HipHop Talks Podcast
Introducing "Hip-Hop Talks Podcast/Media'' - a captivating experience that immerses hip-hop enthusiasts in the boundless world of the genre and its cultural impact. Join hosts Shawn, Coop, and Adriel as they pay homage to the foundations of hip hop, from its origins to the present day with a diverse take on Hip Hop. Shawn, takes you through the boroughs of New York, while Coop provides a provocative, yet daring take on the South’s stake in the Hip Hop game. Adriel brings the unique perspective of Hip Hop through the lens of those that cling onto the lifeline and purity of Hip Hop. Combining their thoughts and views, is liken to your favorite superhero team assembling to lean into each other’s strengths. Through insightful conversations, passionate debates, and meticulous breakdowns, they explore the intricate fabrics of hip hop, including its powerful lyrics, infectious beats, mesmerizing breakdancing, vibrant graffiti art, skillful DJing, and electrifying MCing. "Hip-Hop Talks" is the ultimate destination for fans seeking to deepen their understanding and appreciation of this influential art form. Tune in and become part of the unified community that celebrates the timeless legacy of hip hop.
HipHop Talks Podcast
Kendrick & SZA Interview, Dre & Snoop on Producers, Tribe and Mary J. In HOF, and MORE!
What if West Virginia became its own country? We kicked things off with this playful suggestion, setting the tone for a lively exploration of the week's most intriguing topics. From our spirited debates on baseball teams and World Series predictions to the end of the LeBron and Bronny saga, we leave no stone unturned. Our chat also pays homage to the legendary Griffey family and touches on the early NBA season, with a hopeful eye on Jayson Tatum’s MVP prospects. Join us as we meander through sports and culture with humor and passion.
Our love for hip-hop takes center stage as we celebrate the revolutionary sounds of A Tribe Called Quest and the Wu-Tang Clan. We weigh in on the jazz-infused beats of Tribe and the gritty bars of Wu-Tang, marveling at how both shaped the rap landscape. The narrative deepens as we dissect concept albums like "Warriors," and revel in the dynamic chemistry of Benny the Butcher and 38 Spesh. We wrap up with a nostalgic nod to the influential Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, underscoring their lasting impact on the genre.
Through engaging stories and spirited debates, this episode brings together the best of hip-hop and sports. We offer candid critiques of Kendrick Lamar's narrative control, delve into classic albums like Ghostface Killah’s "Ironman," and even explore the legacy of The Firm. Engage with us as we appreciate the past, celebrate the present, and anticipate the future of music and sports. Whether discussing the intricacies of album verses or bantering about playlist supremacy, there's something for every enthusiast to enjoy.
🎵outro music plays🎵. What's going on everybody? Welcome to Hip Hop Talks. It's your man, coop, you know. We got your phone. Tap what you gonna do. Yeah, we're gonna talk about that. What up AG Sean, usual stuff. What's good with everybody? Um, what up AG Sean, usual you with everybody. You got the cream hat I got the Wu-Tang shirt Synergy man AG as usual, has something Nas related on.
Speaker 2:Always, that's what you do.
Speaker 3:It's relevant, relevant to one of the topics at hand, but we'll get to some other proceedings.
Speaker 1:You know that's cool. How's everybody week been? Y'all want to do a quick sports rundown right, quick, how we feel like flowing. How's your? Week been. Everybody feeling blessed, we feeling healthy, we up, we right.
Speaker 2:Life is good. Life is good. I just got back today A little jet lag, but I'm drinking some vodka to kind of take the edge off. But life is good.
Speaker 3:I'm good man Just enjoying the fall weather. You know what I mean. We got some this unusual fall weather. We don't have 70s. You know all week here where I'm at in West Virginia, so you know it's been real nice just trying to gear up, you know, for the time change and how that affect my body and all that.
Speaker 1:But other than that man doing good, Okay, after this election, we're going to take a vote and try to make West Virginia its own country. It really doesn't belong to the United States. West Virginia and California got to go. West Virginia in a bad way, California in a good way.
Speaker 2:West Virginia like Demascara.
Speaker 1:We got to up our numbers. We got to trim some of the fat. Don't hate man.
Speaker 1:We goaded out here the two best players in baseball, although I think Acuna could give them both a run for their money, were he healthy, consistently in here playing in the World Series. We got any World Series predictions? Dodgers versus Yankees. Sean, I told you that the Mets were going to lose. I'd like to list forget what both of you have to say. I'd like to list the teams that I hate in order that I hate them in terms of baseball. I hate the Yankees number one. Number one is New York Yankees. I hate the Yankees the most. You should Hit the Mets second. You guys haven't won since 2009. It's been a long time since you've been anywhere important, you need to watch your tone.
Speaker 2:This is how people are going to do this tonight.
Speaker 1:New York Mets number two, chicago Cubs number three, but that's only because I got into a fight at a playoff game down here I was escorted out the stadium I said hey, I said usually when I get escorted out of places. I said I usually say I get escorted out of better places.
Speaker 2:I was like, but I actually don't think I've been escorted out of better places. That sounds about right. That's on brand.
Speaker 1:That's actually on brand so Chicago Cubs number three, st Louis Cardinals number four. So Dodgers number five. So I don't care who wins the World Series. What say you guys? I got the.
Speaker 3:Yanks absolutely absolutely you know what it is.
Speaker 1:Yankees, let's get it terrible thoughts on the early NBA season games Absolutely New Yeti all day you know what it is.
Speaker 2:Yankees, let's get it Terrible.
Speaker 1:Thoughts on the early NBA season games so far. What do we think? I?
Speaker 2:don't like the LeBron and Bronny thing. I'm glad it's over. Get that up out of here. They tried it. It was trash Kind of a hit, that's not a hit.
Speaker 1:I'm a basketball fan. Don't you like nepotism when it's on our side? For a change, though, not like that you know what was dope, though?
Speaker 3:my biggest takeaway was uh, my biggest takeaway was are you saying they not like us? I'm sorry oh, we, we got to get to that too, for sure, for sure. But my biggest takeaway I thought it was dope that Griffey, ken Griffey Sr and Ken Griffey Jr came out to support that. You know, I really like that. You know what I'm saying Because they were the father-son duo that played at Major League Baseball together, and you know, yeah, see what Sean doing.
Speaker 2:Look man, my father and I played on Southside on Fulton Park together. I was 20. He was 47, I think, or 48 or something like that. We played together two on two, hustled some guys. They came back with the Blinkies. We got up out of there. That's a legacy. That's what you really want to have because we actually got some buckets.
Speaker 1:Nobody asked you that. Nobody asked you that at all.
Speaker 3:Sean with Sidney Dean out there.
Speaker 1:Nobody asked you to have your fucking middle-aged ass flashback back to the. Wonder Years. The black version. Like nobody asked you to do all that yeah, what you thought about the early games like what did you? Think do we have any MVP predictions?
Speaker 2:that's only one game, nobody predictions.
Speaker 3:I don't have any predictions, but I'll tell you who I hope gets it and I'm not even a fan of this guy, but you know, I just got to recognize the situation. It's Tatum, the way he was there for Team USA. I hope Tatum wins the NBA MVP this year and I'm not even a Tatum fan like that.
Speaker 1:He wasn't done. A certain type of way. He plays the same position as LeBron and KD.
Speaker 3:They did him greasy. Bro, don't do that, they is a he he is a.
Speaker 1:Kerr. He is a Kerr, they is a he. He is a Kerr. Yes, but I think the team is just too stout for him to win MVP, quite frankly, because when you have four guys that can pretty much score like 20 points a night, maybe sometimes five. When you actually add Porzingis to the mix, it makes it hard to win MVP unless you have, like you have to have like one of those season seasons, like you have to have like one of those like Magic Johnson seasons where he averages like 25 points and 13 assists and nine rebounds and two steals and two blocks and you know what I'm saying Like it's got to be one of those seasons and I don't know if he's going to have one of those seasons, sean, who you got for MVP?
Speaker 3:Himself, of course.
Speaker 1:We took a poll and he voted.
Speaker 2:I think SGA. It's either going to be SGA or Jokic. I wonder how Jokic is going to respond with getting bounced last year if he's going to come back with a different type of fire, because he typically he don't get up for anything, but this is his first time really losing you know what two years, if you will Like. You know he won the championship, had another amazing season after that. I wonder how he's going to return this year if he returns with a chip on his shoulder and I think SGA is going to return with a chip on his shoulder as well, for sure. Those are my two right now neck and neck balls.
Speaker 1:I think because he's going to have to do more. If this team can stay relatively within the win column the way that it did last season, I think Anthony Edwards has an excellent shot at MVP this year. Yeah. But realistically. Realistically at this point. First of all, I thought SGA should have won last year, but realistically, this is essentially Luca's award to lose. He's been the person that's been chosen to win this award so many seasons. I feel like for the first time in five years, he's not everybody's choice to win MVP.
Speaker 1:Usually that's when you win MVP, it's usually the year they don't choose you the way that they've always chosen you to win MVP that you win MVP. And so, although I don't think that they're going to repeat their journey to the finals, I do think he is going to put his first MVP award in the bag. I don't know if it's going to be his last, because winning MVP in the NBA is extremely hard because some of it is media and popularity driven, but I think he's about to have the type of season and they're about to be relevant enough and on enough people's radar and enough people have been like waiting for him to kind of like snag that award that it's his to, that it's his to lose. So I think the MVP award is really dependent upon his performance. If he performs the way that he's actually performed consistently the last couple of years and they win a few more games, he's going to win.
Speaker 3:It's a good pick.
Speaker 2:It's a good pick, I can do it. I don't see, and it's not ready, and it's not ready. The team the Wolves are off right now because they made some bad moves over the offseason. The Wolves are off right now because they made some bad moves over the offseason. I don't think that messed them up.
Speaker 1:I don't know if they're bad moves. I don't know if they're bad moves.
Speaker 3:And let's not forget, he's only in his fifth year as well.
Speaker 2:He got some more time to mature. He'll get there. He's going to get there.
Speaker 1:Got time? Got the Celtics repeating? Celtics repeat no.
Speaker 2:No no.
Speaker 1:Who do you got no.
Speaker 3:I mean it could be OKC. I think they could come out and win it. I think the Knicks got a good shot. It's crazy to say, but I think they got a good shot. You know, in the playoffs, if they're healthy I think they could take the Celtics down. But I would say either the Knicks or the Thunder would be my picks from each coast.
Speaker 2:Wow, that's a hot take. I don't see OKC come out the West. I don't see it.
Speaker 1:I don't see any team beating the Celtics as currently constituted. But I will tell you this I think Philly will get them. No, no.
Speaker 3:I read somewhere where PG and Embiid they're not even playing back-to-backs this season.
Speaker 2:Neither one of them and they're on the investigation. They got Philly on the investigation. Hold on hold on AG.
Speaker 1:You're talking about the back-to-back. First of all, you have to play the front first. You got to play the first game. You got to play the first game before you talk about the. Can't talk about a back-to-back when you haven't even played?
Speaker 3:That's a fact. I feel like they're going to slide deep down in the playoffs. Like you know, one of the lower seeds. Because of that, you know neither one of these cats going to play back-to-backs. They're going to lose a lot of games in the regular season.
Speaker 1:Here's what I will tell you. I think a lot of people are sleeping on Milwaukee. Guys, if Milwaukee is healthy, People forgot about them. Towards the end of last year, milwaukee's problem is health and, dane and Giannis, they have first of all nobody asked you on it.
Speaker 2:I'm just saying you should forget about them. Dane was trashed on First of all hold on Giannis.
Speaker 1:top three player, correct, that's arguable, but yeah. If he could hit free throws, he'd be number one.
Speaker 2:If he hit free throws he'd be the number one player. Yeah, I think I think you say more than that for him. I think he had that phenomenal season when he won the chip. But you gotta think about it, man. Jokic does everything until someone can prove otherwise.
Speaker 3:Jokic is the one I think jokic and luka are the ones that's clearly above him.
Speaker 1:No, no, no, that's what I'm saying. Luka's not that much better of a free throw shooter than him. So it's arguable about that two or three space, because here's the reality of the matter. Well, how can you have Luka ahead of Giannis when Giannis got two MVPs in the NBA championship and Luka doesn't have either one of those things? That's fair. If we're really talking about it. It's like Giannis is actually two behind Jokic.
Speaker 3:Jokic's got three.
Speaker 1:MVPs in a ring. Giannis got two MVPs in a ring. As far as this generation is concerned, it actually goes Jokic, Giannis, and then we can argue about Embiid and Luka at three and four.
Speaker 3:I'm glad you brought that up, coop, because for another point later on I prefer Luka. But when you bring up objective stuff like that, then you have to put Giannis in front. So I'm glad you brought that point up.
Speaker 1:Yeah, he's got just as many all-NBA first teams. And think about it. He started making all-NBA first team when LeBron and KD were in their prime prime. He was making first team.
Speaker 4:You know what I mean. They were in their prime prime.
Speaker 1:He was making first team. He's like that. And let's not forget who Dame is If there's a shot for the money from this generation, he's the guy. He's more clutch than Steph KD and LeBron he has been. If we're just talking about closing games, closing moments, so if they're healthy, if they can add a piece, some team that we're expecting to win may not win and may end up selling off pieces. And if Milwaukee is doing well enough, think about it. They got Doc Rivers as a coach, so they have championship predigree as a coach. They got a top three player from this era. They got the best closer from this era. If they can stay healthy and add a piece or two, don't be surprised Like that would. It would not surprise me. I don't know who to pick out the West, whoever stays healthy out the West is going to win. The West, that's a big decision.
Speaker 1:Like whoever stays healthy between I mean, because there's a lot of teams Well, the Clippers don't matter, because they got creaky knees, creaky knees doing creaky knees, things Don't sleep on Sacramento either.
Speaker 3:Don't sleep on Sac Town, no.
Speaker 1:So you could say Sacramento, okc, minnesota, dallas.
Speaker 2:Phoenix.
Speaker 1:Phoenix, you think the Lakers, how do you feel? You think they're going to be better Eighth or ninth Golden State.
Speaker 2:About seventh. I think Golden State is going to shock some people.
Speaker 1:So those five teams I just named, those are the teams that you're expecting, like OKC, Sacramento, Phoenix.
Speaker 2:Memphis is healthy. If John plays the whole season.
Speaker 1:I need to see Memphis. What about Utah?
Speaker 3:Nah. I think you ran off the top five, in whatever order. I think you ran off the top five, I think, in whatever order, I think the top five is going to be OKC Sacramento, Minnesota, Denver, Denver and Dallas.
Speaker 1:Denver, dallas. Yeah, okay, yeah. So yeah, I feel like all of those teams are a player away from beating the Celtics. They need another player. Yeah, like going to state I'm telling you they got like a player away from beating the Celtics. They need another player.
Speaker 2:Yeah, Like going to state, I'm telling you they got like a 10-man rotation. Right now they're playing with a 10-man rotation. It's not going to hold up in the playoffs. Yeah, it's not going to hold up in the playoffs.
Speaker 1:You got some super chats.
Speaker 2:You got five super chats out the gate. Appreciate y'all.
Speaker 1:No doubt appreciate y'all. No doubt I got you cj, the kid I just arrived. Hope you guys are good overall. How are you? What did I miss so far? You missed nothing. We're just shooting the shit about some sports right quick and getting warmed up. That's all we're doing. Cj, shout out to you, appreciate you. Brunson is a great player, but he needs to trust his players and pass the ball more. That'll come with time. It's got a lot of teammates. It's been a lot of moving parts in the last six to 12 months in New York, so just give that time, mad Max. Luka ain't over Giannis. That's ridiculous, mad Max. We already spoke to that. What you need to do is relax. What you need to do is relax.
Speaker 2:Mad Max, it's real.
Speaker 1:I'm whipping the wheel. Mad Max Don't even worry about it. Wheel man max don't even worry about it. Man max, luca gotta play defense before I raid him like that. That's true because yannis is all nba defense player too. Yeah, as a matter of fact, it's closer between yannis and yokich than people talk about. That's actually the real conversation. People try to make it in an mb yokich conversation because they're both like traditional centers yeah but really the conversation is Giannis and Jokic.
Speaker 1:You know what I'm saying and really it's been about health because if you really look at it, giannis' numbers are just as good, if not better, than Embiid's most of the time. I mean than Embiid and Jokic. Most of the time it's just been health the last couple of years. He probably might have had one of these MVP awards had he not been hurt. You know he's healthy right now.
Speaker 1:Mad Max, again Mad Max. We appreciate it, even though I'm tired of saying stuff that has Mad Max's name on it. Enough with name Kyrie. Better always has been Kyrie's a better shooter. But that's about it, All right.
Speaker 2:We got one more, one more.
Speaker 1:Shout out to our man Appreciate you, brother, what's good with you, peace. Doc got the chip because he had KG, pierce, allen and Rondo At best Doc is overrated. That's what I'm saying. If you give Doc Giannis, dane, middleton and another piece like somebody that's as good as Middleton but better than Portis, like yeah, they can win the chip, their championship contending team, like I expect them, if they're healthy, to be a top three seed in the East actually.
Speaker 3:They're going to have a better record. They're going to have a decade and a half off that one championship.
Speaker 1:They're going to have a better record than Philly because playoff PP and then B, they ain't playing back-to-backs. We don't even know if they know how to play the front nine, let alone the back nine. That is crazy. The Knicks are figuring it out.
Speaker 2:Yeah by midseason, we'll know who's who.
Speaker 1:Miami is always more of a postseason team than a regular season team.
Speaker 2:They don't care about the season?
Speaker 1:They really don't. The Pacers are probably like the dark horse.
Speaker 3:Pacers are a sleeper. Magic Magic's a sleeper.
Speaker 1:Yeah, the Pacers and Magic are the sleepers. That's going to be dependent on health for both of those teams and some of that is just going to depend on it's like well, how great of a player is Van Carrow Is he like? Is he a top 15 player? How far Orlando is going to be like, is he a top 15 player?
Speaker 3:Don't sleep on Cleveland either. Yeah, they can sneak in.
Speaker 1:They can sneak in the playoffs. They got the talent. It's just something about those pieces Don't seem like they fit still. It don't. It just seems like the pieces on that don't fit. You know what I'm saying. So I still expect Milwaukee To be like a top three seed, like maybe two If healthy. But it's Boston again. So, guys, real quick. Last sports thing Before we transition to all our hip-hop, actual talk. I'm afraid Lamar Jackson's gonna win his third MVP award. I'm gonna tell you why?
Speaker 1:I'm afraid? Because you can't be walking around with three MVP awards and no rings, and so if he keeps playing like this, he's actually putting more pressure on himself, in my opinion, to win, and to win right now. Because if you're looking at the people with three MVP awards, like you're in the rarest of air you were in Jim Brown, johnny Unitas, tom Brady, peyton Manning, brett Favre, aaron Rodgers, like three he's not even close to 30. He's 27, guys.
Speaker 3:Yeah, but it's hard to win a championship when the powers that be want the other guy to win so much. So that's all I'm going to say.
Speaker 2:Well, the guy.
Speaker 1:You know what I'm talking about. You hear this Illuminati bullshit?
Speaker 3:Nah, it's good, nah, I mean, this is a whole other tangent man. It's getting flagrant, it's getting real Tom Brady-ish out there for that boy out there in KC. I'm just saying that, man, it's nasty work and it's pissing me off. So we can move on to the next topic.
Speaker 2:That's it. Give me a trigger. That's a touchy shot.
Speaker 3:Yeah, man, it's nasty, bro, it's nasty.
Speaker 1:I was actually saying he's not even getting Tom Brady-level calls, he's getting Michael.
Speaker 2:Jordan-level calls. It's a different level of calls and he's having like a mediocre season. Right now.
Speaker 1:It's like Lake flags coming out and all kinds of Don't get me started man, y'all get me triggered before the show, but what I will tell you is that when you have a quarterback that looks like they're going to be the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for 4,000 yards and run for 1,000 yards yards, when you have a running back who is on pace to become the first running back in NFL history to have two 2,000-yard rushing seasons, when you have those type of things in play for you, that's one of those things that when it's cold in January, no matter what field you're on, it helps even the playing field, even against a Mahomes and an Andy Reid in Kansas City, because the way Baltimore is playing Like this is better than they played all of last year. Like they look. Like it's not unrealistic to say Like if they didn't lose another game, I wouldn't be surprised. Like that's how they look. Like if they didn't lose another game, I wouldn't be surprised. Like that's how they look, Even with their defense looking suspect like that.
Speaker 1:Sometimes, even when they went down 10-0 to Tampa Bay, I was like, oh no, it's like. Unless they're going down 10-0 to Mahomes or Allen, I wouldn't even be concerned. Like I wouldn't even be bothered. If they go down, it's like, yeah, but they got Derrick Henry and Martin Daxley, he can't do that he can't go down to them.
Speaker 2:He just can't, honestly. Nobody really can Going down to them is murder.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that sounds crazy too. Yeah, you can't go down 10-0 to Kansas City.
Speaker 2:No, not at all. Not at all.
Speaker 1:Unleashes their defense. Their defense is actually the thing that's winning for them. So I picked Josh Allen to win MVP. He still looks like he's in the conversation. Ag. You picked Burrow he's still in the conversation. Sean, you picked Mahomes. He has six touchdowns and eight interceptions. I did, I did pick Mahomes. You're right, I did, and although they do have the best record in football, he's not an MVP candidate.
Speaker 1:He's not, he can't have six touchdowns and eight interceptions to be an MVP candidate. So this is just further evidence that me and AG know what we're talking about and you don't. And with that I'd like to slide to the Rock and Roll Hall of.
Speaker 2:Fame inductees. Slide to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It's crazy. We got two super chats. Real quick, queens, get the money.
Speaker 1:Superchats real quick. Pat Mahomes has lost, ag Lamar is just a choker. Kyle 007, queens get the money. Knicks will be there in June, but aren't the finals played?
Speaker 2:into.
Speaker 1:July. Now Yo, mad's, get another one man, mad Max. Only QBs that can beat Mahomes is Joey B and Jared Goff. Because the Lions the best team in the NFL, I feel like. I feel like both Baltimore and Detroit, in order to beat Kansas City, is going to have to add some sort of defensive impactful player, because they just added DeAndre Hopkins and so adding Hopkins kind of balances the scales of Baltimore a little bit more. Kansas City defense man, that defense plan lights out early.
Speaker 3:Man, let's go on to the next topic. Man, y'all get me tight. You know what I mean, for real.
Speaker 1:Let's talk about more. Let's go to the viral vibes a little bit more positive Viral vibes with the Tribe Called Quest AG. The Tribe Called Quest is now officially a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, along with Mary J Blige and Kool and the Gang. Now, I like the picks, but I almost feel like they picked like you know. They're like OK, so we're going to pick from a couple of areas of black music and these are the candidates that we got. I like the selections. Yeah, Of course, this is Hip Hop Talk, so we're going to start with Tribe. What do you think Tribe's contribution is to this culture overall and what do you think this means and this represents for them? There was like a lot of hoopla when Jay-Z and LL went in at the same time. Wu-tang Clan, I believe, is still yeah, yeah. The whole other conversation for another day. Yes, yes, but what do you think? What do you think? What do you think a tribe called Quest has done to, you know, put themselves in position to have such a prestigious honor?
Speaker 3:My biggest thing about tribe, if I may go, is they always ran their own race and you know that's what I always respected about tribe and their, their legacy was so broad. You know what I mean from their sound and you know far as like. You know that whole native tongues movement. You know I'm saying so. I was a wu-tang guy. I'll tell you right now I preferred wu-tang over tribe and listen to them more often than tribe, and and I think Wu-Tang should be in there first. But that doesn't negate Tribe's impact on the culture. You know that continues to be. You know, shown this day they got. You know Sean always talks about. You know legacy in the tree and Tribe's tree is something that's extended into modern day hip hop and you know, I think that's their contribution, man, and I've always respected them for running their own race and you know, and that's what made them unique to me.
Speaker 2:Very well said. Tribe is a safe bet, as much as I love Wu and I hope they get their time, because I think Wu created a whole different wave of hip-hop. Don't want to go down the rabbit hole with that, but I think the Tribe is a safe one. You know, you're talking about the jazz influence. You're talking about the alternative style of hip-hop that they've ushered in. You're talking about the native tongues movement. You're talking about the purity.
Speaker 2:You think about purity of hip hop. You think tribe right, but you think about clean essence of hip hop. You think about tribe. You don't think about anything negative associated with the tribe name, right. You think about the positive impact of tribe. Even when you think about outcasts very similar. You don't have a group that's, you know, I guess, watered with or measured with a lot of negative connotation of hip hop. It looks like it's a clean, healthy hip hop and I think that's what Tribe is. It's a clean, healthy ecosystem of hip hop that's palatable to an alternative audience. So it makes sense for them to be a part of that right now, over whoop.
Speaker 1:I think because of the jazz influence they had a leg up, like they made the jazz influence cool in a ways even their contemporaries with Dayline Jungle Brothers did. It was more creative and inventive and kind of nerdy, kind of rap when they did it. Tribe made it cool, mostly Q-Tip.
Speaker 1:Which is something that's embraced present-day nerdy rap you know which was the point I was about to make. Well, nerdy rap has kind of been the thing for a minute and that's what they're the real founding fathers are. They're the real founding fathers of making the nerdy rap cool. The nerd albums that you get from Pharrell and Chad, like those albums, try them, no pun intended. No, no pun intended. When you get, I wouldn't say OutKast's first two albums, but Equimini and Stankonia yeah, definitely more in their tribe bag Talib and Mos common I think it translates over to D'Angelo and Maxwell and Jill Scott and Erica Badu. I think tribe is at the epicenter of all of that, and so I'm super happy for them because really you know who they are, because you know who their biggest claim to fame is as far as who's on their tree Kanye, because these were actually the first cool, regular hip hop guys.
Speaker 1:There is no big hustler story. There is no um, there is no. There is no noz or snoop level buzz before the album for this group. There is no getting shot like 50. There is no turning dope money into record label like easy e thereE. There is no radio DJ turned into rapper turned political activist like Chuck D. There is no Ice Cube leaving the most. There's no storyline to Tribe other than Tribe being dope is my point. It's pure. Everybody else got a storyline, even Rakim Rakim was told to go play quarterback. He chose rap over going to play quarterback in college. You know what I'm saying? Krs-one used to be homeless. I think we all know what Cool G Rap was doing. You know what I'm saying? Right Flick Rick with the accent and the patch and the shooting. There's a story, like with everybody, with Tribe it was just that shit's dope, like what they're making, like the beat, the drums, the kicks the hooks.
Speaker 2:That's it. That's all they needed.
Speaker 1:Yeah, this is the viral vibe. Like their vibe was like the first vibe that didn't need a story. It was like the vibe was enough. Yeah, and so. I think that's really what they should be remembered for, and I'm more Wu-Tang too, and I'm wearing the Wu-Tang shirt because I feel like Wu-Tang still deserves to be in there. And, sean, I think you are right about them being the safer pick, you know. But that doesn't mean, like that, they're not the right pick either, you know.
Speaker 1:Right, absolutely Like they have in the low end theory. They have an album that I feel like is in competition to be a top 10 rap album all time, depending on, like you know, what your flavor is. I feel like it's that type of album that deserves that type of iteration. Midnight marauders is not too far behind it in my opinion. Midnight marauders is actually the bigger and bolder album. I just don't think it's the better album in the end, no doubt. But yeah, that's how I feel about it. I think Mary J Blige getting in is a big deal for Black culture. I feel like Cool in the Gang is one of those things that is kind of like a throwback classic. It's like how long has Cool in the Gang been eligible? Guys? Kool and the Game was making records like when we were born, it's crazy, crazy.
Speaker 1:Crazy Like shouldn't Kool and the Game been in there.
Speaker 2:Long time ago. Long time ago, long time ago. I just saw Kool and the Game a couple months ago kicked them out of an event that we had.
Speaker 4:They were doing a performance for us and kicked them out.
Speaker 2:I think I seen AJ on video. I'm like yo Kool and Gang is here, dude, trying to get some free food. I'm like yo man.
Speaker 3:I forgot about that.
Speaker 2:Yo, that's crazy. Yeah, you did. You did send me that Kick Kool and Gang. You got the joint man they tried to get in. I didn't know.
Speaker 3:AJ, I know we need to switch topics because this is supposed to be a show of love, but I do remember that, though my bad man.
Speaker 2:Shout out to Kool and the Genetic man. My bad, why are you co-signing?
Speaker 1:him. Why are you co-signing him? Him downstairs Picking Kool and the Genetic out, when we're supposed to be giving flowers on the show for Kool and the Genetic. And he sent out and he sent out and he sent out.
Speaker 3:I know I forgot about that, but yo, as soon as you said it, bro.
Speaker 2:My bad Cole.
Speaker 1:My bad, I apologize.
Speaker 2:I apologize, though we didn't even know it was cooling the game. Yeah, they was wilder.
Speaker 3:That was crazy, we thought it was a pill. And the Game, yeah, they was wilder.
Speaker 2:That was crazy, we thought it was a pimp because he had the latest with him. It was like yo, you can't come in here, man, and come find out. It was one of the guys from Kool and the Game. Yeah, they did a good show. They did a private show for us, man, it was dope, it was crazy.
Speaker 1:You thought he was out here pimping hoes. Cj the Kid with the $20 Super Chat Based on the convo you guys are having. If you ever confirm a Native Tongues versus Wu-Tang station head, I'll make the art immediately. That'd be dope.
Speaker 2:That'd be dope.
Speaker 3:I know it's hard. I don't want to be on that, but that would be dope.
Speaker 1:Okay, so here's what I would tell you about that. It's that you know, like most things Wu-Tang. It's an unfair advantage. Unless you're just picking Wu-Tang album stuff, there will be no Purple Tape or Iron man or Liquid Swords or Supreme Clientele, or for you. I guess Capadonna.
Speaker 2:There'll be none of that. Don't squint your eyes. When you say Capadonna, put your hand on your heart and guess Capadonna Don't be none of that. Don't squint your eyes. When you say Capadonna, you put your hand over your heart and you say Capadonna.
Speaker 1:When you say Capadonna, you put your hand over your heart. What are you doing? Come on man, what are you?
Speaker 2:doing.
Speaker 1:Every time I think about that album, I just think about how they picked him over Deck and I'll never forgive. He was on fire. That didn't disappoint.
Speaker 2:Set the house on fire, you gotta go with the hot hand cool.
Speaker 1:Hold on, hold on, come on hot hand. Yes, it was a hot pipe from the crack that they smoking. Nah, remember, remember.
Speaker 2:It was Sony who wanted no, no, no. Razor Shark was under what's it? Damn, it was Tommy Boy. It was under Epic, I think Razor.
Speaker 3:Shark Records was under Epic. I think it was Epic yeah.
Speaker 2:They wanted. Kappa, they were like yo remember they paid Kappa a lot of money. He got a half a mil. He got an advance yeah, that half a mil advance. Half a mil advance in 98 is crazy yeah.
Speaker 3:And people forget, because that was a point of contention between Kappa and Devine. But we're going off on a tangent. And he had it was some fine print this contract where he had to go gold to get the bonus from that record deal. And he shipped gold initially and then Kappa didn't get paid that money, or what have you, and then he had to be with Divine, but eventually that album did end up going gold.
Speaker 1:I don't care about none of that shit.
Speaker 3:It's a dope album. It's a solid 4 mic album it is not.
Speaker 1:First of all, up until that point, every album that had been released from a main Wu-Tang member or Wu-Tang album had been better than that, and some subsidiary albums are better like Gravediggers.
Speaker 3:Nah, bro, I put Kappa's album against a cow any day of the week have been better than that, and some subsidiary albums are better, like Gravediggers. Nah, bro, I'd put Kappa's album against T'Kal any day of the week.
Speaker 1:There is not a Bring the Pain.
Speaker 3:Alright that's one song.
Speaker 2:That's the exception. That's the exception. That's one song and all.
Speaker 3:I need. I got the remix on to cap.
Speaker 2:Right, I put O'Donoghue out there. O'donoghue, yo, that was crazy.
Speaker 3:Take that woot shirt off Coop Pause.
Speaker 1:Take it off, man Shout out to Cappuccino, one of our bar seminars for the week.
Speaker 3:We win awards by the way, I'm going to stop trying to make it seem like that Kappa album is like that Shout out to Cappuccino, one of our bar seminars for the week.
Speaker 2:We win awards, by the way, we did it for you, coop, we did Kappa down the verse off of Winter Wars for you Is that the bar seminar this week. We did three of them. We did three Trifecta. People wanted more. We gave them Trifecta. We did the Kendrick joint that you submitted. We did the Kappa joint and we did your boy. We did Cannabis. We did Cannabis.
Speaker 1:You did the Cannabis and Cappadonna verse.
Speaker 2:Of course we did. But AG texted me. Ag said yo, let's get cool, let's do Cannabis and let's do Cappadonna. And the people love it. And guess who's outpacing that Kendrick verse.
Speaker 3:But both of those verses are two of the most iconic verses of all time, though Facts.
Speaker 2:Facts, facts.
Speaker 3:But in respect Deck is my favorite Wu member Coop, so don't get it twisted. But both Capadonna and Inspector Deck can say that they boast one of the top five Woo Verses of all time. I'll leave it at that.
Speaker 1:No, you're not about to do that. We're not moving on. I'm the moderator. Fuck all that. Let me tell you how this is going to go. First of all, I like how you conveniently try to make it seem like only the deck and the Kappa versus it's like oh yeah, those are top five versus all time.
Speaker 1:No no, the deck versus, arguably, a top five verse all time. Big difference between top five first all time and top five Woo Verse all time. Big difference, two different worlds, two different worlds. There's a Wu world and then there's the rest of the world. The deck verse might be a top five verse period. Not try to equate them to the same thing. I see what you tried to do. I'm watching you.
Speaker 3:I hear what you're saying, but them verses are not too far off from one another. There's levels to it, but them deck verses are not too far off from one another. There's levels to it, but them verses are not too far off from one another.
Speaker 1:I would like to take this opportunity.
Speaker 3:And Ghost Impossible is up there too, by the way.
Speaker 1:Absolutely Ghost. Impossible is up there.
Speaker 2:It's not the best song, but you heard.
Speaker 3:And it's funny you say it's funny. You say that we can move on. It's the Wu world and then the whole other world. You could argue that impossible and don't get it twisted Deck is my guy. You could argue that impossible is a better verse, just on that album of Wu-Tang Forever, than Deck on Triumph. That's an argument to be had.
Speaker 1:Is there verses on Iron man that are comparable to that Kappa verse?
Speaker 3:Name one.
Speaker 1:I mean, all that I got is you actually comes to?
Speaker 3:mind as a song, not a particular verse.
Speaker 1:No, it is one verse, though.
Speaker 2:But it's not Winter War's verse.
Speaker 3:Yes, it is one whole verse, you're correct, but it's still not Winter War's. It's not verse, though, but it's not Winter War's verse. Yes, it is one whole verse, you're correct, but it's still not Winter War's it's not Winter War's, not Winter War's.
Speaker 2:Winter War's got a record deal and it leapfrogged him over death.
Speaker 3:Yo, that's what the old heads you know what I'm saying, further back than our era would call catch a wreck. Winter War's was Capadonna catch a wreck. All that I got is you was not catching Rick.
Speaker 1:Stop, cut it off. I'm reading Super Chats AG's using words like catching Rick and we have to stay in 2024. I'm sorry, tj, the Kid with the Super Chat. Be honest, would you guys use a track off the pillage against Native Tongues best? No, they would not use a track off the pillage. If they used a track off the pillage against the native tongues, I would pillage them with the native tongues.
Speaker 2:How about that?
Speaker 3:Yo, that sounded crazy. No pause, super pause, that was crazy.
Speaker 2:How about that? That was crazy. And you said it with a smile on your face. That's crazy.
Speaker 3:He said he pillaged them with the native tongues. It's wild yo. Wow, that might be the wildest shit ever said on this channel yo, it's pretty bad when I think about it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:When I think about it, it's bad.
Speaker 2:Oh, my God.
Speaker 1:We could probably chop that up for clicks and likes, actually, yeah.
Speaker 2:I wouldn't want to, all right.
Speaker 1:But you get what I'm saying. I don't you get what I'm saying.
Speaker 3:Nah, I don't know who sent that super chat, but thank you, I'm going to send that super chat.
Speaker 2:Thank you, that was CJ, appreciate you.
Speaker 3:CJ. That was CJ that made my day, because I was still kind of tight about that. Chiefs talk, I ain't going to hold you. Chill out, man, relax. You need to let it go, you need to let it go oh
Speaker 1:man. Thank you, mad Max. Of course they outpacing Dot, lol, they better than him. We're not doing that today. I'm not having that conversation today. Okay, andrew Williams, let's keep it real. The Purple Tape is a Wu-Tang album. I know we like to say it's a Ray album, but if we're keeping it real, it's a Wu album. Well, hold on, let's explore that concept. It's definitely a Ray and Ghost album, but I don't know if it's a Wu album because you got Knuckleheads with you Got. You got Guillotine, another epic deck verse. It might be a top five.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I love that deck verse. I think that's comparable to the Triumph verse, if I'm being honest Me too.
Speaker 1:I think they're in the same stratosphere.
Speaker 3:And Jizz is as well.
Speaker 1:I agree, you got the Capadonna run, which is on ice water, and on ice cream.
Speaker 2:Crazy on ice water and ice cream.
Speaker 1:Now you want to know what I love. Cap on the purple tape. Cap on the purple tape. Everybody on the purple tape is special. That's why the purple tape is special Everybody's on ice water.
Speaker 2:It's why the purple tape is special.
Speaker 1:It's not like he's more special than Method man or GZA or Deck or Ray or Ghost on there. It's like no everybody's special on the purple tape, nigga.
Speaker 3:Well, it's a kind of dive into what he's saying on the super chat. I think people sometimes get confused as to saying, okay, every song has the collection of woo members or is at least a duo on the songs for the purple tape. And you, if you're looking at like you know just numbers or on paper or the optics of it, yes, it looks like a woo album, but the woo doesn't talk about chambers for no reason, right? The Purple Tape album is Ray's specific chamber with Ghostface. It's not a Woo collective chamber that RZA went into for the album. You know the 36 chambers, woo Forever. That's something else, it's something totally different. But RZA had to lock in to a different frame of mind when crafting that album with the beats, because that was tailor-made for Ray's Chamber as a solo artist, but also including Ghostface. It wasn't necessarily with the rest of the clan in mind. They had to get in where they fit in.
Speaker 1:You know I'm saying so to speak see, here's the thing of those early run of albums. That's actually the only one where I feel like the Wu-tang tracks are intentional to show the group effort, which is guillotine, and wu gambino's, like those records, are intentional to show the unity because the rest of it is organically like like ray's chamber. When it goes like there you go long for the ride. Yeah, it's like the other. The other wu joints that are on the other Woo albums before are more organic Raw High with Meth and Ray on Dirty's album, that's more organic. Sandman with Deck and RZA is more organic. Guillotine's intentional on the purple tape. Woo Gambino's is intentional on the purple tape, yeah, and here's the thing To make it the Wu-Tang shit.
Speaker 3:Yes, and to your point, coop, since they're already a group. Nobody talks about these records when we talk about the greatest posse cuts of all time, because they're already a group. But to your point, on these specific albums, they're the posse cut record.
Speaker 1:It's so unfair to do that because if we were to do a posse cut album list and let Wu-Tang in, let's say we would do a top 20 list. I'm not joking when I say at a bare minimum, they would have 7 of them at least at a minimum. If you were to do 20 posse cut records and let Wu-Tang in, they would have at least 7 of them, because it's like hold on, at what point does it become a posse cut? Is it a posse cut at three or at four, four?
Speaker 2:Four they got too many goals. I mean, you just named two.
Speaker 1:I mean I can go back to the beginning. They got chest boxing, they got protecting that.
Speaker 3:Bugambinos, guillotines, you know what I'm saying and even if you just pull them once on a solo album I mean, we're going to talk about Iron man later, but I love assassination day and then you got winter wars.
Speaker 1:They got fourth chamber.
Speaker 3:There you go, four chambers up there.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:Anywhere between five to seven.
Speaker 1:Does investigative reports count? Cause you got us on the hook.
Speaker 3:I wouldn't count that one, I think.
Speaker 1:So I count hook work as bar work. Hooks matter.
Speaker 3:When I'm thinking posse cut, I'm more so thinking of four verses for me Okay, four verses Okay.
Speaker 1:So four verses constitute posse cut to you. I mean fourth chamber's making it chest box. Is making it protect your chamber's making it chest boxes, making it protect your necks making it. Trying to think just off the top of my head. Four guillotines making it yep, wugambinos making it shit. You got the shit from Supreme Clientele. You got Wubanger 101. You got Buck 50. You got Nine Millie Brothers on Fish Scale.
Speaker 3:They're all over the place, bro.
Speaker 1:They're all over the place, Literally all over the place. Yeah, it's not fair to anybody else. Next topic let's talk about where we're going to be fellas in a couple of weeks, which is at the Southern Solo Music Festival in Shelby, North Carolina.
Speaker 2:Sir, Sir can't wait, man Can't wait. Shout out to 8AM Exposure.
Speaker 1:Yeah, shout out to LT 8AM Exposure. Shout out to Tony, everybody involved. We're pulling up soon. I'm currently working on some physical merchandise for us, so the merch is coming soon. I just had to do a little pickup and a little drop off, so I'm just waiting for a couple more things. So the merch is coming, we're coming. I'm excited we got some big acts there, like Young Bloods is going to be there. Our man, lt, is going to be performing. You know I'm excited. This is a big opportunity.
Speaker 1:So, like now what days are we?
Speaker 3:going to be there, fellas.
Speaker 2:I'm going to be on there Saturday at night and Coop, you're going to be on there Friday.
Speaker 1:And I'll be there Friday and Saturday. My Friday may be changing to Saturday because I've been having a couple conversations and I was reminded of something by somebody is that you know better to pull up with the team than pull up on a solo mission when you got a team, especially when you're going somewhere. You haven't gone in a long time, even though it's close to home for me. Haven't gone in a long time even though it's close to home for me. I'm actually thinking about switching my plans to Saturday so that all three of us can actually be there at the same time on Saturday.
Speaker 2:Saturday is, let's do it, november 9th.
Speaker 1:Because what's crazy is that we've been doing this for almost six months now. All three of us haven't been in the same time at the same place either, is that we've been doing this for almost six months now.
Speaker 4:All three of us haven't been in the same time at the same place either.
Speaker 1:We need to make that happen. That's a good moment for us. That's a good moment for our fans. Right now, it looks like I'm tentatively switching my time to Saturday to make sure that the three of us actually get together.
Speaker 3:No, doubt no doubt.
Speaker 1:That's how that goes On to the next order of business. Ladies and gentlemen, we have some albums that have come out. Where do we start? We start with Warriors. Yeah. Start there real quick. Don't call us out. This is a concept, this is motion picture shit fellas. I'm gonna let you unpack it to start off.
Speaker 3:Yeah, this is a concept album, executive, produced by Nas along with Lin-Manuel Miranda and Issa Davis. Miranda and Issa Davis you know they're this is the soundtrack to what I understand is going to be a play that's going to come out to represent the classic Warriors movie. So this album is very conceptual, based on the movie and you know I gave it a run through and it's like pretty dope. But you got to get into the mindset of the movie. So if you haven't really seen the movie you can't really connect with the soundtrack and the um album. But you know it's dope, um, once you get in that mind frame conceptually.
Speaker 3:And the first track in particular, um, I think it's called surviving, uh, surviving the night. You got all the different boroughs to represent, like the different gangs, like in the movie. So you got Nas representing Queens, bli Busta representing Brooklyn, cam representing Manhattan, ghost and RZA representing Staten and Pun Son, big Pun Son, representing the Bronx, and they're rapping from that perspective of trying to survive through the night, like the Warriors did in the movie. So it's a fire concept and you know it was dope to hear all of them on a track together. I don't think Nas and Cameron, especially when they had their differences or whatever, they never did a song together. So you know it was dope to see them come together for this project and I'll be interested to see how the play comes about when it comes. Maybe if I'm in New York, that's something I would look to check out for sure.
Speaker 2:That's a dope pull-up actually, if we can pull that off Absolutely.
Speaker 1:I would like that. These young women are talented. I want to hear more.
Speaker 2:Absolutely, absolutely. Ag hit it man. I got nothing else to share than that AG hit it Dope album. I was happy to see Cam and Nas on the track together, albeit it was this. This is a concept album, so you have to have familiarity with the Warriors, the original movie, and understand the tone of this. You know Lin-Manuel is a very talented brother Working with Nas for a few years now. This is like their second project together in some capacity. I'm glad they were able to get this off the ground and get this moving.
Speaker 3:Sorry to cut you off real quick, sean. If you're not familiar with Lin-Manuel, he's who did Hamilton.
Speaker 2:Thank you, this is phase one of this project that they got going on. Phase two will be the play, of course, and hopefully I would love to see them. I don't want to give too much away until it gets fully released, but I would love to see them have the artists that actually did the music on this soundtrack do that in the same aspect of the play as well.
Speaker 1:Okay. So we're going to talk about this very briefly later. So when I actually heard this concept album as soon as I heard it because this is what a good concept album does lets you know that it's a concept album I said to myself oh no, this is based on a movie, but it's going to make an excellent play. I felt it when I heard it. Unlike that, mr Morale, bullshit, all right. That everybody trying to say is a concept album made into a play. No, motherfucker, this is a concept album made into a play. All right, I don't mean to take it out on YouTube, it's just. People need to know. This is what a concept album is supposed to be made into a play. It's actually entertaining. Sounds like entertaining.
Speaker 3:I ain't gonna do that. I went to the Mr Morales show. That shit was dope. I ain't gonna hold you AG. Nobody asked you all that, nobody asked you how the Mr Morale show was.
Speaker 1:Nobody asked you that.
Speaker 3:I ain't gonna let you misguide the people Coop. I ain't gonna let you do that.
Speaker 1:No, no, no, You've been educated by Mr Morale.
Speaker 3:I'm Lord Hill, you've been brainwashed.
Speaker 1:We can't get you back.
Speaker 3:Next topic I was on time for the show.
Speaker 1:I was. Let's talk about the stabbing shot too, 38.
Speaker 2:It was crazy, we got two more super chats.
Speaker 1:I'm going to get to the super chats and then we go to the stabbing shot. That's how I felt when AG's giving Kendrick props while I'm going on my diatribe Stabbed and shot. That's how I felt when AG's giving Kendrick props while I'm going on my diatribe Stabbed and shot. Stabbed and shot twice. See you later, kid. Didn't Big Noid get a deal off his give up the goods verse? Is that better than Capadonna's Winter Wars verse?
Speaker 2:No. It's not, I'm not sure if he got a deal off of it.
Speaker 4:A lot of people have gotten deals off of verses before.
Speaker 1:I mean Nas' whole original buzz is based on the Live at the Barbecue verse. Az got the whole deal with EMI based on one verse, with the Life's a Bitch verse. One great verse can change your life, I think. Redman's verse on Headbanger yeah. Redman's verse on Headbanger like, yeah, dmx rapping, get At Me Dog. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Redman's verse on Headbanger like, yeah, um MX rapping, get at me dog with his um jaw wired up because some niggas he had robbed, jumped him and beat his ass. Yep, uh, you know there have been moments where people have just like, you know, off the strength of a verse, have like secured the whole deal um, I lost the deal because of my moment.
Speaker 2:You what? I lost the deal because of me freestyling for A&R. You were like man, you can't put that shit out. Get him out of here. I've heard this story yeah, okay.
Speaker 1:So you played ball and you was rapping at the same day, or something like that. Yeah, yeah. Lion ass nigga, he's one lion, I'm hip hop, andrew Williams with the 199 super chat, but everyone from Wu was on the purple tape itself.
Speaker 3:No dirty dirty wasn't on that he don't fit that. No, that's what I mean about the whole chamber. It's just different. He didn't fit that chamber so it wasn't on the album, or he just didn't show up to studio sessions.
Speaker 1:But he would have fit on Wugambinos or Guillotine. I would have liked to hear Dirty on Guillotine.
Speaker 3:I don't see it. Wugambinos, you can't see him on Wugambinos.
Speaker 1:I can, i't see it. You don't fit that cool, you can't see him on.
Speaker 3:Wugambinos, I can. I can see him on Knuckleheads.
Speaker 1:Wugambinos has chest boxing qualities. To me I can see him having one of his spasmos on Wugambinos.
Speaker 2:Not on that one, not the aesthetic that they were going with. He couldn't be on that one.
Speaker 3:Knuckleheads would be the one.
Speaker 1:I'm cool with taking Master Killer's verse out on Wu Gambino's and putting a dirty verse in. Absolutely not.
Speaker 2:Absolutely, absolutely.
Speaker 3:I'm going to say it again Take the shirt off, not yet.
Speaker 2:T-shirt under it. T-shirt under it yeah, T-shirt Too cute, Cool. But I got a tank top like a Jamaican tank top. You want to join to get the holes in it.
Speaker 3:You know what the G. You know what.
Speaker 2:Y'all spending too much time talking about my shirt. I got a brassiere top on it.
Speaker 1:Spending too much time talking about my shirt, all right. My bad cool. Too much time talking about my shirt, all right.
Speaker 3:The fishnet tank top is crazy, the fishnet tank top.
Speaker 1:You need to watch your top, sean, that's what you need to see.
Speaker 3:Stab this shot. Yo Did y'all see the promo with the 38, with the USB.
Speaker 1:No, they should have just put you two niggas right there, Stab and shot yeah that's crazy.
Speaker 3:Yo, the album is hard though. There you go, frontman, that album was crazy. Yeah, Look, 38, special did his name man. I think he was the highlight of the album. Uh, you know, punch lines, metaphors, all that the delivery, and real witty too. You know I'm saying special special got that witty delivery and he was the highlight of the album.
Speaker 3:For me it sounded like a complete album. They was doing their, their whole back and forth. You know, in and out flow stuff periodically through the album and, um, if we're doing comparisons like we love to do, I think 38 uh got him on this album, uh got Benny, but still, yeah, benny's had a fantastic I wouldn't say a fantastic, but he's had a great year. You know what I'm saying with, um, you know what I'm saying Summertime Butch, this album, and you know what I'm saying and then his Death Dam debut. So I think Benny's had a hell of a year. But I've listened to this album multiple times over the week. It's a three-song run that I keep going back through. That's Center Stage, brick Specials and Jesus Arms, that three-song run within the album.
Speaker 2:I keep going back to those over and over. Love those joints. I disagree. I think Benny was a standout. Really I do, I do. I think this may sound crazy, so don't shout.
Speaker 1:It usually does when it's you Keep going.
Speaker 2:I bring balance, I bring the real stone, I bring the balance stone. You bring balance, I bring the balance stone. Balance, I bring the balance stone because last week Coop said that, oh, that Glorilla was a five rating album. Coop, did you listen to Glorilla this week? No, I didn't listen to Glorilla. Exactly, I appreciate your honesty, coop. Yeah, I appreciate your honesty.
Speaker 1:As I was saying, I'm also going to be honest and say we need to put some cranberry juice in your vodka. We need to put some cranberry juice in your vodka, nigga, some orange juice. We need to slide in there and do something that is not water that you were drinking.
Speaker 3:I feel good that Grey Goose and Cranberry hit different.
Speaker 1:They got here drinking Ciroc even after the Diddy shit I got AU vodka.
Speaker 2:This is actually pretty good. Strawberry joint too it's good.
Speaker 1:Don't be promoting these niggas. They ain't giving us no money, that's a gold coup.
Speaker 2:But they could, though what you doing? Come on man, you from Atlanta. Man, are they from Atlanta? No, I'm just you from Atlanta, man, are they from Atlanta? No, I'm just saying you from Atlanta. You know the hustle. Come on man. You flash it real quick and they call you up like hey, thanks for the flash, you want to do some business? Hey, aduvaca, strawberry burst Just came out Tastes delicious. See how she do that. That was a great ad.
Speaker 1:I feel about your ad the way I felt about Capadonna wow, you're going a little too far.
Speaker 2:Now listen, 38 Spets did his thing and this may sound wild, but yes, benny has been busy this year. Benny sounds better when he has a compliment to him, which is crazy. His first album, released on Def Jam, it was solid, it was okay. It just didn't have staying power. It didn't have legs. You know what I mean. Like Coop said, glorilla had the best album and it didn't have legs after a couple of years.
Speaker 1:I didn't say it had the best album. I said it was a good album. It was a good album. It was a good album.
Speaker 2:It was a good album.
Speaker 1:He didn't listen to it afterwards.
Speaker 2:So I mean it really wasn't good. He was just saying it for the moment. He was in the moment and I get it. It's emotional IQ.
Speaker 1:It's emotional IQ versus emotional intelligence. I don't listen to you. That doesn't mean you're not a good person.
Speaker 2:I'm just saying it's emotional IQ versus emotional intelligence. What, I'm sorry, I got you, benny Benny. Benny did really well with 38 Spence. When you think about Benny's original project, when he was solo, it just didn't have the legs To have someone on the side of him like a 38 or Conway or whoever else that collaborates with him. I think it brings the best out of Benny.
Speaker 3:I'm being honest with you. His solo album for Def Jam is called Everybody Can't Go, but you're saying he need to take that back and bring somebody with him.
Speaker 2:Bring everybody with him.
Speaker 1:Right.
Speaker 2:That's a good point. So what you're saying is everybody can go, everybody can.
Speaker 1:Everybody needs to go, everybody needs to go.
Speaker 2:Everybody can Come with me. Come with me and look, there's nothing wrong with that, honestly, because everyone needs like a, they need an antithesis, or they need like a Batman to the Robin, or need like a Ying to the Yang. And I believe, with Benny, he shines the best when he has someone that can balance him out, because I do think that Benny can drown you out so much with his content because it's like this, it's steady, it's steady. He needs someone to kind of spike it real quick. Spike it real quick. And I think that 38 Special spiked it a little bit. Was that crazy? It wasn't crazy, right.
Speaker 2:38 Spesh kind of gave him that extra punch because he was funny. His lyrics, honestly, it has some character to it. He's witty man, real witty, and I think that Beanie needed that wit, because Beanie is a serious spitter, right, and 38 Spesh brings that wit to it. You know what I mean. Like Coop, you're a serious guy, so you need someone to kind of give you like that. You know, bring out the other side of you. Can you smile right now? You know what I mean. When you was, you know, in your former life you weren't smiling that much Coop. Your former life is crazy, you weren't smiling that much, coop. You was like yeah, your former life is crazy, you weren't smiling.
Speaker 3:that much Coop. You was like yeah, I'm the power five. He's smiling.
Speaker 2:I'm the best thing out of here. So you was in that zone, but now you've got two guys that can make you smile and make you feel have fun again. So I think we're on with the 38th special. No disrespect to anybody, it's clearly nobody but 38th special. No disrespect to anybody, excluding nobody. But 38th special. Bring the wit to the conversation. And Benny did his thing. Okay, okay, okay.
Speaker 1:Yeah. So I'd like to say to wrap up this conversation I believe the truth, as usual, because neither one of you is ever really right. That's usually me. The truth is somewhere in the middle. I don't think either one of them is the star of this album. I think the chemistry that they have is the actual star of the album.
Speaker 1:38 and Benny have legit one-two punch chemistry. I wouldn't call it, I wouldn't. It's got some Stockton and Malone to it. You know what I'm saying. It does where it's like well, not the same game, but the game compliments each other so well, the way that they play together. And so Benny's steely, unbreakable stance meets 38 special's insightful and witty, shocking metaphor punchline. When I say this, it's like listening to two guys in the same trap house but they got totally different views on how the trap house is operating. Like Benny's telling you how the trap house is actually like operating. He's like this is the doorman, this is what the doorman does. You know what I'm saying. 38 is like looking out the window. It's like man, we can get life with this shit. Nigga, this is crazy Joking away. 38 is like looking out the window. It's like man, we can get life for this shit nigga this is crazy, it's a joking way. Yeah, you know what?
Speaker 1:I'm saying, and like he's laughing about it, like, like, while he's like cleaning the pistol, you know what I'm saying? Yeah, and so from that perspective of bringing you into that world, they do a good job of keeping you entertained. The bar work on here is excellent. I do feel like 38 is a scene stealer, but I feel like his scene stealing capability takes place because of how steady Benny is on the mic. That's what I mean. It's just like Benny is actually like Stockman on this, setting 38 up to be Malone and get easy buckets. So 38 sounds great on here, but it's because Benny is helping him and putting him in position like a point guard to like sound this great and the compliments are well, it's actually. It actually made me think about this too Like he may not have that bonafide classic that we've been clamoring for, but Benny is remarkably consistent guys. Most of his projects are good. Some of them stick to your ribs more than others.
Speaker 1:Some of them stick to your ribs more than others. It's not bad.
Speaker 1:But he really doesn't make anything below a 3.5, guys. It's rare, I agree it's rare, I agree, that's true, and most of the stuff that usually makes is closer to four than 3.5. And this is and this is another one of those. I haven't quite decided if it's a four yet, but it feels pretty close to that for me and I was pretty impressed by it. And you're right, he's having a good year. The summertime butch, everybody can't go the stabbing shot too. It's like no, this is another great year from Benny. If you actually look at it, he's been the one that's actually been kind of like keeping the flag of Griselda alive.
Speaker 3:Absolutely, it's been waning some.
Speaker 1:Absolutely, it's waning some.
Speaker 3:But you spoke to the chemistry though and I'm not going to say album for album, because it's not fair, because one was an EP but do you feel that the chemistry between Spession and Benny was better than Rome and Conway on their respective project? Yes.
Speaker 1:I do too like significantly yeah it's not even I'm about to say not even conversational, right? Like how about this? Rome and Conway write rhymes together, vinny and 38 write rhymes together and then go to a pool hall and eat chicken wings and drink Jack Daniels and drink beer and hit on broads together. You feel what I'm saying? It's different. And eat chicken wings and drink Jack Daniels and drink beer and hit on broads together. Like you feel what I'm saying, you can tell it. It's like, it's different. It's like, nah, like 38, get drunk and fall asleep Like on the floor and Benny's living on. You know what I'm saying. Like you, you hear that. Yeah, like you, you can. You can hear that. Dope project, yeah, but dope project, all right, another project, same camp, kind of sort of Drum work side of the Griselda affiliates. Love the Genius with Death of Deuce. Sean, slide it to you this time.
Speaker 2:I loved it. I loved it. I told you guys behind the scenes that I felt like this album. It's a dope album, man. She's spitting. She's in a zone in this album and I'll leave it to you, coop because you did throw it up a very, very good point to have me rethink a little bit what I was thinking about in the very beginning. This was a very easy listening album To me. I think Papoose actually stood out on this album in my opinion. I think Papoose sounded great. I think he sounded fresh. It reminded me how dope Papoose really is, honestly, and I felt like he did his thing on this album. I think the features complimented her a little bit more than I've heard her in the past. I wanted to. It's crazy, because I wish that she would have done a collaborative album to kind of give a little bit more punch to it or to give a little bit more zing to it or whatever. But she was killing it, man. She was on point with this album.
Speaker 1:AJ.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I've only gave the album one run through, but what I will say? I thought it was very dope and, just like I said, benny is having a great year. I think the ladies are having a great year. We got some high-quality projects between Love, the Genius, the Dochi and then also the Rhapsody, so you can throw this into the fold. And then we got Che coming, I believe tonight, if not tonight next week, che Noir she's going to drop. They dropped. She dropped a single with Rhapsody called Black Girl. It was pretty dope. But anyway, I think the ladies are having a great year and this is one to put in the fold. So I'm definitely going to run it back some more. I just couldn't get away from the Benny and 38 special to run it more than once, but I'm definitely going to check it out some more.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you know I've, I've had, um, I've had the pleasure of interviewing love twice. Um, it's kind of funny. I feel like her career kind of started taking off around the time that I started doing, uh, this podcasting thing, and so I've kind of always felt connected to her. I've kind of like, as I guess you know, more people have found out about who I am in this sphere and you know I've made you know, sometimes in jest and sometimes in serious nature, about people who you know copy my style and have taken my stuff over the years. I've always kind of followed love and embodied like how my podcast career has gone as comparable to hers and sean. I think it's kind of funny how you brought up. It's like oh well, no, in your former life you really didn't smile as much as you smile here. People that probably pull up here, that used to watch me over there, probably aren't even used to seeing me smile as much like who the fuck is? This, you know, but much like what's going on with me is is that I feel like love has gotten comfortable in her environment and I feel that that comfortable nature has manifested itself in terms of how she emcees. She's never sounded this comfortable on the mic. To me, as she does right now, it feels like it is just flowing out of her and that it's just coming and that her pocket of rhyme, her cadence and her style. There's that moment where it slows down for you and you like, find your style. You know what I'm saying and this is the project where I really feel like she found her cadence and her flow and her delivery. That's going to continue to work from her from now on. You know it's identifiable.
Speaker 1:My problem with it is that and I said this behind the scenes well, too many people are going to identify with Rhapsody and I don't like that for her because that puts a ceiling on her. And I don't mean that to slight Rhapsody, shout rhapsody, shout out carolina, you know I mean, I love rhapsody, I mean, and her album is still in contention for album of the year and fundamentally speaking, like technically, the rhapsody album is better. But there's something about this Love album that feels a little bit more silky, a little smoother, a little easier to listen to. It's got like a vibe to it that's a little bit more enchanting, engaging. And that's what I mean about putting the ceiling on her by comparing her to Rhapsody with this album is because I feel like she's just really like, kind of like, really started to unpack and find herself as an MC, and so immediately to tag her with that label right now I think is unfair to her, because not saying that she is greater than Rhapsody, but the scope of what she can provide, this spectrum might be greater. In terms of some of the records that she makes, like some of the vibes on some of these records, I know that the album is dope. When my crit some of the records that she makes, some of the vibes on some of these records, I know that an album is dope.
Speaker 1:When my critiques of the record are in the nuances of the record. Because here are my critiques of the record. She need more ad-libs. She need more people singing some of these hooks that she's singing instead of her to give these songs a fuller feel. When I talk about a fuller feel, I always reference songs on Equimini. It's like oh no, there's a choir over here, there's a keyboard over there. You know what I'm saying. There's, there's a baby giggling in the background. Timberland style on this right. You know what I mean Like full, because what I think she's gotten to the point as an MC where I think she's found her cadence and her flow and she's comfortable and she sounds great in that.
Speaker 1:Her beat selection has gotten better, in my opinion, even though I feel like there are some records on here and I feel like the beat's been a little bit better. The beat's needed to be as good as she is on the mic. I'll give you an example Cheat Codes by Black Thought and Danger Mouse isn't good because Black Thought is good, it's because the beat Danger Mouse gave Black Thought is good. Black Thought's good on the mic. You feel me? I feel like if she would have picked more beats that fit, this album could have been a little bit better. But these are just, these are just splitting hairs.
Speaker 1:I was impressed and I tend to be by her, but I can tell that she's like in a pocket and in a place, and so I think the only thing now is to just refine and glow up, and so I've started hearing the little shit that comes with MC and it's like look at it like this Watch them niggas by, uh, by Nas. On it was written it's like no, no, that song's not the same with him just singing the hook. Foxy singing the hook gives that song a totally different feel. Singing that hook with him. She needs some of that on some of these records. The record is there, it's just those little things. And so and here's where I say this and it's critical, but it's more of a critique I feel like if she were with west side and not with conway, some of these nuances might be covered, because I feel like he's more into the details of it. That's why some of conway and benny stuff has sounded the way that it sounded over the years.
Speaker 1:Right, because he's made sure that those bases have gotten covered west side of that guy so, yeah, so west side's that guy in the camp that makes sure that those things are taken care of, and so it lets me know that she really is signed to drum work, and so the pin game is going to be sharp from being around conway all the time. So, like love and skis are going to be sharp, they're around conway all the time. Ah, but are the details going to be covered? Is it going to sound full like it does when west side makes a project, right, right, and so you know, truthfully, I just think she needs to maybe like walk two doors down, be like, hey, I'm gonna have your brother produce my next joint, because I think that's really, you know, yeah, I think that's the next move, but I was impressed with the project. Lastly, and then we can slide to the next thing Hat and Garden, the Rome Streets and Derringer.
Speaker 3:Dope Tough, dope Tough song. I'm liking Derringer more, you know, as he progresses I wasn't a big fan of Derringer at first, but yeah, he's doing his thing he has a pocket.
Speaker 2:That's his pocket, yeah.
Speaker 1:Can I tell you the truth. I thought it was just okay. I really didn't love it like everybody else is loving it.
Speaker 2:It's dope, it's just dope. I think it was going to go hard.
Speaker 1:Really, I like it. But here's what I'm going to tell you. Well, beat-wise, I knew Derringer could do this. Rhyme-wise, I knew Rome Streets could do this. What are they really introducing or bringing to the table that makes this any different than anything that they've been doing lately? It's another notch in the belt. It's another notch in the belt. Is that what it is? It's not pushing an envelope. It's a check in the belt. Is that what it is? It's not pushing an envelope.
Speaker 2:It's checking a box.
Speaker 1:Yeah, this is a check in the box. Rome is dope, but I would like to hear some more depth. And here's what I mean when I'm saying more depth. Nobody's asking you to be KRS-One or Tupac or Chuggy. You know Stowe's verse on Vogue cover where he's like Pug had me sitting at his house for seven hours. He mowed the lawn, washed all the cars, watered the flowers.
Speaker 2:Back of my mind, I'm like damn nigga, go get the power we need Stowe.
Speaker 1:Patriots is the virtue, like the last free throw shots when you like. He's still talking his talk, yes, but he's painting a picture for you about how it's actually happening. Yes, he had me sitting at his house for seven hours. He's like, oh shit, you spent the day with the plug, yeah you know, what I'm saying.
Speaker 2:Panache. Yes, yes, yes.
Speaker 1:And so the Rome album doesn't have that. It has the punchlines, it has the bars, the beats by Derringer. It's like, oh no, I get it, you're a top five producer right now. The beats are dreary, boom, bat, flowed down east coast it's, and I like those type of beats. It's like I tell everybody, it's like you can think dj premiere making, come clean for all the beats that sound like, the beats that darren to make, because that's where it's in that wheelhouse, yeah that's where the origin of all those beats come from.
Speaker 1:Like, like me, all of those beats are come clean.
Speaker 3:That's a good point.
Speaker 1:Which there's nothing wrong with that being the barometer for.
Speaker 3:Moonbat, that's classic.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so I get it, but it's like no, nothing about it excited me though.
Speaker 2:No.
Speaker 1:No, I'm cool. That's what I mean about Benny and 38, chemistry being the highlight. It's like oh no, what they talk and it's like, oh no, that's how they always talk. But it excited me because their chemistry was so good and it was so entertaining. Yeah, you gotta throw a storyline in there. You know what I'm? Saying you gotta switch the speed up, you gotta Right.
Speaker 2:And that's what Stove do all the time.
Speaker 1:Let's keep it Wu-Tang. One of the records that I chose today. The MGM Up in the MGM Coked up Psych Six niggas. They telling the story different. They ain't just talking the street shit from.
Speaker 1:Yeah they bring you into that world they tell you, like a quarter brick, split you, like a half a brick, like no, like they really bringing you, like they bringing you in, they bring you into the sidelines with them. You know what I'm saying? Yep, yeah, like take so. So what I would tell you that project needs is they need to take people behind the rope more, a little bit more. No, I feel you, you, that.
Speaker 2:Project needs is they need to take people behind the rope a little bit more. I feel you on that, absolutely.
Speaker 1:You ain't got to be all conscious or most deaf with it.
Speaker 2:You don't got to do that, bring some flair to it.
Speaker 1:Bring some personality to it. Give me some Freddie action. You know what I'm saying. Gibbs is exciting. You know what I'm saying. He'll talk about shit that he used to do, but he'll talk about it in the reference of still keeping his steeds together. You know what I'm saying?
Speaker 2:Right, but it's also vocal inflection too, because you think about when you mentioned Stowe. He's like what he said Feds gave us a pop quiz and we aced it. You know what I mean. It's just the way you spit it, the way you say it.
Speaker 3:Keeps you engaged. Keeps you engaged.
Speaker 2:It keeps you engaged.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I would like to be entertained. Nigga Right, do your job. Shit. All this money I'm paying for all these subscriptions.
Speaker 2:Entertain nigga. Yeah, we got a couple of super chats, fellas.
Speaker 1:You know, here's what every artist's goal should really be in this era is to make somebody enough of a fan to go cop your merch and your physical copies, like that's the goal. And so all of these albums are good, but it's like I want all of these people to level up too, because it's like I want to cop your merch, like, look, we're all wearing merch from our favorites. You and me, sean, we're wearing wu-tang shit. You're you're wearing non-shit. It's like we're fans. Yeah, so we so. So we don't even be looking for. When we see it, we'll be like okay, all right, yeah, I need that. All right, give me that you know what I'm saying like that's what we do as fans.
Speaker 1:The goal is to make us fans, make me your fan, nigga yup. Like the music is what does that? Like I was um watching that Netflix shit like how we are.
Speaker 3:The world got made that was a dope doc it, was it really was but it's like, no, like you see who different up in there?
Speaker 1:it's like no, no, no, the nigga Ray. But it's like no, like you see who different up in there? It's like no, no, no, the nigga Ray. Charles different. It's like. Stevie different, mike is different. You know what I'm saying. Yeah, yeah, like shit to aspire to, to desire to like the shit. Like you realize why it's like, why those people have legions of fans. It's like, oh, no, they like that. You know what I'm saying. Even on the Humble after the awards show, getting drunk and probably sniffing cocaine in the bathroom when the cameras ain't running and shit. You know what I'm saying. Oh, yeah, man, look here, look here, whoever was the dope dealer that night with all those stars in the house? Man, they're probably about two or three. They got dealer that night with all those stars in the house, man, they're probably about two or three teams. They got there at 11. They stayed up till 7 in the morning. How the hell you think they stayed up after an award show to 7 in the morning?
Speaker 1:And they ate Roscoe's chicken and waffles. So y'all ate chicken and waffles. After 11 o'clock at night. Y'all stayed up till 7. Man, they did more skiing than the winter. You got to counteract the itis yeah. Diana Ross is sitting next to Smokey talking about whole brick, quarter brick, half a brick.
Speaker 2:Allegedly, allegedly, man, allegedly, y'all talking about me, allegedly Love you, diana.
Speaker 1:I'm just telling you we're going to get to the super chats right quick. Cj the Kid with another dub, Just because I need to see it. I need to see that stage head so I can see a pillage track played against Beatnuts or Daylight's Best Stuff.
Speaker 1:I do the artwork. You want to know what Y'all want to do? A native tongues, wu-tang, I mean, do it. You can do native tongues. I mean, even though I'm a Wu guy too, it's like somebody has to take the native tongues, so I will. It's not like it's some sort of disgrace in that it's a native tongue.
Speaker 2:It'd be a clean sweep, but yeah. Sweeping you up off the mat. You ain't sweeping shit.
Speaker 1:You ain't sweeping shit. First of all, you're not sweeping shit. The Tribe's album catalog is better than Wu-Tang's album catalog. They may not be the better group. So you're not just waxing me over here, let's not get that twisted and it's native tongue. So I got Daylog, I got. Jungle.
Speaker 2:Brothers let's put it to the test.
Speaker 1:I got Latifah and all that too, oh yeah.
Speaker 2:Every last one is out of body here. Feel that Easy work.
Speaker 1:You ain't about to run me like you think. Easy work Ain't no running tribe in Dayla's catalog like that. They got a better catalog than we do. Easy work, easy work, easy work, easy work. I got your easy E nigga. Okay, I ain't no. Jerry Kerr-ass nigga. Read all the super chat. It's some bullshit. Cj kid, that was wild. Two guys to make you smile and have fun again. It's crazy work. It was crazy, okay. I was hoping you didn't see that one CJ, cj, it was crazy.
Speaker 1:I was hoping you didn't see that one. Cj, CJ. I told y'all about it.
Speaker 2:Ag man, that was crazy.
Speaker 1:CJ, I'm going to tell you like I tell AG all the time Please stop encouraging Sean. You can't do that in public. Shoot him a DM on Twitter or something Nobody wants to. Just, cj, keep that out the street sir Keep that out the street, sir. Keep that out the street, sir. Okay, ill Magic, you guys still have Rhapsody's album held high for album of the year. I still do. Fellas I do too, still in the top five, top three, where you at.
Speaker 2:Absolutely in the top three. Top three, for sure, top three.
Speaker 1:Yeah, tater Tots. Okay, that just makes me want to say pause. Just the fact that somebody's name is Tater Tots, I don't know what's wrong. Let's say pause. I just feel like that type of show what's wrong with Tater Tots.
Speaker 3:That's crazy.
Speaker 1:Where do you rank Sean P? Make me think of Napoleon Dottabart? No, no, yeah, that's crazy, coop. Where do you rank Sean P? Let me think of Napoleon Dottabite? A plus delivery no, no, no, good question, coop. Where do you rank Sean P? A plus delivery and bars, in my opinion, now, tater tots. Thank you for chiming in. I don't know what Sean P you're talking about because I'm from Atlanta, so my Sean P is Sean Paul from the Youngwoods.
Speaker 2:Are you talking about Sean Price? I hope he said Sean Price.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's Sean Price. You know, with Sean Price, I understand why people love him and I'm a fan. I think he would fall outside my top 50, though, but he would be right outside the 50. He would be one of those. It would be tough for him to crack my 50, because I would put somebody like a Cameron ahead of him. I do feel like people with abbreviated tenures, like a big pun or a big L, would be ahead of him, and so it would be hard for him to put him in my top 50. But he was great.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Okay, you're not getting no easy work off me with this native tongues thing. You know what you want to know. I might actually beat you. Matter of fact, aj, you want to stay out of this. You want to stay out of this, aj.
Speaker 3:Oh no, I'm representing the Woo Because you say you're a Woo fan. But if you're trying to hate on Winter Wars, your Wu fandom got an asterisk beside it.
Speaker 1:I'm not hating on Winter Wars. I'm just saying you guys got Winter Wars way higher than I do.
Speaker 3:It sounded like hate to me, I don't know.
Speaker 1:I mean, just because somebody rapped for two minutes straight don't mean never mind, all right, it does kind of sound like hate when I say it like that. I'm just going to be quiet. Yeah, absolutely, it's kind of the truth, though. Let's go to anniversaries, guys. Where do we want to start? Are we starting in order of how old these fucking projects are? Let's do that. Yeah, iron man just celebrated its 28th anniversary. Fellas Came out on October 18th of 1996. Classic album To me this was this was part of the most classic run of hip hop albums that any crew collective from any time period that we've seen, pretty much from any group in hip hop history. I think it's the anchor in a very, very special moment in time that hasn't been replicated or duplicated since. I would ask both of you, gentlemen, to highlight some of your memories for Iron man and give me your top three tracks off of Iron man.
Speaker 2:Damn good question, bro, and.
Speaker 1:Sean, give me three tracks. Don't be trying to do that four, five, six track shit, Because it's Ghost. Three Uno.
Speaker 2:Dos Tres. Ghost is my. If Nas is 1A, ghost is 1B In my personal Pantheon of hip hop. That's personal, it's in me Wildflower, love, wildflower, love, wildflower.
Speaker 1:Poisonous darts Top three. Wildflower poisonous darts are making your top three. Yeah, that's crazy.
Speaker 2:They might be in my bottom three, yeah, but this is mine. That's why it's important for me to say this is mine.
Speaker 1:No, no, no. It's proof positive that my taste is good and your taste is suspect, but it's also proof positive that Iron man is a classic because of these of your problems.
Speaker 2:You said what is your?
Speaker 1:as in mine, I regret every question that I ask you, Sean.
Speaker 2:I love Black Jesus too. My bonus track is Marvel man. Watch out, she's salt water trout.
Speaker 1:Yeah, marvel's up, wow those are all my bottom feeders, but this album is brilliant so it doesn't matter brilliant, brilliant album real quick, just about the album itself, one of my favorite albums of all time.
Speaker 3:You know I talked about the chambers earlier. You know and this is a different chamber that RZA went in for the Iron man album compared to Cuban link, and this may sound crazy, but I don't think those two albums are far off from each other, as a lot of people would think, cuban link is the better album, but I don't think it's albums are far off from each other, as a lot of people would think. Cuba Link is the better album, but I don't think it's a big gap between the two of them. But RZA had to go in a different chamber for this album and I think it's me and Sean that had this discussion many times and it's more of a soulful chamber versus the the Gambino like you know what I'm saying the mafioso style of Cuban Link. But at any rate, I think that this album. Ghost talked about this album a lot, saying he didn't have fun making this album because he was in a depression. So I don't think you can make an album like this, this soulful, without being in kind of one of those type of mind states. You know what I'm saying. So I think that speaks a lot to the mood of the album, but my three favorite joints.
Speaker 3:This is on the fly man. I love Daytona 500 but it's not going to make my top three. I'm going to replace it with one, in no particular order. I'm going to go Winter Wars, of course. I'm going to replace it with one in no particular order. I'm going to go Winter Wars. Of course I'm going to go Fish. True Master did his thing on the beat. That's not RZA, true Master. That's one of his shining moments. That beat is crazy. But for my third pick, instead of Daytona 500, where I'm going to go with is Motherless Child. I think that's one of the RZA beats that don't get talked about enough. That beat is insane.
Speaker 1:Rizzo lost his mind on that as far as the beat is concerned, I'm with you. I think that might be a top 20 rizzo beat yeah, I had.
Speaker 3:I was gonna say daytona 500 but I had to, you know, replace that with motherless child and I'm gonna get an honorable mention. I know you said not more than three Coop, but I want to talk about Assassination Day because it goes to my other point where Ghost said that he was so depressed during that time he didn't even want to record a verse for Assassination Day. He's not on that song. He was just like nah, I don't even want to be on that. You feel me? I mean wonderful album. I got it, you know what I'm saying, right here, the quick vinyl show, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 3:The colors, the vibrant colors of the album was classic at the time. You know what I'm saying. I got the special edition, the blue and cream, like the Wally Clarks, you know what I'm saying. And just a great time. Man Got the even classic Iron man action figure. I don't know if y'all can see that with the glare to go with the cover. So one of them was man. I don't think it's too far off in Cuban league, man, that might be a hot take, but I think it's close.
Speaker 1:When you say it's not far off from Cuban link. What I would submit to you is that you know what it is. It's like comparing Michael Jordan's 88 MVP season to his 95 MVP season. Is he the same player? Is he like averaging 35, 8 and 8?
Speaker 1:it's like no, he's averaging 32, 6 and 6. It's not that far off from 35, 8 and 8, but it's not 35, 8, and 8. And so I do agree with you that Iron man isn't as far off from the purple tape as people think. I think what you have with the purple tape is that those classic songs are 10s and the classic songs on Iron man are like 9s and 9.5s. They're classic. They're just not as classic. It's like, oh no, assassination Day is fucking brilliant. It's just not as classic as Guillotine Making the top 20. Woo posse cuts. Is Assassination Day making it? Yeah, is Assassination Day making the top 10? Maybe, probably Very good change. But is it Guillotine? It's like no. And so that's the thing with iron man.
Speaker 1:The material is there, I think, just to prove positive because I'm just going to tell you my three right quick, how great iron man is is the fact that all three of us are about to pick three songs in a possible and none of us are picking the same fucking songs, like not one, because my three is actually actually ag. You and me are both picking Fish, so that would be the one I'm picking Iron Maiden Fish and Kame and Daytona 500 would be my possible. You love Kame. Yeah, I love Kame. I love that beat to Kame. But to me Kame and Fish, that stretch where it goes from Winter Wars to Kame, is where the album becomes special, because I think that's where you hear Ghost. It's like, oh no, that's not that mafioso shit, that's Ghost. Yep, you know what I'm saying?
Speaker 1:Early on in the album, iron Maiden is purple tape. It's just Ghost's side of the purple tape, it's just ghost side of the purple tape. You know what I'm saying? Same thing with 260. It's like, oh no, that's very purple tape. Like 260 is just like spot rushers. You know what?
Speaker 3:I'm saying we didn't even mention after the smoke is clear like it's joints that was left on the table. That we didn't even say.
Speaker 1:Man, it's crazy assassination and faster blade or or wu-tang joints without ghosts even on them. And so that stretch where it goes after winter wars like boxing hand fish kame. I'm like, oh no, this starting to sound like ghost album you know, what I'm saying, and so those would be my joints. I think Iron man and this is probably getting some 96 treatment too. It's not just, it's getting purple tape and 96 treatment, because it's like it's getting compared to the purple tape, because it's pretty much the same host of characters, a year later.
Speaker 1:You know what I'm saying. It's just well we're going in the ghost chamber. It's like, well, ghost chamber ain't as good. I'm saying, it's just what, we're going in the ghost chamber. It's like, well, ghost chamber ain't as good as ray chamber. It's like, oh, actually, technically it is, it just hasn't been refined yet and, quite frankly, all the beats everybody wanted to rap on just got eaten up on liquid swords and the purple tape, right.
Speaker 3:And what I love about it was the diplomacy of it, because Ray got a solo joint on Ghost's album and Ghost got a solo joint on Ray's album.
Speaker 2:I love that, I love that Kappa is right there standing tall between both of them.
Speaker 1:First of all, he's not standing tall because Ray is still the best MC on this album, so stop that.
Speaker 2:He's literally right here. That's why I said's literally right here. That's why I said he's right here.
Speaker 1:Chef Raekwon is actually the best MC on this album During that time Raekwon was the biggest knock you can have on Ghost's solo album is the fact that well Ray is the better rapper, still a year later on this album. Listen to what I'm about to say. This was probably the last time Ray was a better rapper than Ghost.
Speaker 3:Yeah, wu-tang Forever was pretty even and then he passed him at Supreme.
Speaker 2:He didn't just pass, ray, don't get it twisted. He passed everybody, he passed about 95% of the industry. Yeah, yeah, let's keep it there. There you go to everybody he passed by 95% of the industry.
Speaker 1:Yeah, there you go. Shout out to Ghost and Iron man. It's definitely a classic. Mad Max says Iron man is good, but it's not Supreme, let alone Purple Tape. Come on now, ag, stop it. There's a big gap. Here's what I'll tell you. I think there's an argument between Iron man and Supreme. Supreme feels better. I do feel like the beats on Supreme might be better, but contextually speaking, I think Iron man and Supreme are actually very comparable. That's part of why I hold Ghost on video how about this?
Speaker 1:it's like, well, no, it's like how many people got neither one of those albums are top 10 albums, but it's like how many rappers are walking around with two top 50 albums, because I know ghost is yeah, can I reveal a secret?
Speaker 3:we had a whole station head planned to battle iron man and supreme client I mean not supreme clientele, iron man and um cuban links and the I mean not Supreme Frontier, iron man and Cuban Links. The playlist was already curated match for match.
Speaker 2:That's still coming.
Speaker 3:It's closer than what y'all are thinking. It's very close.
Speaker 1:That's in y'all's minds. Don't do that to Iron man.
Speaker 3:I'm telling you, it's very close.
Speaker 1:No, it's not Ice water. It doesn't even matter how you curate it. If you go in order, it's nasty work.
Speaker 3:That's lazy man's work, that's fine.
Speaker 1:You can't curate your way around the purple tape tracks. No, I'm sorry it's not close. Both of them are 17. Oh, I'm sorry it's not close. It's not close, like both of them 17 tracks. Right, yeah, like, okay, so like it's like 9-8.
Speaker 3:close is what I'm saying 10-7.
Speaker 1:No 9-8. I'm bugging.
Speaker 2:No, I'm bugging, it's bugging. Cool Trust Trust it. We got to send it to Coop. Send it to Coop so he can hear it.
Speaker 3:I'll send it to him. You can run it through. You know what? I'm saying I got the players, I'll send it to you. On whatever your DSP is, I got to say.
Speaker 1:I'm everywhere. Send it to my YouTube or my Apple.
Speaker 2:Okay, we got some major super chats, Coop Sean.
Speaker 1:I'm international. Don't shake your head like that, sir. I'm international. Okay, jermaine Jackson, jermaine Jackson, I believe that we definitely would not have gotten all that I got as you the way that we got, if Ghost was happy and not suffering from depression. Maybe, but that was also. Like you know, ghost is. Ghost makes a lot of we Made it songs you know what I'm saying Like we Beat Our Circumstances and Struggles types of songs. He was always that kind of rapper, you know. So I'm not certain that he wouldn't have made something comparable like that, even with his mind state being what it was, because you got to think about it, it's like, even though he might have been suffering from depression, he didn't sound depressed on Iron man. He didn't. He did an excellent job.
Speaker 2:I know until years ago he talked about it.
Speaker 1:He did an excellent job behind it, but this is why mental health and illness is real as well. That's right, got another one.
Speaker 2:cool, it's a big one.
Speaker 1:Shout out to TJ, tj, the Kid Native tongues Beyond, tribe De La Jungle, latifah and Moni Also has Black Sheep, beat Nuts Leaders Brand, newbie and Fushnik and Busta, and the Far Side was made numbers by tip. You guys think 10 members of the clan can sweep that, not y'all. Cj, first of all, thank you for your $50 contribution and your super chat. It's much appreciated. What we're going to do is we're going to take your super chats and we're going to go buy Sean the help that he needs.
Speaker 3:Oh no, I mean, he named a bunch of people, but we can get in the killer army, grave diggers bag, and you know what I'm saying. Get a couple of W's, you know.
Speaker 2:Oh, big, big facts. I have a lot of dark man on Okay.
Speaker 3:Okay, sons of man.
Speaker 1:Sons of man, y'all will be Okay, I love you guys, but if y'all think that sons of man, yes, maybe, maybe some of the great, biggest stuff. But if you think that's beating top end like native tongue stuff, You're not really respecting the native tongues. This isn't about you knowing your woo stuff. This is about you disrespecting the native tongues.
Speaker 2:No disrespect intended. No disrespect intended. That's not the goal here. The goal is to show you that woo run was amazing. Native tongues was awesome. Don't get it twisted. But when you put that soundscape up against a different type of soundscape, it's not going to hit. I'm soundscape. It's not going to hit. I'm telling you it's not going to hit. You want to fight? We had people arguing with us when we did. What is it? It was written and ready to die.
Speaker 2:We told them that soundscape is different. Don't get caught up into the minutia. You get caught up into the minutia of an album because you're told and you're groomed and believed to the you gotta listen to this. When's the last time you didn't want to listen to a Native Tones album?
Speaker 1:I listened to the Low End Theory and Midnight Marauders last week those are exceptional albums I'm talking about.
Speaker 2:When's the last time you listened to Farside Brand, newbie.
Speaker 1:Beat Nuts. I listened to Lab Cabin, california, by the Farside earlier this year. Yes, I did, I do like that album a lot.
Speaker 2:What did you listen to? I listened to De La Soul.
Speaker 1:I play. Stakes is High with Regularity.
Speaker 2:Deception.
Speaker 1:Deception. I got enough exceptions to beat you. You don't.
Speaker 2:Challenge, challenge Challenge.
Speaker 1:Let's go.
Speaker 2:Max got one for us.
Speaker 1:You want to know what. When I beat you, I'm going to beat you. I'm going to put on my Prince gloves.
Speaker 3:That sounds nasty. That sounded crazy as hell, like he was pointing to it.
Speaker 2:Like he was pointing to the Prince glove, like it's the gauntlet, the Thanos gauntlet in the case. I do it myself, I do it myself. All the purple stones come on the glove.
Speaker 1:Come on for you. Put the gloves on the glove, don't look for it.
Speaker 3:He got the knuckles cut out like the ass cut out the chaps.
Speaker 2:Right, that was wild. You were sitting there playing with the ass chaps, so that was crazy. That was nasty work for you to do that. It made you deep clean your seat after you left, right.
Speaker 1:I'm definitely wearing the gloves when I beat your ass and then after I beat you. You know what I'm going to do. I'm going to go upstairs and make pancakes after I beat you. That's what I'm going to do.
Speaker 3:Yo, flipping pancakes with gloves on is insane. That's serial killer, shit Leather gloves, okay.
Speaker 2:Oh man, Can you get Mad Max?
Speaker 1:real quick Licking pancakes after a weak jazz.
Speaker 4:Sean you going now? No, no, we got Mad Max already.
Speaker 1:Iron man is good, but it's not supreme, let alone the purple tape.
Speaker 2:Come on now stop it there, it's a big gap, no doubt yeah. I mean that depends that.
Speaker 1:See that, to me that depends on what you define as a big gap, because I think hip hop is in a place where it's like, well, the difference between an album that you might have number three all time and the album is number 22 all time, it's not that big of a gap like you think, like like the 19 slots between them, like the albums are 19 slots apart it's closer it's closer than that.
Speaker 1:You know what I'm saying, because I would put a purple tape around a two or a three, but I would put a reasonable down around a 21 or a 22. There's not that large of a gap between those albums. They're just preference albums that I prefer. I prefer it's Dark and Hell is Hot. I prefer Moment of Truth, you know.
Speaker 2:CJ said we read the wrong Super Chat from Mad Max. He said he had another one. Yeah, it's right here. This is the other one he had.
Speaker 1:What did Mad Max?
Speaker 3:say. He said Native Tunnels is not easy work. Sean, don't be ridiculous.
Speaker 2:And Sean Price better than you know who Jack Mad Max is a tyrant man. The dude is a tyrant. No, no.
Speaker 1:Mad Max no, no, no, tyrants have hearts. Okay, mad Max is a communist. Okay, we just need to call it what it is.
Speaker 2:Mad Max is a communist man. That's what it is man man, the communists man. That's crazy, that is crazy.
Speaker 1:It needs to be investigated. It needs to be investigated. Okay, speaking of investigations, an album that birthed one of my favorite rap songs ever it's just celebrated its 27th anniversary Came with mixed reviews, but it also came with a platinum plaque the Firm album fellas. Release date October 21st 1997. What are our thoughts on this album that got mixed reviews and still garners a lot of? You know, this is one of those albums that gets so much talk in folklore and it was really just a one-off yeah, not too many one-offs, like you know, kind of like live on the way that this has, because I don't even think they were together long enough to be classified as even a true like hip-hop supergroup. I agree.
Speaker 3:It was everything surrounding the album. You know you had the departure of core mega um, the replacement with nature um. That added to it. You had too many. You know you had the original um affirmative action on um. It was written, produced by the track masters, and then you get dre into the fold. Who's going to produce the other half of the album and at the end of the day it was just too many. You know chefs in the kitchen and it's not a bad album. But you got a lot of label politics involved too, because, um, my biggest complaint about the album was it's not as many tracks with the core members on there together, so it didn't really seem like a cohesive unit. It seemed more like a compilation, because it's only a few tracks where Foxy, az and Nas are on there together. So that was my main complaint. But overall it's not a bad album.
Speaker 3:I bought it four times over. You had the Cigarette Case Joint cassette. I had that. I had one stolen, one borrowed, never returned it, and you know another time and then a cd, um, I actually like the album a lot but it just wasn't what it could have been. But I think a lot of that's label politics too. I've never bought an album with so many um uh label brandings on it. It had like eight damn labels.
Speaker 3:It's a death jam.
Speaker 1:It had every label on it except for Death Row and Bad Boy.
Speaker 3:Right Aftermath Soty Death Jam, everything was on there, everybody had their hand in the pot so it was just too many chefs in the kitchen. But overall, like you said, cool. Um, you know it's still got a platinum plaque. So I don't like when they say dub it the firm flop, maybe a flop by the expectations, but it's still a platinum album. But, um, my and oddly enough, if we're talking about our favorite joints, my favorite joints outside of phone tap, don't even got nas on it. You know I'm saying I like desperados, I love uh, I'm leaving with nori. You know, throw your guns with az and half a mil um.
Speaker 3:And one joint did nobody touch, uh, talk about, and then I'm gonna pass it to sean is uh, untouchables. Love that beat. That beat is crazy, whiz goes off. But I'm going to maintain this to this day. When I was a teenager and heard that, I swear I think Nas wrote that joint and let Wiz spin it. If you listen to the tone, you listen to the rhyme schemes, that's Nas Escobar, right there over a crazy Dre beat and shout out to Wiz for spitting it. You know, like it was his own. But that's Nas'. I don't got no proof of that.
Speaker 2:No, don't do that. Shout out to Wiz man.
Speaker 3:No, shout out to Wiz, 100%. But there ain't no shame in it. If Nas, you know what I'm saying, there ain't no shame in that, like Nas wrote it. But I don't have no proof of that, but just listening to it, that's Nas man.
Speaker 2:No, no, it's not. Shout out to Wiz. We got Wiz coming soon. Shout out to Wiz.
Speaker 3:No shout out to Wiz, respect to Wiz and the Bravehearts in general, all of them. But I still say, nas, listen to it, listen to it back again.
Speaker 2:Get off of that man. Too many chefs in the kitchen. The mixtapes the songs that were on the mixtapes were better than the songs that were displayed on the album, and that's so many things happened with this album. It's actually, it's really it should be a documentary on the album. Honestly, because of everything that happened to this album. You're talking about Dre really pulling out close to the middle part of the album. His direction was a certain way that he wanted to do it aesthetically and you kind of heard that in the very beginning. You think about the beginning of the album. I think the intro just that skit intro was dope. They have the Cuban Air talking about the Cuban Air firm in the airspace, all of that, and then it starts off with, of course, nas Foxy and AZ the core team. Cormega wasn't there. I think it's really missing Cormega. I think the firm was really missing Cormega. You replace Cormega with Nature. Nature is a comparable MC, maybe a better lyric. Nature. Nature is a comparable MC, maybe a better lyricist.
Speaker 2:He's a better MC, but now he's got a better team, exactly especially during that time. Nature was blazing a lot of every track. During that time he was holding his weight, but he didn't have that extra panache that Cormega brought. You lose that because you already had like two top lyricists. You had Nas and AZ. You had, you know, foxy to break that up a little bit with her style, with her approach, and Comego was that rough, that rough hit right, and you didn't have that anymore. You had another lyricist, maybe a lower tier lyricist in comparison to Nas and AZ, but you had another very dense lyricist and that, to me, was another failed attempt because so much was going on that really hampered the album itself.
Speaker 2:I still like the album. I think it's still dope. In retrospect, in real time, I felt like some of the singles probably shouldn't have came out. I didn't like Farm Biz being a single from this group. I really I really disliked that song. Um, really, yeah, it was that. See how you, yeah, nasty, right nasty. I didn't like the video, I didn't like anything about that that was a bad boy effect.
Speaker 3:Still carrying over it was.
Speaker 2:It was. This was 97, this was 97. A lot was going on. We came up. We were still more than big. We were still more than big. We were still more than big and we tried to replace that with different you know colors and different schemes and things of that nature and we got firm bits. That was nasty, didn't like that. Some of the songs on there was a little bit too poppy, if you will, for this group, for these amazing artists, and I think that's where Dre was like. I can't do this, if you will, for this group, for these amazing artists, and I think that's where Dre was like. I can't do this. Stingy Stout got to evolve. The track masters got to evolve. The record labels got to evolve. Def Jam wanted their piece of the pie. You know Columbia wanted their piece of the pie. This thing was destined to fail, honestly, and it sold platinum, sold platinum, but it was destined to fail based on all of the cooks in the kitchen.
Speaker 3:Real quick. Nature said. That's the reason why he's on most of the songs with everybody, because he wasn't signed to a label, so he had freedom to rap with whoever where the other labels were jockeying for position. Well like, well, now I can only be on so many songs, or Foxy can only be on so many songs.
Speaker 1:Nature or Foxy can only be on so many songs. Nature was like put me on whatever you know, yeah. So I'm glad you brought that up, ag, because well, the main thing that hurt this album was the fact that it's kind of like getting sold a ticket to a basketball game. Let's say you're going to the Lakers game and they're like, oh man, lebron, lebron's going to play, ad's going to play, and then after the second quarter they pull LeBron and AD and you don't see him anymore. Exactly that's literally what happened on the Firm album, literally in terms of listening to the album.
Speaker 1:Because, guys, when I tell you this, the beginning of the album is actually pretty fucking stellar Firm fiasco, going into phone tap, going into executive decision that's a great fucking album start and it feels firm, like starting off. It feels like a continuation. Don't do that. It feels like a continuation of those mixtape songs. But the main problem with the album is that some of the best songs don't even have core members on there. First of all, if I'm getting a firm album in 1997, I don't need a Foxy solo, I don't need a Nature solo, I need a Nas solo. I need't need a Foxy solo, I don't need a nature solo I need a Nas solo I need an AZ solo.
Speaker 2:That's for one.
Speaker 1:That's for one Shout out to AZ. Az is the best MC on this album. He is Some of the best songs. Don't have Nas on it. That's one of the biggest problems with this album. I'm leaving. No Nas, no Guns, no Nas Desperados.
Speaker 3:No, nas, and it's a version with Nas on it that was on the clue tapes.
Speaker 1:Five Minutes to Flush no Nas.
Speaker 3:I like that song.
Speaker 1:No Nas, it's 1997. In 1997, in terms of popularity no Nas, it's 1997. In 1997, in terms of popularity, not his top two or three. In terms of how hot he is, he's nowhere on this album.
Speaker 1:After the beginning of this album, politics man he's on Firm Fiasco Phone Tap Executive Decision and then he comes back and does the hardcore joint with Foxy and I like that record. That record just don't make no damn sense on this album. The joint's hot I and I like that record, that record just don't make no damn sense on this album the joint's hot. I think it's a dope record, but that would have been a dope record for Foxy's album around that time, not for a Firm album.
Speaker 3:To me it was trying to be too much like another on Big's album and I get it and the competition was live and was real and I dig all that.
Speaker 1:But that's what I'm saying. Put that shit on Foxy's album, not on the Firm album. That shit don't belong on the Firm album. Five Minutes of Flush don't belong on the Firm album. Untouchables don't belong on the Firm album.
Speaker 3:I like both of those.
Speaker 1:Throw your Guns with Half a Mill is a great record that belongs on a Firm mixtape, not on the firm album. What the fuck are we doing? Where's the firm? Why does Cannabis have the best verse on the firm album?
Speaker 3:That's a good question, but it's a true statement.
Speaker 1:So there are a lot of gaps with this album that have nothing to do with the songs not being good, it's just that it don't fit. It don't make sense. It's like I told you that Foxy Nas record it's not a bad record. It's like why the fuck is this literally in the middle of an album where I haven't heard Nas for the last four tracks and I hear him again and he's going back and forth with Foxy and then I don't hear him again for the rest of the album?
Speaker 2:Yeah, it was disjointed. It was disjointed. There was no cohesion in that album whatsoever. That's how Dre walked away. You can tell where Dre walked away in that album. You can tell where that album started to pivot.
Speaker 1:Like nothing against nature. Nature is part of the problem with this album, because I think this album needed some grit that nature didn't provide, that Cormega would have provided. But also, too, it's the space that he's taking up. It's like the Firm Family joint. That beat is hard. That shit is crazy. Wouldn't you have much rather heard Nas and Dr Dre rapping back and forth in Nature and Dr Dre rapping back and forth Seeing how the song is called Firm Family? And your buy-in to the firm is Nas and Dr Dre working together mostly, yep, so maybe not a failure, but you definitely didn't get your money's worth.
Speaker 3:No, especially me. I feel like I contributed to that. I bought the album four times over, so they owe me a platinum plaque at this point.
Speaker 1:I talk about Phone Tap all the time. Having a song like Phone Tap on here is a saving grace. I do not think that this album. I think this album gets trashed so much more if Phone Tap's not on there, because for people who have trashed it, for people who don't like it. People don't care for it. What they always say is Phone Tap's on there, saving grace, I'm with you, coop.
Speaker 2:This is one thing. Before we move on, this is one thing. We move on, this is one thing. The fact that I felt this all about even during this time I was 17 when this album came out I felt this opened the door for jay in a way only because even you think back to when then dre had the verse when he said, and uh, y'all talking about the firm flop, you know, uh, jay actually ghost wrote that song. So even though Dre spit it, jay actually wrote that. He wrote that y'all saying the front flop.
Speaker 3:Oh no, that's the one Eminem wrote. Eminem wrote that one. Dre wrote still DRA. I mean, jay-z wrote still DRA.
Speaker 2:He wrote that joint too.
Speaker 3:No, you have to fact check that Eminem wrote that joint.
Speaker 2:I seen that with a check mark, but yeah, it's the arrogance with what she said, eminem wrote Forgot About Dre.
Speaker 3:Y'all in the chat fact check Sean Eminem wrote Forgot About Dre. That's Eminem. But I get what you're saying. That did open the door for Jay.
Speaker 1:I think the biggest thing that opened the door for Jay was this album, but it's because Nas wasn't on the album. Think about this Volume 1 comes out maybe six weeks before this album.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:You can say in 97, no, jay is a better MC than Nas. That's the problem with it. Yeah, that's where he needed to show up on the Firm album and it's like outside. And even though he sounds precise on executive decisions, that's not.
Speaker 3:Nas, that's not. It was written Nas no.
Speaker 1:So it's like you're only getting, and like, to me, phone tap is like the second part of more money, more murder, more homicide. You know, I'm saying or it's the or it's the prequel too. It's like, so it's like you get him in that zone, but other than catching him in that zone for that moment, no, and that's where it started for me, in my opinion, because he actually gave people a reason to say that Jay was better. Because if you go look at his mic performance on the Firm album and then go look at Jay's mic performance on Volume 1, it's like, well, jay sounds better. Yeah, he does. All right, we're going to move to our Discord dialogues for the week. Ag. You said the winner this week is Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. I'm going to let you take the reins.
Speaker 3:Yo, shout out to Miss LB for this one. She's the one that nominated Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. You know, we talked about Wu-Tang, we talked about Tribe. For me personally, when I was in, you know, middle school, bone Thuzzle Harmony was, like, probably my third favorite group behind Wu and Mobb Deep, and I don't think they get the proper credit enough in the hip-hop annals because, um, for whatever reason you know what I mean they boast two classics. If you ask me two classics, if you ask me, east 1999, eternal is a classic, you know. And then creeping on to come up as an ep is a classic. And, um, you know, for whatever reason, they're not talked about and I think that's mostly because the triple time flow, um style is almost like a niche style. So once that kind of got outdated, they kind of got left behind. But you know, if they boast two classic records plus all-time classic hip-hop songs that don't get talked about, like first of the month is one of the greatest, you know, rap songs of all time and crossroads is one of the biggest crossover pop hits of all time, like you know, as far as a rap hit to, they cross over the pop charts. So I don't know why they don't get brought up enough, but they're one of the greatest groups.
Speaker 3:All the members was dope. My personal favorite was Lazy Bone, but Lazy Flesh Wish. Actually Flesh was kind of the Capadonna of the group. You know he gets left out a lot Coop shaking his head, but they're real dope. I just got a couple more points. Cap is that guy, but we're talking about bone thugs now. But a couple points I will say is, um, you know, they were well respected enough where other people wanted to rap with them, like collaborating with big and with pop, right before they passed, where they said I want to rap with them, like collaborating with big and with pock, right before they passed where they said I want to rap with those guys. And let's be real, one of big's claims to fame when people said oh, he, the greatest mc of all time, was his versatility. When he was able to rap with bone, like, oh, big can do what they do. You know what I'm saying, not the other way around, like they was like big can do what Bone does. So that makes him, you know, one of the greatest ever. So I mean, I just think they're one of the greatest ever to do it. And you know, once again shout out to Miss LB, cleveland representative.
Speaker 3:I used to travel to Cleveland a lot. I had an uncle that lived there and not too far off East 1999 is. You know, miss LB. You know where this is, at Chagrin Boulevard, and we used to go there and catch some Cavs games back when. You know, good teams used to come play them because Cavs sucked back then. But at any rate, that's one of the things that I love most about hip hop is because when people talk about their hoods and their you, where they're from so much, it becomes like historical monuments. You know, to us in the culture. You know, when you went to new york, first thing you did was pull up the 40 side. You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 3:Um, when I went to cleveland, you know I had to go to east 99, I said. I told my uncle I said yo, can you take me over there? That's where bones from. He said yeah, I know them boys, I don't. Yeah, so took me over to east 1999. I was in detroit, had to go see eight mile. You know I'm saying I had a friend that was from compton in college. He was trying to get me to go back here one spring break. I said no, I'm good, I enjoy waking up in the morning. You know I'm saying putting on whatever color I want, so I'm good. On compton, I'll take your word for it. But at any rate, you know, for them to be out of the area of Cleveland, to not have many representatives, to come out of that space and be one of the greatest groups of all time, I think is a big deal, and they don't get talked about enough. So you know, I'm glad Ms LB put that as a nomination to get their flowers though. So salute to Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, absolutely.
Speaker 2:Absolutely. Salute to Ohio. A lot of talent come out of Ohio. You're talking about the Ohio players John Legend, osley Brothers, ojs. I think your father from Ohio, isn't he your? Father, you got ties to.
Speaker 2:Ohio. Shout out to Ohio. Bobby Womack the legend, the dirty mac of all time. Oh, come on for hi yo. Um, look, I'm not gonna rehash what ag said, I'm gonna just keep mine very short. Um. Shout out to bone thugs uh, one of the one of the most, I feel like still one underrated group.
Speaker 2:Um, I think they were before that time. Um, they didn't have an identification when it first came out. You know, if you weren't from there, you probably wouldn't have known. They were like from Cleveland, ohio, right? Because they were affiliated with Eazy-E. You know, I think in the beginning, for me being an outsider, I thought they were most West Coast bound, right, I thought, man, these guys are West Coast and they just sound great, it's melodic and it was just a different cadence. Just sound great, it sounded melodic and it was just a different cadence. And to your point, ag, to be able to get on the track with Biggie and influence Biggie, to have that fast style, that erratitat flow, but also being able to get on the track with Tupac as well, it tells you how much respect that they did have in the industry. And they were able to carry the torch even after Eazy-E's untimely death. So again, shout out to the Discord for even picking Bone Thugs. Shout out to LB I know she was very excited about this one. And again, shout out to Bone Thugs and Harmony.
Speaker 3:You touched on Harmony, Sean. That's something that's prevalent today. They were ahead of their time Because if you look at all the rappers using harmonies now, they could have been the blueprint for that Real talk.
Speaker 2:Absolutely, absolutely.
Speaker 1:Singing ass and niggas.
Speaker 2:Absolutely.
Speaker 1:I think, something that often gets lost and shout out to both of you guys for giving bone their flowers. You all made some excellent comments and some thoughts. I'm going to do my best to piggyback off some of the things that you all both shared. I think people forget these guys used to sell records. That's part of why Biggie wanted to do a record with them. That's part of why Tupac wanted to do a record with them. They part of why tupac wanted to do a record with them. They were a big deal. They were moving units. That that, that ep creeping on a come up, went quadruple platinum. Their single, the crossroads, quadruple platinum, east 1999, sold like five, six million records. They were moving units and going multi-platinum off singles and albums, because I think Thuggish Rugged Bone is like the song is like double platinum. They were going platinum off of singles and off of albums and off of EPs at a time where your favorite rapper was happy if they sold 500,000 copies and went gold.
Speaker 1:That was the goal. So they weren't just ahead of the game in terms of the harmonies and the melodies. They were ahead of the game in terms of the fact that it's like, oh, no, they were selling more records than Wu-Tang and Mobb Deep they really were.
Speaker 1:we are all Wu-Tang fans. It's like no, enter the Wu-Tang is platinum. Creeping on a Come Up is quadruple platinum. There's a difference, like three million records sold difference, and so they were a big deal. And I think what they had and what made them so impactful is because I think people grasped onto them as a novelty because of the fast time, rapid fire, rapping of Creeping on a Come Up, suggish, ruggish Bone for the Love of Money, like hit wonderish, classic records but not one hit wonderish. But maybe felt like they were about to be a fad. But what happened when they made East 1999 is that they showed people not a fad, but we can make a classic rap album, full length player rapping like this, and I think that cemented their legacy and their longevity. When they did that, it's because they made a classic rap album.
Speaker 1:Rapping like that it's not. It ain't the same shit as Tone Loke making Funky Cole Medina or fucking Young MC making Bust a Move. No, it's not that. It's like no, no, no. These guys came back. We came back with a vengeance. They made an excellent record and when you actually go back and listen to them rap. These guys could rap, rap, rap, rap, ass off, rap.
Speaker 3:It was impressive when you come to school and could rap a whole Bone Thugs verse. That used to be the thing in middle school, AG.
Speaker 1:I can remember the thing was being able to rap Thuggish Rugish Bone. If you could rap Thuggish Druggish Bone. If you could rap Thuggish.
Speaker 3:Druggish Bone the girls loved you.
Speaker 1:Facts If you couldn't, you were nobody.
Speaker 3:And I'm glad you brought up the point Coop about. They released the full length album after the EP and then they followed that up with a double album. Like Art of War is not a bad double, it really isn't. It don't get talked about with, you know, the greater the greater double albums, um, in hip-hop. But it's not. It's not a bad double album. So they always had the content. I mean, they always had the uh material out there going, you know, multiple platinum. But I think their content is the reason why they may not be heralded as much as the other artists, because some of the things they talked about it was in some wild stuff, you know the Ouija boards and all that. But, um, they were dope still.
Speaker 1:Yet you know, I think I think Mr Ouija, uh off of uh East 1999 is one of the best interludes ever. It is, it is it really is it's creepy as fuck, let's get to a couple super chats and then we're going to get to our last segment before we slide out of here. Cj, the Kid station head preview Shaheem or Chi Ali, I'm not picking. That is nasty, I'm not picking.
Speaker 2:Shaheem the rugged shell.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you're going to pick Wu-Tang. It's been that kind of day, CJ the Kid. Again Bone Thugs-N-Harmony did songs with Big Pac, Easy and Pun while alive. Yeah. Yes, it only was Kenny Castro also was on a song with Pun before he died. Yeah, Bone put in that work and they were highly respected their songs, some of their records. Bone's a bigger problem. They made a lot more hit records than they get credit for, too Days of Our Lives.
Speaker 3:Your guy hits everywhere, everywhere I'm with you.
Speaker 1:I think First of the Month, and Crossroads are For the love of money All the time. Great hip-hop. First of the Month might be the most underrated classic rap song of all time. Like nobody talks about that record, that record is great. I'm in agreement with that. It came out. Nobody talks about that record at all and it's like no, it was a very, very big deal.
Speaker 3:Yeah that's why I love this Discord Dialogues man. It gives the opportunity to wax poetic about stuff like that. That was the first single.
Speaker 1:That was what really solidified that they were here. To say is, when they dropped first to the month, it's like oh no, these guys aren't no flash in the pan, they're really like dope. They're like going to be here. Yeah, all right. So we've come to the end of our show and, although we're about to pause, you all can press play on our picks for the week. So am I kicking off the press play?
Speaker 3:yeah, go ahead did we get the kids to top it before we do the press play? Yeah, we gotta do the kids try to dodge the Kendrick.
Speaker 1:The Coop tried to dodge the Kendrick topic. Well, I figured we'd scratch the topic. You know what topic I'm going to scratch.
Speaker 3:That's what a lot of people pulled up for, though it's the thumbnail, that's the main topic, I guess.
Speaker 1:So Kendrick did an interview with SZA. It went well. Have a great night everybody. Thank you for subscribing. Okay, no, kendrick, and okay. First of all, kendrick being interviewed by scissa is like you know, larry burger being interviewed by, like magic johnson, it's like the journalistic integrity of it is totally lost. But let's go ahead and do it anyway. What were your takeaways from this interview? Did you find out anything new about either one of the artists? Anything insightful, anything I should give two fucks about?
Speaker 3:no, listen, I'm with you. Like you know, sza was going to ask Kendrick the tough questions and I would keep the same energy if Nicki Minaj was interviewing Drake. She's not going to ask Kendrick the tough questions and I would keep the same energy If, uh, nicki Minaj was interviewing Drake. She's not going to ask Kendrick. Like yo you call you know, hold me a PDF file, but what about the allegations against yourself? She's not, she's not going to do that. Um, and she did ask him about not like us, but the way she framed it was kind of weird. Like she asked it like a hyper. She said this is a hyper masculine question, so you don't have to answer it, or whatever. But I don't know if she thought he was going to be on some raw, raw stuff. But then he gave what I'll say about Kendrick. He gave the most you know PC answer I've, you know, ever heard. He's, he's really good, because here's why he called Drake a master manipulator, but Kendrick is a master marketer. And here's the Huh.
Speaker 1:Takes one to know one.
Speaker 3:Yeah, he's a master marketer because what he did with his whole soliloquy on Not Like Us was two things. He didn't necessarily relate it to Drake, but he said you know a guy with morals and you know a guy who stands on you know certain beliefs or what have you. So he tied it back into an album or a project that most of the culture doesn't think is. You know, the best in his discography would just say that. But now he's linking his biggest hit ever in with that album because he's saying that's the mantra of this song, the exact sentiment I was trying to paint on this album.
Speaker 3:And another very smart thing that he did was he's kind of taken the meaning of not like us away from the drake element because you know, like you said, coop, the song blew up based off of like who the song was about. Yeah, I mean, it's a banger Best song of the year, but part of it was who the song was about. But when you remove that, when you remove Drake from it, you're essentially saying like, okay, this thing can stand on its own and have more legs going forward as a hip-hop, all-time hip-hop, classic song because of the mantra and what it means. So I'll give Kenny credit for trying to separate the song from Drake and lump it over there with his Mr Morale and the Big Steppers album, because he's a marketing genius for that. That was my main takeaway from the interview. Well, if you want to call it an interview, it was more of a conversation between your friends.
Speaker 1:More of a conversation. That's the type of shit con artists do. Ag, that's some con artist shit. That's all I heard you say. So you know, sean, you were right. My father is from Youngstown, ohio. Youngstown has a lot of pimps, a lot of players, a lot of pimps, a lot of players, a lot of hustlers, a lot of con artists. So I know a con when I'm being conned.
Speaker 1:I know when I'm being conned. I know when I'm being conned. He's sitting up here trying to separate Not Like Us from Drake, because he knows that he's never had a record like this do this, and so what he is really trying to do is attribute it to his talent level and his skill and his thought process and all of those things are attached to that record. But that record's about drake, and drake is the focal point, and so I don't want to hear no bullshit about him trying to unpack it, unwind it, untoggle it and try to make it into something different. Nigga, it's, it's a diss record. Your biggest record of your career is a diss record because it's of the person that it's about. Now we're not going to keep on playing these little fuck-ass games and acting like that's not the reason. That's the reason.
Speaker 1:If he was making this song about fucking. How about this? He did a whole verse one time and name dropped everybody, and it wasn't as big as doing this. That's because of the artist that you did it to, so stop trying to separate yourself from it. You've been embracing this moment in every other way. It's gotten you all the way up to your own Super Bowl performance. You should be happy. This interview was terrible. This was a terrible interview.
Speaker 3:You got to say it like Barkley Terrible what you got Shaw.
Speaker 2:I don't think it was a terrible interview. I think it was a terrible interview. I think it was. I think it was an interview. I think that he did something that he should have done and that's control his own narrative. I had mixed feelings about this interview. I went through it like two or four different times when I was trying to kind of parse through the interview and understand the interview. He made a comment in the interview that he cried recently. He's talking about emotions. Oh my God.
Speaker 1:I'm the only one that realizes he's gaslighting everybody. Is it just me? Is it really just me?
Speaker 2:He's on. Joe spoke on that and Joe did mention. He said that the guy that he attacked for being soft and being sensitive he actually doing the same thing in this interview. He's talking about emotion. He's talking about emotion. He's talking about sensitivity.
Speaker 1:He's talking about tapping into his feminine side.
Speaker 2:All of these things that he was talking about. Look, all things can be true.
Speaker 1:It's my feminine energy that's enabling me to have a dialogue with you, nigga, please.
Speaker 2:Remember when 50 got at Ja and threw at Ja for singing on hooks and having, you know, female sing on the hooks and all of these things. And when he removed Ja from the scene, he did the same thing. Correct, this is not too far from that at all. It is. It is. It's only if this is not authentic. But who are we to say that it's not? Who are we to say that this man is not in touch with his feminist side? I mean, hell, he made the Mr Morale album.
Speaker 2:He talked about his auntie, his uncle or something like that. He's reaching into different parts of his own, of, I guess, his life and his artistry. Right, and the best artists are the ones who can articulate that really well. Now, I know that's a popular thing to say because he is coming off a big hit with Not Like Us. He's ridiculed. You know, the artist that we consider to be might be the softest one in comparison and he's talking about these feminine things and you know all these things that he's attaching himself to or he's more comfortable with in his interview with a friend. So I get all of that. I get all of that, but at the same time, as an artist, he reserves that right. He reserves the right to feel that way. He reserves that right to change on us if he feels that way.
Speaker 1:I can't have friends like Cizzo. That's not going to work. Okay, that's not going to work.
Speaker 2:You can't have friends like Dolly Parton at this current age. What do you mean?
Speaker 1:I had Dolly Parton on the north side making this money. Okay, Bring my 25 cents back.
Speaker 3:And with that said, let's go to press play.
Speaker 2:No, I mean, look man, yo, look man, yo. Shout out to Andrew, because Andrew and I had a lot of conversation behind the scenes on this for the past couple of days. Andrew had a really, really strong take on this from different layers. When you're diving into, you know the psyche of someone like Kendrick, or just kind of reflecting on ourselves. It made me change my thought pattern on what Kendrick is saying and what he's trying to express. And cool, you said it yourself. You said you know this guy made Mr Morale and he showed us a different side of him.
Speaker 2:On Mr Morale and for whatever reason, it didn't connect to a lot of the fan base. People try to force it. They try to force to say, oh, this is a classic, I think Charlamagne Tha God said we won't appreciate Mr Morale until years later and how important it is. It's now becoming years later and I still don't think we identify how important that album is. This is him circling that wagon and saying I'm going to go back and get that fan base that I may have alienated during this battle. I'm going to bring him over to my side. He's doing what he's supposed to do. Whether he's believing it or not. The truth is going to come out regardless at the end. Drake said in one of the raps like this guy is not what y'all think he is. He's a trickster and but y'all following him. That's what he said.
Speaker 2:That's what Drake said, right? So we'll see how it plays out. You know what I mean. Art, by nobody. Love you is not a capital for Kendrick. I'm giving a different side of the coin, because I'm still split down the middle as to what this is all about. If he doesn't follow this up with an album, that means anything that can follow up the battle and follow up what he's doing then all this for naught right? The fan base is going to get behind Kendrick regardless. Fellas, the momentum is there, everything is there.
Speaker 3:Can I add to it I'm sorry, sean, like I just now thought about this To your point like where he's selling everybody on the morals and the feminine side isn't morally. That's what J Cole tapped into in order to back out the battle and he's getting flamed for it.
Speaker 2:He's getting flamed for it. The momentum is on his side. It doesn't matter what K-Dot does right now. The fans are going to justify it. That's what we're seeing. Drake would have did this. You know what would happen.
Speaker 1:If Drake would have talked about his feminine side.
Speaker 3:I mean, that's his whole catalog.
Speaker 1:Can you imagine what the backlash would be if he were to sit down and talk about getting in touch with his feminine side? Do you know how they would have a fit?
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:But at this point I'm going to be honest with you, gentlemen, at the point that Kendrick Lamar being interviewed by Cesar there does just become a point in the interview as a man where it's like, well, really nobody cares what you have to say. What was his awareness during the interview? Yeah, who cares about your, mr Morale, and all your little morale problems? Nigga, what's SZA have on nigga? Is she in a sundress, tights, with her hair down Ponytail?
Speaker 3:That's part of the Mr Morale, because he wasn't checking for that. He was being a loyal fiance, I ain't the only one that he's being a loyal, loyal fiance.
Speaker 1:I ain't the only one that don't need friends like SZA either. Kentry.
Speaker 2:Look, man, man, look he gets. He got a lot of momentum right now. It's like no matter what he does, the fans like every night, he just defends Yo don't let the Dodgers win the. World Series. Okay, this is Goodness Right, right, don't let the Dodgers win the World Series.
Speaker 1:You're right, don't look here. So AG was getting tight earlier, I'm getting tight now. We got to get out of these tights.
Speaker 3:Yeah, let's go to the press play, let's do it I don't feel safe, I'm uncomfortable, I'm not ready for that man.
Speaker 1:I'm uncomfortable.
Speaker 2:Y'all know the play, y'all know what a play is Y'all see it, it's in front of your face right now, yeah, yeah. You got to come to grips with it, yeah.
Speaker 3:Yeah, speaking of play, let's hit the press play.
Speaker 2:Yeah, cool, kick us off, man, what you got.
Speaker 1:You know, doing the commemorative stuff made me realize that 1997 was actually a better year in hip-hop than people gave it credit for I think it's just a change of pace year, and so I tried to pick some of my favorite records from 1997.
Speaker 1:So, starting off, guantanamera by Wyclef featuring Lauryn Hill and the Guantanamera. The Carnival's one of the more underrated albums of that era. Go John and the Guantanamera. The Carnival is one of the more underrated albums of that era. It is. It is Like the Carnival is the album of the year contender in 1997. And that's saying a lot because you got Life After Death, wu-tang Forever, no Way Out, and the Carnival is in that consideration, in that conversation.
Speaker 1:That was my favorite record from there. That's back when I thought Lauryn Hill was on time about all the things that she did. Alright, but the bar work is stellar, as always. Second, of course, personal favorite Phone Tap by the Firm. I've thought about this. The most important contribution that I think that I have to hip hop is my interview with Chris the glove Taylor, who actually made this record, and so, yeah, one of my, one of my greatest moments was actually just having him explain how phone tap happened and how the whole firm fiasco literally happened, not the song. So Phone Tap at number two.
Speaker 1:Next, another personal favorite of mine Ray and Ghost Unite, again with the MGM. This is my favorite song on Wu-Tang Forever, because I think people forget that Wu-Tang kicks street knowledge but really not street talk outside of Ray and Ghost, and so Wu-Tang Forever is heavy on the bar work and street education but very, very light on the street talk. The MGM is the street talk on Wu-Tang Forever. Yeah, everybody knows how it starts off. You know, up in the MGM psych, six niggas walked in flashing their gems Peace I, yeah, yeah, yeah, everybody knows the MGM.
Speaker 1:Number four, another 97. 97 Hov. How can I talk about 97 when I'm talking about 97 Hov? Imaginary players Top three J songs to me, still to this day, when people talk about the Jay-Zz, at least because you know, I think there are different iterations of jay at this point, but the jay that I grew up on.
Speaker 1:If I was picking a song to describe jay to people, this would be the record I put to be like who is jay-z? It's like. This is the guy you know and I had never heard somebody talk on record like this and make it almost more entertaining than having an actual hook when he's talking on here. He's like. He's like niggas think I owe him something. They gave me Rockefeller startup money, you know. Yeah, his talk is special on there. Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's very, very special.
Speaker 1:Going to keep it in Brooklyn, going to keep it in 97. My Downfall by Big. I think the foreshadowing nature of this song keep people from calling it what it is. It's one of his five best songs, guys. The mic performance on here is stellar. You can argue that, as far as three verse songs goes, this is as good as any that he's ever done. Dmc on the hook is epic. The beat is eerie and monstrous and rhythmic and cinematic and haunting and all of those things. Yes, my downfall. My downfall might be the best record on life after death. Like, just like in a vacuum, if we're talking about beats, rhymes and life. Me and Sean Combs taking broads homes.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it might not be a good verse to spit right now. No, no, no, that pays poorly.
Speaker 1:Yeah, with some bitches from Brussels eating clams and mussels.
Speaker 2:I can puss.
Speaker 1:Pretty face and mussels, I can push. Pretty face, no waist. I just want the bush so I can mack it. Give her a package to push, because I work them hoes, bend them hoes. I'll show you how to play them hoes, can you just? Yeah, he's crazy on there. He's crazy on there.
Speaker 1:My downfall by big Number six actually got a compilation. Dj Mug Soul Assassins from 1997, but one of the best goody mob records that you'll ever find and one of CeeLo's best mic performance. Decisions, decisions. The battle's no longer physical, it's from within. You live to die, you die to live again, but you can't win for losing. What side are you choosing? Decisions, decisions to make, yes, classic, classic record from the goody.
Speaker 1:And, last but not least, wanted to give a little midwest love common invocation. Invocation is produced by no id and actually is the start off to one day it'll all make sense. A lot of people forget that what helped delay this album was the fact that common was legally fighting for the right to use common sense, and he actually lost that, and so this was actually the first album that he released as common, and invocation is the first record that you hear in the iteration of Common as we currently know it. This was the start of it. I believe he said something on here. I inhale imagination and breathe wonder. So Common was always special on the mic. Shout out to Common, shout out to Chi-Town, midwest I Am God just hit me up last week we coming to Chi-Town soon, trying to work that out for the top of next year. Common with the In invocation, coop with the press play y'all, play on.
Speaker 3:I really like that list. I really like that list A little 97, love 97 was a sneaky good year. It was. It was AJ you ready.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, since we had the dope discussion last week about on last week's show about soundtracks, that's where I took my press playlist. I went and dove back into some of my favorite soundtrack records. So I'm started off with Nota Lege by Rakim. Eric B and Rakim off the Juice soundtrack. Eric B and Rakim off the Juice soundtrack my personal favorite Rakim song, and the reason being for that is just because I was coming of age. You know, I was around 11 years old when this dropped and you know I had listened to Rakim since, Paid in Full, you know, put on by my older cousins. But I was finally at an age where I felt like it finally clicked and I was getting you know the lyrics and what he was saying. It was like connecting for me by this time. You know what I mean, because rock him was rhyming at a different level for a long time, but this was the time like it really clicked for me. So that's why this uh song is my favorite rock him song.
Speaker 3:Then next I got pain from the above, the rim soundtrack, which is my second favorite pop song of all time love pain as a record. Um, I remember when this came out, this had uh, it was kind of a la um silent murder one. Uh, it was written because if you got the tape of above the real pain was on there, but if you got the cd didn't have pain on there. So that you know stuff like that used to drive me crazy back in the day when they did releases like that. But anyway, um, this pock record is and the opening scene of the movie, you know, after nutso jumps off the roof smacking the backboard and all that you know. I'm saying just the open with this song was crazy. It was iconic. So love this song.
Speaker 3:Next I got Tragedy by the RZA off the Rodman Reason soundtrack. I mean RZA, you know, I think he was underrated as one of the MCs in Woo and I think this song proved that. I remember watching this video every day on Rap City. The video was like crazy, one of the best videos out at the time and, yeah, like a kung fu flick and it was just. It was just super dope. But I remember that was the first thing that we heard of wu-tang forever coming. They said 97 february, but we know it didn't come out february. He came out later but that was the first thing we heard of that, him previewing it in that song. So the anticipation started to build from there and you know, if I'm compiling my personal top, however many 25 Wu songs or whatever, this song by RZA makes the cut for me.
Speaker 1:Really.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I love Tragedy that much. Love the record.
Speaker 1:I love it. Love it On your head like Tragedy.
Speaker 2:Love it. I predicted the Wootang Forever album as well. It did. He talked about Wootang Forever.
Speaker 3:Next I got Murdergram Not to be confused with Murdergram by LL Cool J, but this is by the group Murder Inc. And this is one of our biggest what ifs in hip hop history, if this trio actually got to release an album, because the collabs that they did together were all, in my opinion, 10 out of 10. And you know this this particular song, dmx murdered this when he came in, and everybody, john Jay-Z included, but DMX took it to another level. But this is one of my favorite tracks off the streets is watching soundtrack. So, like I said, that's a big what if I wish they could have released the album. Next I got Tommy's theme off the belly soundtrack.
Speaker 3:And when I tell you, when the locks first came out during the bad boy era, chic was my favorite, but I slowly began to like come around to jada, kiss being my favorite. But what I will say is, to me, this verse shows how dope chic is, because Kiss and Styles are in their back and forth. You know, in and out, flow back and it don't even matter. Like. How many times have you said that it don't even matter what they're doing on this track? Because Sheik comes in with a verse that kills everybody, in my opinion. Like when he said he was piled up. Like the World Series is one, I said it's game over. Like Sheik got the best verse on this song, so that's one of my favorite joints. Um, next I got you want to be me? By naz off the eight mile soundtrack, and this may be a hot take, but I think this song is just as scathing as ether. Without saying jay's name. Like from the hook to what he's saying and the bars like very disrespectful.
Speaker 3:It is very, very disrespectful. And I was surprised it made its way on the soundtrack that also featured Jay, you know, and then put it on there, but it's a whole nother story for another day how this song found its way on the soundtrack. But at any rate I don't think this gets talked about enough as a disc record and I think that's because he never said Jay's name on the record. But you know who he's talking to and who he's talking about, and this is as scathing as it gets man, arguably just as much as Ether for me. So if y'all ever heard this, check it out. It's crazy.
Speaker 3:And the last one I got on my list is Hustler's Ambition by 50 Cent off the Get Rich or Die soundtrack. Hustler's Ambition is my personal favorite 50 Cent song. It checks every box. The bars are there. 50 is not really the lyrical guy, but his bar work on here is really good. The hook is there, top notch and the beat is stellar. This is my favorite 50 Cent song. Overall, the whole soundtrack is compilations. Go as a G-Unit compilation. Criminally slept on it's dope from top to bottom. Love this whole album don't love the album.
Speaker 1:Love the song. Think it's a top 550 song for me.
Speaker 3:Oh, it's got bangers left and right on this album. I think it's a great album. You know what I'm saying. Especially for a compilation or a soundtrack, I didn't think it had any skips.
Speaker 1:Personally, Out of respect for your opinion, I'm going to go back and listen again, but I don't remember it being like that. But I do remember Hustler Ambition is like that.
Speaker 3:50 did a lot of heavy lifting on that.
Speaker 1:Sean, you want to take us home with your whack list?
Speaker 2:My list is working. Y'all, Especially yours. Coop, Coop going to come in third place again with your whack list. My list is working. Y'all, Especially yours. You got zero votes on that last list we did before. We're going to start that again.
Speaker 1:I've tried to explain this to you. These people don't know shit. That's what I'm here for. If they knew, they wouldn't need me to guide them, nigga.
Speaker 2:That's crazy. That's crazy, that's wild. My first one is Nori and Nature. I'm Leaving. You guys know I love that joint. To me I felt like Nori again. You know, corona, queens, love, fright City. Same thing. You know, same coin, different side. I felt like Nori was on on his way up and I felt like this song was one of the ones that got nori into that conversation of just being a respected um artist. Um, you know, coming off the heels of the uh of the war report and he was on his album. Uh, but I'm leaving. He killed his joint with nature. Um, I wanted to keep it in Corona Again. I was in the city this week and wanted to keep it in Corona with the Styles P and Nori joint come through. This was on the Violators 2 album. That joint was crazy. I remember the chorus like Evening.
Speaker 3:What's the time?
Speaker 2:It went crazy, man. Here's why they call me the ghost. I'm half live, half dead. When it's beat, I bring all the souls. Corona Queens, and you have Left Rack City in there. Just makes so much sense. Those two albums right there Smoking. Everything Coop did already.
Speaker 3:That Violator album is hella slept on man. It's crazy.
Speaker 1:Violator is slept on.
Speaker 2:Sean's list is suspect he slept on and again being in the city man. I felt good being in the city man and I wanted to keep it with Corona, again with the life, styles P and Pharaoh Munch and I thought this song was actually like a bonus track during that time and it was on. I think it was like the last song played on the Gangsta and the Gentlemen album and I felt like it was a very good closeout to the album. But I love this song, the Life by Pharrell Munch, styles P. I also had to go to Ghosts and Trife Biscuits. I thought this song was a great setup for this album, pretty Tony album that I've talked about enough. I thought this album was really really dope To me. I felt like Ghosts was on a major run. He was carrying that Wu flag during his time because Wu was kind of falling off a little bit during his time as well, and this album was Ghost.
Speaker 2:I think his fourth album that came out came out the Bulletproof Wallets and you know, just being able to set the tone with Biscuits was one of my joints. That chorus was crazy and I reached in a pocket for this one man. I went to that. Boot Camp Click Also came out in 97. I think the thing that hurt Boot Camp Click, and I think someone asked Sean P earlier. It just so happened I was actually listening to this album on a plane man going into New Yeti and I forgot how good this album really was. The problem with this album it came out a month before Woo Wu.
Speaker 1:Forever. It is the problem.
Speaker 2:That's the problem right Because we were comparing Wu and Boot Camp.
Speaker 1:The only problem with Boot Camp is the Wu-Tang clan.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:Yes, absolutely Okay. So Boot Camp had people who could spit with Wu-Tang, but they didn't have the stars. Ray's a star. Ghost is a star. Meth is a star. Dirty's a star.
Speaker 2:Wu has the stars, facts, facts, and we kind of looked at Boot Camp Click as like the B-Squad in comparison to Wu and this album happened to come out like a month before Wu-Tang Forever and I think it hurt, I really think it hurt the momentum of this album because Buckshot Shorty was crazy. You know Loch Ness Monster. You know Coco Brothers, smith Wesson at the time they were going crazy Strong, strong album, strong album. And you know all the talk around Nas and Jadakiss. You know this week and you know Jadakiss saying Nas was the goat, but you know this week and you know Jadakiss saying Nas was the goat, but you know we had some goofies out there saying that. You know Jadakiss was ahead of Nas.
Speaker 2:I wanted to go back and listen to a lot of the Nas and Jadakiss collaborations and I felt like what If? Was one of those, to be quite honest, fellas and again I don't want to go down this rabbit hole Nas really smoked Jada on all these collabs that they had. It's like Nas took it to a different level to say look, I'm Nas, made you look remakes are the only exception.
Speaker 4:I was about to say, yep, ag the remakes would be the exception.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's the only exception.
Speaker 2:That's because the original was so great of a mic performance and just all around love for that song. Nas was like whatever, whatever, just give him this remix of me, fellas, it's for the love. But what If is dope? Nas went crazy on what If he did? And my closeout man.
Speaker 2:I went back to the Lost Boys album, this album. I remember when this album came out, it was 99. This album, I felt it. This album was really close to me from home. It was really close to me for home. It was really close to me for home. I had just got to North Carolina. My first duty station, freaky Tside passed away, got killed, unfortunately. Rest in peace, freaky Tside. But this album to me, if you really want to feel like what New York felt like, this is that album. In my opinion, in 99, this was that album and Ghetto Jiggy was that one. It's like I felt something different with, uh, the way you know, it was just pretty loose, you know, doing this thing with the production piece of it, the ad libs, freaky towers in the background, with the ad libs, all these things connected with this song for me. And, um, I just felt that nostalgia when I was in the city. That's my roundup for this week's playlist.
Speaker 1:That's pretty good. While you were there, it gave me an excellent idea. I noticed this show goes better when we just block your face with an album and you talk. Now on every time you talk. It is great. I'm just going to have the image.
Speaker 2:Block you off. It is wild, even as you said. Yo, we got a couple of super chats yeah, yeah, I see him.
Speaker 1:Cj the kid again. Appreciate all the love, cj. Recently lord jamar spoke on big suspect lyrics in real time. When you hear the various questionable bars from big, did you catch them and question it? To be honest with you, it's been floating around Big for a long time and I'm going to tell you what really sparked it was when the artwork from Machiavelli actually the artwork from Machiavelli is really what put all of Big's lyrics into motion. It was something people had talked about before. But then when you see imagery from the original version of the Machiavelli album, you know, with Big and Puff in some compromising and putting some people, in Big's case at least, in some compromising positions. So there has been some talk about Big's lyrics being controversial on that level for quite some time at least in this show.
Speaker 3:There's a lot of stuff Big said that we didn't wrap along with. We get to that part and we just, you know, bob our head.
Speaker 1:Yeah, CJ the Kid again. Sean, you better play Biscuits on that station head. Oh, you know I will. I wouldn't do that if I was you. I wouldn't play any Biscuits from Wu-Tang Clan on the station head. Actually Biscuits is a joint.
Speaker 2:That's me Yo what up?
Speaker 1:I'm going to dig into my native tongue bag.
Speaker 2:Dig into native tongue bag. Sounds weird, but I get it. I get it. You know what?
Speaker 1:Everybody. No, we've had a wonderful discussion at Hip Hop Talks. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, pull up in our Discord. We got YouTube shorts and merch coming soon. We got the Summer Soul Festival coming soon. We outside with it, we inside with it. We making great lists with it. At least in the case of me and AG. In Sean's case, he's trying. We're going to give him a piece of effort.
Speaker 2:Cooper needs to hit some white case. He's trying. We're going to give him a different effort. Cooper, you think he's going to beat me Yo?
Speaker 3:one more part in thought. Man Hit Boy posted that big hit. I don't know why, but big hit is locked back up again and I hated to hear that news. So I just wanted to send a shout out to Big Hit man, hold your head, you know what I'm saying and hopefully get to come home again soon and stay free.
Speaker 2:Yeah, man.
Speaker 3:That's my last, that's my parting shot.
Speaker 1:Yeah man Shout out to Big Hit. Hold your head, fam.
Speaker 2:No doubt, no doubt. I think we finished fellas. Like, subscribe, share. Like, subscribe, share. Follow us on Twitter. I'll put the Discord link in the chat as well. Follow us on the Discord. Follow us on Facebook. I'll put that in the chat also.
Speaker 1:Oh, yeah, and people tell us what you want to hear and see from us. You know what I'm saying. Like you know, tell me and AG the stuff that you want us to do. We know Sean can't do anything for you, but if you hit me and AG up, tell us what you like, tell us what you need us to do. Whatever you'd like to see shorts on, y'all want to hear some of AG's deep dives on Big Sean's mediocre album. He's here.
Speaker 2:That is crazy, that is crazy.
Speaker 1:You want to hear me talk about a rapper who hasn't made a great album in seven years, but y'all keep calling him the greatest rapper of all time.
Speaker 3:Hit me up, holler at me If you want to hear about Coop shaking the mayor's hands with the Prince gloves on.
Speaker 2:Get him up. Yo, he walked by the mayor. You stabbed him in the ass like yo hey, hey, go get me some water boy. Hey, you told me to go give you some water. Yo, my bad Forget getting me some water.
Speaker 1:Lower my taxes. I almost had to finance my groceries the day. They were so expensive. I got to the counter. It's like we can apply for a finance if we go grocery shopping right. My first party cost this much money.
Speaker 2:Taxes are crazy. I got charged with a parish tax in Baton Rouge. I got charged with a parish tax. I'm like what the hell? Is a parish tax.
Speaker 1:I'm about to start putting $250 down a month and just be like look $250. I'll see y'all next month.
Speaker 3:I'm going to have your money Yo all the self-checkout Yo I think you should get a 15% 20% discount if you go through self-checkout, because you're doing it yourself.
Speaker 2:Facts, facts. Shout-out to all the people, man. Shout-out to CJ, the Kid that came through for us tonight. Yo, cj, get that thing ready for us, man, so we can do this battle, so we can smoke Coop boots. Yo, trife the Engineer, trife the engineer, trife, boogie, get ready, get ready. We about to get Coop that work man. We're going to get him worked out on our station.
Speaker 3:I'm going to send you that other list, Coop Trife.
Speaker 1:I don't know what type of work that you're doing, but you don't want to align yourself with Sean and go up against me. Trife, it's going to be all bad for me. 88 Spence with the Super Chat Really dope show. We appreciate you, Spence. We went over today. We'll be up soon. Follow us on Discord, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Twitch, every other simple, stupid fucking name that's out there that we got our logo up on.
Speaker 2:We'll see y'all and Shelby in a couple weeks. Shout out to LT Peace Salute. Another one. Shelby, come and break bread with us. I'm not giving out autographs. Don't come with me to have fun. No autographs from the kid we out, I'm just kidding. Cut the feed off, man. That is crazy. Yo we out.