(ThatKidInTheCorner :: RJ Done Lost His Mind)

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May 6, 2006

RJ Done Lost His Mind

Soul Position show details and general fawning in re: RJD2, complete with sample iTunes playlist

Enjoyed one of my most enthusiastically hip-hop intensive days (and certainly my most hip-hop Wednesday ever) this past week, as I had the pleasure of catching both Jay-Z, P.O.S. and Soul Position (which is Blueprint as the MC and hip-hop NerdGod RJD2 as the DJ) all in a single day. (The Jay-Z thing was actually [cough, cough] an interview at an online advertising conference, but hey, I'm still counting it.)

Seeing the RJD2 thing live has been a long time coming for me. I got hip to him about two years ago and have been nerding out to his music ever since. He's released two full-length solo albums, Dead Ringer and Since We Last Spoke, has partnered with MCs like Blueprint, Aceyalone, and Diverse on LPs, and has contributed the usual spate of remixes to his various labelmates (on nerd-hip-hop powerhouses Definitive Jux and Rhymesayers). And I've pretty much bought/ collected almost all of them. (At this point, I could use some kind of RSS feed that just alerted me to the presence of new RJD2 tracks.) I'm officially sold on RJD2.

I've been trying to sort out what works for me in re: the RJD2 (past the obvious "his name sounds like R2D2"). While he's had flirtation with some kind of crossover/ breakthrough success (like when ESPN used "Ghostwriter" as the music for their NBA playoff package), RJD2 remains relatively obscure. Which continues to surprise me -- this dude seems pretty premium to me, and (in my most humble of opinions) deserves a lot more money and success. Though of course there's the whole dancing-about-architecture problem when you try to explain your taste in music (it's music -- the best way to understand it is to listen to it, but we'll get to that in a second), I think my RJD2 fanboyness comes down to a couple big things:

There's a distinctive RJD2 sound: at this point, I know RJD2 tracks when I hear them. While his sound can wander a bit, there are a couple core elements -- big funky/ soulful basslines, thick melodies composed of fairly basic rock sounds, and a general lushness that manages to not be terribly sloppy and random -- that show up more often than not. It's a great sound that he is very much owning right now -- and it feels like it's only a few degrees to the left of becoming very poppy very quickly. If anything, I'm pretty shocked that there aren't more DJs out there just aping the RJD2 thing. I mean, it's at least better than Crunk (and yes, I know I'm out of touch and a big nerd).

He's Not Afraid To Sound Like Rock Music: while RJD2 is definitively a hip-hop producer, he's more than willing to mix in a big rock-and-roll sound. Big guitars, big drums, big noise. And I tend to like that sort of thing -- it explains why I'm still buying Chemical Brothers records after all these years.

Get This Boy To Hollywood!: RJD2 tracks tend toward the orchestral (big lush sounds, good use of dynamics and whatnot), and most have clear beginnings, middles, and ends. And I like beginnings, middles, and ends. Even when there aren't words, there's usually a little story. (If that makes any sense, like I said, dancing about architecture.) This all means that someone has got to get this boy to Hollywood and let him score a film. Something along the lines of what Air did with The Virgin Suicides or Mellow did with CQ. There you, movie business. You can have that one. Free of charge. And when you speak of me, speak of me kindly.

The Super-Producer Who Knows How To Make The MC Seem Cool: although RJD2's solo instrumental records are certainly solid, his best stuff seems to come when he's working with an MC; most of my favorite RJ-produced tracks involve an MC ("The Final Frontier," "Shoot Frank," and "Big Game" are all on the list). And while you certainly notice the production on these tracks (usually in a "Hot damn that's a cool sound" way), it almost invariably flatters the MC. RJD2 just seems like a good team player; like a pass-first point guard for hip-hop. During the Soul Position show it became clear that the people were there for RJD2 first and Soul Position second (it might have been the "R-J, R-J" chants for the encore that tipped me off). And while he hammed it up more than I expected (he even danced around for a couple tracks in a silly homemade costume as alter-ego "Mo Buttons"), he didn't need a ton of attention. It came off as very genuine, and very humble -- and his music still has the same feel. Maybe it's just because so much of hip-hop is so boastful and me-first that a little humility actually seems refreshing.

Anyhoo, this is already too long. Re-reading what I just wrote, I'm not convinced I've done a terribly good job of explaining what I'm talking about. That is, I'm not sure I've explained what's so nifty about the RJD2 character and his music. Probably better to just let the music speak for itself. So I made a little iTunes iMix playlist that you can go and check out for yourself:

My RJD2 Playlist On iTunes:

Explosive From Diverse's One A.M. record, with Lyrics Born added as a guest M.C. Loud and fast and rockin.
No Gimmicks From the most recent Soul Position, I could almost do without the lyrics on this one, if only because the production (especially that bass line) is so niftt
Since '76 Very funky, very easy to get into. Love the big horns
Final Frontier I've been listening to this song for over two years and I'm not remotely bored of it. From Dead Ringer.
Ghostwriter (Remix) I couldn't find the right version of this track on iTunes. Sigh. This is the one ESPN used.
Big Game I didn't include RJD2's Cannibal Ox remix, but this is the next best thing. I didn't realize I was obsessed with this song until I found myself unconsciously mouthing the lyrics all the time. "It's the air in the room/ Content times two."
Smoke & Mirrors I think you just sort of have to include this one.
Shoot Frank I talked about this track in December; it also hasn't gotten old. A little on the mellow and moody side, but it definitely works.
All for U Funky collaboration with Aceyalone. Track one on Magnificent City
The Horror Cool song, silly music video.
Wylin' Out (RJD2 Remix) I don't know if RJD2 gets full credit for this song (since he just was on the remix), but, um, it's awesome. Makes me want to buy Mos Def records.

Check it out, let me know what you think. Hope you dig it.

(Apologies for the clunkiness with the sharing and the playlist...I'm pretty shocked iTunes doesn't let me take a piece of html to plug into the site here -- if someone has a better way to do it, I'm listening. And just getting the link required sending myself an e-mail. Sigh. I tried, Apple enthusiasts. I really did. But it took like 67 clicks when it should have taken like 3 -- ahem, like on youtube -- and you still need the silly iTunes player to make work. Another company trying to ring-fence the Internet. Yawn. I should have just used Amazon.)

Posted by thatkid at May 6, 2006 4:11 PM under ThatKid

May 6, 2006

RJ Done Lost His Mind

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