Ok….I both scrolled through and did a search in the thread and not a single mention of J-Live???
In the late 90s early 2000s when I was a cratedigger making beats on the Yamaha SU700 J-Live was really one of my favorite emcees! As a matter of fact when recently listening to my very last beat tape from 2005 before selling all vinyl records it naturally had a J-Live acapella over one of the beats! 
He’s still great to this day, check this out! 
Asheru was/is also really really great, here’s both together over a Pete Rock beat from 1996:
Asheru and Blue Black (Unspoken Heard) - Truly unique! 
Lone Catalysts (J Sands & J Rawls) collaborated with J-Live on the track Dynomite below (J Rawls also made two albums with Fat Jon from Five Deez under the name 3582 ):
So here’s some favorite Five Deez tracks of mine:
WOW WOW! I can feel it!
(instrumental…but the switch up at 1:18 )
Lifesavas really flow in such great ways:
Back then in the early 2000s I listened A LOT to Schoolz of Thought so they are still among my very favorites:
Also make sure to check out the track - 10) Final Stages (A New Era) 28:34 - 
from the album Think Fast: The Orientation
I’ll end this post with the following - PAY DUES! 
:
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Saw JLive here in town in 2003. Can’t remember who else was there, People Under The Stairs, maybe. Prerty great performance. Dj’d, freestyled, and scratched all at the same time. Had some of his releases and was stoked to see him sound just as good live, as he was on his albums.
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you wasn’t ready
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Ordered some CDs this morning to pick up from a local record store. This was on the bag. You don’t get that treatment from Spotify…
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This record is so good! I was surprised when I got the email that he dropped another one so soon. It’s got a minimal thing going that just really works.
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Yeah I was surprised too, but I’m starting to think he’s the kind of artist that has no choice in the matter, he sounds like he has to do it
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Like he’s being forced by an external source or internal one?
I guess internal but that’s a good question, but to me he sounds like he couldn’t stop rapping if he wanted to.
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I hope he doesn’t. Still one of my all time favorites from the conscious sub-genre. He continues to age well, unlike Atmosphere imho.
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I have always been a fan of atmosphere’s ethic but never of his mic skill, but he’s been a big part of the support for many artist I like a lot. I think he’s really a pioneer of a sort… I guess I’m really talking about Slug, but he seems like a good dude.
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I 100% agree with you. Their recent records lost me. Feels like they are tired or just somehow separated the boom from the bap.
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Yeah was pleasantly surprised by the new Aes album. Grabbed a physical copy as soon as i could. Been a good year in some respects for hip hop, Aes, Danny Brown, Billy Woods, Open Mike Eagle, Clipping with good projects - all running parallel to the mainstream becoming a weird pastiche of itself.
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I think Aeosop Rock has always wanted to be taken more seriously than just an indie rapper, not that there is anything wrong with being an indie rapper but I think he’s like the female rappers who don’t want to be considered good for being a female rapper, but good for being good… I think the indie darling tag is something he would not mind escaping… I think El-p felt some kind of way about that also
I love the era when rappers were proud to be underground and there was an actual culture, it went down hill imo when the gangsta rappers who already had their own space took over the underground tag as well , and other underground artist didn’t speak up and resist that.
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