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Talib Kweli
QUALITY
(RAWKUS/MCA)

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On his first proper solo album (sans collaborators Mos Def or Hi-Tek), rapper Talib Kweli makes music that is socially aware and socially acceptable, too. Kweli’s smart enough as a rapper not to tangle in politics simply for politics’ sake, and that’s one reason he’s so compelling an MC — he knows that to make his fight your fight, he has to make you listen first. The enthusiasm of his delivery and the sanctity of his message on "Get By" — that too many young folks are content with just being and not living — turn the song into one of hip-hop’s great social anthems. Matched with the energy of producer Kanye West, Kweli’s passion bursts through like bubbles in soda pop as he lists a litany of violations: drugs, alcohol, fashion. West’s contemplative piano riffs and boisterous church-choir invocation could easily have been used for his more high-profile clients like Jay-Z, but his inclusion only reinforces Kweli’s message: we’re all in this together. Elsewhere, the punchy horns and slinky, soulful female accompaniment on "Shock Body" and the buoyant West Coast funk of the DJ Quik–produced "Put It in the Air" forge a new kind of activist rap: one whose music does as much connecting as its politics.

BY JOSEPH PATEL

Issue Date: January 2 - 9, 2003
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