Bun B - Don't Die

There’s a reason why all the most popular sayings are short—I mean, besides the fact that a paragraph-long adage would be difficult to remember, let alone repeat accurately: the best advice is often the simplest.  Take, for example, the pearl of wisdom Bun B, Colin Munroe, and Talib Kweli impart to listeners on this new track: “Don’t Die.”  Whatever your beliefs on life and the hereafter, it’s a good rule of thumb—and when you find yourself in a place Where the Streets Have No Name, there’s no such thing as “too careful.”  On the final leak off K-Salaam & Beatnick‘s hotly-anticipated mixtape, the Booth-approved production duo’s combo of funk guitar riffs and glittering synth arpeggios sets the stage for some sage meditations on life (and death) in the streets.  Both Bun B and Talib come as hard as usual here, the former opening the track with some sobering thoughts on our current recession and the latter advising those who’d like to keep breathing to uphold the streets’ code of silence, and Munroe uses his trademark vocal filters to unconventionally catchy effect on the hook. Those digging this bracing cut can find plenty more words to live by on WtSHNN, set to drop on the 28th.