travis scott – Radio Laurier

August 1, 20170 Comments

The DAMN. Tour

The DAMN. Tour has been described by critics as a “centre-stage ass kicking” by critics. The acclaimed album DAMN. by Compton-born rapper Kendrick Lamar, has gone double platinum since it’s Good Friday release.

In terms of the album, I would describe it as a very complete piece. His alter-ego “Kung Fu Kenny” comes through a lot of the tracks and carries right over into the show.

Before Lamar hit the stage, Big Baby D.R.A.M. and Travi$ Scott came to the stage. Dram, famous for the catchy hit “Broccoli,” serenaded the crowd in the opening minutes and closed with the track. About 10 minutes passed before Scott was on the stage. He went all the way to his tapes and brought it forward to Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight. He also performed his latest single, “Butterfly Effect.”

Travis couldn’t be kept on the ground. He mounted a large bird (which was fitting) and hovered over the audience while he performed some of his greatest hits, like “Antidote” and “Goosebumps.” He was enjoying himself so much, he performed “Goosebumps” four times.

AIN’T NOBODY PRAYING FOR ME.

This is the phrase that rang out over and over. It was found on the screens, in the air, and on the majority of the concert merch. Kendrick spliced in videos of him fighting with martial arts, where he was known as the Black Turtle. He called out a fan that challenged him saying that Toronto wouldn’t remember, and then used it as a segue into tracks from his debut album, Good Kid M.A.A.D. City. The 2012 release is what really put Lamar on the rap scene as a force to be reckoned. It made his flow, interludes, and content famous.

Good Kid Good Friday: DAMN. by Kendrick Lamar

Album Reviews

May 7, 20170 Comments

Good Kid Good Friday: DAMN. by Kendrick Lamar

Technically, my time with Radio Laurier is over… but I couldn’t resist jumping at the opportunity to review DAMN. by the one and only Kendrick Lamar. After the release of his acclaimed concept album To Pimp a Butterfly in 2015 and accompanying piece Untitled Unmastered in 2016, I was convinced that Kendrick would be on a break.

Then, it happened. Out of nowhere, he dropped a track called, “The Heart Part 4,” which indicated that a new album was coming. It cited April 7, but I had to patiently wait until Good Friday, April 14. It really was a good Friday. Little did I know that DAMN. would become my favourite of Kendrick’s albums to date.

Here are the five main reasons why I love it so much:

It isn’t just a rap album. Each track offers something in terms of genre.
Family matters come to the surface, which is reminiscent of 2012’s Good Kid M.A.A.D. City.
The collaborations with Rihanna and U2 are somewhat unexpected, yet incredible.
Kenny is fearless in his critiques on the government and the media, especially Fox News.
Two words: production value.

He is the greatest rapper alive (sorry… still stuck on “The Heart Part 4”).

Kendrick has been acclaimed for his music videos, especially those coupled with tracks from To Pimp a Butterfly. I lost my mind when the video for “HUMBLE.” dropped, which is where the image at the very top of this post is from. If you haven’t seen it yet, click below.

Just when I thought that my 2017 was made, the DAMN. tour was announced. Cornrow Kenny will be going on tour with Travis Scott and Big Baby D.R.A.M. Of course, my boyfriend and I got pre-sale tickets for his show in Toronto on July 25. I’m definitely going to be writing a concert review, so stay tuned for that.

My favourite tracks off of DAMN. are as follows:

DNA.
FEAR.
HUMBLE.
ELEMENT.
YAH.

…but I love the whole thing.

The Zeitgeist of Hip-Hop: Migos’ Culture

Album Reviews

February 6, 20171 Comment

The Zeitgeist of Hip-Hop: Migos’ Culture

Donald Glover, a.k.a. Childish Gambino, set social media ablaze with all things Migos on January 8th when he shouted out the Atlanta hip-hop trio and their single “Bad and Boujee” during his first Golden Globes acceptance speech. The big ups to Migos increased Spotify streams of the single by a staggering 243 percent and it didn’t stop there—Glover confirmed an upcoming collaboration with the group and proclaimed Migos “the Beatles of this generation.” Currently, “Bad and Boujee” is the number one song on the Billboard 100.

Migos, no strangers to the charts, have ruled the past few years with singles such as “Versace” with a feature by Drake, “Look at my Dab,” and “Fight Night,” but would the string of successes continue for the trap trio upon the release of their latest musical effort?

With much hype and anticipation, Migos released their sophomore full-length album, Culture, on January 27th with features from heavy-hitters like Gucci Mane, Travis Scott, Lil Uzi Vert and 2 Chainz. Upon listening to the album through, I could not help but notice the vocal seamlessness of Qauvo, Offset, and Takeoff—a melodic and literal representation of their growth since their 2013 mixtape, Y.R.N. (Young Rich N****s). Migos’ growth spurt did not leave their signature catchy hooks and undeniable chemistry in the dust, but played on these strengths and set the bar for the future of hip-hop.

Most of the 13 songs on the album feature a heavy bass line without sounding indistinguishable from one another as unique songs. Being said, Migos has gone from mastering the art of the single to mastering the art of the album.

The Migos, without hesitation, have launched beyond notoriety into superstar status.

If you’re bad and boujee, you will (probably) like these tracks from Culture:

“Get Right Witcha”
“Slippery (feat. Gucci Mane)”
“Deadz (feat. 2 Chainz)”
“Out Yo Way”

Shows/After Class

December 6, 20160 Comments

Week 12: December 5, 2016

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There was so much to talk about; this weekend was very overwhelming for music (but in the best way possible). Childish Gambino dropped his third studio album, Awaken, My Love!, a new song by Kid Cudi and Travi$ Scott titled “Baptized In Fire” was released a teaser for Cudi’s upcoming album, and J.Cole released album artwork and videos for the sudden release of his fourth studio album, titled 4 Your Eyes Only. DJs Deej, Nix, and Winks are happy with, and looking forward to everything.

In a slight revisit of Starboy by The Weeknd, the DJs looked at its progress since its release. As of right now, all eighteen tracks are on the Billboard Top 100 list, which is a repeat of the accomplishment that the artist had with his last album, The Beauty Behind the Madness.

It was a little bittersweet for the trio, as it was the last show of the semester. There are only twelve episodes left before they leave Laurier for the next step in academia, and otherwise. It may seem like a lot, but this term has gone by quickly. The trio are looking at introducing some new segments next term. If you want us to highlight a less mainstream artist, please Tweet us at @RLAfterClass or comment on our Instagram post @afterclazz.

This week’s track list is as follows:

“True Colours” – The Weeknd
“Redbone” – Childish Gambino
“St. Tropez” – J. Cole
“Leave” – Post Malone
“Now and Later” – Sage the Gemini
“Snow (Hey Oh)” – Red Hot Chili Pepper
“All Night” – The Vamps ft. Matona
“Old Thing Back” – Matoma ft. Ja Rule and The Notorious B.I.G.

The RapUp/The RapUp

September 20, 20160 Comments

The Rap Up: Episode No. 2

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The Game V.s. Weak Mill

Meek Mill should honestly retire from hip hop and and go somewhere and chill. In all honesty, Weak is not made for beefs in hip hop. According to the Game, Weak Mill snitched on him regarding Sean Kingston getting robbed in the club in LA for his jewelry. Game reported on Instagram that he did not rob Sean Kingston. Game’s with Weak Mill is because he snitched on him, Game flowed through with a diss track to Weak titled “92 Bars” which definitely had some bars and totally annihilated Weak Mill. Meek obviously followed with a diss track of his own titled “OOOOUUU Remix” featuring Beanie Sigel and Omelly (the roadie).

Meek’s track wasn’t as good as Game’s but that was expected. Weak Mill is becoming the Ja Rule of today’s rap game as far as beef goes and his career is almost at its end. He has peaked and climax. I personally don’t think he can go back to being the old Meek Mill. Meek has had his run in hip hop, although it was short lived, he is the wife of Nicki Minaj, I mean that’s kind of a come up, I guess.

Kanye on the Gram

For some reason, two of the biggest and most influential people in the music industry simply refuse to create an account with Instagram. Of course I’m referring Jay Z and Kanye West. It appears Kanye has caved as a brand new and even ‘verified’ IG account has been recently discovered. At the moment there’s only one picture uploaded from the account and NO it’s not a warm smiling selfie. Instead, Kanye opted for a rather obscure picture depicting a scene from Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 1990 film, Total Recall (see below).

It’ll be interesting to see where this goes and if Mr. west is here to stay. Which makes this story slightly ironic considering his Wife and her siblings (Kim Kardashian & Kylie Jenner) have the most followers on Instagram in the world.

A photo posted by Kanye West (@kanyewest) on Sep 18, 2016 at 8:23am PDT

Birds In Waterloo Sing McKnight

Almost a full year later, fans now have Travis Scott’s second studio album, Birds In The Trap Sing McKnight, firmly in their hands. The album dropped September 2nd and has already surpassed sales expectations.

The sound of the album is best described as experimental layers of sound and acidic instrumentals that intertwine with raw, unpolished, and heavily filtered vocals that convey an enthusiasm that has come to be known only as Travis Scott.

The features aren’t too surprising, except for Kendrick Lamar, Andre 3000, and the absence of Justin Bieber. While that might sound like an odd combination, the two are actually quite close with each other and Bieber even appeared on his last album, Rodeo, on one of the standout tracks.

(Written by TJ Mroz & Garrick Gray)

This Weeks Rotations:

Grateful – Lil Wayne

Big Amount – 2 Chainz Ft. Drake

Gucci Snakes – Tyga Ft. Desiigner

Deja Vu – Post Malone Ft. Justin Bieber

92 Bars – Game

OOOOUUU Remix – Meek Mil Ft. Omelly & Beanie Sigel

The Ends – Travis Scott

Goosebumps – Travis Scott Ft. Kendrick Lamar

Check On Me – Future

FDT (remix) – YG Ft. G-Eazy & Macklemore

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After Class Week 01: September 13, 2016

News/Shows/The RapUp

November 5, 20150 Comments

The Rap Up: Halloween 2015

Hip-Hop Halloween 2015

Student Loans… commitment… exams… Sorry didn’t mean to frighten you, but then again, who doesn’t love the excitement of Halloween? Your favourite artists would agree, and really brought their A-game this year. Schoolboy Q was a blunt, Jhene Aiko got her Audrey Hepburn on, Beyonce was Storm from X-men, Chris Brown redid Michael Jackson’s werewolf, Nicki Minaj was on point with her fairy god mother look, but by far, hands down, the best Halloween costume of 2015, and I think the internet and Future would strongly agree, is the unknown guy who made his own Gucci Flip-flop costume (see featured photo). After all, we thought it was a drought.

In Yeezy We Trust

That’s right, FINALLY we have an update. In similar fashion to how a chosen prophet announces the coming Jesus, Travis Scott has foretold the second coming of Yeezus. In a recent phone interview, Travis Scott told Hot 97 that Kanye West’s incredibly mysterious and highly anticipated upcoming album SWISH, was “coming very soon”. On top of that exciting proclamation, Scott also said that the album should not be slept on, and earlier in the year teased fans that it would be a game changer. Wow. That’s a lot of hype to live up to but if anyone knows what Kanye has in store, it would be his producing protégé Travis Scott. Last month Kanye also released two tracks on his SoundCloud profile, to which Travis Scott confirmed was legitimate and captioned a photo with “it begins” and another stating something that he and Kanye had been working on for years would soon surface. In a recent phone interview Kanye also added to the hype by describing the album as a “sonic painting”. Either way, Travis Scott and Kanye West need to stop playing with our hearts but then again, it’s kind of surprising we even got this warning. Caution, Yeezy season approaches.

Rider Demands

There’s no debate that Jay Z and Kanye West might be the biggest artists you may ever have in your city, however, have you ever wondered what they ask for when spending a few nights in the most luxurious hotel your city has to offer? Well for Mr. West it starts with; no cylindrical vases, a brand of speakers (Genelecs 1031a) that’s been discontinued for ten years, only black towels, Kashi Go Lean cereal, mint flavored dental floss, and finally thirteen bottles of alcohol totaling $3,200, three of those bottles being Paradis Hennessy. While this would be an absurd list of requests for the average individual, this is pretty much what we expected from Kanye and to be honest, we’re surprised it isn’t more ridiculous. As for Hov, he requests no vacuuming near his room, that none of the hotel staff ask for concert tickets lest they “avoid embarrassment”, that the hotel room temperature be set at 71 degrees, three $80 Mayan tuberose-scented candles, and finally one bottle of Ace of Spades champagne, and not be charged for it (which makes sense considering he owns the company). That actually isn’t too crazy considering Jay’s status, and we here at The Rap Up appreciate that Hov likes to set the mood, and saving a little cash is always a smart move. Maturity is a good look Mr. Carter.

Songs Played:

White Iverson (remix) – Post Malone Ft. Rick Ross

Whole Lot – Akon Ft. Migos

Royalty – Jeremih Ft. Future & Big Sean

Third Shift – Fabolous

Sitting Pretty – Ty Dolla $ign

Solid – Ty Dolla $ign

Angel – Fetty Wap Ft. French Montana

Stuck In My Ways – Fetty Wap

The Omen – Ace Hood

Real (interlude) – Ace Hood

Workin’ – Diddy ft. Travis Scott & Big Sean

MMM – Diddy Ft. Future & King Los

Most of Us – wiz Khalifa

Outsiders – Wiz Khalifa

Illuminate – Wale

New Phone – Wale

Mind Right – Young Thug

Phoenix – Young Thug

Angel Dust – Lloyd Banks (prod. AraabMuzik)

Live4Ever – Lloyd Banks