In early 2003, Malichi Male ruled Toronto urban radio airwaves with his refreshing brand of Hip Hop, containing conscious lyrics and infectious beats. He secured a Top-5 single for six consecutive weeks on mainstream radio, while hitting number one on the Joy 1250 Christian radio’s countdown. To date, he remains the only Christian urban artist to simultaneously have a top 5 single on both Christian and secular radio. Malichi has been nominated for the 2004 Covenant Award, the Urban Music Association of Canada Award, the Vibe Award and the Maja Award and is the proud recipient of 2 Maja Awards in the categories of Hip Hop Album of the Year and New Artist of the Year.
A few months back Malichi delivered his 20-track magnum opus, or rather his “Real Life” album. While the underground circuit is strong and future stars are on the rise. Malichi has a world-wide appeal that is almost contagious right from the first track. With several street bangers already in place who would have thought that a Canadian-based independent rapper that goes by the name “Malichi “ would drop an album that could prove to be timeless!
If you don’t have this album in your collection, seriously, either you don’t like hip-hop or there’s something wrong with you. I’m not even going to begin to describe why every track is dope, because I’d literally be here all night. “Anything”, “B-Boy Stance”, “Want 2 B U”, “Help”, “Child Soldier”, etc…They’re all classics. But if I had to choose favorite tracks off of here, they would be “Street Life” “Hesitate”, “Stressing” and “Heaven”. “Cry” is so smooth and heartfelt, it’ll give you chills….I remember the first time I heard this track, I played it over and over again, and just like the whole album, it never gets tiring or old. Everything about this track is beyond classic–the unbelievable beat and the flawless flow, the vocal hooks and the Spiritual theme.
Few albums have touched on the street life while demonstrating the pain and misery that comes along with the fast life, as much as “Real Life”. Malichi’s tracks display feelings of anger, hope, tranquility and spirituality. The bottom line is simple. This is one of the greatest Hip-hop albums of the year. Perfection. I recommend it to anyone who desires their music on a higher plain. It is never too late. There will be no need to push the skip button on your media player. Every track is a chapter in the story of why this album was built around the title of “Real Life”.
Picture an album with no filler, twenty songs with sharp lyrics, top shelf production, a rapper with a style that is absolutely unique – you will never hear an emcee with a similar tone and flow to that of Malichi. And you’d be hard-pressed to find something here that you won’t love. You can put this in and not touch a single button except the volume – through the entire 20 tracks!
