Brother Ali and Wale-"2nd Time Around"

2nd Time Around is off of "The New Deal" mixtape presented by 10 Deep productions and DJ Benzi. It was released a few months ago but I still can't stop jamming out to it.

This song is truly a powerful statement and indictment of the current state of commercial rap.  Walé spits a pretty tame verse but Brother Ali goes off for like 32 bars.  He talks about Rapper's responsibilities to their neighborhoods and the people they represent. 

 He also describes an incident where Homeland Security froze his record company's assets and bank account because they were concerned about a wire transfer of money for an up-coming show from a promoter in Australia.  His verse is mainly a report card on the status of the hip hop community as it is today. He just spits that day to day real life rap. 

Brother Ali-"people are starvin and you talk about ballin?/can't think of nothing more important than that jargon/hundred different ways to describe diamonds sparklin." 

Walé: "Walé, I turn beef into mince meat/ your condescending ways, don't convince me/and i aint no what condescending meant till yesterday/So i through it in a rap so I'd remember that/yeah, it aint nothing to me/I play the background whole time, Mario 3.

Good Stuff. 

Here's the link.