Filed under: Art Files, Friends'n'Fam, Hip Hop, Sharpshooter | Tags: cognito, ecstatic tour, frolab, jay electronica, jewell, mos def, the hvw8 art and design gallery, union la, whosane
Filed under: Friends'n'Fam, Good Looks, Hip Hop | Tags: exhibit a, exhibit c, jason goldwatch, jay electronica, just blaze, nepal
Let’s kick things off with a contradiction! I pledged not to rewind into the past but alas (yeah, that rhymes), I think these visuals need to be engaged. Jay uploaded this to his personal YouTube account last Thursday and I hope he releases more footage soon. The cryptic credits give praise to director Jason Goldwatch “The Wizard of Eyes” and cinematographer “Robot The Magnificent”. In recent months, the hip hop universe has caught Jay Elect fever and sparked quite the frenzy over his recent track Exhibit C. For those of you who have listened to Jay express confusion (or baseline intrigue) in the hype surrounding this joint, it might be worthwhile to review his older material to contextualize this new contagious love for all things Jay Electronica. That said, it’s exciting to hear an emcee of Jay’s caliber on the radio and receiving respect and appreciation from diverse audiences. Let’s ride this wave. While I have been steady knockin’ Exhibit C since Just Blaze’s informal radio-rip drop, it is far from eclipsing joints like “Eternal Sunshine” or “Trolley Stop”. Let’s all dig into our musical archives and revisit the golden nuggets of Jay Elect circa 2007, shall we?
Filed under: Friends'n'Fam | Tags: doctors without borders, haiti, Hip Hop, new orleans, partners in health, updates
My trusted readers, I appreciate all of your love and support throughout the recent dry spell of updates. I got caught up in the tide of life but I have returned with renewed energy and momentum moving forward. While I am tempted to blast back posts on all of the new releases and political happenings, I think it’s best to avoid redundancy. I will say it’s strange and a bit overwhelming how much “happens” in cyberspace within a short month or two. It’s an impossible task to keep up or catch up as the case may be. As you can imagine, I have thoughts to fill pages on the crisis in Haiti and the continuum of responses immediately following. If you want to gauge how I’m feeling before I go in on the situation, peep my fellow poet, activist and dear friend Josh Healey draw important parallels between Haiti and New Orleans and offer an important challenge to re-conceptualize “relief” as it is commonly imagined. Read the article in full HERE. I hope to offer my two cents over the upcoming week, I encourage folks to research the track records of the organizations collecting donations (I personally suggest Partners In Health and Doctors Without Borders). Beyond that, look forward to a steady flow of updates on hip hop, current events and general commentary on my circus of a life. I hope you all had a peaceful transition into the new year and may we all use the blueprints of survival from 2009 to maneuver the next 12 months with patience and the comfort of knowing that ultimately, we know nothing. Drop me a line and let me know what you’ve been thinking/feeling these days.
Filed under: Art Files, Good Looks, Hip Hop | Tags: blakroc, damon dash, dj semtex, Jim Jones, mos def, soulja boy, the black keys
“most say I’m politically incorrect / but most people scared they spit it so indirect” – Jim Jones
Admittedly, I have been sleeping on the highly anticipated collaborative BlakRoc album bringing together the disparate sounds and styles of Mighty Mos, The Black Keys, Raekwon, Jim Jones, Q-Tip, RZA and many more. In truth, I nearly forgot about it entirely until I stumbled upon the vinyl version in Amoeba on Sunday (shout out to my crate digging partner-in-crime, Nicky Free). While the album’s official release date passed on November 27, 2009, I feel it deserves a delayed post with respective props (I humbly accept a late pass). What’s more entertaining than musical trailers highlighting Damon Dash coordinating an endearingly awkward introduction between The Black Keys and Black Dante? Jimmy Jones sharing the booth with an entourage of eager white folks hype off their newly acquired “street cred” (just playing…mostly). That reminds me of the time I ran into Jimmy on 6th ave and 14th street outside of that 99 cent store…my homegirl had him sign her pack of cigarettes and exchanged a few quips. How I miss serendipitous NYC run-ins. In other news, DJ Semtex uploaded a 3 part series to Vimeo of interviews with Mighty Mos on a host of interesting topics from 2009 highlights in music and film to his ruminations on Soulja Boy and the politics of preserving one’s swagger. Whereas everyone else seems to be tired of Mos sharing his thoughts, I could listen to him talk shit for days on end. Who else can make dynamic and hilarious off-the-cuff jokes about “going green” re: swagger? And while his bravado is far from subtle, you simply can’t deny the important contribution of The Ecstatic to hip hop’s contemporary landscape. I’m willing to engage any of y’all in a healthy debate about that! Be sure to peep these DJ Semtex interviews in full and go cop that BlakRoc album, I promise to post my thoughts ASAP!
Filed under: Friends'n'Fam, Good Looks, Hip Hop, New Shit | Tags: j. period, jay electronica, nneka, the madness, walking
DOWNLOAD :: Nneka Feat. Jay Electronica “Walking” (J. Period Remix) ::
At this point, my unbridled enthusiasm for all things Jay Electronica is self-evident. Indeed, his latest feature on this hypnotic Nneka “Walking” joint (to be included on her and J.Period’s upcoming mixtape The Madness (Onye-Ala) slated to drop tomorrow Tuesday December 15) is no exception. As per usual, Jay Elect manages to lace his brief verse with lyrical heat just “your average John Malkovich / transform myself to the wind like The Alchemist / you know what the outcome is”. In truth, the stand out of the track is J.Period’s dynamic production (try and catch the clever layered sampling) and Nneka’s complimentary vocals. If this is any indication of the quality of The Madness, I’d argue we have reason to be excited. It’s rare enough for mixtapes to have descriptions that don’t make me cringe (if at all). Here it is via 2dopeboyz: “From fury to folly, overwhelming enthusiasm to complete rage – madness is a term used to describe an extreme state or extreme journey, which tends to leave the participant altered, sometimes forever. In an era of political corruption, fast paced technology, and what some may argue as a cultural renaissance, madness is sometimes the term that fits best to describe the state we’re living in today. It is the madness that speaks to our generation, and The Madness (Onye-Ala) that Nneka and J.Period present to the world on December 15, 2009. Utilizing J.Period’s unique documentary-style approach to the mixtape, The Madness (Onye-Ala) is a collection of new and remixed tracks from Nneka, the Nigerian born singer/songwriter who is quickly making her stamp on the US.” A special shout to Christine AM for putting me on in the throws of a grueling week — we find much needed refuge in music during days drowned out by heavy rain and the ebb and flow of everyday life. Stay warm, San Francisco! Lastly, I want to apologize for the infrequent posting. I have plans to put out more material in the immediate future and be on the look out for in-depth interviews with some genius types I have the pleasure of knowing. In the meantime, download and loop this joint (highly recommended for car rides and long commutes on the train — it has an addictive quality to it).
Filed under: Friends'n'Fam, Hip Hop | Tags: afta-1, amorous, bilal, gas'd, jesse boykins, love is real
DOWNLOAD ▲❍▼❏ AFTA-1 — LOVE IS REAL VOL. 4: Vessels Behind A Moment ▲❍▼❏
“We are all One. Individuals with a unique gift and calling. Still, by a universal vibration, through the art of creation; we are all C o n n e c t e d. Devine by design, it all intertwines.” – Bilal
Filed under: Art Files, Friends'n'Fam, Hip Hop | Tags: sade, soldier of love
DOWNLOAD :: ❍▼ SADE “SOLDIER OF LOVE” ▲❍ ::
Sade is back and her return is epic beyond measure. In truth, I continue to characterize Sade as musical royalty which is simply to say that I’m generally unable to offer useful critique of her music at this moment. The devastatingly beautiful cover art alone puts her in a category apart from the rest. In my eyes, she makes even the biggest giants in the game shrink back down to amateur size. May she set the law of the land. Let us begin the countdown to the (overdue) release of her aptly entitled album “Soldier Of Love” slated to drop on February 8, 2010. According to Kingz over at Y2kDaily, “Soldier Of Love” which Sade co-produced with Mike Pela, was written by Sade along with longtime collaborators Andrew Hale, Stuart Matthewman and Paul Spencer Denman. The track, featuring a pulsating and anthemic drum beat along with haunting vocals that Sade is known for, is also set to debut at radio December 8th and will kick off the countdown for “Soldier of Love”. Basically, download “Soldier of Love” now & repeat.
Filed under: Good Looks, Hip Hop | Tags: always, daykeeper, grammy, muhsinah, the foreign exchange, the oscialltions: triangle
:: ▲▼▲ MUHSINAH — THE OSCILLATIONS: TRIANGLE ▲▼▲ ::
The lovely Muhsinah recently released the first iteration of her latest project “The Oscillations: Triangle” which to no surprise is receiving warm praise from critics and fans alike. Last week proved to be especially eventful for Muhsinah as she debuted the music video for her self-produced song “Always” and shortly thereafter received an exciting Grammy nomination for “Best Urban/Alternative Performance” (by extension) for her classic feature on The Foreign Exchange’s track “Daykeeper” off of their sophomore album Leave It All Behind. It’s refreshing to see quality artists get the shine they deserve — shout out to The Foreign Exchange for their nomination and I encourage you all to peep the winners at www.grammy.com on January 31st, 2010. For an album teaser, download one of the craziest joints “Lose My Fuse” produced by Flying Lotus (download via 2dopeboyz). Now if only dope artists would put out collaborations such as this one with greater frequency…a girl can dream. In the meantime, support good music and go cop this!
Filed under: Friends'n'Fam, Hip Hop | Tags: dwele, fwmj, meebo the cat, rockstar
FWMJ and his baller cat Meebo take inter-species bonding to new (intimate) heights = LOL X SMH
Dwele also accrues cute points for documenting his dog Rockstar’s fly fit. Cat’s still win…
Filed under: Art Files, Good Looks | Tags: avant-garde, david graver, marcel duchamp, the aesthetics of disturbance
“avant-garde is to be enslaved to a shallow notion of innovation for innovation’s sake, to favor the outrageous over the well-wrought, to cloak mediocrity in the robes of the rebel.” — david graver
