Best of '08: Elitaste.com's Dan Weisman Top 10

Posted Wednesday, December 03, 2008 @ 08:02 in Music by Dan Weisman

2008 was a funny year for music. Lil Wayne thrived going on what is essentially a second career as a rapper, selling close to three million copies and, if I had to guess, he will probably sweep the Grammys. Digital downloads and music exposure in general is at an all-time high. So that leaves me with the question, why did some stuff not pop off like it was supposed to this year? I heard a lot of incredible music this year and I'd like to share some of it that the mainstream might not have caught and offer solutions as to how the lives of these songs could have been better lived! Please note that I love all of these songs and don't necessarily think another artist should have made them, I am just positing another voice through which the song could have been released for wider commercial success.

1.  O'Neal McKnight "Check Your Coat" should have been, and could have been, Michael Jackson's comeback song. Don't get me wrong, O'Neal's version is incredible in my opinion but this could have been the song that singlehandedly brought MJ back to King of Pop status. Instantly his most timeless record since "Rock With You." And as much as I like Greg Nice on there...throw Heavy D on there for nostalgia's sake or Jay-Z on the remix...it'd be like Jam meets Change Clothes meets Rock With You...wow.

2.  Sam Sparro "Black And Gold" should have been Kanye's had we known about 808s and Heartbreak earlier this year. Not that Kanye needed it, but man, that song is incredible and I think, stateside at least, the song didn't get the attention it deserved. The raw emotion and imagery in "Black and Gold" is definitely on a Kanye level. Not too mention how crazy the video is!  There is definitely some sonic and aesthetic overlap between Sparro and Kanye (Sparrow had a late model Lincoln stretch in the video, Kanye had a late model Lamborghini Countach in the "Can't Tell Me Nothing" video..'80s excess...you know what I mean).

3.  Jim Jones "Pop Champagne" should have been Ron Brownz...oh wait, it was. No, but seriously...this is actually a situation where it was probably very beneficial for both parties to just be excited about each other's involvement on this track. And let's not forget Juelz' return! He's been kinda quiet on a mainstream tip for a minute. Harlem (and NY) needed this track! Imagine if Cam was on this. WOW! The video is classically over the top but it's something people will remember.

4.  Ryan Leslie ft. Cassie "Addicted" should have been Usher's. Again, don't get me wrong, R. Les and Cassie are a great duo but the things Usher can do for a song and the things a song can do for Usher! He definitely needed something like this to follow "Love In This Club." I'm also going to say this song could have gone to Plies.  He gets his R&B on a lot!

5.  Shawty Lo "Foolish" coulda been a great Three 6 Mafia single to follow up their take on "Lollipop."  We know how much Shawty Lo killed "They Know" and "Dunn Dunn" it all and "Foolish" might have foolishly slipped through the cracks.

6.  The Dream "Ditch That" could have been Joe Budden's comeback single. People would love to see Dream and Budden on the same track. Can't you just picture Joe's matter-of-fact flow and raspy delivery on this track. It would have been "Focused" mixed with "Pump It Up"; that's a classic NY club banger right there. Takes you back to 2003. Not really a bad thing right?

7.  Clipse "Fast Life" should have been 50 Cent's. Let's be honest for a second. "Get Up" does not do 50 Cent justice.  We're talking about the guy who made "In Da Club", "A Little Bit" and "Candy Shop". What's more is that although I LOVE the Clipse, their fans were not ready for a Scott Storch record after two albums of Neptunes only.  There needed to be a withdrawl process; you can't go from "Wamp Wamp" to this. I have faith that their real solo effort is going to be super official

8.  Young Jeezy "Circulate" should have Wale on it. I'm obviously biased because I manage Wale but that "love me out in DC just like gogo" line leaves me wanting Wale on that track. Don Cannon came super correct and although I don't think this track should have gone to Wale per se, I would love to hear him on it.

9.  Robin Thicke "Magic" should have been Justin Timberlake's. This song just didn't blow up like it should have.  To me, this is the best song Robin has ever done; from a production and songwriting standpoint, this song has it all. I think if Justin had used this to carry him into 2009, we would be hearing this song through the summer.

10.  Erykah Badu "Honey" should have been Alicia Keyes. Not that Alicia needed another hit but man, this song is fire, why did it not connect. Plus Alicia Keyes and 9th Wonder is like a blogger's wet dream.

 

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