Introducing ‘Notes from Mr. Sandman‘ – a column slapping a spotlight on lyricists overlooked, under appreciated, or just plain criminally slept on. Or like a man named Nas once said, “I never sleep, cause sleep is the cousin of death.” Enter Mr. Sandman with what y’all missed while chasing the REM dragon.
The past year was Chicago’s year, with guys like Chance the Rapper, Lil Durk and of course the effervescent Chief Keef grabbing headlines faster than Calvin Johnson does passes. But before that young crop made their presence known there was Che Smith who was steady ripping mics for years.
Che, better known as Rhymefest, came up when the only scene in Chicago was a deep underground one. Twista and Crucial Conflict were the few guys handling the spotlight while artists like All Natural, the Nacrobats, Typical Cats, Juice and the Molemen were running everything else. The only radio station that would touch rap at that time was WHPK. Fest was a bridge between those two scenes, a superstar made for the limelight but born in the dungeons of the underground. A veteran of the battle circuit, someone who smashed Eminem into pieces when called upon.
Fest was the winner of two scribble jams doing so in commanding fashion. And as the Commons and Kanyes and No I.D.s rose to fame, Fest was right there too, providing them with examples of how Chicago lyricists get down. Fests’ biggest accolade came when he won a Grammy for co-writing Kanye’s “Jesus Walks:” [LISTEN]
His full-length debut Blue Collar wasn’t the commercial success that he had hoped for but it had potential: solid production from guys like Just Blaze, No I.D. and Mark Ronson as well as a narrative that covered all the bases that Fest rounded in his career – from his rise through the underground to his role as an emerging superstar.
Perhaps the title was a little off-putting, but it embodied Rhymefest to a tee, a guy who never believed in coasting. The album was supposed to propel him into the spotlight but it just never materialized. It lacked finesse and was out of character, like watching Michael Jordan play baseball. But on songs like “Tell a Story” you do get to hear what Rhymefest is and will always be known for: [LISTEN]
Fest waited four years to release a follow up in El Che, and that too made few waves. He was moving into a new era and the stage in which he held court was changing too. He steeped himself in local philanthropy and politics, even running for alderman at one point. In some indefinable way Fest was maybe a little too far ahead for hip-hop. He saw things going in a direction that wasn’t up to his standard and instead of selling out to rap about money or women or drugs or whatever was trending, he moved on to a larger mission.
It’s been a minute since Fest stepped on stage, and it’s a wonder as to how it’ll be when his next album drops. Whether or not it’ll pop or not is of no consequence. It’ll just be good to hear back from an ironclad lyricist again.