"Lemonade was a popular drink and it still is"

That's the line that immediately comes to mind whenever I think of Guru.

I don't begrudge anyone's love or even like of Guru, but he's just not for me. IMO, each and every time he's paired with another MC he gets left in the dust. I'll give him props on his tone and delivery, but lyrically he comes up short in my eyes. Some have the voice and some have the content but few possess the two.

I don't remember him really doing many collaborations. His earlier stuff I like a lot. I know he and Premier had a split can't remember when it occurred.

Manifest is a classic particularly the remix version
Whose gonna take the weight also a classic.

He fell off to me during the late 90's. I always remained a fan though.

Incidentally not fast Eddie. I remember having his stuff on a bootleg tape my freshman yr in college. I bet he thought he was about to revolutionize the rap game and then he just fizzled.


Everyone knows of Rakim but he had a song on the mahogany album that was a real sleeper. "The Ghetto". He is dropping some serious shit on that cut.

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he did some, mostly with other Gang Starr affiliates...Jeru the Damaja, Group Home/Lil Dap, Nice & Smooth. He's on the 2nd Prince Paul album on a song w/ Planet Asia that's pretty good. Oh and he's on one of the Dilated Peoples albums too

Let's get ready for the weekend with a contribution from one of the top five MC's of all time, and arguably the best lyrical painter of pictures there's ever been.

I'm speaking of course of Nas, from back in the Nasty Nas days. Any time I lay back and listen to Nas do his thing, I'm awed at how imaginative and engaging his words are. Off of the "It Was Written" album, (one of the best albums of any musical genre) I present to you.....

Shootouts.

It Was Written...is way underrated

That album is fantastic. I don't see how anyone can say otherwise. Like I said, Nas is top five for me all time. Just don't cast him in another movie. I loved "Belly" from Hype Williams. It was like one long video, but damn, Nas was sleepwalking through the whole thing. Not his fault though, he never should've been put in that position to fail.

its worth it just for The Set Up

New York State of Mind off the original Illmatic album
ETHER One of the best diss songs ever. Have never been able to view Jigga or Hova in the same light after that.

One mic also classic.

Halftime. One of his first joints.

Off the top of my head I Remember him being on Main Source's live at the Barbecue collaboration. Don't feel like checking but also classic. His line was I went to hell for killing Jesus if I remember correct.

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Today we'll take a look back at an overlooked RZA effort.

Off the underrated soundtrack, from the underrated film Bulworth, it's.....

The Chase.

One of the first Rap groups I instantly fell in love with, it's 3rd Bass with....

Brooklyn Queens

An interesting yet sad tale, is what became of Prime Minister Pete Nice. After his 3rd Bass days, Pete really got into the sports memorabilia world though that didn't work out so well for him. He's also had some issues with the taxman.

Peter Nash Pleads Guilty To Tax Fraud.

Just a great thread by a great poster

I guess now Pete Nice now has the gas face.

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Nicely done.

I thought you'd catch that. I always remember that album. I bought that album along with PE'S Fear of a Black Planet at the same time. It was a big deal for me because I actually bought the tapes at their regular price. I used to buy bootleg or dub tapes a lot so for me to pay regular price for something was a big deal to me. Sorry to hear he has sort of fallen on hard times.

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I picked up The Cactus and License To ILL on cassette at Ford City on the same day. I thought I was the coolest kid on the South Side.

All my early Rap influences came from watching Rap City on BET and YO MTV Raps on Saturday mornings. And then WJPC 950 AM came along but it disappeared before we had a chance to really appreciate it.

The New Style was my favorite track off the License to Ill album.

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It's "Brass Monkey", the underrated "No Sleep Til Brooklyn", "Paul Revere" and then everything else in my view.

Today we'll delve into the work of a renaissance man of sorts, Mos Def. Off the "Black On Both Sides" album, which has one of the best covers ever,



here's Ms. Fat Booty.

whats so great about the cover ?

but yea..i should listen to that, been awhile

Just a face coming at you and there's no escaping it.

Even if you have no idea who Mos Def is, you most definitely stop and stare and that album cover. It follows you around the room.

To commemorate the release of "Straight Outta Compton" this past weekend, let's pay tribute to the city out West albeit with a little twist. We head back to 1991 to revisit DJ Quick's debut single, off his debut album "Quick Is The Name", it's.....

Born And Raised In Compton.

i want straight outta compton to go away so if anything i can turn on the radio/TV without hearing "HOW'D YOU GO FROM SELLING ROCKS OUT OF A CRACKHOUSE TO HAVING DINNER IN THE WHITE HOUSE?!?!!?" fuck off!

anyways in terms of love ballads to LA i'll offer up something off of the beaten path which, IIRC, uses a beat made from fatback band's "backstroke" (indeed when i first heard backstroke on 102.7 one night i was like HOLY SHIT THATS A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD!!!!!" and yeah)

dolla holla (project blowed comp) - beautiful day in the neighborhood

hey i could have done to live and die in LA you know... "i had sex with your wife BUT NOT IN THOSE WORDS!!!!" =D

and do the chorus with me CUZ SECTION EIGHT'S ON TAPE(?) MOVIN LIKE A FREIGHT TRAIN LEAVING THE IMPERIAL STA......TION!"

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btw for what its worth i think express yourself is the best song NWA ever made. i love the way it starts off like I'M EXPRESSING WITH MY FULL CAPABILITIES.... NOW I'M LIVING IN CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES!!!!!

and of course dre comes out and says he has to "get straight" then do whatever..... HEY WHY YOU GOTTA "GET STRAIGHT" DRE? WHY WOULD THAT BE?

he doesnt smoke weed or cess tho cuz it gives a brother brain damage... don't be another sequel! and hey ice cube aint one for the pop charts!!!! lol man this song is so full of it, but then again so is most of "Gangsta rap" --- one day when listening to scarface's i seen a man die i realized gangsta rap was just about saying the most extreme shit you could say, ergo it was all bullshit.... i laughed and got my head screwed on right and went on to start to enjoy more "overground" rap aka "pop hop" or stuff that has seen a top 40 chart or 2. prior to that i had my backpacker superority complex and was all like EWWWW POPULAR RAP HAS GOTTA BE GARBAGE..... soon after this i picked up a copy of reasonable doubt and got over my bias.

btw am i the only one here who thinks scarface sounds like saafir rapping on i seen a man die? maybe its hte other way around, but as i've surely said in one of these threads b4 i really dig saafir's light sleeper (OG version). ah well c'est la vie. heres to hoping straight outta compton can get out of the mass advertising cycle ASAP.

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For me, Gangsta Gangsta is the best N.W.A. Ice Cube era jam, while Appetite For Destruction tops the list post Ice Cube.

Parental Discretion is advised is a the sleeper song on straight out of Compton album. Gangsta Gangsta. Hmm. Fuck the police. And Gangsta Gangsta 1 and 1A. I did like the lyrics on Parental discretion. It was the first time I'd ever heard of Braille. I used to play that album every day as a sophomore in high school.

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gangster rap had its place but some of the later guys appeared to be cartoonish to me. N.W.A and the Geto Boys got props for being pioneers but the guys that came along later just appeared to be piggy backing because it was hot at the time.

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Ironically, Scarface was one of the only real gangtas if legend is to be believed