…is killing it, and has been the last 3-4 years. As a label, no other is seeing them right now as far as quality releases…Finally getting to really digest the "1978's" LP, and am blown away…Carry on...

but they'll be in here shortly to shout you down.

Mello Music Group's slate of album in 2012 was as good of a year for any hip-hop label than I can think of. Right up there with Elektra's 1991 slate.

They've pretty much been running shit sine their inception. Started the year of strong too with the Kenn Starr album too.

werd.

...man that 78ers LP, wow...

Or do they have other material?

I've been meaning to check that out

I am, was kinda late on this one, FIRE....don't believe they have any other projects...

Red Pill's new single + album were announced today

http://2dopeboyz.com/2015/02/17/premiere-red-pill-look-at-what-this-world-did-to-us/

He's got some good production behind him. Should be good

I want to stop myself from calling them the new Rawkus
but fuck it

>I want to stop myself from calling them the new Rawkus
>but fuck it

I first talked about in a thread Philpot created almost a year ago:

http://board.okayplayer.com/okp.php?az=show_topic&forum=5&topic_id=2881533&mesg_id=2881533&listing_type=search#2881705

To paraphrase and update, Rawkus had three A+/A albums (Funcrusher Plus, BOBS, TOT) as does Mello Music (In the Ruff, People Hear What They See, Trophies). Mello Music then has a bunch of albums that fall between the A to B+ range, whereas Rawkus has much fewer. Mello Music has been going REALLY strong since 2010-11, whereas the quality of Rawkus albums fell off a cliff after 2001. What ends up helping Rawkus is the albums that they distributed in the late '00s and some of those Rawkus 50 albums. Mello Music has actually done a really good job at the developing they're artists.

but i feel like you're excluding numerous A/A+ albums from the rawkus catalogue
blackstar
internal affairs
hi-teknology 1
lyricist lounge 1
soundbombing 1

and theres not much from that early era that i wouldn't put in the A-/B range
brace 4 impak, big picture, home field adv,

maybe I'm being too generous with some of these, looking back on my backpack days with rose-colored glasses - i wouldn't dispute that without going back and giving a lot of this stuff a hard listen

Ah, I forgot Black Star. That's definitely A/A+ album.


>internal affairs
>hi-teknology 1
>lyricist lounge 1
>soundbombing 1

For me, Internal Affairs is A-/B+ range, Hi-Teknology are Lyricist Lounge are B+/B. Soundbombing 1 is weird because I had all the 12"s first, so it was a basic mixtape to me. Soundbombing 2 is an A-.

>and theres not much from that early era that i wouldn't put in
>the A-/B range
>brace 4 impak, big picture, home field adv,

Forgot about Brace 4 Impak, and I agree with you. I also agree about Home Field Advantage. Truthfully, I've never heard Big Picture all the way through.

But even with all those albums in the A-/B+ range, Mello Music still has more that fall in the same range. Their hit/miss ratio is pretty insane.

>maybe I'm being too generous with some of these, looking back
>on my backpack days with rose-colored glasses - i wouldn't
>dispute that without going back and giving a lot of this stuff
>a hard listen

I'd say you're pretty much correct. And the 12"s that pretty much built the label still hold up. But I do think it matters that we never got full albums by guys like L-Fudge, Shabaam Sadeeq, Rose Family, RA the Rugged Man, Black Attack, etc., during that era. That's never been an issue with Mello Music.

...not to even mention the albums ...so i dont think MMG will ever be BETTER than Rawkus was, but they are surely the "Rawkus" of today which is pretty damn important..

>...not to even mention the albums ...so i dont think MMG will
>ever be BETTER than Rawkus was, but they are surely the
>"Rawkus" of today which is pretty damn important..
>
>
>

its not even a fair comparison honestly...

rawkus biggest are hip hop ANTHEMS...

mello has a lot of dope music. but you couldn't play one song at a classic hip hop party and get a reaction.

rawkus artists were primetime the same way major label artists were

Obviously different times, but time will tell what is considered classic by heads...I can give you personal classics/bangers right now from Mello that knock, and yes they are that dope....

again... i like mello catalogue

but you can't put a song on and girls start rubbin they titties

truth! funny ish….

If in in 1997 or 1998, Rawkus had put out full-length albums by L-Fudge, Shabaam Sadeeq, Sir Menelik, Black Attack, RA the Rugged Man, B-1, Rose Family, etc., then I feel like we could have a better comparison. I get that it was a different time when pressing a whole CD wasn't as easy to do as it is now, but playing the "What If...?" game with those albums holds Rawkus back. With Mello Music Group, you've never had to wonder, "Hmmmm, I wonder what an album by ______ would sound like?"

Regardless, after 1998/99, Rawkus lost just about all interest in the groups that built the label, with the exception of Mos & Kweli, and tried to move on to more commercial pastures. Mello Music has managed to grow their roster while still staying loyal to the artists that got them to this point.

....rawkus, guesswhyld, fondle em, abb, etc...i wasnt even expecting full LPs from these labels or artists back then ...so i think a label today might be hard to compare if you think full albums are most important

What Rawkus did have though in terms of albums was pretty damn good.. BS, Mos,Monch, H&M, BigL, CoFlow reissue etc

never.

on the label
that sounds real risky in 2015 so i didn't bother DL
what's their best jawns in the vein of Trophies?

Diamond District - In the Ruff
Sean Born - Behind the Scale
Guilty Simpson and Apollo Brown - Dice Game
Hassaan Mackey and Apollo Brown - Daily Bread
The Left - Gas Mask

That "Gas Mask" joint got BANGERS…one example…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IehjjEFmAJg

So even if you aren't feeling Ras in 2015 (like me unfortunately - dude used to be in my top 5) you'll still probably like the beats

It's like the No Limit of indie rap right now. The new Kenn Starr jawn is slept on too.

and Oddisee is right there with Mike in terms of dopeness.

Truth.

hassan mackey / kev brown "that grit" bangs sooo hard.

one of my fav albums in the last few years

That track w/ Kool Keith has been on constant repeat

the truth

Apollo always kills it!

It's pretty great. As mentioned above, there's a Kool Keith track on there produced by L'Orange...

...the best "15" LP I have heard this year...any other new music suggestions?

some great songs on there. Not feeling the Quelle Chris, Open Mic Eagle or Kool Keith tracks, but the rest is flames. The beats on those tracks are dope, I just don't really care for the mc's

Maybe it'll grow on me

there are some lackluster tracks ("house rag" is terrible), but overall this is much better than both mandala albums which were released last year, in particular, "lose the ground", "word to the wise" and "circles around circles" are fire. I still think their best comp album is self sacrifice though

I'm going to need tall black guy to do a full album with an MC soon...

...your point about Tall Black Guy, yes, needs to happen...

The Apollo joints hits hard as always, expected nothin less hah!

The Nottz, Oddisee and Tall Black Guy features as well...

Also, Red Pill nice on that Oh No.

Theres still some things on here I hafta ? - I need yall to explain to me L´oranges appeal?
Those beats are zzz to me. And wtf was Exile on with them softrock guit chords and vox chops?