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"Thinkin' of a Master Plan" – Rakim

(For some odd legal reasons, Santogold changed her name to Santigold)

Hate me for it, but I love this song.

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Brooklyn we go hard
We on the look for the advantage, we work hard
And if we seem to rough it up a bit
We broke but we rich at heart
Pull ourselves up now we won’t choke
It’s our time, put the lights on us

War tactics they make me sick
reel your heart in run away with it
Smile in your face, undermine your back
got guns for the strength they lack
So if you know another way
you can’t look the other way
if you know another way,
tell them so right to their face

We think you’re a joke
Shove your hope where it don’t shine

I pay for what’s called
eccentricity and my will to evolve
I hear them all say
that I got heart
but not everything that it takes

Taint my mind but not my soul
Tell you I got fire
I wont sell it for no payroll
Let ’em hold me down
I know if I know another way
I can’t look the other way
I know another way
I’ll tell them so right to their face

We think you’re a joke
Shove your hope where it don’t shine

dillanthology.com
dillanthology1

Review by David Jeffries

Kicking off with the perfect choice of “Runnin'” from the Pharcyde, Dillanthology 1 is an excellent sampler of late hip-hop producer J Dilla’s work for others, but it’s not an overview. Important tracks with Janet Jackson, Jaylib, Q-Tip, and others are missing, plus there are also no liner notes explaining why this man from Detroit was so influential and how he touched so many. One listen through, though, and even the newcomer will know why he’s so revered. Track after track of warm soul and head-bobbing beats fill the collection while great names from Amp Fiddler to Busta Rhymes all deliver, feeding off productions so attractive and balanced that they could make lesser artists seem brilliant. Nothing is below a B+ here but a proper solo J Dilla cut would have rounded the set out nicely, and with the rule of only one track per artist, his great work with Slum Village alone seems underrepresented. Still, if you’re a newcomer looking for that gateway drug or a devotee looking for an excellent mixtape, Dillanthology 1 is a no-frills solution.