Q & A with a Drum Machine

21 Questions (Disco Mix) by 50 Cent, original version from Get Rich or Die Tryin´ (Analog, 2003) 21 Answers by Lil´Mo, from Syndicated: The Lil´Mo Hour (Unreleased) After too long a layoff I´m back. The old computer is dead and now I´m packing a shiny new iMac so hopefully the music will flow. I was hesitating with this one since the songs are from the recent past, but that´s the thing with R&B and rap... they´re very "of the moment" genres that, for the most part, don´t age well. Sure you still listen to your Quest and Roots from back in the day, but Kane sounds stale ("Raw" notably excepted), and don´t even think about pulling out those Stacy Latissaw records! So today we go back through the mists of time to 2003. One really great thing about hip hop is the traditon of answer songs, settling beef through single release... gotta love that. Of course, like most things hip hop, the origin is right there to be seen in reggae. But that´s another story... This song / answer song pits Curtis Jackson against Cynthia Loving, or, if you must, 50 Cent vs. Lil´Mo. 50 fired first with "21 Questions", a song that posits the aformentioned quantity of preguntas to his lady, trying to figure out if it´s him or his fortune and fame she´s after. And of course I can´t just give you the regular version here, so here´s something you might have missed... the slinky Disco mix! Fortunately, Lil´Mo is here to fire back ¨21 Answers" and fill him in. Everyone knows 50, but Lil´Mo has always been a favorite of mine, and doesn´t get the recognition she deserves. In fact, the 2003 album that "21 Answers" was supposed to be on was scratched, and remains unreleased. The ranks of quality female MCs are pretty freakin´thin, so give respect where it´s due!