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John Legend and The Roots- Wake Up! (album review/preview)

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When I first heard these 2 music titans were getting together and doing an album together I couldn’t believe it. Well myself and thousands of others are believers now cause it’s finally out and the album is a beast! If you thought the Jay-Z/ Linkin Park Collision Course album was nuts this album is a must by.

Soulful singer John Legend & the baddest band in all the land The Roots present Wake Up!, and if you think that this dream team of a combination looks good I can assure you it sounds even better! This album is packed with 12  songs pulled from the soulful music of the 60’s and 70’s all with a theme of awareness, engagement and consciousness all blessed by John’s voice and the Roots instrumentation/ lyrics. The album is highlighted with familiar tracks like “Little Ghetto Boy” by Donny Hathaway mixed with more obscure selections like Baby Huey and the Babysitters’ “Hard Times” which is my cut. Wake Up! also includes one original composition, John Legend’s “Shine,” which is featured in the documentary Waiting For Superman.

From the very start of the album this killer combo comes out of the gate’s full blast with a loud, soulful, live, hard hitting sound that you can’t help but get excited and bob your head too with “Hard Times.”  This track is probably one of my favorite because it’s the perfect combo of John’s high notes, The Roots instrumentation and Black Thought lyrics. I had to bless yall with a live in studio performance of it which gives you one hell of an idea as to how they all recorded this album which makes sense as to why it’s so live! I swear if you closed your eyes with the volume all the way up you’d swear John and the Roots were playing live right in front of you. It’s that live yall.

“Hard Times (live in studio)”

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOgkRniSNTs

“Wake Everybody”

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJgxJ6JrPkc

01. Hard Times Feat. Black Thought

02. Compared To What

03. Wake Up Everybody Feat. Common & Melanie Fiona

04. Our Generation (The Hope Of The World) Feat. Cl Smooth

05. Little Ghetto Boy (Prelude) Feat. Malik Yusef

06. Little Ghetto Boy Feat. Black Thought

07. Hang On In There

08. Humanity (Love The Way It Should Be)

09. Wholy Holy

10. I Can’t Write Left Handed

11. I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free

12. Shine

01. Hard Times Feat. Black Thought

[audio: 01. Hard Times (feat. Black Thought).mp3]


02. Compared To What

[audio: 02. Compared To What.mp3]

03. Wake Up Everybody Feat. Common & Melanie Fiona

[audio: 01. Hard Times (feat. Black Thought).mp3]


06. Little Ghetto Boy Feat. Black Thought

[audio: 06. Little Ghetto Boy (feat. Black Thought).mp3]


09. Wholy Holy

[audio: 09. Wholy Holy.mp3]


10. I Can’t Write Left Handed

[audio: 10. I Can’t Write Left Handed.mp3]

12. Shine

[audio: 12. Shine.mp3]

5 out of 5 Cartons


-Black Milk



John Legend & The Roots release video “Little Ghetto Boy”

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Unless you have been living under a rock, that is under another rock, you know about John Legend and The Roots collaboration album coming September 21st, 2010.  You can pre-order the album here. Singles and now video has slowly begun to seep out, to give us all a taste of this powerful talent packed album.  They have just released the video “Little Ghetto Boy”.  A mellow laid back track, that makes you feel that you are in Harlem in 1975 with your afro pick. :)  Enjoy.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbY7KTZFR5Y

Get up with a Legend

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Getting two top notch talents to collabs on a project is not easy. But when it happens, we are all in for a great project. Sitting here still listening to Nas and Damien Marley’s project together, Distant Relatives, it makes me want more artist to join as one to give the fans something special.

One of my favorite rap groups The Roots, has joined up with a multi-talented singer in John Legend to present to the world, Wake Up!

There are so many endless possibles to this project. I’m happy to see these two super talents push aside their ego’s and produced a cd together. From the early reviews, this has the makings of a classic disc.

September 21st is the date to remember. The Roots and John Legend are giving the world an early Christmas present.

Wake Up! tracking

1. Compared To What
2. Hard Times
3. Little Ghetto Boy
4. Wake Up Everybody w/ Common and Melanie Fiona [audio: Wake-Up-Everybody-feat.-Common.mp3]

5. Our Generation [audio:  Levis_JohnLegend_Our_Generation.mp3]

6. Love The Way It Should Be
7. Hang On In There
8. I Can’t Write Left Handed
9. Wholy Holy
10. I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free
11. Shine

Here is an added bonus. This is the trailer for the video The Fire

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHlLS2yUBaQ

Fresh from the Fridge- The Roots featuring John Legend- Doin It Again

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The baddest band in all the land are back with they’re forthcoming album “How I Got Over” set for release this month on the 22nd. And who better to hire for some smooth soulful vocal’s then the talent of John Legend. Today I’m blessing your ears with one of two feature’s John Legend is featured on entitled “Doin It Again.” If the title and lyrics on the track sound familiar it’s because they’re sampled from John’s “Again” track of his sophomore album “Once Again.”

Before you play this track be warned that it is straight FIYAH!!!!!! I swear it made my eye’s water. The beat is heat, Black Thought’s lyrics are on point as usual and I love how they sampled a live version of “Again” as opposed to the studio version because it flows perfect with the Roots live sound.

Here’s a great live video of spotlight sample I’m talking about…

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtC0rcHkTxE

And to all my Root’s fan’s here’s the album cover and tracklist for they’re new album…

1. Interlude 1 feat. Amber Coffman, Angel Deradoorian & Haley Dekle of Dirty Projectors
2. Walk Alone feat. Truck North, P.O.R.N. & Dice Raw
3. Dear God 2.0 feat. Monsters Of Folk
4. Radio Daze feat. Blu, P.O.R.N. & Dice Raw
5. Now Or Never feat. Phonte & Dice Raw
6. How I Got Over feat. Dice Raw
7. Interlude 2
8. The Day feat. Blu, Phonte & Patty Crash
9. Right On feat. Joanna Newsom & STS
10. Doin’ It Again
11. The Fire feat. John Legend
12. Interlude 3
13. Web 20/20 feat. Peedi Peedi & Truck North
14. Hustla feat. STS

The Roots Feat John Legend – Doin’ It Again

Download [Download not found]

Enjoy the freshness

-Black Milk