I hope any of my friends who are going to SXSW get a chance to see this showcase. Just a look at the opening acts make it worth it. BIG K.R.I.T., ScHoolboy Q, Action Bronson, Don Trip, STS, & The Foodchain, worth the price of admission, then you get treated to a full Slaughterhouse/Yelawolf set. And just to give you the most for your month, BooBoo is gonna do Get Rich Or Die Trying in it’s entirety. I’d pay good money to see just that. I really wish I could go to this.
Best of 2011: Verses
2. Big K.R.I.T. - R4 Theme Song
Another artist who had a stellar year. Big K.R.I.T. has basically become the 08/09 B.o.B. Being the go to Producer/Rapper from the south who has been some releasing hot shit. This year he released his debut album Return of 4Eva, back in March. After that, anyone who is anyone has a Big K.R.I.T beat or verse on their mixtapes/albums. He is response for T.I.’s latest song ‘I’m Flexin’, and is just putting in that work.
I chose this song because I think it represents Big K.R.I.T. very well. A hot beat, masterful flow, southern slang, it’s just that cool ass song you can drive real slow to with the top down on a Sunday night with your main chick riding shotgun, puffing on that L, while the cops drive by watching, not able to do SHIT because you got your prescription. I challenge anyone to listen to this song and NOT nod your head by the end of it and if you were in your car, you’d most likely be rewinding that first verse just to yell out, LEFT COAST and throw your dubs in the air. Actually that last part might just be me, but you get the idea.
The visuals for TIP’s newest song just dropped. Come on TIP, why you gotta let your boy do the video all half assed like that. This is your return to the A after being locked up on some old bullshit, why let your boy try and remake the What’s Up, What’s Haapnin’ video? He didn’t even really do that good of a job. At the very least call up the kid, Goldwatch and let him remake the Nasty video for you. That shit was Hot, Nas back in Queenbridge? Can you say Queensbride? Word to Ron Ron. It’s aiight I guess, yo, next time you want a good video, holla at your boy. I’ll have you in Bankhead in the middle in the trap, going hard like Waka. If it wasn’t a parole violation, I might do something like this, but I don’t want to be responsible for sending the King back to the pen. Anyway, welcome back TIP.
Damn……I mean after that Shady 2.0 Boys cypher nothing else could really even measure up. I mean it was 9 mins long, they spit bars for days, Yelawolf stepped his game WAY WAY WAY up, even Joey, who had the worst flow on the whole damn song, spit better than everyone else on the other cyphers. It’s Shady/Aftermath, I expect that when you have greatest rapper of all time as your boss, its sink or swim at Shady. But I digress, coming in at number 2 was this cypher. Big K.R.I.T. delivers some knowledge, Tech Nina reminds everyone they have been sleeping on him since the 90s, Kendrick Lamar showed why the Good Doctor allowed him to ghostwrite some songs that will never appear on Detox (not because they weren’t good, but because Detox will never get release), and B.O.B. showed off why he SHOULD be ghostwriting for TIP or at least lighting a fire under his ass so we can get more this and less this. The only stand out was Machine Gun Kelly, Ross Flow dawg? Nah brah, tell that ghostwrite to not give you rejected Ross rhymes, As far as I can figure, he was only there because Diddy needs a return on his investment since the market isn’t doing so great right now. Sorry rappers, Shady set the bar so high, you’d need smoke all Weezy’s purp, while standing on Shaqs shoulders to just get high enough to use binoculars to see the dot that is the bar. Muhfuckin Crooked said You might as well do the Jada and leave a Will West Coast LA Shady/Aftermath, the muthafuckin Doctor *drops Mic*
Wow, way to be behind on the times there XXL. For the past 2 years, XXL Magazine has been releasing their annual ‘freshman’ class of hip hop artists who people should be on the look out for, only every year, they seem to be getting further and further on their coverage. Do they not that realize that we live in the age of the internet and artist can go from a nobody to multi-platinum almost over night, ie Drake? Come on XXL, THIS is your freshmen class. No disrespect to any of the artists who deserve to be on the cover, but freshmen I would not call a majority of them. Let’s take a closer look:
- Meek Mill - Signed to Rozay’s MMG label, with no less than 6 mixtapes out. Freshmen? Hardly, having been in the game since ‘09 I would call him a Junior at best.
- Big K.R.I.T. - Been around since late ‘05. Dropped a studio album last year which was really good. Signed to Def Jam. Freshman? Wrong. Sophomore at the least.
- CyHi Da Prince - 2 mixtapes out last year. Signed to Yeezy’s G.O.O.D Imprint. Held his own at the BET cipher in ‘10 and how can anyone forget his appearances on the G.O.O.D friday leaks. Freshman? Nope Graduate.
- Lil Twist - Signed to YM/CMB. Appeared on the label compilation album in 09 and appeared, on tour with Wayne in 08 or 09, cant remember, featured in The Carter doc. No mixtape or album yet, but for sure this year. Freshman? ARGUABLY.
- Yelawolf - Signed to Shady. Dropped a studio album AND a mixtape last year. Freshman? No, Graduate.
- Fred Da Godson - Popped up around late last year. I heard his name here and there, but he didn’t get my attention until about November. Impressive from what I hear. Freshman? Possibly. I could have just been sleeping on him, but I’ll give them that.
- Mac Miller - Been dropping mixtapes since 07, but didn’t really gain the attention from the blogs until Early last year. Freshman? nope, late again XXL
- YG - Ol Boy who sang that ANNOYING ass song ‘Toot it N Boot it’ from last summber? Yeah sorry XXL late again.
- Lil B - Yo, Based God was a part of The Pack, you know the guys who drop that vans song a few years back. Not only does Lil B have a huge been, has had one for the past 2 years, but he rolls around with soulja boy. Come on son! Freshman? Not a chance. Also if there is anyone who DOESNT deserve to be up there, its him. I don’t understand his buzz. It could be because of these atrocities to music, but it could also be because I fucks with Nike and he is strictly a vans guy.
- Kendrick Lamar - I’ve written plenty about Kendrick Lamar. Fucking with Aftermath and the Doctor. 2 mixtapes/albums. Freshman? Last year maybe.
- Diggy Simmons - DIggy gots 3 mixtapes out, with a buzz since LAST year. Not only was he on the BET cipher, but he was on a reality show. Freshman? again last year.
XXL, this is a prime example as to why print magazines are slowly dying out. You still have the mentality that information travels at the speed of the post office. Retire the ‘Freshmen’ Class list. It’s sad. The demographic you guys are going for more than likely ALREADY KNOW ABOUT YOUR SUPPOSEDLY FRESHMEN, SINCE LAST YEAR. There are SO MANY NEW artists who have a nice buzz NOW that are truly freshmen, Skeme, Paris Jones, Emilio Rojas, Gilbere Forte, Trek Manifest, Nickelus F, Hollyweerd, Fly Union, Rugz D Bewler, Phil Ade, Stalley, just to name a few whose mixtapes have been getting constant spin on my iPod since the beginning of ‘11. Even then that might be a late list. XXL, hire me to get your cred back. You guys are a joke right now.
