Freeway full discography12/18/2023 ![]() The audio on this album is magnificently diverse, in a way that helps the album stay fresh from track to track while avoiding the danger of sounding confused or busy.īut the real gem here lies at the very end. “Sho’ Nuff”, like “Follow My Moves”, finds Freeway taking a tour through southern, rather than eastern or western, tropes. “Know What I Mean” hits Freeway with the soul samples he’s best recognized for rapping over, while “Freekin’ the Beat” hands Free a generic Aftermath-style track. “One Thing”, featuring Raekwon, is not necessarily an original take on sucker MCs, but through sample choice and performance the three men involved deliver a nearly flawless track on its own merits. “Microphone Killa” gets Freeway in cipher mode with fellow Philly native Young Chris, while “Money” and “Follow My Moves” catch him in his thug motivation mode a la Killer Mike. The following track, “Never Gonna Change”, features a beat that most MCs would find ridiculously difficult to conquer, but Free tackles it with near-casual effectiveness. You see, Jake One also does a good job of highlighting how malleable Freeway is. Free’s joy here is infectious, yet in the framework of the album, the track acts as mere preparation for what’s about to follow. It has a chance to go down as this year’s “International Player’s Anthem” or “Hey Ya”, just one of those stupidly enjoyable songs that anyone who comes in contact with can’t help but champion. “She Makes Me Feel Alright”, which features a genius, bubbly flip of Rick James’ “Mary Jane”, tells the story of Freeway and a love interest. Beyond his words, Freeway’s rhythm is what really tells the story and attracts attention. ![]() Like Redman, his schemes are those of a rapper’s rapper. The way Freeway raps is an absolute exercise. I’m wondering if the things hip-hop fans and critics are listening for aren’t what they used to be. I find this hard to explain because many critics have tried passing Stimulus Package off as a better-than-average release to get until something better comes along. It places itself in so many different pockets throughout a given verse. What makes Freeway so entertaining is that he requires a listener to leave his lyrical expectations at the door. How do I explain “One Foot In”, a song so exquisitely put together in both rhyme function and sample lacing that I can’t help but bob my head, memorize the lyrics, and enjoy the hell out of the coolest hook I’ve heard in a while? How do I explain away my embrace of a typically horrible Birdman verse on “Follow My Moves” solely on the strength of an amazing southern-style banger and Freeway’s typically motivational lyrics and exciting delivery? The Stimulus Package is nothing less than the album Freeway was born to make, a release that finds both Free and Jake One at the apex of their respective talents, milking each other for everything they’re worth. And as such, I’m finding it difficult to put this album into words. Thankfully, I couldn’t have been more right. After Freeway further proved his worth on Jake One’s White Van Music in 2008, I had an inevitable feeling that if any producer were to assume the Just Blaze role in the future, it was going to be Jake One. His hiatus from the mic to travel to Mecca as part of his Muslim religion seemed to have done him all the good in the world, as he came back a supremely confident, truly unique MC.įree at Last also introduced fans to the potential Jake One taps into when providing Free a backing track. While the production wavered incoherently between midlevel Roc-a-Fella boom bap and the mainstream aspirations of singles like “Lights Get Low” and “Take It to the Top”, Freeway himself became an utter beast on the microphone. This left a fickle hip-hop audience unsure of what to do with Freeway was he good or garbage? His rhyme schemes are not traditional either, which is a trait he would really bring into focus on the G-Unit/Roc-a-Fella release Free at Last in 2007. But Freeway is also one of the more unique vocalists in hip-hop, with a nasal whine that can slightly recall Lil’ Wayne at its most fever-pitched. His debut with Just Blaze, 2003’s Philadelphia Freeway, was a monster of soulful production that took most seriously Jay-Z’s Blueprint for success. Of all the rappers to watch their careers go the way of the mixtape rapper in the wake of Cam’ron and Jay-Z’s dissolution of the Roc, Freeway is the one I always held a soft spot for. ![]() Thank God almighty, Freeway is free at last.
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