B.o.B switches it up, No Genre (2010) Free Mixtape... don't sleep.

RuffDraft
RuffDraft Members, Writer Posts: 4,753 ✭✭✭✭
edited December 2010 in The Essence
Technically, this is The Essence, but this mixtape has been featured on an underground blog (shoutout to HipHopLinguistics.com) and has received good reviews.

He's a current and original artist who brings the heat starting with the first track, Beast Mode:

Sounds a decent tape, so I wouldn't sleep on it, especially when it's free :tu

Download.

Comments

  • RuffDraft
    RuffDraft Members, Writer Posts: 4,753 ✭✭✭✭
    edited December 2010
    his energy is in beast mode
    but his lyrics are in weak mode

    lol He's a pretty original artist, not the worst. Check out the features over at HipHopLinguistics.com:
    B.o.B “No Genre” Album Review
    This mixtape is the first time I’ve ever really listened to B.o.B. I mean, we all know that Airplanes track from the radio and television. And I’ve heard a couple song from his last album. But I never really sat down to listen to B.o.B until this week. I guess the fact that “No Genre” was available for FREE download made it easy to get, and once I had it in my rotation, I just couldn’t take it out. “No Genre” is one of those free mixtapes that is much better than most albums I pay money for these days, and it has made me a big B.o.B fan pretty much overnight.

    Why I Like This Album?

    1. It’s FREE - The fact that a cat like B.o.B put out an album’s worth of free music says something to me, mainly because he didn’t have to. Dude has a big hit song on the radio, and is at the height of his popularity. This means he could have released this for purchase and everybody would have bought it. B.o.B could have made a lot of money off of “No Genre.” But the fact that he decided to give it out for free kinda shows me that he’s not caught up in being rich or famous, and he touches on that point a lot in “No Genre.” In fact, B.o.B drops verses in Feet Don’t Fail Me Now, track of the week Not Lost and American Dreamin that examine his rise from obscurity to super-stardom from a real humble and realistic viewpoint.

    One good example of this viewpoint is in the song Feet Don’t Fail Me Now, which features T.I. In that track, B.o.B drops the following verse about how his new found fame hasn’t made him forget about where he came from, and won’t stop him from staying on his grind:

    Yeah signed yours sincerely/
    I’ve been up on my game, really they just started listening/
    So when you talk about the greats you got to mention me/
    And if you’re smelling dro you know that I’m in the vicinity/
    Flawless with symmetry yeah since elementary/
    ? bite the style like they trying to swap identities/
    Empty refrigerators all I see up in my memory/
    Now I’m in the club with complementary Hennessy/
    But this a jungle so you hear the snakes slithering/
    These ? fake like a face with no blemishes/
    So I’m moving with the force of an Olympian/
    So cold with it you would think that I invented it/
    Yeah I got a million ways to get it in/
    All day back and forth like tennis is/
    Another day at the office to handle business/
    From the beginning I’m sprinting to where the finish is/
    2. It’s conscious – I also always get impressed when rappers who have received mainstream success continue to spit socially or politically conscious rhymes. Especially since that’s not the type of stuff that gets radio airplay or Late Night spots these days. While “No Genre” is a mixtape, and therefore contained a lot of party style group and club tracks, B.o.B also laid down a handful of serious songs with real opinions and messages. Tracks like Shoot up the Station, video of the week The Watchers and quotable of the week Dr. Aden all touch on anti-establishment, conspiracy theory type of themes.

    A good example of this type of rhyming can be found on The Watchers, which could be my favorite song on the mixtape. On that track, B.o.B drops the following verse which touches upon all types of deep thought-provoking ? :

    Yes I feel the end, the end is close/
    The same thing happened eons ago/
    To know exactly you’d have to read up some more/
    Every day technology speeds up some more/
    As is above, so is below/
    Some feel the heat yet some feel the cold/
    We are the souls, yes we have been chosen/
    Some roll with angels and demons and those but/
    Hold up Bob don’t go there/
    You know that they watching, they all see and stare/
    But they can’t stop me I’m already there/
    And y’all ain’t seen ? but y’all already scared/
    I’m gone, high like fructose, fructose/
    You wanna know the truth? Really you don’t, you don’t/
    It’ll blow you out your mind like a ufo, ufo/
    I’m basically a resident of Pluto, Pluto, you know/
    But you’ll probably be the same one hating/
    Saying every rapper is in the Freemasons/
    While the cops giving out free mace to your face/
    Now how do that taste?/
    I’m out of my mind/
    These videos telling y’all lies bra/
    Telling y’all we holding evil hand signs bra?/
    Last time I checked I’m from the east side bra/
    So do your research and make your own mind up/
    ‘Cause us musicians have influence on this mic but/
    They don’t like that so they conquer and divide us/
    3. Storytelling - Y’all know I’m a sucker for hip-hop storytelling, and B.o.B shows off crazy skills throughout “No Genre.” The manner in which he incorporates emotional dialogue into his stories is really impressive. Cold As Ice tells the story of a man who robs a bank with his girl only to end up in prison after she rats him out. Dr. Aden tells the story of a doctor who is unknowingly infecting her patients with biological chemicals as part of a government experiment. And Attraction is a story about B.o.B’s experience with women.

    Probably the best example of B.o.B including dialogue in his storytelling can be found in Cold As Ice. In this story, a man plans and executes a bank robbery with his girl, only to be betrayed when the operation get foiled. The following verse tells the story of this man’s reaction to the events:

    So I realized it was over when the SWAT team kicked in the door/
    So I dropped my gun and the cash and then I got ? -rushed to the floor/
    And they took me into the station, and they started the interrogation/
    And I said, ‘I ain’t sayin’ a word ’til I get appropriate representation’/
    So as I get escorted out to my surprise what do I see/
    There’s my baby sitting in cuffs telling the officers everything/
    And I stand there in amazement trying to find an explanation/
    And the cops come in and restrain me, and they mace me, and they tase me/
    I said, ‘Baby, why baby? What did I took to forsake you?/
    How could you turn your back on me? You’re selfish, I hate you!/
    All I ever wanted to do was love you. Were you faking?’/
    So I snatched a gun from an officer, and I cocked it, and I aimed it/
    And said, ‘This is for all the pain you done put me through you ungrateful/
    How could you? All I wanted to do was save you!’/
    And here I am, day fifty-five, with fifty-five hundred to go/
    when you love a girl who’s as cold as ice eventually you’ll get froze/
    Overall, I highly recommend taking advantage of this FREE download. “No Genre” is one of those mixtapes that sets the bar high for what a mixtape is supposed to be. It’s got a little something for everybody, and it definitely has me looking forward to B.o.B’s next major release. Peace.

    B.o.B “No Genre” Track Listing:

    Beast Mode (? . by Infinity)
    So So (? . by Jim Jonsin)
    How U Do That (? . by Kutta)
    Feet Don’t Fail Me Now (feat. T.I.) (? . by Kutta)
    Higher (feat. Playboy Tre x CyHi Da Prynce x Bun B) (? . by Polow da Don)
    Shoot Up The Station (? . by Kutta)
    Not Lost (feat. T.I.) (? . by JR Rotem)
    Cold As Ice (? . by Mike Caren & B.o.B)
    The Watchers (? . by B.o.B)
    Batman Flow (feat. Donnis) (? . by Dr. Luke)
    American Dreamin’ (? . by Mike Caren & B.o.B)
    Grand Hustle Kings (feat. Young Dro x T.I.) (? . by Quincy Jones)
    Dr. Aden (? . by Jack Splash)
    Attraction (? . by B.o.B)
    Game Time (? by J. Lack)
    All City Chess Club: I’m Beaming (Remix)
  • ninjasenses
    ninjasenses Members Posts: 157
    edited December 2010
    it seems like this mixtape has been getting alot of buzz...i downloaded it but i honestly wasnt to impressed after one playthrough. Ill have to give it another listen before I have a solid opinion though.
  • contemplate
    contemplate Members Posts: 1,345 ✭✭✭
    edited December 2010
    i was just happy to hear more bob
  • elijahcraig
    elijahcraig Members Posts: 24
    edited December 2010
    his energy is in beast mode
    but his lyrics are in weak mode

    LOL. He tries his best, that's all I can ask. In a world where Antwon Dodson has a hit song and remix, when it comes to B.O.B. I'm a fan.
  • bluprint
    bluprint Members Posts: 465
    edited December 2010
    I got it not superinpressed but its ok
  • ty the great
    ty the great Members Posts: 162
    edited December 2010
    I like this. I like this alot better than his album or his last mixtape (Bob Vs. Bobby Ray). Lots of good tracks that are more conventionally based, and Bob showcases some good flows.
  • RuffDraft
    RuffDraft Members, Writer Posts: 4,753 ✭✭✭✭
    edited December 2010
    I like this. I like this alot better than his album or his last mixtape (Bob Vs. Bobby Ray). Lots of good tracks that are more conventionally based, and Bob showcases some good flows.

    Agreed, I think any original artist who comes with their own style should be given their props in todays climate.
  • rip.dilla
    rip.dilla Members Posts: 17,412 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited December 2010
    I DL'ed it and gave it a listen and its a 3/5 to me. Dude sings way too much than rhyming IMO.

    Better than the album though.
  • RuffDraft
    RuffDraft Members, Writer Posts: 4,753 ✭✭✭✭
    edited December 2010
    rip.dilla wrote: »
    I DL'ed it and gave it a listen and its a 3/5 to me. Dude sings way too much than rhyming IMO.

    Better than the album though.

    For free music, that's pretty dope, IMO. B.o.B has no need for a mixtape in my opinion, he's reaching the charts and receiving acclaim, so it's cool to see an artist put something out just for the love of it. Gets my respect for that.