Heres an article I just wrote for my college newspaper about Hip Hop albums in 2014, the most anticipated and the highlights so far. I had to throw in some Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, Tech N9ne, and Eminem to keep peoples attention, but I also snuck in plenty of underground acts. Heres the article: So far for 2014, the Hip Hop scene, both mainstream and underground, has been pretty dynamic. We’ve seen T.D.E newcomer Schoolboy Q drop his spontaneous major label debut, Oxymoron, met with positive criticism. We’ve seen Strange Music acts !MayDay! and Strange Music newcomer/underground veteran Murs deliver their collab effort !MursDay!, as well as Tech N9ne and the entire Strange Music crew’s latest collab effort Strangeulation. We’ve seen several comebacks from artists such as Chicago veteran Common with Nobody’s Smiling, New York icon and G-Unit frontman 50 Cent with Animal Ambition (as well as a new G-Unit EP titled The Beauty Of Independence), Alternative Hip Hop icons The Roots with And The You Shoot Your Cousin, iconic underground MC/Producer duo Atmosphere with Southsiders, and underground legend Pharoahe Monch with P.T.S.D. We’ve also seen the rise of West Side rapper YG and his mostly DJ Mustard-produced debut studio concept album My Krazy Life. Even Rick Ross released his strongest effort yet with Mastermind. There has been so much to take in this year for the Rap game, but the best is still yet to come. 2014 is not over yet, so here’s a small taste of what’s yet to come for Hip Hop in 2014. T.I. – Paperwork: The Motion Picture: Originally titled Trouble Man 2: He Who Wears The Crown, a sequel to his 2012 effort Trouble Man: Heavy In The Head, and after being moved from Atlantic Records to Columbia Records, T.I. plans for his 9th studio release to be the first in a trilogy of albums. Mostly produced by Pharrell Williams, T.I. plans for this album to be his most artistic effort yet. So far singles from the album include About The Money featuring Young Thug, No Mediocre featuring Iggy Azalea, and New National Anthem featuring Skylar Grey. The album is set to be released October 21st. Nas – Untitled: It’s been 2 years since Nas released his last album, Life Is Good. This next album, yet to have a title or a specific release date, is to be Nas’ last album under Def Jam Records. The only confirmed track so far is rumored to be titled Sinatra In The Sands featuring Jay-Z and Justin Timberlake, and to be produced by Timbaland. Kendrick Lamar – Untitled: The past 2 years since Kendrick’s monstrous Aftermath Records Platinum certified debut, Good Kid, m.A.A.d City, Kendrick has become arguably the biggest star in Hip Hop. Since the release of GKMC, Kendrick’s made waves with his controversial name-dropping verse in Big Sean’s single, Control, was nominated for a total of 7 Grammys (although he didn’t win any), landed a spot on Eminem’s 2013 album The Marshall Mathers LP 2, and delivered the most talked-about cypher with his fellow T.D.E label mates at the BET Hip Hop Awards. The only details released about Kendrick’s next studio effort is that it will be released in September of 2014, although not even a single or an album title have been released to the public yet. Kanye West – Untitled: It’s only been a bit over a year since Kanye released his artsy, spontaneous 6th studio album, controversially titled Yeezus, but Kanye’s already prepared to drop his 7th studio album in the same way Beyonce released her last album: unexpectedly with no announced release date, meaning it can drop anytime without anyone knowing. Yeezus had no commercial radio play, yet it still managed to go Platinum. This next album will sound like a combination of Yeezus mixed with Soul sampling in a similar style to his 2004 debut album The College Dropout. Snippets from rumored tracks on the album, titled All Day and Black Bruce Wayne, have been leaked, yet it is still unknown whether they will be on the album or not. Since the release of Yeezus and his marriage to Kim Kardashian, Kanye has been the center of attention for the media, which is not unusual for Kanye. The album is rumored only to have 8 tracks. Run The Jewels – Run The Jewels 2: Run The Jewels is an Alternative Hip Hop duo consisting of rapper Killer Mike and rapper/producer EL-P. Last year they duo made waves with their free self titled debut, met with universal acclaim from fans and critics alike. RTJ2 will be released October 28th and the first single is called Blockbuster Night Part 1. Lupe Fiasco – Tetsuo & Youth: It’s been 2 years since Lupe released the sequel to his 2005 debut album Food & Liquor, Food & Liquor 2: The Great American Rap Album. Unlike it’s original; F&L2 was a commercial flop and failed to sell over 200,000. Although it did earn him a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Album and was met with positive reviews. Tetsuo & Youth has spawned 3 singles so far, Old School Love featuring Ed Sheeran, Mission, and Next To It featuring Ty Dollar Sign. No release date has been confirmed yet. Lil Wayne – Tha Carter 5: Rumored to be Lil Wayne’s final solo album, Tha Carter 5’s current release date is October 28th. It’s been a little over a year since Wayne released his underwhelming 10th studio album I Am Not A Human Being 2, and 3 years since he released Tha Carter 4. The albums in Wayne’s “Tha Carter” series are considered by many his best studio efforts and are his most successful, so fan expectations are high for his final solo release. So far singles for Tha Carter 5 include Believe Me featuring Drake, Krazy, and Grindin’ featuring Drake. Eminem & Shady Records – Shady XV: Last year Eminem released his rumored final solo album, The Marshall Mathers LP 2, the sequel to his iconic 2000 sophomore album. But that doesn’t mean the Detroit icon is done for good. Eminem recently announced that on Black Friday, November 24th, he will be releasing a 2-disc album titled Shady XV. Disc 1 will be a Greatest Hits compilation of Shady Records most famous hits, and disc 2 will be a collab album between Em and current and past Shady Records artists (50 Cent, Yelawolf, Slaughterhouse, D12, Obie Trice, etc.), similar to the 2006 Shady Records compilation album The Re-Up. So far the only song released from the album is a single titled Guts Over Fear featuring singer Sia, originally meant for the soundtrack of the upcoming film The Equalizer.
Posted on: Sun, 14 Sep 2014 21:36:06 +0000
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