Category: Rap
Angel Haze vs. Azealia Banks – The Cat Fight Track Smackdown
Angel Haze
Azealia Banks and Angel Haze are in the midst of a full-blown bitch fight? Well, duh. Who didn’t anticipate this ticking time bomb of tension to explode at any given notice? The igniting factor? A passive aggressive tweet, of course.
As BrooklynVegan pointed out, “Azealia Banks tweeted, ‘Seriously, if you were not born and raised in NY…. DON’T CLAIM NY. YOU ARE NOT A NEW YORKER.’ Angel Haze apparently took this to be a direct shot at her and her track “New York” and a Twitter fight ensued.” To add fuel to the fire, Perez Hilton thrust himself into the tweet rage, and Banks called him a F****t. Woah.
Regardless of the (still continuing!) saga, we all get to enjoy the “bitch!” name calling fest in the form of a fresh track smackdown. How long will the cat fight ensue, and who will win this epic battle of rebuttals? You decide:
Azealia Banks – No Problems
Stream Mykki Blanco’s New “Acid Punk Rap” Mixtape – Cosmic Angel
Mykki Blanco is somethin’ else. The word “spectacular” comes to mind. She’s a 25 year-old, New York City dominating Queen of “acid punk rap” who has two self-proclaimed sides: “cute and criminally insane.”
As the alter-ego of originally born, Michael David Quattlebaum Jr., Mykki Blanco (as stated in Pitchfork’s article: We Invented Swag: NYC’s Queer Rap) is breaking down traditional hip-hop identities.
“We’re living in a time where the mediocrity of mainstream pop culture is at an all-time high… Who gives a fuck [about being mainstream]? I’m not trying to be in the 40/40 Club popping bottles while rappers throw hundred-dollar bills on strippers. I’m just out to make my audience happy, fulfill my creative vision, and be successful on my own terms, which is doable.” – The Multiplicities of Mykki Blanco, Interview Magazine.
Blanco isn’t just a “teenage girl rapper” though. Quattlebaum and Blanco as one is a multi-faceted emerging artist with an impressive resume, adding performance artist, actor, fashionista and poet to the list. As a result, Blanco’s independent, artistic hip-hop femme fatale persona and fresh sounds rule our ears, reign our attention and result in obsession.
Mykki Blanco‘s also been working fast and furiously having just dropped a bouncin’ 15-track mixtape, Cosmic Angel: Illuminati Prince/ss. The mixtape includes an impressive collaboration of producers like Flosstradamus, Le1f, Gatekeeper and more. Addictive tracks like “Wavvy,” “Haze.Boogie.Life,” and “Fuckin the DJ” have placed Blanco in our minds and on our maps… and luckily for us, she’s just getting started.
Stream Cosmic Angel below, on SoundCloud or download here and watch the new video for “Haze.Boogie.Life” now:
Mykki Blanco – Haze.Boogie.Life
Fresh Tracks – NEW: Main Attrakionz, Absofacto, Naomi Punk, Blue Hawaii
Main Attrakionz
“Cloud Body” is the latest addictive, billowy, and appropriately titled, “cloud rap” single from Main Attrakionz‘s recently released LP, Bossalinis & Fooliyones via Young One. The “best duo ever” consisting of Oakland hailing rappers, MondreM.A.N. and Squadda B, have certainly proved with this track that “cloud rap is that shit that you can trust.”
Cloud Body (prod. by Grown Folk) – Main Attrakionz
I keep finding myself obsessively listening to “Backfire,” the latest track by Jonathan Visger aka Absofacto. The solo “experimental pop” project is an offshoot from Visger’s other band, Mason Proper. According to Paste Magazine, Visger teamed up with Mason Proper guitarist, Brian Konicek, to record “Backfire” in a basement – Sounds… typical, but the dreamy indie rock track is anything but:
Absofacto – Backfire
Gritty grunge, dream-pop, noise-rock, garage punk… this is what I think of when I listen to Naomi Punk. And, when I listen to the Olympia/Seattle-based trio’s track, “The Spell,” I wanna trip out, rock out, and score some sweet flannel. “The Spell” is off of Naomi Punk‘s second full-length album, The Feeling, originally released on vinyl. So technically this is a (re)fresh, as Captured Tracks has recently reissued the LP digitally, on CD, and on CLEAR vinyl – Ooh fancy!
Naomi Punk – The Spell
Montreal’s ambient dream-pop “love project,” Blue Hawaii, has just released a two-part single, (I see what you did there), “In Two” and “In Two II.” Back in August, Grimes displayed her absolute admiration for Blue Hawaii’s upcoming LP, Untogether (due in early 2013), via the Twittersphere, calling it the “biggest album of next year, WOWWWWWWWW.”
Raph/Raphaelle Standell-Preston (of Braids) and Agor/Alex Cowan from Blue Hawaii
Blue Hawaii – In Two
Blue Hawaii – In Two II
For the Women, Weed & Money – Kendrick Lamar Show Recap + NEW LP: good kid, mA.A.d city
I recently saw Kendrick Lamar, the Compton hailing rapper with a serious cult following, play at The Warfield in San Francisco as part of the BET Music Matters Tour. If you think this is amusing, you’re not alone, as I apparently stood out like a sore thumb. But as Lamar so eloquently states, “uh uh, fuck that.”
As I passed through two sets of security, and waved off the $13 beers, I entered the venue doors. A sea of arm waving, head nodding, energy buzzing fans, a wall of smoke so thick it could’ve been cut with a knife, and a suffocating blanket of damp heat welcomed me to the world of Kendrick Lamar.
It was apparent by the crowd that Lamar’s fans are hardcore – They were lit up, getting down, and jumping, jamming and yelling every lyric along with their beloved 5’6″ hip hop wunderkind of only 25. Lamar took requests from the crowd letting them determine the direction of the show. He sat on a chair, having a heart-to-hearts with his fans. Pointing into the crowd, he asked, “What’s your name? Shannon? Let me ask you something Shannon. If you had a boyfriend, would you be faithful?” “Everybody, are you faithful?” and the crowd gleefully screamed, “NOOOOooo!”
Lamar continued to swoon the audience with a revised edition of The Recipe, replacing the words “L.A” with “The Bay,” to which his San Francisco/Oakland fan-base yelled wildly and appreciatively.
It’s clear Lamar is an entrancing entertainer, but the love his fan-base gives him is rightfully earned due to his talent, which is evident more than ever in his latest (October 22nd) LP, good kid, mA.A.d city via Interscope Records. The album includes a slew of guest musicians including Dr. Dre, Mary J. Blige, Drake, J Rock and more. It’s an amazing compilation of smooth beats, fresh lyrics and a little storytelling. Stream the entire album on Spotify and experience the addiction that is Kendrick Lamar.
Kendrick Lamar – Swimming Pools (Drank)
Kendrick Lamar – The Recipe (feat. Dr. Dre)
NEW! Death Grips – @Deathgripz [listen and download]
Who wasn’t beyond bummed when Death Grips dropped out of their tour back in May to work on their new album (out in October), No Love Deep Web? Canceling their shows felt abrupt and totally premature, like a stunted unsatisfying fling. However, if the rough-and-ready experimental punk-rap-hip-hop group continues to produce amazing new jams like @Deathgripz ( Twitter handle represent) then by all means boys, have at it – you might even be forgiven… just don’t cancel on us again.
This roaring, bouncy, trippy jam (which may actually be an unreleased track from The Money Store) ends the Adult Swim Singles Program in which they release 13 tracks over 13 weeks. Artists include a variance of Com Truise, How to Dress Well, Wye Oak, Elite Gymnastics, Flying Lotus and more. Head on over for a download of all 13 jams.
Death Grips – @Deathgripz
coco stereo 