Bloggerhouse Hip Hop

Roaming the internet, you can hear all sorts of music out there, music that is intended to be heard by the masses. When you sit down and think about it, that music itself is from the minds of those who created it. It’s their labor of love so to say. I’ve watched people sit down and construct a beat, and I must say, it’s something I enjoy witnessing. The birth of a beat is a deeply religious experience. The music itself says a lot about the person who created it. If today’s spotlight artist, Sybylys, music is any indication of the person he is, then he is one complex fellow. Sybylys takes his craft rather seriously, employing a musical background to create a well constructed musical piece that is just that, a musical piece. His music is deep and complex, something that you don’t hear a lot in hip hop. He also runs the Silent Springs blog, where he promotes his music and offers up some interesting torrents. Poised to make more musical composition in the future and getting his name out to the masses, we sat down and talked to the Piacasso of the beats…..

Download — “Gold Star” — Listen

WYDU: What’s good man? Can we get a proper introduction to the man behind the music?

Sylybys: Basically I’m a guy from New Jersey, United States, the capital of the world. My website SilentSprings.blogspot.com runs pretty thick these days, mainly for posts of other people’s music. Originally the site promoted my own music, which it had done for months and thousands of downloads before it was shut down a few months ago. I released maybe 20 singles in total.

My music can be divisive, so reception was divided. This definitely started as a test of the internet, and it has certainly given me some answers. My music is out there now and I cannot control where it goes or what reaction it gets. I hope the people out there who have heard enjoy it.

I have just released a new single, “Gold Star”. It’ll be the quickest two minutes of your day. My songs move quickly. There are no periods of repeats. The song moves on a line straight up. I make the most out of every second, because I think most musicians take time for granted. For these reasons my songs are ultra-catchy and popish, yet undeniably advanced musically and technically. Download the free single to see what I mean.

W: So how long have you been working your craft? What is some of the history behind you and your music?

S: I’ve been a student of music all my life. My only goal is to progress my musicianship. The biography of a musician is not very important, only how it has affected him. This interview could be endlessly long, but I like to answer more questions than I inspire.

W: What tools of the trade do you employ in your music making?
S: I believe that the tools used to create music are not relevant. You could make a song with a telephone, or you could make a song with a keyboard impersonating a telephone. It makes no difference. Hip hop has thoroughly proved this already.

I will say that I am disciple of two arts. 100% sampling hip hop and 100% acoustic jazz. Many times I keep these two things completely separate, as history pieces. The best songs, though are combination of both of these things in ratio.

W: The material I’ve heard from you definitely breaks the mold of “the norm”. How would you describe your sound to those that haven’t heard it before?

S: I would hope that it would break the norm, obviously, because the norm is terrible, so thats good. The state that I reach for when I compose is Mayhem—-Rapture—-Wailing Sirens. Its known as that raw shit—the hardest beats. I always thought that one question addresses every aspect of a song’s identity: What would you be doing while the song is playing? I would say, with the most redeemable music, sex or killing, but my music is too innocent for killing and too hard for sex. Obviously sex and killing aren’t to be encourage, but they are carnal passions, humans at the most base, and these moments are what music impersonates.

W: You state in your first post that you make “Sound Music”, instead of hip hop music, can you elaborate on that?

S: The genre of the best music is not apparent, so I strive for music which obeys no laws of aesthetic or style that have been before.

Obviously, I am influenced by everything I absorb, and I do not detract from the musicians who I impersonate, but I cannot do John Coltrane justice. Not merely because of lack of skill, because that time has passed and attempts to emulate another time inevitably come off as contrived. Even trying to sound like a contemporary musician detracts from finding your own sound. The style which I can most honestly incorporate is my own. But I feel I do strive for the same thing people from Coltrane, Sun Ra, to J Dilla et al, reached for themselves. It’s silent infinity and deafening nothing. Many people reading will know very easily what I am alluding to. If you do not, I would see you switch sides, and thats the purpose of my creating, and my seeking your consumption of my material.

W: You are very vocal about hip hop production at times on your site, how is your general feeling of the average producer in the hip hop field? Where do you see the music going to in the future?

S: Music goes as people go. Right now it seems pretty hard for a lot of people around American and around the world. The population’s demeanor still seems dull, traumatized. As we emerge from this period hopefully our music and our identity will improve as well. My music goes as I go, and I do fine.

W: What are your aspirations in the music biz? what do you hope to accomplish?
/>S: My goal is to create music which is completely redeemable, the most productive way a person can spend some time. I want as many listeners as possible, to instill what I see as useful information, if properly digested.

W: What projects are you working on currently?

S: Basically, I play a lot of music. My exploits online and in real life are completely separate, so I’m not going to plug anything besides my wesbite SilentSprings.blogspot.com and the new single, “Gold Star”.

W: Where do you hope to be five years from now as far as your music goes?

S: I’m only looking at the very near future. I decided very recently I would collect my efforts into making a living in music and this is really the first step. Thanks, Trav.

Record labels and other parties interested in exploiting me, the one person behind all that music by Silent Springs AKA Sybylys should email sybylys@aol.com . Here you have a great opportunity to be the one who discovered me, and all you have to do is listen to me.

W: Any last words for the minions out there?

S: Many people reading will believe me when I say that I am among the loudest of all time. To those people, I insist that you are right and that you spread the word about the site and my music. I can’t do it alone, but I will if I have to.

Ending, my only allegiance is to the one true living god. Many people reading will know very easily what I mean. We are of the same people.

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Hip-Hop lovers, the world over has been inundated by cynics who think they’re part of a dying art form. On the contrary, the members of Now On are leading a rebirth of the very fundamentals that defined Hip-Hop thirty years ago: originality, voice, culture and of course, entertainment. In fusing and confusing this elemental barometer, Now On emerges with a grimy freshness unseen or heard to date.

Consisting of emcees IX Lives (son of Larry “Squirrel” Demps of the fabulous Dramatics) and Jackson Perry formerly of Funktelligence, together with Haircut (LabTechs) of Athletic Mic League (AML), Now On is set to make their tenure in the music industry the very definition of “def.” Having already shared the stage with Eminem, Slum Village, The Roots, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Common, The Pharcyde, De La Soul and Little Brother to name a few – the members of Now On have felt the influence of Hip-Hop’s elite, and are prepared to stand among them. They have toured extensively throughout the U.S., Europe and Japan; have appeared on national television; have licensed songs for TV and film; and have reached combined CD sales of over 10,000 units.

After relocating from Michigan in 2005, the release of Now On’s debut full-length album “Eye Level” (peep the left sidebar, can’t believe I slept on this joint last year!!) combined with the unparalleled energy of their live show quickly made them a fixture in the thriving Los Angeles music scene. 2007 saw successful tours and buzz-worthy releases in the U.S., Europe, Japan and Australia, including their latest “Don’t Call It A Mixtape” (click to DL) hosted by the legendary DJ House Shoes.  This September, Now On will release their highly anticipated sophomore full-length titled “Tomorrow Already”. With the Lab Technicians production team at the helm, Now On has pulled themselves up by their lyrical moon-bootstraps to pump out the innovative, post-futuristic soul that has entertainment industry skeptics throwing their hands in the air, screaming “Live for the Now, On to the Future.” And take it from me, I’ve heard the promo for “Tomorrow..” and as much as I’ve love the Lab Techs’ production on Buff 1′s “There’s Only One”, the production on this album is just as, if not better, than the ridiculoid (thanks Dart!!) heaters that fuel Buff’s sophomore album (that Buff cat ain’t nothin’ to sneeze at on the M-I-C either). Peep Now On’s MySpace for more goodness. Trust me, after blaring this sh*t thru my headphones for the better part of the last two evenings, “Tomorrow Already” will go down as one of the most consistent, innovative releases of the year….don’t slumber!!!

Track Listing for “Tomorrow Already”
Coming September 30, 2008

01 HERE (Prod. by Haircut)
02 THE ANSWER (Prod. by 14KT)
03 ALL YOU EVER KNEW (Prod. by Astronote)
04 THIS WAY (Prod. by Haircut)
05 UNWIND (Prod. by Haircut)
06 THE A feat. Buff1 (Prod. by 14KT)
07 THE WILLOWS (Prod. by Haircut)
08 TOMORROW ALREADY (Prod. by Haircut) (click to Preview)
09 MARBLES (Prod. by Haircut)
10 CATAPULTS (Prod. by JakeOne)
11 TOUCH feat. Aloe Blacc (Prod. by Haircut)
12 REPRISE (Prod. by Vaughan T)
13 THE RETURN (Prod. by Haircut)

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On Tuesday, Sept. 9th, ill poetic will follow up the successful Joe Budden/Portishead “mash-up”, “MM3rd” with his next installment: “ill poetic presents NIN (Nine Inch Nails) meets Outkast: Nine Inch Naliens”. Another “Free Download” it will be available Sept. 9th at ill po’s MySpace

From ill poetic: “I released a free download remix record, meshing the sounds of Portishead’s newest album “Third” with Joe Budden’s “Mood Muzik 3”. A few days ago, Joe Budden was asked about this tape in an interview, and gave his two thumbs up. With that ‘cosign’ if you will, I wanted to give a quick follow-up download of all the instrumentals to this download (link below), as well as a bonus, unreleased remix. Below is a quick reminder of what the press had to say about the Budden/Portishead record, as well as a peak into the next record in this series to be released Sept. 9th.”

Download Budden meets Portishead “MM3rd” Here, and the instrumentals Here.

AllHipHop.com:”…mixed and layered beautifully by Ill Poetic… this daring and innovative mixtape is yet another example of how Joey Jumpoff is putting the heat on the Rap game whether you know it or not”.

HipHopDX still in the hhdx top 10 mixtape section) “ill poetic puts together a great mash up of Joe Budden’s ‘MM3′ and Portishead’s latest ‘Third’

Rolling Stone: “At long last, someone saw fit to fill the iPod of the ghoul in Edvard Munch’s “The Scream”. It’s like, he’s scary, but he needs to work out, too. This mash-up of Joe Budden and the new Portishead record should be just the thing.”

2dopeboyz: “I was first put on to Ill Poetic, the emcee/producer out of Cinci ,OH when I read a review over at my man Vizion’s site last year. Thinking of a master plan, IP just dropped this mash up of Joe Budden’s “Mood Muzik 3″ and Portishead’s latest album, “Third” (as well as some previous material). It’s more than a mash up though as this dude chops and layers Budden’s vocals over Portishead’s music in such a way that it really fits the ‘mood’ I felt Joey was trying to portray.”

Tha HipHop: “They might exchange notes/ideas on expressing their moods in novel ways thru their music. Though there’s no report of such actual encounter (thus far), the two acts have been brought together thru the magic of blend by Cincy’s Ill Poetic. The Ohio emcee/producer — do yourself a favor and check his album, “The World Is Ours” — took bits and pieces from Portishead’s catalog (mostlyf rom their latest, “Third”) and added Joe Budden’s verses from his “Mood Muzik 3″ to create ‘the kind of dark, atmospheric LP that your cousin drinks bourbon in a bathtub to with the lights dimmed.’ It’s called “Mood Muzik’s Third” and it’s eerily dope.

*other mentions/reviews of the project have made it to the Washington Post’s Website, New York Daily site, as well as AOL’s Entertainment section.

…..AND most importantly, peep W.T.R.’s take on “MM3rd” HERE

What do you get when you cross a Muslim from a small town on the Canadian Prairies with the hip hop culture? You get this week’s artist in our New Artist Spotlight, A.O.K. The well rounded MC brings a lot to the table, and not just in the musical sense. He is a writer, done screenplays and written books. That well roundness is also well displayed on his debut album, If You Don’t Buy This, The Terrorists Win. The music reminds me of something found out of the Living Legends camp in terms of music and subjects. The album contains straight up goofiness in the space alien invasion tale found on “Tales From The Planet Grolic”. Then he might jump into a serious track, questioning the rolls of religion and not relying on it as a crutch. Some might call it unfocused, I’d like to say it’s well rounded. Even from the first time he contacted me, I could tell this was a cat that I could vibe with on a personal level. As some of you that might have emailed me in the past will know, depending on my mood (and how many “pops” I’ve had), I can be a little on the goofy side. Dude never missed a step in dealing with me. I can dig that. So when it was time to do the interview for the spotlight, I anticipated a witty banter between the two of us. He held up his end of the bargain well, I on the other hand was kind of flat. Eh, oh well. Take time to check the interview, listen to the tracks. An open mind is a well fed mind….

A.O.K. - Coffee Shop Girl (from “If You Don’t Buy This CD, The Terrorists Win”)
http://www.zshare.net/audio/178170134cfe98f7/

A.O.K. – You are a God (from “If You Don’t Buy This CD, The Terrorists Win”)
http://www.zshare.net/audio/17817182bdcb719d/

http://www.assaultofknowledge.com/

Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/assaultofknowledge

WYDU: What’s good? Can we have a proper introduction for the readers out there?

A.O.K.: My name is Omar Mouallem, aka A.O.K. (Assault Of Knowledge). I am a Lebanese-Canadian who grew up in a town of 2500 people, three stop lights, two mills and one rapper. I am a journalist and writer by day, rapper by night and asleep by mid-morning. I like scientific skepticism, coffee shops, dope rap shows, bad TV news and talking about my bowels.

W: All good topics…. How would you describe your music to someone who hasn’t heard of you before?

A.O.K.: People who’ve met me, but haven’t heard my music, still know what to expect from it. I live to love, laugh and learn, so my raps naturally reflect that. For people who haven’t cracked a beer with me or shared a cigarette – I have a hard time trying to explain to them. Especially in Alberta where the average person knows five rappers, and they all wear gold. I can tell you that I’m more Kanye West than Lil’ Wayne, but I’m more Bob Dylan than Kanye West. I’ve heard people call my music hipster-hop or folk-hop, so whatever that means, I guess that’s what it is.

W: The title of your album is great, “If You Don’t Buy This CD, The Terrorists Win”. I’m assuming you are talking about the group of people and not the Rap-A-Lot group from the 90′s. How did the title come about?

A.O.K.: The reason for my album title is very simple, and very superficial: I want to get your attention. (It was plucked from a stand-up bit by comedian David Cross.) I’ve been a rap critic for a prominent Canadian music magazine for some time now, and I get a package of about ten CDs a month – eight of which I’ve never heard of. The ones I’m going to listen to first, or at all, are the ones that grab my attention. You can’t judge a book by it’s cover, but the cover can entice you to the pages. The stores, the venues, the net are saturated with indie rap albums, so I knew I needed something to give the appearance of uniqueness, whether or not the content validates it.

As for those Rap-A-Lot terrorists, I wish them the best with their highly anticipated, 17-years-in-the-making follow up album, Man Did We Fuck Ourselves Over When We Named Ourselves The Terrorists.

W: As the title would suggest, there is a lot of humor on this album, and “non-hip hop topics”, but you also have some strong social commentary, such as “Fake I.D.”, “You Are a God”, and the strong “Cedar Seeds”. How do you balance the fun with the serious?

A.O.K.: I sometimes wish I didn’t. I know how jarring it can be listening to a song about coffee shop girls one minute, and then hearing me spew hate against the intelligent design movement the next. I sometimes wish I made two EPs – one light, one heavy. But I also wanted to show that I was versatile. First impressions last forever, and I’d rather be perceived as a bad track-sequencer or incohesive than a one-trick pony.

As for the balancing act. It’s just me talking about what I think I know. Some of these things make people laugh, some of them make them think and some accomplish neither.

W: Back to “Cedar Seeds”, which deals with the conflict between Israel and Lebanon. Why is this an important topic to you and how did the song come about?

A.O.K.: Man does this question open up a door to a very large room. The gist of it is this: I was going to Lebanon in the summer of 2006 to see family, learn more about ancestry, exercise my Arabic and experience my heritage as an adult for the first time. Six days before my flight the war broke out between Hezbollah and Israel. I spent the entire summer glued to Al Jazeera. One night I was at Cousin Moe’s house with my other cousin, Spinning Truth, and we were watching Lebanon get obliterated on TV.

It was July 30, and probably the worst massacre of the forty-some day war just occurred in Qana, a Shiite slum. It was murderous and the news was not holding back; they were giving us a glimpse of the anguish as vivaciously as cameras can make it. So we just started writing – we’re all emcees, and Spinning Truth is also a singer. Cousin Moe bought a beat from Givemebeats.com with his Visa, – it sampled an intense Middle Eastern song. By 5 AM we had the song finished, but the civilians of Qana were still dead.

W: So the generic question, after that deep one. What do you hope to attempt with the album in general?

A.O.K.: Other than participate in a genre of music that I love, nothing much. I’m not trying to elevate the industry or re-define anything. I’m just doing one of the things that I love doing.

W: I’m not going to pretend I’m a expert when it comes to being geographically in tuned to Canada, but I know that Edmonton isn’t a huge hip hop hot bed. How did you get involved in hip hop, being from a small town on the Canadian Prairie?

A.O.K.: I live in Edmonton now, but I spent most of my life in High Prairie. This is going to sound ridiculous, but I attribute my love affair with rap to Da Brat. When I was ten, Columbia House sent us Funkdafied and it was the most super thing ever. (It still gets regular play from me, actually.)

I never really fit in in High Prairie, even though I had lots of friends, I was the non-pork-eating alien from a funny speaking family. We didn’t live on a farm or own a quad or go hunting – we were a just hard-working, successful immigrant family. But because I didn’t really fit in as an Arab either, seeing as how I’m born-and-raised Canadian, I felt isolated from both cultures and had to fit in somewhere. So after hearing Da Brat, and then obsessing myself with rap, I clung to hip-hop and let it shape much of my personality. It gave me a sense of belonging.

W: You were in the Vancouver, correct? How did that treat you? How is Edmonton now?

A.O.K.: I’m not in Vancouver anymore. I did live there, for three years. It’s where my label-mates live and where I started recording my album, did my first shows and first took rap seriously – but it’s not where I live. I live in Edmonton, aka “Stab City.”

Edmonton is great. I’ve watched the hip-hop scene grow twofold in just the last two years, though it is still very disconnected. There are several reasons for the sudden growth: Cadence Weapon has brought some light to our city, a new rap night that’s lasted more than a month without getting shut down, and a festival I helped organize, called Hip-Hop in the Park, last May. That was a block party we threw. Hugely successful, like 700 people showed up. It was 9 hours long and had 50 local artists. Pretty amazing for a small, blue-collar city with conservative values.

W: What do you have going for the future?

A.O.K.: I need to bow out from rap for a month or two, get some other projects – books and screenplays – completed, then I’m hoping to complete an album with my Vancouver homie, Neato! (who appears on my album as The Filthy Varmint). We call ourselves The Hood Samaritans, and it’s going to be largely boom-bap and humor-hop, nothing too heavy like “The Cedar Seeds”.

W: Any last words for the fine people out there?

A.O.K.: I was going to share my mothers recipe for meat pies, but she said she’d disown me if I did. So I’m going to share a TV pilot I wrote in film school in 2004. It’s called The Committee, it’s a cartoon, like Ninja Turtles, except the crime fighters are rappers. Hope you enjoy.

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Is there anyone that emphasizes hardcore hip hop more than Freddie Foxxx? Forgot all that fake gangster shit that is being spewed on the radio airwaves these days, that shit is straight up garbage. If I want the raw, hardcore rhymes, from a prototypical hardcore rapper, I’ll listen to Freddie Foxxx. Freddie came on the scene in the late 80′s with his Freddie Foxxx Is Here album, that was released on MCA. This would be during a time that major labels such as MCA had no clue how to market hip hop (and they still don’t), and the album ended up flopping something serious (and in hind sight, it wasn’t that great of an album). In 1992, Freddie, now with Epic/Flavor Unit, submitted an album to the label, which was titled Crazy Like a Foxxx. At the time, Freddie was coming off a strong appearance on Boogie Down Production’s “Sex & Violence” and was a part of the Flavor Unit, lead by Sha-Money and Queen Latifah. The album would ultimately end up being shelved by the label after some lukewarm reviews in The Source. Crazy Like a Foxxx would find itself being leaked on the internet, with rather shitty quality (they were made from the promo copies) versions made their way around the internet as early as ’04. That was until just recently, when Fat Beats dropped a two disk version of Crazy Like a Foxxx, with disk one being the original commercial album and disk two being the demo version, which was largely produced by the DITC.

Disc One starts off the track, “Can’t Break Away”, which starts off an album which has an ominous dark mood to it and the track just sets the serve. It’s typical fanfare from the early 90′s, which is when the album was made and meant to be originally released. Freddie was never the most lyrical MC, but what he lacked in lyrical content, he made up for in delivery, style and package as his energy level was always sky high. The beat is suitable for for Freddie’s hard edged flow as he deluges into the ghetto anthem, complete with NY’s favorite way to do a hook, which included getting your homies into the studio and have them shout the chorus. Another banger that exemplified the NY flavor during those golden age years, is “Daddy Boot Knock”, which is a banger if I’ve ever heard one. Freddie was quick to tell you if you were fakin’ the funk, as he let loose and white rappers, female “tough guy” MC’s, and other topics such as “I’m the baddest”, which by now we’ve all heard a million times, but Freddie made that shit sound so rugged and hardcore, you are screaming along with him by the end of the three and half minutes. Disk two actually contains some different tracks than found on the retail version, with tracks like “Man Destroy’s Man” and “Pressure on the Brain”, give anyone purchasing this collection, their money’s worth. The standout track that will have people buzzing is the title track, “Crazy Like a Foxxx”, which Freddie goes at the Ultramagnetic MC boys for a line they dropped on “Yo Black” that went something like ““why would you put a Foxxx against an alligator”. Probably not a smart idea, whether it was on purpose or not, which is still under debate. On the track, Foxxx serves beat down pie to Moe Love, Ced Gee and Kool Keith. There are three versions of the track on the collection, with my favorite being on the demo disk.

Production wise, there was nothing mindblowing on the original album, just quality music. Lots of the cliched sounds from the day in age are found. Foxxx is one of those MC’s though, that you want to listen what he says, because more than likely, it’s going to be somthing outlandish, so production doesn’t need to overshine the tracks. Of course the true treats are found on the disk two, with the Diamond, Showbiz and Buckwild treats. “Call of the Wild”, which leads off disk two, is classic DITC. The dusty horns, and ill bassline brings the track to life as Foxxx brings one of his best performances between the two disks. “Click Click” features some hard drums that deliver a sinister bassline and gives images of creeping down the block in the dark, looking for either someone to blast, or a cypher to spit in. DITC was famous for horns, and tracks like “The Middle Man” contain those trademark horns. A funky sax sample has Foxxx baggin’ on brothers, who are whipped.

What makes this album work so well, at least for me, is the fact that the shit Freddie be sayin, isn’t just shit he is making up. You have reason to believe he’s either done what he is talking about, or would do it. There is not a fake bone in Freddie’s body. He is the epitmy of the hardcore New York hip hop to this day. While this may sound a bit dated by today’s standards, it’s also more “real” than 99% of the albums by today’s standards as well. It’s a nice snapshot of hip hop in the early 90′s and really a prime example of why most cats over the age of thirty claim hip hop was better and regulary start sentances with “back in my day….”

Killa featuring 2Pac

http://media.audibletreats.com/Freddie_Foxxx-Killa_Feat_2Pac.mp3

DISC 1: JAILHOUSE VERSION

1. Can’t Break Away
2. Crazy Like a Foxxx (Ultramagnetic dis)
3. Interlude
4. So Tough (video mix)
5. Daddy Boot Knock
6. Project Mice
7. Jailhouse Rock
8. Killa (feat. 2Pac)
9. Meet Some Skins
10. Interlude
11. Shotty in the Back
12. Interlude
13. Funk in yo Brain
14. Step (feat. Chuck D of Public Enemy)
15. Do What You Gotta Do
16. Pressure on the Brain
17. Rev Glock (skit)
18. Rev Glock
19. Crazy Like a Foxxx (alternate mix)
20. Amen

DISC 2: DITC VERSION
1993 Demo Version Produced by Showbiz, Lord Finesse, & Buckwild

1. Intro
2. Call of the Wild
3. Can’t Break Away
4. Click Click
5. 8 Bars to Catch a Body
6. Project Mice
7. Rev. Glock
8. Crazy Like a Foxxx
9. Man Destroys Man
10. Pressure on the Brain
11. Who is the Middle Man
12. Cook a Niggaz Ass (feat. Kool G Rap)

Crazy Like A Foxxx album preview
http://media.audibletreats.com/CrazyLikeAFoxxxPreview.mp3

Freddie Foxxx’s MySpace page:
http://www.myspace.com/freddiefoxxx

Fat Beats:
http://www.FatBeats.com

“Lost In Brooklyn”-Down South

Now, this is some feel good hip hop right here! I usually like to listen to an album to refresh my memory a night or so before I post the album. I’ll tell you this much, after listening to “Lost In Brooklyn” this past weekend I’ve had it in constant rotation ever since. The beats carry this debut disc from Down South, while the majority of the production sounds exactly like The Beatnuts (who produced “Open Sesame”, “Around The Clock” and the title cut) which is always a good thing. Of course my favorite, as well as mostly everyone’s who’s ever heard “Lost In Brooklyn” has to be “Southern Comfort” which features production from Stretch Armstrong, but “Jimi Crack Korn” doesn’t fall too far behind. What’s quite surprising is that most of the production has a nice change of pace within the track, it’s not just the same loop over and over, props to Shawn J Period who handled the majority of the beats.

Lyrically, it’s enough to keep you entertained but again..I’m all about the beats, you could be spitting the most nonsensical lyrics but if the beat knocks I’m all in! Be sure to check for the 1:18 instrumental “Departure” that sounds like a Beatminerz banger. While we’re on the subject of “all too short instrumentals”, nothing pisses me off more when an MC wastes a perfectly dope beat by utilizing it for an album break or whatever..God, that kills me!! Still, please do yourself a favor and give this one another listen I promise you be glad you did. Oh, I almost forgot to mention that Bobbito makes a brief appearance on the posse cut “Spin Da Bottle”…now, one thing’s for sure Bobbito was never Rakim on the mic.

“Let Me Explain”-Mysterme & DJ 20-20

Let me tell you what I know about Mysterme & DJ 20/20 right off the bat…..very little, next to nothing! After hearing “Unsolved Mysterme” on a mixtape that I found while searching the net’ for Chi Ali’s “No Surrender, No Retreat”(Primo Remix) earlier this week, I was dumbfounded. “Why have I never heard this?” I asked myself. First of all, “Unsolved Mysterme” samples “Blind Alley” so if you’ve read any of my previous posts (sample appreciation) you already know what time it is. Kids, this is some dope ish! Released on Island Records/Gee Street (Hmmm…I think I just….yeah, I had an idea…stay tuned) in 93. “Let Me Explain” has that dope 93-94′ “flavor” that we all miss so dearly. While most of the hooks on the album are fairly simple, it’s just straight up dope hip hop and MC Mysterme’s voice is dope..almost a grimy, gravel-like D-Dot twist between his Two Kings In A Cipher days but not quite that of his Madd Rapper persona.

Seriously, you will fall in love with this album. If your like me, you may pick up a forgotten gem from “Bust The Facts” (major props to Dread and em’!, thanks for making my life easier!) and while it may have been that knock in the early 90’s, in present day your left like….ehhhhh? Well, I am extremely impressed with “Let Me Explain”, it’s just a crime that I didn’t pick this up in 93′. It would’ve been a major chapter music-wise during my high school days..or more like “daze”, that’s how dope “Let Me Explain” is! You’re gonna’ love this!

“Throwback Classics”-mixed by Green Lantern

Many of you are surely familiar with DJ Green Lantern through his affiliation with Eminem (however, most recent pairings with the likes of Charles Hamilton has me scratchin’ my head), and don’t get it twisted when Green Lantern drops a mixtape it’s usually pretty damn solid. I’ve seen plenty of “Golden Age” mixtapes but this one blends together quite nicely with a few tracks you wouldn’t see on alot of DJ’s so-called “Golden Age” mixtapes. I’m glad I came across this one yesterday, I’m trying to upload all my CD’s and tapes to a spare hard drive…boy if that doesn’t take over your life, maaaad time consuming!! In the meantime, I’m sure that your ears will be pleased after hearing this.

Tracklisting
1 – Intro
2 – Pete Rock & CL Smooth – Mecca & The Soul Brother
3 – A Tribe Called Quest – If The Papes Come
4 – Kool G Rap – Road to the Riches
5 – JB’s – Jimbrowski (Green Lantern remix)
6 – Ed O.G. – I Gotta Have It
7 – O.C. – Time’s Up (Green Lantern remix)
8 – Nas – It Ain’t Hard To Tell (remix)
9 – Special Ed – Five Men & A Mic
10 – The Beatnuts – Reign of the Tec
11 – KRS-One – Sound Of Da Police
12 – Masta Ace – Saturday Night Live
13 – Main Source feat. Nas – Live At The BBQ
14 – Black Moon – Who Got Da Props
15 – Diamond D – Sally
16 – Gangstarr – DWYCK (remix)
17 – De La Soul – Saturdays
18 – Ultramagnetic MC’s – One To Grow On
19 – Main Source – Fakin’ The Funk
20 – K-Solo – Spellbound
21 – A Tribe Called Quest – Scenario (remix)
22 – KRS-One – Like A Throttle
23 – Gangstarr – Just To Get A Rep (Green Lantern remix)
24 – Jeru da Damaja – Come Clean
25 – Public Enemy – Shut ‘Em Down
26 – D.O.C. – Funky Enough (Green Lantern remix)
27 – Lady of Rage – Afro Puffs
28 – Ice Cube – Tell Ya Bitch To Come Here
29 – MC Eight – Growin’ Up In The Mood
30 – Kool G Rap – Ill Street Blues (Green Lantern remix)
31 – Fat Joe – Flow Joe
32 – The Pharcyde – Passin’ Me By (Green Lantern remix)
33 – A Tribe Called Quest – Butter
34 – Big Daddy Kane – Young, Gifted & Black

“Masterpiece ’01″-Mixed by Pete Rock

Yet another one of the numerous albums that have ended up on my hard drive (which crashed yesterday…oh shit!!!) and I couldn’t begin to tell you how I came across it originally. “Masterpiece 01″ along with “Masterpiece 03-Mixed By Lord Finesse” are both Japan only releases from the Handcuts Records imprint..which I know absolutely nothing about. As far as this mixtape handled by Pete Rock is concerned, it’s not one of my favorites being that there is really no flow to the overall mix that the “Soul Brother #1″ has pieced together. Not to say that it’s a bad thing whatsoever, it’s just that tracks like the opener (Mandrill’s “Fencewalk”) seem a little out of place setting the pace for the likes of The Roots “Panic!”. The same case can also be made for The Peech Boys “Dance Sister” blending into Common’s “Go”. Still, P.R. does get major props for highlighting some of my favorite “overlooked” classics within the mix i.e, Cru’s “Bubblin” & O.C.’s “Far From Yours”. Pete also drops the Tom Scott classic “Today” which has been a major sample for some of your favorite artists. I’m sure you’ll get the same feeling as I did upon first listen when Pete drops The Lost Boyz’ “Jeep, Lex Coupes…” and leads you smack into “Freeway & Allen Anthony’s “Alright” (WTF??). While not quite as long track-wise as the Finesse “Masterpiece” I posted earlier, Pete Rock’s “Masterpiece 01″ still contains more than a few classics with decent blends that will surely make for an enjoyable listen on any road trip.

Track Listing

1 Mandrill /Fencewalk
2 The Roots/Panic !!!!!!
3 Peech Boys/Dance Sister (Biofeedback)
4 Common/Go!
5 Tom Scott/Today
6 L.L. Cool J/Mama Said Knock You Out
7 Redman/Can’t Wait
8 Parliament/Funkentelechy
9 Cru/Bubblin’
10 Showbiz & A.G./Next Level
11 Ghostface Killah/Be Easy
12 Lost Boyz/Jeeps, Lex Coups, Bimaz & Benz
13 Freeway feat. Allen Anthony/Alright
14 Black Sheep/Flavor Of The Month
15 Group Home/Supa Star
16 Rakim/The Saga Begins
17 The Jackson 5/I’ll Bet You
18 O.C. feat. Yvette Michele/Far From Your
19 Pete Rock/Revenge
20 Pete Rock feat.Vanessa Sanchez/I Had To Say
21 Pete Rock feat.Slum Village/Gansta Boogie

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The end of the month is winding down, which means I better get this months WYDU Classics up before it does expire. After having two different ideas for this month’s theme, I ended up bagging them and going with a bunch of more or less obscure as fuck type things and remixes. Why? Because I like them, no other reason really. I had two sources that I got most of the tracks for this months WYDU Classic, my man Jsta over at Back 2 Da OG and Mad Human at Underground for Your Neck & Mind. Both spots tossed up stuff I was either looking for or never heard of before, and both came with the goods.

On a WYDU Classic note, anybody that is good at graphics and wants to give a hand in designing covers for future WYDU Classics, let me know. Might as well be a little more professional with these things. You’d get the credit of doing them, and doing me a big favor.

The collection jumps off with a familiar enough song, Mobb Deep’s “Drop A Gem On ‘Em”, my personal favorite track from the Hell On Earth LP. What’s different though, it’s a remix from the Vinyl Reanimators. It was found on a vinyl only release (hmm, wouldn’t mind running across these) from DJ Shame, Sean C, Rhythm N*gga Joe and Joe Mansfield. They were independently released and had some excellent remixes and this track can attribute to the quality of them. Another nice remix of a fairly popular song of the 90′s is next, with “Bronx N*gga (Blue Note Remix)” appearing. Remixed by DJ Moe Love, which was found the 12 inch single of the the track. I have to say I like this remix better than the original from Tim Dog. Nice shit. The somewhat unknown, but legendary New Jerez crew shows up on track three. Diezzel Don & The Govnener bring friends along as well, in the terms of Redman, Rah Digga, Pacewon, Young Zee and just about anyone who is anyone from New Jersey. I don’t know where this track is from, or how I got it, but it’s good shit. Track four features a non album track from the Cenobites. You can see Kool Keith starting to get kinda of weird here, but still sounding like the Ultramag’s version. The DOC remix of “Mind Blowin”, is as far as I remember, strictly a promo release. It’s remixed by Dre, and daaaaayum, the shit is DOPE! Another track that is probably better than the orginal, and I had NOTHING against the original. A stretch of dope west coast albums follow, as a remix of “Ballad of a Menace” by the Capital Punishment Organization (C.P.O.), Low Profile’s “Funky Song” gets the remix treatment and what is some old classic west coast without some Rodney O & Joe Cooley doing a track, their “Oldie But Goodie”, which is also got the Zapp remix going on. More west coast goodness comes in the form of in a dope Mannish track, who was part of the west coast underground movement in the late 90′s. “Jive U The Man”, is a nice track that was found on their ’95 Audio Sediative LP. A rare Madlib production is the treat found at track fifteen on the Kazi’s “Wake Up” track. I’m not the biggest Madlib fan, but this beat is bangin’ harder than a cheap Thai prostitute. A batch of fairly obscure track bring up the back, with Red Eye Rum, Dirty Face Angels, Da Germ, and Ill Knob all dropping incredibly dope tracks that you need to learn about.

WYDU Classics Aug 08

01 Mobb Deep – Drop A Gem On Em (Vinyl Reanimators Remix)
02 Tim Dog – Bronx Nigga (The Blue Note Mix)
03 Diezzel Don & GovnenerMattic – Family Day feat Redman, Pacewon, Young Zee, Rah Digga
04 Cenobites – Cold Peein’ On ‘Em
05 EZD feat Noreaga and Muzalini – Worldwide
06 The D.O.C. – A Mind Blowin (Remix)
07 CPO – Ballad Of A Menace (Homicidal Theme Remix) (with MC Ren)
08 Low Profile – Funky Song (Remix)
09 Rodney O & Joe Cooley – Oldie But Goodie (Remix)
10 Criminal Nation – Niggaz From The Ghetto
11 Rappenstine – Scream
12 7A3 – Party Time (City Mix)
13 Mannish – Jive U The Man
14 Red Eye Rum – Get This (biz street mix)
15 Kazi – Wake Up
16 Dirty Face Angels – Actin Up (street mix)
17 Ill Knob – A beautiful thing (street)
18 Germ – Itz Uzelezz ft. Lin Que and Finsta Evil Dee remix

My man Krayzee over at Blowin’ Up The Spot laced up this nice little collection of tracks. A lot of harder to find west coast funk bless this one. Grab the locs, and play it at high volume. I’ve been playing this in the iPod the past couple weeks, so it’s got the WYDU endorsement. Enjoy!

Krayzee Funksta – Ghetto Funk Stylistic

01.Dr Dre & Snoop Dogg – Deep Cover – from “Deep Cover OST”
02.Att Will – Shoot’ Em Dead - from “Do it Att Will (1993)”
03.YGM Geez – Streets of Compton – from “Streets of Compton Maxi Single (1993)”
04.Kam – Thats My Nigga – from “Made in America (1995)”
05.Eightball & MJG – Pimp in my own rhyme – from “On top of the world (1995)”
06.T-Lowe - Ka Boom – from “Keep it real (1995)”
07.O.G. Cell E Cell feat. Natasha Walker - Whatcha gonna do for me – from “It’s on & crackin’ (1996)”
08.Madd Hatta – Trunk-O-Funk – from “Serious (1995)”
09.
Bossman & Bandit – Crazy – “16 keys (1994)”
10.B.G. Knoccout & Dresta – Compton swangin’ – from “Real brothers (1995)”
11.5th Ward Boyz - The Streets – from “Rated G (1995)”
12.Volume 10 – Pistol grip pump – from “Hip-hopera (1994)”
13.New Breed Of Hustlas - Locs dye 2 – from “Streets got me gone (1994)”
14.E-A-Ski - Blast if i have to – from “Blast if i have to (1995)”
15.Young Lay – All about my fetty – from “Black n dangerous (1998)”
16.Ghetto Mafia - Organized Crime – from “Draw the line (1994)”
17.J Mello feat. 4 Tay – One day – from “Since day one (1998)”
18.Chink - Anotha day – from “Capers (1995)”
19.I Smooth 7 – Coolin’ in the ghetto – from “Ghetto life (1995)”
20.O.G. Cell E Cell - Sucka free – from “Sucka free maxi single (1994)”
21.Champ MC - Keep shit on the real – from “Ghetto flava (1995)”
22.J-Sly – Clap 2 this – from “Clap 2 this maxi single (1996)”
23.Big U & The Madhouse Crew – Raw deal – from “Raw deal (1996)”
24.K-Daddy & Smoov MC – Let it ride - from “Let it ride EP (1994)”
25.MC Ren feat. Eightball & MJG – Who in the fuck – from “Ruthless for life (1998)”
26.Vontel – Loungin’ – from “Tru II Life (1995)
27.Juice – East Side – from “Rez E-Rekt’ed 2 Rein (Resurrected 2 Rein) (1995)”

Last but not least a mix of new stuff. So if you lacking on checking some artists, this mix has a nice little collection of stuff I’ve been feeling as far as new releases go. Give it a listen.

Nueve Hip Hop Vol 14

http://rapidshare.com/files/139123801/Nueve-_Hip_Hop_Vol._14.zip.html

01 Freddie Joachim- Sauced
02 Buff1- There’s Only One
03 Nas- What It Is
04 DJ Revolution Feat. KRS-One- The DJ
05 Elzhi Feat. Ayah- The Leak
06 GZA- 7 Pounds
07 DJ KO Feat. Torae, John Robinson, Talib Kweli & Tiffany Paige- Someday
08 Large Pro Feat. Killa Sha & Guardian- Maica Living
09 Jozeemo & Kaze- Where Yall At
10 NYGZ Feat. Nick Javas & Black Poet- Legendary Pt. 2
11 King Syze Feat. Vinnie Paz & Apathy- And Now
12 The Loyalists- Loyal Theory
13 Blu- High Music
14 Kay- I’m On A Run
15 Rhymefest- Bring It Back
16 S1 Feat. Skyzoo, Supastition & Dow Jones- Upper Echelon
17 Dumhi Feat. Kay- Go Left
18 Supastition- Wrong
19 Rashid Hadee- Get Mine
20 Murs & 9th Wonder- Free
21 S1 Feat. Inspectah Deck & Blu- Supafly

Just trying to catch up on the inbox overload….this is the best of it all.

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Missing ELements #3:

“Ok so I hit you with a political joint, a hip hop joint, but now its Friday and what do we do on Fridays? We party, we get down, we pick up girls… dimes if your game is tight enough get that Loose Change.”

Black ELement – Loose Change (Produced By Rami Afuni): http://www.zshare.net/audio/174316201d291499/
–
Black ELement
AMajorMinority.com
myspace.com/blackelement
My Debut album “A Major Minority”
Coming September, 18th

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Talib Kweli – “The Perfect Beat” featuring KRS-ONE, taken from the album Eardrum. This footage was shot here in LA and is mostly taken from a show KRS and Kweli did together in April at the Shrine Auditorium.

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KONCEPT presents KONVERSES Chuck Taylor Edition (Mixed by The Audible Doctor) dropped Aug. 15 and is available now @ Fat Beats NY..It is also now available and SHIPPING WORLDWIDE @www.myspace.com/konceptut

…..production by J57, Slarc, The Audible Doctor, Tailor Made NYC, & more…..PICK IT UP!

Here’s a track titled “The Great Hype” produced by Slarc
http://www.zshare.net/audio/17699852859246c4/

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More Common Market….

“Gol’ Dust” is taken from Common Market’s (RA Scion & DJ Sabzi) forthcoming LP, Tobacco Road, which will be released on 9-9-08 on Hyena/Massline Records.

Common Market – Gol’ Dust
http://www.zshare.net/audio/1769829031ff30b0/
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Free Download: Tha Connection “Universal Dominance”

The Hempstead, New York duo Hus Tha KingPin and SmooVth Dude who make up the hip hop crew Tha Connection come thru with their new release “Universal Dominance” that is now available for free download. The 12-track release includes production from Sci Fi, Max I Million, 12bit, DJ Kryptonite, Reeplay, AGQ, Elaquent, Darkitect, Vans Cal and Ialone. Tha Connection who made their debut last year in the Rawkus Records Digital 50 with their appearance on 12bits release “Stranded on Planet Rock” are on a non-stop grind. Since than, they gone on to release and appear on the “Cosmic Bounce” EP by SmooVth and Drums, the Hus The KingPin appearance on “Love Song” from Fella Vaughn’s “Do My Thing” single (Melting Pot Music) and a few promotional EP’s. Their hard work and consistency is now starting to show, recently they signed with Goontrax in Japan for their first retail release that will be in stores December of this year and to continue on they are now preparing another release with Domination Recordings.

Tracklisting:
1. Funktions (Prod. Sci Fi)
2. Supa feat. Prolifical (Prod. Max I Million)
3. Zen (Prod. 12bit)
4. Moon (Prod. DJ Kryptonite)
5. The Tunnel feat. Rozewood (Prod. Reeplay)
6. Sentido (Prod. AGQ)
7. Take It Higher Remix (Prod. Elaquent)
8. Oven Remix (Prod. Darkitect)
9. Red Carpet (Prod. DJ Kryptonite)
10. Hibernation (Prod. Vans Cal)
11. Venerable Leash Remix (Prod. Max I Million)
12. Six Feet (Prod. Ialone)

Free Download: Tha Connection “Universal Dominance”

For more info, please check out: Myspace.com/TheConnectionTeam
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Godsendant Music proudly presents the lead-off single from Krohme’s The Beasts Released Volume 1: South of Heaven, Goon Opera.

Featuring Kool G Rap, Chino XL, C-Rayz Walz, Sean Price & Hell-Razah, produced by Krohme, The full-length, produced entirely by Krohme is available Halloween 2008.

The digital version is available for download from the Godsendant Music Store 8.26.08 and includes the clean & dirty versions as well as 2 additional remixes, CD version available 9.16.08.

We’re also sending along the 2nd single off of Atari Blitzkrieg’s A Hand-Made Soul album, The Happening (Produced by Bronze Nazareth).

A Hand-Made Soul is also available in the Godsendant Music Store on 8.26 as a CD or digital download. The album features g
uest appearances from Sadat X, Agallah, Timbo King, Little Indian, Rack-Lo & Krohme.With production handled by Krohme & Bronze Nazareth.

Krohme feat. Kool G Rap, Chino XL, C-Rayz Walz, Sean Price & Hell-Razah – Goon Opera (Come See Me)(Dirty)

Krohme feat. Kool G Rap, Chino XL, C-Rayz Walz, Sean Price & Hell-Razah – Goon Opera (Come See Me)(Clean)

Atari Blitzkrieg – The Happening (Dirt Farm Version)

Atari Blitzkrieg – The Happening (Mr. Clean Version)

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Termanology Dropping Sept 30th

Production lineup looks pretty amazing….

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Some international hip hop flava? Haven’t listened to yet, so I can’t comment

PULLING STRINGS presents: MR.MALCHAU´s FREE DOWNLOAD MIXTAPE “2CRACK4RADIO CHAPTER ONE”. The tape includes 16 UNRELEASED TRACKS produced by sum of the best danish producers. It´s a blend of his OLD and NEW material stretching from the years of 2003 to 2008. There´s no cameos on this tape,it´s just MR.MALCHAU´s own voice on the M-I-C. DOWNLOAD the tape HERE: WWW.MYSPACE.COM/MRMALCHAU

Also look out for MR.MALCHAU´s “2CRACK4RADIO CHAPTER TWO” coming out NEXT month. It is also a FREE DOWNLOAD tape with 16 UNRELEASED TRACKS with OLD/NEW stuff. This tape also includes cameos from artists such as:Jinix,J-Spliff,Jahi and more. If you miss that real HIP HOP you do NOT wanna miss out on these tapes.. STAY TUNED!!

Check for more information on: WWW.MYSPACE.COM/MRMALCHAU
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On Saturday, August 16th 1600 Avenue Inc., a 501C3 organization, and its flagship program Hip Hop Leaders (HHL) brought at-risk youth, the community, political figures, and an impressive number of celebrities, musicians, actors, and other influencers together in the name of unity, education, and a safer future for the youth.

The day started with intimate, powerful mentoring sessions with influential figures such as Scoop Deville, Spinderella (Salt-n-Pepa), Asya CEO of Fusicology.com, and Richard Gant (actor).

The day transitioned into a Town Hall meeting further discussing the serious challenges the youth face as well as solutions to those problems. The panel consisted of community-based celebrities like The Poetess, Sticky Fingaz, Lorenzo Murphy, 40 Glock, Ryan Ford of The Source, and Bone from “Training Day” along side community activists Donny Joubert of Nickerson Gardens, Gregory Thomas of Kush Inc., and Pastor Moses Collins of Glory Bound MBC. Together they all communed in the name of Peace and Progress.

Additionally Hip-Hop entertainers that also lent their time to this years events were: Akil (Jurassic 5), Arabian Prince (founder of NWA), DJ Mark Luv (Zulu Nation head), Paul Stewart, Porscha Coleman, Lauren London, Jackie Long, Terrence J of BET’s 106 and Park, comedian Alex Thomas, and Warren G who surprised the fans with a solo set at the end of the night under the moonlight on the UCLA Royce Hall Terrace. These influential Hip-Hop community members “gave back” by participating in a full day’s worth of “edu-tainment” to discuss issues of importance.

Hip Hop Leaders Founder Frank Satterwhite comments,

“Our hip hop leaders students as part of the year-round curriculum in schools, helped produce the HHL Conference, created a forum for victims of violence to be honored, and paid tribute to these same victims via spoken word. This is a proud moment.”

Special thanks to Media sponsors KDAY Radio, and Fusicology.com as well as the following elected officials who through their letters of support or direct involvement have spurred the HHL Program forward: U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Congresswoman Linda Sanchez, Congresswoman Laura Richardson, CA-State Senator Mark Ridley Thomas, Assembly member Warren Furutani, Assembly member Mervin Dymally, Assembly member Mike Davis , Assembly member Elect Isadore Hall, Council woman Janice Hahn, Counil member Mike Gipson, Council member Steve Bradford. 1600 Avenue Director of Community Operations Demirea Perry also specially thanks Rock Tha Vote for being in attendance to help ignite at-risk youth to “be the changed” for years to come!

Official web site – http://www.hiphopleaders.com

Special thanks to our partners:

Alphanumberic

American Rebel PR

Believe Light

Fusicology

Good Worx Music

Green Society

Guayaki

Guitar Center

Honest Tea

IGA Rap Dept.

KDAY (The New Beat of L.A.)

Mighty Fine Inc.

Oakley

Olade

Redlight PR

Robustflavor.com

Timberland

Trunk Ltd.

Ubiquity Records

UniverSOUL Productions

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Nearly a year after the release of “GetBack”, the third opus from North Carolina’s own Little Brother, Rapper Big Pooh prepares to release his new solo project titled “Rappers Delight” on September 2nd as a free download via HallofJustus.com with an official version on November 4th. As with Little Brother’s recent project “And Justus For All”, Pooh teams up with DJ Mick Boogie & DJ Warrior for “Rapper’s Delight”, which also features appearances from Talib Kweli, Bishop Lamont, Joe Scudda, Chaundon, Jozeemo & more. Not to be outdone on the production tip, Pooh packs an all star line-up of beat makers to include J. Dilla, Khrysis, Focus & Nottz along for the ride.

With the teaser track “With You” produced by 9th Wonder, becoming an internet and YouTube smash, Pooh picks up right where his 2005 debut solo album “Sleepers” left off. Reminiscent of “I Used to Love H.E.R”, Pooh speaks to Hip Hop as if it were a woman looking for direction. Tired of the status quo, Pooh laces down his views on the current state of hip hop and where him and his crew stand by means of spitting game.

Also preparing the release of the next single, “Plastic Cups”, Rapper Big Pooh is ready to close out the summer with “Rapper’s Delight”, available for FREE DOWNLOAD Sept. 2nd on HallofJustus.com with the OFFICIAL version available on November 4th with additional features from Jay Rock, Oh No & more…including production from 9th Wonder.

About Big Pooh & Little Brother:
Little Brother hails from North Carolina and consists of emcees Phonte and Rapper Big Pooh. Their debut album “The Listening”, released in 2003 to high acclaimed, and was followed by “The Chitlin Circuit 1.5″ mixtape in 2005. The group’s second album, “The Minstrel Show”, also dropped in 2005 and received a “XL” from XXL magazine and 4.5 Mics from The Source. Following the release of “Rapper’s Delight”, Rapper Big Pooh is planning his second full length album “Dirty Pretty Things” due in spring of 2009. He is also planning an album with another Detroit based producer Young RJ with their collaboration titled “The Recipe”.

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WYDU Fantasy Football League

I’m a little late on my “Happy Madden Day” post, which will instead be tittled WYDU’s 2nd Annual, that hopefully will dropping later this week (you might have gotten a sneak peak of it when it accidentally went up last Friday for an hour or two). Football season means fantasy football starts as well. Yes, I’m a fantasy football geek as well. My man A-One over at Know Good Music suggested we start a fantasy football league. I said it sounded like fun, so here we go, a couple weeks before the season, getting a football league together. We already have four contestants, including myself. CH Commish from Slushy Gutter Summer, A-One from Know Good Music and Antone from Hip 2 Da Game. I’d like to get at least 10 teams and no more than 12. So if you want to join in on the ruckus, let me know at travglave@yahoo.com. Right now, the draft is tentatively scheduled for Sunday, Aug 31st as a live online draft. That could be changed if it effects enough people though. I’m ready for some football…..

Favorite Joints

12. Ras Kass – B.I.B.L.E. (from the Institutionalized Vol 2

If I had to pick a favorite west coast MC, it’d be Ras Kass. Fuck it, he is one of my favorite MC’s, east, west, north or south. The Institutionalized Vol. 2 mixtape has some nice cuts on it, and this happens to be one of them. Over a slow gospel piano track that slowly picks up into a full fledge congregation type of track, complete with the gospel being sung along with the track in places. Topic wise, he tackles one of my favorite, religion. If you’ve followed along with Ras’ career, you know what his stance on it is. This track shows the world that Ras hasn’t lost it. Now, can we get an album?!?!

11. Doomtree – Drumsticks (from the Doomtree LP)

For those of you unfamiliar with Doomtree, it’s five MC’s and four producers, with it’s most popular face being P.O.S. of Rhyme Sayers fame. I’m a sucka for bangin’ drum tracks (which you’ll soon see more of on this list. A little organ like sample over hard, slammin’ drum track gives it that “rough” shit flavor as the crew spits over the track and is backed up by a great vocal sample on the hook.

10. Grynch – Good Morning (from the Second Wind LP)

We dropped Grynch with a New Artist Spotlight a couple weekends ago, so if you slept on the tracks then, here is another one. Over a smooth, mellow track that is equipped with a mellow synth sound that allows Grynch to ride the beat with an aerostreamed delivery as the Grynch gets a little personal. For fans of that “grown folks music” (I hate labels, but it is what it is), this track should appeal and conquer that thirst.

9. (TIE) Invincible – Sledgehammer (from the Shapeshifters LP)
Buff1 – Tear The Speakers Up (from the There’s Only One LP)

Detroit goodness is being dropped with these two tracks. The tracks remind me a lot of each other. Maybe it’s that “Detroit sound” that they contain (and yes, Detroit really is starting to get a defined sound), or just the fact they both contain hard beats that Buff and Invincible just rip to shreds. Invincible dropped an incredible album last month, one that is still in my rotation on the norm. The beat contains a flute type sample that is chopped up and laid down over a heavy kick drum laced with snaps and claps. Invincible is one of the best females going in the present day. She could hold her own with any of her male counterparts any day.

Speaking of hard drums, Buff’s song lives up to it’s name as the drum track truly “tears the speakers up”. Again, the D-Town sound is evident as drums knock harder than a Mike Tyson uppercut. A little guitar like sample accompanies it as the track turns into true beauty. As far as the album itself, I must speak on it….If you were around last summer, you should know I was a big fan of Buff’s Pure LP, well, his latest album, There’s Only One is an even better album that that one. The album is a nice range of hard bangers, thought provokers and mellow smooth joints. Truly one of the better albums I’ve heard this year so far, so support the man and pick up a copy..

8. Canto I feat Has-Lo – Touch The Sky (from the While You Were Sleeping LP)

Hip hop from Nevada? Who woulda thunk it? Only a few acts seem to come from Nevada, which usually consists of Vegas, but this brother duo, Canto I, is coming out of Reno via Vegas and have dropped a solid LP that deserves some attention. On this track, they team up with resident scribe and WYDU favorite, Hassy-Lo, the Lo-Assassin for a upbeat and excitable track. It’s fun to hear Has on a track that is a little different from his normal sound as he drops memorable lines and shows his humorous side. Great track and I hope to have more of Canto I in the future on the site.

7. Kooley High feat Halo & Chaundon – Burnin

Kooley High is another group/artist that I’ve tried to push a lot this year. I’m a fan of the J League as it is, and these cats bring the best of that flavor to the table. I’m not on the up and up on this song, but I found it on both Halo’s and K-High’s myspace pages. It’s got that old school feel to it (the sample used gives it that), but it’s just ill. You have the new cool cat of NC, Halo aka Ben Ready (more on him to come in the very near future), Chaundon, who is among my favorite members of the Justus League and my girl Rapsody who does her damn thing as well. Be on the look out for a full featured Kooley High album to be dropping in the forth quarter.

6. DXArmy – Progression (from the Progression LP, link to the MYSPACE page)

You might not have heard about this crew outside of the NY area, but you soon will. Armed with an ILL bassline, horns and a groovy drum track, the lead single from DXA is sure to remind you have some golden age area music. I’ve played this track over and over the past week or two and it reminds me of something that should have been released in ’94 (and that’s NOT a bad thing). It just reminds me of a classic track such as “Time’s Up” or “How Many MC’s”, it’s that damn good. You’ll be hearing more about this group in the upcoming days. You can already pick up their album by clicking on the advertisement in the upper left hand corner. Well worth your hard earned dollars.

5. Emilio Rojas – That Time (from the upcoming Nouveau Slick project)

I’ll be the first to admit, I wasn’t the biggest fan of Emilio Rojas’ last project. I can’t pinpoint an exact reason why, maybe it’s because he seemed to sound like so many other artists out there. I’ll also be the first to admit, I could’ve been wrong to dismiss him so quickly. After checking out the video for “That Time”, I quickly went on a mission to find an mp3 for the track. Emilio laid some silky smooth lyrics over an soulful M-Phazes track. It all adds up to one of the better singles I’ve heard this year. I’ll be the first to eat my words when I’m wrong, and Emilio might just make me do that.

4. Has-Lo - The Quiet Things (from the upcoming EP Small Metal Objects)

My man Has brings some emotion to the game, something that lacks in a lot of hip hop songs. If you been dumped recently, throw this song on and hide the knives. Has reminisces over forgotten love of yesterday that did him wrong. Over an ill sample (that I should know where it’s from), the mood is one of somberness and self pity, which is great. The tracks last line sums it all up the best: “You’re my psycho, I’m your victim”. True dat.

3. N’Telligence – Let Me Run It (feat Preach) (from the Black Boy Lost LP)

It was this track that smacked me in the face and really made me attention the the N’Telligence album. For one, it features a guest appearance from Preach, who is an MC that I’ve been a fan of even before I started this blog. I always check anything his name appears on. But it’s not just Preach that makes this song a severe head nodder. An uptempo beat aides N’Telligence as he runs ramped over the the music, his flow matching the intensity of the beat stupendously.

2. Common Market – Winter Takes All (from the Tobacco Road LP)

I was one of the few cats that didn’t jump on the Common Market bandwagon after they released their Black Patch War EP earlier this year. It wasn’t that it was bad music, it was just nothing really stood out to me. Since then, I’ve had the pleasure to hear the Tobacco Road LP and I can say there is plenty that stands out on that release. This is my favorite joint from it so far, “Winter Takes All“, which has a soft piano sample that Sabazi is starting to become known for. The track sounds like something that could’ve been made for the Blue Scholars release last year, but Scion makes it his own.

1. Shawn Jackson – Fix Ya Face (First Of All….)

This album has been one of my favorites over the past month or so. Shawn Jack just brings the flavor to the masses, and that’s exemplified on the track “Fix Ya Face”. It’s going to come off to some as “Grown Folks Music” (whatev
er the fuck that is), but if that means good music, that it is. A mellow track serves as the backdrop as Shawn Jackson demonstrates that he is a nice MC, dropping some great lines. I could listen to this jawn day and night right now and not grow tired of it.

Top Spins

Fuck the fourth quarter, give me the summer time releases any day over the big name releases that usually equate into major disappointments. After a slow start to the ’08 year, it’s picked up in the past few weeks. Dope EP’s by the Jazz Addix and Supastition have been getting a lot of play, but didn’t quite make this list as well as well constructed albums by L.E.O. (produced by Large Professor, which is all the bit as good as the somewhat disappointing solo Extra P album) and N’Telligence that I wish I could somehow mention as well, which, I guess I just did. I don’t want to hear anyone bitching about the slow year, because the past month or so has more than made up for it. Hip Hop is like Elvis Presley, y’all say it’s dead, but there is still sightings of it all over the place.

1. Buff 1 – There’s Only One

Last summer, when I was actively trying to do these list every week, Buff 1′s Pure, was named through out the summer as one of my favorite albums that I was giving a lot of play to. This summer, Buff is back, with his There’s Only One album. And I must say that this album is even better than his debut album. Those of you familiar with Buff will know that his Lab Technicians crew supplies him some magnificent beats that can either bang the speakers, or create sweet melodies, suitable for playing on a lazy Sunday afternoon. If you were a fan of last year’s album, this one should please you even more.

2. Elzhi – The Preface

Detroit is KILLIN it lately. Elzhi is the next in line of strong D-Town MC’s and producers that shines brighter than the sun. You should know Elzhi as one of the MC’s in Slum Village. Dude is nice on the mic, as he is an MC’s MC as he just comes at you with lyrics. Then you put him behind some Black Milk and other dope beats? You have no chance. You put him on a track with Royce? Fuuuuuuck, it’s over!

3. DXArmy – Progression

I know what you are thinking….”Trav is just listing this new group because they got an ad on his blog” eeeeeeerch, put your breaks on! This album would be getting this mention regardless if I had never talked to these cats. It’s nice to know that some artists in New York remember where they came from. It’s that old New York boom bap. Killer basslines abound on the Progression release and the production is top notch, especially if you miss that New York sound. This album will give those cats that think hip hop is dead some hope.

4. Common Market – Tobacco Road

Repersentin’ the northwest, Common Market brings that knowledge and beats! This is thinkin’ mans hip hop, but wait, they actually got beats to drop the knowledge over??? This is what I was hoping the Nas album would sound like, but I guess we’ll have to settle for Common Market. Sabazi is that dude on the boards. He definitely has a “sound”, that defines his production. If you like that sound, then this album will not disappoint in the least. Scion is one of those MC’s you want to hear what he has to say, and he has a lot to say.

5. Canto I – While You Were Sleeping

This album so far is slipping under the radars, but hopefully not for long. Canto I drops a hellva sophomore release and proves dope music can come out of Nevada (Reno via Vegas). The two brothers, Effect & Joe Fury, crafted a well rounded album that is along the same kinds of melodic albums you find me listening to quite often, something they dub “headphone music” and that it is. I’m still just getting into the full digestion of While You Were Sleeping, but I can this getting a lot of play in the next few months. Find it and check it out.