more from
Just Due Records
We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

NPR

by TJ Reynolds

/
  • Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    Includes full 8-page lyric/photo book

    Includes unlimited streaming of NPR via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 5 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      $10 USD or more 

     

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more. Paying supporters also get unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app.
    Purchasable with gift card

      name your price

     

1.
The Rapper’s Almanac Welcome to the rapper’s almanac Guaranteed what you see be all of that Made to last long time like an artifact I put my heart in that, ‘til it’s all a wrap You need to get your ears checked if you call it wack I do this 24/7 this is not an act No need to be aggressive always on attack But if you put me in a corner you’ll be on your back, Wherever I’m at I put on the map Keep the microbrew maxing out on the tap Tell the engineer better arm the track Because I stay in the pocket like a quarterback Untouchable, you’ll never see my armor crack You ain’t baiting me to messing up my karma, jack Call my agent, I’m not going to call you back Cuz I’m busy working on the rapper’s almanac It was this date in 1977 that the brother in question Took his first breath in realized that his mind was a weapon But an even better tool when the school would let him Run wild with his own imagination And find freedom where others found stagnation Bound for greatness, he’d always claim But when the awards were announced no one called his name Never one to dismay, he persevered Put in years from when he first appeared Released his first collection of raps in 2000 And it was quite apparent that he knew how then Though it’d take some time to find commercial success It was a sweet victory that reversed all the stress It hurts all the less to drop verses so fresh It became canonized and heard after death
2.
3.
Each Morning Addition I’m thankful for the day I’m thankful for the night I’m thankful for another chance to even get it right I’m thankful for my bed and the dreams that don’t die, and for the morning sun giving me reason to rise, For what I know is coming and what is a surprise, For that life-sustaining fire in the sky, And you can call it Jesus you can call it Science, But it just comes across as some deafening defiance, If I don’t have the vision to shut up and listen Take a morning meditation, to be in a good condition,Take a razor blade to shave my face then face the day and make the pain just flake away, Give hate a break, try to be unbiased, See the other side maybe they can come find us, Or we could find them,that could be our mission,Reward is living for another morning edition Each morning edition, Each moment we’re given, Is more than sufficient It’s important we listen To the voice of the poeple cross the planet, spread the news but not through Gannett Gotta plan so I don’t have to panic but they’re trying to paint us up into a corner, y’all, we’ve climbed so high can’t afford to fall It’s like every story I’ve told is tall gotta stop acting like such a know-it-all and find the right side of the bed to be rolling off
4.
Wait Wait... 02:50
5.
Anti-Theme Music This ain’t my theme music This just some in between music Saturday morning go ‘head and clean to it or turn down the lights make love to your Queen to it Ain’t a thing to it, it ring true kid I get on the mic you know I get ill Giving you a pinch so you know that’s it real Like when I was a kid you cannot sit still When the beat drops in it’s such a sick feel I’m spitting venom like my girl just got a snake bite and remember this was your idea for a date night. What now? A little skinny dipping with a great white? That ain’t right Don’t clip a birdie wing when he ‘bout to take flight Bye bye, I’m sky high Moving up to the register from a fry guy You had your time, now it’s my try Dynamite, we can finally see eye to eye I’m the type of guy that’ll keep it cool when it’s my turn to rock Like a dog on a firetruck I earned my spot and I learned a lot…by letting it breathe When I see them opportunities I seize Now what you think when you step to me Are you crazy? I’m ‘bout to punch you so hard you’ll be lazy in your left eye, but ain’t to TLC you’re gonna receive from me No can you just be backing up You see you’re all in my space and I’m about to just hit the erase Cuz you’re gone like myspace and facebook Couldn’t even steal my sound you’re such a lame crook Meaning you got nothing on me like the emperor’s new clothes I’m free, no I don’t play that Imma take it way back Imma flip them letters like you Vanna and I’m Sajak, did I really say that? Yes I think I did you see When I’m off the dome I’m ill as can be Let me spill the beans Can’t keep it under wraps If you want to rumble then I’m freaking thunder claps So just let it rain Let it pour, let it drain Let it out, let them shout Let them cry and complain While I entertain and keep it light-hearted It was just an intermission Now you got this guy started
6.
Fresh-Gross 03:47
Fresh-Gross I’m fresh, fresh This is fresh, fresh I’m gross, gross This is gross, gross We all got a couple different voices One that we love and one that annoys us But you see, each of those is integral The egotistical, and the critical Cuz sometimes you feel you are the greatest in the world A couple minutes later feeling so pitiful You gotta find the dichotomy to find harmony We guard ourselves like an armory At the start of the night Looking so tight Mirrror mirror on the wall tell me who you like I’m the most unfairest How I’m the one they cherrish Don’t want to be showing their faces right after me They’re too embarrassed Knock back a few, knock back a few more Dance, sweat, party hit the greasy spoon at four Catch a cab home, crawl inside Look in the mirror it’s Mr. Hyde Cuz the last thing we want is to be typical Constant reinvention just to keep original To self-promote poses being egotistical So make sure that they’re getting the reciprocal Cuz if you’re asking for money honey you better bring it And only if you’re an eagle should just try to wing it Cuz a gift isn’t what we’ve been given It’s what we’re meant to give the world that we live in…
7.
Marketplace 03:41
Marketplace I’m throwing down, hoping it all falls in place I’m just carving out my niche in the marketplace I’m ‘bout to take it all, don’t stall, make haste I’m just carving out my niche in the marketplace So what I’m selling, I hope that you’re buying I’m talking ‘bout the message that I be supplying The record books will be all erased when I carve out my niche in the marketplace They say this is a phase and it will pass but I feel myself dying like the middle class Wimps at the NRA all pistol-whipped and politicians make up fake sh*t like the fiscal cliff so they job feel a little more important Act hard just a little bit impotent but our cut is a itty-bitty quotient Fiddlesticks to the companies controlling So here’s a settlement from the benevolent with a gag order to never mention it How I’m controlling the entire nation with insider trading, to your irritation Like libations- got your head spinning Imma tell your story, Imma set it in perpetual depression We need some aggression to really strike fear in these coward congressmen Time ain’t money, man, time is life and you’ll never get it back once you pass through the night So don’t chase a check, chase a dream Don’t create competition, make a team Cuz on the face it seems you be following trends But it’s that copycat crap you be wallowing in But if you can discover your original voice When the people hear you you don’t give ‘em a choice Cuz when you share your perspective it’s very effective Bares a resemblance to a collective Go around blowing minds like a revolver and when they believe they will speak with their dollars Make a career out of being sincere If there’s one takeaway I hope that much is clear So what’s there to fear but the unknown You belong out here, so come home
8.
American Public Media I bet you’d like to have your cake and eat it, too Well here you are, baby I made it just for you But you wouldn’t know something fresh if it slapped you in the face Oh, but just in case baby tell me how it tastes You want to have the world wrapped up in a little bow But if you had it all you’d still want a little more You’re so insatiable it takes a fool to fill Oh but you knew the deal Baby tell me how it feels We almost didn’t make it though Did you really think that I would be impressed Cuz you’re so obviously leaning right or left Don’t prescribe so blindly that you cannot see Just how hypocritical we all can be You have got all of your causes cuz it’s good but if all your causes costing you more than they should You’re going to stagnate the whole movement before it starts So just recuse yourself and show a little heart We almost didn’t make it through
9.
10.
On Point This is on point I honor my ideas by following to the end Cuz talent expands with the work you put in It hooks me again manifesting the rhythm The quest I’ve been given: be the best in the business, The tests and the quizzes and all the curve balls that unnerve y’all, at first occur small beckon your fall grind you up to an absurd crawl And you’re still running ‘round looking for cure alls I’m sure the call hits you, too The question is are you ready and willing to follow it through There’s no calling a truce yet Cuz it’s a battle between you and your excuses You know what the truth is That any time one of us refuses Their power over us reduces So take every opportunity to disjoint That’s why my message remains on point I’m on point like a ballerina, from Catalina who had a dream to be the baddest ever seen up on any platform, I’m weathering that storm I can’t conform to all of your wack norms All before Jimmy can crack corn - I don’t care So grow a pair and know that it’s no fair And that’s life, you don’t get cast twice So I’m getting more firsts before my last rites It’s trial by fire, getting baptized so who am I to judge, begrudge and chastise I’ve been there so if you want my advice Not to get caught slipping like some black ice Ain’t no drifting off my mission And I got to be convincing to get you to come and listen by doing it so consistent To where there’s no choice, you gotta anoint Cuz everything I drop…is on point (Comdot) I push the point like Isaiah Thomas an index finger's when you caught up in a lie Could’ve got caught up in a lot like shot up in lot But I stay on “P” like the master These boys can’t see what I’m after Even if I paint a picture for ‘em in a rhyme So we can’t see eye to eye It seem like they blind They living in denial, that’s foul C’mon, now, one single mile from the ground to the clouds Swimming in the sky with the style Living for the rhyme, for the rhythm for the sound That’s the way it is and that’s how it be (true) What I say to anything in front of me (move) Do yourself a favor, get a grip, get a (clue) When it’s lit it’ll tick When it hits it’ll boom (Ooh)
11.
The Takeaway What is the takeaway? What did we learn? From love that we made to bridges we burn… What is the takeaway? What have we got? For every advancement another bomb that we drop… Another bomb that we Drop off the planet, that’s our trajectory All our best minds are off making weaponry Enemies and people with the slight difference for instance how religion creates such cynicists With very little evidence to the contrary The way we be treating each other is beyond scary So keep calm carry on steady Is this the news or comedy? Who on the beat like Mamady Keita Zeta to the Alpha, are you the top dog Can the planet live without ya? Cuz at the same time we’re moving toward the betterment We balance out the detriment by racing toward our eminent destruction, sucks when government don’t function They shake you, strike you, scrape you like percussion Imagine resources poured toward death went to sustain all the life that’s left (KBLE) So what you take away from it, It’s safe to say history repeats on the daily day,You don’t got intention to pay for that you delinquent, Start thinking ‘bout them cats who done paved the way for your breathing, Your lifestyle, Your meaning, I’m saying that there’s a reason for everything you believe in the questions - can you conceive it There’s history lessons in every second, I mean it, You just got to read it, reflect it, Be it with best intentions, And test our allegiances to tradition Convention is rigid and scripted to resist any changes risen against it, But that’s the essence the lesson is to prevent it from taking root in our mind, Like an epidemic the times won’t change Cuz that’s a lie, homie, change is the only constant, We adapt to survive, and that’s just a fact of life, So how you catch a glimpse of the future No need to ask it, it’s simple, that past is riddled with answers so get to mapping (Blooded the Brave) What is the takeaway, what does it cost What is it worth if we don’t know what we’ve lost Why do we walk in circles pacing with our heads down, I’m here to lift them up and take down the crown, This is for the day we set it free from the cage, and they don’t even know, but I’m Blooded the Brave, and we do it together, yeah me and TJ, we set it free with these words that we say
12.
13.
Diane Rehm 02:34
Diane Rehm Just me against your tyranny ‘Bout to getting it popping like Diane Rehm Out nowhere take over entire scenes You knowing I’m getting you open like Diane Rehm The news complex is a giant scheme I be the voice of reason like Diane Rehm Uh, there’s no denying me I can’t be stopped like Diane Rehm I’m the smartest kid you ever heard get ignant So tell me why you still can’t guess the limerick This isn’t a game some lightening fast fill in the blank I’m filling my tank got a couple mil in the bank I’m still in the frame you got a face for radio But I can code switch if you change up the ratio Sorry, smarty, you can never take over the party Nobody gets your name right like Meghna Chakrabarti Progressing in the here & now I’m never stopping, son And like Batman, I like my Robin Young Crystal clear signal here’s never been weak Home grown Hoosier Steve Inskeep It gets deep, my coverage and what you’ll discover is a brother with the power to make you stop thinking it’s us and them Cuz tax dollars pay a portion of our budget You’d think we give free abortions the was they get upset Thanks for tuning in, I’m doing this for the enjoyment But let me go and send this on over to Bob Boilen He’ll tell me if my sh*t is wack Although I’m never broke down like Click and Clack I flip the tracks and it sets me off Rap over the entirety of NPR But you can call in to get a word in edgewise Toe Jamming up your program like a pledge drive
14.
Tiny Desk 00:49
15.
All Things Considered This just in… All things considered, we made it a long way Amazing that we even made it out alive All things considered, we got it together But I don’t think we should be that surprised All things considered, we took some damage but still we managed to make it through All things considered, it’s a blessing even when they’re testing me and you All things considered What is a battle if it costs nothing with no losses on either side? What is a choice with no options with no struggle to decide? What is a ruler with no mercy with no give, and with no bend? What is love with no heartbreak without the thought that it could even end? And all that is so sobering But Imma keep soldiering, soldiering on And Imma stay into you, keeping us in the news like this were an interview (innerview) a view of your heart, won’t take us apart, Our bond is unbreakable, as long as we make a full effort to grow, and that’s how you know we got the exclusive, we’re bringing the news in, into your soul Well don’t get your news all from the same source A lot of misinformation ‘fore the truth came forth But that’s the main course, that’s what I’m trying to chew on Then break it down to an itty-bitty gluon Like a headline don’t tell the whole story Something seems fishy there’s a little more for me To dig up, big up to cleansing your soul Spread a little light leave the demons exposed Don’t let anybody have dirt on you That’s like being in your grave that’s like peeing in your shoe I don’t know, just something you don’t want Learn from mistakes that’s how you grow up But don’t be a drag, I ain’t no tow truck But I will pull over, help you lift the load up We’ll make it together, never call us quitters We’re doing pretty well, all things considered
16.
Alt. Latina 00:32
17.
Talk of the Nation It’s the talk of the nation Tribes have all gathered For treaties left in shatters By these invasive bastards Because our patience is not limitless for the death of innocents with you is imminent My reservations Barren piece of land Where once the chiefs would stand ’Til they find oil beneath the sand It’s the talk of the nation What didn’t make the news But if you take their shoes You’d see the hatred, too But it’s amazing The oppressor never sees All the rights they seize Carried from overseas Now immigration you try to deny but the trails that we lie (cry) will never run dry It’s the talk of the nation It’s the talk of the nation
18.

about

Donate to National Public Radio! www.npr.org/stations/donate/index.php?ps=st273

What happens when the world of Hip-hop collides with National Public Radio? You get this fun romp through NPR's world as filtered through the lens of Hip-hop. NPR theme songs get chopped up and turned into beats, and songs play on the themes of the shows. Interludes where the rapper calls in to shows like A Way with Words and Wait, Wait..., as well as exclusive interviews with famous Radio personalities such as Diane Rehm and Terry Gross

credits

released December 14, 2015

Produced, written* and performed by TJ Reynolds
Mastered by Jeremy Radway for Radio Love Productions
(*except guest raps) TJReynolds.net

Rapper’s Almanac - samples a Scandinavian folk song
“Gi Mig En Dag” (“Give Me a Day”). Piano by Rich Dworsky,
Guitar by Orlando Velasquez, Outro Vocals - Sandra D

Each Morning Addition - Theme song by BJ Leiderman,
Guitar by Orlando Velasquez

Wait Wait - Theme song by BJ Leiderman

Fresh-Gross - Rhodes from Kate Lamont, Saxophone by
Joshua Silbert, Background Vocals - Teresa Reynolds (Sax recorded
by J. Silbert at The Pop Machine, Rhodes recorded by Ryan Koch at Arkbarn)

American Public Media - Vocals - Teresa Reynolds

Marketplace - Theme song by BJ Leiderman

On Point - Theme song by Four Tet - “Everything is Alright”
Guest Vocals by The Comdot, Scratches by DJ Spoolz

The Takeaway - Theme song by Robert Malko and John Blanton
Guest Vocals by KBLE & Blooded the Brave, Guitar by Orlando
Velaquez, Drums by Joseph Lehner (Drums recorded by Ryan Koch at Arkbarn)

Diane Rehm- Theme song by Claude Bolling

All Things Considered - Theme song by Don Voegeli, Background
Vocals by Sarah Zuckerman

Tiny Desk - Violin - Tracy Silverman

Talk of the Nation - Theme song by Greg Smith

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

TJ Reynolds Boston, Massachusetts

contact / help

Contact TJ Reynolds

Streaming and
Download help

Redeem code

Report this album or account

If you like TJ Reynolds, you may also like: