Thursday, June 24, 2010



Keys - Infiltration

One of my little traditions here is that after I review a CD for the City Paper, I'll come back and dedicate a post to it here on GN and post an mp3 and maybe some additional thoughts on the record. In this case, though, it feels a little odd to come back to this Keys mixtape after my review set off a shitstorm of comments section controversy a few weeks ago. And although it was all in all a lot of fun for me to kind of watch it all unfold, I have no desire to fan the flames or keep it going, because really it's silly out of all the hundreds of positive and negative reviews I've written for me to become the guy whose mission in life is to stop Keys. Contrary to all the speculation, I've never met her and knew nothing about her beyond her music before reading Jaye Hunnie's article, so the review was all just reacting to the mixtape, and that's not a personal bias.

So listening to it again in context of all that went down, was I wrong? I can't say I really regret anything I wrote. I asked people to download Infiltration and tell me what they think, and really nobody so far has rushed to her defense that didn't seem to come from Keys's own Facebook or Twitter, a lot of people who I know or are in the scene have been kinda laughing at it all with me behind the scenes. A lot of commenters seemed to think I don’t understand what mixtapes are because I pointed out the heavy use of industry beats, but, as I probably should’ve noted, the intro talks up Keys as bringing “creativity” and “real songs.” You can't say shit like that and namedrop KRS One everywhere, and then just come with the same old mixtape shit. What, you think you’re saving your real songs for the album? And what's with all this 'Spartan' shit? Nothing screams 'boring East coast mixtape rapper' more than constantly quoting a three-year-old movie like 300, get some new ideas. I mean, I do hope Keys gets the chance to show what her grand vision is and make a real album and prove me wrong. I give a lot of people a couple bad reviews before I give them a good one.

Keys - "I Am" (mp3)
This song is kind of obnoxious but I think it's still my favorite, kind of pulls off the tough angry vibe better than anywhere else on the mixtape.

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Comments:
Funny thing, I JUST read the CityPaper article, your review, and then all of the Citypaper.com comments. Funny stuff.

I was JUST about to come and find that old post you mentioned here about the Keys fiasco and BOOM you do THIS!!!

I have still not DL'ed the mixtape, afraid to waste my time after being very dissappointed by Tay Eaz "Block Work" and Tony Austin "Gangsta Grills" consecutively. I need something DOPE! Maybe after I 'discover' something GOOD, i'll go back to Keys.

And for the record, I've mentioned Al's bad taste in the past. Like, he'll post like the worst song from an otherwise good mixtape/album. Or he'll like some artist like...I won't even mention a name. But we definitely have dissimilar tastes, lol.

The folks on those comments were outrageous though, And I agree with Al when he said if it wasn't for the diss, no one would even care about Keys, and Keys said herself if it wasn't for the diss, she wouldn't care much about rap. It'd still be her 'secret passion.'

So, kudo's to Al, for the review and standing up for yourself in the comments section. But, like JayZ said, never argue in a room full of fools, cause from a distance people can't tell who's who.

And hopefully, that BS will bring mo' folks here to get some knowledge of who and what is going on in the local scene.
 
Yeah, I'm totally fine with people disagreeing with me on certain artists or certain songs -- everyone's always gonna have different responses to music. Fact is, I don't LIKE being the only critic writing about some records/artists, and am always encouraging more voices to get out there and cover this scene, because my word shouldn't be the end all be all. The ad hominem attacks about how my opinion means nothing BECAUSE I like or dislike one thing or another are lame, but it's all good, people talking is better than silence.
 
I love ittttttt
 
I still haven't downloaded the mixtape and still have no desire to do so. I have asked around and no one has heard of her seen her do shows...blah blah . Some old story. And like you Al I have seen and heard people in the hip hop community all say the same things about her mixtape. I have heard from artists, producers and just general people and I would say that 90% all say that they don't like it! So all her "Yes Men" and all the riders are boosting her up for a down fall! Not to mention that someone is really investigating her "Violater" Management deal and supposedly it's not the real Violater Management or even connected! So I'm going to sit back and watch this as it all unfolds!
 
for someone who has yet to show any kind of music that has reached outside of this blog. you got a lot to say about people my man. where are your songs and mixtapes. who the f@@@@&k are you?
 
yo ain't that the pot calling the kettle black, Beacon?
 
Yes, Mr. Pot.

Mr. Kettle at your service.
 
maybe, but i don't do music. i heard peats shit and for petes sake dont quite your day job homey.
 
You might not do music, but you constantly give indications that you're in the scene somehow and seem to know people, which is why it's obnoxious and hypocritical for you to hide behind a pseudonym AND attack someone who doesn't. Peat's music has never been posted on this blog, because really I've just never heard it and he's never hit me up on that tip, as far as I know he's just a quality commenter who actually gives honest opinions without trashing people or seeming to have personal vendettas, which is more than I can say for you.
 
i didn't know y'all was fucking with each other al. my fault bwhahahah
 
You've heard my music. I hope you're not talking about that singing stuff I did(you can click my name on the comment for a link), it was a JOKE. The whole Peat Marwick thing is a joke. I can't sing a lick, and I did those before auto-tune got popular, lol, i'm pretty sure I would have used that back then. I got the name off of a trucker hat I bought years ago and did a song as a joke and called myself The Peat Marwick Experience. I learned later through google that peat marwick is some type of accounting firm, I think.

I did used to rap, I did a show or 2 back...at least 5 years ago. I haven't done anything since and I'm sure you've never heard me.

However, I am on Ogun's album Real on Purpose, I produced and rapped on "Touched by an Angel" and I am the 1st verse on "The Dugout" That should give you kind of a clue of how I used to spit.

To be honest, I kind of just grew out of rapping so I no longer do it. i do still dabble in making beats when i have time, however, i do not shop those beats so I guess mentioning that was useless.

But yeah, if you have that Ogun album, check it out. I'd like to think I was pretty darn good, lol. And I'd like to hear your thoughts.
 
Once again some dipshit had FAILED to impersonate me. I NEVER LEFT ANY COMMENTS HERE. Keyz is ASS and just like i said, her last name should Jordan the way she FADE AWAY after this junk dropped
 
Once again you've FAILED to learn the lesson that the price of anonymity is that you don't have any ownership over your 'name.' You didn't even make it up, I did. And since you've decided to make Beacon your outlet to publicly talk shit with impunity, other people have apparently decided to use it for the same thing. Tough shit!
 
official
 
Okay, I DL'd it.

It's not terrible, not great. It has a couple joints I'll keep, for the most part it's weak though.

My interest peaked when I saw the video for "Sponsor" on allbmorehiphop. I got the satire in it, I dont know why you couldn't figure it out Al, it was plenty flat out. Anyway, I thought that was a cool song and then the BeamerBenzBently beat came on, her "ButterfliesNBellies" but she didn't rap, it just sounded like she was gonna kill it, she didn't.

Anyway, she has a TON of potential, she's young though and has time to nurture it. She even spit over a NERD track, lol, which wasn't great, but had a ton of potential, also.

Her main problem to me though was that her flow sounded like Minaj's a LOT! On one song she sounded like Smash, though, lol. But that is where I see your point Al, was she sounding like Minaj as a joke or is that the cadence she normally uses, which I think is her regular flow. Odd as it is.
 
Read my review again and tell me what I supposedly didn't understand about the track: "'Sponsor,' over the beat from the current Teairra Mari single of the same name, cleverly inverts the original song's concept, trumpeting female self-reliance while mocking gold diggers with a valley-girl accent."
 
You got me, I was going off memory.

Anyway, that's the hi-lite of the mixtape to me.
 
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