Until I Get Married

What’s great about the new gig is the opportunity I have to cover hip-hop extensively, specifically current hip-hop. I’m a man who appreciates the genre’s history; as someone who grew up a jazz fan first and foremost, maintaining my awareness for a music’s history has always been extremely important. But I’m not one of those listeners who longs for hip-hop to be what it used to be. I like the evolution of it and I appreciate what artists are doing today with it.

One thing I have noticed this year is the way hip-hop has been tailored beyond it’s traditional environments. Used to be the music was for the streets, trunks of cars, the club, and pre-game warm-ups. When hip-hop wanted to be something for the ladies, it was always slightly pandering. But these days, I think the formula of making a song for specific environments has either gone away or expanded, because now there are a lot of albums people can play in a lot of different places and it sounds perfectly appropriate.

The bedroom is a perfect example.

Similar to a list I’ve done before, but scaled down for the purpose of being succinct, here are five albums I have either played or can imagine being played in the background of a good old fashioned make out session. This list is by no means an authoritative one, just something I culled together for the purpose of today’s post, so anyone who wants to say I forgot one, shut up in advance and just write it down in the comments section. I’d love to hear other people’s suggestions. For those who have never heard the selections listed, I urge you to do so. All of them are good. I wouldn’t list them otherwise.

ALBUM: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
ARTIST: Kanye West

Unless you were born yesterday, and deaf, and on another planet, you’ve probably heard this album. It’s a moody, moody thing, and I don’t think it can be played straight through a make-out session without things getting a little awkward (“Monster” anyone?), but those moments are rare. For the most part, MBDTW is an album someone is going to make a baby to.
Good make out song: “Devil In A New Dress”
Bad make out song: “Monster”
Awkward but might be interesting make out song: “Power”

ALBUM: Kush and Orange Juice
ARTIST: Wiz Khalifa

The Pittsburgh rapper is one of hip-hop’s most promising new talents, building up a a fan base made up entirely of stoners and teenage girls who like stoners. Kush and Orange Juice, this year’s free mixtape he released via The World Wide Web, is the primary reason for his surging popularity and it might be the primary reason a couple of guys get laid. As a general rule, any album that’s good to smoke to is probably good to do other illicit activities to. Now I should say here, I don’t smoke at all, but I definitely do the other illicit thing, and I can honestly say, Kush and Orange Juice is good for that.
Good make out song: “Mesmorized”
Bad make out song: “We’re Done”
Awkward but might be interesting make out song: “The Kid Frankie”

ALBUM: Blvck Diamond Life
ARTIST: Droop-E

Okay, so this choice can partly be attributed to my love for Bay Area hip-hop artists and music, but it’s also attributed to my knowledge that any make out session with Sade is a good make out session. Droop-E, for those who don’t know, is the son of E-40, and though he rhymes, his true talents lie in his ability to produce some of the most interesting sounding hip-hop being made today. As the title suggests, Droop-E’s Blvck Diamond Life is a tribute of sorts to Sade’s classic album, Diamond Life. Every cut on the free 8-song EP samples a song from Sade’s archive, which basically means this is a Sade album with rap. Some might say that’s blasphemy, I say bravo. Whereas any man who puts on Sade to set the mood could be written off as cliche, a man who puts on Blvck Diamond Life could put a woman on to something she hasn’t heard.
Good make out song: “Like A Tattoo”
Bad make out song: “Hungry”
Awkward but might be interesting make out song: “I’m Loaded”

ALBUM: Thank Me Later
ARTIST: Drake

You can say what you want about the guy, but his music has been good for me. If it hasn’t been good for you, that’s probably your fault. Seriously. If you can’t get some to the good make out song I list below, just give up and go back to the drawing board.
Good make out song: “Shut It Down”
Bad make out song: “Over”
Awkward but might be interesting make out song: “Up All Night”

ALBUM: FROM THE WESTSIDE WITH LOVE
ARTIST: Dom Kennedy

Look, chances are, you probably don’t know who Dom Kennedy is. Chances are you probably haven’t heard From The Westside With Love. Do both. One of my favorite artists for the last couple of years released one of my favorite albums this year, for free, and I would get into details why this is a good album, but I don’t feel like it. I just hope my word is good enough and you all trust me on this.
Good make out song: “The Hotels”
Bad make out song: “Me Again”
Awkward but might be interesting make out song: “A Leimert Park Song”

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The Process: Back on the work out tip, and this morning was without a doubt my most tiring work out yet.

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