For almost 2 decades now, Virginia emcee/DJ Skillz has been known for dropping his yearly “Rap Up” songs where he summarizes all things pop culture that took place in the previous year. In recent memory, artists like Uncle Murda have started to follow the blueprint by releasing their own “Rap Up” songs. So earlier this weekend, Skillz took to social media to announce that he will NOT be dropping a 2021 Rap Up & is retiring the tradition. We here at UndergroundHipHopBlog.Com would like to salute Skillz for starting a unique trend in the culture & wish him well on his future endeavors.
For almost 2 decades now, Virginia emcee/DJ Skillz has been known for dropping his yearly “Rap Up” songs where he summarizes all things pop culture that took place in the previous year. In recent memory, artists like Uncle Murda have started to follow the blueprint by releasing their own “Rap Up” songs. So earlier this weekend, Skillz took to social media to announce that he will NOT be dropping a 2021 Rap Up & is retiring the tradition. We here at UndergroundHipHopBlog.Com would like to salute Skillz for starting a unique trend in the culture & wish him well on his future endeavors.
Once again, we repeat, Skillz has the only yearly rap up that matters. The rapper returned for his annual practice of recapping the year, and boy did he cover all the bases for 2019.
2019 was one for the books when it came to everything pop culture, and Skillz was up to the task. He didn’t miss a beat for “Rap Up 2019,” touching on everything that had the internet and streets talking. In the 2019 edition of the song, no stone was left unturned either.
“And I was like y’all glued to the telly, Lifetime dropped a bomb with Surviving R.Kelly. But don’t be mistaken the Feds ain’t breaking, Rob had it coming this was years in the making.”
“Gucci was living foul, Bird Box was wild, and if you went to Fyre Fest *ad-lib*, it’s above me now. Then Spike got his Oscar, and he had to flex, and we all shook our heads at Jussie Smollet. Half us was like nah he’s cappin’, the other half was hmmm imma see what happens. Hate crime staging? Bro just stop, cause there’s no such thing as the gay Tupac.”
“And Endgame made some bread. Must be something in the water, Taylor Swift won’t wash her legs. And Ayesha Curry gets a mention. Talkin’ ’bout, ‘It’s not wanted, but I’d like to get some male attention.”
He didn’t miss a thing, trust us, you can listen to the song below and Happy New Year.
2019 has been a wild year and Skillz has returned once again to wrap-up everything that went down.
On the wild stories of 2019 side, Skillz tackles R. Kelly, Jussie Smollett, Fire Festival documentaries and more. In triumph, you hear about Spike Lee, DaBaby and more.
You can hear Skillz also talk about Cardi B’s drugging of men, the success of Avengers: Endgame, Ayesha Curry wanting male attention, the Popeyes chicken sandwich, David Ortiz being shot, the Starbucks cup in Game of Thrones and more.
Virginia rapper Skillz is coming with that audio heat. The hip-hop veteran has promised to come through in a big way with his “2019 Rap-Up” anthem.
On Monday, Skillz went to social media to encourage fans to cop limited edition merchandise and vowed to give every buying customer early access to his record.
2019 Rap Up Is Coming! W/ that being said doing sumn special for my day ones! Limited release Mad Skillz tees on the website right now, cop one & receive a free download of the 2019 Rap Up BEFORE its released to the public! https://t.co/fpXXPpXDL8 once theyre gone? Theyre gone! pic.twitter.com/798GkvMNYY
Days prior, Skillz came forward to defend blasting Uncle with his “Murda Gram” diss song.
“I don’t even rap no more, man. But, the level of disrespect, when he DM’d me, that was it. His DM happened like a week ago, no, like two weeks ago. He just DM’d me and he said you the PG version and I’m the R-rated version. Like, the screenshot of the song is the DM. He said that to me. And I just said back, ‘Who this?’ My thing is, it’s been plenty of cats that have tried to do the Rap-Ups but no one’s been this disrespectful. I’m like, bro, why you keep saying my name? Y’all have to understand the only people who hear an Uncle Murda ‘Rap Up’ is in New York or World Star. But it doesn’t get past Exit 7 on the Turnpike. There are still people asking me, ‘Who is Uncle Murda?’ I’m just like, bro, like, he funny, he’s a character but he ain’t built for bars. … There’s 30 rappers in Brooklyn more important than Uncle Murda. Ain’t no more saying my name on the records. Come on, fam.” (Hot 97)
If the debate for the King of R&B is up for grabs, followers of the late great James Brown can rest easy, as his position among the greatest to ever do it, is secure as a Master padlock. Known indelibly as the “Godfather of Soul Music,” Brown’s career covered successive generations that stretched from chitlin circuit pit-stops in the ’60s, through his own Funk era and ultimately, the birth of Hip-Hop. In the Netflix original documentary, Mr. Dynamite: The Rise Of James Brown, the life and times of the oft referred “hardest working man in show business,” is examined fully. Questlove, Chuck D, Nelson George, Greg Tate, and others appear in the doc’.
It is common knowledge that Brown’s influence on Hip-Hop has been acknowledged and celebrated through countless samples – “Funky Drummer” being the most popular – but who knew Brown dipped into the sampling pool himself?
As it turns out, Brown’s saxophonist and bandleader, Alfred “Pee Wee” Ellis, was called into James’ dressing room one night after a thunderous performance in the summer of 1967. Never formally trained to read music, Brown explained to Ellis that he had something in his head he needed to be transformed into song.
“I started putting notations to his grunts,” Ellis remembers with a hearty laugh at the 57:00-mark of the film, “which came out to be the bass line of ‘Cold Sweat.’”
Ellis goes on to explain that he had been listening to Miles Davis’ “So What,” which “popped up” while he was developing the track that would eventually become “Cold Sweat.”
“So I took that [dee dumph] part and repeated it over and over,” Ellis explains. “Then we added a very important guitar part, contrasting all of that – which is funky all by itself.”
An unquestionable masterpiece, “Cold Sweat” has been cited, by some (including in George’s The Death Of Rhythm & Blues) as the first true Funk song for all its moving parts. Aside from Brown’s grunts that laid the groundwork for the beat, the finished track borrowed from his previously-released “I Don’t Care” in 1962. Moreover, it incorporated Brown’s signature screams and solos from Maceo Parker on sax, and Clyde Stubblefield on drums.
“I didn’t write it to be so monumental,” Ellis confesses, “but my Jazz influence was creeping into his R&B, so the combination of the two is where the Funk came from.”
During the late 70s, when Brown was said to be losing a step, his Funk music was hot as ever in the Hip-Hop community and among DJs. Albums like Get On The Good Foot and Sex Machine were in heavy rotation, while “Give It Up Or Turn It Loose” provided breaks that proved to be something of a goldmine. But it was the unlikely “Funky Drummer” that catapulted “Mr. Please Please” to un-chartered territory.
For the record, the actual Funky Drummer was not very fond of the tune. “I hate that song,” the late Clyde Stubblefield affirms in the doc. “We all was so tired and didn’t even want to record. So I started playing just the drum pattern. Brown liked it. We recorded it, and it came out ‘Funky Drummer.’”
#BonusBeat: The trailer for Mr. Dynamite: The Rise Of JamesBrown:
If the debate for the King of R&B is up for grabs, followers of the late great James Brown can rest easy, as his position among the greatest to ever do it, is secure as a Master padlock. Known indelibly as the “Godfather of Soul Music,” Brown’s career covered successive generations that stretched from chitlin circuit pit-stops in the ’60s, through his own Funk era and ultimately, the birth of Hip-Hop. In the Netflix original documentary, Mr. Dynamite: The Rise Of James Brown, the life and times of the oft referred “hardest working man in show business,” is examined fully. Questlove, Chuck D, Nelson George, Greg Tate, and others appear in the doc’.
It is common knowledge that Brown’s influence on Hip-Hop has been acknowledged and celebrated through countless samples – “Funky Drummer” being the most popular – but who knew Brown dipped into the sampling pool himself?
As it turns out, Brown’s saxophonist and bandleader, Alfred “Pee Wee” Ellis, was called into James’ dressing room one night after a thunderous performance in the summer of 1967. Never formally trained to read music, Brown explained to Ellis that he had something in his head he needed to be transformed into song.
“I started putting notations to his grunts,” Ellis remembers with a hearty laugh at the 57:00-mark of the film, “which came out to be the bass line of ‘Cold Sweat.’”
Ellis goes on to explain that he had been listening to Miles Davis’ “So What,” which “popped up” while he was developing the track that would eventually become “Cold Sweat.”
“So I took that [dee dumph] part and repeated it over and over,” Ellis explains. “Then we added a very important guitar part, contrasting all of that – which is funky all by itself.”
An unquestionable masterpiece, “Cold Sweat” has been cited, by some (including in George’s The Death Of Rhythm & Blues) as the first true Funk song for all its moving parts. Aside from Brown’s grunts that laid the groundwork for the beat, the finished track borrowed from his previously-released “I Don’t Care” in 1962. Moreover, it incorporated Brown’s signature screams and solos from Maceo Parker on sax, and Clyde Stubblefield on drums.
“I didn’t write it to be so monumental,” Ellis confesses, “but my Jazz influence was creeping into his R&B, so the combination of the two is where the Funk came from.”
During the late 70s, when Brown was said to be losing a step, his Funk music was hot as ever in the Hip-Hop community and among DJs. Albums like Get On The Good Foot and Sex Machine were in heavy rotation, while “Give It Up Or Turn It Loose” provided breaks that proved to be something of a goldmine. But it was the unlikely “Funky Drummer” that catapulted “Mr. Please Please” to un-chartered territory.
For the record, the actual Funky Drummer was not very fond of the tune. “I hate that song,” the late Clyde Stubblefield affirms in the doc. “We all was so tired and didn’t even want to record. So I started playing just the drum pattern. Brown liked it. We recorded it, and it came out ‘Funky Drummer.’”
#BonusBeat: The trailer for Mr. Dynamite: The Rise Of JamesBrown:
Honoring a tradition that is nearly 20 years old, Skillz sums up the year that was with a rap. Long before any ball drops commemorating the arrival of 2019, the Virginia veteran MC (and DJ) makes sense of a complicated year in Hip-Hop and the world at large.
Skillz stays in the pocket with, “Dubs beat the Cavs, J.R. was late / Then Pusha spilled all of the tea on Drake / All we heard was ‘you’re hiding a child’ / I’m like, ‘Bruh, the Rap game gettin’ wild’ / Eminem fired back at MGK / We got a surprise album from Bey’ and Jay / Lebron got gone, left for L.A. / And I still wanna know who bit Beyoncé.” He references Tiffany Haddish’s revelation and subsequent speculation that actresses including Lena Dunham, Sanaa Lathan, or Sara Foster bit Bey’ while at a party. Moments later, Skillz deduces “The whole year was ugly / Remember, ‘Kiki, do you love me?’”
While Skillz is known for humor, he also asks serious questions. “Demi OD’d, Mac Miller died / And there’s still kids out here trying to get high? / Yeah, we had issues, but most were torn / If it wasn’t mental health, it was prison reform / They gave Suge 28, that ain’t no joke / 50 was petty all year, he wanted all the smoke.” He also references the families separated at the border, Donald Trump’s litany of apparent mishaps, and the confirmation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
He gets in a few stingers too. “Just live ya’ best life, and smile for the camera / Unless you’re Juelz Santana“ and “Draymond and KD was war and peace / And then came ‘who’s the King of R&B?’ / Jacquees, stop runnin’ ya mouth / Your R&B stands for ‘run your ass back in the house’ / I’ma say it, y’all might feel a way / But the King of R&B? That’s Beyoncé.”
Happy 2019 to you and yours from the Ambrosia For Heads staff.
#BonusBeat: This year Skillz, who put the “Mad” back in his name, released I’m The DJ… And The Rapper. The multi-threat referenced the 30-year-old title and artwork by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince.
Honoring a tradition that is nearly 20 years old, Skillz sums up the year that was with a rap. Long before any ball drops commemorating the arrival of 2019, the Virginia veteran MC (and DJ) makes sense of a complicated year in Hip-Hop and the world at large.
Skillz stays in the pocket with, “Dubs beat the Cavs, J.R. was late / Then Pusha spilled all of the tea on Drake / All we heard was ‘you’re hiding a child’ / I’m like, ‘Bruh, the Rap game gettin’ wild’ / Eminem fired back at MGK / We got a surprise album from Bey’ and Jay / Lebron got gone, left for L.A. / And I still wanna know who bit Beyoncé.” He references Tiffany Haddish’s revelation and subsequent speculation that actresses including Lena Dunham, Sanaa Lathan, or Sara Foster bit Bey’ while at a party. Moments later, Skillz deduces “The whole year was ugly / Remember, ‘Kiki, do you love me?’”
While Skillz is known for humor, he also asks serious questions. “Demi OD’d, Mac Miller died / And there’s still kids out here trying to get high? / Yeah, we had issues, but most were torn / If it wasn’t mental health, it was prison reform / They gave Suge 28, that ain’t no joke / 50 was petty all year, he wanted all the smoke.” He also references the families separated at the border, Donald Trump’s litany of apparent mishaps, and the confirmation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
He gets in a few stingers too. “Just live ya’ best life, and smile for the camera / Unless you’re Juelz Santana“ and “Draymond and KD was war and peace / And then came ‘who’s the King of R&B?’ / Jacquees, stop runnin’ ya mouth / Your R&B stands for ‘run your ass back in the house’ / I’ma say it, y’all might feel a way / But the King of R&B? That’s Beyoncé.”
Happy 2019 to you and yours from the Ambrosia For Heads staff.
#BonusBeat: This year Skillz, who put the “Mad” back in his name, released I’m The DJ… And The Rapper. The multi-threat referenced the 30-year-old title and artwork by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince.
Skillz still has the only year-end wrap up that matters. Debate your Auntie.
Today (Dec. 31), the Virginia MC dropped his “2018 Rap Up” and he once again deftly summarized all the major highs and lows, and jokes, of the year in rhyme form.
This time, he even brought along Lil Duval—his “Smile (Living My Best Life)” does serve as the song’s instrumental after all.
Listen to the “2018 Rap Up” below and tell us what you think.
