yU - I Believe ft Duff

"Today's a special day in remembrance of a man that resembled the spirit of a leader at a time where many just followed suit & went with the tide. Another example of how powerful the spoken word can be, changing the lives of many by something as simple as a thought; amplified by the tone of his voice. When I'm onstage, sometimes I think of Martin & Malcolm. I think of how they fueled their supporters with inspiration to push forward. I wrote "I Believe" at a time when I myself was going thru a lot, and was trying to fine tune my focus. Somehow after talking to my creator, & Charlie Ross (who lived in Okinawa, Japan at the time), I was given the music & this is what came from it." - yU 

"I Believe" comes from 2011's, The Earn. An album highly worthy of your support. Available here.

yU -  I Believe ft Duff

Hassaan Mackey & Apollo Brown - The Note (Gensu Dean rmx)

A couple weeks back, I supported the joint album by lyricist, Hassaan Mackey and producer, Apollo Brown - Daily Bread. The album is amongst my top ten for the year thus far. Consisting of raw soul fused beats and Hassaan's slow flow and insightful lyrics, it's an instant classic for the duo and for all true hip hop advocates. 

Producer Gensu Dean, the newest addition to the Mello Music Group decided to contribute his expertise to the dopeness by remixing "The Note." In my opinion and not discrediting Apollo's production, but this one trumps the original, and compliments Hassaan's gritty baritone voice quite nicely. Peep the rmx and original below, then head on over to give the album a full spin.   

Hassaan Mackey & Apollo Brown - The Note (Gensu Dean rmx)
Hassaan Mackey & Apollo Brown - The Note

Oddisee - Much Mattered ft Olivier Daysoul

What really matters in your life? Are you living to please others, spending your very last to stay in the spotlight, or are you clearly above all that? Oddisee drops his sentiments over a track that in truth wasn't meant for the Rock Creek Park album, but after looking back into his hard drive - having already completed nine songs for the project, he realized this was indeed meant for the album. Here is the vocal version featuring longtime collaborator Olivier Daysoul. Enjoy!

Oddisee - Mattered Much ft Olivier Daysoul

DTMD - You

I first heard PG County duo, DTMD right around March of last year. The Basics EP kicked things off for me. The 6 song ep was a great introduction to a group who took me back to that feel good time in hip hop. In addition, I found their name quite interesting as it bares in similarity to that of well known 80's super-duo EPMD. Consisting of producer, Dunc and emcee, Toine, Mello Music Group continues to feed the interstreets and souls of music lovers worldwide with this revisited joint from DTMD. "You" comes from The Basics Ep and will also feature on their debut upcoming album Makin' Dollas set to drop on Sept 20th. The track is a smooth soulful gem where Toine gets loose and simply lets cats know to do whatever it is you do, as long as it's you. Nuff said! Get your download of the track plus a bonus gem entitled "Keep On" ft yU. 

DTMD - You