Archive for the ‘LOVE x LOYALTY’ Category

TIMELESS TRUTH: Dominican Diner

Monday, June 9th, 2014

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Words and pics collected via Charles Dunne

Hip Hop “purists” have been blessed with an emergence of a modern group with the intention of preserving the art. The Queens representatives, Timeless Truth, had been actively making noise in the New York hip hop scene. With previous projects such as Scene of the Rhyme and the critically acclaimed EP Brugal & Presidentes the duo has stepped up to the plate to fill the void in the modern era for those patiently waiting to hear return of the boom bap.

Timeless Truth debut album, Rock-It Science (produced By RTNC), solidified their emergence in the game as one of Queens’ top tier groups. The brothers separately showcased their own skills in the music videos “What A Life” and “Alliance” proving that they are more than capable of independently holding down the reputation of a what it entails to be a Queens emcee. The visuals provide a modern day in the life of the New York natives, whether it be traveling down the boulevard or playing dominoes on the rooftop. However, the tracks contain a certain essence that is rarely evoked in recent times.

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After setting off music videos to the Rock-It Science album the two emcees linked up with Hip-Hop ambassador Large Professor. Large Pro accompanies the duo in the debut single off the impending album Cold Wave. SuperBadSolace and Oprime39 scoop the Professor up after schooling the youth at John Bowne High and remind us that Queens is home to some of Hip Hop’s most monumental rhyme writers. This is not the first time the brothers have been in the work environment with hip hop legends. In the fairly short amount of time on the scene, they have gained the respect of some of hip hop’s most elite figures. From the gate, they managed to gain the attention of Mafioso Rap pioneer, Kool G Rap.

The track, “World Renown”, marked their emergence to the scene with a made man (a track which would subsequently be leaked by Dallas Penn in a manner that was just as monumental of a leak as that of Edward Snowden’s). Sean Price has also been noted as guest feature on each of their releases up to this point. The two have been a closely associated with other prominent up-and-coming New York emcees such as Roc Marciano, Meyhem Lauren, and Action Bronson. The unveiling of “Wavelength”, however is not the way OPrime39 and Solace decided to finish up their 2013 year.

The brothers recently were invited to perform on Sway Calloway’s MTVJAMS program RAPFIX. The two emcees came prepared and performed exclusive never before heard lyrics. Just a day after their performance on RapFixLive, the hip hop group announced the forthcoming project Dominican Diner EP, which is set to be released on 6/10. The announcement came at the wrapping up point of 2013 with a leaked track titled “Out of the Loop”(Prod. by FAFU). Just a few days ago, they released the second single off the approaching EP, titled “Trife”.


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London Suburban Swag…

Sunday, June 1st, 2014

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I was type frosty on the PoloRL Wimbledon collection this year simply because I haven’t really aced an outfit yet from the series.

The pieces are mmm-kay. Nothing too crazy which is prA’Li due to the games being played in England and British swag generaly being more bland than everything else. Still I saw a couple of I.T.’s I might would consider if the fLOurishments presented themselves…

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The ballboy jacket and the crewneck sweatshirt are both clean and sharp at the same time. Now if only there were some kicks that would fux with these pieces.

Oh snap!!! adidas did the damn thing and dropped some tennis shoes to pay homage to the matches at Wimbledon. Well played adidas. Well played.

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And by well played I mean the Rod Laver. Leather upper and suede toe cap? I know my man Dirty Jerz is copping two(2) pairs minimum. THIS is a championship Rod Laver.

By the way adidas, I’ma pretend you didn’t put this Forest Hills into the Wimbledon pack since this shoe clearly belongs in a U.S. Open pack.

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Maybe next year adidas drops a ‘Grand Slam’ pack with the Rod Laver, Stan Smith, Forest Hills and Grand Prix styles? How about it adidas?

Meyhem Lauren: Silk Pyramids

Saturday, May 24th, 2014

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Meyhem Lauren has been going hard in the booth since we last heard a full length project from the young Queens lord. Last year’s ‘Raw Cashmere’ EP, done alongside the producer Ice Rocks found Meyhem Lauren cleanly in the boom bap backpack vein. The beats and the rhymes were perfect for wearing contractor Timbs and headphones for head nodding. That’s dope for an EP project but ‘Silk Pyramids’ is a full length album and much more is expected from Meyhem Lauren at this stage in his catalog.

Buckwild DITC comes thru on the production like a sage mentor to provide a soundbed of dope music a young hardbody emcee would love to rhyme over. I look at Buckwild like a Cadillac DeVille of the beats. Smooth and steady beats that give you a controlled ride even on top of uneven asphalt. Buckwild’s drums are on point and a welcome sound for rap music in 2014. There’s been so much rap in my recent memory without drum kits present I was wondering if we would ever hear the snare again in Hip-Hop.

Meyhem Lauren doesn’t come to the album without bringing his rap friends either. Longtime co-defendant Action Bronson, former DasRacist heartthrob Himanshu, XXL Freshman Troy Ave, Lo-Life general Thirstin’ Howl 3rd, and Outdoorman AG da Coroner are all spitting the bars like this was their project and not a feature for their big homey. Himanshu and Coroner’s verses stand out as gems to me even from dudes who I’ve heard from for the last several years. AG da Coroner’s debut album is another highly anticipated project on my 2014 list.

Meyhem Lauren is justifiably part of the NYC rap renaissance I’ve been waiting for since Wu-Tang phased out and the Diplomats flamed out. Meyhem has kept improving his verses so that he isn’t outshined by Action Bronson or outclassed by Troy Ave. Listening to Action on a DITC soundbed reminded me of Big L and the wit he displayed with his verses. Then I thought to myself how Meyhem Lauren along with Action Bronson was the second coming of Lord Finesse and Big L. Just like Finesse on the microphone was a master lyricist I see Meyhem having that much dedication to his words and verses.

My favorite track on the album is ‘Honey Sorbet Champagne’. Buckwild murders the music and Meyhem str8 decapitates with his verses. ‘Salmon Croquettes’ with AG da Coroner’s feature is serious Hip-Hop. The keys from Buckwild and Coroner’s appearance guarantee Meyhem will use this as funeral music. If you ever needed an anthem to get you hype for a stickup then ‘Where The $ @’ is your jam. Peace to Thirstin’ Howl on that sick ass verse. Himanshu and Meyhem trade verses on ‘Narcotics Anonymous’ and I live for Meyhem’s ad-libs at the song’s end. ‘100 MPH’ opens the album and also features Action Bronson. Nuff’ said.

Don’t take any of this hyperbole from me on face value. Stream these three(3) tracks from the album right here and right now. NYC rap ain’t making a comeback because it never left. #RespectTheFlyShit



Help The ICs Flourish…

Sunday, May 18th, 2014

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Casimir, Rafi and I have been given a second chance to put together a nice webseries about riding the subway and eating. You should have already seen some of the previous episodes of the Food Warriors webseries.

To this end we are creating a uniform of sorts for us to wear on days when we shoot video. You can’t name a winning team which doesn’t have a uniform. This should hopefully unify us in our mission to make the best damn videos you have ever seen.

We’ve decided to all rock the same New Balance kicks as our uniform. LOL. Nah, but seriously, New Balance sneakers are dope as hell, comfortable and oftentimes made in the U.S.A. Now we just need help in choosing which one to wear…

I’ve been visiting the Finish Line stores inside of Macy’s and they are catching str8 up bodies with their New Balance selection.

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Champion Style…

Sunday, May 11th, 2014

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The Champion Reverse-Weave sweatshirt is an iconic piece of apparel because it resonated across a broad spectrum of lifestyles. Collegiate kids rocked the reverse-weave emblazoned with a screen print of their university. Kids in the ‘hood rocked the conehead to represent the school of hard knocks.

I’m begging my connect at the brand to seed me with a couple of reverse-weave pieces so I can add those icons to my repertoire.

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In the meantime and in between time I have this camo varsity for a cold spring evening.

The Air Jordan 2012 Deluxe is one of the criminally slept on sneakers. Not slept on by myself or you folks who follow this page.

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I’m looking out for Champion to return to the podium in 2014. I’ll keep you posted if I see any pieces.