Over the last decade, hip-hop has gone through a transitional phase, morphing into overblown big budget albums accompanied by over hyped guest appearances (with the words “featuring” actually outshining the artist), coupled with over budget videos,  oversized jewelry, and cars with over proportioned females…. you get the idea. What happened to keeping it simple? Well, left coast Living Legends member, Murs, and underground production sensation, 9th Wonder (Little Brother), have decided to keep it simple. One MC, one Producer, ten tracks of pure hip-hop. It’s back to the basics with Murs 3:16: The 9th Edition, which is about as basic as it gets.

   Murs doesn’t attempt to woo heads with a ridiculous vocab or stunning tongue acrobatics. Instead, Murs simply conjures up narratives about what a mid-twenties black man goes through on a daily basis. It’s so simple that it sounds boring on paper, but it’s the way that Murs delivers his tales that have garnered him the fan base he possesses today. Within the ten tracks, he delivers startling material that another emcee probably won’t cover over the lifespan of his/her career. He is ridiculously introspective, which allows him to become tangible and easily relate to his audiences. From the outset, Murs’ intro alone sets the tone for the album, as in just under two minutes, he tackles his views from the struggle (“these niggas need Jesus/fuck it niggas need Oprah/all this killin’ and this pimpin’ and these foul ways of livin’/see everyone’s forgetting that the struggles not over”) and even simple inquisitions (“to answer all the questions that’s been shootin through your group/Yes 9th does really make these beats on Fruity Loops”). From there the power of 9th wonder is felt on the whimsical “Bad Man!”, as the reggae infused production allows Murs to speak his mind on the contradictions of how women think they want a bad man, but not really.  Murs is always at his best when he delivers joints about the opposite sex, as seen on “Freak These Tales”, when 9th Wonder’s smooth and sexy production couples perfectly with Murs’ depiction of the transformation from naive young male to mannish sex addict. To sum it all up in one line, Murs delivers the gem “They say you come twice the first time and now I understand/I came once inside of her then I became a man.” Continuing with his views on women, Murs and 9th create the beautifully crafted “The Pain”, where 9th’s ill vocal sample drifts amongst a mellow string arrangement, for the emcee to get introspective, with verses about the complex art of swooping the ladies.

    Don’t sleep though, because it ain’t all about the ladies, as Murs comes through with diverse narratives and views on life throughout the rest of the LP.  The outright side-splitting “Trevor An Them” illustrates an encounter with a dim-witted former acquaintance botching up a 7-11 robbery attempt. Also when Murs recounts gun control chaos on the on the aptly titled “Walk Like A Man”, he becomes more than just an emcee. With the track containing three different movements by 9th, it sets the stage for Murs to craft his tales of vengeance, remorse and careless gun toting, which are done so vividly that you wonder if it really happened or not. Finally, Murs may raise a few eyebrows on “And This Is For…” where he addresses the color barriers within hip-hop and gives his honest opinion on this whole melting pot we call the music industry. It may be viewed negatively by some, but no doubt, Murs says what he wants it to, and in all honesty what many may think about, but are too scared to discuss, in the wake of the Eminem vs. The Source confrontation. It’s all Murs all the time, and who can argue with that?

     With Murs 3:16 the 9th Edition, both Murs and 9th Wonder prove the old adage, “less is more”, as the album clocks in at under forty minutes, but addresses more than most 20+ song albums could ever handle. Even though many of our hip-hop community are enamored with our overblown music industry and may think that the laid back vibe of this LP is a bore, it hopefully will snatch the ears of many who just want some basic hip-hop, minus the camera tricks. Dope rhymes, Dope beats, who could ask for anything more?