Giovanni James: "Shame On You"

Giovanni James is a hot young talent about which I've been able to dig up very little, aside from the facts that he has been picked up by major label Warner Brothers with only two singles under his belt, of which "Shame On You" is the most recent. It will be interesting to see if WB allows him to develop along this stylistically singular display of talent, or if they will insist on pairing him up with EDM/trap producers and attempt to mold him into a crossover pop star.

Red Pill: "90's Money"

Mello Music Group (not to be confused with the other MMG) keeps both feet planted firmly in the backpack hip hop vein, having released albums by Apollo Brown, Oddisee and L'Orange, among others, and this recent cut by Detroit rapper Chris Orrick a.k.a. Red Pill hardly breaks the mold. As someone who is still very much making the same sort of salary he did a full two decades ago, I can relate wholeheartedly with "90's Money". Probably not what homeboy meant, though.

Ka: "Peace Akhi"

Now this shit I like. The flow of Nas with the measured, patience cadence of a medicated Kool G Rap. Apparently Ka is a firefighter at his day job, so make whatever obligatory jokes you'd like about smoldering flames. We here at WKMR are above that shit.

Danny Brown: "Hand Stand"

Been awhile since we last saw Danny Brown and Darq E. Freaker on the same track, but good things come to those who wait. Speaking of long waits, Brown's belated to follow up to 2011's XXX - entitled Old, presumably because he's been sitting on these tracks for the last two years - comes out September 30.

Major Lazer: "Bubble Butt"

Don't y'all think this twerk shit done got out of hand?

Paul White: "Street Lights" [feat. Danny Brown]

Running out of hyperbole to spit re: Danny Brown so let's focus on Paul White, a UK producer that I'm hitherto unfamiliar with but who is supposed to be producing a good chunk of Brown's upcoming album. "Street Lights" the single is billed to Paul White, and probably represents a more accurate picture of what he intends for his own material as opposed to what he's bring to the table for the Danny Brown record, but I do like the way Danny sounds over such an obtuse beat. Stay tuned, should be a video for this shortly.

(via URB):

Earl Sweatshirt: "Woah"

I still have a hard time differentiating Earl Sweatshirt and Tyler, the Creator apart verbally - at least not without a bit of effort - but Sweatshirt seems less playful, more prone to lyrical badassery and unabashed shit talk. It's all in good fun though, as this Tyler-featuring video shows neither Odd Future member taking himself in the slightest bit seriously. Kind of weird that a guy like Frank Ocean came out of this clique but I guess when big titty geriatric ballerinas are on the table anything's possible.

Cadence Weapon: "Hype Man"

If there's a single element that completely sandbags many live hip hop shows it's the goddamn hype man. You know, the guy that won't let the rapper you actually came to see get two words in without screaming "JEEEEEEAAAHHHH!" over top of him. Yep, fuck that guy.

Homeboy Sandman: "Richardsun"

Yep, another Homeboy Sandman cut up in this WKMR shit. I'd actually post a lot more of dude's stuff except I'm actually kind of self-conscious of giving any particular artist preferential treatment (the vast majority of artists covered here have exactly one entry apiece to their name).

"Richardsun" may go down as one of the man's more obscure tracks, being released in an edition of a mere 300 7" singles to celebrate the 10th anniversary of some German record store I've never even heard of (HHV.de). So you might want to exorcise your desire to score a copy posthaste. Oh ho ho, I see what I did there.

Big Boi: "She Said OK" [feat. Theophilus London]

"She Said OK" has been around in audio form for a few months now; in fact, you probably absorbed its playful novelty value pretty quickly and forgot all about it. Big Boi can't be havin' that shit, not with Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumors not streeting until November 13. So here we get some belated softcore footage to reinforce our formerly fleeting love of the tune.

Pac Div: "Black Acura" [feat. Mac Miller & Raven Sorvino]

"Show out for the girls and get your ass whipped / on some 8th grade right in front of the class shit"

I totally slept on Pac Div's debut last year but have since been playing catch up via the stray single here and there. This one's the best I've heard so far, nimble wordplay over rumbling-yet-unobtrusive shoegaze beats. This one is from the upcoming GMB album.

[EDIT 11/27/12: added music video]:

Kendrick Lamar: "Westside, Right on Time" [feat. Young Jeezy]

Kind of strange having Jeezy on a Black Hippy track, but this new Kendrick Lamar joint is a freebie issued as part of Top Dawg Entertainment's fan appreciation week. Jeezy unexpectedly doesn't add anything to the track but at least he doesn't take anything away from it either. The 70's string-drenched soul sample is the real highlight anyway.

Homeboy Sandman: "Watchu Want From Me?"

Thing that's got Homeboy Sandman tagged as one of my top 3 rappers out there right now is that he's got a gift for wrapping a formidable, tongue twisting flow into catchy as hell beats and choruses. There aren't many singles the guy releases that don't deserve a place on this blog, and since it's been a minute since I've given him his due check out this first leak off of his upcoming Stones Throw debut First of a Living Breed.

[UPDATE 10/24/12: added music video]:

Talib Kweli: "Push Thru" [feat. Curren$y and Kendrick Lamar]

Just goes to show how quickly the churn is in mainstream hip hop when Talib Kweli is the old guard on his own track. Here he gathers upstarts Curren$y and Kendrick Lamar for one of those classic old soul, world weary feel (kinda) good tunes that Kweli is known for. This is the first of presumably many leaks leading up to Kweli's Prisoner of Conscious [sic] out at an indeterminate date later this year.

Arca: "Self Defense"

This one percolates malevolently, coiled and ready to spring but never quite breaking the tension. It's about eight minutes too short by my standards, but I'm a notoriously hard sell. This is supposedly coming out on UNO NYC but their website doesn't list Arca in anything other than a tour date capacity. Check out his Soundcloud page in the meantime.

Fore: "Don't Have a Clue"

Nothing particularly compelling about the rapped verses - they're heartfelt yet average - but the soaring chorus is what sets Zimbabwe artist Fore's "Don't Have a Clue" apart. With that falsetto reminiscent of old British New Romantic bands this is one of the premier chill jams of the summer.

You can get the entire Going Back is Not the Same as Staying on Fore's Tumblr.

Wu-Block: "Union Square"

This is some of that bouncy boom bap stomp that only NY hip hop crews seem to be able to pull off. In this case we have an album length collaboration between Wu-Tang and D-Block coming up. "Union Square" showcases Ghostface Killah and Sheek Louch, the duo of which apparently masterminded the project, although representation from both crews is expected to make the album (it's unclear whether "representation" includes such Wu heavy hitters as Method Man or RZA).

Vinny Cha$e: "Ball"

This one is getting a post not for its brilliant lyrics but for the insistent bass line, which is what really tells baby girl you're gonna ball. Get that Survival of the Swag mixtape for free right hurr.

XV: "AaaHH! Real Monsters" [feat, ScHoolboy Q]

Been looking for something new worth posting from Wichita's own XV and here it is. "AaaHH! Real Monsters" is a collaboration with ScHoolboy Q from the due-any-minute Popular Culture mixtape. Gotta love the cover art, a sly cross between Sgt Pepper and The Simpsons. Fuck it. 

Illa Ghee: "Rap Wizardry"

This is my first taste of Illa Ghee right here (at least that I can recall). In spite of the title "Rap Wizardry" Ghee's flow doesn't nearly aspire to Rakim heights, but he's got personality and sometimes that's more important. The beat by Dom Dirtee is equally as important, analog drums and 80s synths putting out a chill vibe which contrasts nicely with Ghee's declarative rhymes.