Edd’s MANtra: Three Mixtapes You Probably Don’t Have, But Should

March is here and I’m bored. I bet you are too.

In November and early December, music’s biggest names drop their best work to get some of that last-minute Christmas cash. But by January, your favorite artists go into hibernation and the music landscape is as barren as Amber Rose’s scalp.

So for the first few months of the year, we’re left trying to convince ourselves that these puny Rick Ross mixtapes and Nicki Minaj singles are actually good. Unless you want to spend an hour listening to a man brag about diamonds and dinner, you might wanna pass on that Rawsssssssssssssse.

And if you like this creature, there is no hope.

So what’s a music fan to do? Hide under a rock until summer? Fear not playas, I’m here to help. I’d like to introduce a few artists whom you may not know, all of whom have FREE music for you to enjoy. Check them out – it won’t cost you a dime to get through the spring doldrums.

For the OutKast fan: Big K.R.I.T.

Andre 3000 recently confirmed that a new OutKast album is NOT in the works. Never fear, for we have K.R.I.T. I’ve mentioned K.R.I.T. before – his Return of 4eva mixtape was better than most albums last year. Heck, it sounded like an album itself, triggering fond memories of  Kast’s 1996 ATLiens. Like OutKast, he can be just as introspective as he can be ign’ant. K.R.I.T. serves up a slice of Southern life – from religion to relationships – while riding his new rims to the nearest club. He doesn’t pretend to be someone he’s not. He’s as real as the rest of us – he’s just blessed with outstanding wit and lyricsm.

Stop wasting time and download his new mixtape, 4eva N A Day.

For the R&B fan: The Weeknd

Huh? Wut iz Arrugh And Bee? The genre has been relegated to milk-carton status for years now, only popping up a here and there to remind us how mighty it once was. Shockingly R&B is being brought back by one of Drake’s buddies.

Hold on, before you think I’ve lost all credibility, I urge you to give The Weeknd a chance. If you checked out Drake’s latest album, you probably remember Weeknd appearing on all the tracks that didn’t suck. That’s not a coincidence. Weeknd has an excellent ear for beats – these songs SOUND like real R&B, not the techno-electro-Cybertron club weirdness we’ve been forced to endure for years. There are a couple of drawbacks – the dude seems to only sing about women and partying. Literally, that’s ALL I’ve ever heard him sing about. That and he sorta sounds like Trey Songz’s little sister. But trust me, he sounds mighty good while doing it.

The Weeknd has a bunch of mixtapes, but last year’s House of Balloons is best. Cop it here.

For the fan of grouchy ’90s rap: Freddie Gibbs

Growing up, I was a casual music fan, but it was the gritty tracks of the 1990s that really drew me in and made me a super fan of hip hop.

In 2012, this is considered gritty: “Tuck my napkin in my shirt, cause I’m just mobbin’ like that.”

I came up on nasty, dirty, flickering-light-bulb-swinging-from-the-ceiling-in-a-filthy-hallway-with-dead-roaches-crunching-under-your-feet grittiness. It’s now a lost art. Few can pull off those gully lyrics that appeal to crabby rap fans like myself, but Freddie Gibbs is at the top of the list. Gangsta Gibbs sounds like he hopped in a Delorian in 1997 and wound up stranded in the 21st Century. Thanks to his impressive wordplay Gibbs’ street tales are haunting, fierce and oddly inviting. Young Jeezy and the rest talk a good game but Gibbs paints portraits.

Download A Cold Day In Hell. Your little brother won’t like it, but you will.

What artists are getting you through this musical drought?