Some of the heavy hitters of the rap genre take every chance they get to hoist Talib Kweli upon their shoulders. On College Droput, Kanye West claimed, 'My relationship with Kweli, I think, was one of the best things to ever happen to me in my career as a rapper ... I love him for that.' Hip-hop pioneer Jay-Z said, 'If skills sold, truth be told / I'd probably be, lyrically Talib Kweli.'
Why then has Talib Kweli consistently been under the radar of high volume hip-hop? Releases like Kweli's latest disc, Right About Now: The Official Sucka Free CD answer that question.
Right About Now embodies the true 'starving artist' quality of Talib Kweli's music with its lyric-driven, rather than producer-driven tracks. In this regard, the sound of Right About Now most closely resembles Kweli's earliest work with Rawkus Records.
Kweli spins verses deploring the commercial ring-tones of hip-hop music and, in doing so, acts as proof positive that Talib Kweli wishes less for his music to produce dollars than to produce distinction.
On Right About Now, listeners hear Kweli's contempt for the corporate side of hip-hop as he insults the likes of Interscope CEO Jimmy Iovine and Geffen Records CEO David Geffen. He even defines MCA Records as the Music Cemetery of America, and in so hearing, listeners will understand Talib Kweli's love of hip-hop.
The album's title track defines Kweli's intentions for hip-hop, proclaiming, 'Our crew is the best, and we proved it. music is the vanguard of our movement.' In such proclamations, Kweli sings of his love for hip-hop and of his great hopes for the hip-hop movement.
On the most production-savvy track of this album, 'Charlemagne,' he lays down a sped up Ben Kweller sample with a sound similar to that which he has produced before for production reliant rapper Cam'ron.
With 'Ms. Hill,' Kweli continues singing hip-hop's plight as he devotes this wrenching song to Lauryn Hill of Fugee fame in pleading for her return to music as a pioneering solider on its frontlines.
Overall, Right About Now: The Official Sucka Free CD is just another in a long line of releases by Talib Kweli which demands more from its listeners than passive listening and requires an investment of time. While the release by Koch Records may act as further proof that Talib Kweli is not looking to expand his devoted fan base, Right About Now: The Official Sucka Free CD is an album that deserves attention from even uninitiated followers of this progressive force in hip-hop music.
