Drums Please: Summer, Summer, Summer Time– Hip Hop Releases to Look Out For This Summer By Ben Wedin Summer is always a great season for not only listening to hip hop, but also releases. Last year, Yeezus and a few others dominated the stage. What is there to look forward to this summer? Here’s what I’m most excited for. It’s always hard to know nowadays when record labels delay releases or people try to Beyonce the whole thing, but here are some expected summer releases. For those unfamiliar with these artists, I also included some recommended listening and some sample lyrics. Ab-Soul: These Days Soul! This album is slated for a June 24 release, so you shouldn’t have to wait long. He’s frequently described as the ‘paranoid hippy’ of TDE, which doesn’t do him justice. Soul is thoughtful, eloquent, nerdy, but also a gifted rapper. The man is not out to write bangers, but the tracks bump all the same. I mean, the man talks about “pineal gland” in a song with Danny Brown. Who else but Soul? LISTEN: “Stigmata”, TDE 2013 BET Cypher, “Illuminate” BARS: ‘Wish I could see out of Selassie’ eye / Maybe my sovereignty would still be mine / If all the gangs in the world unified / We’d stand a chance against the military tonight’
A$AP Mob: L.O.R.D. At first, the association with A$AP was only the woozy Clams Casino-style beats and altered vocals from A$AP Rocky. Then there was Lord$ Never Worry, and A$AP
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Ferg became widely known. The debut album from the crew may propel another member up the ranks, and this time around, the beats don’t sound like Rocky or the trap-style of A$AP Ferg. The flow and beats are reminiscent of old school Nas, so it will be exciting to hear the final project of the whole Mob together. LISTEN: “Trillmatic”, “Xscape”, Lord$ Never Worry (Mixtape) BARS: ‘I got a funky-funky style with a funky swag / I bought the funky-funky Nikes got the hat to match’
Azealia Banks: Broke With Expensive Taste Before Iggy Azalea’s “Fancy”, there was Azealia Banks’ “212.” You can argue the lyrics and beef if you want, but Azealia’s take on all of the crudely sexual and misogynist tendencies of rap is something I’m ready to hear more of. The album’s been in the works for ages now, so hopefully we’ll see a release soon. LISTEN: “212”, Fantasea (Mixtape) BARS: ‘Reefer and cabanas / All my vehicles handsome / The Mullers with the bezels / I bought ‘em to spoil the fellas’
the gods of underground. Expect archaic samples, insane loops, and sick flow. Also watch for an EP from Bishop Nehru before this album drops. LISTEN: “You Stressin”, Nehruvia (Mixtape) BARS: ‘I ain’t afraid cause my intelligence is relevant / To my heaven-sent flows and everything embedded in it’
Common: Nobody Smiling Rap game Obama. After a 2011 release and visiting the White House much to the chagrin of Fox News, Common is ready to bring more conscious-rap to the public. The concept-driven album is going to be about violence in Chicago and will be produced by longtime collaborator No I.D., so there’s a lot to look forward to. LISTEN: “Open Letter (Remix)”, Be BARS: ‘The same way they said she was the shooter /Assata Shakur, they tried to execute her / I went to Cuba to see her / We should free her, like we should Mumia’
The Cool Kids: Shark Week
Rap can get so serious: drugs, gang life, constantly talking about trying to make it to the top. That’s what made The Bake Sale so great: it was two really cool rappers talking about riding bikes and kicking it. The duo has ended their
Bishop Nehru / MF DOOM: NehruvianDOOM When MF DOOM wants to collaborate with you, you’re doing something right. The 17 yearold wordsmith Nehru who’s already rapped for Disclosure is now teaming up with one of
brief hiatus and are ready to tell you about their trips to the grocery store in the coolest way possible. LISTEN: “What Up Man”, “computer school”, The Bake Sale, When Fish Ride Bicycles BARS: ‘Just a F.Y.I, I’m F-L-Y / And for
