Benz and a Backpack

“You never thought that hip-hop would take it this far,” and I imagine nobody in the first thirty years of hip-hop did. Radio play? Yup. Magazines? Okay. Grammys? Probably. But fellowships at Harvard?

If anyone deserves a fellowship at an elite institution it’s 9th Wonder, who is one of the premier educators and practitioners of hip-hop. 9th has been teaching a soul sampling course at Duke University, and over the course of his career he has approached his music with an unparalleled level of intelligence and devotion. That devotion will be on display in The Harvard Fellowship, a film directed by Kenneth Price (who collaborated with 9th on The Wonder Years) that will document 9th’s year at Harvard, and hopefully dispel with the idea that “hip-hop” and “entertainment” are synonymous.

“The Harvard Fellow follows one of hip-hop’s most dynamic artists, 9th Wonder through a year of lecturing and research at Harvard University. While at Harvard, 9th will have an office on campus, teach a class on the history of hip-hop, complete a research project and further explore hip-hop’s history and culture in an academic setting.”

The research component to the project is especially interesting. 9th will spend the year unearthing and cataloguing the samples that make up his 10 favorite albums. For more information on The Harvard Fellow, visit the project’s website, and be sure to make even a nominal donation to The Harvard Fellow’s Kickstarter, because after all, money only grows on trees after you get a degree from Harvard.

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We don’t usually blast radio rips, but if any emcees and producers were worth listening to no matter what the quality, it’s DOOM X Ghost X Madlib. Here goes the Madvillainz (DOOM and the Madliberator) remix to DOOMSTARKS’ (DOOM and Ghost a.k.a. Tony Starks) song “Victory Laps,” which premiered last night on Hot 97′s Rosenberg Radio. The song is off the upcoming DOOMSTARKS self-titled project via Nature Sounds, about which very few details are known. Shouts to OneThirtyBPM.

Download: DOOMSTARKS (DOOM & Ghostface Killah) – Victory Laps (Madvillainz Remix) [Radio Rip]
Buy: DOOMSTARKS (DOOM & Ghostface Killah) – Victory Laps (Madvillainz Remix) [Cassette]

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I’m sure most of you are familiar with Jaydiohead, the project from Max Tannone that skillfully mixed Jay-Z and Radiohead. Max is a blend specialist, though I know for a fact there is no end to his ambition. Today, Max released his newest project, an artful combination of Wu-Tang member Ghostface Killah and “the sounds of vintage African funk, high-life, and psychedelic rock.” The product is an unquestionable success. Stream the album below, and hit the skip for a full tracklist and D/L. Keep tabs on Max via his website.

Ghostfunk by Max Tannone
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Today’s a big day. To celebrate the release of Monumental (Duck Down Records), Pete Rock & Smif N Wessun leaked another single off the album, “(I’m A) Stand Up Guy,” featuring none other than Black Rob. Stream the song below, read the KevNott review of Monumental here, and order the album now! Hit the skip for more on Curren$y’s Weekend At Burnie’s, Big Sean’s Finally Famous, and Wu Tang’s Legendary Weapons.

Pete Rock and Smif N Wessun “(I’m a) Stand Up Guy” feat. Black Rob by duckdown

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With the Random Axe album due out in five days, Ruby Hornet’s Sean CK caught up with Da God for an honest, funny, and at times off-putting interview. Among other things, P Body talks about Guilty Simpson and Black Milk, the differences between Detroit and Brooklyn, and how P’s forthcoming album might just be the most ignorant album in hip-hop’s (relatively) short history.

Ruby Hornet: Can you describe the relationship between cats from Brownsville, and then Midwest folk from Detroit etc. There seems to be a relatable vibe between the two.

Sean Price: Man, ya’ll Detroit and ya’ll Chicago nigg*s, ya’ll are crazy. We ain’t like that out here. We get it poppin out here, but not like that. Ya’ll nigg*s are crazy! Having big automatic weapons an shi*t. We might have a pistol, you feel me, maybe a nine, at the biggest maybe a mac or a tech, ya’ll nigg*s be having Ar-15′s, you know what I mean, Big Johnny Rambo sh*ts in the back of ya’ll rides, we don’t do that out here. We got a bunch of fu*kin projects and a bunch of windows, so when you pull out an AK, yo ass is getting told on. Someone is telling on you. we can’t do all that. Nigg*s get it in, don’t get it twisted, but it ain’t like that. We put it in with small caliber weapons, compared to the sh*t ya’ll be doing.
Read more.

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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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Juan Deuce #2 through Roc Marciano, with representatives from the DMV, Detroit, and T Dot. Includes R&B crooner Miguel, a re-established Lloyd Banks, plus Johnny Blaze, Tony Starks, and Lex Diamonds.

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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Elzhi through Juan Deucington, plus Gil Scott-Heron, Ghostdini and The Genius, Muldrow and Monae; Jump-Off Joey’s Mood Muzik 4, French Montana’s Mac & Cheese 2, and Cole’s Friday Night Lights.

Previously: Dizzy’s Best Singles Of 2010 [Part 2]
Previously: Dizzy’s Best Singles Of 2010 [Part 1]
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Henry Mancini is probably most well-known as the composer behind The Pink Panther theme song, for which he won three separate Grammys in 1964. His other notable works include music for Blake Edwards’ late-50′s TV show Peter Gunn, the score for Edwards’ 1961 film Breakfast at Tiffany’s, and the score for Edwards’ 1962 film Days of Wine and Roses. His music has been sampled by everyone from Grandmaster Flash in 1986 to MF Grimm in 2006.

Bear with me here: in his interview with Nardwuar, J. Cole explained that he and his boy CED used to rhyme for days over Pete Rock’s “The Game,” a beat from The Chocolate Boy Wonder’s ’98 solo debut Soul Survivor that featured Ghostface, Raekwon, and Prodigy. For “The Game,” Pete Rock sampled the theme song from the 1974 film The Girl From Petrovka, starring Goldie Hawn and Hal Holbrook. Who scored The Girl From Petrovka theme song? Henry Mancini. Marley Marl pulled from the same Mancini tune for his collaboration with KRS-One in 2007 called “Rising To The Top.” Mancini’s versatility and fluidity between genres made him one of the most prolific composers of all time, and a prime source for contemporary sample-based producers.

Henry Mancini – Theme From ‘The Girl From Petrovka’ by BenzAndABackpack5

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At this point Das Racist is a household name on the internet, and with very good reason. For those unacquainted with the Brooklyn-based trio, the group consists of emcees Victor Vazquez (on the left in the above picture), Himanshu Suri (center), and hype man Ashok Kondabolu (on the right, better known as Dap). They dropped two mixtapes in 2010: Shut Up, Dude and Sit Down, Man, both available for free download. Some dismiss them as highed-up jokers, but their astonishing breadth of cultural and musical knowledge coupled with a (typically veiled, but substantial) ability on the mic puts them in a class all their own.

On “Nutmeg,” Victor and Himanshu go in over the Ghostface track of the same name (off Supreme Clientele). It’s unquestionably an homage to Ghostdini– hyper-referential, weed- and food-centric, and at one point Vazquez even contorts his voice into a constrained, high-pitched rasp, eerily reminiscent of Pretty Toney. For all the naysayers, while Das Racist might not fill Ghost’s big shoes on the cut, take note of the technical skill with which they write and deliver their rhymes:

Das Racist – Nutmeg by BenzAndABackpack

Das -Racist – Nutmeg (Lyrics)
First Verse, Hima:
Queens Boulevard, Kierkegaard, hustle hard,
hustle bustle OMG, on my guard, oh my god,
Vic came back with three pizzas, give one to
Dap, his stomach under-crowded, proud kid, young
Samaritan, fuck a George Harrison, embarrassing,
sitars no comparison, looking garish, hit it
out the park, Roger Maris, plus Shea Stadium,
Flushing, Corona, chop shop pop rocks,
My Sharona, kid coboloba (?),
hold up, slow up, blow up, pull-o, ver, get
smart again, it’s a cardigan, play the race card
again, and again, and again, drinks at Bennigan’s,
where’s Ralph Waldo, Ellison, person of
color, yall can’t see me? Shoot at you actors like a
DP, Erna Anastos, aspestos
apartments, smarter in a starter jacket, custom
compartments, illuminati, in my mind soul and
my body, pause, young Bobby, Digital
hobby, physical, that’s amazing, that’s amazing
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I know I’m not the only one who’s SUPED off this gem-of-a-find, courtesy of BK’s own ARS (shouts to wonderful women who also are monster hip-hop heads). Rip the audio before it gets taken down!

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Ridin’ solo has become passé.  Everyone nowadays is linking up, whether it be it hip-pop stars or backpackers.  Young Money, Slaughterhouse, Diddy Dirty Money; the list goes on and on.

Last week, out of nowhere, Dizzy and I were blessed with the opportunity to interview Chuck D of Public Enemy as we sipped sweet tea at his kitchen table.  Much of the conversation was about the decline of live hip-hop shows and the disappearance of crews, two things Chuck believes have a serious correlation.  He dropped knowledge about the predeccesors of hip-hop shows, all out funk fests from the likes of Earth Wind and Fire.  “You think an emcee would come walking onto the stage like nothing after an entire funk orchestra rocked out?  Nah, they would come out dancing their asses off.”

Inspired by miss a.k.w.’s Throwback Thursday: Posse Cuts Edition (Parts One and Two), here are ten of 2010′s hottest team efforts.  At first, I wasn’t gonna rank these cuts so you guys could be insulated from my opinion.  But, fuck it, leave some comments.

1. Curren$y Feat. Mos Def and Jay Electronica – The Day

The lead single and anthem off of Pilot Talk.

“I’m so sorry/ if I don’t look happy to be here/in your label office/cause they said I cant smoke weed here”

The first question we asked Chuck D in our upcoming interview was what he though of Jay Electronica’s verse on this song.

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2. Rick Ross Feat. T.I., Jadakiss, and Erykah Badu – Maybach Music III

Rick Ross’s 2010 release Teflon Don shows serious growth and maturity.  Ross is one of the few artists this year that has successfully put together a solid, 12 track album that is replayable from front to back, over and over.  Top 3 so far for me.

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3. Young Money – Bed Rock

No one can ever say Birdman is bad for business.  After nurturing a young Lil’ Wayne into a mega-star, he has now constructed a super-group of young and up and coming (if you can still call them that anymore) rappers and singers around him.  Now that Drake and Nicki are household names, I’m thinking Tyga is next to burst, starting with “Dueces“.

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4. The Roots Feat. Blu, Phonte, and Patty Crash – The Day

If you put on How I Got Over, the latest release from The Root’s, as background music, you will barely be able to tell when one song ends and the next one starts.  The whole album blends seamlessly, with The Day sitting right at the middle.  The best part might be the rare appearance by Blu.

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