Brilliantly Blunt

It’s been a little while since we’ve had new Voli, but here’s his first track of 2012. Says Voli:

I’ve been waiting for 2012 to go full blast with the Nouveau Classique movement. My project “The Wall” is definitely coming out this year and I’ll be releasing music from it soon. Thanks to anyone supporting this early. Meantime, enjoy this track to get the year warmed up.

This guy doesn’t have a single whack track in his discography. Follow him on Twitter here and hit the jump for the download link.

All I can say is YES! Ever since Elle Varner debuted “Only Wanna Give It To You,” I’ve been fiending for more music. On Conversational Lush, she serves up 13 tracks to hold the public over until her EP Perfectly Imperfect is released later this year. Don’t sleep on Elle Varner. Based on these tracks, I have a feeling that she’s going to have a PRETTY good summer this year.

Conversational Lush by OMGElleVarner

In case you forgot (like most of us did), Nicki Minaj has an album dropping in less than a month April (the pushback was just announced). #OOP. Here’s the video for her newest single off Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded, “Stupid Hoe.” The lyrics are beyond wack and Nicki’s gotten too comfortable with her simplistic rhyming skills. However, the beat and the video itself makes up for what is lyrically lacking. Directed by Hype Williams, the video is colorful, vibrant, and a little bit odd. Essentially, it’s reflective of Nicki herself. It’s a decent video, essentially the epileptic mania that you would expect of a Nicki Minaj video. However, I need Nicki to come a lot harder. She may be the dominant female rapper in the game, but she is in no position to get comfortable. Here’s to hoping she avoids the sophomore slump.

I’ve been sitting on this post for weeks now, waiting for the rest of my BB crew to get their lists in. Surprise, surprise, nothing materialized. Since today is the last acceptable day to wish people a Happy New Year, and therefore the last day to mention anything 2011 related, I decided to post my best albums and songs list. If you have any objections or think I overlooked any projects or tracks, hit the comments section. Bear in mind, this list is MY personal opinion, which means it’s only 95% fact. Hit the jump to start agreeing with me.

Baby, I'll paint the sky Blue.

And what were you doing during your first week on earth? Billboard just announced that Beyoncé and Jay-Z’s newborn daughter, Blue Ivy Carter, has become the youngest person to chart on Billboard. “Glory” by Jay-Z featuring B.I.C. debuted on the Hip-Hop R&B charts at #74 this week. Here’s a bit of trivia. This song is Jay-Z’s 107th entry onto the charts. Baby Blue was born on January 7th, or 1/07. And the numerology doesn’t stop there. The number #74 is a combination of both baby and parents’ birthdates, seeing as Jay’s birthday is December 4th and Bey’s is September 4th.

Basically, Baby Blue is a reminder to all of us to hustle harder. If she’s already accomplished charting at four days old, who knows what’s to come in the future! Congrats to the Carters.

“Life just got REALLY good.”

Two days ago, Jay-Z and his wife Beyoncé welcomed their first child, daughter Blue Ivy Carter into their lives. Today, Jay released “Glory” (A nice double entendre, aptly titled after his mother, Gloria)—a song about the conception and birth of Blue Ivy, and her importance to him: “You’re a child of destiny/You’re the child of my destiny/You’re my child with the child from Destiny’s Child, that’s a hell of a recipe.” Finished off with actual audio of Blue Ivy’s first cries, it’s a beautiful track that evokes Stevie Wonder’s “Isn’t She Lovely.”

“Glory” could very well be considered one of the most important songs of his career. It joins the exclusive ranks of songs such as “Moment of Clarity” and “This Can’t Be Life,” songs that open up deep cutting wounds for Jay. He’s made it clear multiple times that he’s been afraid to love after being hurt so many times, whether it being from his father’s abandonment or going through the trauma of an ex-girlfriend delivering a stillborn child. The topics of the aforementioned songs find their way into “Glory,” but it’s the song’s revelation that the Carters have suffered through at least one miscarriage that makes Blue Ivy’s birth all the more triumphant. Wracked with emotion, fear, and bliss, “Glory” is the full realization of the line from “Beach Chair” (See I got demons in my past/ So I got daughters on the way). Jay acknowledges that he’s made a few mistakes in the past, but it’s all about baby Blue now. Recall Jay’s line in “Monster” when he states that his Achille’s heel is love. All the proof is in “Glory.”

Leave it to Jay to release a song about his daughter, featuring his daughter, before he and his wife even issued their statement on their child’s birth. But music has always been his outlet—whether he’s fighting court cases on “Izzo (Hova),” airing out rivals on “Takeover,” addressing relationship rumors on “03 Bonnie and Clyde”—Jay has told his story and expressed his feelings through his raps. Aside from retelling stories about his drug dealer past, the topics of songs like “03 Bonnie and Clyde” and “Takeover” were all on very public incidents and rumors. If anything, he was setting the  public record straight through those songs. Only recently have we been invited into his private life. Songs like “Glory” let us into parts of Jay’s mind that have been locked up for decades, juxtaposing the intimate nature with Jay’s wide-reaching platform.

It’s important to remember that Jay’s been an emotional stonewall his entire career. Never one to be even be photographed smiling, his all-black-everything style, his shades, his Yankee fitted, and his business persona oozes swag. They’re all indicative of a fiercely private man, despite being a cultural messiah and husband of the biggest female icon of a generation, even being quoted years ago that he was “dating Michael Jackson.” There’s no escaping the limelight for Jay, which is perhaps why he finds solace in rapping about his past ways. His drug dealer chic has spanned across 11 solo albums, and barring a few instances in which he let his walls down (“Song Cry” and “December 4th” come to mind, along with the songs mentioned above), he’s kept his cards close to his heart his whole career.

Though as of late, the sensitive side of Jay has been more prominent. In turn, he’s become less of a rapper, and more of an adult—a novel concept. In an October 27th, 2010 interview with The Wall Street Journal, we saw further chinking in his faceless armor. Speaking on “Big Pimpin,” perhaps his most misogynistic, but invigorating banger to date, he talked down on himself:

Some [lyrics] become really profound when you see them in writing. Not “Big Pimpin.” That’s the exception. It was like, I can’t believe I said that. And kept saying it. What kind of animal would say this sort of thing? Reading it is really harsh.”

On “Big Pimpin,” he also says, “Me give my heart to a woman?/Not for nothin, never happen/ I’ll be forever mackin.” He acknowledges his growth in Decoded, stating that eventually he would give his heart to a woman (enter Beyoncé). On Watch The Throne, he was as open about his personal life as he’s ever been on an album. He had parental aspirations on “New Day,” he spoke up against Beanie Sigel and Dame Dash on “Why I Love You,” and even admitted that he was “fuckin depressed” on “Welcome To The Jungle.” The existence of Jay’s newfound feelings isn’t coincidental. Not only does family life change a man, but he was bound to open up while collaborating with Kanye West—it was Kanye after all, who cleared the lane and made it okay for rappers to become more introspective (pay homage, Aubrey).

A sensitive Hov not only stemmed organically from working with Kanye so closely, but also from him recognizing the prevailing zeitgeist of hip-hop today. If Drake can sell millions of records about wallowing in an emotional cesspool—if Kanye was able to generate the biggest of his career out of some auto-tuned, rapped/sung breakup ballad—then Hov can get down with his deeper side. Hip-hop is getting more personal than ever, and it’s the transparent rappers who are getting the attention and selling records. Jay not recording a song like “Glory” would make him seem like a dinosaur in a kid’s genre, instead of the aging, wise OG he’s become.

Topically, he’s avoided his own feelings for two decades. Now that he’s discovered and let go of what’s inside for the first time, he’s got a few albums of material unlocked. On “Glory” he raps:”I wreak havoc on the world, get ready for part two/A younger, smarter, faster me.” Rap Genius interpreted it as a reference to Blue Ivy, but with the birth of his daughter, it’s also the rebirth of his career. Get ready for part two to Jay’s career. Call him sensitive Hov.

Not even two days old and little Blue Ivy Carter already has a feature. Just minutes ago, new father Jay-Z posted on his site Life + Times his first song post-baby. Titled “Glory,” the song is an ode to the little heiress and her journey. Hit up the DL link below, and try not to tear up at the sound of little BIC’s crying during the outro. Produced by The Neptunes.

Mazel Tov Jay and Bey, and welcome to the world Blue.

DOWNLOAD: “Glory”

Our 2011 predictions were eerily on point. Expect our 2012 predictions to come true too.

J: Drake records “Marvin’s Room 2: Marvin’s Revenge” with Common dropping a guest verse. Aubs will also do a lot more rapping in 2012.

S: Rihanna takes a couple of months off after touring to rejuvenate and let her relationship with her lesbian lover blossom.

J: House/Dubstep music will continue to grip its ugly tentacles around the realm of hip hop; vocals will become obsolete. Following that trend, Kanye West will officially go by the name DJ Yeezy World Peace, and create an album through a dubstep vocoder—his first invention as “Yeezus The Carpenter” for DONDA. It’ll sound kind of like this.

J: Big Boi will release another album, giving him 2 solo efforts before Andre 3000 even announces his first.

Hit the jump to read the rest of our blunt predictions!

Music is a monkey-see, monkey-do industry. If one thing works for a particular artist, bet on the rest of the business trying it out for themselves. T-Pain, the supa dupa flow and assaulting Yung Berg were all past trends that lasted for years. Expect to see your favorite rapper take these 2011 hip-hop trends to the charts in 2012. To each his own.

Hit the jump to read the full list.

Last week, Complex declared “Tupac back” as the best hip-hop line of 2011. Uh, okay. What was really back in 2011 was hip-hop. The genre has been suffering in recent years (or since the 90s, depending on how old you are), because of an overall lack of quality. Entering 2011, Golden Era snobs were raising their noses in disgust, the streets were wondering where 50 and Jeezy had gone, and everyone else was weary. In 2011, however, it seems like every rapper that mattered or wanted to matter stepped up and created exceptional music.

The established guard of stars came out this year in full force. Lil Wayne nearly sold a mili first week with his first post-prison release, Tha Carter IV. Eminem, still riding his monumental Recovery wave, teamed up with his old buddy Royce Da 5’9″ to unleash a collaboration album full of hard, misogynistic bars. Kanye West and Jay-Z promised and delivered the most anticipated tangible product in years in Watch The Throne, although the Concords 11s might have trumped The Throne in that department. (I say “tangible” lightly, since their initial digital-only release prevented a highly-anticipated leak). Each star did their thing, and expanded their horizons. Lil Wayne proved that you don’t need to make good music to sell records. Eminem was able to to make a fun record with a friend without any pressure. Kanye West continued to sonically expand what’s considered hip-hop while getting Jay to rap over some dubstep along the way. Expect DJs and electronic music to continue to infiltrate hip-hop in 2012.

While the old guard held their own, a new generation of rappers cracked into the mainstream. These rappers have been hot names for years, but 2011 was the year that they were able to get their label situation in line with their vision. Wale was given a second chance by Rick Ross’ Maybach Music Group and Warner Bros. He fell short of his “classic” ambition, but he produced a #1 record with plenty of feel-good bangers, pop hits and introspective moments to satisfy himself and his label.

Big Sean, the former black sleep of G.O.O.D Music, was finally deemed ready by Kanye. He went ahead seized the spotlight and the iPods of every house party in America. With T.I. back in jail, Meek Mill had nowhere to turn until a certain red-bottomed boss scooped him up. After providing the most belligerent, loud, boastful record in 2011 with “Ima Boss,” he dropped Dreamchasers and one of the most vivd storytelling verses of the year on “Tony Story.”

Remember Tity Boi? Yeah, me neither. But do you know who 2 Chainz is? Yeah, that’s Tity Boi. 2 Chainz reinvented himself in 2011 with a new moniker and heightened work ethic. His “Spend It” is currently the hottest street record, and he’s the go-to feature for trap rappers everywhere.

Out of all the rappers to finally breakthrough this year, J. Cole has perhaps made the biggest impact. Handpicked by Jay-Z to one day take the crown, J. Cole has had the entire industry behind him and against him at the same time. Everyone wanted to see J. Cole succeed, but nobody could agree on how to roll out his music properly. After over a year of touring and delays, his debut album, Cole Word, finally received it’s September release date. What it didn’t have was a hit single to carry the album up the charts. “Work Out” had been a summer flop, and “Can’t Get Enough” wasn’t being pushed enough. Despite label forecasts of 50,000-60,000 albums sold, Cole World quadrupled what the industry thought it was capable of, selling an astounding 218,000 copies its first week.

What J. Cole was able to do has now opened doors for the likes of Kendrick Lamar and Big K.R.I.T. All three have distinct sounds that are all favorable to the underground—conventional wisdom would have them pegged as Indie acts with no mainstream appeal, and therefore no selling power. But if J. Cole was able to debut with a #1 album just off the strength of his music and fans, who’s to say Kendrick and K.R.I.T can’t do the same? J. Cole has made it possible to be yourself in an industry that’s always looking to pawn rappers off for another hit single, and still sell enough to please the Israeli overlords. Kendrick and K.R.I.T released highly acclaimed projects of their own, and can now continue to build their fan base and brand instead of worrying about needing a crossover single to sell records.

J. Cole wasn’t the only Indie warrior in 2011. Mac Miller had the first independently released #1 album in over 15 years with Blue Slide Park, selling 155,000 copies first week. Tyler, The Creator’s Goblin has sold over 150,000 copies on an Indie label. J. Cole, Mac Miller and Tyler’s contrarian approaches all proved that a strong brand and loyal fan base trumps any rushed effort with a catchy single leading the way. What they accomplished will significantly impact how artists and labels roll out their product in the future.

Long delayed albums stuck in label purgatory also saw the light in 2011. Lupe Fiasco had to sell his soul to Atlantic Records, but he was able to get Lasers released (it ended up being his best album commercially, even with it’s shortcomings). Common finally got his act together, put his acting aside, got in the studio with No I.D after over a decade of separation, and recreated Resurrection for modern ears with The Dreamer, The Believer. Young Jeezy, through all of his promotional hiccups, managed to get TM103 out to your hood and my suburb right before the new year.

Despite all of the incredible music that was released in 2011, much of it has been overshadowed by conflict. What’s hip-hop without the beef, right? Nobody is dieting out here. 2011 was the year of the subliminals. Jay-Z told Birdman “you got Baby money,” which sparked a war of words that ran throughout the year. Drake took jabs at Kanye and Jay-Z on “I’m On One” (“the throne is for the taking—watch me take it”) and on “Dreams Money Can Buy” (“my favorite rappers either lost it or they ain’t alive”). Pusha T and Common dedicated entire records to dissing Drake (apparently they’ve noticed Drake’s commercial power). Aubs was involved in just about ever subliminal diss record in 2011 some way or another. That’s not a coincidence for the “human croissant.”

Credit to those who shed the subliminals and went right for the jugular. Lil Kim used Nicki Minaj’s success to try and resurrect her career, sparking a very public war of words. Game tried to get people to remember his existence by going at everyone connected to hip-hop on “Uncle Otis”—everyone except the label bosses who kept delaying his album. It was Lil Wayne, however, who provided the nastiest line of 2011, going right at Jay-Z and his pregnant Queen Beyonce: “Talkin’ bout Baby money, I got your Baby money. Kidnap your bitch, keep that, how much you love your lady money?”.

There was even R&B beef in 2011, which is always funny. Robin Thicke had the Twitter beef of the year, and Chris Brown and Frank Ocean even got into it. It’s only a matter of time until someone gets killed over Twitter, and Chris Brown’s cousins seemed determine to waste Frank Ocean over a couple tweets:

R&B and hip-hop became very intertwined in 2011. Frank Ocean’s Odd Future collective successfully fucked up the minds of half of teenage America with their I-don’t-give-a-fuck, shock, punk-rap rager attitude. Ocean ended up as the go-to hook-smith on Watch The Throne and on Goblin. His R&B counterpart, The Weeknd, exploded out of Toronto with some serious co-signs from Drake. The Weeknd promised and actually released three brilliant mixtapes in 2011, outproducing half of the R&B industry. His presence was felt all over Drake’s acclaimed Take Care—whether it was adding vocals, songwriting or production, The Weeknd helped Drake push Take Care to a creative zenith (similar to what Kid Cudi did on Kanye’s 808s & Heartbreak)—the ultimate example of hip-hop and R&B tastefully co-existing.

To close 2011, The Throne embarked on a North American tour. Those lucky enough to attend were treated to one of the greatest concerts ever put together. It was the ultimate concert experience—with tickets starting at almost $100 in many cities, it was a tour steeped in over-the-top stunts, stages, songs (they performed that song about African Americans In Paris 168 times over 34 concerts) and wardrobes (Kanye’s leather kilt and Air Yeezy 2s commanded attention at every date). Jay-Z’s bombastic, bat-out-of-hell performance of “U Don’t Know” was the most exhilarating concert experience I’ve ever had:

Hip-hop is in a strange place right now. Comedians are rapping, rappers are singing, singers are rapping, and Pitchfork keeps giving Lil B exceptional reviews. There’s no clear direction for the culture and the genre, because hip-hop flexed it’s diversity in 2011. Never has hip-hop literally had something for everyone. Hip-hop no longer has a myopic attitude—it’s artists are throwing a molotov cocktail to the establishment and creating music to expand the culture, to let everyone in. It’s much cooler to lead the revolution than to inherit the crown. Watch the new year.