Feel Good

Mixtape hip-hop is starting to get old. Most of the people putting out mixtapes don't realize that these de facto compilation albums used to be tools of the trade for DJs only. So it's good to see real mix-masters like the folks at Feel Good Entertainment come out swinging on their latest release, Good Morning Mixtape!!! This one should make a sizable dent in the local hip-hop community. It's full of crisp beats and soulful loops provided by Young McFly that are good enough to make this an instrumental-only release all by themselves. But for the good of the cause, Feel Good appears as a group, bringing strong lyricism to the bulk of this 21-track LP. What's crucial to understand is that not only is Young McFly a topnotch lyricist but he also does production on most of the songs here. It's his ability to handle both tasks that's impressive. The best tune is a remix of Lupe Fiasco's "Kick Push," which is full of staccato breaks and clear wordsmith rhymes. The conscious track "Riding a Dream" is also strong, with multiple shoutouts to fallen revolutionaries laced in between McFly's crafty flow. The MCs selected here know how to rap in a fashion that's understandable, and that's almost a lost art in hip-hop nowadays. The only drawback is that some of the beats seem jacked without any remix techniques applied at all. And that's theft. But it's also a component of hip-hop that's been around since the beginning, so they're just following in the footsteps of others. When McFly is on the boards, things are strong, and as long as that approach continues, the cats at Feel Good Entertainment shouldn't have anything to worry about.