Mercy, Mercy Me

defsounds.com

The south handed us The Dungeon Family, TI, Lil Jon, Rick Ross, Master P and Ludacris.  Completely wild personalities.  Dudes with thorough talent  and killer instincts.  Platinum recording artists with style and substance.  The list is long and strong. Whether you appreciate it or not, the south has carved out a niche and legend that will live longer than you and I ever will.

It’s obvious that I’m a proud New Yorker.  Nostalgia aside, that “golden-era” cliche is being refined by a new sound, and new looks.  But being a rapper from NY still carries (the most) weight.  I rock with rappers from all over the country but my NY pride ultimately leads me back home.  Tito Lopez has me scratching my head.  He’s got to be from Queens right? Brooklyn?  Not even close.  Mississippi can’t possibly sound like this?

KRIT does his thing but Tito Lopez is a Mississippi kid cut from a different cloth.  He came up listening to his parents hip hop collection and his pedigree is evident.  Feed a kid a steady diet of 50 Cent, Gang Starr and Jay Z and it doesn’t much matter where you raise him.  He’s going to spit it the way he hears it.  His newest project The Hunger Game  displays his love for pure lyricism.

Tito’s “Mass Appeal” and “Devils Pie” freestyles are ridiculous.  He reminds me of Kendrick Lamar that way he strings his punchlines and metaphors together.  He attacks every track as if his career depends on it.  And truth be told, it probably does.  It’s easy to be here a few months but harder to go the route of the ten year legacy.  Tito Lopez’s debut is coming soon via Capital Records.  In the meantime, get your hands on The Hunger Game at:

www.datpiff.com/Tito-Lopez-The-Hunger-Game-mixtape.354955.html