Review: All We Need - @Raury written by @Maryyy_UK

Picture if Kendrick Lamar, Coldplay, and Mumford and Sons made an album together and that’s type of sound Raury has. 

Mixing folk, indie rock and hip-hop, Raury makes a splash in his debut album All We Need. This Georgia rapper spits poetic lines, talking about the destruction of Black communities, personal heartbreak, and everything in between. While his album covers a range of topics, it still feels like a cohesive piece of work.

 He starts heavy with the title track when he tells us that “As soon as we being to speak we begin our career as actors.” This makes the audience think: How much of what we say is actually real? In Trap Tears featuring Key he levels the playing field, telling the “tragic stories” that lead to he trap life, often not by choice. This song has the most hip hop feel compared to the rest of the album. He shuns the popular opinion that this lifestyle can be avoided, when in reality it is the only option that some people have. Hence, the infamous name “Trap”.

In Forbidden Knowledge featuring Big K.R.I.T, he talks about “digging deeper” because young black people have the tendency to become distracted by the glitters, not realizing what it actually important. Raury hopes that message will “stand as long as red wood sequoias, pyramids and stones from Stonehenge” all of which hold the historical mystery of forbidden knowledge. Then he gets personal, which is also heavy, but just a different kind of weight. In Woodcrest Manor II he reminisces back to the days when him and his homie just drove around and listened to music, but different dreams led to different paths. You know how it goes, the friends in high school that you considered family, but now ya’ll don’t even talk; yeah it’s that type of relationship. Even though Love Is Not a Four Letter Word is a heartbreak song, it’s not typical. Raury speaks his mind on the track saying “I ain’t thinking about you” recalling the warnings about the girl’s immaturity, he sings his heart in the background saying “I miss you." Using a light acoustic sound, this reminds us all of our first break up where we can’t decide whether or not we hate them or want them back.

In this album, Raury just poured out everything that was going on in his brain, and that’s what I like about it. Sometimes artists try to separate albums with one emotion. However, Raury just lets all his thoughts hold equal value. Whether it’s his frustration with the way Americans are easily distracted by commercial things or the way his ex girlfriend broke his heart, everything is important. That’s what makes it so relatable;  we all do this. We all have those stare-at-the-ceiling and-think nights where all of these thoughts enter in and out of our heads. Raury just writes it down and combines it with an irresistibly unique sound for all of us to listen to.

Review: It's Better This Way @BIGKRIT Written by: @Natural_Nation

Right out the gate Big K.R.I.T. comes hard. I actually had to pause the first track to collect myself before I could continue listening.

I’ve been a K.R.I.T. fan ever since I heard Children Of The World one hot summer weekend on MTV Jams. My friend and I stopped to look at each other when the song ended. The pure fire we had just experienced amidst the 2010 hits of Young Money, Gucci Mane, and Soulja Boy had completely caught us off guard. It was lyrically saturated, full of gumption, and it was SO southern. A combination we’re not used to hearing in mainstream hip-hop.

“I got a chip on my shoulder the size of a boulder.”

Krit brought it all back and hit us with a jazzy and soulful first track entitled King Pt.4 on his new mixtape It’s Better This Way.  I admit it was his typical M.O.A jaded rapper feeling ignored due to restrictive southern rap stereotypes, who was long overdue for mainstream success. A tale we’ve certainly heard from him before. But it’s his raw emotion that forces you to listen to his story time and time again. It’s what leaves you saying…” Damn, why ya’ll do him like that?." You have no choice but to empathize and that is the magic of Krit, a Master storyteller with candy coated words.

The rest of this mixtape is pretty classic Krit. If you are already a listener you won’t be disappointed. If you’re not, you are most certainly late but I won’t hold it against you. This is as good a mixtape as any to hop on the bandwagon. Krit supplies us with the all the juicy 808, seat back, one hand on the steering wheel, gold grill, head nodding tracks we’re looking for. I personally always listen to him in the summer, windows down, music blaring. He manages to encompass all the catchiness of a hit record with all the production and content of a classic record. And he has no problem delivering this to us time and time again. I would imagine this is why he is so frustrated with the industry. The reason why I enjoy this artist has everything to do with the factors I mentioned earlier, when I first heard his music back in 2010. The combination of his style, lyrics, and delivery, hit the center of every target for me. As a musical genre, hip-hop does little to acknowledge the talented rappers of the south. When it comes to naming top rappers/lyricists of almost any decade, how many of those names appear below the Mason-Dixon line? Let’s name the few that mainstream does acknowledge: Lil Wayne, T.I., UGK, Outkast, and depending on who you’re talking to the infamous Jay Electronica ( yes, he is in fact from New Orleans). Long story short when it comes to merit, especially lyrically, this is an area the south gets the once over. From the gate Krit has always had this factor working against him and he’s not shy to say it. Despite that, he doesn't shy away from his roots. His origin is proudly represented in his music and it’s one of the most important aspects of his sound.

The track that stood out most to me was track 8: Into the darkness. It’s a sound I don’t recall hearing from Krit before. It embodied more of a PartyNextDoor vibe. It never lost the Krit flare of course but it was still interesting to hear him experiment with a different sound. Krit also manages to feature a number of different artist on this mixtape. I was surprised to hear Ludacris, and BJ the Chicago Kid was one of my personal favorites on Vanilla Sky. Overall, this body of music gave me everything that I wanted to hear and reminded me once again why my itunes reads 9 albums and 137 song under his name. He may not have the fame or recognition he desires but his effort and talent shows. He’s taken no shortcuts, he’s put in the work and his music is reaching the ears of those who appreciate it and really want to listen. It’s a long road but maybe, ...it’s better this way.

@Natural_Nation’s Favorite Tracks:

[King Pt.4].[How Bout That Money],[Party Tonight],[It’s Better This Way],[Piece of Chain], [Shakem Off]

Stream It's Better This Way below via DatPiff

#InCaseYouMissedItMonday: Self Titled (Illa J) - @IllaJ; A Niles P. Joint

It’s never easy following in the footsteps of a successful family member. When your late older brother is one of the most beloved and revered producers in Hip Hop history, the challenge seems nearly insurmountable. This is a common theme in the story of Illa J.  

Being the younger brother of J Dilla had some perks. He became a member of his brother’s group Slum Village and his debut album was filled with posthumous Dilla beats. However he soon yearned to outgrow his brother’s shadow. He wound up moving from Detroit to Montreal and had his self-titled sophomore album produced by Canadian production duo Potatohead People with a couple of co-producers. With these new pieces in place, Illa J is ready to set off on his own musically.

As cool as the album is, it actually starts on a seemingly sad note with She Burned My Art which is a breakup song with a hopeful monologue at the end. It sets a sonic tone at least as the beat is entrancingly smooth.  It also features Canadian spitter Moka Only, who shows up on four of the album’s eleven tracks. Universe is appropriately titled as it is a bouncy space-funk joint that is two step worthy. Aside from rapping, Illa J gets to display his singing ability on the song. Kaytranda continues a hot streak and co-produces Strippers, a hypnotic ode to the exotic dancers of the world. Conversely, Sunflower is a duet with Allie that profiles as more of a love song. While being entirely sung by both parties, the guitar work is astounding. It’s a sweet song that is also danceable. 

Of all the sports in the world, I’m not sure I’ve heard too many songs about bowling. Perfect Game changes that with lyrics chock full of bowling termanology that Illa J uses to describe how dope he is. The entrancing keyboards that Potatohead People have mastered are stippled with the sound of a ball knocking down some pins. The closer is one of the more heartfelt joints you'll hear in 2015. Never Left pays tribute to J Dilla. The title says it all, Illa J feels that his big brother is always with him. At the same time, he speaks about people that try to profit off of Dilla’s legacy. It’s a very honest song that shows two sides of a story that most don’t cover. There are many tribute songs to deceased loved ones on wax but there can sometimes be a seedy factor when it comes to dealing with posthumous material and other affairs. I commend Illa J for addressing it while also expressing love and reminiscing over his big brother.  

Illa J is possibly the most chill album of the year. It seems like every single track was purposely designed for you to groove to with your drink of choice, creating a very even wave for the album’s duration. Now musically and thematically Illa J utilizes some of the same trademarks that Dilla had perfected. But by switching labels (from Delicious to Bastard Jazz) and going with Potatohead People in lieu of beats from the vault, Illa manages to make an enjoyable album on his own terms while still keeping with family tradition musically. Potatohead Peoples deserve recognition as far as the beats go; not only do they stay consistent with quality, they also don’t use any samples at all. They might seem like minor footnotes but they are both easier said than done and hold pivotal indications for the future. Illa J is a homecoming of sorts, as Illa J himself successfully forges his own place in the game and lays the foundation for a bountiful solo career. Listen to Illa J below.

In Case You Missed It - #Euphoria - @Moruf88 & @IAmImanOmari

Let's go back to a couple years back. Shades of Moo hadn't been released yet. Garden State to Live was still in rotation and we got nice loosies like Jasmine. The point is we were wondering when we'd here the new Moruf project. Fast forward a little bit of time and he touring with Stalley. Who knows how or when but he got to link with an awesome producer named Iman Omari. The duo collaborated and created something quite on unorthodox from what we have heard before. Let's get to the music.

The tape opens with a self-titled introduction. Very eerie sounding production blares through your headphones. Omari croons over the beat and verse one. Enter Moruf in the second part of the intro. It's interesting to hear his voice altered and edited to a slightly higher pitch. Nonetheless, great way to open up a project. Track two, Clutch! I actually spent a lot of time trying to find the melody but frankly there isn't one in a flipped song like Iman Omari trademarks. The melody comes solely from Moruf and his lyrics and Omari and his singing in the second verse. This trends throughout the tape. In fact, SLY!, Fallen, and Get Envolved do the same thing. My favorite joint on this album is School Daze. I've always loved how Moo uses skits from scenes of old movies in the intros to his song. So of course he does the same with School Daze and name dropping a bunch of classic 90s movies and TV like Next Friday, Kids, Family Matters, Fat Albert, How Stella Got Her Groove Back, and others. I also really enjoyed The Path. Omari shows out his soulful vocals over a crazy beat. It pissed me off how long I sat there trying to figure out the sample he flipped the beat from. I swear I had my tongue on it but had to give up so if you're reading this it's never too late.

I suggest you listen to this through headphones rather than speakers. Iman Omari outdid himself producing. Moruf still gave us the classic hip-hop sound we all love him for. When I first heard this tape I actually despised it. Not because it was bad but because I didn't understand it. Myself, like all things have to grow up to appreciate it for what it really is. I'm glad to say Euphoria was just that for me. Stream Moruf & Iman Omari's Euphoria below.

#InCaseYouMissedIt End The World+ - @redlinegraffiti

I'm 100% certain you missed out on good music with this group. Let's take a trip back to DC last year. Trillectro '14. Crazy lineup with some surprise guests as well. Acts included Big Sean, TWRK, Dougie F, Sza, Sango, Goldlink, Migos, Rae Sremmurd, and Travis Scott. Throughout the rainy day everyone ripped the two stages but a small local DC band was one of the openers of the headlining stage. I was heavily impressed. The band's name was Redline Graffiti. After the show I followed their soundcloud and listened to their EP titled The Drill on my trip back to Jersey. Almost a year later I'm still listening and you should too.

A few months back in March they dropped their most recent project, End The World+ EP. Let's get to it. It was short but sweet 4 track offering. Redline Graffiti is a crossover genre band that branches from Jazz, to alternative, to rock, to even hip-hop. Track one, Appetite is a testament to just how versatile their music sounds. Dante Pope starts the song off with a gospel praise break sounding percussion introduction with a kick and clap (snare) breakdown. Enter really dope bassline and and acoustic guitar with soothing vocals by Drew Moten. It kinda does a two part timbo thing. What I mean by that is they take the percussion out and change the melody for a bit before returning to the original sound. "If you're scared say you're scared. If you're tired say you're tired." Beautiful but upbeat love song and a great way to start a project.

Thieving In The Place is track two. It continues the really mellow feel. Drastically slower this time around. Moten lays down vocals over chords played by Ajene Harley. Donald Martin does a beautiful time harmonizing on the hook. It leads perfectly into track three. The Donnie Most Remix of the latter song. The same lyrics repeat but the slow chords are met by computerized sounds that sound like something out of a video game. The hook is much different. The percussion is boom bap hip hop over R&B jazz sounding vocals. Verse two continues a more complex drum fill as the song progresses. It gives the song a different sound altogether. I enjoyed them both, as a ballad and jam.

They close out End The World with a self titled track. Martin takes the lead vocals this time around. I always loved electric guitar solos and Harley delivers with flare when the song begins. "It's the end of the world and I need you here, but it feels like the end of the world right now" croons Martin. You can hear raw emotion in the songwriting and vocals of this one. Moten returns on verse two and the bridge. I was really surprised from his unique voice returning back to the foreground and with falsetto. Everyone got their own shine on this song and it's definitely this fan's favorite. You can watch the visual for End the World below.



I usually end these write ups with a rating of sorts but I won't. I really just want you to listen. They were a fun act to watch live and in studio their skills speak for themselves. This is a very talented group of young brothers from the nation's capital. End The World+ can be purchased on iTunes and Bandcamp. Luckily for you we have the soundcloud stream for you below. Check them out. Ramsey signing off.