Big L- Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous

Second post!  I hope to keep the blog musically varied, so here we have Big L, another one of those fantastic east coast 90 rappers who flew under the radar.  This was his only release unfortunately,before he passed away like any good rapper.  Anyways, L drops some really sick rhymes and pretty much kills on every track.  I would have to say his flow and lyricism even rivals that of Biggie.  If you haven't heard this yet, check it: Put it On All Black As usual, if you dig it, buy it!

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Live and direct from Aotearoa...

I spent last weekend at a music festival in Whitecliffs, the legendary valley farm 100 km outside of Christchurch, New Zealand. I~Nation's line up featured the best kiwi talent in Jungle, Funk, Soul & Breaks, and Dubstep. Tiki Live was the mind blowing headliner, but I was struck most by Ladi6, one of Aotearoa's premier hip-hop artists. Ladi6 (Karoline Tamati) is one of the most casually stunning and rhythmic performers I've ever seen on stage. Her smooth deep vocals keep your mind in a trance and your body moving with a spicy beat. After much anticipation, on October 27th 2008 Ladi6 released her debut solo album "Time Is Not Much." In wake of the successful album release tour, Ladi6 has earned herself the title of New Zealand's leading "soulstress and our Queen of hip-hop," (nzmusic.com/forum). Pay your respects at www.ladi6.com. Peace and Love, Trojan abroad

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My Favorite Colo(u)r is Blu

Hello, Mellow, I know it's hard to love an ordinary fellow muses Blu, on the track "Melo" off of the mixtape Her Favorite Colo(u)r, dropped earlier this week. A leader in the reemergence of the Los Angeles underground hip-hop scene, Blu is hardly ordinary and extremely easy to love. Colo(u)r is a gem in the landscape of cluttered and over-produced internet mixtapes: simple, relaxed, and completely lacking in gunshots and sirens. It mixes samples ranging from the classic to the recent (including Billie Holiday, and a sequence from the 2004 movie "Closer") with Blu's meandering, laid-back flow reminiscent of Phife from the Tribe. The feel created is that of a sort of next generation Jazz rap; not quite as organic or ethereal, but just as poetic and honest. Blu's earlier work, on his debut album Below the Heavens, and his collaborations with Producer Mainframe under the name Johnson and Johnson, has shown Blu to be introspective and intelligent. His lyrics reflect a genuine concern for the state of the world, particularly the working youth. On top of that, he's local. Her Favorite Colo(u)r showcases Blu's growing talent and his maturity, still with the same flair for simple wisdom and multi-syllable rhymes. See I'm not the same as Lil' Wayne pleads Blu in the first verse of the songe "Untitled(LovedU)2".  In a world where autotune dominates (and in light of the release of "Prom Queen") I think we can all be grateful for that.

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