Twan's Top 10 - #2 Big K.R.I.T. "Wuz Here"

Phenom but me on to this one. I had heard of Big K.R.I.T but had never really listened to a lot of the music. Man, when I played this tape, it DID NOT come out of rotation for a long time. It has everything you want in a hip hop album. Dope lyrics, banging beats, storytelling, and depth of emotion. K.R.I.T. lets people in to his mind and soul and you come out rewarded for it. K.R.I.T. is breathing new breath into the southern music scene.

Also check "Before there Wuz Here: The Excavation" to hear K.R.I.T. talk about the samples he used and how the original compositions inspired his work. Its a great look inside the creative process that made "Wuz Here"

Twan's Top 10 - #3 G.O.O.D. Friday Releases

Now I know this isn't a mixtape per se. However, you can't ignore the music they Kanye and his G.O.O.D. Music label dropped this fall. If you put the 14 tracks together, you get a collection of great music. Everyone from the G.O.O.D. family is represented. The line up that Kanye has put together is diverse and very talented. And these songs show it.

Twanstradomus Top 10 - #4 The Freedom Suite LP

There is SOOOOO much good music coming out of North Carolina. And this group is no exception. The Beast consists of Pierce Freelon on the mic, Stephen Coffman on the drums, Eric Hirsh on the keys, and Peter Kimosh on the bass. For this album, Freelon called his mom, Grammy nominated vocalist Nneena Freelon to help out. They blend jazz and hip hop seamlessly. Sometimes groups that try to combine two genres come off as missing something. The Beast dodged this hurdle by providing the listener with good music, first and foremost. The album has help from Rapsody, Thee Tom Hardy, Kooley High, King Mez, and Phonte. It also contains spoken word segments from Herbie Hancock and ?uestlove, among others, who talk about issues of jazz artists acceptance of hip hop to issues in the LBGT community. If you want some good music, listen to this album. Here's a taste of what they offer.


Freedom Part I by The Beast from The Daily Tar Heel on Vimeo.

BigTwan's Top 10 - #5 J. Cole "Friday Night Lights"

What more can be said about J. Cole? When this mixtape dropped, it literally shut down his site with the amount of traffic it received. One of the flagship artists under Roc Nation, J. Cole is one of the hottest up and coming emcees in the game. And he does not disappoint with "Friday Night Lights". This mixtape shows a more well rounded J. Cole. From letting the world know that he's on the cusp in "Blow Up" to talking about the duality of man in 2face. "Ink from the pen spilling on the my notebook/Filled with dreams, this is my hope book" It is my hope that the hip-hop world takes heed of this emcee. Cuz he has something to say.

BigTwan's Top 10 #6 Pac Div "Don't Mention It"

Pac Div is one of the young groups out that keep delivering on a consistent basis. I didn't think they could keep it up after Church League Champions. Man was I wrong. They pick up right where they left of with Don't Mention It. It's good to see that there are people who can strike a balance between beats that will bust your speakers and dope lyricism. Listening to this tape makes a country dude from VA feel like he was from Cali. Some of the standout tracks are "Don't Mention It" "Shine" and "Waves at the Prom"

Twan's Top 10 - #7 Joe Budden Mood Muzik 4

Who says storytelling is dead in hip hop? Joe Budden shows that a emcee can show emotion and not have to seem "soft". As with others in the series, Joe again brings the listener into his life so we can see situations thru his eyes. This can be seen on songs Like "Welcome to Real Life" and "Role Reversal". With features from Styles P, Pusha T, Royce, Crooked I, Lloyd Banks and Fabolous nobody drops the ball. Mood Muzik 4 does not disappoint.

Twan's Top 10 - #8 Add-2 Tale of Two's City Vol 4: Better Days

Add-2's a Tale of Two's City series is always on point. He doesn't disappoint with Vol 4. He balances storytelling with battle rhymes well on the tape. He goes from subjects like killing emcees in the game to talking bout that old feeling that hip hop is losing with ease. Some of the standout tracks on the tape were "DGK" and "Waiting So Long" and "The Feeling is Gone". No only a great emcee, Add-2 is a cool dude. Check back thru some of the old podcast to peep the interview we did with him.

Phenom Wyte's Top 10 Mixtapes of 2010

Thee Tom Hardy: Secret of the Green Magic                                       Rapsody: Return of the B-Girl                  

I have both of these mixtapes at my #9 spot. It was hard to put one of these mixtapes higher than the others and I couldn't leave either one off. These two artists are my top new artists of the year. Since they under 9th Wonder's label, we know the production on both joints are tight. Its the lyricism that sets these two artist apart from the pack. Its a crime if you haven't copped them yet. Like they say in the song together "We'll be your favorities" Its a Wonderful World yall!

Phenom Wyte's Top 10 Mixtapes of 2010

Now Big Simba aka Phenom Blak did his top ten soul and rap albums of 2010. I happen to agree with him on those two lists. When it comes to mixtapes, I have a slight different opinion. On our podcast (look for the tab on top if this is foreign to you. Enjoy!) I said that I would come up with my own mixtape list. Now my list includes anything that was free (so mixtapes, free lp and ep) So here it is. From Phenom Wyte to you.



#10
My number ten mixtape is from the group Tomorrow Yesterday titled To...From... (The Ladies Album). As the title suggests, this is a gift from the group to the ladies. Now this isn't what you general think of as a ode to the ladies with a bunch of dudes talking bout how good they are in the sack or how all the ladies can't resist them. With songs like "Treat Her Right" and "She It" the group takes a more adult approach. Production is great with samples from classic songs like "Ladies Night" and "Love of my Life" by Michael Jackson. So grab your girl and relax to the good music.