Scribbler's "Get Out of My Brain!" Countdown of the Month (December 2016)

So here are three things to note about this month's edition of the "'Get Out of My Brain!' Countdown of the Month".  First and foremost, given the lack of girl power on the November edition of "In Heavy Rotation", I apologize to the ladies and don't want y'all to think I'm slighting y'all one bit; however, the songs which rule my brain space unfortunately control me and not the other way around.  Trust me, y'all will be better represented later this month.  Second, I have developed a more-exact-but-still-inexact science for tracking all of this: I simply note the amount of times a song comes to mind and about how long I'm thinking about it.  It ain't perfect, but it's a much better system to make sure folks don't get cheated out of the opportunity to make this countdown like no other.  (I doubt most of these folks care that much, but still.)  Third, this edition will feature songs either belonging to "The Blame Game" in which I blame specific people and/or things for my mental repetitiveness, "NPT HitstoryMakers" for artists and songs who and which boldly go where no others have gone before or stand on their own two category-less feet.  Since you have been prepared and briefed probably more than you wanted to be, let's get to the madness...

In Heavy Rotation (November 2016)

What I've come to appreciate about doing "In Heavy Rotation" is how I can go into a month planning to listen to one set of five albums.  However, between putting off giving my take on certain projects, being pleasantly surprised when others are released, watching TV and getting ideas for picks or hanging around folks whose musical palates exceed their foodie tendencies, it forces me as an avid music lover and constantly-evolving human being to 1) always remain open to change and 2) adapt to said change as deemed necessary.  Also, I've learned to go with the flow, i.e., instead of trying so hard to ensure I have a balanced representation of hip hop and rock, male and female artists or Black folks and everybody else, simply share what speaks the most to me in that particular month.  After all, it is my blog series, so that means I don't always follow the rules--even when I set them myself.  With that said, it's time to unveil some of this good music I've been bumping...

Scribbler's "Get Out of My Brain!" Countdown of the Month (June 2016)

The beauty of the "Get Out of My Brain! Countdown of the Month" is threefold. On one hand, there are songs that you have absolutely no problem with occupying your brain space.  On the other hand, there are others that have no business being there at all and make you question your self-proclaimed impeccable taste in music--particularly whether or not you ever had any in the first place.  On a third hand loaned from some stranger on the street for the purpose of making my point, you could start off a month thinking that you're gonna have a few repeats from last month, but the vast treasury of music combined with the randomness that has always been your mind takes over.  To the last point, The Manhattans had a really strong chance to be the first repeat spot holders with "Wish That You Were Mine", but that whole first time for everything thing will have to wait at least another month.  So enough of the introductory fluff...let's discuss this month's space invaders...

Scribbler's 3-for-1 After Tuesday Special: A Tribute to Phife Dawg

Now y'all know that something or someone has to be special for me to buck the trend and post on a Wednesday when this blog is New Problem Tuesdays.  However, if special exceptions are made when popes, kings, queens, princes, princesses, presidents and political leaders pass away, then the same must be done for hip-hop royalty.  When I was scrolling through my Facebook news feed last night before bed and saw a report that Malik Taylor aka Phife Dawg--one-fourth of one of my favorite hip-hop groups of all time, A Tribe Called Quest--had passed away at the age of 45, my heart immediately sunk and I knew that his storied bout with diabetes was the culprit--although the family hadn't confirmed it yet.  It made me feel two different things: 1) I felt like I lost one of my favorite uncles or older brothers and 2) I hate diabetes with a passion because of what it can do to people over time, especially if not properly handled.  I immediately resigned myself to listen to my two favorite albums of theirs, The Low End Theory (1991) and Midnight Marauders (1993)--the latter being the very first hip-hop album that I ever purchased.  Then I thought, "How can I honor Phife Dawg without unveiling my 'Rave & Favorite Five' hip-hop duos & groups too soon and going out of order again and waiting until next Tuesday to do it?"  The answer is threefold: 1) Tribe albums will be "In Heavy Rotation" for a while; 2) by the time this post hit the Innanets, it will be an "11th Hour Post of the Week"; and 3) I can share my "Rave & Favorite Five" Phife Dawg verses.  (You see what I did there...you're welcome.)  Hence, I bring you the first "3-for-1 After Tuesday Special" in NPT history.  Let's roll...