Benz and a Backpack

Ski Beatz offers up another session at his 24 Hour Karate School and this time around the dojo is at 30,000 feet up. 24 Hour Karate School: Twilight drops Valentine’s Day and all the usual suspects (Curren$y, Smoke DZA, Stalley, etc.) are sitting co-pilot. Bow to your sensei, because Ski treating that bass like you should treat your girl this Tuesday. You ain’t “Living it Up” like Mikey Rocks and Trademark unless you got the type that wants them sticky-green flowers though.  If you ain’t got a girl at all, just put this on rotation in the whip and cruise with Mary Jane.

Hit the skip for the the tracklist and a little sumn extra. Remember, J.ust E.njoy T.his S.hit.  Read the rest of this entry →

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Smoke DZA released the visuals for “Pow Pow” off his album Rolling Stoned. The video essentially re-creates the end of Jay-Z’s “Dead Presidents” video, an audacious statement by the Kushed God. It shows him, Dom Kenendy, Big K.R.I.T., Big Sant and a few others drinking Rosé and playing a game of Monopoly with real cash. While DZA is a major league weed-rapper, the scene is more suitable for Hov’s video; Notorious B.I.G., Jigga, and AZ are Hip-Hop icons and the board game epitomized there roles in the rap game. Smoke’s blunt-touting mellow rhymes are enjoyable, but Rolling Stoned is not moving units like the platinum selling Reasonable Doubt. It might also be interesting to note that Smoke’s and Jay-Z’s albums are the the only two that didn’t leak this year; the latter a result of rigorous security measures, the former presumably a consequence of sparse demand.

Hit the skip to watch the original Dead Presidents’ video. Read the rest of this entry →

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These were the free releases that stayed in our collective rotation the longest. 2010 was kind to many artists for wholly different reasons: Apollo’s knocking on the proverbial door, DZA’s got his foot in it, Freddie’s got the door halfway open, Cole’s got it open all the way, Das Racist is opening several doors at once, and Wiz is about to tear the door of its facken hinges. Enough with the door metaphors, hit the skip already!

Honorable Mention: Nipsey Hussle – The Marathon

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In case you haven’t been keeping up, here is the full compilation, with a track list and D/L after the jump. The artwork has all been from celebrated hip-hop photographer Mike Schreiber, who recently dropped a collection of his favorite hip-hop pictures called True Hip-Hop (available via Amazon.com). Each of his pictures captures some fundamental element of hip-hop: Biz’s playfulness, Nas’ cerebral disposition, Mos’ introverted artistry, Meth’s larger-than-life persona. The release of Mike’s anthology in 2010 is just one of the reasons it was such a wonderful year for hip-hop. Here’s to an even better 2011!

Previously: Dizzy’s Best Singles Of 2010 [Part 5]
Previously: Dizzy’s Best Singles Of 2010 [Part 4]
Previously: Dizzy’s Best Singles Of 2010 [Part 3]
Previously: Dizzy’s Best Singles Of 2010 [Part 2]
Previously: Dizzy’s Best Singles Of 2010 [Part 1]
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Fifth and final installment, from The Roots through yU (of Diamond District). It includes several emcee/producer combinations: Ruste Juxx & MP, Dat X & the Chocolate Boy Wonder, Mos & Ski, Sky & Ill, Trek Life & Oddisee, Waka Flocka & Lex Luger. Plus: Sean Price and Tyler The Creator at their finest, respectively.

Previously: Dizzy’s Best Singles Of 2010 [Part 4]
Previously: Dizzy’s Best Singles Of 2010 [Part 3]
Previously: Dizzy’s Best Singles Of 2010 [Part 2]
Previously: Dizzy’s Best Singles Of 2010 [Part 1]
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Curren$y through Earl Sweatshirt, including newcomers Das Racist and Doss The Artist as well as seasoned vocalists Dwele and Marc Anthony.

Previously: Dizzy’s Best Singles Of 2010 [Part 1]
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On his most recent Ecko Unltd. Mixtape, CR The Beast prominently featured a song each from Wiz Khalifa (“In The Cut”) and Curren$y (“Roasted”). This time around, CR decided to decided to dedicate a whole tape to their music, most likely because their creative processes so closely match his own. Among other things, getting toasty is a must. That way you can open your mind and achieve a form of Higher Learning. In addition to Wiz and Spitta, the tape features Ski Beatz, Young Roddy, Trademark, Smoke DZA, Big K.R.I.T., and much more. Tracklist and download link after the jump!
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MoneyCashShoms alerted me to a situation that took place at the end of last summer when Das Racist’s Victor Vazquez challenged Farley Katz, an in-house cartoonist at The New Yorker, to a cartoon-off! The reason? Vazquez was unhappy with Katz’s commentary on American Fast Food culture, which referenced the Das Racist joint “Combination Pizza Hut And Taco Bell.” Katz accepted the challenge, and the rest is history. And even though Katz and TNY did not hold true to their promise– that if they lost they’d become a magazine dedicated to rap and jewels (haha)– the fact that the cartoon-off happened is worthy of recognition in and of itself. What’s that age-old adage– it’s not where you end up that matters, but how you get there? Yeah. Something like that.

It’s been a minute, but this go-round of Mixtape Monday has a little bit of everything: Das Racist for the deconstructivists, must-listen Nas for the purists, Smokers Club representatives for the weed heads, Aloe Blacc for the musical connoisseurs, TrapDub (or ‘ThugStep’) for the party-goers, Gucci for the anti-lyricists, and the 2010 BET Cyphers for those who haven’t heard em yet. Bewler!

Benz And A Backpack Presents…Mixtape Monday – Vol. 22 by BenzAndABackpack4

Download: Benz And A Backpack Presents…Mixtape Monday Vol. 22

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Curren$y, Big K.R.I.T. and Smoke Dza are bringing the Creative Control Movement to Providence this Sunday October 3rd down at Jerky’s Music Hall. Pre-sale tickets hit for $17, while tickets at the door will run $20. Show starts at 9 pm. Don’t miss a moment. Bonus: the BenzAndABackpack crew will be repping College Hill down at Jerky’s all night. Roll with or meet up with us downtown.

These three artists are on the up and up, and missing them during their take off would be poor form for any hip-hop head. Don’t make that mistake. This show is bound to be banging.

If you ain’t up on the waves that the Creative Control team and the music man Ski Beatz have been making, check the homie ACB’s run down.

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Every now and then, trying circumstances arise that would put a strain on any relationship. When that strain becomes sustained, or when it shows some semblance of permanence, it’s time to put the foundation of that relationship under the microscope and evaluate whether or not it is fundamentally sound. If it is, then you break out your tool belt and work with the other person to rebuild the interior of that relationship, and move forward. If it isn’t fundamentally sound then you tear that house down and look for a different plot of land to build on.

There’s no time to waste on people who don’t reciprocate equal love and respect. Surround yourself with the people who do, because they’ll always hold you down. Keep the others at arm’s length. Dame and Jay parted ways in 2004, most likely because Dame was not a supporter of the direction HOV was headed. Now Dame is doing much cooler shit than Jay, and he’s doing it with a group of people dedicated to a singular artistic cause. Ski Beatz, Curren$y, Big K.R.I.T., and Smoke DZA are DD172 teammates featured in this week’s Mixtape Monday. Other tracks include: brand new Raekwon, Andre 3000, Styles P, Cee-Lo, KanYe, Lupe & Pharrell, as well as cuts from Detroit’s Doss The Artist & Hir-O, and Providence’s own CR The Beast and Chachi. DL link under the cut!

Benz And A Backpack Presents…Mixtape Monday – Vol. 21 by BenzAndABackpack

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It was after a particularly grueling (but prodigious) recording session in the building known as DD172 that Curren$y, the increasingly ubiquitous New Orleans rapper, decided to defuse and decompress his over-worked crew by joking that working in the studio with Ski Beatz was like a “24-hour dojo.” Though only a quip, Mos Def, also in attendance, ran with the idea, eventually recording the swingy song, “24-hour Karate School,” which would become the purported single off the album of the same name.

Mos Def – 24 Hour Karate School [prod. Ski Beatz]

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Since this auspicious meeting, Ski and his vivacious team of musicians, rappers, artists, and videographers, have been hard at work, catapulting the DD172 collective into the blog-o-sphere and capturing the attentions of journalists, industry executives, heads, and even a few casual listeners. Teamed with Damon Dash, Ski is launching what is beginning to resemble a movement in hip-hop, pushing a sample-based, jazz-oriented revivalism. This sound is defined by its refurbished Reasonable Doubt-era throb and swing, packed in tightly with lush guitars, airy keys, and blustering brass.

Curren$y ft. Jay Electronica & Mos Def – The Day [prod. Ski Beatz]

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It’s a lot to take in. Thankfully, the aesthetics of the DD172 movement make it all palatable. Read the rest of this entry →

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Official visuals for “Nothin’ But Us,” the most recent single off Ski’s upcoming drop 24 Hour Karate School. Mark my words, Ski Beatz is about to have a major renaissance; he’s linked with a young crop of rappers that is poised to take over the game in the very near future (Curren$y, Wiz, K.R.I.T., Yela, Smoke DZA, etc. etc.). Stay ahead of the curve and get up on them now!

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