Life is fiction, competition and contradiction
Petty perceptions, window dressing for misdirection
Love is a lotto, I know I know you know what I know
Hope is so hollow, that’s why winos follow the bottle
And people pressure, make death a hidden treasure
A guilty pleasure, lonely language inside a letter
It’s now or never, move it, move it, love it or lose it
‘Fore it’s recruited, then included in something stupid
It’s nature’s nature, pay the player and say your prayers
Naysayers, the haters, the major players, the beggars
You ’bout it, ’bout it, don’t allow it, pout witout it
Then those who doubt it, doomed to die to death of cowards
The world is yours, in a world we can’t afford
So ignore the law; start a fire, then start a war
If you’re sick and tired of your access denied
Free will died long before blogs and iPods…
(c) P.O.R.N. “Radio Daze”

P.O.R.N. is featured on two tracks on the album, “Walk Alone” and “Radio Daze”, the latter being quoted in a review by Andrew Shapter of The Huffington Post, “Why The Roots May Have The Best Album of 2010″.

Not a shabby introduction for the West Philly native and Money Making Jam Boy member. P.O.R.N. is currently hard at work on his mixtape due out in January. Philly DJ’s Mike Nyce and Rich Medina are collaborating on this upcoming project, and he’s expecting contributions from fellow Jam Boy, Truck North and Philly rapper Peedi Crakk among others.

You can follow P.O.R.N. on Twitter at @porndmc and check back here at The Couch Sessions for info and download links when available…this is a project from a dope new emcee you won’t want to miss!

The Money Making Jam Boys consists of: P.O.R.N., Truck North, STS Slim, Black Thought and long-time Roots Crew affiliate Dice Raw.

Danny feat. Von Pea – Hoedown Showdown

Yep, we have some more from Couch Sessions Approved Artist Danny Swain for you. As many of y’all know, I’ve been down with this kid since 2006, and his Def Jux debut, “Where is Danny,” is dropping real soon (finally!). “Hoedown Showdown” is my favorite tracks out of all of the ones I’ve heard so far. Produced by Alex Goose, the track draws from the dark, psychedelic tones that both Danny and Alex was going for. Lyrically, this track is a beast. Get on this.

catch up on Danny, check him on Twitter and MySpace.

Danny Swain – Manic At The Disco

You might remember Mr. Swain from our harping on him since way back in 2006, and our review of his last album, And I Love H.E.R. If you still haven’t gotten hip to Mr. Swain yet, you need to stop sleeping.

After a slew of stops, starts, and other associated drama, Couch Sessions Approved Artist Danny Swain is finally releasing his latest LP on Def Jux records. Since the last album The album, titled Where Is Danny? is slated to drop this year, featuring production from the stellar Alex Goose.

Swain cuts through the nonsense of hip-hop, giving us simply dope lyrics and rhymes over hot beats. Even though some might call him “backpacker,” Swain consistently stays current and defies any label or categorization. Manic At The Disco takes on a darker tone than most of his work and is a take off of Eminem’s Slim Shady EP.

If you need to catch up on Danny, check him on Twitter and MySpace.

The Carps – It’s Raining In The Projects But It’s Sunny In Africa (Rudeboi-LaBeouf Remix)

If you’ve been reading this site for a while, you know that we have been a huge fan of The Carps since this site’s inception. I’m glad to report that big things are ahead for the duo and they’re heading back to the studio to make new music, and Jahmal was recently featured on the MSTRKRFT CD Fist of God, along with John Legend, Lil’ Mo, Ghostface Killah and others.

I got a chance to hang with Jahmal while I was in Montreal last week (shout out to Schwartz’s Delicatessen, the Ben’s Chili Bowl of Montreal!) and he peeped me to this remix to their earlier release It’s Raining In The Projects But It’s Sunny in Africa that he was going to finish up on the train ride back to T.O. I finally have the mix in my (digital) hands, and I gotta say–it’s a banger!

myspace.com/thecarps

If you didn’t know, Brittany Bosco dropped one of the hottest albums of 2008 with her Spectrum EP. Not only was the packaging better than anything else put out last year (except maybe for that Chester French EP), but the music was some of the best I’ve heard in a while

Since then, the Atlanta based Ms. Bosco has been on her grind with well recieved shows on the West Coast and an upcoming show in New York at Santos Party House on May 21st. While she was out in LA, she filmed a video for her song “Black and White,” which  is dropping real soon.

I have already pegged Ms. Bosco as a figure to watch in 2009. Her and her fellow Big Up ATL companions Danny! and Alex Goose are off to big things this year.

myspace.com/brittanybosco

Danny
And I Love HER

It’s a damn shame that Danny Swain isn’t more known in the music industry. While some acts, even those who aren’t even signed to labels, generate massive Internet hype, Swain, who is signed to the venerable Def Jux can’t even get his label to return his phone calls.

But its all good. Swain has resorted to what he does best: producing, writing, packaging, and distributing this records by himself. And like his last CD that I reviewed here two years ago, this D.I.Y. approach can hold its own with any major label CD on the market this year. (And no, I’m not biased, this is my honest opinion.)

And I Love H.E.R. is a concept album, and that concept is one that most guys know all to well–our frustrations with women. But of course, there is a duality to all this: the “woman” is hip-hop. As a dude who hasn’t gotten the ink that he deserves in the hip-hop industry, the frustration is well deserved.

Danny Swain – I Want Her (Snippet)

What strikes you first about this album is its production. Headed by the 24 year-old Danny and ATL producer Alex Goose, the sound leans very heavily on 60s era jazz samples and skirts into the Motown sound. Sure, the cover and the title pay homage to the Beatles, but the sound stays fresh and modern. Even if tracks like “The Groove,” “I Don’t Know”, and “After the Love Has Gone” have some 60′s cheekiness, it’s handled with in a way that’s tasteful and not annoying (Think “Hey Ya, not “Rehab”), and songs like “At What Price,” having an ending which I can only describe as amazing.

Danny Swain – At What Price (Snippet)

As a producer, Danny has a knack for putting a fresh spin on the tired hip-hop “backpacker” vein with production that emulates the jazz-centric “golden era” of hip-hop but dosen’t imitate it. Tracks like “Not The One,” “Wanderland,” “Do You,” and “Never Change,” have song of the year status on my iPod and the thump of “Yoko Ono,” can put almost any street song to shame. In fact, why doesn’t Danny have a production deal?

Danny Swain – Wanderland (Snippet)

As for the lyrical side, Swain brings fire as always with a nonchalant flow that never tries too hard. From his lyrics to the liner notes (mastered at Roscoe Mastering and Waffles?) Swain never seems takes himself too seriously, which is a rareity in hip-hop. Of course many people compare him to Kanye West (which apparently he’s still salty about–he mentions it about 4 times on the album), but Swain leaves the egotistical nonsense at home. Tanya Morgan’s Che Grand and Naledge from Kidz In Da Hall are recruited for the ride.

Danny Swain – Where You Goin’ (Snippet)

The Verdict: “And I Love HER” ain’t your typical rap CD, and that’s a good thing. Solid production. Solid rhymes, and an a refreshing atmosphere that is neither backapcker nor hood makes this album a must buy for 2008. Seriously.

Buy And I Love HER from CD Baby

Us East Coast people may joke about the so-called “flyover states,” but the nation’s heartland has went ahead and produced a unique scene all its own. And if everybody that comes from the Show Me State sounds like Miles Bonny, then we better take notice.

The first time I heard about Bonny was when he was with Sounds Good, his collaboration he put out with MC Joe Good, which we played on the Podcast back in the day. Bonny provided the beats to the album Biscuits & Gravy which is one of the more underrated hip-hop releases of 2005, and offered a glimpse of the Lawrence, KS hip-hop scene which birthed the equally underrated Deep Thinkers. I lost track of Bonny until a week ago, when I heard some of his new tracks that put him in front of the mic. Bonny, was known more for his production skills, dropping almost 15 albums on his own Innatesounds label, but he left the vocals to other artists.

Bonny has put his vocals at the forefront, and the dude’s sound is incredible. Bonnny’s smoky voice sets this dude apart from a lot of R&B singers out today. Personally, this might actually hold me over until D’Angelo decides to put out another album. Bonny is also as jazz trumpeter, and his work blends hip-hop, jazz, and soul.

I can’t nail down a particular album to check because there are so many but his Closer Love EP is a good start (iTunes), Check his MySpace and Innate Sounds homepage and see for yourself.

myspace.com/milesbonny

Miles Bonny “Yes i Do”

No doubt most of you have seen this new Nike commercial featuring Saul Williams. It’s been plastered across ESPN, and the NCAA March Madness tournament for the past couple weeks.Most people were a little concerned that Saul would let a song about reparations be used by a corporate giant like Nike, who still uses sweat shop labor in Asia. Saul went at the haters on his message board:

I have never seen a Nike ad and thought “I gotta get those shoes”, but I have thought, “who sings that? I gotta get that album”. which is to say, am I selling Nikes or is Nike selling Saul Williams albums?

I made $0 from the sales of that album….so far.

I might consider myself a sellout if I wrote a song FOR a corporation, but an ad exec asking me to use my song in their commercial, strikes me as not much different as a student asking to use my song in their film. Granted I can think of plenty of corporations that I would say no to and a couple of years ago I probably would have said no to Nike, just as I did to Mercedes (but they actually wanted me to write a poem about a car! A poem!). But, yes, I knew that Nike had made certain steps in addressing issues, which I had to research years ago as my neice, who is a formidable athlete, and daughter have both begged me for Nikes. Although I do not personally own a pair, I remember what it was like to be in junior high school. They’re both really excited about the commercial.

The commercial is damn cool, and I see this as a sacrifice for the greater good. If only a fraction of the millions of people who saw this ad would go and research the artist and maybe even go to his shows, then everybody wins. Saul gets more fans (and more money), and Nike gets to further cement its status as being a trend setter in the marketplace.

Hopefully, the dude got more from NIKE than the paltry $80,000 that Feist and Yael Naim got from Apple for their commercial endorsement.

Saul is playing the 9:30 Club on Monday, and it’s not sold out. Check out our interview with Saul Williams from 2006.

Danny Swain feat Von Pea – I Don’t Know

Like most Black recording artists who don’t sound like this, Danny Swain has had some trouble with his record label. After signing to Def Jux last year, the dude wasn’t even getting phone calls or emails returned. Check his interview with 33 Jones where he calls out his label multiple times.

Well, Swain is releasing an album, but not through Def Jux.

On April 15th, Swain will release And I Love H.E.R., and its going to be self-released. The dude is even boxing and stuffing CDs by himself. That’s hustle. Thing is, it sounds like a major label album, with appearances by Naledge (of Kids In Da Hall) and Von Pea (of Tanya Morgan). Like his previous efforts, Danny handles most of the production by himself.

Like I said before, this dude can hang with the best rappers/producers out there. Check the tunes on his MySpace page and you’ll agree (or your money back!). This album is going to be a monster. Def Jux will regret sleeping on this one. (track via 15 Mins to Live)

Wow. This video is definately out there, but a good look at the moment for me. Why? I don’t know. Mabye cause Santi looks so damn good in it. Looks like she’s definitely gonna blow up in ‘08.