I Fux With...Conscious Dancehall

Busy Signal - Loaded

Calling Busy a "conscious" musician is somewhat disingenuous. He does the slack stuff as well as anybody and, much like his friend Mavado, he knows how to rack up a musical body-count. But, unlike almost any popular (male) Dancehall deejay, his makes an effort to educate as well as entertain . This album is widely acclaimed as the best Reggae/Dancehall album that came out last year (I would personally go with Serani's). It has my favorite song of last year, "Jail", and quite possibly the most absurd concept song ever, "Unknown Number". His flow on "Knocking at your door" is just insane, and "Real Jamaican" makes my African ass wanna be Jamaican for 3 munites 22 seconds. Enjoy.

I Fux With...Emo-Dancehall

Serani - The Future

Autotune is the worst thing to happen to R&B in the last decade. On the other hand, it is the best thing to happen to Dancehall (well, other than the Gully god) in the last few years. Unlike in R&B, where autotune is seemingly used as a gratuitious way to hide bad singing, In dancehall, it is used by cats like Serani and Demarco to add Queen-like operatic emotional sensationalism to their singing (think good Emo)...Or maybe I'm just deluded. Either way, Serani's album is straight bananas. Enjoy.

This Is Lovers Rock

Sade - Lovers Rock (courtesy of Nevertraveled)

"Sade is Venus with a record deal" - The Chairman

This is a belated Valentines day post. As anyone who knows me knows, I love Sade. Her voice isn't that great technically, but, damn, does it get you in the mood.

I fux with....Movie Soundtracks

Slumdog Millionaire Soundtrack

This movie is by far the best movie I've seen this year. It's damn near ready to knock Spike Lee's masterpiece, 25th Hour, out of my all-time top 3. The soundtrack is just as awesome. Enjoy.

I fux with....Country Music

African Bwoy wit an Inglish accent

Sway - Saturday Night Hussle


Sway - This is my Demo

I Fux with...Hiplife (part 2 of 2 (or maybe 3))

Obrafour Mixtape (download)

Heavy

Ghanaman

Who Born You By Mistake?


Again, Maggie Ahuofe:

Obrafour ("The Executioner") traditionally is the person who beheads people sentenced to death by a chief. He came onto the rap scene in the late 90s. He was one of the fist rappers to spit solely in Twi. (Reggie Rockstone, the self-proclaimed Godfather of hiplife (and I don't disgree :)) rapped in both twi and english). What sets him apart from other Hiplife artistes is his prolific use of traditional proverbs and folklore in his rhymes.

Obrafour's first album was "Pae Mu Ka" which literally means "Split it say it" (It makes much more sense in twi, but an english approximation would be: "Say what's on your mind") . This album is arguable one of the most socially conscious and lyrically masterful Hiplife albums ever made. Notable tracks on this album include "Kwame Nkrumah" - a tribute to the country's first president and "Ghanaman" which is basically an interpretation of the cliched phrase: "Ask not what your country can do for you…." and "Yaanom" which calls on the people to listen!

Other Obrafour classics include "Who Born You By Mistake?" (One of the best insults you can say to a Ghanaian), "Maame" a tribute to mothers, "Ntitie Pa" good upringing.

His most recent album, "Heavy", saw him make a dramatic shift from standard Hiplife to the more traditional highlife style (Think Usher suddenly deciding to do an album full of 70's Stax soul). An average Obrafour fan might not appreciate Heavy but it takes more listens to fully appreciate the intricacies of what he does on that album. The title track is ridiculous!

I Fux with...Hiplife (part 1 of 2 (or maybe 3))

Kwaadee Mixtape (Download)

Abrantie Mabre

Ka Wo Nan To So

P 1


For the longest time I detested Hiplife. I always judged it through a hip-hop lens and found it lacking in all of the things I loved in hip-hop. It was only recently that someone convinced me to give it a secnd chance and opened my eyes to the uniqueness of the genre. So when I decided to do a series of Hiplife posts I had no choice but to outsource it to her. So without further ado, Maggie Ahuofe on Kwaadee:

Okomfoo (Traditional priest) Kwaadee (which according to my mum is an abbreviation of "Kwame Adei" a common Ashanti name) burst onto the Hiplife scene in 2002/2003ish (ish because this is the first time I heard his music). He, like Obrafour, raps exclusively in Twi and what sets him apart from other rappers is his use of very authentic twi and intonations. The average Ghanaian that you'll meet speaks very "westernized" twi interspersed with numerous english word substitutes, but this guy...not so much. (ALEX: He also has by far the best sense of humor of any hiplife artist I know)

His debut album was "Okomfoo Se Koo" (which I cant translate directly because my twi is too westernized). The first single off this album, "Meyere ne Mempena" (My wife vs. My mistress), is a classic in its own right. Granted all men cheat (ahem) but you rarely hear a rapper openly debating the pros and cons between his gf & wife in trying to figure which one to stay with (This is very similar to the Chris Rock skit "Old pussy" vs. New pussy")(ALEX: It's more or less a Ghanaian version of Gregory Isaac's "Cool Down the Pace").

Basically his wife is old school and timid and the mistress is young, vibrant, wears "shiny shoes", parties like its going out of style and is a tantric fox in bed. He makes the "wise" choice in the end and sticks with his wife because he cannot keep up with the "new school". Notable tracks on subsequent albums include "Abrantie Mabre" (the eternally exhausted young man trying to make it the legitimate way) and "Efie Nipa" which laments the problems of society's impoverished population.

The main reason he is being featured on this blog is because of the track "K'a wo n'an to so" from his most recent album "Nsem Pii" (Numerous issues). Translated, it means "Close your legs". This is by far the funniest hiplife song ever (ALEX: I say funniest song ever, no matter the genre. I literally fell off my bed laughing the first time I heard this track). He discusses the anguish older men go through in efforts to remain faithful to their wives whilst younger women entice them. He encourages all women to have a sign on their privates with the labels "No trespassing" & "Private and individual property". This is infinitely funnier if you understand the lyrics. Until then, just take my word for it.

(ALEX: A couple of my other favorite Kwaadee tracks tracks are P 1, A funny track about his elementary school days, and Nkran Kwanso, a song about getting your freak on in public)

I Fux with...Blues

Bobby "Blue" Bland - When You Come to The End of Your Road


Bobby "Blue" Bland - Dreamer

After seeing the number of people who downloaded the Johnny Cash upload, I decided to do another one of these. This time I'm doing the blues. Bobby Bland is my favorite Bluesman ever and this is my favorite blues album. The most famous song on the album is "Ain't no Love in the Heart of the City" but my favorite is the one embedded above, "When You Come to The End of Your Road". Check it out.