"Is ******* worth listening to?"

Mr. Rager

Thought it would be handy to have a thread where we can ask each other if a certain artist is worth listening to, and if so, which songs should someone should check out by them. Have a big problem myself trawling through hours of a mediocre discography just to find some artists' best songs, and I know some people here have a great knowledge of hip-hop, past and present

So..to start the ball rolling..are ASAP Rocky and Tech N9ne worth listening to?

Yo! MTV SUCKS

ya & ya

Boom_Bap

A$AP - I listened because of the hype. Didn't do it for me. Listened again and it sounded even worse. I would give him a miss if I could do it all over again.

Tech N9ne - Hit and Miss for me. Some moments of inspiration, some moments of mediocrity. Probably too much of the latter for me to actively persue his catalogue, but I wouldnt turn off one of his songs if it happened to be on.
His 6's and 7's albums got great reviews, so why not check that out.

conor.hogan.2

A$AP, from what I listened to was a waste of time and cringeworthy even.

Tech N9ne is very odd, I never really gave him a chance but have heard him several times and it wasn't particularly compelling enough to make me bother to get any more of his music.

Shapey Fiend

A$AP Rocky is very much worth listening to in my opinion. Picks really, really good beats. He's less about content and more about having a good cadence for whatever beat he's rapping over and using rakes of different southern rap flows.

Tech N9ne - Nah..

mufcboy1999

ASAP all day for me, tech 9 not a fan bar a few bits so it's a no from me.

Currency anyone? One of those artists Iv just ignored , even when his stuff is in front of me.

Good thread bud.

Da Shins Kelly

A$AP - I don't like him. I know other people do though.

Tech N9ne - haven't listened to much of his stuff. What I have heard is alright.

Sl!mCharles

A$AP is good, some lovely beats in LiveLoveA$AP, and beats are a big factor in my enjoyment of a hip hop song, probably more so than the actual rap being delivered. Blasphemy maybe, but the way I am. That said, I enjoy a lot of his rapping, both delivery and content isn't all the same and keeps me interested.

Tech N9ne I've never listened to.

Curren$y I like, nice beatz again, good chilling choons. Great features as well. Just heard a few songs here and there mind. Haven't listened to any full albums/mixtapes.

Jimmy Iovine

mufcboy1999 wrote: »

Currency anyone? One of those artists Iv just ignored , even when his stuff is in front of me.

Sl!mCharles wrote: »

Curren$y I like, nice beatz again, good chilling choons. Great features as well. Just heard a few songs here and there mind. Haven't listened to any full albums/mixtapes.

Drop everything you have and listen to Covert Coup. It's unbelievable from start to finish. His song with Freddie Gibbs is amazing imo. Easily one of my top songs from last year. Gibbs' flow is absolutely outrageous on it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mH47EgnTbAE

Boom_Bap

Curren$y is good, but I think that he releases far too much material! I've lost track of his EPs and albums at this stage. Because he is so prolific, it's all blending in and becoming less exciting for me.

I'd definitely start out with Covert Coup or Pilot Talk and take it from there.

Sl!mCharles

Listening now Jim, 2 tracks in - it is tasty stuff for sure.

Mikeyt086

Just want to give a +1 to Curren$y. Smokee Robinson Mixtape, Verde Terrace, Covert Coup and How Fly (collab mixtape with Wiz Khalifa before he blew up, the first i had heard of him, before literally every rhyme was about weed or Taylor Gang) are all brilliant.

For me: Jon Connor, 2 chainz (Whats the craic there? Ever since he changed his name from Tity Boi he is on feckin every track!), Freddie Gibbs and Ace Hood. All artists I see about the place but dont really know.

Shapey Fiend

I'd put Curren$y in the same category as ASAP Rocky. Picks universally excellent beats. Rides them nicely. Interesting flows. Doesn't say a whole lot you'd remember.

Jimmy Iovine

Mikeyt086 wrote: »

Just want to give a +1 to Curren$y. Smokee Robinson Mixtape, Verde Terrace, Covert Coup and How Fly (collab mixtape with Wiz Khalifa before he blew up, the first i had heard of him, before literally every rhyme was about weed or Taylor Gang) are all brilliant.

For me: Jon Connor, 2 chainz (Whats the craic there? Ever since he changed his name from Tity Boi he is on feckin every track!), Freddie Gibbs and Ace Hood. All artists I see about the place but dont really know.

I think he's quite good. He slips from just normal rapping on one track to a double time flow on the next track with an unbelievable ease. He was with Interscope a few years ago but he's on his own at the moment I think.

Check out his latest mixtape, "Cold Day in Hell". It was released the same day as A$AP Rocky's mixtape came out. There are some nice tunes on it.

I think he's making an album/mixtape (not sure which) with Madlib and they're going by the name MadGibbs. This is a tune they put out in January. It's pure gangsta rap. I love his flow. He sounds almost hypnotic when he raps.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbxcPy1qJTU

pragmatic1

Rocky ASAP is fairly good. He has a good ear for music. Don't know much about tech nine but what I do know sounds too corny for me.

Boom_Bap

Mikeyt086 wrote: »

For me: Jon Connor, 2 chainz (Whats the craic there? Ever since he changed his name from Tity Boi he is on feckin every track!), Freddie Gibbs and Ace Hood. All artists I see about the place but dont really know.

Jon Connor - Waste of space but has loads of media outlets pushing him. He must know people in high places, he's not getting where he is from talent.

2 Chains - Featured on everyones songs at the moment. Was one of the shinning stars on the recent cypher vids. But I dont think he's strong enough to hold a whole song.

Freddie Gibbs - He's quite good, as mentioned, his stuff with Madlib is ace. I think he's at his best when he increasess his pace rhyming, but he often rhymes to slow and needs to re-up on subject matter. Too many weed songs.

Ace Hood - I have him on ignore for some reason, so I know nothing about him.

Jimmy Iovine

Boom_Bap wrote: »

Jon Connor - Waste of space but has loads of media outlets pushing him. He must know people in high places, he's not getting where he is from talent.

I heard a song by him there tonight where he rapped over the beat from "Cleaning Out My Closet". It was rubbish. He's one to avoid on the basis of that showing for me anyway.

Crann na Beatha

This post has been deleted.

mufcboy1999

Freddie Gibbs I love , everything I heard I'm liking. Recently signed to young jeezys label which tbh I think is a bad move can't stand jeezys music . The ghetto is a great song to start of with , very good story teller IMO.

Ace hood I don't like and wouldn't recommend but Iv only heard a small amount but it was enough to throw me of him.

Izella banks? Startin to hear her name a lot recently ... Heard that 212 song which is a great club tune but not really what id call hip hop , is she another niki Minaj (pop)...

horsebox09

I think Jon Connor is very decent;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZQz4FQLjmw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hK2S4O3-Rk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDWp-8os4oY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxRg2MoAmYc

^ Absolutely destroys the last track, a "waste of space" is very harsh, imo

Da Shins Kelly

mufcboy1999 wrote: »

Izella banks? Startin to hear her name a lot recently ... Heard that 212 song which is a great club tune but not really what id call hip hop , is she another niki Minaj (pop)...

Azealia Banks' EP is pretty good. I think she's better than Minaj, but she seems ambitious (from interviews I've seen and read), so I can imagine her breaking the mainstream pretty easily. She has the talent too - sings, raps and writes her own material. 212 is a good song, but she's got a few other good ones too. She's definitely got some skills.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tP-4m4b3tA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEGpPuVGe3o

conor.hogan.2

Azealia Banks, looks like she could be very good but the whole first half of 212 left a bad impression in my head of her.

Da Shins Kelly

conor.hogan.2 wrote: »

Azealia Banks, looks like she could be very good but the whole first half of 212 left a bad impression in my head of her.

She is good. 212 is huge in the clubs from what I heard, and it was a great debut track to get attention. Anyone I know who has heard it has immediately become obsessed with it and her. She's definitely making waves, and I think she does have the talent to back it up. She kinda reminds me of Lauryn Hill except younger and filthier. Nothing wrong with that. Her EP is worth a listen.

conor.hogan.2

Da Shins Kelly wrote: »

She is good. 212 is huge in the clubs from what I heard, and it was a great debut track to get attention. Anyone I know who has heard it has immediately become obsessed with it and her. She's definitely making waves, and I think she does have the talent to back it up. She kinda reminds me of Lauryn Hill except younger and filthier. Nothing wrong with that. Her EP is worth a listen.

Yeah, you can see by the second half of the track she has proper talent I must give her EP a listen after the 110 others I have queued up.

Zero-Cool

Mr. Rager wrote: »

and Tech N9ne worth listening to?

I was so sick of rap in the last few years with the likes of lil wayne and drake taking over. The I listened to Tech N9ne and he is now my favourite rapper. Check out his album Sickology 101. He has different styles on different albums but has unreal skill. Sickology covers a lot of it. Plus, his independant label Strange Music lets the artits put out what they want and no pop sh*t like gets forced on the bigger labels.

Def recommended.

Mikeyt086

Casey Veggies?

Seen he has a bit of a buzz over his new mixtape that just dropped. Worth a go?

mufcboy1999

As said in track of the day, mac miller ?

@ da shins Kelly , Ye azzela banks does seem to have some talent tbh. 212 is a banger (club tune) fairly raunchy lryics to go with it too lol.

What's the deal with her and Minaj, are they beefing or something?

Mikeyt086

mufcboy1999 wrote: »

As said in track of the day, mac miller ?

@ da shins Kelly , Ye azzela banks does seem to have some talent tbh. 212 is a banger (club tune) fairly raunchy lryics to go with it too lol.

What's the deal with her and Minaj, are they beefing or something?

Yeahhhhh budday! :pac:

Ok, so I hopped on the Mac Miller bandwagon around September 2010, when he released the K.I.D.S (Kickin Incredibly Dope ****) mixtape. I was hooked. Standout tracks on this one are:
-Kool Aid And Frozen Pizza*
-Outside*
-Ride Around*
-Nikes On My Feet*
-Senior Skip Day
-Dont Mind If I Do
http://www.datpiff.com/Mac-Miller-KIDS-mixtape.143884.html

His next mixtape was Best Day Ever, which is in the same mould as KIDS and is consistently chill and impressive. Stand out tracks:
-Best Day Ever*
-Snooze*
-Life Aint Easy*
-Get Up
-Donald Trump (not my fav, but this one is undoubtedly what shot Mac to the popularity he now enjoys)
http://www.datpiff.com/Mac-Miller-Best-Day-Ever-mixtape.207667.html

Next up is I Love Life, Thank You. This one came out just before his album Blue Slide Park, to tide the fans over. It doesnt have a real theme or flow to it as a mixtape, but there are a few solid tracks:
-The Miller Family Reunion* (cold beers, hot day, such a good tune)
-Just A Kid*
-Family First
-People Under The Stairs.
http://www.datpiff.com/Mac-Miller-I-Love-Life-Thank-You-mixtape.272902.html

Then Blue Slide Park came out, obviously I cant post a link as it is an album. Fans of Mac's were a little disappointed at this claiming it was "too commercial", but I still think it has some damn solid tracks:
-Blue Slide Park
-PA Nights*
-Under The Weather
-Of The Soul
-Frick Park Market (was big on US radio)
-Party On 5th Ave

Most recently, he dropped Macadelic, and honestly I think it is my favourite yet. It has been the soundtrack to my life the last 2 weeks. Im just going to state my favourite tracks:
-Desperado*
-Loud
-Aliens Fighting Robots*
-Lucky Ass Bitch*
-Fight The Feeling*
-Ignorant*
-The Question*
-Angels
http://www.datpiff.com/Mac-Miller-Macadelic-mixtape.327035.html

In summary,The tracks that have a * beside them are must listens, if you only want to quickly check him out. If you want to just listen to the tracks I mentioned above you get an idea of what he is about, but I HIGHLY recommend downloading at least KIDS, Best Day Ever and Macadelic, and giving them a full playthrough on a nice day. My favourite Mac projects would have to be (in order), KIDS, Macadelic (too early to make #1), Best Day Ever, Blue Slide Park, I Love Life Thank You.

Da Shins Kelly

mufcboy1999 wrote: »

As said in track of the day, mac miller ?

@ da shins Kelly , Ye azzela banks does seem to have some talent tbh. 212 is a banger (club tune) fairly raunchy lryics to go with it too lol.

What's the deal with her and Minaj, are they beefing or something?

Yeah, the lyrics are pretty raunchy, but there's something feminine about it. Like, I always think the sexuality of the likes of Lil Kim is very masculine, like they're trying to be like men. Whereas it just seems to come from a more female place with Azealia Banks.

I don't know what's going on with her an Minaj. I know there was some sort of back and forth on Twitter, but I've no idea what was said or what it was about. I don't know if she'll be as big as Minaj (probably not), but I think she's more interesting and definitely more talented than her.

Boom_Bap

-Cassey Veggies - I think he started out with OFWGKTA and moved on from them. He's got alot of support on the underground and magazines, especially from the likes of MURS which has got him playing Paid Dues. But I have never listened to him, or if I did it has obviously been forgettable.

- Azelia Banks - Well worth listening to, dirty mouth on her, but it's not what she is all about. she has skills.

- Mac Miller - I like the kid, I actually started to listen to 'I Love Life, Thank You' this morning while eating my Crunchie Nut Corn Flakes for the first time and liked what I've heard so far. The thing that I like about him is that he had the potential to either go in the direction of stoner rap, or to get a bit of a back-packer vibe. And he chose the latter which I think was his best sound. His mixtapes are fairly well produced and have some standout tracks. But there are some that are extremely substance lacking and skipable.
I also need to check out Blue Slide Park, what I've heard til now has been average.

D'Agger

Just to chip in I quite liked Blue Slide Park - thought he stepped it up a notch on this one compared to what he had put out previously and it was well produced imo

mufcboy1999

cheers for that mikey, appreciate it. iv downloaded the latest mixtape now, iv a fairly long trek in the car on friday so il give it a full listen then and let you know what i think. In the mean time the question and fight the feeling have gotten a serious few spins to say the least.

il get to his older stuff later on, il give macadelic a proper blast first

Mikeyt086

mufcboy1999 wrote: »

cheers for that mikey, appreciate it. iv downloaded the latest mixtape now, iv a fairly long trek in the car on friday so il give it a full listen then and let you know what i think. In the mean time the question and fight the feeling have gotten a serious few spins to say the least.

il get to his older stuff later on, il give macadelic a proper blast first

Thats a how I get into a lot of rappers these days. Get their newest project, then go back and do some homework.

conor.hogan.2

"Ass backwards, copped It was written and then Illmatic"

Shapey Fiend

Azaelia Banks has a smashing song in 212 but I've found her other material so far deeply underwhelming.

Mac Miller is the worst high profile rapper to emerge in the last 10 years.

conor.hogan.2

Shapey Fiend wrote: »

Mac Miller is the worst high profile rapper to emerge in the last 10 years.

Sure if you never heard anyone from odd future and Drake.

MD1990

conor.hogan.2 wrote: »

Sure if you never heard anyone from odd future and Drake.

Drake is a pretty good rapper
Soulja Boy would be the worst

conor.hogan.2

Possibly but he only had 1 song then faded relatively fast.

Odd Future are still around and gaining, Drake is not that bad I just threw him in there.

conor.hogan.2

1 - MF Doom?
2 - Aesop Rock?

Boom_Bap

conor.hogan.2 wrote: »

1 - MF Doom?
2 - Aesop Rock?

MF DOOM - I think he's great. Madvillan, King Geedorah, Operation DOOMsday and Victor Vaughn are excellent albums. His rhyme schemes are simple, he uses funny words like 'poppycock' but under the surface his lyrics have lots of hidden meanings. It's also tricky to keep track of all his alter egos.
He also puts on a great live show.

Aesop Rock - I love Aesop Rock, many people dont, and I've said before that i understand why. His voice could be perceived as annoying, he sounds like he's talking gibberish and the beats used are never normally conventional.
The first album of his I heard was Bazooka Tooth and I thought it was just a wall of noise initially. I listened to Labour Days and Float, then back to Bazooka Tooth and understood what was going on. I think that with each album he progresses alot. His album last year with Rob Sonic (Hail Mary Mallon) is one of my favorite albums.

conor.hogan.2

Boom_Bap wrote: »

MF DOOM - I think he's great. Madvillan, King Geedorah, Operation DOOMsday and Victor Vaughn are excellent albums. His rhyme schemes are simple, he uses funny words like 'poppycock' but under the surface his lyrics have lots of hidden meanings. It's also tricky to keep track of all his alter egos.
He also puts on a great live show.

Aesop Rock - I love Aesop Rock, many people dont, and I've said before that i understand why. His voice could be perceived as annoying, he sounds like he's talking gibberish and the beats used are never normally conventional.
The first album of his I heard was Bazooka Tooth and I thought it was just a wall of noise initially. I listened to Labour Days and Float, then back to Bazooka Tooth and understood what was going on. I think that with each album he progresses alot. His album last year with Rob Sonic (Hail Mary Mallon) is one of my favorite albums.

Cheers.

These are 2 rappers who considering other rappers I like I should like their music but what little I have heard has just not drawn me in but I have never really made a conscious effort to listen to them yet.

Aesop from what little I have heard either talks a lot of complex sounding gibberish or I just never listened enough or possibly is just way over my head.

Boom_Bap

conor.hogan.2 wrote: »

.

Aesop from what little I have heard either talks a lot of complex sounding gibberish or I just never listened enough or possibly is just way over my head.

Listen to Labor Days, it's not as jibberish-y and is a bit more accessible.

Put it this way...if it turns out you like both, you've got a serious amount of music to get through, thier catalogues are brilliant.

conor.hogan.2

I don't know what it is with Aesop the first time I heard Sage or Slug for example the lyrics and the music just clicked with me (more so Sage).

Bobby Baccala

conor.hogan.2 wrote: »

I don't know what it is with Aesop the first time I heard Sage or Slug for example the lyrics and the music just clicked with me (more so Sage).

Check none shall pass by aesop, it's the song that got me into him, and it's easier to listen to compared to some of his other stuff.... even though the lyrics make no sense.

Btw, anybody know if aesop is black or white? I've never looked at any of his music videos apart from one where it's hard to tell.

Boom_Bap

P4DDY2K11 wrote: »

Check none shall pass by aesop, it's the song that got me into him, and it's easier to listen to compared to some of his other stuff.... even though the lyrics make no sense.

Btw, anybody know if aesop is black or white? I've never looked at any of his music videos apart from one where it's hard to tell.

None Shall Pass is a good shout as well. Great album.

Da Shins Kelly

I LOVE Aesop Rock.

Mr. Rager

What's Common's best work? And what about Talib Kweli?

Bobby Baccala

Mr. Rager wrote: »

What's Common's best work? And what about Talib Kweli?

Common, anything. preferably his 90s stuff. he's just a plain beast.

check out anything that talib has done with mos def (blackstar)

Mikeyt086

Wouldnt mind being pointed towards ASAP Rocky's best stuff, I really like his new track 'Goldie'.

EDIT: Sorry, just seens he was mentioned in the first post lol.

Mr. Rager

P4DDY2K11 wrote: »

Common, anything. preferably his 90s stuff. he's just a plain beast.

check out anything that talib has done with mos def (blackstar)

Cheers, but what would be his best work to start off on? Like a stand out, eg Illmatic, MMLP, The Documentary etc?

Bobby Baccala

Mr. Rager wrote: »

Cheers, but what would be his best work to start off on? Like a stand out, eg Illmatic, MMLP, The Documentary etc?

Like chocolate for water, be, resurrection, the dreamer the believer.

Any of them 4 would be a good place to start.