PICKS POSSE - Week #31

The IP'S PICKS community shares what they're listening to.

Spring forward, family! The snow is melting, and consistent warm weather is in our sights here in New York. You gotta love it.

And you know what else you gotta love? Another week of heat from the PICKS POSSE.

LFG.

$5,000 Loveseat: Saafir “Light Sleeper”

This debut single has always been a favorite of mine. The appropriately dreamlike quality of this beat, produced by Jay-Z (no Hova), served as the perfect soundtrack for Saafir’s (RIP) unorthodox style. It sort of stumbles along, equally soothing and cacophonous, threatening to fall apart at any moment for the entire three and a half minutes. Saafir speeds up and slows down, hopping on and off the beat while remaining completely in control, something a lot of people try and fail miserably at. The whole thing is a masterclass in style. Wake up.

Max Makes Music: Ernesto Lara “Cantos”

My man Ernesto Lara continues to offer heat to the world. His new album, La Letra, is written fully en espanol (Ernesto is bilingual and actually teaches Spanish in MD). This one sounds like dawn in DR. I see a pink-orange horizon and ocean waves rolling in.

Mephisto Loafer: Erule “Listen Up”

This song bounced around college hip-hop radio in the mid-‘90s and even gets some play in the movie Kids. Always assumed Erule was from NYC and it wasn’t until years later that I realized he was from California. While the Roy Ayers sample had already been used a few times, the way he flipped it made it sound brand new.

Erule had a great voice, flow and lyrics and put out a bunch of other music, but not sure anything lived up to this one. Although “The Real Me” is also a very good song. Was surprised to see it up on Spotify so get it while it lasts.

Jason Heiserman: ELIZA “Fever Dreams”

UK R&B is the gift that keeps on giving. I am just learning about UK singer/songwriter ELIZA (formerly Eliza Doolittle), but what first caught my eye was the ridiculously dope cover art for her new album, The Darkening Green. It’s like the Funkadelic classic Maggot Brain, but on some concrete ish. This whole 9-track album is fire, but “Fever Dreams” was a standout for me. Angelic, stripped-down vocals, nice mid-tempo production, catchy hook.

Here’s a solid article on ELIZA’s transformation from young pop star to modern day, independent R&B artist. I definitely recommend checking out the full project.

Hello I’m Bobby: Emilia Sisco “Too Late”

I found a cheap copy of the new Mobb Deep Infinite album on Walmart.com a few weeks ago, but I needed to spend $20 more to get free shipping. So naturally I spent the next two hours trying to reach a free shipping limit to “save” $6. Sidenote—the Infinite album keeps getting better with every listen. It’s one of the most cohesive sounding posthumous efforts. “Against the World” is one of my most listened to songs since the album came out.

Back to my online quest to spend money to save money. I prefer to buy in person from record shops as much as I can, but I’m also not above a big box deal from time to time. While doing some digital digging for modern soul 45s, I stumbled upon an artist I had never heard of—Emilia Sisco, a Finnish singer putting out music on Timmion Records. I started listening to some of her music and was immediately caught up in her smooth voice. The soundscape from the Timmion studio band Cold Diamond & Mink was equally as dope. I copped a couple 45s to help fill the cart, and I am glad I did.

My pick this week is “Too Late,” the B-side to another heater, “Your Girl,” released as a 45 in 2024. Both songs are from her Introducing Emilia Sisco album that I now need to dive more into. Perfect Sunday morning music.

Krisch: Too $hort ft. FM Blue “Oakland Style”

Too $hort dropped his eighth album in 1993 with Get In Where You Fit In. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I think no other rapper had released that many albums by then.

For everybody who couldn’t believe it, Playboy Short breaks the previous seven albums down in the intro: “Don’t Stop Rappin’, girl, that’s your life, talkin’ about smokin’ that glass-pipe, Players was the weakest, and that’s the realer, but I still came hard on ‘Coke Dealers,’ Raw, Uncut and X-Rated, Born to Mack, Life Is...Too $hort is when I first went platinum, $hort Dog’s in the House came next, and $horty the Pimp makes seven, bitch…”

Get In Where You Fit In was one of my first CDs that I bought after seeing the single “I’m a Player” on Yo! MTV Raps. To this day, it remains my favorite Too $hort album. I’d even argue that it’s one of the best-produced West Coast records of the ’90s, with beats by Ant Banks and live instrumentation by Shorty B and Pee Wee, who both also had worked with Digital Underground.

One of my favorite songs on the album is the closer “Oakland Style,” where Too $hort gives shine to fellow East Oakland rapper FM Blue. I always liked FM Blue’s flow on this track. Many years later, I found out, thanks to the internet, that in 1993 FM Blue also released the Ant Banks–produced, tape-only album Oakland Styles, which includes an alternate version of the song featuring Oakland rap veteran Dangerous Dame.

SCRO: Stan Ipcus “Face it Easy, Ma (DJ Scro Remix)”

First off, let me say I’m a Stan and been a fan of Ipcus music since our College Park days. The original “Face It Ma” is one of my all-time favorite tracks of his, and the Timbaland beat was fire. But I wanted to add my flavor to it, so I blended his lyrics over Mad Lion’s “Take it Easy (Jaguar Skills Safe Sex Remix).” IYKYK.

The song takes you on a journey through White Plains with Ip and his crew as they party with girl named Isabella and her crew and he tries to secure some late night “face” from her, lol.

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Shout to DJ Scro—we used to do shows together back when we were in college. He used to hold me down on the turntables, and now he holds it down every week with the PICKS POSSE. That remix is crazy, and the cover art is outta pocket!

Big thanks to everyone else who contributed this week. All fuego as always.

Sending love and respect to everyone on the check-in. Peace!