Ecstatic, The

Hands-down one of the best hip-hop albums of 2009. Raps about globalization, race/cultural conflicts and social problems. With his signature syncopated flow, Mos Def is widely known as one of the best underground rappers around. And this album is one of his best. 16 tracks of excellence.

FCCS: NONE TRY: 7, 3, 15, 12, 6, 5

1. Spoken word intro leads into super-enthusiastic rompy beat.
2. Slow, glitchy beat. Grim, cold rap. Good background horns in the beat give it an extra punch. Mysterious xylophones contribute to the mood.
*3. Smooth rapping over Filmi soundtrack samples. Produced by Madlib. Features a very political rap by Slick Rick. What more could you want?
4. More Filmi samples, this time produced by Oh No. Awesome forceful rapping.

*5. Old piano sample loop mixed with rattling bells. Slow, rapping about peace, religion, god…and sticking to your priorities.
*6. Spoken-word intro by Femi Kuti, leading into samba beat. Super-syncopated, upbeat rapping. Lots of footstomping, handclapping, etc. balancing out the percussion.
*7. Lead single. Excellent futuristic beat with lots of synth sounds combined with orchestra symphony crescendos.
8. 45 second introduction—a skit where pilots are narrating a plane flight and then start telling passengers how many weapons they’re packing. Super-percussive beat with middle eastern instruments.
9. Slow acoustic ballad. Lyrics all in Spanish.
10. Frantic xylophone paired with super deep drum bombs. Lots of toy gunshot noises. (Lyrics about boys and girls playing cowboys and Indians). Rapping interspersed with singing. Mos Def doesn’t have the best voice, but his rhymes on this track are pretty sharp.
11. Jazz fusion influenced beat with lots of dreamy synth, steady basslines, and flutes. Super in-your-face rapping. Lots of energy.
*12. Super-accessible, very cheery inviting beat with lots of piano stabs, and funky basslines. Lyrics about harsh working conditions, but with an optimistic outlook.
13. Pretty sparse, minimal beat. Peppered with frantic xylophones. Slow rapping. Lots of singing from Mos Def.
14.Female soul singing with Mos Def’s rapping/singing interspersed. Tinkle piano and deep bouncy basslines.
*15. J Dilla production- chopped up soul samples with strings, and plucky guitar. Features Talib Kweli. Excellent interplay.
16. Bouncy 70’s disco beat combined with horn and synth samples. Very repetitive rapping, but it is still very syncopated and upbeat.