We Plug to You... Mister Rae - The Brand New Masquerade EP

Hello people! As you know, there is nothing that gives me more joy than serving you some GOOD music so it is with great pleasure that I plug to you - Underground Hip-Hop artist, Mister Rae a.k.a Rae Diaspora (real name Rinre Idris). A member of Nigerian Hip-Hop collective 'Str8Buttah', Mister Rae poetically addresses personal, social and political issues on his highly anticipated EP titled 'The Brand New Masquerade' which we are about to get into.

My favourite song  on this 11-track EP is the Teck-Zilla produced Afrobeat-infused 'Here Now'. On this celebratory song, Mister Rae beautifully details the life, times and struggles of an up & coming artist before he finds success and is in celebratory mode on the hook in reference to the later-found success.

 "I'm here now, you can rise the chair now; Pull yourself a beer, Grab yourself a chair now, I didn't write the script so don't ask me how; let's toast to the past, celebrating here and now" 

Firstly, I love the way he uses Afrobeat music as his musical backdrop on this and still makes the song sound so modern, his flow is so infectiously smooth and he totally owned the beat with some sharp clever lyrics and wordplay. The uplifting sensation of the song also serves as a major inspiration for everyone going through a hard time and the song affirm that while tough times don't last, tough people certainly do.

This next track is titled '3rd World Superstar' - a glorious and hard-hitting production laced with heavy drum patterns and lush keyboards; this beat was obviously cooked up by a lover of  80's and 90's Hip-Hop music and I think it was a perfect choice on which Mister Rae tackles the issues that he does on this song. We all know how 80's and 90's rappers were inspired to write and make music by their environments and that is what Mister Rae taps into on this track - he expresses his anger towards the current state of his country; the economical and political issues and the fact that although he manages to shine in spite of the system, it hurts that his people are still going through the same struggle. I really love how he brings the ol' school Hip-Hop vibe and sense of having a strong message to the table, not many rappers have that anymore. Honestly this song almost brought me to tears, I really love it and I hope you guys will too.

 

'Easy Lover' is the final track I'll be sharing with you from the very enjoyable EP and on this Segun Bucknor-sampled, he features fellow Str8Buttah group member, Teck-zilla. This should be a favourite for those who love the Highlife, Funk and Afrobeat genres of music. With a vocal sample of Segun Bucknor being served on the chorus, Mister Rae and Teckzilla take turns in spitting some really dope verses. The sampling on this track is what really makes it more interesting. These emcees take charge of the beat and their ability to enunciate rap lyrics in a unique and creative way, paired with poised breathe control and impecabble delivery are what make this song go down especially well.

 

This mixtape is unlike any other project I have heard this year and to be candid, I don't think anything like this will be released anytime soon. Mister Rae burst unto the Nigerian Hip-Hop scene in 2003 and instead of following the route of a lot of rappers and rapping about trivial issues, Mister Rae is bringing something to the mainstream audience; he is bringing back the essence of Hip-Hop by exhibiting powerful lyrical content and amazing song-writing. I leave you with just one word: DOWNLOAD!

Download: Mister Rae - The Brand New Masquerade (EP)

We Plug 2 Y.O.U... Tosyn Bucknor The CON.Tra.Diction

OK I honestly DO NOT know where to start with this feature... I've been staring at my Laptop Screen for a couple hours tryna put pen to paper or in this case, fingers to keyboard on this feature BUT alas... Seldom have I worked with or come across a new/upcoming artiste that is quite as enigmatic, ambigious and press-shy as The Con.tra.diction, an 'alternative' Singer/Song-Writer from Lagos, Nigeria...

The BIO information on her Reverbnation reads 'First a writer, but also likes to perform her own material' while her Facebook page simply muses 'Con.Tra.Diction is the MUSIC PERSONA of Tosyn Bucknor' & I hear you ask 'SO well, who is Tosyn Bucknor?'... That's just the thing though, there are more than a million answers to this here question that we'd still be here answering it come Next Year's Christmas! There's Tosyn the Radio Personality... Tosyn the Blogger... Tosyn the Philanthropist... Tosyn the Columnist (trust me, its ALOT) & we'd still be nowhere near to knowing who the Con.tra.diction was???

She says she calls herself a CON.tra.diction because she is an 'old soul living in a young woman's body, a lady and a tramp. deep and playful, melancholy and chirpy, here, there, everywhere!' but her 'Con.tra.diction' name holds so true in that a figure so in the public eye (or seemingly so) can try and be somewhat inconspicuous at the same time... In a world where the line between artistes and their music is so thin at best & very blurred at its worst, the Con.tra.diction has so far succeeded in keeping it strictly about the music SO we'll oblige and keep it exactly that way...

That record titled 'First' was one of the first records I heard of Con.tra.diction back in the Winter of 07/08 and I have been a big fan of hers since then. This song is so simple & beautiful... The keys and strings that largely make up the backdrop for this record, coupled with the slight hints of violin strings at times, give the lyrics to the song some added life (don't sleep on the lyrics! You actually can't lol!) & help to showcase the Con.tra.diction's vocals quite perfectly, the instrumentals are never over-bearing and they burst unto the centre-stage in small doses at the best of times... I REALLY LIKE THIS SONG! Kinda reminds me of Fiona Apple/Tori Amos a little bit... What do you think of it though?

What about this one?

What you just heard is 'Dreams', the NEW single from Tosyn Bucknor the Con.tra.diction & on this one, she fully unleashes the ROCK CHIC from within... The Alanis Morisette influence shines through so much on this record that it could easily be a reference track for Ms. Morisette & it's really GOOD & damn catchy as well. What about the production on this though? The Electric Guitar & Drums infused musical arrangements are courtesy of another Nigerian Singer/Song-Writer (& also Producer) by the name of Coldflames... DUDE GOES HARD!

I am really impressed by what I just heard... This is the kinda stuff you get when artistes let their hair down and just BE creative! There's no overriding or ulterior motive or notion of chart sales or commercial acclaim with this record.. It just is what it is! It's what happened when the Con.tra.diction & Nigerian Uber-Producer Kraftwork got together in the studio... They sample the 70's record 'Love and Affection' from one of the best Soul Musicians to come out of Nigeria, Segun Bucknor and His Revolution, to create what I can only describe as a GREAT listening pleasure.

SO I have to ask, what do you make of what you've just heard. I quite like the Con.tra.diction. Very very different from what I hear outta the Nigerian Music scene, that's for sure & she definitely gets a WePlugGOODMusic CO-SIGN because I love off her records... Can't wait for more records from her #in2010!

& Just so you know it isn't all fun & games & for a taste of what she's got in the bag for us #in2010... check out this exclusive record that's set to be released next year HERE! It speaks many things to me, this one...

Until the Next Time Beautiful People...

Merry Christmas x