What’s the Opposite of Working With Jay-Z?

Chronically underappreciated Chicago hip-hop producer No I.D. has lately been having some of the biggest successes of his long career: “D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)” and “Run This Town,” both from Jay-Z’s Blueprint III, blew up pretty immensely. In a move that’s bound to confuse a lot of people—and which for that reason a highly rad one—he’s following up those two jams with a collabo with former Verve front man Richard Ashcroft. The pair have reportedly recorded a couple dozen new songs together, and a video for “Are You Ready” is now out. The video (viewable on Ashcroft’s site) is completely boring, but the song itself (posted as an MP3 on Fake Shore Drive) is an interesting mix of No I.D.’s deep, dark grooves and Ashcroft’s passion for all things soaring and delay drenched.