For the past week we’ve seen a bunch of people tackle this album. Writers these days take themselves way too seriously. That or they have these agendas in writing these reviews just to grab a few hits and if they’re lucky maybe a couple of RTs. I’m not a writer. I’m a simple man, I like my beans and rice. We live in a world that is quite simple if you ask me. It’s black, it’s white. It’s good, it’s bad. It’s hot, it’s cold. It’s yes or no. These definitive answers shape who we are.

There is no need to string together a wordy review that only serves as self-indulgent drivel just to deliver one adjective in describing Undun.

We’ve been spoiled for practically two decades now with progression, not regression from The Roots crew. We want Malik B. We miss Len Hub. We want more N.T. collabos. We want more Black Thought verses. We want lengthier tracks and albums; [insert Elaine] yada yada yada.

This album is best listened to front to back and then back to front. It’s not an album, it’s a soundtrack of life. It doesn’t matter if you’re connected to Redford Stephens or not. It’s bigger than him. It wouldn’t matter if was Tony Wycek. It’s almost as if the album is bigger than the music itself.

This is something that could possibly be turned into an off-Broadway musical. For the past few albums I’ve never given The Roots a fair shot off the first listen and trust me, I’ve sipped the juice plenty of times. They set the bar pretty high on Game Theory, the album, many will agree, where Black Thought separated himself from a great lyricist to top 25 of all-time.

But The Roots have always been about taking chances. Thirteen fucking albums now. How many hip-hop groups can you say have had the longevity that The Roots have had? Not Wu, Tribe, De La, Public Enemy, Outkast, Freestyle Fellowship, Geto Boys, Ultramag, Mobb Deep or Gang Starr. None of them ever had the longevity and consistency that of The Roots. That’s not me saying The Roots are the best ever, that’s me daring you to come up with one group in hip-hop who has even remotely put together thirteen quality albums time and time again.

For me to point out the great cuts on here is foolish. You aren’t supposed to pick and choose. You wouldn’t skip to the Winston Wolf scene in Pulp Fiction when watching–would you?

So, do yourself a favor, listen to the album the way it’s supposed to be heard–in its entirety. You’d be doing yourself a huge disservice by skipping around. And while I’m not claiming this is their best work, it is their most fascinating work to date. I know so many of you will be quick to say, “but there are only 9 real tracks,” but if you listen to the entire album, its 14 chapters. By the way, Illmatic only had 9 “real” tracks too.

So get past yourself and the way you want their albums to sound these days. I promise you it may not hit you right away, but with each listen the album will continue to impress and leave you wanting more.

These boys hit their stride awhile back, now they’re just playing with house money and parlaying it into more wins.

And that one adjective you’re waiting for; great. The album is fucking great?!!!??! –Philaflava

We’re still a few months away from the year closing out, but we all know the 4th Q is usually for big names, big labels and even bigger releases. This list is about 10 rappers who have been grindin’ for years. True lyricists who each put in work year in year out and still seem to lack the appreciation they rightfully deserve.  This isn’t an all-time list, it’s just a group of 10 rappers I feel are currently underrated, unappreciated and warrant the recognition.

Hip-Hop has  been good to us these past years. With the emergence of Big K.R.I.T., Danny Brown, Freddie Gibbs, French Montana, Action Bronson, Tyler The Creator, Fashawn, Pill, Mr. Muthafuckin’ Exquire, Blu, Elzhi, G-Side, ASAP Rocky, Curren$y & Roc Marciano just to name a few, we’ve had to double up on our hard drive space.

There are always going to be rappers with strong co-signs, better geographical residency or those who lean on friends and favors for that mass appeal. I wanted to put together a list of 10 active emcees that all deserve your attention and in my opinion are truly underrated.

So without further ado, here are my 10 Most Underrated Emcees of 2011.

10. Turf Talk

Point blank, one of the sickest rappers to come from the Leftcoast since Ras Kass. Download the new mixtape Return of The Jedi here.

9.  Phonte

Some people have dismissed Little Brother, but in doing so they dismissed Phonte. Bad move holmes. Phonte continues to find his zone as he is entering his prime. He recently released Charity Starts At Home and the stellar “The Good Fight“ is just a taste of what you’re missing.

8. Tragedy Khadafi

The man didn’t get the props as Intelligent Hoodlum and in 2011 he still doesn’t command the respect as Tragedy Khadafi. This is the man who gave us Grand Groove , made The War Report classic. If you ask me he is just as responsible for putting QB on the map as MC Shan or Nas. Tragedy hasn’t lost a step and before its over people will realize just how great a lyricist he really is.

7. Open Mike Eagle

I could write a bunch of shit to sell you on why Mike is so underrated or I can just post these two videos.

Nightmares

6. Meyhem Lauren

While his partner (Action Bronson) has been making plenty of noise of his own, this Queens native has been winning over the internet one blog post at a time.

Animal Science (Crossroads) feat. Roc Marciano

5. Shad

Had Shad lived in the Tri-State he’d have a much larger presence. Unfortunately he isn’t down with Lil Wayne, so this Canadian rapper by way of Kenya will have to continue making dope tracks to win the U.S. over, one state at a time.

Yaa I Get It (Oddisee Remix)

4. Sean Price

We’ve been waiting on Mic Tyson to drop for years now. It was suppose to drop before the real Tyson even became an actor. By the time this album sees the light Iron Mike will probably be on Inside The Actors Studio discussing his accomplished film career. There aren’t many emcees as honest and entertaining as P, but I think I speak for everyone–DROP THE ALBUM already!

Figure Four

3. K-Rino

There may not be a rapper as hard working, consistent and equally as talented as K-Rino. He is truly hip-hop’s best kept secret and has been for years.

2. Slug (of Atmosphere)

Slug is no stranger to the game and while he’s been doing this for almost a few decades now, he’s finally breaking into new territory. Whether it’s a KRS-One & Buckshot collabo, a  Bun B shout-out or Joe Budden personally courting for him to get on his new album, Slug is reminding people why he is one of the best story tellers in the game.

Atmosphere – Beware

1. Black Thought

As far as I’m concerned, until the day he retires Black Thought will always be #1 on this list. He hasn’t spit a weak verse in forever. He continues to get better with age and he pretty much eats up every guest spot ever given to him. Black Thought is the epitome of a rapper’s rapper. He is without a doubt the most underrated emcee of this year, last year and forever.

Men @ Work (Live)

Too good not to post. Details here.

DOWNLOAD: The Roots & Weird Al Yankovic – Madvillian Accordian (D minor)

The greatest rap band and the greatest rapper of (92-94) combine like a pair AJ True Blue‘s and jeans. Link contains ALL of The Roots and Nas tracks from the show. Enjoy! –Philaflava

Download the show here

After listening to Ghostface’s In Tha Park feat. Black Thought, first posted on T.R.O.Y., I have come to realize it might be impossible NOT to include Black Thought among the 5 best rappers today. Follow me on this one, go back to ’94 when A&R extraordinaire Wendy Goldstein signed them to Geffen Records. Months later (Jan ’95) they dropped their major label debut Do You Want More?!!!??!.

Many consider that very album to be a true blue classic with stellar tracks such as Proceed, Silent Treatment, Distortion to Static and The Lesson, but it wasn’t until later in his career that Black Thought truly developed into one of the best all-around emcees in the game. Like vintage wine, he got better with age. It happened to Steven Tyler, Phil Collins to even rappers like Lil Wayne and MF Doom.

Ghostface Killah -In Tha Park feat. Black Thought

If you go back to the mid-90′s (technically The Roots dropped in ’93 w/Organix), think of all the rappers who stayed consistent and actually got better. In 2011, you probably won’t even be able to think of 5 rappers that has consistently put out great music and aged gracefully with each passing year. Redman? Nope. Ghostface Killah? Need I remind you of the last 3 years of his career? Nas? LOL. Pharoahe Monch? Nah. Think about it, many rappers peak and quietly fall into hip-hop obscurity. Some continue to embarrass themselves with failures at reinventing themselves or keeping up with the status quo.

For years many people wrote off Black Thought as being lyrically lyrical and ain’t saying nuthin’. Well, a lot of those people had to change their mind when they heard Thought @ Work, Web or the sociological tracks on Game Theory. Since then Black Thought hasn’t dropped a weak verse.

It’s true Black Thought doesn’t have that one song like Rakim does, like Big Daddy or even Biggie. Black Thought has a plethora of great songs, great albums and phenomenal guest appearances. AND he is still doing it! While there are many great emcees today like Jadakiss, Jay Electronica, Pusha T, Andre 3000 & Lil Wayne, not many have catalog, consistency and most importantly the longevity that Black does.

Is Black Thought a Top 5 MC today? I don’t see how he isn’t. In fact, he is probably flirting with Top 15 all-time status with each verse he lays. –Philaflava

Vote now

If this is anything like “Fire” or “Doin It Again” I’m buying two copies. – Philaflava

New York (June 24, 2010) – Musical powerhouses John Legend & The Roots are presenting fans with a fiery new offering, Wake Up! The upcoming CD, being released by Sony Music on September 21, 2010, will feature soulful music from the 60’s and 70’s all with an underlying theme of awareness, engagement and consciousness— effectively telling listeners to Wake Up!

After being inspired by the recent historical Presidential election campaign of 2008, the R&B singer Legend and hip-hop band The Roots felt a need to enter the action. What started as plans for a single quickly developed into a passionate album representing change, hope and activism— not only referencing one particular moment in time, but on a larger scale, holding true no matter what the political climate may be.

The resulting album features eleven profoundly evocative songs infused with sounds of gospel, rock and reggae inflections with hip-hop influences. The album is highlighted by familiar tracks like “Wholly Holy” by Marvin Gaye and “Little Ghetto Boy” by Donny Hathaway mixed with the more obscure selections of Baby Huey and the Babysitters’ “Hard Times,” and “Hang on in There” by Mike James Kirkland.

“These songs sound so relevant now,” Legend says. “On most of them, you wouldn’t change a lyric. ‘Wake Up Everybody’ (the album’s first single, featuring contributions from Melanie Fiona and Common) has four verses—the first one is a general statement, the second is about education, third is about health care, and the fourth is about making a better environment. No editing needed.”

“When these songs were written, people were more spiritually in tune,” says Roots drummer/musical director Ahmir “?uestlove” Thompson. “It was fresh from the civil rights era and there was a feeling of hope that maybe, yes, someday we will all be free. In 2010, not so much.”

The album features one original composition, Legend’s song “Shine,” which is featured in Academy Award-winning director Davis Guggenheim’s upcoming documentary film Waiting for Superman. The song, a “Stevie-Wonder-meets-gospel” stunner, clearly demonstrates the strengths of this specific group of musicians. Wake Up! blends Legend’s expressive, thoughtful vocal interpretations with an element of funk that only The Roots can provide.

Bringing John Legend & The Roots together is an inspired pairing, so logical that it’s a little surprising they haven’t teamed up in a proper collaboration before. John Legend is a six-time Grammy winner whose three albums have all hit Number One on the Billboard R&B charts, and who has collaborated with such artists as Kanye West, Jay-Z, Alicia Keys, and the Black Eyed Peas. The Roots—currently visible nightly as the stupendously versatile house band on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon—have released nine acclaimed studio albums (including the recent How I Got Over) and redefined the relationship between live instruments and hip-hop.

Time to pick up the pace on our SLS series with a new edition. Somethin’ for your car, somethin’ for your hangout spot, or just somethin’ for you to chill to. Hella shouts to dirt_dog from TROY for the artwork. Download link, tracklist and a re-up of Volume One with proper artwork after the jump.

Sounds Like Summer – Volume Two

Download Now

01 DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince – Summertime
02 LL Cool J- Jingling Baby (Remixed But Still Jingling)
03 Hieroglyphics – Oakland Blackouts
04 Jay-Z – I Just Wanna Love U (Give it 2 Me)
05 TI – What You Know
06 Above The Law – Black Superman
07 Masta Ace – Good Ol’ Love
08 Warren G & Nate Dogg – Regulate (G-Funk rmx)
09 DJ Quik – Quik’s Groove 2
10 The Roots ft Raphael Saadiq – What They Do
11 Ahmad – Back In The Day
12 Domino – Sweet Potato Pie
13 Luniz – I Got 5 On It (Bay Area Ballas Rmx)
14 Jurassic 5 – Concrete Schoolyard
15 Treacherous Three – Feel The Heartbeat
16 De La Soul – A Roller Skating Jam Named Saturdays

Sounds Like Summer – Volume One

Download Now

01 E-40 – Nah Nah ft Nate Dogg
02 3xKrazy – West Coast Shit
03 Da Brat and The Notorious BIG – Da B Side
04 Erick Sermon – Music
05 Snoop Dogg – Lets Get Blown
06 Kilo Ali – Love in Ya Mouth ft Big Boi
07 King Tee – Dippin (rmx)
08 Dam Funk – (My Funk Goes) On & On
09 Scritti Politti – Tinseltown to the Boogiedown ft Mos Def and Lee Majors (Ali Shaheed rmx)
10 2Pac – To Live and Die in LA
11 Ice Cube – You Know How We Do It
12 Boogiemonsters – Honeydips in Gotham (Monster rmx)
13 The Dove Shack – Summertime in the LBC
14 Big Mike – Burban & Impalas
15 Rich Boy – Boy Looka Here
16 Big Tymers – Still Fly

1. Walk Alone (Truck North, Porn, Dice Raw, Mercedes Martinez)
2. Dear God 2.0 (Jim James, MOF)
3. Radio Daze (Blu, Porn, Dice Raw, Mercedes Martinez)
4. Now Or Never (Phonte Coleman, Dice Raw)
5. How I Got Over (Dice Raw)
6. The Day (Blu, Phonte Coleman, Patty Crash)
7. Right On (Joanna Newsom, Sugar Tongue Slim)
8. Doin It Again (John Legend)
9. The Fire (John Legend, Rick Friedrich)

1. Blu – Stop with the queer videos and these half-ass lo-fi tracks. Either make a real album, with real music and release it properly or just step the fuck off the internet. You’re becoming more and more irrelevant the more Fashawn drops heat rocks. You know Fashawn, the new Blu with some street appeal? Basically, stop being an aloof sissy and put out music that you’re capable of. Ain’t none trying to hear or watch this bullshit. NONE! I say this with love too.

ParieArtNommee. from Johnson Barnes on Vimeo.

2. Wu-Massacre - A big LOL @ anyone buying this. I’ll admit, I was amped when the leaks came out earlier this year but this isn’t an album. It’s a gank move and you’re a fucking sucker if you drop your hard earned money on this shit. For starters the album lacks sequence, true collabos (see Criminology 2.5) and most importantly CHEMISTRY! The entire album was phoned in and if they were smart they would have made an EP out of this crap and done the album the right way, the RZA way. You stupid muthafuckas.

3. The LOX/Jadakiss – Yeah I heard “Slow Down” and you’re killing them, but all three of you are some hypocritical emotional queers. First you sign with Puff. Then you spend the next decade berating and threatening Puff. Now you’re back on his lap like Brett Hart is on Vince McMahons. Oh and Kiss, I know you ain’t made a “wack verse since the 90s” but you ain’t made a dope album in forever! If you’re gonna go the Bad Boy route in 2010 at least get your money right before you hit the airwaves.

4. Def Jam – Either release the new Roots album or just release The Roots. How many push backs must they get? And this is just a pre-warning but if Justin Bieber is ANYWHERE on this album I swear to god I will eBay my Def Jam University sweater.

5. Doing Nas remakes – It’s bad enough we’re not even checking for Nas these days but now all these newjacks are trying to redo Illmatic? No, bad idea. Leave that shit alone and get your own identity. No offense to some of the great talents out there like Elzhi, Freddie Gibbs or Fashawn but leave that Illmatic shit alone. It only reminds us about how shitty hip-hop really has been for the past 15 years when your best music features Illmatic productions re-written lyrics to the tracks.

6. Yelawolf – I’m a huge fan. He just signed to Interscope which only means one thing, either a 2013 record release or a 2013 contract release. Eminem collabo in 2011 though! And speaking of white emcees , just how fat is Sage Francis going to allow himself to get?

7. Brotha Lynch Hung’s Dinner & A Movie – This is the Chronic of horror core music. Yeah I said it!

8. Jay Electronica – Great rapper, great personality, great person. Having said that, if you don’t drop an album you’re going to be Saigon all over again. Remember Saigon? Yeah, never do we.

9. Joe Budden or Buddens – Why are you the most unlikable, annoying personality in hip-hop? It’s not jealousy. I think you’re actually a good lyricist but your voice in unlistenable after 2 minutes because all you seem to do is whine. You might have the sports references on lock, but you peaked. No way will you ever be anything more than a yenta talabenta. Stop whining. Stop with self-indulgent videos. Just stop.

10. Snoop Dogg – General question but after Doggystyle has ANYONE ever bought another Snoop Dogg album? Who even takes this clown serious?