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The Old Prince - Album Review (OkayPlayer.com)
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"I'll confidently state that Shad's a far Better Rapper than Kanye West"
When I receive a press r..."I'll confidently state that Shad's a far Better Rapper than Kanye West"
When I receive a press release that reads; "One of the strongest Canadian hip-hop records ever!" I'm like, "yeah, and?" But it also quotes OKP as saying Shad is "worthy of Common and Kanye-style accolades." As of this album's intro, I'll confidently state that Shad's a far better rapper than Kanye West. Musically, The Old Prince has a similar feel to Blu & Exile's Below The Heavens record. Soulfully romantic samples and classic drum snaps provide a perfect texture for Shad to bob and weave like Earl The Pearl Monroe leaving strings of memorable lyrics for his contemporaries to snack on. So pass the popcorn, eh.
Shad is Canadian. And besides the occasional Kardinal Official or 2/3rds of Main Source, our partners to the north aren't known for producing an overabundance of heaters. But just one listen in, I'm a believer for real. Shad's pen skills are ill and not just on the lyrical tip, it's dude's timing. He knows exactly how to ride, hide or dominate a beat depending on the song's tempo and hits and this is the difference between a Supaemcee and simply an accomplished lyricist. And despite this prowess, The Old Prince is never pretentious. Shad's got a healthy splash of self-deprecation expressed in lines like, "Spend two weeks eating popcorn like students do except I'm grown and this is not dorms so it's a bit more pathetic, ok a lot more" from "The Old Prince Still Lives At Home." Shad also shows he can slow his roll on "I Heard You Had A Voice Like An Angel," an atypical ode to fallen musical stars, depleted hope and broken dreams.
All in all, the kid seems right at home over an array of beats and topics. Shad stays energetic and witty yet humble and relaxed. "I Don't Like To," "Compromise" and "Exile" are all choice tracks that may have you asking yourself why you've been sleeping on Northern Territory cats in the past. As far as Okayplayer accolades, I'd place Shad somewhere in the Blu/Kweli continuum, a deft lyricist with Exxon-deep rhyme pattern reserves. Plus, I heard his '05 debut, When This Is Over is pretty nice too. Git familiar.
- Jeff Artist
http://www.okayplayer.com/content/view/5591/5/
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Why Shad K is Canada's Best Rapper (National Post)
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When Shad K last performed in Toronto, there was a moment when the audience went silent.
"I'd ne...When Shad K last performed in Toronto, there was a moment when the audience went silent.
"I'd never seen anything like it," says Ty Harper, producer and host of Flow 93.5's OTA Live, who picked Shad's The Old Prince as 2007's record of the year. "He has the confidence you expect from a rap artist, that swagger, but it's mixed with humility. There were 400 people at the Mod Club and no bar chatter --just 400 people waiting to hear what else Shad would say."
He was born Shadrach Kabango in Kenya to Rwandan parents, who soon after moved to London, Ont., where his mom worked as a hospital lab technician and his dad as a machinist.
"London is pretty much where I call home," says Shad, 25, on the phone from Vancouver, where he studies humanities at the University of British Columbia and yesterday began his cross-Canada tour with Halifax rapper Classified. "My family was always connected to Africa, but I grew up on MuchMusic and liked Hayden in junior high."
While he was completing his business administration degree at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ont., his sister sent his demo tape to a talent competition at a radio show. It was his 22nd birthday, and entering him was his older sister Charity's gift. "I wasn't really one for putting my music out there, but at that point, I was excited to give it a shot," he says. He wound up making it to the finals of the contest. For his last song, he brought up his guitar, which, like his amazing ability to freestyle [see sidebar on Page AL4], has be-come a staple of his live show.
"We were just having fun," he says. "I didn't expect to win, but I realized how much I enjoyed being onstage."
Shad would go on to win the contest, earn $17,500 to record his well-reviewed 2005 debut record, When This is Over and open concerts for Common and Lupe Fiasco. But it was hearing his mother recite a poem at a rally for Rwanda that same year that pushed him to take his music to a more personal place.
"To hear my mother be so candid and talk about her loss made me become a lot more passionate about expressing myself through music. I got a lot more interested in putting out my own ideas," Shad says.
When it came time to record The Old Prince, along with playing piano, guitar, drums and bass, Shad also told autobiographical tales of being stingy and living at home -- he raps the second half of one song a capella because, he jokes on the track, he couldn't afford the second half of the beat -- with ballads about growing up black in a mostly white area and his feelings for Africa, genocide and the difficulties he has finding "a Claire Huxtable" of his own.
"I think where he's from makes him a bit different," Shad's mother, Bernadette Kabango, says over the phone from Rwanda, where she relocated this year to head up a needle exchange. "His world isn't as narrow and money-driven as it is for most people. Maybe the word is humble. He knows who he is and doesn't feel like he needs to copy or follow trends."
His approach definitely seems to be working. CBC Radio 3 called 2007 "Year of the Shad," and now, the MC studying David Hume and Descartes says he's closely following the elections in Kenya and hoping to communicate some of that with his growing crowds.
"Performing live is the most immediate way to connect with people," he says. "If you're upfront with what you're saying, you might as well be up there and let everyone know what you think."
-For more on Shad K, The Old Prince and his cross-Canada tour dates with Classified, visit shadk.com.
THE ART OF THE FREESTYLE:
Five Tips for Impressing Your Friends by Shad K
1 Don't over-think: It's a free-form of expression so just let it out. It's more fresh and musical that way.
2 If you're freestyling with friends or other emcees, don't rap for too long. Don't be that guy.
3 Learn from the creativity of guys like Eminem about putting words together: Content aside, rhyming things like -- storage booth, orange juice, kick the door hinge loose and rip out the four-inch screws -- that's what we call rhyme-skill. The more creative you can be with your rhyming, the better.
4 I don't advise using a rhyming dictionary -- it takes some of the fun out -- but try to remember interesting words and rhymes you come across in the everyday and use those.
5 Don't switch your style up: It will just mess up your ability to think fast. Spit the way that comes natural to you and the ideas will flow better.
Author: Ben Kaplan
http://www.nationalpost.com/arts/story.html?id=241006
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10 out of 10 (RapReviews.com)
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Shad :: The Old Prince
Author: Pedro 'DJ Complejo' Hernandez
Music Vibes: 10 of 10
Lyric Vi...Shad :: The Old Prince
Author: Pedro 'DJ Complejo' Hernandez
Music Vibes: 10 of 10
Lyric Vibes: 10 of 10
TOTAL Vibes: 10 of 10
The concept of "The Old Prince" is one that we can all relate to and understand. To sum it up, princes aren't supposed to be old because they are supposed to become kings before they become old. Applied universally, the idea is that we all want to do great things and as times passes we become impatient and begin to wonder whether our time has passed. Shad's album captures his own conflict with the idea of being an old prince. Every rapper goes through a period of time where they wonder whether they will ever make it big time and even consider giving up on the dream. This insecurity has been touched upon by other rappers, but never with the passion and appeal shown by Shad. Shad's ability to relate his own triumphs and insecurities to the rest of us allows him to create one of the best albums released in the past year.
The album kicks off with a short interlude where the story of "The Old Prince" is told and then Shad kicks his first verse:
"Brother please, no more Pamela Lees, let's set it straight
I'm the biggest thing out of Canada til Quebec separate
And I never medicate so y'all feel me if I'm ill like a lump
Some dudes used to burn down trees and now they stumped
By the simplest questions and everything they think is deception
As they sink in depression, no telling where our life's heading
I'm light headed from stress where I write hooks like a fight method
Like credit I'm indebted from my misuse
My life like a magazine, got so many issues
God edits the stories, still trying to find the father like Maury
He ain't with the stars like Tory
Spellings, spell it out like NORE
On a quest for glory"
Instantly you can tell Shad is something special on the mic as he mixes humor, punch lines, and emotion in a way few emcees are able to. On top of that the man has a great voice and precise flow that ensure you understand every word he spits. The intro is only the beginning as Shad hits us with track after track of great, meaningful music. "I Don't Like To" finds Shad indulging by giving in to the temptation of showing off his mic skills dropping dope lines like "y'all stay second rate Chingys at the quality inn." "What We All Want" is a soulful and honest song dedicated to the universal aspirations that fuel our everyday struggle. "Brother (Watching)" is a heartfelt exploration of being Black in our society as Shad hits upon the evils of stereotypes, both as they hold down Black youth and at the same time pressure them to live up to those stereotypes:
"I try to hold some hope in my heart for these African youths
Coming up where I'm from, many traps to allude
Surrounded by mostly white and affluent dudes
And somehow you expected to have mastered the smooth
Swagger, and move with the right walk, the right talk, fashion and crews
So suddenly attacked and abused
And what's funny is being Black wasn't cool
Where I'm from, til suddenly you started hearing rapping in school
Hallways, amidst this madness I grew
With a knack for amusing through this little skill for rapping at dudes
And we all like to laugh at the truth
But when you young and the same facts pertain to who you rapping them to
Well I opted not to bring that to the booth
But after a while it sort of starts nagging at you
The crazed infatuation with Blackness is tragic in view
The fact that the tube only shows Blacks acting a fool"
The emotion and energy Shad puts into every song forces you to take his music just as seriously as he does. Just as Shad is able to address deep topics, he also easily is able to make you laugh at the lighter side of life. "The Old Prince Still Lives at Home" is one of the funniest rap tracks ever laid down as Shad talks about being broke. The comedy reaches its climax when the beat drops out and Shad raps A cappella because he couldn't afford the full instrumental. "Out of Love Pt. 2" is another entertaining track where Shad lets us know he's had his fair share of struggles with the ladies. The album ends just as strongly as it begins as Shad continues to lay down amazing tracks. "I Heard You Had a Voice Like An Angel/Psalm 137" is a religious themed track addressing the evils and temptations that can lead to the downfall of any prince. "Compromise" instantly shoots you out of the serious lull of the previous track as Shad tells you to never compromise and continue doing you. "Get Up" is the last song on the album and ends on an appropriately triumphant note.
From start to finish, "The Old Prince" is one of the best albums to have come out in 2007 an amazing achievement for a relatively unknown rapper and a testament to the passion and love Shad infuses into his music. Shad is the most talented newcomer I've come across in quite awhile. Shad's talent transcends the basics of being able to rap well as he is able to create full songs that are as catchy as they are engaging and meaningful. His skills on the mic are so impressive that he could rock over the wackest of beats and still sound dope. Thankfully, he's assembled a crew of producers that are just as outstanding as he is. Every track on "The Old Prince" has a beat that is as compelling and musically pleasing as Shad is on the mic. Though Shad only set out to tell us his story on this album, he ended up showing us that not only is his time as king here, he is a more than worthy candidate to lead hip-hop into the future.
Originally posted: January 8, 2008
source: http://rapreviews.com/archive/2008_01F_theoldprince.html
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Shad is Hip Hop Royalty (Excliam!)
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Shad Is Hip-hop Royalty
By Vish Khanna
Shad has emerged as one of Canada’s most gifted young hip...Shad Is Hip-hop Royalty
By Vish Khanna
Shad has emerged as one of Canada’s most gifted young hip-hop artists and, with his new album The Old Prince, he’s made a fresh, ingenious record. Based out of London, Ontario but currently pursuing graduate studies in Vancouver, Shad turned heads at a 2004 radio competition, winning $17,500 towards his 2005 debut, When This is Over. The independently released record showcased a budding talent with a warm flow who alternated between endearingly silly and conscious rhymes. Brandishing an acoustic guitar with a DJ and a live band, there’s something automatically unique about the old-school flavour Shad brings to contemporary hip-hop and he’s made an astonishing artistic leap with The Old Prince.
“That was definitely one thing I was trying to do — really make sure that this one is a step beyond the last one,” Shad says. “Everything from the production side to articulating my ideas in a way that was simple, succinct, and creative, came together naturally.”
Loosely woven together as a children’s story, The Old Prince is a solid slab of hip-hop, both reverent and outside of the form. With production from Toronto talents like Slakah the Beat Child and Relic the Oddity, the record has an eclectic mix-tape feel. Strains of Ali Shaheed Muhammad boost crowd-pleaser “I Don’t Like To” and the neo-soul of “Compromise” owes much to a certain Mr. West. Indeed, Shad has an allegiance to hip-hop made by suburban college dropouts yet he possesses an edgy, mature perspective.
“I felt like Kanye West’s first album did that perfectly,” he says. “The production was new but it felt like the hip-hop that you still loved, like that classic Tribe stuff. When you hit on it, or something that you feel connected with, you kind of know. That’s what I try to do; that’s the vibe that comes out naturally for me. When I think of hip-hop, that’s what I think of.”
The confident 25-year-old writes such convincing songs, he gets away with things that seem corny on paper. First there’s his penchant for playing acoustic guitar with a backing band. “It’s not fun for me to just perform my songs; that’s not a show for me. So I always try to keep the energy there and make it worth watching. The live band is nothing revolutionary but it’s a way of keeping things interesting; I can do tracks with the DJ, I can do tracks with the live band, and keep things moving.”
Secondly, in a genre where cussing to amp up a crowd is commonplace, Shad never utters an expletive. “In hip-hop, it’s weird that that stands out as something different,” he says. “It’s just one of those weird things where it’s become the language of the genre but yeah, it’s something I don’t do so I don’t bring it to my music.”
Finally, on both of his albums, Shad has incorporated elements of poetry and spoken word by his parents. Soon moving back to their native Rwanda, Francis and Bernadette Kabango have profoundly influenced their dutiful son.
“I had the idea of ‘the old prince,’ which is quasi-fairytale-ish, so I had them narrating bits and pieces,” Shad explains. “There’s also a song where they’re on the tail end of it. I’m talking about issues of black youth [in Canada] and I thought it’d be cool to have their insight on the song because I know it’s been important to me growing up.”
Balancing sharp humour, party jams, and substantial social commentary, Shad sounds wise beyond his years on The Old Prince.
http://exclaim.ca/articles/multiarticlesub.aspx?csid1=116&csid2=4&fid1=28498
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A Prince Among Men (Eye)
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EYE Weekly - A Prince Among Men
SHAD
Shadrach Kabango is one frugal dude. In 2005, while s...
EYE Weekly - A Prince Among Men
SHAD
Shadrach Kabango is one frugal dude. In 2005, while still a student at Wilfrid Laurier University, he saw a golden opportunity in a hip-hop star search promoted by Kitchener-Waterloo radio station 91.5 The Beat. Performing with a hastily assembled band for the first time, he walked away with a cool $17,500 to put towards his debut recording. Rather than take time off from school, he recorded during his co-op term in Ottawa on evenings and weekends.
When buzz started to build for When This Is Over and interest in this hot new MC from London, Ont., was growing, Shad chose to complete his degree in commerce rather than throw himself fully into a rap career. And nowhere is his thrifty sensibility better conveyed than on “The Old Prince Still Lives at Home,” from his new album The Old Prince. His semi-serious anti-bling anthem cautions compulsive consumers that they're just a “penny safe from starving in the streets,” and hinges on the sweetly dorky gimmick of having the beats run out before his rhyme does, because, well, they cost too much.
It's probably not too far from reality, but Shad is still serious about the message. “People feel they don't have time to do anything about the bigger picture, they're too busy trying to buy the bigger thing, and it takes up their time and energy,” says the reflective 25-year-old from his temporary digs in Vancouver, BC. It's likely that he learned this life lesson well from his parents (they emigrated from Kenya while he was a child, though the family's origins are Rwandan). And it'll come as no surprise to anyone who's heard his lyrics or witnessed the genuine warmth of his live show that he's currently studying philosophy to better understand the present-day global predicament.
“Business wasn't something I was too interested in, but it was practical,” he says, and he explains that the big questions that preoccupy him in his studies are also the defining themes of the new album. “The main things I've been sorting through are, ‘What sort of person am I becoming?' and ‘Will I be able to be this person in this kind of world?'”
The album itself is loosely structured as a modern-day fairy tale, reflected in the cover art featuring Shad in 17th-century European garb. “This image of an old prince struck a chord, for some reason,” he explains. “This guy who's a fumbling character, who should be king, but he's just an old prince. It's this idea of us growing up and becoming the generation of people who are in control of the world and what happens. It's a daunting task.”
This faded fairy-tale idea recurs at various points throughout the album, woven together by the wise voices of a male and female narrator. They are, in fact, Shad's parents, and he's involved them before – most notably on his previous album, where he based the song “I'll Never Understand” on his mother Bernadette Kabango's poem about the Rwandan genocide. Though making the song didn't have a political goal, Shad reports that some fans were nonetheless moved to social action, and the man himself is clearly motivated by his parents' example (they retire later this month to pursue social projects in Rwanda).
“I wanted to put them on the album because they've been important to me as far as being grounded,” he says, and refers to a song from the new album, “Brother (Watching).” It's one of the best on the album, blending minor-key soul with keen observations gleaned from growing up black in white-bread London: the contradiction of living in suburban culture's “crazed infatuation with blackness” while simultaneously subtly excluding young black students for their difference.
“I remember talking with my mom about racism when I was really young, saying something like, ‘Mom, when I grow up, I'm gonna prove people wrong,” says Shad. “And I remember her saying, ‘No, you don't have to prove anything to anyone!' That always resonated so strongly, that idea that you don't exist to disprove stereotypes, you just exist to be you.”
Helen Spitzer
http://eyeweekly.com/eye/issue/issue_10.18.07/music/lead.php
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Critic's Pick - 5N’s (NOW Toronto)
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Shadrach Kabango is one of the wittiest lyricists in hiphop, and his sophomore LP is a concept album...Shadrach Kabango is one of the wittiest lyricists in hiphop, and his sophomore LP is a concept album of the highest order. He consistently expresses fresh ideas, from "Y'all cowards couldn't rap/wrap this dope with a Zig Zag" to "This world is so sick / like Ne-Yo's hit, or folks with no OHIP."
Metaphors with multiple interpretations, sharp similes, insightful social commentary, wordplay that tickles the mind to contemplate… there's nary a weak or wack line or moment on The Old Prince.
DJ T-Lo cuts up Now A Daze with A-Trak/Kanye-like succinctness. On What We All Want, Shad and Relic the Oddity tackle the magnetism of desire, and Kamau, who also provides a typically amazing outro, offers his humble confessions.
The melodic, mellow production provides a Native Tongues-in-their-prime-like backdrop for Shad's smooth-as-butter flow. And his unpredictable mix of cleverness, cuteness and modern cultural consciousness doesn't once fail to impress.
Shad is joined by Grand Analog at the Mod Club Wednesday (October 24).
Addi Stewart
NOW | OCTOBER 18 - 24, 2007 | VOL. 27 NO. 7
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Top 10 Hip Hop Albums of 2007 (Exclaim!)
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Shad The Old Prince (Black Box)
With all the poise of a seasoned vet, Shad hit heads with one of ...Shad The Old Prince (Black Box)
With all the poise of a seasoned vet, Shad hit heads with one of the strongest Canadian hip-hop records ever. The achievement is particularly significant when comparing The Old Prince to 2005’s When This is Over. The London, Ontario MC far exceeded the promise of his first record, refining the wit and attention to detail within both his production tastes and multi-layered wordplay. The freebie 2007 sampler La Cassette Mixée #1 was an astonishing display of Shad’s leaps and bounds and further evidence of his confident mastery of hip-hop is all over The Old Prince. Don’t sleep on it.
--Vish Khanna
