The Audacity of Dope

Aw man.  First off, you know anything related to the greatest show of all time, Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, is automatically getting posted.  Second, Shad can really rhyme and this track is dope.  Everything I’ve heard from dude, I’ve liked.  Good to see another dope Canadian MC (shout to Kardi & the Black Jays, Drake, Web, Moka, etc.), since somebody has to rep our neighbors to the north properly…lord knows their athletes aren’t doing it*.

*ok, ok.  You guys have picked it up after a horrible first week.  Took you waaaaay too long to get going though.

Swiped from Pitchfork.

QN5‘s Domingo remixed a classic joint from Amy’s first album and they synced it up to the original video.  After one listen, I still prefer the original, but that’s cause I’ve bumped that one about 23981293218 times (and cringed at the homophobic lines each time).  Domingo did his thing on the remix though, good ish.  Some of you younger cats might be familiar with part of this song, since B.o.B. sampled it for “Grip Your Body.”  And the nerve of them to label it as “featuring Amy Winehouse.”  I hate when people do that.

Sidenote: get yourself together Amy, we need you back.

Let’s keep the A-Side Worldwide theme going for another post, shall we?  Buff sits down with HHO and discusses the sounds and messages in his new album, There’s Only One.  He’s on point with “Beat The Speakers Up.”  That’s just what Sound Session does every weekend.

(I’d be facing the other way…)

I mentioned in the Bishop Lamont post that the Los Angeles hip-hop scene is on fire right now and when you combine that area with the another hotbed of talent, the midwest, it’s just not fair.  A lot of artists from Michigan have relocated to the L.A. area over the years (Dilla, Ta’Raach, Househoes, etc.) and the A-Side Worldwide family has a few that split time between the two regions as well.  You’ve probably heard of Buff1 by now, if not through his solo work (cop There’s Only One, in stores now!), then perhaps through the classic Athletic Mic League material.  Another group that’s on the rise, Now On, consists of one of Buff’s AML cohorts, DJ Haircut, alongside Jackson Perry and IX Lives.

Now On dropped their debut album, Eye Level, in 2005, and released an equally impressive project, Don’t Call It A Mixtape, last year.  Their currently prepping the release of Tomorrow Already, and they’ve been kind enough to leak the title track off it for y’all to check out.  I wouldn’t necessarily label this joint as indicative of their sound, as they’re a hard group to put in a box.  There’s no need to classify though, it’s just good music.  I’ll toss in another new track with Shawn Jackson as well:

Now On – “Tomorrow Already”
Now On ft. Shawn Jackson – “Write Back”

With production from the criminally underrated Lab Tech crew, Astronote, and Seattle’s own Jake One, you already know what to expect.  Be on the lookout for Tomorrow Already dropping soon, and also keep an eye out for Haircut’s Mayer Hawthorne project…it’s gonna be crazy.

U-N-I performing “Beautiful Day” with Me-N-Them for MTV…where did that 3rd verse come from?

So if you haven’t heard, MTV is holding a contest for the best breakout artist from Los Angeles, and the homies Thurz & Y-O from U-N-I are in the final three!  The winner gets to perform at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards on Sept. 7th (which will be hosted by the hilarious Russell Brand, chyea).

Here’s where you come in: we need everyone to head over to http://la.mtv2.com/ and vote as many times as you can for U-N-I.  The underground hip-hop community managed to help Substantial win the last MTV contest like this, so we need to do it again.  If you’re really bored, pretend typing in the captchas is keyboard practice.  Eh?  Ehhhh?  Ok, fine.  Do it for good music instead.

What are you waiting for?  Go.  GO!

The homey Modi over at DCtoBC sent this over for y’all to check out.  He recently paired up with two other blogs specializing in the DC/Maryland/Virginia area, StartOfTheLine and KNOWxONE to highlight some of the best talent from the area in a monthly mixtape series.  If you missed July, you can find it over at the Dopehouse.

As for this month’s edition, Modi explains:

we’re not here to whine about how our region is overlooked when it comes to hip hop; we’ve already made progress. wale had arguably the best mixtape of the year, and sold out that show at S.O.B.’s in NYC last month. tabi bonney’s videos were all over cable, and one even earned an MTV awards nomination. we have definitely made an impression on the music industry, and are on the way to a movement.

people are hungry to see what else the region has to offer, so we went extra hard in creating the best possible august edition of the DMV mixtape. in addition to the names you already know, we wanted to introduce a few that you may not. we got exclusives, we got unreleased tracks, we have some major label talent, and we have people who grinded out their tracks in their basements on makeshift studio equipment. and we can honestly say it all cranks. so take a second and check it out.

There it is.  Tracklisting and download link after the jump.  Speaking of the DMV, Soulstice will be on this week’s Sound Session.  Be sure to tune in!

Read more »

The homies over at Ruby Hornet continue their excellent “Freestyle In The Park” series with this edition featuring Tanya Morgan.  If you’re sleeping, Tanya Morgan Is A Rap Group and Von Pea and Donwill (shout to Ilyas) spit some verses from their latest EP, The Bridge.  You can also check out another page on Ruby Hornet where they break down the inspiration behind their “We Doin’ Our” cut, which astute listeners will remember hearing on Sound Session when it first dropped.

Seattle people: y’all can catch TM at the Showbox (Market) on Sept. 26th as part of the “Freshly Dipped Tour” (more dates on the site), alongside the Hieroglyphics, Musab, Knobody, and hometown heroes, The Blue Scholars.  Should be a great show!

One of the best blogs out there, illRoots, linked up with one half of Inverse, Tunji, for a quick Q&A session.  Tunj speaks about the group’s sound, their inspirations, and gives us a little information on their upcoming debut album, Long Day’s Journey.  You can peep the entire interview here.

If you still haven’t downloaded their So Far (The Collection) project, slap yourself and then grab it here.

You may have heard us talking about this on Sound Session the past few weeks.  It’s official: two of the best in the game, Elzhi and Black Milk will be coming out to the Seattle stop of the Red Bull Big Tune Beat Battle.  It’s going to sell out, so be sure and cop those tickets…

As much as we all complain about D’Angelo’s disappearance, at least he’s popped up on a few dope collaborations over the years (“So Far To Go” & “Imagine” come to mind).  Maxwell, on the other hand, has laid reeeeeally low.  I spotted this recent live performance of his classic “This Woman’s Work” over at the Smoking Section, and had to post it up.  If for some reason you don’t have the song, download it ASAP:

Maxwell – “This Woman’s Work”

Hint: play this song for any girl born in the 80’s who played basketball growing up and watch what happens.