Kanye West feat. Raekwon & Kid Cudi-Gorgeous

I've played basketball for most of my life and I remember when I was young and watching Michael Jordan during some of his biggest games. Jordan played a level of basketball that not only was incredible to watch, but also one that was inspiring. I vividly remember times after watching Jordan put up 30 on a helpless defense going out to my basketball hoop and shooting hoops till the last light faded. The only cement that my "court" had was a small sliver of sidewalk that ran in front of the hoop, the rest was grass and dirt. Didn't matter. I was inspired.

Kanye's new album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is like an epic Jordan performance. It's not only great to listen to, it's also a wakeup call to other rappers, saying hey fellas, time to go shoot some more jumpers. Kanye's verses have a hunger to them that I've never heard before from him, perhaps indicating a desire to be considered one of the best rappers in the game, rather than just as a great entertainer. Some of his best G.O.O.D. Friday tracks are on the album, but all are reworked and redone. Like expected, the production on the album is stellar, and many of the songs have a multidimensionality that I've never heard before (see "Blame Game"). My favorite track so far is "Gorgeous" featuring Kid Cudi on the hook (and sounding way more comfortable than he does on parts of his new album) and Raekwon coming in the 9th inning of the song and hitting a walk off homer. "Gorgeous" has three verses (three!) from Kanye and clocks in at almost 6 minutes, a quick indication from Kanye on the second track of his album that he's back to rapping, and is coming for the crown. As far as I'm concerned, it's his.

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Kid CuDi-Pursuit of Happiness (Steve Aoki Dance Remix)

Moodawg would be the first to tell you: we ain't no doctors around these parts. We do know a little bit about music, at least what sounds good to our ears, and one thing I've noticed lately is a shift in musical trends.


I would say that the two biggest trends in music right now are the bending of musical genres, and the heavy influence of electronic music in almost all forms of music right now. An artist that has recently made it big is Kid Cudi, an almost perfect example of my theory. Cudi comes out of Cleavland and moved to Brooklyn when he was 20. His rise to fame came way of his first mixtape "A Kid Named Cudi" which hit blogs in a major way. Cudi represents a twist on Chicago influenced rap that isn't about being the alpha male, being hard, being real, or most of the more stereotypical themes of modern rap music. Cudi talks about his fears, weaknesses, and hopes, and has had his music described as "emo rap." This aint emoscreamodreamo we're talking about, but it's definitely more introspective and aware than a lot of rap out there...


Cudi's "Pursuit of Happiness" is a great introduction to Cudi and the fusion of electronic and hip hop. Over a beat by Ratatat, the New York based electronic duo, Cudi raps about his dreams and nightmares and what making it is all about. Today's jamandahalf, however, is the dance remix by Steve Aoki. Aoki takes the original and infuses it with synths and a throbbing bass, turning a laidback jam into a song that's guaranteed to keep CMC moving for a while. Cudi's debut album got some serious spins in 661L last semester (at least in my room), and with Cudi looking like his next album will bring together even more artists, indicative of a larger movement in music, blending, not mashing, seems to be the way of the future.


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