The Rundown: Joey Bada$, B4.DA.$
A track-by-track look at the Brooklyn spitter's debut.
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The Rundown: Joey Bada$, B4.Da.$ - Building his buzz-worthy hip hop career over the last five years, Joey Bada$ finally makes his commercial debut with the birthday release of B4.Da.$. The Brooklyn rhyme champ draws from BK's mid-'90s hip hop stars such as Black Moon and Smif-n-Wessun to freshen the flow of today's rhyme style landscape. Click and check out this song-by-song breakdown of Joey's music arrival. (Photo: Pro Era)
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“Save the Children” - Armed with righteous snippets from pro-youth rally speeches Joey kicks off with his latest LP with a not-so-direct message of helping ghetto youth from under their problems. “'Cause misery on the interior,” he spits, “s**t gets more scarier / I’m never in fear, just a little inferior, in some areas.” (Photo by: Douglas Gorenstein/NBC)
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“Greenbax” (Introlude) - Coming in at 48 seconds, this interlude finds some candy hustling toddlers bluntly discussing getting money over a thick, airy piano sample. (Photo by: Douglas Gorenstein/NBC)
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“Paper Trails” - Yet another example of Joey being a continuum of Brooklyn mid-‘90s hip hop. A hypnotic head-nodding rhythm flavors this flow about, well, whatever melds one thought-filled word into another. “Sitting back plotting, jotting information on my nation,” rhymes Joey. “Really started from the bottom, boy, cotton.” (Photo: Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images for BET)
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“Piece of Mind” - Ethereal keyboards ride a boom bapping hi-hat on this cut as Joey unleashes another labyrinth of verbiage. “What’s life like now, tryin’ to figure out,” he raps. “They put this mic on trial ‘cause he be killin’ now. Bitin’ my forbidden style.” (Photo: Splash News)
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“Big Dusty” - “You don't want to see the evils, which I dwell in Hell,” Joey kicks in the first verse of this cut. “To excel, this s**t never fails, always excels / They been swallowing since before the double XL.” It’s another cerebral culmination of style reminiscent of a ‘90s underground cipher. (Photo: Josh Brasted/Getty Images)
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"Hazeus View" - On this track Joey conjures ‘90s one-hit rhymer Nine (“Whatcu Want?”), adding a sing-songy tinge to his Buckshot style. (Photo: John Ricard / BET)
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“Like Me” feat. BJ the Chicago Kid - Over a heavenly keyboard sample mixed with a snare, Joey teams with Chi-Town singer BJ to pile the verbal dexterity high with life and spirituality. “Since '9-5 momma been working 9-5 and I know the landlord is fed up with our lies,” Joey explains. “So we pray to the gods: the Jahs and the Allahs.” (Photo: Manuel Nauta /Landov)
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"Belly of the Beast" feat. Chronixx - For this dancehall venture with reggae star Chronixx, Joey gathers inspiration from Brooklyn '90s rhyme duo Smif-N-Wessun with his emphatic enunciation. "Comin' at me sideways, get straightened up," he rhymes. "Deflate s**t up / Give me the cash, my bucks straight going up." (Photo: Manuel Nauta /Landov)
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"No. 99" - With a beat inspired by A Tribe Called Quest's "Scenario" and a rebellious spirit fueled by Public Enemy's "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos" Joey rhymes of a youthful rebellion against white supremacy. (Photo: Max Herman/Retna Ltd./Corbis
Photo By Photo: Max Herman/Retna Ltd./Corbis
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"Christ Conscious" - Where the title suggests an homage to Jesus, the hazy bombastic track is really Mr. Bada$'s meditation within a whirlwind of metaphors and punchlines. (Photo: Gonzales Photo/Demotix/Corbis)
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"On & On" feat. Maverick Sabre and Dyemond Lewis - Teaming with U.K. singer Maverick Sabre and fellow Pro Era teammate Dyemond Lewis, Joey shifts gears into a smoothly jazzed R&B cut. (Photo: Lloyd Bishop/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank)
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"Escape 120" feat. Raury - Pro Era producer Chuck Strangers shades this track with a trip hop rhythm as Joey goes introspective and escapist with a rhyme reflecting on life, old friends and missed opportunities. (Photo: Kristy Umback/Corbis)
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"Black Beetles" - Feeling a bit like an etymologist, Joey kicks this blunted track off with: "I guess that we those like black beetles that's on the tracks and singles / And that flow is mean but it lacks tacks and needles." In a phrase: this song sounds like it's off the dome. (Photo: Gary Gershoff/Getty Images)
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"OCB" - On "OCB" (Only Child Blues) Joey takes a break from street reflections and battle flows to discuss his life as mom's one and only kid. "I remember sittin' in my room all alone," he reminisces, "staring at my ceiling fan getting in my zone." (Photo: Robert Wagenhoffer/Corbis)
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"Curry Chicken" - Hardcore rhymers can be momma's boys, too, as Joey displays on this low-key, jazz-tinged cut where he spits about being a famous MC who always remembers to appreciate the love of his mother. (Photo: C Brandon/Redferns via Getty Images)
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"Run on Ya" feat. Action Bronson and Elle Varner - Singer Elle Varner and gourmet hip hopper Action Bronson join Joey on this sexually raw track. "You the only one I'm tryin' to mack with," Joey tells his lady. "But you could be a liability / 'Yo fat a** hit / Horrible that a** been, bend that s**t backwards / Crack one back and hit the p***y like a password." (Photo: Johnny Nunez/WireImage)