Hello everybody, I hope everyone has been keeping well and safe!! It’s been a while…
Firstly I apologise to all the loyal readers as I’ve been away for a while this year. It’s been a busy year and if I’m honest, I’ve lost my love and passion for music recently. It felt like music wasn’t exciting me as much, so didn’t feel right to write about it! However, I’m feeling a bit better and a bit more motivated.
I just wanted to explaon my absence but I have been excited by some music projects in the meantime and I will list some of them in the following posts.
Hello everyone! It’s that time of week where I bombard you all with a list of what I’ve been listening to the past week! It’s been a while since I have updated you, have a look below of all the music that’s been on rotation.!
Stormzy – Wiley Flow
There has been a lot of noise and controversy in the UK grime scene surrounding Wiley. If I’m going to be perfectly honest, I have no idea what started Wiley’s frustration. With this track Stormzy paves homage to one of the grime pioneers Wiley. The beginning of the song starts with a snippet of a clip where Wiley refers to the fact that everyone else in the scene are his “youngers”. Stormzy uses this to flip and relate to his song by referring to his own success. I feel that this is the Stormzy I prefer in comparison to his more commercial songs like “Vossi Bop”. Stormzy when he is raw for me is when he’s at his best, listen to his freestyles like “Standard” and “Scary” for examples.
Shaybo – Ya Dun Know
This song has blown up thanks to the power of the internet. I came across the song and video on twitter and have been playing the song ever since! I love the fact there are more female rappers coming up and even better them being British. There are a few really good British rappers in comparison to the men. Shaybo brings a uniqueness to her rapping as she spits in the Yoruba dialect too in this song. Yoruba is one of the many languages spoken in Nigeria and it is great she is able to incorporate both her British and Nigerian identity in the song. For those that aren’t aware, “Ya Dun Know” is a common slang used a lot in London and is a term usually used when someone is bigging something up. The accompanying video is good too, simple and fitting to the song. I also liked how she referenced her old video where she was much younger so we could see the growth in her music.
Mahalia Ft. Ella Mai – What You Did
I’m a big fan of this collaboration, women are really taking centre stage in all genres nowadays, rap and r&b are just examples. In this song we hear samples from Cam’ron and Juelz Santana’s hit song “Oh Boy” as well as Norman Whitfield’s “I’m Going Down”. The song exudes female solidarity in the face of a lover ho has wronged them. One of the lyrics that stand out for me are from Ella Mai’s verse where she sings “Oh, it’s funny how right when I let my guard down you play around”, I’m sure many women can relate to this line. I like in the chorus that they flip the scenario; ‘Cause I would not expect someone to stay around If I let them down, oh” insinuating that if they had wronged their lover they would expect them to be reacting in the exact same way. I hope this is the first of more collaborations between this two, their singing styles compliment each other very well.
Myers – Common Kid
I’m sure everyone is now aware of the Netflix series “Top Boy” that was released on the 13th of September. The original soundtrack has been released and while the album is great and filled with the finest UK talent, there was 1 song I feel should have been on there. While watching the series, this song in particular stood out to me. I had to shazam the song as I had no idea who was rapping. Since discovering, I have had this song on repeat. The song touches on the gritty street life which evidently was very relevant for the episode. Have a listen below; ( Also check out Bugzy Malone – Die By The Gun)
Normani – Motivation
“I’ma break you off, let me be your motivation” is what I’ve been singing since I heard this song. Normani who is famous for being a apart of the group ‘Fifth Harmony’ finally spreads her solo wings with this debut single. I have a feeling she is one to watch. The song is great and the video is absolutely mind blowing. Her talent spreads from vocals to dancing and it is clear she is finally showing the world her talents. I am here for any success she has in the future!!!
Dave – Professor X
This is one of the standout tracks on the Top Boy soundtrack for me. Dave outdoes himself with his witty wordplay in this song. I loved the Terminator “Not around no more” reference as that fir perfectly with the line he was spitting. I could be here all day picking out the talent behind some of the bars in this song. Have a listen below;
Gambimi – Picture
UK artist Gambimi caused a storm last week with a video on his Instagram that went viral showing him pleading a lover to forgive him for his wrongdoing. All of this was the lead up to the release of this single. The famous words “Can we fix, can we blend, can we contour” are possibly what stand out in the whole song. Personally I have been listening to Gambimi’s music for a while. He used to release songs regularly on SoundCloud. I feel his voice is a mixture of Trey Songz and UK singer Angel. A soothing R&B sound with the right kind of rifts and harmonies. Have a listen below;
Quality Control Ft. City Girls, Stefflon Don, Renni Rucci & Mustard – Like That
Quality Control have released a new album entitled; Quality Control: Control the Streets Volume 2. One of the things I like about QC as a label is their appreciation and support of female rappers. This song features their female Queens City Girls as well as new signee UK rapper Stefflon Don. We also are treated with an addition from Renni Rucci and Mustard.
Apologies for the wait for a new post from me! There has been so much new music out in the past few weeks! I love this time of year as the “summer hits” die down and we start getting album releases and EP’s as the concert season starts again. I will be doing a few album reviews soon but for now here are some songs I’ve been playing on repeat…
Casanova Ft. Chris Brown – Coming Home
I don’t even know where to begin with this track. Firstly can we talk about the fact the sample is from one of the best songs from Case and Joe released almost 11 years ago! The original song was called ‘Faded Pictures. As soon as I heard Casonova’s song I knew where the inspiration was from instantly. A slow jam classic. Casanova and Chris did the sample justice and this new version is great! As usual Chris Brown kills every single feature he hops on and amazes us every song with his vocal ability. This song has been on repeat since I heard it. Have a listen below and have a listen to the original;
Yo Trane – Waves
I am SOOOOOO excited about this new release!!!!! I am a BIG fan of Yo Trane. His ‘Late Night Drive’ EP is one of my favourite R&B projects in the past 3 years. His music makes me feel every emotion possible and his production is always so complimentary to the song. I think he is one of the few artists that could release a project of all his instrumentals and I would still have it on repeat. I really hope this is the first of more new music this year released from Yo Trane. I’m really hoping he drops another project soon too. R&B can be played all year but in summer it is appreciated even more. Have a listen below;
Pusha T Ft. Lauryn Hill – Coming Home
Hearing Lauryn Hill on a song will always make me feel some kind of nostalgia. I really enjoy Pusha T and Lauryn on this track and after hearing the song was recorded in late 2015 I can hear why. I like the sentiment behind the song with the idea that love is the answer to so many questions. Lauryn sings; “When love is gone, you hold onto anything, some do wrong, just to feel anything but when the void is filled, you stand up to anything“. The words remind of the song by the Black Eyed Peas called “Where is the Love?”. Pusha also addresses the idea that Black people have had good activists that have stood up for them in the past. He also addresses the idea that Crack Cocaine was initially sold to Black gangs to benefit and profit the US government however it started an internal rivalry between Black gangs. Have a listen below;
KYLE Ft. Teyana Taylor – F You I Love You.
I heard this song at an event last week and added it straight to my playlist. It’s one of those songs perfect to play in the background when you want to chill. I actually had to shazam the song as I did not recognise Kyle’s voice. I will be checking out his other music as I like the tone of his voice. In this song he is able to sing along and find a way to sing with the deepest tone in the same sentence. Of course Teyana sounds perfect in this song as she is able to demonstrate her talent through her wonderful and unique voice. Have a listen below;
Aitch Ft MoStack & Steel Banglez – Weekday
Man of the hour Aitch has released his anticipated second EP today, Friday 6th of September. I have not listened to the whole tape properly and digested it all however this is one of those songs that grab you from the first listen. I knew from the lineup that I would be a fan as Mo Stack an Steel Banglez rarely make a bad song. As usual Mo Stack uses his cheekiness to provide us with a memorable phrase. He says;
She said “Men are trash”, I said “Yeah, that’s true” But you’re the company you keep and I’m chillin’ here wid you So what does that make you?
Classic Mo cheekiness!!! ha!
The song is quite slowed down which if you’ve heard many of Aitch’s recent music, is a nice change. I think this will be a fan favourite. Have a listen below;
Blade Brown Ft. K Trap – Joints
This is my favourite song from the Blade Brown project. Such a hyped up song! Have a listen below;
