Prior to the two announcing they’d hit the studio together, among collaborations this writer would never have expected, former Cash Money beats champion Mannie Fresh linking up with Mos Def (fine, Yasiin Bey) would have ranked chiefly. To the casual listener, their styles would be the most unlikely of kin. To the avid Fresh devotee (or a knowledgeable Kanye fan), you know the truth: the man can do anything.
We’ve been waiting on this for some time now, but evidence of the project has been scarce, until a few weeks ago. Def premiered a couple of the tracks from the anticipated OMFGODBKNOLA at a show, including “Black Jesus”, finally revealed here in its full glory.
As evidenced by the admittedly scattered, but largely misunderstood, The New Danger and more cohesive Ecstatic, Def tired of the constrictions of traditional hip hop some time ago, so the brief portion of this track spent actually rapping should come as no surprise. Just sit back and enjoy Fresh’s brainchild.
