hardfeelingsuk: exclusive yo majesty mash-up

HARDFEELINGSUK (Freeform Disco 1) is composed of David Alexander and Richard Winstanley. They are mixing the full length LP of Yo Majesty, and David was the kind soul who allowed me to preview the new tracks.

However, if female rappers aren't your cup of tea perhaps you should aurally dive into "Chronic Happiness", a mellow electro-track featuring David's vocals. For those of you who are dangerously feeling Yo Majesty, he also created a fun techno mash-up of their track "Club Action". If you didn't think he was talented enough already, he is also the artist behind the image to the left. Props to him! You can check out more tracks produced by David and his collective at their site.

DOWNLOAD: YO MAJESTY- Club Action (Freeform Disco 1 Mash-up / Remix)
DOWNLOAD: YO MAJESTY- Club Action (original mix)

DOWNLOAD: FREEFORM DISCO 1- Chronic Happiness

BUY Yo Majesty/Freeform Disco 1 music at site

BLOGWATCH: You Ain't No Picasso brings us the 12 days of mixmas, featuring selections by members of Oh No! Oh My!, We Are Scientists, Page France, Apples in Stereo, and more. Toya showcases her highs and lows of 2006, particularly within the R&B genre.

yo majesty: coming to a hood near you.

YO MAJESTY are no strangers to this blog. I posted about them back in June, and since then they've received attention from bigger blogs such as BIGSTEREO and stereogum. The latter blog marked the three ladies as a "band to watch" in 2007, and I can't agree more.

I've had the privilege to hear rough mixes of seven new songs not appearing on the Yo EP. With them in my ears, I have received confirmation that hip-hop is, in fact, not dead.

Sure, it doesn't seem like Yo Majesty is about to spit some socially conscious lyrics on the level of "The Message" or Public Enemy. They're no Shakespeares of the hood. However, Shon.B, Shunda-K, and Jwel B are a complete breath of fresh air. They bring the party without needing any help from Scott Storch, Pharrell, or will.i.am. They spit sexual lyrics without needing to show any skin. Quite simply, instead of just talking about the glorified early days of hip-hop, they go there musically. While the rest of the south was occupied with chopping and screwing, snapping, and pumping out mediocre crunk shit, Yo Majesty was busy perfecting their throwback Miami bass/electro-hop sound. This sound is dominant throughout the tracks currently recorded for their full-length debut. If the new track "Old School Shit" is any indication, I anticipate that the final product will be a you-can't-even-handle-it-all buffet of booty-dropping.

You'll be hearing more about Yo Majesty here at The Moneyshot. Until then, I'll leave you with two mp3s-- "Warning" and a presumably older song "Don't Fuck With Me" (courtesy of hardfeelingsuk freeform disco 1).

DOWNLOAD: YO MAJESTY- Warning
DOWNLOAD: YO MAJESTY- Don't Fuck With Me

BUY Yo EP on iTunes

HEADS UP: Perhaps I'm biased, but my pick for "artist to watch" in 2007 is Denver native Laura Goldhamer. Her upcoming albumYe Olde Leave Behind has blown my mind. I will keep you posted about the release date.

RIP: Sadly, "The Godfather of Soul" James Brown passed away this Christmas. He was an incredibly influential artist, laying the grounds for funk, disco, and hip-hop.

BLOGWATCH: Culture Bully takes a jab at Jay-Z. soul sides ponders the power behind Jennifer Hudson's "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going" from the film Dreamgirls. Between Thought and Expression has a great new tune by Robyn, Diplo's remix of Justin Timberlake's "My Love", and a track that can only be described as an "electro pop update to Khia's 'My Neck, My Back'." Honorable Media gives you a taste of the new Chamillionaire mixtape.

yo majesty: get yo ass on the flo'.

YO MAJESTY wasn't discovered by me...They found me. I don't know how these ladies knew I'd dig their hott booty-bass ol' skool sound, but I'm glad they did.

The ladies' motto is "smashing against the sonic perimeter" and I can't stop letting their voices smash against my ears. How can you resist a group that spits, "Courvoisier, Courvoisier where art thou?" and hums the beat to Salt 'N' Pepa in the background? It's simplicity. It's genuine. It's skills. It's hip-hop at it's best. Yo Majesty is to ol' skool hip-hop what The Pipettes are to Phil Spector's girl-groups. They take it back, they update the sound...and they blow my mind.

Yo Majesty consists of three ladies--- "Shon.B knocking down rhymes like toy soldiers, Shunda-K haunting us with supersonic raps, and Jwel B the songstress of the group ripping track after track." Their flow and chemistry is impeccable. Can they be my best friends? Please?

DOWNLOAD: YO MAJESTY- Club Action
DOWNLOAD: YO MAJESTY- Kryptonite Pussy

Make sure to check out two more songs, "Monkey" and "Hustle Mode", on the space. BUY their EP here.

BLOGWATCH: Living in Stereo has a great track by my favorite soul ladies' man Swamp Dogg, along with an interesting read on gay marriage and polyamory. Head over to Timedoor for Dert's Jose Gonzalez hip-hop mash-up if you haven't heard that yet. 2 Many Scenes has a tune from a great J-pop artist that is reminiscent of Kelly Clarkson power-pop. Speaking of Ms. Clarkson, ONTD has her new song "Go" which you may have heard in Ford commercials.