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Partial collection of songs taken from former Murda Inc. signee Charli Baltimore’s second unreleased album “The Diary (You Think You Know)” (2003). The album spawned a total of five singles, one of which (“Diary”) earned a Grammy nom at its 2004 ceremonial event for Best Female Rap Solo Performance. Charli at the time was shocked that her song was submitted for such a prestige nomination, given that there was limited promo/budget behind it alongside no music video to aid it. Furthermore, the song did not chart on Billboard, but despite this its buzz in the streets was enough to score the renowned nomination. Other singles – “Philly’s Finest”, “Charli, Charli”, “No One Does It Better”, “Hey Charli” – were all released via vinyl or CD single pressings to similar reception garnered from underground and urban magazine critics (although the Eve-assisted “Philly’s Finest” did catch flack from friend-turned-foe Foxy Brown for interpreting it as a disrespect to New Yorkers and the original sample it was based on, that being “Brooklyn’s Finest”, shared by Jay-Z and Biggie). While the album did receive slight advertisement through mentions on compilation sets like “Murda Inc presents… The Remixes” (2002), “Murda Inc. presents… The Inc.” alongside fellow labelmate Ashanti’s “Chapter II” (2003) album; “The Diary” would end up getting shelved in late ’03 due to label CEO Irv Gotti exhausting the effort’s budget on personal illicit substance problems. Track-listing is as follows: 1.) Hey Charli 2.) The Diary 3.) Get It Right, Part II (feat. Caddillac Tah & Ronnie Bumps) 4.) Days Like This 5.) Charli, Charli 6.) Philly’s Finest (feat. Eve) 7.) I Still Don’t Give a Fuck (Interlude) 8.) No One Does It Better (feat. Ashanti) 9.) Ghetto Fabulous (feat. Jewell) 10.) Showdown (feat. Caddillac Tah, Black Child & D.O. Cannon) 11.) Get at Me Dawg (50 Cent & G-Unit Diss) 12.) You Want Me Dead 13.) Ill Bitch (Lil’ Kim Diss) 14.) Niggaz Ain't Shit (feat. Quarter & Nina) 15.) Down 4 U (feat. Vita, Ja Rule & Ashanti)

Full collection of songs taken from hip-hop legend and The Firm member AZ’s shelved fifth album “Final Call” (2004). The album’s Metaphysic-produced cut “Talkin’ Gangsta” was queued to be a buzz pick for radio outlets but was later issued to white vinyl only due to the album’s unexpected two-month early leak. The album altogether was temporarily shelved due to AZ’s dissatisfaction with the direction of the album. When the effort began to circulate both in the streets and via online, fans’ reaction to the project was reported to be somewhat critical as longtime fanatics dubbed the CD as “commercial sounding” and felt it did not follow up strongly to AZ’s prior album “Aziatic” (2002). Though the album was heavily bootlegged online and in the underground market, “Final Call” did not see an official release until late 2008 when its title was revised to “Final Call: The Lost Tapes” with a remixed track-listing and a notable omission of the interlude “Poor Poor People”, featuring Puerto Rican, New York native (Nuyorican) poet Lemon. Guest appearances on the unreleased album include Tony Sunshine, Rell, CL Smooth, Ralo, Nu & Young alongside sampled vocals by the late Aaliyah. Track-listing is as follows: 1.) Freedom (Intro) (feat. Lemon the Poet) 2.) Omega 3.) The Truth (feat. Ralo) 4.) Seems That Way 5.) Talkin’ Gangsta (feat. Tony Sunshine) 6.) Side 2 Side (feat. Ron G) 7.) You Know (feat. Rell) 8.) No Strings 9.) Gangsta MC’s (Interlude) (feat. Lemon the Poet) 10.) Live Wire 11.) Magic Hour (feat. CL Smooth) 12.) I Am AZ 13.) Girls R Free 14.) Poor Poor People (Interlude) (feat. Lemon the Poet) 15.) Let Me Know (feat. Aaliyah) 16.) Quiet Money Anthem (feat. Nu & Young)

Long before Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes of TLC’s protégées Blaque added “Torch” to their fully released discography in 2019, nearly more than a decade prior their album was in an unreleased state thanks courtesy to label issues and creative differences. Originally, “Torch” was due to be released in 2003 under Elektra Records. The group’s first promotional single “No Ganksta” (featuring Missy Elliott) was sent to radio in late 2002 as a “buzz” cut for the LP, but failed to amass critical acclaim after reviewers felt the Missy Elliott-produced mid-tempo number was a blatant rip-off of 50 Cent’s “Wanksta”, when in actuality it was an essential “answer” song to Fif’s single. Resorting back to the drawing board, Elektra and Elliott decided on ushering in Blaque to make a concluding cameo in the Jessica Alba-, Mekhi Phifer-starring dance-drama flick “Honey” (2003). The group’s theatrical feature was accompanied with a catchy Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins-produced groove entitled “I’m Good”, which charted modestly overseas in countries like Australia and Germany but failed to repeat the same momentum in the states where it only managed to peak at number 95 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. Making matters worse was that Blaque’s follow-up single “Ugly”, featuring fiery hot production and hilarious guest vocals by the group’s fellow labelmate Missy Elliott, missed the singles charts but fared better on the Singles Sales aspect. Due to a combination of the singles underperforming commercially in the states, lack of creative input from the group and Blaque’s label Elektra merging with Atlantic Records, the album was pushed back from a fall 2003 release to an early 2004 date and eventually got scrapped. Talks of the album being revisited via iTunes were considered as early as 2008 when Beyoncé’s father Matthew Knowles absorbed the group’s unreleased content for his Music World Entertainment label. Unfortunately when delays followed and no release was shown, deceased member Natina Reed spoke to ‘YouKnonwIGotSoul’ two months before her death to relay that as a group it wouldn’t make sense to put out “Torch” to fans if Blaque had no creative control during the album’s recording process. As time elapsed, towards the 15th anniversary of the shelving of “Torch”, remaining members Brandi and Shamari confirmed that the long sought-after LP would be available to digital servers in May 2019. Production credits include Missy Elliott, Linda Perry, Wylee, Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins, Craig Brockman, Jazz, among others. Track-listing is as follows: 1.) I’m Good 2.) Blaque Out (feat. Lord Tariq & Peter Gunz) 3.) Blaque Out (Original Mix) 4.) Freakazoid (Demo Version) ft. Missy Elliott 5.) Freakazoid (Album Version) ft. Missy Elliott 6.) (Deeper) Try Harder 7.) It’s Not Me 8.) Ugly (Album Version) ft. Missy Elliott 9.) Ugly (Alternate Version) ft. Missy Elliott 10.) Fall Through 11.) Hopeless (Dirty/Explicit Version) 12.) Hopeless (Clean/Amended Version) 13.) Nappy Dugout 14.) Dat’s Right (feat. Missy Elliott) 15.) If It Was Me 16.) Fall Back 17.) Love ‘Em Down 18.) Her Name (Tribute to Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes of TLC) ft. Alicia “4Bia” Cherry, D.R.I.P. da Gumph 19.) No Ganksta (Album Version) ft. Missy Elliott 20.) I’m Good (Trackmasters Remix) ft. Freck Billionaire

Collection of known songs taken from female rap duo Dyme’s unreleased debut album “Diamonds in the Ruff” (2000). Hailing from Mount Vernon, New York, identical twin sisters Idrissa and Aisha Hassan initially teamed up as musicians under the generic stage name Duo before revising their artistic moniker to Dyme. The pair’s lyrical crafting skills and stellar storytelling earned them cameo features both on-screen and off-screen. The first came per the Q-Tip-starring, direct-to-VHS flick “Love Goggles” (1999), while the second resulted in a spot on the Ruff Ryders/Cash Money 2000 Tour. With these modest forms of recognition, Dyme was solid proof that they were just as hot as their male spitting counterparts. Through the release of several buzz singles (“Spanish Fly”, “3 Stories”, “In the Cut”, “Million Dollar Chicks (Where They At”), Dyme readied a debut album due to be titled “Diamonds in the Ruff”, penned for an early 2000 release before being mind-numbingly postponed to early 2001. While they awaited their turn for the musical limelight, Dyme hopped on an assortment of tracks and remixes shared by a rolodex of famous musicians, most notably Whitney Houston and Deborah Cox. Talks of the two-piece collective being signed to DMX’s label Bloodline Records and having their own movie (“Double Crossed”) were widely considered as effort to further strengthen the pair’s hype. Sadly, all momentum was halted when the sisterly duo asked to be released from their contract with Arista and have their album shelved. It remains unclear as to what pushed the twins to step away from the scene; the rumor is said to be that due to their singles not being properly funded for commercial support on radio or in clubs, this may have put pressure on the two’s management to postpone further steps to have their name promoted extensively, resulting in Dyme’s frustration and cause to leave Arista. Track-listing is as follows: 1.) Phone Skit #1 2.) N*ggaz Do Real Thangz (feat. Bobby Simmons & Smif-N-Wessun a.k.a. Cocoa Brovaz) 3.) In the Cut 4.) What’chu Want (feat. Lady Luck) 5.) It Ain’t a Game 6.) 3 Stories (feat. DMX) 7.) Another Story 2 Tell (with Notorious B.I.G., Nas & Trina) 8.) Phone Skit #2 9.) Ladies, Are U Wit Me? 10.) Thug Glamour 11.) Spanish Fly (feat. Cuban Link & Barrio Boyzz) 12.) Diamonds in the Ruff 13.) A & I (Demo Version) 14.) Is It a Crime? 15.) Double Cross 16.) Where They At? (Million Dollar Chicks) 17.) Phone Skit #3 18.) My Love Is Your Love (Wyclef Jean Remix) (with Whitney Houston) [*] [*] = denotes bonus track; released in 1998

Former J Records recording rap star Shells seems to be lost in obscurity these days. But no worries as we at Obscure Sounds proceed to shine the light on this underrated up-north spitter. Following his successful run as an underground battle rapper, the New York-bred MC caught the attention of talent scouts at J Records looking for fresh unsigned hype, and Shells was their winning pick. After hopping on his labelmates’ remixes (Lyric’s “Episode”, Mario’s “Just a Friend 2002”), Shells pieced together a profound cohesive body of work entitled “Welcome to Times Square”, geared for a late 2004 drop. Despite hype garnered from the single “Why I Love You” being featured in the Samuel L. Jackson-, Ashanti-starring drama flick “Coach Carter” (2005) and its many other singles circulating on radio ahead of the effort’s planned release, “Welcome to Times Square” was frustratingly shelved. More than likely, the album’s unreleased state was an aftereffect from J Records dealing with conflicting merging business deals among RCA and Arista. Still, this did not at all stop the album from being leaked online to YouTube and white label vinyls. Here is an imagined track-listing for the project: 1.) Ladies & Gentlemen 2.) Pull Over (feat. Mashonda) 3.) U a Gangsta 4.) Bronx Connection (feat. Remy Ma) 5.) Frontin’ 6.) Imagine That 7.) Put Ya X Up 8.) I’m So BX (feat. Remy Ma, Drag-On & Liveson) 9.) I’m Laughin’ 10.) When We Met (feat. Lumidee) 11.) Catchin’ Feelings (feat. Anthony Hamilton) 12.) We Can’t Lose (feat. Styles P) 13.) What We Do (Freestyle) 14.) Difference 15.) Over the Top (feat. Grafh) 16.) Internationally Known/Throwback Freestyle 17.) Why I Love You 18.) I Bet It’s Gonna Pop 19.) Get Your Roll On Lyrics 20.) They Wanna Spit Like... 21.) No Problem (feat. Remy Ma) 22.) Watch 23.) Shorty 24.) Neglected

Check out the full collection of songs taken from Queen Latifah's collaborative compilation with her Flavor Unit Records signees: Storm P, Aposouls, The Athletes & Confidential, entitled "100% Hater Proof" (2002). Though the album isn't unreleased, it was an overlooked gem that dropped in stores on October 8, 2002 to modest praise from CD consumers and even got mentioned in the paper, most notably "Billboard" and "Jet" magazine, the latter where Latifah mentioned that she would be putting her focus on the business aspect of the music industry by promoting her Flavor Unit acts and the "Hater Proof" CD through her co-founded label after securing masters for a back catalog of her previous works hailing from the '80s and '90s. Latifah mentioned that she wanted to promote her understudies like how Motown Records did with their artists back in the day. She also informed "Jet" that she would be juggling roles as a music businesswoman with being a mainstream actress as she was due in line to be part of a planned CBS television series titled "Molly Anderson"; however, as time elapsed it was later decided that executives at the network would not be moving forward with the pilot nor series. Track-listing is as follows: 1.) Gutta 2.) The Unit 3.) Calzone 4.) Me 5.) We Be 6.) Whooh! 7.) Benjamins 2002 8.) Off The Wall 9.) They Don’t Want It 10.) Guns & Butter 11.) 100% Hater Proof 12.) Funny Cats 13.) Get Down 14.) Duz Dat 15.) Give It Up 16.) Street Life

Known outside of her solo work as an initial member of ‘90s R&B girl trio 702 and former part of Pharrell Williams’ Star Trak-signed Latina R&B group Affair, Tiffany Villarreal attempted to make it her all with her lone studio album, the simply self-titled CD: “Tiffany Villarreal” (2004). Its most notable single “You, Yourself and You” flew under the radar when not much promotion was given for the radio friendly tune, later costing its album’s release to be shipped exclusively overseas in Japanese regions and being ultimately shelved in the states. What makes it more troubling aside from the axed U.S. release, was the noteworthy fact that there were additional gems left off the album for creative reasoning. Tunes like “Boogie on the Upside” and “Played Out” were ultimate melodic sweetness to the auditory senses and slower paced offerings like “Hill of Falling Stars” and the cancelled remix to “You, Yourself and You” were sure to be played at heavy rotation at the clubs and local gatherings alongside being queued for slow jam night sessions on every known R&B radio station across the nation. Here’s a list of the rare unreleased leftover tracks that could have been featured on Villarreal’s non-U.S. debut release: 1.) Boogie on the Upside 2.) I Don’t Know 3.) Played Out 4.) Hill of Falling Stars 5.) You, Yourself and You (Extended Remix)

Check out a collection of songs by Cash Money Records’ first R&B group Official (formerly known as Unplugged) with their scrapped debut “Tellin’ Our Story” (2001). The unreleased project was due to boast guest contributions from fellow labelmates Christina and Lil Wayne, alongside west coast R&B musician TQ. The album was led by two singles; the first being the Lil Wayne-featured “I Don’t Know”; the follow-up “Anything You Want” (also featuring Weezy) was given the full fledged single treatment with a nationwide CD/vinyl/radio release and an intriguing music video. While it’s unclear why the effort suffered the shelving curse, it is presumed like so may lost urban music treasures of the yesteryears that it was an aftereffect of lackluster single chart performance. Track-listing is as follows: 1.)    Intro – 2 Unplugged 2.)    Anything You Want (feat. Lil Wayne) 3.)    Let's Talk About It 4.)    My Apology 5.)    No Sympathy 6.)    If I Were 2 Die 7.)    Hennessy 8.)    Bye Bye 9.)    4eva 10.)  Bump Da Bump 11.)  Freak (feat. Christina) 12.) As Long 13.)  Supastar (feat. TQ) 14.)  Seperate Ways 15.)  R U Down 16.)  Why (Interlude) 17.)  Why 18.)  U Stayed 19.) Thank You 20.)  I Don’t Know (feat. Lil Wayne) 21.)  Don’t Cry

A collection of rare unreleased leftover material that failed to make the final cut of the standard track-listing to Missy Elliott’s former Goldmind Inc. signee Tweet’s sophomore album “It’s Me Again” (2005). The following content was originally recorded between 2003 and 2004 and eyed a release for late 2004; however the majority of the tracks would be scrapped due to Tweet’s previous label Elektra Records merging with Atlantic Records in the middle of the album’s production, causing Tweet to abandon the initial tracks and retool her effort while under Atlantic as part of a legally-abided contractual agreement. Track-listing is as follows: 1.) Shook Up (feat. Free of 106 & Park) 2.) See Ya 3.) Proceed 4.) Face to Face 5.) Tu Tu (Toot Toot) 6.) You (feat. Missy Elliott) 7.) Thugman (Remix) ft. Missy Elliott 8.) Hypnotic (feat. AZ) 9.) Whisper 10.) How Girls Get 11.) Cool Breeze (Just Another Day) (feat. Whitney Houston)

It will always be exhausting looking at the list of R&B musicians who were robbed of a proper career, and Ms. LaTangela Newsome has to be among the grandest pick for most underrated vocalists of an era. Long before her venture into television as the sassy antagonist on Nickelodeon’s “Taina”, LaTangela had whipped up an album’s worth of material that would be shopped to numerous record labels during the mid-‘90s as hopes to be signed – and according to her, she had a number of deals on the table. What has been presented from her vault personally over the past few years is 6 demo tracks, five being recorded in 1995 when she was practically a teenager and the remaining selection being a 2000 demo for her referenced by powerhouse songstress Deborah Cox. You don’t want to miss out on this listening experience, track-listing is as follows: 1.) Don’t Cry 2.) Far Away 3.) Just the Thought of U 4.) Love Walked In 5.) A Million Miles Away 6.) I Just Can’t Get Enough (Demo) ft. Deborah Cox [*] [*] = recorded in 2000 as a demo for LaTangela as part of a potential contract deal with Motown Records

Apologies in advance for such a hefty delay in posting. So much has been going on in my personal life that I've had to postpone a number of things. But one thing's for certain I'll always try my very best to update y'all weekly with these grand gems. Resuming back to our normal schedule I present to you what was a upload favorite on my old YouTube channel - the rare unreleased leftover material that failed to make the final cut to Ginuwine's third studio effort "The Life" (2001). The following tracks featured production by the likes of Timbaland, Static Major of Playa, Soulshock & Karlin and Big Dog. Track-listing is as follows: 1.) Fix It 2.) Give It Up 3.) G's Got a Thang for You 4.) Don't Think Wit Yo Dick 5.) Wine 6.) So Anxious (Timbaland's Anxiety Mix, Pt. 2)

Like the rest of the world, I tend to wonder where Mona Lisa is currently hiding these days. Did she want to live a private life and focus on another profession, or was she burnt out from broken promises from the music industry when her presence was seemingly thrown to the shadows due to fierce competition R&B had to offer towards the turn of the new millennium? One thing’s for sure, this lovely songbird had cooked up some of the most memorable material for the ‘90s scene, and she was due to strike with another outing with her debut’s follow-up entitled “Gett’n It On” (1998), led by the radio single “Peach”. The song produced a rare, limitedly released music video directed by Ron Norsworthy and was additionally planned to be remixed by Ja Rule and his Murda Inc. entourage. Sadly, when the song failed to pick up successful momentum from the public, its album was decidedly shelved. From the sounds of what has leaked so far, the album could’ve followed the same vein of ’98 albums on Billboard: decent charting position coupled with strong favorable reception by some of the most renowned music reviewers of its time. For now, here’s an imagined track-listing: 1.)    Peach 2.)    Gett’n It On 3.)    Lead Show (feat. Willie Lead) 4.)    Rapture 5.)    Who Do You Love? 6.)    It’s Alright 7.)    Silent Night 8.)    Peach (So So Def Remix) ft. Ja Rule