The Factz Speak for Themselves

Ok I admit it, I am a little late on Mickey Factz, but so what? I am all about good music and this guy has put out some good stuff lately. I used to be the kind of guy that would stick to a certain genre in terms of music as I always listened to just R&B and Hip Hop, but lately as these genres have increasingly been experimenting with different musical varieties that constrictive attitude changed. For example, the mixture of alternative rock with the musical styles of Jay-z, (Linkin Park) N.E.R.D., (Fly or Die CD), and Timbaland (One Republic) was a refreshing sound, reminiscent to the kind of feeling behind the Run DMC hook up with Aerosmith. Although it is still not heavily prevalent in mainstream Hip Hop and R&B aside from Kanye West’s “Stronger”, and Usher’s “Love in This Club”, there has also been mixing into the electronica/rave/trance scene with PRGZ’s mixtape Fear and Loathing in Hunt Vegas (If you don’t know about them, you have to get this mixtape), Swedish rapper (although he does NOT sound Swedish) Adam Tensta’s “My Cool” and "Before U Know It", UK R&B star Taio Cruz’s “Come On Girl” and “She’s a Star”, and Princess’ (of Crime Mob) “Pretty Rave Girl” (This track is getting a lot of hits in my current rotation).

Hip Hop is an evolutionary form of music as there is a dynamic process behind beats and rhyming and Mickey Factz is a modern embodiment of Hip Hop’s progression as he definitely demonstrates these recent experimental trends. Factz is part of a refreshing movement of hip hop as he as also worked with The Cool Kids on tour and Naledge from Kidz in the Hall although he claims not to be a part of the so-called “Hipster Movement.” If you haven’t heard his mixtapes, you better click the links on the pictures for each mixtape.

When I heard this mixtape, I automatically thought about what Wale did with his A.D.D. tracks and I loved it. This collection of songs shows an appreciation of classic hip-hop pioneers and the framework of Factz’s musical interest. Factz spits on tracks dating back from 1985 with samples from Slick Rick, A Tribe Called Quest, BBD and LL Cool J among others. The remixes on some of the tracks were pretty nice too especially the modern rendition of Slick Rick’s classic “Children’s Story” with Factz’s storytelling and the trance beats added to the original beat. Get this mixtape to listen to while you’re cruising because it will definitely be sure to entertain you and bring you down memory lane.



N.E.R.D. is probably one of the most underrated groups out right now, as they never have received a lot of media play aside from Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo as the Neptunes production team. That being said, Mickey Factz’s In Search of N.E.R.D mixtape provides a couple of gems for true N.E.R.D. fans because it brings back some life into their past two albums. Factz’s political wordplay on the third verse of “Breakout” is witty as he said, “Our country has totally lost it I blame it on the leaders I knew we were gonna get fucked cause we had a Bush, a Dick, and a Colon (Colin) in office.” “Run to the Sun” (My favorite N.E.R.D. track) brings out the same vibe as the original with Factz trying to sway a lady’s attention, yet he provides a unique plot twist at the end of the song. Other standout tracks on the mixtape are “The Way She Dances” and “Things Are Getting Better.” Factz work on this mixtape actually opened up an opportunity to actually meet N.E.R.D as he will make a cameo in the “Everybody Nose” video. Factz also made another song off a Neptunes track called “Don’t Be Light” recently that will be on his next mixtape The Leak that will be released later this month.



Factz’s last mixtape Heaven’s Fallout is just crazy eclectic assortment of tracks sampled by Daft Punk, Prodigy, Mark Ronson, Royksopp (yes, the Geico Commercial), and others. “Something About Us”, an original track by Daft Punk, is probably the best song on the mixtape as Factz raps about his relationship with music and starts the track out with a Method Man flow from the classic “You’re All I Need.” The track is influential and brings justice to the instrumental-based original; listen to the lyrics on this joint. Another strong track is the romantic “You Remind Me” with Factz repeatedly saying, “I wanna be your cave man” (a pun on the commercial). “Smack My Bitch Up” is a track where Factz gets aggressive and shows some swagger on Prodigy’s hype alternative rock/electronica beat; so put the volume and get hype to this one. “I Like Your Supras” got that dance club feel with a sick drumbeat and sound effects. Hearing the Daft Punk song "Aerodynamic" looped on “Let You Go” had me going, it sounds nice over Factz chill rap style. Some good tracks to listen to when you are stressed out or just trying to chill and reminisce are “There’s Nothing Left”, “Breathe Another Day”, and “Loud Whispers.” Although there may have been one or two tracks where I hit the skip button, Heaven’s Fallout is definitely worth putting in your rotation if you have not already.