We Plug to You: Add-2 - A Tale of Two's City Vol. 4: Better Days

What up, y'all? *checks calendar* word, it's December already? 2010 definitely pulled a Usain Bolt on us. Not gonna lament on it, though, cuz it's been a good year for me (hopefully, it was a good one for y'all too). Moving along, a while ago the chief Ayo suggested I plug some Hip-Hop. A specific project in particular. I was game, but a little wary, because this specific artist is one I could literally go on & on & on about. And he's from my city, Chicago, so that bias is one I can't completely get rid of, no matter how much I try. He's just that good. Without further ado, I plug to you Add-2.

I became a fan of Add-2 back in 2008. Besides the uncanny resemblance to someone I attended college with (LOL), I used to read his blog on hiphopdx.com back when they had blogs (ahh...the glory days). Seems like forever ago, though. It was there that I heard his murderous freestyle over The Roots' '75 Bars (Black's Reconstruction)', I've been hooked ever since. He spat with such ferocity & tenacity on that freestyle, I'm pretty sure I rewound that ish a couple times. Later that Summer, he dropped 'A Tale of Two's City, Vol. 2: The Return of the Menace'. Since then, he has been consistently spittin' ETHER, via features, freestyles, more singles and his next mixtape a year later, 'A Tale of Two's City, Vol. 3: The Rise and Fall'. Personally, that mixtape was spun on a daily basis for a long time. The breakout song 'Luxury' was being played on radio, and #TeamAdd2 was stronger than ever. Add's buzz was building greater by the day. Even 9th Wonder was put on game.

In March, I saw him kickin' freestyles with Tanya Morgan, Blu & Exile, and he even got to perform with The Roots (!!!!) at the Highline Ballroom this past June. It was really dope to see all the success for the homie; besides being super talented, dude is super humble. Periodically, he kept hinting that an EP called '...Better Days' would be dropping sometime this year. Lord knows I was geeked. In the meantime, he was featured on Actual Proof's 'Super Genius' remix, which included spitters such as Naledge, Kendrick Lamar & Laws (just to name a few), and the recently released 'Drunken Style' by The Away Team (both of these songs bang, btw). Long story short, '...Better Days' soon turned into the mixtape 'A Tale of Two's City: Better Days', one of the BEST (yeah, I said it) mixtapes to drop this year. Add sticks to a winning formula for the 4th installment of his tales, and I can't complain at all. Truthfully, if I could, I'd highlight every song on the mixtape, cause there isn't a skippable track, but alas, I can't. I'll highlight the 3 (out of the many) that I absolutely loooooooooove.

"Success makes me look so damn good, don't it?"

MAAAAAAN LISTEN. The beat provided by The Getards is just so crisp. And I'm not afraid to say I stan for Tanya Morgan, so when I saw Donwill & Von Pea on the track list, I knew that the three of 'em were gonna deliver nothing less than heat. Everyone (or almost everyone) has those people in your lives (exes, even ex-friends or the like) who didn't support or care until they saw your success. They see that you're on, so they try to get on. This is the song you play when you gracefully decline and then spit in their face lol. The song is aptly titled 'A Love Letter To All My Exes'...

"Nobody gotta accept you, EXCEPT you"

Add dedicated this song, 'Brown Skin Girl' to the youth, more specifically our young women. This song is a beautiful dedication. I definitely love the second verse, because Add's telling young women (even some of these older ones, yo) that they're fine the way they are and not to fall victim to society's "standard" of beauty, and to basically love themselves for who they are. Andy Allo does a beautiful job of adding her vocals to the chorus, which is life-affirming in it's own right in my opinion. Beautiful song all around. This is a song that needs to be played on radios, in schools... man, anywhere kids need some support.

"I lost my mind man, Google couldn't map that / tryna hit Dondria & see if she got a Phat Phat"

I'm a sucker for charging beats & awesome horns, and D-Man delivers with this, 'Spare None'. I can only imagine the screw faces in the room when this beat came through the speakers. But yo, Add spits line after line, rhyming like a damn savage. When I heard the line "runnin' over every n*gga that you runnin' with / then walk up to ya grandpa & kick over his bucketlist ", I literally said "that's rude as hell!" and then rewound it. That's vicious as hell, man. The song is quite menacing, from the lyrics to the production. All around dope.

Another song I dig a LOT is 'Slow it Down'. Gives me that perfect Chicago Do or Die / Twista feel. Good job on that one. You could slip this in a 90s playlist & it'd fit perfectly. And the song is a grooove. *snaps on beat*... More songs to check out include 'DGK', 'The Feeling is Gone',  and 'Off Our Cloud'. But seriously, the whole tape is solid.

So what more is there to say, really? G'on 'head and download it already!

*the link is missing track three for some reason, so click on this

Peace,

doJo.

PS: Add recently released the track Comic Book Flow. Peep it here, and read his words here:

"As an artist whose career has been aided heavily through hip hop websites, blogs & the internet as a whole it upsets me to see the powers that be trying to dismantle our outlets for our voice in an attempt to gain control over us. Try as they may they can not, nor will they ever be, successful at silencing us."

We Plug to Y.O.U... The Stuyvesants.

Before we go into the music, I surmise this is where I introduce myself. Well, I'm Jo. Or doJo. If the name sounds familiar (although I won't be offended if it doesn't), it's because of this. Ayo asked me to contribute, and I had a great time doing it. Hopefully I can do it again sometime [wink wink, nudge nudge]. A couple of months & BBM conversations later, here I am. My musical tastes range from that good old Jackson 5 to the musical styling & impeccable adlibs Gucci Mane has graced us with (in small doses, of course). I’m enamored with Colbie Callait almost as much as I love Ray Charles, and the musical productions of Nicolay and the whole Foreign Exchange Music imprint will forever leave me breathless. I don’t claim to know more than I do in terms of music, and I will admit that I don’t give everything a chance. But from what I like, and what my last fm page tells me, I’m willing to give almost everything a chance. But enough about me; let’s get to the music.

I love Brooklyn. I’ve always called it my second home. There was a time where I was adamant that I’d live there for the rest of my life. Although that notion has come and gone, one thing that remains is that my love for the city is still there. My favorite time to go is during the summer. There’s so much energy and so much going on, you really can’t sit still. So when this project popped up in my Twitter timeline while I was at work, I took a chance on it and was blown away. What I’m plugging to you is 25 tracks of soulful, crate-digging, utterly amazing production in the form of The Stuyvesants’ “Brooklyn’s Finest.”

No one can describe who they are and what they do better than that person, so I’ll let them handle the formalities:

"The Stuyvesants” is a collaborative effort between music producer Allan Cole (Algorythm), and record collector Darien Victor Birks (Flwrpt). Both reside in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, NY. The two wanted to work together on a project where they could incorporate several of their talents, related to music and design. They wanted to do this under a moniker that would pay homage to the ’70s. The collaboration allowed them to do four major things, design, beat dig, produce amazing music, and simply have fun.

Through this project, they hoped to not only pay homage to the 70s but also take the listener on a journey through Bed-Stuy in that era. I can truly say that they achieved this goal and then some. I've been playing it non-stop since June 1, and each time I find something new to love.

I have to admit, I’m not into jazz, but there is something to be said about this particular track, "A Liquid Love (A Sophisticated Meeting Place)". I was in a band for 6 years, so of course, the first thing that drew my attention were the horns. They’re soft, but not too soft; they charge but they’re not overbearing.

That song, "There's So Many", is my favorite on the project. The first time I heard it, I was immediately taken to my aunt’s apartment in Brooklyn (in my mind, of course). This song is a perfect example of block party, everything is all-good and everyone is having a great time kind of music. The tambourine gets me all the time and I just start doing a soul clap each and every time. There’s just enough funk and soul and it balances perfectly. Go on ahead and do the bus stop to it – I won’t judge.



"Sunrise in the Stuy” is a whimsical and enchanting song. The loop of the horns and how they come in at what seem to be odd counts is a highlight for me. This song, to me, is the space in-between when a dream ends and when you wake up. I can definitely see myself in bed when this song comes on, and the climax at 1:31-34 is the morning stretch. Or maybe it’s the moment I open my eyes.

More notable songs that I encourage you to check are “W.O.M.A.N., ”a sultry track that encourages a slow dance; “Seldom Seen,” which has a vocal chop and a breakdown fit for a king, and “Green Ave. Anthem” which is just as fanciful as “Sunrise in the Stuy.” “Hustlers” is a gritty, grimy attack that still maintains the soul that is prevalent throughout the entire album. The drums are hard hitting and the chop of the hook is flawless.

The Stuyvesants’ album is, in my opinion, perfect for any occasion.

Their goal was to pay homage to the 70s, and I think they achieved that goal and more. Any listener can tell that Algorythm and Flwprt took their time to perfectly craft this album, and it is prevalent from track 1 to 25. Each song is crafted so that either they are short enough to always make you want more, or long enough that you still want more, thus hitting the repeat button. There is a song for everyone on this project, and a song for any occasion. I recommend anyone to give this a try, because there is no room for disappointment on this project.

Download: The Stuyvesants – Brooklyn’s Finest

Until the Next Time,

Dojo