The Power of Words: The Mixtape
shortcut: [Album2248541]
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| Artist | Skyzoo |
| Type | Compilation |
| Released | April 17, 2009 |
| Rating |
3.46 from 12 ratings
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| Ranked | #191 for 2009 | | Genres | |
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| 1 | Intro | | 0:59 | | 2 | Clearer Hearing | | 1:57 | | 3 | Bells & Whistles | | 3:19 | | 4 | Back on the Map (feat. Maino) | | 3:31 | | 5 | Appreciation | | 2:59 | | 6 | Freshfest (feat. Wale) | | 2:22 | | 7 | No Pretending | | 3:03 | | 8 | Five Year Plan (Interlude) | | 1:59 | | 9 | The Don Cheadle Effect | | 2:47 | | 10 | Do Remember (feat. Young Chris) | | 2:31 | | 11 | Alphabet Soup | | 2:27 | | 12 | We Are Jamla (feat. Big Remo, GQ & Rapsody) | | 3:58 | | 13 | Left 4 Dead (feat. EPMD) | | 3:13 | | 14 | Say What You Say (feat. Big Pooh & Naledge) | | 3:41 | | 15 | When I Rhyme (feat. Talib Kweli & Reks) | | 2:58 | | 16 | We Belong | | 2:44 | | 17 | Outro | | 4:32 |
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| 2009 |
The Power of Words: The Mixtape
[Mixtape], [Promo]
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Digital File |
Aphilliates |
n/a | |
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Nodima
 Very good; minor flaws.
Digital
[Rating22039921]
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The Power of Words: The Mixtape (Produced by 9th Wonder unless noted) [Aphilliates Music Group 2009]
1|Intro|0:59 3 - 3.75
2|Clearer Hearing|1:57 (Produced by 10 for the Triad) 3.75 - 4
3|Bells & Whistles|3:19 (Produced by Algorhthym) 3 - 3.5
4|Back on the Map (feat. Maino)|3:31 (Produced by Jake One) 4
5|Appreciation|2:59 (Produced by Analogic) 3.75 - 4
6|Freshfest (feat. Wale)|2:22 (Produced by Illmind) 3 - 3.75
Wale sounds like Wiz Khalifa on this. Illmind goes in.
7|No Pretending|3:03 (Produced by Khrysis) 3 - 3.5
Khrysis takes it back to Premier in the late '90s.
8|Five Year Plan (Interlude)|1:59 1 - 1.75
Whack and pompous but I can dig it. Could have just let "Don Cheadle" explain itself though, no need preaching to choirs.
9|The Don Cheadle Effect|2:47 (Produced by Ceased Werds) 4
10|Do Remember (feat. Young Chris)|2:31 3.25 - 4
11|Alphabet Soup|2:27 (Produced by J Dilla) 3.5 - 4
12|We Are Jamla (feat. Big Remo, GQ & Rapsody)|3:58 3 - 3.75
I always think the girl's voice is saying "Chandler baby".
13|Left 4 Dead (feat. EPMD)|3:13 2.75 - 3
14|Say What You Say (feat. Big Pooh & Naledge)|3:41 (Produced by Illmind) 3 - 3.5
"Sorry that you gotta pay attention to follow me". "I rap like Olu Dara's son in '91".
15|When I Rhyme (feat. Talib Kweli & Reks)|2:58 (Produced by Statik Selektah) 4 - 4.5
16|We Belong|2:44 4 - 4.25
17|Outro|4:32 2.5 - 3
Overall: 57 - 59.75 3.43/5 67 - 70%: Impressive; well above average; TRY IT
Skyzoo's lyrical game, actually, is a little better here than his album in my opinion. The songs aren't as quality, but the lyrics on the beats just sound a little tighter and I actually come back to this a little more often right now despite all the DJ drops. I saw Skyzoo open for Ghostface Killah a few days ago, and one thign struck me more than anything else: his voice is different on stage. My one problem with Skyzoo is his nasal voice that sounds like he's holding back a little bit and sometimes makes him harder to understand than he should be. But live, he sounds like any other rapper and honestly it was kind of hard to tell him and Torae apart. So I'm not sure why he sounds the way he does on record, but, anyway this mixtape is another in 2009's long line of album-quality mixtapes. The only difference, of course, is ridiculous DJ drops and perhaps a few generic throwaway beats. "Bells & Whistles" is epitome of mixtape filler, but stuff like "Don Cheadle Effect", "Clearer Hearing" and "Alphabet Soup" are really dope stuff. The most important thing to be prepared for with this release is phrases or symbols with double meanings; Skyzoo loves to smirk at his listeners through the mic, and he's never flexed those muscles more than this tape.
The songs aren't as good as The Salvation, but Skyzoo does a good job balancing mixtape raps with album-quality material, and Power of Words is definitely one of the year's better mixtapes a a result. The production is solid and Skyzoo's taking it serious; this could probably be likened to Torae's Daily Conversation. The theme is the same as Skyzoo talks a lot about how detailed his lyrics are, as though in response to Torae's call for artists to focus harder on their bars. To some it's a slightly condescending attitude that the new Duck Down is promoting, but I'm personally all for it. Especially if it's going to result in tracks like "When I Rhyme". Talib spits a line I really like on that track: "I wish I could mask my feelings like MF DOOM". More rappers need to take pride in not only their success, but their craft. Also, tracks like "Back on the Map" show off where kingsoby got his Finale comparisons from. I didn't hear the delivery similarities on Sky's album but it's definitely there here. Production heads should also get a kick out of this album, because guys like Jake One and Analogic really bring, while 9th Wonder is his typical consistent self and the rest of the guys do what they do. I've got no problems with Skyzoo in 2009, his mixtape and album are both equally worth hearing. By the end of "We Belong", one thing's for certain: Skyzoo can fucking rap. |
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| | CD |
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| | Wishlist |
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rym
