From rap battle king to pop sensation Professor Green has surprised many with his recent release. Filled with social commentary, witty lines, epic beats and brutal honestly the Professor Green Album - Alive Till I'm Dead definitely ranks highly with some of the UK's best.
Professor Green started off in the London battle scene at nights such as Jump Off, making a name for himself as a force to be reckoned with engaging in many legendary battles, most notably with Stig Of The Dump. Subsequently he caught the eye of a certain Mike Skinner of The Streets and got signed to his label The Beats. This was however cut short When the label folded. Then, in 2009 a potentially fatal attack with a bottle in a London nightclub, left Professor Green with a gruesome scar just above the Lucky tattoo on his neck. Ironically it was shortly after this that Professor Green began making serious moves in the music scene with his album Alive Till I'm Dead.
Aside from the obvious big single tracks such as Be Good To Green (feat Lilly Allen) and the INXS-sampling I Need You Tonight, which are clearly aimed at the mass market, the bulk of Alive Till I'm Dead is surprisingly rich in lyrical content and music dynamics. In City Of Gold the Professor paint a gritty and sobering picture of life in London. 'An it moves fast in a city full of bright lights and tight dresses Medusa's that'll seduce ya if ya ain't ready' this is complemented by moody production and heavy drums.
However in my opinion the most hard hitting and heart felt track on the Professor Green album is 'Where Do We Go' in which he revels a story and painful memories of a past relationship 'I had a heart to love but both of my parents left me An I found it hard to trust, made it hard for us. We used to argue an fuss a lot always wondered when it was gunna stop' The melancholy vocals and rich chords reflect Green's lyrics perfectly. His talks about saying goodbye to a child they didn't get to see and it is clear that the lyrics are straight up honest and very personal.
With A list of features including Lily Allen, Labrinth, Example, The Streets and more you can be assured Alive Till I'm Dead is full of catchy choruses and a variety of sounds. A lot of the album is sample based, thus in a sense Professor Green has stuck to his hop roots but tailored it with a contemporary/commercial sound. His delivery is on point throughout and Green even experiments with more melodic/sung vocals at times which works surprisingly well.
All in all The Professor Green album - Alive Till I'm Dead is consistently good throughout, there are very few (if no) skipable tracks and it is very easy on the ear. Although certain tracks are clearly aimed more at the mass market, Green has managed maintained his integrity through his strong lyrical and personality. The rise of Professor Green and his UK Rap peers has certainly opened doors for other up and coming music artists.
If you like UK Rap, Grime etc you should check out Skilf and download his new mixtape 'Alter Egos' from his site. I highly recommend it, there's a really good mix of tracks on there and the rapping is on point.
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