Willie Joe ft. Dice "Coming Up"

From what I can learn Willie Joe is repping the Bay and Atlanta, dropped an album entitled Focus this past August and my bet is when he was in Seattle for the release party he shot this video. Can't be mad at that. Dope to see visuals of the town from an outsiders perspective. Local singer and emcee Dice holds down the hook for Willie on this track about some things we all understand in this recession.

The download link I was directed too at Dat Piff was no longer active. Speaking of Dat Piff, all aspiring rappers I don't care whose tape you downloaded off the site, do not use Dat Piff to distribute your music. It's wack as fuck and looks tacky. End rant. You can purchase Focus from Willie Joe here.

The Post Christmas Wrap Up

I'm enroute to work brunch once again after many months away. I told the bartender to be hooking up some champagne in my glass of OJ, hope he remembers! If you took a break from the computer over the holiday you might of missed more than a few things, here are a few jawns that grabbed me.



Kendrick Lamar has only elevated in the months since the release of his stellar O(verly) D(edicated) record. If you missed out on the review or interview peep 'em respectively. Schoolboy Q is the only member of the Black Hippies who hasn't hit us with a great project. With this leak off Setbacks there is no doubt in my mind that he will stand tall with his family.



SL Jones isn't a name I've heard too much outside of a guest verse or two with Killer Mike. Here he calls on the big homie to close out his track. Pill also swings through for a solid 16, dude is becoming my new favorite guest rhyme slanger. SL holds it down, makes me curious what he has coming. This is off a tape he plans to drop in January. The new year is already looking promising and I'm still devouring music from the year that we ain't quite finished with. Gotta love great music!



Speaking of Mike this is some serious hiphop shit right here! Just let that track above play. Yes that is El-P lacing Killer motherfuckin' Mike with a monster of a beat. They are working on an album that shall be released via Adult Swim. I seriously couldn't be more excited for this and it's been more than a hot minute since Jamie Meline's alter ego has gotten me excited in the slightest. Rest assured should this hit the internets faces will be melted while minds are sharpened on the knowledge Killer Mike recites with ease.

And this being our blog and all we did drop a little EP yesterday you might have missed. It's from Brothers From Another and you can learn more here - or just scroll down slightly. I'm outta here, come eat some food at Palisade today and help ease my hatred of the place.

Currensy "Daze of Thunder"

Curren$y - Daze of Thunder from Creative Control on Vimeo.

What's a morning without some Spitta? I can hear Swerve rockin to it at the moment and this video is as fresh as any other one he's dropped. Off his upcoming tape Return to the Winners Circle.

2 Rappers. 2 Producers. 2 Albums.

Tick Tock - Co$$ (feat. Sene) from Mupalia Pictures on Vimeo.

The pairing of one emcee with one producer is more commonly used as a marketing ploy these days than it is a demonstration of two artists really collaborating to make some powerful music. There are always the exception’s to the rule and via the internets above ground stature more art is being made than probably ever before in the history of recorded music. Being stuck with one portable music playing device that has no space I chose two albums to join me on my bus ride to work yesterday. I didn’t expect them to be what I was listening to 24 hours later but sure enough I was impressed.

The two albums in question are Revelations, an officially titled “mixtape” from Co$$ and Numonics, and Brown Study, the debut album from female ATL by way of Detroit spitter Boog Brown and fellow 313 representer Apollo Brown on the beats. Both albums represent their towns and demonstrate young voices trying to strike a chord in the ears, hearts and minds of anyone who will give them the time to hear one song.

They are both banging, classic styled boom bap affairs that will have heads rolling shit up and vibing out to the grooves laid down via perspective producers. Apollo Brown wears his city heavy on his sleeve demonstrating the best elements of some grimy Detroit production with lots of samples, hard drums and some smooth melodies which add a certain texture to Boog’s voice.

Numonics on the other hand veers away from much of what you have heard out of the city of angels. Listening to the project (it may be tagged a mixtape but this is all original - it’s an album) you are struck with his keen sense of space within his beats. He utilizes pauses in the action, be it the elimination of a key sample or the cutting of the drums from the track. Sometimes tunes sound like he might have fleshed out what he was listening for with some live players. Or else he is digging and chopping with the best of em.

Like his partner with the beats, Co$$ isn’t coming off like your typical west coast gang baning rapper. He runs with Blu and while I wouldn’t want to compare them in many ways their choice of content is similiar. Co$$ is aiming to show the multifaceted life of people, be them rappers or you or your fam. Everyone lives life and the ability to capture those minute details that make up our experiences on Earth is a skill not all know how to convey.

Boog Brown is a serious chick with no gimmicks but the skill she wields on the mic. I was hipped to her by House Shoes making the comment that woman can’t rap, but Boog has bars. He is right about her skills, but I think there are a few other femcee’s worth something. As straight forward as they can come, you won’t hear her getting flashy or talking nonsense. As she says “every word counts” and she doesn’t seem to forget it throughout the twelve tunes that make up Brown Study. She talks shit and steadily demonstrates why you shouldn’t doubt her claims. But braggadocio alone does not an emcee make. And Boog Brown is an emcee. Listen to her.

Co$$ and Numonics dropped their project with the dopehouse for free, grab it via their post here.

Apollo Brown & Boog Brown dropped Brown Study with Mello Music Group and can be purchased here.

One Time @ Bandcamp With... Bodega Man

As per usual with the Bandcamp interview, if you missed Bodega Man's album check out the review of it from Monday! I came across this album just as it dropped in February, I'd just gotten a job and was starting to feel a little more on my feet. The job was serving students at my alma mater which didn't excite me much. One perk was I got to play music all night long, can't ever be mad at that! Bodega Man got a few spins there and a few in the whip, his lyrics about the struggle for a dollar mean something.

Introduce yourself? What should people know about Bodega Man?
Well the name is Bodega Man from East side of Long Beach. I’m a very humble emcee and a college grad with a lot to spit for the masses.

You grew up in the same area that Snoop Dogg did, what can you say about this community? Do you still live in that area?
Well, its a multi- racial community which includes Latinos, African Americans, Asians, and Samoans. Everyone in the community has different culture values and conflicts occur when the different cultures clash. The neighborhood is still rough but after a while, you learn to cope with the environment. I don’t live in the area anymore but I still hang around with my friends who live there.

Your first album never saw release due to it's poor recording quality, what did you change in that process to make your second album, The Jazz Album: Recession Thinking, of high enough quality to let the public hear?
A.T. (Average Thought) recommended me to his boy Matt who has a recording studio in his garage after hearing The Bodega Album. Once I recorded a few tracks from The Jazz Album, I kept in contact with Matt from there on. Matt knew what he was doing and gave me some direction for the album as well.



Your producer is A.T., how did you two meet? What is the collaborative process like between the two of you?
A.T. was trying to sell his MPC for 900 bucks and his beats. I didn’t really pay attention to it for two weeks because I had finals. Until one day I looked at his ad again. I wrote down his myspace page info, then I checked it out... man, I was speechless. You don’t come along around people like A.T. His style of beats is what i was looking for because I’ve always admired Jay Dilla beats, Pete Rock, Primo, and Madlib and A.T. had that style. I gave him a call and left a message on his phone. It took him about two days to call back but I had missed his call. He was selling his beats for 150 a pop but I didn’t have that kind of money so we talked it out and managed an agreement. Before he gave me any of his beats, I had to freestyle in front of him at his homeboys pad. When he started to freestyle, I stayed my ass quiet hahahhahhaha. Ever since then everything has been history.

The way A.T. and I handle our collaborative process is by feeling each others idea out or I tell him about the song that I’m writing and he makes a beat or he has a beat ready.

You are a college grad working in the service industry, how does this situation feed your creativity?Well I look at what I have and figure out how I’m going to make it. Even though I’m a college grad I still struggle to make ends meet. Thats when my creative juices start to drip and I’m able to write better music. I feel like people who start from the bottom have that hunger to show the people what its all about.

What did you grow up listening to? Who inspired you to start flowing?
I listen to everything from Red Hot Chili Peppers, Nirvana, 2Pac, Snoop, Dr. Dre, DJ Quik, Nas, Wu-Tang, MC Hammer, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, oldies music, salsa etc. The people who really inspired me to flow were Mos Def, J-5, Nas, Common, and Talib kweli.

You mentioned that your next album, tentatively titled The Love Album may be your last. Is it still in the making? Still planning to have it be your exit? What would be next for you after that?
Yes, The Love Album: Love In Love Out will be my last album. I am working on it right now and I’m about three songs deep into already. After this album I’ll work on little tracks or throw out songs here and there when I get inspired to write. After this album I’m planing on producing with my boy Tech Advance and see where that goes. I wouldn’t be the greatest at it but I’ll try my best.

What is the overall vibe of Hip Hop in LA today?
In my opinion I feel like LA has lost its touch in hiphop. Most cats are stuck on their selves trying to make it with corny songs. Don’t get me wrong, I respect the hustle but dudes lost that touch. Once in a while you find true gems and say damn, thats hip hop. Overall, the vibe is alright.

Who are you listening to today?
I’m listening to the new Roots album, John Legend, Jose James, Mayer Hawthorne, Dam Funk, Aloe Blacc, Jay Electronica, Little Brother, Nas, 2Pac’s old material, Kindred The Family Soul, Eryka Badu, Stalley, Bilal, Black Keys, Black Spade, Corinne Bailey Rae, Fashawn, Currensy, Incubus, J. Cole, and Blu.



Outside of music, what are your other hobbies? What do you like to do for fun? Believe it or not one of my hobbies is running long distance. Running makes me clear out my mind and forget about everything and its soothing. For fun, I like to go out and find low key food places to eat, drink good beer, and cruise on my beach cruiser.

Are your parents fans of the music? Supportive of the creativity?
My mother loves the material but doesn’t understand some of my tracks. Sometimes I take my mom to my shows and she enjoys them. She’s very supportive in my creativity. I love her dearly.

What's the story behind the name Bodega Man?
Back in college when I did track and field, I was the run to guy if anybody needed anything cheap. If they needed clothes, cheap food, furniture, drugs... I was the run to guy. So that’s when I started telling people to call me Bodega Man because you could find anything cheap at bodegas. For those who don’t know what’s a bodega, it's a small store in the hood where you could find anything from food, shirts, etc except illegal drugs hahahhahha depending where you go.

Have you been to Seattle? Heard any modern hiphop from the town?
I’ve never been to Seattle but I would like to visit. As far as hiphop from Seattle, I’ve never heard of anyone.



Last words? Advice? Shout outs? Words of wisdom?
My last words are for the people who are struggling and that’s to keep your head up through this recession. They say its over but its only over for the 1 percent who rule over us. The advice I would like to give to any emcee is to believe in your craft, never wait on people, and invest your money on yourself. I would like to give shout outs to my whole family, my sugarr, my friends, A.T., Tech-Advance, Flipa, Kiki iz Da Man from France, Young Dub from Arkansas, Daniel Funaki for his bomb pictures, Ashley Caprice and you could catch her at kbeach.org on Wednesdays from 10am-12pm, the whole Dirty Politicians camp, XP from the Rhyme Addicts, DJ Underground from the big ATL and you could catch him at djunderground.podomatic.com, Young Hype, Onwon, Bad Fish from the LBC, State of the Art, Unitus, DJ Yeraflavor, DJ Joni from Spain, Buddah from Reno, Dr. Ebony Utley and all the people who downloaded my craft... I would like to thank every single one of you who supported me either from youtube or my bandcamp site...Thank you.... my words of wisdom would be believe in yourself. peace out!!!!!!

G-Side & Huntsville Alabama

In 2008 I graduated college, lost my job and made the decsion to move back to Oregon. Staying in OR didn't last but moving did for quite some time but through all my travels the only album that I consciously made sure to always have with me came out of Huntsville Alabama by a group called G-Side. That album was called Starships & Rocketz, download it here.

Since then their profile has only risen, although not as fast as another AL representing artist who does a quick few bars at the end of this video repping for their state college football team.



I hadn't paid them much attention of late and this morning I came across an awesome article by Jon Kriby who contributes to Wax Poetics among other magazines. This article was done for Oxford American, a well regarded publication focused on exposing American South culture via "the very best in Southern writing."

Read the Oxford American feature on G-Side here. Peruse some more videos below.

Jorge Ben

Brazilian music has interested me since I started buying records. Deodato's Prelude was something dug up on the first excursion. At some point Jorge Ben's name came up and while I'm yet to come across a record of his in the bins I've found records here and there on the internets to give a hint into why this man is regarded so highly in his home country.



A song of his came on in shuffle and prompted me to see what I could find in the way of footage of performances. If you have never heard the man, listen and watch. It's all subtle and simple. It's fun. It's light. But maybe it's not, I don't speak Spanish so at the end of the day I don't have a clue what is being discussed here... I dig it none the less.

Show Tufli "Keep in Mind That I'm an Artist and I'm Sensitive About My Shit!!"

Show Tufli is a name that's been buzzing around the blogosphere for the last couple years but his tribute style mixtapes haven't really gotten him off the ground. I suppose the Charles Hamilton affiliation may be hurting too. But regardless of who he knows and how the public views his marketing ploy's the bottom line is the music on his latest project, inspired by Erykah Badu, is fresh and the perfect slice of summer for these cold and wet days Seattle has been awaiting.

I put this 10 track project on tonight and was immediately caught up in his style. Dude is only 18. I guess recovering from paralysis would be invigorating. The above video features an intro that gives you a little history on Show and the one below is a more professional affair that shows off the traditional summer BBQ on the block. Of course there's a girl who's caught the young emcee's eye.



If the videos got you interested you can download the tape here for more.

Rapsody ft. Skyzoo & Thee Tom Hardy "Honda Accord Music (Still Can't Afford A Maybach Remix)"

RAPSODY - HONDA ACCORD MUSIC (REMIX) from Pricefilms on Vimeo.

After taking mild swipes at this project she delivers a video for a stellar track on the back half of the tape - I didn't even listen to it halfway through. Guess I know how I'm spending my evening off. This is a classic 9th beat and what's not to love about that title... or the skills of all three emcees invovled. Tom Hardy might have to be given a listen now.

Gil Scott-Heron & Jamie XX "NY is Killing Me"

Dropped a little bit ago, been stuck in my head. Mesmerizing beat from The XX mpc player, I'm real intrigued about him remixing all of Heron's latest opus I'm New Here. Watch for it in February from XL Recordings!

EvergreenOne "Born In 86 (Preview)"

Almost Famous went down last night, Meka impressed all there I think. While sipping on some whiskey I got to chopping with A-Hyp and he hipped me to some Tac goodness. Been playing that Milk On Wax from Evergreen and Todd Sykes and this sounds like it's in the same vein. Raise your hand with me if you were born in 86!

One Time @ Bandcamp With... 80's Babies

I found Sonic Music early this year via the 80's Babies Bandcamp site. Like so much of what I download I didn't know anything about it, but after it came on in the shuffle a few times I knew I needed to get into it a little deeper. After just one listen I was shocked that this was an album being pushed through their site and by no other means that I'd seen. This is the beauty of Bandcamp and why I've been doing these reviews and interviews. Sure Kanye West may have made the ultimate pop document discussing the current state America has found itself in, but there are a lot of people with things to say, struggles to work out and thoughts to share. Tall Black and Dee Jackson are two of em and Sonic Music deserves your ears.

First up can you introduce yourselves? Who are you, what do yall do, how long yall been at it?
We’re a Chicago bases hip hop group named “ 80’s Babies” consisting of 2 memebers. Dee Jackson is the emcee, and Tall Black Guy is the producer. The groups been together over 4 years now.

Is this your first musical endeavor?
No, we released our debut album 80’s Babies LP in 08. T.B.G is a member of Pathfinders and they have a project out, and Dee Jackson has solo efforts previously released.

Are you guys born and raised in Chicago? What part?
Dee Jackson is born and raised on the south side then moved to the burbs. TBG is actually from Detroit but grew up in Chicagoland.

When did you know you wanted to rhyme/make beats?
Dee Jackson has been rhyming since 97 and TBG has always been a hiphop head, but starting making beats around 2001-02.

Are yall 80s babies? Or is it more about being in line with a sound from a different era?
We are both 80’s Babies, but it’s more about the golden era of hiphop.



How did Rookie films get invovled with yall? Are there more videos in the works?
We are fans of each other. We always loved what they’ve been doing and they have always enjoyed our work. So it was only right, plus those are the homies anyway. Technology video coming soon by Rookie Films.

When did you officially release the album?
Sonic Music was released on May 18,2010

How has the response been locally?
Very positive, lots of love from the home town

How often are you guys playing shows?
We perform on a weekly basis now. For booking hit up 80sbabiesmusic@gmail.com

Who are some artists that inspire you?
Nas, Common, The Roots, J Dilla, DJ Premeire, The Roots, Pete Rock, Mos Def, Slaughterhouse, Blu, Tribe, Lupe, and the list goes on…….

Who do you view as peers within the Chicago hip hop community? Is the scene supportive of each other or are cats all doing their own things?
Chicago hiphop scene is very segregated, but there are some talented cats that we have mutual love and respect for, such as The Pathfinders, Thaione Davis, Primeridian, Kazi the Blak, Yng Sin, K Sera, Allegra Dolores, Kenny Keys, Rashid Hadee, 1773, Fam Squad, Jelify, GQ the Teacha, Radius, Coolout Chris, Amina, Midflex, and many more. Chicago is in good hands.

Currensy "Pilot Talk"

Those that know me could tell you why I like Currensy. I can tell you that his music relaxes me. I love his lack of seriousness. It’s not a I don’t give a fuck, it’s more like he just isn’t concerned with the bullshit in life. On the song “Seat Change” he repeats the refrain “She just want to ride with a G” - it’s this carefree attitude that permeates Currensy’s lyrics along with his choice of musical backings courtesy of mostly Ski Beatz that makes Pilot Talk an album that will make you smile, nod your head and worry about the little things in life.



Pilot Talk dropped in the middle of the summer and was full of sounds perfect for smoking and riding, backyard barbeque's or the headphones. Ski cooked up music that is in a groove no one else is touching. It’s more live than most producers fuck with, it’s invigorating at times, humble and concerned at others. Regardless of the tracks tone, Currensy knows what to do at every turn always holding his own and demonstrating his worth as an emcee for good.



His cleverness that was hinted at throughout the mixtape grind is on full display here. His verbal dexterity is in a league all its own and his imagination is classic. While he can get abstract with the best of them, he doesn’t spend his life in the clouds all the time. He closes the album out with a great analysis of how people watch those with fame. Only someone who’s been through the regimes he has could speak on this with such accuracy, and few would approach it with as much honesty.



Nesby Phips produced one of the only non Ski tracks here and he also joins Spitta with a guest verse. “Piroritze (Beeper Bill)” is another slightly more serious tune addressing peoples inability to pay bills and yet blowing money on nonsense. Not your typical rap philosophy.



But by and large Currensy is a relaxed dude who likes to enjoy life. He raps a lot about weed of course, so much so that it doesn’t even have to be mentioned and yet it’s there. The smoke just bleeds out his verses. The aforementioned “Seat Change” is all about Currensy winning over ladies nonchalantly and it’s a perfect place for Snoop to slide in with a guest verse. Luckily he doesn't waste too much time of these tales, just enough to let the guys he know he hasn't lost his touch.



The guest emcees are abundant on Pilot Talk but don’t ever detract from Currensy’s demeanor. Next to Snoop and Devin he stands tall. “Chilled Coughpee” is one of the dopest Ski produtions here and Spitta & The Dude sound meant to rhyme together. Perhaps it’s the southern chemistry. His parts in the Jets ride with him on the smoothed out smoking gem “Roasted” and just begs for a Jets album. Stalley shows up for maybe my favorite track here in “Address” that always gave me some odd comfort whenever it played during the last year.



With Pilot Talk Currensy and Ski hit a chord together that hasn’t been seen in a producer emcee pairing in quite some time. The pothead aesthetic Wiz and Spitta have been championing has found it’s musical counterpart in Ski’s brand of live production. Wiz has been on a path for larger things for awhile now, Currensy seems to be a little more down to earth and always in his own lane. Pilot Talk establishes his lane as one not influenced by any other sounds today.

Avatar Young Blaze "Wishing On A Dream"

Some more Jon Jon visuals for you to feast on. This guy has put in serious work this year. Avatar stays grinding too. One of the stand out tracks from his freely downloadable "mixtape" Russian Revolution. If you missed that read up about it and him. The lovely Isabella Du Graf (where's the album at ma?) kicks it with Av in his new home - the always sunny LA. Didn't expect this as a single, I'm glad I was wrong.

"Was raised in the same house Jimi Hendrix hit his first joint/So you could say purple haze raised me."

Poetik Force ft. Avi The Most Ill & Blakface "The Rush"

Poetik Force will be the subject of a bandcamp feature around here in the near future, he passed me his latest video from his The Mary Jane Project last night. I'm still trying to make sense of these visuals, but regardless of that the song is one of my favs of the year.

Snow day: Video break!

While those of us here in Seattle act like the world has come to an end thanks to an early snow storm (word is this is the earliest we've gotten snow since '55... this winter is gonna be rugged) the rest of the world hasn't slowed down or taken a break. If you are like me and holed up in your spot for the day staying warm here are a couple heatrocks from the city of angels. Maybe they will warm you up.



Jay Rock's voice here is as menacing as can be. The song "Diary of a Broke Nigga" is light on happiness and heavy on the dark reality that is our economic times. While times are tough we shouldn't be unprepared for more acts of violence against our fellow man. This song isn't about sympathy, it's about despair.



If the modern day intelligent gangster rhetoric doesn't do it for ya there is always the other side of LA hip hop, honest everyman Blu. While far from discussing street politics, Blu also raps about life and the struggles humans deal with. Word is he is preparing his Warner Bros. debut No York and this may be the lead single. FlyLo on the beat!

Fatima "Warm Eyes"

Anyone else miss them Summer days already? With some Dam Funk production you can always have summer!

Munk "Violent Love"

I woke craving something different this morning. I found my way to Rinse for the first time. I'll save my praise for another time, but whatever you have heard about the long running online radio station is probably true. Pretty amazing project.

This is about a group called Munk and the tune "Violent Love" that the visuals above accompany. I like the concept of telling the tale in reverse, showing a situation I'm sure anyone involved in this music game has encountered with their partner, sometimes you just need to listen and escape. But sometimes that's the last thing you can do.

In The Woods.TV: Far From Home

Got hit up by this guy Will via facebook complimenting my Teebs interview. He works with the Portland based In the Woods internet TV station. They got some cool features on the site, dig into it and peep this snippet they caught of Teebs rocking out and tweaking sounds out. Think Ardour might have to be the soundtrack to my bus ride home this evening.

Currensy "Michael Knight"

This Currensy is leaps and bounds beyond the kid whose tapes I've reviewed so far. Something illy for your Sunday morn wake n bake. I see Spitta's repping a Seahawks hat?!