The Audacity of Dope

Back to business as usual this week, nothing but good music and good times.  Check out this week’s Sound Session for new songs from artists like Chali 2Na, the Kidz In The Hall, Raekwon, Kev Brown, Pac Div, Anjulie, Lushlife, Seattle’s own Blue Scholars, and more.  Speaking of the town, huge shout to the Massive Monkees for killing it in the first round of “America’s Best Dance Crew” on MTV.  Not only are they repping the 206 to the fullest, but they’re also representing true b-boy culture on one of the biggest stages in the world.  Keep up the great work fellas, we’re all proud of you.

Be sure to check out our full interview with the elusive and legendary Bilal too.  We had a great discussion about his classic 1st Born Second album, what he’s been up to since its release almost a decade ago, his upcoming Air Tight’s Revenge project, and much more.  It’s a great one.

Show #219 (8-9-09)

1. Blue Scholars – “HI-808” (Local Music)
2. Nas ft. Choklate – “Film”
3. Chali 2Na ft. Anthony Hamilton – “Don’t Stop”
4. Kidz In The Hall – “Flickin’”
5. Lushlife – “The Kindness”
6. Khingz – “Blaq Han Solo” (Local Music)
7. Slaughterhouse ft. M.O.P. – “Woodstock (Hood Hop)”
8. Raekwon ft. Inspectah Deck, Method Man, & Ghostface Killah – “House Of Flying Daggers”
9. The Roots – “How I Got Over”
10. **INTERVIEW WITH BILAL (SNIPPET)**
11. Bilal ft. Mos Def & Common – “Reminisce”
12. Kev Brown – “The Random Joint”
13. Rashid Hadee – “Set In Stone”
14. Pac Div – “Young Black Male”
15. Drake ft. Saukrates – “The Search”
16. Fresh Espresso – “Something New” (Local Music)
17. Brother Ali – “Us”
18. Mos Def – “Pistola”
19. Mayer Hawthorne – “One Track Mind”
20. Anjulie – “Some Dumb Girl”
21. Peter Hadar & Theophilus London – “Want You 4 Myself”

Link to download the mp3 – http://www.mediafire.com/?i4goitumtzq
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/63949230e475187d/)

Link to download the full interview with Bilal – http://www.mediafire.com/?limxqmnyonz
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/6388930225a66890/ )

If there are any problems with the links or if you’d like to be added to our weekly email list to receive the playlist and download links after every show, just shoot me an email, DJHyphen@gmail.com.

A few months ago, J. Moore and I held a quick informal poll on Sound Session with our listeners – Of the most well respected ‘big 3’ R&B singers of the last 15 years, who is your favorite – Maxwell, D’Angelo, or Bilal?  Despite only releasing one official album, Bilal battled it out with D’Angelo for the top spot and they ended up tying the vote.

Personally, after hearing 1st Born Second in 2001, my entire vision of R&B was shaken to the core.  On that one record, Bilal displayed a soulfulness in his music, songwriting, and most noticeably, his voice that hasn’t been topped since.  Simply put, it’s a flawless album and marks one of the crowning achievements of the Soulquarian collective.

When Bilal came through the SNSS studio, we jumped at the chance to ask him all about that album, his Love For Sale follow up that was unfortunately shelved by Interscope (Industry Rule #4,080), and his upcoming project, Air Tight’s Revenge.  We also discussed his upbringing, his first big break as D’Angelo’s back up singer (and his prompt firing), behind the scenes stories from the Soulquarian days, his favorite J Dilla memory, and much more.  Check out the full interview below to catch up with the legendary Bilal Oliver.

Bilal on Sound Session – http://www.mediafire.com/?limxqmnyonz
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/6388930225a66890/ )

If you’re a music lover and don’t own 1st Born Second, cop it immediately…

(4:32 FTW)

I like how I’m so busy/tired these days that I upload my own footage and forget to post it on TAOD until I see it on other blogs.  Whoopsidoodle.

Much like the Asher Roth footage I posted last week, here’s a medley documenting Cudi’s performance in front of 15K people at our Summer Jam from the end of last month.  After coming out to his intro, he ran through joints like “Dat New New,” “Is There Any Love,” “Sky High,” “Make Her Say,” and “Day N Nite.”  I’ll have more SJ footage soon, plus interviews with Cudi and Asher as well.  Stay tuned…

By now, most of you have heard Nas’ collaboration with the 2009 Red Bull Big Tune champion, C-Sick, but I thought I’d post up the ill behind the scenes footage of the making of “Film.”  Above, you can peep a little background on C-Sick’s journey, while the two studio segments are below.

Also, neither of the 2 versions of the song that have leaked online so far are the final edit, so I’m posting that up too.  In case you’re living in the woods, my co-host on Sunday Night Sound Session, J. Moore, created the Red Bull Big Tune with Vitamin D, Jake One, DV-One, and Marcus Lalario.  The homies helped put this song together and even recruited Seattle’s own Choklate to sing the hook.  Due to sample clearance issues, C-Sick’s original beat had to be replayed, and you’ve yet to hear the final, official version of the track…until now.  Enjoy!

Nas ft. Choklate – “Film” (final version)

I’m not sure if it’s just a natural part of getting older, but it seems like an inordinate number of people in the public eye have passed away this summer.  We’ve had to start our show with RIP shouts almost every week, and sadly this edition of SNSS was no different.

By now, you’ve probably heard that we lost yet another member of the legendary Slum Village family, Baatin, last week, but I also got news that an old friend of mine passed too.  Jose Hernando was a great friend of my family and even rented a room from us when I was in 7th and 8th grade.  For those two years, he was almost like a big brother to me and I’ll always remember those days fondly.  We used to play all sorts of video games and he was always there to help with anything I needed.  He was also a semi-pro bicyclist and was training a few weeks ago near Seward Park when a van hit him and placed him into a coma.  After fighting bravely, he passed in peace on the 24th.  He’ll be survived by his wife Chanel, his two children, and all the people he touched throughout his life.  You couldn’t wish to know a nicer and cooler guy, and I’m happy I was able to have Jose in my life, even though it was far too brief.  I really wish we could have caught up before all this happened.

You hear it all the time, but it’s so important not to take life for granted.  Reach out to your friends and family and tell ’em you love ’em.  You never know what life will bring, so live each day to the fullest and be the best person you can be.  We’re all in this together and our interaction and relationships are what make life special.  I hope you’re all doing well and if I haven’t talked to you in a while, let’s catch up – DJHyphen@gmail.com.

Show #218 (8-2-09)

1. Eminem – “The Warning”
2. Clipse ft. Keri Hilson – “All Eyes On Me”
3. Noel Zancanella ft. Baatin – “Could It Be”
4. Slum Village ft. Marsha Ambrosius – “Cloud 9”
5. Crown City Rockers – “Soul”
6. The Roots – “How I Got Over”
7. Lushlife – “Until The Sun Dies”
8. Fresh Espresso – “The Lazerbeams” (Local Music)
9. Drake ft. Saukrates – “The Search”
10. Statik Selektah ft. Lil’ Fame, Saigon, & Sean Price – “Critically Acclaimed”
11. Blue Scholars – “Coo” (Local Music)
12. Consequence – “Closer”
13. Nas ft. Choklate – “Film”
14. Beatnick & K-Salaam ft. Bun B, Talib Kweli, & Colin Munroe – “Don’t Die”
15. Mayer Hawthorne – “Shiny & New”
16. Nicolay ft. Carlitta Durand – “Lose Your Way”
17. Peter Hadar & Theophilus London – “Want U 4 Myself”
18. Mr. Hudson ft. Kid Cudi – “Everything Is Broken”
19. Brother Ali – “Us”
20. Guilty Simpson – “Coroners Music”
21. Sonny Bonoho – “Judge Brown” (Local Music)
22. Jay-Z ft. Kanye West & Rihanna – “Run This Town”
23. Raekwon ft. Inspectah Deck, Method Man, & Ghostface Killah – “House Of Flying Daggers”
24. J. Cole – “Dream Girl”

Link to download the mp3 of the show – http://www.mediafire.com/?gfzijmezgtd
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/636035690e255b56/)

If there are any problems with the links or if you’d like to be added to our weekly email list to receive the playlist and download links after every show, just shoot me an email, DJHyphen@gmail.com.

Ok, honestly…it’s about 10pm and still damn near 90 degrees here in Seattle.  I like summer weather, but in a city that only has AC in office buildings and stores, we’re just not built for this.  J and I always disagree, but I’d rather be too cold over too hot any day.  If it’s freezing, at least you can turn on the heat or put on more clothes.  If it’s 80+ degrees in the dead of night, there’s only so many Otter Pops you can devour.

Unfortunately for the town, we didn’t help the cause by playing [Dylan] hot fiya [/Chappelle] this week on SNSS.  With new joints from the Roots, Goapele, Saukrates, Killer Mike, Jay-Z, Pac Div, Mr. Hudson, and more, this was a great show from start to finish.  Shout to our homey Larry Mizell Jr. (aka Gatsby from Cancer Rising) for coming through to celebrate his inheritance of Street Sounds, one of the longest running radio programs here in Seattle.  Be sure to check him out every Sunday on 90.3 KEXP (www.kexp.org) from 6-9pm to hear more great hip-hop on the airwaves.  Sunday nights are oh so official in Seattle.

Lastly, peep the footage we just posted of Asher Roth performing at our Summer Jam in front of 15K people last weekend right here.  For more Summer Jam footage featuring artists like the New Boyz, Asher, Kid Cudi, The-Dream, Pitbull, Flo Rida, Sean Paul, Akon, and Ludacris, keep your eyes on this page all week.  We’ll have more live clips and our interviews with Cudi and Asher coming soon as well.

Show #217 (7-26-09)

1. The Roots – “How I Got Over”
2. U-N-I – “Land Of The Kings”
3. Goapele – “Milk & Honey”
4. Consequence ft. Kanye West & John Legend – “Whatever U Want”
5. Saukrates ft. Rich Kidd – “Salt N Pepper”
6. Rakim – “Holy Are You”
7. Trife Diesel – “Wanna Be A Rapper”
8. Killer Mike – “In My City”
9. **INTERVIEW WITH LARRY MIZELL, JR.**
10. Grynch ft. RA Scion (of Common Market) – “You Know Me” (Local Music)
11. J. Cole – “Dream Girl”
12. Jay-Z ft. Kanye West & Rihanna – “Run This Town”
13. Freeway & Jake One – “Bloggers” (Local Music)
14. Pac Div – “Back”
15. Asher Roth ft. Chester French – “As I Em”
16. Slaughterhouse – “Cuckoo”
17. Drake – “The Winner”
18. The Physics ft. Language Arts – “Back Track” (Local Music)
19. Punchlyne & Fokis – “We Came To Rock”
20. Mr. Hudson ft. Kid Cudi – “Everything Is Broken”

Link to download the mp3 of the show – http://www.mediafire.com/?yzlynmwemnc
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/632634413588b8b0/)

If there are any problems with the links or if you’d like to be added to our weekly email list to receive the playlist and download links after every show, just shoot me an email, DJHyphen@gmail.com.

Those of you in Washington (or stalking my Twitter) probably heard that we had our annual Summer Jam concert yesterday at White River Amphitheater with performances by the New Boyz, Asher Roth, Kid Cudi, The-Dream, Pitbull, Flo Rida, Sean Paul, Akon, and Ludacris.  Usually, I have nightmares of these days because it’s a fun event for the audience, but generally really hectic to work.  Last year was a painful double dose as I spent the entire day registering voters  for the Obama campaign (we put onnnnn) and then running around backstage interviewing cats.  This year was a lot more relaxing as I spent the majority of the time chilling with my two favorite acts on the bill, Asher and Cudi, and their folks.

We’ll have interviews coming soon with those two, but in the meantime, I grabbed some footage of Asher’s performance for y’all.  Peep the video above to see him, Brain, and Wreckineyez run through a few joints from Asleep In The Bread Aisle, including “She Don’t Wanna Man,” “Be By Myself,” and of course, “I Love College.”  For more Summer Jam footage hitting the net all week, keep your eyes on this page.

I highly recommend checking out the Great Hangover Tour with Asher, Cudi, Pac Div, and B.o.B if it hasn’t hit your town yet.  I’m slightly salty that we didn’t get the full lineup here in Seattle, but SJ with 1/2 of it was dope too.  Anyway, peep it…you won’t be disappointed.

While the weather has been nice out here in Seattle for a while (yes, we do have nice weather, shocking, I know), it’s finally starting to feel like summer.  This weekend featured the annual “Bite Of Seattle” festival, an awesome exhibition match between Chelsea FC and the Seattle Sounders in front of 66K at Qwest Field, and A-Trak & Theophilus London shutting down Chop Suey.  All of this under 80 degree sunny skies mind you…and now this coming weekend will feature our KUBE Summer Jam at White River Amphitheater.  Nothing like summer in the SEA.

On this week’s show, we played new cuts from folks like Killer Mike, Donnis, J. Cole, Pac Div, Goapele, Slaughterhouse, Mr. Hudson, Rakim, and more.  We also ran a joint from the big homey Jake One off his project with Freeway, along with world premiering the final version of Nas’ “Film.”  The version that you’ve heard floating around the net features the original beat from last year’s Red Bull Big Tune winner, C-Sick, but the final version sports revamped and replayed music, along with the proper mixing and mastering.  With our very own J. Moore co-writing the hook, you know we had to drop the official version of that big tune.

Last but not least, shout to Consequence for calling in to talk about his new single with Kanye & John Legend (the joint is crazy) and his upcoming Cons TV album.  “It’s the Cons fool…word!”

Show #216 (7-19-09)

1. Rakim – “Holy Are You”
2. Killer Mike – “In My City”
3. Donnis – “Heartbeat”
4. J. Cole – “Ladies
5. The Physics ft. Macklemore – “Good” (Local Music)
6. B.o.B – “Camera”
7. Pac Div – “For You”
8. Get Busy Committee – “Come And Talk To Me”
9. Freeway & Jake One – “Bloggers” (Local Music)
10. **INTERVIEW WITH CONSEQUENCE #02, PT. 1**
11. Consequence ft. Kanye West & John Legend – “Whatever U Want”
12. **INTERVIEW WITH CONSEQUENCE #02, PT. 2**
13. Mr. Hudson ft. Kanye West – “Supernova”
14. Drake – “The Winner”
15. DJ JS-1 ft. Wordsworth & Rahzel – “What’s Happening”
16. Skyzoo – “The Beautiful Decay”
17. Slaughterhouse – “Warriors”
18. Grynch – “My Volvo” (Local Music)
19. Nas ft. Choklate – “Film (Final Version)” (WORLD PREMIERE)
20. Lupe Fiasco ft. Matthew Santos – “Shining Down”
21. Goapele – “Milk & Honey”

Link to download the mp3 of the show – http://www.mediafire.com/?inztxznej5n
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/629529039f341627/ )

If there are any problems with the links or if you’d like to be added to our weekly email list to receive the playlist and download links after every show, just shoot me an email, DJHyphen@gmail.com.

Sometimes you have to take some personal time and I’m currently in between a movie double header (the new Harry Potter was cool…older Guy Ritchie film up next), so nothing special this week.  Just a RIP shout to Arturo Gatti and special thanks to the Physics for coming through the Sound Session studio.  [Biggie] And anotha one [/Big]

Show #215 (7-12-09)

1. Grynch ft. Tunji & Geologic – “Smoke and Mirrors” (Local Music)
2. J. Cole – “Ladies”
3. Chali 2Na ft. Elzhi – “When Will I See You Again”
4. Jay Electronica – “Exhibit A”
5. Alchemist ft. Eminem – “Chemical Warfare”
6. Freeway – “Freeway’s Beard”
7. Slaughterhouse – “The One”
8. Bishop Lamont ft. Xzibit – “Hallelujah”
9. **INTERVIEW WITH THE PHYSICS, PT. 1**
10. Drake – “The Winner”
11. Mr. Hudson ft. Kanye West – “Supernova”
12. Consequence ft. Kanye West & John Legend – “Whatever U Want”
13. B.o.B – “Camera”
14. **INTERVIEW WITH THE PHYSICS, PT. 2**
15. The Physics – “I Just Wanna Beat” (Local Music)
16. Major Lazer ft. Mr. Vegas & Jovi Rockwell – “Can’t Stop Now”
17. Get Busy Committee – “Come And Talk To Me”
18. Amen – “Tried To Tell Ya”
19. Wale ft. K’Naan – “Um Ricka”
20. Choklate – “Sun’s Out” (Local Music)
21. Melanie Fiona – “Walk On By”
22. Fashawn – “Life As A Shorty”
23. Maxwell – “Playing Possum”
24. **INTERVIEW WITH THE PHYSICS, PT. 3**

Link to download the mp3 of the show – http://www.mediafire.com/?jwjnd2zmknm
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/62640210530a2bc4/)

If there are any problems with the links or if you’d like to be added to our weekly email list to receive the playlist and download links after every show, just shoot me an email, DJHyphen@gmail.com.

As much as I like interviewing my favorite MC’s (most of which are dudes), it’s always a much appreciated change of pace when we bring a talented female into the Sound Session studio.  A while back, the lovely Melanie Fiona came through to chop it up with us and play some records from her upcoming album, The Bridge.

While the album’s release has been delayed until August here in the States, peep the interview to hear her discuss the motivation behind the music, why it’s universal to everyone, and how she’s hoping it helps kill off ringtone singles.  She also talked about her Canadian/West Indian background, the process of crossing over to America’s music industry by signing with Steve Rifkind’s SRC label, touring with Kanye West, and more.

You can watch the interview above or download the audio below.

Melanie Fiona on Sound Session – http://www.mediafire.com/?2m4glq2znej
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/62326399c6288270/)

Be on the lookout for The Bridge dropping soon…y’all haven’t heard anything yet, trust me.