An Announcement.

I am retiring, sort of. In essence, it’s almost a managerial position, perhaps comparable to the older folks you see doing teenager-type jobs. The time has come where I really don’t have the time to write anymore. Hip-hop is still amazing, music in general is still running through my veins and saving me, but I can’t keep this up any longer. I tried doing a number of things to improve the blog here, but none of them have panned out as I wanted. Also, I’ve come to the conclusion that Musical Essence won’t come close to the greatness of some of the bigger blogs, which is unfortunate, but a reality. I check traffic. Perhaps it was even delusional to think so in the first place, considering I’m just one guy, running this from his laptop, whenever he gets some free time and has something to say. Free time has become limited, and in order to be most advantageous, I switched.

I’ve moved over to Tumblr. There, you will find some new things, mixed with a bit of old. Most likely 90-plus percent of the posts I make will be audio — a track I have loved recently, or for a long time. From time to time, I can throw up some neat images, provocative quotes, or interesting writings. But for now, sticking to audio is the easiest and most effective way to deliver a message. The message is of the greatness of music, the ability of music to cure ails and make you forget about the world for a little while. I would like to thank everyone who’s inspired me and been helpful at some of the bigger blogs, as well as every artist I’ve gotten the chance to interview, as well as the people who I know read the site. I hope that everyone can make the smooth transition, hopefully just changing their RSS feeds, and come check me out over at Tumblr.

I’ll see you there.

New Ryan Leslie Album (Stream)

It’s Tuesday! New releases abound in November, with Ryan Leslie, Wale, and (surprisingly) 50 Cent [probably] being bought by me in the coming weeks. So, I’m off to support my man Ryan by buying his new album “Transition”.

If you’re still not convinced, even though this is his SECOND album this year, with his eponymous debut being one of the stand outs of the year, you can go and check out the entire album in streaming format via herfection. You won’t regret it, I promise!

Review: Brother Ali’s “Us”

Shit! I thought I posted this like two weeks ago, but apparently I hit “draft” instead of “post”. My bad. More shit coming soon! Sorry for being the world’s most inconsistent blogger, if anyone still reads…

 

You should know his name by now. While being a large man in stature, Brother Ali packs more of a punch with his words rather than fists. It’s that time again — he is back with his second output in 2009 alone. A devoted fan sparked Ali’s imagination for the original title of Street Preacher, but the title was later changed into Us. However, just because the title may have changed, does not mean that the quality of the music has. Once again, as with all projects from the albino brother, Ant is behind the boards for this one. His production is laced with blaring horns and crisp claps and snares. Ant’s act, along with Ali’s, has become commonplace, and they have simultaneously cemented their spots near the top of the quality music list year after year after year.
Ali, as per usual, tackles a wide variety of subjects. On the album, he raps about nearly everything — a woman with a troubled past (“Baby Girl”), devious neighbors not so unlike the previous Dorian (“House Keys”), strained family dynamics (“Tight Rope”), and of course, solidifying his place amongst the greats (“Best At It”). Where Ali really shines though is where he allows the soulful production to guide him, where his mind is set free, and you can tell he’s so relaxed, and at ease. What becomes of this formula is near perfection, and is done a few times during the course of the album’s 16 tracks. “Crown Jewel” really just might be the crown jewel of the album, with its triumphant horns and smooth bassline. “Fresh Air” follows this idea as well, as the funky backdrop allows Ali to showcase his talents perfectly.
When all is said and done, the listener has spent an hour of their life listening to one man project his thoughts, ideas, and fears onto the ears of many. Was it worth it? Absolutely, and then some. While this album isn’t without flaws (“House Keys” is still rather weird to me…), by the time January rolls around, this album will be in the tops of the list as best albums of the year. The album’s slogan, showcased many times throughout the packaging states: “There’s no me, and no you. There’s just us.” The brother must have gigantic arms, because he has extended his reach to include people from all walks of life, who are fighting all different struggles, who are ready to face the world, one day at a time. This bond of unity is one of great importance, and no matter where the listener is in regards to age, global location, or maturity level, there is value in Us. There is value in hearing a man expand his thoughts to paper to speech. This is the sixth time the street preacher has come to town, and if you have missed him before, you cannot afford to miss him now.

Us is available from many sources, including Amazon and Fifth Element online. Support the man, he deserves it.

“I glide across the surface with my head held high / shoulders pushed back, I’m convinced I’ll never die…”

Weekend Reading: 9/27

“Early in life I had noticed that no event is ever correctly reported in a newspaper.” – George Orwell

A little late, but weekend reading for all of you. Congratulations to the Detroit Lions, who FINALLY won a game earlier today.

It’s Banned Book Week!
I’m sure most of you have read some of the books on the “banned” list, and this time of year is always when the debate comes up as to why these books were even banned in the first place. [superstition review]

What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Stronger
This cyclist hallucinates, goes into spells, and essentially just goes absolutely crazy, but still continues to be successful. Insane. [ny times]

MJ In The League at 50?
During his recent induction speech, Jordan made a joke about playing at 50 years of age. I wouldn’t be surprised by this at all, to be totally honest. I’d pay to see him play again. [espn]

Immortality: 20 Years Away?
Really? Scientist Ray Kurzweil makes this claim, based upon improvements in nanotechnology and understanding how the body works. [telegraph]

Later this week — a concert review of a recent show by The Fray, and an album review of Brother Ali’s new cd, Us. Stay tuned guys. Also, I still have TWO (2) Netflix invites to give away. See the post below for details.

Netflix, Anyone?

Alright, here’s the deal. I love Netflix. It’s easy to use, has no late fees, free shipping, and is just an all around great service. I use it all the time, and end up watching a lot of movies. Recently, me and the special lady have been catching up on Heroes before Season 4 premieres in a few days. It’s a great show.

Regardless, I have FOUR (4) promotional codes for anyone who wants them. Normally, Netflix offers a two-week free trial. With this, you get a month. It’s an excellent, reputable service that I wholeheartedly love and recommend. With the trial you receive access to both the DVD Delivery and the “Watch Instantly” service, that plays movies right on your computer screen, or tv screen if you have Xbox Live. That being said, if you would like any of these codes, let me know and I’ll send you one.

Note: This free one-month trial is good for accounts opened BEFORE 10/31/2009. So, if anyone stumbles on this post after that date, these codes wont work anymore.

So, once again, if you’d like some free movies, you know what to do.

EDIT: I forgot to mention, Netflix is a service that, unfortunately, only works in the United States. Sorry.

Weekend Reading: 9/14

“Early in life I had noticed that no event is ever correctly reported in a newspaper.” – George Orwell

Just thought I’d share some interesting stuff with all y’all.

I’m not really up on all this Twitter business, but this is certainly worth checking out for a laugh. This reminds me of my late grandfather. Visit Justin on Twitter.

Complex attempted to list their top 10 mixtape-albums of the decade. Like any list, there’s always going to be disagreements. I’m not on board with most of these picks to be honest, but it’s worth the read. Visit Complex blog.

Summer is coming to a close, but if you still need to float some speakers on the water on a nice day (like today, for example!), then this post is great for you. Visit Lifehacker to learn how to create floating speakers.

I like where I live, but sometimes it’s nice to get out and see the world. If you don’t do much traveling at all, The Art of Manliness has a great guide to get started, riddled with tips, tricks, and all-around great ideas. Visit AofM for a traveling guide.

Coulda Been You…

image.

I like Wale. I do. I want him to do well. Is he poised to be the best emcee to grace the mic? Most likely not. However, he can be great. We’ve all seen it. He burst on the scene with 100 Miles and Running – a project I supported on this blog. He came next with a themed mixtape…about nothing. At least, that’s what the title was. He tackled racism, relationships (re: The Manipulation, my favorite track from there), and many other topics, and did it well.

Next up, after a large number of push-backs and delays, came Back to the Feature, a Wale featuring ____ project, enlisting numerous emcees. It’s pretty solid for what it’s worth, and I would recommend that project out if somehow you haven’t yet.

His retail album, Attention: Deficit is finally dropping, October 20th I believe. Not sure if that’s right or not, writing off the top of my head. The album cover was released the other day, and it’s awesome. The first single is “World Tour” f. Jazmine Sullivan. Here’s where the problem lies.

Not in the song, mind you. It’s the fact that this song is AWESOME. Drake basically captured the “song of the summer” award with “Best I Ever Had”, and while I like Drake, this spot could have very easily belonged to Wale. It’s catchy, has a dope female singer, and really is a feel-good song — in other words, it’s perfect for the summer time. This song could have been the song, but instead, it’s probably just going to get love around some internet circles, which, as evidenced by Slaughterhouse recently, is not enough to garner big sales.

I saw an ad the other tv that said Wale was going to be on the MTV Awards (whatever show is coming up next). So, that’s a good look for him there. If he’s performing, he better be doing this song, so more can hear it. I want Wale to succeed, I really do. The DMV area is behind him all the way — and no one where I’m from has even heard of him. Let’s change that. I’m tellin’ ya, the song of the summer coulda been “World Tour”, definitely…

MP3: World Tour – via 2db

Also, someone should forward this to Wale. I have twitter, but hardly use it, and I doubt he’d see this if I tried via Twitter. Assistance, anyone?

Weekend Reading: 8/29

“Early in life I had noticed that no event is ever correctly reported in a newspaper.”

- George Orwell

Just thought I’d share some interesting stuff with all y’all.

Drake’s Racist Line? Not So Much.

I was confused at first as well when I heard the line, but Young Son sets it all straight. Side note: check out Young Son’s music. Dude is dope.

Interview with producer Dela

A good friend of M.E., Praverb snags an interview with Dela. Well done, all around.

Tips To Optimize Pandora

I use Pandora all the time. For those who do not know, Pandora provides a streaming service based on songs you already like. It can be tailored and perfected to match your tastes.

Master the Art of Knife Throwing

Who doesn’t wanna learn how to do this? Seriously.

Got a cool article you saw around the ‘net? Toss me an email!

New Music: “The Pigs”

New record from Musical Essence favorite One Be Lo! Aww helll yeahhhhhhhh!

“The Pigs” f. Mike Posner

via RH.

Legend of the Fall Offs: Common (Sense)

“I remember when you did your thing without a doubt tastefully
The problem was you didn’t know when to bow out gracefully
Once told, never burn out, it’s best to fade away
Preserve your value so that you can live to see a greater day”
-Busta Rhymes, “Legend Of The Fall Offs”

Lonnie Lynn Jr. is still capable of being a great hip hop artist. He’s released arguably one of the best songs of all time (word to I Used To Love H.E.R.). He’s released one of my favorite albums of all time (word to Like Water For Chocolate). But lately, Common, I don’t care about you and your musical output, your “acting career”, or anything else you could possibly do. I wouldn’t pay to see you perform live.
I’m sorry. I feel bad about it, really, I do. All it would take for me to be a fan again is for you to release some music that doesn’t make my ears bleed. I would start at the beginning, but I’m expecting the readers of the site to be somewhat familiar with the story of the Artist Formerly Known as Common Sense.
Let’s just look at the last few musical outputs from our main man Lonnie. Let’s start with 2005’s Be. Kanye West went ape-shit all over that album, still trying to prove himself, and provided our boy with the best beats of his career not involving the Soulquarians and/or Dilla himself (RIP). I own this album, and still revisit it from time to time, but it’s replay value has diminished, except for the intro and “Testify”. (God, that intro is fantastic).
Next up, 2007’s Finding Forever. Talk about a snooze-fest. With the only track of substance being “The People”, C-to the double M-O, to the N, (…motherfucker move back!) borrowed some influence from his own Electric Circus, and used that electricity to shock me into sleep every time that record comes on. I would elaborate more, but I’m usually napping.
Finally, Universal Mind Control. Originally called “Infinite Summer” I believe, but was then pushed so far back past a summer release, it would have been absolutely retarded to keep that album name. So, he went with something worse, and, if you can try to understand, an even worse album cover. A floating shirt, really, Common? That’s all you can come up with? Seriously? This album was almost saved by the banger that is “The Gladiator” (See? I told you I’m trying to be a fan.), except that every other track isn’t good. And I wanted to shoot Common, and then myself, after hearing “Sex 4 Suga”. So, needless to say, I enjoyed that album. /sarcasm.

Alright look Common, let me explain something to you. We, as fans, share the same disappointment when you come out with a new record. Mos Def must be teaching you some things. So, if you want an album that people will like and then subsequently buy (which makes you money), here’s what you need to do:

• Call up ?uest. Have him drum the shit out of all your record. (Sidenote: recently saw The Roots live. Excellent show.)
• Just rap. No more corny lines. (“I can like a pop machine!”)
• Throw in some featured artists that can help your song(s) be better. (Fuck The Neptunes, especially Pharrell)
• Maybe a Kanye beat. Or two. Or five.

If you do these, shit, at least some of them, you’ll have a much better record than the last two steaming piles you’ve tried to pass off as albums. Maybe people will buy them. Oh wait, you don’t really need the money. I forgot. You’re an “actor.” Right.