[EP] MARVELOUS MAG & SHABAAM SAHDEEQ - "God's Coin"

This is a nice team-up of two vocalists right here - super skilled Shabaam Sahdeeq and talented harmonizer Marvelous Mag. Representing two different generations of artists but always brings that HEAT. Seven tracks deep, pretty much no guests artists and lots of nice turntable work by Chinch 33. Check this one out!

[Album] SADAT X - "Agua"

When the world first heard The Brand Nubians 1990 debut album "One For All", notorious for being praised with the much hyped five mics rating in The Source, few would think that Derreck X would be the artist out of that trio to have the highest profile and largest catalouge in a few years. In fact "One For All" treated Lord Jamar and Derreck X as Grand Puba's back up band, and didn't even appear on half of the album. But sometimes the tables turn, through hard work and dedication Sadat X (as he soon after changed his name to) crafted a unique style with an unmistakable voice with lyrics that often dealt with personal feelings and surviving in a world where friends and lovers often turn out to be willing to stab you in the back when you least expect it. The only problem was that he might have started to put quantity over quality a little too much in the last ten years or so.

It's been a long time since I've been really excited about an X album, though I did like his "Love, Hell or Right" album from 2013. Now the New York artist is back with "Agua" sporting a pretty damn impressive cast list of guest producers and emcee partners. How about Pete Rock, Diamond D, Da Beatminerz, Nick Wiz, DJ Scratch, Easy Mo Bee, Fokis, Dub Sonata and Will Tell? What about Lord Jamar, Dres, Edo G, A-F-R-O, Rahzel, Cella Dwellas' UG, Milano, Shabaam Sahdeeq, RA The Rugged Man, and Wordsmith? That's a lot of features and producers and as I haven't had the time to listen yet I'm not sure how cohessive the X-Man has managed to make it sound but one thing's for sure, there's bound to be several real bangers on here to cherish. Probably more than any Sadat X albums in ten years or so. Released on Tommy Boy, the album is available for purchase in both physical and digital form now, and can also be streamed and purchased (both digital and on CD) in full via X's official Bandcamp. One thing though, the last I heard from Sadat X was that he's working on a full-length album entirely produced by Diamond D, and as usual we get one track to show for it. Well, I for one hope it's still coming. But what the hell, with Pete Rock, Da Beatminerz and Nick Wiz I sure as hell can complain. I also wasn't a fan of Will Tell on some earlier X albums, but the single/video "Murder Soundtrack" (above) with AFRO and Rahzel has convinced me has stepped his game up big time. You can also cop the physical from UGHH where you can also see the credits for each track. TURN IT UP!

[EP] SHABAAM SAHDEEQ - "Modern Artillery"

One of the original leaders of the Rawkus movement from back in the day, Shabaam Sahdeeq, quickly made his name synonymous with what was then known as real hip hop and to this day he stays dropping hot shit. His latest album, 2013:s "Keepers Of The Lost Art", was one of that years most overlooked LP:s and still gets ocassional play over here. Now Shadeeq is back with yet another project, the seven track EP "Modern Artillery" which's existence I had completely missed out on when limited edition cassettes were pressed up and manufactured for 2015:s Cassette Store Day on October 17. The otherwise digital release is available to purchase and listen to from regular suspects like iTunes, Amazon and Spotify now. A limited edition vinyl run is however also said to be in the workout, so while you're waiting why not stream the entire project via Audiomack below or check out the official music video for the Big Ape produced "Get It" up top.
 

SHABAAM SAHDEEQ - "GMR"

  If you follow The Lost Tapes you know that I, mr. claaa7, is a huge fan of Shabaam Sahdeeq and the "Ke epers of the Lost Faith" was one of the most underrated albums of last year. Now he's back with another project entitled "Timeless Of The Collection", which is spearheaded by the hard banging lead single "GMR" produced by Brown Bag AllStars member J57 with cuts by DJ Eclipse. The album which will be released digitallly via Bandcamp will feature a handpainted cover by Shabaam himself for each single, and limited editions of this singles artwork is available from Shadeeq's Bandcamp on prints and T-shirts so hurry up and buy. Dope cut too!

SPIT GEMZ Ft. SHABAAM SAHDEEQ - "News At 11"

Spit Gemz is dropping his next album "Godly Features" on April 14, and as you can hear by the title the album will probbably feature a massive guest list. The first single is produced by Bazooka Joe and features the always super ill Shabaam Sahdeeq, "News At 11". This is some slamming boom bap shit, can't wait for the album!

LEWIS PARKER & EASTKOAST - "Superior MC's" (Ft. Shabaam Sahdeeq & El Da Sensei)

Ever since I first heard Lewis Parker for the first time on Ghostface's "Fishscale" and "More Fish" albums in 2006 I've been constantly blown away by his work. For 2015 the London born Parker hooks up with NY emcee Eastkoast for a full-length project called "MK Ultra: Operation Hypnosis" available for pre-order via KingUnderground.com. The first single features Shabaam Sahdeeq and El Da Sensei and is fittingly given the title "Superior MC's". Powerful!

SHABAAM SAHDEEQ - "Skillet"

Shabaam Sahdeeq always been a sick rapper, no question, but in 2013/2014 he's been a fucking monster with it. The "Keepers of the Lost Art" album was absolutely ridiciolous, and is still getting spins, and the agressive yet soulful thump that DJ Ready Cee hooks up for Sahdeeq the New York legend gets cinematic with it. "Skillet" is the lead single from DJ Ready Cee's upcoming producer abum "In The Cut" so be on the lookout for that.

SHABAAM SAHDEEQ Ft. MASTA ACE, RAS KASS, EL GRANT & PAWZ 1 - "Darkness"

Coming on the heels of his excellent "Keepers of the Lost Art" (in my opinion his finest album yet), Shabaam Sahdeeq releases the promotional street single "Darkness", a powerful posse cut produced by Jake Palumbo and released on Space Lab Recordings. Over the dark, thumping instrumental Sahdeeq get busy along with legends Masta Ace and Ras Kass a long with El Grant and Pawz One. The digital single is available from the labels Bandcamp for free streaming and can be downloaded for a price of your own choosing. The single include the main version, a clean mix and the instrumental. Bang this rugged ish y'all!

[Video] SHABAAM SAHDEEQ - "Keepers Of The Lost Art"

On April 29 hip-hop veteran Shabaam Sahdeeq releeased his best album yet, "Keepers Of The Lost Art", unquestionably one of the most underrated projects of the year despite a relatively good promo campagn from Below System. If you're not up on this album yet, do yourself a favor and cop the CD @ UGHH or your retailer of choice, I strongly doubt you'll regret it as Sahdeeq has finally released an album worthy of his talent. The title and opening track of the album just got the visual treament which you can see above, and in case you missed the four previously released videos from the album check this YT playlist and get your support on!

REDICILUS Ft, Shabaam Sahdeeq, El Grant, Bekay & Famoso- "Kalashnikov & Kush"

I never heard the artist Redicilus but as first aquaintances go you don't get much better than this. Not only is the rugged head-nod incuding production supplied by the man himself, but Redicilus goes the posse cut route for "Kalashnikov & Kush". You got Shabaam Sahdeeq who ALWAYS sounds like one of the most impressive emcees in the game when spitting on a beat that does his talent justice. We also get a tight verse from Bekay who I personally haven't heard squat from in quite some time til' now; up-and-comer El Grant (who we most recently heard on his tuff Torae assisted single "Truth Hurts")  and another, for me at least, new name in Fatmoso. They all do a great job and I for one can't wait for Redicilus upcoming debut album debut "In Response: Dee-Fi". You can read a lot more about the allbum and this single on its Bandcamp page.

SHABAAM SAHDEEQ - "That Dope" (Ft. Wais P & Sha Stimuli)

Shabaam Sahdeeq killed it every time he appeared on a single or track back in the Rawkus era, which I recently celebrated on the compilation "FUCK Rawkus". Following that he had a few years and dropped a few projects that clearly didn't make his skills any justice at all. The last few years however, with very momemorable guest apperances on records by DJ Spinna, Lewis Parker, and DJ Skizz to name a few. The latter is also the producer behind "The Dope", the first single from Sahdeeq's just announced fifth official album; to be titled "Keepers Of The Lost Art". Looking at the tracklist (see below), this definitely looks CRAZY, good to see a lot of Lewis Parker, DJ Skizz, DJ Spinna and I'm especially hyped about the features from Tragedy and REKS. The album drops on April 22, according to iTunes.

01. Keepers Of The Lost Art (prod. by Res Nullius) 
02. Conceited Confidence (prod. by Ran Reed) 
03. Playing Games (prod. by Lewis Parker) 
04. Speak Truth (feat. Reks & Kamala) [prod. by DJ Ready Cee] 
05. Walk With the Light (prod. by Lewis Parker) 
06. That Dope (feat. Wais P & Sha Stimuli) [prod. by DJ Skizz] 
07. Hardbody & Heavy (feat. Half A Brick, EastKoast & DJ Dister) [prod. by Lewis Parker] 
08. Tranquilo (prod. by Harry Fraud) 
09. Grown Man Hustle (feat. Eric Rico) [prod. by Lewis Parker] 
10. The Come Back Kid (feat. Skyzoo and F.T.) [prod. By DJ Skizz] 
11. Seasons Change (prod. by Lewis Parker) 
12. City of Fame (feat. Mic Handz) [prod. by Teike van Baden] 
13. He Who Dares (feat. Lewis Parker) [prod. by Lewis Parker] 
14. Fall In Line (prod. by DJ Wonder) 
15. O.G. Certified (feat. Tragedy Khadafi & DJ Ready Cee) [prod. by Lewis Parker] 
16. Done It All (feat. Bekay) [prod. by DJ Dister] 
17. Relax (Remix) [prod. by DJ Dister] 
18. Energon 2 (feat. Spit Gemz & DJ Dister) [prod. by One Take] 
19. Honor Me Now (Remix) [prod. by Science of Vinyl Villains] 
20. U Don’t Want None (feat. General DV) [prod. by AlterBeats] 
Bonus Tracks (Digital Only): 
21. Cut From a Different Cloth (feat. Hakim) [prod. by Donald Robinson Cole the 3rd]
22. Do You (prod. by DJ Spinna) 
23. Motion Picture (prod. by DJ Spinna)

[comp] SHABAAM SAHDEEQ - "Fuck Rawkus: The Early Years"

Shabaam Sahdeeq was one of those really bright shining new stars, along with cats like B-One, that more than most artists seemed to really be working hard with the label to get his music out there, as he was featured on their major compilations like Soundbombing II" and was able to release several 12" singles on the label in preparation for his debut solo album. Unfortunately, Rawkus soon started going downhill and the relationship soured between the artist and the label so much that Sahdeeq wasn't even allowed to get a hold of his own master recordings when he left the label. Had that not happened we probably would have got something incredible  like what I present to y'all below with the latest The Lost Tapes compilation. Instead he moved to Raptivism and rerecorded all new tracks that didn't hold a candle to his early singles, the early guest features, and tracks that remained unreleased until Nick Wiz dropped his stellar "Cellar Sounds" compilations a few years back (featuring a few tracks recorded between the producer and rhymer around '95/'96). Together these 14-15 songs makes for a mad dope listen, with plenty of nasty beats and plenty of lyrically rewind moments, in other words pure hip-hop shit  which why I've choosen to call it "FUCK RAWKUS: The Early Years". Luckily, at least he released the mini LP "Rhyme Related" as part of Polyrhythm Addicts with DJ Spinna, Apani B. Fly Emcee and Mr. Complex which is a must hear for any serious hip-hop head. 

I was dissapointed with Sahdeeq's output after he left Rawkus for the longest so I'm real happy that he finally have started releasing real quality material again in recent years with several interesting guest spots for artists like DJ Spinna and Lewis Parker, a long with several ill singles in his own name. Not to say that he hasn't dropped some heat along the way, the second Polyrhythm album was fire and there's been some mixtapes and whatnot but i feel he's definitely back in business now and got something real dope in store for us soon. This is of course an even stronger reason in my opinion to go back to the beginning and collect all of these joints and sequence them as close to an album as possible. I really hope you enjoy this, because I've been banging it like crazy - as most of these are vinyl rips some of the sound qualities between songs might differ slightly but they are all definitely listenable, and more than that. Please drop a comment with your thoughts or who you want to see the next time get The Lost Tapes treatment... Also, don't forget to TURN IT THE FUCK UP!!!

01. "Everyboy Raps"
02. "Arabian Nights" [Nick Wiz Universal Mix]
03. "It Could Happen" (Ft. Shadowz in The Dark)
04. "So Real"
05. "5 Star Generalz" (Ft. Eminem, A.L., Kwest & Skam2)
06. "Sound Clash"
07. "Side 2 Side" [The Main Joint]
08. "On A Mission"
09. "WWIII" (Ft. Pharaohe Monch)
10. "Every Rhyme I Write" (Ft. Smif-n-Wessun)
11. "Are You Ready?"
12. "Concrete" (Ft. Xzibit)
13. "Styles Upon Styles"
14. "Finish The Game"

SHABAAM SAHDEEQ - "FUCK RAWKUS..."

SHABAAM SAHDEEQ - "Tranquillo" / Conceited Confidence"

With his mid-to-late '90s Rawkus work their young signee Shabaam Sahdeeq quickly became an artist to be looking for with through hs terrific wordplay, well thought out and often introspective lyrics appearing on various proects like "Soundbombing II" and several rather mindblowing 12" singles and EP:s. These early recordings ¨truly proved that Sahdeeq was a terrific emcee with an already huge potential that just kept on growing, all placed over production by the likes of Nick Wiz, DJ Spinna, Hi-Tek and The Alchemist to provide his vocals with a cinematc feel. However, when the emcee was dropped from his Rawkus deal, not only were the records he first recorded locked up at the label's publishing, but it seemed a lot of his contats with producers were a lot farther out of reach. The resulting "Never Say Never" droppped on Raptivism in 2001 and clearly didn't deliver on the promises made on Sha's early work. It had it's moments but all-in-all it was a dissapointment. (Trust me, I have been working on early Sahdeeq compilation for some time which should see the light of the day soon).

However, recent singles and collaborations points to Sahdeeq really getting ready to get back in business, just check out the two latest single releases from the New York spitter. The main single that just dropped is a video for the new Harry Fraud produced "Tranquillo" (out now on iTunes) while the other is called "Conceited Confidence", produced by Ran Reed! Both dope joints, and "Tranquillo" is the first track to emerge from Sahdeeq's April 22 album "Keepers of the Lost Art" which drop on Netherlands label Below System. TURN THAT FUCKERS UP!!

[Album] AWKWORD - "World View"

NYC emcee Awkword released a very interesting project late this Sunday; unfortunately it hit the net after I had gone to bed due to the dime difference over here, and since I haven't been on The Lost Tapes since then really I haven't been able at all to make any new updates. But better late than never, here's Awkword's anticipated concept album "World View" which featues Awkword and several A-list underground spitters going in over production collected from all over the world. Really interesting stuff, and especially when some of the producers include ATG, Numsonics, Domingo, DJ Fafu, The White Shadows, Tranzformers and many more, while guests include, but not limited to, Chaundon, Sean Price, Shabaam Sahdeeq, Punchline, Beretta 9, Jasiri X, Chino XL, Sha Stimuli, REKS, C-Rayz Walz, Dug Infinite, Mista Lawgne (!), ILLBILL, Slug, and Joell Ortiz. Despite featuring several producers "World View" clearly has a cohessive soun, and comes off as an homage to the Golden Age of true hip-hop. Be sure to check this one out, not least because it's a free digital project, sponsored by the always great DJBooth. TURN IT UP!!

SHABAAM SAHDEEQ - "Conceited Confidence"

Shabaam Sahdeeq is a real interesting lyricist, a very talented guy who's gone a long way from his first excellent 12" series on Rawkus Records which was imo followed by some rather mediocre music. More recently he have started dropping some really dope material, including guest apperances on records by Lewis Parker and DJ Spinna, and his latest single, the Ran Reed produced "Conceited Confidence" which is a pretty nice jam that stands somewhere in between, clearly worth a listen or two. Will be interesting to see where this turns up though as it's way overdue for Shabaam to release a proper, really dope solo album.. He definitely got the skills for it!

[Video] ALTERBEATS / SHABAAM SAHDEEQ - "Stop It"

Alterbeats, the fast Rising boom bap producer of the French Alterprod outfit, released his second producer driven under own name on October 29 titled "Class Struggle". Following the successful "The French Revolution", Alterbeats latest is another excursion into the lands of hard boiled beats in the French tradition and lyrical American emcees. Just like on the previous LP, on "Class Struggle", Alterbeats once again joins up with one-time Rawkus star Shabaam Sahdeeq for the imressive cut "Stop It". The track comes full circle when the talented DJ Tricks does a nice turntable routine hook. Buy the album in digital format @ iTunes or the CD @ Fat Beats.

DJ Duke Ft. Shabaam Sahdeeq - "Who"

I hope all of y'all are a bit familiar with skilled beatsmith DJ Duke at this point as we've heard several crazy tracks coming out of his studio over the last year. "Who" featuring the always impressive Shabaam Sahdeeq on vocal duties is easily my favorite Duke cut so far, everything from the beat, to the hook and verses, to the mix and overall production is top notch here. "Here Comes the City Brother" is out September 2013 so don't sleep!!

B.A.M. & M-Dot w/ Jaysaun, Nutso, Block McCloud, Blacastan & Shabaam Sahdeeq - "Visionaries"

This posse cut is fucking insane, I've warned people about DJ Low Cut before, this underground producer (who of course is behind this single) seems to have the midaz touch when it comes to bringing quality hardbodie hip-hop. And when you got a beat like this and a line-up of heavy hitters such as Jaysaun, Nutso, Shabaam Sahdeweq, Blacastan, Block McCloud, Chaundon, Tribeca and DJ Family Tyz all bringing their A-game you know you got a winner on your hands. Play this one LOUD!

"Visionairies" will appear on B.A.M. & M-Dot's upcoming mixtape which should be out by the end of this year. However, it will also make an earlier apperance on the remix album of DJ Low Cut's slamming "New York Minute". If you like what you hear, check out more of DJ Low Cut @ Bandcamp.

Spinna & Sahdeeq drops new 7'' single

It seems I've missed a lot of gems over the last week since I really haven't had much time to check for new music and news pieces. Brooklyn's DJ Spinna is by far one of my favorite producers and his many contributions with Shabaam Sahdeeq (who's been making a strong comeback the last year) has always been top-notch material. Therefore the release of two new collaborations put out on 7" vinyl via Spinna's new imprint Correct Technique comes as fantastic news. PRE-ORDER THE SINGLE and stream both songs below.

DJ Duke Ft. Shabaam Sahdeeq

DJ Duke (Assassin) releases another promo teaser for his upcoming "Here Comes The City Brother", this time featuring Shabaam Sahdeeq in the booth. Look out for Duke's LP to drop sometime next year.