I went to an afrobeats party here in LA a few weeks back and was kind of surprised by it, even though I'm probably super late to this. I'd only heard a couple afrobeats tracks from a few years ago when it started popping up, and I wasn't impressed. I've come up on some shit I actually like now:
I get turned off too easily by a lot of Nigerian/Ghanaian rap for autotune overuse but there are some I like. I particularly like the production on this one. older
yeah, the older stuff I remember hearing just seemed too tepid and auto-tuney. I like this newer stuff that's more laid back though, some of it has a bit a K Frimpong feel to it - I looked a little at Juls' Boiler Room set and he even opens with a K Frimpong track. They were also playing some Burna Boy at the party I went to, but I guess he's more afropop. I was just surprised to see a club full of american kids going nuts over music from Nigeria and Ghana, trying to sing along to choruses in Yoruba and shit.
Haha I have tried to rap along to the middle Olamide track I posted. I was pretty unaware of a scene beyond West Africa and its immediate diaspora (e.g. there is similar music coming out of London by London artists, many of whom have connections to Ghana/Nigeria) so that's interesting to hear.
it's making its way to Brazil too, from talking to friends in São Paulo it seems like rappers and producers are into it but it hasn't really seeped out yet. A lot of current Brazilian hip-hop already sounds pretty close to this stuff, imo. A friend sent me this new track that just came out, it's straight up afrobeats:
Did anyone follow Spark Master Tape back in like 2012-2014? extreme but he's back and I'm into it. this is some "one verse a day" thing he did last year I've been enjoying. some weird choices of beat (mambo no. 5???) but he pulls off shit I would not expect
You should just make time for it one night to forget about the pandemic for a while. :slow burner: I'm tempted to not link a track but this is the last one with (strut fav) khruangbin:
I'm going to see Cam rap on Friday and pretty excited. There is some heat on Purple Haze 2
Oh yeah, so Cam comes out and is all into the motions but clearly lip-syncing. This goes on, and the crowd was feeling disrespected. I made some friends in the audience off that bullshit. Anyway, he was doing material from the new album so it was possible he was just not prepared, and hey, i'm in my 40s too - so I kinda get it. Thankfully, he eventually broke into a full set of classic material and I can confirm that he is one of the best to ever do it!
I should also point that I broke with the nation of islam at the same time Malcolm did when reading The Autobiography... as a kid (j/k), so I'm not claiming that Jay is a prophet or anything with his lyrics. But his wordplay is nice.
i've been excited about the new Run The Jewels album
dababy's album has some joints on it
alc x conway
primo x gunn (love the beat - shades of pete rock and four tet)
Comments
Is that the Jurassic Park island?
Q Tip ex prod it and did several beats - some heat from Paul White too
I need a Keisha Plum album.
older
wow - that juls posse cut is
this is some "one verse a day" thing he did last year I've been enjoying. some weird choices of beat (mambo no. 5???) but he pulls off shit I would not expect
I'm going to see Cam rap on Friday and pretty excited. There is some heat on Purple Haze 2
You should just make time for it one night to forget about the pandemic for a while. :slow burner: I'm tempted to not link a track but this is the last one with (strut fav) khruangbin:
Oh yeah, so Cam comes out and is all into the motions but clearly lip-syncing. This goes on, and the crowd was feeling disrespected. I made some friends in the audience off that bullshit. Anyway, he was doing material from the new album so it was possible he was just not prepared, and hey, i'm in my 40s too - so I kinda get it. Thankfully, he eventually broke into a full set of classic material and I can confirm that he is one of the best to ever do it!
Sampa The Great - Birds And The BEE9
Whole thing is FU-WAY-GO. Some really good MUSIC under it all.
That video seems utterly appropriate for what we're living right now