Apollo Brown
Hip Hop
RIYL: Wu-Tang Clan, KRS One, Oddisee
From Apollo Brown’s Bandcamp Page:
Narrated by The RZA, this is Ghostface Killah’s brutal tale of gangsters, betrayal and one vengeful soul hunting the 12 most powerful crime lords in the World. The Deluca’s pressed Tony’s remains into 12 vinyl records – one for each member of the family. But little did they know – he would return…
This project is a daring, full-length Crime/Horror concept album. Executive Producer, and Ghostface Killah’s longtime Wu-Tang Clan collaborator, The RZA refers to the album as “groundbreaking” in the hip hop genre.
Apollo Brown was asked to record an alternate album at the same time as Adrian Younge created “Twelve Reasons To Die.” Keep in mind, the legendary Detroit producer (Apollo Brown) was given access to Ghostface Killah’s recordings and constructed beats around GFK’s work. This made the project one of the producer’s most challenging projects to date. That hard work has paid of as “The Brown Tape” is also one of the best albums to date from Ghostface Killah or Apollo Brown. Cinematic and nasty, this is Hip-hop at it’s most raw.
Originally a Record Store Day release, The Brown Tape finally gets a true, proper release from Apollo Brown. A gritty and raw rework of Ghostface Killah’s Twelve Reasons To Die fans finally have a chance to snag this release without having to dig out their parent’s cassette deck, or pay an arm and a leg for the limited LP release. Officially out in January on digital, and CD/Vinyl in March, GFK/Wu-Tang Fans have something to look forward to after the tragedy that was Wu’s 2017 release The Saga Continues
If hip hop is your jam, then this official release might be for you. Apollo Brown serves up a spicy mix and rework of GFK’s work, and I dare say, makes it sound better than the original. There are some fantastic beats too, even if you aren’t into it lyrically. Ultimately, this single is worth the listen, if only to hype you for the full-length re-release.
