VonSwayne is a lover not a fighter…..so to all the ladies I say this……..

That was Stephen ‘Di Genius‘ McGregor with ‘Don’t Cry’. You should remember his ‘production’ work from the Bad People Riddim we featured in just week #2 of ‘ROTW’ here on mToH. It seems a young 20-something Stephen wasn’t satisfied killing the game from behind the boards. I can only imagine he must have thought to himself…”Stephen if you can be called ‘Genius’ before the ripe old age of 20, why can’t you be called ‘King’ of the dancehall by 25?” I have to say if that’s what young Stephen is thinking then we’re all in for many more years of great music like Don’t Cry. The good part is when he does become ‘King’ then decides to take his talents to South Beach no one in JA will cry. That’s just the next step in dancehall success. Hate, hate, hate, hate, hate….anywho I digress.

The Street Swag Riddim is stuffed to the gills with great artists. You can buy and/or preview the tracks at the evil evil iTunes or Amazon. Take your pick. Before we hit the jump I will give you yet another 2010 banger from Agent Sasco. I have yet to tire of his voice and hopefully the same goes for you cuz pretty much every riddim I come across with him on it gets loaded into the good ol’ blackberry and hence the riddim of the week cue. This is “Lord Have Mercy”. If you can’t catch it, Sasco is singing to a higher power asking him why people hate and to protect him from said hate. This ‘goes hard’ as my guy Seif Al-din would say.

Where Agent Sasco leaves off vocally Aidonia picks up as best he can. Aidonia hasn’t ascended to the top tier of dancehall but he leads tier 2 with a vengeance. Go ahead and leave a comment disagreeing. I will politely ignore you. LOL. It matters not to me where you are in the hierarchy but how well you play your position and Ah-did-diddy-donia plays his very well. This is ‘Whine’.

Can we ever have too many whine girl songs in dancehall? (That’s not really a question). Of course not. There was a dancehall song that once proclaimed very proudly that ‘in Jamaica we mek a new dance every Friday’. There has rarely been a truer statement. One of the latest dances(as in many months old) is one called the ‘follow through‘. Ding dong will be good in my book for life for releasing ‘Holiday’ around the time of my 30th b-day. Today I return the favor. This is Ding Dong teaching us not about the skip-to-my-lou this time but the follow through dance.

This week’s relative unknown highlight is Big Ship Productions very own Bramma. He is one of two or three artists signed to the McGregor camp who isn’t a McGregor…….to my knowledge anyway. This track ‘Send Me An Angel’ is probably my third or fourth favorite on the riddim. Bramama does his thing singing once again to the most high to guide and protect him even though those around him may be plotting against him. Sound familiar? Reggae music is quite simple isn’t it kids.

So Stephen McGregor is making his production to artist move and Tony ‘Mentally Ill’ Matterhorn has been, for the last few years, making a great career for himself as an artist after a lifetime and hall-of-fame career as a soundclash DJ/MC. The man who played an integral role in taking dacnehall music and the soundclash art form around the world is also one of today’s leading dancehall artists. Currently the DJ turned MC is putting together another string of hits to rival 2006/2007, this one is called ’Pressure Gyal Phone’. Tony asks a very important question ‘How can you say you are a gyallis(pimp) when you are pressuring a girl’s phone…..as soon as she leaves he phones and says come home’. Well said Tony. Enjoy!

3 out of 5 stars
(A half star was lost due to Will.I.Am’s bit, but keep in mind every Nicki Minaj track gets a half star bump )

3 out of 5 stars

Download mix here!

Tracklisting:
Scratcha DVA – Lost (Bakonga Mix)
Zinc – Nexx
Doc Daneeka – Hold On
Katy B. – Katy B is on A Mission (Roska Mix)
Scratcha DVA – Quick foot (Revisited)
Submerse & Resketch – Fruit Salad
Katy B. & Zinc – Louder
Kingdom – Seven Chirp
Girl Unit – Temple Keys
Hot Chip – Hand Me Down Your Love (Todd Edwards Microchip Dub)
Littlefoot – Sell Your Soul
The Count & Sinden – Elephant 1234 (Hot City Remix)
Submerse & Resketch – Eva01 (Prelude to battle)
Magnetic Man Feat. Katy B. – Perfect Strangers
Blu Mar Ten – Nobody here (Kastle Remix

Shadrach Kabango aka Shad can be found on stages with the likes of K’Naan or K-os from his native Canada. His praises can be found on blogs from Kevin Nottingham to Kanye’s blog to Okayplayer. This remix by Oddisee of Shad’s first single off his album TSOL is bananas. Check @ Shadk.com for all the info you could possibly need to know or not know about young Shad. Be sure to peep a video or two as well under the music tab.

3.5 out of 5 stars

Download mixtape here. <—-Right Click!

Tracklisting:
Bunji Garlin – We Done Dey (Iron Island Refix)
Atki2 & Dub Boy ft. GRina – Flower of Life (Dub / Idle Hands)
Donaeo & The Heatwave ft. Rubi Dan, Capleton, Vybz Kartel, & Danny English – Party Harder (The Heatwave Refix)
DJ Mujava – Please Mugwanti / Sgwejegweje (Out Here)
Magic Fly ft. Ricky Rankin – Those Two Sounds (Mr Benn Remix) (Bastard Jazz Recordings)
Sizzla – Money We A Make (Shaolin Temple Riddim)
Delly Ranx ft. Focus Ryte – Wine It and Climb (Shaolin Temple Riddim)
Joe – Claptrap (Hessle Audio)
Busy Signal – Step Out (Acappella)
Atki2 – Electric Wasp (Dub)
Natalie Storm – Look Pon Me (Acappella)
Hard House Banton – Flonko Bants Bootleg
Pamputae – Wining Master
El-B – Que Pasa Papi (Dub)
Geenius ft. Ms Dynamite – Get Low (Crackish) (Dub)
Donovan “Vendetta” Bennett – Jonkanoo Riddim (Don Corleon)
Ill Blu – Bullion (Hyperdub)
Bunji Garlin – Fire Now (Acappella)
Geiom – Eyl Booty (Berkane Sol)
Rita Indiana – Los Poderes (Dutty Artz)
Sticky ft. Marvin Brown – Too Bad Mine (Steak House special)
Sticky ft. Lady Chann – Eye Too Fast
Papi Sanchez ft. Shabakan – Guayamo o Peliamo
Enur ft. Natasha – Calabria (Ministry of Sound)
Pitbull & Lil Jon -Anthem (Calabria Riddim)
Smutlee – Hot Wuk / Calabria (Smutlee Blend)
Maxwell D – Don’t Care
Sticky ft. Ms Dynamite – Rude Gyal
Rymez ft. Juza – African Air Horn Dance
Ghislain Poirier – Coco Drunk (Ninja Tune)
Vybz Kartel vs Lil Silva – Clarks (DJ Shredah Remix)
Sticky ft. Marvin Brown – Jack It Up
Baobinga & I.D. ft. Rubi Dan – The Future (Dub)
Chief Boima – Techno Rumba (Uproot Andy Remix) (Dutty Artz)
Busy Signal & Machel Montano – Wooeii Gal Wooeii (Juke Boxx)
3 Suns – Give It Up

3 out of 5 stars

Officially, Azealia Banks scares the shit out of me. Not because she can rap lipstick circles around Nicki Minaj, or because she recently unveiled a seriously sultry singing voice on her cover of Interpol’s “Slow Hands,” it’s mainly because in 90 seconds she’s able to display more sex appeal, swagger and skill than most MCs take entire careers to conjure.

Hmmmmm…..I have my opinions (and obsessions) that you are well aware of……….but I will let you form your own.

2.5 out of 5 stars

3.5 out of 5 stars

There hasn’t been a lot of music released this week, and the little we got was mostly forgettable, but seeing as the insatiable music appetite needs to be fed, fed and fed again, we decided to to a six pack this week and feature what we think are Nate Dogg’s best hooks.

It is not an easy list to make (and I am sure there will be disagreements) because his is one of the most distinctive and original voices in rap. There was a time when a guest feature from Nate Dogg practically guaranteed hip-hop gold. Nate is recovering from the effects of two debilitating strokes so it may be a while before we hear from him again.

1. Warren G – Regulate

   The G-Funk era was defined by Nate Dogg’s cool singing. The story in ‘Regulate’ is actually quite violent (in a 90s New Jack City kind of way), but Nate Dogg’s brand of soul tempers all that, which is why this has become a favorite of frat houses everywhere.

2. Nate Dogg – One More Day

   This melancholy narrative on growing up on the rough side of town is easily my favorite Nate Dogg song.

3. Pharoahe Monch – Oh No

   This is probably Nate Dogg’s best hook ever, and Pharohe Monch’s verse would make my Top Ten Best verses in hip-hop, if I was ever bored enough to actually write that list.

4. The Dogg Pound – Big pimpin’

   Ok it is not strictly a hook, more like a filthy dirty singing interlude in a filthy dirty rap song, but Nate still kills it.

5. Dr Dre – Next Episode

   Ironically the weakest thing about this Dr Dre track is Dr Dre’s rap. The man can produce the hell out of a sing, but he should leave the rapping and singing to the experts. “Smoke weed everyday!”

6. 50 Cent – 21 questions

   Simple beat, simple hook, great song. Remember how good fiddy used to be? Before he made millions on Vitamin water and figured out he didn’t need to rap?