Fearless Ninjas

Why wasn’t this on Rae’s album?

Ghost beats up the track and shows his versatility.

Hip-hop + Health Care =

SOHH’s coverage.

Since President Obama has made heath care reform a priority in the United States SOHH decided to check in with your favorite rapper’s to find out how they feel about doctors, insurance companies and the medical system as a whole.

It’s crazy to me why this isn’t getting more coverage in the blogosphere. Hip-hop is more well known for talking about problems than talking about solutions. SOHH has taken more than a cursory, perfunctory glance at the issue, investing real time and effort in a subject that should be on everyone’s lips. This isn’t just an issue for the Anglo middle-class. Many times, the reality is that what government on a Federal is doing will not effect the day to day activities of most Americans. Yet people focus on the Federal government, while ignoring their local government. How many people come out to vote for national elections, but don’t participate in politics at a local level? The numbers overwhelming show a disproportionate amount come out for the Presidential elections and not much else.

Here, SOHH put together videos and informatio trying to initiate conversation on the subject. Everyone from Raekwon, Lil Boosie, Playaz Circle, Warren G, DJ Webstar and others whose health has been in the news as of late recently, are all assembled here. I applaud them. Good looking out.

Surgical Gloves (preview)

Rae is so hyped about this track, he did it twice at the release party.
Well he did it about 1.5, forgetting the words halfway through the second time.

All good.

Rae’s OB4CL2 Release Party recap…

So last Thursday I headed up to NYC with Gas. Apart from his fugazi GPS system that took through Brooklyn and on the BQU despite S.O.B.’s being right on the other side of the tunnel, we got there and didn’t miss anything.

Kinda bummed that we were supposed to get a free copy of the album, but apparently it was for people who had copped tickets after the price went up. Oh well.

A few opening acts. Yawn…

11:30 and with Scram Jones on the turntables, Rae took the stage. No Ghost, Lyfe Jennings, Wyclef and Kool Herc took the stage at different times, but this was Rae’s show and Rae’s house. And my man killed it. It was not like any other time I had seen him. Lucid, coherent, interacting with the crowd, full of personality, dude put on one hell of a show. Alternating between a few tracks off OB4CL and OB4CL2, it was a good mix of both. He even ran through full tracks off the first, doing all parts on records that featured Ghost and on Verbal Intercourse. The place was a sweatbox, but somehow I had goosebumps.

The bar was high on this one. Why set it so high when OB4CL created it’s own lane in rap. Plus 4.5 years in the making with the proverbial “dropping next year/quarter” shenanigans for a minute, people wanted needed this to be good. Really fucking good. And the album does not disappoint. From seeing so many of our rap-superheroes lose their shine, luster, ability to relate, ability to recreate that excitement, somefuckinghow, Raekwon pulled it off.

Granted it’s not that he created a new lane again, but the raps, rhymes, stories and schemes sound and feel like vintage Raekwon. The album is brilliant, filled with amazing production that seem to mesh with Rae’s voice and style well, as opposed to simply grabbing who is hot, regardless of the coherency, and trying to force it to work.

Despite Gas’ incredibly fucked up, twisted pretzel logic, if you are, or were, a fan of Rae or early Wu, go BUY the album and support.

The show was one of my all time favorites. One of the best shows ever? Probably not, but just like there is a difference between my favorite rappers/ albums and what I think are the best rappers/albums, there is a difference between best/favorite shows, and this was certainly one of my favorites.

Raekwon’s OB4CL2 release party(s)

So first this one was announced and I got tickets:

Then this one was announced:

I hit up Kid Capri to be put on the list and instead he invited me to a show he is filming for HBO tomorrow night, where Big Daddy Kane, Rakim and KRS-1 are judging.

Real talk?
I’m trying to make all three…

Rae & Ghost…

It became official this week, Ghostface is my favorite rapper ever.
Best? No.
Favorite? Yes.

OB4CL2 is dropping September 8th (supposedly) and the leaked tracks make me hopeful.
Ghost’s R&B album (you know this will be official. Tony Starks always comes correct with bringing the soul element…) The Wizard of Poetry drops September 29. One of the things I want to do here is break down various Ghostface tracks.

In the meantime, a future classic from Rae and Ghost, with Meth.