Brinson OMG Review

Label- Godchaserz Entertainment
Before September I didn’t know much about Brinson. I had heard him only a couple of times featuring on D-MAUB and Eric Cross projects. In the past two weeks I’ve learnt quite a bit and even gotten his latest album OMG (and no neither this review nor the album in question have anything to do with that annoying Usher song). He’s got this obvious southern approach yet it sounds fresh and different. Using interesting rhyme schemes, he’s got a lot of passion and he does straightforward and honest music, no strings attached, no bells and whistles; just the simple message of Christ exalted.
The production on this project is cool too, like I’ve said it’s mostly crunk that’s catchy and easy to chant along to. He’s got guys like Juice20/20 behind the boards and that’s pretty nice. The tempo ranges from very upbeat to pretty mellow tones. One interesting thing I noticed about Brinson is the fact that he seems to be a big movie fan; quite a lot of his metaphors are based on popular movie references. I guess that’s a good thing as a lot of people won’t find it hard to get what he’s saying. From the get go, Brinson gets in our faces with his blunt lead single “Don’t Rap No More”, a simple waning to any emcee alive to simply exalt Christ with his/her music or drop the mic. I like the hook on this one especially. “Green Grass” is another good song although it gives mixed feelings especially when you get to the hook as you don’t know whether to sing along or just hope the next verse starts soon. There’s “Breaking Down”, “Every Knee” and “Fully Persuaded”, tracks that what this album is about. Watch out for Knine’s verses on his guest spots, very refreshing to hear. There’s a skit that ordinarily would have turned me off but listening to it gets you amused at the humour in it (maybe I’m nuts) and even helps you appreciate good music, certainly one of a kind.
A demerit for the album was that some of the hooks and choruses put me off, they sounded a little too labored and I think Brinson should have tried putting a few more singers on the album to diversify the flavor. Still, by the time you get to the beautifully crafted Outro and eventually the Cypher you are satisfied the listening experience wasn’t a waste of time at all; more than anything else you feel encouraged. If you’re looking for good music that lifts our Lord Jesus then Brinson is the man for you. Much like David was a man after God’s heart is truly and aptly styled a God chaser. Don’t hesitate cop this album ASAP.

Trip Lee Between Two Worlds Review

Label-Reach Records.

The world we live is a broken one, much like a bad watch and as Christians whether or not we recognize it we’re like Neo from The Matrix, caught between two parallel “realities” and since Adam fell humanity has been on a journey that resembles a downward spiral. At this point it just seems like a large section of humanity possess brains powered by hamsters on wheels! So what does the Christian do? Pine away for heaven, the perfect world or try to fix the broken world by offering the solution, Jesus? This dilemma, the “in, not of” disposition towards the world (like in Philippians 1) forms the bulk of Trip Lee’s 3rd album Between Two world presents itself as a 15 track banger.
First let’s focus on Trip’s growth. From being that young prodigy on the Reach label he’s grown into a man that pulls his own weight effortlessly. With his 3 album discography and various guest spots his gift has progressed like the path of the righteous and it’s exciting to think that even though he’s on such an impressive level he’s still growing!!!
So what makes Between Two Worlds an almost perfect album? Well we could start off by looking at the top notch production with some of the foremost producers on this project. From DJ Official to Alex Medina to Tony Stone, JR, Big Juice and of course G-styles this it’s practically an all-star cast. Secondly the featured guests; fantastic appearances from guys we know like Tedashii, Lecrae and Thi’sl to lesser known guys like J.Paul and Chris Lee. Each guest brings a beautiful flavor to each song that complements Trip’s abilities. The most excellent appearances were from Leah Smith and Jimmy Needham, lending their beautiful voices to the project. Another praiseworthy attribute is the theme that each song dealt with, right from the first line “They say hindsight is 20/20 well they right it’s behind me/back for the third time you know where to find me…” on the intro “Real Life Music” you know you’re in for a treat. Then there’s a song that deals with temptation, “Covenant Eyes” featuring PRo, who has the answers to life’s questions on “Life 101” and the excellent acknowledgement of our limitations and God’s sovereignty on “Limitations”. It doesn’t stop there, there’s a prayer of dedication on “Yours To Own” with Jimmy Needham, a “kill the flesh” anthem called “Snitch” and down to “The Invasion (Hero)” with Jai practically everything that concerns life as we know it in this broken world is touched on and in a fresh and real manner too.
Before I round up this review, I must draw attention to the beautiful work Reach Records is doing with regards to marketing. From occasional giveaways to maintaining a strong online presence they’ve kept the public well informed and hungry for good music. It’s not hard to understand why they have such a wide reach (no pun intended). A video from this album (The Invasion) is already a hit on different channels and has even featured on BET’s 106 and Park. If you’ve noticed they also pay much attention to detail as the album art on Reach albums nowadays is just bananas. I think a lot of other labels should be taking notes.
In the midst of my enchantment with B2W, I have a little reservation which comes in the form of Sho’s verse on “I Love Music”. Something about the verse (and maybe the song) comes across as cheesy even though the song is enjoyable. This album is easily 2010’s number one album (with Lampmode’s The Church and Rhema Soul’s Fingerprints it’s only worthy challengers). An album we’ll remember in years to come. I give it a 4.5…it’s that good!

Lampmode Recordings The Church:Called & Collected Review

Label- Lampmode Recordings

The Church; some define it as an institution, some define it as a building and some call it The Body of Christ. Some even look at The Church as a living, breathing being and call her The Bride of Crist. So who’s right and who’s wrong? Well listening to Lampmode’s compilation should offer a lot of helpful answers.
One of my favourite TV shows is Lost and I’ve often imagined what I’d do if I was stranded on an island with a bunch of strangers. Well aside trying to get all of them saved assuming they aren’t I’d love to have my Bible and this album so I’ll organize them (even better than Jack Shepherd or Ben Linus) and of course hear the kind of music I classify as “dope”. Trust me when I say this one of the few albums that’s got it all; five star production, tight emcees spitting truth and a theme that is both relevant and properly dealt with. Based on a book by Mark Dever called 9 Marks Of The Church, The Church is basically an album that lets you know what the church is and why what a lot of Christians claim to be part of might just be a cult or social gathering, oops!!!
Who better to feed us on the subject than the cats who are versed in the art/gift of ‘Lyrical Theology”? I mean, they’ve got a credible MO as far as such things are concerned and I wasn’t surprised they delivered a well packaged project.
Starting things off for us is the beautiful combo of God’s Servant (who I think is a monster) and Azriel on the song “Take ‘em To Church” a nice anthem making a case for belonging to The Church is necessary. From there on out it’s fireworks as shai linne’s two songs “Biblical Theology” and “Expositional Preaching” both get your head nodding but actually emphasize on sound doctrine as opposed to your pastor’s philosophy or his captivating style of preaching. On the latter song shai proclaims “Y’all should be mindful of this devout thesis/all of the Bible’s about Jesus, The Old Testament? Jesus Christ concealed, the New Testament? Jesus Christ revealed!” hmmm… also along for the ride is Trip Lee with “Conversion” a wonderful expose on the subject with relevant excerpts from Mark Dever sermons for the hooks. Flame weighs in with “Leadership” a flawless analysis on church administration/leadership structure from Christ down to us. Then of course there’s Hazakim with their signature messianic “uncut and raw” approach serving us “Evangelism” and “The Good News” two absolutely necessary gems. With all this quality you would think that’s about as far as it gets but you’d be wrong as the high points of this album are Stephen the Levite and “Church Discipline” a track exploring how to deal (in love) with erring members of the flock and it’s done over a sick DJ Essence beat and a beautifully sampled hook, his other contribution “Membership” is as good and is a very nice discussion starter as he examines the state of modern day church membership accompanied by the legendary sound s of Tony Stone. By the time we’re through and have gotten to the end of the album we’re bursting at the seams with so much to process but Evangel doesn’t seem to care as he rounds it all up with “Beautiful Church” an ode cum history lesson on the journey the institution we call The Church has made from the tower of Babel to our present day. The beat for this was crafted by Big Juice and was just celestial and Evangel duly killed it!
The production on this project borders on illegal, yes we’ve come to expect quality production on Lampmode projects (from the Tim Brindle days to Jas Knight) but Alex Medina, Big Juice, Tony Stone, DJ Essence (my favourite producer) all contribute the kind of beats that are masterpieces on their own and yet do not take anything away from the featured emcees, they are just skillful anointed fellows who deserve much props.
There’s one little issue though, Tedashii’s song was a little to mediocre, not bad but we’ve heard him at a much higher level. That aside this album is one I’ll like to play to my grandkids (alongside a few Cross Movement albums) and say to them “this is what classic music sounds like”.

Dwayne Tryumf 777(Mark Of The Peace) Review

Label- Tryumfant Records
As a Nigerian I find it rather amusing that my country is a former British colony yet we turn to America for most of our music! Before I got into Christian music, I could barely list 5 British acts (outside The Beatles) that I knew and I think it’s a bit worse now! Nevertheless, I know that UK rap acts are gaining a solid reputation within the circles that matter and they’ve got ears prickling up in attention on both sides of the pond nowadays. In Christian rap we’ve seen Jahaziel and Dwayne Tryumf achieve huge crossover success and there are others following in their footsteps (S.O., Guvna B, E-Tizz, Gems, etc…) but all of them Dwayne Tryumf seems to be the poster boy for the UK’s Christian rap scene. He’s been on Katalyst’s album Death By Design, Lecrae’s Rebel, a couple of mixtapes here and there and his song “I Don’t Pack a Matic” off the Mark of Peace EP has solid credentials so dropping 777 was long overdue I guess.
From start to finish the album has your attention. The captivating “777 intro” which was released last year (and is on Uprise’s Video Lounge on OH TV) fittingly kicks off a hot collection of awe inspiring tracks. Possessing this Jamaican flavor (staying true to his roots) Dwayne manages to give us hip hop, reggae, dancehall all in one package with a little touch of gospel too. Some of the songs on the album aren’t exactly new but they are nice additions to the mix, “I Don’t Pack a Matic” and “Proverbs 31” fall into this class. “Never Be the Same” has Dwayne spitting in his signature rapid-fire staccato like way over an awesome beat and a wonderfully sung hook. “He’s The King” an anthem of Christ’s sovereignty is another beautiful banger. “African Drum” and “Sons of God” are two beautifully crafted songs with the aforementioned dancehall flavor and Mr Tryumf holding it down with his verses. As u go along its almost as if the album slows down yet it doesn’t lose its quality as songs like the melodic “Help Me Find My Way” and “Trust Me” round things up for us.
A noteworthy trait on the album is the rich cast of guest artists (nothing less than 14 of them) which basically consists of the “who’s who” in UK Christian music from Muyiwa Olanrewaju to Ryan Carty to Jahaziel. Even with this many guests Dwayne Tryumf still holds it down!!! Not an easy task. One drawback is the Comedian Chris skits; they seem somewhat subpar for a project of this caliber. Other than that 777 is a hefty album that is sure to launch Dwayne Tryumf to much bigger things in the future, it gets my 4 stars unapologetically.

Braille Weapon Aid Review

Label- Syntax Records

Braille: system of writing for the blind that uses characters made up of raised dots.
Weapon: something used to injure, defeat or destroy or s means of contending against another.
Aid: to give assistance or provide with what is useful to achieve an end.
2010: the year we’re in at the moment
Bryan Winchester: this cool dude from Portland, Oregon, father, rapper servant of Jesus Christ.
Vintage: possessing quality, akin to being classic, superior
Sigh… forgive my apparent rant by text as you wonder what the vocabulary lesson is about. The words I’ve just defined seem unrelated; only if you’ve not heard Braille’s 2010 offering and nice follow up to 2009’s Cloudnineteen. Weapon Aid is pure hip hop, infused with the type of quality that’ll be felt by even the few alive who are unschooled in hip hop. Braille has often made the genre something that has texture, something that comes alive, something you can relate to whether you’re a guy like me in faraway Africa or a down under in Australia.
Weapon Aid is a 10 track offering (and Braille’s 6th studio album) that had just one feature (theBreax) leaving us with the opportunity of enjoying Braille’s potent lyricism to the fullest. songs like “Revenge (The Right Way)” and “Up” are five star offerings that’ll be here for a long time (archeologists from the future take note). “Poison”, “Thinking Shoes”, “Complexicated”, “Nothing Left to Say” and “Give Myself” (a wonderful love song) contribute to this vintage mix of great tracks. Braille on each one asserts himself as that emcee you know you should listen to and he does it with great humility. The beats on the album make your ears happy and that’s the sort of thing we’ve come to expect from Braille. Ranging from heavy synths to organs and heavy guitar riffs to the customary live drums; it’s the kind of production that gets you breaking out in goose bumps and the like.
This album is so good you can use it to silence that annoying neigbour of yours who keeps taking cheap shots at Christian rap (in this day and age?) even though what’s bumping in his music player is obviously garbage (content wise, production wise and otherwise). I give it a 4.5 without flinching except that I think it even deserves a higher rating. If you haven’t heard it already why not listen and try to prove me wrong if you can.
P.S. check out the album art and leave a comment if you can figure it out. That’s how deep it gets…

Humble Beast Humble Beginnings Vol. One Review

Label- Humble Beast/Syntax
Not too many compilations are ever worth the listen, even when you put the best artists together. So I normally approach such projects with a “win some, lose some” attitude. Well, Humble Beast smashed that to bits for me. Some of the most respected cats in Christian rap came together (much like Voltron) and formed a “Humble Beast” a new movement aiming to take on the hip hop culture with their brand of creative, real and truthful hip hop. With guys like Braille, Odd Thomas and Theory Hazit on the team, there’s no need to overemphasize the resulting success. The concept is simple; emcees with beastly delivery yet humble enough to serve Christ with their gifting.
On Humble Beginnings Volume One there’s quite a lot of storytelling, cool production and mind-blowing collaborations which makes for a neatly done project. As brief as 11 tracks, this project is a solid argument for the case “hip hop is not dead”. With each cat bringing his own experience, style and craft to the table we are privileged to hear and experience the best of the best.
Kicking off with what seems like an unusual yet impressive intro for this type of project (a Pastor Eric Mason sermon excerpt), you know you are in for a good listen as you slide down the track list. “The Dream That You Gave To Me” with Braille and the late Citizen Aim (RIP) is a simple and awesome joint, a pledge to make god’s business one’s business. Sareem Poems serves up a nice metaphorical story about “The Beast” on “The Story that’s Rarely Told” and then there’s the banger “Humble Hungry” with Theory Hazit, Odd Thomas and Citizen Aim. Each cat spitting solid verses over a beat that’ll be hard to get out of you head. Propaganda weighs in with “Beautiful Pain” an unusual but truthful ode to pain and by the time Odd Thomas ends things with “Truth Wars” you’ll probably get upset that the album’s done! Each song gets you thinking and for me that’s the beauty of this project; rap for the “thinking man”. The production of each beat is excellent and the mixing comes across beautifully except for a few cases where I couldn’t hear Citizen Aim’s verses properly. I loved the emphasis on live drums on most of the songs, a rarity nowadays.
I really can’t wait for Volume Two, whenever and if it ever comes out. I can’t help but wonder that if they call this humble, what’s next???

LMNO & Theory Hazit Determined To Fly Review

Having duos in hip hop? Hmmm… maybe as singers it could work out pretty easily but it’s pretty hard to come across two guys doing rap music and doing it well enough that you don’t notice that one is outshining the other. I can only think of a few successes; Redman & Methodman, The Lox, Everyday Process… but the subjects of this review, LMNO & Theory Hazit seem to possess this chemistry that enables them to come hard enough to get them appreciated. It’s like LMNO’s the knife that cuts the meat and Mr. Hazit does the rest.
On Determined to Fly the dynamic duo serve a vintage hip hop album with no strings attached, unadulterated game, more than convincing delivery and the type of beats that got me hooked on the beautiful genre in the first place. Almost everything on the album’s perfect even down to the album art, a fish with outspread wings leaping above some water and the mere sight of that even without hearing single scratch from the album is enough to bless you. It’s a beautiful tribute to a beautiful art form seeing how very few people put much thought into album art nowadays.
Songs that definitely should be on constant repeat on this project include “Boombaptism”, “Money” with Suzi Analogue, “Born to Write” and the title track “Determined to Fly” a really dope jam and my favorite “Full Motion” especially because of the last verse where Theory Hazit merged analogies on both sports and different music genres together! Pure bliss I tell you. Of course there’s the seemingly inevitable drawback of this album being the type that not everyone in your class or down at choir practice would be into. That’s probably intended because the album comes across as targeted at only a select few, the “conscious/underground hip hop heads”.
Whatever the case may be, Determined to Fly is a 4.5 star effort that makes 2010 a happy year musically for anyone with good ears. Peace!!!!

PRo Redemption Review

Label – Reflection Music Group
Redemption is an apt title for an album, not only because of itself but also because of the man behind the album. Derek Johnson aka PRo is a man who knows all about mistakes being given an opportunity to “right his wrongs”. I’d heard some chatter about him approaching the Christian rap scene with a sort of bad attitude which eventually brought some animosity his way but a few years on, associating with the right people and adjusting that attitude has made a different person entirely. Personally I’d shrugged him off after listening to “Shut ‘em Down” from his Blackout album but he’s definitely taken it up several notches since then. He released a single “I’m Sorry” which pretty much over and then he’s been a guest on so many albums recently and impressed so much so it was only normal to expect this album to be cool.
Redemption is themed on its title, an album that analyses how God reached out and saved an undeserving specie called man, an album that PRo threw his all into and got some nice results in return. It’s got this nice crunk flavor that is definitely going be felt by a lot of people and at the same time is not too generic. In fact if I didn’t know any better I’d say this was a Reach Records release! With beats from guys like D-flow and K-drama it’s an album that’ll please the ears. It’s also got quite a lot of songs (20 of them). Songs like “Merked”, “Slave to You”, “Murder Swag” and “Power to Die” all have a nice “kill the flesh” ring to them while keeping us aware of God’s grace and mercy to do so. There are some pretty personal songs like “I Want to Know” and then there’s the standout song “Clear the Air” with Mr “Christian Rap” himself, Lecrae, a song that puts to bed all the erstwhile controversial comparisons between PRo and Lecrae.
Evidently hanging with BJ Thomas and the rest of the Reach crew has spawned dividends of epic proportions and it just goes to show how integral fellowship is to the Body of Christ. I must point out that as good as this album is there’s still a lot of room left for PRo to grow. Yes we all love comebacks but it has to be said that this album might have to grow on some and for others it’s not an album they’ll dwell too much on but whatever you position is it’s a decent 3.5 star effort in my opinion. Beyond all that it’s beautiful to witness such a great testimony in my lifetime…

Japhia Life Nazareth Review

Label-Arms Out
I’d like you to have a brief flashback to the period between the mid and late 90s (probably the early 2000s too). The period just before hip hop’s demise; reflect on all the “good” music we had back then before this crunk ‘monster” descended on us all… nostalgic isn’t it? Now snap out of it as fast as possible! Reality check, the year is 2010 and as you read this you’ve probably reached a stage in life where you think that singing in an alien voice is a normal thing, or that skinny jeans that sag to the knees is as ok a practice as brushing one’s teeth. Yes, my brothers and sisters there’s trouble and chances of rescue are a measly 1 out of 10. Even though my mood suggests it, I’m not here to just lament the sorry state of things. This is a review for a true hip hop album from Japhia Life, Nazareth.
Japhia Life, Philly native who I can’t say I’ve heard much from save on J-Silas’s (now J-Johnson) album Soundproof and on DJ Morph’s International. I’ll confess to being one of the few that believes that outside the “big 3” (Lampmode, Reach and Cross Movement) very few Christians can rap. It’s safe to say guys like Braille, theBreax and Eric Cross have consistently proved me wrong. Japhia is another one of those “exceptions to the rule” sporting that effortless Philly style, over beats with conscious/underground appeal and he serves up Nazareth an album you can’t afford to sleep on. With such a good name for an album he lives up to (and goes beyond if I might add) expectation with this 14 tracker. It’s just like I said, a nostalgic, sober album that tackles a lot of real issues from gun crime to the everyday dilemma of looking for answers in our respective lives. One thing that is endearing about this album is Japhia’s calm flow which allows you to hear what he says as he takes you on a journey to show you that something good can come out of Nazareth (and even Philadelphia).
Standout songs include “Don’t Keep Me Waiting”, “I Wanna Go”, “Mama’s House” and a personal favourite “Does Anybody Know?” a very deep song… “Moment In Time” and “One Shot” are notable mentions too. Production wise there’s a sort of Jekyll/Hyde effect with some of the beats being really awesome (“Does Anybody Know?”, “One Shot” and “Don’t Keep Me Waiting”) and some of the other beats sounding too synthesized and generic. One producer that people shouldn’t sleep on though is this Chris Batson guy who was behind the “Does Anybody Know” track; he’s got these awesome drum loops that just complement Japhia’s style and delivery. Wit from Frontlynaz helped out with “Don’t Keep Me Waiting” and impressively too.
In conclusion Nazareth is one decent piece of art that may not be on everyone’s playlist but is a solid effort nonetheless. It gets a 3.5 from me, the type of album to give to the wounded few (like me) who pine away for the “good old days”.
P.S. Check out the album art, beautiful stuff man!!!

Rhema Soul Fingerprints Review

Label- Good City Music
Fingerprints as defined by Webster’s Dictionary; “the impression of a fingertip on any surface… for the purpose of identification or something that identifies one, as either a trace or character revealing origin or the analytical evidence that characterizes an object or substance”
Yes, that’s what the Rhema Soul trio called their third studio project and aptly so seeing how the album bears that artistic signature we’ve come to love. An album that employs the use of some very sick beats and verses (reminiscent of their Good News Dope Beats EP) to give an honest and refreshing account of all the marks they’ve left on life and vice versa. Practically a breath taker from start to finish, Fingerprints is a 15 track offering that features the ever impressive production skills of G-styles (if you’re into Christian Rap as much as you should, you’ll know him well enough) and I honestly wonder why(with a mischievous grin on my face) the album wasn’t just called “G-Styles’ Fingerprints!!!
Kicking off with an intro that has G-styles showing off his vocal prowess singing (and autotuning) away! This is the kind of album you want to bump from the car stereo or in class or to your Mama (like me!). From the unapologetic “Never Lay Low” to “Sky’s not the Limit” there’s that general feel of a challenge to take your place in God’s plan being thrown across. There’s more from the seemingly endless supply of bangers on this one, with different flavors too, the very easy to relate to “Fly Away” (which Rapzilla touts as video of the year by the way), the title track “Fingerprints” and “Blow Your Whistle” are anthems that urge us to go against the grain and be who you are by God’s standards. We also have “Let Me Live” speaking against the incessant “beefing” and division that exists on the rap scene, then there is one song that I liked but for the life of me couldn’t figure out what the song was about, “Shorty’s Lost” another song that had G-styles crooning (in autotune nonetheless). Maybe it’s just a case of cultural differences me being Nigerian and all but I still couldn’t grasp the idea after listening to the song over and over again. That being said, this album’s strengths can’t be overemphasized when you consider the quality production, the explicitly on point verses and the fact that there’s just one featured artist, Eddie Nigma (whose verse on “Sky’s The Limit” is just criminal, in a good way of course). Then consider that the trio of K-nuff, Juanlove and Butta P (in my opinion the best female rapper presently) has this awesome chemistry and everyone brings something concrete to the table and you’ll just be swept away by the Fingerprints project. Very few groups can pull this kind of thing off (think the Black Eyed Peas before Fergie) but they did, and so gracefully too!
Without flogging a dead horse, Fingerprints is a must listen, whether you want Dope Beats, Good News or both (pun intended). A solid 4.5 star fingerprint that’ll be hard to wipe off…

Brinson's first Video off the album OMG

this is a video from my man Brinson, review on his awesome album coming very soon,enjoy this meanwhile.

Brinson - Don't Rap No More Official Music Video from Brinson on Vimeo.

K-Drama WE FIT:The Workout Plan Review

Label- Cross Movement Records
We all know him (ok most of us do), father, producer, rapper and very importantly Christian. K-Drama ladies and gentlemen, the dude from Ohio who literally changed Christian Rap with his song “Air Jordan” the official “I want to remix it” song of last year (in case you didn’t know, that song has more remixes than Phil Jackson has trophies!!!).He’s got the love and respect of many and rightly so, his previous albums are good examples of consistency and he’s been rewarded so to speak with a recent record deal on the Cross Movement label!! Now he’s given us a “workout plan” to help us “get fit”.
How many of us remember the John Wells (Tonic) jam “The Body” from his “the Dash” album??? Now imagine a whole album with many more analogies on “body building” and “Godly exercise”, some beats that’ll make any of the vintage Jane Fonda fitness tapes go green with envy and then some amazing lyricism and you are ready to experience this album. Clocking in at 17 tracks K-drama doesn’t hesitate to show us he’s really got his weight up since 2008’s Boombaptism. This is quite the album considering it’s an easy contender for one of the top five albums of the year in a year that was extremely explosive for Christian Rap. Some of the tracks are literally workout tracks, perfect for playing while you jog or go through some regimens in the gym, take “holistic” or “This Waste” as examples, high tempo songs that talk about pushing one’s self to go above and beyond... this album is a “DIY” manual by rap that generally shows a Christian how to grow in The Faith. Nothing short of the best we hear a whole new level of maturity and even diversity exhibited on this project as opposed to Boombaptism (which can hold its own by the way). The beats range from heavy drum synths to techno sounding tracks with a few mellow tones present.
The intro as is always the case with K-Drama is on point, “Bodybuilders” gives us an overview of what the whole album’s about, then the fast paced “Holistic” tackles the ‘work out your salvation with fear and trembling’ tip and from there on out it’s blast off mode. A bunch of different themes are touched on and done justice to. “Don’t look down on me” with AD3 and Sean Slaughter kicks against judgemental stereotypes, “Stronger on My knees” emphasises how essential prayer is and “Spot Me” addresses the importance of building with other members of the Faith. Other strong tracks include “Get Your Weight Up”, “You doing too Much” (funny song), “DIE-IT” which features Humble TIP and a pretty neat D-MAUB sample and one of my favourites alongside “ This Waste”, “Hope They Aint Lying” a pretty good social commentary on the state of things right now(listen to the first verse on this one).
I’ve been all praises right? Any weaknesses? Well for starters some of the featured artists didn’t come hard enough. Although I understand discipleship and encouraging upcoming emcees, there’s often no need to throw a rookie on to the pitch if more “consistent”, “star” players are available for selection. Secondly(and finally), at 17 tracks the concept of “Building the Body” seems almost akin to flogging a dead horse, it’s almost as if the best songs are at the beginning of the album.
This project overall is a contender for the top 5 albums of the year. The balance between basic yet pretty much overlooked solid concepts, memorable beats and K-drama’s lyrical ability and wit make for an album that easily rubs shoulders with Rhema Soul’s Fingerprints or Json’s City Lights. Hopefully listening to the latest from the recently signed Cross Movement Records rapper will help you prayerfully get your “Weight Up” and get you as “ABnormal” as possible(pun intended). Just remember, “be like the cricket, hear from your knees, with Faith as eyes and knees as ears” (how deep is that?) actual words from K-Drama himself. I’ll give this a 4 star rating without flinching. Yeah it’s that good....
P.S. a Nigerian actually produced one of the jams on this project!!! Yup, a Nigerian.

JSon City Lights Review

Label- Lampmode Recordings

Json’s third studio release is the latest installment in what is for me a great story on the benefits of God’s Mercy and Grace. His story is one that I would love to tell but time and space will not permit me. When I was told that Lampmode had signed him and re-released his sophomore album “Life on Life” I was elated because I felt he deserved it. His addition to the Lampmode roster is a testament to the God given ability in him as a rapper and is also amazing seeing how different (in style) he is from his label mates say Hazakim and Stephen the Levite.
City Lights is a project that calls on all believers to get their Matthew 5:16 on in whatever part of the world they find themselves in and this call is made using a bunch of great jams, Json’s sick flow, storytelling ability and some awesome production. Some top notch guest artists contribute too.
As for standout songs there are quite a few, something we’ll have to get used to as far as the St Louis native is concerned so we’ll just explore a few of them especially the ones that caught my ear the most. “Crank it Up” with the very much on the rise PRo is simply ill, a song that will get you amped up on the idea of letting Christ shine through your life. “Peephole” and “Hustle City” give us an account of grimy St Louis, Tennessee ripe for some Salvation. There are awesome Jesus pointers like “Love like This” with Thi’sl and Jai, “Hope You See” asks us if God’s transforming power is at work in Json’s life, my answer? An emphatic yes, then there’s “Goon” featuring Thi’sl and AD3 and “City Lights” the title track with Flame and Trubble. Two radio friendly and yet evangelical songs which I expect to be remembered a long time from now. Of course, Json doesn’t let us down from the storytelling aspect (obviously a Lampmode thing) with “Unexpected Happenings” and “What I Am” alongside R-Swift are compelling stories. The best story and probably the best song on the album “Parent Me” with the beautiful production and hook by J.R. is a song that touches on the issue of parental neglect whether as a result of work or church. A simple beat and poignant Json lyrics make for a goose pimple inducing listen.
The theme of the album is not lost once on the album and there’s even a skit or interlude that just sums everything up, “I am a City Light” that features people from across the world, from Uganda to Canada to Russia!! I should add that Flame’s singing skills shouldn’t go unnoticed as he seems to know how to take hooks very effortlessly. Top notch production from guys like Big Juice makes this album a definite keeper, one of the top albums of the year. 4 solid stars…

K-Drama Holistic Video

This is a wonderful song from one of my favourite albums, the video's pretty awesome too!! Enjoy...

shai linne Storiez Album Review

Those of us that love Christian rap won’t mind it if you call us addicts. After all we yearn for the next single or album to drop like a crack head yearning for a fix. I daresay in this hunger we’ve somehow learnt to take anything that comes our way under the tag of “Christian rap” and we accept it substandard (void of Word) or not. This can be put down partly to the fact the emergence of “crunk” which I’m sure every “hip-hop head” sees as a headache and an adulteration of the original genre. Well, I consider my self one of such “hip-hop heads” and I still love crunk. Have I sold out? A discourse for another day, today’s discourse however, revolves round an emcee that without a doubt deserves the title “hip-hop head”, his name? shai linne aka “the lower case emcee”
I’m specifically talking about his third studio album Storiez. This is one cd I barely knew was out and didn’t even listen to for a whole year! Why? Let’s just say made it to the top of my hit list first… that aside we all know shai line has a signature that includes lyrical ability and spiritual depth (his previous projects attest to that fact) but even I have to admit that this time he hit us hard with quality stuff. This is an album that is very much what it sounds like, a compilation of stories complete with a narrator (Pastor Rick Warren of The Purpose Driven Life fame) and these stories like every other good ones have profound lessons to teach. In an era where the average song is 4 minutes long, our guy decides to do songs that average 5 minutes, some even go up to 8 minutes! The guest list consists of people you may know and some you may not, from Flame to Json, Evangel to Ant it seems both the “underground” and the mainstream of rap are represented on the project. Might I add there are kids on a couple of songs (I mean we’re talking about stories right?)
I believe I’ve painted a pretty good picture as regards structure, now let’s get to essence (and I don’t mean the Dj). Shai linne has always hit on the message of salvation from eternal damnation and the songs on this album more than subtly make that fact known. From songs like “As the hour draws near”, “letters from the grave”, “wake up you’re alive” to all the other songs on the album there’s always something on each song that you can relate to regardless of your viewpoint. There’s a song about the Passover in Egypt, one about the great Charles Spurgeon, one about love but I think the greatest story (song) is Martyrs. With a cast of Json, Evangel, Techniq, Ant and God’s Servant this song tells of different martyrs in different times that were cut down for The Faith and their refusal to renounce Christ. My verdict, craftily profound and it even borders on disturbing as it makes you ask yourself “what have I been doing all this while?” (Although I doubt you’re being asked to looking for trouble or an easy death in the name of martyrdom). One thing that grips you on each song is the vivid representation of each story that you often feel like you were present at the time of each of the narrated events (except you are for some reason “imaginationally challenged”).
Storiez is a keeper, that’s for sure. Probably won’t get 5 stars from everybody but it’s amongst the best albums ever made. As I am rounding up I guess it’ worthwhile to mention that this album debuted at no 14 on the iTunes rap/hip-hop chart when it came out, obviously an indicator of the power within.

Outtadisworld Everyday Process Review

Everyday Process-Outtadisworld
Label-Cross Movement Records
C.S. Lewis (The great man who gave us Chronicles of Narnia, Mere Christianity and much more)once wrote “if we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we are made for another world”. True? I guess so, my neighbour says that’s just hedonism and all I asked was “are we not all hedonists?” hence our dire need for Jesus. That C.S. Lewis quote is the first thing you hear in this robotic/futuristic voice on the freshest Everyday Process album Outtadisworld. And just in case you’re wondering neither the Cross Movement rappers nor my humble self have forgotten how to spell.
This album came out in late 2009 two years after their debut album and I must say it is more than awesome!! These two hard hitting cats from Philadelphia have given us an expository account of living an alien concept as far as the world is concerned, Christianity. Much like their first effort this album is just a grand slam! Refusing to be put in a box, they’ve given us a versatile/futuristic sounding album. Each song is the type that get’s you asking yourself if you are behaving like the “alien” you are or you’re just blending in with popular culture. With a style you can’t exactly brand apart from calling it the “Everyday Process sound” this is an album that has everything from techno beats to r n’ b beats, witty punchlines, scriptural admonitions and most of all the type of thing that David did and got God head over heels for him… Praise!
Right after the C.S. Lewis quote the first song “Invasion” has EP saying “I’m so left that I aint right” and that’s pretty much the concept throughout the album, they basically present the same message in different lights. It’s either the poignant “Against the Grain” or the nostalgic “Freak” (a sort of hip hop rendition of the dc talk Jesusfreak concept). From the techno inspired “I Don’t Belong” to the laid back, soothing and R n’ B influenced “Make You Smile” it’s just a case of beautiful rendition after beautiful rendition. Iz-real and Mac the Doulos do more than hold it down on the project and make an offering that will be loved by the average music fan and the hip hop head alike.
Of course like most albums there are lead tracks and to mention a couple the adoration drenched “Jesus Pride” is one, an anthem of sorts, this joint just outlines a bunch of attributes our Lord has without a hook or pause for air leaving you in a state of goose pimples and smiles as you attempt to visualize all that’s being said. I mean Mac the Doulos starts off by saying “Jesus is preeminent that means He’s supreme…” and ends with “…He killed death and shook it off/brushed His shoulders off and said look I’m Boss!” get the picture? Another one is “Fire” an ode to Jeremiah and not being able to hold back God’s message because the fire’s just too much (like third degree heat to the bones to be exact) and you could easily get consumed. Take note of the effortless delivery on this song along with witty metaphors for example “I’m powered by The Son like solar/… you can’t find the depth of His Love using sonar…” or “I tried to keep silent like mute man/but that was fire to the bone marrow like fusion…” how about “No longer like the X man but still they call me mutant…”? Classic stuff I tell you.
Are there any drawbacks? Believe it or not the only one I can think off is just as you’re getting amped on the message they are spitting you hear “Bye Bye” and “The Saga Continues” songs signalling the end and you’re probably thinking it’s a joke, but it’s true, the album’s too short! Such is the quality within this project. It’s been quite a while since I heard an album and wished it was a little longer (you’d probably have to go as far back as 116 Clique’s Amped!!!) but I guess the brevity is deliberate, so you don’t bite much more than you can/should chew.
This is truly a keeper, primarily for the message and then because it’s different from what is obtainable in Christian hip hop today, and not just different but unique!! To sum it all up all I can just tell you is this album is what they say it is… Outtadisworld!

Review- Entermission Dj Official

DJ Official-Entermission
Label-Reach Records
There’s a culture that’s been alive for thirty something years, a culture that refuses to be defined geographically, a culture that is probably more influential on a lot of societies than their collective governments, a culture you can either love or hate but it will grow and survive regardless of your feelings. This culture I’m referring to is what we know as and call Hip hop. As with every other culture hip hop has its signature elements, take for instance it’s aka emcees or rappers, it’s language or hip hop slang/lingo, it’s traditional dance or b-boying (yes, all ye jabbawockees and soulQuest fans and the like, hip hop was here first), it’s art or graffiti (which nowadays is deemed illegal in most places). Hip hop even has its own dress code, its own rules for behaviour, but unlike every other culture there is one important element that I haven’t yet mentioned, an element that was there at the beginning and despite its importance seems to be ignored, it’s the element known as deejaying!! Yes! The deejay, he/she who is responsible for the music, he/she that dictates the pace, he/she whom all others in hip hop pay respect to.
The hip hop culture was lost for a long time in a fallen state, it was in turmoil, chaos, shapeless and void (reminds one of Genesis 1). Well Christ came and redeemed it and today we have the gift of Christian hip hop and by extension Christian rap music. We have a culture that has been evangelized to and is saved even though certain brothers and sisters of this culture choose to be stubborn…
Before I get carried away, this is a review on a veteran (and saved) DJ’s project; Dj Official’s Entermission. One of the most anticipated albums in Christian music ever!! We first heard about this album when Dj Official gave an interview on the Reach Records website shortly after the DWYL (Don’t Waste Your Life) tour. He told us he was working on his debut album and that the concept was basically Missions, something we all agree hip hop music needs. What is Missions? The intro gives us a clue “Enter the Mission” with Dr Eric Mason, pastor/co-founder of Epiphany Fellowship tells us “the Christian by identity is a missionary we don’t just do missions. Missions are not just trips to certain destinations, it’s who we are, and its God’s call on our lives to go into the world based on the Great Commission…” (Matthew 28:19). Now carry that and spread it across 18 tracks and what you have is a banger sizzling with God’s mandate and over 20 passionate cats spitting lines to put across the point.
This album was released on Boxing Day 2009, ending the year 2009 and kicking off 2010 with old and new rappers respectively. It has everybody worth noticing as far as Christian rap is concerned on it and of course they are all spitting one message, the call to missions. After the excellent hard hitting R-swift intro we have the first single off the album which I’m scared to say was not the best1 it’s Lecrae and Flame on the song “Show Off” meant to urge the listener “show off” God’s glory in every nook and cranny of the globe. From here on out we have a diverse mix of songs from the hardcore/streetwise “Streets of New York” and “Streets of Philadelphia” to the “different” sounding “Love Fallen” that had Brits Jahaziel and Gems and the reggae “specialist” Benjah. Of course there are the mandatory 116 Clique jams with Trip Lee’s southern delivery dripping all over “Get Busy”, Sho Baraka narrating a few stories on “Chaos” and Tedashii holding his own on “Use Me” and later on alongside newcomers H.G.A. on one of the standout songs on the album, “Go” a jam that’ll blow you away thanks to the staccato like delivery (reminiscent of T-Bone or Dwayne Tryumf on the 777 intro). Other cool collaborations include Thisl, K-Drama, Json and Tedashii (again) on “Chisel Me”, an earnest prayer to God to hone us into fitting instruments for His mission and of course a remix from Trip Lee’s 20/20 album, “Eyes Open Remix” with Sho Baraka.
Now for me the best songs on the album were not from the “usual suspects” (Lecrae et al) they were from the cats that’ve made “Lyrical Theology” the awesome phenomenon it is today. Enter Christian rap pioneer and stalwart Phanatik alongside Lampmode Records emcees Evangel and Stephen the Levite on the very deep “Not My Own”. If Entermission had a title track this would be it! With each emcee on point with their lyrical prowess, they take things a notch higher by laying on us some serious theology telling us about the ‘Proto Evangelion’ or the first evangelic mission all the way back in the garden of Eden and how that has been replicated over and over till present times. Phanatik aptly sums it up with his bars saying “let’s slay a man to save a man…/then send the lamb down through the man’s family line...” this song is a classic, reminiscent of the early Cross Movement days (biblical truths conveyed and Christ glorified). The other outstanding jam is the song “Missio Dei” (or God’s Mission) with the relatively unknown God’s Servant spitting a DIY manual for missions; it just effectively sums the concept of the whole album. Like I said earlier on, this is just top notch Lyrical Theology.
Now are there any minuses on this project? Well for me it is the problem of adequately balancing both style and /or content. A lot of the songs (especially from the 116 guys) had an excessive ration of style which just kept distracting you from the message they were trying to pass across as opposed to some others which were just plain by way of the message embedded within. Of course people must be able to like what is being said on these songs but we need to be careful to ensure we are not just bumping heads and not convicting hearts with our music. Plus the r n’ b songs on the album “Nothing Without You” by J.R and Cam’s “Forward Me” felt a little out of place and much too conventional, nothing you would remember in three or six months time. That being said Entermission is a more than decent album overall, reminding us how important the deejay is to the hip hop culture and how important Missions is to the Christian culture. By the way, watch out for the delightful instrumental outros after a few of the songs are over and even the one instrumental track “For My Breakers” which is a wonderful tribute to the hip hop culture… in 2010 we expect a lot of things but one thing that has come and must stay mandatory for every one of us Christians is our “entering the mission”……

REhab!!!!

The Tonic-The Dash, Refreshment for the Race....

Yes, Ambassador’s got 3 albums, Phanatik has got 2, heck even Tru-Life has an album! (As solo artists that is) not to mention R-Swift, J.R., T.R.U.T.H. amongst a few. So the question that had been bugging me was what about tonic? Of course I kept asking that partly because he’s my fave among the fab four and also because I wondered what a Tonic album would sound like considering he was mostly responsible for most of the “anthems” on all ‘em C.M albums.
Then I got into my second year in school and I was pleased to hear he was working on his solo project aka “The Dash”. You can’t imagine how amped up and happy I was until Bam!! News hit us that Mr John Wells (his real name by the way) had had some sorta breakdown which led to hospitalization and work on the album was postponed indefinitely. Heartbroken, we rayed hard for him and by god’s Grace the tonic bounced back. I was meanwhile stuck with “Forever” (arguably the best C.M jam ever) and then History dropped just before it was announced that would be the last album they’d produce as a group. Talk about heartbreak! But there was at least a great legacy to look back upon. With Chop Chop, Soapbox and other albums dropping I kept itching (or should I say thirsting) for a Tonic album and on the 31st of March 2009, The Dash was dropped. Yup! After at least 4 years of anticipation the album’s here and my God! If reviews are anything to go by, another C.M. emcee has given us a top notch serving!
So what exactly is The Dash? For those of us conversant with athletics it’ll be common knowledge that the dash refers to a race and isn’t that what life is? Cradle to the grave, youth to old age, birth to death. And we’re all running different races whether we believe it or not. That’s the basic message on this album and Tonic further elaborates by explaining that on every tombstone (ok most of ‘em) is an epitaph that reads whatever the person or his friends/family wants it to read. Now just under that is a timeline for example 1947-2009(imaginary) and it’s pretty much obvious that there’s a dash in between the two dates. One’s life is more or less encapsulated in that dash, his or her achievements, activities, likes and dislikes are all attached to that little dash. With this album Tonic takes the initiative to try and suggest the best way to make that dash approved by God’s standards.
Now don’t get it twisted, just because this album’s been in the oven for about 4 years doesn’t mean it’s outdated (which is an impossibility with the C.M. by the way, flattery aside) because it’s got banging beats, catchy hooks and of course Heavy word! In addition to the mix is the all star cast of guest emcees ranging from Izreal to Shabach to even Enock and Earthquake (remember ‘em from all those C.M. albums of old?). And a couple of new cats inclusive too…. Trust me this is an album to listen to over and over again……
Parting shot? The Boss is the Boss, don’t mean to start any arguments but The Tonic’s not just C.E.O. by name or title, he’s C.E.O. by rap too. He’s got a mind that one needs to have 24/7, a mind that looks at issues critically. The dash is just the 1st in along series (I hope) of Tonic renditions. Simply put, High walk, High Talk, High Thought (in reverse of course)….

The 1st single off Identity Crisis Folks!!!

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Don't Miss the Identity Crisis Release Party in Nashville at the GMA's!

Wed. April 22nd 8-10 pm at B.B. King's. Click here for map

Special Guests: Sho Baraka, Trip Lee, Lecrae, Flame, J.R.