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I would fucking love to see Slick Rick live

Poison

Tobacco smoke conquers the air as I sit here with the words ‘Hood By Air’ on the front of my tee, and the words 'Been Trill’ on the back. contemplating just how life has not been kind enough to provide me the funds to cop the whole www.vfiles.com website. The current source of KTZ and HBA, within the vfiles new arrivals and the work-in-progress of a Hood By Air official website, is teasing my student loan to say the least.

Shayne Oliver, the designer of HBA, may not exactly prioritise subtlety in increasing the prices of his garments. With a 2-way leather coat available to cop for the mere back-pocket change of over $2,000. But this broadening of his products leaves the clothing line in a position where it has now covered a much larger area of the market. It is also now more thorough; branching out by producing at least a full outfit in the colour red. With the symbolic block long-sleeved tee distributed exclusively from the vfiles website in the colour orange. While this seems about as ground-breaking as a Styrofoam pile-driver, the release of such extravagant colours from this traditionally black and white clothing brand is previously unheard of.

I don’t like it.

Nevertheless, this only highlights the respect towards vfiles, and subsequently the depth of their products online. 

The Mount Rushmore of Rap Albums

Queens, Compton, Long Beach, Brooklyn, Oakland. Just to name some amongst the prime producers of pioneers in the hectic rap game, from the east coast right to the west. Back to the days of leather jackets and wind-resistant, face-consuming lenses. To the days of the record heat waves amongst the suburban streets and the not-so-‘sub’ urban streets, when the sun itself was at its hottest. These were the years that the music genre of ‘rap’ was conjured up by what I only assume to be the son of a, likely, jazz-musician father, and blues-musician mother, or vice versa. Much like the sun itself, the genre and culture of rap very much rose in the East but was then stolen and set to rest in the West. Here I take a look at a few of the best rap albums of all time, and the artists themselves.

Long Island, New York, 1986; a man, barely, at the mere age of 18, decided to skip school one typical day upon being spontaneously stolen off the streets by a local DJ, ‘Eric.B’. Too right- a normal day of academics would be of no suitability for a young man that was far from a normality. This very young man was William Michael Griffin Jr, soon to be known as ‘Rakim Allah’. Later to be known as ‘Talent at room temperature’, by myself. Only a year in age, yet 10 years’ in development later, the naturally gifted kid from New York had transformed into a Rolls-Royce of a man that is widely regarded as being one of the top five emcee’s of all time… and definitely the first of the ‘founding fathers’. In this year, both he, and ‘Eric.B’, produced what is again widely regarded as, and in my eyes, the second best rap album of all four generations thus far. The ‘jiggy’, low based, up-tempo beats, the natural flow, and pure wit in lyrics make this album an invaluable gem in rap’s treasure chest, produced by the first mastermind of rap himself. ‘Paid in Full’ is the album title, and it is certainly worth a large payment, in full. To say, out loud, that Rakim was not the original legend of rap is blasphemy, and my advice is to not be in the presence of true followers of the genre/culture when you say it… and it’s best to whisper. This was the rising of rap, on the east coast.

November 9th, ’93 is the day the United States of America changed his name to Wu-Nation; following the release of the debut album ‘Enter the 36 Chambers’ from newly-formed rap group ‘Wu-Tang Clan’. With this album, the clan re-sculptured the image and re-wrote the delivery that Rakim authored previously. The group came directly from the gutter, and rapped in the gutter, about the gutter. There was none of this ‘I rap to change the world’ bullshit. They cared about the money, and acknowledged that money came hand-in-hand with acclamation. This dedication, this mentality, this hustle, remains bold in this album. Maybe not the artists all mothers would desire their children to listen to after school, on the weekend, or ever. Especially with such songs as ‘Protect Ya Neck’, but this was the realness of rap, the realness that makes the 90s that substantial amount better than the 2000s- for rap fans. They grew up on the crime side, the New York Times side, hidden in disciplinary’s blindside and thankfully chose to document it in this genuine, legendary album.

I think I speak for 99% of knowledgeable, comprehendible, rap fans all over the world when I say that Nas is, technically, single-handedly the best rapper of all time. The other 1% I suspect to be Jay-Z’s relatives. Well…

Dear any other doubters that can be influenced,

Please listen to ‘illmatic’.

From the millions of fans that have converted to the religion of Nas.

April 19th, 1994 was the day above all days. Jesus dressed in nike air max’s and wore a bulky gold chain, he temporarily changed his name to ‘Nas’ and created the spectacular album ‘illmatic’ that could only be matched by a diamond-encrusted bible… or 3. From there the record sales escalated frantically, and there is not a single valid argument against the statement that this is the best rap album of all time. The experienced Nas, at the inexperienced age of 20, produced a certain form of magic within this album, an attraction that cannot be resisted, the only legal addiction in rap culture. As an artist he was overshadowed by the two-biggest names in rap that were present at the time, Tupac and Biggie Smalls, and never quite received the media attention that they had bestowed upon themselves. Although the acknowledgement of his undeniable, unmatched talent has consistently been massively present. In this album, his admirable lyrics are similar to that of a poet, his flow is similar to that of an experienced natural, and his passion is similar to that of nothing else I have ever had pleasure of hearing or seeing. The album was like a cauldron, that Nas added the deadliest of ingredients to, before putting it out there at every others rapper’s danger of extinction. Before recommending anyone to listen to rap, I demand they listen to this god-sent album. It changed rap an unimaginable, unexplainable amount.

Rakim, Wu-Tang Clan and Nas dominated and defined the rap game in 1994, but then ‘Tupac Amaru Shakur’ truly came to light, charging out of Oakland, California. Suddenly any kind of settlement all previous rappers had agreed on was completely ruined. 2pac burst through and ransacked the rap charts. He took the true essence and soul of rap, and carried it around with bottles of champagne, a Colt 45, and a red bandana. For 2 years. He failed to produce a single album that genuinely competes with the masterminds of ‘Paid In Full’, ‘Enter The 36 Chambers’ and, most certainly, ‘illmatic’. But having created one of his best and rap’s best albums ever (Makaveli: The Seven Day Theory), in no longer than a single week, he certainly proved himself to be the best all-round rapper of all time, and not a single rapper is held anywhere close to the regards of which he is held in throughout the world… even to this day. Not put on a pedestal even half as high. Not a single rapper, to this day, can overlook his 75 million album sales, without feeling majorly inferior and humble. Maybe it was the controversy, the addiction the media and the population had for this young man. Maybe it was his philosophical, absolute genius mind. Maybe it was even the varied attitude of ‘thug-life’ to the kind and caring side of him. Tupac not only stole the rap game, but generally stole America; he was one of the most influential names in the world. His music simply couldn’t be matched and his style daren’t be mocked. He was a genius and an extremely diverse, complicated person if ever there was one. Such a strong man, disbelief was the initial feeling when he tragically died after being shot for the second time. Such a strong young man, with the world literally at his feet… it was an inevitable end no matter how inhumanely both he and his body fought it. At the peak age of 25, he died. The legacy he had blessed us with, was ours to keep. But that true essence and soul of rap that was prime for those few years? … He held on to them. He took them with him to his grave, and they were set to rest… in the west.

New Tracks!

The playlist on this blog features my pick of the best songs released in October.

*I know the Bishop track was actually released about 2 months back, but the video was released at the end of October and the song goes so hard..

Rap’s Prescriptions

It would be the finest shit fresh from a bull to suggest that the genre of rap does not come hand-in-hand with less-than-legal ‘medication’. Naivety or ignorance would be the primary reasons behind such a statement. And protesting one’s innocence would be the lone justifiable excuse. Of course, every genre of music features it’s fair share of 'creativity enhancers’- let’s say. “Sex, drugs, and rock 'n’ roll” is a widely acknowledged phrase, let us not forget. But why view that statement as anything other than an 'inspirational’ quote to refer to and print on low-cut boyband t-shirts? When it is much easier to ridicule a genre that expresses it’s addiction, along with other criminal offences, even more freely.

Let’s not shy away from the justified reason behind these criticisms, mind. It’s in the contract that, in general, shit does tend to hit the fan subsequent to the involvement of drugs. And in terms of this, rap has been nothing but a series of fans and shits. Such as the death of Wu-Tang’s lead-man Ol’ Dirty Bastard, and more recently Lil Wayne’s drug-induced series of seizures and Snoop Dogg inevitably losing his mind and adopting the name of a popular 50s movie character, in replacement of the king of the jungle, in replacement of the household pet. (I refuse to actually refer to him as “SnoopZilla” or “Snoop Lion”).

Imagine for a second we lived in a less judgmental world where one was not negatively judged on what one consumed or did to oneself. Cudi’s work is heavily influenced by 'that maui wowie’ and, as proved by the shocking tracks he produced while clean, his customer satisfaction rate is heavily dependent on it. Whilst not being the most devoted fan of his; in terms of music, I, along with the majority of rap followers, acknowledge that the combination of the two is the best since Jack met Daniels. And when the results are timeless tracks like 'The Prayer’, who can genuinely disagree- with a straight face.

I’m personally not encouraging or discouraging anything, just approaching the subject from a different angle. Black is a very dark shade of white after all, and what seems to be plummeting certain rappers into a black hole of a constant licked state, are seen by these artists simply as an aid in restoring purity. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, is it not? Each to their own, I say.

The minimalist theme Terry Richardson thrives on continues to be as easy on the eye as ever. The infamous blank wall and wooden floor are exploited again as the King of Casual recently photographs high-profile model Georgia May Jagger. Yet again, the end products look sick.

A hypebeast’s wardrobe, an 80’s greaser’s revival, and a popular fetish in certain European clubs

With an obese wallet and a black card, one sure fire way to look like a prized prick and sweat out the ace of spades champagne you sipped from the bottle last night is by sporting layers upon layers of leather. This misuse of the material seems to have been relevant for around a year now- a year too long for my liking. Why walk around, in public, sporting the very same material on your person that you look for whilst reluctantly strolling around dfs with the missus. As with a significant proportion of ‘fashion statements’, a couple of rappers- primarily Kanye of course- initiated this smooth craze. No pun intended. No seriously, no pun intended, the word ‘smooth’ being used purely in the literal/physical sense. After photos circulated of Yeezus sporting the garms, i can only imagine that hypebeast’s drooled at the opportunity to rinse the absolute fuck out of the style and part with far too much of daddy’s money to ultimately dress up in resemblance to a bin bag. On the topic of hypebeast’s and leather- it all makes you think, if only Louis Vuitton released leather 5 panels. Call me old-fashioned- hell, call me no-fashion, but i personally prefer garms made from cotton and polyester. You won’t catch me reflecting rays from the sun and sweating my jacobs off in an extravagantly poor attempt to be fashionable anytime soon.

shit me i aint been on this in time. think i might start using it again but only as a music blog tho. i post too much music related shit on twitter n fb n wanna do one but long for makin a new music blog somewhere else