Apathy Ft. M.O.P. & Celph TItled - "Stomp Rappers"

I'm not the biggest fan of Apathy I've we're being one hundred, but the kid does have bars, a great ear for beats and gets some great guests on his record (just check the entire album he did with OC last year for example). On the first Friday of March (2/3) he is releasing "The Widow's Son" and based on the singles and credits this one will be worth to hear at least a couple of times. For the love of Hip Hop I'm posting all of the singles including the latest joint which features none other than Lil' Fame and Billy Danze over the appropriately titled self-produed "Stomp Rappers".

The real winners are the three earlier singles, produced by Nottz, Pete Rock (and featuring Pharoahe Monch) and DJ Premier's "The Order". Looking at the tracklist, it seems that as far as outside credits we have gotten all of the best shit aisde from the AG and DJ Mekalek-assisted "Never Fall Off".

[Review / Stream] BLU & NOTTZ - "Titans In The Flesh"

Real quality releases have been few and far in between in my honest opinion but one producer I fucks with heavily is Mr. Nottz who caught my attention back when Busta dropped "E.L.E." and from then till now he continues to amaze me. It should be noted that Nottz, like Dilla (who was a big fan himself), is a little more prone to experimenting with different styles than say Large Professor or DJ Premier. As such his catalouge might not be quite as constant in quality as the aforementioned legends but when he's on, he's ON. And listening to "Titans in the Flesh", his new project with celebrated LA wordsmith Blu it quickly becomes evident that Nottz's brings his ON game big time, as does Blu. Over only six joints, a remix by J57, and 26 minutes Blu sounds as home on whatever curve ball headbanger beat the producer throws at him - whether as raw as the funkiest LA low rider banger ("Heaven On Earth") to the most soulful New York boom bap classic ("To The East", "The Man"). Or why not bring both of them styles together like on "Giant Steps" which features an exercise in lyrical futility between the Coasts with Skyzoo, Bishop Lamont and Blu all going for the jugular with the exquisite cuts of DJ Revolution tearing up the turntables being the cherry on top. Not to mention the shout out to John Coltrane - if you know, you know. There's no wack tracks here, just that ill shit that made me fall in love with Hip Hop all those years ago. A big shout out to Nottz and Blu for this monster you made. When your head is constantly nodding for 30 minutes you know that you're listening to real fucking Hip Hop.

If you follow this genre and these particular artist you are of course aware that "Titans in the Flesh" is the follow-up to 2013s "Gods in the Spirit" that featured five original collaborations and a Nottz remix. Though three years separate their release and crafting they work well together as an album, as well as a look into the growth of these two artists and their musical camraderie. Be sure to support good music and go and cop this new project through iTunes if digital is your thing or grab the limited edition Yellow 12" EP from UGHH while you preview the sounds via the official Soundcloud stream up top. "Gods in the Spirit" is also still available on iTunes and on Deluxe Edition CD from UGHH. I strongly recommend listening to both of these projects back to back, shit is absolutely excellent.

RAPPER BIG POOH & NOTTZ - "300Z"

As a big fan of producer Nottz I've been eagerly anticipating his full-on collaboration with former Little Brother emcee Rapper Big Pooh and having now listneed to "Home Sweet Home" in its entirety I can safely say that the project does not dissapoint. Check out the entire album for yourself via Bandcamp below, peep the visuals for the latest single "300z" up top and head over to UGHH and order yourself a copy of this gem on CD or LP.

[Shelved Classics] CANIBUS - "Hip Hop For $ale"; OG w. Nottz

In the section "Shelved Classics" I take a look at albums by major hip hop artists that for one reason or another failed to either materialize at all or was completely changed from its original concept once they were finally released. Note that I might use the term "classic" in a rather loose sense in some of these cases. Today I'm writing about the sixth original album by Canibus, the legendary New York emcee who has a reputation for being notoriously hard to work with as evidenced by his many feuds and skipping of labels. "Hip Hop For $ale" was to be the follow up to his critically acclaimed "Rip The Jacker", an album where he had worked exclusively with one producer (Stoupe The Enemy Of Mankind) to achieve a consistant sound. For this album 'Bis aimed to repeat the One MC/One DJ formula by reaching out to the constantly underrated Nottz Raw.

Canibus and the VA beat master hooked up and started working on material for the as-of-yet untitled album. The combination was really something; Nottz's excellent brand of triumphant boom bap meshed well with Canibus' high level of lyricism and calm but precise delivery. The single "Hip Hop" was released to mixtape DJ's and created a decent buzz as even 'Bis haters needed to recognize the chemistry and classic hip-hop feel to the record. I'm not sure how much of the album the two actually completed, but an unfortunate falling out between the two would all but dead the projects true potential. The reason for the fall out was that Canibus manager had issued a mixtape to Sandbox Automatic called "The Vitruvian Man". The CD contained not one or two songs from the forthcoming but still unfinished new Canibus album but about half of the tracks the MC and producer had recorded together - and not in snippet or low quality versions either! This made Nottz pull out of the project and vowed to never work with 'Bis again, a fact that is very unfortunate considering the power of songs like "Back With Heat", "It's No Other Than" and "Hip Hop".

Having both the "Hip Hop For $ale" and "Virtuvian Man" at hand I thought it was only right to put together this Lost Tapes version of the material.. I used all the Nottz productions from the retail LP and added the  original songs not available on the LP from the "Vitruvian Man" to create an idea of what we might have heard where the real collaboration fulfilled. While the production here bears the trademark of Nottz's sound there are no guarantees that all of the beats are his since the "Vitruvian Man" did not come with any credits. Either way it's an interesting take on an album that in the end featured some brilliant moments, yet failed to live up to its potential. Enjoy!

01. "Hip Hop (What Ya Want)?" (Ft. Nottz)
02. "It's No Other Man"
03. "Back With Heat"
04. "Show 'Em Love"
05.  "I Gotcha" (Ft. D.M.P.)

06.  "What You Lookin' For"07  "They Dontr Know"
08. "Let Me Fuck You"
09." Full Battle Rattle"
10. "Dear Academy"

CANIBUS / NOTTZ - "Hip Hop 4 $ale" [OG LP]

[Stream] TALIB KWELI x 9TH WONDER - "Indie 500"

Talib Kweli and 9th Wonder's "Indie 500" is another one of those releases that I've been really eagerly anticipating since it was first announced a while back. What's strange though is the fact that the majority of the project is not at all produced by 9th Wonder however, instead 9th's four beats are combined with heat supplied by Nottz Raw, Khrysis!, Hi-Tek, Eric G to make the LP a memorable one. No matter how you slice it this should be a banging project as Talib knows how to make a banging record when he got the correct beats to work with. You can stream the full album via Soundcloud, while the CD and LP ships from UGHH now.

[ALBUM] DIAMOND DISTRICT - "March On Washington: Redux"

2014 was finally the year that Diamond District, the Washington trio consisting of XO, yU and producer/emcee Oddisee, Their album "March On Washington" was right on time giving the current status of what the hell is going on with the US (and here in Europe as well).  Welll-received by fans and critics alike, it was great to hear the trio going in again and much needed. And it was only yesterday that they released their remix album titled "Redux" to iTunes. The remix project features big names like Large Professor, Diamond D, Nottz, OhNO, Black Milk, DJ Skizz and more. Sounds very interesting, stream it or purchase it below. TURN IT UP!

BLU & NOTTZ - "Boyz II Men" [DIAMOND D Remix]

"Boyz II Men" originally appeared on the Nottz produced Blu EP/mini-album "Gods in the Spirit" EP earlier this year; as well as appearing on the DJ Revolution/Coalmine collaboration compilation/mixtape "Unearthed" (a must hear if you haven't already). The great Diamond D has remixed the track for the Deluxe Version of the album, bringing one of his many signature sounds to the mix, and while it's not as strong as his work on BIGREC's recent album, you'll definitely have your head nodding. You can order the iTunes deluxe edition which is out now, as well as the unmixed version (also Deluxe) which is out on both CD @ FatBeats among other retailers. Enjoy!

OBX - "Make It" / "No Love"

Texas spitter OBX is a new name to me but he definitely got both lyrics and style plus veteran producer Nottz laces him something beautiful on "Make It" too. The single is lifted from a forthcoming album titled "Villain" dropping November 25 which also features the soulful knocker "No Love" that also packs a memorable apperance from Fashawn. Other guests and producers to look forward to include Meyhem Lauren and Frank Dukes. Should be one to check for!

[EP] BLU x NOTTZ - "Gods in the Spirit"

Both Blu and Nottz are artists that I feel is super talented and has dropped plenty of super hot material warranting them places as some of the most interesting artists out there right now, though I also think that they both have dropped uninspired projects as well. Luckily with their brand new EP, "Gods in the Spirit", they are both at the top of their game. Featuring five original songs and a remix that all bangs along hard with soulful chops and well written lyrics that'll suck you in right from the moment you press play. The artwork by renowed graffiti legend (and emcee) Skam2 adds a lot to the overall quality of the project as a whole too and this would be dope for a vinyl release. As it stands now it's digital only, available through iTunes, though you can stream the entire thing below via Soundcloud so be sure to do just that, and for chrissake TURN IT UP!

[Video] PUSHA T x KENDRICK LAMAR - "Nosetalgia"

The Clipse's Pusha T drops his new album "My Name is My Name" via GOOD Music/Def Jam on October 8. When I was checking out the tracklist, I was especially excited about the Nottz produced track boosting a feature from Mr. Kendrick Lamar. So fortunate then that not only has "Noestalgia" been released as an early single, it now gets the visual treatment... And it's every bit as sick as I had expected; these guys went IN!!

JAY DEE - "Diamonds (The Shining Pt. 1)"

I've written it before, but an official release of Jay Dee's long lost vocal album for MCA circa 2002 has long been high on my wish list. 2013 it's finally time for that as was previously reported with the release of the first 12", "The Anthem" / "Trucks", two tracks that were previously both found on the unauthorized leak around 2010 including ten songs recorded for the project (the focused listener noticed that "The Anthem" was in reality a different version of the Kanye West produced "We F'd Up"). While there's still no official release date for the full album, it's evident that we are getting closer to finally getting the final album fully produced, arranged and sequenced by Dilla that we will ever get to hear, as the second single from the project is now ready for release. 

Titled "Diamonds & Ice" this forthcoming EP features two Dilla vocal cuts in two alternate mixes each, including instrumentals and a bonus beat. Check the facts; long before "The Shining", Dilla gave the subtitle The Shining Pt. 1 and Pt. 2 to two tracks from "The Diary" (a.k.a. "Pay Jay"); the Nottz produced "Diamonds", and the Madlib produced "Ice" as both cuts saw the Detroit maestro reflect on the expensive, shinier things in life. "Diamonds" was included on the aforementioned leak, while "Ice" was released as a bonus track on certain issues of Jaylib's "Champion Sound" and as a promo 12". What's really funny is that I've been tacking on just "Ice" as the outro to the "Pay Jay" leak for my iPod tracklist for at least a year since I felt it really fit the vibe of the LP, as well as the incomplete leak missing a Madlib production. Additionally, the EP also features a bonus beat called "The D", another Madlib beat that Jay Dee secured for the MCA record yet never recorded vocals over. All music on this Pay Jay record comes straight from the mixed and completed masters created by Dilla himself. Pre-order "Diamonds & Ice" @ Rappcats, and turn the volume up LOUD on the mastered version of "Diamonds (The Shining Pt. 1)" below... So chunky!

[Mixtape] HOUSE SHOES x BIG - "Dreams"

Legendary Detroit DJ and producer House Shoes'' "Dreams: B.I.G. Re-Imagined" is a little different from the usual BIG tribute. Rather than rushing it out for a 9:th release, the initial idea came to Shoes on that date and since then he has been on work on the project. The initial idea was to send out a bunch of classic BIG accapellas to a bunch of his producer homies, resulting in fresh takes by innovative producers such as Nottz, Wajeed, Khrysis, Quelle Chris, Nameless, 14KT, Brenk Sinatra, and of course House Shoes himself. I'm usually not that fond of new interpretations of the true classics, but Shoes did a real great job here and there's a lot of music on it that deserves to be heard, so make sure to press play ASAP!

01. "Kick in the Door" [Nottz Remix]
02. "Dead Wrong" [Wajeed Remix]
03. "Dangerous MC's" [KNX Remix]
04. "The What" [Nameless Remix]
05. "Ten Crack Commandments" [14KT Remix]
06. "Everyday Struggles" [P.U.D.G.E. Remix]
07. "Bust A Nut" [Quelle Chris Remi, Bx]
08. "The Routine (Think BIG)" [Khrysis Remix]
09. "Ten Crack Commandments" [Brenk Sinatra Remix]
11. "Party & Bullshit" [HouseShoes Remix] [*]
12. "Flava in Ya Ear" [Nameless Remix] [*]
13. "One More Chance" [KNX Remix] [*]

HOUSE SHOES PRESENTS "DREAMS: TEN B.I.G. CLASSICS REIMAGINED"

[Video] Nottz Ft. Pete Rock - "Turn It Up"

Nottz brings out his collaboration with Pete Rock, "Turn It Up", for his latest video release. Originally featured on the DMP producers' "In My Mind" EP back in 2011, which you can purchase from iTunes.

House Shoes x Nottz x Oh No x MED

House Shoes, one of the foremost representants of the Motown hip-hop scene, is releasing his album "Let It Go" on June 19. From there, we hear the fat single "Last Breath", featuring Nottz, Oh No and MED ripping the mic. Other guest spots on the LP are held down by people like Guilty Simpson, Roc Marciano, Alchemist, Charlie 2na, and many others; all produced by Shoes himself. I'm especially looking forward to hearing another "Greneberg" collaboration. Pre-order here.

01. "Let It Go" (Ft. Shaqif Husaayn)
02. "Empire"
03. "Goodfellas to Bad Boys" (Ft. Moe Dirdee)
04. "Dirt" (Ft. Greneberg)
05. "Time" (Ft. Big Tone)
06. "Crazy" (Ft. Black Milk & Guilty Simpson)
07. "Last Breath" (Ft. Nottz, Oh No & MED)
08. "Keep On" (Ft. Co$$)
09. "Sweet / Noodles"
10. "So Different" (Ft. Charlie 2na)
11. "Everything (Modern Family)"
12. "Sunrise" (Ft. Black Spade)
13. "Trouble" (Ft. MarvWon & Moe Dirdee)
14. "Nails" (Ft. Quelle Chris & Guilty Simpson)
15. "Castles (The Sky is Ours" (Ft. Jimetta Rose)
16. "Cry Now"
17. "Roller Coaster" (Ft. Self Sayes & Fat Albert Einsteen)
18. "Empire (Reprise)" (Ft. Sam Beubien of Will Sessions)

HOUSE SHOES - "LAST BREATH" (Ft. Oh No, MED & Nottz)