http://www.djbooth.net/index/tracks Listen to new songs from Hip Hops hottest artists. en Copyright 2010 2010-02-09T02:07:38+00:00 http://www.djbooth.net/index/tracks/review/laws-shining/ Laws, the Florida-based emcee we most recently saw speeding through his Daytona 500 freestyle, has gone from DJBooth newcomer to DJBooth favorite in only a matter of weeks. I guess there’s no denying talent. On his new leak, Shining, making its worldwide premiere right here, Laws is taking a more mellowed out approach to his music, due in no small part, I’m sure, to the effects of some of the best 9th Wonder production we’ve heard in a minute (and that’s saying something). Even better, Laws does the beat proud with a smooth, punchlined flow that includes references to, in no particular order, The Watchmen, optometry, Bono, gardening, drug addiction, Tupac and, of course, yo momma. What can I say? There’s never a dull moment on Shining. (Cue the groans). For more from Laws keep your eyes and ears locked to our front pages for his Don Cannon Presents: 4:57 Mixtape, hosted by DJBooth and set to hit the world on February 16.  Street, Mixtape, Dirty South 2010-02-09T02:07:38+00:00 http://www.djbooth.net/index/tracks/review/mike-dreams-feelin-this-world/ It’s been a long road, but the wait is finally over. In anticipation of tomorrow’s physical release, Mike Dreams is offering his debut album, Dreamer’s Poetry, for free streaming and download right here in the Booth. For those who haven’t been following the Minne-ap emcee on his musical journey, this final leak should be all the convincing you need. Feelin’ Out This World finds Dreams rejoining forces with MUSIC2DREAM2 singer Christina Fisher (his collaborator on single We Goin’ Worldwide) for some of his trademark meditations on the artistic grind. Citystarz’ ebbing and flowing synth backdrop has a downright hypnotic vibe, but try not to get completely lost in the music; Dreams’ allusive lyrical insights are not to be missed (“I manage my stamina well / so they Can’t Touch This like Stanley Burrell” is easily my favorite couplet of the day). It all adds up to a rock-solid album cut that’ll have devotees and new fans alike racing to download their free copy of Dreamer’s Poetry. So, what are you waiting for? Mixtape, Dirty South 2010-02-09T02:06:21+00:00 http://www.djbooth.net/index/tracks/review/chris-faust-book-faust/ In a German legend famously reinterpreted in plays by Christopher Marlowe and Goethe, a man named Faust makes a pact with the devil in order to satisfy his hunger for earthly knowledge. Now, I’m definitely not implying that Booth newcomer Christopher Faust got his rapping skills from the main downstairs, I’m just saying there’s underground hip-hop and then there’s underground hip-hop. In any case, the Brooklynite seems to be making the most of the spooky literary allusion, as evidenced by newly-leaked cut The Book of Faust. Backed by the ominous, cinematic boardwork of Atticus Ross, CF stares into the figurative abyss, preparing to throw caution to the wind in pursuit of his musical ambitions, “I’m on the edge, no looking back… your bed’s made, leave your old life on the tracks.” As if Faust’s dark lyrical vision wasn’t unconventional enough, the artist forgoes the traditional hook in favor of an eerie sung outro featuring guest vocals by Cocoa Sarai. Intrigued by this up-and-comer’s left-of-center style? Grab a copy of his latest project, the half-self-titled FAUST, when it drops April 12. Street, Underground, Northeast, Collaborations 2010-02-09T02:05:08+00:00 http://www.djbooth.net/index/tracks/review/jeff-chery-zone-out/ It’s been a minute since last we featured Booth favorite Jeff Chery, and even longer since any news surfaced regarding the emcee’s long-awaited, DJBooth.net-sponsored Going Against the Grain mix-album. Well, today we are proud to announce that, first, Chery is back on our front page with a brand new promo single and second, those who have been holding their breath for release details on GAtG can finally exhale (if they’re still alive after months without oxygen), because the project is back on track and set to drop March 23. The aforementioned promo cut, Zone Out. is a slow-burning banger aimed squarely at the clubs. Here, P Haze‘s skittering, synth-driven production sets the stage for appropriately scatterbrained verses from the emcee formerly known as Pay$0z, who delivers his cash-stacking and game-spitting rhymes with the surprising caveat that “I have trust issues as far as I can throw.” Zone Out isn’t set for inclusion on GAtG, but anyone not yet convinced the project will be worth the wait should keep it locked. In the weeks leading up to the 23rd, the artist is set to bring us two or three exclusive world premieres! Club, Northeast 2010-02-09T02:04:35+00:00 http://www.djbooth.net/index/tracks/review/concise-kilgore-dusted/ It’s time to update your music collections ladies and gentlemen; Concise Kilgore is here with his first Booth feature, Dusted, a booming cut worthy of being on that “Don’t Sleep” playlist you share with your musically regressive friends and family. Dusted, the first single off his new Sade-inspired mixtape Indecent Proposal, takes listeners back to a time when true, talented hip-hop artists could be found plying their linguistic craft in smoky, dimly-lit nightclub settings, filling the night with lines like: “I’m loaded, notables noted, highly touted quotables, frequently quoted.” His unique flow bounces off the jazzy piano keys and saxophones highlighted in the beat, coming to us courtesy of producer Brisk Oner. As if Dusted wasn’t evidence enough, Kil makes sure to let listeners know that he’s cut from different cloth on the hook: he is, undeniably, “more than just a recording artist kicking dust.” If you need further proof, be sure to check out his latest Refined Hype-presented project, Indecent Proposal, available for download now.  Download Concise Kilgore’s Indecent Proposal Mixtape at RefinedHype.com! Street, Underground, Westcoast 2010-02-09T02:03:12+00:00 http://www.djbooth.net/index/tracks/review/jaicko-fast-forward/ Having suffered through Click (a.k.a., the Adam Sandler comedy that failed so hard it ended up being more depressing than Death of a Salesman), I can’t say that the ability to Fast Forward through life’s dull moments sounds all that tempting. Barbadian buzzmaker Jaicko must have been lucky enough to miss that one. On his latest single, the Oh Yeah singer tells a special girl, “I wish that we could skip to the part when we was married.” Though the singer would probably be well-served to take things a little slower, the one-two punch of his soulfully melodic vocals and Ryan & Smitty‘s energetic synth boardwork make this radio-ready jam difficult to resist; needless to say, Fast Forward should have ladies lining up for miles to “push [Jaicko’s] button.” Was that lyric suggestive to begin with, or did I deliberately take it out of context for humorous effect? I’ll let you decide. More importantly, those who like what they’re hearing should stay tuned for more leading up to the summer release of the singer’s debut album, Can I. R&B, Pop 2010-02-09T02:02:01+00:00 http://www.djbooth.net/index/tracks/review/lloyd-banks-beamer-benz-bentley/ I love options, even though sometimes there’s nothing harder in life than making a difficult choice. However, the dilemma presented to Lloyd Banks in Beamer, Benz, or Bentley is one that I wouldn’t mind tackling. Over a spooky, echoing beat, Banks joins forces with Juelz Santana for the new street single off his next, currently untitled LP. While the subject matter is nothing groundbreaking, (cars, drugs, guns, girls, and … cars) both emcees use crisp flows to keep the content of the song as exciting as its production. What makes the track especially captivating is the return of Banks’ dazzling wordplay, which has been absent from most of his recent mixtape tracks. Juelz on the other hand, has been dropping bangers lately (see Home Run) and with lines like:“Makin’ movies, Tom Cruisin’/ if it’s action then I’m shootin/ pockets fat, neck studded Studdard / boy my nickname should be Ruben,” I don’t see a decline coming soon. Look out for Banks’ next G-Unit-only helmed album (he is no longer with Interscope) to drop this summer. Club, Street, Northeast, Collaborations 2010-02-09T02:01:56+00:00 http://www.djbooth.net/index/tracks/review/ludacris-my-chick-bad/ Ludacris and Nicki Minaj on a track called My Chick Bad? We haven’t seen a pairing this highly anticipated since the San Diego Zoo tried to mate those two endangered pandas. The second single off Ludacris’ upcoming album Battle of the Sexes – following the now omnipresent How Low – My Chick Bad is centered around some chopped-n-screwed production courtesy of The Legendary Traxster, followed closely by Luda’s always punchline heavy flow and, I think it’s safe to say, the only verse in hip-hop history to feature a Lisa Leslie reference (I have to give it up to Nicki on that one). Still, this might be one of the weaker Luda verses we’ve heard in a minute, although that probably says more about the man’s incredibly consistent quality than any specific failings here. Or maybe I’ve been popping crazy pills? Does the Booth disagree? If My Chick is Bad puts you in the mood for some more gender balanced hip-hop be sure to cop Luda’s now Shawnna-less album Battle of the Sexes, which will now be coming out on March 9. Download My Chick Bad at RefinedHype.com! Club, Dirty South, Collaborations 2010-02-08T03:38:44+00:00 http://www.djbooth.net/index/tracks/review/lil-jon-miss-chocolate/ Remember Black Star’s uplifting “Black is beautiful” anthem, Brown Skin Lady? Lil Jon’s new single Miss Chocolate is nothing like that. Miss Chocolate’s strength is its production, a hypnotically head-nodding, club banging beat cooked up by Drumma Boy and Mr. Jon himself. For his part Lil Jon drops a not-exactly romantic verse – “…so round so thick / so nasty I love that sh*t” – along with, of course, his usual assortment of “Yeah!”s. (What? You were expecting something else?) Luckily, the King of Crunk isn’t handling vocal duties alone, wisely also bringing in R. Kelly, who delivers the kind of obscenely entertaining verse you’d hope for, and the supremely smooth Mario, whose hook and verse work somehow manage to push the song into musically respectable territory. Will Miss Chocolate be the lead single of Lil Jon’s long-awaited album Crunk Rock (due out in May)? That depends in part on how the masses respond, so have at it DJBooth nation. The future of Miss Chocolate is in your hands.  Club, Dirty South, Collaborations 2010-02-08T03:37:16+00:00 http://www.djbooth.net/index/tracks/review/mikkey-halsted-im-man/ With the release of his DJBooth-sponsored Best You Never Heard mixtape, underground mainstay Mikkey Halsted intends to bring the uninitiated up to speed on what he’s all about. Lesson one in the Windy City emcee’s crash course comes in the form of inaugural leak I’m the Man, which finds Halsted emphasizing the fact that well, he’s the man – and, consequently, you’re not. Accompanied by producer SC‘s subdued blend of chopped vocal samples and harpsichord (looks like the harpsichord comeback I predicted over on RefinedHype is already underway!), Halsted backs up his assertion, delivering bars brimming with heavily-alliterated braggadocio: “N*ggas took exception when I called myself sire, but they sat back and watched me set the city on fire.” On the middle and final verses, fellow Chi-town natives Sly Polaroid (previously heard on Ben One‘s Never Leave My Side (Remix)) and Cloak Hancock step up to the mic, each making a convincing case for his own status as “The Man.” For more “hard sh*t” from Mikkey and his cohorts, download a copy of BYNH when it hits the Booth this Thursday. Street, Mixtape, Midwest, Collaborations 2010-02-08T03:35:35+00:00