Summer of 1998!

As we face this heat during the summer months my mind has traveled back in time to the summer of 1998! That was a good time for me as a young adult and in my love for music. I had just graduated from college and was working at 92Q in Baltimore, where we were getting ready for our Summer Jam concert! During that time there were a lot of great songs on the radio. I'm talking about music that had a purpose and had your head going from side-to-side to the beat and rhythm. It's funny I wish I could take a time machine back in time to some of my favorite times in my life. It is even more amazing how music has played a major factor in my life as well. So, I thought I would share a little play list of some of the hits in the summer of '98 that made me rock out. This is just a taste of what '98 had to bring so don't go getting on me for missing shit! :)



Next - Too Close



Wyclef Jean - Gone Till November



Dru Hill - How Deep Is Your Love



Monifah - Touch It



Missy Elliott & Da Brat - Sock It 2 Me



Deborah Cox - Nobody's Suppose To Be Here



Master P - Make Em Say Uhh!

Alison In Wonderland!!!

There is not much I can say about this lady other than "she is effin' awesome!!!" If you have never heard of her or seen her live let me be the first to say, "World, allow me to introduce you to Alison Carney!" She is a beast! A talent like no other and just a all-around cool ass chick! Peep out her latest EPK "Alison Wonderland", I guarantee you won't skip a song as she captures your mind and soul with each note. Enjoy!

Why I Love Adele!

So sue me for watching "Dancing With The Stars" but it is my secret delight. I was geeked when I heard Adele was going to be on there performing. There are a lot of folk out there that claim they can sing but Adele surpasses them ten fold! She is so hot and in demand right now, so much that tickets for her performance at the 930 Club in DC are going for like 3G's from scalpers. I love me some Adele but I'm not parting 3G's for her though. LOL. Good thing I know folk. If you are not familiar with Adele I urge you to get caught up with this wonderful and gifted singer. Yea, she's British and wait for it....white, but who cares?! This woman can blow. And I would go on the record to say she is hands down the best vocalist out there right now! I dare anyone to say well what about Rihanna, Keri and Beyonce'. Please don't play yourself! Her cover of the Rolling Stones "Rolling In The Deep" is truly amazing! See for yourself below.



Her album "21" is currently number on the charts. So do yourself a favor and go cop what I call musical magic to your ears. You won't be disappointed. Trust me.

Mint Condition - 7 Album Review

It is hard for me to sit here and write this review for a group that has been stellar and consistent in their craft for more than 20 years! Not hard that I think they are not appealing now but hard for me to imagine that time certainly does fly by. The release of their 7th studio album coincidentally called "7" shows us why this band (yes band) has been able to survive and inspire for the past 20 years. This album is some sort of a reunion for die-hard Mint Condition fans with the return of Keri Lewis. The album is laced with 11 tracks that show you the growth that the group has made over the years. Those of you hoping to hear smooth melodic slow jams that made you fall in love with them years ago, you have another thing coming. There are some very funk ladened tracks on here that showcases Stokely's very distinguished voice. Tracks like "I Want It" and "I Can Ease The Pain" are reflective of that statement. In a day in time in music where real musicianship is either a lost art or just totally forgotten Mint Condition shows us that it is still alive and well. Songs like "Caught My Eye" and "Not My Daddy"(co-written by Kelly Price), show us a glimpse of the past that made us all fall in love with this group 20 years ago. My suggestion is that you put this album on right now and just close your eyes and let MC take you to a place where all you need to do is  just relax and relate.

https://sites.google.com/site/stretchsworld/Not_My_Daddy.mp3
https://sites.google.com/site/stretchsworld/Caught_My_Eye.mp3

Brother Where Art Thou Soul? .

As I sit here listening to Sam Cooke belt out "A Change Is Gonna Come" something struck me that over the last 20 years in R&B, there has been a problem...it's called "SANG-ING!" 

Yes, there are some great singers currently out there but most of them you may not even heard of since they are indie or so far underground it will take Chilean miners and 3 moles to find them. I miss the days of Donny, Luther, Stevie, Bobby (not Brown) Womack, Otis and Al just to say name a few. There are a few cats out there now that have most definitely been influenced by the kings of yesteryear. Such as R. Kelly, Jaheim, Bilal, Anthony Hamilton and Raheem Devaughn. It is crazy to me how soul music is perceived now. If it isn't overproduced with catchy hooks it doesn't sell. Hell, they don't even care if you can sing now. It's all about having that 15-minutes of fame song that will be on the Top 100 Digital Charts. I don't know about you but just like how I like my women, I like my music with--substance. It doesn't take a genius to write "Birthday Sex", hell I can get sex when it's not even my birthday! But it does takes a genius to write "Rocket Love" and to sing 


"I longed for since I was born 
A woman sensitive and warm  
And that you were 
With pride and strength no one would test 
But yet have feminine finesse 
And so much more"

Now that is what you call a song. 


I know how things happen in cycles and phases but I sure hope that the phase of wack music ends soon. I want my soul back and I want it now! I wish I could have lived and experienced the early Motown years or had a chance to see Black Moses (Issac Hayes) in concert. Don't get me wrong I love music if I didn't I would have never got into radio, programmed for both Yahoo and AOL Radio, worked at Bad Boy. But I do have an issue with the lack of love in music today. So I say this my fellow lovers of music...let's get some soul back into our music! I would hate to raise my kids on BS tunes! Bring on the SANG-ING!!!


Check out some flavor from some of the torch carriers of soul music! Eric Roberson, Bilal and Anthony David. Enjoy. 

De La Soul - Timeless

Today was an epic day for music but for Hip-Hop in general! One of the most influential groups in Hip-Hop was inducted into the Library of Congress for their debut album 3 Feet High and Rising. They join the likes of Public Enemy, Tupac Shakur and Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five. This is an epic accomplishment for the 3 MC's from Long Island, NY. So shout out to to 3 of the best to ever pick up a mic--Maseo, Posdnous and Dave.

I have many favorite De La songs that make my day but since this honor is from their first album let's take it back to '89!! Once again much love for these Native Tongue members for this honor and accomplishment.

The Return of L. Boogie!!!

I can remember the first time I heard 'The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill', I was in college and doing radio in Baltimore, and I was able get an early copy from the record rep and listened to it as I drove around the streets. I was so blown by her voice and the conviction that she sang with on every song. I already knew her rhyming skills were above the curve. There I sat in my Jeep just taking in the dopeness of Lauryn Hill and from that point on I knew she was a bonafide star. Yes, we knew she was the sexy vixen assassin of The Fugees but she carried a vibe and charm that let her stand apart from Clef and Pras. I didn't think in my mind that she would go on to sell over 8 million records. That's going platinum extra crazy!

Of course with her riding that high wave a crash was imminent. L. Boogie was on top of the world with her debut solo album but then something went astray. Many blame her relationships with Clef and Rohan Marley to her just going coo-coo for coco puffs nevertheless she did a complete 360 from the world. Now flash forward 12 years later (yes 12 years) and she is set for a triumphant come back. She is what the music industry needs now. The industry has been infected with Kat Stacks, Soulja Boys, Becky songs and Nicki Minaj's! It's time to go back and bring back what made the world stop, look and listen to real music. I'm looking forward to seeing Lauryn rip the stage at the Rock The Bells Festival in NYC this weekend! I tip my cap to you Lauryn and to your return to glory!

Here is some classic Lauryn for you!!





Here is the latest single from Lauryn called 'Repercussions'.