Childish Gambino!

So if you read my last post about Mr. Donald Glover, aka, Childish Gambino, you already know who he is and know that dude is coming up! Since I got on, I've been listening to his music nonstop. I'm hearing more and more of his great singing ability and his growing flow as a rapper. He states it quite a few times in his music, about how he didn't come into making music taking it seriously as a an artist. It was more of a "side" thing on top of everything else he does. Listening to his older tracks and comparing those to his new, you can hear how much more serious he's become and the hunger in his rapping.
And if I haven't yet, I definitely have to applaud him for being true to himself and rapping about what he knows. He's not rapping about guns or being a thug. Throughout his music I've noticed that he often references about his music not "being Black or White", and how he isn't making music to be directed towards any one group of people. Gambino says, "...These smart middle class Black kids need a role model...". Me being young and Black and surrounded by music that has everything to do with violence, drugs, drinking, etc., I must say it's always a breath of fresh air to hear an artist strictly make music about their life and what they know...even if half of what they know is all about "f****n different kinds of bitches".
Either way it goes, Childish Gambino is making some quality music. Even Addidas recognizes it by having Freaks & Geeks theme their new Adicolor commercial featuring Dwight Howard. Two of my favorite tracks off of his latest release of music (March) in a 5 track free EP (featuring Freaks & Geeks) are Be Alone and Lights Turned On. The 1st track, Be Alone, comes in with a very beautifully sang chorus. It is a true track to that feeling of loneliness, longing for someone and even betrayal. Lights Turned On, the 4th track has a complete opposite feel than the 1st. It has a cool, fun, sexy feel to it. This track is because it has sort of an underlying techno beat to it. And yes, I did say sexy..."I want the lights turned on...", now tell me where your mind runs to...and that's exactly what it is about. Ending with this stronger techno beat, which goes surprisingly well, this song will make you want to play it back a few times. So go ahead and click the link below to listen and/or download Childish Gambino's free EP. Enjoy!

EP - Childish Gambino

Donald Glover: Actor or Rapper?

If you've ever watched the comedic TV show Community or Comedy Central stand-ups, then you probably know who Donald Glover is...the Black guy. Residing in New York, by way of Atlanta, he is a comedian who also writes and raps. He is also 1/5 of the people behind Derrick Comedy (derrickcomedy.com). If you have, or even haven't, heard of them, something any fan of Comedy should check out is a movie called Mystery Team by Derrick Comedy. This is starring Donald Glover and three others from Derrick Comedy; all I can say is: HILARIOUS. And if that wasn't enough credit to prove that he knows his jokes, he also write for the show 30Rock. But what few people may know is that he not only raps, but he is damn good at it. He goes by the name of Childish Gambino as a rap artist. I honestly recently started listening to him, I heard that he rapped, but didn't think it would be serious so I brushed him off. Searching for some new music the other day, I came across a song he did over Kanye West's All of The Lights beat called Break, so I gave it a listen.....it was great. I'm not exactly sure yet, but I think he is also singing on the track, and he can do that as well. After really feelin' that track, I saw that someone released an unofficial mixtape by the name of I Do Not Talk. I ususally pass right over unofficial mixtapes, but it's a compilation of 20 songs from his old albums and mixtapes, so I figured what better way to listen to his music. There isn't much I can say to describe it besides different, good and funny [lyrics]. The beats are amazing. They are all different and incorporate different sounds, but nonetheless, very hot. I started from track one and just "vibed" through the whole thing. Although I will admit, towards the end the tracks started lacking what it had going in the beginning. I Do Not Talk is definitely a great listen to get into his music, I highly recommend it if you're looking to add a new artist to your music library. Click the links below to listen and/or download his new song Break and the mixtape I Do Not Talk. Enjoy!

Break (AOTL) -Childish Gambino

I Do Not Talk - Childish Gambino