Bw’s Blog

This Somalian/Canadian hip-hop artist brings a fresh sound to a genre that’s overflowing with generic garbage.

K’naan’s latest album, Troubadour, is worth a listen even if you don’t necessarily listen to hip-hop music.

The album starts off with T.I.A, which isn’t my favorite, but it’s still decent. The beat becomes a little repetitive after a while, but the chorus is easy to sing along with. Luckily, he manages to avoid repetitive beats on most of the other songs.

ABC’s (ft. Chubb Rock) is a fast-paced song that’s really fun to listen to. The chorus features gang vocals that sound like a group of teenagers. The lyrics, “They don’t teach us the ABC’s/all we got is life on the streets”, makes the message of this song quite clear.

My favorite song off the album is a softer one: Take A Minute. I’m a sucker for emotional songs, so I’m not surprised that this song stuck with me. The beat consists of a sweet sounding drum beat and some soft piano chords. The chorus is just awesome, and I’m shocked that this song hasn’t been released as a single yet.

Unfortunately (for some), I’m not one to analyze lyrics, so I can’t comment too much about the lyrical content of Troubadour. However, it’s pretty obvious that K’naan is a socially conscious artist who puts a lot of thought into his writing. You won’t find any bitches, glocks, booze, or cars in his rhymes.

This album is full of great songs, and one even features Kirk Hammett from Metallica! This album has everything, and I can honestly say that I’ll be listening to it long after I finish this review. Go to myspace.com/knaanmusic to hear some tracks.

Sincerely,

BW.