Overlooked: Add-2’s ” More Missed Calls” (Stream & Album Review) Posted by Dharmic X on 04/29/13 | Filed under Downloads, Mixtapes, Opinion, Album Reviews, Overlooked, Add-2

Chicago’s Add-2 is one of the most slept-on emcees in the game right now. Those who are familiar with his catalogue know that his diminutive frame masks a ferocious delivery and the ability to deliver thought-provoking concept songs that can translate to the hearts and souls of listeners. Amongst this group of people are a few who know a thing or two about hip-hop, such as 9th Wonder and fellow Chicago rhymeslinger, Common.

When Add-2 drops a project, it tends to be worth giving a list to.

Last week, Add-2 released "More Missed Calls", a follow-up to his "One Missed Call" mixtape he released in 2011 (coincidentally, on this project there was a song called “More Missed Calls”). This go-around, the Chicago native hones in on the “missed call” motif, structuring the project around three tracks loaded with voicemails from both fans (“Check The Messages”) and haters (“The Haters Interlude”). The rest of the project feeds off the energy of these interludes, creating a cohesive thread of sorts.

"More Missed Calls" starts with the appropriately titled “Leave A Message,” where Add-2 uses quick phrases to dig deep into his own identity. He begins by saying, “father Muslim, mother Baptist, middle child, Middle Passage.” It sounds simple, but this method of contextualizing his identity goes beyond the surface of who he is as a person and into what he represents based on where he comes from. He further celebrates his identity on tracks like “Rings & Crowns” and “The Almighty Add-2,” with the former actually giving love to fellow Chicagoan Kanye West, not only with the intro (“Like we always do it this time”) but also with his cadence on the track to an extent. His lyricism is bar-none on these joints, dropping gems like “it’s like a white slave walking with a black master.”

But Add-2 is not too self-absorbed to devote an eighteen-track project about himself. The song “Paper” might be one of the standouts on "More Missed Calls". On this track, Add-2 rides over a beat from Slot-A and raps from the perspective of money. Literally. It is a song reminiscent to Nas’s “I Gave You Power,” except Add-2 is rapping about the power that money has as it dictates the lives of working class people. Meanwhile, “Mother’s Day” is an uplifting track that sees the Chi-town repper narrating the life and struggle of a single mother. In constructing these type of sophisticated tracks, Add-2 refuses to dilute the power of each individual bar, ensuring that the tracks are lyrically on-point.

And then there is a song like “Dear You,” where Add-2 uses his own perspective as fuel for a song that transcends the personal experience and delves into emotions that everybody goes through. The song finds him write a letter to an ex-girlfriend that he lost to pursue his dream. He laments about losing her but ultimately uses the experience as one to learn from, begrudgingly leaving her with her current boyfriend. It is a song that hurts emotionally, but at the same time, it is the antithesis to boorish tracks like “Marvin’s Room” that run rampant amongst more egotistical mainstream rappers.

The production on More Missed Calls is an engaging and diverse blend of sounds. Helmed primarily by Slot-A and J-Rell, frequent collaborators with Add-2, they create a soundbed that alternates between energetic and somber. Songs like “Eulogy” burst with life, while the aforementioned “Dear You” is a mellow and smooth track that allows for the story to shine through. The work from unheralded producers is boosted by appearances from Khrysis (“Die”) and Thelonious Martin, who laces a banger in “Underdog.”

Meanwhile, features are left to a minimum. Sean Boog does his thing on “Die” and Asia Monique drops a powerful hook on “Mothers Day.” However, the highlight guest verse on "More Missed Calls" comes from ANTHM, who obliterates his verse on “Boombap Blues.” “I’m back without a treasure map, I’m still searching for clues,” he says on the track, which finds him and Add-2 demonstrate brilliant chemistry together.

"More Missed Calls" is one of those projects that will not impress with flashiness and star power. The project instead is rooted in sincerity and humility, which is rare in emcees. Don’t get it twisted; Add-2 will lyrically slice open the heads of his so-called competition. However, while he does demonstrate this prowess, his focus on "More Missed Calls" is to feed the souls of those listeners who were willing to take the time to call him and leave thirty-second voice mails describing how powerful his words have been in his life. This is a project that is both personal and worldly at the same time.

See Also:  Overlooked: 7 Albums From the Past 2 Weeks You Might Have Missed
See Also:  Who Else Is Feeling Add-2 & Slot-A’s “The Reunion”? (Listen & Download)