As it is often said that the “third time is the charm”, but in the world of the 5%, the third time is the understanding. In his third project since being introduced on Lord Jamar’s The 5% Album in 2006, New Rochelle(Now Rule) native drops this official mixtape featuring Wu Tang Clan in-house producer Iron Sheik titled ‘For Promotional Use Only Vol.1’.
His first solo joint, Living Mathematics, received critical acclaim which pushed the emcee/spoken word artist to continue his mission. When asked about his metamorphosis from spoken word artist to full fledged recording artist, Kasim says, “I took what Jamar told me and ran with it. I was still deep into the spoken word at that point because I could still spit these righteous and conscious lyrics. Nobody was hearing that in Hip Hop no more. I was doing poetry and that’s how Jamar decided to call me.”
Over an entire decade later, Kas recruited New York-born/L.A.-based Wu Tang producer Iron Sheik, who’s the brainchild of the project, seemed like the perfect blend for Kasim’s third effort. Keeping the tradition of the mixtape era, Kasim has enlisted “The Mixtape Queen” DJ Lazy K(Max B, French Montana) to host this monumental production ,which is being presented by Kas’ own label, Little George Music.
Leading the wave of For Promotional Use are remakes of two timeless Hip Hop classics by rappers who were/are also 5%ers; “I Ain’t No Joke” by Rakim and Big Daddy Kane’s “Ain’t No Half Steppin'”. With no samples cleared, Kasim ups the ante on cadence, delivery and overall pure lyrical skills.
Stream For Promotional Use Only Vol. 1 HERE
