The Mammoth Tusk
Encyclopedia
The Mammoth Tusk is the debut album by Lebanese
-Syrian rapper Eslam Jawaad
, the album was released on the 6th July 2009. It features guest collaborations from: Miskeena, Lord Sear, Shadia Mansour
, and Rude Jude
. The album also features more mainstream acts including: De La Soul
, frontman of: Blur
, Gorillaz
and The Good, The Bad & The Queen, Damon Albarn
. The latter of which Jawaad worked with on The Good, The Bad & The Queen's self-titled debut album on an unreleased B-side entitled "Mr. Whippy" and also appeared with Albarn on Gorillaz's Escape to Plastic Beach World Tour
when he rapped on their iconic song "Clint Eastwood
". When the group played in Damascus
, he rapped in his native Lebanese, as he does on the song "Alarm Chord" which also features Albarn. His song "Pivot Widdit
" was used in the Dubai
film City of Life, and "Siasa" in Rendition.
Music said: "Most rappers have probably given their resume a slight tweak to confer the right sort of street experience, but if Eslam Jawaad
is guilty of embellishing his past, you've just got to hand it to him for his impressive feats of imagination. Formerly a member of, hmm, the Lebanese Mafia, Jawaad claims he moved to London
following the botched sale of an eight million dollar mammoth tusk. There, he hooked up with Cilvaringz
, a Dutch affiliate of the Wu-Tang Clan
, and following a spate of recording, made contact with Damon Albarn
, who invited the rapper to contribute an Arabic rap – which would become the future Mr Whippy – to the debut album from The Good, The Bad & The Queen.
If that sounds an unlikely turn of events, The Mammoth Tusk is proof it's not all hot air. Boasting production credits from The RZA, De La Soul
, and Damon Albarn
, Jawaad's debut proper is irreverent and fun, playing up his backstory with smart rhymes and a showman's flourish. Pivot Widdit
is a Timbaland
-tinged club track that finds Jawaad proclaiming himself the beat butcher of Beirut city over a niggling Arabic-tinged hook and certainly, if anyone's got claim to an Arabic sample here, it's not Timbaland
. Meanwhile Beirut
and the Albarn-produced Alarm Chord, an eerie ska lope reminiscent of a gloomy Gorillaz
, find him rapping in his native tongue. There is some political engagement here: Criminuhl finds him musing on his identity in a country that mistrusts him because of the colour of his skin - Only thing I’m blowing up is charts, he declares. Indeed, a little seriousness is welcome, because Jawaad's playfulness sometimes gets the better of him: Star Spangled Banner, which sees him comparing parts of his lover's anatomy to various US states, is not an especially good look. But his wit is sharp as a cutlass on "Rewind DJ
", a De La Soul
-produced cut that chops up the hook from Aaliyah
's Try Again
as a smart dig at substandard rappers - and going on The Mammoth Tusk, he's certainly earned the right."
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
-Syrian rapper Eslam Jawaad
Eslam Jawaad
Wissam Khodur , better known as Eslam Jawaad , is a rapper of Lebanese-Syrian origin. His debut album, The Mammoth Tusk, was released in 2009.-Career:...
, the album was released on the 6th July 2009. It features guest collaborations from: Miskeena, Lord Sear, Shadia Mansour
Shadia Mansour
Shadia Mansour, also known as "the first lady of Arabic hip hop is a Palestinian singer and MC. Much of her music focuses on Middle East politics. Her first language is Arabic and she raps in Arabic. Mansour has recorded music with producer Johnny Juice of Public Enemy. Her first single,...
, and Rude Jude
Rude Jude
Jude Anthony Angelini also known as Rude Jude is a DJ and co-host on The All Out Show with DJ Lord Sear on Sirius Satellite Radio's Shade 45 channel from 4pm-8pm EST. He is actually only on from 4-7pm M,T,W and on Thursday he plays his own mix from 7-8pm EST...
. The album also features more mainstream acts including: De La Soul
De La Soul
De La Soul is an American hip hop trio formed in 1987 on Long Island, New York. The band is best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres...
, frontman of: Blur
Blur (band)
Blur is an English alternative rock band. Formed in London in 1989 as Seymour, the group consists of singer Damon Albarn, guitarist Graham Coxon, bassist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree. Blur's debut album Leisure incorporated the sounds of Madchester and shoegazing...
, Gorillaz
Gorillaz
Gorillaz is an English musical project created in 1998 by Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett. This project consists of Gorillaz music itself and an extensive fictional universe depicting a "virtual band" of cartoon characters...
and The Good, The Bad & The Queen, Damon Albarn
Damon Albarn
Damon Albarn is an English singer-songwriter and record producer who has been involved in many high profile projects, coming to prominence as the frontman and primary songwriter of Britpop band Blur...
. The latter of which Jawaad worked with on The Good, The Bad & The Queen's self-titled debut album on an unreleased B-side entitled "Mr. Whippy" and also appeared with Albarn on Gorillaz's Escape to Plastic Beach World Tour
Escape to Plastic Beach World Tour
The Escape to Plastic Beach World Tour is a concert tour by the British virtual band Gorillaz. The tour is in support of their third studio album Plastic Beach. It is notably the band's first world tour in its decade-spanning history...
when he rapped on their iconic song "Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood (song)
"Clint Eastwood" is a song by Gorillaz. It was released as the first single from their debut album in March 2001. It peaked at #4 in the UK and #57 in the US on 11 September 2001. The single has sold 480,000 copies in the UK according to the Official UK Charts Company. The song is a mix of...
". When the group played in Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
, he rapped in his native Lebanese, as he does on the song "Alarm Chord" which also features Albarn. His song "Pivot Widdit
Pivot Widdit
"Pivot Widdit" is the second single by Syrian-Lebanese rapper Eslam Jawaad from his debut album The Mammoth Tusk. The song was used in the Dubai film City of Life, and "Siasa" in Rendition....
" was used in the Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
film City of Life, and "Siasa" in Rendition.
Reception
Louis Pattison of BBCBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Music said: "Most rappers have probably given their resume a slight tweak to confer the right sort of street experience, but if Eslam Jawaad
Eslam Jawaad
Wissam Khodur , better known as Eslam Jawaad , is a rapper of Lebanese-Syrian origin. His debut album, The Mammoth Tusk, was released in 2009.-Career:...
is guilty of embellishing his past, you've just got to hand it to him for his impressive feats of imagination. Formerly a member of, hmm, the Lebanese Mafia, Jawaad claims he moved to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
following the botched sale of an eight million dollar mammoth tusk. There, he hooked up with Cilvaringz
Cilvaringz
Tarik Azzougarh, better known as Cilvaringz, is a rapper, manager and hip hop producer associated with the Wu-Tang Clan.- Personal :Lives in Marrakech, Morocco...
, a Dutch affiliate of the Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
The Wu-Tang Clan is a hip-hop group from Staten Island that consists of RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard. They are frequently joined by fellow childhood friend Cappadonna, a quasi member of the group...
, and following a spate of recording, made contact with Damon Albarn
Damon Albarn
Damon Albarn is an English singer-songwriter and record producer who has been involved in many high profile projects, coming to prominence as the frontman and primary songwriter of Britpop band Blur...
, who invited the rapper to contribute an Arabic rap – which would become the future Mr Whippy – to the debut album from The Good, The Bad & The Queen.
If that sounds an unlikely turn of events, The Mammoth Tusk is proof it's not all hot air. Boasting production credits from The RZA, De La Soul
De La Soul
De La Soul is an American hip hop trio formed in 1987 on Long Island, New York. The band is best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres...
, and Damon Albarn
Damon Albarn
Damon Albarn is an English singer-songwriter and record producer who has been involved in many high profile projects, coming to prominence as the frontman and primary songwriter of Britpop band Blur...
, Jawaad's debut proper is irreverent and fun, playing up his backstory with smart rhymes and a showman's flourish. Pivot Widdit
Pivot Widdit
"Pivot Widdit" is the second single by Syrian-Lebanese rapper Eslam Jawaad from his debut album The Mammoth Tusk. The song was used in the Dubai film City of Life, and "Siasa" in Rendition....
is a Timbaland
Timbaland
Timothy Zachery Mosley , better known by his stage name Timbaland, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper....
-tinged club track that finds Jawaad proclaiming himself the beat butcher of Beirut city over a niggling Arabic-tinged hook and certainly, if anyone's got claim to an Arabic sample here, it's not Timbaland
Timbaland
Timothy Zachery Mosley , better known by his stage name Timbaland, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper....
. Meanwhile Beirut
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
and the Albarn-produced Alarm Chord, an eerie ska lope reminiscent of a gloomy Gorillaz
Gorillaz
Gorillaz is an English musical project created in 1998 by Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett. This project consists of Gorillaz music itself and an extensive fictional universe depicting a "virtual band" of cartoon characters...
, find him rapping in his native tongue. There is some political engagement here: Criminuhl finds him musing on his identity in a country that mistrusts him because of the colour of his skin - Only thing I’m blowing up is charts, he declares. Indeed, a little seriousness is welcome, because Jawaad's playfulness sometimes gets the better of him: Star Spangled Banner, which sees him comparing parts of his lover's anatomy to various US states, is not an especially good look. But his wit is sharp as a cutlass on "Rewind DJ
Rewind DJ
"Rewind DJ" is the debut single by Syrian-Lebanese rapper Eslam Jawaad featuring. De La Soul, from his debut album "The Mammoth Tusk". It was recorded at Studio 13 in London, England....
", a De La Soul
De La Soul
De La Soul is an American hip hop trio formed in 1987 on Long Island, New York. The band is best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres...
-produced cut that chops up the hook from Aaliyah
Aaliyah
Aaliyah Dana Haughton , who performed under the mononym Aaliyah , was an American R&B recording artist, actress and model. She was born in Brooklyn, New York, and was raised in Detroit, Michigan. At the age of 10, she appeared on the television show Star Search and performed in concert alongside...
's Try Again
Try Again
"Try Again" is a Grammy nominated single by American recording artist Aaliyah. The song was written by Static Major and Timothy Mosley, and produced by Timbaland, for the soundtrack of the film Romeo Must Die . It was released on May 22, 2000 as the lead single of the soundtrack. The dance-pop and...
as a smart dig at substandard rappers - and going on The Mammoth Tusk, he's certainly earned the right."
Tracklisting
- "Pivot WidditPivot Widdit"Pivot Widdit" is the second single by Syrian-Lebanese rapper Eslam Jawaad from his debut album The Mammoth Tusk. The song was used in the Dubai film City of Life, and "Siasa" in Rendition....
" - 3:26 - "Star Spangled Banner" - 3:05
- "Tickle My Pickle" (featuring Miskenna) - 3:40
- "Rewind DJRewind DJ"Rewind DJ" is the debut single by Syrian-Lebanese rapper Eslam Jawaad featuring. De La Soul, from his debut album "The Mammoth Tusk". It was recorded at Studio 13 in London, England....
" (featuring De La SoulDe La SoulDe La Soul is an American hip hop trio formed in 1987 on Long Island, New York. The band is best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres...
) - 4:37 - "Baba's Shotgun" - 1:21
- "Trick" - 3:10
- "Leave it Alone" - 3:06
- "It Wasn't Me (Skit)" (featuring Lord Sear and Rude JudeRude JudeJude Anthony Angelini also known as Rude Jude is a DJ and co-host on The All Out Show with DJ Lord Sear on Sirius Satellite Radio's Shade 45 channel from 4pm-8pm EST. He is actually only on from 4-7pm M,T,W and on Thursday he plays his own mix from 7-8pm EST...
) - 1:15 - "Criminuhl" - 3:20
- "Heave Ho" - 3:52
- "The Mammoth Tusk" - 4:18
- "Big Slingaz'" - 4:09
- "So Real" (featuring Shadia MansourShadia MansourShadia Mansour, also known as "the first lady of Arabic hip hop is a Palestinian singer and MC. Much of her music focuses on Middle East politics. Her first language is Arabic and she raps in Arabic. Mansour has recorded music with producer Johnny Juice of Public Enemy. Her first single,...
) - "Alarm Chord" (featuring Damon AlbarnDamon AlbarnDamon Albarn is an English singer-songwriter and record producer who has been involved in many high profile projects, coming to prominence as the frontman and primary songwriter of Britpop band Blur...
) - 3:29 - "Beirut" - 3:52