Music

I promised commenter Bobm that I would make his 9 year old son a cd of clean, good rap music. After yesterday's comments on my 50 Cent post, I figured I would expand on that cd by devising a list of rap songs for people who aren't into rap. The idea is to keep it clean and accessible. This is what I have so far, I invite all of you to add songs you think should be on the cd in the comment section:

1. 'Discipline' by Gangstarr. The other recommended song is 'Take it Personal' though 'Discipline' is the one I chose for the overall message.

2. 'Get it together' by Beastie Boys. Yes, I realize I should probably choose something off of 'License to Ill' but there is the boy's father to consider as most of the songs off 'License' are shouted while those off 'Ill Communication' are more toned down. Actually, just listened to this song and there is quite a bit of cursing on it so its not making the cd for the 9 year old anyway.

3. 'Scenario'- Tribe Called Quest. Again, I know there are better, less popular songs by Tribe but the idea is for there to be some recognition of the songs. I don't know that many 9 year olds with extensive attention spans.

4. '21 Questions'- 50 Cent.

5. 'Children's Story'- Slick Rick. I love Slick Rick. They just don't make rap like this anymore, the bouncy, sing-along kind of rap.

6. 'What's The 411'- Mary J. Blige.- I just listened to it for the first time in awhile. Other than the dated references 'Girbauds hanging baggy', there is also more cursing than I remember. Not making the cd.

7. 'My Favorite Song (Got Some Teeth)'- Obie Trice. The funnest song I've heard in a long time. Oschisms described it as typical party music of our youth. Exactly.

8. 'Passin' Me By'-Pharcyde. This song bridged the gap between my brother and me in regards to music. I couldn't relate to his 'Ten Crack Commandments'-esque music by gangsters like Biggie or wanna-be gangsters like Tupac. He didn't like Tribe or Beastie Boys. Getting him into Pharcyde made riding in his car with him a lot better.

9. 'Bump Heads'- Eminem, 50 Cent, Tony Yayo, Lloyd Banks.Another one that may not be making it onto the cd for the 9 year old but that older people may like.

10. Bonnie & Clyde- Jay Z and Beyonce. One of those sweet 'love my girl' rap songs. Another example of this is 'Good Girl' by Jadakiss and Timbaland.

11. 24 Hours to Live- Mase featuring Lox and DMX. A great song about what these rappers would do if they had 24 hours to live. Of course, Mase left rap because he said G-d came to him and said that he should be a man of G-d. He's a Reverend now.

I'm going to be adding songs as I think of them.