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Hip Hop

Shawn Chrystopher ft. Dom Kennedy & Ashly Breshe – Situation

shawnChrystopher

Inglewood emcee Shawn Chrystopher lets loose a buttery bit of jazz-inflected hip hop w/ the Dom Kennedy-featuring “Situation” from his recently released The Lovestory LP.

Shawn Chrystopher california (Facebook)

Rating 8.1

brown8

reviewed by
07-23-13

Mick Jenkins – Crossroads (feat. Chance The Rapper & Vic Mensa)

Mick Jenkins – Crossroads (feat. Chance The Rapper & Vic Mensa)

Chi rapper Mick Jenkins grabs a couple of his fellow bros in the 312 incl. emcee of the moment Chance The Rapper for a vibed-down jazzy tones On Gaud produced slow creeper.

Mick Jenkins (Twitter)

Rating 8.4

reviewed by
07-19-13

Que f. Migos, Juicy J and B.o.B – Young Nigga (Remix)

toung nigga que

The latest posse cut to capture the B3 imagination is Atlanta MC’s Que’s “Young Nigga” remix featuring Migos, Juicy J, and Bobby Ray. Spoiler alert: Juiceman raps about banana clips in this one too.

Que georgia (Soundcloud)

Rating: 8.0

brown8

reviewed by
07-18-13

Nick Brewer – So Good

nick brewer

Nick Brewer and B3 seem to be on a bit of a vibe here. The jazzy tones of “So Good” and the UK rapper’s subtle easy-on-the-beat rhymes are not only refreshingly unique (especially for the Brit rap scene) but also manage an immense catchiness and a stick with you quality that maybe separates him from many of his jazz-hop sort of peers. We’ve had “So Good” on repeat all day and we’re pretty sure you’ll be doing the same after you press play.

Nick Brewer england (Official)

Rating 8.0

brown93

reviewed by
07-17-13

The Rub – Feel You featuring Lil Fame & Misun (Marco Polo Remix)

marco polo remix

Marco Polo remixes the Rub (New York DJs Ayers and Eleven) track “Feel You” featuring B3 favorite Misun from earlier this year. M.P.’s remix sports a decidedly a mid to late 90’s feel, particularly in how the diction on Lil’ Fame’s verse and the way the retooled beat break together sound absolutely beamed in from 1997 or 1998. Get a sample below.

Marco Polo newyork (Wiki)

Rating: 8.3

brown8

reviewed by
07-17-13

Mannie Fresh – Forever (Feat. Carmine & Mayalino)

mannie fresh

Of course we love this. Mr. “Bread and Baloney”, Mr. “Real Big”, Mr. one of the best rap producers ever Mannie Fresh drops new track “Forever”. Naturally, it’s interesting to hear someone with as lengthy as a career/record as Mannie embrace changes and new trends in music (the Future-esque hook, the 2 Chainz flow) but all told we’re bumping “Forever” out our trunk REAL BIG.

Mannie Fresh louisiana ( Twitter)

Rating 8.2

brown8

reviewed by
07-15-13

Ta-ku & Raashan Ahmad – Lean Left

Ta-ku & Raashan Ahmad

Ta-Ku & Rashaan Ahmad’s 2011-recorded (!) album gets its proper release this week thanks to the cool brahs at Jakarta Records. The gloomy soul-flavoring (always a b3 fave!) of “Lean Left” is our pick from the record’s sixteen strong tracks. You check out a full sample of the LP on soundcloud.

Raashan Ahmad (Facebook)

Rating 8.2

brown8

reviewed by
07-11-13

ProbCause – LSD (Feat. Chance The Rapper)

ProbCause - LSD ft. Chance The Rapper

Guessing when Chi MC ProbCause was looking for brahs to feature on his “LSD” track, Mr. Acid Rap Chance the Rapper was #1 on that list. He’d have been #1 on our list. Prob’s The Recipe Vol. 2 is out July 16th.

AngeProbCause (Soundcloud)

Rating 8.1

reviewed by
07-10-13

Context – Small Town Lad Sentiments (Mike Skinner Remix)

context skinner remix copy

“This is Mike Skinner, you got an garage?” Mike Skinner co-signs on Context’s brilliant “Small Town Lad Sentiments” with this classic-Streets-sounding flip. We can’t seem to get enough of this 2-step vibed, garage jam from the Midlands rapper , and it’s cool we’re not the only ones (Hi Mike Skinner!). Peep this rip of the Skinner Remix courtesy of a recent Mistajam BBC 1 Radio set.

Context england (Facebook)

Rating 8.5
brown8

reviewed by
07-10-13

ScienZe – The Date (Feat. LeXuS) (prod. Lord Quest)

scienze

“The Date” is excerpted here from Brooklyn rapper ScienZe’s just released Ella LP. Featuring A+ production from the likes of Ski Beatz, Blu & Lord Quest (who’s featured here on “The Date”), we’re on about the more laid back easy to love “The Date” which plays out with ScienZe recalling on a particularly fly romantic interlude. You can stream Ella in its entirety on bandcamp.

Scienze (Official/a>)

Rating 8.2

brown8

reviewed by
07-09-13

Propain – Got a Problem (Feat. Kirko Bangz & Slim Thug)

propain

Houston. H-Town. Baghdad on the Bayou. H-Town riser Propain grabs a rising Houston star (Kirko Bangz) and a Houston capofamiglia (Slim Thug) for the easy ride-out leaner “Got a Problem”. Styrofoam cups up. Ridin’ Slab is out today.

Propain texas (Soundcloud)

Rating 8.3

brown8

reviewed by
07-08-13

Context – Small Town Lad Sentiments

context

Listening to UK rapper Context’s new track “Small Town Lad Sentiments” is a little like having one foot firmly in sort of classic garage mid 90’s time-warp (and a very well-executed fresh approximation of that sound at that) and one being pulled at unflinchingly 20 years into the future; the rhymes, the feel of the track all sound very progressive, modern and futuristic (and we don’t mean “futuristic” in the future garage sense, we mean july 4, 2033 is tomorrow futuristic).

Context – Small Town Lad Sentiments

Context england (Facebook)

Rating 8.1

brown8

reviewed by
07-03-13