We find the winter upon us, for most sooner than expected. Looking back on both the summer and the fall, its crazy how fast time flies. During this time we’ve seen a bunch of artists drop some memorable projects. On the flipside we’ve also hoped to hear from certain artists a little bit more, but this wasn’t the case. The worst part about it is some of these artists have teased us with memorable verses, but left the fans wanting more. Most fans selfishly want to hear from their favorite artists as much as possible, but that is just them being fans of hip-hop.
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Jay Electronica was at one point seen as that artist that was going to bring real hip-hop back to the forefront. That spot is currently filled by Compton's Kendrick Lamar, but that doesn't mean that there isn't a spot for Jay in the game. The problem with Electronica is he is another one that has time and time again disappointed fans by not releasing new music. Jay first starting making some noise on the blogs with Act 1: Eternal Sunshine (The Pledge), which was fifteen minutes of continuous music mixed in with a few interludes. The song that really put him on the map was his thought provoking bars on "Exhibit C." Not to mention songs like "Exhibit A" and "Exhibit B" were like a dream come true for true hip-hop fans as he was able mix lyricism with potent Just Blaze production. Since then Electronica has released a couple of songs, one entitled "Dear Moleskine" that had the blogs on fire that day. With Jay you don't really know what you're going to get. There have been a number of well known artists and producers that have confirmed that the album does exist, but one has to wonder what's the hold up. Jay Elec's fan base is a colt like following that seems to support him through thick and thin, but one has to wonder how longer can they wait for this album. This is another album that not only his fans need, but hip-hop needs.
Detox
Dr. Dre has topped the Forbes' list of the highest-paid musicians, thanks to his massively successly Beats empire, which doesn't bold well for Detox. Let's really sit down and look at the timeline of the legend better know as Detox. Dre started working on this album sometime in 2001, but took a break for a while to collab with other artists which caused the release to get pushed all the way to 2005. After a bunch of bumps in the road, the album finally looked like it was coming out in 2010, with Dre releasing a single entitled "Kush" which featured Snoop Dogg and Akon. The song did well hitting as high as 34 on the Billboard Hot 100. In February of 2011, Dre released another single entitled "I Need A Doctor" which features his long time friend Eminem and Skylar Grey, and the song peaked at number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100. Since then we haven't recieved any new music that's supposed to be on the album. At this point fans have to wonder if there is even an album done. Numerous sources claim that Dre has had the album completed for a while, but due to the fact that he is a perfectionist, he continues to tweak the project every chance he gets. This album has been way past over due, and hip-hop needs this album to drop as soon as possible.
The Marathon
Nipsey Hussle is one of the artists that has helped power this West Coast movement as of late, which is as strong ever at the moment. The former XXL freshman has carved a name in the game following this prestigious award with two classic mixtapes entitled The Marathon and The Marathon Continues. We know the grind doesn't stop though as Nip continues to work and make his message heard all over the world. Nipsey can be heard recently dropping freestyles over classic beats and doing a number of different features. Nip is no slouch when it comes to collaborations and this was apparent on songs like "Fountain Of Youth" and "Black Faces." Neighborhood Nip will be releasing another new mixtape [delayed until 2013] continuing with the Marathon theme as it is entitled The Marathon 3: Victory Lap. I'm sure that at this point though fans would love to hear an album from the Slauson Avenue product though. After being named a XXL Freshman in 2010, he has seen fellow honorees J. Cole and Big Sean drop one album with Wiz just releasing his second one this week. Hopefully we can expect to hear a new album from him shortly after the release of his mixtape early next year.
"Back To The Crib"
Juelz Santana was once seen as one of the next big artists out of New York. Since then he hasn't capitalized, and while he still has the ability to regain his spot, he definitely a lot of making up to do to the fans. Fans were promised new material a number of different times, but due to his studio being raided he wasn't able to get the new work out to the fans. It's kind of unfortunate because at one point Juelz had two legit singles in "Back To The Crib" featuring Chris Brown, and "Homerun" featuring Lil' Wayne. Speaking of Weezy, there is still the matter of the enigma better known as the I Can't Feel My Face album, that hasn't come out and still has no release date. Santana has recently come out and assured fans that he and Tunechi will still be releasing that so hopefully that is on the way sooner rather than later. Over the years the Harlem native could be seen dropping freestyles here and there while also appearing on a few features such as "848" and "Salute." As of late Santana seems to be making a full comback as he has already released a new single of off his mixtape entitled "Bodies" which is featuring Chicago young gunner, Lil' Reese. The big news though is Juelz stated he is still working on his third studio album Born to Lose, Built to Win, and should be released sometime in 2013, but before then he will release two mixtapes entitled Reagan Era & Reagan Era Pt. 2. Hopefully fans will get that album sooner rather than later though.
Recovery
Lyrically there aren't many rappers that are in the same stratosphere as Eminem, if any. Em has proven time and time again that when he is really focused, not many are able to keep up with him. This was apparent when Em single handedly destroyed the "2011 BET Cypher" with a number of vicious punch-lines and flows that had fans rewinding his verse back for months. It has been a while since we have gotten a solo project from the Detroit native as his last project, Recovery, came out in 2010. Em has been since working very closely with rap supergroup Slaughterhouse, while focusing on a number of other ventures. In between all of this he has also given fans a collaboration album with his former rival, Royce Da 5'9, which was a good album, but don't really compare to Eminem's individual work. Another classic record should be on the way as Em has promised fans a new album in 2013, but hopefully its sooner rather than later.
“Sixteen”
Andre 3000 is another artist that we as fans know we will never get a mixtape from. It does get tiresome for fans to continuously hear 3 Stacks drop jewels on verses only to not hear from him again months later though. The verse Dre gave us for “Sixteen” was simply incredible. This was a follow up to the gem he gave us on “Pink Matter.” 3 Stacks has also been heard spitting heat on a new joint off of T.I.'s new album entitled "Sorry." Label issues have not only prevented 3000 from giving us a solo album, but also not being able to give us an Outkast project. Hopefully by some miracle him and the label are able to work something out and he can give us something soon. I'm sure fans won't hold their breath though.
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Jay-Z is arguably the best rapper alive as he has the ability to have the hip-hop world in a frenzy with one verse. This was apparent when Rick Ross’s “3 Kings” was released about week before his album dropped. It got to the point where some engineers re-released the song while removing Ross and Dr. Dre’s verses. That was definitely one of the verses of the summer and left fans wanting more. Jay has recently been seen appearing on the remix to a joint off of Meek Mill's debut album entitled "Lay Up." Dropping songs like “Glory” are cool, but fans would love to hear a new album from Hov. Realistically we know we will never get a mixtape from Jay, but it has been a while since Blueprint 3, hopefully he doesn’t leave us waiting much longer.