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We're here now because Blogger is awful: http://somanyshrimp.wordpress.com/

Eventually we'll get the domain name and shit straightened out so this Blogger version won't exist.

Thanks.

Gucci Mane & Snoop Dogg -- Awesome

http://twitter.com/DjTeknikz/status/2186226160

This track KNOCKS. The latest in the series of Ridiculous/Gorgeous/Failure/Wonderful sarcastic, ironic reclamation of 'fancy' words. Snoop in No Limit reinvention mode (dude continues to release quality populist gangsta music unconcerned with pop crossover). Exciting to hear them in the studio together.

Lambourghini bright yella
ya know its awesome
police try to pull me over
ya know i lost em
just bought a flyin saucer
ya never saw one
shineys on the flyin saucer
now aint it awful??
so icy blowin stupid kush
aint it unlawful
im smokin on the finest Cali
but im in Georgia
trunk lifts on my rims
shine like a quarter
panoramic roof clearer than a cup a water
awesome, how gucci flossin, its truly awesome,
???? bringin carbines out, so proceed with caution
if i let a nigga press me, thats extortion
with voices keep on screamin ball so i keep buyin porsches

so icy is my company and millions made monthly
managed by my aunt-y, i make a lotta currency
currently increasing g's, you keep interrupting me (shh!!)
i grinded, grinded, one day blew up suddenly
you must have a low self esteem you keep on hatin on me
girlfriend keep on datin me, she say she like the thug in me
marijuana drug in me, purple codeine drug in me,
ecstasy, liquor sippin, you dont gotta fuck wit me
dont you think a what can be, homeboy he a bug-a-boo
you just a lil nut to me, sold ya like a crush decree (??????????)
awesome pet shop on my benz, smoke gray on them silver things
no, this is not a dream, lil mama come join my team

DG Yola/Gucci/OJ - "Tall Rims" + Gucci as a linguist

DG Yola, Gucci Mane & OJ Da Juiceman - "Tall Rims" (via DGB)

I'm posting this song so I can jump off what Noz said about Gucci and his love of language in this post. First, though: "Wonderful" is a great example of how Gucci's become one of the absolute top lyricists in all of rap. For one, you get opening rhymes of "Jacob/tomato/acres/Jamaica/Decatur" and "ordinary/canary/carry/military" — this is not standard rapping, this is the kind of lyricism Jay was doing on "It's Hot (Some Like It Hot)". People who aren't realizing/understanding this are either stigmatizing and/or just plain not paying attention. And that's before you take into account that Gucci molds the first batch of words so that they seem like natural compliments to each other, phonetically engineered to rhyme even though they very clearly aren't. Another thing about "Wonderful": the beat is wound super-tight, with these escalating pianos and mile-a-minute hi-hats, and so Gucci's verses are knotty and are packed with alliteration and internal rhymes. It would seem like he's showing off if the song wasn't so tense. A commenter on Noz's post intimated that Gucci's writing process wasn't very interesting, and of course I couldn't disagree more, and I think "Wonderful" proves why.

Now, "Tall Rims". The key portion re: Gucci and language comes halfway through his verse:

Crazy color chains and the fruity flavor Forces
Vette, Hummer, Benz, Bentley, damn I got choices
Bart Simpson chain make me feel important
H2 Hummer sittin on Charles Barkleys
Smokin on broccoli, bite look gnarly

Is it not obvious that this guy is really — with care and thought— building verses? The alliteration would go without stating except that I can't remember anyone using "fruity flavor" instead of "fruity colors", but maybe I'm forgetting some Young Dro lyrics. The rest of the verse though hits at exactly what Noz said in his post and what we talked about in our big Gucci posts. Bart Simpson, Charles Barkley, broccoli, gnarly: this is evidence of a rapper that clearly enjoys using his vocabulary to construct complex verses as well as someone who is concerned with taking an original approach to the subjects of trap-rap. Notice how he uses the word "bite" instead of something like "grill"— not only is it an unusual choice but the use of a word that starts with the letter B is purposeful after he used "broccoli".

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A quick note re OJ: I think the guy has been really tearing it up in the past 2 or 3 months (hence my embarrassing mix attempt). I never really thought of him much as a lyricist, but he's really added that dimension to his music, and lately he's been rapping with a certain force and a mean, almost arrogant, edge. His opening lines on "Tall Rims" — "Flamin hot charger/ Famous Amos dunks/ Ice water whippin/ Got me stuntin on these fucks" — are especially nasty, and to be honest it seems to me like OJ is starting to take rapping seriously now that he's catching some buzz off of Gucci and getting on magazine covers. In the XXL interview he talks about how he came up with the "aye!" ad-lib when he was just fucking around in the studio trying to come up with an identifiable ad-lib and I get the impression that he's a goofy, fun-loving guy who messed around a lot in the studio when no one was paying him any attention and that's a lot of what we heard when he first broke out earlier this year. He's stepped up to the plate or whatever, or maybe Gucci's rubbing off on him.

A Missed Opportunity

How is this not called SNACKS ON DECK???

Lee Majors - City of Gods feat. Yukmouth, Cellski, Dru Down, Rahmean & Jacka

With Tower Records out of business Im pretty sure this kind of uber-popular West Coast gangster shit has become a much more regional phenomenon than it ever was before, but regardless the mob figaz, lee majors, cellski, yukmouth etc remain pretty underrepresented for the quality of the music theyre dropping. This kind of shit should be huge nationally (& on some level it is -- see Murder Dog's cover story on Jacka from a couple months back) but without that kind of national distro these artists are gonna have to learn to adapt to the internets & start pushing nationally that way, at least if they expect to get some magazine cover love. start here: http://twitter.com/theJacka

MATTHEW AFRICA: BEST OF DJ QUIK

the homie Matthew Africa just completed his new Best Of Dj Quik mix that you need to get up on. Shit I haven't even heard this yet, it's sitting on my laptop at home, but I'm cosigning the fuck out of this shit just off the strength. I'm posting from work because I just want people to check for this shit. If you've heard any of Matthew's mixes you know he's on point with his shit. You really can't go wrong with the man. Get learned and download that shit.