There Once Was A Boy Called Ali....


It was early 2000. Ghostface, Common & Jay-Z all had projects in the pipeline, I was still pissed at Manchester United (Bastards) doing the Treble the terrorists didn't have the upper hand and (almost) all was right with the world. So there i am chillin' at home on the couch on a friday night. The tele was on with the volume turned down and a DJ 279 was doing his thing (before Choice FM lost it's way). He then came back from an advert/commercial to do an interview with a young brother by the name of Ali Vegas. He was being touted as the boy who could put New York back at the top of the tree. He started going through the motions like everybody else and i was like ok just the same old stuff that all newbies say ' i'm gonna do my thing' & 'i wanna take hip hop to a new level' & 'my albums gonna be dope' & all the other catchphrases you normally associate with an up & coming MC. Then he and his crew (Sleep & a girl going by the name of Star) went into freestyle mode. DAMN!!!.... this boy could spit. For about 15 mins all 3 went verse for verse. His crew were nice but Ali was next level and if memory serves he was only 16 at the time. Then 279 started spinnin' a few of his tracks for the (supposed) album and the depth and wordplay shown for such a youngun was amazing. That lit the touchpaper and UK heads in the know were shouting his name. Then as time passed and nothing happened he went the way of most MC's and disappeared off the radar. Then about 6 months ago i happened across Ali's myspace page. He had some new tracks on there so i took time to listen and in Say My Name & Where I'm From he's still showing the potential to make big waves. Anyway, i decided to share his old mixtape and some unreleased stuff (with Ali's blessing) with you the good people. So enjoy and check out his myspace.

p e a c e

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