And in this week’s installment of jayelectronica.com the when-is-act-2-coming-out:
Jay Electronica and Erykah on a photo shoot for URB. Watch:
I should preface this by saying I was sorta tipped off to this thing coming out. My good friend Jolie, ophthalmologist who was recently promoted to Chief Coffee-Getter and Blogger of Shiny Things at URB, weight loss mentioned to me during a Girl Talk (most hilarious white guy ever, 5 stars) show that the 11th March cover of URB was going to be Jay Electrackalack. Apparently URB was preparing for the photo shoot, and lo and behold – Erykah just sort of shows up.
Not that I’m complaining, of course. Brilliant musicians, the both of them.
I’ll give a free secret present to anyone that can guess my favorite quote from this video. Like I’ll write you into the next show.
This week, this a history lesson presented in the form of a bonus episode, decease mixed by the infamous J Rocc of the Beat Junkies. Ladies and gentlemen – Droppin’ Science.
Now, sovaldi for those of you who are not “up” on the “hip slang” of “today’s young hepcats”, droppin’ science refers to when a professor or scientist accidentally allows a test tube to fall onto the floor. Appropriately enough, then, this mix features a slice of the Blue Note discography that served as the font and laboratory for a major chunk of the production behind many of our favorite rappidy-raps – right alongside some of those true and actually rappidy-raps.
The selection, of course, comes from the recent Blue Note release, Droppin’ Science – Greatest Samples from the Blue Note lab, which presents the original samples in their untampered brilliance. Some of us may well have these songs already (on vinyl, no less), but for anyone that wants a pristine copy of ten of the most-often raided jawns next to the Funky Drummer, this is not a bad choice. Or, hell, if you’re a producer, see if you can sample a different part of The Edge and make it sound as legendary.
And of course, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention a good portion of the reason for posting this episode up while I prepare for the next one – I’ve got 5 free copies of this one on hand to give out to anyone who wants one. 3 are going out on this site, 2 are going out exclusively to Mixtape Show Facebook Group members – so join up.
Want one? Pretty easy – if you listen to this mix, you’ll hear, as noted above, some of the actual sampled cuts right next to some of the better-known tracks that sample them. Just name any one of the many hip-hop classics that you hear in this episode below – artist and track, please – and based upon how quick you are and how much I like you, I’ll get you a copy shipped out. Post your answers in the comments. (If you’ve won something in the past, feel free to name cuts, but we’re trying to let everyone get a chance here, dig?)
For those interested in the tracklist of the actual CD you’ll be winning (and if you don’t win, might as well cop it):
1. It’s Your Thing- Lou Donaldson
2. Mystic Brew- Ronnie Foster
3. Think Twice- Donald Byrd
4. The Edge- David McCullum
5. Oblighetto- Brother Jack McDuff
6. Get Out Of My Life Woman- Joe Williams
7. Down Here On the Ground- Grant Green
8. Spinning Wheel- Lonnie Smith
9. Howling For Judy- Jeremy Steig
10. Who’s Making Love- Lou Donaldson
But for this episode itself – for the first time in Mixtape Show history, no tracklist. I’m gonna let you all fill that one out. For the n00bs among us, this is your first introduction to what we in “the know” call “diggin in the crates”, which of course dates back to the old Chinese railroad workers that would dig about in crates full of railroad ties for particularly shiny specimens which they would sell on the black market so that they could afford Mobb Deep records. It’s an exciting world, ladies and gentlemen, and we welcome you.
And hey, bonus, you can listen to this one at work and not get in trouble. No curses!
So this episode should answer all questions about who I voted for. Let’s cut the typing and do the rundown, click shall we?
(but before I do that – remember that you can embed this episode in your myspace, website like this blog, this site etc! Look above!)
Tracklist!
Mobb Deep – Shook Ones (MF Doom Remix). I don’t think I need to say much about this one. The original was great, this one is possibly greater. Doom is just stupid as a producer. Who needs extra drums? Classic. I won’t be mad at you if you rewind just for this one. myspace.com/mfdoom.
Zero 7 – Somersault (Dangermouse Remix feat MF Doom). And Doom shows up as an MC this time. I had a very good friend once that played Zero 7 incessantly whenever I was at her place. I probably know all the songs from their first CD by heart, and I don’t even know what the album cover looks like. One of the odd joints out where Doom actually attempts to tell a(n ostensibly) coherent story. Simple, but dope production. Don’t get it twisted though – Zero 7 is great by itself. myspace.com/zero7.
Amplive - Video Tapez (feat Del the Funky Homosapien). Off the Zion I member’s somewhat infamous Radiohead – In_Rainbows remix album. There are obvious comparisons to be drawn to Dangermouse‘s Grey Album, but it’s still a good (and free) record. It raises a lot of questions (doesn’t everything nowadays, though?) about media ownership and rights, as well. myspace.com/amplive.
Donwill - Camp Cupcake. Off the Beat Thieves Vol 2 record. I will leave the title alone and say that I dig this cut.myspace.com/donwont.
vicolude – Daedelus - Playing Parties (Yesterday’s New Quintet – The Stars Remix). Featuring a very prominent figure from my childhood. Okay, who am I kidding – my teenhood and nascent adulthood.
Daedelus - Obama 2008 feat Shariq and Taz of Sa-Ra. This song is so ridiculous it’s not even funny. Wait, it is. This is the jam, official, game over, I could play this 20 times and it would make a great episode. I don’t know why they have to be so dismissive about my mother’s opinions – I think she may very well have voted for Obama. I should ask her. By the way, if you ever get the chance to see Daedelus – do so. It’s brilliant.myspace.com/daedelus.
Donwill - Go Head (beatjackee = Wale Oyejide). I’m not sure what Mr. Oyejide is doing about the inevitable mixup between him and the other Wale, but I’ve always dug the former’s production. Look for more Donwill soon, by the way, as soon as I get that Suburban Sprawl record…
Q-Tip – Breathe and Stop (Iain Haywood remix). More solid production work from Iain – dig the saxophones! What, you’ve heard his stuff before, right? Do your homework. myspace.com/12pads.
Muja Messiah – Paper Planes (feat Manifest).M.I.A. gets the beatjack treatment this time (about time, that Piracy Funds Terrorism Vol 1 was pretty much grand larceny – can we get a Vol 2, by the way?). I obviously like this song. I guess I should be a little troubled that the “activist” message has been lost in this version, but really activism is for pansies anyway. myspace.com/mujamessiah.
I kid.
Bonus cut -
Cappadonna - Slang Editorial (Madlib Remix). Or at least that’s who it’s credited to, I just happened upon this track while I was mixing this episode down. Remember Cappadonna? That dude was cool. I’d listen to a Cappadonna record. Apparently he actually made some records, but all I remember hearing about him after Triumph was that he was driving taxis. myspace.com/madlib.
On the 15th, mind I got a bunch of messages (thanks Mirateck, Iain and the slew of others) telling me to check youtube’s front page. As soon as I got back to my computer, I was greeted with an officially HP-sponsored ad:
(Fake) Camron – HP Hands commercial
What you must understand, though, is that this was up on the front page of youtube, with an HP banner. HP was officially endorsing this. It’s confusing, because the Killa Cam (killa!) is essentially lamenting his (killa!) being forced to shill for HP (killa!) to pay his bills (killa!). Which one would think casts HP in a negative light. Regardless of the fact that this actually sounds like something (killa!) Cam would say – why sponsor something like this? Why not actually have the real Cam’ron do an HP commercial? Why go with a parody, when you could get something serious?
I’ll tell you why – because somewhere, some young advertising intern had an epiphany. And that epiphany is:
There is nothing serious about hip-hop*. It is a parody of itself.
I remember when I first got Soulja Boy’s “I Got Me Some Bathing Apes”. I thought it was the most hilarious thing ever. And I’ve always found something inherently amusing about Dipset, to be honest. Rap at this stage is so cooned out that nearly everything is a ready-made caricature of itself.
*I shortened this phrase to make it cuter. By “hip-hop”, I mean “90% of today’s mainstream hip-hop”. Obviously not the stuff that I play on this show, though some of that is also funny to me.
Let’s see some evidence, shall we?
Exhibit A:
Kanye West and Lil Wayne
This cut contains what is currently my favorite Lil Wayne quote. “Sometimes I pick up a magazine / or a tabloid / or a tambourine / Sometimes I wanna go and just smoke a bag of weed / and leave the Earth on a motherfucking trampoline”
So strange! So creative! Clearly the work of a drugged out of his mind tortured genius. A lot of people don’t “get” Lil Wayne’s more esoteric stuff, but I think I do.
One problem – that’s not Lil Wayne, or Kanye. It’s a parody – but it’s damn near as good as anything either of them would put out (possibly better). Listening to this thing, there are some funny lines, but one of the things that was keeping commenters on the Youtube thread confused as to whether or not this is an authentic track is that so many artists – Lil Wayne being a prime example of this – dance the line between “insanity” (genius?) and sanity (mediocrity?) so often and imperceptibly that you’re never really sure why you enjoy a song.
Is because the media pushing it down your throat? Are you just settling for it because nothing better is out there? Or is the song actually good?
And for that matter, does an artist actually need talent to make a song that is “good”?
Exhibit B:
Deadly Adventures – Michael Vick vs 50 Cent
I don’t have any point to make here, I just think this video is hilarious.
Exhibit C:
Lethal B – Pow! (Forward Riddim) (Original Video)
Here, we see that this has even infected the UK’s grime scene. Am I the only one that laughed through this whole video? I mean, dig D Double E – that dude looks like he’s had polio for 22 years and somebody just found the cure but it hasn’t quite worked its way through his body yet. Why is he moving like that? And is he vomiting blood? Then you have Discovery Channel outtakes with Napper, and by the time Forcer comes on with the spinning rims and unnecessary booty, it’s one white boy short of a Weird Al song.
Don’t get me wrong, though, this is an awesome song. The fact that the song itself was banned is also pretty cool, I guess.
So, yeah
I don’t know, kids. I feel like I could make some point here, but I suddenly find myself losing the desire. Rap is funny, in a Kurt-Vonnegut-so-it-goes sort of way, because on one hand it entertains me, but on the other hand I realize that a lot of kids don’t quite understand how to differentiate between reality and fantasy and they actually believe what these men are saying.
Tears me up inside, innit.
I also wonder if I should feel bad that I produce a show about something that I can’t take seriously.
