内容紹介
NICOLAY とLITTLE BROTHER のPHONTE によるユニット”FOREIGN EXCHANGE”が2004 年にリリースした大傑作アルバム”CONNECTED”!全世界で5 万枚を売り上げながら、現地ディストリビューターの倒産によって廃盤となり数年間流通することのなかった本作!!NICOLAY による最高に美しくソウルフルで魂を揺さぶるハーモニーを生み出したトラック群とPHONTE の愛に満ちたピースフルでポジティブなリリックの高揚感溢れるラップがヒップホップというリズムとハーモニーを通して一体となった最高傑作!!まもなくリリースとなるNICOLAY&KEY 名義でのフルアルバム、さらにFOREIGN EXCHANGE 名義でのセ カンドアルバムと多くのリリースを控えるNICOLAY だけにこの再流通はタイミングもばっちしです!ジャケットにも表された美しい世界感は誰しもの耳を止めるでしょう。UNDERGROUND HIPHOP史上に残る最高傑作です!!
Album Description
The Foreign Exchange first "met" in mid-2002, when Phonte (who resides in North Carolina and is also a member of the underground rap trio Little Brother), heard some of Nicolays music online and asked to rhyme over one of his tracks. When Big Pooh of Little Brother, lent his vocals to the track, the song became "Light It Up," and was featured as a B-side single for the groups acclaimed 2003 effort, The Listening. "Nic was sending me some of the most beautiful stuff Id ever heard in my life," Phonte says emphatically. "They inspired me so much that I just had to do something over them." The end result is Connected, a gorgeous and reflective blend of hip-hop, R&B, and electronic soul.
While Phonte serves as the duos main vocalist, the group is quick to point out that Connected is not a "Phonte solo album," and is instead an ensemble record with Nicolay and Phonte acting as the projects conductors. With guest shots from up and comers Critically Acclaimed on the churchy, organ-driven "Hustle, Hustle," and neo-soul songstress Yahzarah contemplating lost love over the melancholy vocal harmonies of "Sincere," Connected finds Nicolay and his multi-talented counterpart uniting artists from different genres under a united theme of good music.