DJ Premier and Mass Appeal released the album ‘Hip Hop 50 Volume 1’
This has been a great year for hip-hop as a number of emcees, from K-Dot and Benny The Butcher to Pete Rock and more, have released critically acclaimed albums this year. Now that we’ve reached the midpoint of the year, legendary producer DJ Premier has released a five-track collection titled Hip Hop 50 Volume 1 to commemorate the occasion.
Mass Appeal collaborated on the project, which is said to be the first in a series of volumes. In addition to Joey Bada$$, Remy Ma, Rapsody, Nas, Run The Jewels, Slick Rick and Lil Wayne, the album was produced entirely by DJ Premier. The group comes together to continue hip-legacy. hop’s After the release of Gang Starr’s historic and chart-topping One Of The Best Yet, this is also his first proper project since then.
With “Lettin’ Off Steam,” Joey Bada$$ shows off his rapping skills with his slow, unfiltered flow and rhyme schemes. Prem’s gritty soundscape and a pad and pen are all that Joey needs to let off some steam.
As a follow-up, “Remy Rap” features Remy Ma and Rapsody in a historic collaboration that bridges the past and present. Rapsody begins with an excellent line, “Daughter of a gun, I spit it like a bullet/ That’s literary caution I should win me a Pulitzer,” before reminding us of her lyrical pedigree as a true wordsmith. Remy Ma, on the other hand, is brutal with the bars, spitting lines like “Ya’ll be on some she hit me so I’ma hit her back/ I be on some she hit me so now she These ladies came to slay everything they could get their hands on, and Preem provides them with just the right reverberant setting to do so.
It’s the anthemic “Beat Breaks” by the legendary rap God Nas that takes us back to the roots of hip-hop, a slamming tune that examines how rap came to be and how it relates to what we have now. It’s time for “Terrible 2’s” with El-P/Killa Mike/Run The Jewels, who bring the mayhem over Prem’s creepy, spacey beat. While scratching lines from GURU, Drake, and Busta Rhymes in the chorus, Preem ties the song’s subject matter to the late rappers.
Final cut “The Root Of All” features Lil Wayne and Slick Rick The Ruler rapping together, an unexpected pairing of emcees. Smooth punchy drums and soulful, nostalgic textures abound on this record, which deviates dramatically from the previous album’s moody cinematic beats. Despite Slick Rick’s smooth flow and vivid lyricism, Lil Wayne is rapping his butt off and holding his own against Slick Rick’s. A heartfelt and engaging piece of music from rap’s flashiest emcees was the best way to wrap things up.
Hip Hop 50’s soundtrack will consist of ten extended plays (EPs) featuring only recently released music from the industry’s most respected producers, who are helping to shape the musical and cultural landscape as we approach the 50th anniversary of Hip Hop. Swizz Beatz, The-Dream, Mike Will Made It, Hit-Boy and Tainy are among the artists who have collaborated with DJ Premier on a new EP following the release of DJ Premier’s EP.
A new distribution deal with The Orchard means that the entire series will be available on Mass Appeal. Celebrating the latest and greatest in Hip Hop while also bringing together some of the genre’s biggest names, this project will help solidify the #HipHop50 campaign. The Universal Hip Hop Museum, which is scheduled to open in 2024, will receive a portion of the #HipHop50 proceeds.
There will be strategic partnerships, global activations and innovative content/programming to celebrate Hip Hop’s 50th birthday through Mass Appeal’s massive #HipHop50 initiative. For the production of live event programming, Mass Appeal and Live Nation Urban recently announced their partnership. This partnership will create moments that bring together the voices that have made Hip Hop a way of life, from park jams to festival stages.
It has aired documentaries such as YOU’RE WATCHING VIDEO MUSIC BOX and CYPRESS HILL: INSANE IN THE BRAIN through its #HipHop50 premium content partnership with Paramount + / Showtime. On July 10th, SUPREME TEAM will premiere for the first time. Rapper Nas and radio host Minya “Miss Info” co-hosted The Bridge: 50 Years of Hip Hop, a Mass Appeal Spotify Original podcast released in 2017. Oh.
