Personally, my style is simple. Clean lines. No frills. Basic colors. Mostly the same brands. I'll buy the same jeans, hat, and shirts multiple times because once I find what I like I stick with it. But it wasn't always like that.
I was once strongly influenced by the force of style that was once hip-hop.
The boombox? You wasn't even official is somebody in your circle didn't have one of these. Radio Raheem was straight up art imitating life because it was commonplace to see cats with these on their shoulders everywhere.
Polka dots? Already covered it in a previous post.
Iceberg? Ask me why I spent $700 on a sweater and I swear I still couldn't answer it to this day except for the fact that I had the money to blow lol. Patent leather on Pluto's ears??? Fahgetaboutit.
Polo? Still coppin it.
Coogi? Bill Cosby would be jealous of my sweater collection back then.
Avirex? Rocked the hell out those leathers.
Car systems? Did hip-hop ever stop cherishing it's cars and the knock in them? In the South, we call it "wang" and there's nothin better than hearing on old Chevy with it's truck rattling from three streets over.
Backpacks? lol...we used to boost them from everywhere, just to have every color under the rainbow.
Raiders gear and Starter jackets? N.W.A. damn near changed the world. But I don't think anyone went back to jheri curls.
Overalls with spraypaint? Michael Bivins may not be a name now but way back with Another Bad Creation, son had everybody rocking those joints.
A mink coat? If Fat Joe's big ass can get in one, why can't I?
Hip-hop has always been about style, even to excess, whether that meant in how you wore it or how much you paid for it (or in some of our cases, what we should've been paying lol).
Everybody rocked the tags on their gear and hats. Kids still wear their New Era stickers today. Back in the day, it was all about having the flyest sneakers. Kids today have the net to get all the old shoes we coveted plus the latest SB's, Bapes and exclusive or imported AF1's. Personal listening experience? Yeah, I got an Ipod now with the earbuds but back in the day, it was all about the earmuff lookin joints. It was nothing to pay $60 for a pair but you was pissed when you effed those joints up.
All because hip-hop has always been about style and always will be. And we say it loud and with flair that always makes us stand out in the crowd.
So the last "Gaww-deeee!" post will be about the past. Some of it way back. Some of it not too long ago.
These two albums symbolized the West Coast back in the day. People didn't know if Cube could do it solo. He slipped out this EP just to shut cats up...and silenced them. And, ATL was just hard but hardly noticed outside of the West. Truth be told, they should prolly be legends.
Ice Cube - Kill At Will EP
Above The Law - Livin' Like Hustlers
Ahh...classic shit right here without a doubt. We've given you other late 80's/mid-90's classic but these are some of the more.
A Tribe Called Quest - Midnight Marauders
LL Cool J - Bigger And Deffer
Raekwon - Only Built For Cuban Linx
When this cassette dropped, I used to listen to it every single day on my hour drive back and forth to work for my first ever job. Ask me the lyrics to any song to this day and I bet I can recite it. After being almost drifting to the brink of being "irrelevant", Kris Parker came back strong with this album. Sharp cuts and samples, heavy dancehall influence, and the usual Blastmaster "in your face" truth...good shit.
(Anybody got Live Hardcore Worldwide? I need that joint!)
KRS-One - Return Of The Boom Bap
Ultramagnetics will never be understood. Let's just make that clear. But they did make some funky music and paved the way for wordsmiths and beat chemists like Ghost, Doom, Prince Paul and the list goes on. They didn't break the mode. They smashed that shit into minute pieces so that it couldn't be put back together again.
Ultramagnetic MC's - Critical Beatdown
Ultramagnetic MC's - Four Horsemen
Highly slept on but soulful.
Cee-Lo - Cee-Lo Green and His Perfect Imperfection
To slow it down a little, I remember when my folks copped this dude's first tape lol. Stace My Ace reminded me to look out for this joint and when it popped up, hell, I wanted it for delf.
Best Of Freddie Jackson
Tracklisting
1. A Little Bit More ft.Melba Moore
2. Calling
3. Don't It Feel Good
4. Look Around
5. Me & Mrs. Jones
6. Rock Me Tonight(For Old Times Sake)
7. Second Time for Love
8. Sing a Song for Love
9. Tasty Love
10. You Are My Lady
When Prince dies, they're really gonna have to mention how this man changed the game with his creativity and musical abilities. This is an OLD album right here and it's rare so enjoy. Better back it up on two discs because once it's gone, it's gone.
Prince - For You (1978)
This is new but you need it yo. AZ deserves some long overdue credit. The advance of this joint was smokin so this should be top caliber NY hip-hop.
AZ - AWOL (Retail)
PW is smoked
Backup Link
PW is dukins
Gwen Stefani - Love. Angel. Music. Baby
Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley - Welcome To Jamrock
DJ Kay Slay-Live On Shade45
This is nice collective featuring some old and new mixed together for a good quality mix. Hopefully, Filefront will begin cooperating some time soon. I remember always waiting on Big Ron to either get the latest shipment of Ron G, Doo Wop and Clue or when he'd come back from NY he used to bring a back full of tapes and the Tapekingz label would be all over those joints.
TapeKingz - Fifteenth Anniversary Mixtape
The Tracklisting
Green Lantern:
1. Intro
2. Big Pun/Ghostface - Yeah Yeah Yeah (Green Mix)
3. Jadakiss/Remy Martin/Fat Joe/LL Cool J - Still Leanin (Green Mix)
4. 2Pac/Biggie - Hail Mary, Our Father (Green Mix)
Dirty Harry:
5. Intro
6. East Coast Rap Figures
7. 50 Cent F/Notorious BIG - I Warned You
8. Ason Freestyle
9. Down South Rap Figures
Doo Wop:
10. A Toast To Da Kingz - Doo Wop
11. Hot 97 Interlude
12. Bottom Line - Doo Wop/Jay-Z (Prod. by DJ Premier)
13. Fugitive - 50 Cent/Doo Wop
14. Sonny Handsome Freestyle
Whoo Kid:
15. Game Freestyle
16. Juvenile Freestyle
17. Busta Rhymes/David Banner - Down South
18. Game Freestyle
19. Ice Cube Freestyle
20. Dr. Dre - Sunshine
21. Nas - Twilight
Kay Slay:
22. Papoose Freestyle
23. Lloyd Banks/Tony Yayo - Ain't No Click
24. Jadakiss/Sheek/Swizz Beats - Real Hip Hop
Pudgee P:
25. Intro
26. Buckshot & Young Buck - Buck Ain't No Joke (Pudgee-P RMX)
27. 50 Cent Verse over Craig Mack
(Pudgee-P RMX)
28. Mobb Deep Verse over KRS-One (Pudgee-P RMX)
29. Eminem - A DJ Story
(Prod. by Pudgee P)
30. Tha Riot Squad - Stick Up Kids
(Prod. by Pudgee-P)
31. Biggie - Me & My Bitch
(***Rare Live Version***)
32. Jay-Z & Audio Two - What More Can I Say (Prod. by Pudgee-P)
DJ Envy:
33. Murder - M.O.P.
34. Mobb Deep Freestyle
35. Jingling Baby - Joe Budden/Coke
This right here should garner some love. If it doesn't, you all ain't really feeling us like you should.
This is hip-hop.
Undiluted.
No commercialism.
The essence of what started all this.
Mr.Magic & Marley Marl Radio show From 1985
Side One
Side Two
