Way Back: The Good Fight (2015)
“To the clones keeping, black music soul weeping
I'm a new angel, and they only want the old demons”
- Oddisee on “Want Something Done”
In May 2015, Oddisee released The Good Fight through Mello Music Group. It was his 7th solo album and 9th overall, not including his 10+ mixtapes and EP’s. Luckily for us, he’s as proficient as he is prolific. The content is always quality and most of music’s toughest critics agreed.
In reviewing the album, RapReviews said he approaches “real life issues with wisdom and humility”. AllMusic described the album as “infectious and artistically grand” while the Boston Globe opted for the phrase “an elegant groove”. HipHopDX was bold in proclaiming that “the production is exquisite”. It was the ultimate compliment as Odd both wrote and produced the entire album, a boast that Kanye West couldn’t make even on his best efforts.
On “Want Something Done” Oddisee doubles down on his desire to remain independent and condemns working for approval and awards.
Clipping magazines, repeating this ain't had to be
Self published, but we're still running for covers now
Imagine me in pageantries, we branded as awards
What's the difference 'tween them auction blocks and cooning for applause
Even selling out, or buying something that you can't afford
It ain't a plan to keep us poor, it's just a plan to be ignored
This self-publishing he speaks on could be what allows him to release as much music as he does. It doesn’t garner the aforementioned awards, but it continues to be something that he’s proud of.
Remember when having Maimouna Yousef on your hook meant an instant banger? Well she pitched in on the hook for “Contradiction’s Maze” to help Oddisee describe the duality of life.
And yet I wanna take more risk
I don't wanna take more losses
Wanna be a better spender but I like the idea of not caring what the cost is
I wanna tell the truth even when it hurts, but when I get it back I'd rather have the blow softened
It’s here where he makes subtle reference to his Muslim faith and indirectly alludes to how tough it is in the society he operates in.
Introspection is practically a staple of underground rap and must be done well in order to keep up with the subgenre’s elite. Oddisee meets the challenge on the 70’s-inspired “A List Of Withouts”.
My mother worked the register all the way through her pregnancy
Less than a week from getting me she was working to better me
Pop's selling coke out on Lanny Park in the 70's
He hustled for the struggle to stop the troubles ahead of me
Oddisee digs into his Maryland upbringing and what his parents did to provide for him. He taps the failure of his father’s business as a valuable reminder. Somehow, it’s not hard to see the connection between his pop’s restaurant and his self-publishing music career. The solo hustle is in his blood.
Isn’t that what The Good Fight is after all? Working hard when nobody’s watching and knowing that the work may never be valued, understood, or praised until it’s too late? That seems to be part of Oddisee’s journey. He’s making great music for a genre that has mostly relegated genius like his to the underground. As one of rap’s unsung heroes, he’s made peace with that reality, and has vowed to keep fighting the good fight, even on the bad days.
