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Derek Minor | Astronaut Video | @thederekminor @justderaj @kingbyron23

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Directed by Caleb Natale, Derek Minor brings us his “astronaut” video. The world can be a heavy place. Some of us allow the weight of our problems to hold us down. Others set limits on ourselves and what we can accomplish. Astronaut is all about blasting off past those problems and defying the gravitational pull that tries to keep us from reflecting greatness. The astronaut in the song is focused on exploring a new world without limits, he is seeking new destinations, and getting high above the gravitational pull.

Check it out and let us know what you think. Spread The Soup!

Jered Sanders | Verseatility Written Mixtape Review | @jeredsanders @MyNameIsBizzle @chicangeorge

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When it comes to giving an artist credibility as a emcee, they have to pass a couple of tests. One of the biggest and easiest tests to secure their status is showing “versatility“. This is the act and ability to adapt or be adapted to many different functions or activities. With that said, Jered Sanders decided to go the essence of this definition in lyrical form with his newest mixtape “Verseatility“.

Picking some of the greatest beats within the game, Jered gives new life to them as he reflects his on his “new life”. The beauty in this mixtape is how he shows that he can change his style and flow according to the style of the variety of production on the project.  We see this within the first two tracks. He starts off by giving us a laid back east coast flow on “Guess who’s Bizzack” and goes with a crazy double time flow with the next track on “Lu King“. With the cunning cadence changes, he as brings it with the content within his bars as well. Within his “Beauty” track he speaks on how some can “trying to chase red bottoms with a Payless souls“. He also gets emotional with tracks like “Letter to AJ” as he spits bars to AJ whose in bars. “Brand New Person” shows Jered at his best as he speaks on so many different concepts on old habits and new ways of living.

Overall, this is a great mixtape. It’s always great to hear/see a artist use beats and make them sound like their own beat and/or make it sound better than the original. If this is your introduction to Jered Sanders, then you should go back and check out some of his other projects. They are just as good as this mixtape. You need to get familiar, because you will be hearing more from him in the future. As far as showing his ability to be versatile, he gets my approval. Spread The Soup!

Beleaf | In Fatherhood Album Review | @BeleafMel @kingsdreament @chicangeorge

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Beleaf has been a staple in hip hop. Not only has he been a member of great groups, such as The Breax and Dream Junkies, but he has been known as one of the illest and consistent rappers of our time. Recently, he has been focusing more on demonstrating proper parenting skills with his “Beleaf in Fatherhood” vlogs, which have inspired many of all walks of life. With the recent success of his Fatherhood series, he has decided to focus more in that direction and retire from hip hop. With that stated, he has decided to give us one last go with his “In Fatherhood” album.

The album starts off with a dark, but delicious production from DSTL with “Douchbag” . He starts the album off letting us know that “We never miss a beat/my flow a roller coaster whoodie  hold on to your seat”. This is exactly how it feels on this track/verse. Next, he gives us a response to his shady neighbor, Frank, with “Lightweight“. On the track, he explains his parenting skills and ambitions. He symbolically explains how he throws his kids in the air and why they are “lightweight”.  Next he allows the listener to experience “ice on ice violence” with “No Chill“. Beleaf gets even deeper speaking on current issues or race and government on “Plate“. Beleaf has always been great rapping about relationships and he continues to deliver with tracks like “Heartbreak” and “Got Someone“. Beleaf doesn’t slow the steam with the album as he ends it with bangers like “Tribe” and “Baby Daddy“.

Bealf goes out with a bang with his last album! This album is so important to hip hop. As he has raised the bar with great hip hop over the years, it is time for us to allow him to raise his “black panthers”. May you continue to protect your life and thank you for reminding us that you are not just a great physical father, but a great father/Baby Daddy in hip hop. Spread The Soup!

Please support and purchase the album>>>HERE!

What Do We Really Want From Wale ? (A Open Letter To Hip Hop Fans) | @Wale @Chicangeorge

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On Wale’s classic (my favorite project from him) mixtape, A Mixtape about Nothing, he had a interesting track on their called “The Artistic Integrity“. It started off with a scene from Seinfeld as George Costanza was speaking to the executives of their TV Show. As they wanted to make some changes, George went on a rant about not compromising and keeping his artistic integrity. With that being the theme of the song, Wale raps about the pressures of art over commerce, the pros and cons of fame and comparison ( Within that concept, Wale also delivers one of the best triple entendres in hip hop history with “We apples and oranges  but everybody pears/peers/pairs). It’s his wordplay and passion from this track and songs like “The Perfect Plan” ( where he gives a promising and precise prophecy of the problem that kills hip hop) that made him the people’s champion for becoming the savior of hip hop. Ironically, the same one’s who gave him that title also put him on the cross. With a string of unsuccessful commercial releases, people feel as though Wale has lost his artistic integrity. While many of us are asking, “What happened to Wale?”, I challenge you in this article to think “What have WE done to Wale?”.

Why did Wale stop being lyrical? This is a question that I continue to hear. I follow it up with “When did he stop being lyrical?“. With his first major release, “Attention Deficit”, people felt that he was all over the place….hence the name of the project. That project (***go ahead and get your stones ready to throw, but don’t stop reading) was this generation’s “All Eyez On Me” album..BECAUSE OF THE VARIOUS SUBJECTS THAT ARE COVERED ON THE ALBUM (NOT BECAUSE HE IS TUPAC!!!).  No one had a album that talked about inner racism (Shades), black women’s struggles (Diary), a accurate account and effect of fame (90210), depression (Contemplate) along with radio and club singles packed into one album within this generation like Wale. Kanye and Lupe (his “pears”) came close..but not as artistic as Wale. He didn’t fail us, we failed him by not supporting. With each project, we expected “more” from him and he began to become “less” of who and what we loved from him. Side Note- “Golden Salvation” ties with Nas “I gave you power” as the best personification tracks created in hip hop.

As I have heard people talk about how they hate his new album “Shine“, I simply ask you “What do we really want from Wale?“. When we have asked him to be lyrical and he delivered…it wasn’t enough. When we asked him to be a little more street and he delivered….it wasn’t enough. When we asked him to be more trendy and he delivered….it wasn’t enough. People say that he is a “crybaby“, but he is “crying out” about his baby…which his his art. We don’t really know what we want from him. This weird web that we spun for Wale is one that almost every artist of every genre gets trapped in. Am I saying that I love every track that Wale comes out with? Not at all. I simply want us to be honest with ourselves about how fickle we can become as fans towards artists. We want them to stay in “our own LITTLE box“.  Once they get too big for the box, we throw them away. Wale, along with any other artist that you have done that to, doesn’t deserve that. That is why so many of them begin to think, “What good is artistic integrity, if the fans won’t let me be artistic?“. What do we really want from Wale and every other artist we listen to? I don’t think we really know. In a world of apples, oranges and pears…fans have just become too fruity. Spread The Soup!

Nobigdyl | Canopy Written Album Review | @Nobigdyl @Chicangeorge

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With so many artists creating music, being in the spotlight is a big deal in 2017. Ironically, Nobigdyl would like to humbly stay in the background as his faith and story are in the forefront with his new album “Canopy”. This project is a symbolic look as to how his “canopy” covered him through some dark times and isolation he experienced in his life. He reflects how the darkness actually can make it easier to see the light.

He starts the album off with “Treetops“. On this track, he creatively discusses focusing on moving higher in life through his tree climbing experience to the tree top. Leaving the worries of the world at the ground, he breaks down how important it is to get solar power and spits “living water, he rained on me, raised by the son, that’s photosynthesis“.  On “Burn“, he talks about how he burned with envy towards other rappers and how he had to overcome his pride and competitive spirit. Next on “Video”, he gives a ode to his wife declaring that ” On the late nights, I can be your Letterman“. Nobigdyl goes deep on depression with “Suicide Nets” and  follows the track up with album favorite “Purple Dinosaur“. Similar to the theme song of “Barney”, Nobigdyl tries to make you feel the love by the end of the song. He goes on to speak openly about his weaknesses in life on “Shade Tree“, in which he is asking for God to “shade” him from going back down the road of destruction.

This is a great album. Even though Nobigdyl brings high energy and creative flows and bars throughout the album, it’s pretty dark. This is what makes this album so complex, because you can look at it from both sides of the coin. On one side, we can see him see showing his growth as a artist/man and on the other side we can see a conceptual story of a man that is rising to the top (Treetops) who then falls (Burn) and learns how to grow again the right way throughout the album. This isn’t a one time listen and should be considered as one of the best listens of the year. Nobigdyl’s “Canopy” will surely catch all listeners and covers the basics of him being a big deal in the game. Spread The Soup!

 

You can check the album out >>>>HERE!

Sean C. Johnson | Save Me Video | @SeanCJohnson

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Have you ever been in the friend zone? Well, Sean C. Johnson does a great job showing how it feels with his “Save me” video. Not only are the lyrics on point, but the video takes it to the next level. This video should go down as one of the best of the year! What are your thoughts? Spread The Soup!

Sean David Grant | Wonder Years Written Album Review | @seandavidgrant @Trackstarz @chicangeorge #WonderYears

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The 80s was one of the best decades for television. During this period of time, writers had some of the best “coming of age” shows. One of my favorite shows was “The Wonder Years“. This show starred Fred Savage as Kevin Arnold and viewers got to see narrated episodes/glimpses into his life. This show won several awards, but one of it’s most impactful awards that the show received was a Peabody award in 1989. It won the award for “pushing the boundaries of the sitcom format and using new modes of storytelling.” Maybe this was Sean David Grant’s idea for naming his most recent album after the show. Maybe he wanted to push boundaries of hip hop through his unique mode of storytelling.

One way he achieves this goal is through his style and flow. His voice is very unique and the listener can hear how he can cleverly allow his words to linger as he asserts his alliteration in his cadence. One can hear a great example of this on his tracks “They Know”  and “Honest With Me“.

Another way he does so is by his storytelling. We can hear a great ode to his “Winnie” on “Alfie“. We also hear him parlaying bars with his “Paul Pfeiffer” partner, Ric Sincere, on “Paper Weapons“. “Rated R Nights” also shows the dark side of Sean’s stories, showing his balance as a storyteller.

Lastly, he draws in the listener through his transparency. As we listen on tracks like ” Suffocating” and  “Abandon“, we can hear his fears and issues with fame. This is a constant theme throughout the album.

Sean David Grants nails the wonder years concept. His tracks come off as relatable and show a mix of emotions ranging from being fragile to showing fury on the mic. I thank him for showing us his wonder years and hope there are many more to come. Spread The Soup!

You can check out the album >>>>HERE!

Adalid | Teflon 90 Audio | @whoisadalid

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Check out Adalid spazz out with his new single “Teflon 90“. This really reminds me of some of his older work. If he continues in the lane, I think that this will be his best project to date. Let us know what you think. Spread The Soup!

K. Sparks | Casablanca, Round Midnight Audio | @Ksparkstv @inaworldofnegli

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“Casablanca, ‘Round Midnight” is K. Sparks first single from his EP entitled “Gold” produced entirely by Negligence from the Ukraine. When asked about the title selection for the EP K. Sparks stated the following. “Gold is a substance that sustains value. Regardless of the time period it consistently retains that value. I remember there was a time period when platinum gained in popularity and every musician gravitated towards that as the standard. However as the fad ran its course the value of Gold remained. I entitled this EP Gold because it retains that value of quality lyricism, content and solid production. In this present musical climate of simplistic production and mumble lyrics I view it all as platinum. For some people it’s cool momentarily, but ultimately the Gold standard of quality music will stand the test of time. Level up”.