Smart & Angry

News of a possible demise of one of music’s most commercially successful groups over the last decade: The Black Eyed Peas, has come to surface as of late. For some, this may come as a sigh of a relief,  for others(mostly under the age of 16) it will come as one of the worse thing to come to since...  

On the other hand I will admit that these guys did make a lot of very dope music over 10+ years(seems a lot longer). Especially if you keep in mind that they did start out as a group that  wanted to be positive.   Be prepared to be surprised as I drop 20 gems on that ass!  

***I took the liberty of including all entries from the group (production, songwriting, solo records ) to make the list. Unfortunately that doesn’t included those of the non-musical variety or I would of included this great work of non-fiction as well.

With out further ado I present the Top 15 songs from The Black Eyed Peas()

20.Black Eyed Peas ft Esthero-Weekends
This used to set off the weekend for us. Back in the days when I used to burn mix cd’s this was included on any mix that was meant for night of going out. The Sly & the Family Stone sample flip was cool as well as everything else about this jam. I especially loved the ending on the album version where the beat drops out and it’s just guitar and bass, that was always fresh to me. Pre-Fergie greatness right here.  

19.Black Eyed Peas ft Sergio Mendes-Sexy
Real smooth music right here. The piano solo by Sergio on the song itself warrants an inclusion on this list. Nuff said...

18.Black Eyed Peas-Pump It
A 60’s surf-rock sample from that song that was used in Pulp Fiction who would’ve thought to flip something like this to a new hip-hop dance jam, and you know what??? I  couldn’t front on it at all. Even though it was a little more pop oriented than I would’ve liked (that Fergie bridge almost always makes me want to take a seat), It was catchy as hell, and was way more tolerable than My Humps for damn sure.

17. Black Eyed Peas-Hey Mama
Sean Paul had been ruling Dance-Hall music...that is until this dropped. Yeah it crossed over with the rest of the record, but it was good switch-up for them. Rocking a party jam that wasn't too pop, but still got the nor hip-hop and most importantly it got the people out thereselves.

16. Black Eyed Peas-Imma Be
I listen to this song tdday and think “Why did this not come out around the same time as Jerry Seinfield's Bee Movie​​​”? This was off The E.N.D album and was pretty  just about spelled that for the group in general.This song though was a bit of genius. It somehow incorporated the Hyphy sound of the bay, with  Electronica, and a bit of Funk as well. This was the last time I can remember where they were still  a bit ahead of the curve.

15. Black Eyed Peas-Fallin Up
This was the first song that I can remember from the guys. Yes the video was sick, but the sound was crazy on it. I honestly fronted on the first album at first cause I think the sound was just a few years to ahead of me. I always liked this song though, it was like DJ Preimer joint,  with more of a latin west coast vibe.

14. Black Eyed Peas ft De La Soul-Cali to New York
Yeah did you forget these guys were originally a hip-hop band? This song right is responsible for reintroducing me to one of hip-hops greatest groups of all time. Posdnuos and Dave where killing this beat(which was a monster on it's on). To even think that BEP could hold their own with these guys is an after-thought, but the result was a very fresh nice posse cut.

13. Black Eyed Peas-Bebot
Apl De Ap I always was the nicest in the  crew on the microphone. This cut right here proves my point. I don't even know what he is saying but he sounds nice saying it. When it gets to the Filipino part on the hook...just gets crazy. I had a few Filipino friends who all I had to do was start singing that very part and would get super-hyped. Must be a nice feeling when you can rock a crowd in another language.

12. Black Eyed Peas-Hot
Not only was he nice on the Mic, Apl De Ap was also nice behind the boards. This beat was ridiculous. Oh and with Kim Hill on the hook...done deal. Unfortunately this was her last track she recorded for the group as she had left sometime during the recording of the second album. Which of course made room for Fergie and the rest is history as we say. Oh and at the end there is this drum break that leads into the next track that is nice as well.

11. Black Eyed Peas ft Les Nubians & Yasinn Bey(Mos Def)-On My Own
As you can see I was a big fan of the second album. I was tempted to just list first seven tracks from that album and made this a lot easier. Well what I have to say is I was just getting into the whole Rawkus/Okayplayer/Spitkicker/Soulaqurians sound and this jawn right here was everything that I loved about it. Very west coast still, but smooth enough for both guest to sound at home on.How they went from this to working with David Guetta, I will never know...

10. Will I Am-Go!
This was ridiculous! I heard it on Madden 05’ and couldn’t get it out my head. Don’t know how this didn’t become a smash single as well? The energy of this record is crazy! Plus the way he flips that Beastie sample is pretty fresh. There might be a few to many breaks in the record where DJ’s people who play music now days wouldn’t know what to do with. Either way this was a crazy song! I don’t know if there is another record they have recorded that has the potential to set a party off as much as this one.

9. Black Eyed Peas ft James Brown-They Don't Want Music(Pete Rock remix)
Can you believe one of the last appearance of the Godfather of Soul, might have been on such a pretty much, soul-less album? Good thing that Pete Rock came in and rescued this track from its glossy origins and created this more Soul'd out remix of this cut. Off the of the remixed collection of cuts titled Renegotiations EP (must have for fans of the group and hip-hop in general as Premo, Erick Sermon, DJ Jazzy Jeff, and Large Professor also included on here) this sounds more like something that James Brown would be on.

8. Black Eyed Peas-Joints & Jam
This was fresh. Like even today when I listen to it, still sounds new. From the beginning, these guys were bound to go more the party direction with their sound. Not their fault either they sounded comfortable in this area. I know the hip-hop heads wanted another The Roots, or The Fugees, but instead they got The Black Eyed Peas who could rock a party, and at the same time sound like they are happy to be at that same party.

7. Black Eyed Peas-Positivity
A beautiful song, from this you can see a few of the seeds of Where is the Love?. While more hip-hop oriented, it had a lighter feel to it. The guitar sprinkled in throughout would come to be the orhcestral arragment, the subdued synth became the more on the forefront synth, and you add Justin Timberlake and a dumb down the lyrical style you see what I am saying. Though I love it when this flips up at the end of the song, goes back to a beat with a harder edge as well.

6. Black Eyed Peas ft Q-tip, Talib Kweli, John Legend and Cee-Lo- It's Like That
Honestly if it wasn't for this song, there never would have been a purchase of Monkey Business by me(technically I bought it for my ex, but this song allowed me to do so in good conscious). That line-up itself warrants the inclusion on this list. Plus the beat is nothing more hip-hop than anything on either Elephunk or Monkey Business albums. Wish there could have been a verse from Cee-Lo as well on here is my only complaint.

5. Will I Am-Fantastic
This guy is a great producer.That is one thing I have always noticed about him from early on in the Peas career. Songs like this don’t come from just anyone, and especially from a person who came to make some of the current biggest hits over the last 10 years almost. A great post-break-up song.

4. Will.I Am-Lost Change
Off of his often same titled debut album, this song features Will in pre-Elephunk mode experimenting more with the sounds from the Bridging The Gap more so. An instrumental joint that sounds like it could have seen light of day in a James Bond score, or exotic Spanish/Latin location shoot somewhere in the world. Dude was mad talented from the get go, I would love to see him venture into these waters again.

3. Estelle ft Kanye West-American Boy(Produced By Will.I.Am)
Here’s another single that actually  from a previous off of Will’s 3rd solo album Songs About Girls titled:Impatent(Which is kind of funny cause Let’s Get It Started was actually a song off of his solo release before this Must Be 21). For me personally a night in Paris this year made that song especially magical, but besides that, the song is truly is a good mix of all the right things made this a worldwide smash.

2. Serigo Mendes ft Steve Wonder & Gracinha Leoprace-Berimbau/Consolação
Will.I.Am most definitely benefited from growing up in East LA. There are so Latin roots sprinkled all throughout his productions especially more so early on. Being heavily influenced by Samba-music legend Sergio Mendes(who also played keys on Sexy off of Elephunk), Will.I.Am with his own fame rising at the moment, decided to produce with him a full album. You probably heard or saw this at a Starbucks(they sold it off their now defunct record label) somewhere on planet Earth sometime in 2006 most likely. This song is magic though, Stevie Wonderon the Harmonica, original Brazil 2000 singers, Medes on the keys, and Will.I.Am most importantly silent doing something elsewhere(drum programming).

1. John Legend-Ordinary People( produced and co-written by Will .I. Am)

Yes, John Legend was signed by Mr West to G.O.O.D music, but this was the song that made him even more so of a household name.  Quietly this showed the range of BEP Black Eyed Peas Will.I.Am’s artistry beyond Let’s Get it Started. While supplying this generation with one of it’s greatest relationship songs.

**Bonus**
Will .I. Am ft Thugnifficent-Dick Riding Obama
Sorry had to do it, to this day I still think this song is hilarious. 

(Is that red velvet???)
I got to be completly honest, I been bumping Ross albums every year as they are released for the man. I have never felt his mixtapes, nor did enjoy listening to that Self Made compilation(R.I.P the artistic talents of Wale, & Pill) one bit. Usually though In terms of major solo releases his brand of music I can usually roll with for a few months. With the birth of this single though I feel the streak is in jeopedy as the act though is beginning to wear thin.

The track leaked released last week titled I Love My Bitches was stupidity, digitally captured on in fulll.Yes Just Blaze backdrop is a force of nature, but besides that? The chorus(which I guess Lil John wasn’t available for) is a him repeating “I love my bitches” with an extra emphasis on: bitches(which one my friends in high school could get writing credits for this cause he used to say it just like that back in 97). That could come across as funny I guess to him and his inner circle of friends weed carriers, but elsewhere, I don’t know who in their right mind would find themselves repeating this chorus?

As far as the lyrics go, it’s him at one his less-sensationalized verses and basically it’s him talking about how much he likes to trick. With some Scarface/Casino/Godfellas fantasies sprinkled in here and there.

Well I guess when you rise from the lowly ranks of a middle-wage earning Correctional Officer to fictional successful Mobster boss this is the tale you must tell.   

(If you want to listen to the song I guess you can listen to it here, cause I am not posting that shit anywhere near the vincintity of my words)
-Justa

I was invited to review the group  Zipsquad’s Lifestyle EP. Since I never review anything really from unsigned artists,  I thought I would give a go and review this.

I’ll begin with this, if you have a project with 10 tracks or less, don’t have skits. I saw an interlude on the tracklisting and was like what??? I also almost gave up on the album from the get go, cause there was some talking going on the first track for like 40 seconds over the first track!!! Which would of been cool for like 20 seconds, but this is an EP, and I don’t know who you are, and you want to talk for forty-plus seconds of what is suppose to be a rap album? “Bad form Peter(That’s Hook reference for you young’ns)”. The artist themselves aren’t bad though, as far as constructed rhyme patterns and technique go, they definitely have skills. The problem is that  that most of the time they are wasted on cliche’ topics of gettin money and bitches unfortunately. Which wouldn’t be a problem if it was done in a somewhat interesting way.

As far as the  production goes,  most is forgettable except for the track Long Nights, Cold Champaigne & Weed Smoke which flips a sample quite nicely. Think the guys need to gravitate a little more towards this type of sound next go around, it goes with their styles a lot better than the Celly Cel/90’s Bay Era synths that tend to litter this EP instead.  While the dudes are cool on the mic, there is nothing that warrants any further listens of this. There definitely is potential for the guys though, the guys have technique just need some better ideas as well as production to go along with and I think we might have something to talk more about next time. 

-Justa