I’ve been on an Adam Sandler kick the past week and wound up getting sucked into the surprisingly rewatchable The Longest Yard, which I probably haven’t watched more than 5 minutes of since it came out. It is peak 2005 with Sandler at the tail end of his white hot streak, Nelly at the height of his powers, and cameos from a somewhat recently retired Michael Irvin, Stone Cold Steve Austin, D12, Big Boy, and of course friend of the blog William Fitchner. What really makes it scream 2005 though is the fire flames soundtrack from Nelly himself in a song that was a YouTube hype video staple back in the day, “Here Comes the Boom.”
I did not realize this song was somehow 25 years old. “God’s Bathroom Floor” is a track that bounced around for a while before finding an official home on the Overcast! EP, but it never made the cut on the actual album. “Introspective raps over a jazzy hypnotic melody” also may be the best way I’ve ever heard to describe Atmosphere.
Initially written and recorded when Atmosphere and fledgling label Rhymesayers Entertainment were still making a name for themselves in the Minneapolis hip-hop scene, “God’s Bathroom Floor” was an early standout for the group. Turning heads and drawing new fans in with Slug’s introspective raps over a jazzy hypnotic melody produced by Stress, the song was performed live frequently, quickly becoming an audience favorite before ever appearing on an actual release. Even then, it was only a live performance they made available, and only on a limited mixtape they released in 1996. It would be another year before the 4-track studio recording would surface on Atmosphere’s Overcast! EP—a collection of focus tracks promoting their debut full-length album—but “God’s Bathroom Floor” never made it onto the album itself and slowly slipped into obscurity from there. – @Atmosphere
It’s like I never felt alive before Mhmm, I’d rather have me peace of mind than war See me and you, we ain’t that different I struck the fuck out and then I came back swingin’ Take my time to finish, mind my business A life ain’t a life ’til you live it
It’s no secret that I’m a big Mac Miller fan and last week would have been his 29th birthday after passing away in 2018, which is crazy he wouldn’t have even been 30 yet. I think Mac was an artist that I related to because I was in college when he first started popping online and he was rapping about a lot of the same stuff I was doing. He was probably the most successful out of the white kid frat rap genre (Asher Roth, Sammy Adams, Chris Webby etc.) that was like a comet back in the late 2000s, but he was also the only one to really grow up and his music reflected that.
K.I.D.S. and Best Day Ever still immediately takes me back to drinking around campus and Blue Slide Park came out when I was living by myself in New York working my first real life job. (It was also the first time I owned a car with an actual CD player) Watching Movies With the Sound Off though is where Mac really started experimenting and you could see he was trying to break out of the party rapper mold, which eventually led to much more well rounded albums like GO:OD AM. He started branching out into other genres like funk and somehow successfully bending that to fit his own style like he did with The Divine Feminine before releasing arguably his best all around album Swimming, released just over a month before his death in 2018. His family and inner circle posthumously released his Circles album in 2020 as well.
But I think one of the most enduring examples of his work oddly enough was his NPR Tiny Desk Concert. I was feeling nostalgic the other day so I threw that up on YouTube and it just shows the growth Mac Miller had from his early days as he croons with a live band including one of my favorite songs of his, the melancholy ballad “2009.” There are much worse ways to spend 15 minutes of your day so I highly recommend checking it out.
Racks on racks, I don’t rap on tracks Without my A-game, so please don’t ask me about no pressure Bitch, with the grip of my fingertip I can hold this coast together
Ab-Soul goes hard on “ILLuminate,” but Kendrick Lamar is so so good. K-Dot isn’t a voracious social media user though so I feel like he drifts in and out of people’s minds. He came out with what I said was the album of the year in 2017 with “DAMN.” He followed that up in 2018 with the surprisingly excellent movie soundtrack to Black Panther. Movie soundtracks are usually flimsy albums with one hit song like Wild Wild West, but Kendrick took the job serious as all hell and put out a legit full fledged album. He’s been relatively quiet in the two years since so we’re stepping into the way back machine for this 2012 Ab-Soul track “ILLuminate” featuring Kendrick doing the damn thing.
True story: Back in college I used to work at The Gap where I developed my bulletproof method of folding t-shirts and crisply stacked denim. But because I was absolutely broke I would work whatever shift I could get so sometimes that was the mid-afternoon shift working the register and folding reasonably priced sweaters. Other times it was the 4 AM shift unloading the truck and opening up all the new products. And since I was one of the only guys that worked there, this included taking the 100 pounds of cardboard through the back hallways of the mall, down the sketchy service elevator, and into the belly of the South Shore Plaza to crush it all up in the dumpster. Real great job for like $9 an hour. Anyways, I paint this picture so you can understand how any form of entertainment was greatly needed. Now the No. 1 perk of working these absurdly early morning shifts was the fact that the mall was obviously not open yet so we could listen to our own music in the store. Well being like 19-years-old provides a certain level of the chemical “fuck it” in your system so when the middle aged ladies would bring out the radio to play some Matty in the Morning, I would snatch the Aux cord and BLAST obscure rap like Chris Webby at 5 in the morning. Now just picture me, unpacking boxes before the sun was even up, playing rap at a deafening level inside a dimly lit Gap just to get through the morning.
A featured artist in our #RushHourRap series, a truly original rapper, and a personal favorite of mine, it came out over the weekend that indie rap icon MF DOOM passed away at the age of 49. Yet another truly stunning loss for the music industry as a whole. Known for his lyrical prowess, and unapologetically verbose style, Daniel Dumile (pronounced Doom-ee-lay) AKA MF DOOM has been rapping under various names since the 80s. Dumile was a member of the rap group KMD, going by the name of Zev Love X, but the group broke up in 1993 after the death of his brother. After a few years away from music, Dumile came back onto the scene performing while wearing a Doctor Doom mask and adopted the moniker “MF Doom.” Doctor Doom is even on the cover of his 1999 debut solo album Operation: Doomsday.
Most of MF DOOM’s solo work came in the early-mid 2000s with probably his most well known album, Mm…Food, a clever anagram that included tracks all named after food such as “Rapp Snitch Knishes” to complete the wordplay. His last solo album dropped back in 2009, but he’s done all kinds of collabs over the years like the Madvillainy album where he teamed up with Madlib for what many call his magnum opus.
DOOM collabs often sneak up on you with their completely unique beats and work their way into your brain like the 2018 collab with Czarface, Czarface Meets Metal Face.
Speaking of collabs, I’d be remiss to not include MF DOOM’s 2016 collab with Atmosphere on “When The Lights Go Out.”
You may have never heard DOOM on the radio, but that hasn’t really been a measuring stick of musical quality since *at least* when YouTube was launched, probably earlier if we’re being honest. He was clearly an artist that was held in high regard around the industry. Rap juggernaut Lupe Fiasco even released a freestyle the other day honoring MF DOOM.
Thanx DOOM…I learned so much from you about the art of rapping. Studied and analyzed you for years as recently as a few days ago. I wish I could’ve met you to tell you that. ❤️🙏🏾…here’s some raps…rest easy…Amin… pic.twitter.com/1njyEArfzT
— TAPE TAPE & HOUSE EP NOW PLAYING (@LupeFiasco) January 1, 2021
Check out this interview clip below where DOOM talks about how in his rhymes he always wanted to keep people off guard like he was “keeping a good conversation with the listener.” You can actually watch the whole interview from the “MF DOOM: The Man Behind The Mask” documentary here.
So if you’ve gotten this far, you’re probably wondering, why the Doctor Doom mask?
“It don’t matter what the artist look like, it’s more what the artist sound like. The mask really represents to rebel against trying to sell the product as a human being. It’s more of a sound.”
In a sea of ringtone rap and corporate branding, MF DOOM was truly one of the most unique, genuine, gonna do things his own way type of artists we’ve ever seen. Rest in Peace.
Confronted by the devil himself, and stay strong You think you can take the King, now meet Kong Strong as the base of a mountain, there’s no counting How many MC’s, have sprung from our fountain
From the group that needs no introduction, this 2005 track “Biochemical Equation” comes off one of Wu Tang’s massive collaborative efforts, Wu Tang Meets The Indie Culture. This song in particular features verses from both RZA and indie legend MF Doom so there’s plenty of clever wordplay here. RZA really is a five tool player as a producer, rapper, and an actor with dozens of acting credits to his name, including a season on the wildly underrated Californication. Just a quick quarantine binge recommendation if you’re looking for a new show.
Now add this track to your iPod shuffle or just follow the #RushHourRap playlist on Spotify!
Another day of #RushHourRap bringing you fresh tracks that you may or may not have heard before, but this is one you need to add to your rotation. Produced by Saud, featuring Shiloh Meets World and King Los, “Woman” is a slick, up tempo bass heavy track that just feels like a speeding down the highway kind of jam. So check it out or you can follow The 300s #RushHourRap playlist on Spotify below and we’ll curate it for you.
A side note, I’m rootin’ for you, I use these bars and start recruitin’ for you But treat her right And just remember, on your lonely nights this mic will be your friend You tell it all your secrets that you keepin’ deep within Your fantasies, regrets, your happy moments and your sins And if he doesn’t comprehend, at least he can pretend Let’s begin to be the men we never seen
J. Cole really is a one man murderers’ row of guest spots, including this 2018 feature on Cozz’s “Zendaya” track. Cozz is a member of Cole’s record label, Dreamville, and has been featured throughout Cole’s Revenge of the Dreamers series that’s essentially acted as a spotlight for his up and coming artists. Cole has spoken extensively about how he intentionally got on as many other artist’s tracks as possible to show people what he can really do when he’s in his bag. So much so that he even rapped on “A Lot” how nobody even wants him on their song anymore because he’s that good.
I never was one for the bragging and boasting I guess I was hoping the music would speak for itself, but the people want everything else Okay, no problem, I’ll show up on everyone album You know what the outcome will be I’m batting a thousand It’s got to the point that these rappers don’t even like rappin’ with me
Emergency edition of #RushHourRap this morning as Eminem dropped SIXTEEN new songs in the middle of the night! Music To Be Murdered By – Side B is another vehicle for Em, now 48-years-old, to show off his unmatched lyrical prowess and the elite ability to play with flow and cadence all while delivering rapid fire rhymes.
It’s packaged as a continuation of Music To Be Murdered By, which Em dropped back in January pre-pandemic. Marshall’s late career blitz continues as this is his 4th album in the last four years and his 7th in the last 11, which kicked off with Relapse way back in 2009. That came after a five year hiatus following Encore and I remember that felt like the end of Eminem, which is crazy to say 16 years and seven albums later. Em’s work over the past decade has been hit or miss with massive, massive success like Recovery, some well received albums like Marshall Mathers LP 2 that featured some A+ tracks like “Rap God.” Then of course came some misses like Revival and Kamikaze, both of which I enjoy as an Eminem stan (“Lucky You” still BANGS), but were not all that well received critically or commercially. We’ll see how MTBMB – Side B is received by fans and critics, but any time Eminem blesses the eardrums with new music I am all in.
The 300s 