MOG Editorial Review

Stretching back to the late nineties with his Mos Def collaboration Black Star, Brooklyn MC Talib Kweli has been regarded as one of hip-hop’s most talented lyricists. His fourth album, Gutter Rainbows, finds the rhyme vet in a unique space, free of major label hindrances and released to fans as a digital-only offering. In certain respects, Kweli has become the “old faithful” of hip-hop music, he consistently displays amazing lyricism (“Cold Rain”) that you just don’t find in the average rapper. While there are certain naysayers claiming that Kweli’s music has become fairly predictable, it's undeniable that the songs on Gutter Rainbows are technically superior to most songs being made today. Bright spots like “I’m On One”, and “Palookas” alone are testament to Kweli’s ability to knock one out of the park at will, even if it may not happen as often as we’d like, and we can only hope this is the begin of a new, freeing chapter in Kweli's career.