Posts Tagged ‘Hopsin’
So XXL just released the cover for their 2012 freshman class. If you’re not familiar, this is kind of notorious in hip-hop for being a big event…. that really doesn’t matter that much. More than anything, it just gets people worked about behind the scenes politics and let’s everyone throw their two cents in about who they think should or should not have graced the issue. Nonetheless, it’s fun, especially when you see some guys you’ve been riding with for a while get some shine.
This year’s class: Machine Gun Kelly, Danny Brown, Kid Ink, Future, Roscoe Dash, Hopsin, Macklemore, Don Trip, Iggy Azalea and French Montana.
I really enjoy the list this year actually, as the XXL crew did a pretty good job of incorporating some of the different facets of hip-hop, making selections ranging from Macklemore to Don Trip. I can see most of these MCs continuing their success and having solid careers in the industry.
However, in my opinion, there’s a few noticeable absentees in the class. First and foremost being A$AP’s head honcho Rocky. However that was supposedly by his own choice, stating a busy schedule as reasoning. Also Casey Veggies, Schoolboy Q and Jon Connor should have found their way on to this list in my humble opinion. Connor’s appearance might be a little premature though, seeing as the usual selections already have a solid fan base (and sometimes aren’t even “freshman” at all) and Connor is still working his way up to that point. But if I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times, Connor is murking about 97.3% of the new guys in the game right now. As far as explanation for Young Veggies and Schoolboy being left off… I have none. But like I previously stated, covering the Freshman issue has not really proven to correlate with career longevity and those guys will be just fine.
I am going to take a quick second to specifically congratulate Hopsin. He’s out there proving you really can do the damn thing solo if you just don’t seem to fit in anywhere else. If you missed my Artist of the Week post for him wayyy back in the day, catch that here.
Lastly, this gives me a good opportunity to throw in an Iggy Azalea pic. Happy Monday fellas.
Time for a change of pace. You were undoubtedly already familiar the last two artists I’ve featured as Artists of the Week (Kid Cudi and B.o.B). With this week’s edition of AotW, I’m switching it up in the hopes of introducing you to someone you might not know as much about. I’m also not making a mix for a couple of reasons, but definitely check out the video, streams and iTunes link below.
Coming out of Los Angeles, Hopsin originally signed with Eazy E’s label Ruthless Records in 2007, but after a rocky partnership with Eazy’s widow Tomica Wright, broke away and started his own label Funk Volume. Although not immediately obvious, this would prove to be the jump off point for Hop’s career. Under the freedom of owning his own label, Hop was able to showcase not only his music but his music and video production talents as well. Marketing gimmicks such as his signature white contacts and taking shots at big name artists started to gain him a fair amount of buzz in the underground.
Recently, his appearance alongside B.o.B on Tech N9ne’s “Am I A Psycho?” as well as his “Ill Mind of Hopsin 4” have gained him a fair amount of attention from those who may not have previously been familiar. Below I’ve thrown together a youtube video and some songs for streaming. You will also find the links to Hopsin on the interweb (I recommend you check this out, as he interacts with his fan base all of the time) as well as a link to his most recent project Raw.
Bonus: Check out a young Hopsin on That’s So Raven here
I’ve been waiting on this new Ill Mind of Hopsin for a while now, and true to his word, Hop dropped it on his birthday. Hop is a guy who is pretty known in the underground for throwing a lot of shots at a lot of different big rappers. This time Tyler, The Creator was his victim of choice, which really came as no surprise as Hopsin’s fans seem to be constantly bringing up Tyler’s name, and after Hop worked with B.o.B, I wouldn’t be surprised if a little of B.o.B’s ‘Odd Future tension’ rubbed off on him.
The next single from Tech N9ne’s upcoming All 6′s and 7′s. Personally, I’m a much bigger fan of this track than the previous leak. Both Tech and Hopsin kill their verses and B.o.B reminds me why I became such a big fan of his in the first place (sometimes when I hear him on the radio I forget). Stream below, look for the album on June 7th.
