New Urban Music Releases Week Of June 23, 2009
Ginuwine
A Man’s Thoughts
Review
2009 release, the sixth album from the R&B vocalist. A Man’s Thoughts was produced by The Underdogs, B Cox, Timberland, The Runners, Johnta Austin, Oak and Polow Da Don. The album includes guests appearances from Brandy, Missy Elliott, Bun B and Timberland.
1. Interlude
2. Show Off
3. Trouble [Feat. Bun B]
4. Last Chance
5. Interlude
6. One Time For Love
7. Open The Door
8. Get Involved [Feat. Timbaland & Missy Elliott]
9. Orchestra
10. Touch Me
11. Lying To Each Other
12. Even When I’m Mad
13. Bridge To Love [Feat. Brandy]
14. Used To Be The One
15. Show Me The Way
F.L.Y. (Fast Life Yungstaz)
Jamboree
Review
Although many artists ride the wave of success, only a few stay on top. Luckily for the Fast Life Youngstaz a.k.a. F.L.Y., they have sailed straight to stardom. Hailing from Stone Mountain, GA, the three members of Def Jam’s newest hip-hop group have made a tremendous splash all over the country with their dance-driven smash hit “Swag Surfin’.” “If you go on Youtube and type in `Swag Surfin” you’ll see videos of people inside clubs going from side to side in a wavy motion, surfin,’” says 21 year-old rapper Mook, who helped pen the hit with fellow group members Myko McFly, 20 and Vee, 22. “We got bands, drill teams and college basketball teams playing it before they run out for their games. The Atlanta Hawks come out to `Swag Surfin” now too. It’s just a whole buzz we have that’s building up.”
After releasing “Swag Surfin’” in the late summer of 2008, the Fast Life Youngstaz melodic sing-song style started to burn like wildfire throughout the Southern United States. It didn’t take long before Def Jam president L.A. Reid caught wind of the fresh new group and invited the guys to perform live for him in New York City. Although the guys had only been a group for close to two years, they were already performed numerous times in and around Atlanta.
On the KE produced track “Bands,” F.L.Y. play off the kinetic energy of collegiate halftime shows. “The beat itself sounds like you’re in the band room at a HBCU football game,” says Mook. “The title `Bands’ actually has about three or four different meanings that we’re playing off of in the song.”
In an effort to quiet any would be skeptics, F.L.Y. recorded “Stop Hatin’ `09″ which details their road to success and their unique take on down-South hip-hop. “We’re versatile,” says Myko. “We can pretty much adapt to any style of music.” “In a lot of our songs there’s a lot of harmonizing and real melodic flows with different types of word play and metaphors,” adds Mook. “We like to have fun on our songs. You’re going to want to dance every time you hear a FLY record.”
Armed with their debut album JAMBOREE, F.L.Y. are ready to take everyone who’s listening on a ride. “I believe the rest of the country will catch on to the F.L.Y. movement because it’s like a wave,” says Vee. “And you don’t want to be left out or you’ll drown.
1. Jamboree
2. Bands
3. Swag Surfin’
4. Party Time
5. Mr. Lenox
6. Gotta Be
7. Across The Globe
8. Mounted Up
9. Prada Walkin’
10. Sauced Up
11. Better Days
12. Stop Hatin 09
y
Willy Northpole
Tha Connect
Review
WILLY NORTHPOLE is the first true Arizona rapper to break out of the confines of the state. Yet, with the release of Willy Northpole’s stunning debut Tha Connect that limited perspective is about to change, we are introduced to a world of marked gangsters, midnight crack slingers and strong family bonds.
On his first single “Body Marked Up,” an ode to the numerous tattoos that cover his body, Willy drops verbal bombs onto an unsuspecting audience. Utilizing a minimal beat that was produced by a 14 year old new-jack named Wonka, “Body Marked Up” is a hypnotic banger that has enticed more than a few industry ears. Through his child hood friend & manager Tiffany J. of Family Tree Entertainment he inked a deal with Ludacris’ powerhouse label Disturbing tha Peace.
On the moving track “Heaven,” produced by Jelly Roll, Willy revisits the pain of the violet deaths that have befallen on many of his homies. Willy was locked-up for robbery at the age of 15 which may have just saved his life. In the youth detention for three years, Willy hung posters of Jay-Z, DMX and others on his cell walls and continued to write rhymes on a regular.
Another standout track from Willy Northpole’s includes the Black Elvis produced “The Life,” a feel good song that features Def Jam soul man Ne-Yo on the hook. “I had left the song without a hook, because I wanted to get an R&B singer on it, but Ne-Yo was the last person I expected to get. Man, when I heard Ne-Yo on my track `The Life,’ I knew my life was about to change.” In truth, after listening to Tha Connect, your life too will be changed.
1. Intro
2. Hood Sh**
3. The Story
4. Skit (How Hard)
5. Body Marked Up
6. Hood Dreamer featuring B.o.B.
7. Feeling Alright
8. Skit (Ghetto Tour Guide)
9. Ghetto Tour Guide
10. #1 Side Chick featuring Bobby V.
11. Vegas Lights
12. The Life featuring Ne-Yo
13. Dear Lord
14. Skit (At Salt’s Grave)
15. Heaven
Leave a Reply