We’d be lying if we told you that the soundtrack to The Great Gatsby isn’t subpar. Though it has an all-star cast, much like the movie it’s tied to, there’s something  overwhelmingly lame about it. Nevertheless, it did remind us of other times when hip-hop and movies collided. For your listening pleasure, we’ve compiled these special moments below.

4. Bad Boys 2 

Though this is the soundtrack to a Michael Bay movie,  it’s genuinely not as scatter-brained as that connection would imply. While some of the songs were not originally recorded for the record, the true beauty of the album is how well it flows. Also, this is probably the last project where Bad Boy artists were collectively visible.

Highlight: Notorious B.I.G. ft. 50 Cent – Realest Niggas

3. Blade 2

In the cultural landscape of 2013, it’s a little difficult to imagine a movie with swords and vampires as anything other than a clusterfuck, but we implore you not only to watch this movie, but to listen to this soundtrack. The blurring of the lines between EDM and hip-hop are the talk of the town these days, but this phenomenon is far from recent. This soundtrack is living proof. Some of the hottest electronic producers paired with the some of the hottest emcees and the result was of course, pure fire.

Highlight: Massive Attack & Mos Def – I Against I*
*(Make sure your bass is turned up)

2. The Man With the Iron Fists

The quality of RZA’s directorial debut is divisive, but no one can disagree on the quality of the music. With the exception of that strange song with Ghostface and Wiz that comes at the tail-end, its a cohesive project throughout, particularly on the production side (Shouts to Frank Dukes). In fact, even Corrine Bailey Rae did some work on the boards.

HIGHLIGHTS: Wu-Tang Clan – “Six Directions of Boxing
Kanye West – “White Dress”

1. Space Jam

Even among other children’s movies, Space Jam is a bizarre creature. Featuring Looney Tunes, aliens, Michael Jordan and even Bill Murray, it might be the single most “90’s: cultural artifact ever spawned. Nevertheless, the soundtrack is purely extraordinary. Beginning with Seal’s enrapturing cover of “Fly Like an Eagle,” it lifts you immediately and doesn’t let you touchdown for even a moment. Much like the plot for Space Jam, this soundtrack is a pure singularity.

Highlight: EVERYTHING.

The post 4 Movie Soundtracks That Are Better than The Great Gatsby’s appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

For the holidays, street wave proprietor, Stussy, collaborated with artist, Trevor Jackson, for a line of nostalgic tees commemorating a time in music when you couldn’t turn an iPod dial. Jackson‘s been puttin’ in work since the mid to late 90’s and is responsible for the cover art on over 300 albums and remixes on compositions from the likes of Unkle, U2, and Massive Attack. Check out some of these clever tees with lyrics of the jams of yesteryear. Watch below to see Jackson speak about his career from the beginning and balancing both music and design.

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“I just want to be respected as a writer,” says Malik Hall, the artist formerly known as KIDGNS (Kid Genius) and currently known as Haleek Maul, brooding emcee from Barbados. Throughout the interview Haleek has chosen his words very deliberately so when he says “writer” instead of  “lyricist,” there is clearly much weight to his word choice. “I’m not trying to jam a simile into every line,” he explains. For Haleek, intricate lyricism has become a craft for its own sake rather than because it enhances songs. Actively avoiding that lane, Haleek seeks to be noted for his imagery, his sonic presence. For inspiration, Haleek doesn’t listen to punchline-laced mixtapes: he listens to Andre 3000, Tricky and Bjork.

While he ritually listens to Outkast’s Aquemini at least once per week, the Andre 3000 influence isn’t immediately discernible; one has to really engage the music. The Tricky and Bjork influences are also difficult to discern, but their relationships with British super-producer duo Massive Attack conveniently mirror Haleek’s relationship with Supreme Cuts, a producer twosome who treat Haleek like a younger brother.

Their collaborative effort Chrome Lips, was released a few days ago, but Haleek says that it was a year in the making. None of the tracks were recorded with both parties present and Haleek didn’t meet the Chicagoan producers in person until this past summer, but the music says otherwise. Over perfectly murky beats, Haleek spits tales of decadence, despondence and swag. When asked how the collaborations were able to come out so seamlessly despite their different origins and nascent artistic relationship (they only met a year ago), Haleek gave a long answer and a short answer.

The long answer was: “We have different cultural influences, but we have similar mindsets. They have the same work ethic and drive that I do, but it’s just like we grew up on different things and we’re at different points in our lives as well. That’s why you find that we’re different but we still have the ability to collaborate. It’s like I’m a painter from someplace and the other guy is an architect. I decide to do graff all over his building. It’s still a pretty ass building, but it just has really pretty graffiti on it. That’s a collaboration if you think about it: it’s just taking on person’s strong points and another person’s strong points and kind of just like raveling them up in each other until you can’t differentiate which is which.” (The short answer was: “I’m Missy and they’re Timbo!”)

Haleek likens their collaboration to different cloths being woven together until the result is something completely foreign and new, but Chrome Lips is tagged as the product of “Supreme Cuts & Haleek Maul.” When asked why they decided to not go the Madvillain or Emanon route and coin a new name, Haleek says, “I think we just wanted people to know that this is Supreme Cuts and this is Haleek Maul and this is how we come together on a record. I don’t think we should have to rebrand it or make it a whole new thing. I think this is just Supreme Cuts showing their stuff in terms of the versatility of their production skills. On my part, it was a showcase of the different beats that I could flow on.” The finished product is great, but those cloths aren’t indistinguishable just yet.

Nevertheless, that may change. Alluding to upcoming projects, Haleek ambitiously assures that “game-changers” are in the works. The genre-blending and experimentation seen on Chrome Lips is just “practice,”Haleek assures. Typically, such sentiments are harbingers of an imminent sophomore slump, but Haleek has already released two projects in one year, so perhaps he’s already over that hurdle. As his run continues, we’ll see whether he’s gassed up because of strong lungs or because of hot Barbados air. I’m betting it’s the former.

The post Exclusive Interview: Haleek Maul appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.