The Audacity of Dope

I know it’s a bit lazy to go bullet-point style, but it’s a fairly effective way to communicate, right?  Here are your weekly SNSS highlights:

• Shout to the State of the Artist (SOTA) crew and Candidt for dropping by the studio to chop it up with us.  We also world premiered a new SOTA record called “Chief Seattle.”  Yeah, you know what it’s about…
• Thanks as well to Joell Ortiz for coming by a few weeks ago when he was in town.  Peep our interview through the links below to hear updates on his Free Agent project, working with Jake One, whether or not Slaughterhouse is signing to Shady Records, and more.  YAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOWWWAAAAAA!
• Lastly, be sure to check out two video interviews we released in the last week: 1st with Wiz Khalifa (70k views, Wiz is a STAR) and yesterday’s with my favorite writer in the game, Shad.  Surreal to be able to connect with such dope artists left and right…we’re just happy to be able to provide a platform for ’em:
• Wiz Khalifa – https://www.theaudacityofdope.com/2010/10/20/wiz-khalifa-on-sound-session/
• Shad – https://www.theaudacityofdope.com/2010/10/25/shad-on-sound-session/

Enjoy the show!

Show #282 (10-24-10)

1. Nottz ft. Dwele – “You Need This Music”
2. Child Rebel Soldier (Pharrell, Lupe Fiasco, & Kanye West) – “Don’t Stop”
3. Freeway – “Escalators”
4. The Kid Daytona – “Fly Lullaby”
5. Kendrick Lamar ft. Jhene Aiko – “Growing Apart (To Get Closer)”
6. Wiz Khalifa – “Mezmerized”
7. Celph Titled & Buckwild – “Miss Those Days”
8. **INTERVIEW WITH STATE OF THE ARTIST, PT. 1**
9. State Of The Artist – “Chief Seattle” (**WORLD PREMIERE**) (Local Music)
10. **INTERVIEW WITH STATE OF THE ARTIST, PT. 2**
11. Cee-Lo – “Old Fashioned”
12. theFEW ft. Cilvaringz & Blue Raspberry – “Homage To RZA”
13. **INTERVIEW WITH JOELL ORTIZ #02**
14. Joell Ortiz – “Battle Cry”
15. 7L & Esoteric ft. Inspectah Deck – “12th Chamber”
16. Mayday ft. Money Making Jam Boys – “Worst Case Scenario”
17. **INTERVIEW WITH CANDIDT**
18. Candidt ft. Maya Jenkins – “Imaginary Stereo” (Local Music)
19. Common ft. Bilal – “The 6th Sense” (Throwback of the Week)
20. M.anifest – “Coming To America”
21. DJ Nphared & Grynch – “Air Max ‘Em” (Local Music)
22. La Roux ft. Kanye West – “In For The Kill (Remix)”

Link to download the mp3 of the show – http://www.mediafire.com/?qw7x36t3b821dew
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/819873988cf85373/)
(2nd back up – http://usershare.net/wywpyp5rpky8)

Link to download only the interview with Joell Ortiz – http://www.mediafire.com/?v43tdydgwml15x9
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/819879679df95f7d/)
(2nd back up – http://usershare.net/1zwf2itwan0k)

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.

Anyone who has visited TAOD before knows that I’m a huge fan of Shad.  Not only is he one of the most gifted MC’s around, but he’s also putting his heart and soul into his music and discussing deep, genuine emotions.  I’m not sure you can ask for anything more from an artist and I’m elated to see the United States finally starting to catch on to his music.

Fresh of the American release of TSOL, Shad came to Seattle with K-Os for the first stop on their Born To Run tour.  It’s only right that we recorded a little something for y’all, though I do apologize for the poor lighting and video quality.  Hopefully you still enjoy our discussion covering the tour, the TSOL project, how it compares to his previous work, the intricacies of his lyrics, and more.  It’s not often that I get to discuss the finer points of artistic expression/responsibility with our guests, so this was an especially fun interview to conduct.  There’s much more that can be said about the issue though, so we’ll have to rekindle it when Shad’s back in town.

In the interim, enjoy the interview and be sure to cop TSOL and The Old Prince ASAP!

This past weekend, I had a chance to check out the Seattle stop of the Waken Baken tour when it hit the Showbox Sodo.  I’ll be posting up my interview with the opening act, Yelawolf, soon, but I was also able to chop it up with Wiz Khalifa backstage and we recorded this quick interview for y’all.  We discussed the tour, Wiz’ incredible buzz, his experiences in the Pacific Northwest, getting his hometown Pittsburgh Steelers to support “Black and Yellow,” and more.

Shout to Wiz, Will, Artie, and Motti for hooking everything up.  Cop that Kush & Orange Juice if you haven’t already…definitely one of the best projects of the year.  Just wait until the official album drops…

[La Bamba] In the year 2000 [/Conan humor], I started working in radio at KSPC outside Los Angeles and as a college freshman, I was amazed by the freedom the indie broadcasting platform afforded me.  After looking through my personal collection, the music director was impressed and allowed me to play whatever I wanted, rather than being limited to the records in the station’s library.  As a result, my early playlists were filled with music from the Soulquarians, easily my favorite collective of artists back then…and still today.

Of all the classic albums they were involved with, perhaps the record I played the most was Bilal’s 1st Born Second.  Simply put, it’s flawless, front to back, and one of the most underrated pieces of music from the last 25 years.  If you would have told 18 year old Hyphen (who actually had a different, and horribly embarrassing nom de plume at the time) that I’d one day have Bilal co-host my radio show, I would have flipped.  Ok, I would have flipped twice: who knew I’d still be in radio 10 years later?  Shrug.

We’ve interviewed him before (peep it here), but it was a special honor to dedicate the entire episode of Sound Session this week to the genius that is Bilal Oliver.  We played nothing but Bilal records all night, mixing in a sampling of our favorite songs from all 3 of his classic albums, some b-sides, and guest appearances with his colorful and insightful commentary.  He even closed out the show with a live performance of “Levels” off his newest project, Airtight’s Revenge.

I’ll have the accompanying video up as soon as I can, but in the meantime, enjoy the audio.  Shout to Dru, JK, Hawk, Marc, and Chok for helping bring Bilal through the show.  Be sure to cop his albums if you haven’t already!

Show #281 (10-17-10)
**Co-hosted by Bilal**

1. Bilal – “For You”
2. Bilal – “Bring 2”
3. Bilal – “Cake & Eat It Too”
4. 88-Keys ft. Bilal – “M.I.L.F.”
5. Bilal – “Think It Over”
6. Bilal – “Sometimes”
7. Bilal ft. Mos Def & Common – “Reminisce”
8. Guru ft. Jay Dee & Bilal – “Certified”
9. Bilal – “All Matter”
10. Shafiq Husayn ft. Bilal – “Cheeba (Nottz Remix)”
11. Bilal – “Hollywood”
12. Bilal – “It’s Cold”
13. Bilal – “Soul Sista”
14. Bilal – “Funky For You (Interlude)”
15. Talib Kweli ft. Bilal – “Can I Talk To You (Lil’ Darlin’)”
16. Bilal – “Levels (Live On Sound Session)”

Link to download the mp3 of the show – http://www.mediafire.com/?k67xajkkqnupn8b
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/817543606bc77c35/)
(2nd back up – http://usershare.net/e7zxor62i5h0)

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.

I could write a bunch about this week’s episode of SNSS that featured all sorts of dope new music plus interviews with two of Seattle’s dopest, Eighty 4 Fly and Fatal Lucciauno, or I could eat dinner before midnight.  It’s tortellini too…I mean, WWJerseyShoreD?  Hopefully I’ll have more time to write next week.  In the interim, la musica:

Show #279 (10-3-10)

1. Black Milk – “Welcome (Gotta Go)”
2. Nottz ft. Black Milk – “Blast That!”
3. Kendrick Lamar ft. Dom Kennedy & Murs – “She Needs Me (Remix)”
4. Big K.R.I.T. – “Hometown Hero”
5. Laws & Hypnotic Brass Ensemble ft. Dave Young – “Never”
6. Terrace Martin ft. U-N-I & Charlie Wilson – “Special”
7. **INTERVIEW WITH EIGHTY 4 FLY, PT. 1**
8. Eighty 4 Fly – “So Cool” (Local Music)
9. **INTERVIEW WITH EIGHTY 4 FLY, PT. 2**
10. Chris Brown ft. Drake, T.I., Kanye West, Fabolous, Rick Ross, & Andre 3000 – “Deuces (Remix)”
11. Devin The Dude – “Jus Coolin”
12. Bilal – “Think It Over”
13. Shad – “Keep Shinin’”
14. J. Cole – “It Won’t Be Long”
15. **INTERVIEW WITH FATAL LUCCIAUNO, PT. 1**
16. D. Black & B. Brown ft. Spaceman – “Loyalty” (Local Music)
17. Kanye West ft. Jay-Z, Swizz Beatz, & CyHi Da Prynce – “So Appalled (Short Edit)”
18. **INTERVIEW WITH FATAL LUCCIAUNO, PT. 2**
19. Jay-Z ft. Memphis Bleek, Freeway, & Beanie Sigel – “1-900-HUSTLER” (Throwback of the Week)
20. Freeway – “Beautiful Music”
21. Blue Scholars – “Lumiere” (Local Music)
22. Bruno Mars – “Our First Time”
23. Hey Champ – “Cold Dust Girl”

Link to download the mp3 of the show – http://www.mediafire.com/?z8lf11ryab34fy0
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/81138718a6b72666/)
(2nd back up – http://usershare.net/rtfo75h6pt46)

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.

Another week and still busy…hmm, I’m sensing a pattern.  In any event, peep this week’s edition of SNSS for tons of dope music from cats like K.R.I.T., CyHi Da Prynce, Shad, Kendrick Lamar, Hell Razah, Slakah The BeatChild, and more.  If you aren’t up on these folks, that’s the reason we do what we do.

Also be sure to stay tuned for our full interview with J. Cole (missed the first full one?  peep it here) and check out the quick footage I grabbed of Jay Electronica at Bumbershoot a few weeks ago…

Show #278 (9-26-10)

1. Big Boi ft. Andre 3000 & Sleepy Brown – “Lookin’ 4 Ya (Full Mix)”
2. Big K.R.I.T. ft. Curren$y & Wiz Khalifa – “Glass House”
3. Playboy Tre ft. Lil Jon – “Ready Go”
4. CyHi Da Prynce – “Studder”
5. Bilal – “Cake & Eat It Too”
6. Joell Ortiz – “Farewell Summer”
7. Kanye West ft. Pusha T – “Runaway”
8. Eighty 4 Fly ft. Nipsey Hussle – “Until We Bleed” (Local Music)
9. Wiz Khalifa – “Black & Yellow”
10. D. Black & B. Brown ft. J. Pinder – “Make It Brighter” (Local Music)
11. Shad ft. Von Pea and Donwill – “Rose Garden (Remix)”
12. Slakah The BeatChild – “Things I Do For Her”
13. Consequence – “Got Me Trippin’ (The Amerie Joint)”
14. Kendrick Lamar ft. Dom Kennedy & Murs – “She Needs Me (Remix)”
15. **INTERVIEW WITH J. COLE #02 (SNIPPET)**
16. J. Cole – “Villematic”
17. Language Arts – “Roll With The Winners” (Local Music)
18. Hell Razah ft. R.A. The Rugged Man – “Return Of The Renaissance”
19. Eric B. & Rakim – “Follow The Leader” (Throwback of the Week)
20. Travis Barker ft. The Cool Kids – “Jump Down”
21. Bruno Mars ft. Damian Marley – “Liquor Store Blues”
22. Chromeo – “You Make It Rough”

Link to download mp3 of the show – http://www.mediafire.com/?hy40yb4wdmbne7x
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/80873493c3a49303/)
(2nd back up – http://usershare.net/6ipivkohruef)

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.

Pretty busy, as usual, so I’ll just hit y’all with the basics tonight.  Enjoy the show!

Show #277 (9-19-10)

1. CyHi Da Prynce – “Studder”
2. Pete Rock & Smif-N-Wessun ft. Raekwon – “Prevail”
3. Wiz Khalifa – “Black & Yellow”
4. The Kid Daytona – “The Champ”
5. Consequence – “Got Me Trippin’ (The Amerie Joint)”
6. Kooley High – “Atmosphere”
7. Trackademicks ft. Phonte – “Fool On The Hill”
8. Eighty4 Fly ft. Nipsey Hussle – “Until We Bleed” (Local Music)
9. Aleon Craft – “Early Moan”
10. Kanye West ft. Jay-Z & Swizz Beatz – “Power (Remix)”
11. Kanye West ft. Rick Ross, Jay-Z, Nicki Minaj, & Bon Iver – “Monster”
12. J. Cole – “Villematic”
13. Bilal – “All Matter”
14. Black Milk ft. Mr. Porter – “Closed Chapter”
15. John Legend & The Roots ft. Pete Rock & CL Smooth – “Hard Times (J. Period Remix)”
16. Blue Scholars – “Lumiere” (Local Music)
17. The Foreign Exchange – “Maybe She’ll Dream Of Me”
18. Notorious B.I.G. – “Unbelievable” (Throwback of the Week)
19. Language Arts – “Roll With The Winners” (Local Music)
20. Mayer Hawthorne – “No Strings”
21. M.I.A. ft. Jay-Z – “XXXO (Remix)”

Link to download the mp3 of the show – http://www.mediafire.com/?pjt6ly2wqjunkql
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/80622260cddc1809/)
(2nd back up – http://usershare.net/5fw8qbnlx1rk)

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.

Another insanely busy weekend around the Northwest, and pretty much all over, with the first official week of the NFL season taking the country by storm.  Between the NFL, NCAA football, the FIBA championship, the US Open, EPL, the WNBA Finals (hey, gotta rep the home team…plus I’ve had a crush on Sue Bird since about 2002), and the MTV VMA’s, not only do we have a lot of acronyms, but Saturday & Sunday were jam packed with entertainment.  Rather than rehash it here, you really should be following my Twitter…and of course, J. Moore’s as well.

On the heels of our web chat footage of J. Cole from last week, if you missed his live performance at Bumbershoot, I shot some footage you can check out right here.  When “Grown Simba” drops at 8:47, it’s really too ill, and this performance shows why Cole is gonna be a star in the near future.  It’s well deserved too.

Show #276 (9-12-10)

1. Joell Ortiz – “Battle Cry”
2. J. Cole – “Villematic”
3. John Legend & The Roots – “Hard Times”
4. Big Boi ft. Andre 3000 & Sleepy Brown – “Lookin’ 4 Ya (Full Mix)”
5. Black Milk ft. Mr. Porter – “Closed Chapter”
6. **INTERVIEW WITH LANGUAGE ARTS, PT. 1**
7. Language Arts – “Fast Life” (Local Music)
8. **INTERVIEW WITH LANGUAGE ARTS, PT. 2**
9. Wiz Khalifa ft. Fashawn – “In The Cut (Remix)”
10. Andy Allo ft. Blu – “Dreamland”
11. Pollyn ft. Freddie Gibbs – “Falling Out of Place (Remix)”
12. Aleon Craft – “Early Moan”
13. Kno ft. Thee Tom Hardy & Tunji – “Rhythm Of The Rain”
14. Kanye West ft. Common, Pusha T, Big Sean, Kid Cudi, & Charlie Wilson – “G.O.O.D. Friday”
15. Grynch – “My Volvo (Sabzi’s Bolbo Riddim Remix)” (Local Music)
16. Dres of Black Sheep – “For The Record”
17. Maxwell – “This Woman’s Work” (Throwback of the Week)
18. Lace Cadence – “Moonlight” (Local Music)
19. Bilal – “Think It Over”
20. Aloe Blacc – “Mama Hold My Hand”

Link to download the mp3 of the show – http://www.mediafire.com/?frnjg15cxyj539a
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/80382355fdc0bc38/)
(2nd back up – http://usershare.net/zri3p6vkyaht)

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.

“We back.  We back, we back, we back”

Another edition of SNSS is in the books, but as usual, we have your back on the archival tip.  Shout to Mister D.O.G. for coming through and to the One Reel/Bumbershoot family for providing some free tickets to their upcoming festival.  You don’t want to miss it!  More details here – www.bumbershoot.org

Show #273 (8-22-10)

1. Freddie Gibbs – “Live By The Game”
2. Mickey Factz – “Paradise”
3. J. Cole – “Blow Up”
4. Aloe Blacc – “Politician (Live On Sound Session)”
5. Outasight – “Ahh Yea”
6. Joell Ortiz – “Sing Like Bilal”
7. Bilal – “Restart”
8. Nipsey Hussle ft. Lloyd – “Feelin’ Myself”
9. Kanye West ft. Jay-Z & Swizz Beatz – “Power (Remix)”
10. Trek Life – “Wow”
11. 2 Hungry Bros. & 8thW1 – “Stupid Face”
12. Shad – “Yaa I Get It (Oddisee Remix)”
13. LaRue – “Not Like Me” (Local Music)
14. Paul Wall ft. Raekwon, Jay Electronica, & Yelawolf – “Live It”
15. **INTERVIEW WITH MISTER D.O.G., PT. 1**
16. Mister D.O.G. ft. Mistah F.A.B., Outrageous, & Cool Nutz – “She’s 100 (Remix)” (Local Music)
17. Slum Village ft. Little Brother – “Where Do We Go From Here”
18. **INTERVIEW WITH MISTER D.O.G., PT. 2**
19. Da Brat – “Fa All Y’all” (Throwback of the Week)
20. Lupe Fiasco – “Go To Sleep”
21. Diggy Simmons ft. Lupe Fiasco & Pharrell – “Oh Yeah!”
22. Lace Cadence – “Moonlight” (Local Music)

Link to download the mp3 of the show – http://www.mediafire.com/?wtt6mwlp47lftwh
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/79660731d324a16d/)
(2nd back up – http://usershare.net/9p40m16gk5p9)

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.

It’s been a long time coming, but the homey Lace Cadence of Clockwork has officially released his first solo project, coming in the form of the Launchpad mixtape.  If you’re familiar with Clockwork, then you know a bit of what to expect, but this builds off the group’s sound and takes it to a new place altogether.  I had a nice discussion with Lace about where he’s at musically these days and I couldn’t be prouder of dude.  In essence, he’s a grown ass man and he’s going to make the music he wants to make, without compromise.  He’s shown elements of this style throughout his career, but he really owned it on these records.  As an artist, that’s where you want to be.

I’m also happy to add that J. Moore and I hosted the tape, while DJ B-Mello mixed the project from front to back (sound familiar?).  It was a great process all around, so big shouts to Lace, Frank, Blastoff Productions, Producer L, and everyone involved with Launchpad.  Hope y’all enjoy the tape as much as we enjoyed putting it together.

Download here.