Folks who listen to Jordan, Jesse Go! already know about Grad School Music superstar Ashkon and his international mega-hit Hot Tubbin'. But what about Richie Cunning?
But if you're wondering if this dude can really spit, check out these tracks recorded live on KPFA's legendary hip-hop radio show The Drum with Kevvy Kev. The Drum's in its THIRTIETH year of broadcasting hip-hop to the Yay Area late Friday nights. Richie destroys two freestyles here. It's really difficult to get closer to my heart than by alluding to both Common's first album and 1989 National League MVP Kevin Mitchell in one song.
"Lemme read off the trivia card / who the ill cat still rappin' gritty & hard? / Go 'head, take a min... give up? Here's a hint: Rich C, OG from the City of Fog / Dog, I was solo smashin back when Wild 104 was 107 / Back when Jerry and Joe were Bay Area legends / Back when left field wasn't Barry, it was Kevin"
Jay Smooth is the host of WBAI's The Underground Railroad, a blogger at hiphopmusic.com and the creator of the video podcast The Ill Doctrine. I talked with him at The Sound of Young America Live!, part of Sketchfest NYC at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in New York.
All our videos for this show were shot by Benjamin Ahr Harrison, a New-York based videographer. You can find him online at badcharacter.com. Thanks, Ben! Our audio was captured by Jeff Solomon.
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Interview: Wes Jackson, founder of the Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival
Wes Jackson is the founder of the Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival, co-founder of Seven Heads Entertainment, and president of marketing firm The Room Service Group. He answered my questions via email about his motivation for creating the Festival and what he looks for in a performer, among other things.
Aaron Matthews: Why did you start the Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival?
WJ: I started the Festival for several reasons. One, I thought hip-hop should have a world class festival on par with the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. An all day, outdoor representation of the city’s music, cuisine, culture and energy.
Secondly, I wanted to create an event that would help reclaim the hip-hop brand from years of bad press, vultures and interlopers. Hip-Hop needs to grow up and take itself seriously. There teenage fans of hip-hop as well as 30, 40, and 50 year-old fans. Hip-Hop fans of all ages need quality music and events that appeal to where they are in life.
The Summer Jams take care of the teenagers. There is Rock The Bells who attacks this issue with a sledgehammer and a slightly alternative spin. I wanted to create one for our demographic as well. Metropolitan, educated, slightly older, female, and racially/ethnically diverse.
AM: What do you look for in a performer when you are assembling the lineup for the festival?
WJ: Someone with fundamental skills. More than this elusive ‘swagger’ that is so prevalent these days. I am looking for someone who is pushing the art forward. I look for real content. Stage presence. When putting together the line-up, I look for a balance of old school and new school. Local acts and acts that rarely make it to Brooklyn.
AM: How do you balance the different tastes of long time Brooklynites and more recent arrivals?
WJ: It’s not that tough. I get Big Daddy Kane and KRS-One for the old heads. Lupe [Fiasco] and Mickey Factz for the gentrifiers. Is that a word? At the end, both old and new Brooklynites appreciate quality and history. We also price the event so that as many socio and economic groups can participate. This brings the old and new communities together.
AM: Have there ever been issues over which acts have been chosen?
WJ: Sure. Everyone has their favourites and I have the final say. Feathers get ruffled sometimes but we are all pros and sort it out. The one who gets pissed is me when I let people talk me into acts I know don’t fit the brand. I have learned to use my experience and lead without being despotic. My gut instincts on this are usually right. For the most part we all come to a consensus.
What was your initial goal in starting Seven Heads Entertainment?
WJ: My goal was to work with my friends and changed the world. Still is. [Laughs]
Back then I was enamoured with the idea of running a record label. I wanted to be Russell Simmons. After the returns started to mount, that dream ended. Fundamentally I just wanted to get my vision of hip-hop out there. I wanted to start my own business and realize my dreams. We did some great things. Released some fantastic records. Saw the world. I hope to bring the brand back soon as a digital entity.
The main performance day of the Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival starts at 4pm tomorrow, featuring performances by Mickey Factz, Blu & Exile, KRS-One, DJ Premier, 88 Keys and more.
You can find out more about the Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival at brooklynbodega.com.
Some of you web savvy folk might recognize the name Mickey Factz. The Bronx emcee has been the subject of many a blog post as of late thanks to his boundary-pushing approach to hip hop. Not only the music he creates, but they way it is being heard has both hip hop fans and hipsters alike asking “Who is this guy?!” Mickey Factz is an over-night success years in the making. He spoke to me about his digital mix-tape The Leak Vol.1, his evolution as an artist and who he’ll most likely be compared to.
Chris Bowman: You mention in your bio that your "music will get to the masses whether it be through traditional or non-traditional mediums". The success of the on-line mix-tape series has been a prime example of the latter. With The Leak you took a different approach releasing one track at a time. Why did you decide to try this method?
Mickey Factz: Gotta cause a stir up somehow, someway. By doing that it creates a word of mouth campaign, leading people from all walks of life talking about Mickey Factz, whether it’s good or bad. They're talking and that's all that matters. By talking, it creates awareness, people then act on that awareness.
CB: You made a good point when you said "In evolution, only the strong survive. Those unable to adapt to a changing platform or culture, will be left extinct." Over the years you have evolved from Renegade to Jack Danielz to Mickey Factz, changing your style along the way. What have you learned from those previous incarnations?
MF: Interesting question. As Renegade, I was basically vicariously living thru my favorite emcee's. Some of ‘em were violent. Some of ‘em were straight up lyricists and others were just partiers. Because of backlash that I might have gotten from the streets, I used Jack Daniels as a cover up. Saying I was drunk when I did it. Turning into Mickey Factz was essential ‘cause it made me look within myself and become the artist I am today.
CB: Your music has been embraced by a wide variety of fans, earning you the recently coined label of hipster rapper. On the other side of that it seems to have stirred up negative feedback also. As you say, either way at least people are talking. What is it about your style you feel has caused so much buzz?
MF: It’s the flamboyance, the swag, the lyricism, the cockiness, the human side. All of these emotions lead the fans to accept what I do because it’s real and they go thru it too. Every word has a purpose and meaning. Plus I'm dope as fuck.
CB: You have already been offered a record deal from Atlantic Records and a solo deal from Missy Elliot. What made you decide to turn those offers down?
MF: It wasn't the right time. Timing is everything and right now, it’s the time for Mickey to position and align himself properly to gain the maximum exposure he deserves.
CB: What would you like to add that people might not already know about you?
MF: That y’all will compare me to Michael Jackson, that's how confident I am.
Mickey Factz will be performing at the Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival along with Blu & Exile, KRS-One, DJ Premier, 88 Keys and more Saturday July 12. Also, you can download the latest installment of The Leakhere.
Our man Killer Mike aka Killa Kill from the 'Ville has a new video, featuring Ice Cube, called Pressure. Powerful record -- there's a lot going on in the video, not entirely sure what they're shooting for with it. It certainly packs a lot of visceral punch.
Below, see Mike destroy a freestyle on BET. Rare to see MCs truly freestyle on TV when they could just spit some writtens, but it's obvious that Mike is coming off the dome.
Blu is a Los Angeles-based MC, and half of the hip-hop group Blu & Exile. Last year they released their first album as a duo, the critically-acclaimed "Below the Heavens." Blu talks about his start as a battle MC in his Los Angeles high school, and about finding his voice as a profoundly personal rapper. Listen to This Week's Show Online
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Above: he never loses his flow on Jigga What, then rips into H to the Izzo ("fuck it, I'm guilty"), then some other smash hits. Below: he rocks "Heart of the City" over "Sunday Bloody Sunday." The whole set (in nine parts) here.
Jon Reiss is the director of the films Better Living Through Circuitry and more recently Bomb It. The documentary traces the origins of graffiti from cave paintings, to the reinvention of the art form in the 70's and 80's through to the global phenomenon it has become today. Listen to This Week's Show Online
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Like this record a lot. Blu is supposed to be coming over for an interview later... but I've already had one cancellation today, so I'm not counting my chickens until they hatch. In the meantime, enjoy this video.
I didn't even know that my high school friend Richard had a second life as rapper Richie Cunning until he emailed me yesterday. I didn't even know he rapped. I should become a rapper. It seems like fun.
Anyway, Richard aka Richie Cunning and our man Ashkeezy are opening for West Coast hip-hop stalwarts People Under the Stairs on Thursday night at the Independent in San Francisco... a great place to see a show, walking distance from my old apartment.
Whether or not you live in the Sco, you can download Richie's new single, "The City," which is a fantastic tribute to the best city in the world. Also, the N Judah. I think my first single's going to be about the 49 Van Ness-Mission.
Independent underground hip-hop exploded on the west coast in the 1990s, and it was thanks in no small part to the work of The Living Legends, a broad collective of Los Angeles and Bay Area artists whose relentless hustle made the world safe for underground rappers. The Grouch remains a leading light in independent hip-hop, with thoughtful, personal rhymes and often self-produced beats. He talked with us about what it means to be independent, how his family has affected his music, and about how his sincerity helped ameliorate the friction his race caused in the hip-hop world. His latest album is Show You the World.
The man Wale isn't quite as impressive to me as he is to some, but he does have skills, and that D.A.N.C.E. song is bananas, so the combination is great. A little rapping is great for cutting the general... uhm... Frenchness of the original. Nice to hear someone repping the District, too. Besides these MaxFunsters who are planning a meetup around the Paul F. Tompkins show, of course.
I'm usually against "Free XXX Rapper" campaigns. Most rappers (not all, of course) have great legal representation, and if they end up in jail, it's because they did some shit they deserved to go to jail for.
My feelings on Slick Rick, however, are completely the opposite. Rick was born in the UK, though he moved to New York as a toddler. Unfortunately, he never went through the many hoops to become a US citizen. In 1990, Rick shot a cousin who the rapper accused of trying to extort and kill him. His plea arrangement in the case was specifically tailored to avoid triggering deportation. After he was released, the interpretation of the rules changed, and the government has been trying to deport him more or less ever since.
Of course, letting Rick become a citizen of the United States is enormously beneficial to our country. He's one of the great musicians of his generation, and he's been working tirelessly to help prevent violence since his release. If you've ever heard him speak, he's an eloquent voice for a better country.
Yesterday, New York's new governor, David Patterson, gave Rick a full pardon. His lawyers will file for a waiver of deportation within two weeks. I couldn't be more pleased.
Above: conclusive proof to Jordan, Jesse GO! listeners who don't live in the Bay Area that Keak da Sneak is NOT a made up rapper! He's real! And this is the single from his new album!
Surprised to see that the new version of this track (released in the Yay six or nine months ago) features Prodigy and The Alchemist (rapping?), but it's good to see that Keak da Sneak is back. New album dropping soon on Koch... I wonder if he'll come be on TSOYA. I just emailed his publicist.
I'm getting kind of excited about B.o.B. -- he feels like a 2008 iteration of the Dungeon Family, even more than, well, the Dungeon Family does.
This isn't his best track, Rich Boy's not much of a rapper, but it's a pretty good one, and an interesting take on the "trance-hop" meme that's been going around. We'll see if B.o.B. has depth to match his style, but as I said... I'm excited.
Podcast: Ego Trip! with Brent Rollins and Gabriel Alvarez
Brent Rollins and Gabriel Alvarez are members of the hip-hop media collective Ego Trip. The group produced the acclaimed magazine Ego Trip in the late 1990s. Since that time, they've written two hilarious and insightful books - Ego Trip's Book of Rap Lists and Ego Trip's Big Book of Racism. More recently, they've produced specials and series for VH1, including last year's White Rapper Show and their current series, Ego Trip's Miss Rap Supreme.
Alvarez has worked for many years as a hip-hop journalist, and was a contributor to the Adult Swim series The Boondocks. Rollins is one of the world's top urban designers. His works included the logo for the film "Boyz in the Hood" and the cover for many albums, including the seminal "Mos Def and Talib Kweli are Blackstar." Discuss this episode on the forum! Download This Show (MP3)
MaxFunster Doug-Life has a secret life as a member of the hip-hop group Filf Dos, who are opening for past TSOYA guestsTanya Morgan April 18th in Chicago at The Note. Doug was kind enough to hook us up with some tickets to give away for the show... all it takes is an email, and the address is here on the Max Fun Forum. I'm even throwing in some stickers and whatnot. TM are a great group who put on a great show, and if you're in the Chi, you should definitely check out the show.
