The Musik Lounge

Reginonal Hip Hop exists across the country. Some regions gain some media attention, some gain record label attention. Detroit has gained both over the years, with just cause. Since the passing of J Dilla in 2006 the town has seen an increased presence in the national Hip Hop scene. With aritsts like Black Milk, Guilty Simpson and Mayer Hawthorne all representing for the 313, and legends in the scene like Royce Da 5'9" linking up with the Slaughterhouse crew and touring relentlessly to spread there brand, which by extension is spreading the Detroit sound to further unknown locals. Given the history of the city, be it the music, the politics, the industry - or down fall of, it's no suprise that this city has been and continues to be a hot bed for influential music. Going through some new music that's been gathering digital dust on the hard drives around TML brought me aross a handful of releases that slipped through the radar and shouldn't have. Dilla ambassador and...

The thing that constantly comes to mind when I listen to The Bar Exam 2 is Royce’s vocal tone. It’s scathing, biting, as though he took all of his pent up frustration and held it in, and then used it as motivation to spew forth some of the strongest lines ever directed towards the industrialization of Hip Hop. But beyond sounding so serious, it proves the passion someone in Royce’s position has to have to still be in this game. After what seems like a continuous roller coaster ride of a career could Royce Da 5’9” finally have the focus he needs to get himself where he belongs - in the company of kings. Jumping out the box loud and hard Royce and his younger brother Kid Vishis attack the mic, bringing that “Heat to the Streets.” Royce and his brother have excellent chemistry, so much so that it might prevent Vishis from escaping the shadow – with four features here I can’t think of one line that I’m sure it was him and not Royce spitting. From here Royce runs through a series of bragga...