Little Known Little Brother

Often times, when hip-hop artists are asked about their biggest influences, the same names are mentioned time and time again: Jay-Z, 2Pac, The Notorious B.I.G., Nas, Kanye, etc. But, I bet if you asked a ton of blog era legends like Drake, J. Cole and Wale, they’d all mention Little Brother, one of the most impactful and influential rap groups of the 2000s 🎧

Little Brother is comprised of rappers Phonte and Big Pooh and producer 9th Wonder - the three met as students at North Carolina Central University and released their first album The Listening in 2003. They caught national attention when Jay-Z heard the beat for their song Lovin’ It, attempted to take it for The Black Album, but ended up with 9th Wonder produced Threat instead 🗣

They went on to release a few mixtapes and albums thereafter and eventually broke up in 2010. From their soul sample inspired sound to their so-called nerdy backpack rap, Little Brother left an immense imprint on an entire generation of artists who came up after them. Especially Drake, who has been vocal about his love and appreciation for them. Little Brother was featured on 2 songs (Don’t You Have A Man & Think Good Thoughts) of Drake’s Comeback Season mixtape and Drake even shouts them out on his song Fear 👀

Do your homework on these legends - trust me it’s worth your time. I’ll drop my favorite tracks at the bottom of the newsletter 🙏

Year End Lists

2022 is coming to a close...I can’t believe it. And that means it’s the time of year that music focused media outlets drop their own year end lists. I’m really not one for these, because it’s always the same stuff...mainstream music, so a lot of dope and impactful artists have projects and songs that go unnoticed 😏

So with that being said, I feel as if I must fulfill my civic duty and provide something different for you. In the coming newsletters, I’ll be giving my recommendations and reviews on some of my favorite, lesser known artists, projects and songs and hope they provide you with as much joy as they has for me. If there is anything specific you would like featured, Sleepers of the Year, Artists to Watch etc., please respond to this email or DM me and let me know 🙏

As mentioned above, here’s some Little Brother songs you need to add to your rotation ASAP 👇

• Lovin’ It ft. Joe Scudda

• I See Now

• The Way You Do It

• For You

• Whatever You Say

Playlist here as always, enjoy your week fam 💜

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