He is perhaps most known for his introspective lyrics and his five independent albums under TDE, Longterm Mentality, Control System, These Days., Do What Thou Wilt., and Herbert, which were all released to positive reviews and commercial success. Raised in Carson, California, he signed to indie record label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) in 2007, where he eventually formed West Coast hip hop group Black Hippy, alongside fellow California-based rappers Jay Rock, Kendrick Lamar and Schoolboy Q. With this infusion of outside production, hopefully, Cadillactica will rise from the shadow cast by Return of 4Eva.Herbert Anthony Stevens IV (born February 23, 1987), better known by his stage name Ab-Soul, is an American rapper, singer and songwriter. Produced primarily by the King himself, it features Raphael Saadiq, "Money Trees" producer DJ Dahi, Beyoncé producer Jim Jonson and Nicki Minaj producer Alex da Kid. released a mac-spit slew of mixtapes leading up to his sophomore LP Cadillactica debuting this Tuesday. In a year packed with excellent hip-hop releases-Danny Brown's XXX, Jay-Z and Kanye West's Watch the Throne, the Beastie Boys' Hot Sauce Committee Part Two- 4Eva stays true to its promise, standing at the top of rap in 2011. produced the entire thing himself, morphing the brilliant vocal sampling of J Dilla with heavy Southern trap and undertones of 808. combines the Cannabutter smoothness of Houston's Devin the Dude with the extraterrestrial energy of Outkast. On the monstrous 21-song effort, K.R.I.T. In 2011, the King Remember in Time dropped Return of 4Eva, a mixtape that accidently referenced Chick Corea while proving K.R.I.T.'s status as a predominant Southern rapper. Return of 4Eva : What's next from Big K.R.I.T.įrom Meridian, Mississippi, Big K.R.I.T.'s finest work is, by default, in his past. Though a few tracks miss the mark (album-closer "W.R.O.H.," the blank check of "Hunnid Stax"), this ambition proves Ab-Soul's best work is ahead of him. With the track coming in at 5:31, it's one of the shorter songs on the album. On "Just Have Fun," Ab-Soul relays a clouded first half, pausing for an AA skit and returning with a neo-soul beat and double-time rhyme. But when Ab-Soul is guest-less on his tracks, he delivers his best work. With guest verses from the Black Hippies, Rick Ross and Action Bronson, it's a star-studded affair. In 2014, Ab-Soul released These Days., his third LP and strongest Billboard performance (no. In 2009, he dropped his first mixtape with Top Dawg, the Youtube-released and promising Longterm, and formed Black Hippy with Lamar and company. Growing up around the Saturn record store, Stevens grew into the family business, laying his first rhymes down on internet forums as a teenager.īy 2006, Ab-Soul had caught the attention of Top Dawg Entertainment, the Carson, California indie label with Lamar on its roster. His grandfather Cletus Anderson ran Saturn records, the LA label that put out Ice T's "The Coldest Rap" debut in '83. On songs like "What's tHa Word," Ab-Soul reveals an unexpected singing talent, busting out his falsetto chops on the hook.īorn Herbert Anthony Stevens, Ab-Soul has a family history in rap. Jay Rock is the prospect, with heavy DMX-yelling delivery yielding to a resonant image now and then (see Rock's strongest verse on Lamar's "Money Trees").īut Ab-Soul might be the most versatile of the Black Hippies, laying down an ignorant banger with ScHoolboy Q or something with a little more weight on a guest verse with Lamar. ScHoolboy Q is the horny, bucket-hatted sidekick with a talent for making non-sequiturs work (see the impossible contortions of "titty, ass, hands in the air" on "Man of the Year"). Kendrick Lamar, Black Hippy's undisputed leader, seismically shakes the rap world when he appears on guest verses (see 2013's "Control"). Ab-Soul, in permanent shades and cool in demeanor, is the wildcard of the riotously successful Black Hippy Collective.
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