Best hip hop albums of 2010 so far...

Mine would probably include:

The Jacka & Lee Majors - Gobots 2

J Stalin - Prenuptial Agreement

Black C - 70's Baby

Other than that, idk.  I'm still waiting on that Nipsey, Devilz Rejectz, Jacka, Shady Nate and Lil Blood to drop.  I didn't even know that Stevie Joe's **** dropped @ rubbersoul.  Was it really that bad?  Shan's Song was one of my favorite songs this year.   I'll check it anway to give my own opinion.

And here's snippets from the Devilz Rejectz album... this is about to be my favorite album of the year

http://twiturm.com/ot3kr

[QUOTE="Black-Demon"]

I totally disagree with that. When Yo! MTV Raps! was alive they had everyone from Jeru,O.C.,or Group Home (non-mainstream artists) to Wu-Tang,2pac,and Biggie making appearances and talking about their albums. I'm pretty sure if the hosts or the people in charge of MTV cared about what ONLY the main audience wanted they wouldn't even think about taking time to visit with rappers who haven't even gone gold yet. 106th & Park is supposed to be a hip hop program yet many of the freshman rappers from this year and last year (even the ones who are looked at as major breakthrough rookies) have never made an appearance on the show besides J. Cole and a few others (Mind you,J. Cole was on The Blueprint 3 like I said before,so I'm pretty sure thats why they put him on there). You can easily blame people who own BET or the industry for practically forcing rappers to glamorize a gimmick to sell records but when it all comes to down it,it's because thats what people sadly want to listen to. Part of my point was discussed on the Hip Hop Vs. America special and David Banner was dead-on with what he said at 8:36;Nowadays the core people who buy albums and feed into album sales are more tuned into the materialistic/mysogynistic BS that are most of the time filling up the countdown shows and radio stations. But unfortunatly these newcomers have bills to pay so they have to milk the mainstream for what its worth. 

Colt45fool

There has always been a ****y set of music that the mainstream tunes into. That's NORMAL, the record execs have been doing this for DECADES. MC Hammer went diamond, while Illmatic didn't go Gold for years during the "golden age" of hip hop...but who was getting props from hip hop heads back then? Who eventually went double platnium based off word of mouth and dope music?!?! Case and point. Nas won, and he put out good music on a major label. 

People in the 90s were still buying Vanilla Ice, Marky Mark, MC Hammer, Sir Mix-A-Lot, while great records took YEARS to go platnium (Illmatic took seven years to go platnium.) Things haven't changed that much guys...records execs have just gotten dumber. 

We both have different opinions on what good music is so I can't argue with that.

Lauryn Hill has also sold 8 million records in the US and won 5 grammy awards,while Wu-Tang was also selling ridiculously,during the same time Redman was releasing nothing but gold albums (until he hooked up with Meth then Doc's Da Name 2000 went platinum),while DMX had two albums released the same year and had both debut at #1 and hit platinum status,don't forget Outkast still pushing a platinum when they came out in the era where it was only east and west coast being heard. My point is of course the major mainstream people were still selling extremely,but at least artists back then that we see as icons now were sharing the spotlight also. Nowadays to even go gold as an up and coming emcee is near impossible,while the hit six I mentioned before sold easily WITH the creation of limewire and other programs/websites that give away priced music for free. And what bothers me is the fact that people stopped paying attention to rappers who we claim to be skilled verbally because they don't have popular names associated with them. Like I've said before,why is it that J. Cole is now striking a fuse when he got signed to Jay-Z's label? Why is it that Drake got a good name as soon as he had Wayne on number of his songs on his mixtape? Wiz was the breakthrough artist of 2010 and I have yet to see him on a popular hip hop program that is known for promoting well known or talented up and coming artists. I'm not saying record execs have nothing to do with the problem,but the fans do also.

Edit:Oh,and I'm pretty sure It Was Written got a lot of exposure because of having Lauryn Hill on a track and R. Kelly on a remixed track lol

As for the main thread argument that's been going on for 4 pages... going gold or platinum on a major isn't what's important.  If you only do 100,000 but you own your own label, you're making more than the guy who goes gold on a major.  Ask any bay area rapper who's been in the game a while... its all about that independent hustle.  Better yet, ask C-Bo.  He's sold 3.5 million records throughout his whole 20 year career and he's never been on a major or gone gold.  Ever.  He's richer than Jadakiss (certified gold artist on Rocafella) Beanie Siegel (certified gold artist on Rocafella) and Freeway (certified gold artist on rocafella) combined, and yet nobody east of the mississippi has a clue who the **** he is.  Just like any other business, it's all about how much you're willing to hustle.

I got that 3.5 million figure from here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C-Bo

- STRONGLY disagree with Orlando's statement that Jacka wouldn't sell on a major label. "All Over Me" would've killed on the charts with a major label push. I've said it plenty of times before, but I could easily see Jacka being one of the most successful guys in rap today because he's really got a grasp on everything; it reminds me so much of Jay-Z around "Vol 3: Life & Times of Shawn Carter" era. He can do the clubs, he can do the streets; he can do the bay, he can do the east coast; etc.

Even if you disagree with that, I don't know how on earth you could say he'd do worse that Little Brother's album on Atlantic did. There are plenty of good reasons that album sold like crap; if an album by Jacka sold bad it'd most likely just be from bad promotion.

- The line between indie and major is so fine these days that half the artists Orlando refrenced barely mean anything (TV On the Radio is on Interscope, btw). Practically any artist that gets on a push on Pitchfork, if they aren't already on a major label, they're on an "indie" label that's either owned and/or distributed by a major label anyways. Sub Pop (home to guys like Fleet Foxes) is owned (49% share, I believe) by, and completely distributed by Warner Brothers. Hot Hot Heat got the Pitchfork treatment almost a decade ago with their Sub Pop release, and, unsurprisingly, were called up to Warner Brothers with their next release.

The line becomes even less relevant as more and more major labels are focusing their releases to their "indie" imprints - Universal releasing through Fontana, Epic releasing through Koch, Sony releasing through Red, etc. If you went to buy Bun B's Trill OG when it dropped, it shared the same prominent shelf space as, say, Lady Gaga, but it was "technically" released on an indie label.

And pretty much any remaining indie label only has one other hope of gettig any attention whatsoever, and that distrobution from the ADA (Alternative Distrobution Alliance) which, of course, is also mostly owned by a major label.

So if you're going to compare major label artists to indie artists, the only way to get anything out of that comparison these days would be to compare, say, Drake, to say, some local garage band playing at your high school. Otherwise, there really is no difference these days.

As for the main thread argument that's been going on for 4 pages... going gold or platinum on a major isn't what's important. If you only do 100,000 but you own your own label, you're making more than the guy who goes gold on a major. Ask any bay area rapper who's been in the game a while... its all about that independent hustle. Better yet, ask C-Bo. He's sold 3.5 million records throughout his whole 20 year career and he's never been on a major or gone gold. Ever. He's richer than Jadakiss (certified gold artist on Rocafella) Beanie Siegel (certified gold artist on Rocafella) and Freeway (certified gold artist on rocafella) combined, and yet nobody east of the mississippi has a clue who the **** he is. Just like any other business, it's all about how much you're willing to hustle.

I got that 3.5 million figure from here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C-Bo

a_ratchet_fan

lol, I'll be an exception to that. And I believe dudes in KC been fonkin with him.

But yeah, the independent hustle of the bay has always been pretty amazing. Looking back the past couple years, the only person I can think of to make it into rotation on MTV (the main MTV, not MTV Jams or whatever,which I don't get, but seeming anyone can get on) without being on a major is Keak Da Sneak. He was in heavy rotation on "Tell Me When To Go", and they even started playing "Super Hyphy" - and dude didn't really have a real album to promote it with or anything either, lol.

Alot of the way the rap business is handled these days is derived from Cash Money and No Limit, and those dudes all learned everything from E-40 and the bay.

But yeah, when you look at the kind of numbers that Stalin and those Livewire dudes were doing, and put it up against how little promotion went into it, they had to be some of the most profitable rappers on the planet last year.

[QUOTE="IsThisIt_basic"]

I was just typing up a big thread about Travis Porter but then I realized that pretty much all their good songs aren't on Youtube, and there didn't seem to be much of a point of making a thread if I couldn't provide the audio.

Anyways, "Differenter Gang" and "Proud to Be a Problem" are two of my favorite releases so far this year ... "Hotel" is easily one of my most played tracks this year, "Be Free" could easily be a Billboard-crushing hit, and there is just a ridiculous amount of good music floating around those two mixtapes.

Magna_Man109

What are your thoughts on MGK? Hes a CLE native and I've met him a few times and seen him perform. He may not be the best lyrically, but watch some live performances and damn this dude has a way with the crowd up there.

He's pretty decent; he's got a nice double-time flow, too. I just don't feel like him (or FKI) fit in with Travis Porter at all. But I'd defintely check out some solo work from him.

[QUOTE="a_ratchet_fan"]

As for the main thread argument that's been going on for 4 pages... going gold or platinum on a major isn't what's important. If you only do 100,000 but you own your own label, you're making more than the guy who goes gold on a major. Ask any bay area rapper who's been in the game a while... its all about that independent hustle. Better yet, ask C-Bo. He's sold 3.5 million records throughout his whole 20 year career and he's never been on a major or gone gold. Ever. He's richer than Jadakiss (certified gold artist on Rocafella) Beanie Siegel (certified gold artist on Rocafella) and Freeway (certified gold artist on rocafella) combined, and yet nobody east of the mississippi has a clue who the **** he is. Just like any other business, it's all about how much you're willing to hustle.

 

I got that 3.5 million figure from here:

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C-Bo

IsThisIt_basic

lol, I'll be an exception to that. And I believe dudes in KC been fonkin with him.

But yeah, the independent hustle of the bay has always been pretty amazing. Looking back the past couple years, the only person I can think of to make it into rotation on MTV (the main MTV, not MTV Jams or whatever,which I don't get, but seeming anyone can get on) without being on a major is Keak Da Sneak. He was in heavy rotation on "Tell Me When To Go", and they even started playing "Super Hyphy" - and dude didn't really have a real album to promote it with or anything either, lol.

Alot of the way the rap business is handled these days is derived from Cash Money and No Limit, and those dudes all learned everything from E-40 and the bay.

But yeah, when you look at the kind of numbers that Stalin and those Livewire dudes were doing, and put it up against how little promotion went into it, they had to be some of the most profitable rappers on the planet last year.

aight, besides select regions of the midwest and the south on the east of the mississippi, you would literally get blank stares if you brought up C-Bo's name on the east.

 And yea, J Stalin been made... Prenuptial Agreement just made him considerably more rich.  All of the Mob Figaz been ridin around in Benzes and Beamers since that C-Bo Presents The Mob Figaz album dropped.  Mac Dre was about to be one of the richest rappers on the west coast if he had been around long enough to get Thizz Entertainment national.  The bay's been extending its underground network over the last 2 decades and now it covers most of the western united states... if someone's hot in the bay then they're probably also hot in Texas, KC, Vegas and even Chi & the D.  There's almost no other underground scenes that can say that.

i'll go with hollow tip's new album street value. i had high hopes for stevie joes album but that was a huge flop. so far this year has been awful. some of street value sounds like it could have been on flawless 2, it's a good album.rubbersouI

Glad to hear that album turned out good; I'm excited to hear it. "Crime & Poverty" was a disappointment; the first track sounded like it could've been off of "Flawless 2", and then the rest of the album pretty much sucked. So I've been hoping "Street Value" would pretty much be more of "Flawless 2".

Hollow Tip also released an album with his crew, The Mercenaries, the same day as "Street Value" ... whole thing was produced by Nickateezy, so, again, I'm hoping for more of that "Flawless 2" sound.

Mine would probably include:

The Jacka & Lee Majors - Gobots 2

J Stalin - Prenuptial Agreement

Black C - 70's Baby

Other than that, idk. I'm still waiting on that Nipsey, Devilz Rejectz, Jacka, Shady Nate and Lil Blood to drop. I didn't even know that Stevie Joe's **** dropped @ rubbersoul. Was it really that bad? Shan's Song was one of my favorite songs this year. I'll check it anway to give my own opinion.

And here's snippets from the Devilz Rejectz album... this is about to be my favorite album of the year

http://twiturm.com/ot3kr

a_ratchet_fan

I've always had a hunch that, despite his immense potential, Stevie Joe's album was gonna suck. Haven't heard it yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if Rubbersoul is right. That Town Thizzness imprint has went from "can do no wrong" to "can't do anything right" in just a year's time.

Not listening to anything from Devilz Rejectz 2 until it drops, but yeah, I have every reason to believe that that's gonna be AOTY.

[QUOTE="a_ratchet_fan"]

Mine would probably include:

 

The Jacka & Lee Majors - Gobots 2

J Stalin - Prenuptial Agreement

Black C - 70's Baby

 

Other than that, idk. I'm still waiting on that Nipsey, Devilz Rejectz, Jacka, Shady Nate and Lil Blood to drop. I didn't even know that Stevie Joe's **** dropped @ rubbersoul. Was it really that bad? Shan's Song was one of my favorite songs this year. I'll check it anway to give my own opinion.

 

And here's snippets from the Devilz Rejectz album... this is about to be my favorite album of the year

 

http://twiturm.com/ot3kr

IsThisIt_basic

I've always had a hunch that, despite his immense potential, Stevie Joe's album was gonna suck. Haven't heard it yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if Rubbersoul is right. That Town Thizzness imprint has went from "can do no wrong" to "can't do anything right" in just a year's time.

Not listening to anything from Devilz Rejectz 2 until it drops, but yeah, I have every reason to believe that that's gonna be AOTY.

lol naw... I'm still feelin most of the stuff that Livewire drops.  I never liked Philthy Rich that much but the rest of them gassin.  Extortion Music Vol 1 was the **** and idk about you and rubbersoul but Prenup was easily one of my favorite albums this year.  There's 3 songs I haven't played since the day I bought it (*cough* that terrible *** song with E-40 and the two right after it) and the rest I play on repeat.  Heroin Music is probably going to be one of the best albums LW's put out period and so will Shady Nate's if he ever gets around to releasing it.

On a different note, why does A.G. Cubano got no hype outside of EPA?

- STRONGLY disagree with Orlando's statement that Jacka wouldn't sell on a major label. "All Over Me" would've killed on the charts with a major label push. I've said it plenty of times before, but I could easily see Jacka being one of the most successful guys in rap today because he's really got a grasp on everything; it reminds me so much of Jay-Z around "Vol 3: Life & Times of Shawn Carter" era. He can do the clubs, he can do the streets; he can do the bay, he can do the east coast; etc.

Even if you disagree with that, I don't know how on earth you could say he'd do worse that Little Brother's album on Atlantic did. There are plenty of good reasons that album sold like crap; if an album by Jacka sold bad it'd most likely just be from bad promotion.

IsThisIt_basic

It's all speculation.

The main point of that post I made was that good music doesn't simply sell itself, regardless of whether its on an indie or major. You can't just assume that good music will sell simply because its good, which is what Colt was saying. And it seems like you agree with me on that point since you specifically brought up how a major label push would've helped the Jacka. Tear Gas sold okay as an independent based on pretty much just word mouth alone. And I'm sure the Jacka made at least some money off of it. But to really sell well he would need a lot more than just word of mouth about his music. Simply releasing good/great music isn't going to give him a gold plaque. Marketing and all that other mess is what will. Will some artists go platinum just based on their music alone? Sure. But that is very very very rare nowadays and is not what happens to the vast majority of artists.

[QUOTE="IsThisIt_basic"]

- STRONGLY disagree with Orlando's statement that Jacka wouldn't sell on a major label. "All Over Me" would've killed on the charts with a major label push. I've said it plenty of times before, but I could easily see Jacka being one of the most successful guys in rap today because he's really got a grasp on everything; it reminds me so much of Jay-Z around "Vol 3: Life & Times of Shawn Carter" era. He can do the clubs, he can do the streets; he can do the bay, he can do the east coast; etc.

Even if you disagree with that, I don't know how on earth you could say he'd do worse that Little Brother's album on Atlantic did. There are plenty of good reasons that album sold like crap; if an album by Jacka sold bad it'd most likely just be from bad promotion.

Orlando_Magic

It's all speculation.

The main point of that post I made was that good music doesn't simply sell itself, regardless of whether its on an indie or major. You can't just assume that good music will sell simply because its good, which is what Colt was saying. And it seems like you agree with me on that point since you specifically brought up how a major label push would've helped the Jacka. Tear Gas sold okay as an independent based on pretty much just word mouth alone. And I'm sure the Jacka made at least some money off of it. But to really sell well he would need a lot more than just word of mouth about his music. Simply releasing good/great music isn't going to give him a gold plaque. Marketing and all that other mess is what will. Will some artists go platinum just based on their music alone? Sure. But that is very very very rare nowadays and is not what happens to the vast majority of artists.

Mess claimed that The Jacka's the #2 selling artist in the bay only behind himself... Mess been eatin.  And The Jack already had the success from that C-Bo Mob Figaz album... that sold 200,000 or something.  His 1st album (The Jacka of The Mob Figaz) sold decent too and so did Tear Gas.  You don't need to sell that much as an independent to see profit.  The Jack Artist sold about 30,000 albums.  Let's just say that its a 50/50 split on brick and mortar sales and the albums are selling for $15 each.  30,000 x 15 =$450,000 / 2 =$225,000.  After paying guest features and the nonexistent advertising fees, he'd still have 200 grand easy.  Repeat that with the dozens of albums and comps he's released and it adds up.

I already said in my post that the Jacka at least made some money with Tear Gas (even though it sold closer to 15k-20k and not 30k, or the fact that I bought my copy for $10 and not $15). No one is arguing whether or not independent artists can make money by selling less records than major label artists. We all know that is true already.

And though whatever sum of money, whether its $100k or $200k, that the Jacka made off Tear Gas is certainly respectable to all of us.... its not really that much money for such a great album. We're talking about arguably the best rap album of all of last year, and one of the most popular artists in the Bay here. It's sad to think that artists like Asher Roth most likely/probably made more money off Asleep in the Bread Aisle while being on a major label than the Jacka did for Tear Gas.

Going back to the point I was making to Colt, if good music alone was truly enough to sell an album, good music like Tear Gas would have sold a lot more than 15K, 20K, 30K or whatever amount it sold.

Listened to these to yesterday and I liked Differenter Gang a lot but wasn't feeling Proud to be a Problem at all. Will give both more rotations though.Balimi

I like the production on Differenter Gang better, and it's more consistent, but the highlights of Proud to Be a Problem outshine it for me (especially "Hotel").

BTW, Colt, I think you would either really like or really hate these tapes. Check them out.

[QUOTE="IsThisIt_basic"][QUOTE="a_ratchet_fan"]

Mine would probably include:

The Jacka & Lee Majors - Gobots 2

J Stalin - Prenuptial Agreement

Black C - 70's Baby

Other than that, idk. I'm still waiting on that Nipsey, Devilz Rejectz, Jacka, Shady Nate and Lil Blood to drop. I didn't even know that Stevie Joe's **** dropped @ rubbersoul. Was it really that bad? Shan's Song was one of my favorite songs this year. I'll check it anway to give my own opinion.

And here's snippets from the Devilz Rejectz album... this is about to be my favorite album of the year

http://twiturm.com/ot3kr

a_ratchet_fan

I've always had a hunch that, despite his immense potential, Stevie Joe's album was gonna suck. Haven't heard it yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if Rubbersoul is right. That Town Thizzness imprint has went from "can do no wrong" to "can't do anything right" in just a year's time.

Not listening to anything from Devilz Rejectz 2 until it drops, but yeah, I have every reason to believe that that's gonna be AOTY.

lol naw... I'm still feelin most of the stuff that Livewire drops. I never liked Philthy Rich that much but the rest of them gassin. Extortion Music Vol 1 was the **** and idk about you and rubbersoul but Prenup was easily one of my favorite albums this year. There's 3 songs I haven't played since the day I bought it (*cough* that terrible *** song with E-40 and the two right after it) and the rest I play on repeat. Heroin Music is probably going to be one of the best albums LW's put out period and so will Shady Nate's if he ever gets around to releasing it.

On a different note, why does A.G. Cubano got no hype outside of EPA?

See, when you put it that I was I mostly agree with you ... it's just that you're leaving out a TON of the forgettable stuff they've released the last six to nine months. Used to be any time Livewire released something it was worth your money.

But yeah, without a doubt, I think everyone in the group could drop a fantastic record (even Philthy - you don't hear it often, but he can drop great verses). And yeah, Heron/Heroin (I've seen it go by both) Music will likely be a great record, and I think it goes without saying Shady Nate's record should own - I think he might have Stalin beat as the star of Livewire.

[QUOTE="Colt45fool"]You're not getting it though. What if EVERY independent artist had backing like Vampire Wekeend.What if these independent musicians were backed by major labels. Look at Modest Mouse--Modest Mouse has such a cult following as an independent artist that when they go to a major their album goes platnium. Now apply that to Vampire Weekend, and Odawas...Fruit Bats, and Fleet Foxes...Black Milk and The Jacka. You think these dudes wouldn't sell? Fruit Bats, and Odawas probably not but the other musicians probably would. Way more than you're giving them credit for.

ICP isn't good, I was just bringing them up as a musician who has sold. Independent music sells. Good music sells. Independent =/= good, though it can be.

Good music sells because they grow established fanbases who expect a certain level of quality. If good musicians went major, they'd sell way better or just as well as the current crop of major label musicians. The ear of the listener isn't dead, the record execs are just morons. 

Orlando_Magic

Vampire Weekend is super catchy, makes funny videos, gets airplay on MTV, and is basically a pop act on an indie label. Sure, I think other bands like them would sell on a major label. Who wouldn't? They are everything a major label looks for in a new act, yet are on an indie. Not every indie band is like that.

Fleet Foxes would sell well but not on the level of Vampire Weekend.

The Jacka and Black Milk definitely would not sell on a major label. They would sell worse than Little Brother did when LB was on Atlantic.

Fruit Bats and Odawas would not sell.

I am not disagreeing with you that artists with established fanbases will sell. That's pretty obvious lol. You said earlier that good music sells no matter what, even if its on an indie. So I gave you some examples of "good" music (aka music I know you like) and showed you that they weren't selling. There's really not much more to it than that.

What's stopping someone like Freddie Gibbs from having a fanbase as large as Wiz Khalifa? Both of them are good, maybe even great artists, yet if both of them put out albums today Wiz would be the only one to put up decent numbers. Just because you are a good artist does not mean you will ever develop that core fanbase that will translate into album sales.

The fact that you already admitted earlier that "bad" music sells shows you that quality of music isn't the sole determinant of album sales. So when a good album happens to sell, you can't just sit back and say "oh it was because the music was good." Marketing and getting the right people to listen to the music is just as, if not more important.

Obviously the only determinant in selling isn't making good music; that's obvious. Accessibility is expected, but bands like Radiohead don't make pop music and they still go Gold on indie labels...TV On The Radio sells without pop music, and so do the Fleet Foxes. These bands may be the exception, but it's telling of how much the industry has changed....because 30 years ago these bands would never sell. Ever. The industry is changing and so are its fans. Piracy isn't the only thing killing record sells these days, it's people going out and searching for dope music....once record execs realize this, maybe we'll see the multi platnium record sales we saw earlier this decade. 

I don't listen to Freddie Gibbs so I can't comment on it. The Jacka and Black Milk would absolutely sell on a major with the right promotion. Dudes have single worthy songs for days. "Get It In"/'Summer'/Glamorous Lifestyle wouldn't get radio play? You think? Without U/RePPin For U/Overdose/Long Story Short wouldn't get play? I could see either guy put up Kweli type numbers, especially Black Milk. 

^ I couldn't see any of those songs getting major play on the radio...especially not black milk. The Jacka possibly because I could see him attracting a larger audienceandyboiii

I already said in my post that the Jacka at least made some money with Tear Gas (even though it sold closer to 15k-20k and not 30k, or the fact that I bought my copy for $10 and not $15). No one is arguing whether or not independent artists can make money by selling less records than major label artists. We all know that is true already.

And though whatever sum of money, whether its $100k or $200k, that the Jacka made off Tear Gas is certainly respectable to all of us.... its not really that much money for such a great album. We're talking about arguably the best rap album of all of last year, and one of the most popular artists in the Bay here. It's sad to think that artists like Asher Roth most likely/probably made more money off Asleep in the Bread Aisle while being on a major label than the Jacka did for Tear Gas.

Going back to the point I was making to Colt, if good music alone was truly enough to sell an album, good music like Tear Gas would have sold a lot more than 15K, 20K, 30K or whatever amount it sold.

Orlando_Magic

The Jack Artist sold 30K, not Tear Gas.

But lol... I didn't realize you were a fan.  I wish he would focus more on his solos than on his collab projects.  Not that I'm not looking forward to Devilz Rejectz 2 and the Freeway album, but he should've not released Broad Daylight and just saved 3 of the best songs for the real albums (Murder Weapon and Dunya).

[QUOTE="andyboiii"]^ I couldn't see any of those songs getting major play on the radio...especially not black milk. The Jacka possibly because I could see him attracting a larger audienceColt45fool

Singles like "All Over Me" and "Don't Be Scared" would kill on radio (incidentally, both singles with Jeffro production and Matt Blaque hooks). And I think the thing people - and even record companies these days - forget is that, if you can get a foothold with commercial singles like that (that are legitametly great songs, to boot), you can afford yourself time to cater to the more hardcore audience as well. I'll always refer back to Jay-Z as the best, and most successful example of this, like when he was doing songs with Mariah Carey, and at the same time, featuring on the remix to Juvenile's "Ha" (not exactly a mainstream single) and doing songs with guys like UGK and Scarface. I think Jacka is the first rapper I've seen in a long time that can really pull it all off, and he could do big figures with the right label situation in hand.

Defintely the sleeper album of the year for me. After intially being really disappointed, I've enjoyed this more and more with each listen, and now it's a serious AOTY contender for me. I think I like it even better than last year's "Giants & Elephants", and that was the best album of 2009. I could do w/o "Good ****", but otherwise, everything else is solid. It's another one of those albums that just stands out for being a really well thought out project, not some half-baked mixtape ****.

Guce is really one of the best rappers out there today; I can't think of many rappers that are half as enjoyable to listen to. And Matt really displays why he's such a sought-after hook man. Tron Trees really kills the production on here, though ... amazing stuff. It's just amazing that there are people out there making some of the most amazing music I've ever heard for an audience of a couple thousand people, lol.

Guce's "American Bully" (and maybe Bullys Wit Fullys Vol 4, depending on who he decides to do it with - T-Nutty maybe ?!) is already my most anticipated album of 2012.

btw, this is dropping in two weeks, and I have a feeling it's gonna own pretty hard:

Lil Rue - "Stars & Straps"

I've been waiting for a real official solo album for Rue for a long time, and the badly marked "mixtape" "Fully Loaded" kinda killed my hopes for one. But this is sounding pretty solid ... here's a trailer for the record:

"Stars and Straps (Trailer)"

That "I'm too cool/I'm too fly" hook sucks, but whatever, Rue's verses are where it's at anyways. Any proof needed of that can be found here:

"Struggle"

Jesus, Rue kills that track. Can't remember the last time someone bodied Jacka on a track, but Rue did it. This is off of "The Dead End", Rue's upcoming SMC/Town Thizzness debut.

Defintely the sleeper album of the year for me. After intially being really disappointed, I've enjoyed this more and more with each listen, and now it's a serious AOTY contender for me. I think I like it even better than last year's "Giants & Elephants", and that was the best album of 2009. I could do w/o "Good ****", but otherwise, everything else is solid. It's another one of those albums that just stands out for being a really well thought out project, not some half-baked mixtape ****.

Guce is really one of the best rappers out there today; I can't think of many rappers that are half as enjoyable to listen to. And Matt really displays why he's such a sought-after hook man. Tron Trees really kills the production on here, though ... amazing stuff. It's just amazing that there are people out there making some of the most amazing music I've ever heard for an audience of a couple thousand people, lol.

Guce's "American Bully" (and maybe Bullys Wit Fullys Vol 4, depending on who he decides to do it with - T-Nutty maybe ?!) is already my most anticipated album of 2012.

IsThisIt_basic

Personally I can't support rappers who claim blood when that B&C **** has no business being up here.   Only reason I supported Jonestown was because The Jacka was on it.  Messy Marv and Guce can get the **** out of here with that BS.

btw, this is dropping in two weeks, and I have a feeling it's gonna own pretty hard:

Lil Rue - "Stars & Straps"

I've been waiting for a real official solo album for Rue for a long time, and the badly marked "mixtape" "Fully Loaded" kinda killed my hopes for one. But this is sounding pretty solid ... here's a trailer for the record:

"Stars and Straps (Trailer)"

That "I'm too cool/I'm too fly" hook sucks, but whatever, Rue's verses are where it's at anyways. Any proof needed of that can be found here:

"Struggle"

Jesus, Rue kills that track. Can't remember the last time someone bodied Jacka on a track, but Rue did it. This is off of "The Dead End", Rue's upcoming SMC/Town Thizzness debut.

IsThisIt_basic

Yea I saw this on BayIsBack.  I'm bout to cop this when it comes out along with Devilz Rejectz 2 since they drop the same day.

i'll go with hollow tip's new album street value. i had high hopes for stevie joes album but that was a huge flop. so far this year has been awful. some of street value sounds like it could have been on flawless 2, it's a good album.rubbersouI

^^^ This.

Man, that Stevie Joe album ****ing sucks! Literally every Town Thizzness release since DJ Fresh's album has been worse in quality than the last, and I, at the very least, didn't see this being worse than the Sleepy D album, but damn this album is bad. The only good songs on it have been around for years (that track with The Team is two, maybe even three years old) and appeared on tons of records already. And I don't know who the hell is listening to Stevie Joe for songs about the ladies.

Speaking of really bad albums I've recently picked up, that J Stalin & Lil Kev album also sucks.

With that said, though, I'm really loving the new Hollow Tip record. For those that haven't listened to Hollow Tip, listen to Flawless 2 first - seriously, it's some of the best production I have ever heard in all my years of listening to rap. But there is some excellent stuff on this one too; really, I'm surprised just how good it is, and I'm liking it better each time I listen to it (right now I'd say something like 2/3 or 3/4 of the songs own, and I'm now finding myself even bumping some of the tracks I was initially skipping). Alot of the best songs are the ones that sound like they're from Flawless 2, but there are also some pretty amazing songs that go into territory I've never heard Tip & Nickateezy go before.

Right now "Talk That ****" and "The Takeova" are early favorites.

Hollow Tip really is turning into one of my favorite rappers these days ... he's not a great rapper by any measure of greatness, but in an age where everybody has some gimmick or another, he's just him, and it's nice to listen to a rapper with no real pretense. He's just putting out good, enjoyable music, and, as I'm going through his already pretty massive catalogue, I'm finding out dude has one pretty impressive catalogue. Sacramento has a great rap scene, guys.

[QUOTE="IsThisIt_basic"]

Defintely the sleeper album of the year for me. After intially being really disappointed, I've enjoyed this more and more with each listen, and now it's a serious AOTY contender for me. I think I like it even better than last year's "Giants & Elephants", and that was the best album of 2009. I could do w/o "Good ****", but otherwise, everything else is solid. It's another one of those albums that just stands out for being a really well thought out project, not some half-baked mixtape ****.

Guce is really one of the best rappers out there today; I can't think of many rappers that are half as enjoyable to listen to. And Matt really displays why he's such a sought-after hook man. Tron Trees really kills the production on here, though ... amazing stuff. It's just amazing that there are people out there making some of the most amazing music I've ever heard for an audience of a couple thousand people, lol.

Guce's "American Bully" (and maybe Bullys Wit Fullys Vol 4, depending on who he decides to do it with - T-Nutty maybe ?!) is already my most anticipated album of 2012.

a_ratchet_fan

Personally I can't support rappers who claim blood when that B&C **** has no business being up here. Only reason I supported Jonestown was because The Jacka was on it. Messy Marv and Guce can get the **** out of here with that BS.

Personally I don't care what rappers are doing irl ... I'm just concerned with whether or not they're making dope music, and Guce is putting out some really dope music these days.

[QUOTE="a_ratchet_fan"][QUOTE="IsThisIt_basic"]

Defintely the sleeper album of the year for me. After intially being really disappointed, I've enjoyed this more and more with each listen, and now it's a serious AOTY contender for me. I think I like it even better than last year's "Giants & Elephants", and that was the best album of 2009. I could do w/o "Good ****", but otherwise, everything else is solid. It's another one of those albums that just stands out for being a really well thought out project, not some half-baked mixtape ****.

Guce is really one of the best rappers out there today; I can't think of many rappers that are half as enjoyable to listen to. And Matt really displays why he's such a sought-after hook man. Tron Trees really kills the production on here, though ... amazing stuff. It's just amazing that there are people out there making some of the most amazing music I've ever heard for an audience of a couple thousand people, lol.

Guce's "American Bully" (and maybe Bullys Wit Fullys Vol 4, depending on who he decides to do it with - T-Nutty maybe ?!) is already my most anticipated album of 2012.

IsThisIt_basic

Personally I can't support rappers who claim blood when that B&C **** has no business being up here. Only reason I supported Jonestown was because The Jacka was on it. Messy Marv and Guce can get the **** out of here with that BS.

Personally I don't care what rappers are doing irl ... I'm just concerned with whether or not they're making dope music, and Guce is putting out some really dope music these days.

I dont care what rappers do in real life either... they're promoting the **** in their music when they obviously aint bloods.  Its disrespectful to both the bloods and the bay.

I really can't think of a time I've heard Guce talking about B&C on wax before, but I'm still getting into his stuff, so I can't really say. As far as Marv goes, though, I could really care less about him ... I do think he could make a great record, but I have about zero hope it'll ever happen.

btw, we were talking a couple posts ago about dope records dropping next Tuesday ... Telly Mac's new album "Your Nothing Till Someone Kills You" (yes, that's the way the title is spelled) drops next Tuesday. I'm actually a little more excited for that than I am Devilz Rejectz 2, but Telly Mac's last album is one of my favorite albums of the last five years or so. And Levitti shows up on the new album! Lookin' like a good month for bay rap ...

I really called that Stalin & Lil Kev album wrong ... I thought about not posting that because it was my impressions after just one listen and I had a feeling I was gonna like the album better, but whatever.

Anyways, I'd liken the album to "The Prenuptial Agreement: The Leak Mixtape" in a number of ways ... one being that it's biggest problem is crappy mastering and sometimes cheap sounds. But there's enough talent that I don't even care. Another way that it's similar to The Leak is that it's not really the kind of album that you'd show someone to try to convince them Stalin is great, but for any dedicated Stalin fan, there's a lot to like here.

Basically, "Fast Forward" is horrible, and there are some weak tracks towards the end, but outside of that, there's a lot to like. Namely, the first track just nails what made The Real World Vol 2 so great, and track #9 (don't have the album on hand as I type) is as vintage of a Stalin and Mekanix collaboration as you could ever want.