Sudan is one of the most dangerous places on earth. With a misguided guerilla rebellion on one side and a government that is willing to use all the firepower it can muster to stop them on the other, all those stuck in the middle are the ones that suffer the most. Women are raped and assaulted with alarming regularity and anyone who opposes either side is liable to lose either a limb/s or there life. Millions of people are living in absolute poverty with little to eat or drink & diseases are common place & spread like wildfire.
In 2005 a peace deal was brokered between Sudan's government & the SPLA (Sudan Peoples Liberation Army). Emmanuel Jal, an MC from southern (Christian) Sudan who used to be a child soldier for the SPLA, teamed up with northern (Moslem) Sudanese singer & composer Abdel Gadir Salim for a project backed by the
Make Poverty History campaign (all y'all should've had that white band around your wrist to show support at some stage).
Ceasfire is a whirlwind of african rhythms & arrangements, and a bare knuckle hip hop sound that is very rarely heard these days. Regardless of the language barrier it is not hard to recognise a nice flow when you here it and Emmanuel has got just that.I'm not gonna get all wordy and use a load of nonsensical adjectives to decribe this album. I'm simply gonna say that it's message is all about peace and that it is ,in my view, a masterpiece. It took me 3 spins to truly understand just how good this is. In my eyes this is a must have, but only if you let yourself expect something different (a bit like Outkast when Aquemini came out). This is beautiful hip hop. Grab it now.
Some of these you'll know & some you won't. But that is beside the point beacause they are all bloody superb. Grab and appreciate....
Although it's title aludes to something that hasn't happened quite yet, Big Sean's Finally Famous mixtape is a solid piece of work. Having been signed by Kanye to his 'Getting Out Our Dreams' imprint, Sean's 1st offering for the masses showcases a nasel flow over GOOD's brand of soulful yet colourful beats. Once or twice i found myself getting a tad irritated by Sean's sometimes squeeky flow. But fortunately the good far outweighs the bad. A nice intro to Big Sean's world. Grab it or take a listen at Datpiff 1st.
The Good Samaritan Music Project brings today's relevant issues to young minds using Edutainment (if you don't know by now you never will). This Particular venture brought hip hops original teacher, KRS-One, with some of the UK's closest substitutes, Paradise, Skinnyman & MCD. Although sometimes his beat choices have been questionable, anything involving KRS One lyrically is a must have. Plus, as far as i'm concerned anything involving Skinnyman & MCD is a must have also. The results, helped by Charlie Parker on the boards, is definately worth adding to any regular playlist (and then some). This was originally requested by Charlie Darwin, so props you you bruv for reminding that it actually exists. Grab & Enjoy.
