Meet Random, aka Mega Ran. Teacher, Rapper, Hero. Random is one of those guys that I feel like I've heard of before, but just can't place where or how. Weird, cause Random is a pretty good rapper with some solid production behind him and a positive outlook. Though a Phoenix, Arizona resident you can hear the Philly in his voice. Graduating from Penn State University, he moved to Phoenix where he taught middle school until 2011, when he decided to commit to his music full time. Good move, i'd say, as his ability to relate to people combined with his fantastic imagination has gotten him some incredible opportunities.
In 2007, Random released "Mega Ran", an album featuring production completely sampled from the Capcom platform video game "Mega Man". The 8-bit integration into heavy hitting hip hop beats led to Capcom taking notice of this innovative effort and offered Random a special licensing agreement. Since then, he has outred the US, UK & Japan, performed at the world famous "Comic-Con" Convention and has had his music placed in television, movie and video games.
Random's current offering is "Mega Ran in Language Arts", a three EP series. Over the three separate EP's, Random enlists the help of fellow emcees mc chris, Homeboy Sandman, MC Frontalot, MeLa Machinko, as well as Wordsworth & Punchline who earned attention on some Mos Def tracks and appearances on other Rawkus recordings. Volume 3 concludes the saga with Mega Ran in more video game scenarios. The video game samples don't dominate the production, though, as we also get more traditional hip hop. There's a good mix of beats here, ranging from soulful with female hooks to arena style battle raps. His subject matter is still largely based on his love for video games and as a fellow gamer, I can appreciate that. A Routine Trip To Game Depot offers a story of an ordinary day where Random goes to buy a video game at the store. The element of trading other video games in and getting damaged games in return (something every gamer knows about) make this an easy tale to relate to. Other stand out tracks include Student Vs. Teacher featuring Storyville and mc chris (from Aqua Teen Hunger Force fame) and The Regimen featuring Wax. Through his lyrics, we also see the affect that his full time dedication to hip hop has on the quality of his music. This is a very polished album, ambitious in its venture into the world of video gaming yet a fine display of musicianship in a back-pack rap package (say that 3 times fast).
I've said it before, i'll say it again: hip hop needs to have more artist's involvement in academia. I love hearing rappers who are or were teachers...they tend to be more skilled artists. That doesn't always translate into good music, but that's not the case here. This is some of the most innovative work i've heard from one artist since MF Doom. Stream the entire album "Language Arts Volume 3" below and support this man's music.
I give "Mega Ran in Language Arts Volume 3" 5.5 out of 8 bars.
*Bonus Track* As i've spoken about it a good amount, i'd be remiss not to include a track from the album that got Random the attention that he deserves. Here is Take Your Turn (Bombman) from the 2007 album "Mega Ran". Enjoy!
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