Conversation: A Lil Ventilation - Who's Responsible for all these Bodies?

Listen to this...






(Disclaimer: the album hasn’t dropped yet, so I couldn’t find the lyrics online. These are the words that I heard when I listened to the song for the hundredth time. So, I apologize in advance if they aren’t all correct. I just thought that it was important for you all to read.)

"The wine is white and the lights are dim.
They warned you don’t go home with him.
His guilty feet’ll never dance again.
(I know, but will I ever get the chance again?)
I been held in contempt for an incident.
But it takes two to be intimate.
So, by no means was she innocent.
(Well, it wasn't a crime if I didn't witness it.)

They said that chivalry is dead
Then why is her body in my bed?
At sunrise, the morning paper’s read.
They found a body in my bed

Can nonchalant be obvious? of course.
I lean forward, hurry, whisper, the choice is yours
Need I remind you that I’ll have no remorse?
(I understand.)
Here’s a kiss, sweetheart, this won’t hurt a bit.
I can kill it with kindness or murder it
Then I would face the time a murderer would get.
(You'll get away with it.)
Life.

They said that chivalry is dead
Then why is her body in my bed?
At sunrise, the morning paper’s read.
They found a body in my bed"

(And the end of the song is only for the grown and sexy. LOL)

Ever since I figured out what this song was about, I’ve been DYING to write about it. I’ll admit, Cee-lo’s voice and the snares in the background is what initially convinced me to put this song on repeat. But after really listening to the message that he’s conveying, I became addicted. It’s so hard to find songs with thought provoking messages these days…so I was impressed.

So let’s get to it. Who’s to blame for the death of chivalry? It seems like a simple question with a simple answer. You would think that it would only make since to blame men for the things that they don’t do to show appreciation for women.

But on the other hand, I KNOW that you know that girl that lets dudes get away with everything. I know her. I went to high school with her. I met hundreds of her in college. She’s the girl that I could never REALLY be friends with because secretly, I blamed her for allowing men to believe that we could be walked over. I blamed her for letting them believe that they could be with one girl, and another girl, and somebody else, and that’s ok. I blamed her for making him believe that the best part of some girls is what they can do at night after she just met him in the club. Cee-lo found a more creative and intriguing way to say what I partially believed all along. He confirmed that I’m not crazy for partly blaming THAT girl for the death of chivalry.

Nowadays, some guys aren’t slick with “game” and don’t approach women properly simply because, let’s face it, they don’t have to. They can tell a girl that they don’t want to be in relationship with her…that they don’t care about her (and they don’t ever plan on caring about her), and she’ll still be willing to give him exactly what he wants. He doesn’t have to open doors for her. He doesn’t have to pull her chair. For what? She’s not worth it. She doesn’t make herself worth it.

But of course, I don’t think that the blame should only be thrown one way. I think that men took the notion of us wanting to be independent a little to0 far. Just because I might want to pay for my own dinner, doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t pull the chair before we sit down. It kinda seems like women can’t really win. If a woman demands too much respect, she might not get any. And if she demands none at all, she’ll get that too. But as with most relationships with any other human being, there has to be a balance. If both parties respect themselves as more than just one-night stands, they’ll both be treated accordingly. At the same time, if that’s what you’re looking for, don’t be mad when the other person (male or female) isn’t chivalrous.

Ok, now back to this amazing song. I thought that it was great that some type of female perspective is present in the song. (Although, it’s kind of biased, because clearly, she only represents one type of woman.) Everything that she says is dumb. She's fine with being just another body. And by no means, do I think that all women are part of this feminine blame of chivalry’s demise. But this chick, and all women like her, need to know that they are ruining it for all of us.

I also think it’s interesting that he refers to her as a body. Not a woman. Not another person. Just a body.

My favorite line of the whole song is: “His guilty feet’ll never dance again.” I just love how he sings it ...and I love how this line fits into the larger scheme of things. It’s the third line of the song, so I think it was a good idea to start the song admitting that men are a guilty part in this “death of chivalry” discussion. I also like the notion of describing that people do things that they’ll do never again after that first impression has been made.

My other favorite line is: “Here’s a kiss, sweetheart, this won’t hurt a bit. I can kill it with kindness or murder it.” Word, Cee-lo? I see you! Lol That line is just too smooth. The whole song is just too slick for me. I feel like the message of this song is going to go over a few people’s heads because they'll get lost in the parallels...and I like that. The slang use of “kill it”, the DEATH of chivalry, the “murdering”, the contempt and innocence of a crime, the bodies…this shit is just way too witty. Even the instruments that he uses, provide that eerie, mysterious, crime solving kind of vibe. I love it. Everything about the song is absolutely genius.

In fact, I just love how he tells this story. I'm impressed with the way that he sets it all up and the fact that he uses such a small amount of words to spark a debate. I like how he asks, “why is her body in my bed?” It forces you to think about the answer to the question instead of having to hear him place the blame. The whole thing is cleverly done.

With all this being said, I don’t think that chivalry is completely dead. There are still men who know how to treat women and there are still women who deserve to be treated with respect. It’s up to us, as human beings who want the best, to act accordingly.

As always,
Les is more.

Passion, Pain, Pleasure...

Trey Songz drops his fourth studio album today....who's excited? That would be me.


I'm not going to go through and review every single song because at the end of the day, it's a Trey Songz album...you already know what that sounds like. I must admit, I'm not quite sure if it's as good as "Ready"...but at the same time, it took awhile for some of the songs on "Ready" to grow on me so I have to give this album the same respect.

My one complaint about this album is this: Obviously, Trey hasn't gripped the fact that he can dominate the lane of R&B club bangers. The closest thing to a "Say Aah" on this album is "Bottoms Up" and that's it. If there would have been more songs like that...this album would have been better. Passion, Pain, Pleasure is generally slow...but I mean, it's Trey....so...that's fine ;)

I like that Trey still does interludes. I feel like that's a lost art in music today and his are always good enough to be whole songs.

I can also appreciate that there's 17 tracks. It seems like a lot of artists have been getting away with releasing EPs and calling them LPs. I feel better about spending my money on full length albums lol.

"Bottoms Up" was a good first single. It's catchy and the beat knocks! Nicki Minaj's verse is ok. A little spastic for me but I've grown to like it and I didn't expect anything less from Barbie.

I still don't know about that second single "Can't Be Friends"...I'm still waiting for it to grow on me. And the video is interesting...


Out of the 17 tracks, I'm in love with 9...and I haven't really heard anything that I can't stand yet. I've bought every Trey Songz album since "I Gotta Make It" and not once have I felt like I wasted my money. Therefore, I'm definitely gonna go drop another $10 on the kid before today is over.

He's worth it. He's spent most of his career being overlooked and underrated. It's good to finally see him shine.

Best songs on the album: "Massage" (my FAVORITE), "Alone" (my other favorite), "The Usual" (ft. Drake), "Unfortunate", and "Red Lipstick".

By the way, I think the album title is genius. What else is there to sing about but passion, pain, and pleasure? :)

Sample Me This...

Shout out to my music crony, Tia, for pointing this sample out...
(BTW, this is one of my FAVORITE Ne-Yo songs...)

I Put On...

I LOVE old-school music. Mayer Hawthorne is amazing! It took me about 10 minutes to grip the reality that this voice was coming out of this body. I feel like this is the type of music that my grandparents fell in love to. Classic.

Kobe Bryant Keeps Proving That He's Great…and You're Still a Hater? Wow...

It's been about a week since the 2-time Finals MVP, Kobe Bryant took home his 5th championship. As a fan, I'm extremely proud of what Kobe has accomplished and I look forward to seeing what else he can conquer as his career continues. On the other hand, another part of being a Kobe Bryant fan is dealing with his haters.

And in all honesty, there's just too damn many of y'all.

I'll admit, some of the things that people say about Kobe are true. But the reasons that people have for not liking this man are some of the most ridiculous things I've ever heard in my life. And don't get me wrong, everyone is entitled to their own opinion about a person, but at what point does a hater decide that it is no longer appropriate to hate on someone?
I think this question has always ran across my mind with Kobe haters. Like…yea…you can't stand his personality, but at what point in this career that you're witnessing do you decide to respect this man for his contribution to the game of basketball?

I feel like at some point, somewhere, somehow, it became cool to not like Kobe Bryant. It seems some people don't like him because of what they heard somebody else say and didn't really take the time to figure it out for themselves. I only made this conclusion based on some of the reasons that people tell me that they don't like Kobe. So let's break this down…shall we?

Reason number 1: "I can't stand him…he's so arrogant!" I can't really argue with this one, but only because I've found that the perception of arrogance can vary. Personally, I like the sureness and confidence that Kobe has about himself and his game. If you think you're amazing, and you really are…then I don't feel like I can really argue with that…but I can see how that would annoy people and make them not want to support someone. BUT…these same people who say they "can't stand him…he's so arrogant" are the same people who wholeheartedly defend and support Lebron James. ARE YOU SERIOUS? Lebron James is so full of himself that he can't even go and shake hands with the opposing team if they beat him. I'm talking about a man who is so arrogant that he will refuse to do media interviews if he doesn't have a good game. Lebron is an amazing player but his sportsmanlike conduct is basically non-existent. So, if you love Lebron but don't like Kobe, don't act like arrogance is a factor in your decision. And Kanye West? (I'm moving away from basketball for a second just to prove a point…) Kanye might be one of the most arrogant celebrities that I have ever seen in my life. But you know what people say about him after they go and buy his album? "I don't like Kanye as a person, I just like his music." So, fine. Don't like Kobe. Respect his game and stop being a hater.
Reason number 2: "Kobe wouldn't be where he is without Shaq." Well, being that Kobe has won 2 championships without Shaq and now has more rings than Shaq…I don't really have to say much more about this, do I? Let's move on, hater.
Reason number 3: "Kobe is such a cry-baby. He's always complaining to the refs!" First of all, I don't know which game of basketball you're watching where star players don't complain about some of the calls they get. Wade, Carmelo, Duncan, Lebron, KG, Dirk,…anybody. In fact, it happens so often, that players and coaches are fined by the NBA for even talking about it in the media. Don't try to single Kobe out for something that everybody does. And if you think Kobe is a "cry-baby," you BETTER NOT even think about liking Rasheed Wallace. This man swears that he never touches anybody during any of the games. And we're not even going to talk about how he was escorted out of the Staples Center for camping outside of the referees' locker room after Game 7. C'mon, hater, on to the next.
Reason number 4 (and this is one of my favorites…) "I'm so tired of seeing the Lakers win." Wow. How stupid do you sound? You wouldn't be tired of seeing your favorite team win all the time. But let me ask you this, hater, if the Lakers are playing the Celtics, who are you going to cheer for? The Celtics??? But if you're tired of seeing the same team win, why would you root for the franchise that has won the most championships in NBA history. I'll tell you why…because you're a hater.

Reason number 5: "He's so overrated." I've even heard people say that they don't like watching Kobe play because they feel like the commentators give Kobe too much credit for what the Lakers accomplish. My response to them is always, "Have you seen them play without Kobe?" Are people missing all these game winning shots that he makes? Don't you hear people say that he's the best closer in the game? If you think that the Lakers would win championships without Kobe Bryant, you have got to be retarded. If you want to know what overrated looks like, go take a peep at the star of that Cleveland team. It must suck to THINK that you have to best player in league, as he repeatedly disappoints you every season. Even Skip Bayless from ESPN said, "At 6-9, 260, Lebron [is the] most spectacular attacker of [the] basket we've ever seen. We watch because of what [we] MIGHT see or what we SHOULD see …and don't." Kobe has proven that he's a champion..and you're just proving that you're a hater.
Reason number 6: "Kobe's a traitor. He doesn't represent Philly enough." Now this, ladies and gentlemen is hating at it's finest. I hadn't really heard this until I moved to Philly for a few years (where Kobe-hate is at its highest.) I have a message for all of you: Dear Philadelphians who hate Kobe because you think that he doesn't "rep his hood enough." You are ridiculous. Yes, Kobe is from Philly. But at the age of 6, he moved to Italy and lived there for about 8 years. He came back to Philly, went to high school for 4 years and then moved to LA to play for the Lakers. So, Philadelphians, do you ever hear Italians complaining that Kobe doesn't represent Italy enough? Do you ever hear ANYBODY else's hometown crying about how somebody doesn't shout them out enough. No. Grow up. And let's be honest, y'all weren't really saying none of that until Kobe came into Philly in 2001 and beat the 76ers in the Finals. Kobe mentions Philadelphia and Italy in any story that he tells about his childhood. He's a huge Eagles fan and his father played for the 76ers. If you weren't so busy hating, you'd be proud of what your city produced.

Reason number 7: "Why did he have to marry that mexican chick? He doesn't like black women." Does this have ANYTHING to do with the game of basketball? No, hater, it doesn't. And didn't Michael Jordan leave his black wife and is now dating a white chick? And we still consider him the greatest. Only a true hater searches for reasons not to like a person. Relax.


Reason number 8: "I just don't like him." I guess that I can respect that you didn't make up all of these other ridiculous reasons that other people have but really? Just shut up. You probably don't even watch basketball.

Reason number 9: " Kobe is so selfish. He's not a team player." I guess in the beginning of his career, this was a legitimate complaint. But now…not so much. You can look the stats up for yourself. Not only is he a team player, he's damn near an assistant coach. If you're really a basketball fan and watch the games, it's obvious that Kobe has realized that the team is more important than himself. Appreciate the growth.

And last, but not least, reason number 10. I have to say, this is the one that irritates me the most: "He's trying to be Jordan." The reality of the situation is that every time a good player enters the league, everybody is looking for "the next Jordan." Remember when everybody thought that it was going to be Penny Hardaway? Vince Carter? Tracy McGrady? The bottom-line is…Kobe catches flack for being the closest thing to it. But why does he have to be "the next Jordan"…why can't he just be "the first Kobe?" But, hater, I REALLY want you to think about this. If Jordan is the greatest, and Kobe is trying to be like Jordan, what's the problem? If Kobe was an activist and wanted to be like Martin Luther King, would that be an issue for you? Do people hate on Usher for being inspired by Michael Jackson? If Kobe was a comedian, and wanted to be like Richard Pryor, is there a problem with that? At the end of the day, Kobe is really just trying to be Kobe. If he was trying to be Jordan, he would have went to college. If he was trying to be Jordan, he wouldn't have scored 81 points in one game. If he was trying to be Jordan, he would have come into the league and put a #23 on his jersey (like Lebron did.) Yes, he sticks out his tongue and pulls up for jumpers like Jordan did, but is that reason to not appreciate his game? Did you stop appreciating Lil' Wayne's verses after he admitted to no longer writing his raps down because he heard that Jay-Z doesn't put his on paper? Probably not. After the Lakers won Game 7 against the Celtics, somebody tweeted, "Look at Kobe trying to be Jordan again. He put 5 fingers up just like Jordan did." Ummm…hello? How many fingers is Kobe supposed to put up when he gets 5 rings? I say all of this to say: when it comes to Kobe and Jordan, appreciate the similarities, recognize the differences and move on. Kobe Bryant will never be Michael Jordan. Michael Jordan will never be Kobe Bryant. And you, hater, will never be either or them.
Les is more than a hater.

Thank Drake Later...Or Now...Whichever You Prefer.

I feel like I need to start this review with a disclaimer. I'm a Drake fan. I love all the things about him that people don't. I don't get tired of his singing. I usually like his content. I love his flow. I think he's witty and I've grown to appreciate his swag and the energy he comes with on his tracks. With that said, I'm not sure that it was ever possible for me to not like something about this album. I mean...it's DRAKE.

Ok...so here we go.The unfortunate thing about Drake's career is that his success isn't based off of whether he's good or not. It's based off of whether or not he can live up to everyone's expectations after dropping that AMAZING...CLASSIC "So Far Gone" Mixtape. I'm not sure if "Thank Me Later" is better than that or not. Some of the songs are...some of them aren't. Some of them could have gone on the mixtape. LOL

I have to admit, there's WAYYYYYY more singing on this album than I thought it would be. It's hard for me to compare his music to other artists because nobody really does what he does. It would be stupid to categorize his album and compare it to Weezy's, Kanye's or Hov's. They don't make R&B songs. I appreciate Drake's vocals so all the singing is not a drawback to me. I like it. :)

Just in case you don't want to read my opinion of every song...I'll say it now: the album is good. Is it worth paying $9.99+tax on June 15th? Hell yes. Is it better than "So Far Gone"? Umm...I think it's worth a discussion. But I will say this: If you liked "So Far Gone"...I don't see why you wouldn't like this. It's quite a bit of singing on both. They're both really smooth with Drake singing his own hooks and guests appearances from some of the most respected dudes in the game. There's a few songs that will get played in the club, but most of it won't. I like 9 of the 14 songs and the other 5 still have potential. (I've only been listening to the album since yesterday so there's still time.) Some of the best songs on the album are: "Over", "Unforgettable", "The Resistance", "Karaoke", "Shut It Down" and "Miss Me."

I think the lyrical content is decent. I mean...he's never really been making earth-shattering statements in his music but his ability to stay true to his reality is always something that I've appreciated. The day that he starts rapping about struggling in the hood, selling drugs, and killing people, will be the day that I stop listening to him because that's obviously not his life. He makes songs that I can relate to; the story of a young person trying to manage relationships, friendships, family, and success. He's the he 23-year-old that's trying to work hard and play even harder. On some of his songs you can't help but think, "Damn...is he talking about his life or mine?"

One of my favorite things about Drake is his delivery. His flow is sick and his ability to spit a bunch of bars without breathing is impressive. He always knows when to start singing in the middle of rapping a verse. His vocal range is decent. I mean...obviously, he's no Marvin Gaye but I can't think of anyone else who has the versatility that he does. His success is based on the fact that there's really no one like him. And this album is further proof of that...whether you like it or not.

I just know that people are gonna listen to this album and say "This is wack. He's soft. I thought he was gon go harder than that." Stop lying. No you didn't. Go back and remind yourself of what you liked about "So Far Gone"...and realize that he did the same thing for this album. He's still telling the story of your life with catchy, melodic hooks and witty punchlines that either you appreciate or laugh at. Honestly, the Grammy-nominated Canadian kid hasn't changed a bit. This album could have been called "Still So Far Gone."
(Click on the picture above so that you can read Universal Records' Countdown for "Thank Me Later")

If he didn't live up to your expectations, I'm not really sure where your expectations came from or what you were listening to before the album came out. If nothing else, the kid was consistent. Go BUY the album. He deserves it. I'm not sure what other artist are supposed to drop this year, but I'm pretty sure that this is gonna be one of the best albums of 2010.

So let's start with the singles. "Over" goes hard. I only needed to hear that song once to know that I loved it. I mean, the chorus had the grow on me but he spit two hot verses over a phenomenal beat. That was an obvious choice for a first single. I can't think of anything negative to say about it.

"Find Your Love" is a good song too. Yes, it's sounds like a leftover track from Kanye's "808s and Heartbreak" ...but I liked that album too so...yea. The lyrics are great. His singing is good and the song is just catchy as hell. If you hear it, you'll find yourself singing it, and then you'll need to hear it again. Next thing you know, it'll be your shit. LOL (Oh...and the video for this track is his best thus far...)


"Miss Me" featuring Lil' Wayne is the third single off of the album. As soon as I heard him say that Drake stands for "Do Right And Kill Everything"...I liked it. But then I heard the chorus, and I loved it. Everything about the chorus is genius. And then Wayne spits a verse...what more can you ask for?

"Fireworks" is the first track on the album. I didn't love the song at first but I gotta say, it is kinda growing on me. I feel like it would have been better without Alicia Keys...or maybe if she was saying something else. I don't know, something about her part is annoying to me. On the other hand, I did a little research and noticed that the first line of the song is: “Money just changed everything” and Drake previously stated that the first song on "Thank Me Later" will be the continuation of "Fear" which ends with “It’s funny how money can change everything." That's not really important but I think it's clever. (And it supports my opinion that this album could be called "Still So Far Gone" lol) Either way, "Fireworks" is OK.

"Karaoke" is such a "Drake song" lol. I feel like if he would have been successful at getting Sade to be on this album, this was the song that she would have been on. It's real mellow. The whole Karaoke theme is cool...the singing is good. I like it.

"The Resistance" is one of my favorites. This is one of the songs where I thought, "Wait a minute. Did I write this song?" lol My favorite line is when he says, "The people I don't have the time to hang with always look around and say the same shit...'You promised me you would never change.'" I can empathize with that struggle of trying to maintain friendships with people who aren't trying to grow, while you're working your ass off to become the best. It's a genius concept for a song and of course his delivery is on point. The way this song starts lets you know that it's gonna be a problem.

"Show Me A Good Time", which is produced by Kanye West, is another good one. The beat is cool...the lyrics are decent. The song is a good time.

As I said on twitter, I really bang with "Up All Night", which features Nicki Minaj. Drake's verse is alright. The beat is good. The chorus is great. I love when he does that little southern accent thing with certain words. Nicki's verse is poppin! I don't like her all the time but I like her on this. "Man for Pete's sake, scratch that, sweep stakes!" LOL


"Fancy" (Feat. TI and Swizz Beatz) is an OK song. I think the chorus could have been better. TI's verse isn't amazing but come on, it's still TI. The song doesn't really get good until Drizzy starts shouting out the girls in different cities at the end and then spits that last verse.

"Shut It Down" (Feat. The Dream) is a great song. I think it would have been better without The-Dream's verse.

"Unforgettable" (Feat. Young Jeezy) is one of, if not THEE best song on this album. Drake's verse is classic. The beat is crazy. The Aaliyah sample is catchy. The chorus is great. Jeezy's verse is sick. I hope that this is the 4th single.


"Light Up" (Feat. Jay-Z) is gonna have to grow on me. I feel like Drake could have came harder on this track. Hov's verse was OK. I was just expecting more from a "Drake and Jay-Z" song. It's not terrible, just not one of my personal favorites from either of these great artists.

"Cece’s Interlude" also has to grow on me. I'm just not sure why there's an interlude so late in the album. The singing is OK. I don't really feel one way or another about this one...

I really like the chorus of "Thank Me Now." I think the concept of the song makes it a clever way to end the album. I'll have to spend a little bit more time with the verses to see how much I really like the whole song.

Last but not least, I heard that the "9AM in Dallas" freestyle is gonna be a bonus track on the album. He goes in and really spits on this song. I wish he would have taken the time to create a chorus/another verse and made this a legitimate song on the album.
So....there it is. I love the album. You could thank him now. Or you could thank him later...on June 15th, to be exact.

(I only downloaded the leaked version because I couldn't wait. I'll DEFINITELY be buying it in 2 weeks.)

Les Is More.

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I Put On...

I've been a Johnta Austin fan on the low for awhile. He finally is dropping new music and I'm so excited about it! His new album, "Love, Sex, and Religion" will be out soon :)

Real Music: New Amerykah Part Two (Return of the Ankh)

This album isn't for everyone. And I don't say that negatively, I say that literally. If Souljah Boy Tell'em is your all-time favorite artist, nine times out of ten, this album is not for you. (And there's absolutely nothing wrong with that…I'm down to "turn my swag on" and "crank dat souljah boy" with the best of them lol) But there's a difference between making good songs and making good music. The line has been drawn for decades…and ladies and gentleman, Erykah Badu makes music. Real music.

The first thing that I liked about this album was the title. Obviously, the "New Amerykah Part Two" portion of it was expected based on her last album, "New Amerykah Part One (4th World War)." But the "Return of the Ankh" part of the title is interesting to me. An Ankh is an Egyptian hieroglyphic character that means "eternal life." So…basically, she's saying that this album is the return of something that's timeless, which means that it'll always be around, and more importantly, that it was always here. That's deep. I love it.

The title is only successful because it's true. The content of her music is universal and timeless. You can never really go wrong with songs about love and relationships because somebody, somewhere, at some time experienced the exact same thing. So, the empathy factor is there.

And the fact that the title of her album alludes to the notion that this music was already here is genius. You can clearly hear that these songs are influenced by songs of the past. Some parts of "Turn Me Away (Get Munny)" are identical to the 1980 hit "Can't Turn Me Away" by Sylvia Striplin, which is the same song that Junior Mafia sampled for "Get Money." Actually, only 3 out of the 11 tracks do not contain samples from old songs. So, the presence of past greatness is felt throughout the album.

One of the few songs that doesn't contain a sample is the first single, "Window Seat." This was a GREAT choice for a first single. It's such a classic "Erykah Badu song" and the lyrics are just as phenomenal as her vocals and the catchy melody. I haven't met anyone who doesn't like this song. She caught a lot of flack (and a disorderly conduct charge) for the video, but honestly, it only brought more publicity to the amazing song.


The second single hasn't been revealed yet but "Jump Up In The Air And Stay There" was released before "Window Seat" as an internet promotional single back in January. This song has Parliament-Funkadelic written all over it...and the addition of Bilal and Lil' Wayne only make the song better. The beat is catchy....inspires a nice little head-nod. The video is very kaleidoscopic, but I like it.


The album starts off with "20 Feet Tall," which has repreitive lyrics but I think she did that to reinforce the message that if you stand up to what you believe in and what you know is right, you can see past love. The music is real chill but the message is deep. Good song.

"Agitation"...I don't know about that one yet. Sometimes I like it and sometimes it sounds like a theme song for a TV show. It's a short track, so maybe it was intended to be more of an interlude that an actual song...I don't know.

I basically like every song until I get to "Incense." Musically, it's ok but the song altogether doesn't really do much for me. It takes too long for her to start saying anything and the beginning of the song makes me want to go to sleep. It isn't terrible, but it is one of my least favorite on the album.


For many people, that first sentence can tell them all they need to know. Either they will continue listening, or the song will end...right there...at the first line. "Out My Mind, Just in Time" starts with Erykah saying, "I'm a recovering undercover over lover." It's a great first line. That's the love that people don't sing about too often...but many people experience it. The rest of the song follows that mood of the person who has realized that they secretly gave too much of themselves to someone who didn't deserve or appreciate it. The whole concept of over loving someone is intriguing to me, and if I keep talking about this song, this review will turn into an essay that's completely off-topic lol. I'm not quite sure how much I love the song, but the message is amazing.

Overall, I like the album. Although I wish there were a few more tracks, I don't feel like these songs were easily thrown together in a short amount of time. I appreciate the content and messages that are presented throughout the album, and as a self-proclaimed "music head" I appreciate the samples of throwback music. On the other hand, it's not the type of album that you would want to hear all the time. A lot of these songs might not get a lot of radio play...and most of them probably won't get the media exposure that they deserve.

The fact that this album isn't for everybody is the best and worst thing about it. And for what it's worth, "New Amerykah Part Two" is better than "New Amerykah Part One."

I Put On...

I really like these dudes...

I Put On...

I love this dude. I swear, he knows my life too well.

Raymond v. Raymond: A Disappointment?

Usher's 6th album drops on March 30th, but you already know how the music game is these days...it leaked last week.

I don't know whether to start with the good or the bad...so let's just start with the basics. The album cover is cool. Usher looks great. Although, it's kinda confusing to me why someone would try to differentiate between something that's the same. When I first heard that the album was going to be called "Raymond v. Raymond," I thought that we were going to see two sides of Usher battling within one person. I thought it was a double CD... like "T.I. vs. T.I.P" or the whole Beyonce vs. Sasha Fierce thing. Ummm...no. You can barely tell the difference between the two Ushers on the cover...and the music is the same. He should have just named the album "Raymond." But even that would have been misleading because the album, collectively, is not that personal. It's certainly no "Confessions" ...and I mean that in every possible way that can be interpreted.

The first time I listened to the album in its entirety, I didn't like it. I found myself skipping through the songs, trying to figure out which one I thought should be the next single. The first problem was that I had heard many of the songs before and it's not because I downloaded them. "Papers" was released as buzz single in October 2009. It was a #1 single...for some reason. I guess the content is interesting but let's be honest, that's not a great song. Then there's "More" which is the another "not-so-great" song that's been embraced by the NBA and appears in a few commercials. They even asked him to perform that during the 2010 All-Star Game, which shouldn't have happened (I haven't heard anybody say that they liked that performance.)

And then there's the actual singles. "Daddy's Home" is cool...it's a song that grows on you. I didn't love it at first but that first line of the song makes you start it over. LOL. I don't know if it should have been the first single but it wasn't a terrible choice. In my opinion, "Lil' Freak" was an obvious choice for a single. It's kinda catchy, the beat is hot, and obviously, nowadays, anything with Nicki Minaj on it is going to get a lot of attention. The third official single is "OMG" which is produced by and features Will.I.Am. I had to listen to it a couple times to figure out if I liked it...and I do. There's a little part at the end of the song that won me over. (What can I say? I'm a sucker for slow breakdowns in fast songs lol)

So let's get to real question here. If you think you have a great album, why would you release FIVE singles before the album drops??? (For comparison purposes, Trey Songz just released his 6th single and his album dropped in August.) Here's why: Usher needed to convince people to buy it. I don't mean that in a marketing sense. I mean it in the sense that he needed to prove to people that he could still make a good album after "Here I Stand", which was lackluster to say the very least.


And after hearing the three official singles, I knew that this album would be better than the last, but would it really be a GREAT album? The answer is no. Out of the 15 tracks, I like 8, but 3 of those 8 are the singles, which means that I usually skip them while listening to the album. Now, I'm down to 5 new songs that I like. And of those, I only LOVE one.

"Mars vs Venus" is hands down the best song on this album. "This is the big bang...step into the ring of fire" that I was hoping the album would be. Whatever mind frame Usher was in when he made this song, he should have stayed in it, made about 10 more like it, and put them on the album. With Marques Houston trying to make "Mattress Music", Songz's "Anticiaption" and Willie from Day26 releasing his "Sextape Mixtape," Usher could have really killed the game and shown them how this whole baby-making music thing is done.


I like "There Goes My Baby"...it's a nice song and his vocals are amazing, which I must say is fairly consistent throughout the album. (But that's not really impressive. Everybody already knows that Usher is great singer.) The other 3 songs that I like are "Pro Lover," "Okay," and "Guilty." My only problem with these songs, (and much of the album) is the content. Seriously, Usher, how long are you going to make the "Oh my god, this girl is so bad! I gotta take her home from the club even though I'm guilty of cheating on my girl" type of songs? That's what I hear from my 21-25 year old guy friends. You're divorced with 2 children. Get it together. One of my friends said that if Usher tries to make the excuse that this album is a reflection of his life, his life is "pretty lame." (C. Jaggon)


Nonetheless, those are decent songs. Other than that, there's "Monstar," "She Don't Know," and "So Many Girls," which might be my least favorite Usher song EVER. And "Making Love (Into The Night)" reminds me of the song he did for the Disney Tarzan Soundtrack. I'm sure that somebody will really like some of these songs, it's just not me.

So...back to the original question: Is Raymond v. Raymond a disappointment? Well, it depends. If you're comparing Usher to other artists, then no, it's not a disappointment. 8 good songs out of 15 is not that bad...especially when there's still time for the rest of the album to grow on you.

BUT, if you're comparing the new Usher to the old Usher, this album is definitely a disappointment. With the exception of "Here I Stand," fans are used to more than half of the songs being good on an Usher album. In fact, we're used to most of the songs being GREAT and then a couple of them being CLASSIC. We're used to starting with the first track and not having to push any buttons until the last song is over.

Don't get me wrong, it's not a terrible album. It's just not what I thought it would be. And how ironic is it that the album is called "Raymond v. Raymond"...since the real issue here is that Usher can't seem to win against the better version of himself.

Les, ladies and gentlemen, is More. ;)
(as I put "Mars vs. Venus" back on repeat)

I Put On...

I know that this won't be a put on for alot of people...but some of yall don't know about this dude...so let me put you on. Ladies & Gentleman, this is Mr. Brandon Hines.

More Than An Affinity: Drake

Anybody who knows me, knows how much and how long I've supported Drake. I was rockin to "Replacement Girl" in 2006. My homie Chris put me on to "Man of the Year" and "Brand New" shortly after that, and I've been hooked ever since.

I even got caught up on DeGrassi just so that I could kinda feel this kid out and decide if I really liked his personality. I needed to see if he would be another Keri Hilson in my book (which is someone who I respect and can appreciate their music, but don't really like their personality...which makes its kind of hard to support everything they do.) Obviously I didn't really learn much from DeGrassi because that's not really him, it's Jimmy...but the show was entertaining nonetheless. lol


Either way, it took me awhile to figure out if I liked his swag (or if he even had any), because its not the typical steez that you would expect from a rapper/singer who delivers the punchlines and messages that he does. He's far more intellectual...far more cultured than these hood niggas who NEED to rap to take care of their families. (Not that there's anything wrong with that.) And I think that knowing that he's chosen this career strictly because of passion and not because of "a way out" makes his swag more appealing. There's a calmness that he maintains that I LOVE...which compliments that "confidence on the borderline of arrogance" that's a typical quality that I'm attracted to.


(My favorite part of this video is at 4:05 or so...)


The thing that won me over the most is his interviews. (I must admit, I've spent far too much time on YouTube.) The way that he views himself and the way that he views women is impressive to me. As a woman, I realize that some of us are strong-minded, confident, intelligent, and ambitious. I also realize that some of us of are not. I don't get offended by the songs about bitches and hoes, because I don't feel like those songs are about me, and they are honest stories of women who exist. Trust me, I know a few. (For more on this topic read my entry entitled Conversation: A Lil Ventilation ) Either way, I appreciate Drake, who seems to understand both types of women, which is obvious in "Best I Ever Had", which could be taken as a song about a women he really cares about or...somebody that he REALLY cares to have sex with...which is fine too lol.

(Skip to about 6:45 in this video)



To top it all off, his flow is amazing and his voice...well in the words of my good friend Candace, "his voice sounds like sex." Like seriously, I thought it was great on "November 18th"...but I can't even tell you how many times a day I could listen to the chorus of "4 My Town" (which is Birdman's song featuring Drake & Lil' Wayne). I don't know who's idea it was for him to make his voice that low and deep on the hook of that track but it's a problem...in a good way ;) The dude's lyrical abilities are incredible and the fact that he can sing is the icing on the cake. When is the last time that we've had an artist who can deliver a great 16 bars and then successfully sing their own hook. (And I'm not talking about no Ja Rule shit either...) When have you ever heard anything like "So Far Gone"...a classic collection of tracks that can be played from the clubs, to the streets, all the way back to the bedroom. ("A Night Off" is my shit!)


Either way, I've never been more proud to watch an artist rise to the top than I am of Drake. Watching him perform at the Grammys, despite the fact that his album hasn't even dropped, was so monumental for his career. To watch somebody grow from the rapper that nobody really knew, to the guy that everybody wants on their track, is a great feeling as a fan. And knowing that this is only the beginning, and that his grind is incessant, who wouldn't want to witness this kid from Toronto take the industry by storm? I do. I don't know if I've ever appreciated an artist more. He describes himself best: "More than what you bargained for and nothing less than real." Some people say that he's overrated...doin too much. Well, Les Is More, so maybe that's why I have more than an affinity for the kid... :)

Sample Me This...