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I'm generally not a big fan of soul or R&B (for the sake of brevity I'll be using "R&B" to refer to both from here on out, even though I realize there's a difference), at least not much of the stuff that's come out since I've been born. If it manages to incorporate hip hop into it somehow, though, I'll generally give it a look despite the fact that, historically, the mix of hip hop with those two genres has not fared particularly well. My negative opinion has no doubt been influenced by the fact that I came of age during the wave of 90's R&B, from New Jack to Bad Boy, that insisted on getting a guest verse from rap's flavor of the month emcee for virtually every release. Wu-Tang, somewhat surprisingly given how grimy they were when they first came out, seemed to be the one group that consistently pulled off the R&B cameo (for proof, see Jodeci, Mariah Carey, Jonell, Mary J Blige, SWV). The marketing gimmick of combining a singer from Column A with a rapper from Column B and hoping for a radio hit continues, the only difference these days is that it's a lot harder to tell a really bad Rhythm and Rap song from, say, a Kanye album. Perhaps most telling about the current state of affairs is the fact that Beyonce put out a harder rap record than her husband in 2008.
As usual, I digress. Two releases recently found their way to my inbox that show how to successfully mix R&B with Hip Hop, and have restored my faith in the crossover. The first project was sent over by my man at Rhymehouse, featuring Daru Jones and his sister Rena, called Feel the Love (it was apparently released some time ago, but I slept on it the first time around). Daru's been in the music game for over a decade now, and is perhaps most famous for performing with Slum Village. As a producer, the man is, judging by the near limitless supply of free downloads that he offers through his blog, prolific. I don't have much information on his sister Rena, but according to her bio she has worked with a couple of artists we've featured in the past, Kissey Asplund and the Innate Sounds Crew.
In a lot of ways, the sound of Daru & Rena's album feels like an extension of J Dilla and Illa J's Yancey Boys, which is perhaps not surprising considering that Daru also grew up in Michigan and cites Dilla as a major influence on his work. If you liked Sounds Like Love off of the Yancey Boys album, you'll definitely be into Feel the Love. The beats on this album knock, and it would have worked just as well with some hard-edged rhymes from an emcee as it does with Rena's singing. Here are a couple of songs off of the album:
Daru & Rena - Happy
Daru & Rena featuring Dilla - Take Your Hand
Here's a link to d/l Daru & Rena's Feel the Love. And Rhymehouse has a track that Daru recently put out with Black Milk, which you can get over here.
If you like those songs and are looking for even more hip hop and soul fusion, you might be interested in Mick Boogie's latest project with British singer Adele. Released last month, the mixtape takes Adele's vocals from her debut album 19 and throws them over 1988-era hip hop beats (slightly updated by Mick Boogie and a few other producers). It's sometimes difficult to judge the quality of remixes that use classic instrumentals, particularly with R&B blends, as the familiarity of a beat can often mask what would otherwise be a mediocre effort. Adele's vocals are good enough to stand on their own, however, and there are a few guest appearances from the likes of Naledge from Kidz In the Hall and Big Pooh from Little Brother, so there's value in it even if you aren't smoothed out on the R&B tip. Two tracks from the tape, Adele88:
Adele featuring Naledge - First Love (Remot Remix)
Adele featuring Big Pooh - Melt My Heart to Stone (Kickdrums Remix)
Here's the link to d/l Mick Boogie and Adele's Adele88.
Further listening:
Daru Jones' MySpace and his blog
Rena's MySpace
Mick Boogie's blog, The Press Play Show
Adele's MySpace
And speaking of Dilla, Vibe has a great article (<-- how often do you get to say that?) on the legal battles that his family has been going through since his passing (link via stones throw, via rafi).
01/13/2009 08:31:01 PM posted by Fresh