Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn MC Skyzoo is releasing his Langston Hughes title-inspired album, A Dream Deferred, next Tuesday (October 2), through his own Duck Down Music-distributed label, The Faculty.
Named after legendary Harlem Renaissance poet Hughes poem of the same name, Skyzoos fourth album uses a more diverse variety of features compared to his 2009 debut, The Salvation, boasting appearances from Jill Scott, Freeway, Raheem Devaughn, and Talib Kweli.
I feel like a lot of people are at a point where they know what it is that they want, and they have this dream that theyre going towards. But what happens when things dont go the way you thought it would? Skyzoo recently told AllHipHop.com in his thick, New York bravado.
The closer you get to it, the more you realize its nothing like you thought it would be. What happens then? I think thats what that poem meant, and thats what I wanted the album to be about, Skyzoo added.
As an avid fan of the Jazz sound that filled the Harlem air during Hughes time, Skyzoo described the incorporation of live Jazz instruments and string sections that producers like DJ Khalil and co-executive producer !llmind brought to the project.
It stays true to the root of what people know me for rhyming over. Dirty drums, good baselines, and that core feeling. But its not sample heavy, said the lyrical story-teller. Its a bigger sound. More lush. We had people come in and play stuff. We arranged it, wrote music pieces for it. I wanted it to sound like a dream.
Grammy winning producer 9th Wonders trademark presence is not as strong on the upcoming album as on Skyzoos debut album, The Salvation, which was released on 9th Wonders Jamla imprint. Although the North Carolina producer lends to the albums first single, Jansport Springs (One-Time for Chi-Ali), Skyzoo claims that for the majority of A Dream Deferred, he wanted to stray away from the sample-heavy beats which permeate 9th Wonders signature sound.
In recent times, Skyzoo has parted ways with Jamla in order to build The Faculty, but says 9th Wonder has been supportive of his recent endeavors. That was one of the things that 9th and I had talked about. He was all for it, said Skyzoo. I felt like I did my part in helping to get Jamla to a certain place. And I wanted to do that for my own Jamla now.
Check out the tracklist for Skyzoos A Dream Deferred below:
1) Dreams In A Basement featuring Jill Scott (produced by !llmind)
2) Jansport Strings (One Time for Chi-Ali) (produced by 9th Wonder)
3) Pockets Full feat. Freeway (produced by !llmind)
4) Give It Up feat. DJ Prince (produced by !llmind)
5) Glass Ceilings (produced by !llmind)
6) Range Rover Rhythm (produced by Jahlil Beats)
7) The Knowing feat. Jessy Wilson (produced by Eric G)
8) Drew & Derwin feat. Raheem Devaughn (produced by Focus)
9) Realization feat. Jared Evan (produced by DJ Khalil)
10) The Rage of Roemello (produced by DJ Khalil)
11) How to Make it Through Hysteria (produced by Best Kept Secret)
12) Steels Apartment (produced by Black Milk)
13) Spike Lee Was My Hero feat. Talib Kweli (produced by Tall Black Guy)
14) The Cost of Sleep (produced by Tall Black Guy)
