LUPE FIASCO'S THE COOL
The name of Lupe Fiasco's sophomore set sounds like a Kanye-ism, and that's fitting: The Cool spills over with Mr. West-style urgency, and it's just about as smart as anything Fiasco's more flamboyant mentor has issued. It could even land Lupe a little too close to the top of the hip-hop heap for Kanye's comfort. The Cool is cool not only for its sober, clear-headed vibe -- Fiasco ponders everything from the apocalypse to poverty to the weight of worldly possessions in these songs, some of them produced with a level of sensitivity uncommon among studio tracks by Soundtrakk -- but also for its potential. Songs like "Dumb It Down," about the music industry's insistence on the same old sorry themes, burn with reliability and realness. But others go deeper. "Little Weapon," produced by Fall Out Boy's Patrick Stump, and "Intruder Alert" shape-shift customary hip-hop dialogue to let the issues of the day come sharply into focus. They make you think. Overall, The Cool is fevered, fierce, and at times furious, but so is Lupe Fiasco, and the album easily earns its spot as one of the top 10 CDs of 2007.
01. Baba Says Cool For Thought (ft. Iesha Jaco)
02. Free Chilly (ft. Sarah Green and GemStones)
03. Go Go Gadget Flow
04. The Coolest
05. Superstar (ft. Mathew Santos)
06. Paris, Tokyo
07. Hi-Definition (ft. Snoop Dogg and Pooh Bear)
08. Gold Watch
09. Hip-Hop Saved My Life (ft. Nikki Jean)
10. Intruder Alert (ft. Sarah Green and Matthew Santos)
11. Streets On Fire (ft. Matthew Santos)
12. Little Weapon (ft. Bishop G and Nikki Jean)
13. Gotta Eat
14. Dumb It Down (Feat. Gemini and Graham Burris)
15. Hello/Goodbye (Uncool) (ft. Unkle)
16. The Die (Feat. Gemini)
17. Put You On Game
18. Fighters (Feat. Mathew Santos)
Click here to download...
The name of Lupe Fiasco's sophomore set sounds like a Kanye-ism, and that's fitting: The Cool spills over with Mr. West-style urgency, and it's just about as smart as anything Fiasco's more flamboyant mentor has issued. It could even land Lupe a little too close to the top of the hip-hop heap for Kanye's comfort. The Cool is cool not only for its sober, clear-headed vibe -- Fiasco ponders everything from the apocalypse to poverty to the weight of worldly possessions in these songs, some of them produced with a level of sensitivity uncommon among studio tracks by Soundtrakk -- but also for its potential. Songs like "Dumb It Down," about the music industry's insistence on the same old sorry themes, burn with reliability and realness. But others go deeper. "Little Weapon," produced by Fall Out Boy's Patrick Stump, and "Intruder Alert" shape-shift customary hip-hop dialogue to let the issues of the day come sharply into focus. They make you think. Overall, The Cool is fevered, fierce, and at times furious, but so is Lupe Fiasco, and the album easily earns its spot as one of the top 10 CDs of 2007.
01. Baba Says Cool For Thought (ft. Iesha Jaco)
02. Free Chilly (ft. Sarah Green and GemStones)
03. Go Go Gadget Flow
04. The Coolest
05. Superstar (ft. Mathew Santos)
06. Paris, Tokyo
07. Hi-Definition (ft. Snoop Dogg and Pooh Bear)
08. Gold Watch
09. Hip-Hop Saved My Life (ft. Nikki Jean)
10. Intruder Alert (ft. Sarah Green and Matthew Santos)
11. Streets On Fire (ft. Matthew Santos)
12. Little Weapon (ft. Bishop G and Nikki Jean)
13. Gotta Eat
14. Dumb It Down (Feat. Gemini and Graham Burris)
15. Hello/Goodbye (Uncool) (ft. Unkle)
16. The Die (Feat. Gemini)
17. Put You On Game
18. Fighters (Feat. Mathew Santos)
Click here to download...
