You watch channel zero with that bitch Barbara Walters

216. Crooklyn Dodgers '95 - "Return of the Crooklyn Dodgers" (MCA Soundtracks, 1995)

From the soundtrack of Spike Lee's quite underrated Clockers, comes this track, the sequel to Special Ed, Buckshot, and Masta Ace's Crooklyn soundtrack title track, and it pays homage to the original with constant vocal samples (chopped up expertly by, who else, DJ Premier) while outdoing it, thanks to Chubb Rock, O.C., and Jeru the Damaja. Chubb sounds as passionate as any MC ever on this one. OC kills it as always. And Jeru is his usual super preachy but still real dope self. The real star, though, is Primo's beat, which is and A+++ melancholy street banger, the drums hard enough to matter, but the other instruments and vocals filling most of the space. I didn't know what it was like being a young black man in Brooklyn when I heard this in 95 (or whenever I heard it), and I never will, obviously, but when everyone was talking about rappers keepin' it real in the 90s, this is what I thought that meant.