Description
Black Vinyl Pressing
Orders are limited to 1 per customer
Coalmine Reissues in partnership with Stunning English are pleased to announce this special edition vinyl reissue of CunninLynguists’ celebrated debut LP, Will Rap for Food, marking the first time the album will be available on wax since 2005.
Consisting of founding members Deacon the Villain and Kno, the duo would make a name for themselves for their East Coast-influenced boom bap with a southern charm, abound with battle-ready braggadocio and side-splitting humor.
Right from the intro, the pair get down to business, delivering a balanced combination of both lighthearted subjects and weighty material, produced largely by Kno, whose skillfully crafted soundscapes would catapult him into the upper echelon of beat makers with his style of ’90s New York loop-digging and chipmunk soul.
On the lyrical tip, Deacon and Kno manage to incorporate punchline rhymes, introspective musings, and your more standard rap boasts without ever sounding forced. Deacon is especially adept at the wordplay, where he opens up the album with the line, “The music makes me high even though I stay away from cannabis like Wyclef.” In addition to their quick-witted bars, the duo also chart out more emotional terrain, with Deacon’s confessional account of finding himself through hip-hop on “Mic Like A Memory” and Kno’s painful story of abandonment by his mother on “Family Ties.”
With the album title and scattered skits of two panhandling emcees, the CunninLynguists playfully appeal to both the mainstream and underground dichotomy, without dwelling on the distinction.
“Will Rap For Food started off as an EP that Deacon and I planned on pressing 1000 CD-R copies of. It ended up being the seed that connected us with all of you and took us around the world — almost always performing 'Lynguistics' as our show closer. Funny that the first song from our first project is still the most popular over two decades later — that’s a high bar! Hopefully we’ve lived up to that first impression and will continue to do so. Thanks for listening, always.” -Kno
Tracklist:
Side A:
A1. Will Rap for Food
A2. Lynguistics
A3. Mic Like A Memory
A4. So Live!
A5. Hey
A6. Fukinwichu
Side B:
B1. Ain’t No Way (feat. Anetra, Mr. SOS)
B2. Missing Children (feat. Braille)
B3. Midnight
B4. Thugged Out Since Cub Scouts (feat. Jugga The Bully, Mr. Raw)
B5. Kno’s Diggin’
Side C:
C1. Half Animal
C2. Family Ties (feat. Cashmere The Pro)
C3. Dirty South
C4. Mindstate
Side D:
D1. Takin’ The Loss (feat. Jugga The Bully)
D2. Not Guilty
D3. 616 Rewind (feat. Celph Titled, Kashal-Tee, Sankofa, Tonedeff)
Mastered at Plush Vinyl Mastering by David Cheppa.
Press Quotes:
“‘Will Rap For Food’ (2001) was a solid, accessible debut, filled with clever rhymes and tremendously consistent production…” -Pitchfork
“With an award-winning name like CunninLynguists, it's no surprise that the duo of Kno and Deacon the Villain excel at creating cunning lyrics with a sense of humour.” -Exclaim!
“The CunninLynguists proved they didn’t have to employ or diss tired rap clichés, and instead used their mischievous sense of humor to rap their way into your pocketbook.” -RapReviews
