Potholes In My Blog: Listen: Thelonious Martin Enlists Domo Genesis & Curren$y for “Atlantis”

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1. Listen: Thelonious Martin Enlists Domo Genesis & Curren$y for “Atlantis”
2. Watch: Mick Jenkins’ Incredible Year Continues With “Dehydration” Video
3. The 1978ers – People of Today
4. Potholes Premiere: Watch Quiet Dawn Break Down His New Single With Oddisee
5. Listen: BJ The Chicago Kid’s ‘The M.A.F.E. Project’ [Mixtape]
6. Watch Wara From the NBHD’s New Video For “Slangin'”

Listen: Thelonious Martin Enlists Domo Genesis & Curren$y for “Atlantis” Posted: 20 Nov 2014 10:48 AM PST While Chicago is largely lauded for their wide array of talented MCs, I'd be the first to argue that their crop of producers is just good if not better. One of the cats leading the pack is Thelonious Martin largely because of his marvelous sampling ability and versatile production. He recently laid the audible backdrop for Curren$y and Domo Genesis' latest collab "Atlantis," from Thelo's upcoming Wünderkid project. The horn-dominated instrumental is rhythmic and sounds like a classic Spitta beat. I'm not even a huge fan of Domo, but he definitely did his thing on this joint. Listen below.

Watch: Mick Jenkins’ Incredible Year Continues With “Dehydration” Video Posted: 20 Nov 2014 10:43 AM PST Mick Jenkins has built a reputation as one of the most ferocious lyricists of Chicago's new wave, and, in my opinion, has arguably the top mixtape of the year with The Water[s]. He has a knack for wrapping (pun intended) real life messages and ideals inside of intricate, welcoming bars—remind you of anyone? Maybe Kendrick Lamar? Just as K. Dot has done with songs like "Swimming Pools," Mick has succeeded in doing the same. Today, he's back with the visuals for one of my personal favorites from the project, titled "Dehydration." It features The Mind with some killer, complementary vocals, and the chant-laden production was handled by DJ Dahi. You can watch the video below.

The 1978ers – People of Today Posted: 20 Nov 2014 06:33 AM PST The 1978ers – People of Today Mello Music: 2014 It is sometimes difficult as a hip-hop fan to always connect with the messages rappers convey in their music. Of course, a listener does not always have to personally connect with the lyrics of a song; one need not have lived in Queensbridge in 1994 to feel what Nas is saying on Illmatic. However, some artists have so greatly distanced themselves from everybody else with their words that it distracts from the music. How is the average person supposed to react when Jay Z raps about his art collection? People of Today, the first full-length collaboration between rapper yU and producer Slimkat, is very much an album that aims to connect its message with everybody who hears it. As the album starts: "Sisters, brothers, fathers, mothers, older, younger, fighters, lovers, O.G.s, newcomers, lower class all the way to the upper. We are people of the world today." The message of The 1978ers is very much one of positivity, and yU is starting up where he just recently finished off. This album comes only one month after March on Washington, a brilliant collaboration with Oddisee and Uptown XO as Diamond District with similarly hopeful sentiment. Everybody prominently involved with March on Washington and People of Today hails from Washington, D.C. If one simply turns on the news, one will be bombarded with negativity rooted in the United States' capital city. Not only does the District face common urban issues such as poverty and crime, it also is a host to the various political scandals and corruption performed by those who are supposed to help fix the country's problems. Having such an outspoken force of positivity from a city that can be such a dark place is an incredible asset. yU believes that we as people of the world can rise above the negativity that surrounds us, no matter who we are. yU is an incredibly capable rapper, with some silky smooth flows and a great ability to really emphasize the messages in his lyrics. On tracks like "Sacreligious" in particular, yU expertly switches up his delivery as well as lyrical tools like alliteration and assonance to really get his words through to listeners. Most of People of Today finds yU with a silky smooth style, but he is also able to approach a track with a more aggressive style as seen on the brief "Gentlest Ones." The breakout star of People of Today is, undoubtedly, Slimkat's production. Throughout the record's 18-track, 56-minute runtime, Slimkat presents himself as a versatile and skillful producer, conquering a multitude of different styles. The album starts with a very jazzy backdrop defined by groovy bass and hard drum kicks on "One-Nine-7-T-8" and the phenomenally funky "In The Way." Tracks like "U Know How It Iz" and "Without a Clue" incorporate vocal samples into the beat in a way that has rarely been done this masterfully since College Dropout-era Kanye West. With more smooth, atmospheric production on "Develop" and "Give It Up" later in the album, Slimkat shows he is a complete package when it comes to making beats. Unfortunately, the brilliance of Slimkat's production is somewhat of a double-edged sword. As previously stated, yU is no slouch on the mic and brings his absolute A-game on tracks like "FAR" and the aforementioned "Sacreligious." Yet the beats on here are so nice it's sometimes easy to feel lost in the vibes provided by Slimkat and almost ignore what yU has to say. Of course, terrific production outweighing great lyrics and messages is a very good problem to have, and luckily the soulful soundscapes reflect those messages bountiful in yU's lyrics, even to a listener not hanging on every word. 3.5 out of 5 stars 3.5 out of 5 You can purchase People of Today here.

Potholes Premiere: Watch Quiet Dawn Break Down His New Single With Oddisee Posted: 20 Nov 2014 06:30 AM PST French producer Quiet Dawn has been making some noise thanks to the recent release of his single “New Dawn,” which features a killer instrumental and potent-as-ever bars from Oddisee. So when I was approached to share an interview that breaks down the track, of course I was interested. That sentiment only got stronger when I watched the clip of Dawn speaking on the track. While his demeanor is pretty laid-back, his excitement about the track is palpable, especially in discussing two bits in particular. First, there’s the fact that Oddisee apparently turned his vocals in within a few days, and they were so perfect that Dawn didn’t have to do a damn thing to ‘em. And then Dawn mentions how he and his team in the studio were too lazy to go home and get shakers, so they recorded that part using brushes and jeans. Pretty rad, especially considering you probably wouldn’t have known that if he didn’t reveal it. You can watch the interview and stream the single below. Buy it here.

Listen: BJ The Chicago Kid’s ‘The M.A.F.E. Project’ [Mixtape] Posted: 20 Nov 2014 12:00 AM PST Throughout most of this year BJ The Chicago Kid has been part of some great features. He’s also released notable covers and accompanying video’s for all of them, in lieu of a new album. Some of these include an homage to James Brown titled “Real Love Never Dies”, “Perfect” which samples Fabolous & Jeremih’s “Thim Slick”. Not to mention he had a certified hit with “Studio” for SchoolBoy Q. The Chicago crooner has been busy. We finally get a new mixtape from BJ The Chicago Kid, titled The M.A.F.E. Project. The project features an Aaliyah cover of her classic “One In a Million”, an acapella take on Justin Timberlake’s “Strawberry Bubblegum”, him and SchoolboyQ’s remix of Kanye West’s “I Can’t Hold My Liquor” and the aforementioned “Real Love Never Dies”. Guest appearances on the project include; Freddie Gibbs, Sasha Go Hard, ScHoolboy Q, Smoke DZA and Kobe. Stream and download BJ the Chicago Kid’s new mixtape below: Download: The M.A.F.E. Project

Watch Wara From the NBHD’s New Video For “Slangin'” Posted: 19 Nov 2014 11:25 PM PST Last time we heard from Wara From The NBHD, he was taking over the city, recreating his own version of Grand Theft Auto in “Raw”. He’s back with the follow-up visuals to “Slangin'” off his fantastic Kidnapped album, which he released late this summer. “Slangin'” serves as a continuation to the story depicted in the video for “Raw”, which was released earlier this month. In his latest visuals for “Slangin,” Wara and his NBHD crew continue to go down a path of poor choices, drug selling, and the fatal consequences that follow with pursuing that life. As the story unfolds, things take a turn for the worst, as friends become enemies. You can stream Wara From the NBHD’s New Video For “Slangin'” below: