Even the staunchest of hip-hop supporters has to admit that for the most part, musically, the genre has been repeating itself for years by the early 21st century -- the same beats, the same sounds, the same tempos, etc. But then there are a select few who break free from these restraints -- especially
Lil' Brian & the Travelers, as evidenced throughout the group's 2007 release,
Worldwide. Zydeco is a style that has been rarely -- if at all -- integrated into hip-hop, which is what
Lil' Brian & the Travelers do throughout their fourth album, as they continue on in their self-described "z-funk" style. While not a straight hip-hop release --
Lil' Brian often sings rather than raps -- the presence of record scratching and even an appearance from
the Dogg Pound's
Kurupt shows there are definite links between hip-hop and z-funk. Tracks such as the album-opening title track, "Bounce," and "Funky Zydeco" make
Worldwide one of the year's top surprise party albums -- even a pointless remake of
Bob Marley's "I Shot the Sheriff" can't halt all the fun (c'mon -- that's like trying to cover "Stairway to Heaven" or "Purple Haze").
Paul Simon would be proud.