MIXTAPE 97 – WEST COAST WINTER

Why is it so cold? Anyway, order other news: Giveaways, rx son!

Yes, I do have 5 copies of 2K Sports’ NBA 2K8 for XBOX 360 (USA version) up for grabs. Merry Christmas, etc. Listen to the show to get details on how to grab your own copy and then post up your ideas in the comments. And as I said, 3 of them will be going out on the site, and two will be going out on the Mixtape Show Facebook Group – you gotta be in it to get the info on how to win one (click here to join up).

Massive, massive shouts to DJ Spaceboy at 2K for making this possible.

This ep – just West Coast all over the place. You’ll like it, I promise.

Strong Arm Steady – Steady Mobbin feat The Game. And Will Blast screaming random ignorant things in the background. No bad feelings though, that just adds to the bananas-factor of this joint. The funky Dago connection is in the house. I love this song. CHUUUUCHmyspace.com/strongarmsteady

Tha D.R.E. – Wild Child. I can’t necessarily vouch for the rest of the record, but for anyone who appreciates Bay Area rap, this cut is a gem. Oddly enough, dude is from Milwaukee.

Unagi – Mo Champagne feat Motion Man. Unagi hit me with this cut and I think I played it 8 times back to back. The dude really is just dope with the loops. unagi442.com.

Johnson&Jonson – La La La. Yes, Blu is in here. Seriously, how are they going to clear these samples? Jon, can you shed some light on this? Either way, this is really dope. (You’ve heard – and seen – Johnson & Jonson here before, by the way). Something to look forward to ’08 – the Powders and Oils album. myspace.com/jandjbabyproducts. I’m not pretending to understand the name, though.

Spice 1 – Playa Man. Again, get well soon, dude. I’m really just now getting into this cat’s music. myspace.com/spiceone.

Double F – Weed, Greed, and Chases at High Speed (prod. Dilla). This off his mildly controversial 2006 Welcome to Cali Jay Dee tribute tape (which almost made it onto the First Impressions tape). Short, to the point, and, well, great. myspace.com/mystadub

Dam Funk – December Sun – At some point the two of us are going to link up and just give you all a ridiculous show. Dam is just too funky with the beats. I know I talked all over this one, but you can go get yourself a listen at his myspace. Check for him on the new 2K8 soundtrack, too. myspace.com/damfunk.

Kam – (Untitled)?. This comes off of a Naam Brigade mixtape (the only one I have, actually). Yes, the Message revamped. You can hate all you like, but I actually dig this song a lot. Naam Brigade somehow pulls of these throwback beats that show the roots of this music without sounding contrived – on the contrary, a lot of their tape goes really, really hard. Kam is pretty great on this cut, and the combination of the NoI references, the commentary on the West Coast gangster rap market, and the parallels to the original cut are pretty interesting. In that vein, the “fag” lines are a little abrasive at first, until you remember that the original cut dropped them the same way. myspace.com/westcoastkam1

Hope you all dug this one. Good luck in the contest, and be on the lookout for a few special editions of the Mixtape Show coming your way very soon…

And on a related note, I know I’m kinda opening myself to the flames by calling anything a “West Coast” episode. Too much great music out here – again this is just a slice of the diversity out here. Feel free to let the recommendations fly in the comments.

MIXTAPE 60 – BACK TO BASICS

Hey, sovaldi sale I think I’m actually on time with this one. There’s no real concept here, stomach aside from the “back to basics” thing, sale which basically means that I’m talking ass and playing random tracks because I like them. Classic.

Also, since I did a lot of talking in the show, I’m going to lay off on the long descriptions for the tracks. Hope you don’t mind. Leave comments, let me know how you felt this one…

Oh yes – I’ve just upped the quality from 96kbps to 160. It’s 2007, kids. The player above is gonna give you lofi, but if you want the hi-fi, you’ll need to download it by clicking the album cover from now on (or just subscribe in iTunes).

shoutouts to truestatiks for the intro beat!

DK – Observing The Night. DK’s all right, man. I like this dude. myspace.com/dk730

RZA – Just A Lil’ Dude feat Q-Tip and Free Murder. I am really feeling this joint. Off the Afro Samurai soundtrack. I have yet to check this show out – anyone out there seen it and can comment on it? afrosamurai.com

Hi-Tek – Let It Go feat Dion. This new Dion cat is kinda nice. I’m not buying this “15 times in a single day”, though. I mean, logistically, that’s just not even fucking feasible. Liar. myspace.com/hitek

Denots – Inolvidable. Better break out your old high school Spanish texts, because these motherfuckers get bilingual on us. This crew is out of Paraguay, and apparently fans of the show, which is always a bonus. myspace.com/bassreflexpy.

Howard Lloyd – We Did It. I’m not condoning any of the behavior found in this song. It is kinda funny though. cdbaby.com/cd/howardlloyd

4-Ize – Steroids. You might remember this dude from mixtape show 29. 4-Ize is a weird dude. 4ize.com

Nas – Where Are They Now (West Coast Remix) featuring Breeze, Kam, King Tee, Candyman, Threat, Ice T, Sir Mix A Lot, and Conscious Daughters with cuts by DJ Bobcat. Yeah, that’s a long “featuring” list. There’s another couple of these ones, actually, featuring mainly East Coast rappers from both the 80s and 90s – y’all wanna hear those? I got em…

Sniper E - SAS Diss Part 2. I can’t really explain why I like this song. It’s hilarious. Check out the “big ups” on dude’s site for a shoutout to the mixtape show. I actually don’t even know anything about SAS other than that they like to say “Dipset, bitch”. snipere.co.uk.

That’s it for me for this show. Let me know what you thought, and be sure to stay tuned to your favorite hip-hop podcast for more craziness soon soon soon.

Oh, and speaking of that video I was talking about, I am kind of toying with the idea of doing a video podcast. Would you all be interested in seeing something like that? If so, what would you want to see?

MIXTAPE 45 – STREETS OF LA MIXTAPE

Like I said in the intro, recuperation this is a guest spot* called the Streets of L.A. Mixtape Vol 1 from one of LA’s more infamous mixtape DJs, prescription DJ Nik Bean, cohosted by Bishop Lamont. Oh yeah, and voting ends in a few days, so go to podcastawards.com and VOTE, MOTHERFUCKERS.

Tracklist is below – look for the expanded version later.

Young Hootie – I’m the Best
Ras Kass – Let’s Go to War
Game feat. Gusto – Will I Die
Bishop Lamont – Go Ape
Damani feat Mack 10 – Inglewood

Look out for next week’s episode of your favorite rap/hip hop podcast right here.

Oh, and if I get any fucking e-bangers up in my comments, I’m going to write an email about you to your mom.

You have been warned.

*If you’re interested in doing a guest spot/cohost, holler at your boy.