Archive for the ‘Billy Sunday @ XXL’ Category

TONY STARKS IS IRON MAN…

Friday, July 31st, 2009

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I might be one of the luckiest dudes in the world. I didn’t have a ticket to the Ghostface + Red / Meth show going down here in NYC and it didn’t look good for me to come up on one either. I wanted to get into the 88 Keys, Asher Roth, Kid Cudi show at the same location and when I put my desires out there on the internets I only heard the sound of crickets. I reached out to Asher’s people and they didn’t have a single ticket for the kid either. There was no way I was gonna be able to finagle my way into this concert, especially since the industry has been buzzing about Raekwon and everyone knew he was in town and would cameo at this event.

Lo and behold, CARL CHERY hit me up on my new Blackberry and told me that he could hold me down for the show. Let me say this right here, CARL is a good dude, nullus. I didn’t really know fam from any of these other young industry cats when he came and took over from Eskay at the X-spot, and we kind of got familiar [ll] at some open bar industry party in a sneaker store. You never know though what people are about at those parties since everyone is drunk and looking to bag up something that smells good. The proof to me that CARL was the truth is when I wanted to quit the X-spot after I visited my sick mom in Atlanta.

Instead of letting me go off on my way son kept hitting me on the e-mail and the cellphone telling me that the slot here at the X-spot was gonna stay open for if and when I wanted to get back on the grizzly. Any other dude in this industry would have said fuck it, especially since CARL and I don’t have any history in the first place. He had no reason to be loyal to me other than the fact that he was just that type of person. I hope this guy gets all the rewards this business has waiting for him because 99.9% of the people you encounter in the industry are shitbags or junkies. Myself included. You don’t ever come across real dudes often enough so I salute that dude CARL CHERY.

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Tony Starks is one of the last real emcees alive. It has to be the situations that the Wu encountered when they first came out that has made these brothers so damn resilient and so special. It’s more than their talent that makes the Wu-Tang Clan the greatest rap collective of all time. It is their integrity to Hip-Hop. That might sound lofty and ridiculous but the Wu Tang never traded their popularity away for silly shit like clothing lines or liquor sponsorships. Yes asshats, I remember the Wu Wear brand, but that wasn’t being promoted by a single Wu artist as “their” clothing line. I’m talking about the silly shit that rappers do now to become entertainment company presidents and CEO’s and dungarees models. GTFOH!

The concert last night didn’t disappoint me. Redman and Method Man were the shit, but Ghostface tore the house down with the Raekwon cameo. Them two niggas is the peanut butter and jelly of rap music. You can grow up off their music. If I’ve seen anyone in the Wu perform the most it would have to be Ghost. He gets it in [ll] in all kinds of weather. Hardbody. From sneaker pimps shows to free ass outdoor festivals in Brooklyn. I would bet you any amount of money that Ghost would do a set for a senior citizen home. Thirty years from now that could be a reality too. It will be Ghost and his grandchildren opening up for some robots and extraterrestrials. Tony Starks G is still that futuristic.

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Big In The Streets…

Thursday, July 30th, 2009

air zoom mvp

^ $40 retail therapy @ Mr.Joes 38th St / 8th Ave NYC

StreetLevel.com hasn’t published the Raekwon podcast with me, TIM and OnSmash HOF building with the Chef just yet.

PNC Radio did chop up the audio for the inaugural Nah’Right Radio broadcast. You wanna hear it? Here it go…

Pt.1 (Intro/Internets Discussion)

Pt.2 (Nas & Kelis Fuckery/Kanye vs. Jay-Z)

Pt.3 (Marvelous Mo’s Like & Dislike for Drake/Slaughterhouse Phenomenon)

Pt.4 (Freeway/Is it cool to release songs weekly, daily etc./The Game & his Bi-Polarism/Eskay speaks on other bloggers)

Pt.5 (Who’s next in Hip Hop?/Outro)

Big shouts to A.King from PNC Radio for the rips. You can DL these clips or just let them rock out in the Z-share players. People are saying they want to hear more Nah’Right Radio. So do I. Stay tuned party people.

Wednesday had me meeting the folks from Conerstone Marketing at the Wale album listening session. I ran up in that piece a little late because I was on my retail therapy (see above pic). By the time I got there there was no more alcohol left but there was plenty of chicken, yams and collards. Hipsters, and conversely Blipsters don’t eat shit. They just smoke Marlboros, drink vodka, and snort cocaine (how else do you fit into skinny jeans?). The general consensus, okay, the intern from Complex named E, said that the album was fire and Wale did not OD with the Go-Go (whew).

I walked from the recording studio while the rain ripped open the clouds and came down like Niagara. The perfect night to go see Raekwon @ The Noisemakers event thrown by Shot97’s PETER ROSENBERG.

‘Rainy Dayz’

I’m on heavy Cuban Linx mode this week. As you read this I am enterprising an alliance to come up on some tickets for the concert tonight at the Nokia theatre with Redman, Method Man, Ghostface Killah and Raekwon. Should I wear my Iron Man Air Max 180s?

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PrA’li not since the weather report said it would thunderstorm again tonight.

The concert will be just like this right here except 1000x better.

As much as I am going to love these dudes doing the classic material I am going to go batshit if they perform this song…

‘4 Minutes 2 Lockdown’

After the Noisemakers event I wanted to motivate over to the HomebaseNYC anniversary concert. HomebaseNYC is one of the many projects that my homey DeePhunk is producing. His partner in rhyme is the sister whose name escapes my burnout ass. I owe her and Spec Boogie the best shout out on another drop here on this site.

HomebaseNYC was deep with the internets and TWitter celebs. I dived into the green room to see if I could partake of any refreshments but Hip-Hop was in the building (read: boozehounds had already absconded with the comp beers). I still hung around though and guess who was holding court? The broady executive 40 Diesel. My mans-n-them was there too. Tanya Morgan’s DONWILL, brass knuckle rap addict Spec Boogie, Sixth Sense and California spitter DIZ GIBRAN on his NYC grizzly.

DIZ was extremely humble and real when I put him on the spot. He is a real dude that I am gonna start checking for on the regulack. Plus, he ain’t afraid of the ‘S’ on the back of the internets. I fux with dudes that understand the macro > micro. DIZ goes in hard [ll] over J.Dilla for the Jay $tay Paid album.

Make It Fast’ (Unadulterated)

The HomebaseNYC show ended with the emo stylings of the young man COLIN MUNROE. I wasn’t mad at son for being wild EMO. That is the newest trend in the game along with skinny jeans. Right now rap music needs an official MICHAEL McDONALD on the chorus to smash all the EMO’s and T-Pains in they biscuit. But until then…

Colin Munroe – ‘Will I Stay’ from dallas penn on Vimeo.

Rocking The Bells…

Monday, July 20th, 2009

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We are leaving Babylon…

Going to a farther land…

Here’s a random DP thought otherwise known as a TWit. Maybe Rock The Bells should go to Palestine and help those people work out their issues.

I’ve been on a mean grind lately internets. I’m getting too old to still be doing this shit. I’ve got to decide if I quit this shit and go back to managing construction projects as a religion instead of only as vocation. The Rock The Bells concert is as good as anyplace you might want to start.

The Rock The Bells concert is rap music’s Woodstock. The rappers here are working their asses off. All those long hours in the studio are for this afternoon event. Everyone shows out too. I see rappers jumping around on stage and even doing backspins. Is there still a space in rap music for the dancers? I meant breakers? Answer that later.

There are so many people to cut a check for at this event. The talent (natch) but there are tons of folk that put this whole shit together who need, ne, deserve some extra payment. How about the police? They were called in to make sure that Black males kept their hands off one another. I’m starting to think that one of you rap phags might be the ghey rapper. Not you Pierzy. All these OTHER niggas. Memo to rap phags: Keep your hands off one another.

Anyhoo…

So I got to go to the Rock The Bells concert for their New York City leg. I wish XXL had sent me in with some press credentials (no shots). Instead it was my homegirl from Complex mag hooking me up with her extra swag. No press credentials meant that I got my dSLR camera with the monster zoom confiscated by the undercover cops, er, event security personnel. *FUGAZI!!!* Where were these cops when planes in Boston were being hijacked with plastic cutlery?

Now that I have been stripped of my hi-def dSLR camera I switched up to me low-def snapshot digital joint (as Popeye might say). Boo-Yah! The pics aren’t the greatest but they never are with me. Study the movement of the subjects. Don’t forget that the second half of the word Hip-Hop is for you to move your body to. Don’t just hop though. Because that would be corny. Eli Porter does that.

Here’s what I think would be fun. Let’s take a lot at some of my pics from the day…

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High heels were definitely in the building. That’s actually some pics of rappers feet though.

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My favorite throwback jersey is the white wearing the 40 Acres and A Mule joint. You know shit is in a recession when white starts taking back our 40 Acres and A Mule. LOL!

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More LULz went out to this, er, “wardrobe malfunction”.

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Here are some random crowd shots. White Boy Weed was definitely in the building as it should be. That’s the homey from Complex mag Young Sue. Asian folks get it in for Hip-Hop culture worldwide. Sue is from Paris. By way of San Francisco. Yeah, I know the cliche.

There was a good number of Black people at the event which is strange for outdoor shows. I’m sure half of them were comped. Snowflake swirl was also in the building heavy. Rock The Bells concerts might be the only place that no one looks twice at inter-racial couples. FTW.

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The Buckshot KRS-1 Duck Down (Ruck Down) set was dope. Buckshot had the flow and the energy while up on stage. Masta Ace came through and so did the Kidz In The Hall band.

Sometimes I forget that Double-O is an entertainer because I see him out and about so much. One day he will be too huge to connect with the folks on my side of the gate, but until then I fux with dude [ll].

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KRS-1 remains possibly the single greatest influential icon still performing to this day. So many emcees should say that they are from his DNA. Rappers? Not so much. KRS-1 is quick to point out the truism that emcee >>> rapper, and Hip-Hop isn’t just rap. Peep how shorty standing behind the promo poster gets scared when KRS-1 speaks. She might need to duck down.

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The Paid Dues stage was where they had sequestered the Brooklyn boom bap contingent. The god Primo was on stage with the Mash Out Posse and finally we see people outside of the rap nerd fanbase giving Premier his justified legendary props. Shouts to whoever it was from M.O.P.’s entourage that brought his pitbull to the show. You can take these fools out the ‘hood but you can’t take the ‘hood out these fools.

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You know the moment we are all waiting for was the entrance of SlaughterHouse. This is the buzz in rap right now. Everyone has heard the tracks but how they perform as a group is the one thing I thought that needed to improve upon since I first saw them together in February for Joe Budden’s release party.

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SlaughterHouse was exciting and they were nimble on stage. They weren’t stepping on each other’s toes this time. Each member let their brother get time to shine.

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SlaughterHouse is biggtime now. They even have the requisite rap music rockerchick to sing the hook for their smash single ‘The One’.

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There was a minor scuffle during the SlaughterHouse Wu-Tang reconciliation moment. I didn’t get to catch any of that since I didn’t have any access to the backstage areas. I’m sure those pics and video will be somewhere on the internets. The bonus for me was seeing the famous Tahiry in person. She is a beautiful chick, but as rap wives go CoCo > Tahiry for the simple fact that Ice-T strips her naked at Body Count shows. If Budden starts doing that to Tahiry I may have to change my opinion.

“You mad that your ass ain’t famous? Too bad that your ass ain’t famous” – Nickel Nine

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tahiry

All in all the Rock The Bells concert was the best show you will see this summer. The NaS Damien Marley set was where the final exclamation point was delivered to the crowd. ‘One Love’ is the flag that Hip-Hop needs to fly.

Shouts to Dre from Nah’Right, MikeWaxx from illRoots, Homeboy Sandman, Joe Scudda, Statik Selektah, Double-O, DJ Premier, Billy Danze, Lil’ Fame, Joe Budden, Royce da 5’9″, Crooked I, Joell Ortiz and my homegirl @sooeypooey.

Hit her up on the Twitter if you ain’t an asshole.

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marley

You Can’t Spell Thugs Without Hugs…

Friday, July 10th, 2009

fisty gayme

It seems like a lifetime ago when Fisty Scent and Gayme were trying to patch up their relationship. It had to be a bitter pill for Game to be kicked to the curb by Dre. Wasn’t Dre the dude that found Game in that strip club and took him down off the pole? Ever since his disconnection from the Aftermath umbrella Gayme has been like a rudderless ship in the middle of the ocean.

I watched Gayme’s tirade against Ghey-Z and thought to myself that what Game really wants more than anything is the hug from an elder rap statesman. If Jay would just invite Game on one of his yachts for a cruise through the Caribbean how happy do you think Game would be? Game doesn’t hate older rappers because they are old, he hates them because they ignore him.

Sure, this is a retarded way of getting attention from the people that you love, but why should rap music be any less dysfunctional than the rest of the world? At least Game isn’t forcing us to put out an Amber Alert on his ass by disappearing off the map. He is standing directly in front of us calling out for help. Jay-Z just has to give homeboy a hug. And maybe a kiss [ll].

This could be problematic though if Bleek feels ignored.

video link via Nah’Right

SlaughterHouse = Graphic Music…

Thursday, July 9th, 2009

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In about one month (or less for the illegal downloaders) the SlaughterHouse collective project will be unleashed upon us. That will be a great day for these artists since they formed a union that many couldn’t believe would bear an actual album rather than just a few singles. I’ve always loved the idea of rappers from different locales finding common ground without sounding soft or diluted. My only concern at this point is whether SlaughterHouse can make it to the finish line intact.

Their popularity has brought on a new set of problems that I hope they will be able to withstand in the long term. The jealousy that arises from other artists and fans alike who feel that the SlaughterHouse collective doesn’t deserve their blessings is starting to show its face. This sentiment was expected however. I’m not worried about outside forces slowing down the SlaughtHouse movement. It is the dischord from within that I am concerned with. Will these artists be able to contain their egos from one one another?

Over the course of the year I have discussed the SlaughterHouse collective at this site. Which site? THIS site gotdamnit. The comments have ranged from which emcee has brought the best lyrics to the table to which of these rappers is the most likely to say some shit off wax that creates friction in the “rapposhere” (my word bitches). I’ve gone through the trouble to use some of the information that you have spoken on and create a graphic representation of what the SlaughterHouse collective means to us all. The internets loves graphs.

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2009 Album Anticipation (Buzz Chart)
The anticipation for the SlaughterHouse album is off the charts when you compare their leaked singles to those of Only Built 4 Cuban Links 2, the Blueprint 3 and Detox. At least SlaughterHouse has a confirmed release date. The other three albums may never come out.

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SlaughterHouse Shit Talker
Rap music is definitely a spectacle now as much as it is about recorded music and who understands that better than Joe Budden? His disdain for the Vibe ‘Best Rapper’ list is what caused that magazine to have to close their doors. I hope that Joe Budden’s penchant for letting his stream of consciousness rants create more attention than his rhymes doesn’t rub off on the rest of the collective but I see that Royce is also letting other issues with washed up rappers become his focus instead of the Revival EP he just released on iTunes.

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SlaughterHouse Best Lyricist
This is the topic I’m most excited to debate after the album has been released. Who will be the emcee that goes in the deepest and the hardest [ll]? Which one of these guys will leave it all in the booth? Who will make me press rewind the most. Joell and Crooked I have been early favorites of most people online, but I have a sneaky suspicion that Budden and Royce have a few tricks up their sleeves.

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SlaughterHouse Sexiest Member
Don’t forget for one second that rap music is now pop music and pop music is about image and style above all other things (sadly, including music). With that said I thought we would take a look at the sexiest member of the SlaughterHouse collective. You know that isn’t Joell or Crooked I who are both inceidentally two of the ugliest motherfuckers to ever grip a microphone. Maybe that is why they are such ill rappers? Royce and Joe Budden are both vying to be the Eddie and J.T. of this boy band but the sexiest of them all is their manager Crystal. You can say hi to her on the Twitter and ask her when SlaughterHouse will be coming to your town.

Or you can just stare at her picture like I do.

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