Doomtree: "Game Over" (Music Video)

Minneapolis rap posse Doomtree dropped another video off their recent, self-titled album. "Game Over" features Mictlan on the raps, Paper Tiger on the beat, and Turbo Nemesis doing the cuts and scratches. Enjoy.

Follow this link to cop Doomtree

Freeway Speaks About White Van Music

Freeway - White Van Music from Three/21 Films on Vimeo.

J.Loonz: "Capital Punishment" + "What It Feels Like" + "I Missed You"

Photography by Andrea Brubaker

So our boy J.Loonz, as you may or may not know, if chillin' in Prague at the moment for a little study abroad trip. And I know you've all been waiting on the official release of the Nerd-Hop mixtape. Let me tell you, it's going to be worth the wait. Everyone is just tryin' to get their act together, fixing and tweaking the tracks, so when it's time to unleash Nerd-Hop for ya'll, you're getting the best product possible. And, not to get you excited or anything, but it might be coming sooner than you think.

But for now, let it be know that J.Loonz is a hustler. This man found studios in Germany and Prague to put down tracks. So between the women, whiskey, and weed (and beer, you know there's plenty of beer in Prague), J.Loonz has been writing songs and putting down new material. It seems he also found some dude named JX Caliber, who I honestly don't know much about because communication with Loonz is limited right now. But they're gettin' it in right now. Why don't you enjoy these tracks for the weekend. I don't know why they're in .wav format, but they still play. Maybe that's what they use over in the Eastern Block.

As for me? I'm heading to Michigan this weekend to watch the UW Badgers take care of business against the Maize and Blue. I'll be back on Sunday. Peace.

J.Loonz: Capital Punishment ft. JX Caliber
J.Loonz: What It Feels Like ft. JX Caliber
J.Loonz: I Missed You

If you like what you hear, hit the man up on his Myspace and let him know!

Twins 7, White Sox 6

That was easily one of the best baseball games I've seen in a while. Twins looked down for the count once Slowey got injured and gave up all those runs in the 4th. But in typical Minnesota fashion, they started grinding away, one run at a time. Great victory, couldn't be more proud of my Twinkies. Huge games from everyone, now we just gotta close out against Kansas City!

ESPN Recap of the Game

Atmosphere: "You" & "Yesterday" (Live on Jimmy Kimmel)

Atmosphere continues dominating the late night talk show performance circuit, as they stop by Jimmy Kimmel to perform the opening chorus to "You," and then transition into one of my favorite songs off of When Life Give You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold. "Yesterday" is such a beautiful song, and Slug definitely does it justice on this performance. Atmosphere are coming to perform here in Madison, WI on Halloween night, which is sure to be crazy. I'll most definitely have some footage of that one for you all. Plus I've been in talks with the higher ups at Rhymesayers, and I should be doing an interview with Slug and Ant around that time, as well. So keep checking back for more exclusives!

Hands On White Van Music (Video)

You already know what it is.

Kidz In The Hall: "Love Hangover" (Video) // Naledge: Brainiac Society Mixtape

First up is this little here musical video to provide you with some visuals for the Kidz In The Hall track "Love Hangover," featuring British songstress Estelle.

Love Hangover - Kidz in the Hall feat Estelle



Second thing is we've got a little special mixtape dropped by Naledge, and featuring plenty of music and guest artists. I'm just gonna use the 2DB dl link for this one, so fat shouts to them. 34 songs is a little much for me, but I hope you enjoy nonetheless. Download link after the album art.




Naledge: Welcome To The Brainiac Society (Mixtape)

Black Milk: "Give The Drummer Sum"

I posted this video of Black Milk working in the studio for his single off the upcoming TRONIC, it's called "Give The Drummer Sum." Aptly titled, it might take a couple of bars for you to catch on to the beat for this song, but the drums are absolutely INSANE. Black Milk is one of the more innovative producers doing it right now. Enjoy, as there will be more goodies from TRONIC coming soon. And get the album when it comes out on October 28.

Black Milk: "Give The Drummer Sum"

Brother Ali: B96 Freestyle

Oh. My. God.

9. Minutes.

Black Milk in the Studio (Video)

Working on TRONIC, of course. This is the lead single, "Give The Drummer Sum."

Black Milk: TRONIC (Album Art & Tracklist)

Just checked the inbox, and what do you know? I see the official release info for Black Milk's highly anticipated TRONIC, due out on October 28 via Fat Beats Records (who also just released fellow Detroit spitter eLZhi's excellent album The Preface. No but seriosuly, Black Milk is a beast, check this. Above is the album art, the tracklist is as follows:

1. Long Story Short ft. Dwele
2. Bounce
3. Give The Drummer Su
4. Without U ft. Colin Munroe
5. Hold It Down
6. Losing Out ft. Royce da 5'9
7. Hell Yeah ft. Fat Ray
8. Overdose
9. Reppin For U ft. AB
10. The Matrix ft. Pharoahe Monch, Sean Price, & Dj Premier
11. Try
12. Tronic Summe
13. Bond 4 Life ft. Melanie Rutherford
14. Elec (OUTRO)

Remember to purchase (yes, with your own real money) this album when it drops! More updates to follow.

Jake One, Brother Ali, Rik Cordero Speak on "The Truth"

Never ending Jake One promo. This has got to be one of my more anticipated albums coming up in the near future.


Jake One & Brother Ali - White Van Music from Three/21 Films on Vimeo.

Jake One: White Van Music Preview

You already know, god damn it.

Royce Da 5'9": The Bar Exam 2 (Mixtape)

Detroit rapper Royce Da 5'9"'s highly anticipated (not joking - Shake @ 2DBz was receiving hate mail because this mixtape took a while to get released) mixtape is finally here. Royce is a seriously ill rapper, so download this via HipHopDX, and give it a couple "spins" in the ipod.

Royce Da 5'9": The Bar Exam 2 (via HipHopDX)

The Cool Kids: "Delivery Man" (Video)

Muja Messiah: "Get Fresh" (Video)

Muja Messiah's new video for his banger off of B-Boy D-Boy. If you don't have that album, go cop it now. One of my favorite releases of the year. Apparently, accoring to NahRight, this album is being re-relased on Nov. 11 with larger distribution, too. "Puttin' Mineap rap back on that map again / This year I'm goin' platinum, a million Myspace friends." Word up Muja!

Keep your eyes open for the cameos by Slug and M.anifest, too.

Naledge: "Happy Birthday To Me"

It's Naledge's (of Kidz in the Hall fame) 25th birthday today. He dropped a birthday track, apparently in dedication to himself, to the masses via RubyHornet. I was about to skip this, but I was it was produced by the consistent and talented Statik Selektah, so I gave it a listen. It wasn't nearly as egotistical or simple as I expected. I'd recommend investigating for a fun listen.

Naledge: Happy Birthday To Me

eLZhi: The Preface (Album Review)

Since the late 1990s, eLZhi has been a monster in the Detroit hip-hop scene. With a slew of underground guest spots, mixtapes, and his work with the group Slum Village, eLZhi’s dues have officially been paid. Yet, outside of his home city, eLZhi’s solo career has not received the same level of attention that his skills merit. He seeks out to change that with his first proper solo album, The Preface.

eLZhi unabashedly lets it be known on the album’s opening track, “Intro (The Preface),” that he’s trying to show the people “what a classic is.” This bold claim may sound farfetched, but any skepticism should be quickly erased once eLZhi starts rapping. Even with only a twenty-second teaser verse on the intro track, eLZhi’s fierce delivery and intricate rhyme schemes should get listeners hitting rewind.
What really sets eLZhi apart from other emcees are his rhyme patterns. Embedded in many of his verses are seemingly unlimited internal rhymes that most rappers seldom use to the same effectiveness. And while it would take the average emcee weeks or months – if not forever – to create a similar rap, eLZhi makes it sound effortless. The only way to highlight eLZhi’s unparalleled ability is to highlight a section of his first verse of “Brag Swag,” as follows:

“The day that hell snowed is when eL fold, poetry’s well told / It’s entertaining, keep niggas training like the railroad / Stinging, what I bring in is dope as the kingpin / Slinging, OGs through me, beneath the wingspan / Expert, through the wet dirt, but still my tech squirt / Bucked, and niggas tucked in, just like a dress shirt / Been a beast in the winter fleece, come for your dinner feast / With the pen unleashed, I’m like a priest, with inner peace.”

The amazing thing is, though, that every song has lyrics on par with this. “Motown 25,” a rehashed track from his EuroPass mixtape, is an absolute lyrical onslaught, with eLZhi reciting the kind of clever punchlines that make you say to yourself in amazement, “Did he really just say that?”

One common worry about The Preface was that eLZhi was not going to have enough creative concept tracks. Rest assured that this problem is non-existent on The Preface. “Guessing Game” is one of the more innovative rap songs of the year, with eLZhi spitting incomplete lines, thus giving the listener a brief moment to guess how he will complete the previous line at the beginning of the next one. “Colors” features eLZhi rapping in the form of a teacher, instructing his students about color schemes. Though relatively elementary, the method which eLZhi goes about rapping the song helps it pose as interesting.

With fellow Detroit beatmaker Black Milk handling production on all but two of the tracks, The Preface makes for a very complete and consistent album. From start to finish, the album serves as a how-to manual for aspiring (as well as established) emcees. Since he has been rapping, eLZhi has known he is better than the vast majority of the rhymers out there, and with The Preface, he has proved it to everyone else.

Rating: 8/10

Atmosphere at Take Back Labor Day Festival

Spotted these couples videos at MFR.
Atmosphere: Always Coming Back Home To You


Atmosphere: God Loves Ugly

J.Loonz Freestyle

Is Nerd-Hop still on the way? Can't come soon enough. I'll tell you firsthand, I've heard plenty of it (if not all of it), and it's ill. But until that mythical drop date, I'll do my best to hit you with random exclusives such as this.