The Doctor's Office: The Best Releases From Aftermath

What's going on homies?!  With this salute, we go to the house the legendary Dr. Dre built.  When he left Deathrow Records, he wanted a fresh new start.  Completely new slate.  Thus he started Aftermath Entertainment.  Aftermath became home to many different artists ( most of them for short periods), but none more bigger than some Caucasian emcee from 313 named Eminem.  At some point, he had names like Eve, Last Emeperor, Busta Rhymes, Raekwon, Joell Ortiz, Bishop Lamont, Slim The Mobster, and the legendary Rakim all on his roster.  While most of these artists never dropped anything, the ones that did get released are some of the most critically acclaimed albums ever.  With that said, let's start the best releases to drop from Aftermath (this includes albums from labels in conjunction with Aftermath like TDE, Shady, G-Unit, and others).

10. 50 Cent- The Massacre

How do you possibly follow-up one of the strongest debuts in history on a critical and commercial level?  That was the question Curtis Jackson was asking himself when it came to life after Get Rich Or Die Tryin'.  The answer came with his follow-up, The Massacre.  This album, although lacking some of the craftiness and straight street accessibility that made GRODT a classic, did a damn admirable job.  Still containing an abundance of infectious cuts for the ladies like "Candy Shop" "Disco Inferno", and "So Amazing", as well as gutter tracks for the street like "God Gave Me Style", "In My Hood", and "Baltimore Love Thing", The Massacre sold almost as much as its predecessor.  It would be years before we would see 50 bring this kind of heat again.

9. Dr. Dre- Compton: A Soundtrack By Dr. Dre

It had been over a decade since the last time we've been blessed with a whole full length album from the good Doctor.  While painfully anticpating his mythical Detox album, word got out he had scrapped the whole project and wanted to start on something else in conjunction with the hugely successful and record-breaking movie Straight Outta Compton.  The rumors turned out to be true, and boy what an album it was.  One of the most anticipated albums in such a short period of time ever, Dre dropped Compton, and from the moment you pushed play, you were reminded of why he's one of the single most acclaimed producers in all of music.  Sounding refreshed and refueled, Dre recruits old homies like Eminem, Snoop, Xzibit, and Ice Cube, as well as up-and-comers like Justus, King Mez, and new Aftermath signee Jon Connor to help him with this impeccable album.  While not the likes of 2001 or his landmark debut The Chronic, this album still thoroughly bangs and became of the decade's biggest accomplishments.

8. Eminem- The Eminem Show

This poses the same question asked earlier about 50 Cent and The Massacre.  How do you possibly follow-up a masterwork like The Marshall Mathers LP?  I mean the album sold nearly two million units in one week, making it the highest selling hip-hop album in one week ever.  Well, Marshall answered with The Eminem Show, a slightly, and I do emphasize slightly, more grown up and open look at Marshall.  While still bringing plenty of controversy with cuts like "Square Dance", "Say Goodbye Hollywood", and especially the politically and socially charged "White America", he also bares his mind and heart on tracks like "Cleaning Out My Closet", "Sing For The Moment", and "Hallie's Song".  Winning practically every award you can win, it was seen as a formidable successor to MMLP.  Ultimately, this album became his second straight Diamond-selling album.

7. The Game- The Documentary

A young Compton emcee named Jayceon "The Game" Taylor linked up with 50 Cent, Dr. Dre, and G-Unit in 2004, and was seen as an extended G-Unit member.  When it became time for his debut, The Documentary, all eyes were on him to be the new savior of the west coast, and the album completely and totally delivered.  With heavy assistance from 50 and Dr. Dre, his debut The Documentary became an instant classic and very much resembled the commercial and critical acclaim of Get Rich Or Die Tryin'.  There was hit after hit on this album, and there no stoppage of them anywhere.  From "Westside Story" to the Kanye-crafted "Dreams" to the crossover smash of "Hate It Or Love It", The Game had arrived, and with five million units sold, there was no stopping him.

6. Kendrick Lamar- Untitled. Unmastered

What can you say about King Kendrick?  Simply, the man is just not human.  His abilities on the mic are beyond description, not just from a technical aspect but from a writing aspect as well.  His sophomore album, To Pimp A Butterfly, has become something of a landmark and an album of greatness and artistic perfection.  During the recording process, he had some throwaways that he ended up putting on his version of The Lost Tapes called Untitled.Unmastered.  With no titles and clearly no mixing or mastering done, even with the lo-fi on these tracks, these cuts would've been completely perfect for To Pimp A Butterfly, or even for its own whole new full length album.  Artists like Kendrick come along once in a generation, and even with unmastered cuts at his disposable, this album unmastered is better nine out of ten albums you'll hear in 2016 completely mixed and mastered.

5. 50 Cent- Get Rich Or Die Tryin'

There was no denying that 2003 was completely the year of Fif.  Already catching major buzz with his hit "How To Rob", and his soon-to-be-shelved debut Power Of The Dollar, the sky was the limit for 50, but due to his shooting and the label not wanting to deal with any of the drama pending, they dropped him.  What was Columbia's loss turned into Eminem and Dr. Dre's gain, as they scooped him up and, along with the worldwide sizzle of "Wanksta", dropped his enormously anticipated debut, Get Rich or Die Tryin.  This album was nothing less than a destroyer, critically and commercially.  With "In Da Club" spinning worldwide, the album sold a million in a week and ultimately sold over ten million worldwide, thus officially letting people know that music's newest breakout star had arrived.

4. Dr. Dre- Chronic 2001

Yeah I know, the "proper" title for it is 2001, but what the hell, YOU know that's what it was supposed to eb called.  In any case, Dr. Dre was faced with the nearly impossible task of following up his genre-defining debut, The Chronic from eight years earlier.  Did he succeed?  Hell yeah he did, and then some.  Dre didn't do anything except updating his sound, his g-funk if you will.  Relying less on Parliament samples and choosing to go more towards a new gen-gangsta sound filled with synths, heavy bass, impactful drums, and strings, Dre had a fluidity that was simply dazzling and impeccable.  Much like The Chronic, when he put on Snoop, Tha Dogg Pound, RBX, Warren G, and Rage, he brings newcomers like Eminem, Hittman, and Knock-Turnal and all especially Em do exceptional jobs.  It's not often you hear about two back to back timeless events in hip-hop in album form, but if anyone could do it, Dre could, and succeeded.

3. Kendrick Lamar- good kid, M.A.A.D. City

In an age where a debut album doesn't have nearly as much overall merit as continuous hit singles, TDE's most acclaimed talent, Kendrick Lamar got down with Aftermath and when word got out that TDE was on board with Dre, the hip-hop world couldn't stop talking.  After the buzz from "The Recipe", he dropped his TDE/Aftermath debut, good kid, M.A.A.D. City, and the game was not the same since.  Seen as one of hip-hop's most phenomenal debut albums in nearly a decade, Lamar showed Compton through the eyes of a young man trying to survive the pressures of self and of the Compton streets while trying to make a way out of his environment and push to new beginnings.  This was nothing short of amazing, and pushed the album to platinum status, plus winning awards.  A new star had been born, but little did we know, his greatest achievement was yet to come.

2. Eminem- The Marshall Mathers LP

In '99, the world was introduced to a bleached-blonde, blue eyed rhyme animal who exhibited dark and twisted humor, but you knew was a mic destroyer as well.  This young man was Eminem, and his debut, The Slim Shady LP, was a major, major hit, selling around eight million units based off hits like "My Name Is", "Just Don't Give A Fuck", and "Guilty Conscience".  He followed this up with The Marshall Mathers LP, a noticeably darker, and way more brutally honest Em.  This was not the joking, twisted humor Slim Shady.  We got a look at Marshall, a man that came from a broken home with a very volatile relationship with his daughter's mother as well as an even more venomous one with his own mother.  One of the most controversial albums to ever exist, Eminem pushed as many buttons as possible to deliberately piss off conservatives and haters alike.  Delivering one of the game's most compelling cuts ever heard in the deranged "Stan", this album was filled with anger, drug usage, misogyny, homophobia, and so many other taboos and emotions it would be hard to keep up. Regardless, this is a masterpiece of an album, in all of it's savagery and conflicting emotions, Em not only sold over twelve million units worldwide and won a shitload of awards, it certified that he was the biggest thing in music bar none.

1. Kendrick Lamar- To Pimp A Butterfly

An artistic breakout and breakthrough for hip-hop, Kendrick Lamar elevated his game to an entire new level, maybe even two.  Although his debut was a classic in every sense, his follow-up was more than the term 'classic'.  This was history, a musical masterwork of timeless proportions.  Easily the Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill of our generation, or even Illmatic or It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back, albums like this don't come along but once a generation.  Eliminating sampling on a grand scale and boom bap, for more of a live instrumentalist, stripped down, minimalist approach, and the results were spellbinding.  Mixing jazz with soul and eclectic rhythms, this album was a heavy look at the Black consciousness from a human level and a societal level, this album put you through emotion after emotion, and thought process after thought process.  From the concept (which was nothing short of brilliant in itself) to the music to the extraordinary rhymes, with cuts like "Mortal Man", "U", "The Blacker The Berry", and the highly important "How Much A Dollar Cost", this is an album that will change you.

Aftermath is almost instantaneously known for many a critically acclaimed album, as you've seen, and incredible results have come from Dr. Dre's "pharmacy".  While we await albums from Anderson.Paak, Justus, and Jon Connor, we can rest assured that, if released, the albums will be among the year's best albums and will continue to add to the outstanding musical legacy of Aftermath and Dr. Dre.  Until next time!

Authentic Hip-Hop: The Best Releases Of Mello Music Group

What's up world?!  Hope you're enjoying these label salutes that I've been posting, and based upon some of the feedback, you really are.  There are still a few more labels to go such as Def Jam, Shady, Aftermath, Babygrande, and Rap-A-Lot still to come.  However, right now I would like to salute a label based out of Phoenix, AZ and it has been referred to as "the new Rawkus Records".  By all means, the comparison is very real.  Mello Music Group has released some of the most acclaimed underground hip-hop in recent memory.  Artists such as Rapper Big Pooh, O.C., Diamond District, Oddisee, Mr. Lif, and Open Mike Eagle have seen some of their most revered work with this label, and the roster and projects continue to grow and expand.  So without more to say, let's get to the TWENTY best releases to come out of the fantastic label.

20. Rapper Big Pooh- Words Paint Pictures

Fromer Little Brother emcee Rapper Big Pooh has been known for dropping fairly dope releases since we went for dolo, especially his highly slept-on Sleepers.  Back with the same hunger we saw when he was with the LBs, he dropped not one but two strong releases in 2015.  The first was a collab with Detroit beat monster, Apollo Brown, called Words Paint Pictures.  More agressive than we've seen him be in years, Pooh sounds quite nice over the intricate soul samplings of Brown, and the results with cuts like "Augmentation" and "Promised Land" make this EP a tremendous listen.

19. Has-Lo- In Case I Don't Make It

Philly emcee/producer Has-Lo was known in inner circles for his debut, Fuck Has Day, but he aimed to grow more of an audience with his follow-up album, In Case I Don't Make It.  This is as depressing of an album as you may hear, yet it has traces of dark beauty as well.  It's an unstable look into Has' psyche, and how his conflicts are taking its toll on him.  Tracks like the ominous "Storm Clouds", the faith questioning "Subliminal Oppression" and the wrenching suicide letter title track are vivid and you really sense he has a lot of questions about his life, and this has to be up there as one of the most open and honest albums heard in a long time.

18. Rapper Big Pooh- Home Sweet Home

In the second half of 2015, Pooh dropped his second album within the same calendar year, Home Sweet Home, which was a collab with famed fellow VA beatsmith Nottz for a hell of a ride.  While Pooh was more aggressive with the aforementioned Words Paint Pictures, he stepped his overall lyric game up and sounded like a championship contender again.  Over some very knocking production from Nottz, Pooh came out the corner swinging and landing with cuts like the title track, "Fries", and "Homemade".  Pooh showed with these two albums he still had a fire within him, and showed that he deserved to be in the list of those emcees that just when you thought you were about to count them out lyrically, here they come to show you to pump your brakes.

17. Ugly Heroes- Ugly Heroes

MMG's version of Dilated Peoples, the trio of Red Pill, Verbal Kent, and beat-monster Apollo Brown delivered a self-titled debut the likes of which was damn impressive.  Similar to his work on Gas Mask (see later), Apollo Brown present dark, occasionally somber production, mixed with reflective and honest lyrics from Kent and Pill.  There's truthfully no shortage of heat on this very acclaimed debut, and it's clear on cuts like "Desperate" and the stellar "Long Way Home" that the Ugly Heroes are the champions for the blue collar worker and blue collar emcee as well.

16. Diamond District- March On Washington

Repping the DMV area, the trio of yU, XO, and emcee/producer Oddisee first dropped their debut In The Ruff (see later), to incredible reviews and acclaim.  Many penned it an instant classic, and the wonder was if they could repeat that same acclaim.  The result came with March On Washington, an album filled with lyrical jewels, truth spitting, and uplifting the community while being relatable and down to earth.  This album highlights not just the great three man chemistry between them, but the constantly impeccable production by Oddisee, and every track on here sounds more polished and more accessible than their debut.  A pretty thorough and consistent album, DD had a great another great one on their hands.

15. Quelle Chris- Ghost At The Finish Line

Another representative of the D, emcee/producer Quelle Chris is more along the side of the quirky and slightly oddball in terms of lyrics and content.  In 2013, he had put out the decent 2 Dirt 4 TV: Niggas Is Men, which contained the stellar "Old Friend", and he followed that up with his debut full-length album, Ghost At The Finish Line, which pretty much follows the same left-brain route that Niggas Is Men went.  While cuts like "What's Up" and the hilarious stylings of "Super Fuck" will make you shake your head in confusion while appreciating his need to be unique and himself, it's more weighty cuts like the exquisite sounds and hunger-driven "Loop Dreams", the slightly brooding "Wait A Minute", and the dark "King Is Dead" that help bring a balance to this album.  While just short of the fluidity of Innocent Country (see later), it holds its own within the label's rising acclaim.

14. Open Mike Eagle- Dark Comedy

Chi-town representer Open Mike Eagle is quite an interesting individual.  His knack for wit and truth mixed with straight out absurdity has garnered him lots of fans and a steady following for some years now.  It's like when someone goes to the horror movie to see how funny the movie really is in spite of any gore or psychological head trips the movie may put you on.  Open Mike Eagle is that guy.  His debut album, Dark Comedy, is just that: a dark, twisted and zany approach to the truth of the world, only through being humorous.  This is an album to fully digest listen after listen, as you learn more and more about how ingenious his approach was for this album.  

13. Apollo Brown- Grandeur

One of hip-hop's rising beat animals is Detroit's Apollo Brown.  He's already been featured twice here, and truthfully we're not done with him.  After collaborating with cats like Ras Kass, Big Pooh, O.C., Guilty Simpson, and Skyzoo, it was time for Apollo to deliver his own compilation album that highlighted incredible emcees handling their business over Brown's outstanding soulful production.  With performances from all of the above, plus the likes of Your Old Droog, M.O.P., Planet Asia, and the late Sean Price, Brown delivered the power with his debut album and proved he was officially a threat in this game.

12. Mello Music Group- Persona

Known for their critically acclaimed compilations, Mello Music Group hit the jackpot in 2014 with Persona, a very finely put together compilation using all the emcees on the roster along with occasional special guests.  This album puts one in a spirit of the old Soundbombing or Lyricist Lounge series from Rawkus, only with no DJ mixing the album (which would've be CLASSIC by the way).  Every track flows together as if the album was straight water.  Not to mention this was among the best produced albums of the entire year.  Standouts on this fantastic album include the vivid yU cut "Homicide" and Masta Ace's "Troubles".  An overall reflective and occasionally somber album, this regardless is that next level compilation that gave listeners the best the roster had to offer and the results were simply incredible.

11. Quelle Chris- Innocent Country

Quelle Chris returned in 2014 to drop another installment in the 2 Dirt 4 TV series, only this one is his most cohesive to date.  Still containing the same charm that Chris has been known for, unorthodox as it may be at times, Innocent Country has Quelle teaming up with in-house producer Chris Keys for a fairly steady production.  This is evidenced from the intro instrumental track, "Freedom & Fear", which has Keys beautifully displaying his piano skills in what may be the oddball track on here simply because a track this exquisite is so out of place here.  That's not to say the rest of the album is wacked out because it's not at all.  Cuts like "The Ones To Watch", "The Plan", and "Nothing Moves" are nicely executed tracks that are among Quelle's most sensible cuts, but it hits a new level with the confluicted and introspective "I Asked God", where he's questioning God about his importance and his relevancy.  Arguably his best album to date, Quelle is continuing to be among the D's most intrguing emcees and also one of MMG's most interesting.

10. The Left- Gas Mask

Once again Apollo Brown appears on this list, and this time he teamed up with emcee Journalist 103 to become The Left.  With this debut, Gas Mask, this is a rugged and uncompromising brand of hip-hop and deserves to be seen as one of the most potent albums to come out of the entire discography of Mello Music.  Powerhouse cuts like "Binoculars", "Chokehold", and the insanely soulful and brooding Guilty Simpson collab "Reporting Live" really drive this scorching album, and once again shows how Apollo can bring some of the best out of an emcee.

9. Oddisee- People Hear What They See

Aside from Apollo Brown, Oddisee is Mello Music's most in-demand producer, but he's also a prolific emcee as well.  Between his vocal albums and instrumental albums, up to this point, he had put out six albums in five years.  With his sixth album, People Hear What They See, Oddisee , he drops jewels for the everyman, while experimenting with live instrumentation and limited sampling all throughout the album.  Never known for being a gimmicky emcee, his brand of introspective, honest, and relatable hip-hop is refreshing, and this albums stands among some of his best work.

8. Hasaan Mackey & Apollo Brown- Daily Bread

Can't get enough Apollo can you?  With this album, he collabs with NY emcee Hasaan Mackey to deliver Daily Bread.  Filled with the customary hard bass and soul samples of Brown, Mackey delivers raw, gritty raps and the chemistry between the two is very impressive as the melancholy production matches the brooding content of Mackey.  Mackey is already a talented emcee, as this became evidenced on other releases such as his collab with Kev Brown, That Grit, but this album showed how the right producer can match your mood and delivery, and Brown did just that with cuts like "Elephants", "Tell Me", and the hypnotic "Something".  A definite must have for all Mello Music fans.

7. Diamond District- In The Ruff

Three young hungry emcees from the DMV area emerged on the scene in 2009 as a trio to become the Diamond District.  The guys of X.O., yU, and Oddisee displayed a fire and passion on their debut album, In The Ruff, that made it impossible to ignore them within underground circles.  Considered one of the best achievements of the label, this album contains some of Oddisee's best production work to date, especially on cuts like "Back To Basics", "I Mean Business", and the title track.  In a year that had quite the stellar album get dropped, one must mention In The Ruff as one of them.  There have been several that penned this as an instant classic.  One or two listens and one can see how that claim could be made.

6. L'Orange- The Orchid Days

One of hip-hop's most magical and creative producers in NC native L'Orange.  This young producer delivered his most amazing solo instrumental album to date with the amazing The Orchid Days.  With beautiful soundscapes that resonate from a forgotten about, unappreciated era.  There are those producers that sound like they're painting images and making movies, but L'Orange is truly one of those people.  There are occasional vocal performances from the likes of Boog Brown, Blu, and Homeboy Sandman, but very similar in acclaim to Dilla's Donuts or Pete Rock's Petestrumentals, L'Orange delivered a priceless production piece that officially put him on a pedestal that would get him more noticed.

5. Georgia Anne Muldrow- A Thoughtiverse Unmarred

Empowering. Inspirational. Impassioned. Breathtaking.  Those are just a few of the words that come to mind when listening to west coast poet/emcee/singer/producer Georgia Anne Muldrow.  Although she has dropped a few albums prior to this, A Thoughtiverse Unmarred is her first rap album, and she did an extremely admirable job.  Instantly drawing comparisons to timeless albums like The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill and Baduizm, Unmarred contains the soul of Billie Holiday mixed with the consciousness of Sista Souljah and the vulnerability of Lauryn to make an album of grandeur.In this day and age, projects like this are gems.  Along with the excellent production talents of Chris Keys, this is an album that should be on a much higher platform and pedestal than it is within the mainstream.  Honesty plus education equals masterpiece.

4. L'Orange & Jeremiah Jae- The Night Took Us In Like Family

Already known for his simply exquisite production abilities, L'Orange links up with NY emcee Jeremiah Jae for what could only be classified as not a gangsta album, but a GANGSTER album.  As in, the thirties and forties, black and white Scarface-type old Manhattan streets-type movies.  With The Night Took Us In Like Family, this bleeds of a truly original audio cinematic original.  Jeremiah is the narrator/gangster draped in a long white goose goat with matching scarf and top hat chronicling the cold, dusty streets of New York's underworld, and L'Orange provides the very appropriate score to this brilliant audio movie.  One of the most impressive albums in all of 2015, this album was truly head and shoulders above most releases and still remains as one of the label's true benchmarks.  Don't take my word for it, all you have to do is peep tracks like "Underworld".

3. Oddisee- The Good Fight

What can you say about Mello Music in 2015?  Aside from the previously mentioned collab with L'Orange and Jeremiah Jae, another person that delivered nothing short of a fantastic album was Oddisee.  Arguably his finest piece of work within his entire discography, The Good Fight is an amazing work centered around the ins and outs of trying to be a successful artist and trials and tribulations that go along with it, both professional and personal.  A very down home, relatable album to the common man that's not necessarily a hip-hop artist, Oddisee remains spiritually and professionally grounded throughout the entire album.  Cuts like "That's Love", "A List Of Withouts", and "Book Covers" are exemplary cuts that showcase his noticeable ability to have his content be one with the people, and how he represents the blue collar guy.  A breakout album for him, this is the new benchmark for him.

2. Ras Kass & Apollo Brown- Blasphemy

When the announcement came that Apollo Brown and west coast lyrical legend Ras Kass would be doing an album together, immediate chills went through the atmosphere.  Once the highly controversial single "How To Kill God" was dropped, the stakes were all the way raised.  In comes Blasphemy, which is basically a whole album of Ras Kass' most notorious cut "Nature Of The Threat" from his widely regarded classic debut album, Soul On Ice.  There isn't a topic he doesn't touch when it concerns worldly and organized religion, which will automatically rub people the wrong way, but from a technical perspective, this is Ras' most lyrically ambitious and focused album in years.  You put that along with Apollo's searing trademarked production, and you have another Mello Music classic on your hands.  The whole album isn't quite this flammable, as cuts like "Bon Voyage" are very melancholy and "Giraffe Pussy" with Royce Da 5'9 and Xzibit are just lyrical embers.  Regardless, Blasphemy remains a new standard of greatness within their careers.

1. Apollo Brown & O.C.- Trophies

As you can see, Apollo Brown has dominated this list, and rightfully so, as he is Mello Music's most in demand beatsmith.  We've seen the work he's done with Ras Kass, The Left, Hasaan Mackey, Rapper Big Pooh, and Ugly Heroes.  However, he also did incredible work with others like Guilty Simpson.  It was his collab, however, with longtime Brooklyn D.I.T.C. representative O.C. that got his most substantial acclaim.  O.C. had been known for his '94 classic debut, Word...Life, and his '96 follow-up, the flames Jewelz.  Since then, he has put out mediocre to decent albums such as Bon Appetit, Smoke & Mirrors, and Starchild.  Leave it to Apollo Brown to bless the talented emcee with arguably the best production of his career.  In short, this album is as close to flawless and perfection as you will hear this decade.  Highly polished and confident rhymes mixed with fantastic and suitable production from Brown made for magic in every way.  Cuts like "People's Champ", "Prove Me Wrong", and "Angels Sing" bring back images of the Omar Credle of '94-'96, and we can't get enough of it.  No gimmicks.  No fronts.  There's not even a concept here except just rhyming and showing that nobody better dare have the nerve to forget how highly skilled he is as a lyricist.  Sometimes, at the end of the day, it's better to know less is more, and as simplistic as this album is in terms of approach, Trophies belongs among the best albums this decade and possibly this era.

Honorable Mentions

Kool Keith & L'Orange- Time? Astonishing!

Gulity Simpson & Apollo Brown- Dice Game

Apollo Brown- Options

Red Pill- Look What The World Did To Us

Mr. Lif- Don't Look Down

Verbal Kent- Sound Of The Weapon

Has-Lo & Castle- Live Like You're Dead

Ken Starr- Square One

Oddisee- Alwasta (EP)

Finale- Odds & Evens

yU- Before Taxes

Oddisee- Traveling Man

The Black Opera- The Great Year

Mello Music Group- Mandala Vol. 1: Polysonic Flows

Mello Music Group- Mandala Vol. 2: Today's Mathematics

Castle- Return Of The Gasface

Truthfully, there are more that can go on this list, as Mello Music Group constantly delivers fantastic, back to basics hip-hop that serves as a necessary alternative to the force fed material plaguing our airwaves today.  With their fanbase continuing to grow, it may not be long before Mello Music Group will become one of the most talked about labels within the mainstream.  Salute to Mello Music Group for bringing authentic lyricism and impeccable talent, both on and off the mic, to the forefront.  Until next time folks!

My Vinyl Weighs A Ton: The Best Releases From Stones Throw Records

What's up world?!  I must tell you that I'm LOVING saluting these amazing hip-hop labels that have meant a lot historically to the culture and to those that are currently still impacting the game or have the potential to be huge.  Whether underground or mainstream, these labels have or currently are impacting the game in substantial levels.  This salute goes to Stones Throw Records, a label created by Peanut Butter Wolf and his late friend and business partner Charizma, and became the home to such artists as Quasimoto, Guilty Simpson, Homeboy Sandman, and R&B crooner and Grammy Award winner Aloe Blacc.  The label is relatively slept-on by the mainstream, by is highly revered to the underground and for indie artists.  In 2014, Peanut Butter Wolf released a documentary chronicling the rise of Stones Throw with My Vinyl Weighs A Ton, named after his own compilation release.  If you have not checked out the documentary, it's well worth the viewing.  With that, let's begin with the best releases from this celebrated label.

15. Oh No- The Disrupt

Madlib's baby brother Oh No, has made almost as much noise as his highly esteemed brother.  More recently known for being half the duo Gangrene with The Alchemist, he was a solo guy before it all, and his his debut was 2004's The Disrupt.  A very promising album, Oh No showed his excellent production abilities, as well as his fairly decent mic skills as well.  With cuts like "Right Now", "Move", and "The Ride", it was clear we were on to something, and he was about to not just be Madlib's little brother much longer.

14. Homeboy Sandman- Kindness For Weakness

One of the underground's most checked for lyricists is Queens emcee Homeboy Sandman.  Already applauded for albums like The Good Son and First Of A Living Breed, he delivered Kindness For Weakness earlier in 2016.  Already considered one of the year's most overlooked albums, Homeboy continues his knack for wordplay and storytelling with poignancy and clarity.  While tracks like "Heart Sings" and "Eyes" are quite fantastic, it's the reflective and spiritual "God" that really captivates the listener about HS.  Arguably one of his top two or three albums, this album deserves to have several spins.

13. Rasco- Time Waits For No Man

Cali native Rasco has been known in the underground for quite some time now.  Before he became part of Cali Agents with Planet Asia, he dropped his debut album, Time Waits For No Man.  The album is lyrical hunger personified, and with cuts like the Defari/Dilated Peoples-assisted "Major League", "Take It Back Home" and "View To A Kill", it isn't hard to see why this is among Stones Throw's most talked about albums during its day.

12. Homeboy Sandman- Hallways

One of Stones Throw's most versatile emcees is Homeboy Sandman, and his second full length album on the label was Hallways, and it served every bit as great of a listen as anything we had heard from him.  The first single "Refugee" was just a taste of the excellent penmanship and vision HS would provide on the album.  Already acclaimed, Sandman continued his excellent work and keeps progressing towards being considered one your favorite emcees' favorite emcees.

11. Peanut Butter Wolf- My Vinyl Weighs A Ton

The creator and owner of Stones Throw Records released his own compilation album, My Vinyl Weighs A Ton, and it was a highly acclaimed success.  With performances by Planet Asia, Rasco, and Lootpack among other emcees and DJs, this album became known as one of the most important albums in the history of the label, and served as one of the true pillar albums for their upbringing.  He later was behind the documentary of the same name, which documented the growth and history of the label, but the album itself is critical excellence, and showed that PBW was just as good of an artist/DJ as he was a visionary.

10. Homeboy Sandman- First Of A Living Breed

Queens emcee Homeboy Sandman released his first Stones Throw album, First Of A Living Breed, and it was definitely a great album.  Sandman had started to really establish himself as a formidable lyricist based off his prior albums of Actual Factual Pterodactyl, Nourishment, and especially his breakout album The Good Son.  With First Of a Living Breed, tracks like "Mine All Mine", "The Ancient", and "4 Corners" are all cuts that show dexterity and versatility, yet all show how talented of a penman he is also.  

9. Lootpack- Soundpieces: Da Antidote

One of the first truly shining moments of Stones Throw came with Lootpack's Soundpieces: Da Antidote.  Consisting of DJ Romes, Wildchild, and producer extraordinaire Madlib, this was one of the first truly acclaimed and exciting projects to emerge from the burgeoning label.  Very innovative and imaginative production from Madlib, and excellent mixing by Kut Master Kurt, this was pound for pund one of the late nineties best kept secrets, and it provided cuts like "Verbal Experiments" and "The Anthem" an avenue to present unapologetic true, authentic hip-hop.  

8. Strong Arm Steady & Madlib- In Search Of Stoney Jackson

Cali-originated trio, Strong Arm Steady, was well known in underground circles, primarily by collabs with the likes of Defari, Xzibit, Tha Alkaholiks, and others.  The crew of Mitchy Slick, Phil Da Agony, and Krondon handled their business as solo artists before coming together as a group, and were among the nicest crews out of LA underground.  They delivered an album with the production talents of Madlib, In Search Of Stoney Jackson, that was as red hot as anything the two acts have put out.  Madlib's eccentric, yet occasionally brilliant, production were just as important and essential as the often times fluid and steady flowing chemistry of SAS.  Many consider this their overall best album, and with Madlib behind the boards with the production he presented on cuts like "Cheeba Cheeba" and "Needle In the Haystack", it's not hard to see why.

7. Guilty Simpson- O.J. Simpson

Detroit rhyme animal Guilty Simpson is well known in the underground circle, primarily because of his affiliation with the late Dilla and collabs with Black Milk, Elzhi, and the late Sean Price.  He had previously dropped the searing Ode To The Ghetto (see later), but his follow-up, his collab with Madlib O.J. Simpson, was every bit as hard as anything he had done prior.  The very convenient, yet slightly controversial, title was named after Madlib's real name (Otis Jackson) and Guilty Simpson's stage name, thus O.J. Simspon.  Nonetheless, the album was filled with the typical street-centered grittiness that makes Guilty Simpson who he is.  Plenty of dope tracks to go around, the partnership between Madlib and Guilty is evidenced and makes the producer/emcee chemistry between them a worthwhile listen.

6. Quasimoto- The Further Adventures Of Lord Quas

By 2005, we had become familiar with Madlib's helium-voiced blunted out alter ego Quasimoto.  Quasi's debut album, The Unseen, was a widely praised album that established Madlib's innovative approach to being a creative emcee.  Quasi's follow-up album, The Further Adventures Of Lord Quas, continued the eccentric, yet intriguing, work of Madlib's alter-ego.  The story became more of Madlib's very adventurous production that more times than not, really works out well.  This became almost as big of a cult classic as The Unseen, and deserves to be credited with being as big a part of the acclaim of Stones Throw as any other release.

5. Guilty Simpson- Ode To The Ghetto

Guilty Simpson's debut album, Ode To The Ghetto, was everything we thought it would be: raw, lyrical, gritty, and full of talent worthy of being among the upper ranks of Detroit mic destroyers.  With crazy production from the likes of Dilla, Oh No, Madlib, and Black Milk, there was simply no shortage of heat throughout this very dope release.  Little to no filler material, every cut serves a purpose, and cuts like the ominous sounding "I Must Love You" and the Random Axe-assisted "Run" are very well-proportioned for this album.  

4. Quasimoto- The Unseen

The much talked about debut album from Madlib's weeded-out, helium-pitched alter ego, Quasimoto, is still considered a very important piece of indie/underground hip-hop.  Developing a wide cult following, Lord Quas became a big fixture within the alternative hip-hop circles, and it definitely became an album that would be considered an acquired taste.  Filled with plenty of psychedelic head trips, and was reportedly recorded while Madlib was hooked on shrooms for about a month, it's a spaced out yet wildly imaginative album that has continued to stand the test of time.

3. J Dilla- Donuts

The late great James Yancey is known as one of the most revered and decorated producers of all-time.  Changing the landscape of the hip-hop producer, J Dilla was a treasure, and inspired everyone from Pete Rock to Kanye West behind the boards.  His instrumental album, Donuts, is widely considered the greatest hip-hop instrumental album ever released in hip-hop.  Many of the beats on the album have ended up getting used by artists like The Roots, MF Doom, Slum Village and more.  This album officially marked his legacy in stone, and now years after his death from complications of Lupus, Dilla's instrumental jewel of an album is as relevant and essential now as it was when it was released just a couple weeks after his death.  The most timeless piece of the Dilla discography.

2. Jaylib- Champion Sound

When the word got out that two of the most revered and decorated producers in all of hip-hop would get together to do a collab album, mouths were just watering.  The album finally dropped in mid-late 2003 and it met every expectation.  Deemed a classic, and rightfully so, the concept had Madlib rhyming over Dilla's rich sampling and Dilla rhyming over Madliberator's quirky, yet ingenious, production.  Celebrating the best efforts from each one, this album became a center piece of Stones Throw, and quickly became the album they were known for up until that next year.  Never-ending standouts, Jaylib became a duo that constructed a seminal album that could easily rival any exceptional debut of that decade.

1. Madvillain- Madvillainy

The album that officially made Stones Throw a more known label.  One of the most landmark albums in the history of indie hip-hop, Madlib and MF Doom collaborated on what would become a masterpiece of a project.  Some of the most bizarre, yet brilliantly sampled, production ever from Madlib was the most beautifully designed backdrops for the quirky, yet clever, rhymes of Doom.  Easily comparable to the likes of De La Soul Is Dead, Aquemini, and Critical Beatdown, this is a classic that takes a while to fully absorb, but once you get past how unique this album is, you also realize how fully special this album is, and with insane cuts like "Fancy Clown", "All Caps", and "Figaro", this album is unlike most albums you may ever hear.  The song structure is set up to where they're mostly 2 minute cuts with no hooks, just Doom rhyming his metal-faced ass off over some of the most left-field production (filled with elements of pseudo-Jazz and world music) Madlib has constructed.  One of the top two, if not the best, album of the entire decade, Madvillainy is still Stones Throw's magnum, opus, as well as a career defining album for Doom and Madlib.

Stones Throw Records is a very important piece of hip-hop, as it's seen as one of the truly refreshing labels made for artists to be who they are unapologetically and unabashed.  As a result, artists were promoted to push their creativity and originality, without any A&Rs or "machines".  Truly a label for the artist, all shouts to Peanut Butter Wolf and the late Kharisma for this fantastic label and its roster.  Until next time cats!

The Greatest Unknown: The Best Releases From Rhymesayers

What's the haps folks?!  This salute goes to an underground label based out of Minneapolis, MN.  Rhymesayers Entertainment has been primarily the home to established universally acclaimed acts Atmosphere (co-founders of the label) and Brother Ali, but over the years, many more acts have aligned themselves with this very acclaimed and praised label.  One of those labels you've been sleeping on for over a decade, Rhymesayers has put out some of the most memorable hip-hop to ever grace our ears.  With that, let's start this very good list of the best to get released from this fantastic label.

15. Aesop Rock- The Impossible Kid

Rhymesayers' residential complex vocabularian Aesop Rock returned after a four year absence to give us The Impossible Kid.  Truthfully, this album sounds he never missed a beat.  While most known for his outstanding Labor Days (see later), he has also given us pretty good albums like Skelethon and None Shall Pass.  However, he reached a new level of artistic merit, while still clearly showing how conflicted his mentality is about life and himself in the world.  As a great side note, this became his highest charting album to date, debuting at number three on the R&B/Hip-Hop Charts and number thirty-three on the Billboard two hundred.  Aesop Rock's already devout following is steadily growing.

14. MF Doom- MM...Food

Ah, the allusive Doom.  After releasing his prior album of Venomous Villain under the Viktor Vaughn alias, and the masterpiece known as Madvillainy all in the same year of 2004, he released MM...Food under the Doom moniker.  The supervillain himself constructed an album based around food, while applying themes such as fake friends, false fame, and loose women to items such as chicken, hoe cakes, and many other dishes.  Without question a very unorthodox album, it's also very trademarked Doom, and still contains some of his best board work as well, especially on cuts like "potholders" and "Hoe Cakes", plus Madlib's guest production on "One Beer" is just stellar.  Any and all Doom fans must have this in their collection.

13. Brother Ali- The Truth Is Here (EP)

There isn't a bigger and more acclaim act on Rhymesayers than Brother Ali.  Don't get me wrong: that's not intended as a dis because as you'll read on about this label, Rhymesayers is chock full of tremendous talent and incredible emcees.  It's just there's something very special about Brother Ali.  His knack for storytelling mixed with socio-consciousness and political awareness is that of legend.  His EP of 2009, The Truth Is Here, was just another example of how needed his presence is in the game.  Fantastic cuts like "Baby Don't Go" and "Good Lord" are just pieces of the exemplary puzzle Brother Ali has constructed for us to put together to see his greatness.

12. Blueprint- Adventures In Counterculture

Ohio native Blueprint has been well known in the underground for some years now, primarily for his work with Illogic as Greenhouse Effect and with producer RJD2 as Soul Position.  With this album, Adventures In Counterculture, he goes experimental with a few different sounds such as electro and techno with "My Culture" but his music has almost always come with meaning and substance such as the brooding "Stole Our Yesterday" and "So Alive".  A consistently deep thinker, and an emcee for the lost, Blueprint expands his horizons and crafts an album that can remembered as one for those need to know someone is speaking for their conflicts and confusion.

11. Jake One- White Van Music

Seattle, Washington's residential hip-hop beatsmith Jake One has been steadily bubbling for the last few years now.  Primarily an underground producer, he started moving up the ranks to crafting beats for the likes of 50 Cent, Prodigy, Evidence, and especially on De La Soul's amazing cut with MF Doom on The Grind Date, "Rock Co.Kane Flow".  He was also responsible for a couple of beats on WWE megastar John Cena's debut hip-hop album, You Can't See Me, including his current theme song "The Time Is Now".  He finally decided to release his debut compilation album, White Van Music, and it banged.  Really banged.  Appearances from the likes of Busta Rhymes, prodigy, Freeway, and others made Jake One's knocking production front and center and placed the album among the best producer compilation albums in recent memory.

10. Brother Ali- US

Already achieving incredible acclaim after incredible acclaim, Brother Ali became the voice of the underground, and arguably the most important fixture in indie hip-hop.  Every album he had put out was stellar and essential hip-hop.  He hit us in '09 with US, an extension of prior albums such as The Undisputed Truth and his masterwork Shadows On The Sun (see both later).  Standouts include "Crown Jewel" and the superb "House Keys", and show his dexterity and passion on the mic.  There was no more consistent emcee moving than Brother Ali, and this was just another example of why he needs to be considered among the greats.

9. Dilated Peoples- Directors Of Photography

The almighty Dilated Peoples.  One of the most influential acts to emerge from LA over the past decade and a half, Evidence, Rakaa Iriscience, and DJ Babu have been known for such highly acclaimed albums as The Platform, Neighborhood Watch, and especially Expansion Team.  Just as revered in the mainstream as they are in the underground, the Peoples released their first group album in eight years with Directors Of Photography, and their first on Rhymesayers.  Arguably their best work since Expansion Team, the guys flow like water from track to track without missing any steps or beats.  With phenomenal production from The Alchemist, Oh No ("the CRAZY "Century Of The Self"), 9th Wonder ("The Bigger Picture"), Premo ("Good As Gone"), and Jake One ("Show Me The Way"), Dilated rips tracks apart the tracks continue to show why the game needs them.  Even after each doing their own solo projects, they sound better together than they even do going for dolo.

8. Blueprint- 1988

Taking it back to the beginning of the celebrated "golden age" of hip-hop, Blueprint brought back the boom-bap with 1988.  This is one of those albums that make you wanna get away from it all in a hip-hop way and reflect on a better time in the game, where lo-fi production, boomboxes, and good ol' fashioned hunger.  There's no shortage on quality material here with such tracks as "Inner City Native Son", "Boombox", and "Trouble On My Mind", and by now, Blueprint is starting to show his worth in hip-hop.  Many considering this is best solo album to date, this album showed the talent he truly possesses.

7. Atmosphere- God Loves Ugly

The flagship act of the label lies with its founders, Slug and Ant, collectively known as Atmosphere.  On this, their second album God Loves Ugly, they wanted to show how far away they were from conventional, traditional hip-hop imagery and themes.  Absorbing their need to be different, we hear some of the most conceptually intriguing and dense hip-hop heard within the millennium.  Considered one of the first "emo rap" albums of existence, Atmosphere brings a passion and an intricate poetic nature with this album that makes this one of their very best albums.  Don't believe me, "Fuck You Lucy" will be a clear indication.

6. Brother Ali- Champion EP

All hail Brother Ali.  The angry Albino outta Minnesota had made one the most landmark indie hip-hop albums of all-time with Shadows On The Sun in 2003, and followed it up with an equally thunderous EP, entitled Champion.  It's only appropriate that the late, great Muhammad Ali is sketched on the cover of the EP, as Brother Ali is sounding like he's fighting the be the champion at this hip-hop shit.  Every track sounds he's seriously going for his, and cuts like "Sleepwalker" and "Chain Link" are filled with intensity and a focus that makes you believe Ali is not to be reckoned with.

5. The Alchemist & Evidence are Step Brothers- Lord Steppington

We had been waiting for a few years for close friends Evidence and The Alchemist to do a collab album.  After ALC would do production work for Dilated Peoples and on Ev's stellar solo debut, The Weatherman LP, it was only right for the album to come together, and we got it.  After dropping a couple of singles like "Ron Carter" (which didn't make the final cut of the album) and "Step Masters", Lord Steppington was here and man did it deliver.  Non-stop bangers from these two and the chemistry between the two made it a fantastic marriage.  Some of the best production you heard throughout all of 2014, the wittiness of Al and the slow-flow of Ev, along with the sizzling production of Al made this a complete winner and one of the single best Rhymesayer albums ever.

4. Atmosphere- When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold

By 2008, we were already familiar with just how great this duo of Slug and Ant had become.  With their fantastic God Loves Ugly and their classic You Just Can't Imagine The Fun We're Having making them more buzzworthy by the time, they follow it up with When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold.  They basically brought the statement "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" with them on this album, as Ant brought some of his best production to date on this album, and Slug, as usual, wore his heart on his arm all over the album, as well doing great storytelling work, and the result was their highest charting album ever, debuting at number five on the Billboard Top 200, a heavy accomplishment within itself.  With cuts like "In Her Music Box" and "Me", it's definitely not hard to see why this album was starting to bring them more national recognition.

3. Brother Ali- The Undisputed Truth

How do you possibly follow up the breathtaking moment in time that was Shadows On The Sun, and the equally vicious Champion EP, the answer came in the form of The Undisputed Truth.  With the exception of acts like De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, EPMD, Mobb Deep, and Outkast, it's not often an artist can put together back to back classic full length albums, but Brother Ali pulled it off incredulously.  Exhibiting as much ferocity and vigor as anything we heard from him prior, Ali is poignant and open with his thoughts and emotions all throughout this exceptional piece of art.  The activist comes out in cuts like "Truth Is" and the vulnerable emcee comes out in the bitter letter to his ex-wife "Walking Away", which must be heard to be fully felt.  There aren't many artists, yesterday or today, that match Ali's ability to preach to the masses while showing his heart at the same time.  He does it and does it effortlessly.

2. Atmosphere- You Can't Imagine How Much Fun We're Having

In 2005, Slug and Ant had been riding off the acclaim of their God Loves Ugly album, as well as the Lucy Ford EP before it.  However, it was their fifth overall album that changed everything.  The album, You Can't Imagine How Much Fun We're Having, is as beautifully crafted and put together of an album as you would find that entire decade.  Frankly, with the exception of the mastery he put together on Brother Ali's Shadows On The Sun, Ant had never been better behind the boards, and Slug was just fantastic on the mic, every bit as open and honest as he could possibly be.  The vivid imagery of "Say Hey There", the fascinating "Pour Me Another" and the touching standout "Little Man" help to make this album their absolute magnum opus and ultimately defined them critically, as this was a highly acclaimed piece of work.

1. Brother Ali- Shadows On The Sun

The album that made Rhymesayers Entertainment one of the most intriguing labels in the entire underground.  It's not often the term 'brilliant' gets used, especially in today's times which is almost non-existent, but in 2003, Brother Ali constructed a brilliant album entitled Shadows On The Sun.  Over some of the most engaging Ant production ever heard, Ali paints honest, poignant, and compelling pictures for the listener in such reflective ways all over the album.  While every track is exceptional in its own right, perhaps it's the painfully open track "Forest Whitaker" where he bravely points out all his physical imperfections and still embraces them all and shows the importance of self-love in one of the most empowering cuts to ever come across this young man's ears to this day.  A landmark underground release much like Madvillainy or Champion Sound, Brother Ali delivered one of the best studio hip-hop albums of that entire decade, and it still stands as one of the most exquisite releases today.  A classic in every sense of the word.

Honorable Mentions

Freeway & Jake One- The Stimulus Package

Brother Ali- Mourning In America & Dreaming In Color

RJD2 & Blueprint are Soul Position- 8 Million Stories

Atmosphere- Seven's Travels

Atmosphere- Southsiders

Evidence- Cats & Dogs

Slug & Murs- Felt 3: A Tribute To Rosie Perez

Eyedea & Abilities- First Born

While you may not know all there is to know about this label, I suggest you stop sleeping on this label and check all these releases and more from a big time label that is among the most celebrated indie labels still going.  Clearly, Rhymesayers has delivered some of the best in hip-hop ever, and one can only guess what's the next big acclaimed album to drop.  Word is another Brother Ali album is coming and he's reuniting with Ant for it so let the sweating begin.  Until next time cats!