Still relatively undiscovered, Detroit emcee and producer Nametag and Nameless are respectively amongst the city’s best kept secrets upholding its reputation for a no nonsense approach to Hip Hop. Where competition has faltered, the duo’s strong affiliations such as House Shoes and a tireless work ethic has made for a slow but steady ascent through the underground’s ranks. For Namesake is their formal debut as they hope to branch out even further while carrying the torch for Motor City legends to come before them.
For Namesake finds Nametag and Nameless joining forces to issue a wake up call that is hard, soulful and thought-provoking with the help of an assorted cast from their town’s scene. Placing a spin on the formula of producer/emcee combos such as Pete Rock & CL Smooth, Gang Starr and the more recent Little Brother, the group forges their own path largely distinct from predecessors. Taking on the role of a statesman, “Hype Break” promotes talent over gimmicks as he raps, “The reason the game’s oversaturated, quite obvious / A bunch of rappers who aren’t artists, only hobbyists.”
Precautionary tales, “How It Get” details how tough bravado can lead to violence and the humorous “Notchos” advises against troublesome women with the clever couplet, “Never been the type that’ll wife a skeezer / These days they digital freaks, BET’s Cita.” Though Nametag is fully capable of handling the rapping on his own, guests include his blood cousin Black Milk on the aggressive “Oxymoron” and Guilty Simpson on the aptly titled “Raw-Dirty-Filth,” both fitting well without outshining the lead.
Nametag and Nameless push themselves ahead of the pack, adding another win to Detroit’s long running hot streak with For Namesake. Despite being slightly derivative at points, the album covers a well-rounded variety of emotion from the infectious “Feelin’ Good + Feelin’ Great” to “The Teacher” where Nametag comes to grips with the passing of mother along with his father’s drug addiction issues. As a unit, they have raised the bar with gritty production and clever wordplay that should take them from under the radar towards greater consideration, whether together or as separate solo acts.
this album is so dope.
Dope!
so you gonna rate this no name nigga, and ignore poor paps…alright i see hhdx
Pap is the biggest cornball since Kwame. Go cry.
paps is the realest.
This album is much better than Pap’s.. Papoose really disappointed me.
That Pap album wasn’t that good. I have it. At best a 3.
Excited to see HipHopDX review this album. Great rhymes, great beats, quality Detroit hip-hop.
Dope shit from Detroit. Two of the best in the state right now!
no joke.
Meh
didnt they review paps album already and it got taken down
1. In a Dream (Produced by Irv Gotti)
2. Story Master (Produced by Scott Storch)
3. Whole Lotta Thug (Produced by Cool & Dre)
4. All on Me (Produced by Irv Gotti)
5. Love Yall More (Produced by Irv Gotti)
6. American Nightmare (Produced by Bangladesh)
7. World’s Most Dangerous feat. Lil Wayne (Produced Cool & Dre)
8. Without Rhyme or Reason feat. Styles P (Produced Irv Gotti)
9. I Swear feat. Erick Sermon (Produced by Erick Sermon)
10. War & Love feat. Azealia Banks (Produced Hit-Boy, co. Chase N. Cashe)
11. Salute feat. Pharrell (Produced Pharrell Williams)
12. Tunnel Vision (Produced by Irv Gotti)
13. Big Beat (Produced by Swizz Beatz)
14. Bully Rap feat. Ghostface Killah, Method Man & Raekwon (Produced Irv Gotti)
15. Standing In the Shadows feat. The-Dream (Produced by Tricky Stewart, co. The-Dream)
16. Back on the Corner feat. Anthony Hamilton, Havoc & Jadakiss (Produced by Havoc)
17. I’m Ready feat. Swizz Beatz (Produced by Swizz Beatz)
Glad to see these two got together. Dope production, great lyricism.
We need more albums like this! The D is full of MC’s that can set the stage on fire!
Loving it!
This looks worth checking out.
Not interested. Too much Michigan rap any fucking more.
This album seems pretty dope, these two are going to go a long way, Detroit is full of some damn great MC’s, lots of quality work out there.
Dope!!
Been rocking this album for the past few days and this is absolutely RAW. “The Teacher” is so raw. That’s real rap, kids.
Damn so many dudes are straight SLEEPING. This is absolutely raw hip hop in the purest form. What are kids listening to these days that has them so captivated that they overlook a cat like this?
Don’t even know why this was reviewed, when plenty of good albums were igg’d.
FRESH…DOPE…KIXXAZZ…TIGHT…LOVE IT!!!!
So dope. One of the top 5 albums of the year. Too bad the swag fags don’t know about that.