On The Dwnld
by Max Hasan | Boston University
A Collection of the most downloaded tracks across college campuses
1. Beastie Boys-”Don’t Play No Game That I Can’t Win (Feat. Santigold)
A few weeks after the release of Beastie Boys‘ highly-anticipated album Hot Sauce Committee pt. 2, Major Lazer, which consists of DJ/producers Diplo and Switch, released a great remix of the Jewish NYC-based rap trio’s collaboration with the M.I.A.-esque electro-pop singer… As expected from Major Lazer , the result is a very dance-able, moombahton-influenced party tune.
2. Grieves-”Best of Me (prod. Budo)“
Rhymesayers’ Grieves, who has been featured on previous On The Dwnlds just dropped a great tune. As one of the few people out there who is both an excellent crooner and smooth poet, he holds a high amount of respect in my book. This song, like most of his material, will not disappoint. Enjoy.
3. Shwayze & Cisco-”Summertime Music”-Island in the Sun
Exactly as the song’s title describes it, this song is the epitome of summer and sunshine. Definitely the type of song that you’d want to be blasting with your sunroof down cruising down the 101, or just chilling on the patio with some Coronas (or Mike’s Hard Lemonade, whatever you prefer).
4. Rapsody-”Black Diamonds ft. Raekwon”-Thank H.E.R. Now
You know that you’re a respected rapper when Raekwon collabs with you on a track. Rapsody may be one of the handful of female rappers out there, which makes it all the more harder for her to break the gender barrier. This track proves that she was well deserving of the the Wu-Tang Clan member’s blessing.
5. Skrillex & Diplo-”Amplifire”
I’m not too big of a fan of Skrillex. He is what people call a “trend-surfer” (he was the frontman of Front First to Last during the height of the screamo-craze, and this new dubstep image is no accident)… but Diplo on the other hand is one of my heroes. As one half of Major Lazer and the genius behind the label/blog Mad Decent, he gets my seal of approval. This track is one part moombahton and one part dubstep, arguably the two most popular electronic music genres at the moment.
6. ProbCause-”Sauced”-Stir Fry EP
ProbCause is a very very versatile rapper. He just dropped his mixtape Stir Fry, which features a remixed track from none other than dubstep legend Flux Pavilion. You can grab his mixtape here
7. Vaiper on the Grass-”Karo Sokis”-Karo Sokis EP
Hailing from Lithuania, these rappers know how to flow surprisingly well. Sounding a bit like Aesop Rock and Atmosphere, regardless of the language barrier, these guys make great music.
8. Kito-”LFO VIP (ft. Reija Lee)
This post-dubstep duo have been featured on On the Dwnld before, and their most recent track is very pleasing aurally. Previously produced by dubstep producer Skream, they have been killing it as of late.
9. Sonny Shotz & On Cue-”Anything Real”
Sonny Shotz is one of the three members of the group Dean’s List who hail out of Boston. Sonny’s recent collaboration is a great, chill mix. Definitely something for everyone’s iTunes.
10. TiRon & Ayomari-”Du Gîr Mig Bra (You Complete Me)”-A Swedish Love Story
TiRon and Ayomari may be Cali-based, but this track was produced by Swedes during their recent trip to the country. Apparently they have enough Swedish-produced material to throw on an EP. This track is great for fans of the late (but great) Nujabes. It’s got a really chill and jazzy hip-hop feel to it.
11. Washed Out-”Amor Fati”-Within and Without
Washed Out AKA Ernest Greene recently released his first full-length album. His style is definitely improving from his more lo-fi tracks of the past to more 80′s synth-driven tracks like this one.
12. jj-”CELEBRIS”
Swedish-based musicians, jj, leaked this track recently. Like most of their stuff, it’s slow and full of synth pads.
Max Hasan is NGJ's College Music Correspondent and a freshman at BU studying economics. He hosts a show, "Left of The Dial" on WTBU, which focuses on promoting underground, local, and college music. He also regularly writes for Collab Projekt, a music blog that he runs with his friends.
Check out my blog http://www.collabprojekt.com
