I would Like To Change The TONE Somewhat Momentarily, And Introduce A New Aspect Of This BLOG That Is Very Important To Me... This Is Going To Be A Regular Post Probably Coming About Once A Week Depending On How Diversified My Music Tastes Are In Said Week. Im Going To Call It "A Escuchar" Which Is Spanich For "To Listen". So Come With me And We Can Talk About Music (Or I Can Talk And You Can Listen Rather) For A Lil' Bit.
As You May Or May Not Be Aware, Tuesday Is The Requisite Day For New Releases In The Music Industry (Like Friday For Movies) And While Nothing This Week Has Really Interested Me Enough To "Purchase" It, There Are Some New Sonic Offerings I Would Like To Discuss. This Entry Will Not Center On New Music, But All Music That I Am Currently Enjoying, Or Is Making Some Sort Of Impact In This World:
First Off, New Entries:
-Drake "Thank Me Later"
Personally, I Have Been Anticipating This Major Label Debut Of Aubrey Grahm's Ever Since I Heard That The Dude Who Did That Song "Best I Ever Had" Was The Same Kid That Got Shot In The Back On "Degrassi: The Next Generation" Sometime In Early 2009. Let Me Explain, Ever Since I Was A Wee Sophomore In Highschool And My Girlfriend Got Digital Cable I Have Been Watching Canadian High School Drama "Degrassi: The Next Generation" Loyally. If Youre Okay With Basic Subtraction, And Aware That I Graduated In 2003, You Will Understand That This Was Shortly After The Show Premiered In America. I Watched As Young Jimmy And Ashley First Decided To Give Themselves Over To One Another And Then Decided That 8th Grade Was Far Too Soon. I Watched As Jimmy, Overwhelmed With The Pressures Of Highschool And His Father's Constant Absence Took His First Swig Of The Hard Stuff. I Watched As Rick, Bullied By All Of His Classmates After Harming His Girlfriend (Terri) Was Pushed The Brink And Put A Bullet In Jimmys Back Paralyzing The Poor Kid Before Putting A Bullet Into His Own Brain. I Even Watched As A Paralyzed Jimmy Tried to Overcome This Adversity By Joining The Band "Downtown Sasquatch" And Later After Frontman Craig Hit The Big Time Pick Up The Mic And Drop A Few Lines On Top Of His Reunited Girlfriend Ashley's Whack Ass Song To Much Praise Of All In Attendance At Degrassi's Talent Show (Much To Ashley's Chagrin."
I Know, The Drama Is Palpable!
So You Can Imagine My Excitement When I Heard That Aubrey Grahm Was Picked Up As A Fledgling MC By None Other Than Rap Pioneer Dwayne "Lil' Wayne" Carter My All Time Favorite Rap Artist. I Immediately "Purchased" the Mix-Tape "So Far Gone" And Was Thoroughly Impressed. "So Far Gone" In My Opinion Is A Cross-Over Masterpiece, Blending Hip Hop, Rap, And Even Some Rock Elements (Thanks To Downtown Sasquatch Im Sure) With Very Memorable Lines And Echoing Melodies That Still To This Day I Cannot Put Down. In All Front To Back, This Mixtape Sounds Very Much Like A Studio Album, Cutting The Bullshit That Other Mixtapes Are Wrought With (Drops, Crappy Intros, Shitty Covers) And Being Geniunely Enjoyable To Listen To From Front To Back, With Only A Few Songs That I Will Skip Over Regularly (I Just Dont Like "Lets Call The Whole thing Off" At All).
So Its Been A Long Couple Of Months Waiting To See What Drizzy The Kid Would Do When Given Creative Control Over A Studio Release. After Being Pushed Back Numerous Times Due To Thieves (Yeah, You Know You Tried To Steal It) "Thank Me Later" Was Finally Released On June 15th 2010!!! But, Alas, Hype Can Be The Driving Force Behind Album Sales Or It Can Be The Destroyer Of Even The Best Attempt... And I Think Hype Definitely Did Its Part To Sell "Thank Me Later" Short. After Not Reaching The Ambitious First Week Platinum Album Sales Precedent Set By "Tha Carter III" That Drake And Lil' Wayne Speculated It Would, One Has To Wonder If Had They Released The Album On Valentine's Day 2010 And Not Kept Hyping And Pushing, Hyping And Pushing (Just Because It Worked For Tha Carter III Doesnt Mean It Will Ever Work Again) Would It Have Reached That Fabled Platinum Status? In All, "Thank Me Later" Is An Incredible Debut. Star Studded Tracks Like "Fancy Feat. Swizz Beats, T.I." "Light Up Feat. Jay-Z" And "Up All Night Feat. Nicki Minaj" Genuinely Are Better Than Anything On "So Far Gone" And Drakes Crossover Appeal Is Obvious If Not A Little Bit Forced. He Does Have A Wonderful Voice, And Some Serious (Not Quite Lyrical Genius Mother Fuckin Wordsmith Status) Flow, But "Thank Me Later" Lacks Genuine Rap Gems Like "November 18th" And "Uptown Feat. Bun-b And Lil' Wayne" That "So Far Gone" Had In Droves. It Seems To Me He Was Trying Too Hard To Cater To Both R&B And Rap Fans On Every Song, Having Few Genuine R&B Tracks Like "A Night Off Feat. Lloyd" And "Bria's Interlude Feat. Omarion". The Singles Dont Have The Lasting Quality That A Single Should Have, And Seem Too Obvious To Make Them Timeless. However, The Ammount Of Effort Drake Put Into His Debut Is Clear, And While He Gets His Share Of Hate I Think That His Succsess Is Well Deserved. I Hope "Thank Me Later" Eventually Achives Its Deserved Platinum Status, Although Thats A Mighty Big Hope In The Era Of Torrents And Pirates. I Am Very Proud Of Little Jimmy Brooks For Growing Up Into A Big Strong MC And Becoming One OF The Most Talked About Artists Of The Last Year. If You Dont Have "Thank Me Later" Do Yourself A Favor And Buy It, Or Download It If Your Too Chicken To Spend Good Money On Something You Can Get For Free. It Gets Better With Every Listen And Hopefully Is Not The Last We Will Hear From Aubrey "Drake(Jimmy Brooks)" Graham. Ima Give This One A Thumbs Up Ladies And Gentlemen.
Antonio Michael Silvera 6/23/2010
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