NUR-D '38TH" AND "CHICAGO AVENUE" REVIEW
Listen to the full interview with Nur-D on our Patreon.
Your seventh favorite Hip-Hop person might bump a few places in the coming weeks. Going into the last leg of the tumultuous year of 2020, Nur-D has been keeping busy despite the setback of no live shows. Between helping the afflicted citizens of the Twin Cities through the most dangerous and pivotal summer of our lives and finishing a two-part project all whilst creating a merch website, Nur-D has been working with many moving pieces coming to the end of the year. Despite the handful, Nur-D has delivered impeccably. As I am writing this, we are awaiting the second part of the project. The first half of this duo of albums, 38th, has been up and spinning for well over a month, so let's begin there.
Part 1: 38th
Nur-D begins this two-part journey on the somber, yet poignant intro “8:46.” With a haunting piano and a deeply reverberated vocal sample longingly echoing in the background, the sample states the right and importance of artists' reflection on the current times. Nur-D understands the importance as “8:46” clearly is in honor of the late George Floyd. Nur-D uses a melancholic harmony to connect the trauma of seeing another black man being unjustly killed for no inherent purpose. While these egregious events cause mourning across the world, Nur-D reflects on it individually. As a person of color having to see these problems, not only in history but also in their everyday lives for ALL their lives, Nur-D provokes a prominent question: “What if I’m the one who’s next?”
“Bandaid” hits you in the face and wakes you up from the somber trance of “8:46.” This track has Nur-D seemingly getting into a battle stance while he sets the tone in this second track. With a drill/trap style banger, Nur-D provides an A-1 hook and a most vocally prevalent energy in the verses. Nur-D knows what he is about to say isn’t a fun subject; so he recklessly rips off the proverbial bandaid.
The third track “Cheat Code” has Nur-D teaming up with his brother and fellow emcee Tuvok the Word. With a gritty low down bass and an uneasy synth, Nur-D hands off to Tuvok who performs the central part of the song. Tuvok’s cadence rides at a faster speed than usual. Tuvok elegantly stumbles through the verse that is delivered with precision. Nur-D rounds off the rest of the song during the wicked beat change. This has to be one of my favorite moments on the project. With keeping a consistent cadence, Nur-D puts things into perspective as bluntly as possible over an unhinged and grimy beat flip.
Over rattling hi-hats and rich strings, Nur-D seems to swim on “Burn it Down.” With an energetic feature from Psalm One, the two emcees share their indifference in the burning down of old ways. As the hook goes:
“I don’t care if you’re uncomfortable,
You can burn the whole thing down.
Couldn’t care about an Autozone,
You can burn the whole thing down.”
It alludes to the fires of early June but leaks into the metaphor of burning the outdated system that only sheds empathy and judgment when the lower class rebels and sets oppression ablaze.
“Misdemeanor” has a brash bump Danny Brown would fit easily on. This track is like Nur-D attack stance #2, as he seems to be directly talking to police that arrested him this summer along with the other countless and heinous acts police committed during the chaos. On the bridge that leads to the last part of the track, Nur-D asks authority directly as he questions:
“Tell me how a phone looks like a freakin gun?
Are you dumb?
Are you serious?
Are you that scared?
I’m just curious.
Do you feel strong?
Is that what you need?
Are you that small?
Is that why I can’t breath?’
Aided by a smooth rumbling calypso style instrumental, Nur-D drives a narrative alluding to the elitism that seems to covertly plague small, predominantly white communities in “Black kid, White Town.” With a short, but very charming feature from Bandon Polphus, this track might come in as my favorite on 38th. Nur-D paints some cringe-worthy, but believable pictures of small, white communities obviously looking down on people of color.
“PSA” is just that. Nur-D announces to White America the changes to come over ominous, grand instrumentation. Nur-D vocalizes poetic forecasts and prophetic announcements such as:
“We’ve tried to be polite,
But every generation gets a lot of half-truths,
And a whole lot of wait and sees.”
“Break the Chains” hosts delightfully charming features from Essjay the Afrocentricrachet and Purple Queen. The three take their turns over this TRON-like space arrangement that would make Injury Reserve feel at home. The guest emcees, Essjay and Purple Queen, steal the show in this joint as Nur-D plays the role of introducing the guest verses.
“Break the Chains” is the spiritually chaotic and passionate climax of 38th. Grand, choir-like instrumentation and vocals hint at Chance the Rapper's influence. Nur-D leaves everything on that table and unleashes all of his pride in the grandest and most passionate way I’ve heard in a long while.
“Goodbye” is another PSA-like bridge to the end. Nur-D speaks to his fans and possible soon-to-be-ex fans. Nur-D states that taking this stance and reflecting in his art on what he believes may lose him fans and other music opportunities. His acceptance is his statement. If fans or people in the music community don’t agree with Nur-D’s stance, Nur-D’s okay with letting them go. “Goodbye” isn’t only just the outro for 38th, it may be an outro for some listeners too.
Part 2: Chicago Ave
On the first day of Kwanzaa, Nur-D released the sequel to his October release 38th, thus completing the street corner in which the world changed this summer. In the midst of senseless violence and chaos, Nur-d has used his growing platform to discuss important and critical topics necessary for our society to move forward. Both 38th and Chicago Ave resonate deeply with the Nguzo Saba (The Seven Principles) of the Kwanzaa tradition.
The majority of the Nguzo Saba has reoccurring actions of building, maintaining, and strive for such things as unity, community, and cooperative economics (supporting local shops, vocation, etc. to build wealth within the community.) Nur-D reflects on these principles throughout these projects, which makes the release date that much more special. It seems plenty of others feel this way, too, as Nur-D brought on quite the ensemble to support his message. The project hosts an absolutely stacked supporting cast of 10 different artists all coming together to help portray Nur-D’s important messages.
Nur-D has had growth as a songwriter throughout these two projects as he eases the listener in on the opening track “Still Alive.” While urging everyone to breathe in and out, Nur-D assures everyone listening has the blessing of still breathing. Nur-D breaths on to the fire to see what life comes from ashes in “Phoenix.” What Nur-D sees is the city rise from the ashes of summer fires and destruction. Emcees Metasota and Destiny Roberts speak on the resilience of their city and the proud people which inhabit it whilst calling out the biases and injustice that still live within it.
With an uplifting and gospel melody of “Brighter Day” Nur-D gives an optimistic perspective with all the apathy and pessimism that has circulated throughout this dark year. In “Got to Come Back,” DJ Hayes makes an appearance in the form of head-bobbing scratches on the ever-funky boom bap bop. Just Wulf also appears in a witty and humbling verse that discusses the influence and rise in the sense of community and entities that threaten it with lines such as:
"On the daily, I’ve been craving my grandma’s soul food,
But lately, gentrification is busy building a Whole Foods.”
Nur-D and Dungeon the Baptist find the true color of gold in “Solid Gold.” This track is a lush and vibrant anthem of being proud of the rich beauty and resilience of our black brothers and sisters. Dungeon the Baptist compliments the tracks messages beautifully; even in his first lines he encompasses the meaning of solid gold with:
”Black is King, ‘black is me.’”
Nur-D brings his best vocal performance on this track as he pushes his voice passionately in the melodies and the soul catching chorus. “Glory” goes with the grand instrumentation and gospel-influenced formula much like in “Brighter Day.” With a valiant and gritty vocal performance from Bayo, this track is more than suitable in many facets, even it could be played in church.
Nur-D revisits the beauty of his skin color in “Black-skinned Angel.” This piano-laced tribute lays a story about Nur-D’s journey from trying to fit in to acceptance of his skin color. Lt. Sunnie adds a dash of self love and growth within her roots of lineage and history. On top of that Nur-D assures the sky is the limit in the face of the uphill the black community faces throughout time:
”Skin that looks like the night sky/
Skin that looks like Nesquik.
Every color in between/
Just know that you can flex it.”
Jazzy sporadic drums and chiming piano riffs make up the sound of “Lady J.” Nadirah adds a harmonious and lofty chorus that shares sense of purpose a loved one might give to you. Together, Nur-D and Nadirah team up to show the positivity and meaning a special someone might give. Picking up the pace, “Freedom,” is more than just a negotiation. Sieed Brown and Nur-D demand justice and lead the charge in attaining equality and the long-overdue semblance of freedom. With a whole posse contributing to the bridge, the chant echoes the most important statement of the year in
”No justice, no peace!”
Nur-D takes his final attack stance in “We Up.” In the last leg of Chicago Ave, Nur-D leaves everything on the table with his subject matter and his passion in his vocal performance. Brandon Pulphus, who also appears in 38th, makes another appearance in this track and raises the bar yet again with his verse with lines like:
“Make America afraid to be racist.
Had a rich history/
They erased it.”
At the tail of the track, Nur-D quite literally chants the battle cry “Yibambe!” The chant derives from the Wakandan battle chant (deriving from the real world Xhosa language of the Bantu people of South Africa) roughly meaning “Hold the line/Hold fast!” which Nur-D alludes to in the track’s chorus.
The final track, “Hello,” adds a connection to the last song on 38th, “Goodbye.” Instead of Nur-D saying goodbye to fans that might not agree with his point of view, he welcomes any new listeners that may have recently come across his music. While he welcomes the new listeners, he explains exactly why he’s committed to the message he has shared throughout these two projects. With his final statements, he urges everyone to do two important things, and these two things echo way past the project’s end:
“Be good to yourself, and be good to others.”
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Review by: Paul Thorson, Hip-Hop Writer @PaulyT03
Edited by: Eric Martin, Writer @eamartin95
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