the speaker talks

Halley Russell, Enthusiast

[thespeakertalks-blog]

THE WORLD'S MOST INFLUENTIAL TASTEMAKER

By Tanner Pritchett

When we look at how Champion has blown up over the last few years, we can see that their renewed success is the doing of one extremely important trendsetter–Kanye West. I have no doubt that Kanye is responsible for the unassuming sportswear company’s meteoric rise since he began dawning their sweaters.

Now literally everybody is wearing Champion. It’s not even anything designer either, just simple, cheap sweaters yet he made it one of the biggest trends in hip hop fashion of the past few years. If anything, this speaks to how Kanye can create trends at will, using his star power and penchant for fashion to push the mainstream into a place of brazen creativity and boundary breaking that it has never been before.

For example when we look at the present-day Adidas line, it is clear that they owe much to Kanye:

Would any of these exist without Yeezys? Certainly none of these would:

It is clear he started the dad hat trend as well as the metal band t-shirt trend that was solidified in popular culture during the Yeezus era. Also, according to Kim Kardashian, Kanye also completely revamped her wardrobe, and picks out both of their outfits everyday, clearly having a massive effect on popular fashion trends–Nearly every part of the Kardashian clan’s wardrobe is influenced by Kanye West’s creative and stylsitic direction– another prime reason his fashion influence continues to spread like wildfire.

For example, this unconventional pairing was influenced by Kanye West.

One of West’s most notable influences on fashion was him being one of the mainstream originators of pairing high fashion with his “migrant chic” style of worn out basic tees, jeans, hoodies, and accessories.

Kanye’s sense of style has especially pervaded into the lives and fashion choices of famous stylists and pop superstars such as Justin Bieber, who is seen in this photo in kilt, yet another trend that Kanye West launched.

Oversized sweaters, classic Adidas sweats-and of course- Yeezys. KANYE.KANYE.KANYE.

Metallica Tee, ripped jeans, designer bag. KANYE.

Whether you’re a hip hop fan or simply a teen girl “Keeping up with the Kardashians” you’re soaking up Kanye’s influence all the same–and oftentimes (unless you follow fashion trends very closely) you have no idea Kanye West has worked his way into your everyday fashion choices. This is what makes him the world’s most influential tastemaker.

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My review for Migos’ breakthrough album Culture will be posted tomorrow.

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The Speaker talks: State of Hip Hop

          I won’t lie, I guess K-dot called it with “Momma Said”, “ADHD” and many others. This was going to be a review about Dr. Dre’s new album, the album many would call an opus, “Compton.” Apparently “Satisfiction” is hot on the West Coast, but it could be hot on the other side of the country too, with themes that run as deep as the Compton roots that made Dr. Dre more than a star, they made him a legend of more than the culture. His Production skills, business skills, and nearly unimaginable skills as an artist have thus far defined him to us all.

         This piece of writing will not be about his album, however, and this is not going to be an in-depth review of the album, because traversing Dre’s discography would be more beneficial than me talking about his power and influence through creative mediums for many decades. I also will not speak on his personal issues, because frankly this is not a gossip website, it was conceived to give a listener takes of records that they are hearing, not hearing, understanding, and looking at hip hop music through a different, unexpected, or enlightening vantage. With that said some may claim that hip hop is in a state of turmoil or moving in a downward direction. It is my conception that the state of hip hop is achieving a renaissance of sorts.

        Kanye West will receive the “Video Vanguard” award tonight, clearly placing him on the echelon of entertainment greats like legend, the King of Pop Michael Jackson, among others due to his contribution to an art greater than a name. What we may not understand is the fact that there are great artists in the world using a variety of mediums in order to support progression away from the standards and are pushing boundaries in a variety of directions every day. These artists are not just hip-hop, these artists are small groups, and people who came from nothing who showed the world that they were and are something to the ears and eyes of those who need inspiration and entertainment, something I can say without much if any reservation is a requirement for being human, as we all are. Imperfect beings seeking improvements within ourselves--music can be that outlet. Tonight the speaker doesn’t just talk, he too listens.

Thanks for reading

Signing off,

Halley Russell

[thespeakertalks-blog]

"Watch The Throne" is one of the best albums ever made.

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What Happened To the Radio?

I challenge the radio to actually play the music that the people want to hear today, while not forcing them to sell their souls for airplay. Here’s an article I wrote a couple years ago to help solidify my point, and our collective disgust within the hope that radio is actually on the upswing going into 2016.

DUALITY IN THE MODERN ACCESSIBILITY OF POP MUSIC [2013, edited]

What follows is an opinion piece.

It can be argued that today, pop music is generally the most accessible art form in the world. It is physically and intellectually easier to grasp than it ever has been. The most relevant exemplification (not currently anymore) is the breakout hit “Royals” from the societal paradox, the elucidated, and quite frankly not very exciting or inspiring “Lorde” who is a singer of a formulation of a platitudinal emblem for moralism within the pop music industry, brought into the limelight by her attempt a morally and socially conscious attack on her competition which includes pop artists who are less critical of the radio as a platform:

“But every song’s like gold teeth, Grey Goose, trippin’ in the bathroom

Blood stains, ball gowns, trashin’ the hotel room...”

The radio and music industries are an entity which coincidentally is a mirror for the general stream of modern consciousness collective psyche--or it used to be. Songs like Lorde’s “Royals” are accessible both in radio airplay and they were popular among target audiences as well. The theme and the purpose of art is what quantifies the expression as a lifeblood, it is irresponsible for a message to be communicated with such ill-understanding that is possible in the eyes of some to be motivated against a significant cultural movement, hip hop, as signified by the latter quotation.

Because of the idea that popular music is oftentimes driven by the motivations of an apathetic and listener-deficient society, as well as the assertion that it is in many ways it is a keystone is establishing tastes and societal motivations, art which requires inference, deduction, and contemplation is unfairly and seemingly unilaterally reserved for elites, leaving many radio listeners and enthusiasts with only snippets or generationally defining songs as blips on the metaphorical radar of sonic choice. Although contemporary music is the most easily located art form in the country, the polarization is evident. The “Top 40″ crowd defines the tastes of a majority in this age. Art in nearly any context should be about understanding expression, which is a process that requires action by the listener, not something that is inundated with passivity.

One key aspect that one would consistently imagine to be included in the definition of accessibility of art--in any medium-- is one commodity that is irrelevant to its definition. The quality of art. Accessibility is the bane of the connoisseur, but it is also what allows us all to enjoy great things that are out there. It can be argued that before the days of Casey Kasem’s [Edit; R.I.P] “Top 40,” the seemingly innate need for distinguishing oneself as a consumer of art has been the origin of polarity in pop. I am hopeful, however. What do you see for the rest of the year? Can the radio be brought back for real?

Still good radio stations: Dash Radio, Last fm, Pandora & Spotify (sometimes)

[pitchfork]

Ethiopian artist Mikael Seifu makes hypnotic electronic music that merges the traditional sounds of his native country with skittering modern rhythms and production—creating a new homegrown sonic lineage in the process.

[thespeakertalks-blog]

Cool!

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[tuneage]

Girl by The Internet featuring KAYTRANDA

I’m so grateful to my friend, Erin, for introducing me to The Internet. No, not this thing all of us reading this are using right now. I mean, the band. I have no idea how I didn’t know about them. The only thing I can say modestly in my defense is that I went through a phase. I put all my energies into neo-folk and electronica. So I missed the whole Odd Future thing (Please forgive me. Please? I pay penance for this most every day, okay.). And The Internet is the phoenix rising from the remnants of that group/movement.

Syd tha Kyd, one of the prime players in Odd Future, is here the lead singer on The Internet’s song, Girl. It’s a completely addictive song. I can literally listen to it on repeat. It’s about the singer’s love and devotion for the anonymous girl in the title. The fact that the singer is a woman, albeit an androgynous, butch-looking woman, just makes this gorgeous song oddly subversive. Syd’s voice is hypnotic – both feminine and boyish, and the beats backing it up are propulsive. It’s a song you can listen to on your headphones, the world your own video, or in the bedroom, another kind of video.

Oddly (pun intended), Odd Future was accused of rampant homophobia in its lyrics. They sparked protests and were even dumped from a festival in New Zealand, as a result. At the time, homophobia was just ending its rein as a cultural trope of hip hop music. But the irony is that Odd Future produced one of hip hop’s greatest musicians who now publicly identifies as bisexual, Frank Ocean ( frankocean ). Syd tha Kyd also came out as gay, a bit before Ocean’s big announcement (she prefers the term gay over lesbian). But given that she’s female, it was not as big of a deal and didn’t penetrate into the mainstream as much. But Syd’s decision to not just sing gender ambiguous songs but ones that explicitly talk about love and lust for another woman make her a truly transgressive artist. That she’s a gay female fronting a group of men says something about the changes in hip hop.

But no matter how much the politics of all this matter, what really makes me ecstatic is the music which is completely on point.

You can find Matthew on Twitter and Tumblr.

[thespeakertalks-blog]

Sampling the Foundation of Hip Hop?

Originally from some shit I did in school...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dT3swdCJrrg

Some may argue that sampling is the foundation of hip hop, considering the fact that original hip hop, based out of South Bronx sampled to create the genre. Others may argue that today's interpretation of sampling in hip hop (i.e. sampling entire records, or large cuts from records) threatens creativity within the genre as well as collectively in music. The opinions of those who argue against sampling tend to include lack of sufficient funding directed at those whose records have been used to create new works. Their main argument, however, tends to lie with the opinion that sampling is "not creative" or limits artists from creating original works. The contrary argument is that the sampled artists are compensated fairly, and that sampling actually positively contributes to creativity within the genre, as well as opening new audiences up to works that these new audiences would not have likely heard without sampling from hip hop artists. Those who argue that sample-based hip hop is unethical are oftentimes artists who do not want their work to be sampled, in contrast, many artists approve of the act of sampling for financial and ethical reasons. Another argument in the ethics of sampling is the fact that many artists skirt the sampling issue by simply replaying or re-singing the work that was in question. The question could be raised that this is not art, but the question could also be raised that it is art in its greatest form as well?

[Some fragments may or may not be an excerpt]

PLEASE GO BUY KANYE’S ALBUM, I MEAN IT.

[thespeakertalks-blog]

Kendrick Lamar Channels Ralph Waldo Emerson on To Pimp A Butterfly, A Philosophy of Dichotomies

 Kendrick Lamar’s highly anticipated sophomore album effort To Pimp A Butterfly is unapologetically one of those albums that takes time and effort on the part of the auditor to fully grasp, and to understand. It is not an album that was made for commerciality (no shit?) or “easy listening.” This album is designed as an enigma, and Kendrick Lamar knows that. The subtitle reads in braille; “A Blank Letter by Kendrick Lamar.” On first listen, one is transported to a realm of g-funk and sounds that emanate from the deep roots of old-school jazz and Blaxploitation styles, a clear 70’s vibe is established on the back of the introduction to the album “Wesley’s Theory” as a faded sample of Boris Gardner’s black pride theme “Every Nigger is a Star” begins Kendrick’s magnum opus. Produced by modern electronic jazz virtuoso, Flying Lotus, “Wesley’s Theory” is a fitting sonic and thematic opener for an album that has a very stark point to establish. Josef Leimberg’s eerie, haunting voice constructs the foundation of the album’s main overarching theme:

“When the four corners of this cocoon collide

You’ll slip through the cracks hoping that you’ll survive

Gather your way, take a deep look inside

Are you really who they idolize?

To pimp a butterfly”

          When I first heard the title of what Kendrick’s sophomore album would be, initially, beyond intrigue, I nearly immediately connected it to a book that many of us have read in middle school. Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird. The mockingbird in question is innocence, and the killing of the mockingbird symbolizes the injustice of destroying innocence in preservation of inane tradition based upon society’s misguided constructs. The title To Pimp A Butterfly is a clear allusion to Lee’s novel, and I would even venture to say that the two are not just parallel in a titular sense, but also share aspects of thematic parallelism. To understand To Pimp A Butterfly to the most cognoscente ability, it is necessary to understand, and be familiar with Kendrick Lamar as an artist. To put it analogously, If Kendrick Lamar’s freshman album Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City was Nas’s Illmatic then TPAB is Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On, and if the language Kendrick spoke in GKMC was Maya Angelou’s I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, then TPAB can most readily be compared to Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Self-Reliance, because of its transcendentalist keynotes: “the self-contained genius, the disapproval of the world, and the value of self-worth.

*Edit: When Kendrick Lamar says "the evils of "Lucy" were all around me", this could be interpreted as a few things, "mankind," due to archaeological reasons, the first human being "Lucy" or the ideas of "Lucifer" that many people, mostly the religious may express. There is recent controversy about this, that is why I added my 2 cents. Once again thanks for reading.

You can purchase Kendrick Lamar’s groundbreaking album To Pimp A Butterfly on iTunes.

�`��vJ�

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HIP HOP BRIDGES THE GAP: “Snoop Dogg Bridges the Gap”

Part two in a series of thought pieces on how hip hop tends to transcend the boundaries of convention.

My first thought after finishing Snoop Dogg’s latest album was: “This album sounds like 2015. It’s 2015 vibin’ music.” Lyrically, it definitely embodies the general feel we have going on this year, in songs like the Gwen Stefani assisted “Run Away” a beckoning hook proclaims “We're approaching the brink but who cares, The world is getting ablaze.” Sonically the album channels that deep undeniable sound of 70’s funk in a way similar to how the opener of Kendrick Lamar’s new album “Wesley’s Theory” served as the font in the poster for Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown, channeling the Blaxploitation genre through the use of five words, although decades removed from its epicenter—Every nigger is a star. On the heels of To Pimp A Butterfly, Snoop’s album BUSH continues the trend of bringing hip hop to arguably the funkiest place it’s ever been. When Kendrick said on “Hood Politics” that he’s “the only nigga next to Snoop that could push the button,” he was right in naming Snoop as the pilot. This is because Snoop Dogg bridges an even bigger gap than the space between Condoleezza Rice’s front teeth, Snoop bridges the gap between having mass appeal and remaining real. Snoop has always been one of the most germane figures in the entire culture, everyone knows who Snoop Dogg is. Go ask your mother right now who he is, and depending on her age she’ll likely quote either “Who Am I (What’s my Name) by singing the iconic line “Snoop doggy daw-ooo-aww-aww-awwg” or another classic “Gin & Juice.” Ask your little brother and he’ll probably reference the radio-hit off of BUSH “Peaches N Cream” assisted by none other than Uncle Charlie Wilson who has, in 2015 seen his biggest year since half of California’s minority youth was rolling down King in a wave of riotous destruction. That was 1992. If you’re my age, you’ll likely remember 2004, listening to songs like “Drop It Like It’s Hot” or “Beautiful” in the car, the windows down, a nice breeze blowing, your clean version of Paid tha Cost to Be da Bo$$ in the CD player, the Pharrell and Snoop collaborations always being the highlight, which is another aspect that makes BUSH such a great album to have in 2015, the fact that ten years later P and Snoop are still making classics together. Throughout Snoop Dogg’s entire life being involved in the hip hop culture, and through all of the popularity he has gained, he has never, not once, sold out. Many people accused him of abandoning his roots after the brief name change to Snoop Lion and foray into Reggae, however, he not once lost sight of who he is as artist, staying true to making music that always sends out good vibes. The music that Snoop Dogg makes, largely due to its eclecticism has the ability to bring people together, especially in times like 1992 when tensions were high, Snoop recalled in an interview with the New York Times Magazine the Blood and Crip truce that happened as a result of the rioting: “Eventually we stopped in this little neighborhood in Compton. There were some Bloods, and they needed some help trying to carry this safe. We got out and helped them, and they were like: ‘Good lookin’ out, blood. Where y’all from?’ And we were like: ‘We’re from Long Beach.’ They invited us to a party.” Throughout his endeavors, Snoop has always been the face of authenticity, from his charity youth football league to his GGN Hood News Youtube network, you can always count on one thing, he’ll always show the world how “California Rolls.”

you can buy Snoop Dogg’s new album BUSH on itunes for $9.99

https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/bush/id961256177

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King Kendrick Lamar...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aShfolR6w8

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Oxymoron: Rebirth of Gangsta Rap

2014 TOP 5: #3

TOPOGRAPHY: SOUTH LA

For someone who has dealt with serious setbacks, followed by numerous habits and contradictions, the paradox is that all of the oxymorons in Schoolboy Q's life have helped him make his most mature and artistic record to date. 2014 is undeniably the year of the revival of classic West Coast "gangsta rap" with records like YG's My Krazy Life, and even more notably, Schoolboy Q's album, Oxymoron. Oxymoron is in itself several paradoxes relating to Schoolboy's gangsta lifestyle which includes all of the trappings that come with it; guns, drugs, and trying to stay alive in the midst of it all, while simultaneously working to establish a better life for his young daughter, which doesn't always include shielding her from his lifestyle entirely. Oxymoron is Schoolboy Q's most serious album to date comprising lines such as: "How could they say feeling good is an addiction? But the world is full of shit, so I don't listen In fact "We living to die" is a contradiction So trapping in a Nissan, O-X-Y, I keep 'em, O-X-Y, you need one" The maturity of Oxymoron, as evidenced by the above lines lies not necessarily purely in the subject matter, but how Schoolboy approaches it. The premise of the song "Prescription Drugs/Oxymoron" is where this record really distinguished itself from his other works, and cemented Schoolboy Q as a preeminent talent of modern gangsta rap--because he took it further than rap, he brought the lifestyle he lived and continues to live, served it to an audience with all the grittyness intact, and proved why paradoxes can sometimes reveal the greatest truth as internal examinations of how we all live.

"Gangsta" the first song on the album introduces the album to the audience with Schoolboy's daughter proclaiming "Fuck rap, my daddy a gangsta." The beat is classic west coast, a looping heavy bassline, yet modernized by the raw current west coast imagery: "Ain't sober, kush odor, kush sodas, crip stoner Real soldier, head off shoulders, makeover" Produced by LA transplant Pharrell, Los Awesome, largely hispanic influenced, just as many West Coast songs are, takes you to Figueroa and Hoover street, all with a more "groovy" vibe evidenced by the hook: "I'm a groovy type nigga, rather two-step with you Pants sagging, rag dragging, rather gangbang with you Triggers squeeze, throw a palette, throw them thing-things with you Hot degrees, anti-freeze, chilling cool-cool with you Chilling cool-cool with you Hot degrees, anti-freeze, chilling cool-cool with you Chilling cool-cool with you Pants sagging, rag dragging, do my gangbang with you"

"Collard Greens" the first single of the album, was a minor radio hit, the beat is quick and has backing synth that is indicative of something off of Snoop Dogg's Paid Tha Co$t to be the Bo$$. The album starts to pick up at this point, a spanish speaking Kendrick Lamar brings some energy to the song in one of his best features of the year: "I'm famous, I blame this on you, cash in the mirror Hang in my penthouse roof, skyline the clearest Watch it, your optics, popping out, you look the weirdest Pop my top on the 105, head with no power steering, ah!" Adding more mainstream vibes, is the collaboration between Schoolboy & 2 Chainz in "WHat THey Want." 2 Chanz interjects a wide array of ATL ambience, and the production of Mike WiLL Made It makes the record just as ATL as Schoolboy makes the record L.A. The production qualities are reminiscent of Future's Pluto, except toned down and slowed down because of Schoolboy's West Coast, Cypress Hill-esque accent. As we progress, Schoolboy is cheered on in the intro of "Hoover Street" as he's "got that work" saying "fuck labor day... fuck punching in." We also learn that Hoover Street OG's know "how it feels to be a real nigga" as the lyrics reminiscent of a modern day version of "Fuck The Police" exclaim. This song steers the record in the direction of a gangsta that has seen it all. The heavy pounding drum dissapates, and the listener then learns that being a "real nigga" entails a much heavier set of subject matter than just being alert about when the police have staked you out. The beat shifts, becoming softer and more haunting and the rest of the song gives us the darker side, Schoolboy speaks from personal experience: "Find a nigga realer than me, my socks stink Eat so much pussy that my mustache pink My hate felt, my .45 elder, poetry's deep I never fail ya, Schoolboy bust flame" The perks of being a Hoover Crip however don't outweigh the risks by any stretch of the imagination, and Schoolboy's modernized west coast reimagination of the classic line from his favorite rapper: "My poetry's deep like the words of my breath, I never sleep, cause sleep is the cousin of death" serves as a stark reminder of the drawbacks gangbanging creates.

The next track on the album is the record's biggest radio hit to date, peaking at number 38 on the Billboard Hot 100, the track is undeniably either "one for the ladies," or one for the mysogynists. The BJ The Chicago Kid feature serves the track well, his R&B baritone adds more mass appeal, just as it did in the same way on the Chance the Rapper song "Pusha Man." As refreshing as it is to hear Schoolboy on the radio, this song is one of the least appealing on the record, yet easily the most appealing song I have heard frequently on the radio in the last six months, which gives it an A+ from me. Also, it is hard to deny the quality of lines such as; "Cause you girl, cause you girl, girl, cause you girl, girl..." After studio, the album takes a tone that hasn't quite been seen yet from Schoolboy. Easily the most emotional song on the entire album, as well as the namesake, "Prescription Drugs/Oxymoron, the first half of which is hard to get through without nearly tearing up. Prescription drugs features Schoolboy's daughter, who is innocently asking her father "what's wrong, daddy?" All while his "chin is pressed to his chest." Although reminiscent of certain sides of Eminem on Relapse, Schoolboy does something that isn't done frequently. He opens the door completely to listener, leaving all the typical pretension that oftentimes accompanies hip hop outside of that door, which is a real privilege to listen to. This song is Schoolboy at his darkest, and most personal hour.

The follow-up song "The Purge" featuring Tyler, The Creator & Kurupt picks the record back up, proving that Schoolboy hasn't given up his crip influenced lifestyle. The Tyler, The Creator feature coupled with Kurupt brings together the younger generation and the older, with two separate sides of LA rap, the independent more affluent Odd Future audience, as well as the more mainstream yet classic gangsta Death Row Records vibe. The siren used in the beat throughout the song provides a sense of danger that is paired well with Tyler's hook that argues that certain parts of town are similar to the 2012 horror film that shares the title: "Coming in for yours Niggas got them choppers and they knocking at your door The sirens getting louder when the bodies hit the floor Why you look confused? Mothafucka, this is war" The follow-up, "Blind Threats" a destined-to-be-classic song. An intro that shouts out West Coast veteran Coolio: "Walking in the valley of the shadow of death, no rules, right" It also employs an obscure sample, most notably with the piano step heard in Gary Burton's "Las Vegas Tango" Schoolboy proclaims "But if God won't help me, this gun will...I swear I'm gon' find my way." Featuring New York's Wu-Tang Clan alumnus Raekwon, the production is top notch, using the same production duo from Setbacks "Figg Get The Money," which was a definite standout on that record.

Followed by "Hell of a Night" the album does what TDE does best, and that is making substantial yet influential records. This would not be possible without more formulaic, pop-influenced tracks like "Hell of a Night," in order to placate more surface-level listeners. The song is pretty bubblegum, yet has some clever wordplay, and like studio, is much better than almost anything else one is liable to hear on the radio. The album raps up with two victory anthems--which are also clever following the "Oxymoron" theme of the record, "Break The Bank" and "Man of The Year." "Fuck Rap I been rich" the song is sure to once again remind us where Schoolboy came from: "GetMine my nickname, O-X and cocaine Nina my new thing, blew up before fame Heart filled with octane, fire in my soul." The song is good, clean, modern west coast gangsta rap, justice is best done to it by watching the masterfully composed music video

The album's conclusion, Man of the Year, is another party song, and is a nice victory anthem with lines like: "See whites, blacks blazing a pound, jumping around Tits, ass bump out her gown Bounce from the ground, hype for the sound This verse straight from the morgue Pop down from the floor... bounce" The song, however lacks the enthusiasm, and a lot of the energy of "Break The Bank," which would have been an all around better conclusion for the album. Oxymoron, however, was, well, a beautiful oxymoron. It brought seriousness to gangsta rap, while remaining true to the sub-genre at heart. It really is a shout out to the West Coast, a shout out to the Crips, a shout out to hustlers. Above all else, above all of its pretension, the album is unpretentious, and will prove to be a modern cult-classic.

P.S.: You should really buy the deluxe version for a more immersive experience. Songs like the smooth "His & Her Fiend" solidify the notion that Schoolboy Q is a capable singer, "Grooveline Pt. 2" gives the listener more of a groovy side of Q they may have missed from Setbacks, and "Fuck L.A." finishes off by Schoolboy reppin' the West Coast one final time: "Renegade, fuck what rappers say, bitch, I am L.A."

You can buy the deluxe version CD of Schoolboy Q's Oxymoron on Amazon: 

http://www.amazon.com/Oxymoron-Deluxe-Schoolboy-Q/dp/B00HUTB50S/ref=sr_1_2?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1411332139&sr=1-2&keywords=schoolboy+q+oxymoron

[thespeakertalks-blog]

Captivating visual entertainment for Ab-Soul's These Days.

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COMPTON, CA

the topography feature for the notorious city will debut on 10/1/2014.

[coslive]

Chance the Rapper meets Kanye West

[thespeakertalks-blog]

Even better than I was the last time...