http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUaZtr7HNio&feature=player_embedded

Deen has to give DJ Drama credit for this one.

Maybe “perfect” isn’t the word, but this is how to leverage networking into dope “quality street music” (his words). Bringing the “old” (is it time to start describing Jeezy, T.I. and Luda as old) ATL and one of the leaders of the new ATL together on the same track for what should be a decent summer-sized summer hit.

Speaking of summer hits, outside of that “Cashin’ Out/Nina” song, I’m not hearing a whole lot of anything new for this summer. “Cashin Out” is no “Racks” damn it. And 2Chainz is not going to save you party people – he’ll do well enough for himself, but he lacks the vitamins and minerals to give you those club hits you love so much. I haven’t gone out much in the last few weeks, but I haven’t heard G.O.O.D. Music’s “Mercy” at a club either. I’mma need you coon rappers of America to give us more candidates for “banger of the summer.” Or am I trippin’ too soon? I believe in y’all. We deserve more competition for this cheap xylophone Nina shit.

So back to this song. Future on the hook is perfect, because I never know what he’s saying during his “verses.” Jeezy sets it off right by just sounding all authoritative and Jeezy-esque, T.I. absolutely clobbers his verse and Luda does what Busta used to do before Luda took that mantle and relinquished that job to Weezy, who in turn let the job to a series of lames that have resulted in us getting stuck with 2Chainz, who, thankfully, is absent from this track! Easy enough on paper and the final result sounds great.

In truth, this was supposed to be much shorter post where I made the following pair of points:

1. T.I. has been KILLING everything he’s been on post-jail. Makes one wonder why it’s taking him so long to make the hit that’ll propel him back on the charts. That’s all we’re waiting for at the moment. That used to come easy to him.

1. Jeezy says “Shout to Gangsta Gibbs, he the next to blow” – I hope with every fiber of my being that Jeezy is telling the truth on that one, even if he has zero control over these things. Even when they directly concern him (TM 103 anyone?)

And since it feels kinda mean to end this post without giving Luda some extra lines, I’ll ask if anyone else has begun to see him the same light as LL Cool J yet? A former rapper (that can still rap pretty well – he has a couple of funny and defiant punchlines on this song) that’s more of an actor these days? I can’t be the only one that thinks that, right? If I’m wrong about this, then we’ll just blame it on my unfortunate obsession with slandering my lighter brethren. I’m seeing someone to help me fix that soon…