DISCOVER 365: Day 365

Artist: Childish Gambino
Album: Camp


First of all, let me please request you not be too surprised that I'm actually going through with this endeavor. I'm now 24 hours into this commitment, meaning it's tied for thirteenth for the longest I've ever committed to something in my life.

Secondly, let me give credit where credit is due and disclose that Rog meant to post on this topic more than a month ago but never finished off the idea.

Finally, I hope that this first post gives you an idea of just how broad the spectrum of music will be that I hope to cover over our last 365 days together before millions of weirdos are disappointed that the world is still spinning.

Childish Gambino is the rap alias of Donald Glover, the young comedian who is probably best known in the entertainment industry as Troy from the underrated NBC comedy, Community. On the show, Glover plays a former high school jock who gets the opportunity to find truly find himself when surrounded by a group of people he would have never hung-out with in high school. What he becomes is the epitome of "nerd cool," as he joins Danny Pudi's character, Abed, as one of the greatest (and strangest) bromance's in television history.

I'm not exaggerating at all when I say I've been on the Community bandwagon since the pilot episode, and, like so many others who have been on since day one, am truly disappointed that NBC's archaic dependence on the Neilssen ratings may ultimately lead to the show's demise. I don't know if there's a smarter show on television, if you define smart as an unusually complex comprehension of Dungeons and Dragons, alternate timelines, and how to turn Alison Brie's nerdy character into a sex symbol. It was on the Christmas episode a few weeks ago that I first heard Glover's character truly bust into a rap and I've watched it about twenty times since. While this isn't included on the album referenced, it is the reason I was drawn to it. See for yourself:

Once I'd truly processed the greatness above, I looked deeper into Glover's Gambino and found his newest release, Camp. I listened all the way through and called Toe to ask the last time I'd recommended a rap album of any kind (needless to say, it was over a decade ago and that album will definitely be on this list). While "hardcore" rap fans may not appreciate Glover's topics or may even feel like he's too nerdy, anyone who can appreciate witty lyrics, random pop culture references and true self-awareness will be pleased. And those expecting a rap version of Weird Al Yankovic will be completely turned off, as the production and skill of Glover are much better than one would expect if only given the description of who he is.

Through the very first listen I was able to pull out references to Krang from the ninja turtles, "You've got it dude" from the Olsen twins, and Land Before Time toys from Pizza Hut that I can still remember playing with. But what else would you expect from a fellow member of the Great 28 club? But while listening to this and hoping for a reference to a part of your childhood, you have to remember this dude pulls no punches and a loud speaker listen at work could get you in trouble. He's not trying to be a novelty act even though some of his lyrics may be punchlines.

Year Released: 2011

# of Tracks: 13

Label: Glass Note


Comparison: The self-awareness to make him rap's version of Vampire Weekend with a lyric style that meshes Kanye, Eminem and Kid Cudi. (Notice the absence of the oxford comma)

Best Lyric: "You're not not racist cause The Wire's in your Netflix queue"

Best Track: "That Power" - Not necessarily because of the traditional hip-hop track at the beginning of the 7:00+ song, but because of the spoken letter at the end of it that starts out as a WTF moment and turns into this mesmerizing weirdness that you can't afford to skip. And because you may have a moment of realization that's very similar.