So who was in Essen?
What did you play? What did you buy? Who did you meet? How did you get there? Where did you stay? What shenanigans did you get up to? Tell us all about it!
What did you play? What did you buy? Who did you meet? How did you get there? Where did you stay? What shenanigans did you get up to? Tell us all about it!
It’s always been Earl versus the world. Fame found him at the age of 16, making him an internet sensation, then a meme, then an enigma, and finally, an icon. For an introverted kid who knew he could rap but was reluctant to accept the exposure and invasions of privacy that came with being a bona fide pop culture phenomenon, it’s been an uncomfortable evolution. Voracious fans threatened to consume not just his music but his personal life too. That same entitlement caused the “FREE EARL” campaign to mutate from eager appreciation to scary obsession and stoked fans’ demand for music during the three years since his last album—even as he was mourning his father’s death earlier this year. Rather than bask in the attention, he recoiled from it, setting himself apart from peers who maintain relevance through carefully strategized ubiquity. As he receded from the spotlight, his mystique grew—as did fans’ desire to hear him to do what he does best.
Feel free to discuss or feature any and all other releases in the comments below
Have you listened to any of these releases?
What are your thoughts?
What are you looking forward to listen to?
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// All feedback on this format welcome below.
Oxnard marks .Paak’s first release on Dre’s Aftermath Entertainment and last of “his beach series.” “You know, we went to Venice, we went to Malibu,” .Paak noted, “so it’s only right that we take it to the next place, up the coast, up to the next beach.” As hinted previously, Dre was “heavily” involved in the making of the LP, serving as executive producer. “His music was everything to me,” Paak said of his mentor. “It molded me.”
Another famous name that pops up on Oxnard is Madlib, a veteran rapper and producer who is also known for his collaborations with DOOM, J Dilla, and Freddie Gibbs.
The new album features “sprawling psychedelic grooves and confident verses,” according to Rolling Stone, and per .Paak, a special ingredient missing from the current musical landscape. “I feel like ambition is missing from today’s music,” he explained. “This is the album I dreamed of making in high school, when I was listening to [Jay-Z]’s The Blueprint, The Game’s The Documentary, and [Kanye West’s] The College Dropout.”
Feel free to discuss or feature any and all other releases in the comments below
Have you listened to any of these releases?
What are your thoughts?
What are you looking forward to listen to?
What have you enjoyed from these artists in the past?
This is a new format I'm trying out to help immerse people into new album discussion. I welcome and look forward to any feedback!