Triple Threat - 'C.L.U.T.C.H.'

Let me give you a recipe for disaster:

1/2 cup of Sean Price
1/2 cup of Jean Grae
2 cups of Estrogen
Crushed Ice
A dash of beat yo' ass
Fresh beats
Mix with sit down and shut up to taste

Straight up disaster for weak rappers! 

Triple Threat first popped up on my radar with the Koontown project. I was immediately intrigued by her ability, both as an MC and as a producer. You just don't really hear about female artists this hard on both sides of the boards so I was excited to hear what was next. Well, my instincts were correct. 'C.L.U.T.C.H.' is next and Triple is cuttin' heads outchea!

I promise you this is special. Triple Threat is in a rare space reserved for the truly singular. The 12 track "mixtape" is a lyrical barrage from start to finish and all but 2 of the tracks are self produced. A consistent theme is extremely important to me and 'C.L.U.T.C.H.' delivers in every way on that front. It's a mighty impressive first effort for the 24 year old DC native.

If you appreciate pure unadulterated Hip-Hop, you must download this album. It's well worth a thorough listen. It's outstanding lyrically and sonically perfect as far as I'm concerned. Standout tracks for me were "Goin' Off", "Straight Spittin' 2" and "Maybe Someone to Uhh." I found no weak points on the project though. Those 3 just really speak to my sensibilities.

SHEZUS!

Check the stream and free if you insist download below. SUPPORT INDEPENDENTS!

RoxFontaine.com is...

Thank you so very much to all of you who appreciate what I do here enough to have voted for me in the 2012 Black Weblog Awards! Your continued support is greatly appreciated. I absolutely could not have done this without you.

I almost skipped this years awards but thanks to the encouragement of a great friend, I decided to do it anyway. Here I am now, writing a thank you as the BEST music blog of 2012! That feels awesome.

I set a goal. I acted on it. I achieved.

I'm excited for the next steps of this journey. Two years ago, nobody had ever heard of this blog. Then, in 2011 I had 4 nominations and 0 wins. This year 3 nominations*, 1 win and 1 runner-up**. Not too shabby. It's definitely a step in the right direction and great encouragement to reach for bigger goals.

Again, thank you all for tuning in to RoxFontaine.com. Hip-Hop's Prospective Perspective.

* 2 categories from 2011 were folded into 1 for 2012.
** There were only two finalists in Best Photography in a Blog.

Sneakerbox Chock & Bueller Da Don - "Patent Leather"

I'm not even sure where to start with this joint. I love sneakers. I love Rap music. However, if you make a Rap song about sneakers, I probably hate it. I don't have to listen to it. I just hate it.

I do not hate this however. As a matter of fact, it's dope! Of course you knew that though. You wouldn't be reading this otherwise, right? Right.

The Jersey boys Sneakerbox Chock and Bueller Da Don aka The Running Matez, have been hard at work on their push to stardom and have been beefing up appearances in the tri-state area to further promote their work. I heard a few new tracks from the upcoming 'Election Day' project at their recent show for CMJ/AllHipHop. They kept this one under wraps and dropped it in via e-mail. Well played, Gentlemen.

"Patent Leather" is self explanatory. Fantastic production, as usual, from Sunny Norway and certified trunk rattlin' music. Get this primary now and look out for 'Election Day' on election day.

Brandon Rossi - "Places & Spaces"

I really really like what Brandon Rossi is cookin' up down in ATL. It's like gourmet chicken and waffles as audio. Soulful, fattening comfort music for 3 am romps after the club. Rossi's sound is super smooth and has a signature on it that all aspiring producers aim for. You know a Rossi beat as soon as you hear the first 4 bars.

This is the first track I'm hearing from Brandon minus Villa. I was already well aware that he could hold his own on the mic, but it's really nice to hear him run solo. On "Places and Spaces" he pulls his "playa" card and charges all that he can to the game.

Get into the track and listen to Brandon Rossi talk that talk to the ladies. It's a fun, laid back track for champion game spitters.

Apollo the Great - "Above the Sky"

They say nothing good comes out of Camden. Apollo the Great says that "they" are so very wrong.

Long regarded as one of the most key independent artists to watch in the tri-state area, Apollo is back in full media swing for promotion of his upcoming 'Hennessy Diaries' project. This new release, "Above the Sky" launched at Complex yesterday and we're sure to see Apollo heat up as the weather cools down.

The young lyricist tore up the scene in 2010 with "Call it Quits" and the next thing anyone knew, he was gracing the pages of XXL, cutting records with the likes of Sean Price and Joell Ortiz and gracing stages wherever real Hip-Hop was to be found. It's no secret that Apollo the Great is drawing from an era slightly before his time. He has a way with words and an ear that are not of this time and place.

That works out to be a beautiful thing and "Above the Sky" has already gotten me fired up for the full album. Dig into the free stream below....