In light of the news that he’s working with Rick Rubin on his next project, GoldLink collabs with L.A. producers Falcons to give us “Vroom.” As if GoldLink’s crafty flow and party centric feel wasn’t enough, implementing a Missy Elliot sample adds another dimension to the records texture, giving listeners a tangible grasp of GoldLink’s creativity. Like his last album, “The God Complex,” “Vroom” captures the essence of his artistry, displaying a wide range of cadences that are becoming signature GoldLink sound. Now who’s got the keys to the Jeep?

The post Goldlink & Falcons – “Vroom” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Roosh Williams ingeniously samples Dazz Band’s 1982 hit “Let it Whip” on his new (and similarly titled) track “Whip It.” Roosh grabs fellow Houston artist GT Garza as the two spit impeccable bars over an 80’s classic. Trakksounds production melds 1982 funk with present day Hip-Hop, allowing Roosh and Garza to flow effortlessly over a feel-good, yet hard hitting record. Making a re-imaging of a song that was popular before most of us were born relevant, now that’s how you whip it. “Whip It” is off his upcoming album “Unorthodox” dropping 2.24. Stream Below or Download on iTunes HERE.

The post Roosh Williams ft. GT Garza – “Whip It” (Prod. By Trakksounds) appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Every true hip-hop head will never forget the first time hearing DJ Premier scratching on a record, and Guru throwing lyrical darts through the speakers. Keith “Guru” Elam may have been taken away from us physically in 2010, but his lyrics are eternal and his spirit is with us forever. This piece is a positive look into one record from each Gang Starr album, which are notable for their impact and certainly should not be forgotten. Take a trip down memory lane with us and enjoy:

1. “Manifest” off Gang Starr’s 1989 debut No More Mr. Nice Guy

With help from Big Daddy Kane‘s 1988 Word To The Mother(Land) vocals for the sample and smooth cuts from DJ Premier, Manifest is one of those records where the hook gets stamped in your memory. For this LP being Guru’s debut, he sure displayed some intense confidence without being overly boastful or cocky. If this was the first song you heard off No More Mr. Nice Guy you could surely say to yourself, “Gang Starr is in this for the long haul.”

2. “Check The Technique” off Gang Starr’s 1991 sophomore release Step In The Arena

Two years later came Step In The Arena. Though we all love Marlena Shaw‘s 1969 “California Soul,” DJ Premier flipped it something serious on “Check the Technique.” This record seemed less about content and more just a smack in the face with Guru’s effortless lyrical exercises. While checking him and Premier’s technique, you knew they were just getting warmed up in 1991.

3. “Take It Personal” off Gang Starr’s 1992 third studio album Daily Operation

Now it’s one year later and Gang Starr drops Daily Operation on us in ’92. With subject matter addressing old friends and backstabbers, Take It Personal is a calm, smirk-on-your-face diss to all you who fronted on the G-U-R-U. DJ Premier brought it with his classic consistent, higher pitched scratches and venomous drums.

4. “Comin’ For Datazz” off Gang Starr’s 1994 LP Hard To Earn

Hard To Earn was one of the hardest albums to choose just one record to highlight in this piece, as the whole album is top-shelf and timeless. “Comin’ For Datazz” was a bit more under the radar on the track list, but heavily notable for its head-nodding, jazzy rawness. Guru really gives you a taste of what he was living like at the time, and they both sounded beyond focused here. DJ Premier properly flips Run DMC‘s 1983 “Here We Go (Live At The Funhouse)” on the hook, making it that much more enjoyable.

5. “My Advice 2 You” off Gang Starr’s 1998 release Moment Of Truth

Four years after Hard To Earn comes the brutally honest, refreshing Moment Of Truth LP, which many say is their favorite Gang Starr album. Aside from the obvious fan favorites and bangers on the album, “My Advice 2 You” is a notable record for many reasons, one being its message. At this point Guru has been through a lot on and off the music scene, with about a decade under his belt as a recording artist. So any honest life advice given from the rap god is going to be honest and heart felt. 1976’s “I Love You More Than You’ll Ever Know” by Lydia Pense & Cold Blood is a wholesome, honest record as well, which DJ Premier gracefully flipped here.

6. “Put Up Or Shut Up” off Gang Starr’s 2003 sixth and final release The Ownerz

With a little help from Gang Starr Foundation’s Krumb Snatcha and DJ Premier’s thick production, Guru addresses all the loud mouth, fake gangsters in the game at the time. The early 2000’s was a gift and a curse, and definitely bred an abundance of funk fakers in the music industry, while the true school weren’t getting as much shine as they should have. Guru was letting us know he was still very much present and beating down all frauds, with assistance from DJ Premier’s flip of Queen Latifah‘s Wrath Of My Madness. Though this was their last album together, their force will live on forever.

Rest in Paradise Keith Edward Elam aka Guru (Gifted Unlimited Rhymes Universal).

July 17, 1961 to Eternity.

The post Gang Starr Is Forever: 6 Notable Guru Moments appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Kanye West’s sixth studio album, Yeezus, leaked four days before its official release on June 18^th, 2013. Guess who didn’t give a fuck? Kanye West. After months of anticipation, a star-studded listening party at NYC’s Milk Studios, and a brash and refreshing marketing strategy of public video projections, Yeezus reached the masses early and illegally, yet the world got almost no response from the Chicago MC.

This nonchalant reaction not only solidifies Mr. West’s opinion about the leak – as well as the album cover itself – but it also represents his approach to the new LP as a whole. “How much do I not give a fuck? Let me show you right now, ‘fore you give it up,” West raps in his exaggeratedly nasal voice, just one minute into the album’s opener, “On Sight“. ‘Ye is already letting everyone know that he’s going to do what he wants on this album, with no apologies. And as the above lyric cues “On Sight”‘s techno barrage to let up and reveal a sweeping soul-ish melody reminiscent of his past work, West’s brash aversion to convention pays off. Beautifully.

“On Sight” gives us a little taste of the Kanye we’ve known in the past, easing us into his new world with a head-nodding, futuristic-sounding banger à la “Stronger” that quickly changes directions as the track morphs into a sharp and warbled electronic shrill. Once this discomfort has slightly set in, “Black Skinhead”  comes at us full throttle. The track is the highlight of the album, effortlessly combining gut-wrenching electric guitars with militant, almost ceremonial drums.  Better yet, Kanye’s flow is in a rare double-time that makes his neurotic shrieks even more compelling. (Trivia: he probably hasn’t flowed that fast since “Get Em High“)

The third track, “I Am A God” continues with the same strength as “Black Skinhead“, with ‘Ye declaring himself a “close tie” to Jesus. Understandably, the song has raised a bit of controversy, with many opposed to Kanye presenting himself as a deity. But listening closely to his tone as he snarls those four words, it seems as though Kanye is declaring his status as a god to both the listeners and himself. Furthermore, beyond those four words, it’s important to note the line, “Until the day I get struck by lightning, I am a God.” Even when he’s elevating himself to the heavens, Kanye still seems to be wary of going too high because maybe there actually is someone above.

The production on the album is constantly complex and often schizophrenic, weaving both seamlessly and abruptly between dark House music, distorted dancehall and maximal EDM. This raging mixture of blown-out bass and disparate noises is honestly like nothing else we’ve ever heard from the Chicago rapper. It is not uncommon for rappers to attempt to cross genre-boundaries and it is very common for producers to violate these boundaries (if they even believe in them), but Kanye genuinely seems to have built this album’s soundscape with pure openness. The production credits for Yeezus are notably extensive for an album without live instrumentation. Moreover, artists with very loose hip-hop affiliations seem to have had significant roles.

Nevertheless, perhaps this openness should have been reined in a little bit. Take “Blood on the Leaves,” for instance. Sampling Nina Simone‘s cover of “Strange Fruit,” a song about lynchings of Black males in the South, Kanye samples TNGHT‘s “R U Ready” and creates a song that’s chilling, yet impossible not to dance to. It’s easy to view the sample as the work of a provocateur, but if nothing else, the album is absolutely a gesture in sincerity. In other words, Kanye actually does think it’s okay to conflate lynching with relationship problems. If that sounds absurd to you, that’s because it is. But how could Kanye think that comparison is okay?

That question brings us to Yeezus‘ lyrics. Lyrically, Yeezus isn’t particularly evocative.  Kanye familiarly raps about luxury life on songs like “Send It Up”, women on cuts like “I’m In It” and “Hold My Liquor”, and loss on “Guilt Trip.” Even when these familiar topics are paired with new interests like the youth of Chicago and the contradictions that come with being a black celebrity, the lyrics aren’t particularly rewarding. The real reward of the album is its affect. Even when Kanye is comparing lynching to relationship problems, despite the absurdity of this comparison, the atmosphere of the song, how it makes you feel, is overwhelming. In fact, Kanye seemingly makes the comparison because of how he feels. For him, affects, feelings, can be equated in ways that words (or realities) cannot. Thus, he doesn’t ask us or convince us to feel a certain way by using clever lyrics: he makes us feel a certain way by pairing two disparate sounds and forcing them to work. That is the strength of “Blood on the Leaves” and the overall strength of the album. Kanye has learned to use sound to command listeners to feel a certain affect regardless of how that affect was created.  A cynic might say he really is a God.

The last track on the LP, “Bound 2”, is a journey into nostalgia. From the moment the sample of Ponderosa Twins Plus One‘s song “Bound” begins playing, it’s like time- traveling into the 70’s. This final song is a true treat, because it takes us all the way back to ‘Ye’s College Dropout days, when he pulled samples from some of the greatest singers to bless our ears, including Chaka Khan and Luther Vandross.  Mr. West’s rhymes are what we’d expect from him, but the singing throughout the track is what makes it exceptional. To put the icing on the cake, ‘Ye lets Charlie Wilson belt out, “I know you’re tired of loving…with nobody to love.” It’s a very comforting ending, especially in comparison to the atmosphere that preceded it.

Yeezus lacks a teddy bear or anything closely resembling one, but Kanye West remains embraceable. In fact, Kanye has grown even colder since “Cold,” but perhaps that’s the point. Yeezus doesn’t have have to give a fuck about us for us to give a fuck about him. He’s a god.

The post Album Review: Kanye West – Yeezus appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.