Mixtape Monday: Phonte, Rapper Big Pooh + 9th Wonder aka Little Brother
The clouds parted and Little Brother dropped a new album, so we decided to celebrate this Mixtape Monday.
Just days removed from the release of their fifth studio album May The Lord Watch, we take a look back at some of the earliest releases that shaped Little Brother's catalog. From mixtapes to full-fledged projects, this is a retrospective that celebrates and hopefully serves as a primer (for some) on all things Phonte, Rapper Big Pooh, and 9th Wonder.
Beginning with The Chittlin Circuit 1.5, we take a look back at some of the earlier material from the trio including their seminal albums The Listening and The Minstrel Show, Separate But Equal, Getback and ...And Justus For All. Other additions include a classic from The Foreign Exchange and solo material from all three members. Shouts out to FWMJ, the man responsible for some of the artwork below.
Little Brother - The Chittlin Circuit 1.5
Released in 2005, The Chittlin Circuit 1.5 was a reissue of LB’s mixtape The Chittlin Circuit featuring eight additional unreleased tracks.
Little Brother - The Listening
Little Brother’s debut album, The Listening, did a great deal to put North Carolina on the map and cement the trio as rising rap legends.
Little Brother - The Minstrel Show
Little Brother followed The Listening with The Minstrel Show in 2005, formally introducing listeners to UBN and the bevy of characters populating their satirical network.
Little Brother - The Commercial Free EP
Little Brother recorded The Commercial Free EP in 2005 and released it as a live album in 2006. The project is a mix of songs from The Minstrel Show and subsequent material.
Little Brother - Separate But Equal
Originally hosted by DJ Drama, Little Brother’s Separate But Equal tape found The Aphilliates and the Hall of Justus combining to spin a little bit of rap gold.
Little Brother - Getback
Little Brother dropped Getback in 2007, featuring tracks from 9th Wonder and a handful of outside producers including Nottz, Hi-Tek, !llmind and Denaun Porter.
Little Brother - ...And Justus For All
Little Brother joined forces with MICK (fka Mick Boogie) on ...And Justus For All, which later received a rerelease with a number of new songs.
The Foreign Exchange - Connected
Fresh off of the 15th anniversary of The Foreign Exchange’s debut album, Connected, it gets a boost here...because Phonte and Nicolay.
9th Wonder - ...Dream Merchant Vol. 1 + 2
By now 9th Wonder is a household name. The Dream Merchant tapes offer a look back at 9th’s early production outside of Little Brother.
Rapper Big Pooh - Words Paint Pictures
Rapper Big Pooh teams with Apollo Brown on the nine-track album Words Paint Pictures featuring Ras Kass, Blakk Soul, Marv Won, and more.
Phonte - No News Is Good News
Phonte’s 2018 solo album, No News Is Good News, is a formidable collection of grown-man rap songs that set the tone for Little Brother’s latest.
Little Brother - LeftBack
Once billed as the final full-length album from Little Brother, it is thankfully just their fourth as of the August 2019 release of May The Lord Watch.
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Karas Lamb writes and digs for tunes you haven’t heard yet. She actually wants to listen to your mixtape. Follow her on Twitter @karaslamb.