
I'm running out of space in other publications to review every heater set to drop this quarter…so I'll be bringing loads of ill reviews and previews right here. I know this blog is primarily frequented by rap nerds of the highest order who are well aware that there's still an elephant's ass worth of sweet releases dropping constantly (whether or not people are buying them is another story), but I hope that some of you will forward this post to those unfortunate souls who think Ready To Die was hip-hop's last heroic disc. Today, September 30, [...]

Here is a track from Jean Grae's latest album Jeanius which dropped July 8th is produced entirely by legendary 9th Wonder and a few tracks by Khrysis. I gotta admit this track is moving, Jean tells a story about an abortion she got back in her teens and how she grew from that experience. Give it a listen

All tracks produced by Illmind and featuring a list of artists including 50 cent, Heltah Skeltah, Little Brother, Black Eyed Peas, Skyzoo, Jean Grae, Fresh Daily and Wale : Dub MD & Illmind presents Blaps, Rhymes & Life [Mediafire D/L] Online: DJ Dub MD - MySpace | Illmind - MySpace | Illmind - website

my evening playlist I think that I'm only now realizing the full potential of the Hype Machine . It's pretty cool that I can find users that "love" my tracks and then browse through their personal playlists. It's a very easy way to find music geared towards your tastes. **** Funny how "Love Thirst" and "Fried Chicken" use a food/sex metaphor and Busta somehow ended up on both of them. Jean Grae feat. Busta Rhymes - Love Thirst (Remix) [...]
Jean Grae - "Shadows Forever" Via OnSmash.
The appeal of this chica is still kind of lost on me but the 9th Wonder beat is kind of cool on some retro ish and Corey of Blacksmith is my dude even if this song sounds kinda pedestrian: Jean Grae feat. 9th Wonder - "This World" [ Audio : download | MP3 mediafire D/L and direct mp3 links, the latter via East Coast Digital Radio , Right Click & Save As please] Track kind of cuts off at the end (at least the ECDR mp3 [...]

I have to assume that the reason I haven't been moved sooner, or with greater passion, to post on the fact that the great lost backpacker-hop tapes, aka Jean Grae's 9th Wonder-produced Jeanius album, has finally seen a cleaned-up, remastered and retooled light-of-day release is the fact that, for those of us who've been rabidly nipping at Jean's heels since her drop-dead stunning, wordy, brainy and brilliant solo debut album have already consumed 99.9% of the Jeanius songs in some form or fashion. [...]

Photo by Xris Manteris The stalest trope in hip-hop criticism used to be the plight of the female MC. Why there weren't more, why they didn't get more attention, why they weren't better. It was trotted out in the early days of MC Lyte, Queen Latifah, and Salt 'N Pepa and revived for the bitch-hop heyday of Foxy Brown and Li'l Kim. But at this point, I'm almost starting to miss the cliché. There are so few woman rappers of note today that no one's even around to call attention [...]
Listen, there's nothing like knowin' yourself Like the way I know that smokin's kind of broken my health Like the way I know my flow don't make appropriate wealth I can't change that But funny I'm sayin' that when it's money I'm aimed at I give a fuck if you frame that or quote it (shit) I meant what I said cuz I wrote it, point noted I know I'm overly sensitive when it comes to, well Just about everything And I'm so hardheaded, I don't need your help Like no advice for these records 'less it's me, myself Like [...]

Ok, I love Jean Grae ! She is probably the most talented female emcee in the game today. Strike that, one of the most talented emcees in the game, male, female, or martian. Unfortunately she has no gimmick, no significant label backing, and thus no mainstream attention. What to do, what to do? Well, there is one way to solve this problem. Put her together with a star making producer! Blacksmith (aka Talib Kweli's boutique label) [...]

How pumped was I when I just read that underground femcee Jean Grae is about to put out a disc of new material? DIG IT! Not since her 2004 LP, This Week , has the buzz been this big surrounding 9th Wonder-produced, South African-born, NYC-raised wordsmith. Jeanius , an independent release on the Warner Brothers affiliated Blacksmith Music, is due out July 8. Preview the first single, Love Thirst (featuring Busta Rhymes) [...]

Jean Grae - Love Thirst (produced by 9th Wonder) It doesn't draw attention to itself right away, but the groove on "Love Thirst" is pretty relentless. It's once you get about midway through the track (that cooing vocal on the chorus--which is just beautifully understated) that you realize how compulsively listenable it is. (Who needs hooks when you can achieve beauty like this without them?) Clearly, this is supposed to be a sex jam, but really, it's great in any setting. I'm really looking forward to Jeanius finally seeing [...]

An unreleased Talib Kweli joint produced by Kanye West just dropped online yesterday called "mama can you hear me." The beat is laid back and it highlights talib's fast paced flow. If there were at least a verse by Kanye in there it could fit right in with the sample-heavy Graduation . I love their collaboration on 'Get Em High' from College Dropout but there are very few things I don't like about that album and most of them are words that get rhymed with themselves... but I digress. The Kanye produced [...]
...Mère poule et fils de... Le café Beaubourg prennait des airs de station de métro aux heures de pointe. Meriem me faisait la conversation, le chocolat fumant et la cigarette au coin des lèvres. Je m'appretais à lui demander de se taire, quand je me souvins le pourquoi de mon cafard du jour. Quelle France allons nous laisser à nos enfants ? Je ne parle pas de la notre, mais de celle que l'on fait. Le monde de demain quoi qu'il advienne LEUR appartient... Hein! Shen. [...]

No doubt ! DJ Jazzy Jeff is back. I'm a few months late on this one, but DAMN. I didn't really have high hopes for this album, but I stand corrected. I have to admit, I've never been checkin for Jeff as a producer. But he brought it, and also brought Jean Grae , Rhymefest , Method Man , CL Smooth and Big Daddy Kane with him. From being a highly respected DJ (who was rocking house parties at age 10 and winning the DMCs in 86), to being [...]

40. Absorbing Man . The bad guy with the coolest name, Crusher Creel, has taken on Thor, Captain American, the Avengers, and even played a part in the 1980s Secret Wars. Whereas many guys are cool in concept but hard to write about, The Absorbing Man stories are consistently satisfying. Cut: 5446/Ball and Chain-Sublime . Ball and Chain-Social Distortion 39. Lex Luthor . [...]