Single Minded: T.I., Dr. Dre and the Walkmen

Photo: Getty T.I. featuring Jay-Z, Kanye West and Lil Wayne, “Swagger Like Us” [ Immukization Remix ] Kanye, Weezy, Jigga and T.I. get crammed inside what sounds like some odd outtake from the TRON soundtrack. Fittingly, this is the only musical environment in which using that aggravating vocoder effect actually makes sense. Dr. Dre, “85 Live!” [ Mixtape ] An hour-long timewarp, this classic set from DJ Dr. Dre (the Yo! MTV Raps one, not the N.W.A one) combines all the hi-top party jams you’d forgotten you loved into one sweet, sweltering mix. Ol’ Dirty Bastard, “Broken Language Freestyle” [ Live ] More evidence of ODB’s unhinged genius, this freestyle from ‘96 finds the late Russell Jones backstroking in his own stream-of-consciousness, varying his vocal tone and delivering Mad Lib rhymes with manic intensity. He even manages to make his screw-ups rhyme. The Walkmen, “In The New Year...