#rewindreview: Intelligent Hoodlum a.k.a Tragedy ‘Saga Of A Hoodlum’ 1993
Those that know me often hear me say I was not the biggest fan of HOP music between late 1991 thru 1993. I often call this the “shout rap era” where there was a lot of dark baggy clothes with the “east coast stomp” movement and overcompensating cursing in rhymes. Over the years I believe this happened out of necessity for a lot of East Coast acts to counter the very real rugged sound coming from the “gangsta rap” of the West Coast. Some of the “shout rap” album releases made it thru the era but many were suspended in time and often don’t age well. Intelligent Hoodlum was a bit of a young prodigy out of Queensbridge New York, under the guidance of the legendary Marley Marl, who also produced his debut album. The M.C. had the 10 year old me looking at the rapper as an inspiration with songs like ‘Black & Proud’ and ‘Arrest The President.’ I was extremely caught off guard years later when I realized he was Tragedy Khadafi whose content seemed like a complete 180 degrees from who I was introduced to. The reason for my shock was because I missed this album and transitional era of Intelligent Hoodlum. At the time of this release, there was no cable T.V. in my home which would be how I stayed up on HOP music and although I heard the singles Grand Groove (bonus mix) and ‘Street Life (return of the life mix), they sounded in line with what I would expect from the rapper. Years later I would hear this album and understand how Tragedy Khadafi was born. ‘Saga Of A Hoodlum’ is either the effects of pressure from the music industry or who Intelligent Hoodlum was all along. Then of course those two thing could be true at the same time. Knowledge is still born on this album but much of it falls under the “shout rap era” of just sounding extremely dangerous on record with rough beats as the backdrop. The music is not exactly the problem as K-Def and Marley Marl handle the majority of the production. Tracks like ‘At Large’ and ‘Role Model’ are undeniable heaters but then the first single off this album which was in line with the soundtrack to Mario Van Peebles’ movie ‘The Posse’ provides knowledge on the “Black Cowboy,” but doesn’t age well as a song. Features are minimal but there is a very young Havoc verse for posterity purposes. ‘Saga Of A Hoodlum’ is often forgotten when talking about albums from the mid-1990’s and although not perfect it is a very important piece to a rappers journey. What did you think of the album? Singles include: ‘The Posse (shoot em’ up),’ ‘Grand Groove’ & ‘Street Life’ Listen to QUANTUM LEAP RADIO every Saturday from 4-6p.m. CST & Thursday from 1-3a.m. CST on 90.1 FM KPFT Houston in HD11 Worldwide @kpft.org/listen (under “kpft in HD2”) Catch past episodes by searching and following @https://linktr.ee/QLEAPRADIO
