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Sometimes theres an implicit stank put on my city; on the East Coast there’s a kind of New York Supremacy. People think of Baltimore as a failed state backwater, a curiosity at best. It can be tough living here sometimes, to be sure. But Bmore has, however, easily the most vibrant, exciting, original, diverse and ambitious music and art scene of any small city in the East and from what I can tell, in the entirety of the country. At any rate, this breakout hit from Tate Kobang is quintessential Baltimore popular art. The style of minimalism with hard pulsing snare claps and the parsimonious use of sampled groove bits (which, that’s all Bmore Club style, distinctly), obviously the lyrics too and the settings of the video which tell a story without telling a story, it’s genuinely one of my favorite hip-hop songs, and you gotta watch the video.
Apr 24, 2025
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While Hip-Hop aficionados laud Yasiin Bey (aka Mos Def) as one of the most talented MCs the genre has ever seen, Bey has seen little appreciation among PEOPLE I KNOW IN REAL LIFE. I chose to EXCLAIM that because I know that Mos Def still remains firmly ingrained in the minds of many people to this day; however, for as much critical and fan attention as this man gets, I simply do not think it is enough!
Why am I bouncing on Bey’s balls so brazenly? There’s not many albums that I consider to be genuine 10/10s. Many come close, but the weird little Anton Ego goblin inside of my head who tells me that everything in the entire world is garbage always has something to bring up that often ends up in whatever album I’m listening to falling short of the fabled Ratatouille Realm.
And then there was Black on Both Sides.
Almost everyone I’ve met that has listened to this album in full has great things to say about it. So many back-to-back bangers that you’d think you were watching Human Centipede. Fresh production combined with witty lyricism and more flows than a leaky diaper make this album truly one of a kind. Actually, I suppose every album is truly one of a kind so this doesn’t really mean anything. How about I just say that this album is a masterclass in Hip-Hop as a poetic art form? Delivering powerful political messages in a way that doesn’t bore the listener or feel overly preachy is always a difficult task, but Bey steps up to plate and knocks that shit into the stratosphere. It’s not just stuffy politics either; Mos Def knows how to have fun. It’s rare to see such a blend of characteristics in one rapper, especially during a time in which many Hip-Hop artists drew from a limited pool of subject material and remained confined to the styles of their predecessors (aside from notable mavericks such as Kanye West and MF DOOM).
If you call yourself a Hip-Hop enjoyer or just want to find a new album to listen to, please consider checking out Black on Both Sides by Mos Def.
Jan 27, 2025
IDK why this seminal L.A. hip-hop quartet doesn't get more love/respect.
When I listen to this track I hear Dilla's influence straight away -- he samples Stan Getz's "Saudade Vem Correndo", loops his sax parts, and then drops a snippet of Run-DMC's "Rock Box" on top of it for good measure.
Artists from Wiz Khalifa to UNKLE to Juice Wrld to JPEFMafia have used it in some form.
And it's appeared in "8 Mile," "Entourage," "New York Undercover" and "Big Daddy," among other shows.
It's a very unique, L.A. (not 2Pac or NWA's L.A.) take on alternative hip-hop (which De La Soul, another Dilla-produced group, was also mining). I think they were incredibly influential for an act that had really only one bona-fide "hit" and barely went gold once during their active career.
P.S.: I'm pretty certain that the slang phrase "low key" is invented here (it's 1995, BTW).
"Amani, Booty Brown Fatlip and Slimkid Tre/ we do it this way, we do it this way."
Sep 21, 2024
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dave blunts stole everything from him and big moe made city of syrup word to houston never went there before but a lot of great music from that city, also beyoncé
Mar 7, 2025
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This shit is worlds cooler than anything Data for Progress does, no offense to DC homies tryna do the good work for that goofy org
Apr 22, 2025
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Eating at a restaurant is a terrible way to meet someone for the first time with the object of romantic involvement. It’s awkward, formal, no matter what there’s going to be weirdness spoken or otherwise about the check, it’s not interactive, your joke reserves dry up, the format requires both parties to learn either too much or too little about a person too quickly. Eating a full restaurant meal loads you up with fatigue and slows your rhythm, gums up your jouissance. Etc.
Better this: assuming you live in a city, meet at a park, walk around, go in stores and galleries intermittently, talk whilst you interact with the world, it’s life affirming, it’s not stupidly pointlessly expensive, and it feels like youre sharing an adventure, it just naturally loosens a person up to be more open, allowing you mutually to get to know each other’s “energy” or whatever much better.
I think I’ve been on exactly one first hang-out first date that happened at a dinner restaurant for dinner — only one that went any further than losing $100 in a night, and it was thanks largely to getting partially sloshed beforehand that I managed it well. Other than that, it’s always been some organic thing that just happened.
Oh also: don’t start the date in an art museum. Are you insane? First hangout ever and you want to go to a place with an atmosphere of stilted reverence where at best you have to whisper banter, and even then you don’t know each other well enough to know how much making fun of things is going to endear or repel, etc. Same with a movie date although if you’ve had any good text or phone interactions, there’s always the old “my leg is on your leg now” gamble. Last and only time I started a first date that way we left as soon as we realized that (1) some Almodovar movies are boring as fuck and this was one of them and (2) we were more interested in touching each other than watching the painfully overwrought characters in the silent venue touch each other on screen.
Picnics are acceptable and encouraged too. Have fun and be safe!
3d ago
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CANDOR is SPLENDOR. Reject the categories of based and cringe + say exactly the thing that you feel from the gut and heart before you erode those things
Irony is great at the service of jokes and wild pastiche. But don’t let it be a stumbling block. Shoot your shot, be embarrassed, be open like a snow angel and trust the True + Good
Apr 22, 2025