Hip-Hop & Bullshit: Blakroc Album Review

The former business partner of Jay-Z and co-owner of Roc-A-Fella records, Dame Dash, has been out of the hip hop mix for a little while now. Shit went sour with him and Jay-Z (seems like this happens with Jay-Z quite frequently) and as a result Dame has suffered financially (as far as millionaires go). He kinda fell of the face of the hip hop map, but much to my surprise and delight Dash will return this Friday, Blak Friday, with a new compilation project of his own.

The Black Keys are a blues rock band from Ohio who formed back in 2001. Apparently, they are Dame Dash's favorite band and he insisted on meeting them personally. Upon meeting with them, he brought his boy Jim Jones and hoped to record a track with them. Mos Def ended up interrupting the recording session, liked the music tremendously, and got on the track with Jim Jones. Dash then believed he was on to something and combined the Black Keys' blues influences with his own hip hop influences and formed a hip hop compilation album titled "Blakroc."

Dash assembled quite the cast to join forces with the Black Keys and they recorded an album over the course of 11 days together. Artists included on the album include: RZA, Raekwon, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Mos Def, Q-Tip, Billy Danz (of M.O.P.), Pharoahe Monch, Ludacris, NOE, and Nicole Wray. Wow.

I just got the album in advance of its release date and it's amazing. Despite the Black Keys being a blues band (and I know there's some hip hop heads that would be skeptical of this), the beats are gritty and grimey. This shit is straight ridin' music and does so much more musically than your run of the mill ring tone, heavy rotation, radio record that our ears are subjected to and tortured by every day on the radio and TV.

The opening song is a beast of a track. It features Ludacris and Ol' Dirty Bastard and is titled "Coochie." I don't think I have to tell you how outlandish this shit is. Dirt Dawg is classic. His verses are never heard before from the locked vault that Dame Dash has kept them in when ODB signed to Roc-A-Fella prior to his death. The track is a certified banger. The strings have an Asian influence over some heavy hitting kicks and snares. The bass line is fucking crisp people!!! Shit is crack, on dogs!!! I'm listening as I write this paragraph - simply amazing.

The next track features Mos Def and is solid, followed by a track featuring this cat NOE. He's on two tracks and absolutely kills all his verses (although he kinda reminds me of a harder, younger, more gritty Jay-Z - I kinda wish Jigga sounded more like NOE actually). We then move into a track titled "Dollaz & Sense" which features the RZA and Pharoahe Monch. WHOA!!! RZA added some of his own Wu-Tang flava to the beat after he smoked a blunt and hit up a guitar on some freestyle shit. The beat is sinister and these two emcees killed it.

Raekwon comes through on a track called "Stay Off The Fuckin' Flowers" and delivers an ill story about none other than baggin' crack and holdin' blocks down. Just make sure you stay off the fuckin' flowers kid!!! Rae walked them dogs and represented Wu to the fullest. Other tracks include collabos with Billy Danz and Q-Tip, Jim Jones and Mos Def, Billy Danz and Jim Jones, NOE and Nicole Wray, and a solo RZA track that had to have been recorded when he was dusted 'cause his shit was FUCKED UP.

This album is so good that the production and creative energy in the studio actually got Jim Jones to rhyme his ass off. He was video taped in the studio talking about how impressed he was and suggested that he was even a little star struck from all the amazing music that was being produced.

BlacRoc is truly something special to listen to. It's a great piece of musical art. Unfortunately, it only has 11 tracks. I wish there were 11 more.

Money Miz gives "BlakRoc" a 4.0 / 5.0 - GO COP THIS SHIT!!!

You can pre-order this album for $9.99 on iTunes and trust me, it's worth every penny!!!

http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPreorder?id=340882195&s=143441

Peep the RZA goin' in during his studio session with the Black Keys, it's plain magical: