Incident

Here's Looking At You, Kid

Plus Fort Que Nous

Tamar Kali [ep/mp3s]

2010-08-24T00:01:00.003-04:00

Geechee Goddess Hardcore Warrior Soul (download)

In addition to the free EP, Brooklyn-based vocalist Tamar Kali recently released her LP Black Bottom. As far as hardcore music goes, she's already queen of the hill. "Warrior Bones" and "Pearl" (below) are two stunning tracks, and represent the artist at her best. The official synopsis of the LP says it well:

/////"Tamar-kali travels a lonely road of independence that finds many artists of her caliber overworked and under-appreciated. Her album title is no mere piece of alliteration, but a reflection of where she found herself after a particularly disheartening period. The cathartic, orgasmic emotion Tamar-kali brings with every song leaves her peerless... As she says in... "Warrior Bones," "These warrior bones ache for revolution/ but the people ain't ready"... for warriors and lovers alike, the thrill of the unexpected makes her music all the more necessary."/////

Warrior Bones

Pearl

Drop a comment if you'd like the downloads.

Jazzy Jeff: Summertime [ep/mix]

2010-08-09T00:01:00.001-04:00

Nothing but classics, with two of the culture's dopest DJs at the helm.

Summertime (download it)

Rare & Bizarre Vol. 1 [ep/mix]

2010-08-03T00:01:00.003-04:00

The Rare & Bizarre series of projects is a favorite. This is volume 1. Enjoy.
{via Revival Blog}

Rare & Bizarre Vol. 1 (download it)

Heat Haze

(rightclick+download)

Some might recognize this next Placebo track from a J. Dilla tune in which he sampled it:

Humpty Dumpty

(rightclick+download)

Swamp Fever

(rightclick+download)

Oddisee: Odd (Seasons) [ep/mix]

2010-07-15T10:59:00.000-04:00

Oddisee is Serta slept on sometimes but he deserves copious attention. His production is consistently smooth and groove. Think of a young producer mentored by the sounds of Radiohead and Dilla and you already kinda know what I'm saying. Grab all four free EPs from his "Seasons" suite below:

Odd Winter (download it)

Odd Spring (download it)

Odd Summer (download it)

Odd Autumn (download it)

The music of Blk Jks: a review (mzabalazo!)

2010-07-06T00:01:00.001-04:00

At the World Cup kickoff concert in Jozi recently, the Blk Jks killed it with their rendition of the popular South African protest song, Mzabalazo.

Mzabalazo

(rightclick+download)

In places like Brooklyn's black community, they've already achieved cult status, but the South African "noise rock" group are still relatively unpopular stateside. Hopefully a quick recap of some of their best tunes can change up that perception. I first saw the group perform around the time their debut EP Mystery dropped. It included the ghostly, ska inspired tune "Lakeside" that grabbed my attention:

Lakeside

(rightclick+download)

In The Guardian's "Post-apartheid art-rock par excellence", Jaimie Hodgson wrote: "Johannesburg's first trendy rock'n'roll export, Blk Jks are the sound of a new South Africa. Indeed you'd be hard pushed to find a better example of the post-apartheid nation's new cultural momentum and boundary-breaking sensibility. [...] "Rock was always seen as a white thing, the music of the enemy," says guitarist Mpumi Mcata. "When we started, we encountered a lot of hostility. Soon, though, people realised that what we were making was far more in tune with what's going on in South Africa now than any of the pop music playing on the radio." [...] Mcata claims it's their dub haze that resonates in the townships, while an art-rock element [...] has excited tastemakers across the globe. "I like bands that sound like the country they are from," says Mcata. "So we just want to leave people with an original feeling of who we are and where we're from."

Summertime (Carlos Ramos remix)

(rightclick+download)

The next year (2009) Blk Jks dropped their After Robots EP, which was indeed clearly in the rock and roll vein. Jaimie Hodgson also wrote some bullshit about the Blk Jks' music "shunning the indigenous urban soundtrack" that is Kwaito. You might agree -- if you only listened to a handful of their songs. Indeed, on "Standby" the group displays the type of pensive sound that could land them into the hearts and minds of hipsters everywhere:

But ultimately, we must pay this white boy from The Guardian no mind here. Any African -- from Brazil to Ghana, from Mississippi to Chicago -- knows that black folks rarely shun their past with the same type of angst so often seen in the West: we build on it. We take James Brown and make hip-hop in celebration of him, nothing less. That Blk Jks were able to seamlessly integrate a track like "Molalatladi" into the After Robots EP testifies:

And with Blk Jks latest EP, Zol! they've situated themselves deeply within the South African musical tradition; proving that they are rock and roll with its most vital ingredient intact: roots. The track "Mzabalazo" above shows this and this title track below illustrates it as well:

Zol!

(rightclick+download)

BLK JKS Are Out to Map the African Brain or Kill the Patient Trying
(SOURCE: Fader Magazine)

It’s a superficial thing, and at this point probably more curse than blessing, but the first thing that hits you about the South African dub metal quartet BLK JKS is their look. There’s a certain afropunk unity to their style that makes them seem like a movement unto themselves, yet even more striking is how strong a presence each member has, pulling away from that center in his own direction. There’s guitarist Mpumi Mcata, reggae star handsome in his ’80s Black Uhuru wears. Tshepang Ramoba, with drummer’s arms and those thick baobab dreads. The bassist, Molefi Makananise, with his professorial air and the ubiquitous kwaito-style sporty (pronounced “spotty”) on his head. And then there’s Linda Buthelezi, the frontman: shirt buttoned all the way up and thick glasses sitting heavily on his babyface. He looks tight-laced and intellectual in a young Dr Frankenstein kind of way, so that even when he’s quiet you can sense a tortured side that’s got to come out—if not in music, then somewhere.

{via Demonica Orozco}

If you can see it, then A&Rs can definitely see it, and perhaps not surprisingly, BLK JKS (pronounced “black jacks”) are something of a hot property lately. The vapors started with a self-titled EP pressed up for their birthday gig at the Apartheid Museum in a Johannesburg theme park called Gold Reef City two years ago. Those five songs floated around the web for a minute, ultimately turning up as a limited edition CD in certain stores in London and New York last June. It’s a heavy collection. “Lakeside” starts the set with a minor-keyed “House of the Rising Sun” intro that leads into grungy dub, Mcata’s rhythm guitar turning over on itself in the mix as Buthelezi moans ominously about paramedics and broken lesions. Just when you give up on deciphering this pseudo-medical diatribe, he breaks into a Zulu jive falsetto and the beat morphs into something like ska, the guitar changing into finely-worked Ernest Ranglin trills. “UmZabalazo” is an echoey mosh pit interpretation of a toyi-toyi, an anti-Apartheid protest chant based on the vocalized sound of AK-47s. If it doesn’t exactly celebrate the possibility of black fascism implicit in those war cries, then it doesn’t blink at the idea either. You can imagine antecedents to their sound if you try—the nya-rock of Cymande, maybe Fishbone if they broke through their surf metal conceits into something deeper, more afrogothic—but you’d more likely extrapolate the existence of an unknown black planet to explain BLK JKS’ origin. That sense of something new has hovered around them since their very first gig—a club rehearsal that turned into a show as on-lookers gathered. The immediate word of mouth about those black dudes that play that weird music underscores how desperately South Africa—or at least its all-white indie rock scene—needed that something.

{via Jason Nocito}

Those expectations, and the look that so effortlessly embodies them, are BLK JKS main problems these days. “We’ve met with most of the majors in SA, they come to us like, ‘Black rock band, sign them and make a lot of money.’ Then they find out we’re crazy,” explains Mcata, sitting in a café in Melville, a suburb of Johannesburg that’s painted a Martian purple by the Jacaranda trees blooming everywhere in the November spring. Mcata is clearly the spokesman and all-around conceptualizer for the Jacks, to such an extent his credits in the liner notes could easily read, “Mpumi Mcata: Rhythm Guitar/Minister of Propaganda.” Buthelezi, the vocalist and main lyricist is actually the least vocal of the four. These two form the original core of the group, having grown up together in a section of East Rand called Spruitview. BLK JKS was formed when Buthelezi and Mcata brought on more experienced musicians Makananise and Ramoba, both from Soweto, to form the rhythm section.

The insanity charge Mcata mentions may not be totally unfounded. The main result of the Jacks’ initial buzz was a chance to start recording at SABC—the country’s biggest and best-equipped studio, housed beneath a corporate tower that dominates, no, intimidates Jo’burg’s skyline. Those sessions became the unedited masters of an LP project titled After Robots (in SA, traffic lights are called robots. Nobody knows why). Nominally a sort of rock opera built around a surreal Mulholland Drive-esque trip through the city, the music is nebulous, sprawling and psychedelic, the narrative often seeming like a pretext for long, winding jams full of that one mind, four directions dynamic. “It’s better when we’re not on the same page,” says Mcata. “On those masters, there’s parts where we play for like 35 minutes of not listening to each other. Like, Molefi’s checking the tone on his bass, and just so that it doesn’t make you physically sick, I’m checking in the same key. Tshepang is doing his thing on the drum, getting everything set up, and basically what you hear is the most beautiful thing.”

Like the jams, the conversation in the café tends to drift, meandering through church choirs, the Mars Volta, Boyz II Men, Tortoise, Cameroonian bassist Richard Bona, Jack Dejohnette, Canadian psyche and luminaries mostly unknown outside of SA like Vusi Mahlasela and Busi Mhlongo. Trying to wrap his tongue around the role that influences play in the Jacks’ sound, Makananise gets a little worked up, “We’re listening to all different stuff, but the first time we played together I was like, ‘Yeah! Shit like this exists!’ Yes, but no…it’s something quite hard, to be fair. I never seen that, to be honest…” And then he lapses into silence, defeated by what he is trying to express. He’s more comfortable talking formally about the music, which makes sense, since it is his session bassist-ability to play comfortably in many different styles that holds the schizophrenia together.

In a way, the secret ingredient of BLK JKS’ sound is the long and venerable tradition of township jazz that pervades the musicianship of Makananise and Ramoba. As Makananise says, “In jazz there are suspended chords and stuff that gives you some kind of a discord. If Mpumi’s playing his fears at that moment when I come in, sometimes I have to play what I feel too, but in the process I have to figure out where he is. That’s where the jazz shit comes in.” There’s also metal there, in the sense of Cream, Deep Purple and early-early Sabbath, when metal was not a genre with rules and uniforms but a tendency, a serrated edge occasionally cutting the surface of rhythm and blues like the tailfin of something terrifying just below the surface. Then there are the traditional South African strains the members grew up with, alongside Fela and reggae. Somehow the force of all those elements swinging away at each other lifts the whole thing off the ground like a fish-tailing helicopter.

In an attempt to position the Jacks within this swirl of traditions, Mcata says, “I feel like we are like a growth on the side of not just the South African thing, but the African thing. An abscess. It could either implode, explode or, like, give the continent super powers.” It seems somehow appropriate to this dysfunctional pan-Africanism that even BLK JKS’ shared South African identity comes from different language groups: Xhosa, Zulu, Tswana and Pedi. This polylinguism expands the Jacks’ range rather than limiting it. “When you talk about vernac [vernacular] and how you bring that in it’s always melody first,” says Mcata. “If you have a big melody, putting words to it is a drag. Some languages just fit better phonetically, so we’ll be like, ‘Oh we got a language that does da-dada-da very well.’”

Put four dudes in a room with four different languages, a few words in common and a movie script to shoot, they might come back with a mess of a film or maybe some grand Chomskian thesis that offers a breakthrough understanding about the structure of language itself. After Robots sounds like that at times, and though the South African majors are hardly good guys in this story, they could perhaps be forgiven if they didn’t know what the fuck to do with the four-headed dub monster that walked into their office speaking in tongues, when all they wanted was the local equivalent of Living Colour. The SABC sessions were partly paid for with a Jacks promo spot on national radio, adding further to their aura. But with no label and no money to pay for their completion, the masters languish raw and unmixed under the tower.

The whole experience has left the group less inclined than ever to target their music for any imagined audience. “Now? Fuck it, we’ll play wherever,” says Mcata. “Forget the whole, ‘We’re gonna get the rastas to like our rock.’ If you have a gig, call us. Jazz event, whatever, we become the color of the gig. We don’t have a home.” As a result, their résumé is less a catalog of recordings than a collection of war stories about the weirdest shows imaginable: the old jail in Grahamstown, Youth Day at the Apartheid Museum, a private performance raising money for rural soccer teams held on the land of a wealthy farmer that meant driving five hours out into the veldt and sleeping beneath the heads of the farmer’s hunting trophies. There was the gig for kwaito station YFM with rapper HHP and the one where Ramoba got in a shouting match with the homeless guy standing on a pedestal as some kind of performance art. With each of these gigs, the legend—and the expectations—continued to grow. Even if they were too weird for primetime, “the only black rock band in South Africa” was too good for the press to resist and sooner or later the buzz had to go international. 2007 brought an offer from Diplo’s Mad Decent label, management by ex-FADER editor Knox Robinson, the appearance of a collector’s 10-inch of “Lakeside” in Other Music and Rough Trade, and a booking for SXSW for 2008, roughly in that order.

The Jacks meanwhile, having more or less given up on storming the SABC tower to liberate Robots, started on a series of lo-fi mini-disc recordings called Kilani Sessions after the sunny, eclectic Killarney loft of Makananise’s white girlfriend that serves as the Jacks’ headquarters. The new recordings have, if possible, even less light, more mass, more sucking gravity than After Robots. “Baragawana” brings more of Buthelezi’s medical obsessions, with references to the largest hospital in Africa. In “Vampire Stand-by Power” he employs a metaphor about machines using 40% of the electric current even when they’re off that somehow becomes the story of a pregnant girl and her dysmorphic baby. “Tinstaa” starts with the sound of CD skipping malfunctions, dissolving into acoustic blue-veldt guitarwork before the Sabbath-like bass comes in under the refrain, One by one, they gonna shoot us down. There are moments here that sound like African metal, not a pastiche of influences but a different thing altogether.

Back at the café, after sitting out of the conversation for a good hour, Makananise picks up his thread exactly where he wrestled it into silence, “I think what I was trying to say before, that from the first time we played together, I thought that BLK JKS could be like unexplored territory…some totally different kind of music.” It’s not the vision, so much as the sincerity, the struggle to articulate it, that give you pause. It’s enough to make you wonder what you wish more for the Jacks: that everything clicks into a fully realized visit to the black planet repeatedly glimpsed in the soup of their mind jams, or that they just keep looking forever, standing, so to speak, on the verge of getting it on, mapping their own brains as they go. (source)

Dead Prez: Revolutionary But Gangsta Grillz [ep]

2010-07-01T04:29:00.006-04:00

Revolutionary But Gangsta Grillz (rightclick+download)

Over the years I've heard more than a few people say something along the lines of, "I wish someone with the lyrical integrity of Dead Prez would complement their message with some a them good beats that folk like Jeezy rhyme over." Usually this type of critique comes from any one of the 20/30-something year-old black women I'm close to in my life, who were able to thrive in urban environments similar to mine, and were culturally and socially bonded enough with working- and lower-class black boys and girls like themselves to develop an instinctual understanding of what's fresh (maybe even based on their instinctual physical reaction to those aforementioned beats).

My hood theory is that Dead Prez must have some of these priceless black women in their lives, and these hypothetical black women are helping get and keep Dread Prez on the path of something I guess I'd call relevant creative resistance -- "birthing new realities" as they put it on one of my favorite tracks from the mixtape, "The G In Me." Without these black women's input, I theorize you get something along the lines of Stic.Man's well-intentioned but clumsy, stubborn solo effort, "My Swag Is Up" (in other words, close but no cigar). From my anecdotal experience, an idea as timely as hooking Dead Prez up with T.I.'s DJ and Lil Wayne's infamous mixtape host, DJ Drama, that had the New York Times calling a hip-hop mixtape one of the year's best albums, had to have come from one of these uniquely, diplomatically equipped black women. Plus, there are original tracks on this project, which is always nice. Other highlights include, "Don't Waste It" (over Gucci Mane's Wasted), "Never Turn My Back" (over Sade's Turn My Back On You), "The Movement" (over Fabolous' Make Me Better), and "Malcolm Garvey Huey" (over Lloyd Bank's Beamer, Benz, or Bentley).

Lauryn Hill: Khulami Phase [ep/mix]

2010-06-28T02:50:00.003-04:00

Khulami Phase (download it)

This isn't an official Lauryn Hill release, rather a compilation of a few tracks you've probably never heard before (like, "Take Too Much", "Music", and "The Passion"), a few old tracks (like Santana's "You Like The Way"), rehearsals, live performances, covers (like Stevie's "As"!, and "Blame It On The Sun" performed by The Fugees, also written by Stevie Wonder), and brief interviews. I usually just can't seem to find time for projects like this, but it was Lauryn, so I listened.

And I was not disappointed; I don't think you will be. If you're still asking yourself, "whatever happened to Lauryn Hill?", like this Guardian article below, this album should answer it for you -- if you give it a chance and listen. {thanks Nat}

Whatever happened to Lauryn Hill?
(SOURCE: The Guardian)

[...] Since Unplugged, Hill embarked on a short-lived reunion with the Fugees, beginning with a 2004 open-air concert filmed in Brooklyn for Dave Chappelle's Block Party movie, and yielding one poorly received new single – Take It Easy – before the group dissolved again, in even more acrimonious circumstances than before. "At this point I really think it will take an act of God to change [Lauryn]," Pras told Allhiphop.com in 2007, "because she is that far out there." Friend and former tour-mate Talib Kweli took a more sympathetic line on his track Ms Hill, from 2005 album Right About Now: "The industry was beating her up / Then those demons started eating her up / She need a saviour."

Her record label, Columbia, claims to have spent millions on sessions for her unfinished, unreleased second solo album, which supposedly features collaborations with soul legend Ronald Isley and similarly troubled and AWOL neo-soul auteur D'Angelo. In this vacuum, New York label Think Differently has released an unofficial compilation of highlights from her decade of inactivity, Khulami Phase, currently available via Amazon.

The gem among these scraps is Lose Myself, cut for the soundtrack to 2007 kids' cartoon Surf's Up. It boasts a synth-pop fizz with autobiographical lyrics Hill wrote in the shower, describing her anguish these past years as a trial she's having to endure to discover true peace and self-love. It's a powerfully moving track, both bleak and hopeful, suggesting the serenity Hill has been searching for is finally within her reach. But Lose Myself was released three years ago, and still Hill's sophomore album has yet to materialise. And those rumours about Rock the Bells were, sadly, unsubstantiated.

"How did this thing that I love so much so easily and so quickly turn into something I loathe and hate?" she asked rhetorically, in one lucid moment during her 2001 Unplugged performance [...] (source)

Breezy LoveJoy [mp3 | ep/mix]

2010-04-06T17:42:00.000-04:00

Breezy LoveJoy is name that lends itself to immediate judgement. Either you're intrigued by it or turned off. The music of, though, will make you forget about that dilemma. Breezy's young, but this s*** is undeniably fresh, creative, and fun.

Featuring on "Follow Through" (music video below), Breezy adds all the flavor for the track. You instantly get a sense for his style and talent when you hear the wailing hook. The track is off The Classic EP by Afro Classics (comprised of Scarub from the group Living Legends and Very from the group Us Pros).

Follow Through

(rightclick+download)

So far he's released two free mixtapes, Sh%t I Can't Clear and Coldtapes (covers of Coldplay classics).

Being from L.A. he has a wealth of styles to mingle with and on Sh%t I Can't Clear it shows. Whether it's him rappin over west coast boom bap on "Sing My Song":

Sing My Song

(rightclick+download)

...singing sensual R&B hooks on "Slowdown":

Slowdown

(rightclick+download)

...or bouncing on commercial drum kits on the self-aware titled "Sumthin For The Radio":

Sumthin For The Radio

(rightclick+download)

Sh%t I Can't Clear (download it)

Coldtapes (download it)

Rare & Bizarre Vol. 3 [ep/mix]

2010-03-26T13:39:00.002-04:00

I like rare grooves. The Rare & Bizarre series of projects is a favorite. This is volume 3. Enjoy. {via Revival Blog}

Rare & Bizarre Vol. 3 (download it)

This rare find by Wet Willie you might recognize from Jigga man's "It's Like That" produced by the legendary Kid Capri:

The Beggar's Song (skit)

(rightclick+download)

And even the yungins should recognize this Menahan Street Band song yet again from Jay's "Roc Boys":

Make The Road By Walking

(rightclick+download)

But the beauty of Rare & Bizarre is that it'll introduce you to folks you had no idea existed. For me, one of those folks was Riz Ortolani:

Il Ricordo di Serena

(rightclick+download)

Ceewhy [mp3 | ep/mix]

2010-03-26T13:00:00.004-04:00

Ceewhy is a good homie from the Twin Cities -- northside Minneapolis to be exact, a part of town, unfortunately, in the mainstream news more often for the murder rate than the college attendance rate (and without the monumental African cultural legacies in places like New York, Chicago and Atlanta that from my experience often help many more trapped black folk rise above the madness). While he was at Clark Atlanta though (the United Negro College Fund really do help some folk) he built considerable buzz, including being featured nationally on BET a few times. Also known as Cyance, he was becoming an underground king in ATL, but moved back up north with a brown skin lady from Brooklyn and got married.

He's since sent over these recent mixtape projects that I'm sharing. The Sickness consists entirely of industry production and Dreams Are Bulletproof has a good amount of it too, but Ceewhy is an emcee that appreciates the art, style and history of lyricism so his range and ability to adapt are both key elements of his technique that he wants the listener to appreciate.

Like the picture above, you'll find that dude is an honest container with glimpses of ghetto life, Malcolm X, and Star Wars inside. I know not everyone appreciates such contradictory elements in the same box. If you're willing to listen though, Ceewhy is the type of dude to engage you and attempt common understanding. If not, he'd probably just say, "f#$% you den" and keep it movin. He knows his heart is good, that there are serious duties in life we must not ignore, and also that life is to be enjoyed -- his music reflects this all.

Cruise Control

(rightclick+download)

I'm highlighting the best tracks with original production (from Twin Cities folk like Rahki, DaRyan, and Will Ways). If the selection below intrigues you, links to the free mixtapes follow.

In These Streets

(rightclick+download)

On "Get It In" Ceewhy raps, "Tryna get it in/ Young boys they just tryna live/ ain't hurtin nobody/ straight hustle positive/ wanna be a role model, show em how to live/ I'm talkin workin stiffs, I'm talkin corporate niggas/ I'm talking white collar blue collar my niggas/ And if don't nobody else feel ya, I feel ya/ What we say is real, what we live is much realer/ I see the world on your shoulders, just don't let it kill ya". He continues, "Shout to single fathers, men who handle business/ shout to married men, who marry good women/ take care of they kids, keep the bills paid/ love they wife to death, cause that's a real thing/ they say a man's life is measured from the ground up/ I say a man's life is measured from the amount of love/ you give and receive, we take and we leave/ but what is left after I'm gone is the best of me":

Get It In

(rightclick+download)

The Sickness: Designer Drugs & Disease Meets Panic (download it)

Dreams Are Bulletproof (download it)

J. Period: Best of the Isley Brothers [ep/mix]

2010-03-22T14:07:00.007-04:00

Creator of "Q-Tip: The Abstract" and "The Messengers: Bob Marley, Fela Kuti and Bob Dylan" mixtape projects, here's a lesser known J. Period piece from 2006 paying tribute to The Isley Brothers and their masterful body of work, featuring Aaliyah, Mobb Deep, C.L. Smooth, Mos Def, Nas, Slum Village, Bone, Easy-E, Big Daddy Kane and a few classic Isley tracks.

Best of the Isley Brothers (download it)

Good Morning remix f. Nas

(rightclick+download)

Faithful f. Papoose

(rightclick+download)

Beauty In The Dark f. Mos Def

(rightclick+download)

Who You Know Like Hov? f. Jay-Z

(rightclick+download)

There I Go Again f. Mobb Deep

(rightclick+download)

Blu: Her Favorite Colo(u)r [ep/mix]

2010-03-20T21:50:00.001-04:00

Liberator favorite Blu dropped this mixtape back in February. Unlike the average "tape" these days, this is actually worth the time it takes to download and add to your collection -- this project is just so smooth. A small selection of the best from the project are below.

Her Favorite Colo(u)r (download it)

On "Amnesia" Blu is in familiar form over a ridiculous, mellow, jazzy Billie Holiday-sample anchored track. This track right here is why you love the brutha. Pretty much everything you'd expect if you've listened to and loved his and Exile's classic debut Below The Heavens.

Amnesia

(rightclick+download)

"Wind(terlude)" is a visual, cinematic groove. Far as "interludes" go this is champion sound. Blu raps, "Must have been some karma from the second verse of "UpAllNite"/ One minute loving life now all we do is fuss and fight/ You fucking right I'm fucking pissed, I'm fucking right/ You fucking his right? You fucking right?/ Next thing you know she gone, that's how you know she wrong, months/ ago she wouldn't sleep alone/ Now she don't even speak on phones, to me it means that shes in peace/ but uhh... to each his own/ Treat her like meat and bones, kisses and reads her poems/ Looking to clean her loans, why you clinging on?/ Used to think that home is where heartbeat is, it's never where the art-ist is/ So she teases, teaches the old dog new tricks, Kathie Lee & Regis/ Co-sign a new whip, happy just to be with/ Classy as a drink, ink pen-speration, been a minute since I kicked some new shit/ Pink lips to patience?"

Wind(terlude)

(rightclick+download)

On "Vanity" Blu raps, "Prioritizin life in case I do not live long/ And finally find some time to sit down and pen a song/ Might as well try and tell you how I feel when I feel/ Not just when it's time to pay some bills/ Life is real/ You can miss it everyday/ Tryna get a lil pay/ Fill a page with some change tryna feel a little change/ On my mind I be thinkin bout the rain but/ Sunshine shines everyday... Hangin on dreams to be happy/ whether lavish or lean/ I seen enough to make a boy die nappy/ Now a man on the search for the God that I am/ But actually I rather be me/ Is it?/ Vanity?"

Vanity

(rightclick+download)

Theophilus London: This Charming Mixtape [epmix]

2010-03-17T13:15:00.002-04:00

On the verge of a new mixtape release from Theophilus ("I Want You Mixtape"), I thought those who ain't familiar yet should get so. Give this brotha time to grow into even newer life experiences and lessons and I doubt he'll disappoint; his talent is raw and promising. Engage him while he's open to keep him open. His first official project "This Charming Mixtape" is available free, or you can find a curated selection below:

This Charming Mixtape (download it | mirror)

Not on this mixtape, but a preview of what's to come on "I Want You Mixtape", the unhurried, jazzy "Life Of A Lover" features Jessee Boykins III (another buzzin, young, raw talent) finds the London sound on a new level.

Life Of A Lover f. Jesse Boykins III

(rightclick+download)

A drippin slow bass beat with a haunting hook, "I wanna know/ I wanna know/ I wanna know/ So show me who you are", Aquamilitia is probably the best track on this mixtape.

Aquamilitia

(rightclick+download)

Speaking of Bill Withers. Wait for the one minute mark on Theophilus' version of "Ain't No Sunshine" and you'll be rewarded:

Ain't No Sunshine

(rightclick+download)

THAT Homeboy Sandman [mp3 | video | ep/mix]

2010-03-11T13:34:00.004-05:00

After some quiet observation of this brutha from the sidelines (tryna see through the media hype clouds that inevitably surround so much these days), I gotta give him his props. So far, Sandman's shown that his passion is intense, his intent right and honest, his ego humbled and joyous, and his dedication to creative storytelling something serious. I'm sharing a few of his best tracks to date below. In each of them he challenges the listener... to listen; each track presents its own unique challenge though.

"Angels With Dirty Faces" is contemplative, somber, inspirational -- an understated chant-like lyrical flow, mourning our homeless bruthas and sistas, hiding in the hypnotizing flow of the track. On the chorus Sandman wails, "I'm a form of life/ forms of life are friend to me/ not unlike infinity/ so all souls alike./ Air raids on polite/ lightening bolts of energy/ I've composed a elegy/ for those that froze tonight/ my bros that froze tonight."

Angels With Dirty Faces

(rightclick+download)

"Everyday Love" is dreamy, vulnerable, poetic -- a lazy, hazy daydream flow speaking to love over a airy beat that'll make ya eyelids-heavy, gently. Sandman raps, "Soon as I ain't scheming on to get into your pants/ that'll be the one that wouldn't last/ guess I'm just a amateur on matters of romance/ matters of the heart/ wish that I could finish but I don't know where to start/ wanna stop speeding but I don't know where to park/ see you in my dreams/ gotta find out where you are/ but it's hard/ I am always where you are... n't/ at/ they say that's the way it goes/ least that's what I'm told/ searchin every cranny every nook/ but they say you neva find it when you look/ find it once it's easy bein 'lone."

Everyday Love

(rightclick+download)

"Mambo Tail Tale" is comedy on funky, jazzy digi-wax -- storytelling at it's playful best over a unforgettable B-Boy Mambo track. Sandman flows, "Now/ I don't really know how the Mambo go/ I don't know if you Mambo fast if you Mambo slow if you Mambo both/ Shorty look fine tho I was tryna kick it like tae kwando/ so I said hell yea I could Mambo miss I am very head honcho-ish/ Now of course jus talkin shit how she gon call my bluff/ this DJ playin all that sambo stuff he ain't gon play no Mambo cuts/ At that point the shit jus got bugged shorty threw her fingers up snapped them once/ I don't know where dudes jus rolled up one had a trombone the other had drums!" He continues, "Broke from out my b-boy stance I extended my hand and she grabbed it/ And we started movin side to side jus kinda synchronized like we had planned it/ Then I started puttin it down I started spinnin her 'round like real rapid/ Then I threw her up in the sky they thought I threw her too high but then I caught her in stride/ When she had landed/ It was fantastic."

Mambo Tail Tale

(rightclick+download)

Sandman ain't for everyone, but he is for listeners. If you take time to accept that challenge, you'll be rewarded.

Free mixtape with a handful of decent tracks (his two albums -- Actual Factual Pterodactyl and Nourishment (Second Helpings) -- on iTunes are much better though):
There Is No Spoon (rightclick+download)

Meanwhile, Sandman's videos always tend to illustrate the brutha's lighter side:

Reflection Eternal: The ReUnion Mixtape [ep/mix]

2010-02-10T13:46:00.001-05:00

A short history of Talib Kweli and DJ Hi-Tek's time together as Reflection Eternal (and collaborations in between the lines), including a few beautiful new tracks from the upcoming album.

The ReUnion Mixtape (zshare download)

J*Davey: Boudoir Synema [ep/mix]

2010-02-10T13:26:00.000-05:00

Boudoir Synema: The Great Mistapes (bandcamp download)

Dolphin: Mono vs Stereo [ep/mix]

2010-02-01T02:34:00.002-05:00

Funky electronica. No one is f*ckin with D'Angelo. Or Steve Spacek either for that matter. But as far as young folk in the apprenticeship tradition Dolphin is puttin in some serious work, sincerely. I'll be sharing much more of his work in the coming weeks. After reaching out to him, he dropped a whole bag of good 'ish for me to share. My favorites on this Mono vs Stereo project are "Fresh Flowers" and "Deserve You". Very right.

Mono vs Stereo (download it)

Le Da Soul: 20 yrs of De La Soul remixed [ep/mix]

2010-02-01T02:13:00.000-05:00

Some of the hardest working folks in the underground "pay respects to the kings" over funky remixes of De La classics presented by mixtape masters Mick Boogie & Terry Urban. Features by Tanya Morgan, Homeboy Sandman, Phife Dawg, Talib Kweli, Asheru, Camp Lo, Tabi Bonney, Big Pooh, etc.

Le Da Soul: 20 Years of De La Soul (download it)

Graph Nobel: Something 2 Die 4 [ep/mix]

2010-02-01T02:01:00.000-05:00

Graph's raspy vocal tones are simply beautiful.

Something 2 Die 4 (download it)

The ARE: Manipulated Marauders [ep/mix]

2010-01-20T17:51:00.000-05:00

A sweet sounding blend of A Tribe Called Quest remixes featuring production by The ARE. Definitely not your average remix project. It's no easy task to make ATCQ sound better than it already is.

Manipulated Marauders (download it)