With the coming of Spring, new mixtape releases are dropping like bird poo on top of your freshly washed hooptie. So today I wanna take sometime out and give a slight review of the latest and greatest mixtapes I have come across on the blogs and sites.
Model/singer/actress Teyana Taylor has been making steady noise over the years from features on Kanye's new album to starring in Tyler Perry's "Madea's Big Happy Family". After dropping a couple singles that received underground success but failed to hit mainstream, she recently parted ways with label Star Trak/Interscope. Now riding solo dolo, she is drawing inspiration from Lauryn Hill's classic debut album with her new EP "MisUnderstanding of Teyana Taylor".
Trying to make a statement with this mixtape, the 21 yr old Harlem native recruits the production talents of JukeBox, Tone P, Mustard, Hitboy, Charlie Boy, King, and Christian Rich. This project also features verses by Fabolous and Jadakiss ("DUI"), Travis Porter ("Choosin") , Honey Cocaine ("Bad Boy"), and Wale delivering a dope 16 scene setting opening on "Make Your Move". This tape also includes the one of several remixes to "Marvin's Room" titled "Her Room" that was released late summer of last year. 15 tracks, top producers, and features from some of rap's best emcees help dress up this newly independent artist's well put together project. Both a mix of singing and rapping over 15 tracks, Taylor shows fans that she has found her lane in the music scene while showing that you dont need a major label backing to drop some heat. Lyrically I feel that Taylor still has some growing to do and that is what holds this EP from being a certified classic, but it is her first and is a lot better than others I've heard this year.
"Make Your Move" ft Wale
"Choosin"
One of the beautiful things about mixtapes are the versatility and limitless creativity that many artists get to express without money hungry industry moguls/loan sharks telling them what they can and cant do. In times where the music industries is the free market of internet use, creative expression and innovation is becoming harder to discover. When that new artist is found and signed, many fall into the trap of putting out work before they are lyrically mature or ready to display longevity. Lucky for music lovers everywhere, Chris Cab's "Echo Boom" is a breath of fresh air for the hip-hop/ reggae world.
Different from Cab's previous covers on "Black and Yellow" and "All of the Lights", from the start of the beginning of the tape( "Echo Boom" ft Pharrell) he establishes that this is going to be all his original and new sound. Cab continues to deliver audio crack with the following tracks. From trying his hand at some dance with "Put in Work" to drawing some influence from his Carribean roots in "Rihanna's Gun" ft. Mavado and Wyclef and "Turn You On" ft Melanie Fiona and Shaggy, Cab's flow and charisma with the beat that show off his talent on a well produced track. He even tries his hand at some pop flavor with the track "Cross Your Fingers" and succeeds in not coming across corny or generic. Not giving too much at once, he slows it down with the following hip-hop love ballad "Angels and Demons" and gets on a more serious but uplifting message with "What Can't We Do Here(Here We Go Again)" and "Going Home". With only 12 tracks, Cab gives the listener enough to establish his individual voice but leaves you still wanting to listen more. At such a young age, that idea of "leaving them wanting more" is something that many artists have yet to master when releasing a mixtape.
With "Echo Boom", Cab experiments with many sounds from pop to hip-hop while still keeping the laid-back chill vibe that you would find in a Corona ad of chilling on the beach. At only the age of 19, it is no suprise that he has already toured nationwide with T-Pain and Gym Class Heroes and is backed by Pharrell. Although many of the tracks are very simple, they still have a certain addicting vibe and quality that is just peaceful to listen to. This mixtape is definitely something to have on your playlist whether you're kicking and partaking in the herbal remedies or just lounging around the house. I just hope that this is not the best or last we here from this up and coming star.
"Echo Boom""put in work"
“You can clean to this, cook to this, you can iron to this"-Wiz Khalifa
From dropping some fire mixtapes but less than decent album to wifin'/savin' industry hoes. Khalifa has made a name for himself in the hip-hop community and continues to keep his music on your playlist with his new mixtape "Taylor Allerdice". Just released yesterday, Wiz drew inspiration from his high school days with the title and shut down interner servers on both Hot New Hip Hop and DatPiff with over 200,000 hits. So to say that Wiz has fell off would be an exaggeration considering his fan base is still heavy and every growing. After listening to this mixtape, I understand why Wiz's riders love it and not just because it is free.
After openingly admitting over his Tumblr that Rolling Papers was a load of hot garbage (summarizing/parapharasing), Wiz stays true to the flow that is what made "Kush and OJ" worth the download and listen and the production that makes dope music. With production from Cardo, Dumont, Lex Luger, Sparky Banks, and Big Germ, "Taylor Allerdice" is a solid tape that comes across as Wiz returning to the music his fans from earlier days would enjoy. Bringing in members of Taylor Gang like Chevy Wood and his fiance Amber Rose, this tape is a interesting mix between the mainstream "pop" sound and underground. Although the subject matter is basically still the same (weed, girls, money, and more weed) and his lyrical skill isn't some of his best work, it is still better than most of the verses on Rolling Papers and is a step towards the right direction for this Philly emcee. I was pleasantly suprised by this tape and give my kudos to Wiz for putting out some good work. The talking at the end of tracks and some of the singing can be left out of his next drop though.
"the code"
"California"
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