Episode 69: Summer Recap 2019 pt. 2 - ft. Da Brat, Dreamville, Coolio, UGK, YBN Cordae and more

Explicit content warning

10/04/19 • 89 min

Part II of the recap including the following topics: (:31) Sugarhill Gang - Rapper’s Delight Not the first Hip Hop release, but the first big hip hop single that pushed the genre into the spotlight; at the time, Hip Hop records were considered "specialty records", and the song was released an R&B/Disco EP. (2:41) LL Cool J - Walking with a Panther "Jinglin' Baby" and "Going Back to Cali" are the standouts. (3:29) The D.O.C. - No One Can Do It Better Yinka still revisits this album; Yinka ponders if D.O.C. would have contributed as heavily to projects like The Chronic and Doggystyle had D.O.C. not gotten injured; Outlaw poses the question if rappers offer their best bars when they ghost write for other artists. (7:57) Warren G - Regulate... G Funk Era Warren G's inclusion on Dej Jam helped save the label; "Regulate" was a summer smash; Outlaw poses the question if certain Hip Hop singles help keep the original sampled songs in the limelight. (12:05) Da Brat - Funkdafied Da Brat was the first female artist to go platinum; everything dope that JD did, he copied from someone else that came before him; Yinka feels Da Brat is criminally underrated, as she's one of his favorite female emcees. (16:47) Bone Thugs-N-Harmony - Creepin on ah Come Up Bone had an unparalleled knack of creating intoxicating singles; despite this being an EP, the sound was ubiquitous . (19:51) Coolio - It Takes a Thief Coolio is an artist whose singles were way bigger than his albums; despite some middling music, he was a legit popstar; Yinka and Outlaw somehow deviate to a discussion about Hot Ones and Nardwuar. (25:20) Organized Konfusion - Stress: The Extinction Outlaw respects Pharoahe Monch, but thinks his fans slightly overrate him; Yinka suggests a "Put You Up" episode for this album. (28:19) UGK - Super Tight Pimp C should be in the conversation for Best Producer on the Mic; Outlaw includes Pimp C in his 4th tier; Yinka claims Pimp C is one of Hip Hop's top personalities; in today's cancel culture climate, would UGK still exist if Pimp C were alive? (33:50) Ja Rule - Venni Vetti Vecci Ja Rule's pivot to commercial pop was annoying. (36:36) Missy Elliott - Da Real World Yinka's favorite Missy Elliott album; we invested money in the artists from the '90s, which is partly why we feel such nostalgia for them; Outlaw asks if this album helped reshape the word "Bitch". (41:50) Lootpack - Soundpieces: Da Antidote "Real Hip Hop", but Yinka acknowledges Outlaw probably would get bored with this album. (44:42) Gang Starr - Full Clip: A Decade of Gang Starr Gang Starr deserves a dedicated episode. (47:36) EPMD - Out of Business This was Yinka's introduction to EPMD; "The Symphony" is the clear stand out. (49:06) Memphis Bleek - Coming of Age A 10 minute rant from Yinka about how disappointing this album is; Outlaw makes the groundbreaking claim that water is wet. (1:00:27) The Beatnuts - A Musical Massacre Not as dope as we remembered; the filler is poor but the good tracks are really good; Outlaw reevaluates his stance that Juju is a 4th tier emcees (he's way lower). (1:03:18) GoldLink - Diaspora Outlaw likes the project; Yinka likes the idea of the project. (1:04:51) Chris Brown - Indigo Neither of us listened to the album; we devote this segment to market manipulation. (1:07:58) Dreamville - Revenge of the Dreamers III Yinka says "I told you so"; this project is dope; Dreamville is having a good year. (1:10:27) Inspektah Deck - Chamber no. 9 Outlaw likes the project; Deck still has bars, but doesn't skip around on the beat as well as he used to. (1:12:00) YBN Cordae - The Lost Boy Dope project; Yinka and Outlaw ponder why DMV artists don't collaborate as much as artists from other cities.

Previous Episode

Episode 68: Summer Recap 2019 pt. 1 - Jay Z, Rapsody, Burna Boy, Jidenna, Freddie Gibbs, Beyonce

The 80z Babies return with another summer recap where they discuss Jay-Z and the NFL, Lizzo and the VMAs, Beyonce and The Lion King, and much more. Details below: (1:29) A$AP Rocky Update A$AP Rocky was released from Swedish prison; his attorney was shot. (3:04) VMAs - Lizzo Yinka appreciates the internet for capturing highlights, allowing us to otherwise ignore silly award shows; Lizzo's music isn't for us be respect the artistry; candid responses to Azealia Banks twitter; discussion on Lizzo's status as a sex symbol; (13:35) VMAs - Missy Elliott Praise for her performance; middling reviews for her Iconology EP, with a preference for her to zig where others have zagged; (21:43) Lil Nas X - Record for Most Consecutive Weeks at No. 1 Outlaw uses this segment as an excuse to play the sample from Nine Inch Nails in the backdrop. (24:56) Jay Z's NFL Deal The deal is an odd one for Jay Z, but we concede there's probably some nuance we're not seeing; you can support Jay Z without being disrespectful to Colin Kaepernick; Outlaw has hated the NFL for awhile and thinks it's evil; each time Jay Z tries to rationalize the deal, he makes it sound worse; Yinka brilliantly dismantles the false narrative that we're past kneeling and that the protest was ineffectual; Yinka provides a challenge to the "seat at the table" narrative when it comes to systems that were not designed for black people. (37:49) Beyonce - The Lion King: The Gift Outlaw the Heartless is not a fan of the original Lion King movie; despite the diverse range of artists and regional sounds, the overall sound feels very Nigerian inspired; songs feature artists from regions that have nothing to do with the subject matter of the songs themselves; it feels like a #travelnoire album; do yourself a favor and explore the catalogs of all the featured artists. (44:31) Burna Boy - African Giant 'Ye' is still so big, you don't even hear hits from this record when out; 'salute me or shoot me' Yinka claims that Burna Boy will go down as one of the all-time musical greats; Burna Boy has the je ne said qoui. (50:08) Jidenna - 85 to Africa Outlaw's favorite album of the summer thus far; the musical growth is evident and the production is dope; Jidenna's "rebrand" has not gone unnoticed; we see you out here, brother. (53:36) Juls - Colour Juls is great at merging and re-contextualizing sounds from regions all over the world. (55:41) Rapsody - Eve Yinka apologizes to Rapsody for not previously checking for her, but both liked this album a lot; the musical direction and mixing is incredible; even tho Rapsody doesn't push the needle forward as a vocal talent, she manages to find her own voice on the record. (1:03:03) Little Brother - May the Lord Watch It's a good album, even Outlaw enjoyed it, but both agree it doesn't offer anything new that we haven't previously heard from this group. (1:06:49) Freddie Gibbs and Madlib - Bandana 'Album of the Year' thus far according to Yinka, Outlaw wholeheartedly disagrees; while Madlib's production is excellent and Gibbs excels on Madlib beats, ultimately his lyrics are interchangeable between songs as each has the same 'I move weight' subject matter. (1:11:34) Chance the Rapper - The Big Day Outlaw, who does not like Chance but is only vaguely familiar with his prior work, found the album palatable; Yinka, who thinks Chance is one of the foremost talents of his generation and is a fan of Acid Rap and Coloring Book, found the album underwhelming. (1:16:41) Nas - The Lost Tapes 2 As always there is the good and the bad with Nas; he should embrace maturity and just make a throwback album for the old heads. (1:24:05) Big K.R.I.T. - K.R.I.T. Iz Here KRIT is a generational talent, but needs to take more chances.