O.C.‘s Time’s Up from his underrated 1994 album Word…Life was a scathing accusation, pointed at thug-posturers who were flooding the Hip Hop scene at the time.
Vocal clips from the song have been sampled in numerous Hip Hop tracks throughout the years; including Mos Def‘s song “Hip Hop” off of his 1999 album Black on Both Sides and Big L’s song “The Enemy”, which appears on his posthumous album The Big Picture. (Wikipedia)
top hip hop songs ever. the Buckwild beat is flawless, how the perfectly toned bass line lingers in the air. that little blues guitar strum. Dying for O.C. to go in. And that he does. Lyrical monster here. Perfect Balance of abstract and concrete. The rhyme pattern is scattered and so many inner rhymes; multi’s and bars. he is so honed in on fake MCs – killer. I sampled the “I’d rather be broke and have a whole lotta respect” for a hook about working my lame job. One of the greatest tracks. Plus cutting up SLick RIck in the hook.