Innercity Griots [Explicit Lyrics]

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Los Angeles in the early 1990s was a creative hotbed for hip-hop innovation, and much of it took place at the Good Life Cafe--a South Central health-food store where the city's finest microphone fiends would gather to showcase their freestyle skills, spitting ghetto wisdom straight off their respective domes. The first group to rise from the scene was Freestyle Fellowship, comprised of Aceyalone, Mikah Nine, P.E.A.C.E., Self Jupiter, and DJ Kiilu. As the follow-up to their independent debut, To Whom It May Concern, Innercity Griots is a progressive hip-hop masterpiece and an incredible display of lyrical elevation. Freestyle Fellowship expand rap music's boundaries wider than their lungs right before they let loose the verbal acrobatics. Groundbreaking songs like "Inner City Boundaries," "Park Bench People," "Bullies of the Block," and "Hot Potato" brilliantly build on the concepts of old-school jazz improvisation in a present tense, as the MCs bounce verses off each other and the cool, jazzy beats. --James Tai

Innercity Griots,Freestyle Fellowship,Fourth & Bway / Pgd,Alternative Rap,Hip-Hop,Political Rap,Pop,Rap,Rap & Hip-Hop,Soul/Reggae/Rhythm & Blues,West Coast Rap

Innercity Griots [Explicit Lyrics]

Innercity Griots [Explicit Lyrics]

Average customer rating:

(3+half) These INNERCITY GRIOTS=Lyrical wizards!!!

(Rating: 9 out of 10- -4.5 stars): L.A.'s Hidden Talent of 1993!

Get Ready For The Super Rap Battle Tag Tournament Champs

Criminally under-apprecited

An acquired taste; suprisingly effective formula

Innercity Griots
Freestyle Fellowship
Manufacturer: Fontana Island
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Soul | R&B | Styles | Music
General | Rap & Hip-Hop | Styles | Music
West Coast | Rap & Hip-Hop | Styles | Music
Experimental Rap | Rap & Hip-Hop | Styles | Music
Pop Rap | Rap & Hip-Hop | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

To Whom It May Concern

Temptations

All Balls Don't Bounce

Shockadoom

Organized Konfusion

ASIN: B000005HT5
Release Date: 1993-04-27

Tracks:

Blood/Bullies On The Block
Everything's Everything
Shammy's/Heat Mizer
Six Tray
Danger
Inner City Boundaries/Bomb Zombies
Cornbread
Way Cool
Hot Potato
Mary
Park Bench People
Heavyweights/Tolerate
Respect Due
Pure Thought

Amazon.com

Los Angeles in the early 1990s was a creative hotbed for hip-hop innovation, and much of it took place at the Good Life Cafe--a South Central health-food store where the city's finest microphone fiends would gather to showcase their freestyle skills, spitting ghetto wisdom straight off their respective domes. The first group to rise from the scene was Freestyle Fellowship, comprised of Aceyalone, Mikah Nine, P.E.A.C.E., Self Jupiter, and DJ Kiilu. As the follow-up to their independent debut, To Whom It May Concern, Innercity Griots is a progressive hip-hop masterpiece and an incredible display of lyrical elevation. Freestyle Fellowship expand rap music's boundaries wider than their lungs right before they let loose the verbal acrobatics. Groundbreaking songs like "Inner City Boundaries," "Park Bench People," "Bullies of the Block," and "Hot Potato" brilliantly build on the concepts of old-school jazz improvisation in a present tense, as the MCs bounce verses off each other and the cool, jazzy beats. --James Tai

Customer Reviews:

(3+half) These INNERCITY GRIOTS=Lyrical wizards!!!.......2007-03-28

Even though this is technically their 2nd album after "To Whom It May Concern" this was my 1st introduction to the crew. Even after all these years it still has so many magical moments that I recommend it to alot of my friends that are looking for something fresh+original. This is the start of the boom of albums concentrating more on lyrics rather than phat production. All 4 mcs are on top of their game throughout the album and the production is off the wall. However that same off the wall production lets them down afew times over the course of the album. Also 1 or 2 of the tracks are abit weak, whether thats to do with how old the album is or that it just wasnt as good as the rest of the tracks. That said, even after 14years tracks such as "Danger", "Innercity Boundaries", "Cornbread", "Hot Potato"(still awesome), "Respect Due" and "Pure Thought" sound as fresh+tight now as they back then. This is the perfect intro to the Fellowship for any new fan. Still hot to death.

(Rating: 9 out of 10- -4.5 stars): L.A.'s Hidden Talent of 1993!.......2006-09-05

1993 was a big year for the city of Los Angeles. Dr. Dre and Snoop were holding down the mainstream portion of the rap scene. The Pharcyde were doing their alternative hip hop as an addition. But who held the underground? There was a group called Freestyle Fellowship who was taking care of that problem. Consisting of Mikah Nine, Jupiter, Aceylone, P.E.A.C.E., and J-Sumbi made this group, with dope beats and dope rhymes. I don't recognize these people except Aceylone because his name still roams around today (and somehow I've been avoiding him for a while). This is one of those albums that I didn't know was released until I came to Amazon.

The group is great for showing off their mic skills, but at the same time, having fun with their word play. A couple of notable tracks that I fell in love with right away is "Shammies", dedicated to chasing the females. "Way Cool" is a fun song, and as I said before, great word play, especially by Jupiter. I think thats Aceylone gets on that track and screams his head off while rhyming. To tell you the truth, I think Jupiter shines on a lot of songs, especially on the song "Six-Tray". Mikah 9 does a little singing/rapping mixture on the relaxing song "Park Bench People", and according to one reviewer he was inspired to write this while he was homeless. Listening to that song, it seems to make a lot of sense.

Production is pretty cool. I like the instrumental-type beats that each member rhymes over. It kind of sounds like something that The Roots would create, but at the same time keep it's hip hop style, like on "Innercity Bounderies". They'd flip an old school sounding beat for Aceylone for his solo song "Cornbread". I'm also digging a lot of the slow and mellow sounding songs like "Mary", a song dedicated to smoking weed.

The album is dope as well. The only problem that I have with this is the sound quality. Some songs are good, but at the same time some songs sound like they're being performed live with no audience. I really don't care about that very much, but when you hear it real closely, you'll realize that. I've gotten used to the members in the group to distinctively tell who is who. Maybe if I heard their solo albums, I'll be able to tell a little easier. But all that is no big problem, and can easily be surpassed. When I bought this album, there was a sticker on the packaging that said "Mad beats and straight up mic skills from L.A.'s underground", a good way to describe this album. I recommend this album to underground hip hop listeners. I origionally gave this a 7, but then after a while I bumped it to an 8, but now I give it a 9. This is one of those albums that you're are going to have to let grow on you. When it does, you will fall in love with it.

Favorite Tracks: Bullies On The Block, Shammies, Six Tray, Cornbread, Way Cool, Hot Potato, Mary, Park Bench People, Hevyweights

Get Ready For The Super Rap Battle Tag Tournament Champs.......2006-03-10

The Freestyle Fellowship is made up of an unprecedented amount of talent. Crew members Aceyalone, Mikah 9, Self-Jupiter, J-Sumbi, and P.E.A.C.E. completely revitalized the Los Angeles underground hip-hop scene in the early 90s. The signature element of the collective is their bafflingly speedy flows. In addition, they bring a whole new set of fresh ideas to the table. Even in the early stages of their career, every emcee is on the top of their game. The production, if unspectacular, is a vast improvement from "To Whom It May Concern..." (1991). That really doesn't hurt the album in the least. Their flow and rhythms dictate the production's breaks and cuts. At times, their flows are so fast, it's nearly impossible to follow. Much of their flows are undoubtedly freestyles, which gives the album a certain charm and freshness that many rap crews could never attain. "Inner City Boundaries" featuring Stetsasonic's Daddy-O and "Shammy's" are fine examples of their impenetrable tag-team rap battle styles. The street-smart "Everything's Everything" and the untouchable "Way Cool" rank among my favorites. The posse cut "Heavyweights" features a slew of quality guest emcees including Spoon (of Iodine), Archie, Cockney "O" Dire, Ganjah K, and Volume 10. Each track emulates originality.

It may take a few spins to fully digest the material. At first I thought it was a bit unorganized and kind of spotty. But like most good albums that emulate any sense of complexity, further listening will prove you wrong. Overall, this is a cornerstone album of the West Coast underground hip-hop scene. It's so good, that it will have you buying up their solo works. Just excellent!

Criminally under-apprecited.......2005-07-28

It's a CLASSIC. Get with it. Just to correct the 1st reviewer; "Park Bench People" was in fact sung by one of the 4 members. The singer is Mikah 9. The lyrics were never written down, it was improvised over a couple studio sessions. It gets better with each listen. Mikah used the 6 weeks he spent homeless in Leimert Park as inspiration for the track.

An acquired taste; suprisingly effective formula.......2004-09-21

Expanding my hiphop collection, I decided to pick this one up once I could find it. I was fascinated by their name, that and the reviews I'd read. I was a little bit bewildered at first, it wasn't anything that I thought could be good, but I'll explain that later. I definitely had to listen to it a couple more times through.
I began to like this album considerably after the second time, as I could understand their style and aim a little better. "Inner City Griots" starts off strong with "Bullies of the Block" and then "Everything's Everything." "Shammies" I didn't like at first, but now I can tolerate it despite its sheer lustful tones. It's one of the few exceptions of those types of songs. Most of the album contains utter freestyling, rapid-fire rhyming that can be hard to descipher, rhyming in synchronization, and even some serious and silly singing, and combinations of all these within songs.
"Park Bench People" is an interesting joint that is sung about hard times (probably not by one of the four MC's of the group). It's different and nice to hear, but not one that should be replayed over and over. I can't make out which of the MC's is rapping during the whole album, except Aceyalone who's voice is unique and he manifests himself as the leader of this group. I am impatiently eager to check out some of his solo albums. Almost every song hits the mark on this album, except in my opinion "Six Tray," "Mary," and "Park Bench People" (like I said not very replayable). "Mary" is another ode to an obvious pastime and affliction (why do so many rappers insist on incorporating this aspect of their life into their music?), yet it still listenable and not as bad as most other songs dedicated to the subject. The songs that stand out even among all the good tracks are "Bullies of the Block," "Danger," Aceyalone's mostly-solo "Cornbread," and of course "Inner City Boundaries" and "Hot Potato." Aceyalone shines on "Cornbread," and "Inner City Boundaries" dispays their consciousness, afrocentric obligations, and basically a bigger understanding of life compared to the other West Coast rappers of the time. "Hot Potato" is compelling, they all rhyme the same lines together for the most part throughout the whole song, and it works well. If I had to pick a favorite from all these, it would be "Inner City Boundaries." I wasn't that impressed by the extended guest list of "Heavyweights," but this one still ends up being a decent song and it has its high points.
"Inner City Griots" is memorable because FF kind-of throws out the book on rhyme and song structure, and writes their own rules. This is a good thing for the most part, but it hurts at other times. Sometimes the songs have no focus or cohesive subject (hence Freestyle) and that can make it rough to listen to, especially the first time around. This aspect led me to deduct just one star, along with the fact that they tend to fall into the typical West Coast cliches of guns, sex, lust for women, physical violence, and drug abuse (really just weed). While this threatens to dominate the album after the first five tracks, these subjects aren't touched upon too much in the second half of the album. In fact, this is what you should expect when first listening to the Fellowship- hearing some of the typical West Coast subjects but a bigger picture of life and a few deep thoughts. Don't forget their innovative freestyle, singing, rapid-fire spitting, and sychronizational rhyming that they bring to the table. FF even adds that East Coast fad (back then) of jazz into their music, and it's a welcome addition. The production here adds a lot to the rhyming, and at times the bass bumps excruciatingly hard. This album may not be a unanimous classic even among the underground heads, but it's definitely worth a couple listens and it's another great example of how dynamic and diverse hiphop can be (contary to popular public belief)!

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