I think this classifies to be a OneFaris Throwback track, after listening to Ghostface – Guest House, I just had to re-visit this R&B classic.
I still remember when I first heard this song as a kid, Ron Isley’s voice stood out for me, his falsetto was really complimented and cleverly produced by R. Kelly, it is with songs like this this that I cannot help but to applaud him for the talent that he is, although current material is lacking this kind of quality, I remain thankful that we can look back and listen to such a song, from the concept to the delivery, this R&B opera, a sequel to the classic Down Low, Contagious remains an evergreen classic.
I like this, Ghost gets his story telling on with the help of Shareefa and Fabolous, Guest House is like a Hip-Hop version of R. Kelly, Chante Moore and Ron Isley’s ‘Contagious’
Diddy returns to our screens and speakers with something new.
During production of his latest album, a concept and group was formed, consisting of himself, singer Kaleena and former Danity Kane vocalist Dawn Richardson, the group Dirty Money, is a edgy R&B group, a rock influenced urban group, Nirvana meets Ne-Yo style sound, nobody was sure what to expect, until now.
“I came from Heaven, Just to sing a song for you..”
The concept which Grammy winning producer Brian Michael Cox attempted to create with his R&B group ‘Dirty Rose’, however, it was not executed as well as this, With Dirty Money and the single Angels, Diddy manages to capture feeling, known for his sampling, he does no different here, the additional B.I.G verse actually provides the ‘street’ element, it captures a range of emotions and interacts with a variation of audiences, truth is, I really like it, it is subtle yet emphatic at the same time. Diddy is no stranger to marketing and he does no wrong here, Hype Williams is called upon for the directing and he pretty much mirrors the song with a visual, monotone and slow, it captures the essences of the track, you forget that Diddy is actually singing. There are some grey areas of confusion, there is a heavy portrayal of religion, which makes sense to the title ‘Angels’, yet the visuals of smoking, partying does clash but overall it manages to blend well and create a contrast that we face in every day life.
Angels has me intrigued to hear more from Dirty Money, this would be a perfect intro track for their album, but that shall all be revealed in due time, for now, Diddy has done it again, and provided us with something extremely different to listen to, from Diddy’s Phill Collins-like singing to Dawn’s sultry ad-libs, Angels might just be what the industry needs.
After the success of their anthem Down, Frontlinerz continued to push their style of music, what many people did not know is that they are pioneers in allowing other artists after to come through, they were one of the first underground artists, recent situations forced them to sit back but Jak Frost and Receiver have returned to the frontline with Can’t Do It Like:
The video, which is currently being seen a lot on the UK’s premier urban channel ‘Channel AKA’ (formerly known as Channel U) is like a sequel to Down, it is their arrival once again, setting the scene before the extravagant Stack Money ft. G-FrSH is unveiled.
Can’t Do It Like has grown on me, it has a classic UK feel to it, it is mid-tempo, they sound hungry, determined to succeed, Having listened to the new mixtape, you can feel their ambition, but what I like best about Frontlinerz is (apart from being real) the chemistry on record, by which I mean you have Receiver (who made a cameo in the current Batman movie ‘The Dark Knight’) with his laid back flow, his calm yet sturdy approach is balanced well by Jak Frost who is more vicious on the mic, you will like him even if he has to force you, it is that approach which we first encountered with 50 Cent, I know the two emcees are different, but their effect is similar, Jak Frost lyrically is raw to an extreme, laced with Receivers smooth tone which smoothens Jak Frosts’ rough delivery, Can’t Do It Like is the intro for their imminent take over.
Written and originally recorded by Grammy award winning Johnta Austin, I previously reviewed the Johnta Austin version and have waited for this since I found out that it was going to be re-recorded by Whitney for her come-back album.
Unfortunately I am a little dissapointed, I felt that maybe it is because it is easier to find relevance in a male voice, but that is not the case, I am more dissapointed because it is such a good song and could have been a hit for Whitney Houston, but it lacks something, it does not feel as emphatic as I would have hoped, especially from an artist of Whitney Houston’s caliber, however I will have to wait and see if it grows on me or not.
Here is Johnta Austin’s version:
Which one do you prefer?
Personally, I prefer Johnta’s version, simply for the feel and soul in the song.
This 17 Year old from London blew the audience (including the judges) away with her outstanding performance of “I’m Telling You”.
Calm, confident and composed, Jade really let her talent do the talking, with so many people auditioning and stating how amazing they are only to have their own dreams crushed by news that they cannot sing, it is a breath of fresh air to see someone so humble and grounded yet give such a performance, a true talent, she deserves to win.
Here is the original:
And an even more memorable performance:
I wanted to end it at that, however, I’ve come across this, it is worth seeing, she is only 6 years old!!
Young Money’s White Knight, Drake, releases his critically acclaimed mixtape So Far Gone, Fear is the new bonus track available on this re-release.
Produced by DJ Khalil, this will be a critics favourite, by far a ‘special’ track, as it is the most recent we’ve heard of Drizzy since his previous mixtapes and guest features, personally I feel this song will keep his buzz consistent as fans and critics wait for the anticipated debut album ‘Thank Me Later‘.
Drake shines best when he lets his emotions out on the mic, highlighting that although his life is on an up, he still has downs, he makes his music easy to relate to for anybody listening, lines like, “I never cried when ‘Pac died, but I will when Hov’ does”, display his comfortability on record, his confidence is sky high and I do not expect any different, who wouldn’t with a hype and fanbase like his, funniest thing is that he has not even released an album yet.
Not much needs to be said about Fear, it speaks for itself.
Since the last review of his album ‘Catch 22‘, I have listened to it more and a couple of the other tracks have begun to stand out more, one of them being ‘Tryna Be Me‘, Co-Produced by Dirty Danger and Rapid, featuring the multi-talented Ruff Sqwad.
I like the classic Ruff Sqwad feel this track has, it is a major record but it’s underground relevance is in full effect.
An instant favourite of mine is Shake Me produced by Top 3 selected producer himself Rapid, Rapid features on this track as well.
With Catch 22 being Tinchy’s album it is refreshing to hear another voice and Rapid really makes the most of it, a stand out on the track, definitely compliments Stryder. The beat itself is up-tempo, with a good blend of sounds, the synth is contrasted well by the live-sounding instrumentation, the singing ad-libs are amazing, I know they’re just ad-libs but they really give the song so much depth, over all the quality is really good, Rapid has been considered one of the best (if not THE best) producer in the Grime scene for a while now, with Shake Me he proves that his talents are just as able to conquer the mainstream.
Many people do not actually know that Rapid is more than a producer, he is a writer and vocalist too, a man capable to be an artist in his own right.
If you have not read the ‘Thy Maryan – Energize’ Review then make sure you check it out, if you already have then you might be pleased to know that Thy is currently in talks with major record label EMI regarding a possible deal, fingers crossed they will support him and his talent because he is one of the best producers (worldwide), his style is diverse, you can hear a track and not know whether he produced it or not, however one thing for sure is, if it is a good production..you will assume it is Thy Maryan.
The FrSH entertainment producer, who produced the banger G-FrSH – URGH, has many more hits such as Energize waiting to be unleashed for our audio pleasure, so keep your ears out for his production and your eyes out for his name as he will no doubt be behind a future favourite of yours.
During a recent trip to New York, I asked the locals which artists in the UK they knew about, I wanted if they have the same exposure that we have of their artists. The majority knew of Tim Westwood and used words to describe him that I can’t really say but you get the point, Dizzee Rascal it seems is the most famous prospect over there, I was hoping someone would say Wretch 32 or Ghetts, however that was not the case, for ages we have had Hip-Hop dedicated radio shows, our own awards ceremony ‘the Brits’ and ‘Mobo’ give out awards to more overseas artists than homegrown, the likes of Tinchy Stryder(that was before the recent awards) Ndubz and Chipmunk are changing that I agree, however if we can know about the likes of Currency, Wiz Khalifa and Slaughterhouse here in the UK then why do they not know of our talent?
There are a few reasons, their population is far larger which means more rappers, so everybody is too busy following what is ‘hot’ rather than having a real passion and allowing themselves to be naturaly inspired by a wide variety of influences. The Duo of Mega and Mayhem, better known as SAS were another name I heared a fair bit, could be due to their once affiliation with Dipset and Rocafella records, or just the fact that they have put the work in over there.
This article/review is to silence anyone who argues that the UK does not possess the talent or the fact that it is because of our dialect, as Americans have a different accent to us yet for years we have been listening and supporting.
After hearing this track, I felt the same feeling that I would get from listening to Wu-Tang, or even Rakim, Black the Ripper aka Samson takes it back, the production is Hip-Hop, it possesses the feeling of a classic, the potential is amazing, A real music fan anywhere in the world can appreciate this, Black the Ripper is talented and is clearly not phased by the problems many face to progress into mainstream, he celebrates the idea of being underground, using the internet to reach his audiences, he has come a long way through his own hard work and ambition, expect to hear a lot more of this artist because real talent can never be denied!
Fáris Rating:
8.5/10
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ONE Fáris 