Doin it Big Under the Radar

There is a certain art that has had time to evolve the past decade(s) of hip-hop. That trend being flying high but still being below the commercial radar. Three artist that have done this and explify this trait perfectly are 1) AZ 2) DJ Skrew (R.I.P.) and 3) Tech N9ne. All three of these artist have had a great career whether it be through their own label like AZ's Quiet Money or through the great mix tapes that Skrew has managed to give us, before his untimely death. Lets not forget to mention the style and culture Skrew brought to light with his music for all of us, not just those from Texas to enjoy. Tech is crazy good and even better live, one of the ways he has built such a diverse and widespread fan base. Even if your not a Tech fan, like myself, I still have made a habit to go to his shows, they're always crazy and the acts that he has with him usually aren't shitty.

Of all the artist that posses this quality to be successful without being pushed by major industry labels one that deserves the most attention is AZ. For all that have never listened to AZ you need to get a CD as soon as possible. AZ is from New York and was the only artist featured on Nas's first CD. Yeah, he's been around for a very long time. AZ has released more albums than most artist burnin up the Billboard Top 25 yet most people have never heard of him. However, get on a hip-hop website or do your homework and you will be shocked. AZ has over ten CD's and all have sold well considering he has no major label to push or promote him. This is an accomplishment that most artist with a major label still cannot achieve. One successful album based off two singles seems to be about the average for most artist now.

AZ has the lyrical style of most east coast rap, lots of metaphors and similes but he goes beyond that. Sometimes you just need to hit the rewind button and listen to those few bars again because dude goes insane on some of his beats. That's another thing, AZ got crazy beats. The sound of his music is just another thing that set him apart from all other rappers. If you've never heard an AZ song think Biggie's hit "Juicy" meets the movie "Scarface". He is gritty and grimy but has a smooth flow that covers his madness on the track in a very mellow-gangster way. On the classic "Sugar Hill" he uses heavy soul and R&B influences but is still rapping about everyday shit. From the album "Doe or Die", his first, to "Legendary" , one of his latest, very little has changed about AZ's music. His flow may have matured, he almost has 20 years in the game, but he's still the same crazy smooth spitter from '94 that could keep up on any beat with anybody. That is why he can fly high but stay off the radar. He has the work ethic, the fan base, skill and most importantly the consistency.

What to listen to:
-AZ: Doe or Die, this is a great classic that any hip-hop fan needs to have. The music may be older than ten years (which is like 60 years in hip-hop) but all the lyrics are still pretty relevant and of course the word play is bananas. Nas makes a few guest appearances and this was back when he was still spittin like that crazy queens bridge kid. All and all the CD is one of those that can be put in and just press play. It's that good.
-Mr. Hudson Feat. Kanye West: SuperNova. This song is great and Kanye kills it, of course. Dude can be an arrogant dick all he wants, his work backs it up so more credit to him. This song is seems like it could be a good preview to what Mr. Hudson's freshmen release will be like and hopefully he blows up.
-B.o.B Feat. T-Pain: Trunk Band. Even though b.o.b did a song mocking the auto tune I think this is a genius pairing of two very creative and deranged minds. The beat is savage and they both tear it up like it's nothing. B.o.b pairing up to do a song with Pain is of course a brilliant marketing move, T-Pain is practically a household name from his Budweiser commercials to his cell apps doing a song with him definitely could not hurt b.o.b's career. Not to mention the song is dope.