Monday Mixtape, Vol. 177

Hope everyone enjoyed the Super Bowl…my favorite commercial was the GM-Will Ferrell-Norway commercial. The punch through the globe did it for me lol.

Threw some jams together that should make you bop your head, starting with infectious Offset, he of fame from the rap trio Migos. Dude is awesome, love his flow.

Lots of random stuff on this one, including a single from Lana Del Rey, a great ballad from Taylor Swift’s second album of 2019, and more.

That’s all I got! Have a good week.

Monday Mixtape, Vol. 124

Where does Post Malone rank in terms of singing hooks right now? Does anyone do it better? Yeah, it’s easy to make fun of the face tattoos and dreads (which he’s now changed to a small 80s era small fro), but “all my friends” is pretty catchy, right? Can’t hate on catchy.

This is an all rap playlist, highlighted by both Future and 21 Savage’s new albums. I was impressed with 21’s album, it has a ton of features (J. Cole, Childish Gambino, Post Malone, Offset, and Schoolboy Q) which complement his monotone flow, and the production fits perfectly with so many tracks.

Future released another album that is just like most other Future albums. He has some alter ego (this time, “The WIZRD,” it all more or less sounds the same, and a few tracks really stand out. A couple of those are on this mixtape.

I also included some older JID, the rapper that blew me away with his mixtape, DiCaprio 2. This guy has something special, we will be hearing a lot more from him.

That’s it people! Hope you enjoyed the (4th Quarter) of the Super Bowl. My commercial MVP was either Stella Artois or the NFL one with all the players.

Monday Mixtape, Vol. 74

My love of Cousin Stizz dates back to 2015 when he released his debut album, Suffolk County, a pure and sincere rap album with no gimmicks, features, or pop songs, just raw as hell Stizz. He's been getting some buzz recently which would explain how he got Offset (from Migos) to feature on this week's opener. What a beat and a catch hook. 

I'm not exactly sure who Ron Gallo is, but if this song - the first track on 2017's HEAVY META - is any indication, the guy is a throwback. "Young Lady, You're Scaring Me" sounds like a song destined for a scene in a Scorcese movie when someone has done entirely too many drugs - as always happens in his movies - and is on a hotel balcony, teetering on the balcony, their life in the balance.  

Whitney just makes great background music. I put them in the same genre as Real Estate but with a bit more pep and soul. Love these guys. 

Spoon has once again released another really good album. I spoke about this a bit last week, but they are one of the few bands that adapt their sound a bit here and there and continue to make quality music while staying relevant over a timespan that any musician would strive for. 

If you forgot who Taleb Kweli was well shame on you! How could you forget one of the best rap albums of all time, Mos Def and Taleb Kweli Are Black Star, and one of my favorite rap songs:  

Kweli released an album with Styles P and this is my favorite track. Glad to hear he's still after it.

Don't know who Soulwax is, but this is one funky electro song. As for John Mayer making his way back on to the mixtape, I just thought "In the Blood" was a great song on what we have instilled in us from our parents and everything we've been through: Will it wash out in the water or is it always in the blood? 

Finally, Slowdive hasn't made an album since 1996, so we'll say they were due for some new music. If you can't hear their influcene on DIIV, well listen to DIIV again!