Apr 27, 2016 Yep, I definitely agree.. I still have both albums on cd great addition to my collection through the years
Apr 27, 2016 Also, another personal favorite would be DMX's It's Dark and h--- is Hot.. I'm not even including Ruff Ryders Anthem, Convo, Damien, Stop Being Greedy, ATF, Crime Story or Get At Me Dog lol. Album is so f---ing fire. ^^ This collab is f---ing great.
Apr 27, 2016 lol licensed to ill is like the opposite of fresh sounding. Totally a product of its time.
Apr 27, 2016 lol I was going to post No Way Out too. Bad Boy was on f---ing fire during that time frame. Victory alone... Such a great album. Still gonna say, Mase's Harlem World is one of the most influential rap albums ever though.
Apr 27, 2016 Man I'm such a huge Bad Boy apologist, those two albums were the blueprints for most of NY's sound in the following years along with DMX's two albums the next year. That sound lasted until Blueprint dropped but so many flows, production cues and the idea of collaborating more came from the 97 trifecta of Life After Death, No Way Out and Harlem World.
Apr 27, 2016 EXACTLY. I feel like 50 Cent took Mase's style once he got shot, too. When I heard GRODT, I immediately said to my friend "This kinda sounds like Mase" Plus, Fabolous was the most notable, to me. The ability to weave in and out between street anthems, raw lyricism and club/love tracks. I felt like Mase really branched both worlds. Also, Puffy's production, with the uses of samples, makes me think of Kanye's 2000s production too.
Apr 27, 2016 He has so many great story telling songs on It's Dark and h--- Is Hot. Damien and The Convo, especially. ATF and Crime Story... Such a classic f---ing album. Damien is so f---ing good.
Apr 27, 2016 I completely agree, shame Ma$e had to face the wrath of purists and Rawkus backpackers back then. My older folks use to tell me that when Harlem World dropped some people called it the death of rap .Even Jay and Nas took a bunch of ideas from those two albums, Vol.1 had some shameless attempts at Shiny Suit anthems and Nas tried to make a continuation of Victory with Hate Me Now.
Apr 27, 2016 I relistened to it not too long ago it's really a good album I prefer that X than the more radio hits styled X liked x gon give it to ya etc
Apr 27, 2016 A bunch of my friends were split on the album, because like you said, people thought it was corny. "Raw" rap was re-emerging and it kind of made Mase look weak (Wu Tang and DMX, especially). I never felt that way. Like I said, I thought Mase killed both aspects, between pop and raw. His verse on 24 Hours To Live is proof enough. Yeah, the shiny suit, and the camera views of most hip hop songs back then lmfao. Jay Z with Girls Best Friend video lol. I Need To Be makes me feel mad weird to listen to now, but I used to f---ing love that song lmao.
Apr 27, 2016 Yeah I've seen you mention this before the competition in NY during the late 90s was off the charts, you literally had something for every crowd. I was way too young during that time but I fully remember the time of the early 2000s before we fell off; Hov in his prime, Nas coming back from the dead, Killa Cam and the Diplomats, Ja Rule, G-Unit, Fabolous...those were real good times man.
Apr 27, 2016 It really was, and the artists that get overlooked a ton are DMX, Mase, and Busta Rhymes. I feel like, those 3, were the 3 biggest artists of the late 90's. DMX especially. That man dominated the competition. People seem to think Jay and Nas just controlled NY at that time, but it wasn't true. I loved Nas and Jay back then, but there was so much competition. I really felt they were maybe 4th or 5th during that time. s---, I even remember the hype around Canibus too. His hype was off the charts at one point, especially during the LL beef. I remember everyone thinking he was a living dictionary and he was going to shut down hip hop. 4,3,2,1 was HUGE at the time too... I just wish Busta would've been on it instead of Master P.
Apr 27, 2016 Τhe Roots - Game Theory Jaylib - Champion Sound GFK - Supreme Clientele Joe Budden - Mood Muzik 2 Masta Ace - A Long Hot Summer
