Ghostwridah - "Born Free"

"Born Free" is just about everything I love about Hip-Hop. The latest release from Miami's golden child's Freestyle Friday series is off the charts! Sampling M.I.A.'s song of the same title, which coincidentally samples a song called "Ghost Rider", Ghostwridah blends style and substance set to a backdrop fresh out of a 2012 remake of School Daze.

We've never heard Ghost like this. What he's doing lyrically is expected. He never misses on that front. The difference lies in the sound. Up to this point, his production has been a lot more glossy and crisp.  "Born Free" threw all of that out of the window for grit and gut. It works beautifully and definitely jumps onto an mp3 CD and into my car rotation.

Check the free stream and download below and get yourself geared up for the upcoming 'Flu Game: The Michael Jordan Theory 2.'

Sneakerbox Chock & Bueller Da Don - "Hijacking"

Bang! The Running Matez are back with a new single and it is FIRAH! We've heard a bunch of singles from Bueller Da Don over the last few months, all featured here. Now it seems the rock has been passed back to Sneakerbox Chock to shoot. In the last month we've been hit with 2 brand new offerings from Chock. No doubt they will keep coming.

This track goes H.A.M. Producer Chosen 1 put together a banger and Chock and Buell are in top form as usual. Definitely two of the most prepared independent artists working right now. It's not a matter of "if" but a matter of when they explode as they remain current and are always creating at a high level. Everything is in place for a takeoff; all of this work is clearing the runway.

On "Hijacking" the sometimes duo give us another of their recorded swag sessions. No shock or surprise there but the weight in their work has been, and continues to be, the gloss in production and presentation. "Hijacking" is no exception. Easily one of the best releases from these two I've ever heard!

Check the free stream and download below.... 

Tim Moorehead - "To Understand" Music Video

Tim Moorehead, aka Trademark, dropped this short music video off this morning. The "freestyle" verse "To Understand" is a brief preview of what's to be expected on the upcoming 'Oktoberfest' album releasing on October 23rd. 

Pretty straight forward here but everything is put together well and I'm interested to hear what comes next. I expect that we'll get more robust looks at the project as the release date nears. In the meantime, you can hop backwards to the previous '#Winnersbreak' mixtape, which has done very well.

Kokayi - 'Pro Deo et Patria'

When Kokayi released 'Robots & Dinosaurs' in 2010, I was blown away by the singular nature of everything he was doing lyrically and musically. The blend of sounds, rhythms and storytelling were unlike anything I had heard before. 2 years later, he's back with 'Pro Deo et Patria' and everything that R&D was has been re imagined and amplified in magnificent order.

One of the most standout elements of Kokayi's work is his production. For this album, he shows up, out and off with the depth of his work and scope of the project. This is album is far more "electric" than the last in terms of sonics and completely abandons all regard for normalcy. Not the faux House-Dance Mix-Dubstep stuff taking over urban radio. That's not what it is at all. It's more genre redefining than anything; in the way that Janelle Monae's 'Archandroid' was. He's completely set his own rules and lane.

I'm amazed at the level of artistry Kokayi delivers. From the first 8 bars of the album to the last he displays pure genius ability. When I heard the instrumentation choices on the opening to the album, "Birdus Ghetti", my jaw hit the floor. This dude is fearless! "ZaZa Hey" and "Punchdrunk" are not of this universe and everything in between is perfectly complimentary. You will be blown away by 'Pro Deo et Patria.' I can promise you this.

Get into the free stream below but PLEASE BUY THIS ALBUM because not buying it is ... well ... ridiculous.