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New Music: Count Bass D

Most people would recognize the Dirty South is known for Crunk (YEAAAAAAH!) and Miami bass, but a small but growing independent hip hop scene is emerging among the candy paint and booty shake.

Sure, we've heard about 9th Wonder and the success of the Justus League, but Count Bass D (nee Dwight Farrell) who has been rockin' the South (Nashville) independently for over 10 years. In 1995, D dropped the instant classic, Pre-Life Crisis on Sony Records. D claimed that Pre-Life was the ” the only live rap album to date using all live instrumentation,” though I still can't figure out what that means.

Although many people couldn't be able to recognize Count at the local grocery store, he's worked with such artists as the Beastie Boys, Vitamin C, Matt Mahaffey (Self), MF DOOM, J-Live, Victor Wooten (Bela Fleck and the Flecktones) and Van Hunt.

Count played every instrument on the album himself. Of course, like most great hip-hop CD's of that era, Pre-Life Crisis, was never promoted well, resulting from Count was dropped from Sony.

Count's newest album, BEGBORROWSTEEL (listen), picks up where Pre-Life Crisis left off. With its obscure samples, and non-bling topics, Count knew that mainstream audiences wouldn't appreciate his work, and he has wisely promoted and released this album almost exclusively online.

Count has a bunch of mixtapes and beats available for sale online at countbassd.com.

Tags: Mandrill

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Mash Up Posse

The term ???mashup??? garnered a good deal of attention following the uproar over 2004???s The Grey Album by DJ Danger Mouse. Although the album was never officially released, it helped to push the mashup sound out from under the direction of a handful of DJ???s and producers in the UK, where it was created, and into the pop music spotlight. Since then, everyone from Madonna to Paul McCartney to Linkin Park has taken an active interest in this hybrid music. Some of the latest and most intriguing mashup offerings come courtesy of Jon Moskowitz out of Brooklyn, NY.

Moskowitz worked with producers DJ Cappel and Smitty to release Blue Eyes Meets Bed-Stuy, a daring combination of verses from Biggie and beats created from samples of Frank Sinatra???s music. (WHAT?!) Although the pairing can feel a bit forced at times, the album produces a few cuts that are just irresistible. The first song deftly blends vocals from ???Juicy??? with a sliced and diced version of ???New York, New York???. Guaranteed goose bumps for any New Yorker or east coast hip hop head. Another standout is track three which layers ???Nasty Boy??? lyrics over bass-laden samples of ???For Every Man There???s a Woman.??? Listen for chops of Sinatra???s horns interspersed throughout???so fresh.

As crazy as the BIG and Sinatra union is, it is not quite as outlandish as another of Moskowtiz??? projects, Queensbridge Meets Kingston. Released in 2004, this DJ Swindle produced EP matches Mobb Deep vocals with samples of Bob Marley???s more well-known tracks. These tracks really bang. Something about the sweetness and familiarity of Marley???s music under Prodigy???s sharp delivery really hits home. The production does not seem to be as intricate or layered as that on Blue Eyes, but Marley???s melodies hardly need any embellishment. The highlight of the album is most definitely the ???Quiet Storm???/???Stir it Up??? blend???pure fire.

Juicy - New York, New York
Nasty Boy - For Every Man There's a Woman
Quiet Storm

Tags: Mandrill

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Interview: Reverend Run

Don’t call it a comeback?

Although he hasn’t been in the limelight until recently, Reverend Run needs no introduction. As one third of the group RUN DMC, Run, Darryl Mc Daniels and the late Jam Master Jay have spread the culture of hip-hop from their native Hollis, Queens to the world.

Reverend Run’s solo project, entitled Distortion, is the first release off of the new Russell Simmons Music Group (RSMG/Def Jam) label. With its pounding rock inspired rhythms and bombastic lyrics, the first single, “Mind on the Road,” grabs your attention immediately.

Not only does the album remind us of how hip hop used to be, but it also takes the genre in a new direction, drawing influences from such rock acts as Lynyrd Skynyrd and Black Sabbath.

Distortion may be one of the most innovative rock albums to drop in 2005. Run is also premiering a new reality show on MTV entitled Run’s House.

Run, you’ve been in the game for a long time. What made you want to pursue a solo project?

I’m a poet. I enjoy it. I love a challenge. This album let me get back into the world and show people what I’ve got.

What are the influences for this new album?

Man, where do I begin? Myself. Run DMC stuff. A little bit of Larry Smith and Russell Simmons and the Beastie Boys. Nothing new. Basically it’s all the stuff that made us so great. And it’s a very RUN album. It reflects my personality.

Why did you choose to go with a virtual unknown producer (Whiteboy) instead of the hottest producers in the game?

I wanted to have full control over the album and yet I wanted some help. I instructed him on what I wanted and that’s that. He was just lettin’ Run be Run. I didn’t want to sound like anyone else, ya know?

Run, many of these new hip-hop artists coming out today weren’t even born when you first started in the game. How do you think the younger generation will react to your album?

I’m not sure how the younger generation will react. You can’t impress the youth by chasing them, you have to impress the youth by being yourself. This is me being me and I can’t change that. I’m not chasing the 50 Cent crowd with this album. They will find me.

Is it difficult to be a man of faith and a hip hop artist today?

No, it’s not. It’s like asking George Foreman if it’s difficult to be a man of faith and knock people out everyday. I think you can be both.

What do you think about the state of hip-hop right now?

I love it. Kanye West is getting all these Grammy nods. You got Common. And look at 50 Cent doing well in the business world. Look at Queen Latifah and Will Smith. Ice Cube has Cubevision productions and is in Hollywood makin’ movies. It’s wonderful that God has given all of these young black men an outlet to be creative. Hip hop culture has given us an outlet to be expressive.

You have a new reality show on MTV entitled Run’s House, can you tell me a little about that?

It premieres on October 14 and I’m extremely excited about it. This is my church and its mind blowing. I can be REVEREND Run on MTV. I’m in a good place for hip-hop, and the channel its on makes it so powerful. This is a very spiritual show and the fact that its on MTV will make it even more exciting. I’m very thankful for the opportunity.

What is the premise of the show?

I wake up in the morning and they show me composing a word of wisdom in my bathroom. I compose a word of wisdom and sent it out to a bunch of people at the beginning of the day. People like my brother Russell Simmons, Kid Rock and Serena Williams. After that, I get out the tub and my show starts. The show will somehow intertwine with those words, and at the end of the day I will end the show with a word of wisdom as well.

This show focuses on not only you, but your family as well. Was it difficult to have your lives taped for a TV show?

Not when you know what you’re here for. When you know your purpose in life, it’s easy to show others.

These are some of the first major moves you’ve taken since Jam Master Jay’s passing a few years ago? Is it difficult to get back into the limelight after his death?

When I have a show that’s usable and helpful, nothing is difficult. It’s only difficult when you don’t have love in your heart.

Distortion is in stores on October 18th. Run’s House premieres on MTV on October 14h. You can find more information on Run at his website and on Myspace.

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Interview with Mad Squirrel and Blake9 of The Acorns

The Acorns is one of DC's best underground collaborations. Appearing on the scene two and a half years ago and made up of MC Mad Squirrel and DJ and label founder Blake9, The Acorns recently released their album Dropping From the Trees on Candlewax Records. The album is lyrically refreshing, with beats that are simple but completely funky. Some notable tracks: “Woodpecker Nemisis”, “Party in my Neighborhood” (which took me back to my Mr. Rogers days), “Those Who Know Network”, “Six Years” and”Five She”. The album also features some other MCs who you should know about: Comel_15 (of Nine:Fifteen), Pasha da eMcee, PreGo 35 and Stylus Chris. For DC Hip Hoppers, this is definitely an album you want to add to your collection.

How did both of you get into the music scene?

Mad Squirrel:Well, I???ve always been a rhymer. It???s funny, when I go back to my mom???s house in Massachusetts sometimes I???ll be going through old stuff and find folders or notebooks or pads full of rhymes. All sorts of shit. A lot of them are actually quite good, but definitely of another era. Then I was out in San Francisco doing ethnographic research for my Ph.D. in anthropology, and I was working at Amoeba Music, and I met Feller Quentin who was also working there. At the time he was doing hip hop with his roommate Eddie Vic. They were called ???the Latter.??? So we started hanging out, and he knew I used to write rhymes, so he was like ???let???s make an underground tape together.??? At the time, I was also hanging out with a lot of dope Bay Area underground emcees, especially folks who used to get together at the Day One open-mics at the Rockin??? Java coffee shop on Haight Street. Because I was there doing research, at first I was a little hesitant to start rhyming. But one thing led to another and the next thing I knew, I was rockin??? the open-mics and doing songs with Feller. Our first Forest Fires Collective stuff was so off the wall that fools didn???t even know. I didn???t even know if people would be feeling it. But Eddie Vic and Feller decided to put it out as a CD. Originally the FFC was Eddie Vic and Feller on the beats, Eddie Vic doing most of the cuts, and Feller (going by the name Smif C) and me and Prego and Sim the Drunken Owl rhyming. I still look back and think, ???damn! We had a tight group of beat-makers and rhymers.??? And my friend Gavin (aka T.Root), who is one of the dopest emcees I know, came through and did a track. And we also had Dr. Lester, our sonic Minister of Information, contributing a track. I knew that the first album had an underlying dopeness to it, but I was actually surprised at how many people were feelin??? it. I mean, for a while it seemed like every new person I met had just picked up the CD. I would go on chat rooms and people would be talkin??? about it and shit. I had also been doing open-mics for a while and a lot of people knew me from that. That???s about the time that I felt I had arrived in the music scene.

Blake9: I have always enjoyed listening to music. From age 7 until I was 16 I played the drums and percussion formally. I took a break from playing music and focused on athletics when I was in high school. I started djing during the summer of 1997. Then shortly after that I met MC Jihad (Isreal) of DC hip hop group Defined Print who introduced me to Stylus Chris. From there Jihad introduced me to others doing hip hop music in DC and so on and so on??? I???ve been making beats since 2000. I put out the ???Say What??? record in 2001. I continue to put out records and make music. The rest is just details.
Read the rest of this entry »

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Motown Remixed Contest

The Couch Sessions is giving away two Motown Remixed CDs this summer!

The Sound Of Young America is young once again. Motown Remixed re-grooves 15 of the greatest songs of Motown for a new generation. On this album, which features more than a dozen of the world???s top producers and remixers, you???ll hear Motown classics like you've never heard them before.

To enter, please send an email to articleonline@gmail.com with your Name, Email, and Location (city, state, country). Contest Ends on September 12th, 2005. Winners will be selected by a random drawing. ONE ENTRY PER EMAIL ADDRESS, PLEASE!

Email addresses will be kept private.

More info on the Motown Remxied series can be found here.

Tags: Mandrill

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OutKast on the Silver Screen

Finally! Someone bought the rights to Outkast's movie!

Universal Pictures bought the rights to the HBO Production. The movie, formerly titled “My Life in Idlewild”, is a musical feature length film in which Andre Benjamin (Andre3000) and Antwon Patton (Big Boi) star as musicians in the 1930's (break out your seersucker suits!). The film's cast also includes Terrence Dashon Howard, Ving Rhames, Patti LaBelle, Macy Gray, Cicely Tyson, Faizon Love, and Ben Vereen. (I read somewhere that Rosario Dawson might also be a castmember) The film was directed by Bryan Barber, a longtime video director for OutKast. This will be his debut as a movie director.

The movie will also feature songs from the upcoming OutKast album as well as a soundtrack that is going to be released on LaFace/Zomba.

The film itself will be released in 2006.

Tags: Mandrill

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Weekend Update: Katrina Clap Edition

LOTS of ways for well-meaning rich people to donate to hurricane victims this weekend, but only two worth noting–seriously.

Although the people at DCist don't really like me anymore, I'm still going to try and make it to their Katrina benefit party at American University tonight, mainly because I've fallen in love with Laura Burhenn's music and I've been itching to see her live for a hot minute now. I've also been wanting to see Restoring Poetry in Music for the longest time as well so it will be like killing two birds with one stone (no pun), to say the least.

On Saturday, Dave Nada (one of the East Coasts most prolific DJ's) will be spinning at Wonderland Ballroom for the Oh Snap! Southern Comfort hurricane relief party.

And this isn't hurricane related, but the Adams Morgan Day festival is this Saturday and Sunday.

With all of this, the highlight of my weekend will be when I see my friend dressed up in a big blue cat suit for a private kid???s party this weekend. Yes, I will be taking pictures!

Tags: Mandrill

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“Golddigger” Remix (”George Bush Doesn???t Care About Black People”)

It's about time. The Hip-Hop community is responding to the deplorable aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Check this “Golddigger” remix by The Legendary K.O. Lyrics are as follows:

Five days in this motherfucking attic
I can't use the cellphone I keep getting static
Dying 'cause they lying instead of telling us the truth (…)
Screwed 'cause they say they're coming back for us, too
but that was three days ago and I don't see no rescue
I ain't sayin' he's a gold digger
but he ain't messin' with no broke niggas
George Bush don't like black people
George Bush don't like black people

MP3 avaliable for download here. (Note, this page is getting linked from Kos, so I might be changing this link soon). Check out more music on FMWJ. (via Kos Diaries)

Update: Mos Def has also released a track called “Katrina Clap” as well. Its actually pretty mediocre (especially for Mos), but still much appreciated. (via Hashim)

PLEASE DONATE TO HURRICANE KATRINA VICTIMS!

Tags: Mandrill

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LA Music: Uponshop, Kicks, Amoeba Music

That's not my picture. However, all of my pictures from my LA trip are on my Flickr Photostream.

Instead of just being another open store taking advantage of the increased foot traffic at the Sunset Junction festival, the crew at Uponshop threw a street party of their own. Near the end of my first day in LA, I got a chance to stop by for a little crate diggin'. Of course, I was too cheap to buy anything, but if I did have money, I would've gotten the sweet vinyl as Marlena Shaw's Spice of Life and for $1.

Coincidentally, I saw the girl of my dreams there too. No Lie. A few weeks ago, I dreamed about a fine ass honey with caramel skin and curly hair spinnin' underground hip-hop once, and here she was (the one on the left), mixing old school soul with hip-hop and reggae and back again. I was in heaven.

A little up the road from Uponshop is Kicks Sole Provider. Usually, I hate going to these “trendy hipster stores,” cause I feel that I'm not “hipster” enough to make it through the door. The last thing I care about when it comes to wardrobe is my shoes, but the staff at Kicks were so damn cool that I almost ended up getting some Addias. But I ended up saving $85 and getting drunk instead.

While were on the music tip, I would also suggest that ya'll check out Amoeba Music on Sunset. It's not the best store in LA for hip-hop, but you can't mention music stores without talking about this place. This place is a Mecca for any type of music fan, and their staff actually knows about music, unlike the mofos at Best Buy.

More California posts coming soon.

Tags: Mandrill

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NFL Stands By Kanye West

The NFL, usually known as the the “No Fun League” by its critics, is standing by Kanye West and won't drop him from the NFL Kickoff concert special set for Thursday night.

Kanye, who nervously (and truthfully) told the world that “George Bush doesn't care about black people,” on NBC's star studded telethon, has the full support of the National Football League. A league spokesperson told E! Online that, the NFL selects its performers “for their entertainment value, not their political views.” This stance is suprising, considering the NFL's reaction to Janet Jackson's infamous “wardrobe malfunciton” at the 2004 Super Bowl.

Kanye's performance, however, won't be live. It will be taped earlier in Los Angeles and edited during the live telecast. The league has not said if this because of the controversy or not.

So far, Kanye hasn't found any Dixie Chicks-esque outrage from his comments, thank goodness. So far, Clear Channel has not dropped their deal with Kanye either. His new album, Late Registration is expected to top the Billboard charts at #1 with over 900,000 copies sold. He will also perform at several other benefit events in the next few weeks.

Tags: Mandrill

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