Bavu Blakes
Create and Hustle (Word4Word Music) It’s more than just making the music; you must be heard. And it’s this painful process that Create and Hustle captures. For Austin MC Bavu Blakes, both processes are daily chores, day-in and day-out. On his new platter, the UT grad and former Hip Hop Humpday MC lays all the words on the table with wit, lyrical flow, and straightforward content, narrating a quick-paced, 12-track training day on his life, art, and the overlapping struggles of not settling in either. Opener “Voo” spells out where he’s from and where he plans to go — “Up South” — then takes a moment to introduce the star himself, followed by lectures of sole opinion, intelligence, “Sarcasm,” rhythm, and rhyme. Claiming the South and hip-hop, with a grain of salt, tracks like “Sarcasm” and “We Used to” critiques both, and at the same time, resonates a plan for restructure, re-evaluation, and rejuvenation. Unlike other MCs who get hung up on the past, leaving the context enlightened but relatively light, Bavu incorporates his knowledge while letting the listener know that he has his eyes, ears, and mind firmly focused to what’s going on.
This article appears in August 9 • 2002.