(AllHipHop News) Rapsody may not have won a Grammy on Sunday, but the fact that the North Carolina-raised emcee earned two nominations was a big accomplishment for her as an individual and for women in Hip Hop. She was only the fifth female rapper to earn a nod for the Recording Academy’s Best Rap Album award.
Laila’s Wisdom received widespread acclaim from critics and fellow emcees. Busta Rhymes even called Rapsody’s sophomore LP the best rap album he had heard in the past ten years.
Late last month, Rapsody spoke with Ambrosia For Heads about her Jamla Records/Roc Nation release. She discussed the other artists’ work that served as inspiration.
“I pulled from Mama’s Gun from Erykah Badu – ‘Time’s a Wastin’ and ‘A.D. 2000.’ We pulled from [Kendrick Lamar’s] To Pimp A Butterfly. We pulled from [Jay-Z’s] The Black Album. We pulled from [Lauryn Hill’s] The Miseducation,” said Rapsody. “9th [Wonder] through in some A Tribe Called Quest. That was the playlist, just random songs from those albums.”
Badu’s Neo-Soul classic had the biggest impact. The former NC State student went on to explain the artistic connection between Laila’s Wisdom and Mama’s Gun.
“If I had to pick one album that’s my favorite of all time, that’s one of them. I just wanted something that’s really soulful. I listen to that album so much at night riding, and it goes through so many different emotions for me,” explained Rapsody. “That’s just kind of how we wanted to mirror it, soulfully, with the instrumentation. Even the title of the project, Mama’s Gun, inspired it. It’s short and sweet, but it says a lot.”