Music Monday: Xaphoon Jones
Time for the second installment of Music Monday, a weekly blog post by yours truly about the various music artists I recommend checking out.
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This week’s highlight is Xaphoon Jones, 1/2 of the dynamic duo that is up-and-coming rap group Chiddy Bang.
Chiddy Bang. From left to right: Chidera “Chiddy” Anamege and Noah “Xaphoon Jones” Beresin.
Who is Xaphoon Jones? I don’t really know too much of his background, but I do know that he is one talented producer. His musical tastes are similar to my own, and he frequently features samples from songs I love like “Reckoner” by Radiohead, “Testify” by Kanye West, “Heard It Through The Grapevine” by Marvin Gaye, “Is This Love” by Bob Marley and “Kids” by MGMT, mashing them up into one beat-induced dance anthem that everyone can jam to. (Check out samples of his work below)
The reason I wanted to direct your attention to Xaphoon is two-fold:
1) His partner-in-rhyme, Chidera “Chiddy” Anamege, has just recently set the Guinness World Record for Longest Freestyling Rap with a time of 9 hours, 18 minutes, and 22 seconds. Anyone who can freestyle for 9 hours straight gets respect in my book.
and 2) Xaphoon Jones Mixtape Vol. 1
This first installment of “mixtapes” consists of a collection of mashups from the aforementioned artists, including other popular artists such Led Zeppelin, Passion Pit, Beyonce and Lil Wayne.
I found this album the same way I find most of the rare golden treasures of music: through last.fm. Upon hearing the mashup of Radiohead and Kanye West (and learning that the entire album was free to download), I immediately grabbed the album. Lying in my bed listening to Vol. 1 one night, I remember being mesmerized by the quality of mixing and producing coming through my headphones. It felt like a gateway to a new genre of music was being opened before my ears.
While not every song on the album is my favorite, I love more than half of them and frequently play them at parties, with friends asking me what genius has merged Bob Marley with MGMT. I take pleasure in answering with “Xaphoon Jones, check him out”. I suggest you do the same.
Xaphoon Jones Mixtape Vol. 1 (sample) by skipthesynapse
Download “Xaphoon Jones Mixtape Vol. 1” here.
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