Odd future, offspring Hodgy comes out to shine with some new visuals off of his 2016 debut solo album Fireplace Nottheotherside, which features Lil Wayne, Busta Rhymes and upcoming french emcee, Salomon Faye.

“Glory” is directed by Open the Portal and takes us on a journey through the life of the California emcee quickly making the transition into animation and the real world with hard-hitting lyrics. This song definitely makes for a great story. Joining on this stand out track for the production is the legendary producer, HI-Tek.

Hodgy released a press release describing “Glory” as an introspective animation, through the lens of a view finder.

“Addressing internal challenges and new found growth, I recognized, a change was at hand. The video’s execution was something I was bound to reach with an amazing collective, ‘Open The Portal.’ &  I would arrive at their DTLA workspace with Trenton, where we created a chemical synergy, bringing us to the video’s treatment and later on, product.”

Enjoy “Glory” below.

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The post Hodgy Brings Us into a World of Animation in “Glory” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

The saying goes, “something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue,” and very rarely does one get all of that and more in a single package, much less a single album. But here I am, in the living room of my West Philadelphia apartment, receiving a gift fit for someone entering a long term commitment. And I suppose I am, in some ways, committing to this music. This album is loving me back or, at least, I like to think it is. Whether it’s the way he marries lighthearted pimpin’ with a coarse, sultry tenor, or the funky bass riddled boom bap that has become a hallmark of his brand of hip hop, it’s safe to say that Anderson .Paak is making his own lane in an industry that has become altogether cut-and-paste.

If Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly is the album that urged hip hop back to its jazz and soul roots, then Malibu is the album to solidify this new era with an unmatched accessibility. The culprit’s name is Anderson .Paak, formerly known as Breezy Lovejoy, who is often cited as the grooviest man in the room. Malibu has dropped after a year marked by a relentless campaign of releases and collaborations with the likes of Knxwledge, Tokimonsta, and most notably Dr. Dre. His prominence on Compton, from tracks like “Animals” and “All In A Day’s Work”, brought him a considerable amount of attention and set the stage for a breakout release in this most recent LP.

On Malibu, .Paak delivers a unique mix of grit and longing in his vocals that helps elevate the album from fitting neatly into a single genre. The matrimony of singing and rapping intertwined with incredibly refreshing production from the likes of 9th Wonder, Madlib, Hi-Tek, and many others creates a soundscape that travels back and forth in time without missing a beat. On the tracks “Am I Wrong” featuring Schoolboy Q, and Lightweight, we find ourselves in a disco laden groove with .Paak giving us his best McFadden & Whitehead impression. On the slower, more sensual cuts (i.e. The Waters, Room In Here ft. The Game, and Waterfall), we receive an irresistibly smooth, sly voice that’s convincing us to stay for awhile. But what is most distinct about this album is the mastery of Anderson’s cadence–the shift from rapid fire rhyming to swaying phrases to all out singing creates textures that are a delight for anyone with an open mind and a love of hip hop.

2016 is already on pace to be a phenomenal year in music. Malibu is out of the gate bright and early, on bended knee, asking for your affection, if only for the moments until another album whisks you away on another love affair. But that’s just it–it doesn’t take much convincing when the music loves you back. RE

Malibu is available for streaming on Spotify and Apple Music, and if you dig it, slide the man $9.99. Consider it a gift to yourself, you deserve it.

The post REVIEW: Anderson .Paak Delivers with “Malibu” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

“Consciousness [kon-shuh s-nis]: the state of being conscious; awareness of one’s own existence, sensations, thoughts, surroundings, etc.”

A seemingly lost element in today’s rap game, consciousness appears to be few and far between. That is not to diminish or take shine away from those emcees who are still releasing a conscious, self-aware message on records. Peace to those who are, and who push for this type of sound in 2015.

Before Mos Def‘s Black On Both Sides and Talib Kweli‘s Train of Thought (Reflection Eternal) came Black Star. It’s tough to find a place to begin as far as explaining this albums potency and lasting relevance. Let’s start with the duo’s title, Black Star. For those unaware, this was inspired by Marcus Garvey‘s birth of The Black Star Line. In the midst of Garvey’s growing UNIA (Universal Negro Improvement Association) he originated this as a means of transportation. To make a long story short, a series of unpleasant events took place involving informants, corrupted management, misconstrued mail fraud charges and the FBI that led to Garvey’s arrest. He would than spend five years behind bars, followed by him being deported back to Jamaica by way of Kingston, in which he still kept things alive and made moves for change.

Now with a little background on Black Star’s reference for the group’s title, you should have a better understanding of why this album is so major, among many other reasons. Let’s get into the LP.

Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star was released in ’98, prior to both of the their official debuts. In just over 50 minutes, they covered some serious ground in terms of content. There is no need to break down each record, as most of you reading this either love it, own it, or heard it a chunky amount of times. They covered every sound possible, with joints still relevant today for B-Boys, deep thinkers, graffiti writers, narration fiends, mothers, grandfathers and aunts. And most importantly the youth. This is an album you can play to your inner-city middle schools and use as a tool for education.

With production from Da Beatminerz, J. Rawls, Hi-Tek, 88 Keys and Ge-Ology all bases are covered. Another notable factor is today’s overall production versus this raw mid/late 90’s sound. There’s really no argument that most of us real hip-hop junkies probably miss albums to this level of rawness as far as the sounds are concerned. Also, the amount of features is far from oversaturated, which you often find in today’s scene. It’s generally a hit or miss, but this was beyond a win.

Black Star, as mentioned earlier, is an extremely powerful title for Mos and Talib. Did they stop at the title? No. Many records, like “Astronomy (8th Light)”, “Thieves In The Night” and “K.O.S. (Determination)” took unaware listeners to school, beautifully embracing and shedding a positive light on the culture. Also, the pictures painted of inner-city life are overwhelmingly present when you listen to these records, which is still very much relevant for all of us in and out of the city currently in 2015. They didn’t stop in 1998 either. Albums, shows, features and years later Yasiin Bey (Mos Def) and Talib Kweli are still shedding this light and keeping a positive, uplifting message. Longevity best describes it.

This article was not meant to be another mediocre, time-passing album review of an LP we all know. That would be exhausting. It was written and conducted with intentions of highlighting one, of many, classic albums that uphold a positive message. Hopefully this will inspire two things: a new-jack is exposed to what a timeless LP is, and for some crazy reason the reader does not own or never heard this album to go buy it, along with both of the emcee’s catalogues. The odds of that last one is almost impossible, we suppose. Also, don’t forget to check out Yasiin Bey (Mos Def) and Talib Kweli’s recent moves, as they’re very notable. Talib is really fattening up today’s rap game with his recent Javotti Media successes. Stay tuned, trust us.

The post Black Star: Remembering The 1998 Classic And Its Relevance Today appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

This is uncommon for rap videos, but the effect is powerful. Taro can obviously rap and he can rap well, but this self-displacement clearly shows that he’s more interested in being respected as a songwriter rather than just as a rapper. If you pay attention to the volume of Hi-Tek‘s slap-happy, soulful instrumental, you’ll notice that it nearly drowns Taro out. Every time Madeleine Curtis moans in the background, Taro is rendered nearly inaudible, yet he seems to be perfectly fine with this. This is what happens when rappers focus on their music more than themselves. Hopefully, karma will reward Taro for his focus. Watch “Karma” below.

The post New Video: Taro feat. Madeleine Curtis – “Karma” (prod. Hi-Tek) appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Talib Kweli announced on Twitter Sunday evening that he will be going for four albums in two years, with a little help from his friends. Kweli plans to follow up on his prolific 2010, which gave us the second Reflection Eternal album as well as November’s solo joint Gutter Rainbows, with two new albums in the fall.

First up is the long-awaited debut LP of Idle Warship, Kweli’s collaboration with R&B singer Res, due to release in September. Just two months later, though, comes Prisoner of Conscious, a new solo album that Kweli has been tinkering with for years. The new album will feature appearances by Mos Def, Nelly, Jean Grae, Kendrick Lamar, Maino and Curren$y, and production from Hi-Tek, Madlib and more.

With the two albums and a book on the way, Kweli seems to be working at a breakneck pace. Yet something still tells me it’s Mos Def that’s holding up the second Black Star album.

Via HipHop DX

The post Talib Kweli to Team With Mos Def, Nelly, More for November LP appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.