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Gift of Gab (real name Timothy Parker) is known for being one half of renowned hip hop duo Blackalicious. As an MC, Gift of Gab is one of the greatest rappers to grasp the mic. His witty word play transcends mere end rhyme, with complex internal rhymes and metaphors. Gab dropped his last studio album in 2012 and returned for a 2015 Blackalicious album in Imani Vol. 1. Gab dropped the powerful 2017 EP, Rejoice! Rappers are Rapping Again!! which features single “Freedom Form Flowing” feat. R.A. the Rugged Man and Rugged Man protege A-F-R-O.
The humorously-titled project is a comment on the state of hip hop. Single “Freedom Form Flowing” is the kind of track which will send you to your chiropractor. Plus, it’s available for free. “Enter my imminent energy element/I am an entity walking ahead of the pack/I really am out of my head and it’s evident/That I will never be able to ever quit/Melanin fellow with helluva relevance,” Gab spits rapid fire.
Legendary MC R.A. the Rugged Man joins for a verse, along with protege and frequent collaborator A-F-R-O. “I rap, you rewind it/The speakers ain’t working/I flap in the night at your jeep and you swervin’/I’m black with the eyes of a serpent/Back with a knife of purchase/Immaculate rhymes and the heat is conversin’,” A-F-R-O kicks it.
Rugged Man kills it his usual on-point flow and sharp lyricism. “It’s me/I’m back bitches/Gift of Gab, Blackalicious/You could watch that Harry Potter Radcliffe rap his shit,” R.A. emphatically raps.
Production is top-notch. It’s a boom bap, plodding beat which harkens back to hip hop of old. “Freedom Form Flowing” offers a taste of Gift of Gab’s Rejoice! Rappers Are Rapping Again!! EP which is album crafted for hip hop heads.
While the first single is free, please consider purchasing the new album through Gift of Gab’s Patreon and supporting real hip hop. Moreover, as Gab reveals, the proceeds allow him to continue making great hip hop in the wake of his 2012 diagnosis of kidney failure. Considering his dialysis, Gab’s ability to tour is limited.
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