Track Listing

1. Title Theme
2. Von Sees
3. Raw Life
4. Hustle Hustle
5. Let's Move
6. Nic's Groove
7. Be Allright
8. Sincere
9. Brave New World
10. The Answer
11. Come Around
12. Happiness
13. End Theme
14. All That You Are
15. Be All Right Remix
16. Call
17. Downtime Remix

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3004 in Music
• Released on: 2004-08-24
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Explicit Lyrics

Album Description
The Foreign Exchange first "met" in mid-2002, when Phonte (who resides in North Carolina and is also a member of the underground rap trio Little Brother), heard some of Nicolay’s music online and asked to rhyme over one of his tracks. When Big Pooh of Little Brother, lent his vocals to the track, the song became "Light It Up," and was featured as a B-side single for the group’s acclaimed 2003 effort, The Listening. "Nic was sending me some of the most beautiful stuff I’d ever heard in my life," Phonte says emphatically. "They inspired me so much that I just had to do something over them." The end result is Connected, a gorgeous and reflective blend of hip-hop, R&B, and electronic soul.

While Phonte serves as the duo’s main vocalist, the group is quick to point out that Connected is not a "Phonte solo album," and is instead an ensemble record with Nicolay and Phonte acting as the project’s conductors. With guest shots from up and comers Critically Acclaimed on the churchy, organ-driven "Hustle, Hustle," and neo-soul songstress Yahzarah contemplating lost love over the melancholy vocal harmonies of "Sincere," Connected finds Nicolay and his multi-talented counterpart uniting artists from different genres under a united theme of good music.

Amazon.com
As cliché as it sounds, music does have the ability to bring people of various background and ethnicities together. Think not? Witness Connected, the debut album from the Foreign Exchange. North Carolina-raised MC Phonte, one-third of Little Brother, and Dutch producer Nicolay formed the duo and crafted the ethereally lush hip-hop album without ever meeting face-to-face. Using the marvels of modern technology, the group traded verses and tracks over the Internet. The result is anything but mechanical. Nicolay crafts soulful, intricate backdrops that draw comparisons to producers Pete Rock and Kanye West. On the appropriately titled "Nic's Groove," the producer crafts a pitch-perfect midtempo track over which Phonte and Little Brother cohort Big Pooh trade verses. Phonte also enlists a host of upcoming artists to guest on the set. The group's MC teams with newcomer Median on the emotional "Be Alright." While Median holds his own, Phonte is in full command with a personal lyric about dealing with the ups and downs of everyday life. Meanwhile, "Sincere," which features R&B songstress YahZarah, will have listeners falling in love with hip-hop and each other all over again. Connected is a prime example of the power of good music uniting different worlds. Maybe our elected officials could take a page out of the book of the Foreign Exchange. --Lincoln Smith

Customer Reviews

If a rap record can be "pretty"...
If a rap record can be "pretty", this one is.

With rapper Phonte (one third of the very good group Little Brother) on the mic and Dutch producer Nicolay on the beats, this record really soars. The music is VERY Jay-Dee-esque, to the point of almost sounding like the nicer Slum Village stuff, but with more spread. The influences are apparent in some cases, but even a Prince-like track makes the cut and the album has great sonic range and depth. It's lush, atmospheric and chock-ful of great ear candy that makes you wonder what the heck is in Netherland's water.

The lyrical content ranges as well, but it's certainly not out of line to suggest that it's a feel-good record. Lots of references here to love and relationships (even the cover has a couple kissing on it in the rays of the dipping sun) and stories of a maturing person, and not the jaded rapper style we've all just about heard enough of.

With some keyboards playing, singing and mad arrangements that are allowed to breathe as they unfold, "Connected" does exactly what it implies: plugs you in to the bigger picture of life and what's important.

Connecting elements of Hip-hop in a whole new way
The Foreign Exchange is not just the collaborated efforts of Phonte and Nicolay, but their ability to bring together a host of talents. Phonte does not rap on every track (in fact he only raps on 10) but he certainly is responsible for the album as a whole, taking on executive producer role, finding the talent and having 9th Wonder mix down some of the beats.

I always have trouble in trying to describe the production of Nocolay. Many of his beats sound like they use elements of The Nutcracker Suit or Pete and The Wolf (I'm not sure that helps a lot of people out). They are smooth, well laid out tracks, yet far from any other hip-hop production I've herd.
The beat for Title Theme gives you a pretty good feel for the kind of production that is going to follow in the rest of the album.

Vons Sees is a track featuring a short rhyme by, well Von Pea and unfortunately is forgettable. The real album starts on Raw Life when Phote finally drops over a head nodding beat. Joe Scudda also contributes the second verse and comes off pretty well. But, a distorted Phonte comes back on the track to rip it up ("I speak with no prejudice/ You thought kissing ass was in my blood type, O Negative").

Hustle, Hustle is another well produced track, the chorus with some infectious jazzy horns. This track features Critically Acclaimed, Phote only can be herd in the background of the chorus. The group holds there own, but the beat hear steals the show.

Let's Move is a Little Brother union of Big Pooh and Phonte, as well as the following track Nic's Groove, which not surprisingly enough is one of the better tracks. The two mesh perfectly together over Nicolay's beats just as well as they do over 9th Wonder's.

Be Alright and Sincere are both tracks featuring Phonte and some soul crooners. Brave New World is a solid track where Phonte really shines just relating to the daily struggles in his life and out society. The Answer returns the album to a more hip-hop feel with Oddiisse and Ken Star helping out Phonte. Come around is an entirely sung by Darien Brockington (who sounds faintly reminiscent of Sisqo).

Happiness, Big Pooh and Phonte join up again, which works pretty well excluding a weak chorus. End Theme is completely sung by Yahzarah. All That You Are is a solid track featuring Phonte and Median. The album then closes with a couple of Remixes which are nice, but don't add anything exceptional to the album.

One thing that is clear throughout the album: both Phonte and Big Pooh have improved which is scary. They put everything into whatever piece they are trying to create.

This is a solid album, very creative and different. It also stays away from your typical hip-hop music. While there is enough on here to satisfy most, some might be disappointed in the lack on straight up rap or even a lack of Phonte in general. Chances are if you're a Little Brother fan, this will defiantly be something you enjoy. If your just getting into them or want an impulse buy, I wouldn't recommend this. As a rap album it might not be what you're looking for, but as a creative piece of music it's defiantly high quality.

Truly Universal Music
Let's start with the flaws on this album. Be Alright (Remix) and Downtime (Remix) were unecessary. And anyone who dislikes hip-hop/R&B collabos ("Sincere") will probably have a hard time getting into this. Aside from these minor blips, however, "Connected" is one of the few hip-hop albums that is truly universal in its essence. Nicolay's beats have a worldly sound to them that I don't ever recall hearing on an entire hip-hop album. As well, he is able to mimic the sounds of notable producers such as Jay Dee ("Let's Move"), Hi-Tek ("Hustle") and Pete Rock ("Happiness") while crafting his own sound ("Nic's Groove," "Raw Life" "The Answer"). Lyrically, Phonte parties ("Nic's Groove"), prays ("Be Alright") and preaches ("Brave New World") while giving the rest of the Justus League significant mic time ("Von Sees," "Hustle" and "Come Around" don't feature Phonte at all). Fans of positive hip-hop artists such as Gift of Gab, Talib Kweli, and KRS-One, as well as those who appreciate the "out-there" creativity celebrated by OutKast, De La Soul, and The Roots, will enjoy, if not love "Connected." 4.5 Stars.