I’ve been waiting for something from these cats to drop since the homie RNR told me they were working on a collaboration project a while back. Mohammad Dangerfield is a composed of two of my favorite NYC emcees Rugged N Raw and Hasan Salaam, and Van Gogh is a nice little freebie they’re giving out before they drop the album’s first single this summer. Click below to listen to Mohammad Dangerfield’s Van Gogh:

[See post to listen to audio]

And click the following link to download the track for FREE: Download

Rugged N Raw “Truth Serum” Album Review
For me, Rugged N Raw’s “Truth Serum” is a perfect example of how music videos and free track downloads can help artists find fans in this new age of the hip-hop industry. I picked up this album from RNR at a local show almost a year ago. Being a big fan of his previous release “Another Level,” I listened to the new album right away, and even picked Life’s Purpose to be HHL track of the week in October – before getting caught up in other music. But recently, RNR dropped consecutive videos for I’m Broke and Proud and The Ultimate, and I was so impressed with them that I gave “Truth Serum” another listen – and I’ve been bumping it nonstop ever since.

Why I Like This Album?

1. It’s very personalized – In the album’s intro, RNR tells us that he is “liable inside the booth/ to make complex contents simple as tying shoes.” I got that statement more and more as I worked my way through this album, because several tracks tackle serious topics by explaining them in the light of everyday stories and personal experiences. I’m Broke and Proud turns the struggles of a starving artist into a series of amusing personalized stories, What A Night tells two stories that describe the common feeling of not having enough time to do everything, Life Purpose deals with both life and death and the emotions that surround them, I’ll Stay is another in a long line of RNR relationship analyzing songs, and I Can’t Take It talks about avoiding anger and retaliation despite being surrounded by negativity.

2. Rugged N Raw is still rugged and raw – You’ll find in hip-hop that a lot of emcees who start out as raw underground hip-hop lyricists eventually polish their flows to make them more mainstream accessible. And following his last album, I guess I expected the ruggedness to disappear over time as RNR polished his flow. But it hasn’t. While Rugged N Raw has obviously improved his skills as an emcee and producer, he has also managed to maintain the raw style that makes him who he is. RNR just has this crazy raw in-your-face flow that doesn’t sound like anyone else. And it worked out brilliantly in this album.

3. This is smashmouth music! – I jacked that line directly from the album’s opening track, but it‘s true. Most of the tracks on “Truth Serum” are hard-hitting lyrics laid over hard-banging production. Tracks like Smashmouth Music, All The Way, That’s What It Is, New Life and The Ultimate are the type of tracks playing on my iPod when you see me heavy metal dancing while pumping my fist on the subway during rush hour. And we all need to pump our fists from time to time, right?

4. The verses are dope – The more I listen to this album, the more I notice different verses. In fact, I can’t think of a single verse on the album that doesn’t stand out as quotable or well-written or humorous. One great example is RNR’s second verse from I’m Broke and Proud, which starts off with the following hilarious rhymes:

I ain’t posting latte chis/
I don’t go on shopping sprees/
I don’t even buy Tropicana/
Tropical Fantasies’ fine for me/
There’s not a lot I could make possible/
Only cheap ideas in the arsenal/
I’ll take a chick to the museum/
Looks nice and admission fee’s optional/
When stress does weigh down heavy/
Vacation is necessary/
What do I do? I pack my bags/
Weekend cruise on the Staten Island Ferry/

Overall: I slept on this album for almost a year, so the best advice I can give you is to not make the same mistake. Rugged N Raw’s “Truth Serum” combines hard-hitting beats, raw underground lyricism, interesting subject matter, and RNR’s unique way of viewing his surroundings to provide fifteen tracks of great underground hip-hop. It’s one of those albums that I find a new favorite song on every day. Pick up a copy and check it out for yourself. Peace.

Album Track Listing:

1. Truth Serum Preface
2. Smashmouth Music
3. Drama
4. I’m Broke & Proud (feat. Hasan Salaam)
5. All The Way
6. What A Night
7. That’s What It Is (feat. HiCoup)
8. Life’s Purpose
9. New Life
10. The Ultimate
11. Love Man
12. NY to NC (feat. URL)
13. Locked Away (feat. Homeboy Sandman)
14. I’ll Stay
15. I Can’t Take It

Brand new video from RNR’s latest album “Truth Serum.”

RNR is one of my favorite of the NYC underground. His album “Another Level” was one of the best albums of 2008. If you like this track, check out former HHL track of the week Life Purpose, and be sure to check out the new album that features these tracks, “Truth Serum.”

This week’s underground hip-hop track of the week is Rugged N Raw’s Life Purpose, off his new album “Truth Serum.” Life Purpose is a poetic lyrical track that deals with the untimely death of RNR’s pops, a teenage abortion, and dealing with his mother’s miscarriage. Click below to listen to the track:

[See post to listen to audio]

And be sure to follow along with the lyrics after the break.

[Verse 1]
I thought that I lost any reason to live/
Dead dad late November ‘round that season to give/
Now the doctor said too much fluid in the lungs/
There was absolutely nothing they could do but pull the plug/
I was on the verge of growing up, becoming a man/
I guess God needed him more and scooped him up with his hands/
Now don’t get me wrong – I’m grateful for the time spent/
But I begged to the lord, ‘Don’t take him – not yet!’/
On one hand it’s motivation, find my dream and get it/
But then again forget it, I can’t tell him that I did it/
He won’t get to be a grandpa, see me finish college/
Never saw the rough edges smoothed out and polished/
I worry sometimes the goal I’m facing is wrong/
Then I cry because I’m sorry that I’m taking too long/
Finding happiness without pop very hard pursuing/
All I want is a sign that he can see what I’m doing/

[Verse 2]
I had the chance to be a dad but I ain’t accept it/
My girl aborted – we didn’t get protected/
All my life growing up I believed it was wrong/
Little human beings die and these teens are at fault/
Despite scares, I thought it couldn’t happen to me/
But I knew soon as I bust little man was conceived/
Paternal instinct is real, it weighed on my conscience/
Fears came true, next day my girl’s nauseous/
Can’t imagine her grief, she carried it around/
The joy and pain of parenthood, sadly lived it now/
I constantly see an image of his smiling face/
I’m ashamed to be alive, I swear I need a hiding place/
Fuck life ‘cause I wish I died instead/
And every baby I come across I find regret/
’Til the point I wanna place knives inside my head/
Then once karma sees that I paid the price, I’m set/

[Verse 3]
For what it’s worth I’m still glad for opportunity/
To be on this earth and see what it got to do for me/
Little know fact in my heart it’s tragic/
Five months before conception, mom had a miscarriage/
Part of me hurts for this seed that should’ve been/
But the selfish I knows otherwise I couldn’t live/
I’m a plan B – just a consolation prize/
A chip’s on my shoulder to not let fate decide/
How my life is going to go – I’m the pilot steering/
I walk around straight faced though inside I’m tearing/
I’m constantly reminded that life is not promised/
I’ma stop moping and be happy I got it/
At times I’m sorry that I saw my daddy go/
But that’s a role model I can say I gladly know/
The mistakes I made whether savage or thin/
I just got to make sure that they don’t happen again/

Rugged N Raw “Another Level” Album Review
Charisma – some rappers have it, some rappers don’t. I could tell Rugged N Raw had it the first time I saw him walk on stage at NYC’s Bowery Poetry Club. Looking less like an emcee than a financial investor after a long day on Wall Street, RNR was decked out in a businessman’s attire, including dress slacks, button shirt, tie and suspenders. Because of this, I knew RNR had microphone skills before he spit even a single verse. After all, you’ve got to have skills to confidently jump on stage wearing something like that.

Rugged N Raw shows off this charisma, coupled with large doses of creativity and originality, throughout the course of his debut album “Another Level.” His lyrics are witty and often comical, demonstrating the effective rhyming, storytelling and analytical abilities of a talented emcee. This is seen throughout the course of “Another Level” with entertaining songs from start to finish.

One thing that impressed me about this album was Rugged N Raw’s storytelling ability. Ups N Downs is an autobiographical account of RNR’s experience with music , and how it has been both a blessing and burden on his life. Booty Call is a comical story about RNR’s hectic trip across the city for a late night sexual encounter. And Harsh Reality shares stories about a hardworking basketball player and a talented writer – both of whom watched their futures crumble due to bad decisions. The following verse explains the sad fate of the basketball star:

Fathered five kids in two and a half years/
No time and no money, his life turned so ugly/
His parents kicked him out upon discovery/
He was running the streets hanging with the wrong company/
Still distraught he was acting so deceitful/
He stopped shooting hoops, started shooting needles/
No more promises of collegiate scholarships/
A coulda been that never was that no one wants to bother with/
Never said no to trouble – scared to speak his mind/
Dead in the alley, no legacy to leave behind/

But what I really like about Rugged N Raw is his sense of humor and unique gift of thought. Several tracks on “Another Level” are either hilarious or well thought out, and contain different ways of thinking about everyday events. RNR’s Advice Column is a Dear Abby-flavored radio talk show in which Rugged N Raw gives callers advice on a variety of wacky problems, while Let The Ugly Out offers an interesting view about letting go your concern with the thoughts and judgments of other people.

My favorite song was Miss Broadway, a track in which RNR shares several of his relationship problems with the listener. The following verse had cracking up every time I hear it:

You want the toilet seat down – you scolding me sucks/
You should be as kind to put the toilet seat up/
Man you think that I lie and you go through my stuff/
You feel dumb, I was exactly where I told you I was/
Now I love her to death and she’s the queen of the house/
But if she mess up, best believe she sleeps on the couch/
If it all settles down and I ain’t get that pissed/
Man it’s cool, it ain’t nothing that some head can’t fix/
She wanna watch Lifetime, man I’m sorry to say/
She gotta wait until I’m finished here watching the game/
When she grabs the remote, yeah she’s mad at me now/
But the channels can’t change, I took the batteries out/

That shit sounds just like my girl homie. If you can relate, you might also be entertained by Rugged N Raw’s “Another Level.” It is unique, funny, head nodding and charismatic – and should provide a great break for those of you looking for a little something different. I highly recommend picking up a copy. Peace.

Related:
If you like this album, you’ll probably be interested in other charismatic emcees. I’d recommend Soul Position “Things Go Better with RJ and Al”, Living Legends “Classic”, and K-Os “Atlantis Hymns for Disco”.

Album Track Listing:

1. Intro
2. Redemption
3. This Is It
4. RNR’s Advice Column
5. Miss Broadway
6. Let The Ugly Out
7. Attraction
8. Interlude
9. Ups N Downs
10. Kick You Down
11. Harsh Reality
12. Booty Call
13. Another Level
14. Gone Too Soon
15. Outro
16. WildStyle