Great day for music as Big K.R.I.T. dropped the much anticipated mixtape, 4Eva N A Day today. K.R.I.T. treats us to a whole 17-track song list free of features (much respect for that). K.R.I.T.’s debut album, Live From the Underground is tentatively scheduled for a June release.
Click here to download.
Can’t wait to delve into this one as Seattle-based DJ Sango remixes The Weeknd‘s work. You can find nine remixes from all three of The Weeknd’s projects he’s released.
Click here to download.
Sorry for missing yesterday’s song of the day, folks! Hopefully today’s artist spotlight will make it up to you (it should). Today’s artist spotlight is the mysterious R&B singer The Weeknd. The Weeknd is not a group or collab as many believe, but a lone 20-year-old from Toronto. Like former spotlighted artist Frank Ocean, The Weeknd has made significant waves from his single mixtape that he has released, titled House of Balloons (available for download below).
The Weeknd takes samples from a variety of genres from artists like Beach House (“Loft Music”) and Siouxsie and the Branshiees (House of Balloons/Glass Table Girls) to create a unique electro hip-hop and indie vibe. The Weeknd also combines synths and heavy bass to add even more distinction to his sensual lyrics.
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Much of The Weeknd’s fame has come from a co-sign from Young Money artist Drake. Drake has recently been tweeting lyrics from The Weeknd’s “Wicked Games”. There have also been rumors that Drake’s producer, Noah “40” Shebib, worked on House of Balloons. The rumors were quickly dispelled by The Weeknd himself via twitter.
What does The Weeknd sound like? In my opinion, he combines the best of Drake’s R&B voice and lyrics with those of The-Dream. Some songs give you a classic 90s R&B vibe while others will give off a futuristic and indie feel. It’s no stretch to say that The Weeknd and Frank Ocean can reshape R&B music in dramatic fashion.
But how much of an impact can The Weeknd really make on the R&B scene? After all, there are no guarantees that The Weeknd will grow as an artist. House of Balloons is a fantastic debut mixtape, but there is still room for improvement. Do classic R&B fans really dig the new indie-R&B fusion that The Weeknd brings to the table? Or is this just a fad of 2011 that will soon disappear into darkness? Frank Ocean and The Weeknd certainly are giving fans something to talk about, but let’s see if they can actually permeate that talk rather than become afterthoughts like many artists have become. Give the tape a listen and let me know what you think.
Click here to download House of Balloons.
Common needs no introduction. From the South Side of Chicago, a guy that has truly stuck to his roots throughout his career, he’s in my top 5 all time. This song was recorded a while ago (10 years apparently, it just never made a Common album) and was finally given some life on DJ Eves I Know What You Did Last Mixtape, mixtape. Produced by Kanye West (Yeah, now you know it’s old since he rarely produces now), the two pair up for another great song. Common’s story telling is unmatched, and he has a nice flow on this one. Take a listen below, and click the link for the download of the tagless (no annoying DJ screaming over every bar) version.
GO!
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