PILL

so much melodrama in the rap game. i feel that many, if not most, rappers are trying way too hard to prove shit. with laid back swagger becoming an increasingly rare commodity, it is very refreshing to hear a great new mixtape: PILL'S 4180: the prescription, that exemplifies the forgotten art of bragging without sounding whiny.



pill is a fun rapper who doesn't make party rap, and that makes me glad - party rap started to really annoy me around when i heard "PARTY WORKS" on benzi's NEW DEAL mixtape. (truth be told, i love "party works", but it was a major 'ok, that's enough' track for me.) instead, pill raps about the hustle, but not in the obsessive, sometimes whiny, way that clipse, jeezy, and juelz do it. there is no way any of the above could drop as good a coke-rap over "single ladies" as pill does on "blow".

he also has the ability to wax lyrical, and it makes for a really nice balance on the mixtape. the quick 'coldest story ever told' he drops over "heartless" is a nice teaser of his storytelling abilities, which get a better showcase on "it ain't eane gotta be like dis".



if you are not sold on pill yet, watch his video for "trap goin' ham" - it's kind of documentary-meets-music-video. maurice garland has an incredible firsthand account of the video shoot on his blog.

oh, and there is a great beat repertoire on 4180 - from "single ladies" and "jumpin' out the window" to "nike boots" and "drivin' down the block" - and a bunch of great stuff i've never heard before, too. "bunkin" is especially monumental. more rappers need to get on the 'boing' sound effect.



here is a link to the mixtape! download the whole thing!

pill - 4180: the prescription