Jumping up from the grittiness of North Philadelphia comes the Grand Agent with an arsenal of intelligent rhymes, clever syncopated flows, and superb delivery. By Design is an impressive debut from a talented wordsmith. Everything about this project is first rate, from the confident rhymes that the Agent spits to the groovalicious beats that accompany the vocals. This cat goes well beyond rap music product and invites the listener to join him in a journey into deep level hip-hop culture.

This album is devoid of gimmicky tricks as Grand Agent's lyrics carry the album all by themselves. The cuts even feature real live cuttin' and scratchin', which presumably was incorporated into by design.
Standout tracks include the album's first single, Every Five Minutes. The addictive song celebrates the chaos and mayhem of urban street-team promotions -- the endless frenzy of posting flyers, spray-painting stencils on the sidewalk, and placing product stickers on every pole in sight that's needed to make people want to hear a song "every five minutes." Another track that steps up is Mingling (…with Mayhem), with its loopy funk and intricate rhymes. Grand Agent recorded this a few years back, but included it because of its underground success. Another major-league track is the mixtape favorite Its Only Right with the talented Planet Asia crew. It rides a relaxingly jazzy instrumentation under a tight rhyming flow and phat lyrical ode to Big Daddy Kane. Know the Legend excels on the strength of a funky hook utilizing the guest vocals of rap vet Lord Finesse. Much of the material is too authentic for most radio to embrace, but the underground scene is poised to more than make up for any lack of mainstream exposure.

Grand Agent has quickly shown himself to be a hungry and formidable MC with strong roots in hip-hop's cultural tradition. By Design proves itself to be a strong foundation on which to build an extensive career. Start the collection now: There are sure to be many more Grand Agent gems to follow.

grandagent.net

Review by Funk Wizard Snow
Editor - Phillyhiphop.com
March, 2001