Sounds From The Front Porch: U.S.D.A & The Power of the Cosign

Sounds From The Front Porch is a series where I will unravel some of southern hip-hop’s most overlooked or underrated artists and albums of the past and present.

As a young child, I used to look at rappers the same way kids used to be in awe of superheroes. For every Spider-Man, Batman, and Superman, I used to herald artists like 50 Cent, T.I., and Young Jeezy as these impenetrable forces to be reckoned with. The thing about 2000’s hip-hop is it was massive. It didn’t hold the same culture-blanketing effect rap has on pop culture in 2020 but every artist I listened to felt like gods towering over the masses. Even artists like Lupe Fiasco that didn’t hold the same steamroller mentality approached songs with awe-inspiring, mystical wizardry. As a result of their massive auras, rappers had the abilities to put on other artists/friends they thought were deserving of a spotlight under their wing. This could be for the better or the absolute worst.

Let’s look at the best first: Jay-Z has this effortless ability to make his cohorts look like stars next to the greatest of all time. Kanye West is one of my favorite rappers of all time in spite of the antics that accompany the modern day musical Joel Osteen. Beanie Sigel and Freeway looked like the next big stars to rise out of hip-hop due to the praise and guidance from…