By shelz.
Grown man business has been short in abundance and even shorter in demand in hip hop recently as commerce continues to dictate swag rules. But when three grown men come together and drop something for the mature ear, it’s a grand change of pace. Such is the case with Phonte’s first single from Charity Starts At Home, “Not Here Anymore.”
9th Wonder does a fantastic job re-working the classic Rose Royce tune, “Love Don’t Live Here Anymore.” All the parts are there, but they’re chopped up like a puzzle with all the pieces in different places. It respects the original while still presenting in a fresh way. Very well done.
Phonte respects the mellow of the track and it bodes well for his story of proper evolution. Understanding the chaotic path you walked brought you to the new place you stand and turning the young you into the new and improved older you is something we all aspire to. According to Phonte, that’s his reality. Once you grow past the novelty of being in control of yourself, things being right outweigh things being good, even what’s on your plate and how you treat your closest of homies. He still manages a few directionless shots at unknown emcees in this flurry of maturity though.
You know deep down you ain’t nice, just a little courteous.
Funny.
Elzhi pulls up the rear and again proves why you should support whatever he does. His verse is nothing but deserved arrogance. He’s poetic, cinematic; magical even. Plus he’s righteous. Don’t bother to step Cletus. You’ll walk over, but you’ll limp back. The skill is just that sharp. He reports your one-hit-wonder sob story as ordinary, another bad ending for a bad emcee. No one was expecting anything different for you. Sorry.
“Not Here Anymore” almost sounds like an epitaph. That may drop a bit a rain on the parade, but it doesn’t ruin the cool of this song one bit. Its dope and if this is a sign of what we should expect from Charity Starts At Home, I’m very excited.
Phonte Ft. Elzhi – Not Here Anymore
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