The Weekly Coos

On August 11th, 2023, Hip-Hop turned 50 Years of Age, and as much as I wanted to, I don’t think I could have stayed at Yankee Stadium hootin’ and hollerin’ for 8 hours straight, starting at 6 PM. Fortunately, the concert was live-streamed, and more importantly, Hip-Hop came through with some real-real by giving us some new heat, specifically on Apple Music, where their collection of DJ Mixes grew with these highlights of classic Kid Capri & DJ Green Lantern mixes for the fans; however, I’m here to speak on another project that came and hit the target with rugged lyricism. Signature by Joell Ortiz & L’Orange is that project – a reinvention of Autograph; it comes with depth, ferocity, and fantastic production. They reinvent the tonal focus of the original track and create something more rugged and realistic, except this time, it’s not as toned down and reflexive and more so creatively astute, taking the original constructs and pushing away the depths of its Boom-Bap beats, creating more complex and unique constructs that reinvent the wheel and give us something that isn’t as ubiquitous.

Joell Ortiz’s rugged sense of reality, whether flexing or expanding on the culture, specifically as a Latino, has always been a vital quality and one of the more prominent reasons he shined within collaborations as part of the collective Slaughterhouse or Gorilla Glue with Fred the Godson and The Heatmakerz. Like the early days of Hip-Hop – one or two rappers to one producer or two – Eric B & Rakim and Gangstarr – Curren$y & Harry Fraud, Boldly James & The Alchemist – Signature is similar, but also different as it comes with heightened direction toward turning something that has been around, and give it new context and shifting the foundation. It isn’t the first time we’ve gotten something like this; Ghostface Killah did so with his collab album with producer Apollo Brown, The Brown Tape, and using Big Ghost Ltd. to produce new beats for The Lost Tapes. Like them, this is as seamless with its connectivity and synergy, and that comes with the quality of the expected and what comes from it. As a reconstruction, the work is more focused artistically than narratively; the narrative doesn’t flounder here. It becomes a gamble about whether these new flows and melodies or the production combined with the content, can stand firm effectively and individually.

I’d highly recommend one to have listened to Autograph to understand the differences, especially in tone and if you come into this review raw, having this being your first Joell Ortiz album. For example, with “Masked Up,” where the original takes form with these more soulful notes to accompany the atmospheric drums from The Heatmakerz, L’Orange takes away the soulful notes and brings forth a beat with predominately varying drum patterns that boast excellent braggadocio arrogance in Joell Ortiz’s verses. What makes him different and akin to others is the humility he brings in reminding those of the means of his past and what it took to be where he is, like in the first verse where he raps, “Issa whole lotta bums in ya circle/Before rap I got money off white without fucking with Virgil/At the table with the 50 cent ox,” and bringing a reminder later by rapping, “Before the tours, live cover bands and people/It was stamps, wild rubber bands and diesel/I was out there while the law passing.” Like these tracks that get shifted from the drained reflective textures of the original, it’s vice-versa with “Love is Love,” and it doesn’t falter with the change. 

Even with that notion of recommending listening to Autograph, this stands on its own because it doesn’t circumvent the narrative, just the production and tone, delivering a refined sense of self, like with “Therapeutic.” On the song, L’Orange changes the soulful aesthetic of the original with something more rustic and jazzy. Similarly, Joell Ortiz changes his melancholic flow to something more rustic and tonic and makes the chorus feel enhanced, so when you hear “I find that music’s therapeutic/I write it, record it, then listen to it” it feels more refined with the artistic virtuosity of L’Orange’s production. The jazzy horns bring subtle depth, while the orchestral strings aren’t as subdued, heightening the connectivity with the percussion. It leaves you in awe, especially if you listen to the same tracks back-to-back and sense how rejuvenated Joell Ortiz sounds, elevating instead of beating himself down. There are varying changes that become more notable if one chooses to listen to the tracks sequentially with that from Autograph.

Some come from the mixing, and other times it’s their tonal shift, like Cyhi, who is more subdued on the L’Orange version, and Sheek Louch, who comes with that same ferocity and synergy on “Love is Love;” unfortunately, the piano notes are boisterous, driving home that artistic grit, even if takes away from the audio of the vocals. Both versions are great in their own way, though the latter because of the production. I prefer the former as L’Orange’s choice to bring harmonious bass grooves, piano melodies, and smooth drum beats, mirroring the bass, to higher levels that can drown out some of the vocals. It’d work better if the levels get more refined; for some, it won’t work, and others, it will. There is more than just the production and shift of tone, especially in Ortiz’s refined confidence in these reflexive and braggadocio bars. Tracks get shortened to remove the extended instrumental portion to keep it in one straight flow, despite some featured artists getting additionally removed, and verses get chopped to showcase the great synergy between the two. “Doors Up” is one example where the chorus gets removed for instrumental breaks, and the verses get shortened to convey his hardened mentality.

As glowing as I’ve mostly been, the experimentalness of it all isn’t for everyone. Frankly, there were moments I could have just taken the beat and removed the vocals since it’s merely redundant and more for fans of the old-school mentality. It runs short and flies by quickly, making it a swift listen while sometimes leaving me slightly disappointed they didn’t do a little more to round the edges and expand more than just the changes I’ve mentioned. But for what gets given to fans and others, it’s quality. It’s a niche product that might become forgettable in the long run, but for Ortiz and L’Orange fans, it’s bound to leave you with some music to add to the playlist. It’s some quality work that shows us one can be creatively astute without forgetting the root of which one comes from. It’s that classic New York flair, shifting and layering many different traditional instruments into eclectic, righteous rap beats bliss.