the dream of hearing some new prem... [this is your life (sort of) part 2]

is DJ Premier the greatest producer of all time? i don't know but i figured i had to post something on him just cause. i'm gathering what i call "Essentials" of the great soul singers and influential Hip-Hop producers and i started with Primo. i will say this: he can make anyone sound good over his soundscapes. no one can make 4-bar loops sound amazing for over 4 minutes better than Premier. shit, he probably could resurrect vanilla ice's career with one sole produced album by him. if you know his work you should agree with me, he's the best at making an average rapper sound good. now i'm not gonna name examples but you probably know who i'm talking about when saying this. when you have your own signature production style, you've reach the mark between a good producer and a great one. now i'm saying that in the perspective of making good music, not having a signature sound like a kazoo or something. there's too many damn songs in his catalog to pin down his greatness, trust i tried to think of one pinnacle track. you can't do it. so you'll probably go with a easy favorite of yours. maybe because your fave rapper is blessed with his sounds. or one everyone will notice and somewhat agree on. or that rare track no one has heard but you, and it's your sole mission on earth to share it with the world. but before i reach in the goodie bag for a song let me ask this question: is there any song that the rapper out shined Prem's production? off top i can't think of shit and i probably won't have a response when the next blog goes 'round. what song i will say is creative in it's own right is NaS' "I Gave You Power" off his now recently-dubbed classic, It Was Written. basing a premise previous used by Organized Konfusion with their song "Stray Bullet", God's Son talks the tale of being a gun (instead of a bullet in O.K.'s case). definitely one of the greatest songs from both parties (when the fuck is their album they suppose to make together coming out? Scratch you owe me $$$!!!). this is probably my favorite song on the LP. so without further ado, and before i run out of shit to say about this man here it is, enjoy:

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NaS - I Gave You Power

bong: this is your life (sort of) part 1ne

we all know The RZA is hands-down top 10 of greatest producers of all time (#4 on my list btw). what we may not know of is his side project from '94-'97, Gravediggaz. composed of himself, Prince Paul, Too Poetic & Frukwan, they were the quintessential "horrorcore" group (the phrase, created by Russell Simmons started with the group The Flatlinerz). what Russell envisioned to be the next big thing in hip-hop was anything but. exceptions sometimes come about and what Gravediggaz accomplished with their debut album broke the mold. 6 Feet Deep (or Niggamortis for U.K. fans) is a guilty pleasure of sorts. mainly produced by Prince P it showcased RZA's lyrical abilities as the alter-ego RZArector. in fact each member formed their own identities: Paul was The Undertaker, Frukwan was the Gatekeeper & Too Poetic was the Grym Reaper. their off-the-wall subject matter is amazing and this particular LP has some of Paul's best production. i strongly recommend this for any hip-hop fan especially those ever intrigued by the "horrorcore" sub-genre. they only had one other album after this as the whole group, The Pick, The Sickle And The Shovel (by this time they left the whole "horrorcore" style to focus more on introspective lyrics) and a couple of EPs. from the goodie bag this time are a couple tracks that didn't make the 6 Feet Deep album. i believe these tracks was from the demo they were shopping around before the actual album came about. also their video for 1-800 Suicide (Poisonous Mix) (Prod. by RZArector featuring the vocals of Wu-Affiliate Blue Raspberry) w/ song song included. as always, en.................joy:

Gravediggaz - 1-800 Suicide (Poisonous Mix)
Gravediggaz - Freak The Sorceress
Gravediggaz - Ashes To Ashes
Gravediggaz - Ahh Here Comes The Gravediggaz

you've been warned...

props to down-south.com for the upload to this shit. this boy on some other shit (had to make the picture BIG just in case you didn't see it).

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Empire & Lil Wayne - The Drought Is Over 2: Tha Carter III Sessions (psswrd: third-coast)

simply the best...better than all the rest

the peoples over at onsmash got the extended video for the best video of '07 (let alone song) so far, UGK's International Player's Anthem featuring the G.G.O.A.T. OUTKAST (what i can't pick favorites???). as always enjoy:

UGK feat. OutKast - International Player's Anthem (Extended Version)

manifestation of beef? say it ain't so... (r.i.p. 2Pac June 16, 1971–September 13, 1996)

me and my biggest bro. was discussing hip-hop like we usually do and we were talking about 2Pac (i'm not about to provide a link, gky if you don't know who this legend is). my brother was praising his work and we were talking about his beefs with many artists. in particular i asked him why he started a beef with the fugees of all groups. big bro said in the "the sweetest thing" video (a song from the love jones soundtrack) they had some look-alike of 'Pac running around a liquor store. i was like, "are you serious?". big bro said "yeah". i told him bet, i'm gon check it out to see what's up. sure enough 02:34 into the video i see a motherfucker who looks like 'Pac running around the store cause the po-pos' after them. damn, not the refugees too i said to myself. now i only think they "dissed" him in video alone cause obviously that song didn't have shit to do with Pac. damn, everybody was gunning for him. of course Pac retaliated by saying the infamous line "...Heard The Fugees was trying to do me, look bitch I got your fate, this ain't no mother fuckin' movie..." from the amazing "when we ride on our enemies". classic, pure classic. so without further ado, here is the vid in question. comment if you think they were dissing or leave other thoughts on his other beefs. enjoy:

Refugee Allstars feat. Lauryn Hill - The Sweetest Thing