[Crooked Moderator]
If you could trade your hairline with any rapper, who would it be?

Also, are you really eatin doe?

[Anthony Fantano]
@CrookedModerator

Am eating, but trying to diet a little bit and it’s working. i don’t look quite as fat as i did in my nard interview
I honestly like my hairline quite a bit. no trades! i’d trade half of my vinyl collection for ghostface’s gold eagle armband, tho[Brian Gonser]
To Pimp A Butterfly still a 10?
@AnthonyFantano

[Anthony Fantano]
@BrianGonser Was just listening to it yesterday, and yes![Tarkka]
Will there be a sequel to the New Calassic?

[Anthony Fantano]
@Tarkka Yes, most definitely. It’ll probably be a while before that happens, tho[Jonny Soul ]
@AnthonyFantano who are your favorite rappers?

[Anthony Fantano]
@JonnySoulRaps Too many to name, honestly, but a couple are Andre 3K, MF Doom, Ghostface, Kendrick, Busdriver, Killer Mike & EL-P, Daveed Diggs, KRS-ONE, Chuck D. Again, too many to name. I’d need to basically be rifling through my music collection for a definitive list[Mattw116]
Sweeeet, just starting off, thanks for reviewing all the music you do, I’ve heard about a ton of my favorite albums on the year through your reviews, whether they were positive or negative, such as Get To Heaven, No Now, and Choose Your Weapon

Anyways, how do you maintain the best teeth in the game? Can you speak on the importance of flossing regularly?

[Anthony Fantano]
@mattw116 I brush every day, and floss several times a week. I was blessed with big, straight teeth, and I take care of them as well as I can with good, consistent dental hygiene. Also, I don’t really drink any coffee or colored drinks very often[Caslon]
Why didn’t you review Monster, the best hip hop project of this decade?

[Anthony Fantano]
@Caslon Just wasn’t feeling it, honestly[Steelo47: Redacted]

[Anthony Fantano]
@Steelo47 Never. You’d enjoy that too much[MrXercules]
@AnthonyFantano
Welcome to Genius and thanks for doing this Q&A with us!

My question: if you were chosen to commandeer a small army made up of 500 mini versions of a rapper, which rapper would you choose and why? What about them would guarantee you victory in battle?

[Anthony Fantano]
@MrXercules this is the weirdest thing i’ve ever had to think about. i’m speechless[Kev-CUE]
VMA predictions?

[Anthony Fantano]
@Kev-CUE I predict complete disappointment, but we’ll care anyway for some reason despite the VMA’s awful track record with dishing out awards to worthy recipients[TurkishPower]
Lol at me getting deleted

Ok i ask seriously

@AnthonyFantano would you rate jesus piece still a 5 today and do you really think nothing is special with Game and what are your expectations from the documentary 2 ? do you like the ‘'100’‘ song ?

[Anthony Fantano]
@TurkishPower It wasn’t that good![johnjvck]
Can u believe that martha stewart is single

[Anthony Fantano]
@johnjvck All those arts, crafts, and homemaking take up too much time for a relationship[LeBronJames]
Why do you use rg instead of ktt?

[Anthony Fantano]
@LeBronJames It’s no so much that I prefer to use it, but I got people sending me messages on this forum all the time, so I like to respond for a few lulz. If you guys wanna have a Q&A on KTT, hit me up on twitter and maybe we’ll plan one[King2604]
@AnthonyFantano Hello Anthony ! I just want to ask you some little questions…
College Dropout or Late Registration ?
Tha Carter II or III ?
KRIT Wuz Here or Return of 4eva ?
The Chronic or 2001 ?

And just wanted to say, your reviews are good ! Even though I don’t always agree with your ratings you’re still putting in work ! And I wish you good luck with what’s coming next

[Anthony Fantano]
@King2604

College
III
Return
Chronic[YiggyAssHaircut]
Will you take on interns?

If so, can I be one

[YiggyAssHaircut]
@AnthonyFantano
Serious about the intern inquiry
Legitimate journalist over here looking to expand his shitty horizons in South Carolina. Will work for food

[Anthony Fantano]
@YiggyAssHaircut

I only take on people who can intern in person, and can bring skills like writing, music discovery, and audio/video editing to the table[TheMusicConnoiseur]
@AnthonyFantano What are your thoughts on TDE’s rollout for Jay Rocks album?

[Anthony Fantano]
@TheMusicConnoiseur it’s an interesting concept. i just worry it’s a ploy to screw fans into pre-ordering more than they naturally would. there’s no way releasing this album in 2016 makes sense. it’d basically end jay rock’s momentum. while i think it’s a cool concept, i don’t want the release date to be periodically moved up just to elicit more pre-orders. i’ve pre-orderd the album myself in good faith that everything TDE says is on the up and up, but the more i think about this interesting marketing idea, the more it feels like something i hope doesn’t happen again. i think my mind would be much more at ease if the fans collectively knew how many albums had been pre-ordered thus far, and what the final goal of pre-orders is[ahflaum]
@AnthonyFantano What is one album you wish you could go back and review again to change the score and what would that score be?

[Anthony Fantano]
@ahflaum none, really. my reviews are snapshots of how i felt when i was gathering my first impressions. opinions are just perspectives, and perspectives are due to change as long as you take in more information, experiences. that being said, i’m yet to 180 on a record i’ve given a positive or negative review to, but some months i’ll like a record i thought was OK a little bit more, or maybe i’ll love a record i thought was amazing a little bit less. it’s natural to not always feel exactly the same about every song or album you’ve ever heard. change is inevitable and exciting. i always accept it—even if i don’t particularly enjoy it

[Anthony Fantano]
I think influencing change is more important than just blatantly trying to fight it[Pakyed]
@AnthonyFantano Who’s your favorite user on rapgenius?

[Anthony Fantano]
@PakyedTheRapper

Why, it’s you! <3[dalmo]
@AnthonyFantano When are you gonna make new annotations? 

[Anthony Fantano]
@dalmo dunno. haven’t felt like it lately[Khroam: Redacted]
Why do you hate me

[Anthony Fantano]
@Khroam i’d never[Trane]
@AnthonyFantano What’s your opinion on Woodkids music? (His album The Golden Age)

[Anthony Fantano]
@Trane he’s not bad. his production is cool, but i don’t really care for his vocals at all[Kev-CUE]
Opinion on Big KRIT?

[Anthony Fantano]
@Kev-CUE i’ve reviewed loads of his tapes and albums. i think he’s great, generally[Huge_E_Rection]
@AnthonyFantanopls just tag me. I wanna show it to tha homies
Are u single?

[Anthony Fantano]
@Huge_E_Rection i’m taken. i’ve been taken for a long time[Blunderful]
Will you ever review cyphers or rap battles?
I would like too see you break down a BET cypher or etc

[Anthony Fantano]
@Blunderful if two rappers i had a deep interest in were battling, of course. i don’t really care to review a lot of cyphers and battles that are online since many of them are judged already right there, and i don’t disagree with a lot of the outcomes i see on king of the dot or duckdown. i’d rather just sit back and enjoy what they’ve got going[Steb]
Favorite album right now? @AnthonyFantano

[Anthony Fantano]
@Steb my new favorite is probably the new ghost album[DoctorStrange]
@AnthonyFantano Admit it man, you like your Rap fans the most. We typicaly ge you the most views, we clown you the best, we are the most opinionated bunch

[Anthony Fantano]
@DoctorStrange i’ll admit it. i love the discourse and debate around hip hop right now. it makes reviews and the general conversation around each new album exciting and interesting[MojoGokuJojo]
@AnthonyFantano

How old is cal?

[Anthony Fantano]
@MojoGokuJojo he’s got to be in his 40s. 50s?[2yan]
Dream collabs?

[Anthony Fantano]
@2yan i’d love to collab with tyler oakley on a synth pop album with farts as the drum samples[Mr. Varnell]
@AnthonyFantano First of all, thanks so much for coming on… I love ur stuff. And not just rap reviews… your Rush Clockwork Angels review was dope. Couple questions:

Do you have any real criteria for reviewing “unknown” rappers, people who are talented but just coming up on a place like RG or KTT — somebody like Isaiah G, for instance?
Did you expect to have “haters” when you first started doing this, and how do you deal with the people who come at you so negatively?
Thanks again!

BTW — you should know I even use your work in one of my lesson plans

[Anthony Fantano]
@MrVarnells_classes that’s amazing!!!!!

[Anthony Fantano]
@Mr_Varnell

No real set criteria, honestly. If you’re an unknown rapper, I basically just listen to your work like I would anyone else. If it’s good and feels special to me, worth sharing with my audience, I’m usually quick to review it cuz I don’t want some other site beating me to the punch. That’s why I’ve been so excited to review artist like Injury Reserve and Milo. They’re small in relevance, but very special to me because I think they’re interesting and make creative music

I didn’t anticipate to have haters, honestly. It’s been a learning process. Well, it was. I’m basically over it at this point, but the first few years of TND were really difficult in that regard, but it just kinda becomes this life lesson. People are gonna hate you if you take chances and put yourself out there. If you put a point of view out there, it’s dissenters who are gonna speak up first. You have to be ready for that no matter what you’re doing: music, movies, running a business, doing a speech, whatever[kinglelove]
Can you elaborate on your rating system and how it works?

[Anthony Fantano]
@kinglelove

Sure, it’s goes from 0 to 10, and it’s all a reflection of my personal opinion

0 basically says: “i don’t think i could enjoy this any less, or dislike it any more.” 10 basically says: “i don’t think i could enjoy this any more. this is PEAK enjoyment.”

The rest of the numbers basically are a sliding scale between those two feelings. a 5 is pretty much indifferent or neutral. anything less than a 5 means i disliked it. anything more than a five means i liked it. believe it or not, a 6—a score i know you guys hate—means i generally liked the album, but only liked it a little. that 8-10 range means i basically LOVED the record

Got it? :–)[stalewaffles]
Given the time it’s been since the review, have your feelings changed on Kanye’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy? I always felt a 6 doesn’t do it justice… And for that matter do your ratings ever change in your mind over time?

[Anthony Fantano]
@stalewaffles

My feelings haven’t really changed that much, but I appreciate the album’s historical significance—as far as recent history goes, anyway. Honestly, with my scores, I’m not trying to do an album justice or anything like that. I’m just trying to reflect my personal feelings on a record. If you want a deeper explanation of things, that’s why the rest of the review is there, which you’re free to disagree with

I don’t think it’s important or even good to have everyone fall in line and think the same thing on a single album. Dissent is good—even if I disagree with it. With everyone on the same page about everything, things tend to get homogenized and boring. With dissent, there’s a chance for things to change, progress, or alter in some kind of artistic way[ThaEQsplanator]
@AnthonyFantano Hey there, I don’t always agree with your reviews but I appreciate the reasons behind the scores

1. If you could only listen to 3 albums for the rest of your life which ones would it be? (all genres)
2. Is there a genre if you just simply refuse to listen to?
3. Do you play any instruments and have you considered making music? If yes, what genre?

[Anthony Fantano]
1. i can’t pick! ughgughggh! they’d probably have to be long albums since i wanna get the most out of ‘em. kamasi washington’s the epic might be one, hah!
2. not really. maybe weird, niche/gimmicky subgeneres but i generally listen to as much as possible
3. bass guitar is my main axe. yes, but doing so in my current position is a tricky situation. it’ll take some figuring out[mynameiskenny]
@AnthonyFantano Beatles or Stones?

[Anthony Fantano]
@mynameiskenny beatles[BetterInTunechiWitTheCandyMan]
@AnthonyFantano Opinions on Grime?

[Anthony Fantano]
@BetterInTunechiWitTheCandyMan

I think it’d have some real growth potential with american listeners if they’d take on some trendier sounds here and there. that’s dependent on an artist’s wishes to do that, though. their call, but it’ll be interesting to see if any UK rappers catch on in the US soon. there’s definitely some interesting dudes on the high focus roster right now[Freeus]
@AnthonyFantano I recently saw your podcast with Sleaford Mods are you planning on doing more of these types of episodes? If so, what is a top three wishlist of artists/groups you would like to interview?

[Anthony Fantano]
@Freeus i do new episodes of the interview podcast every week. :–)[idontgiveashit]
@AnthonyFantano Do you actually have a roommate but he doesn’t show up on your videos or was Cal created for that sole purpose?

[Anthony Fantano]
@idontgiveashit nah, no roommate. i live with bae[Shaolin_Chef]
@AnthonyFantano

Yo famtano, love the reviews man. Anyway, what is your opinion on 50 Cent? Do you like any of his music? Any particular song or album?

[Anthony Fantano]
@Shaolin_Chef Never cared for 50, probably never will. He’s just always been a glam gangsta to me, and was never an interesting rapper or lyricist. He had some radio hits under his belt, but that’s out it for me. I just don’t care for 50[Kev-CUE]
What is the thing you value the most in a Hip-Hop record?

[Anthony Fantano]
@Kev-CUE Personality? Something to say? And I don’t mean in a “SAY SOMETHING MEANINGFUL” sense. Like, if you’re gonna rap, do it because you think your story, lyrics, writing is so funny/entertaining/enlightening that it NEEDS to be heard. Don’t just rap cuz it’s something to do. You’re participating in one of the most communication-heavy genres of music out there. Think about what you wanna communicate to potential listeners. What do you wanna say to them?[Swishalicious29]
A few quick questions my man
1. Do you like Oingo Boingo?
2. Best Slayer albums to listen to besides Reign in Blood?
3. Best Pantera album besides Vulgar Display?
Thanks man! Kurt Vonnegut rules btw

[Anthony Fantano]
@Swishalicious29

Yes
South of heaven
Cowboys from hell[Slickk]
@AnthonyFantano have your opinions about G-Eazy remained the same, with a general dismissive overtone, even given that his work has continued to do well commercially?

[Anthony Fantano]
@Slickk yeah, still not into g-eazy