1. Intro
I wanted the mixtape to start out really epic sounding and the first thing that came to mind was the Chicago Bulls introduction music.  I only wish I didn't sound so corny when I'm talking.  I still love that beat though.
2. Hyph Is Like feat. Chivalry
I always wanted to rip the Nas beat.  This was the beat that made me fall in love with Nas and DJ Premier.  I'm really glad I was able to have Chiv on the track though and that verse he did about me was ill as fuck.
3. Overnight Celebrity
I always thought I had it in me to do the sped up flow and this came out great.  the funny thing is I wrote this when I didn't even count bars and it fit perfect.  Except certain parts.  And the parts where I stumbled over the words and left it anyway.  But this is definitely a favorite of mine.
4. Clap Back
I always liked this Ja Rule beat despite the fact that he had comitted career suicide at this point by going at 50, Dre, and Eminem.  I think I did it justice, but I could've done a lot more with this track.
5. Warrior
I love this fucking beat.  As soon as I saw Lloyd Banks' video switch from "On Fire" to "Warrior" I knew I had to rip this.  I think the first verse was hot, I only wish I would've left the second verse on there cause the only reason I didn't include it was a subliminal diss towards some guy telling me he knew about my music.
6. Lean Back (Interlude) feat. Chivalry
I asked Chiv to do an interlude for me since I didn't think I'd have him on the mixtape since he was in Pittsburgh and this is what I got.  It's hot even though all he's doing is talking.  Plus the little hook he did will be featured on volume Three.  Look for it.
7. 4, 3, 2, 1, feat. Chivalry
I always loved this LL beat and the fact that Chiv was on it makes it that much sweeter.  He killed his verse (did you hear what he said?) even though my verses were rather week.  But just being able to do that hook was a lot of fun.
8. What We Do
This beat was hot from the moment Just Blaze laced it for Freeway so I had to give it go.  I think I was saying some hot shit on this one but I think if I had a hook it would've been even crazier.  But I'm still proud of this one.
9. Gangsta Music
I had to do this beat especially after Wes did a rhyme over it.  I wasn't even feeling it at first but after I saw the video and copped Diplomatic Immunity I knew it was hot.  This is another one of my favorite tracks, I think it came out real hot despite the missing hook.
10. XXplosive
I just had to try to talk my pimp shit.  lol.  I think it came out nice.  Ed appreciated it probably cause I said his name a few times.  But really, I'm no pimp.  Just an MC.  Though the ladies love the flow.  lol.
11. Hip-Hop feat. Chivalry
The last track that we did.  I really wanted this beat and I searched high and low until I came across it.  Once I did, it took very little time for me to write my verses and I knew I had to leave the hook the same.  The only thing that slowed things up was Chiv cause he was being picky (as usual) and wouldn't write his fucking verse.  Once he did, he came in in the wrong spot and ended up rhyming after the beat was finished, which I thought threw off the whole track.  His verse was hot though don't get me wrong, but I which I made him fix it.
12. Feelin' It (Interlude)
This was me talking a break of sorts I guess.  I knew I wanted to just have a track with me talking about the mixtape and this was it.  I was heavily influenced by Jay-Z's S. Carter Collection Mixtape at the time and he did the same thing on the "Blunts And Armadale" track off of there.  I liked it at the time so I ran with it.
13. It's Murda feat. Chivalry
I love this beat!  It's so sick!  Does anyone remember when Def Jam put out that teaser video with Ja before "Holla Holla"?  It was Ja smoking a cigarette in the booth and just ripping his verse on "It's Murda" then switching into "Kill 'Em All".  I loved that video and I loved the track.  Chiv was bananas on this shit.  Crazy hot.  My shit was on point too put I wish I hadn't screamed "rap" at the end of my second verse.  Kinda dumb, but I was excited.
14. Blood Pressure
This beat became one of my pissed off anthems when I heard Cassidy's version, so when I finally found the instrumental, I knew I had to spit some shit over it.  I decided to go with the fact that my friend Kristine was getting knocked around my her then boyfriend.  I'll still fuck that dude up if I see him.  You don't hit a female period.
15. Still H.Y.P.H.
I had to do this beat too.  it was the only other Dre beat from Chronic 2001 that I wanted to fuck with.  I thought I did it justice, especially on the hook.  The verses could have been a lot better in retrospect.  But overall I though the hook carried the track and that was good enough for me.
16. One For B Hyph
I knew I was doing this beat a soon as I hear "One For Peedi".  Shit's hot.  My flow was pretty hot I thought.  In fact, this is probably one of my favorites off this mixtape.  And if you're wondering who Whodi is, that's a friend of Chiv and I who we brought over to Death Before Dishonor Records in 2004 only to completely lose touch with him.  he's till our boy, but I don't think he's rolling with us like that anymore.
17. Breathe
Thank goodness for me finding this beat with Fabolous on the hook.  Who knows what would've happened.  I was spitting some fire here though, and that's saying something since I've never been great at witty lines or any of that other stuff.  I really like this track though.  My favorite track easily.
18. Song Cry
The original version of this track was me talking about my different relationships with girls I've met over the years.  Only problem was when I went to record it, I left my backpack in Angel's car and she was in Keyser.  So she was gonna read the rhyme to me over the phone so I could record it.  And she didn't like it because I was talking about other girls.  I got the rhyme and I thought about saying "fuck it, I'mma do it it anyway", but I decided to rewrite it.  And so I wrote this rhyme about not seeing my nephews in awhile and feeling censored about certain topics so you don't hurt others feelings.  And it came out nicely.  I wish I would've known how to count bars then though so I could have fit the hook in better.
19. Throwback (Interlude) feat. Angel
Once again this was taken from the Jay-Z mixtape because he had a short track with Beyonce screaming "make my money nigga".  I wanted my girl on there too so I picked out the Usher/Just Blaze track and let her write her part.  And she delivered in a big way.  You gotta love that "Death Before Dishonor baby" line.
20. Bring It Back
Angel loves this song, I don't because I borrowed very heavily from the Lil' Wayne version and that's just not my style.  The second version had potential until I started forcing it and I forgot to make my words rhyme.  Still a sick beat though.  I like this better than "Go DJ".  Unless I'm in the club.
21. Stop
The second track I did for the mixtape.  I always felt this was a hot beat and I liked the fact that Jay and Swizz got together to do this one.  I really liked my flow on this one and I even included the line about Friends ending on there.  Now that's hip-hop.  If you've never laughed at Friends then you don't have a sense of humor.  But I really liked this track and said in my earlier review of this mixtape I wish it had've been earlier in the mix.
22. It Blows My Mind
This beat is slept on too much.  It was off The Neptunes Present: Clones compilation and it was just Snoop and Pharrell collaborating over a hot Neptunes track.  This was the precursor to the "Drop It Like It's Hot" madness.  I had to rip this.  I think my falsetto on this was nice since nobody knew it was me and the lyrics were hot even though I dissed all the drunk kids who fucked up Kanye's 2004 WVU performance for me and I dissed my roommate.  But they both needed to get their shit straight.  And at least my roommate has for the most part in my opinion.  But this track caught more Zs than narcoleptics.
23. Turn It Up
This track was an Alchemist production he did for Sheek Louch so it was an easy pick for me.  This was basically aimed at certain people in my life who were fighting with each other over bullshit.  All I was saying is how stupid fighting over dumb things is and that life is too short to do that.  But no one noticed.  I thought the way I flipped the hook was cool though.
24. Game Over
If I had known how to count bars when I recorded this it would've been so much hotter.  Instead I was trying to fit lyrics and it really threw the whole song off.  But I got a lot of love for doing this because everybody and they baby mama knew exactly what games I was talking about and everything.  So it was more of a triumph than a failure.
25. Got It Twisted
The one song I wish I would've not done.  I thought it would be cool to do a drinking song because I did a lot of that at the time but it really came out bad.  It's definitely funny though especially when I try to sound like a girl on the track and I incorporate a puking noise into the hook.  I feel sick when I listen to this.
26. Never Change
The first song I did for the mixtape!  The song I named the mixtape in!  I really don't recall what made me want to rhyme over this beat but I'm really proud over how it came out and what it started for me.  And this track defines the mixtape as a whole, just me talking deep shit all over the place.  That beat is just so sick, you gotta love Kanye for making it.  It's ironic how the first song I made became the last track though.  But this is right up there with "Breathe" as one of my favorites.

I learned a lot from this mixtape.  I learned you lose listeners who know what a bar is (shout out to Ghost and Scorpion for pointing that out and too Alex for sending me to those forums that had that "how to count bars" topic).  I learned that hooks are a very valuable asset on any song.  I learned that just because you're angry doesn't mean you can't make a peaceful song (Song Cry).  I learned what it felt like to have a project out there with your name on it representing you and what you do.  I learned what it was like to not get listened to as well.

So in closing, I love The Mind's Mixtape volume 1.  It's a masterpiece in my eyes, despite it's shortcomings.  And when I find the time, I'm eventually gonna break out all those beats again, rewrite the rhymes so they're in bar form, record the whole mixtape again and put it out as The Mind's Mixtape volume 1.5.  Just so it's easier on my ears.  But every time I listen to this mixtape, it reminds me why I do music and why I love music.  And that's what counts.