Play | The Rhapsody Editorial Music Blog

Q&A: T-Pain

More than perhaps any other modern R&B performer, T-Pain understands that today’s artist is best viewed as a spectacle -- and that the spectacle is art. Witness his entrance to this year’s MTV Video Music Awards on elephants; or his Rhapsody pre-VMA party where the man born Faheem Rasheed Najm was flanked by mimes that looked like rejects from an Insane Clown Posse casting call. Even his singing voice is a novelty that borders on gimmick. The stringy robotic affections of auto-tune at once set the singer apart from the R&B flock, and also grant him a mechanic’s anonymity, giving the effect of a musical mask. It is singular and universal, and it also sounds pretty damn dope when you’re lost somewhere on the Sunset Strip at 3 a.m.

We caught up with the Tallahassee singer one late Saturday night in September as he was preparing to take the stage. As his wont, T-Pain was worried that the audience didn’t really want T-Pain since the opening DJ was rocking electronic beats. “If I had Daft Punk DJ in front of me, I’d feel a little less nervous right now,” he admitted, before adding, “Daft Punk holla at your boy T-Pain. If you did it with Kanye, you can do it with me.” In our brief but revealing conversation, he explained the concept for his new album, exclaimed his love for neo-soul and Roger Troutman, and spoke on upcoming projects such as T-Pain Is Dead and T-Wayne.

Rhap Session: Black Milk

Detroit rapper Black Milk is one of the most promising young producers in hip-hop. He grew up with the generation that saw J Dilla as a model. Though it's unfair to call Black Milk a Dilla clone, there are several stylistic similarities between the two. So, since Dilla's passing in early 2006, hip-hop devotees have tried to anoint Milk the heir to his throne. He didn't disappoint. Popular Demand dropped in 2007 and was a revelation. Sparse, lo-fi and sublime, it cemented Black Milk's reputation as a master of hard drums and soulful hip-hop. 2008's Tronic further expanded on his palette, pulling from pop, neo-soul and revivalist boom bap. It also showcased Black’s skills as an emcee. Recently, Rhapsody caught up with the Detroit producer to talk about his acclaimed new album as well as some of his future projects.

[Click the "Continue Reading..." link to listen to a playlist featuring the music discussed in this post.]

Indie Hip-Hop's Surge

Count me among those who’ve been skeptical of the continued artistic relevance of indie/underground hip-hop in 2008. There is still a lot of great talent on the scene, both in terms of vets (Murs, Madlib, DOOM, Jean Grae) and rookies (Blu, Black Milk, Pac Div, Blue Scholars), but barely any decent new music was released in the first eight months of the year. The only indie hip-hop album with any replay value was Jean Grae’s Jenius, which was recorded three years prior. And then September hit.

[Click the "Continue Reading..." link to listen to a playlist featuring the music discussed in this post.]

Playlist: In Defense of the One-Hit Wonder

(Photo: Ali Anne) 

For the most part, the term “one-hit wonder” is used pejoratively. As they say in the South, even a blind squirrel can find an acorn, and we generally believe that this is true in pop music. One-hit wonders are flukes, flashes in the pan that take a back seat to career artists. This isn’t fair, of course. Some of the best songs of the past 40 years have been produced by so-called one-hit wonders. Their music is, by and large, unencumbered by the pretenses of legacy. It’s looser, more prone to novelty and gimmickry. From old-school classics such as Jean Knight’s “Mr. Big Stuff” and The Larks' beautiful “The Jerk”  to disco and funk jams such as Anita Ward’s “Ring My Bell” and E.U.’s wonderful “Da Butt,” this music is fun and carefree. And, what’s better, the acts didn’t stick around long enough to wear out their welcome. They never matured, never changed and never slipped into self-parody. In the mind of the listening public, they are ephemeral and ageless, the pop music equivalent of Dorian Gray. Let the Rolling Stones tour until their Depends get squishy; Musical Youth will forevermore be in their early teens, passing the dutchie to the left-hand side. And there is also no cult of personality surrounding them. They never substituted celebrity for music because few of these would ever be considered celebrities. What you hear here is pop music in its purest form.

Further Listening:
Playlist: One-Hit Wonder, the Urban Music Edition

Rhap Session: Blu

Los Angeles' Blu is one of the most promising young emcees on the West Coast indie hip-hop scene. Over a 14-month span from 2007 to 2008, he released three full-length projects -- each under a different moniker and each featuring, exclusively, a different producer. The first, and most widely praised, was his collaboration with L.A. producer Exile, Below the Heavens. Exile's work recalled the jazzy, lo-fi hip-hop of early Rawkus Records, while Blu's rhymes were introspective, personal and confessional.  But unlike emo-rappers, Blu rarely cast himself as the victim, preferring to relate his life in events and not emotions. It's the same formula formerly used by Common and Talib Kweli, and comparisons were even drawn to Nas' seminal debut album, Illmatic.

Blu followed this up in 2008 with an album from his group C.R.A.C., which included up-and-coming producer Ta'Raach. The Piece Talks ditched the raw hip-hop palette of Heavens in favor of forays into psych, soul, electro, rock and all points in between. Next, Blu formed Johnson and Jonson with producer Mainframe. The self-titled album, released last month, once again pushed the creative envelope, though it was more playful and ostensibly less experimental. For this exclusive Rhap Session, Blu discusses his sudden ascent, the Johnson and Jonson album and his future plans.

[Click the "Continue Reading..." link to listen to a playlist featuring the music discussed in this post.]

Q&A: Raphael Saadiq

It’s tempting to say that Raphael Saadiq’s new album, The Way I See It is a musical stunt designed to ride the current wave of late '60s/early '70s funk-soul nostalgia. After all, the album does liberally mine a classic sound, taking bits and pieces (often-times verbatim) from the playbooks of Eddie Kendricks, Otis Redding, Marvin Gaye and others. This particular brand of nostalgia is hardly new: Sharon Jones, Nicole Willis and Nino Moschella have made looking back chic for underground audiences, while Amy Winehouse, Joss Stone and Duffy made it profitable. But though you’d be forgiven for being cynical of Saadiq’s timing, it’s awfully hard to hate on the music. From Saadiq’s pleading lyrics to the quivering strings, organ swells and bouncy basslines, the music here is heavenly. It extricates hip-hop, R&B, disco, electro, polyrhythmic funk and all points in between, leaving the listener with droopy, love-struck soul. It's not so much a gimmick as a transformation, and listening to The Way I See It is like staring at a newborn. You can’t help but smile. We recently caught up with Saadiq and spoke with the man about his new album, his musical heroes and his future collaborations.

Kanye West, "Arrest at LAX"

by Sam Chennault

In conjunction with his widely praised VMA performance, and in support of his upcoming single, the minimalist blast of auto-tuned despair entitled “Love Lockdown,” Kanye West unveiled his latest post-9/11, situationalist performance art piece today, “Arrest at LAX.” Other artists (Sean Pean and Britney come to mind) have explored similar themes of surveillance, anonymity and resistance within the modern media environment, but Kanye takes it one step further. Notice that in addition to the initial still photographer that he "attacks," there is another video cameraman lingering in the background,  thus negating Kanye's struggle and elevating the piece's themes to Sisyphean proportions.  And, of course, the coup de grace is that all of this is set at an airport, Bush's shadowy hub of dehumanization, and on the seventh anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. This touch adds an extra layer, making this more than a mere commentary on the tribulations of celebrity, but rather a meditation on our country's loss of personal autonomy and privacy. All in all, nicely played, Kanye West.

Further Viewing:
Kanye Gets Arrested [TMZ.com]

Further Reading:
Kanye New LP Title, Release Date Listed Online [MTVNews.com]

Video: Golden Dolphin Jocks Blunted Martian at Totalitarian Swim Cube

by Sam Chennault

The hip-hop world buzzed yesterday about the revelation from Olympic gold medalist/new national icon Michael Phelps listens to Lil’ Wayne before his swim meets. (The admission comes just before the minute mark in the above video.) But, really, this is only surprising for those of us who expected Phelps to sustain himself on binaural transmissions via his aqua-men overlords. After all, who doesn’t listen to Lil’ Wayne in 2008?  Barack does. When I visited my 83-year-old grandmother last month, I caught her singing “A Milli” while knitting an afghan and sipping Ovaltine. The only thing strange here is that our new pop laureate is a syrup-addled rat-boy whose lyrics read like hydrogen-jukebox stream of consciousness meets Richard Pryor in the V.I.P. room of Magic City. After spending the '90s sweating alien invasion, it’s as if we’ve collectively said, “Screw it, bring on the martians.” But I digress. It’s nice to know that Phelps is a little like us, and more importantly, we’re all a little like Mike.

Further Listening: Michael Phelps' Rhapsody Playlist

Rhap Session: John Legend & Estelle

by Sam Chennault

John Legend and Estelle thread pop’s past with its future. Over the past five years, Legend has emerged as one of pop’s most talented and popular young stars. His refined take on neo-soul borrows as much from the classic pop of Burt Bacharach as it does the '70s soul boogie of Stevie Wonder, and hits “Save Room” and “Ordinary People” are sweet lovers' lullabies that will haunt Valentines Day for years to come. Given the elegance and versatility of his music, it’s little surprise that the first signee to his fledgling HomeSchool label is the talented and eclectic U.K. emcee/chanteuse Estelle. Originally hailed as the Brit's answer to Lauryn Hill, Estelle stepped out of that shadow this year with her critically acclaimed stateside debut, Shine. With contributions from Wyclef, Cee-Lo, Kanye and John Legend, the album is smart, polished and fun. After linking up for a chat with her and Legend, it’s obvious that Estelle’s music mirrors her personality.

WMC 2008: 4 Days in Miami

by Sam Chennault

In Joan Didion's '87 mediation on Miami (still the best book about the city, in my estimation), the famed author portrays the city as an intercontinental way-station everyone flocks to but no one really belongs in. In her eyes, Miami is illusion, more of a costume than a city, which explains why it's a fun place to visit but a difficult one to live in. For the first few days, there’s a sweaty, chemically induced fever rush of skin, liquor, sun and music; but after that, the mirage fades and you're left with littered street corners, greasy pizza shacks and the woozy after-effects of the libertine lifestyle. The heat becomes oppressive, the hard-bodies appear devilish, and the city's intense yet unfocused energy starts to singe. Still, for those first few sleepless nights and listless days, there's nothing as exciting as being in the Magic City.