As the year comes to a close, we thought it was only appropriate to share with you the music that inspired us most. Off top, let me make it clear that this isn’t “top” or “best” anything. Contrary to popular opinion, this music thing is not a competition. Not to mention that trying to collapse a year’s worth of music into a comprehensive playlist just isn’t really feasible. Just ask Lily Allen, Pac Div or about 100 otherartists who easily could’ve ended up on this short list. Having said that, it’s only right to pay homage to the tracks that made our life that much more enjoyable. Whether they made us sing and dance, contemplate our lives or drive way too fast in the whip, the artists behind these 25 deserve a little recognition. Consider it their gift to you.
The Clipse are nothing if not consistent. Not only is the quality of their music virtually guaranteed, but over the course of their career, the themes have stayed pretty consistent too. Even so, Hell Hath No Fury was further proof that talking almost exclusively about cocaine trafficking could still make for a brilliant piece of work. While Lord Willin’ captured the duo at their most youthful, riding a wave of commercial success to platinum status, Hell Hath No Fury found them resentful and frustrated by industry politics, crafting a relentless masterpiece of an album. If the subject matter was repetitive, Malice and Push always kept things interesting through sheer lyrical ingenuity.
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This shit is wet, but please don’t make the mistake of thinking this is all you need. Til the Casket Drops, well, drops on Tuesday, and I can already say the brothers Thornton have one of the best albums of the year on their hands. Can’t say I expected much less though. If The Clipse leave something to be desired quantity-wise, the level of quality more than makes up for it. A lot of credit has to go to Chad and P too though; since before Lord Willin’, they’ve supplied The Clipse with some of the most consistently excellent production in the game. With a little help from Sean C & LV (“Roc Boys”) and DJ Khalil (“Kinda Like a Big Deal”), the Tunes laced the soundtrack up proper once again. Do yourself a favor and cop this shit when it drops this week.
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Let’s not get things fucked up. The Clipse are still one of the biggest threats in the game. With Till the Casket Drops less than a month away, the Brothers Thornton kept it simple for “Popular Demand”, calling on Rik Cordero to direct the clip for one of the more crucial slaps in recent memory. Maybe they could’ve set their sights a little higher, but hey. It’s to the point I suppose. And I’m still not tired of that Pusha verse yet.
Back by popular demand indeed. It’s been a solid three years now since everybody’s favorite dropped their stellar sophomore effort, Hell Hath No Fury. I don’t know too many folks that got enthusiastic about Killa coming back, but the collab only makes sense. P doing his best Cam impression on the hook is comedy, but the highlight has to be that first verse. Pusha just murks. Till The Casket Drops is set for release in December, but in the meantime between time, this one is whip ready.
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Hip-hop may be an ever-changing beast, but one thing is constant: The Clipse’s sense of self. They might not be shouting it from the rooftops, but they clearly think they’re the best in the game—which is a little surprising, given their track record. After receiving a platinum plaque for their eerie and exceptionally witty debut, Lord Willin’, they fell into label purgatory. Four years and two mixtapes later, the even darker Hell Hath No Fury had critics and fans fawning, but still bricked like a Kwame Brown jumper. Despite the difficulties, Pusha T and Malice still believe in the Clipse. And somehow, their bravado is understandable.
This one’s relevant to a lot of us. Nic Nac, Hyphen, Bundy & Ben for the beats. Lan for the creative process. D.S. for the track itself. In this video, DJ Khalil breaks down the process behind the creation of The Clipse first single off their upcoming album, “Kinda Like A Big Deal”. Each part is clean by itself. The guitar riffs. The bassline. 5 gum came correct with this one. This is just so clean. A walk through of how a track can blow up. Props to The Clipse for coming with this. Cleanest beat of ‘09?
Everybody’s favorites are at it again. October will see the release of Till the Casket Drops, the highly anticipated fourth studio album from Malice and Pusha. As dope as “Kinda Like a Big Deal” is, it’s still good to see these two working with the Neptunes. As far as I’m concerned, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. “All Eyes On Me” isn’t their strongest work together, but a heater regardless. The Keri feature can’t hurt either.
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Often times, one of the primary goals of a music video is to breathe new life into a song by depicting it visually. I think music videos are at their best when the video makes you like the song more. I’m not sure if I feel this way after this one. Could they have gotten a bit more creative with it instead of a series of performance shots in a stairwell? I think so. Nice colors though. It’s cool to see Kanye and the Clipse together. Kanye is doing a great job of staying relevant through his features recently, I applaud him for that. But I still wonder, will the Clipse ever make a better video than this
Umm. Let’s see. Don’t even know where to start with this. Thanks Malice. Thanks a lot. This is so needed and appreciated. Malice of the Clipse brings us the first installment of his video blog. Fuck, I don’t even know what else to say about this. Just peep it. It’s amazing.
In efforts to get us all on the same page. The Clipse are Malice & Pusha T. They’re everyones favorite. Now. Recently they came out with their clothing brand Play Cloths, which shits on Sean John, but isn’t sniffing Pastelle.
