So why is Cunninlynguists’ Will Rap For Food on this best 1,000 albums ever thing?
What’s in a What’s in a name? Old Billy Shakespeare, a dude known for being pretty good at stringing words together, wrote that line for the character of Juliet in a pretty famous play called Romeo and Juliet.
What’s in a name?
That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet
I’m motivated to reference Shakespeare here because we need to start with the name of this rap collective, which comprises Deacon the Villain (now that’s a name!), Kno, and Mr. SOS.
Now, I get it: Cunninlynguists is a clever name* and as a much younger man I’m sure I found it pretty funny. And while I’m not offended by the name in the least, it simply feels like something that has to be defended – at least in some small way – in relaying that Cunninlynguists is a superior hip-hop outfit.
* I came up with a term called clevAR some years back. If you’re familiar with the use of “extra” when it’s used in a certain way, clevAR is kind of “extra clever,” TOO clever, too clever by half. Cunninlynguists as a name is absolutely clevAR.
Which they are. Cunninlynguists are flat out great, as evidenced by Will Rap For Food.
On songs like “Lynguistics,” they deliver superior hip-hop flow against orchestral strings and an almost operatic soundscape. This balance plays really nicely too as the lyrics can be, uh… a little aggressive in a rated “R” kind of way (so be warned).
The jaunty, frantic-paced “616 Rewind” is exquisite underground hip-hop that happens to have high end production – which includes incredible classical music instrumentation. And it’s something of a masterclass of how a rap collective can divide and conquer when divvying up verses.
“Thugged Out Since Cub Scouts” should get an award for the song title alone. It’s a more languid, instrumental number that has a European flair, and shows off how good the sound production is on this album.
“So Live!” is a really fun party number, driven by a rollicking piano.
Pop culture stuff that has something to do with Cunninlynguists’ Will Rap For Food
There are plenty of other examples of “bad name, good X.” One of the first to come to mind is the TV show, Cougar Town. At its conception, the focus of the comedy was to be the exploits of a 40-something mother (played by the great Courtney Cox) with… let’s just say younger men.
Cougar Town quickly pivoted, however, into an outstanding ensemble comedy about a group of friends who call themselves the cul-de-sac crew.
Some stats & info about Cunninlynguists – Will Rap For Food
- What kind of musical stylings does this album represent? Rap, Hip Hop, Underground Hip Hop, Alternative Rap, Southern Rap
- Rolling Stone’s greatest 500 albums ranking – not ranked!
- All Music’s rating – not rated!
- When was Will Rap For Food released? 2001
- My ranking, the one you’re reading right now – #439 out of 1,000
Cunninlynguists’ Will Rap For Food on Spotify
A lyrical snippet from Cunninlynguists’ Will Rap For Food that’s evocative of the album in some way, maybe
Feelin’ my wrath, venturing through parts of the South so dirty you’ll want to be given a bath.
What does the “best 1,000 albums ever” mean and why are you doing this?
Yeah, I know it’s audacious, a little crazy (okay, maybe a lot cray cray), bordering on criminal nerdery.
But here’s what it’s NOT: a definitive list of the Greatest Albums of All-Time. This is 100% my own personal super biased, incredibly subjective review of what my top 1,000 albums are, ranked in painstaking order over the course of doing research for nearly a year, Rob from High Fidelity style. Find out more about why I embarked on a best 1,000 albums ever project.