Johnson & Jonson

We Say...

Review by Michaelangelo Matos

As Johnson & Jonson, Long Beach rapper Blu and producer Mainframe have made an album that will warm the hearts of old Native Tongues fans and early Rawkus heads alike: music whose generous samples include bits ranging from Hugh Masakela ("Long Time Gone") to John Lennon ("Hold on John" utilizes the Plastic Ono Band cut of the same name) and whose beats amble more than they push. Though we count ourselves among Blu and Mainframe's biggest fans, by no means was Johnson & Jonson's success assured: Blu is the kind of dude who could not be more nonchalant about his obvious rhyming skills, and Mainframe — despite working on some posthumous J Dilla releases — has yet to make a signature work. Until now, anyway.

Mainframe's aesthetic works perfectly for Blu's stories — often funny, always rooted in the everyday. Take "Mama Always Told Me," whose sharp organ whirls and '70s-game-show horn fanfares are like TV in the background, while Blu boasts in his living room: "We made a classic cause our shit pumps/ Changed the game in six months/ Gave them what these kids want." "Go for the Gusto Room" is a funky visit to the local casino that sounds like it was inspired by Hunter S. Thompson, with Blu providing inspired shit-talk monologues at the beginning and end. And like a good indie artist, he has harsh words for "handing out royalties as big as your advance/ Labels can't stand it" on "Bout It Bout It." The refrain is simple, and speaks for far more than just its hook: "I know you're 'bout it, but it's how you go 'bout it."