prince paul : politics of the busine$$
There's no shortage of tongue-in-cheekyness in the world of hip hop, but Prince Paul is pretty much the innovator of rap satire.
His first solo project (having departed from production duties with De La Soul) "Psycoanalysis (what is it?)" was rife with riffs on the transformation of the genre in the early 90's, "black culture" (as presented by the conglomerate marketers), and a dark sense of humour about the vices and mentalities that hinder the black image.
His follow up, 3 years later, "A Prince Amongst Thieves" was a concept album, a full story told over 35 tracks, a "hip-hop dramady". It deeply examined the difficulty of actually making it in "the business", and the lengths some will go through to get into it. While neither album contained brilliant songs, their concepts and execution certainly held weight.
Now comes, 4 years after "Thieves", "Politics of the Busine$$" wherein Paul, and his usual host of guest stars (including Guru from Gangstarr, Kardinal Offishall, Dave from De La, Dave Chappelle and a some of the biz's indie greats). The album cuts through the nature of the industry, the high stakes behind it, and the necessity of popularity, and the lack of focus on artistry.
And, as before, the album is brilliant in design, however, the execution presents itself as nothing more than clones of what's top 40. Yeah, I know that's the joke, but unless you're geared to always listen to the lyrics, it just sounds like the same old shit you get from Muchmusic.
There are some standout tracks, "Not Tryin' To Hear That" with Guru and Planet Asia is as active as any Gangstarr tune (ie. laid back and jazzy), "Original Crhyme Pays" feat the Beatnuts, Tony Touch, and Tash (which is a skilled play on the lyrical chorus to a hiphop jam), and "Chubb Rock Can You Pleas Pay Paul The $2200 You Owe Him (People, Places and Things)" which takes an old De La sample (from "Pease Porridge" on De La Soul Is Dead) and remixes it with, well, Paul's message to Chubb Rock.
"What I Need" features Toronto's Kardinal Offishall and a better hidden remix has Saukrates replacing Kardinal... both jams worthy.
It's not genius per se, but it is what it is.