We’re three weeks away from Christmas…but the real gift has been the steady stream of bangers that continually lift our spirits & put us in a festive mood. That means that Insomniac’s Weekly Top Ten is the perfect stocking stuffer. You don’t have to wait in long lines to get one, there’s no sales tax or shipping and handling fees, and you don’t need to gift wrap it ’cause if you tried you’d be bat sh*t crazy!!! Having said that, you should already know what to do. It’s time to sit back, relax, and enjoy the Top 10!
1) So many Hip Hop fans complain about artists not taking risks and having to endure a daily rotation of radio songs that sound exactly the same…Then seemingly out of nowhere a boundary pushing act emerges with the talent & skills needed to shake up the scene! SHEIK AKA SK is the perfect artist to stir listeners from their mundane listening habits with his ground-breaking track, “The Breather” – a musical patchwork of sonic brilliance that blends hip hop, soul, jazz, funk, and dance music into 4 minutes and 39 seconds of pure pleasure! We don’t know what other rappers are doing in terms of creativity but we DO know that SK is leading the pack!
2) Pennsylvania’s DJ ILLOGIK enlisted Detroit’s lyrical powerhouse, FINALE, for the Flexvocal produced “Open Season,” a gripping, go for broke cut that drives home the point that being a minority in America is like walking around with a target on your chest. The track pulsates with such intense fury that it just might blow your speakers & Finale’s confident delivery expertly anchors the entire affair.
3) SMOOVTH & CONFIDENCE topped our list with their last collabo “Rap Science” & they’re ridin’ high on the countdown once again with “Come Get It.” Confidence comes thru with another gritty, boom bap soundscape to keep heads noddin’ while SmooVth flows over the track with his masterful delivery. It’s just another sign that their collabo album is gonna be a MONSTER!
4) REDMAN doesn’t need to prove anything to anyone at this point in his career…but just for the hell of it the Funk Doc treats fans to more magic on the mic with the Theory Hazit produced “Bars.” As expected, Reggie Noble destroys past & present competition with killer lines and his well-honed delivery. It’s “Mudface” music for your ass from an emcee unafraid to get his hands dirty!
5) Washington DC’s, J-SCIENIDE, rides the beat on “Power Of The Holy Ghost” so smoothly that you’ll want to give him accolades based on delivery alone. But let’s face it, the track as a whole is a Hip Hop head’s wet dream…especially since it conjures up memories of Diamond D’s classic “Best Kept Secret”(for those true crate diggers out there). Everything about the joint soars! The perfect throwback sound intermingled with new school nuances that we love to listen to…and reward.
6) BAS and his Dreamville mentor, J. Cole, teamed up for the Cedric Brown & KQuick produced, “Night Job” and dropped a sonic bomb on excited fans anticipating big things with the release of the “Too High To Riot” album. The murky, slow-rolling track is exactly what you would play on your way to a night job…or maybe it’s what you would play after QUITTING your night job. Either way, it works.
7) BEANZ engages in some tag team interplay with rising lyricist, KO, on her “D.O.P.E.” mixtape cut, “Hip Hop,” and shows that the music will never die as long as they’re still a part of the game! Emcees who have been around far longer than these two don’t possess half their skills. The music you loved is undergoing a resurrection. Beanz & KO will “make the s**t breathe and live again.” Truer words have never been spoken.
8) STAN IPCUS hits listeners with another dope display of mic skills on the El RTNC produced, “P-U.” The one-take wonder always sets it off in the booth with his smooth delivery and humorous lines(“I like my beats squashed and my trees green like parsley/and chicks who shave their s**t bald like Charles Barkley”). El RTNC complements his flow perfectly by contributing a soulful groove that crushes other productions. To sum it all up, Stan’s raps are “straight hot to def an’ if you think you nice you stink like breath!”
9) FREEWAY created a true gem with his deeply confessional new Merc Beatz produced track. Whether reflecting on his past with The Roc or his current health issues, the powerhouse spitter continues to shine! Merc provides an immaculate musical landscape for the Philly Freezer to flow over with its lush grooves & sped up samples. Simply put, it’s “Heaven.”
10) WIKI took a little break from his Ratking collective to flex some solo muscle on the Black Milk produced, “Hate Is Earned.” The joint is raw, gritty, and FUNKY…Three words we like to hear when associated with the kind of Hip Hop we love. If you want an underground banger that’ll melt your speakers it doesn’t get much hotter than this!
Well that’s it for this week. Catch ya next time and…DON’T SLEEP!
– Kevin Keith
