I could be wrong, but I feel like "backpack rap" is the kissing cousin of "conscious rap" — another term that I hear a lot — when two people are arguing over the merits of one particular style versus the other. But as they say in boxing, "styles make fights," and seemingly everyone loves to see poor "backpack" get wedgied and shoved into his locker.

While some artists and groups carried this designation as a badge of honor, most rejected the terminology. And for good reason: if the music is quality, who cares about anything else?

Enter, Blu & Exile, who released a quintessential Hip-Hop album, Below The Heavens, in 2007. Sonically, the album built upon traditions forged by Golden State royalty like Souls of Mischief, Jurassic 5, The Pharcyde, and Dilated Peoples — albeit with a level of introspection that melded perfectly with Exile's samples/chops.

Below The Heavens is a near perfect example of why albums with a single producer and MC are usually magical. Look no further than examples like Snoop and Dre's Doggystyle, MF Doom and Madlib's Madvillainy, JAY-Z and No I.D.'s 4:44, Royce da 5'9" and Preemo's PRyme, LL COOL J and Rick Rubin's Radio, and Big Daddy Kane and Marley Marl's Long Live the Kane, as proof that cohesion goes a long way in making a tracklist feel more like book chapters, than refrigerator magnets.

2007 was an interesting year in Hip-Hop. EL-P's label, Definitive Jux (which always got lumped in with backpack rap) was still thriving, Rich Boy added "Throw Some D's On It" into the lexicon, DJ Khaled announced "We The Best," and Guru put the finishing touches on his final Jazzmatazz project.

The seedlings for what would become Below The Heavens began in 2005 when Blu was 21 years old. As a fan of singularly-produced albums from the likes of Preemo, Dilla, and Hi-Tek, he heard something in Exile's production which he felt could create synergy.

"[Exile] had all the jewels for me to create and get out everything I needed to express for my debut," Blu said.

Hip-Hop was taboo in Blu's household because he was raised to have strong religious convictions. He eludes to his history on "The World is," rapping, "“I was raised by a reverend yet the lessons didn’t help/Had to get ‘em for myself."

If heaven is indeed a real place, Blu seems to rap with a somberness that he would never reside there. In 2007, everyone seemed to be commenting about everything they had, while Blu seemed committed to what he would never be able to achieve. In a sense, Below the Heavens is a commentary about participating in Hip-Hop without the promise of a reward. On "The World Is (Below the Heavens)," he raps, "Be a Star out your Gang and aim above the clouds, And if you miss, you'll at least be amongst your own crowd." In a genre where flaunting wealth and excess becomes a sign of success, Blu proves that participation is the true reward.