The blurring of country music and hip-hop currently playing out at radio has been in the making for a long, long time.
As the old saying goes, “everything changes.” Country music is no exception to the rule. While legends such as George Strait and Alan Jackson are still writing and releasing material rooted in tradition, a younger generation of talent is challenging fans to accept a wide range of new ideas. From 808s to syncopated vocal deliveries, the most popular country artists sound more and more like hip-hop artists with each passing year.
And guess what? There is a good reason for country music’s recent evolution. As the team at Insider reveals in a new documentary short, country music has a long history of following other genre’s paths to success. What is happening now has happened before, and it will no doubt happen again as consumer tastes continue to evolve.
To understand how this genre hybridization has shaped today’s country and hip-hop, the Insider team spoke with Kevin Holt, an ethnomusicologist at Columbia University who’s studied the relationship between country music and Southern rap, with a focus on Atlanta hip-hop culture. Holt broke down the many commonalities that country and hip-hop have had all along — including both genres’ particular emphasis on roots, authenticity, storytelling, and lived experience. He explained that in the digital-streaming era, the boundaries between genres like country and hip-hop are becoming more diffuse. That’s how we get artists like Sam Hunt, dubbed the “country Drake,” and it’s also how we got country-trap anthems from MCs like Young Thug and DaBaby. We also took a look at the rise of the year’s biggest genre disruptor, Lil Nas X, who shook up both country and hip-hop with his category-defying smash hit “Old Town Road.”
What is a mixtape? Merriam-Webster will tell you a mixtape is a compilation of songs recorded from various sources, but hip-hop fans know that is only one definition. Mixtapes are also a way for up and coming artists to showcase their developing sound. Before the age of Spotify, and long before the royalty rate associated with sampling rose, many hip-hop artists would sample the hits of other artists and add their own verse (or verses). The reworked track would then be burned to a CD or shared for free online, often both.
Record labels were not always directly involved with mixtapes. In fact, many viewed a rapper’s mixtape as being akin to a band’s 4-song demo. That all began to change after sites like DatPiff and other mixtape hubs began seeing hundreds of thousands, sometimes even millions, of downloads for a single mixtape. Labels then recognized that mixtapes could be a smart marketing tool, and as long as they could keep production costs low they would be able to promote more new talent with less risk.
But there was a problem: Mixtapes still cost money. They may cost less to produce than a traditional album, but there were still numerous people involved in the creation of a mixtape that needed to be paid. Labels, or perhaps their lawyers, realized many of those working on mixtapes would likely love to be associated with a major label and therefore willing to work for less if there was a promise of more opportunities in the future.
The solution was fairly simple. Projects labeled as ‘mixtapes’ or ‘street albums,’ otherwise known as any record released for promotional purposes that are not sold in stores, would pay less than traditional albums. Producers wanting to work with talent on the rise accepted this deal, often signing into longterm deals to work with the label on multiple projects, and for a while, everything seemed to make sense.
Then Spotify happened. Now, for the first time ever, more and more people were streaming music than ever before. They also began buying music less, which in turn lead labels to focus more and more marketing efforts on promoting their presence on streaming platforms. This lead to releasing albums exclusively to streaming platforms – AKA – they released albums they never planned to sell in a traditional sense. These albums were then dubbed ‘mixtapes’ or ‘street albums’ so those working on them would be paid less, but in reality, they’re commercial products being pushed to consumers the same way a label might promote a traditional record.
In short, producers got screwed because outdated language made it possible for the record industry to pay them less for the same amount of work through a very basic act of wordplay. Here’s one producer discussing how it happened to them:
.@WizKhalifa’s producer E. Dan (@IdlabsMusic) explains how record labels avoid paying producers + how Wiz’ loyalty got him beat placements 💯
Technology and the way we consume media changes far faster than the institutions that bring us the media we crave. This has been proven time and time again throughout pop culture history. The early stars of television could never have imagined a world with VHS tapes, let alone streaming, so none of them thought to ask for compensation if/when their series made it to those platforms. Likewise, musicians who were successful in a time before the internet have found the battle for royalties to be a constant uphill battle.
It’s not about foresight, however, because nine times out of ten the studios and record labels working with talent are no more aware of what the future will hold than those who produce content for them. Instead, corporations use legal jargon to ensure they always dictate how royalties and sales will be split between them and their talent. For example, since the dawn of the internet many labels have begun adding a clause to their contracts with talent that stipulates they will be allowed to distribute the music on sales and streaming platforms that have yet to be invented. That way, should a new Spotify or YouTube appear, there will be no argument as to whether or not the label gets a piece of whatever money that new channel brings in.
If all this makes it sound like the industry is rigged against the talent you wouldn’t be the only one to feel that way. Throughout time artists of all sizes in every corner of entertainment have had to bargain with those who financed their creative pursuits in order to ensure their livelihood. The chances that this trend changes anytime soon are slim, but thankfully there is more information available than ever that can help artists better navigate this area of the industry. In fact, here are a few books we recommend:
Inside Music is a podcast about the lives of professionals in the music business. Each week, host James Shotwell chats with an artist or industry tastemaker to learn how anyone can navigate the world of entertainment.
On this episode of INSIDE MUSIC, host James Shotwell calls up and coming rapper Jack Harlow to discuss his rise from Louisville, Kentucky to the national spotlight. He may only be 18 years old, but Jack has quickly established a voice and presence that is attracting a lot of attention from the industry. James asks Jack about his early days in music, the choice to remain independent, and the difficult path that this young entertainer now faces as he works his way to the next level of his career.
The music you hear in this episode is provided by Jack Harlow and his team. The opening track is titled “Ice Cream” and the snippet at the end is taken from “Hitchcock”. All of Jack’s music can be found on your preferred streaming service.
If you enjoy the show and you want to help us make more episodes, please subscribe to Inside Music on iTunes.
On this episode of INSIDE MUSIC, host James Shotwell sits down with hippy-hop innovator Mod Sun to discuss his career, including what fans should expect from his upcoming album. James and Mod Sun have a long history of working together in music, but this is the first time they have shared a conversation with the rest of the world. When not discussing his record, Mod Sun tells James about growing up in Minnesota, meeting Don Cannon, and how he came to own one of Travis Barker’s prized Cadillacs.
The song you hear in this episode is “Smokin What I’m Smokin On” from Mod Sun’s upcoming album. You can stream the song in full on Soundcloud.
You may already know this, but Inside Music is available on iTunes. Click here to subscribe so you never miss an episode!
On this episode of INSIDE MUSIC, host James Shotwell welcomes Minneapolis based rapper and SideOneDummy recording artist Astronautalis on the show as his first-ever in person guest. Astronautalis tells James about the inspiration behind his new album, Cut The Body Loose, as well as his crazy history in music. The two also discuss the influence of the Miami music scene on Astronautilus’ career, as well as their mutual admiration for the music of Trick Daddy. We don’t have a lot of hip-hop artists on the show, but we hope to have more in the future. Don’t miss this conversation!
The song you hear in this episode is “Running Away From God,” which appears on Astronautalis’ new album, Cut The Body Loose.
You may already know this, but Inside Music is available on iTunes. Click here to subscribe so you never miss an episode!
There is a lot of confusion among young artists today over what exactly it is that labels, managers, and everyone else in a position to help their career are looking for when seeking new talent. Most rock and pop bands believe they need to have strong social media skills, decent sales, and as many tour dates under their belt as possible. This is true, but those three elements are not the only things considered when someone is deciding who to work with next. Rappers, for example, rarely tour before being signed, and most give the bulk of their music away for free through mixtape releases or one-off singles. The return on their investment in creativity may not be recuperated as fast as those who sell their every creation, but it does allow for rappers to share part of themselves with a digital audience that many bands and performers from other genres never manage. Still, what is the value of a following if those who believe in you most are not willing to financially back your art?
In 2016, the best way to establish yourself in a way that attracts people who have the power to take your career to the next level is to offer what is often referred to as ‘the complete package.’ The definition for this ‘package’ can vary greatly from genre to genre, but the core elements remain the same. You need a strong online presence, of course, as well as a sizable following from people who are promoting your work without you having to ask them to do so every other day. You need people to hunger for your next move, and when you take that step you should be controlling the development of whatever comes next from the ground up. If you’re making a video, you should develop the idea and find a team to make it a reality. If you’re going on tour, you should design promotional materials to help spread the word. You also need to know how and where your music fits into the greater entertainment industry. Do you know what your audience looks like? Where do they live? Do they buy albums, or just singles? Do they prefer streaming music over purchasing physical products? Knowing this will not only make you more likely to succeed, but it will also enable you to better connect with those who support you most.
To further illustrate this point, let’s take a quick look at one up and coming independent artist who is poised for international stardom solely because of his relentless work ethic. Cousin Stizz is a twenty-four year old rapper from Boston with one mixtape to his name and a recent digital single (“Super Bowl”) that has received coverage all over the hip-hop blogosphere. Though his presence in the rap world has only been known outside his hometown for under two years Stizz has already attracted a large online following thanks to a combination of quality material, free downloads, constant interaction with listeners on social media, live performances, and, perhaps most notably, incredibly high quality music videos that showcase both his talent and his personality in ways simply hearing his art can never achieve. Take a look at his recent video for “No Bells,” which finds Stizz exploring his hometown with his crew while rapping along to the popular Suffolk County mixtape cut:
This is a video created by an artist who has surrounded himself with similarly driven people who understand the value of quality content. For the sake of comparison, here is a video from Future, one of the biggest rappers in music today, which was released around the same time as the clip for “No Bells”:
If I hadn’t already told you Cousin Stizz was an independent artist and that Future was a Billboard hitmaker, could you tell the difference when watching these clips? Probably not.
The same comparison could be made between any track Cousin Stizz has released and any hit from today’s rap heavyweights. Quality control is key to Stizz, and he does everything in his power to ensure he only delivers the best music he is able to create. From there, Stizz promotes his art with high quality visuals, as well as cover art, and a steady, but not overwhelming flow of promotional messaging through social networks. More often than not, fans that hear or see his art tweet about it themselves, and Stizz makes it a point to retweet those promoting his work so that he doesn’t need to sell his art himself. Why should he? Stizz may know his music better than anyone else, but he also understands that word of mouth is perhaps the most powerful tool in new music discovery. It’s far easier for your friend to get you to check out something new than it is for the unknown creator of that thing to get your attention. Stizz puts in his work up front, and the reaction from his audiences dictates how his creations are promoted moving forward.
Any industry pro looking for new artists to work with would be a fool to not consider Cousin Stizz because he, somewhat ironically, doesn’t appear to need help at this point in his career. From an outsider’s point of view, Stizz is able to create quality music and videos, receive coverage from essentially all major music outlets covering his genre, book shows across the US, and have his every move promoted, celebrated, or otherwise discussed by a wide array of rap fans on the internet. Cousin Stizz has found a way to establish himself as a reliable brand in a world of artists who often struggle with consistency, and that speaks volumes to anyone in a position of power. With the industry being as cutthroat as it is, most of the so-called ‘gatekeepers’ of the industry are looking for talent that, if anything, merely need more money to better do what they are already doing on their own. It’s not about changing or improving who an artist is, but rather empowering them to be a better version of who they already are. Cousin Stizz is ready for the big leagues, and his body of work, as well as his promotional strategy, tell us that without him having to open his mouth.
You might be not be a rapper, but there are lessons you can learn from the hustle of Cousin Stizz. First and foremost, quality is everything. You can release singles, an album, or even five albums over the course of a year, but if your quality is not consistent you will quickly see a diminishing return on time spent. The digital age has lead us to believe everyone needs to be making something new all the time, but that isn’t necessarily true in music. The artists who succeed most often are those who put as much time, focus, and effort possible into each new step they take. Be it a tour, recording new material, shooting videos, designing promotional materials, or even writing tweets, quality and honesty are everything. Be real about who you are and what you want, share those ideas with the world in the most creative way you can imagine, and then engage with those who connect with what you’ve released. Leverage their belief in what you’re doing to convert more to your art, and in time you will have an army behind you that every label, manager, publicists, and booking agent cannot deny. You don’t have to accept their offers for help, but at least you’ll know they are available and that you’re on the right path with your career.
James Shotwell is the Digital Marketing Manager for Haulix. He is also a professional entertainment critic, covering both film and music, as well as the co-founder of Antique Records. Feel free to tell him you love or hate the article above by connecting with him onTwitter. Bonus points if you introduce yourself by sharing your favorite Simpsons character.
It’s hard to throw a digital rock online without hitting a list featuring anywhere from 5 to 500 artists poised to make a big splash on the music industry at large in 2016. We have picks of our own, which will make themselves known through the content we run in coming weeks, but we are always looking for even more new talent to discover. Having a good song or two is nice, but those who truly wish to make it in the modern age need more than a hook and melody to succeed. Artists today need to be self-motivated, confident without being cocky, and above all forward-thinking. They need to disregard the path to success others have paved and find a way to lift themselves, as well as others in their genre, out of the muck of obscurity.
As far as we are concerned, few independent musicians are doing more to make a difference in the world today than Marco Pavé, a fast rising hip-hop artist from Memphis, TN. Pavé has yet to have a hit single on national radio, but he has already given a TED talk on the importance of socially conscious music and developed a dedicated online following that wouldn’t think twice to promote his latest creations. For Marco, success is best when it aides the people around him as much as it does himself, and it’s that desire to see his entire community rise up that is helping establish his presence in the art world.
We recently had the opportunity to chat with Marco about his life and career, as well as where he hopes to find himself in the future. You can find highlights from our conversation below.
Haulix: Hello, Marco. Thank you for taking a few minutes to speak with us. How is the day treating you so far?
Marco: Hey! Thanks for having me! It’s going pretty good, things are picking up pretty well for me; so staying busy is always good.
H: Your most recent EP, Perception, dropped about two months ago. How has the response been so far?
Marco: Yes, time is flying on that project! The response has been very great. My EP debuted at #24 on the CMJ charts and quickly made it way to the top 10 and eventually to #2 most recently. My EP has been featured on sites like The Source, That’s Enuff, Soul Train, BlkDmnds, and many more. The paper of record in Memphis, The Commercial Appeal named my EP as one of the best records on the year in Memphis. I am a blessed that 5 songs have been this critically acclaimed.
H: Do you have goals in mind for each release? If so, what did you hope to accomplish with the release of ‘Perception’?
Marco: Yes. I have specific goals for everything that I do, especially with a project. I always want to increase my fanbase when I release new music. I feel like that was one of my main goals for this project. I have rapidly grown from the local Memphis scene and my music and project goals need to reflect that. I also wanted to accomplish the goal of telling my story and not giving a dam what anyone had to say about it.
H: The single, “Black Tux,” has been on repeat in our offices for about three months at this point. I think we first caught it on when The Source ran it back in September. I know a lot of aspiring rappers struggle to catch the attention of any blogger, let along the major publications. To what do you attribute your ability to stay on the radar of industry critics big and small?
Marco: I am blessed first and foremost, not in some kinda I am divinely guided type of way but I am just blessed to be here being respected by these major publications after making if from what I’ve made it through! I am all about networking, I know these publications are not some entity that can’t be tapped into, they have writers that are humans just like me. It’s just about reaching out and waiting for something to pop. I now also have an amazing publicist that gets me a lot of great looks.
H: Memphis was once considered a hotbed for rap talent, though it has been a little while since your city produced a major star. How would you describe the local music scene right now, and how has it changed in recent years?
Marco: It depends on what you consider a major star, it’s been some great guys coming out of Memphis lately. IheartMemphis, with Hit the Quan has taken the world by storm with his dancem Young Dolph is increasingly popping up on urban radio with features from 2 Chainz, T.I, and Gucci Mane, and Yo Gotti hasn’t lost any steam in the last 10 years. He is responsible for the careers of Snottie Wild and Blac Youngsta. A lot of times Memphis artists get their city identity stolen by Atlanta because it’s a hotbed for Hip Hop right now and Memphis doesn’t have much of a music industry to compete. But the local scene in Memphis is strong right now with artists like Preauxx, Jon Waltz, Casher, Xavier Wulf, Hippy Soul, Zane Rigo and Tayy the Pro to just name a few. The industry has changed a lot here in Memphis because so many people move away to pursue their goals on larger level.
H: Let’s take it back to the beginning. When did you first start rapping, and when did you start to realize you could really do something with your talent?
Marco: Man, I have been making music for a while now. I haven’t always been making the best quality music; I was accustomed to recording on whatever was available. I have been making music for about 12 years now. I got started when my friends and me were in the cafeteria of Volletine Elementary in Memphis, Tennessee. We used to beat on the tables and make up raps on the spot. That transitioned to my friends and I recording music on the tape player that I stole from my dad’s room, and now I am making records on my album 12 years later. I realized I had the talent to make it happen early on.
H: Have you had a moment in your career where you’ve felt like you’ve ‘made it’ in any way? If so, what was it?
Marco: I don’t really have those moments because I haven’t made a million dollars yet (laughs). But seriously I do, when I wake up everyday and think back to where I used to be as a PERSON, not just an artist, I’ve made it. The fact that I can just sit up and respond to emails and do interviews and give talks about hip hop all are signs of making it to me. There are still a ways to go, but I am proud of what I’ve been able to do.
H: I’ve read quotes where you claim to make your music for everyone, and that you love to blend genres/styles whenever possible. Who is currently influencing your work?
Marco: Man I’ve been going back stepping away from contemporary music a bit, I’ve been listening to John Coltrane, Nina Simone, Frank, Harry Bellafonte and more. I want to be able to stretch a song like these amazing jazz artists, everything was an instrument, even their voices.
H: As much as we love your music, we’re also pretty taken by your concern for your local community. To what do you attribute your continued passion for seeing your city thrive?
Marco: Man, I am from this city. If I did like everyone else who goes from poor to the middle class and forget about all the people in the struggle then that defeats the purpose. I want to build the city to be better even when we are all gone. I can do my part through music for now.
H: Has giving back always been part of your music career?
Marco: It hasn’t always been apart of my career, but I can say, once I focused on more than groupies, and being in the club trying to get laid, my career changed for the better.
H: You were able to present a TED talk last year on how hiphop saved your life. Can you tell us a bit about that experience and what, if anything, has developed from it in the months since your appearance?
Marco: That experience was great! I was actually invited to do two Ted talks and both of them are things that I will have in my arsenal for a long time. I have gotten some major press from my first ted talk from The Source Magazine, to Soul Train. The Root even named me as one of the 17 unsung heroes of Black Lives Matter. Having two Ted talks under my belt is a great way to push my career forward outside of just making music.
H: Looking to the future, what goals do you have for both your music and your philanthropy?
Marco: For my music, my first goal is to get my debut album out, tour from the success of my EP, and then eventually get into European tours. For my philanthropy, if I can even call it that, I just want my platform to be large enough to help entire families pay for college, start a business, pay off loans, etc. I don’t want to give and increase the idea of poverty; I want to BREAK the idea of poverty.
H: Speaking to those goals, what are the biggest hurdles standing in your way?
Marco: The biggest hurdles standing in my way music wise is the local industry in Memphis, there is none! Especially for hip-hop artists, those artists that I named earlier are all either leaving Memphis or have left Memphis to build connects in LA and ATL, so in order to do anything very long term I need to find connections in other places and try to build everything I need from the ground up. And for the philanthropy, I am just not rich yet (laughs).
H: If you could offer one piece of advice to aspiring musicians reading this now, what would you say?
Marco: Never give up! But don’t hopelessly dream and hope, you have to plan; you have to build your team. Most importantly you have read and study the game, there are so many books out there about copyrights, publishing, touring and everything else that indie artist need to learn about.
H: We wish you the best of luck in everything, Marco. Before we let you go, are there any final comments or plugs you would like to share?
Marco: Thank you so much for having me! This was a great interview; I love a publication that does their research. For everyone out there reading please follow me on all social media @KingofMarco, and visit my website at KingofMarco.com
The following post was submitted to Haulix by Michael Giegerich, a universally respected hip-hop critic whose origins in music began in the world of punk and alternative rock. We asked Michael if he would shed some light on his transition between genres, and fortunately for us he was more than willing to share his adventures here on our blog. Enjoy.
One of my fondest childhood memories goes something like this: riding shotgun in my dad’s car on a sunny afternoon in 2005, Mike Jones’ “Back Then” was coursing through the speakers. The track was inescapable on Atlanta’s 95.5 The Beat and MTV alike, but at this moment, how many times I’d previously heard the single didn’t matter. Maybe it was due to the contagious levels of confidence in Jones’ flow, or maybe it was the blustering, record-scratching beat, but one thing was certain: I wasn’t just casually enjoying “Back Then” – it made me feel alive.
An average kid from the suburbs, I spent the bulk of my teenage years invested in metal and hardcore music, dragging my mom to shows and spending every last cent to my name on edgy band tees. Eventually, armed with nothing but a Tumblr blog and an audio recorder at the age of 15, I converted this passion into words – a lot of words, in fact. Over the next four years, I poured my heart and soul into covering the bands whose stages I dove from and CDs I wore thin; in tandem, my writing skills and industry relationships grew.
As the story goes, though, my love for the genres I once valued so highly began to wither upon my sophomore year in college; a natural conclusion to a phase that some may say lived past its shelf-life. Coincidentally, a severe bout of depression almost stole my life soon after, and in the process, my love for music and writing was robbed entirely. The next six months found me spiraling downward as I searched for anything that would make me feel whole again; changing majors, scenery, and medication, all routes that proved fruitless. I eventually smashed into rock bottom after it became clear nothing could break my fall, but in those depths, some much needed self-reflection led to finding the common denominator of happiness in my life: hip-hop.
I had actively kept up with more than a handful of rappers for years, sure. Hell, I even reviewed my fair share of rap records and was more knowledgeable on the genre than most in my social circle. Yet, for the first time, I consciously realized the pure, unadulterated joy it gave me. Whether it involved getting buck to Rae Sremmurd’s pop-infused Atlanta trap at my university’s spring concert or throwing back lukewarm beers to Danny Brown’s unmistakable squaw in my dorm room – much like that sunny afternoon in 2005 – the weight on my shoulders dissipated. Upon this realization, I slowly but surely picked up writing again while devoting myself to understanding as much as humanly possible about the music that had given me so much. I began examining hip-hop projects with a fine-toothed comb, reading every feature related to the genre I could find, and most importantly, reminding myself everyday of how fortunate I was to receive this chance at redemption.
Seven months later, it’s almost overwhelming to see how much has changed. My mind is sharper than ever, my appreciation for hip-hop is expanding exponentially, and recently, I conducted what is undeniably the most notable interview of my career to date. In truth, though, I’m not satisfied just yet. As hip-hop once pushed me to find inner peace, the inescapable work ethic of the genre now pushes me to perfect my writing skills and not lose sight of the promising road ahead. There’s a long way to go, but throughout the journey, one simple fact will remain constant: hip-hop saved my life.
So here’s to you, hip-hop. Here’s to you and whatever the future may bring.
Every artist, regardless of genre, does their best to make each album release something special. What makes that any one special varies from album to album, but ideally the artist behind that release believes the work to be the best they could possibly create at that time. After all, why would you release something you were not a fan yourself? The entire reason any artist strives for a record deal or similar financial backing is to better express themselves.
But what if you didn’t have a choice in how or when your album was released?
Lupe Fiasco has maintained a position near the top of the hip-hop hierarchy for nearly a decade, but he’s not above falling short of expectations. The Chicago based rappers has experienced numerous ups and downs during his career, but no drop may have hurt more than the release of his third album, Lasers, in 2011. This was the release that supposed to cement Fiasco’s place amongst hip-hop’s greatest icons, but due to several wars with his label the product that eventually arrived on shelves was not what fans, critics, or even Fiasco himself wanted to hear. It still had moments, of course, but overall the album was a clear step back in a career that had until that time been on a constant progression made in leaps and bounds.
Now, after four years of regret, Lupe is taking a step to erase his biggest commercial disappointment from the record books.
In a new message to fans, which accompanied a series of updates on the rapper’s plans for the future, Lupe has revealed a way to ‘unmake’ Lasers. Check it out:
“My 3rd musically related thing I want to accomplish this year is not to make another album but to do something waaaay stupider…I want to unmake an album. I watched the ATARI E.T. documentary and got inspired. So here’s my idea. For all you people who really hated my 3rd album LASERS for whatever reason in the universe I want you to send it back to me so I can destroy it with an actual Laser.
You not getting any money back or an apology or anything like that. The fact still remains that a lot of people really loved LASERS (Me Included) despite the popular myth that it’s one of the worst rap albums ever but sometimes the myth can be stronger than the truth. So yeah….if you have a physical copy of LASERS that you absolutely hate and wish for it to be rendered non-existent then you can send it back to me and I’ll have it destroyed with an actual giant laser and send it into next world in spectacular grand fashion!
Just how Fiasco will use a laser to destroy remains a mystery, but the idea has quickly garnered the rapper a lot of positive attention in the press. A quick scan of bothhashtags on Twitter reveals fans seem into the idea as well.
If you found yourself wishing to destroy an album you created, how would you do it?
If you’re anything like me, you probably started the day by recognizing that the start of a new work week had indeed arrived and then immediately began shaking your fists at the sky in anger. Monday is rarely anyone’s favorite day, and from what I have seen firsthand it feels safe to say it’s the one day of the week some people outright hate. I guess to them the arrival of the work week symbolizes the end of their quote/unquote freedom, and as a result they head into the office/factory/restaurant/store with a negative outlook already on their mind. This leads to bad attitudes, which only makes the experience of being at work worse, and for some reason it also seems to make time slow to a crawl. We’re not about that life, and we hope this post can do the same you that the song contained within it did for us.
Generally speaking, we tend to keep a running list of artists and releases to feature in this column that outlines the next several weeks or even months of content production, but every now and then a release comes along that is so good we scrap our plans and talk about it instead. Such is the case today, as we woke and realized it was Future’s new release Dirty Sprite 2 that we needed to cover instead of the record we chose back in June. This was unexpected. It’s not that we don’t enjoy Future and his unique brand of hook-laden rap, but we never really saw his work as something substantial until this release hit our inbox early Friday morning. Now, we may be fans for life.
Now it’s important for those unfamiliar with the work of Future to know he’s not a rapper like Drake or Kendrick Lamar, and by that I mean he’s not someone whose music is necessarily praised for its lyrical content. The infectious nature of Dirty Sprite 2, like most of Future’s catalog, is owed to the way it makes you feel when it plays. There is a vibe to this record that is downright empowering. You hear it and you want to fight a little harder for whatever big dreams you possess. You want to ball as hard as he does, but you don’t necessarily want to be him. The joy Future speaks of is the result of being himself, and it’s that self-assurance in his own greatness that listeners will want to replicate in their own lives.
On a less serious note, Dirty Sprite 2 is also the perfect soundtrack for keeping the feeling of freedom the weekend offers alive throughout the busy work week. You can put it on to and from work, in between meetings, or while you’re at the gym and find that little extra boost of energy you need to push through whatever challenges may present themselves. You bob along with the beats and, even if just for a moment, feel as if your life has temporary transformed into the glossy world only found in music videos. It’s a fleeting effort in low level escapism, but it’s an escape nonetheless.
The reason I chose Dirty Sprite 2 for today’s motivational post is similar to the reasons behind our selection for last week and the week before, which is the presence of undeniable originality and the ability of that force to influence positive life changes in whoever happens to hear them. We don’t want you to catch yourself pissing codeine syrup like Future mentions doing on DS2’s opener, but we do want you to hear what is possible when someone throws caution to the wind and presents themselves to the world without any sense of hesitation over revealing their true selves to the world. Future hasn’t always been able to do that, but having emerged from the end of a deeply intimate relationship with Ciara feeling a new drive to create he’s finally reached that point and it’s good enough to make you work a little harder to be you in everything you do. Don’t miss out.
