bobthepoppop patreon

Reacting to "Showbiz!" by MIKE

🕑 Added 2025-02-14 23:55:19 +0000 UTC

Comments

Spencer Thompson

I think it's pretty apparent that Earl went way more experimental after linking with the NYC underground. I've been a huge fan of his since his self-titled tape and Mike and Medhane since my old friend went to college with Slauson Malone in the mid-2010s; the lo-fi sample loop style with much slower flows was something Mike and Medhane were doing consistently before Earl, although I'd agree on the mentorship and mutual influence point.

Yarden

Something that I love is that if you look up "MIKE rapper" on google images this guy looks like he's the happiest guy on earth. Bro has the biggest smile in nearly every photo.

ginger

bob i need that larry june and 2 chainz reaction

sam

Also want to add that I look at their lyrics more as poetry, which makes it a much more enjoyable listen

sam

Hey Bob, Mike actually influenced Earl sweatshirt, Mike is actually considered the pioneer of underground hip-hop in this lane. Would highly recommend going back and listening to Earls some rap songs and see if it clicks more after hearing Mike.

J7

Mr. Bob do you plan on listening to Beautiful Thugger Girls? Great reaction btw

Cardboard

great reaction 👍 just gonna drop this in here because literally all of his verses are like this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJ94tZubkiA

Sporokle

I know this isn’t related to the video but did u delete your top 50 albums of all time video or am I high and there wasn’t one in the first place

blurr

tbh I'm tired of both these narratives, cause it's clear the influence is mutual and goes both ways lol Earl is a mentor and major influence to MIKE, and after becoming friends and working together, it inspired Earl for albums like SRS... it's not just "one influenced the other"

603453105L

hell yeah. love mike

Tim B

Very excited to see you react to MIKE, I’d recommend his Project Pinball with Tony Seltzer its short and has his style over more conventional production

Julian

lol re-listen to some rap songs my dude

tradez401

This album was cool MIKE always crushes it lyrically some of the production I wasnt feeling and others I rocked with Bob I think you should've started with Burning Desire the production is more cohesive on there.

Spencer Thompson

glad you listened to this. glad your first reaction to mike was "different"...exactly why i was hoping youd listen to him for a while. been a mike fan for years and threw this on randomly last week realizing i hadnt listened to any new albums in months. so glad i did. many of the samples and references prolly go over your head but mike really feels like hes talking straight to me at times, I used to play the song sampled in Watered Down (La Costa by Natalie Cole) all the time when I worked at a coffee shop in my early twenties. zombie pt. 2 was instantly my fav mike beat as soon as i turned it on (an incredibly high bar). i love when you react to more experimental albums like this.

Spencer Thompson

THIS. Earl said himself "I be chilling with MIKE and Med(hane)"

Tre

MIKE is one of those artists you gotta check out his discography overtime. His last 6 albums he’s put out since like 2020 have all been masterpieces imo. I say you should check them out over time because his flow & voice are a little monotonous. Starting at his album Weight of the world and onward was just straight CLASSICS. He is a big influence on Earl (they’ve been good friends for a while now) and he & Billy woods are big influences on Earl’s Some Rap Songs & Feet of Clay. HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend doing reactions to AT LEAST “Beware of the Monkey”, and “Burning Desire” which is a horror themed album. He does like 90% of his own production as dj blackpower. Very intelligent & chill dude.

Samuel C

You also heard MIKE on Celibate on Danny Brown’s Quaranta

Colin Harvey

You got it backwards Bob, Earl was influenced by MIKE not vice versa! Some Rap Songs especially

imani

i can see why you felt sort of inconclusive at least after your first listen. i think mike's woozy, laid back flow is more of an acquired taste that some people would label as boring or as you said, sloppy. it's definitely not for everyone, but that is his appeal. i think (only if you're still interested) burning desire is much more ambitious, engaging and surprising both in terms of the music and mike's rapping. it's also extremely thematic and has a storyline that progresses nicely throughout the album as well. it's about the same length as showbiz and is produced almost entirely by mike per usual. it for sure threw me off on first listen (in a good way) because it wasn't his typical style. again, if you're still interested enough to hear another project by him, i would say burning desire is your best bet.