Large Professor & Craig G Put Hip-Hop On A Pedestal & Celebrate H.E.R. (Audio)
Belgian DJ and producer Koss has been linking with some of the most defiant MCs in the game for many years now. With inspiration from Soul, Funk, Jazz, and Psychedelic Rock from the 1960s and the ’70s, he intertwines these musical genres with the infectious boom bap of Hip-Hop from the 1980s to the ’90s. Koss is the type of producer that mainly sticks to the basics when it comes to making music, which is two turntables, vinyl, and an MPC. He does this because it enforces the creativity in his artistry and this will be showcased in his upcoming album Born To Live (September 8).
Koss recently released his new single called “H.E.R.” which stands for “Hearing Every Rhyme,” and he chose Main Source’s Large Professor and Juice Crew’s Craig G to lace the track and give the audience an illustration of what it was like to witness the birth of Hip-Hop and what has transpired. For over 45 years, the world had to adapt to the not only the music but also the culture that was created by the self-described descendants that rode the back of the bus and made their way to the forefront to make sure that Hip-Hop would not just be a fad.
Hip-Hop is something that literally has taken over the world when it comes to music, movies, fashion, television, and even children’s books. The culture may have never progressed without the assistance from artists such as Large Professor and Craig G. Therefore, it would only be right for Koss to have these two experienced MCs from Queens hop on this track together and spit facts about the past, present, and possibly the future of the culture.
While thinking back to the days in the park when the culture was first created, Extra P starts off the track with, “On the scene / Two turntables and a drum machine / Plus a mic,” He takes it to, “Started off in N.Y. and N.J./ Kept buzzing / But always knew that it wasn’t / For everyone / The message in the song is a heavy one / Peep that light in the dark / That’s a nebula / Named ‘Hip-Hop’ / The world got hit by storm / Once the Flex bombs come on / It’s a showcase between what’s capital and lower case / Now our styles’ all over the place.”
Large Professor Broke More Than Atoms 25 Years Ago. He Broke New Ground.
The self-proclaimed “Angry Old Man” Craig G got right to the point during his verse when calling out the nursery rhyme rappers that feel they should not pay homage to the MCs that made it possible for them to have a career in the music industry. Craig spits, “A child is born with no state of mind / At the age of nine/ I knew that Melle Mel rhyme / T La Rock ‘It’s Yours’ / Made me read the dictionary / The year was ’84 / I swear he was a visionary / Now a days these lyrics consist of one syllable / Preschool cadences / These clowns swear they’re killing you / Amnesia when it comes to mentioning the greats / That’s responsible for the food on their plate / Get it straight.”
Born To Live features Torae, Masta Ace, Marley Marl, Blaq Poet, J-Live, and Keith Murray. It also will contain extended remixes produced by K-Def, 12 Finger Dan, B- Base, and Large Professor.
This song premiered at Mass Appeal.
#BonusBeat: Craig G’s “Love Is Love,” produced by Large Pro’:
This released in 2003 on This Is Now!!.