14th Edition
August 28th 2018
Tragedy Khadafi & BP
"Immortal Titans"
Tragedy Khadafi, though an obscure name, has been in the Hip Hop and Rap game for over thirty years now. Influencing artists which will later on become icons in their own right, namely, Cormega, Mobb Deep, Capone-N-Noreaga, Nas, and many more artists, even in the underground Hardcore or Gangster Hip Hop circles. BP the Neckbreaker, an even more obscure (and hard to find, until I later found the 'the Neckbreaker' part of his name), has been producing music for about fifteen years. They both came together to make this album, 'Immortal Titans', premiering on HipHopDX on August 17, 2018 and is now available on most platforms, like Spotify and iTunes.
Percy Chapman, better known by his stage name, Tragedy Khadafi, formerly known as Intelligent Hoodlum is from Queensbridge, Queens, New York. He got his name in reference to former Libyan dictator, Muammar Gaddafi. Tragedy started out rapping in 1985 as one half of Super Kids with DJ Hot Day, also from Queensbridge. Marley Marl took notice of the duo and produced their singles 'The Tragedy (Don't Do It)' and 'Stunt of The Block' in 1986. Listening to the singles now, it's evident that Tragedy was still pre-pubescent with his squeaky vocals (and equally squeaky baby scratches provided by DJ Hot Day). Tragedy was later made a junior member of the Marley Marl-led Juice Crew along with Big Daddy Kane, Kool G Rap, MC Shan and Biz Markie.
While in prison for robbery at the age of 16, he became a member of Five Percent Nation, a movement by former Nation of Islam member, Clarence 13X, or ultimately known as Allah the Father (he was a former student of Malcolm X). Tragedy went under the alias Intelligent Hoodlum and released his debut solo album, 'Intelligent Hoodlum' on A&M Records in 1990. It reached number 52 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip Hop charts. To cut his summary short, he would later focus his work more on Conscious Hip Hop and started working with the likes of Capone-N-Noreaga, Mobb Deep and Vinnie Paz & Jedi Mind Tricks. He changed his name to Tragedy Khadafi in 1997.
BP the Neckbreaker is a much younger producer from Long Island, New York. His career only spans half that of Tragedy, and not much is know about him besides from his Soundcloud page. He's produced for such greats, both still with us, or passed on, like RZA, 9th Prince, Sean Price, Prodigy and Ras Kass. If anyone else has more information about him, please drop a comment below!
'Immortal Titans' holds fourteen tracks at forty-five minutes in length. It was a seamlessly arranged album showcasing the excellent work done by both the producer and the rapper. The album's feature artists include Nature, Apathy, DJ Stitches, Hus KingPin, Rozewood, SmooVth and Ali Vegas. Tragedy brings you on a journey with different styles which he has built for himself, from all his years of fostering and educating artists. BP's beats complement Tragedy perfectly, as Tragedy stated, "BP’s production brought something out of me that has been kind of dormant in me for a little while, and that has to do with the level and quality of production. I don’t like to talk to the beat. I like the beat to talk to me first, and then I dictate how I am going to attack it."
Tragedy Khadafi & BP - 'Immortal Titans' official video
'Immortal Titans' needs an acquired ear to enjoy. As someone who began listening to Hip Hop with Hardcore or Gangster styles, this album speaks to me, it has a no-bullshit-whack skinny jeans take on Hip Hop. Some of the songs could use some happier tones (at least production-wise) to diversify it a bit, but I personally enjoyed it. That's all for now, check out the video to the song 'Immortal Titans' above and see you all next week! One Love!
Stay tuned for the next edition and be sure to follow me at @stickykeys! Also if there are any albums you would like me to review, drop a comment below.
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