Here we are with the third edition of, the 10 for 10. The first time around, I gave away my 10 favorite Hip Hop songs of the year. And then the second go around, I gave away my 10 favorite R&B songs of the year. And now, I present to you my 10 favorite Pop-Hybrid songs of 2016. Now why did I name this a Pop-Hybrid list? While these some of these songs/artists are believed to be within the pop genre, they have certain elements to me which would classify them as something more than simply “pop”. They could have funk, rap, country, rock, or soul elements to them. Or they could have two completely different genres blended in together. I’m not sure where I’d place each song in its category so I made this list for my enjoyment! (If you have a better idea for what genre you’d fit a certain song, let me know. I’m all ears to learning). Same Ol’ Mistakes – Rihanna (ANTI) It took me a few months to figure out this was a cover of a Tame Imapala song. So, I thank Rihanna for leading me into that band. This song obviously has some alternative ties to it. It feels mysterious and cunning. Everything from the instrumentals to Rihanna’s voice. I like this song a lot because it adds to her versatility to make certain type of music. You never know exactly what you’ll get. I also bet that this song would sound great live. There’s just a lot of good going on in this song. She killed it on this one. Her album ranks as one of the best of any genre this year and this song is the contributing reason why. 24K Magic – Bruno Mars (24K Magic) Bruno Mars brought the heat with this song. It is full of energy and good spirit. One of the good things about artists tapping throwback styles/acts, is that some people will go back and track the origins of those influenced. And while his album as a whole isn’t better than the original art that he’s influenced by, it still does its job to provide a sense of a good time and catchy tunes. This song has a dope beat to it that’ll make anyone get up and start dancing. And it doesn’t matter if you can dance or not, you’re just going to have to dance. Give Bruno some top end production to work with and he’ll deliver for you. Like Rihanna, he can dive into a few different sounds/genres as he please. And him pulling off the disco sound this time around worked. Sidewalks – The Weeknd x Kendrick Lamar (Starboy) Shout out to The Weeknd for getting out of the OVO sweatshop camps while he had the chance. Also, shout out to him for the work he put in on this track. The blues guitars to open the song and that appear throughout the song is a cool touch. This song feels electric. The autotuned hook feels a bit too much but it will do. His rapping feels perfect for this song on this beat. Another quick shout to Kendrick Lamar for his unpredictable flows and replay appeal. This song has its rap elements to it and I’m always here for a decent rap tune. Six Feet Under – The Weeknd x Future (Starboy) Back to Back with The Weeknd but this time, it is with the Freebandz General himself. Future only contributes to the hook but anything he touches, whether it is a full verse or a hook, is usually gold. This song has a kick to it. It makes you get invested right away and has an odd feel to it. I think these two should make more music together. This and Low Life are two good songs they have on their collaboration resume and I’ll look forward to seeing what else they got in the future. John Wayne – Lady Gaga (Joanne) This song has some western feel to it. Mark Ronson was a part of the production on this track so kudos to Gaga for recruiting him. I give the production two thumbs up. Gaga on the other hand has some pipes. Others songs on her album represent a better example of that opinion but I like her performance on John Wayne which appears to be describing a fantasy about some cowboy. While juxtaposing that type of person with a man from the city. I can’t relate to this but if nothing else, Lady Gaga’s hook is money and feels electric. By the way, on a side note, shout out to Gaga’s activism and doing more for some of these movements going on. She is doing more than what some of her other peers are doing. Controlla – Drake (Views) Views, in the grand scheme of things was to many, mediocre. The album still had its high points with some of the hits. Controlla is one of them. I dig the song. This song makes me want to move like that DJ Khaled snapchat video that was floating around last spring. Drake loves his Caribbean influenced ‘tings’. The beat makes ‘tings’ catchy and makes a good anthem for clubs everywhere. Drake sings and raps about the same exact ‘tings’ every time. Just on different sounds. If nothing else, Drake is good at what he’s comfortable doing. And to many, that’s all that matters. Formation – Beyoncé (Lemonade) The hot takes and think-pieces on this song have been hammered repeatedly. Formation still hits though. Imagine 2001 Barry Bonds. That’s how hard this song goes. Queen Bee flexes her muscles on this track and lets it be known that she didn’t come to play. She provides a jolt of power and energy on this while providing another anthem for the masses in these tiring times. The song is straight forward and in your face. You can’t turn away from it and the song became even more interesting after the Black Panther Themed Super Bowl performance and hearing it in context of the album. Say what you want about Beyoncé, but she can get people talking in some of the most interesting ways. And her track record of releasing good music is wide and proven. Cheap Thrills – Sia (This is Acting) I’ll keep this one short and sweet. Sia, put together a carefree track. She performs well on the hook and it meshes well with the instrumental which sounds simple compared to some of the other songs on here. I’m down with the song either way. There is also a remix to this song on her album with Sean Paul. This song didn’t really need a remix from me because I like the original the way it is but a cameo from Paul is welcoming never less. I honestly forgot about him. Dubai – Jeremih x K CAMP x Wiz Khalifa (Late Nights: Europe) Jeremih has music that can either be a slow jam or one with some energy attached. Dubai is an example of a track with some energy. Jeremih, tend to blur the lines between two genres like R&B & Hip Hop. Sometimes it works and that’s what I like about the song. The three verses are fun and everyone lets you know that they are coming for certain things. They’ll flex anytime, anyplace, and anywhere. Also, the production on this song is dope. I can’t explain it but it fits the mood of the shenanigans going on in the song. It also feels like I’m starring into diamonds if that makes sense (it probably doesn’t). Together – Kaytranada x AlunaGeorge x Goldlink (99.9%)
This song sounds complete. It flows well, the vocals sound good, and it is straight to the point. What I like most about the song is the instrumental. Which makes sense because the strength of the entire project is reliant on Kaytranada’s production. He knows who would be able to fit on certain tracks and where on the track they could be able to fit. The result of him figuring that out usually goes well for him. While I’m on the subject, even though this isn’t the best example, Goldlink can really rap. He’s a dual talent meaning he can sing and rap. He does both of those things well. His verse on this one was short but it reminded me that I should check for his music often.
0 Comments
*Editor's note: One of the post in the 10 for 10 has been taken down and moved towards another list. This list will be updated as soon as possible!* The AD Report is back with its 10 for 10! Last time, Hip Hop was featured in the top 10 favorite songs of the year. This time, I go over to the R&B genre where there was a strong outing from a solid amount of artist this year. I’m not the biggest R&B fan in the world but I appreciate the melodies, cadences, and themes which range from love, solitude, peace, and good old dirty-macking. Let’s start off with the man who returned in grand fashion. Nikes – Frank Ocean (Blonde) I really enjoyed Nikes. The pitched-up voice of Frank Ocean to start off the song was bit of a surprise but overall I like how his voice meshed with the melody of the instrumental. Frank is one of those artists who tends to slow things down and that usually isn’t a part of my taste. However, he succeeded in pulling me in. Ocean also had a few quotable lines that stuck with me. One of them being “She said she need a ring like Carmeloooooo” or “Pour up for A$AP, RIP Pimp C, RIP Trayvon, that nigga look just like meeee.” Yeah that last line kind of hit home. Borderline (An Ode To Self Care) – Solange x Q-Tip (A Seat at the Table) Solange’s vocals on this song were soothing and calm. The song opens up with about a couple of instruments (I’m thinking a piano and some variation of a violin family instrument) playing. Once the you hear her start off with, “we been lovers on a mission”, the beat drops and then you feel like ascending to the sky peacefully. The song is well put together and has an interesting purpose behind it. The song seems to cover the topic of safe spaces between two people who love each other. Appreciating the space around them that isn’t full of negative energy in a world that has a lot of it. If I’m wrong on that one, then at least I can go to the grave saying it was my favorite song because Solange’s voice and pen are great. 1990x – Maxwell (blackSUMMERS’ night) Maxwell sings in a few different ranges and they all work well alongside the melody, beat, and instruments. I tried to sing the hook a few times in the car and felt the power, boy I’ll tell you. And while I failed in sounding well, it was a nice song to follow along with. It’s very catchy to the ear. Speaking of the hook, it’s money. It discusses the intimacy between two people. An Intimacy so close that no other outside forces should interfere or influence it. This could be a good song to just play around your significant other during a late calm night to set the tone/mood. Now do I plan on doing exactly that? No but you should! Blended Family (What You Do for Love) – Alicia Keys x A$AP Rocky (Here) Alicia Keys & A$AP Rocky did a good job on the song sharing memories on an area in life that remains personal to them, which is their families. Anytime an artist come up with a song that remains near and dear to them such as involving family, it may not stick with as many people in general. And it isn’t shade to those people. It is just how it is. I can appreciate the song from that angle. People who talk about what’s going on in certain/current angles of their life. Alicia has some pleasing vocals on this one and Rocky delivers a solid verse in a pinch. The sounds on this song are relaxing and peaceful. It has got to be a relief to hear this song from start to finish. The guitar playing within the song is also a nice touch. WIFI – D.R.A.M. x Erykah Badu (Big Baby D.R.A.M.) This song is so goofy, so ridiculous, so out there, and it does not matter because that’s what makes this song so great to me. D.R.A.M. & Erykah havd a dual ability of being able to sing and rap (and do it considerably well). Having these two on a track together helps in giving 2016 some justice. This song has mostly singing on it and I have no issues with that at all because their vocals, is what takes the song home. The funk influenced beat is nice but once you hear the two sing the bridge and outro on the song in the form of a duet, you can tell they had fun making the song together. And at the end of the day, that’s what it is all about. One thing to also note, I have not heard a bad song from D.R.A.M. yet and I’m not sure we ever will. Penthouse Floor – John Legend x Chance The Rapper (DARKNESS AND LIGHT) I’m currently listening to this song and it’s making me bop my head back and forth. John Legend is a legend and don’t you forget about that. The guy can do no wrong. He’s a very good musician, an intelligent man, accomplished, and has a stable family life. On this track, he does no wrong either. His vocals are on point and the background vocals on the track are on point as well. Chance also throws in his two cents with what comes off as late-night spoken word. I think Chance and Legend should work together more. They seem to have good chemistry and I’d look forward to hearing groovy-like tracks similar to this in the future. Scales – Solange x Kelela (A Seat at the Table) I mainly like this song for its cadence and the heavenly voices involved. Solange and Kelela did a good job of putting some soul and gentleness on the track with their voices. The sound of the song feels intimate and their voices go hand in hand with it. This song explores how others like to determine the self-worth of other individuals and how it can be a danger. Once I found out the true meaning of this song, I sported a Wee-Bay face. No seriously, the writing in this song is great and deserves that praise. Aside from the song, it is nice to see Solange get her due and carve her own path. Her and Beyoncé are kind of on separate ends of the spectrum in terms of style but both are in an elite class. Solange especially. I’m glad I decided to hop on her wave now and I look to stay on it for a while. Too Good To Last – Kandace Springs x Terrence Blanchard (Soul Eyes) When I attended school at Rutgers University-Camden, I did a profile on Kandace for the school newspaper. So, it is nice to see that she’s continuing with her music career and excelling at it. This song is the opposite of the song I just listed to. It’s not full of high energy nor is it fast paced. It is slow, smooth, and soothing. Kandace is a very good singer and you can feel the emotion and effort in her heavenly voice. Kandace says, that Terrence Blanchard smashed his trumpet solo and I’m not a huge music critic but I’ll gladly co-sign on that comment. He did his thing on the song. Trumpets have a unique touch to them and in R&B songs they usually work. This is a type of song I want to play in the background while I’m out on a dinner for two. I’ll attempt to make the request if I ever get the chance. Nights – Frank Ocean (Blonde)
I dig the drums and acoustic guitars on the first half of the song. The production on this song feels adventurous and it feels like I’m flying through clouds during a sunset. There is a short list of artists who can sing and rap well. Frank is one of those artists on the list and it is highlighted on this song. Frank is unpredictable in the sense that you don’t know how his pitches, flows, and speed are going to sound like from one track to the next (or throughout the song for that matter). As soon as the beat switches on this song, Frank floats. Opposite from the first half on the song, this time you feel like flying through clouds during clear-star filled skies. This song is very chill and helps me stay cool and collected. Thanks Mr. Ocean. 2016 is a lot of things in different aspects. One thing I think many of us can agree on is that this year was a great year for music. For the most part everyone delivered and there was a lot to look forward to. The AD Report would like to end the year right by giving you my 10 favorite songs of the year from a few of the genre’s. These will be short and sweet. It was hard to come up with ten especially for Hip Hop/Rap. However, like a sports team, there are cuts. The first artist to make the team is none other than Young Thug (please save the overstated critiques for another day). Bread Winners – Young Thug x Young Butta (I’m Up) I was never a believer in Thugger from the get-go. I could understand why people would like him but his music was never really for me. It didn’t hit me like it would for someone else. I’ve slowly but surely warmed up to him now and this song is partially responsible. Young Butta opened the song with his verse and he came out swinging. Followed by Thugger who followed up with jabs and hook with high energy on an energetic beat. This song is perfect in the aspect that their flows throughout the song matched with the instrumental and that is something I can appreciate. Seems simple but the praise is warranted. The word play on this track good too. You can tell these two LOVE money and for good reason. This is just two guys make a energetic song just for the hell of it and it paid off. Neva CHange – Schoolboy Q x SZA (Blank Face LP) Moving to something a little slower, this song from Groovy Q is as smooth and sailing as it gets. The drums that kick in at the beginning of the song is one of the key pieces to the puzzle. It gives sort of a mellow song like this a bit of juice. Q touches up on a few topics in the song where from afar you’d think it would probably be in some way a love song telling from the instrumental. Q can rap very well and it’s evident in this song. SZA was also a star on this track. Her hook was money, soft, and sweet. I should dive into her music more. A matter a fact, I’m doing it as we speak! My favorite song from what’s perhaps one of the best hip hop albums of the year. Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 1 – Kanye West (The Life Of Pablo) The beginning of this song is heavenly. There is a gospel sample included and then once you hear the Metro Boomin tag followed by the hook by Kid Cudi then that’s when you feel like stepping outside in the rain, closing your eyes and letting yourself go. Letting the power of the song get you charged up and feel…liberated! (see what I did there?) It’s all good until Kanye starts rapping about bleached butt holes. Other than that, I enjoy the song for what it is. A good executed use of samples, instrumentals, and vocals. Kanye can bring out the best in artists. Seriously, when was the last time Kid Cudi was on a level like this? Blessings (Reprise) - Chance The Rapper (Coloring Book) Chance is one artist everyone can root for. He’s a good guy, makes people feel good in many ways, and works hard. “The People’s champ must be everything the people can’t be.”, so he says. Chance showcases some of his talents in this song. He gets off a nice verse and does a little singing. After his work is done, a slew of vocalist come in on the outro and bring it home. This is my favorite part of the song. A bunch of people singing in harmony as if the sun is coming out from an awful storm. It’s obvious Chance holds religion to a high standard and I don’t know how to describe it but it’s nice that he weaves in those ties into his music. Do What I Want – Lil Uzi Vert (The Perfect LUV Tape) This song will forever be tied to Russell Westbrook. The triple double specialist of basketball. Say what you want about Lil Uzi Vert and the rest of these 2016 XXL Freshmen but the thing you can’t take away from them is that they seem like they’re having fun with making music. And it’s obvious Uzi is having fun on this. From the catchy hook, to the catchy beat, and the cool adlibs, I have fun listening to this song and you should too. Uzi isn’t necessarily a good rapper yet in my eyes at least but for what he is, he’s good. I bet this song would be fun to hear live as I hear he’s good live. And if after reading this you disagree emphatically and say I don’t like “real hip hop”, I don’t care because NOW I DO WANT, NOW I DO WANT. Find a Topic (homies begged) – Isaiah Rashad (The Suns’s Tirade) Like Young Thug, I’m just now coming around to one of TDE’s top prospects. This is the type of song you just ride off into the sunset with the windows down. Maybe not have the song on blast but at a moderate rate. Rashad’s voice on this track is soothing and I didn’t know his ear for beats are very solid. This song is short and sweet to the point. The chords and bounce on the song are what I like the most. A good way to close out a good album. An underrated album a that. Coordiante – Travis Scott x Black Youngsta (Birds In The Trap Sing McKnight) Maybe I like this song because it sounds…so familiar…ah never mind! Anyway, this song has major punch to it. The intro immediately captures your attention and Travis comes through with the hook and the use of auto-tune. I’m kind of surprised this song isn’t as big as it is considering this would jump off in clubs. I also feel like auto-tune should be firmly apart of him from here on out since he uses it so much. His timing of adlibs is also something I enjoy. He uses only three of them “Yeah!”, “Straight Up!”, and “It’s Lit!”. Overall, this song gets me going in the gym so I had to give the track its due. Leg day goes by quickly when this song is in the rotation. Real Friends – Kanye West x Ty Dolla $ign (The Life Of Pablo) Yeezy makes his return on the list. This song feels nostalgic. I don’t want to get into this “Old Kanye” talk because it’s futile. Artist should evolve, experiment, not remain stale and the new Kanye (artistically, I repeat, artistically) is fine (in some ways though, he's always been like that). With that said, Real Friends is a good song and reminds you how versatile he is/can be. His delivery in this song was solid, he did a good job of trying to tell you a story, and gives you a hook which is as real as it gets. Ty Dolla compliments Ye well on this song with some signing. He knows how deliver on those notes. Add in the melodic, slow, memorizing beat, and you get one of my favorite songs of the year. Get Bigger/Do U Luv – NxWorries (Yes Lawd!)
NxWorries consist of rapper/singer Anderson. Paak & producer Knxwledge. Together they make very good music. Paak is a hook smith. He doesn’t miss when it comes to that and I’m not sure he ever will. He also gives a pair of verses that are cool to follow along with. He’s not the best rapper I’ve ever heard but he does well enough for me to take notice. He’s smooth on delivery and is someone who thinks about the past often. Knwledge on the other hand is cold on those boards. The soul feel in this song is dope and the beat switch is dope. Other artists need to start hitting this guy up because chances are he won’t disappoint. We The People…. – A Tribe Called Quest (We Got it From Here) A song that came out at the right time. The song tackles issues facing America consisting from police brutality, racial/religious discrimination, lack of equality for women, deportation threats, and conflictions from the media. Q-Tip is still as good as ever when it comes to being a lyricist. His hook on the song is straight forward. Even our president-elect would agree. Phife Dawg has a posthumous verse after Tip’s first hook. It was sharp and direct. He was something special back in the day. I had the opportunity to go back to some of their early albums and I can say he had some HEAT. Everything about this song is in your face and straight forward. Combine these two with Ali Shaheed Muhammed and there is a reason why Tribe is considered one of the best. This song just reinforces it. They are for the people. Rest in peace, Phife Dawg. |
Editor's NoteWelcome to the AD report. Archives
March 2017
Categories |