New mixtape reviews, and most of the tabs are now active for easier navigation. More updates coming soon...
Joell Ortiz & Novel – “Defying The Predictable” (Mixtape Review)
February 9, 2010
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Dopeness. Nothing else needs to be said.
I love following people with personality on Twitter. I’ve been excited about Joell Ortiz ever since he dropped “The Bodega Chronicles.” I couldn’t understand how come he didn’t have a deal then, then he got one and the more I researched, the more everything began to make sense, and he became a REAL person to me.
The same thing happened for Novel. He’s one of the few people that actually interact with their fans on Twitter. I said something on Twitter that he and Joell Ortiz together reminds me of the quality music that Timbaland and Magoo used to put out, and to my surprise he hits me back:
“Wait i cant retweet that… I aint Magoo LOLOL.”
Caught me completely off-guard, but it was funny. I started following the dude, and I began to like him more as a person. It makes it easier to like someone when their music meshes with their personality. Genuine people make genuine music. That being said.. if you’re in need of a hip-hop fix, I got something for you…
The Good:
In case it wasn’t implied by the post name, Joell Ortiz and Novel have teamed up for a new mixtape, titled “Defying the Predictable.” The two are familiar with working together, and have done so several times in the past. It makes sense for them to collaborate; I only wonder how come it hasn’t happened sooner. Read more…
Categories: Mixtape Reviews, Music
defying the predictable, joell ortiz, k1ng eljay, mixtape review, novel
B.o.B. aka Bobby Ray – “May 25th” (Mixtape Review)
February 7, 2010
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See? Pretty artwork, Charles Hamilton. Take notes. (joking. kinda. Not really.)
Who’s still sleeping on B.O.B.?
Shame on you if you raised your hand because 1) you’re missing out on something great, and 2) you’re an idiot because no one can see you. Great job buddy.
B.o.B/Bobby Ray has been making noise almost everywhere ever since his emergence as an artist on T.I.’s Grand Hustle record label. Since then, he’s make select moves, but all of them have been surprisingly potent. From his “Autotune” spoof on Youtube, to his “Hi, My Name is BOB” mixtape, to being featured on certain songs, to dropping an interesting single for the radio/TV rotation (“I’ll Be In The Sky”), he’s managed to keep his name on the tongue of most people without dropping a major album.
Well, all of that changes on May 25th when the debut album finally drops. What better way than to get people ready for it by dropping a mixtape with DJ Drama for promotion?
Sounds like a plan to me.
The Good:
There is something captivating about Bobby Ray’s demeanor on tracks. Whether he’s singing, rapping, or sing/rapping, no one can deny that B.o.B was made to do this music thing. Even the freestyles for the mixtape have a different flair than other downloads in its genre. Read more…
Categories: Mixtape Reviews, Music
b.o.b., Bobby Ray, k1ng eljay, may 25th, mixtape review
Bun B – “No Mixtape” (Mixtape Review)
February 7, 2010
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No Mixtape...the mixtape? Anyone else appreciate irony like me???
We all do remember that a review is nothing but a glorified opinion…right? Ok, making sure. On to the review…
Recently, I saw a new track from Bun B on allhiphop.com, so I clicked it automatically. The first thing I hear is Bun saying:
“N*gga called me, talkin’ ‘bout ‘B! What’s the name of the mixtape? When’s it comin’ out?’ I said ‘B***h, this is the mixtape! We goin’ live right now! This track seven!”
You can’t say the UGK Alumni doesn’t have a sense of humor.
I can honestly say that I was not expecting Bun B to drop a mixtape of straight freestyles and album snippets, but because of the fact that there’s no DJ drops, no edits, and it’s just straight Bun B for the entire mixtape…. If you’re a UGK fan, you need this. This will get you excited for the album. Point blank.
The Good:
It’s just Bun. No DJ Drama, no DJ snatch backs halfway through the verses, no cameos. It’s just Bun B wrecking every beat possible…
Except Exhibit C. The beat came on, and Bun cut it off and showed off his sense of humor again (“Nope, it’s time to put this to rest. We gon’ have “Exhibit Triple-F” in a minute..” Read more…
Categories: Mixtape Reviews, Music
bun b, k1ng eljay, mixtape review, no mixtape
Charles Hamilton – “Normalcy” (Mixtape Review)
February 7, 2010
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Yes! The "What-the-heck-am-I-looking-at" cover art signifies that C.H. is BACK! I have no idea what the heck this is...
Eljay’s History Lesson 101:
One of the best mixtapes I’ve ever heard was Charles’ Hamilton’s “Pink Lavalamp.” One of the best freestyles I’ve heard was when C.H. spazzed on DJ Green Lantern’s show for 20 minutes. One of the first people I decided to follow on Twitter (3rd, actually) was Charles Hamilton. One of the first people to actually respond to any question I had about a celebrity or anything like that…was C.H (we had a convo about different races dating, and why it shouldn’t be a big deal). Also, the first mixtape review I’ve ever done for HipHopStateofMind.com was his mixtape…
So of COURSE I’m going to be all over this when it dropped. Unfortunately, I forgot about the music “review” part because I honestly was too busy listening and bumping the music in Indianapolis during Christmas break while eating Chipotle with Rhymestyle.
Pause.
That being said, it says something about a mixtape when it’s over a month later and it still gets spins religiously like it’s a full-feature LP. So, I’ll just put this out there. When you think of C.H., “Pink Lavalamp” and “Normalcy” should come to mind. It’s by far his two best projects he’s ever released. Read more…
Categories: Mixtape Reviews, Music
charles hamilton, k1ng eljay, mixtape, mixtape review, Normalcy
J.O.K.E. (Journal of K1ng Eljay) – “A Slight Difference”
January 26, 2010
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Sometimes, you don't even have to speak to a hater. Just wave and keep moving.
I’ve been noticing a disturbing trend the last year or two that I’ve been writing these J.O.K.E.s and album reviews. There are a lot of times where I’d go on a website and a new song by Lil’ Wayne and/or Drake would be a feature story – because websites usually love to leech on to people that generate interest, and they do it very well – and before I even listen to the song, I’d read the comments just to get a feel of what I’m about to hear. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t, but regardless I listen to the song for myself before stating my opinion.
There are several types of comments that are nested below the song, usually. You have your “Stans”, which don’t even listen to the song. They just hit the comment box and exclaim that everything Wayne touches is gold, with things like…
“WEEZY F ALL DAY! Young MOO-LAH on the MAP!”
Then you have the people that don’t listen to the song, but want you to hear their mixtape. For some reason, they think that because I see THEIR name commenting on every song, this is suddenly going to make ME say “Hey, maybe I should see if they’re NOT a traditional MySpace rapper!”
No. I refuse to let you waste my free internet listening to your music. Then, you also have the type of people that can’t type to save their lives, with things like…
“U kno wat is beez abat! Dis dat new ish 1 be lokin 4! Gunna put dis on fa da shawty!”
No comment. Read more…
Categories: Journals Of King Eljay, Opinions
alicia keys, hater, journal of k1ng eljay, k1ng eljay, lil wayne
Same Song And Dance… (Update News)
January 25, 2010
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Yeah…we’ve done this before… I’m updating the blog because I’m tired of how it looks. Pardon the progress…
And as usual, check the J.O.K.E.s and things below this post.
Word.
K1ng Eljay
Categories: Uncategorized
J.O.K.E. (Journal of K1ng Eljay) – “An Illuminating Theory…”
January 23, 2010
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Jay-Z's sparking controversy, yet again...he's kind of good at this thing, isn't he?
Every single day in every single way, I become more and more annoyed with the Jay-Z situation. Because of his questionable images in his recent videos, the hip-hop star has become the center of attention for allegedly being a freemason and/or part of the Illuminati…
For the record, the Illuminati were (are?) a secret organization or groups that are supposedly responsible for a lot of the behind-the-scene things that have happened in huge events. It is supposedly dead, being disbanded in the late 1800s, but at the time in the 1700s, it was thought of as not being true, so take that for what you want…
Anyway, Jay-Z is at the forefront of this whole situation again. If you remember, this isn’t the first time he’s been in this negative light. Ever since he took up the name of the “god MC” aka “Hova” aka any other name he has that infringes on Christianity, this has been somewhat of a low cloud that has hung over him. But like I said, this is really nothing new to me. Read more…
Categories: Journals Of King Eljay, Opinions
illuminati, jay-z, journal of k1ng eljay, k1ng eljay
J.O.K.E. (Journal Of K1ng Eljay) – “A Letter To SlaughterHouse…”
January 18, 2010
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I swear, Slaughterhouse is like hood, hip-hop Power Rangers. I can dig it though.
To the S.H. Machine,
I know you guys are all busy recording music and fighting crime as your secret night jobs as superheroes, so I won’t waste your time. I’ll just get right to it.
Usually I’m all for peace. I really think it shows immaturity when two people or groups that dislike each other can’t co-exist. In every public venue, there’s bound to be people that don’t like each other, whether it’s a job or a club or wherever. Even in music, I prefer peace…usually.
But in this case, I’m willing to make an exception.
Categories: Journals Of King Eljay, Opinions
benzino, crooked I, joe budden, joell ortiz, k1ng eljay, royce da 5'9, slaughterhouse
J.O.K.E. (Journal of K1ng Eljay) – “Bullet Points”
January 14, 2010
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You know what sucks? Getting told by your coach via text message that you might lose $111 Million. THAT. SUCKS.
Quick summary before I O.D. on Agent Zero…
The original story was that a gambling debt spilled over into the locker room and somehow ends with them brandishing guns on each other. Then it came out that Gilbert brought “unloaded” guns into the NBA arena as a “joke” on the guy he was supposedly hounding about paying his debt.
Javaris Crittendon didn’t take the joke very well, he responded “allegedly” by drawing his gun, which was “loaded” and aiming it at Agent Zero…which is another name and/or number for Gilbert’s chances of playing in the NBA for the rest of this season.
To make matters worse, Gilbert doesn’t think he did anything wrong. A night or so later, they were in the warm-up group and Gilbert brandished his finger-guns (GASP) and aimed them at certain teammates, all while the teammates laughed and enjoyed his antics…until Stern fined every single person in that group that acted as if they enjoyed the shootout.
k1ngeljay