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Album of the Year #25: Kali Uchis - Isolation - HipHop

Album of the Year #25: Kali Uchis - Isolation - HipHop

Album of the Year #25: Kali Uchis - Isolation

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 07:29 AM PST

Artist: Kali Uchis

Album: Isolation

Label: Universal Music

Release Date: April 6th, 2018

Listen

Apple Music

Spotify

Background

Kali Uchis is a 24-year-old Colombian-American singer. Her parents fled to America a couple of years before she was born in order to avoid conflict in Colombia. Born In Virginia, she bounded around between America and Colombia during her childhood. During her adolescence, she learned how to play several instruments and was always writing poetry and songs. At first, she was more interested in directing and writing and had no interest in singing herself. This changed when she decided to release her first mixtape in 2012, Drunken Babble. The project was met with positive reception as people lauded her ability to switch between genres and create her own lane and sound.

As she continued to release more music, her popularity grew and she began collaborating with more well-known artists and producers, particularly Diplo, Tyler the Creator, BadBadNotGood, Kaytranada, Snoop Dogg and The Gorillaz. The first three singles to Isolation, Tyrant, Nuestro Planeta and After the Storm, helped cement her fanbase even further. She performed several festivals in 2017 and at the beginning of 2018 was brought on as the opening act to Lana Del Ray's "LA to the Moon" tour at the beginning of 2018. Several features, including those with Daniel Caesar and Miguel, helped bring her name more into the mainstream as well. At the time of the release, Kali's fanbase was ready for the new album as her last full-length project was released in 2015.

Review

In a world where there are only two options for fans of rap and RnB music, drip or drown, it is refreshing to listen to a project as meaningful and palatable as Isolation. As our genre of music becomes more mainstream, the lyrics and impact of songs become diluted. This has been the case for quite some time and is by no means a new phenomenon, but for me, in 2018, I was actively searching for fresh perspectives and new voices to listen to in hopes of breaking the uniformity and staleness of modern rap. Enter Kali Uchis, a 24-year-old female singer from Colombia. Prior to listening to this album, my knowledge of her music was limited, but I had seen that the project received praise here on HHH, so the day after the release I decided to listen. I will dissect the album more thoroughly later in the piece, but just from a holistic perspective, this project was amazing. The airy, up-beat instrumentals coupled with Kali's incredible vocals make for such a great combination. For me, a project is good if I can feel transported to the world that the artist is in and describing. With Isolation, I felt exactly that – sitting on the beach drinking something out of a coconut with the WhoDatMiami American flag bathing suit on.

The album begins with "Body Language", an invitation to the listener to explore the life of Kali Uchis. Featuring production and writing from Om'mas Keith, frequent Frank Ocean collaborator, the spacious and flute-heavy beat set the table for a deeper dive into the album and the whimsical and capricious lifestyle of our narrator. "Just come closer" she urges the listener, and how can you not with how perfect her vocals sound? The track transitions into "Miami", which is an ode to the empowerment of women and how today, immigrants like Kali and featured artist Bia do not have to conform to previously-established gender roles and they can pursue success in any medium they choose to. The line, "He said he'd want me in his video like Bound 1. But why would I be Kim? I could be Kanye. In the land of opportunity and palm trees" encapsulates her desire to break free from traditional paths to fame for women. Quoted about this line, Kali said, "I'm not the Kim on your motorcycle, btch. I'm the one riding the sht." Kali is in control of her own fate and will not be marginalized by the system that has set her up to fail.

With "Just a Stranger", Kali flips another trope within rap music completely on its head. Ever since Kanye dropped Late Registration, rap fans have held disdain for gold diggers who simply use artists like Kanye for their wealth and notoriety without actually caring for them. But have those same listeners ever asked themselves why gold diggers exist? Kali seeks to provide an answer – the Colombian-American singer bashes the stereotype completely and lauds woman going after what they need. "When bellies are hungry, but there ain't no money you get it and don't care how." As an immigrant woman, Kali faces obstacles on a daily basis that male rappers do not. She feels no remorse taking advantage of someone for money because the odds are against her and she has to get it how she can.

Kali continues to address the hardships that immigrants face in "Your Teeth in my Neck". Within the track, over a bouncy instrumental which I think is my favorite on the album, she discusses how no matter how hard she works, her material keeps getting ripped off and people are appropriating her art. This is a common theme within music, particularly with Americans hopping on trends started and popularized by immigrants. After all, who would have ever thought that Beyoncé would be on "Mi Gente" and Drake would be saying "tings"? This also seems to be a dig at the music industry as a whole, saying that artists are taken advantage of by large record labels, only to be worked and churned out when their popularity diminishes. It is an unfortunate reality, but Kali knows that with persistence and hard work, she will be able to overcome these obstacles.

Within the larger context of the album, Kali also addresses her love life and the relationships the she has been in. In "Flight 22" she floats over the beat, singing about her unrequited love and that no matter where she is going on this trip, she wants to be with this lover. This track truly highlights how incredible her voice is. As someone who was in a new relationship when this album dropped (and still is!), this song resonated with me a lot. I knew that wherever I was going, I wanted my girlfriend with me. On the contrary, Kali addresses some of the hardships she has dealt with in relationships. In "Tyrant" featuring Jorja Smith (you should also check her album out as well!), they discuss the idea of staying closed off in a relationship in order to avoid being overly-exposed and in-turn, manipulated. Kali has addressed previous relationships in which she was taken advantage of, so it is no surprise that she is approaching this new love with some restraint. Even though she is madly in love, she is afraid to show it because she does not want to get hurt again. Whoever you are, I think we can all relate to that feeling in some capacity.

On "Dead to Me", Kali dismisses a past fling, asking the previous lover to simply leave her alone. Even though this person is still obsessed with her, she just wants things to end. I think this track is very relevant, especially with what is going on with Cardi B and Offset right now. Whether their breakup is legitimate or not, the way that the rap community has reacted to it is disgusting in my opinion. Constantly urging Cardi to take back Offset and forgive him for whatever he did wrong is exactly the ways of thinking that propagates the type of behavior discussed in the song. Many men believe they are entitled to whichever women they want and in turn, cannot handle rejection in an appropriate way. Kali is sticking up for herself, and declaring that in her eyes, this person is dead. On a musical note, this beat features one of my favorite instrumentals of the album with airy synths and drums backing her.

Nuestro Planet is a song completely in Spanish featuring Reykon, a Colombian reggaeton rapper. From a production standpoint, this song differs from the album a bit with a more latin-influenced beat. In this it is a great change of pace on the album and even though the listener may not understand what she is saying, it is still sonically pleasing and easy to follow along with. Admittedly, the message of this song of Kali yearning to have things return to how they were with her lover falls a bit flat relative to the depth and importance of some of the other tracks on the album.

Next, enters my favorite sequence of songs on the album – "In My Dreams" into "Gotta Get Up". "In My Dreams" is an absolute banger in every sense of the word. The use of guitar and light percussion make for such a minimalist yet profound beat. This is a song that when it comes on, you just can't help but nod your head along to it. This is the most positive song on the track, discussing this utopian dream world for Kali in which all her problems are erased and everything is perfect, but only in her dreams. Her bills are paid, her mom isn't on coke, boys treat her properly – its great! "Why isn't everyone here?" she wonders aloud. Well, her question is quickly answered when her alarm goes off and she is awoken and slammed with the hardships of her everyday life yet again. This song is another great display of her vocals, showcasing her range as she belts out that she has to get out of bed and look for something in real life that can match what she yearned for in her dreams.

The next track, "Tomorrow", talks about Kali's desire to break-free from her everyday life and follow her dreams. Even though things seem dim in this small town, she urges her lover to follow with her on a path to freedom. All she wants to do is day-dream and pursue her dreams, pushing reality to be addressed tomorrow. The song is produced by Kevin Parker of Tame Impala. The beat compliments the message of the sing so well as the spacey synths give a bounce to the track. Kali rides the instrumental beautifully.

"Coming Home" talks about how no matter what Kali does, there will always be people who disapprove of her, but she is fine with that. Featuring one of the best beat switches of 2018 (no cap), she talks about she intends to stay true to her roots and remain confident despite all the negativity she is surrounded with. When you are a female artist in a community largely dominated by males, appearance is something that is unfortunately brought-up a lot. Regardless of what people say though, she simply intends to "keep It moving."

"After the Storm" is truly a masterpiece. Odds are, if you have listened to one song on this project, it was presumably this one because of the Tyler feature. The message of this song is so overwhelmingly positive and encouraging. For 12 songs, Kali has talked about countless issues and obstacles she has faced as a result of her gender and ethnicity and despite all of that, she urges the listener to remain positive and that even though things may be hard now, they will get better. As someone who tends to overreact and snowball from small issues in my life, this song truly helps to put things in perspective for me. The calming and transient ambiance of the song helps reassure the listener that even when it rains, the sun will shine once again.

The final two songs return to relationship issues, the first in which she discusses how no one likes to be taken advantage of in a relationship. Even though she was cheated on, Kali cannot cope and is acting as if everything is the same in her life. This song shows that even though Kali is working towards independence, there are still moments of weakness that we all face. These moments are underscored on "Killer", the concluding song of the album. This song was recorded when Kali was 17, which is truly a testament to how talented she really is. I think this track shows just how much progress she has made as a woman over the years. Instead of being upset and yearning for her past lover as she did when she was younger, she now has grown and is able to see how she can learn and move forward from this time. Kali wrote this song while she was living out of her car and shows just how low things were for her at the time. It is a reminder to the listener that even though things are looking better now, experiences like these are what guided her to where she is today.

To me, this project just feels so important in the context of the current political landscape. In a world where a GoFundMe to build a wall has $16mm donated to it, we need to throw our support behind strong, immigrant women who show that no matter what race or country you are from, you can be a positive contribution to the community. I strongly urge you to listen to this project, especially if you live in warm weather as this album just screams summer to me. Furthermore, if you are already a fan, see Kali in concert. She was absolutely incredible and was one of my favorite shows of the year. Her bravado on stage compliments her music so well and her vocals sound even better in person.

Thank you for reading and for those celebrating, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all!

Favorite Lyrics

The sun'll come out

Nothing good ever comes easy

I know times are rough

But winners don't quit

So don't you give up

  • After The Storm (Featuring Tyler The Creator and Bootsy Collins)

I'm feeling happy inside

I've got no reason to hide

I'm a dream girl

I'm never stressing my bills

Nobody ever gets killed

It's the dream world

  • In My Dreams

Today is the day I'll learn that I believe in miracles

I can feel the world opening up, I think I broke the curse

  • Tomorrow

Discussion Questions

  • What were your thoughts on the album?

  • How important to you is finding music from new perspectives?

  • Is it important to listen to music that spreads a positive message and helps to eradicate stereotypes and limitations placed on marginalized groups (in this case immigrants and women)? Is this something you consider when consuming music?

  • Do you think Kali will transition into the "pop lane"?

  • From a musical perspective, any other albums that you would recommend that have a similar sound?

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Daily Discussion Thread 12/25/2018

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 03:55 PM PST

Welcome to the /r/hiphopheads daily discussion thread!

This thread is for:

  • objective questions with right/wrong answers (e.g. "Does anyone know what is happening with MIXTAPE?", "What is the sample in SONG?")
  • general hip-hop discussion
  • meta posts...e.g. ideas for the sub

Thread Guidelines

  • Do not create a separate self post for these types of discussions outside of this thread - if you do, your post will be removed, as stated in the guidelines.

  • Please be helpful and friendly.

  • If a question has been asked many times before, provide a link to a thread that contains the answer.

Weekly/Monthly Threads

Other ways to interact

There are a number of other ways to interact with other members of HHH:

New to /r/hiphopheads or hip-hop in general?

Check out these:

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Mac Miller - “Isn’t She Lovely” (Stevie Wonder Cover)

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 03:07 PM PST

Cardi B Rejects Super Bowl Halftime In Support of Colin Kaepernick

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 02:44 AM PST

[FRESH] Pi’erre and Cardo’s Wild Adventure

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 07:03 PM PST

Eminems list of his favourite 12 diss tracks of all time

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 12:17 PM PST

[FRESH MIXTAPE] Waka Flocka Flame - I Can't Rap Vol. 2

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 04:59 PM PST

[FRESH MIXTAPE] Soulja Boy - Swag 2

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 09:19 AM PST

Mac Miller - Grand Finale (RIP)

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 05:36 PM PST

Blonded Radio 8AM LA / 11AM NYC / 4PM LDN

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 07:52 AM PST

https://twitter.com/beats1/status/1077588949978177536?s=21

merry christmas motherfuckers

op can tell time this time. i've been working hard

https://twitter.com/vegynvegyn/status/1077588720272977921

edit: beats 1 schedule calls it "blonded Xmas" and it's only an hour long

submitted by /u/TheOddScreen
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The infamous John from Tennessee call on Sway

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 07:12 AM PST

Ski Mask’s “Stokeley” Surpasses Over 100 Million Streams in Less Than a Month

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 11:13 PM PST

Favorite song of the album?

submitted by /u/theelementchaplin
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[FRESH] Unotheactivist - Ronny J Please Turn Me Up

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 01:56 PM PST

Mac Miller Interview with Power 106 (super positive, prepare for tears, Divine Feminine era)

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 06:12 PM PST

Method Man Arguing with Ghostface Killah and U-God

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 03:18 PM PST

[FRESH VIDEO][NSFW] Father - Throw it (Original video was removed from Youtube and had to be reuploaded on Pornhub)

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 03:43 AM PST

Jay-Z - Holy Grail ft. Justin Timberlake

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 03:58 PM PST

Billboard Hot 100 Discussion - December 14-20 2018

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 02:17 PM PST

From the Billboard Hot 100

Songs marked with a '*' are hip-hop songs or songs by primarily hip-hop artists.

Songs marked with a '\'are songs with hip-hop features or songs by hip-hop adjacents.

Position Title Artist Last Week Weeks Charting Peak
(6x) 1 Thank U, Next Ariana Grande - 1 7 1
2 Without Me Halsey - 2 11 2
* 3 Sicko Mode Travis Scott - 3 20* 1
* 4 Sunflower (Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse) Post Malone & Swae Lee ▲+3 7 9 4
5 Happier Marshmello & Bastille ▼-1 4 18 3
6 High Hopes Panic! At The Disco ▼-1 5 20* 5
7 All I Want For Christmas Is You Mariah Carey ▼-1 6 29* 6
* 8 ZEZE Kodak Black ft. Travis Scott & Offset ▲+1 9 10 2
* 9 Drip Too Hard Lil Baby & Gunna ▼-1 8 14 4
10 It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year Andy Williams ▲+3 13 9 10
11 Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree Brenda Lee ▲+7 18 26* 11
12 A Holly Jolly Christmas Burl Ives ▲+9 21 9 12
13 Jingle Bell Rock Bobby Helms ▲+2 15 24* 13
* 14 Wake Up In The Sky Gucci Mane X Bruno Mars X Kodak Black ▼-3 11 14 11
/ 15 Girls Like You Maroon 5 ft. Cardi B ▼-5 10 30* 1
* 16 Mo Bamba Sheck Wes ▼-4 12 17 6
17 The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You) Nat King Cole ▲+7 24 16 17
* 18 Eastside Benny Blanco, Halsey & Khalid ▼-2 16 23* 16
19 Breathin Ariana Grande ▼-5 14 18 12
20 Youngblood 5 Seconds Of Summer ▲+2 22 29* 7
* 21 Better Now Post Malone ▼-1 20 34* 3
* 22 Going Bad Meek Mill ft. Drake ▼-5 17 3 6
* 23 Lucid Dreams Juice WRLD ▼-4 19 32* 2
24 Imagine Ariana Grande ▲+77 DEBUT 1 24
/ 25 Taki Taki DJ Snake ft. Selena Gomez, Ozuna & Cardi B - 25 12 11
* 26 MIA Bad Bunny ft. Drake - 26 10 5
27 Last Christmas Wham! ▲+4 31 8 27
28 Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer Gene Autry ▼-1 27 3 27
* 29 Trip Ella Mai ▼-6 23 20* 11
* 30 Money Cardi B ▼-1 29 9 13
* 31 Leave Me Alone Flipp Dinero ▼-3 28 14 27
32 Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow Dean Martin - 32 3 32
33 Sleigh Ride The Ronettes ▲+8 41 2 33
34 Feliz Navidad Jose Feliciano ▲+8 42 4 34
35 Here Comes Santa Claus (Down Santa Claus Lane) Gene Autry ▲+5 40 2 35
36 Speechless Dan + Shay ▼-2 34 15 33
/ 37 Love Lies Khalid & Normani ▼-7 30 44* 9
38 Beautiful Bazzi ft. Camila Cabello ▼-2 36 20* 30
* 39 Better Khalid ▼-4 35 14 29
* 40 I Like It Cardi B, Bad Bunny & J Balvin ▼-2 38 37* 1
41 (There's No Place Like) Home For The Holidays Perry Como ▲+60 DEBUT 1 41
42 It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas Perry Como & The Fontane Sisters ▲+59 DEBUT 1 42
43 Natural Imagine Dragons - 43 22* 13
44 Shallow Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper ▼-5 39 12 5
45 Happy Xmas (War Is Over) John & Yoko/The Plastic Ono Band With The Harlem Community Choir ▲+56 DEBUT 1 45
* 46 Calling My Spirit Kodak Black ▲+7 53 3 46
47 Wonderful Christmastime Paul McCartney ▲+54 DEBUT 1 47
48 White Christmas Bing Crosby ▲+53 - 14 12
* 49 Uproar Lil Wayne ▼-5 44 12 7
50 Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) Darlene Love ▲+51 DEBUT 1 50
51 She Got The Best Of Me Luke Combs ▼-4 47 19 34
* 52 BAD! XXXTENTACION ▼-19 33 6 16
* 53 Dangerous Meek Mill ft. Jeremih & PnB Rock ▼-4 49 18 31
54 Drunk Me Mitchell Tenpenny - 54 19 53
55 Best Shot Jimmie Allen ▼-3 52 14 46
56 Nothing Breaks Like A Heart Mark Ronson ft. Miley Cyrus ▲+24 80 3 56
/ 57 Close To Me Ellie Goulding X Diplo ft. Swae Lee ▲+2 59 5 57
* 58 MoshPit Kodak Black ft. Juice WRLD ▲+43 DEBUT 1 58
59 You Say Lauren Daigle ▼-1 58 23 44
* 60 Armed And Dangerous Juice WRLD ▲+7 67 6 44
* 61 Talk To Me Tory Lanez & Rich The Kid ▲+13 74 8 61
* 62 Arms Around You XXXTENTACION x Lil Pump ft. Maluma & Swae Lee ▼-5 57 8 28
63 Be Alright Dean Lewis - 63 8 63
* 64 Backin' It Up Pardison Fontaine ft. Cardi B ▲+2 66 10 64
65 Burning Man Dierks Bentley ft. Brothers Osborne ▲+8 73 9 65
66 This Feeling The Chainsmokers ft. Kelsea Ballerini ▲+5 71 10 66
67 Sixteen Thomas Rhett ▲+9 76 6 67
68 Cozy Little Christmas Katy Perry ▲+33 DEBUT 1 68
69 Consequences Camila Cabello ▲+3 72 7 69
* 70 Pure Cocaine Lil Baby ▼-15 55 3 46
71 Girl Like You Jason Aldean ▲+6 77 4 71
72 Good Girl Dustin Lynch ▲+9 81 6 72
* 73 No Stylist French Montana ft. Drake ▲+12 85 13 47
* 74 Testimony Kodak Black ▲+27 DEBUT 1 74
* 75 You Jacquees ▲+8 83 4 75
* 76 KIKA 6ix9ine ft. Tory Lanez ▼-16 60 4 44
77 When The Party's Over Billie Eilish ▼-8 69 9 52
78 Last Shot Kip Moore ▲+9 87 5 78
* 79 whoa (mind in awe) XXXTENTACION ▼-42 37 2 37
80 Ella Quiere Beber Anuel AA & Romeo Santos ▲+13 93 7 79
81 Beautiful Crazy Luke Combs ▲+16 97 6 58
* 82 Fine China Future & Juice WRLD ▲+7 89 9 26
83 Lost In Japan Shawn Mendes X Zedd ▼-27 56 13 48
84 This Is It Scotty McCreery ▲+12 96 2 84
* 85 Smile (Living My Best Life) Lil' Duval ft. Snoop Dogg & Ball Greezy ▲+3 88 17 56
* 86 Close Friends Lil Baby ▲+4 90 11 28
87 Sweet But Psycho Ava Max ▲+14 DEBUT 1 87
* 88 Gnarly Kodak Black ft. Lil Pump ▲+13 DEBUT 1 88
/ 89 Lovely Billie Eilish & Khalid ▲+12 - 8 78
90 The Christmas Song Lauren Daigle ▲+11 DEBUT 1 90
91 Envy Me Calboy ▲+10 DEBUT 1 91
* 92 Yosemite Travis Scott ▲+8 100 10 25
93 Electricity Silk City x Dua Lipa ▲+8 - 6 93
* 94 Good Form Nicki Minaj ft. Lil Wayne - 94 3 60
95 Millionaire Chris Stapleton ▲+6 - 3 95
* 96 Look Back At It A Boogie Wit da Hoodie ▼-1 95 2 95
* 97 24/7 Meek Mill ft. Ella Mai ▼-11 86 3 54
* 98 Uptown Vibes Meek Mill ft. Fabolous & Anuel AA ▼-19 79 3 39
* 99 Nuketown Ski Mask The Slump God ft. Juice WRLD ▼-1 98 3 63
* 100 MAMA 6ix9ine ft. Nicki Minaj & Kanye West ▼-25 75 4 43

*Note: if a song has been charting for more than 20 weeks and is below #50, it gets dropped off prematurely.

Notable:

  • Kodak Black's Dying To Live album charts tracks in the top 100:

    • #8 ZEZE ft. Travis Scott & Offset (▲+1)
    • #46 Calling My Spirit (▲+7)
    • #58 MoshPit ft. Juice WRLD
    • #74 Testimony
    • #88 Gnarly ft. Lil Pump

  • Post Malone & Swae Lee's Sunflower rises to #4 (▲+3). No other Spider-Man tracks chart.

  • The Hot 100 fills with christmas songs, causing most songs to drop a bit, or fall off.

  • Travis Scott's Yosemite continues to climb a bit to #92 (▲+8), after re-entering at #100 last week.

  • Tyga's Taste ft. Offest falls off after 29 weeks, peaking at #8 and spending its last week at #46

  • NF's Lie drops off after 20 weeks, peaking at #48 and spending its last week at #70

  • Yella Beezy's That's On Me drops off after 20 weeks, peaking at #56 and spending its last week at #92

Billboard 200 (Albums):

Position Title Artist Sales Last Week Weeks Charting
1 Dying To Live Kodak Black 89K (5K pure) DEBUT 1
2 Championships Meek Mill 83K, down 36% 2 3
5 Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse Soundtrack 52K (14K pure) DEBUT 1
6 ASTROWORLD Travis Scott 48K, up 9% 6 20
9 Scorpion Drake 43K, up 3% 10 25
186 Pain 2 Derez De'Shon - DEBUT 1
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[FRESH] [SHOTS FIRED] Layzie Bone - LET ME GO MIGO (Migos and 21 Savage diss)

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 10:25 PM PST

This Is How A $10,000 Feature From Trey Songz Changed Drake's Life Forever

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 02:11 PM PST

50 Cent - Many Men This song is Raw as fuck lol

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 09:46 PM PST

Capital STEEZ - "Herban Legend"

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 05:00 PM PST

[FRESH] Domo Genesis - The Christmas Song

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 09:56 AM PST

[FRESH] Bones - StayingAheadOfTheWeather

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 06:43 PM PST

Kanye West - I feel like that

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 06:25 PM PST

HOG SLAUGHTA BOYZ (Earl Sweatshirt & Na'kel) - silenceDArapgame

Posted: 25 Dec 2018 09:48 AM PST
at

Album of the Year #24 - JPEGMAFIA - Veteran - HipHop

Album of the Year #24 - JPEGMAFIA - Veteran - HipHop

Album of the Year #24 - JPEGMAFIA - Veteran

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 12:12 PM PST

Artist: JPEGMAFIA

Album: Veteran

Label: Deathbomb Arc

Release Date: January 19, 2018

Listen

Bandcamp

YouTube

Spotify

Apple Music

TIDAL

Amazon

Background

Barrington DeVaughn Hendricks, more commonly known as "JPEGMAFIA", is a rapper and producer from Baltimore, Maryland. Despite now hailing from Baltimore, JPEGMAFIA spent most of his childhood years in Alabama. His frequent brushes with racism that is so commonly found in the deep south has left a lasting impact on his character and his music.

JPEGMAFIA's interest in creating music stems from his military deployment, particularly when he was deployed in Japan. Following the blueprint that A$AP mob had crafted in the years prior, each member of the crew had "mafia" in their name, thus leading to his moniker.

In 2015, JPEGMAFIA released his first piece of work, Communist Slow Jams. This project introduced the general public to Peggy's experimental and eclectic production paired in tandem with his abrasive and often shocking lyrics. While his thoughts may be scattered and less cohesive on this project, he proved he was not afraid to say just about anything and was more concerned with getting his message out than breaking into the mainstream.

Just one month later, Peggy release the Darkskin Manson EP. The entire project was recorded during the Freddie Gray riots, and you do not even need to listen to the EP to know Peggy's stance on the issue. With songs aptly titled "Cops are the Target" and "I Wipe My Ass With Confederate Flags" Peggy was clearly fed up with the state of police and African American relations (and this has likely not changed since then). While the album is largely devoid of rapping, it does an amazing job of showcasing Peggy's ability to create oddly satisfying beats with bizarre noises that somehow pair together harmoniously.

In 2016, Peggy released Black Ben Carson which is his piece of work that sounds the most similar to Veteran and where he truly seems to have found his signature style. The beats are really in your face, often loud and abrasive but somehow still pleasurable. Peggy was doing his best to destroy the norms of hip hop production on every track and for the most part he was successful.

Leading up to the release of Veteran, Peggy released another EP and a collaborative project with Freaky both also in 2016. Peggy spent much of 2017 teasing Veteran on his Twitter account. He tweeted a variety of mixed messages about what the album would sound like, ranging from "Veteran is a country album. Barnyard music." to "Veteran is trash. I can't wait to disappoint everybody. seriously it's making me horny just thinking about it." Peggy seemed that he did not feel compelled to build hype for a specific sound that Veteran was going to display and instead knew that the album would speak for itself.

Review

Veteran was released on January 19th, 2018 under the Deathbomb Arc independent record label. Despite having 19 tracks it has a relatively concise runtime at 47 minutes. Every song on the album is produced by JPEGMAFIA.

1539 N. Calvert starts the album with some of the less eclectic production on the record, highlighted by a light key pattern that contrasts with Peggy's flow while simultaneously complimenting it. Midway through the track, a deep rattling bass line comes in picking up the pace of the track. Lyrically wise, Peggy creatively talks about what kind of women he desires to be with saying that he, "need[s] all my bitches same color as Drake" and that he, "need[s] a bitch with long hair like Myke C-Town". Rather than mentioning women that have been referenced dozens of time in hip-hop tracks he instead turns to men who possess the same features he wants in a women.

Real Nega throws the listener right into the abrasive, in your face Peggy we have all come to know and love. The beat is mostly comprised of a sample of ODB's Going Down where in the beginning of the track he is effectively going "AHHHHH AHHHHH" (not sure how to describe this noise much better than that). Peggy adds a fast paced drum pattern and occasional deep bass to the sample to transform what was originally a bizarre intro to a song into a master class of how to turn anything into an instrumental. Towards the conclusion of the track, the ODB sample is replaced with a spacey guitar riff that calms the tone of the track overall before the ODB sample is brought back in to round out the song. While on initial listens it proves difficult to focus on the lyrics present in this song due to the instrumental, Peggy spends most of the rapping about guns and how people act brave on the internet but do not want to run into him in person. Ultimately the show on this track is stolen by the instrumental.

Thug Tears continues the albums of trend of showcasing Peggy's capabilities as a producer and willingness to tear down any norms of hip-hop production that one may normally feel obliged to follow. With an oddly pleasant backing sound that sounds like a cross between cicadas and castanets that fades in and out as the song progresses that is paired with a poppy keyboard riff that sounds like it could be the theme for a video game level, Peggy is about as far away as possible from the traditional rattling hi-hats and 808's that have become all too common in modern rap. The song reaches its climax after the sample "Okay team follow my command" followed by the introduction of rapid firing powerful bass on top of the already eclectic elements in the song sending chills down the listeners spine.

Dayum serves as interlude of sorts, with a busy static background noise and repeated chanting of "Damn I'm awake" that sounds like it is taking place deep in a cave with dripping stalagmites all around. While not a song many would listen to on its own, in the context of the album it serves as a good bridge between Thug Tears and Baby I'm Bleeding.

Baby I'm Bleeding may be the epitome of Peggy's artistic style up until this point in his career and is one of the most iconic songs on the album. Peggy raps with clever braggadocio over an incredibly abrasive vocal sample paired with an erratic drum pattern. For the second half of the song Peggy transitions into a more laid back vocal inflection while seemingly directing shots at certain rappers in particular and also making promises that he won't make missteps like other rappers have done before.

My Thoughts on Neogaf Dying is an ironic title for a song mostly consisting of Peggy repeating the phrase "I don't care". Neogaf was an internet gaming forum that was shut down after a sexual harassment scandal involving the owner. Aside from bolstering his already very apparent attitude towards most of everything, this song is one of the more forgettable tracks on the album.

Rock N Roll is Dead features a beat crafted from heavily distorted Peggy ASMR clamoring in the background. While most songs by JPEGMAFIA tend to feature lyrics that could fall under the "stream of thought" distinction, this track is a bit more focused with Peggy rapping about how Rock N Roll fans nowadays are often associated with the alt-right (or vice versa if you prefer) and makes it very apparent he will not tolerate them coming onto his turf.

Continuing the trend of more focused tracks, DD Form 214 focuses on Peggy's career in the military and how he has dealt with adjusting back to ordinary life since being honorably discharged. The song is one of the calmest on the album with a backing instrumental that subtly picks up and decreases in tempo as the song progresses. Peggy is also gifted with the beautiful vocals provided by Bobbi Rush that begin the song.

The next track, Germs, is a rather bizarre one. Like many of the other tracks preceding it, it features an instrumental containing an instrument that is almost impossible to describe. It almost sounds like a distorted trumpet occasionally blaring, If this track does anything for me it further establishes Peggy's almost uncanny ability to craft ingenious instrumentals out of sounds I have never even heard before.

Libtard Anthem is the first of two tracks on the album devoid of any Peggy vocals. It features Freaky making a multitude of accusation of rauncious acts against said "libtard". The instrumental starts largely empty of much but a drum track and eventually introduces a fast hitting bass line. It is a funny, tongue in cheek song that surprisingly possesses decent replay value.

Panic Emoji is an absolute masterpiece showcasing everything that makes Peggy unique in a single cohesive track. A hodgepodge of sounds that come together impeccably well, it is highlighted by an eerie flute, overwhelming bass, and a sample "ahh" vocal. Lyrically, Peggy creates a vivid picture of his struggles with panic attacks and stress that is all the more emphasized when the bass comes in. The track is beautifully capped off by what sounds like a mandolin or some other sort of light string instrument.

DJ Snitch Bitch Interlude is a short track that sounds like strong static feedback repeating in the background with a rough drum track as well. Peggy (?) delivers rapid punchlines that seem to be a scattered assortment of thoughts. While it is ultimately overshadowed by some of the more popular songs on the record, it does feature a handful of Peggy's most witty lines.

The next two songs, Whole Foods and Macaulay Culkin, do more to highlight Peggy's lyrical capabilities than his beat-making ones which is, for the most part, against the general theme of the album. Peggy's lyrics are often hard to digest or understand on first listen but they are generally deeply packed with pop culture references from an assortment of decades. His ability to use these references as metaphors shows that he is much more capable as a lyricist than he is often given credit for, with people often citing much of his attention coming from his use of "edgy" lyrics instead of thoughtful ones.

Williamsburg does not stand out much on this album but is a decent cut nonetheless. The production here is less avant garde than on the rest of the album with a much more spacey minimalistic beat. Peggy raps about gentrification of his absolute disdain for the such.

I Cannot Fucking Wait Until Morrissey Dies is a track where the production is in stark contrast stylistically to the lyrics. While is contains a chirpy upbeat very light instrumental, the lyrics are regarding Peggy's absolute hatred for certain white public figures with past brushes (or more in some cases) with racism.

Rainbow Six is an absolute gem buried towards the end of the album that, similarly to Panic Emoji, plays to all of JPEGMAFIA's strengths. One of the longer cuts off the album, the core of its beat is a sample of vocal groaning, and as terrible as that may sound at first Peggy has a uncanny talent for turning these unflattering vocal inflections into full on instrumentals. Peggy is joined by Young Midpack and the two collectively voice their disdain for the alt-right and the extremes they would resort to if necessary.

1488 is in reference to two numbers (14 and 88) that are representative of the white supremacist movement (if you care to know the full context of how they are white supremacist related Google it). The song begins with a sampled guitar solo and sounds like it may be a more solemn cut but abruptly switches into Peggy's typical abrasive style.

Curb Stomp is a perfect outro for an album highlighted by JPEGMAFIA'a hatred of the alt-right, police, and the current political climate. He touches on all of the subjects in his typical clever way while being complimented by a bouncy bassline. While the track does not quite possess the potency of earlier cuts, it is a nice summary of Peggy's mind state and capabilities as a spitter and producer.

Favorite Songs

"1539 N. Calvert"

"Real Nega"

"Thug Tears"

"Baby I'm Bleeding"

"Panic Emoji"

"Raindbow Six"

Favorite Lyrics

Two black cards, let me cloak my wrist (Okay)

Fuck a diss, boy, I'm draggin' bodies like it's Metal Gear

I don't care 'bout your fuckin' status, Peggy got no fear

  • 1539 N. Calvert

I treat your ***** like Rafiki, I raise the K like a kid

AR built like Lena Dunham

When I shoot, I don't miss (Trapaholics)

  • Real Nega

Work hard, twerk hard

26 no kids, yeah (Tears!)

Talk shit, back it up

No fades, throw shade, whole game

  • Thug Tears

Peggy, where you been at? Getting all this promo

When it comes to money, bet these niggas is a no-show

I've been out in Bed-Stuy, chilling with my feet up

Laughing at these SoundCloud niggas trying to be us

When I say us, bet, I don't mean no fucking crew

Peggy been a solo act since Looney Tunes & Goofy Troop

Catch me out in Barksdale, counting fettuccine

While you pussy crackers still trying to pass P.T

Ooh, I'm up in Brownsville, strapped with a Kimber

All you yuppie purses getting swiped like Tinder

Now I'm at the White House, looking for your President

Hop out the van pointing guns at your residence

  • Baby I'm Bleeding

I'm a nuisance

DOA to the base

Face wet, legs shake

Grab my chest, feeling faint

These symptoms, can't help them

Where my health went

This hurts

  • Panic Emoji

Feminist, pistol whip your wife first, that's chivalry

Sounding like my minimes

But you ain't got the heart to do these evil deeds

Debra pack

Turn Stone Cold into Simple Steve

  • Macaulay Culkin

Discussion Questions

  • Did you know of JPEGMAFIA before this project? If so did it live up to your expectations? If not will you be listening to his next project?

  • Do you find the oft-abrassive nature of his tracks to limit their replay ability?

  • Would you rather see JPEGMAFIA continue to produce all of his own music, or start to work with well-known producers?

  • Do you think JPEGMAFIA would be breaking out as much as he is in a world with a much less volatile political climate?

  • What would you like to hear Peggy do different on his next project?

submitted by /u/joeygmurf
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Daily Discussion Thread 12/24/2018

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 04:53 PM PST

Welcome to the /r/hiphopheads daily discussion thread!

This thread is for:

  • objective questions with right/wrong answers (e.g. "Does anyone know what is happening with MIXTAPE?", "What is the sample in SONG?")
  • general hip-hop discussion
  • meta posts...e.g. ideas for the sub

Thread Guidelines

  • Do not create a separate self post for these types of discussions outside of this thread - if you do, your post will be removed, as stated in the guidelines.

  • Please be helpful and friendly.

  • If a question has been asked many times before, provide a link to a thread that contains the answer.

Weekly/Monthly Threads

Other ways to interact

There are a number of other ways to interact with other members of HHH:

New to /r/hiphopheads or hip-hop in general?

Check out these:

submitted by /u/ModsLittleHelper
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Meek Mill Donates $100,000 in Toys to Philly Kids

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 09:30 AM PST

Rap Radar interview - Curren$y says he recorded all of the songs from 'Fetti' in one day to prove to Freddie Gibbs that weed wasn't affecting his work ethic

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 10:35 AM PST

'[Freddie] tells me 'Spitta why don't you quit smokin weed so we can get the tape done... so I immediately went to the studio with a copious amount of weed and got all the records done that day and sent them back to him... you don't tell me about 'quit smokin weed''

It's a good interview overall - spitta seems like such a genuine person.

link

submitted by /u/neumatron11
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Earthgang Announces European Tour in February, and Says Mirrorland Album is Dropping Before It

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 04:40 PM PST

Lil Pump Apologizes for Disrespecting Asian Culture

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 09:06 PM PST

[Discussion] Lil Wayne Dedication 6 - 1 Year Later

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 04:47 PM PST

Year has flew by

Thoughts on this now?

submitted by /u/bure11
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[FRESH] Curren$y - Weed & Instrumentals 3

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 09:21 AM PST

DMX - Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 12:45 PM PST

VICE News makes documentary on Young Thug paintings at Art Basel

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 07:15 PM PST

Isaiah Rashad - Stuck In The Mud (feat. SZA)

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 11:38 PM PST

The First Single From The Underachievers: Lords Of Flatbush 3 Drops Friday

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 04:57 PM PST

[DISCUSSION] Run the Jewels - Run the Jewels 3 (2 years later)

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 11:09 PM PST

What's your opinion on Killer Mike and El-P's third official collab? What tracks stick out to you? How does it compare to RTJ 1 and 2? What do you think of Mike and Jaime's overall political statement?

submitted by /u/dyonar
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Tyler, The Creator - Hot Chocolate

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 07:58 PM PST

Freddie Gibbs - Crushed Glass

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 08:50 AM PST

Gucci Mane - St. Brick Intro

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 08:12 PM PST

Odd Future - Swag Me Out

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 11:02 AM PST

A Boogie - "Drowning" with a Live Orchestra

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 02:10 PM PST

[MERRY CHRISTMAS] XXXTentacion - A Ghetto Christmas Carol

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 11:13 PM PST

bladee - Into Dust

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 04:05 PM PST

[FRESH] Curren$y - KhalifAndretti (Ft. Wiz Khalifa)

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 11:37 AM PST

[Christmas] Eazy-E - Merry Muthaphuckkin' Xmas

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 05:06 AM PST

[FRESH] Hopsin - Hell's Carol

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 09:07 AM PST

Trippie Redd ft. 6ix9ine & UNOTHEACTIVIST- OWEE

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 01:47 PM PST

Jeremih & Chance The Rapper - One More Cry

Posted: 24 Dec 2018 07:20 PM PST
at
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