Common

More G.O.O.D. Friday goodness, this time with a roster track. Most people likely expected that these weekly leaks would result in unnecessary throwaways, but Ye’s really been batting 1000 with these. The soul sample on this one is more upbeat than “Devil In A New Dress”, and it’s definitely a feel-good song. Pusha T is a much welcomed addition to the G.O.O.D. Music family and I’m sure his The Fear Of God mixtape will be fire whenever it drops.

Download: Kanye West – “G.O.O.D. Friday”

John Legend is teaming up with the Roots for a full album which is titled Wake Up!. The album will be full of remakes of classic R&B tracks like “Wake Up Everybody” which was originally done by Harold Melvin & the Bluenotes. I follow very few R&B artists but John Legend is one of the lucky few and I was thrilled to see him teaming up with the Roots for a whole album and Common and Ms. Fiona for this specific track. Grab the tracklist for the project and the download link below the break.

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I’m really hoping this wasn’t what Common’s “first official” mixtape annoucement was leading up to. “Just Wright” is a collection of soul and R&B tracks to promote Lonnie’s latest venture in film, Love & Basketball. This tape consists of unreleased tracks from an impressive looking line-up (Dwele, Esthero, Jamiroquai, etc.). This tape in itself seems like it should be a really good listen, so don’t let my grumbling at the beginning deter you. The only reason Just Wright seems to be accredited to Common is because he put it together with help from The Twilight Tone. Tracklist/download link after the jump.

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88-Keys adds an interesting take from one of my favorite songs on Common’s Be album.

I hit up Kanye & asked him if he had the a cappella files for this (which wasn’t out at the time). He gave me the files without hesitation. I turned over this remix rather fast but never finished it because I couldn’t come up with a hook for it. I played it for Kanye & he liked this a lot. So much, in fact, that he was going to reach out to Brandy to lay a hook down on this. Unfortunately, for me, Common didn’t feel this half as much as ‘ye did.

This wouldn’t have gone well with the rest of the album but it is cool to hear a different version for it.

Download: Common – “Testify” (88-Keys Remix)

…no, not together, but wouldn’t that be something! Both veteran emcees have announced that they will be releasing their first official mixtapes. It’s seems so backwards now for an artist to be dropping his/her first mixtape only after making it and putting years of work in, but then again, they didn’t have the full force of these internets to push tapes like new artists do today. But whether these are their first mixtapes or their tenth, they’re going to be highly anticipated. I’m more into Common than Scarface, but both emcees have gained so much respect and rep their styles so well that I’ll for sure give both a listen. Speaking of Scarface, there’s word going around that the next Hip-Hop Honours will be honoring the South. While the South has garnered a fair share of animosity towards it in the past ten years, there’s no doubt that Scarface, Luda, UGK, OutKast, Geto Boys and even Lil Wayne deserve recognitions.

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Consequence drops off his latest tape called Movies On Demand. I provided the song “G.O.O.D. Music” featuring Common and Talib above to give you taste of what to expect from it. Clinton Sparks provides the smooth beat which utilizes a sample and a smooth keyboard loop. I haven’t kept up with Consequence much lately but the past couple songs he has put out has got me paying attention to him again and I certainly am going to give the tape a listen. As you can see from this song, he got a lot of big named feature artists to help out too and it can only help with his exposure. Grab the download and tracklist below the break.

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I can’t end off the day without mentioning the anniversaries it marks: the 10th anniverary of Big Pun’s passing and the 26th birthday of an idol of mine, J Dilla. I’m going to keep it honest and say that although I’m a fan of Big Pun and some of his songs, I don’t know nearly enough about him to write a commemorative post for the punisher, so I’ll stick to what I know and focus on Mr. Yancey.

J Dilla was truly an iconic figure in hip-hop, and as tragic as it seems, that became the clearest when he passed in 2006. I remember turning on MuchMusic (the Canadian equivalent of MTV) and seeing all day long reports and montages about J Dilla. The fact that a major television network was devoting so much time to someone that the vast majority of mainstream music listeners probably never heard of before was testament to his impact on hip-hop’s history. As his beats continue to slowly come out of hiding (one of the latest ones being on Mickey Factz’s “Big Trouble In Lil’ China”), their value nears closer to priceless since there will never be no one like James Yancey again. From the swarm of kazoos on “Geek Down” to the head-banger that is “E=MC2″ (which you can listen to above), those gems will continue to live on for years to come. As cliché as it may sound, J Dilla truly did change our lives.

The more I listen to music like this from Common and think about it the further he shoots up my list of favorites.

Brad and Sean attend a Grammy Songwriter Forum that includes Common, Nas, Colbie Callait, Zac Brown and more. Out of nowhere…Common decides to bring genres together and performs an impromptu performance with Colbie Callait and Zac Brown.

Check below to see Nas & Common talking about violent lyrics in hip-hop. This seemed to be a very interesting panel and I wish I had a chance to attend it.

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“Next Time” is supposedly a song that got left off of Common’s album Finding Forever and it’s always dope to get  new song from him. Common’s albums are some of my absolute favorite to just put on and chill out to and he is established enough that we rarely get a new leak from him. The song would’ve fit in well with the album but Common likes to keep his albums short and full of quality so I’m hoping there are more where this came from. It’s been a couple years since then too, can we please get another Common album in 2010?

Download: Common – “Next Time” (Unreleased)

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Mos Def – Quiet Dog Bite Hard

Ah, the best song category. Even though my choices were limited to hip-hop, I had a nearly impossible time compiling this list and selecting a victor. In the end, I narrowed the short-list down to the songs that got progressively better with each listen and chose the winner from that. “Quiet Dog Bite Hard” might not grab your attention in your first listen. Like me, you might ignore this song for months before giving it another chance. As you give it that second chance, then a third, a fourth and so on, you begin to realize that “Quiet Dog Bite Hard” is an addicting song. It’s lively, up-tempo bounce puts you in a good mood and the beat that drives this feeling is hard to dislike. The Latin flair in the instrumental feels more rhythmic and energetic than any standard hip-hop beat from this year.The quiet “simmer down” hook accentuates the high-energy verses, making the balance in this song on point. Party song or not, Mos Def delivers with some tight lyrics and his flow is just as rhythmic as the beat. “Quiet Dog Bite Hard” is not the best song of 2009 because it draws you in on the first listen; rather, it’s the best song because it retains your interest for many more listens to come.

Check out and listen to the full list of honorable mentions after the jump.

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