Honestly, there isn’t much I can say about this record. At a time when rap’s mainstream success was booming, Rawkus was keeping the True School alive with a rookie line-up that obliterates XXL’s list today. This week’s Re-Release is Common feat. Sadat X & Talib Kweli “1999“.
“Rawkus Records — the little hip-hop indie label that could — went through various major-label dealings over the years, eventually falling under the Geffen Records banner in 2005, in theory an unseemly partnership that did have one immediately positive outcome: a long-overdue best-of collection, Rawkus Records: Best of Decade I (1995-2005). If you’re relatively familiar with Rawkus, you might find the title curious — the “1995-2005″ part, that is — because for all means and purposes, the label became inactive once the ’90s came to a close. Without a doubt, the glory years of Rawkus were the late ’90s, back when the Soundbombing and Lyricist Lounge series were a cultural touchstone, back when Mos Def and Talib…” - Allmusic.com
