The Audacity of Dope

I’ve been meaning to make this post for a minute, but now that 14KT‘s album, The Golden Hour, is officially out in stores, it’s time.  I’ve been listening to dude since the early days of the Athletic Mic League and for as long as I can remember, he’s been dope on the mic and on the boards.  With The Golden Hour, KT flexes the skills he demonstrated winning the Detroit stop of the Red Bull Big Tune beat battle earlier this year.  This is some of the smoothest production I’ve heard all year, but don’t take my word for it…peep some of the tracks A-Side Worldwide has been kind enough to leak:

14KT ft. Tiffany Paige – “The Inside”
14KT – “Ypsilanti”
14KT ft. Aloe Blacc – “Can We (Chill Again)”
14KT – “Illustrious”
14KT ft. Ab & Zo! – “Less Than Enough”
14KT – “The Night”

(links courtesy of 2DopeBoyz)

If you only check one, listen to “The Inside.”  That is my ish right now.  A-Side has been more than generous with the leaked material, so go support them and cop the album right here (and cop that Buff1 and Now On while you’re at it!).  Trust me, there’s even more fire throughout The Golden Hour…

Let’s keep the A-Side Worldwide theme going for another post, shall we?  Buff sits down with HHO and discusses the sounds and messages in his new album, There’s Only One.  He’s on point with “Beat The Speakers Up.”  That’s just what Sound Session does every weekend.

(I’d be facing the other way…)

I mentioned in the Bishop Lamont post that the Los Angeles hip-hop scene is on fire right now and when you combine that area with the another hotbed of talent, the midwest, it’s just not fair.  A lot of artists from Michigan have relocated to the L.A. area over the years (Dilla, Ta’Raach, Househoes, etc.) and the A-Side Worldwide family has a few that split time between the two regions as well.  You’ve probably heard of Buff1 by now, if not through his solo work (cop There’s Only One, in stores now!), then perhaps through the classic Athletic Mic League material.  Another group that’s on the rise, Now On, consists of one of Buff’s AML cohorts, DJ Haircut, alongside Jackson Perry and IX Lives.

Now On dropped their debut album, Eye Level, in 2005, and released an equally impressive project, Don’t Call It A Mixtape, last year.  Their currently prepping the release of Tomorrow Already, and they’ve been kind enough to leak the title track off it for y’all to check out.  I wouldn’t necessarily label this joint as indicative of their sound, as they’re a hard group to put in a box.  There’s no need to classify though, it’s just good music.  I’ll toss in another new track with Shawn Jackson as well:

Now On – “Tomorrow Already”
Now On ft. Shawn Jackson – “Write Back”

With production from the criminally underrated Lab Tech crew, Astronote, and Seattle’s own Jake One, you already know what to expect.  Be on the lookout for Tomorrow Already dropping soon, and also keep an eye out for Haircut’s Mayer Hawthorne project…it’s gonna be crazy.

A bunch of dope videos hit the net recently that you should be aware of, so TAOD is here to help. Check the first video below, then more from PackFM, Wale, Nas, El Prez, Black Spade, and Buff1 after the jump!

First up, Ta’Raach & Blu dropped some visuals for “Buy Me Lunch” off their C.R.A.C. album, The Piece Talks. I’m hoping we also get a video for “Love Don’t” at some point…that’s my ish.

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