Invincible

Invincible
Shapeshifters
Emergence, 2008

My review is here.

I'm a big fan of Invincible. I had heard about this up and coming female MC who had been slated to be the next Eminem, but I was sceptical. I figured the hype had more to do with people wanting to like her rather than actually being into her music. I'm sad to say that this is only the seventh hip hop album by a female MC I've ever owned, and that's if you count Peaches as a hip hop MC. It was only after I heard a few tracks on her Myspace page that I finally relented and bought her debut, Shapeshifters, out June 18 on her own Emergence Music label. Musically, she has great beats and can spit some fire. Lyrically, she is that all-too rare thing in hip hop: an intelligent, passionate MC who uses the art form to break things down and tackle real, complex issues. She's also a lefty, but not an obnoxious, Rage Against the Machine lefty. She deals with the hypocrisy, racism, gentrification, and sexism in the world. She tackles issues of love and depression. She even gets her swagger on a little, but just enough. In short, she's made an amazing record, and deserves commercial success to rival her critical success. So go buy ten copies.