Sunday Oldskool

Sunday Oldskool is hitting the pause button. Sam and Cray explain why the hiatus is necessary before giving thanks for everyone who has supported the show for over 90 episodes.

The one and only Ray Neutron joins the show to discuss his work, which includes his stunning Snap The Track of Kendrick Lamar’s “To Pimp a Butterfly”, human-centered photo-journalism at TYPICAL, and touring with artists like Lecrae, Dream Junkies, and John Givez. He also gives his thoughts on the art of the album cover, and why “a ratchet beat a day keeps the fake deep away”.

Kevin Garcia joined the show to compare notes on ministry in the hood and songs about the hood, specifically Freddie Gibbs’ “Forever and a Day” and Smoke DZA’s “Morals”.

Read about his faith background and cultural background at Reformed Margins

Against our better judgement, we break down some Action Bronson from a Christian perspective on this week’s show. Bronson is a charming but vulgar rapper, recently getting booted from a university concert due to his offensive lyrics. But while there are serious reservations over his content (some of which we share), we find some edifying moments in a couple tracks. Bronson reveals some cracks in his over-the-top style in “Actin’ Crazy” and “A Light in the Addict”, nodding to his insecurities and mental anguish in a way that challenges our perspective of other indulgent and/or obnoxious people in our lives.

After checking back in with the state of justice in Ferguson, Sam and Cray listen to “T.R.O.Y.” by Pete Rock and CL Smooth. The classic track helps them reminisce about their own past, and frames a positive synthesis of the past toward future hopes that should be familiar to Christians who take seriously God’s promise of generational love.

Joshua Powell and the Great Train Robbery’s album, Alyosha, is a current CAPC Members Only offering and the man himself joined Cray to discuss his music. He also dropped fascinating thoughts on how his faith and literary leanings shape his understanding of hip hop music and Kanye West.

Members can download Joshua Powell’s album, Alyosha and you can keep up with Joshua’s work on Facebook.

We continue our examination of Kanye West’s album, The Life of Pablo, with plenty of questions to walk through. Is Kanye torn between worldly and holy living, or is he burying his old life in Christ? Is there anything edifying about processing Kanye’s misogyny? And why is Saint Kim Kardashian, a ridiculous thought?

Check out the “Terror of Monogamy” article we referenced in the show:

The Life of Pablo and the Terror of Monogamy – The Atlantic

In the first part of our deep dive on Kanye West’s The Life of Pablo, we stand back in awe of the beauty of “Ultralight Beam” and argue that it illuminates the rest of West’s album in a gospel-centric light.

For great insight into the album and the public evangelism of West, don’t miss Clock Radio Speakers’ episode from last week: https://soundcloud.com/clockradiospeakers/episode-216-side-b-kanye-wests-the-life-of-pablo

After catching up with some news from around hip hop, Sam and Cray cover Kanye West’s latest album-related antics since they aren’t ready to give thorough opinions on the music itself. Is the trainwreck of a release process still valuable for its honesty, did Kanye cross the line with Taylor Swift, and is Martin Shkreli a real hip hop villain?

A lot has happened with Kanye West since we last discussed his work. We catch you up, discussing the 2015 non-album releases, speculating on how good his upcoming “SWISH” album will be both musically and spiritually, and throw in a sermonette on work ethic and idolatry as pertains to Mr. West.