Pete Philly and Perquisite

Let's set the scene for this eclectic hip hop group I just discovered: On vacation last week I was cursing with a girl friend and she had Pete Philly and Perquisite in her CD player. She lives in Minneapolis, not a place known for hip hop. Pete Philly and Perquisite call the Netherlands home, also not a place known for hip hop. For some reason their music spoke to the moment. It's not super upbeat, but not down tempo either. Basically the group sounds like Outkast if Outkast listened to a lot of Latin and World music.

Pete Philly and Perquisite are interesting because their hip hop comes from many musical canons. When listening you hear a lot of influences, which is not the case in mainstream hip hop. It's a sad but exciting day when two dudes from the Netherlands create better hip hop music than most artists in American, the birth place of the genre.

Felix Da Housecat

Disco and funk have met electronica in Felix Da Housecat's crazy-fun music. He's been making music for 20 years and has been tearing up the dance floor for the past 6 with his blend of beats, entertaining lyrics, and move-your-body groves. Check out his video for "Like Something 4 Porno." The video makes me feel like I stuck in a 1960s documentary about the sexual revolution except this documentary has a better-than-average soundtrack.

Common - Hip Hop still tells a story

Common's album Finding Forever has been out for a while, however I just checked out some of the videos and the video for "Drivin' Me Wild" is excellent because it goes back to hip hop's story telling roots, opposed to just showing huge diamonds, crazy cars, and hoed out girls. I wish mainstream hip hop was more like the music Common produces. 

Video of The Week - Santogold

Check out my new favorite artist, Santogold. This women kills it. She reminds me of MIA but with more reggae, hip hop, and punk influences. Her music is fun yet still says something about the world we live in. To me the best music not only sounds great but has a great message or story to tell. Santogold does just that.