SINGLE: Common ft. Stevie Wonder - Black America Again

It's getting to the point where it feels like the same ole song and dance.  Cops pull a trigger and kill another nigger, WHITE America continues to turn a blind eye to the injustices against us.  They would much rather bash Colin Kaepernick for protesting, without understanding that these killings are THE EXACT reason he refuses to stand.  It's not rocket science, we are being executed and absolutely nothing is being done about it.

But that's all a part of the master plan, right?  Numb society to these injustices and the genocide continues completely unchecked.  Luckily, we continue to have strong black people with status continuing to step up to raise awareness, in an attempt to translate this very simple issue to the tone-def masses.  Regardless of how much they continue to tear us down, powerful music is the ONE thing they will never be able to take from us.  Hopefully, these continued efforts will eventually begin to permeate the mass conscious.

To help promote Common's upcoming album Black America Again, Stevie Wonder joins Common on the powerful track "Black America Again," which is coupled with a video similar to Ty Dolla $ign's "No Justice," and Scarface's "Mental Exorcism" from last year.  The song and accompanying video are yet another disturbing, yet necessary display of the pain our community continues to endure after each life is snatched away from us. 

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SINGLE: Game - Pest Control

One of the many great things about writing for BITM, is that we don't have to report on all the hip hop TMZ news out there. We didn't have to flood our posts with other site's obligatory Drake/Meek "beef". What we do do (ha..), is comb through all that noise out there, and use our forum to highlight topics that interest us. So this morning I came across this Game track. I have vague recollections of reading article titles mentioning Game going at Meek (as well as seeing "this is what you look like when Game disses you out of nowhere" memes). I have no idea why Game decided to jump in the anticlimactic Drake/Meek drama, nor did I have enough interest in looking it up to add to this post. My assumption was that since Game is dropping his 8th LP, 1992, in October, he wanted some extra pub for that. But after peeping that track, I have come to two conclusions. 1: Game decided to remind the world what a diss track sounds like, and that he can craft diss track like the best of them (remember the Game/50 beef? when emcees actually make diss tracks? good times.). This track went WAY harder then I expected it to. 2: For whatever reason, Game REALLY dislikes Meek. This was not a "I need a promo diss" track, this had references on top of references. There was def research done by Game on this one. Oh, and on top of all that, I caught a couple jabs to Beanie Sigel, Sean Kingston and Omelly(?). All I care about from that list is Beans. If you talking about emcees who can swing in a rap beef, the Broad Street Bully is DEF on that list. For months and months I've had to listen to people tell me, "man, Drake is dropping HARD diss tracks". And for months and months I've been wishing for a real rap beef. Are my wishes finally gonna come through? Because a Game/Beanie back and forth sounds good to me. And to clarify, I just want rap beef that stays on wax. Neither I nor BITM promote actual violence.

Peep Game's "Pest Control" below. What uall think? Are uall hoping for Beans to reply ASAP?

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VIDEO: Rhythm Roulette (Mass Appeal) - Big K.R.I.T.

Here we go with another Rhythm Roulette episode from Mass Appeal's video series that spotlights the art of sampling. This time the series focuses on Big KRIT. BITM regulars know we champion this young spitter, but there are a few out there that might not know this emcee is also a bona fide producer. If you follow KRIT or Mass Appeal on social media, you would have seen both promote this episode that come out in March of this year.

Big KRIT is a Meridian, Mississippi native that has been in the hip hop game since the mid oughts. Since then the emcee/producer has been dropping classic records on a regular basis. His accolades are just as high whether you are talking about his lyrical ability or his skills on the boards. Even though KRIT hasn't reached the commercial success of a T.I. or Ludacris (or all the southern rapper clones out now), he is still viewed as an heir apparent to the southern throne. The King Remembered In Time has amassed a loyal underground following with numbers that only continue to grow across the globe.

While KRIT is a "southern" artist, he is not confined to a specific flow, cadence or subject matter (unlike said rapper clones). His beats also range from the smooth and soulful to bust your eardrums in the club type tracks. KRIT hits up Sweet Melissa Records shop in the ATL to pick his three records to sample. At the studio he shows what the records were: Linda Clifford - I'm Yours, Seatrain - Seatrain and Culture Club - Waking Up with the House on Fire. Young Krizzle builds his soulful melody using the samples and adding his own drums and tempo to the track. With a few chopped and screwed vocal manipulations, KRIT finalizes his beat. But here is where the two headed dragon that is Big KRIT takes the series to another level. As mentioned at the top of the post, most know the Mississippi artist as the monster emcee he is. So it is only natural that KRIT spits on his newly minted instrumental. I think the episode with Large Professor has one of Pro's boys spit on the track. But I think KRIT is correct when he proclaims he is the first to make a beat (in the series) and spit over it. So, fans of KRIT, the Rhythm Roulette series, or just GOOD HIP HOP, peep the video below.

Peep the single "Sticks & Stones" first, then the Rhythm Roulette episode to see the process of sampling in all its glory.

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BITM Podcast Ep. 2 - New Era of Hip-hop

Over the summer, the BITM squad discussed the Troy Ave shooting, and whether or not glorifying street culture detracts from the appeal of an artist in today's music. We also chopped up the 2016 XXL Freshmen Class, effectively acknowledging that we are in a completely new era of hip-hop. And finally, we discuss how the evolution of the music medium has affected our consumption of music.

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