The Audacity of Dope

Rochelle is one of the dopest up and coming R&B singers around, and yet another talented artist from Toronto. The T-Dot has really had it on lock the last few years, very impressive. Can’t help but hear a little Aaliyah in this KLSH produced jam. Baby Girl would be proud.

PDX & the Bay connect on this one, produced by Trox. Shout to all the homies along I-5 South.

Another amazing artist coming out of the UK, Kwabs, might be my favorite new voice in music. His vocals are really powerful, though they are tempered down a bit on this specific record. Great stuff.

The EP is out February 3rd.

Our good friend Lupe made another appearance on Sound Session recently, though this one was in the form of our “Studio 93” series, where we interview an artist in front of a large group of winners.  We talked about his upcoming Tetsuo & Youth album, including details about his creative process and a discussion about how responsible complex MC’s are in ensuring listeners understand the messages they put in their verses.  We also discussed how he collaborates with other artists and how he’s often turned down for these projects because of his past controversial statements, before moving on to topics like his relationship with Rick Ross and how the music industry has changed as technology has improved over the years.

It’s always fun to chop it up with Lu, who really is one of the most gifted individuals we have in hip-hop.  He’s an innovative thinker that likes to challenge the status quo, which is always necessary, plus him and Shad are the 2 best writers in the game, imo. Hope you guys enjoy the conversation.  Shout to the Marsupial Empire for recording and editing.

FNF up!

Good music a plenty on this week’s episode of SNSS, including tracks from artists like The Lox, Termanology, Mykestro, Rockie Fresh & Casey Veggies, Kwabs, Kastle, Vancouver Sleep Clinic, and more, but there’s really only one thing on the mind of everyone in Seattle this week: the epic showdown between the Seahawks and 49ers, where the winner goes to the Super Bowl.  It should be a great game since the 49ers are the hottest team in football and might be the only squad more talented than the Seahawks top to bottom.  The Hawks haven’t played well offensively of late (or really all season, at least compared to their potential), but they have a great defense and the huge benefit of home field advantage here in Seattle.

With all due respect to the Patriots and Broncos, the NFC Championship is essentially the Super Bowl since these are the 2 best teams in football.  Should be a great one.  Go Hawks!

Show #448 (1-12-14)

1. The Lox – “Love Me Or Leave Me Alone”
2. Termanology ft. Ransom – “Set It Off”
3. Mykestro ft. Kendrick Lamar – “Set Precedent (LA Mix)”
4. Drake – “Trophies”
5. Rockie Fresh & Casey Veggies ft. Juicy J – “All That”
6. Tinashe – “Ain’t Ready”
7. Mac Miller ft. Syd Tha Kyd & Thundercat – “In The Morning”
8. Kwabs – “Wrong Or Right”
9. Kastle ft. Atlas – “Must Be Crazy”
10. Common – “War”
11. Roc Marciano ft. A.G. – “Soul Music”
12. Nacho Picasso ft. Avatar Darko – “Tell Me Something” (Local Music)
13. Rick Ross ft. Jay-Z – “The Devil Is A Lie”
14. M.O.P. – “Ante Up” (Throwback of the Week)
15. V. Dot ft. Louis V – “Town Biz” (Local Music)
16. Talib Kweli ft. Raekwon – “Violations”
17. Fabolous ft. Jadakiss – “The Hope”
18. Xperience & MTK ft. Casual – “Brighter Day” (Local Music)
19. Black Milk – “Deion’s House”
20. Nemo Achida ft. BJ The Chicago Kid – “Hands On”
21. Joey Bada$$, A La $ole, & Dyemond Lewis – “Sol Luna”
22. Jamall Bufford ft. Magestik Legend – “Travel Light”
23. Vampire Weekend ft. Danny Brown, Heems, & Despot – “Step (Remix)”
24. Elle Varner ft. Wale – “Rover”
25. Vancouver Sleep Clinic – “Collapse”

Link to download/stream the mp3 of the show – http://www.solidfiles.com/d/dd6a462338/
(back up – http://www7.zippyshare.com/v/32953375/file.html)
(2nd back up – http://linkmixes.com/it9far87thh4)

If there are any problems with the links or if you’d like to be added to our weekly email list to receive the playlist and download links after every show, just shoot me an email, DJHyphen@gmail.com.

Here’s the first SNSS episode of 2014, featuring new music from Hov, Drake, Oddisee, Jamall Bufford, BJ The Chicago Kid, Elle Varner, Audio Push, Fabolous, 7 Days Of Funk, The Lox, Pro Era, Tinashe, Bridget Kelly, Vampire Weekend, and more.  If you missed our Best of 2013 wrap up, click here.

In other news, as I type this, we’re a 2nd half away from the Broncos beating the Chargers and setting up an epic weekend of Seahawks/49ers and Patriots/Broncos matchups to determine the Super Bowl.  Can’t wait!

Show #447 (1-5-14)

1. Rick Ross ft. Jay-Z – “The Devil Is A Lie”
2. B.o.B – “Paper Route”
3. V. Dot ft. Louis V – “Town Biz” (Local Music)
4. Drake – “Trophies”
5. Shelton Harris & Tyler Dopps – “No Gods” (Local Music)
6. Oddisee – “Invisible Walls”
7. Jamall Bufford ft. Magestik Legend – “Travel Light”
8. Nemo Achida ft. BJ The Chicago Kid – “Hands On”
9. BJ The Chicago Kid ft. Jerreau – “My New Christmas List”
10. Elle Varner ft. Wale – “Rover”
11. Fabolous – “Cuffin Season”
12. Audio Push – “Shine”
13. 7 Days of Funk (Dam-Funk & Snoop Dogg) – “Let It Go”
14. Malice & Mario Sweet – “Celebration” (Local Music)
15. The Lox – “Love Me Or Leave Me Alone”
16. Outkast ft. Goodie Mob – “Git Up, Git Out” (Throwback of the Week)
17. Joey Bada$$, A La $ole, & Dyemond Lewis – “Sol Luna”
18. Kidd Upstairs ft. Mistah F.A.B., Gaita, & Hongry – “Nostalgia”
19. Talib Kweli – “Lover’s Peak”
20. Tinashe – “Midnight Sun”
21. Bridget Kelly – “Coca1n3 Heartbreak”
22. Jhene Aiko ft. Kendrick Lamar – “Stay Ready (What A Life)”
23. Vampire Weekend ft. Danny Brown, Heems, & Despot – “Step (Remix)”
24. A$AP Mob ft. A$AP Nast & Method Man – “Trillmatic”
25. MeLo-X – “Break From Flatbush”
26. Childish Gambino – “3005”

Link to download/stream the mp3 of the show – http://www.solidfiles.com/d/e5f65fc6d3/
(back up – http://www47.zippyshare.com/v/80917764/file.html)
(2nd back up – http://linkmixes.com/q0o1cfl8nn0n)

If there are any problems with the links or if you’d like to be added to our weekly email list to receive the playlist and download links after every show, just shoot me an email, DJHyphen@gmail.com.

(you like that 3rd person blog title, don’t ya?)

The homies Doc and Armond do one of the best hip-hop podcasts around with their Clock Radio Speakers show and I was honored to be a guest on a recent episode of theirs.  Toss this on and listen to us nerd out about all sorts of topics, including rap’s fascination with radio play and how radio really works, Wale’s issues with Complex, “event” releases in 2013 from artists like Jay-Z and Beyonce, my #InboxMadness Twitter series, industry tastemakers, and a whole bunch more.  Just a fun discussion with some folks that truly love music.  Good times.

It’s the last Sound Session of the year, which means only one thing: time for our annual “best of” wrap up show!  You can peep previous year end episodes here (2012, 2011, 2010, and 2009), but for this year’s list, see below and check our notes too.  As always, we pick what we feel represented the best artists and music that we highlighted on SNSS all year.  Normally, we avoid picking more than one track from an artist, but we couldn’t resist this year.  Kanye and Drake dominated 2013, in every sense (“HOW, Sway?), and they had too many records to only pick one.  Those guys were the MVP’s, but there were lots of great records this year:

Show #446 (12-29-13)
**Best of 2013**

1. Action Bronson – “Strictly 4 My Jeeps”
2. THURZ ft. Cali Martyr – “Got Damn, Got Damn”
3. A$AP Rocky ft. Skrillex & Birdy Nam Nam – “Wild For The Night”
4. Kris Kasanova ft. Skeme & Jarv Dee – “Shut Em Down”
5. Tyler, The Creator ft. Frank Ocean – “Bimmer”
6. Kanye West ft. Charlie Wilson – “Bound 2”
7. Kanye West – “Black Skinhead”
8. Pusha T ft. Kendrick Lamar – “Nosetalgia”
9. Step Brothers (Evidence & Alchemist) – “Step Masters”
10. Nacho Picasso – “Crime Waves” (Local Music)
11. Jay-Z ft. Rick Ross – “F*ckWithMeYouKnowIGotIt”
12. Romaro Franceswa ft. Fearce – “Bounce” (Local Music)
13. Shad ft. Saukrates – “Stylin’”
14. Smash Brovaz – “Whatever”
15. Drake ft. Sampha – “Too Much”
16. Sampha – “Too Much”
17. Drake ft. Jhene Aiko – “From Time”
18. The Physics – “Play It Off” (Local Music)
19. J. Cole ft. Nas – “Let Nas Down (Remix)”
20. Isaiah Rashad – “Shot U Down”
21. Porter Ray – “5 Mics” (Local Music)
22. Chance The Rapper – “Acid Rain”
23. Big K.R.I.T. – “Serve This Royalty”
24. The Internet – “Dontcha”
25. denitia and sene – “trip. fall.”
26. Raleigh Ritchie – “In Too Deep”
27. ForteBowie – “Gucci Mayne”

Link to download/stream the mp3 of the show – http://www.solidfiles.com/d/8f31e46420/
(back up – http://www35.zippyshare.com/v/99509846/file.html)
(2nd back up – http://linkmixes.com/hq2mac07719g)

If there are any problems with the links or if you’d like to be added to our weekly email list to receive the playlist and download links after every show, just shoot me an email, DJHyphen@gmail.com.

Notes:

1.  Action released lots of quality music in 2013, but this collab with Harry Fraud was his best.
2. Finally! A twerk record with lyrics. Club goers and backpackers unite!
3. ASAP’s collab with Skrillex didn’t quite fit with the rest of his album, but that’s not a bad thing when a track is this hype.
4. Kris, Jarv, and Skeme delivered a banger. Sadly, most folks are still sleeping. Not SNSS doe.
5. Tyler’s maturation resulted in one of the best albums of the year and this outro featured a beat that Pharrell wishes he made.
6. Yes, the video is absurd. Yes, the lyrics aren’t super dope. But this is my favorite record of the year. Just insanely enjoyable and a classic ‘Ye sample. You can’t front.
7. Another crazy beat, but the lyrics shine here. Kanye’s crazy but a genius. He was spitting truth all year in these songs and interviews.
8. Pusha had another great year (hanging with ‘Ye helps). This and “Numbers On The Board” were classics.
9. Speaking of classics, Ev & Al nailed this old school inspired slapper.
10. Seattle’s hip-hop scene is on fire and Nacho is the most intriguing MC we have. 2014 will be huge for him.
11. Jay dropped an average album (by his standards) but it still had a few gems, including this anthem.
12. Shout to BeanOne with possibly my favorite local beat ever. I could listen to that loop all day!
13. One Canadian legend linked with another soon to be Canadian legend. SK’s having fun on this one, but those lyrics are still rewind worthy.
14. Good ol’ fashioned boom-bap for the cold weather. T-Dot to SEA, connect.
15. We could have picked numerous records from Drizzy, but this one was a no-brainer. That hook. That beat. Those lyrics. Lock.
16. We had to give props to Sampha’s original that Drake sampled as well.
17. Still think Jhene had the hook of the year on “From Time.”
18. Last year, I mentioned that if the Physics release music in a year, they’re guaranteed to be on our year end list. Well, they released music. And it didn’t disappoint.
19. There were lots of dope “moments” (see Kendrick’s “Control” verse) but one of our favorites was Nas responding to Jermaine.
20. Kendrick was everywhere in 2013 and Q kept anticipation bubbling for his upcoming album, but TDE’s newcomer introduced himself to the world with one of the best tracks of the year.
21. The best part of Seattle’s hip-hop scene is that the future is looking STRONG. Cats like Porter, Romaro, and Dave B are leading the way for the youngsters.
22. Chicago’s up and comer linked with Seattle’s production OG, Jake One, and the resulting song was the highlight of Chance’s album.
23. A lot of folks are taking K.R.I.T. for granted and waiting for him to drop that undeniable classic, which will certainly come, but in the meantime, he continues to release great music. Another year, another great mixtape.
24. The Internet might have had the sleeper record of the year. J still points out that if they sold this track to Janet Jackson, it’s a guaranteed #1 hit. What a record…
25. Denitia Odigie and Sene collaborated for one of the surprise albums of the year and this was the first offering we heard off it. Still knocks.
26. Raleigh Ritchie’s an artist that might be off most people’s radars, but it’ll come in time. This is just a taste of what’s in store from this UK singer.
27. Forte simply does it all: raps, sings, produces. He’s good. He’s gucci.

Honorable mentions from artists not otherwise represented:

• 2 Player Co-Op (Trackademicks & 1-O.A.K.) – “Someone Great”
• 50 Cent ft. Kendrick Lamar – “We Up”
• AB – “You Used To Love Me”
• Amp Live ft. James Melo – “D.H.E.A.”
• A$AP Mob ft. A$AP Nast & Method Man – “Trillmatic”
• Bas ft. J. Cole & KQuick – “Lit”
• Big Sean ft. Kendrick Lamar & Jay Electronica – “Control”
• Bondax – “Gold (Snakehips Bootleg)”
• Busta Rhymes ft. Q-Tip – “Thank You”
• Childish Gambino – “3005”
• Dag Savage (Exile & Johaz) ft. Aloe Blacc – “When It Rains”
• Dave B – “Illectric”
• De La Soul – “Get Away”
• Disclosure, Sam Smith, Jimmy Napes, & Nile Rodgers – “Together”
• Eminem ft. Buckshot – “Don’t Front”
• Halo & Masta Killa ft. Rocki Evans – “No Matter”
• IamSu! – “Hipster Girls”
• Jadakiss ft. The-Dream – “Big Boy Dialogue”
• Janelle Monae ft. Miguel – “Primetime”
• Jhene Aiko – “The Worst”
• Joey Badass – “Unorthodox”
• John Crown – “Ben Franklin”
• John Legend ft. Rick Ross – “Who Do We Think We Are”
• Logic – “Nasty”
• Mack Wilds – “Magic”
• Mayer Hawthorne ft. Jessie Ware – “Her Favorite Song”
• MeLo-X – “God Magic”
• Mystikal – “Hit Me”
• Nickelus F ft. Drake – “Number 15”
• Quelle Chris ft. Tanya Morgan, Cavalier, & Fresh Daily – “Greene Eyes”
• Raz Simone – “Cold”
• Rick Ross ft. Jay-Z – “The Devil Is A Lie”
• Run The Jewels (Killer Mike & El-P) ft. Big Boi – “Banana Clipper”
• Schoolboy Q ft. Kendrick Lamar – “Collard Greens”
• Scribes – “Backseat (New Ride)”
• Sol – “Jump In”
• ST 2 Lettaz – “Trillmatic”
• Tanya Morgan – “For Real”
• The Black Opera ft. Mayer Hawthorne – “Queen Of Hearts”
• T.I. ft. B.o.B, Kendrick Lamar, & Kris Stephens – “Memories Back Then”
• Yo Gotti ft. J. Cole – “Cold Blood”
• Young Roddy – “This One”

2014: let’s gooooooooooooo