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Making the R&B Rounds

There can never be enough music to absorb. When you’ve run your string of mainstream rap, it’s time to put your ear to the street: turn to the mashups, mixtapes and remixes to swell your exposure to the ever-growing world of hip hop.

J. Holiday Feat 8Ball & MJG


"City Boy"

Album: Smokin’ RnB Vol. 9
DJ Smallz
OK, I know I spent a lot of my previous reviews basing on hip-hop’s Generation Y. Something about them being a bunch of tasteless fools hooked on their own flash? So what am I doing this week, plucking J. Holiday out of last week’s trashbin to highlight?
Truth is, going a little schizo in your musical tastes goes a long way to livening them up. A little Wu here, a little Slick Rick there and a little 8Ball & MJG to top it off. J. Holiday leads off "City Boy" with a Sunday-worthy groove, backed by ripping trumpets and all. Thank the Lord, too, cause Holiday’s "Bed" only gave him room to tiredly whine. By the time Holiday calls for the clap, clap, clap, 8Ball & MJG rolls on just as smoothly as the church-sway it rocks into your hips. Yeah, stand up and listen to it — see if you can’t sway.

Plies Feat. Trey Songz

"Shawty Remix"
Album: Mixfilez Vol. 9
DJ Rafi Raf
It’s somehow unfair that Chris Brown gets all the attention, while his crooning companion Trey Songz gets jack. The man has Usher’s suave and puts that fist-clenching heartiness into his falsetto. Sure, it’s trash to the max when Songz screeches, but the undeniably smooth redoing of T-Pain’s and Plies’ "Shawty" blares that some stupid confidence when it steeps into the "my, my, my, my, my’s."

Wyclef Jean Feat. Akon & Lil Wayne

“Sweetest Girl Remix”
Album: Mixfilez Vol. 9
DJ Rafi Raf
It was only a matter of time before someone spliced Wu Tang’s "C.R.E.A.M." into Wyclef Jean’s "Sweetest Girl"; after all the chorus throws a direct shout-out to the Wu’s classic outing. This remix breathes freshness into the overplayed "Girl," then throws in some Raekwon to spice it all up. Fav Akon line: "I don’t know whether or not to lay low/ Cause 25-to-life is no joke." Brilliant.

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