2008 Woodie Awards
Group Nappy Roots stays Hip-hop, new album gets personal with band
Issue date: 8/22/08 Section: Features
Andrew O'Rourke
Contributing writer
"Humdinger - a noun, a remarkable or outstanding person or thing of its kind, a Jim dandy, a whopper," so is the dictionary introduction to the Nappy Roots' first full-length album in five years.
The western Kentucky Hip- hop quintet is back in full force with the release of The Humdinger on their recently formed record label Nappy Roots Entertainment Group.
Living country and staying southern is the attitude and feeling that flow throughout the lyrics and beats on The Humdinger.
The Kentucky natives portray the southern gentleman aspect of hip-hop as they rap about non-confrontational "Beads and Braids" and having a "Good Day" on the album. The boys manage successfully to keep the dirty south sounding style on other hot tracks such as "Swerve and Lean" and "Tinted Up."
The production and MC work are reminiscent of early Outkast recordings and a few references to ATL are mentioned on the album. The track "On My Way to GA" is about Nappy Roots connection with Georgia. Member Fish Scales is originally from Milledgeville, Ga., but Skinny Deville, B. Stille, Ron Clutch and Big V all hail from the Bluegrass state.
Skits in between songs break up the album and allow a personal feel to let the listener get to know the Nappy Roots crew. This is an old school rap trend that is done to add entertainment value to the album as a whole. Digging into the crates of any Hip-hop DJ would also unearth other old school albums that use this format for the skit of the album.
"Down 'n Out" is one of the strong points on "The Humdinger" that is accented with vocal help from musician Anthony Hamilton. The lyrics explore the downside of achieving fame in the music business and the struggles that come afterward. The lyrical composition of this song is very honest and the storytelling is an added bonus that makes this track one of the more memorable moments on the album.
"Good Day" is the first single and has a catchy hook with a clever production value. The chorus is sung by a group of children who state "Ain't nobody gonna die today" and that in itself makes today a good day. The bouncy beat along with the young background singers make this track, a "good time no worries" type of song to uplift the spirits and keep a positive outlook on life. The hip-hop community represents all areas of the globe and it is refreshing to have the Nappy Roots serve as the unspoken ambassadors for Western Kentucky who continue to provide an outstanding amount of energy and creativity on this latest release.
The amount of work done for the album has been keeping the Nappy Roots crew busy for quite a while and it even has credits coming back to Murray State graphic design graduate Carson Gream.
The song "Good Day" also has a video and can be seen on the Nappy Roots MySpace page. The video follows the crew around and shows the members hanging with friends and doing what we do best in Kentucky and that is ... chill.
Nappy Roots latest effort is thoroughly impressive and an overall success of the NREG movement. I believe that you will be hearing much more hip-hop music from Kentucky and the Nappy Roots will have a lot to do with that.
Andrew O'Rourke can be reached at andrew.orourke@
murraystate.edu.
Contributing writer
"Humdinger - a noun, a remarkable or outstanding person or thing of its kind, a Jim dandy, a whopper," so is the dictionary introduction to the Nappy Roots' first full-length album in five years.
The western Kentucky Hip- hop quintet is back in full force with the release of The Humdinger on their recently formed record label Nappy Roots Entertainment Group.
Living country and staying southern is the attitude and feeling that flow throughout the lyrics and beats on The Humdinger.
The Kentucky natives portray the southern gentleman aspect of hip-hop as they rap about non-confrontational "Beads and Braids" and having a "Good Day" on the album. The boys manage successfully to keep the dirty south sounding style on other hot tracks such as "Swerve and Lean" and "Tinted Up."
The production and MC work are reminiscent of early Outkast recordings and a few references to ATL are mentioned on the album. The track "On My Way to GA" is about Nappy Roots connection with Georgia. Member Fish Scales is originally from Milledgeville, Ga., but Skinny Deville, B. Stille, Ron Clutch and Big V all hail from the Bluegrass state.
Skits in between songs break up the album and allow a personal feel to let the listener get to know the Nappy Roots crew. This is an old school rap trend that is done to add entertainment value to the album as a whole. Digging into the crates of any Hip-hop DJ would also unearth other old school albums that use this format for the skit of the album.
"Down 'n Out" is one of the strong points on "The Humdinger" that is accented with vocal help from musician Anthony Hamilton. The lyrics explore the downside of achieving fame in the music business and the struggles that come afterward. The lyrical composition of this song is very honest and the storytelling is an added bonus that makes this track one of the more memorable moments on the album.
"Good Day" is the first single and has a catchy hook with a clever production value. The chorus is sung by a group of children who state "Ain't nobody gonna die today" and that in itself makes today a good day. The bouncy beat along with the young background singers make this track, a "good time no worries" type of song to uplift the spirits and keep a positive outlook on life. The hip-hop community represents all areas of the globe and it is refreshing to have the Nappy Roots serve as the unspoken ambassadors for Western Kentucky who continue to provide an outstanding amount of energy and creativity on this latest release.
The amount of work done for the album has been keeping the Nappy Roots crew busy for quite a while and it even has credits coming back to Murray State graphic design graduate Carson Gream.
The song "Good Day" also has a video and can be seen on the Nappy Roots MySpace page. The video follows the crew around and shows the members hanging with friends and doing what we do best in Kentucky and that is ... chill.
Nappy Roots latest effort is thoroughly impressive and an overall success of the NREG movement. I believe that you will be hearing much more hip-hop music from Kentucky and the Nappy Roots will have a lot to do with that.
Andrew O'Rourke can be reached at andrew.orourke@
murraystate.edu.
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