One of the main reasons I fux with Shaz IllYork is because he takes me back to the days when you could see a rapper in the streets or on the subway. Or copping a tag on a lamppost. Shaz IllYork is soooooo New York it’s not even a game. He lives the classic emcee lifestyle which is to be of the people. Not in some crazy limousine wearing sunglasses while surrounded by bodyguards.
Shaz linked up with Brooklyn spitter Spit Gemz to form The Opposition. With a group name this menacing these two are gonna have to put in some serious work on the microphone. Shaz recognizes how important the visual element of music is currently and he’s already directed several videos for The Opposition movement. Hopefully we’ll see Action Bronson and Meyhem Lauren in some future joints.
Editor’s note: The following piece was published in the November 2011 edition of The Source magazine. Copp that! Word to Combat Jack…
If you asked DruHa, the CEO of DuckDown Records, Hip-Hop’s longest lasting independent music label, how he has maintained his foothold in the music business for the better part of 17 years he will tell you that he sees the music game as a marathon and not a sprint. DruHa doesn’t push his artists to deliver music that they don’t feel is right. While this methodical pace may not resonate with pop music stardom it has helped DuckDown Records garner a loyal fanbase which continually supports their artists.
With the idea of being built for the steady pace that wins the race DruHa signed up to run in the ING 2011 NYC Marathon. This isn’t the kind of publicity stunt that your favorite rap impresario might pull off, but an honest and sincere effort to raise money and awareness towards Alzehimer’s disease. DruHa’s father, Harvey Friedman, passed away earlier this year after struggling with the disease for nearly a decade.
In DruHa’s own words, “I wanted to do something extremely challenging in memory of my father and to raise awareness about this compassionless disease. To properly train for a marathon, I’m quickly learning it takes dedication, perseverance and sacrifice of your personal time. All qualities my father exemplified; it’s a fitting way to pay tribute to him”.
After 17 years of the most real, most raw rap music you may have ever heard you should open up your wallets to support DruHa’s efforts in completing this grueling challenge. You can make your donation here: http://2011teamr2r.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=467404&supid=333503565
Consider this the karmic value for all the DuckDown music you’ve illegally downloaded.
The new Queens Public Library Children’s Discovery Center was formerly my nightclub discovery zone called the ‘Encore’. Think of the ‘Shadow’ nightclub without all the diversity. Just bamboo earring chicks from the Southside and Hollis doing the cabbage patch in velour Fila tracksuits. Polotron lived on Hillside and 168th St. so the Encore on Merrick Ave. directly across from the 164th Street bus terminal was like playing a home game.
The New York Times (where I swiped the image from) talks about the city’s direction in giving good design criteria a priority when constructing and retrofitting public buildings. I’m proud to say that I’ve been part of this effort for over a decade. In that time I’ve watched New York City be transformed into it’s modern metropolitan masterplan.
There’s still spots which need to be fixed, but everytime I go to a 1st Saturday event I think about how the museum entrance retrofit made the museum more accessible to people and transformed the Prospect Heights neighborhood to the point I see single white females standing on the corner of Atlantic Avenue and Nostrand after midnight. Great architecture informs, educates and ultimately it gentrifies.
For this weekend at the Brooklyn Flea I pulled out the Santana ‘Black Magic Woman’ Dunk Highs in the hopes of having some goodluck voodoo I call ‘Shoedoo’. Shit started out bricker than a muvv too. I felt a kinda way about Chocolate Snowflake not checking the weather beforehand.
I ended up having a good day because my homey @MikeyCCL came thru and spent a grip on Deadstock Dallas’ refinery. LOL
My other folks came thru like @DrewPreme. While the shorty @plotzpie and her husband @fineartslibrary almost copped some expensive SB joints, but I guided them to some of my more affordable #swag. Even Terrence came thru and shot some video. Deadstock Dallas isn’t done yet. There are two(2) more outdoor weeks left of the BK Flea and I’m gonna have to pull out some real heatrocks to keep my spot warm.
My favorite trade today was to this weirdo who jumped on my John Byrne ‘Phoenix’ saga X-Men for $15 by offering me $12. I accepted. LOL. I had the comics tucked away in the shoebox of the Steve Nash Air Max 90 Quickstrike ‘Phoenix’. I’m like Crazy Eddie out here making deals and practically giving this shit away. Come thru and check on me Internets.
This weekend also included a visit to the Brooklyn Museum of Art to catch Rich Medina hold it down on the decks as he repped the Jump-N’Funk sonic movement. Brooklyn Museum of Art is the POP LIFE when afrobeat is the vibe. The sound in the great ballroom is all over the place unless you get there early and find that speaker sweet spot.
I’m telling you to get there early since I already know how to play the room. The 1st Saturday party was a fitting end to the day’s activities. I’m going back to the lab to curate another two(2) weeks of Deadstock Dallas at the Brooklyn Flea. I’m pulling out heat from ALL my collections so I hope it doesn’t snow again. My heat will melt that snow and turn it into water. And we all know water no get enemy.
