Done & Done

Rhymefest - Never Can Say Goodbye (ft. Talib Kweli)

Well, the holidays are over, but the gifts keep coming. Today we have 2 free albums, free not in the sense that I stole them and gave them to you, but free in that they will not be paid for by anyone, anywhere. I think this generous trend was started by these guys.

First is Rhymefest, who will also be appearing at The Metro in Chicago on Friday, January, 18th. You can read more about this mixtape here, but Man In the Mirror is an homage to Michael Jackson and is composed of songs all with MJ and Jackson 5 samples. This is a dope album, particularly for this post-holiday vacuum of new music, and even accomplishes the rare feat of funny skits on a Hip Hop album. Maybe this will help Fest get some shine, as his 2006 album Blue Collar was one of the best of the year, yet relatively overlooked. His next one, El Che is supposed to drop in April, but as he says on here, it'll happen "whenever J Records gets that thing together..."
Anyway, you can download it here.


Killer Mike - Bad Day / Worst Day

Next up is Killer Mike and his new/from the vault album Ghetto Extraordinary. From 2005, this was supposed to be his follow-up to 2003's Monster. The song above serves as a good precursor to the song of the year in 2006, "That's Life", from his double-disc collabo album I Pledge Allegiance to the Grind. Somewhat similar to Rhymefest and Kanye, Mike has struggled a bit to emerge from his mentors' shadow (Outkast), but has proven to be a creative and versatile MC. Go get the album here.