Rewind: Mos Def 'The Ecstatic' (Part 1)

Following two disappointing LPs for Geffen, Mos Def rocketed himself back into underground hip-hop's radar with 2009's 'The Ecstatic'. With this album, he returned to form backed with some of hip-hop's best beatmakers. This two part post will demystify 'The Ecstatic''s sample sources.

'The Ecstatic''s opening track and first video single is the Oh No produced 'Supermagic'. Mos Def rhymes over a beat formerly used by Oh No on his own track 'Heavy' from 2007's 'Dr. No's Oxperiment'. The beat samples obscure Turkish singer Selda Bagcan (or just Selda)'s song 'Ince Ince' from her 1976 album 'Selda'. One of the album's standout tracks is 'Auditorium' where Mos trades verses with the ruler Slick Rick. The two ride Madlib's previously released instrumental 'Movie Finale' from his India themed album 'Beat Konducta 3 and 4: In India' from 2007. Madlib also provides the beat for Mos Def's 'Wahid' by sampling Bobby Hebb's 1970 track 'Flower'. Mos Def selected a beat from French producer Mr. Flash for 'Life in Marvelous Times'. The same backing track was previously used on Mr. Flash's own single 'Champions' which included a vocal cut with French rapper TTC and an instrumental version.

Check back for our second look at Mos Def's 'The Ecstatic'.

The Lowdown:
Mos Def 'Supermagic', 'Auditorium', 'Wahid', and 'Life in Marvelous Times'
from 'The Ecstatic' (2009) (MP3/CD)
Oh No 'Heavy'
from 'Dr. No's Oxperiment' (2007) (MP3/CD)
Selda 'Ince Ince'
from 'Selda' (1976) (MP3/CD)
Madlib 'Movie Finale'
from 'Beat Konducta 3 and 4: In India' (2007) (MP3/CD)
Bobby Hebb 'Flower'
from 'Love Games' (1970) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Mr. Flash 'Champions' and 'Champions' (Instrumental)
from 'Champions' (2006) (MP3/CD not available)

Related Posts:
Rewind: Mos Def 'Black on Both sides' (Part 1)
Rewind: Mos Def 'Black on Both sides' (Part 2)