Evidence – The Layover EP

Artist: Evidence

Album: The Layover EP

Year: 2008

Check Out: “So Fresh”

Why: By this time, I was a huge fan of Evidence, this EP didn’t disappoint.

Lupe Fiasco – Food & Liquor: 10 Year Anniversary

This dropped at the start of my senior year of high school. It actually came out on my seventeen birthday. Ten years to today’s date.

He was different than the majority of rappers at the time. He was open about his religion and his faith, which made its way into his music. Also, he skateboarded. Plus, he avoided drugs and alcohol.

I found myself relating to Lupe.

We both followed different paths than our peers, me with my friends and high school classmates and Lupe with his fellow rappers. I wasn’t into the partying, drinking or smoking as other seniors were. In fact, you could’ve said I was straight edge. That sounds weird especially for American seniors.

Lupe was coming off his dope Fahrenheit 1st and 15th mixtape series and an ever doper guest appearance on Kanye West’s “Touch The Sky.” He had a buzz. I knew he was going to be successful after his debut dropped.

Best of Joe Budden vol. 3: #20 Alive

From: Some Love Lost

Year: 2014

“I guess being a wife ain’t sound as fun as being a bad bitch”

I get hyped every time this song comes on. The production from DJ Pain 1 should receive some of the credit. The other half should go to certain lines (“If these coppers shoot me, trust me I’ma shoot back”) and to the hook, especially the “take me alive” part.

Best of Joe Budden vol.3: Intro

Joe Budden is my favorite rapper, its obvious.

He’s a rapper that can do it all. He can rap circles around other rappers. He can rap about materialistic and superficial things. He can rap about the streets. But most importantly, he raps about his life. His unique life. You might call his music emo but I like to think of his music as simply very personal.

There’s not much the fans of his music don’t know. Joe shares it all. And by all, I mean all. He shares a lot of things, even some that might feel a bit too personal. It could make you feel uncomfortable at times with the honesty.

Joe’s puts it all out there and that’s why I love his music. Yeah, he’s an amazing rapper but the content, the content is what keeps me intrigued. You can call his music depressing but I don’t see it like that. Yeah, it covers serious topics and situations including depression, issues with your child’s mother, loneliness, death and suicide, among other things but to me, I see his music as inspirational and motivational. Whenever I feel unmotivated, sad, or unfocused, I listen to this man’s music and get in a zone. It worked throughout college, as I used his music to get focused just before an exam. It works now when things might not go my way. I turn to his music, rap along and know that it will get better.

So, to keep it simple: Joe Budden is God.

Finally, here’s the third edition, which will be in scattered posts, of what I think are the best songs in Joe’s catalog.

(Photo Credit: Joe’s Instagram)

 

Joe Budden – Say Dat Then: Best of Joe Budden (Slaughterhouse Edition)

This song has hit me hardest the past few years. In that time frame, I’ve dealt with death more than I experienced growing up. It seems as the people I’ve known for years, directly and indirectly, have passed away in back-to-back fashion.

It hurts.

Joe Budden – Mood Muzik 4

Artist: Joe Budden

Album: Mood Muzik 4

Year: 2010

Check Out: “Remember The Titans”

Why: Joe Budden delivered again in the fourth installment of his classic mixtape series.

Joe Budden – Green Lantern Freestyle

With all the shenanigans Joe Budden has gotten into in the past few years, it’s pretty easy to forget that he is a rapper first. It’s funny to make fun of him for his multiple “Ls.” He’s dealt with allegations, meltdowns, controversies, etc. His trials and tribulations have been mocked.

Throughout all that, people seem to forget that Budden can rap his ass off.

Even in the present, with all the distractions including the Drake beef and the car chase incident, people do not give the man credit. They are quick to point at his issues and irrelevancy than the music itself. The rapping part should be the most important thing, not the other stuff. That stuff is microscopic. Unfortunately, that’s not how it works in today’s world.

It’s unfortunate because Budden is an amazing rapper. He’s one of the very few rappers who let’s his fans know everything about him. And I mean everything to the point where you might feel uncomfortable. Other times when he isn’t being too personal, he’s showing off his cleverness, wit and dope metaphors.

So with all the bullshit going on, I decided to highlight one particular day.

On March 20, 2007, Budden was a guest on DJ Green Lantern’s Shade 45 radio show.