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Back in November, Latrell James released Lemonade Stand, his latest body of work. While it’s more than a month old, I recently got the chance to listen to it. Featuring a hefty 23 tracks, the Boston upcomer provides a balance of strong punch lines and conscience raps over above average backings by 5 Star Generals, Buckle Up, Duce P, and himself.
The underlying theme is hard work and dedication. As you make your way through the project, you’ll find that James mentions these ideas on almost every track. For an example on “Small Dreams, Big Head” a highlight cut, he raps “I might not be the strongest/I might not be the quickiest/ But I’ll outwork your role model in a minute/That’s ambition, you can put it on your wishlist.”
There’s also the theme of materialism versus spirituality. You see that James is on a mission for lavish living and does enjoy adding to his collection of Jordans but at the same time he knows there’s more to life than material things. ”Death Of A Scholar” and “Act 1? provide evidence. On the former, he rhymes “We all got demons/Sneakers may be mine/But how dare I stand in line and won’t do the same to vote.”
Overall, Lemonade Stand is a nice project. It features good lyrics, creative concepts, diverse hooks, and appealing production that result in strong structured songs. It definitely adds value to what has already been a great year in the Boston hip hop scene. My only complain is that I think it’s too long for an artist of his level. Yes, I think its good to release as much music as you can. However, the attention span for the average hip hop fan is fairly short especially when it’s fresh talent.
It would have been more effective to break the project into two, allowing the listener to take in a small batch of music and get a really good feel for his sound. Plus, this avoids the chance of them missing out on latter parts of the project. But if you’re a hip hop head like myself, then it doesn’t matter. Regardless, I look forward to hearing more from James.
You can stream and purchase the album below. Feel free to let me know what you think by dropping a line in the comment section.
Best Tracks: “Death Of A Scholar,” “2Pac State Of Mind,” “Material,” “Small Deams, Big Head,” and “The Sky,”
- Lindsey Gamble
Back in November, Latrell James released Lemonade Stand, his latest body of work. While it’s more than a month old, I recently got the chance to listen to it. Featuring a hefty 23 tracks, the Boston upcomer provides a balance of strong punch lines and conscience raps over above average backings by 5 Star Generals, Buckle Up, Duce P, and himself.
The underlying theme is hard work and dedication. As you make your way through the project, you’ll find that James mentions these ideas on almost every track. For an example on “Small Dreams, Big Head” a highlight cut, he raps “I might not be the strongest/I might not be the quickiest/ But I’ll outwork your role model in a minute/That’s ambition, you can put it on your wishlist.”
There’s also the theme of materialism versus spirituality. You see that James is on a mission for lavish living and does enjoy adding to his collection of Jordans but at the same time he knows there’s more to life than material things. ”Death Of A Scholar” and “Act 1? provide evidence. On the former, he rhymes “We all got demons/Sneakers may be mine/But how dare I stand in line and won’t do the same to vote.”
Overall, Lemonade Stand is a nice project. It features good lyrics, creative concepts, diverse hooks, and appealing production that result in strong structured songs. It definitely adds value to what has already been a great year in the Boston hip hop scene. My only complain is that I think it’s too long for an artist of his level. Yes, I think its good to release as much music as you can. However, the attention span for the average hip hop fan is fairly short especially when it’s fresh talent.
It would have been more effective to break the project into two, allowing the listener to take in a small batch of music and get a really good feel for his sound. Plus, this avoids the chance of them missing out on latter parts of the project. But if you’re a hip hop head like myself, then it doesn’t matter. Regardless, I look forward to hearing more from James.
You can stream and purchase the album below. Feel free to let me know what you think by dropping a line in the comment section.
Best Tracks: “Death Of A Scholar,” “2Pac State Of Mind,” “Material,” “Small Deams, Big Head,” and “The Sky,”
- Lindsey Gamble
Discography
Still working on that hot first release.
Photos
Bio
Latrell James, formerly known as Sunni Carson, is a fresh developed recording artist and producer ready to be pushed to the worldwide market. He is also the co-founder of 5-Star Generals (music production company) as well as Scholar Camaraderie (an independent brand). Latrell James always had the passion for music; writing lyrics, poetry and producing beats since the young age of seven. Honing his skills in writing and producing is what he focused on throughout grade school and now feels that it's the perfect opportunity for him to add his steadfast mark in the music industry. James is considered to be a strong influence and a respected up and coming artist from Boston, MA. He is an exceptional recording artist where words cannot explain his ability on the microphone or behind any production workstation.
What makes Latrell James different from the average artist is not only his outstanding production, it’s the way he delivers his lyricism to an audience. The content of his music lacks violence, deliberates values on life and tells realistic stories of prestige caliber. Reflections of his life, pure wittiness and his honesty meshing with catchy hooks and impressive beats are what make him special. The rare talent that James possesses garners respect from any acquired music listener. ?Latrell James is a true recording artist that relies on honesty and creating visual imagery that even the youngest of fans could see vividly. Inflection from the first words he utters resonates with struggle and determination. A sense of empowerment is the feeling most say they get after hearing one of his records. James never pushes a “woe is me” aspect onto his listeners. Instead, he empathizes, having gone through struggles himself. Then he uplifts by providing a solution to those struggles and over coming various mental states. Each individual track shows character, from his hates and his loves to his inspirations and desires. Latrell James doesn’t want to just sell records; he wants to leave an impact on people lives. As he once stated, “Music has one of the most powerful influences on the world.”
Since the establishment of his independent brand, Scholar Camaraderie in December 2011, Latrell James has been consistently performing at venues like West End Johnnies, Church of Boston, Middle East Downstairs, Webster Hall in New York City and many more. He has released two projects in 2011: his first mixtape called "Sunni Carson Project" and another released called "The Initiation" featuring lead singles: "When I'm On" (Sunni Cason Project/The Initiation), "Geesh”, "Another Go" and “Where Were You At”.
Today, Latrell James is currently working on releasing much new music for 2012. The forecast for his new music is expected to give an intensive buzz for Latrell James.
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