This post strays from what you'd normally expect to see on this blog but it's a necessary post indeed. MC Hammer was the first hip hop artist that inspired me to listen to the genre and therefore I'll always have a soft spot for him. Hammer Man and Waynehead (produced by Damon Wayans) are 2 of my favorite cartoons from this era. Here's the intro (classic). Sadly it only lasted a season.
Friday, February 20, 2009
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Naughty By Nature- Feel Me Flow
This music video from the mid 90's is one of the more memorable one's for me. I mean yeah there's ladies taking their shirt's off and wet t-shirts but for some reason it just seems to be in better taste than the music videos of today, it has that feel to it like it's all in fun. From the use of pagers to the then cliche blurred out t-shirts, this video by Naughty By Nature will always bring me back to my childhood.
Friday, February 6, 2009
Horrorshow Interview
Normally I'm the type to discover music on my own, by way of the internet, magazines or even through related bands. When I first heard about the Horrorshow it was through a good friend of mine. So obviously I had to give them a listen. When I did I was pleasantly surprised. Horrorshow hailing from Australia consists of Adit (producer) and Solo (vocals). With that being said these guys don't need much of an introduction.
Your beats are what first drew me to your music. Do you find you are sampling material, or are you creating original material in the studio?
We do a bit of both to be honest. Adit can play bass and guitar and a little bit of keys as well so he mixes those elements of live instrumentation in with samples and synths and all kinds of shit. Sometimes a beat will be entirely drawn from one sample or a collection of samples put together and sometimes he'll play the whole thing live. There's one track on our album that we recorded with a band and also some others where we got friends to come in and play instruments on top of samples - - it really depends on what we're trying to achieve with the track.
A couple of videos featured on your Myspace show you performing with a live band. Is it hard to take your songs and reproduce them with a live band on stage? Have you ever considered adding a permanent full band to Horrorshow to perhaps gain a more mainstream appeal?
It's not hard to take our music and play it with a live band because when we do that we're not too concerned about exactly re-creating the original track, we prefer to just take the original track as a starting point and develop a version of the track which is gonna work with the live band format. Obviously it's a very different kettle of fish and you can get a very different sound with all those instruments so we like to play around with that - it's more fun that way. As far as making the band permanent, that set was a special one off thing we did for our album launch. With that said, it was a lot of fun and worked really well so it's definitely something we'll think about doing a bit more of in the future. All of the musicians in that video are our friends and most of them we see them or play with fairly regularly. But if we were to do that it wouldn't be for mainstream appeal - it'd be because it sounds fresh. There's something very rewarding about working on a bunch of songs for so long and then hearing a band transform them into something else all together.
Some of your songs mention "Sydney hip-hop politics," with references to clothing and style. How do you see Sydney hip-hop culture affect your music, and in your mind, how does Sydney hip-hop differ from that of mainstream American rap?
Sydney hip hop culture affects, or at least has affected, my mindstate and the way I see the world and my city. Sydney has a great vibe and increasingly alot of dope hip hop is being made here, but there's also some stuff which is pretty wack. I guess in some ways that added to my hunger to try and make our own attempt at bringing what we have to the table. We also all had a keen interest in graffiti while we were growing up in the "scene" and I think through that we got more of a feel for hip hop and all its elements, the importance of style etc. To me hip hop from Sydney is so different from mainstream American rap I'm not sure where to start but in alot of ways they're just reflective of the environments that birthed them, just the same set of tools - beats, rhymes, cuts, call and response etc - being used to reflect on what are two very different societies.
Would you like to take your music worldwide? What do you see the challenges are in bringing your style of hip-hop to a global audience?
Of course we'd like to take our music worldwide. It's not really somethign we're specifically aiming for because in reality it's a pipedream - exporting australian hip hop to the rest of the world is a difficult task I think because in a lot of ways it deals with distinctly australian issues and voices and so it's not always as appealing to people from other countries. With that said I've had people hit us up from Mexico, Germany, Portugal, London, the U.S. and all kinds of other places saying they're enjoying the music so hopefully one day we can take our music in some form overseas. Some acts from Oz are starting to do so now and that's really exciting, hopefully they can break down some barriers for the rest of us.
When I first heard the name "Horrorshow" I instantly thought of heavy metal music. Do you think your guys' name has affected people's willingness to give your music a listen?
Possibly - who really knows. I think it's worked both ways cos we get some pretty scary looking metal fans who add us on myspace obviously having checked us out for the same reason you have. We definitely get very mixed reactions on the name but I'm not too fussed. Alot of people say to me "oh but you guys don't sound like metal" or "I thought you guys would be like horrorcore" but really they're not looking past the initial aesthetic or imagery of the name and looking into what it actually means, which is what it's all about to me.
If someone was to listen to you guys for the first time what tracks would you suggest they listen to and does that differ from your own personal favorites?
I would say No Rides Left, possibly also Waiting For The 5:04, All Summer Long and Choose None or something like that. To be honest I struggle alot with personal favourites, choosing a favourite track is like trying to say which one of your kids you like the best. One might be ugly, one might be funny, one might like to party alot and one might be really depressed but they're all my kids and I love em to death. I think that's the thing with our first album, we were experimenting with creating a lot of different moods and so there's quite a wide spectrum of stuff on there. But yeah - I would say No Rides Left, i think it best captures what we were tryign to do with that album.
So whats next for you guys? What do you hope to accomplish in life and in music?
Touring, a new album - we're trying to stay busy and make the most of what opportunities come our way. As far as what I want to accomplish in life and music? That's a question that I don't really know the answer to. The past 12 months have been absolutely crazy for us and we've already been so lucky to have some of the experiences we've had - touring with Hermitude, getting down with all the Elefant Traks crew and playign some really awesome shows alongside our friends like Spit Syndicate - we're really just taking it as it comes. But hopefully we'll be around (in music and in life) for a while to come..
If you guys were to have a metaphor for your music what would it be?
Um... I'll make one up. Our music is a big fat joint - it lifts your spirits, makes you laugh sometimes, makes you hungry for more, is best when shared with friends and above all it makes you think.
I'm definitely sold on you guys but for those who aren't or may not have heard of you yet, what's something you would say to persuade them?
I would simply say (and I don't know if this would convince people or not) that our music is honest. A lot of people who know me and Adit will listen to our music and be like "yo that really sounds like you guys" and I would have to agree with them. I think it's weird that I should be using that characteristic as something which will differentiate us from the pack or whatever but I feel like a lot of people these days aren't making music that's really that honest. They're making music which is trying to sound like some kind of preconceived idea of what it should sound like - people just copying each other or writing songs which are saying very little at all about themselves and that's not really our style. We're not reinventing the wheel by any means but we are making honest, heartfelt music and we do put a lot of time and effort and thought into it. so check us out... you never know, you might like it.
Make sure to check out the Horrorshow on their myspace and once you do that you can support these guys by buying their new album, The Grey Space.
Your beats are what first drew me to your music. Do you find you are sampling material, or are you creating original material in the studio?
We do a bit of both to be honest. Adit can play bass and guitar and a little bit of keys as well so he mixes those elements of live instrumentation in with samples and synths and all kinds of shit. Sometimes a beat will be entirely drawn from one sample or a collection of samples put together and sometimes he'll play the whole thing live. There's one track on our album that we recorded with a band and also some others where we got friends to come in and play instruments on top of samples - - it really depends on what we're trying to achieve with the track.
A couple of videos featured on your Myspace show you performing with a live band. Is it hard to take your songs and reproduce them with a live band on stage? Have you ever considered adding a permanent full band to Horrorshow to perhaps gain a more mainstream appeal?
It's not hard to take our music and play it with a live band because when we do that we're not too concerned about exactly re-creating the original track, we prefer to just take the original track as a starting point and develop a version of the track which is gonna work with the live band format. Obviously it's a very different kettle of fish and you can get a very different sound with all those instruments so we like to play around with that - it's more fun that way. As far as making the band permanent, that set was a special one off thing we did for our album launch. With that said, it was a lot of fun and worked really well so it's definitely something we'll think about doing a bit more of in the future. All of the musicians in that video are our friends and most of them we see them or play with fairly regularly. But if we were to do that it wouldn't be for mainstream appeal - it'd be because it sounds fresh. There's something very rewarding about working on a bunch of songs for so long and then hearing a band transform them into something else all together.
Some of your songs mention "Sydney hip-hop politics," with references to clothing and style. How do you see Sydney hip-hop culture affect your music, and in your mind, how does Sydney hip-hop differ from that of mainstream American rap?
Sydney hip hop culture affects, or at least has affected, my mindstate and the way I see the world and my city. Sydney has a great vibe and increasingly alot of dope hip hop is being made here, but there's also some stuff which is pretty wack. I guess in some ways that added to my hunger to try and make our own attempt at bringing what we have to the table. We also all had a keen interest in graffiti while we were growing up in the "scene" and I think through that we got more of a feel for hip hop and all its elements, the importance of style etc. To me hip hop from Sydney is so different from mainstream American rap I'm not sure where to start but in alot of ways they're just reflective of the environments that birthed them, just the same set of tools - beats, rhymes, cuts, call and response etc - being used to reflect on what are two very different societies.
Would you like to take your music worldwide? What do you see the challenges are in bringing your style of hip-hop to a global audience?
Of course we'd like to take our music worldwide. It's not really somethign we're specifically aiming for because in reality it's a pipedream - exporting australian hip hop to the rest of the world is a difficult task I think because in a lot of ways it deals with distinctly australian issues and voices and so it's not always as appealing to people from other countries. With that said I've had people hit us up from Mexico, Germany, Portugal, London, the U.S. and all kinds of other places saying they're enjoying the music so hopefully one day we can take our music in some form overseas. Some acts from Oz are starting to do so now and that's really exciting, hopefully they can break down some barriers for the rest of us.
When I first heard the name "Horrorshow" I instantly thought of heavy metal music. Do you think your guys' name has affected people's willingness to give your music a listen?
Possibly - who really knows. I think it's worked both ways cos we get some pretty scary looking metal fans who add us on myspace obviously having checked us out for the same reason you have. We definitely get very mixed reactions on the name but I'm not too fussed. Alot of people say to me "oh but you guys don't sound like metal" or "I thought you guys would be like horrorcore" but really they're not looking past the initial aesthetic or imagery of the name and looking into what it actually means, which is what it's all about to me.
If someone was to listen to you guys for the first time what tracks would you suggest they listen to and does that differ from your own personal favorites?
I would say No Rides Left, possibly also Waiting For The 5:04, All Summer Long and Choose None or something like that. To be honest I struggle alot with personal favourites, choosing a favourite track is like trying to say which one of your kids you like the best. One might be ugly, one might be funny, one might like to party alot and one might be really depressed but they're all my kids and I love em to death. I think that's the thing with our first album, we were experimenting with creating a lot of different moods and so there's quite a wide spectrum of stuff on there. But yeah - I would say No Rides Left, i think it best captures what we were tryign to do with that album.
So whats next for you guys? What do you hope to accomplish in life and in music?
Touring, a new album - we're trying to stay busy and make the most of what opportunities come our way. As far as what I want to accomplish in life and music? That's a question that I don't really know the answer to. The past 12 months have been absolutely crazy for us and we've already been so lucky to have some of the experiences we've had - touring with Hermitude, getting down with all the Elefant Traks crew and playign some really awesome shows alongside our friends like Spit Syndicate - we're really just taking it as it comes. But hopefully we'll be around (in music and in life) for a while to come..
If you guys were to have a metaphor for your music what would it be?
Um... I'll make one up. Our music is a big fat joint - it lifts your spirits, makes you laugh sometimes, makes you hungry for more, is best when shared with friends and above all it makes you think.
I'm definitely sold on you guys but for those who aren't or may not have heard of you yet, what's something you would say to persuade them?
I would simply say (and I don't know if this would convince people or not) that our music is honest. A lot of people who know me and Adit will listen to our music and be like "yo that really sounds like you guys" and I would have to agree with them. I think it's weird that I should be using that characteristic as something which will differentiate us from the pack or whatever but I feel like a lot of people these days aren't making music that's really that honest. They're making music which is trying to sound like some kind of preconceived idea of what it should sound like - people just copying each other or writing songs which are saying very little at all about themselves and that's not really our style. We're not reinventing the wheel by any means but we are making honest, heartfelt music and we do put a lot of time and effort and thought into it. so check us out... you never know, you might like it.
Make sure to check out the Horrorshow on their myspace and once you do that you can support these guys by buying their new album, The Grey Space.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Cyne- Steady
In case you're too lazy to check them out yourself..... here's a taste of what to expect from CYNE. This is the first song I heard of theirs and was the catapult for my appreciation of CYNE.
CYNE Overall
It's not like I post on here regularly but my laptop broke so it's been even longer. I apologize to anyone out there that was waiting for new posts. Anyways you may have already seen the interview I did with one of the members from CYNE, Akin. Sitting back today and relaxing I figured that I'd do a "light" review of their cd's. Basically just listing my favorite songs of theirs and a favorite line or two from each song. Hopefully this gives some people some fresh music to listen to!
Collections 1999-2003
Tragic- "People no joke, my songs strong like the soul folk, why he go broke, hold your ice, the rap poltergeist. here to bring colder nights, people wake up, slave rappers in the industry need to wake up."
400 Years- "I’m breaking these shackles, they got me chained away from my liberty, look at the history, how they treated us through the centuries, like inanimate animals, only given annual holidays, to represent the hardships we endure today."
Time Being
Nothing's Sacred- "Who cant conform, who can't be told what is norm, who gotta perform with therapy, who's soul is torn."
Steady- "Do you remember when Martin had a dream and Bobby had a regiment."
Samura's Optic- "It is my mission, to shed light to the subject, confederate flags over the houses of the rednecks, American pride, or just evil in disguise, a close reminder of why many of my people died, to bring change in the midst of pain and oppression, we had to stand together and our hope was the weapon."
First Person- "I fight for life and make sure my lifes right, I stand strong on my own two, so what you gonna do, I hold you, In the web of my speech and mold you."
Evolution Fight
Soapbox- "Fu*k a penny for my thoughts, here's a dolla."
Arrow Of God- "I do believe in being after this sh!t, whether you righteous or a misfit, intrigued by the here after, avoid the fear factor, capture the fact that self will be here after, celebrate life and death in the same vein, and those that are gone I mourn but it's from pain."
Running Water- "I stand and I fall, and get up cuz I’m ready to run, like Icarus because I’m close to the sun."
Up Above- "I'll wrestle angels just to see your face again, because you were my life, my mother, my friend."
Pretty Dark Things
I haven't listened to this cd enough to comment on much but I dig the line, "Ladies with their legs wide, goodbye to dildo, goodbye to dildo" from the song Elephant Rome.
I'll try to post on here more often but in the time being (no pun intended) check out CYNE. They're one of the best underground hip hop groups.
Collections 1999-2003
Tragic- "People no joke, my songs strong like the soul folk, why he go broke, hold your ice, the rap poltergeist. here to bring colder nights, people wake up, slave rappers in the industry need to wake up."
400 Years- "I’m breaking these shackles, they got me chained away from my liberty, look at the history, how they treated us through the centuries, like inanimate animals, only given annual holidays, to represent the hardships we endure today."
Time Being
Nothing's Sacred- "Who cant conform, who can't be told what is norm, who gotta perform with therapy, who's soul is torn."
Steady- "Do you remember when Martin had a dream and Bobby had a regiment."
Samura's Optic- "It is my mission, to shed light to the subject, confederate flags over the houses of the rednecks, American pride, or just evil in disguise, a close reminder of why many of my people died, to bring change in the midst of pain and oppression, we had to stand together and our hope was the weapon."
First Person- "I fight for life and make sure my lifes right, I stand strong on my own two, so what you gonna do, I hold you, In the web of my speech and mold you."
Evolution Fight
Soapbox- "Fu*k a penny for my thoughts, here's a dolla."
Arrow Of God- "I do believe in being after this sh!t, whether you righteous or a misfit, intrigued by the here after, avoid the fear factor, capture the fact that self will be here after, celebrate life and death in the same vein, and those that are gone I mourn but it's from pain."
Running Water- "I stand and I fall, and get up cuz I’m ready to run, like Icarus because I’m close to the sun."
Up Above- "I'll wrestle angels just to see your face again, because you were my life, my mother, my friend."
Pretty Dark Things
I haven't listened to this cd enough to comment on much but I dig the line, "Ladies with their legs wide, goodbye to dildo, goodbye to dildo" from the song Elephant Rome.
I'll try to post on here more often but in the time being (no pun intended) check out CYNE. They're one of the best underground hip hop groups.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Atmosphere- Trying To Find A Balance Live On The Jimmy Kimmel Show
It seems like I always use the term "one of my favorites" but this live performance by Slug and Murs on the Jimmy Kimmel show back in '03 is just that. Murs' energy as a hypeman in this perdormance is above and beyond and Slug always sounds better live. Slugs look is classic around the 2:10 mark when Murs runs out of breath and cant continue with the line "I'm trying to find a balance". Another great moment comes about 20 seconds later when Slug delivers the line, "yeah I got some last words" and the crowd answers back with his line of "f*!% all of y'all", which is pretty awesome for live tv. Slug tops off this great performance by hanging up the mic at the end of the video. Enjoy.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
2 Live Crew- Banned In The U.S.A.
As 2008 drew to an end I figured one of my new year resolutions could be to get on this here blog and post more! So what better way to start '09 then to go back into time with a song from 1990. I've been playing this song for a good 15 or more years and just today saw the music video for the first time. Realizing now that maybe it was a blessing not growing up with cable tv for the majority of my life because now I get to go back in time and watch what I was listening to back then and really be able to understand it. "Banned In The U.SA." was written in response to the court decision that 2 Live Crew's album "As Nasty As They Wanna Be" was too obscene (later being overturned on an appeal). Record store owners and group members were actually arrested on obscenity charges. 19 years later things have definitely changed! P.S. The music being sampled in this song is Bruce Springsteen's song "Born In The U.S.A".
Monday, December 22, 2008
Atmosphere- If I Was Santa Claus
Nothing like a little Atmosphere to get you in the Christmas spirit! This song was one of the first I heard from Slug and still to this day is one of my favorites.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Q & A With Equipto
I'm really excited to present to the readers a quality Bay Area rapper's answers and opinions on a wide range of things including politics, Europe, and music (of course). So enjoy this "Q & A" with Equipto.
So with the whole election deal still being fresh, what's your take on Obama?
growin up,,i never thought i wuld c the day we would have a black president..cus thats how we wer raised i guess..its funny,,cus i wusnt a super "go obama" type of dude during the election..dont git me wrong,,i voted 4 him,,but i jus wusnt that gung-ho about it..but,,the nite he won,,i was watchn him walk out ther on that stage & i shed a tear or 2..i culdnt help it if i tried,,jus sumthin that hit me rit then & ther..i no thers a catch 2it tho..i dont think they wuld let a black man up in the white house unless they had sumthin up ther sleeves...but,,im happy 4now..i jus hope he dus sumthin!!
What comes more naturally to you musically; making beats, writing or rapping and which one do you enjoy most?
well,,i dont make beats like that..i mite find a sample & take it 2 1 of my boys 2 flip or wut not..im jus not a technical/computer type of guy..i wuld have 2 say rappin in the booth comes easiest 2me..the writting process is more of a journey & experimental...cus after i write it,,i no how i wanna spit it & how i want it 2 sound..its a trial & error process..
How do you feel about the whole "hyphy" movement? It seems to have lost some of it's steam. Do you think it's ever gonna come back?
i love that the bay got our own thang nationally or wutnot..the world knows the bay is hyphy & thats dope,,,but they need 2 no that we got more 2 offer than jus goin dumb or stupid..the bay is diverse & we need 2b respected for that..as for it commin back,,its a lifestyle out here for alot of these youngstas..so i dont think its goin anywer as far as culture & their outlook on life..but its a part of history now,,so itll eventually evolve & move on 2 sumthin else..
With the economy the way it is and the whole internet craze of music being downloaded illegally, does this force you to find other ways of providing for yourself and others outside of music?
honestly,,i think cd's will only b around for a couple more years,,if that..people jus download shit & miss the fun of reading the credits,,shout outs & pictures of the artist..i think beein frum the city (frisco) gives u an upperhand on survival out here..alot of my friends are hustlers & pretty much got ther hand in everythang ther is 2 git in2...so,,we find a way if the music dont pay...but see,,i du music cus i love it,,it aint my hustle like that..i dont put my all in2 beein succesful wit this music,,but thats jus me...i dont wanna lose the joy i git frum making music so i try 2 keep things fresh & innocent,,in a way..
I know you probably get this all the time but what's it like working with Andre Nickatina? How has he effected you and your music?
dre's a cool dude..we knew of eachother b4 the music..i wus on haight st & he wus in the fillmore..he took me 2 a few in stores & shows around 2000 & that helped me expand my fanbase & expose myself 2 a broader audience...frum ther i jus did my thang & kept pushin..
If you could go on tour with 3 other artists who would they be and why?
i would like 2 tour wit any of the living legends,,any of the hieroglyphics & mayb planet asia or sumthin..thers alota fokes i like,,but im mentioning groups or artist that i think wuld help me git a bigger fanbase & that r on the same kina vibe im on or wut not..i like 2 have fun wen im on the road..
Growing up as a kid what were some of your dreams and aspirations?
its funny cus i dont remember sayn thangs like,,"i wana b this wen i git older"!..i been writtn raps since i wus like 10 yrs old man..did the grafitit thang,,alil breakdancin,,all that..im a product of this hip hop shit..my dad wus a jazz promoter & dj,,so i wus a lil kid goin 2 jazz shows,,beein backstage,,goin 2 radio stations 4 interviews,,checknem in to hotels,,..the whole music on the road thang..so i guess u culd say this is wut i wanted 2 du since i wus a kid..
I heard somewhere that you're into the whole Europe scene? What about Europe draws you into it? Also are you familiar with Europe's hip hop scene?
i think anywer but the usa is a great place for hip hop..thats jus my opinion cus i like the innosence they have towards the music..of course they started late or wut not,,but thats part of the beauty...i think as hip hop artist we have a responsibility 2 show,,teach & express wer we come frum & wut the music is all about..me beein half japanese,,i felt exactly that way wen i went 2 japan..i seen cats thinkn that all hip hop wus is snoop dogg & eminem..its fine,,but that aint all hip hop is about..bottom line iz,,in order 2 git 2 wer we wanna,,we gota no wer it came frum..
To this day, what is something that you still desire? P.S. I read somewhere that Santa Claus checks my blog so I'll make sure to put in a good word for you.
man..thers alota things that still bring a smile 2 my face..but honestly,,thers no feelin like hearin a brand new dope ass beat that aint nobody heard but u...beein in the studio blowin trees writtin wutever comes to u @ the time..that "feelin free" process of makin music..thers no comparison..thers a certain vibe & feelin i git wen i hear songs i love,,,& i jus wanna give that feelin back 2 music lovers..peace..
Make sure to check out Equipto's myspace page!
So with the whole election deal still being fresh, what's your take on Obama?
growin up,,i never thought i wuld c the day we would have a black president..cus thats how we wer raised i guess..its funny,,cus i wusnt a super "go obama" type of dude during the election..dont git me wrong,,i voted 4 him,,but i jus wusnt that gung-ho about it..but,,the nite he won,,i was watchn him walk out ther on that stage & i shed a tear or 2..i culdnt help it if i tried,,jus sumthin that hit me rit then & ther..i no thers a catch 2it tho..i dont think they wuld let a black man up in the white house unless they had sumthin up ther sleeves...but,,im happy 4now..i jus hope he dus sumthin!!
What comes more naturally to you musically; making beats, writing or rapping and which one do you enjoy most?
well,,i dont make beats like that..i mite find a sample & take it 2 1 of my boys 2 flip or wut not..im jus not a technical/computer type of guy..i wuld have 2 say rappin in the booth comes easiest 2me..the writting process is more of a journey & experimental...cus after i write it,,i no how i wanna spit it & how i want it 2 sound..its a trial & error process..
How do you feel about the whole "hyphy" movement? It seems to have lost some of it's steam. Do you think it's ever gonna come back?
i love that the bay got our own thang nationally or wutnot..the world knows the bay is hyphy & thats dope,,,but they need 2 no that we got more 2 offer than jus goin dumb or stupid..the bay is diverse & we need 2b respected for that..as for it commin back,,its a lifestyle out here for alot of these youngstas..so i dont think its goin anywer as far as culture & their outlook on life..but its a part of history now,,so itll eventually evolve & move on 2 sumthin else..
With the economy the way it is and the whole internet craze of music being downloaded illegally, does this force you to find other ways of providing for yourself and others outside of music?
honestly,,i think cd's will only b around for a couple more years,,if that..people jus download shit & miss the fun of reading the credits,,shout outs & pictures of the artist..i think beein frum the city (frisco) gives u an upperhand on survival out here..alot of my friends are hustlers & pretty much got ther hand in everythang ther is 2 git in2...so,,we find a way if the music dont pay...but see,,i du music cus i love it,,it aint my hustle like that..i dont put my all in2 beein succesful wit this music,,but thats jus me...i dont wanna lose the joy i git frum making music so i try 2 keep things fresh & innocent,,in a way..
I know you probably get this all the time but what's it like working with Andre Nickatina? How has he effected you and your music?
dre's a cool dude..we knew of eachother b4 the music..i wus on haight st & he wus in the fillmore..he took me 2 a few in stores & shows around 2000 & that helped me expand my fanbase & expose myself 2 a broader audience...frum ther i jus did my thang & kept pushin..
If you could go on tour with 3 other artists who would they be and why?
i would like 2 tour wit any of the living legends,,any of the hieroglyphics & mayb planet asia or sumthin..thers alota fokes i like,,but im mentioning groups or artist that i think wuld help me git a bigger fanbase & that r on the same kina vibe im on or wut not..i like 2 have fun wen im on the road..
Growing up as a kid what were some of your dreams and aspirations?
its funny cus i dont remember sayn thangs like,,"i wana b this wen i git older"!..i been writtn raps since i wus like 10 yrs old man..did the grafitit thang,,alil breakdancin,,all that..im a product of this hip hop shit..my dad wus a jazz promoter & dj,,so i wus a lil kid goin 2 jazz shows,,beein backstage,,goin 2 radio stations 4 interviews,,checknem in to hotels,,..the whole music on the road thang..so i guess u culd say this is wut i wanted 2 du since i wus a kid..
I heard somewhere that you're into the whole Europe scene? What about Europe draws you into it? Also are you familiar with Europe's hip hop scene?
i think anywer but the usa is a great place for hip hop..thats jus my opinion cus i like the innosence they have towards the music..of course they started late or wut not,,but thats part of the beauty...i think as hip hop artist we have a responsibility 2 show,,teach & express wer we come frum & wut the music is all about..me beein half japanese,,i felt exactly that way wen i went 2 japan..i seen cats thinkn that all hip hop wus is snoop dogg & eminem..its fine,,but that aint all hip hop is about..bottom line iz,,in order 2 git 2 wer we wanna,,we gota no wer it came frum..
To this day, what is something that you still desire? P.S. I read somewhere that Santa Claus checks my blog so I'll make sure to put in a good word for you.
man..thers alota things that still bring a smile 2 my face..but honestly,,thers no feelin like hearin a brand new dope ass beat that aint nobody heard but u...beein in the studio blowin trees writtin wutever comes to u @ the time..that "feelin free" process of makin music..thers no comparison..thers a certain vibe & feelin i git wen i hear songs i love,,,& i jus wanna give that feelin back 2 music lovers..peace..
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Saturday, December 6, 2008
Blu & Exile- First Things First
I came across Blu & Exile sometime last year and instantly was drawn to their sound. "First Things First" was the first song I heard off their album "Below The Heavens". The album as a whole is definitely refreshing compared to the music we're adapt to hearing on the radio now a days.
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