Doing reviews as I have done over the past year I found myself holding my noise while listening to many submissions. I have to realize that just because I do not like a genre of music I should not instantly categorize it until I have given the artist a full accessment.

Bilistic is one of those artist's who enjoys his musical life in a genre that I do not like very much. However, his bio did interest me.

Bilistic has opened for almost every hip hop heavyweight to blow through the Midwest. These openings include Nelly, Bone Thugs & Harmony, Cypress Hill, Jagged Edge, Naughty by Nature, Ashante, Tech 9. Opening for all these heavy hitters means this guy has something special. After listening to the CD the first time, I noted the songs covered the same story lines many other gangster artists cover such as going to jail, killing people, stealing cars, dehumanizing women (you know the drill).

Bilistic is writing from his firsthand experience. He was a gang member as a child and spent real time in a maximum security prison for crimes committed in his youth. He even spent time as a boxer, so you know the dude can kick your ass if he wanted to. I'd be very careful not to piss this guy off!

Now, as you can tell, I'm not a huge fan of Hip-Hop or any of it's sub genres. But on my second and third listen I actually started liking some of his tunes. The mixes where solid and his heartfelt song writing captured my interest.

Another thing that impressed me was the fact that if you like this type of music, Bilistic gives you your monies worth. He has as many as 20 songs on this CD. No 30 second skits either, you get plenty of booty shaken music for your hard earned dollar.

It seems as if every artist trys to separate themself from the pack by coming up with some catchy verb to discribe thier music. Nothing new here as Bilistsic called his style of Hip Hop "Hippie Hop." Bilistic successfully comingles his 60's music roots with his born in the 80's body. I actually liked the phrase Hippie Hop and felt like it was a good discription of his style.

The first five songs had me reaching for the skip button because they where nothing but typical Hip Hop. No Hippy Hop to be found. Everything changed from track 6 forward. Bilistic caught my attention and he would not let it go until the final track.

Songs such as Fallen Angels; I Remember and Where Will I Go , display Bilistic's solid story telling skills. He expresses what caused him to join a gang and discusses life with his sister, who is currently living behind bars. Moving forward, he tells us about how his gang befriended him, then hung him out to dry. This CD allows you to really see the emotional side of this young man. Spending time in jail gave him time to evaluate his life and what he wanted for his future. He put down his guns and picked up his pen. He created some incredible stories and put them to music. Listening to this CD was almost like watching a real life movie about living on the streets with drugs and violance. It unfolds right in front of the listener.

Today, Bilistic has a child and wants to instill a higher value system then he had when he was younger. He wants to be a respectful father figure to his son. He has put his cards on the table and gone 'all in' to making himself successful with his music. His determination is inspirational. I wish him the very best. He is extremely good at what he does. A quick check with CD Baby shows me that Bilistic is not only a popular download, but can really move some CD's.

Bilistic is a great american hero in my book. He doesn't glorify street crime. He glorifies accepting responsibility. I give this Hippy Hop CD one of my highest recommendations.