'Instrumentals One' by Deacon The Villain
A unique collection of music from a multifaceted MC and unsung producer.
If you want to support Micro-Chop you can follow me on Spotify and subscribe to the newsletter and YouTube channel. You can also contribute to Micro-Chop through Buy Me A Coffee, Cash App, PayPal, and Venmo.
In 2001, the rap group CunninLynguists released their debut Will Rap for Food. One of my close friends discovered the record on a message board in high school. At the risk of rose-tinted glasses and nostalgia clouding my vision slightly, I remember this album going mini-viral throughout various social circles in my senior class and some friend groups in grades below us via burned CD. Everyone I hung out with couldn’t get enough of “Linguistics” and “Mic Like A Memory.”
Initially comprised of MC/producer Kno and lyricist Deacon The Villain, the group added rapper Mr. SOS to their lineup for 2003’s SouthernUnderground before eventually replacing him with Natti for their critically acclaimed 2006 effort A Piece Of Strange. Many albums and mixtapes later, the lineup remains Kno, Natti, and Deacon The Villain.
Kno handled the lion’s share of the production on Will Rap For Food, with Celph Titled contributing a beat for “So Live!” and Deacon and Kno co-producing “616 Rewind.” From there, Kno continued to produce the group’s future efforts entirely or almost entirely.
Kno has certainly built up a very impressive resume of production credits over the past quarter century. I highly recommend tapping into the CunninLynguists’ extensive offering of expanded/deluxe versions of several releases that include the instrumental versions of songs. There’s so much amazing music to unpack.
Deacon has also quietly contributed a nice selection of instrumentals to various projects over the years. Though he was primarily known as an MC at the group’s inception, his co-production on “616 Rewind” served as an initial indicator of production chops that have deservedly gotten more shine over time.
Some of my favorite production from Deacon is featured on the criminally underrated 2010 album N***** With Latitude (NWL) by him and Sheisty Khrist. This record is rock solid from front to back with high-quality beats, hooks, and raps. The lead track “Satellites” is a raucous, in-your-face adrenaline shot to the heart and one of my favorite moments.
I also firmly believe the song “Ascension” is a hip-hop classic and a gorgeous work of art that melds impeccable, layered lyricism, beautiful production, and a perfectly sung hook to take it to another level. The lyrics pack a lot of wisdom into a small space as they examine the tension between striving for spiritual wisdom and material wealth. They also speak to the vast number of people who are excluded from the promises of aspirational thinking because of systemic oppression via capitalism, racism, mass incarceration, and failed social systems.
As Deacon says, “Most’ll never get to bat at the field dreams/some people'll never see the sky, they in a guillotine/everybody lives to die, and the in between/is duckin’ gorilla swings and facing the realer things.”
Thankfully, Deacon decided to package the “Ascension” instrumental alongside 12 other beats for the 2015 release Instrumentals One. These include selections from the NWL album, contributions to Natti’s solo album, some unreleased tracks, and other projects as well. Available on Bandcamp for whatever price you’re comfortable paying, Instrumentals One is tough to pass up. It’s a great collection of work that speaks to Deacon’s production chops, which are often overshadowed by his talent on the mic.
For those of you who dig Instrumentals One, you’ll also want to check out the follow-up release.
With the 15th anniversary of N***** With Latitude (NWL) and the 10th anniversary of both Instrumentals projects rapidly approaching, now seems like a great time to give these projects some well-deserved love. Let me know what you think if you decide to do that.