“Dying”
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Mims Ft. Shawty Lo
“Let Me Do My Thang”
Rap Label Death Row Relaunching April 18th
The record label formerly known as Koch Records is mounting its reemergence on the music scene by helping to relaunch former West Coast powerhouse Death Row Records.
The new Koch, now known as E1 Entertainment, is helping to re-launch Death Row with the release of new music on Record Store Day, which is a national event geared towards celebrating independent music and retailers on April 18.
The unreleased Death Row music will comprise a three-track exclusive sampler that will be available in stores next month.
Songs featured on the project include Crooked I’s “Hoodstar,” “Pay for the P***y” by Petey Pablo and “Do What You Do” from Danny Boy.
The Death Row sampler will be the first of more new music that will surface from the label this fall, sources told AllHipHop.com, adding that 90 percent of what was recorded for Death Row has never been released.
The Record Store Day promotion comes amid a crossroads for Death Row, which has sustained as many setbacks and milestones over the years.
Since its creation in 1991, the label has produced classic albums and songs from artists such as Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Tupac Shakur, Tha Dogg Pound and The Lady of Rage.
Death Row’s heyday in the ‘90s ended with the arrival of the new millennium as the company sustained constant legal troubles to go with its highly publicized defection of artists.
On January 15, WIDEawake Entertainment Group, Inc. purchased the label for $18 million.
That same month, items found in the Death Row office after the company filed for bankruptcy were auctioned off to the public.
Death Row is among a string of music labels and entertainment companies that have products distributed by E1, which is regarded as the largest independent record label in the United States.
Artists aligned with E1 include rappers Jim Jones, Fat Joe, Trick Trick and Keith Murray.
The Death Row Records unreleased music sampler is scheduled to arrive in stores on April 18.
Rap Group Blazhay Blazhay Sues Wyclef Over “Danger”
Hip-Hop duo Blazhay Blazhay have sued former Fugees star Wyclef Jean for alleged illegal use of their memorable hit “Danger.”
Blahzay Blahzay, comprised of DJ PF Cuttin’ and MC Out Loud, claim that Wyclef Jean violated their copyright entitlement by using elements of “Danger” in the 2007 song “Welcome to the East.”
Blahzay’s “Danger” was released in 1995, and immediately became popular on East Coast radio outlets.
The track utilized creative vocal samples, such as Jeru the Damaja’s “Come Clean,” and Gwen McCrae’s infectious 1975 hit “Rockin’ Chair” as a rhythm foundation.
After releasing an all-star DJ Premier-produced remix, the group released one album, 1996’s Blah Blah Blah.
The lawsuit was filed in Manhattan Federal Court, and also names Sony BMG Entertainment as a defendant.
The music giant alleged culpability stems from the song’s distribution on Carnival Vol. II: Memoirs of an Immigrant, Wyclef’s sixth studio album.
At press time, Wyclef could not be reached for comment.
Jim Jones Ft. Ludacris and NOE
“How To Be A Boss”
Pimp C Ft. Lil Wayne and T-Pain
“Let’s Talk Money”
P-Wonda [Heater Of The Day]
“Thug Lockdown”
Snoop Dogg Ft. Tanvi Shah
“Snoop Dogg Millionaire”
Abyss Ft. Drag-On
“No Accident”
Flo Rida Ft. Trey Songz
“Jingle Bells”
EZ Skywaler
“Flyest In Da Hood Freestyle”
Kanye West Ft. T-Pain and OB
“OB Flight School Remix”
Radio Host Charlamagne Makes Moves; Lil Ru Inks Major Deal
Former Wendy Williams Experience co-host Charlamagne Tha God is continuing efforts to put the spotlight on North and South Carolina artists, with a historical transition for his Stupid Dope Moves (SDM) artist Lil Ru.
The AllHipHop.com Breeding Ground alum, who has garnered success as an independent artist, recently finalized a new recording contract with iconic recording home Def Jam Records.
The new deal is a milestone for Ru, who has made a string of regional hits and received support from various Carolina movers and shakers such as DJ B-Lord, DJ Chuck T, SDM co-founders Charlamagne Tha God and DJ Frosty.com of Columbia’s The Beat 100.1 (WXBT-FM).
Lil Ru’s success is among a string of accomplishments for Charlamagne, who left Williams’ successful syndicated show in November 2008 to pursue his own career interests.
In addition to writing for Ozone magazine, Charlamagne has written blogs for various websites as well as released two albums under the SDM umbrella.
The radio veteran, who currently hosts a specialty show on WXBT, is maximizing his time with SDM.
The lifestyle brand has already aligned with Headhunter Records to spearhead the exposure of the Carolina Hip-Hop movement.
According to the Charlamagne, it is only a matter of time before the Carolinas emerges as the next big region to capture the full attention of the Hip-Hop nation.
“Stupid Dope Moves and Headhunter Records are just positioning ourselves to be what Poe Boy and Slip ‘n Slide are to Florida; what Swisha House and Rap-A-Lot or to Texas,” he said. “South Carolina and the Carolinas in general are the next region to blow in this southern rap movement, which means we are the next region to blow period. Lil Ru is just the beginning.”
Among the artists featured on Headhunter, which is owned by producer 9 Mil and Lil Bo, are Lil Broad, who is enjoying growing regional buzz from her song “Do You Mind.”
With a diverse roster of talent, Charlamagne believes there is more history to be made in terms of what SDM and Headhunter can achieve.
“We’ve got an army of artist on deck…we built for this…Allah loves us.”
DJ Rob Swift, Kangol Kid, Headline NJPAC Hip-Hop Fest
On April 1-4, Newark, NJ’s NJPAC Center will host Alternate Routes, a 4 day festival featuring over 30 Hip-Hop artists.
The event aims to showcase the many multi-faceted artists in the Tri-State area, along with musicians from Canada. In addition to performances, the festival’s lineup includes spoken word artists, exclusive film screenings, emcee battles, panel workshops, and a late night open mic.
Set to perform on Alternate Route’s second day, dubbed “Fresh Status,” are former Def Jam rapper and Jay-Z signee Sam Scarfo, and Newark native Tame One, formerly of 90’s duo The Artifacts and now the Weathermen.
On April 4, a panel discussion will be conducted with Hip-Hop pioneer Kangol Kid, and trailblazing female emcee Lin Que of X-Clan.
Rob Swift, a founding member of the acclaimed X-ecutioners, will close the event with Hip-Hop Fundamentals 101.
Through exhibitions, Swift is scheduled to detail the various elements of the culture in DJing, beatboxing, and breaking.
AllHipHop.com is the official online sponsor for the event, and local readers/members are encouraged to attend.
Tickets are available through NJPAC at 1-888-GO-NJPAC, www.njpac.org, or the NJPAC box office at One Center Street in Newark, NJ.
For further information on the festival, as well as free events, visit http://njpachiphop.org and http://njpachiphopblog.com.
Gorilla Zoe: Don’t Feed The Animals (Album Review)
Gorilla Zoe, the Atlanta based dope boy turned rapper, is back with his sophomore album Don’t Feed The Animals (Bad Boy South). With this trip to the Zoo, Zoe takes his rough demeanor down a notch by crooning and harmonizing through each track.
The musical quality is heavily polished on Don’t Feed The Animals, and Gorilla Zoe takes advantage of the production value by attempting to position himself radio friendly light. Unfortunately, between talking smack about loose females and dope boy narratives, Zoe doesn’t deliver much musically.
Gorilla gets introspective on “Lost” as he slowly dishes about life on the road and in the spotlight. Lyrically, Zoe’s keeps it typical, “Losing my mind / losing control of the wheel / swerving on and off the road,” but it’s his delivery that defies expectations. He vibes smoothly over a simple beat just letting the truth come out. But just as Gorilla loves to hate his not-so glamorous life, he quickly turns back into his Dope Boy alter-ego on “I’m Dumb” as he looks for a “wife for a night.”
Don’t Feed The Animals reaches low points on tracks like “S*** On ‘Em” and “Echo” as Zoe jumps on the auto-tune wave. Both are ill-fated songs that in actuality serve no purpose other than Gorilla wanting to come off as experimental.
In the same vain as 808s & Heartbreaks Gorilla’s flow is very misplaced, sounding awkward on “Echo.” Topping it off, “Hood Clap” is Gorilla’s desperate attempt re-make his hit “Hood N****.” Lyrics like “If you’re hood and you know it, clap your hands” just make the drug dealing game sound like a childish act.
Zoe does manage to stay true to his roots on “What It Is” and “Dope Boy” and lyrically delivers what most like best about him: raspy hard rhymes. “Bricks of that ‘thrax call me Osama / presidential kush call me Obama / pull up to the trap trunk beat ’em like thunder / Man I’m getting money better watch your baby mama.”
Don’t Feed The Animals has moments of glory but then tragedy swipes the dream away when songs like “Talk Back” take sexual explicitness to a what-the-eff level killing any hope the album ever had. Gorilla Zoe takes a lot of risks trying to show off a softer side to his hard strung dope boy attitude, but with a lack of valuable content, this effort feels like an incomplete album without a clear concept.
Gorilla Zoe Featuring Lil Wayne
“Lost”
The Last Word: Case Becomes “Blaxel Rose”, Aubrey O’Day Becomes a Perv Magnet, and Kanye West In a Family Guy Spinoff?
What’s good everybody? Another week gone by and we have a
slow five days to show for it. From AIG execs getting blasted for those hefty
bonuses they got to Obama picking UNC to go all the way in the NCAA Tournament,
it was just another ordinary week.
Thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of
actress Natasha Richardson, who died Wednesday (March 18) because of a head
injury from a skiing accident Monday afternoon near Montreal. Shout out to the
sounding boards for making everyday worth working for.
So here it is…The Last Word for the week ending March 20,
2009
1. Case Becomes Blaxel Rose; Accidentally Shoots Self in
Throat
It’s been a while since we’ve heard from Case, but the
absence, according to the crooner, hasn’t been without good reason. While
working on his forthcoming album, The Rose Experience, Case moved to Atlanta to
be closer to his family and ended up wounding himself to prevent his kids from
finding his gun. It was then the weapon’s trigger went off.
“I had an accident in ‘02 where I accidentally shot myself
in the throat, so that put things on home for a minute,” he told EUR. “After I
came-to, the first thing I did was try to sing. That’s all I was really
concerned about at that time.”
Soon after recovering from the accident, Case tried
unsuccessfully to negotiate a new contract with Def Jam Records. The experience
resulted in the singer going the independent route to release his music as well
as the birth of his persona, Blaxel Rose – “The Black Axel Rose [of the
rock band Guns-N-Roses].”
“He’s a little wilder than I may generally be. I wanted to
have a little more fun and make the music sound lighter on this album and
that’s more so a reflection on the other side of my personality,” Case
explained about the alter ego, which plays into the title of the new release.
And if you feel Case is going to abandon R&B and Hip-Hop
for a full on foray into rock, think again. Blaxel is nothing more than a name
that expresses his love of rock music. Nothing less.
“It’s just like Hip-Hop; it’s a way of life,” he said. “I am
a fan of rock music; I listen to it all the time. But it’s more so a persona,”
he said. “I’m not one to pigeon-hole myself. In order to that, I have to show
all sides of my personality. No one thing defines who I am.”
Case’s The Rose Experience is slated to hit stores on Tuesday (March 24).
2. Justin Timberlake Considers Tequila Side Hustle
When you’ve done music successfully and haven’t had too bad
of an experience with acting in movies and creating your own clothing line,
then finding something else to do with your time may not be too far off.
At least for Justin Timberlake. The New York Post reports the crooner was spotted on video tasting
tequila during a recent tour of a Mexican distillery. When asked about the trip,
a spokeswoman for Timberlake revealed the outing was “one of his many meetings
over the last two years in development of his tequila business.”
All signs seem to point to JT making moves to launch a new
brand of “naked” tequila. The question is will it or won’t contain the worm.
3. Taraji P. Henson Joins Kanye West and Sanaa Lathan for
Family Guy Spinoff
Now that she’s officially arrived with her best supporting
actress Oscar nomination, Taraji P. Henson is returning to the small screen
with an appearance on the upcoming Family Guy spinoff, The Cleveland Show.
The show, which his slated to premiere in the fall on Fox,
will follow the character of Cleveland Brown and his family as they move from
Rhode Island to Virginia.
Henson will be featured in a future episode of the series,
while Kanye West will be the voice of a rapper named Kenny West. Sanaa Lathan
will be a Cleveland Show regular as the voice of Cleveland’s new wife Donna.
And as an added bonus, Nia Long (remember her?) will play Donna’s teenage
daughter Roberta.
Let’s hope Stewie makes an appearance so he and Kanye can go
at it. Talk about a meeting of the minds. How funny would that be?
4. Tyson Beckford Wants Celebrity Free Magazine Covers
You know the economy is bad when supermodels can’t earn a
steady paycheck. Maybe that’s why Tyson Beckford is putting his foot down and
asking his fellow celebrities to stop doing magazine covers.
The 38-year-old Make Me a Supermodel host justified his
views to the Associated Press as he
revealed that having actors and musicians on these covers ultimately takes away
jobs from models.
“You have to do a lot of tweaking and airbrushing to get the
same from a celebrity that you would get from a model,” Beckford said. “A lot
of celebrities – I’m gonna tell you right now – they’re not 5’11”
(1.8 meters); they’re not a size two to fit into these designer dresses, but
the designers want exposure so they’re willing to make the specific dress for
that actor or actress to get them to look good on the cover.”
Despite all of this, Tyson does feel that celebrities on
magazine covers will go out of style someday.
“It’ll all come back around. One day some designer will wake
up and say, ‘You know what? I don’t want to use Gwyneth Paltrow. I want to use
Adriana Lima, I want to use Gisele (Bundchen), I want to go back to the high
fashion,’” he said. “I think slowly but surely you’ll see that start
happening.”
Is it me or is that the pot calling the kettle black? You
want to invade acting, but don’t want the actors to invade modeling. I know
times are hard, but can’t we all just get along?
5. Spike Lee Gives Kobe Bryant Starring Role in New
Documentary
Kobe Bryant’s antics on the basketball court are getting the
big screen treatment as Spike Lee’s prepares to premiere his new documentary,
Kobe Doin’ Work, at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival.
The ESPN Films production, which features a score by Bruce
Hornsby, was shot during last year’s NBA playoffs when Lee and cinematographer
Matthew Libatique spent a day with Bryant.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, Kobe Doin’ Work will be
shown April 25 as the gala entry in the festival’s Tribeca/ESPN Sports Film
Festival sidebar.
The Tribeca/ESPN Sports Film Festival highlights independent
films about sports and competition. Other films featured in the event include
Jonathan Hock’s Lost Son of Havana, Eric Bana’s Love the Beast, Erez Tadmor and
Sharon Maymon’s A Matter of Size (Sipur Gadol), Marshall Curry’s Racing Dreams,
Carlos Cuaron’s Rudo y Cursi, Mans Herngren’s The Swimsuit Issue (Allt flyter)
and Liz Mermin’s Team Qatar.
Those who can’t make the festival can catch Kobe Doin’ Work
when it airs May 16 on ESPN. After Kobe’s extra-marital past, should the title
of the film be considered a sequel?
6. Aubrey O’Day Becomes Perv Magnet, Bounces Back from
Diddy Firing
Say what you want about Aubrey O’Day, but the former Danity
Kane member is continuing to move forward after being let go from the Bad Boy
girl group.
“Everything in life happens for a reason. A lot of people
last year were fired, we are in a recession,” O’Day said. “We are all going
through hard times. I’m just a public representative for being fired in 2008
and moving on in 2009.”
Hence, her recent appearance in Playboy magazine – the experience proved to be so much
fun that O’Day hasn’t ruled out going au natural again.
“I absolutely want to do it again, any day. I’ve been asked
to actually,” the entertainer told Fox News. “I only took a little bit off this
time so I’ll be back.”
And while the joy of doing Playboy has its pluses, there
comes the shady side as Aubrey’s nakedness has garnered responses from people
who have no problem expressing how much they love seeing her in her birthday
suit.
“I get sent a lot of creepy pictures like of guys licking
the pages,” she said. “It’s slightly weird.”
Anything to get some attention, I suppose. It could always
be worse. There are so many ways to express appreciation for the female form
that it seems to come down to how creative (or rather freaky) a guy or girl
could get their point across.
But then again, that’s the difference between a fan and a
fanatic…Or is it?
In Other Words…
* Nelly Furtado is trying her hand as a record label owner. Billboard reports that the songbird has launched Nelstar in cooperation
with the Canadian independent label group Last Gang Labels. The name is in
reference to her previous stage name of Nelstar during Furtado’s electronica
days. The first act to come out of the label will be the Toronto-based
electro-dance band Fritz Helder & the Phantoms. The group’s debut album is
slated to arrive July 7.
* Danny Glover and Angela Bassett are lending their talents
to a new independent film helmed by actor Giancarlo Esposito. The feature,
titled Gospel Hill, focuses on a decades-old investigation into the death of a
civil rights leader. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Gospel Hill will open
the ninth edition of the ReelWorld Film Festival on April 15. In addition to
Glover and Bassett, the film will feature Esposito, Julia Stiles, Taylor Kitsch
and Nia Long. Gospel Hill is the directorial debut of Esposito, who is probably
best known for his roles in the films School Daze and Fresh and the TV show
Homicide: Life on the Street.**To get the latest AllHipHop Alternatives Features, follow us on Twitter @ www.twitter.com/AHHalternatives**
Hip-Hop Rumors: QueenPen Fights Rocsi!? Chris Brown/Rihanna SEX TAPE? Warning For Yung Berg!
DISCLAIMER:
All
content within this section is pure rumor and generally have no factual
info outside of what the streets have whispered in our ear. Read on.
QUEEN PEN VS ROCSI?
People have been telling me that Rocsi and Queen Pen got into an altercation on Wednesday in the city. I have to admit, I ignored this before I got a more serious letter. Somebody was like, “why is Queen Pen talking about domestic violence when she beat up Rocsi.” Here is the skinny. The hood Queen and Rocsi allegedly got into an argument over Rocsi allegedly sleeping with LisaRaye’s husband. Queen Pen allegedly threw a drink of liquor in Rocsi’s face and it was on! At least this isn’t as bad as what I heard initially: that Queen Pen hit Rosci in the head with a bottle at a club! I’m glad it didn’t go down like that. I don’t know how close Queen Pen and LisaRaye are, but I hope is closer than a pair of peas in a pod. Just a few months ago, Queen Pen was struggling with her man in a domestic abuse case. I think she should apply that to people like Rocsi, since Rox is a smaller, un-hood chick. SMH.
CHRIS AND RIHANNA SEX TAPE?Just when you thought it was getting better, a new rumor sprouts out! There are sources within the Star Magazine that state that there’s a Chris Brown and Rihanna sex tape out there. According to this rumor, Rihanna let Chris Brown record them having sex. Now, RiRi is reportedly very, very nervous about these tapes springing a leak. Also, did you notice the use of plural? According to sources, Rihanna is already very embarrassed with the overall situation with the alleged beating from Brown and would not be happy if this stuff were made public. Wow.MARTIN LAWRENCE IS UPSET AT RUMORS
A friend of Martin Lawrence hit me up, since he is a reader of AllHipHop.com. He told me that Martin was not pleased to hear the rumors that there was a rumor of him dying. Well, not only is he alive, he attended his friend’s son’s karate show. Martin personally requested that I post these pics and deliver the good word that he’s very alive and kickin’ like Bruce Lee!
YUNG BERG: BE CAREFUL IN LA!
Earlier this year, Yung Berg was involved in a “situation” with a relative of Master P. Who knows why this was a beef in the first place, but I heard its not over for some reason. Right now, they are planning the Los Angeles Dub Auto Show and Yung Berg is supposedly going to make an appearance. Now this is to the delight of some, but not Master P’s nephew, according to rumor. I heard nephew and his goonies are looking to get at Berg to snatch whatever chain he might have on him. No more fails for Berg in 09!
NO BUCK ON RAP-A-LOT
I know Rap-A-Lot has a lot of bucks, but they don’t have a Young Buck yet. T-Money from J Prince Jr.’s label Young Empire Music Group hit me up and gave me the scoop. He told that that Buck’s not coming on the label that J. Prince built, but they are cool. Buck was down in Houston celebrating his and Jr.’s B-Day. He made it out to the T.I. concert last Saturday, and linked up with Game on his Birthday at Belvedere for the after-party for Game’s concert. I heard Young Buck also recorded a few tracks with Trae. Buck is still on G-Unit, but he’s got a few things in the works.
T-Money asked that I let everybody know about Young Empire Music Group and that fact that they have some great things in the worlds. P.O.P. on Pimp C’s smash single “Knockin Doorz Down” our their artist A-Dub has his new mixtape.
CANIBUS AND MURRAY: MORE INFO
That Canibus/Keith Murray album is looking real good. I happen to know that, via my illseed intel, the album contains six beats by the great Erick Sermon and six beats by Bronze Nazareth of Wu Killer Bee fame. All this was sparked by the “Can U Handle The Heights” that was produced by Bronze Nazareth from some group called Almighty, and it featured Keith & Canibus. I know there are a lot of people that couldn’t care less about this, but I’m not one of them. I want to see what these dudes have to say.
THE RETURN OF FLOYD MAYWEATHER?Word has it that former number 1 pound for pound fighter, Floyd
Mayweather Jr. will be returning to the ring on July 11th. According to
reports, Floyd’s advisor, Al Haymon has been in conversations with the
suits at HBO for Floyd to return to the ring in a major way in 2009.
Obviously, Floyd would like to face the winner of Hatton vs. Pacquiao
later in the year, but Floyd is looking for a tune up fight a bit
sooner. While talks are underway for a tune up fight to take place on
HBO World Championship Boxing, no concrete opponent has been finalized.
However, the rumor mill has been throwing around the name of one Juan
Manuel Marquez as a comeback opponent for Floyd – Though I would hardly
call the great Marquez a “tune up” opponent.
ILLSEED’S QUICKIES
Holy Moly! I heard that Lil Zane did drop a CD last year and it bricked! I didn’t even know!
I just want to say that I didn’t appreciate how Oprah and her people only classified Kevin Powell as a former abuser. The big homey is a writer, politician and activist, among other things.
I heard absolutely nothing from anybody about South Park Mexican. I assume his alive and not so well in jail.
MY ILLSEED STREET TEAM IS WORKING!
Thank you! If you do anything in the streets with illseed on it, send it to me. Even if it’s a pic that you drew of me, send it!
EPIC FAIL OF THE DAY
YOU CANNOT MAKE THIS UP! A woman by the name of Michelle Owen was very suspicious of her ex-boyfriend. The Indiana woman thought her man might be a perv that used HER computer to find child pornography. The woman was so concerned, that she told the police about it and told them to search her computer for child p###. Well, at this point in the story, I thought she was trying to snitch on her ex, but she was actually snitching on herself. The police search the computer and discovered that there were a pair of videos of her having sexual relations with a dog. She had relations with a beagle. SMH. She fessed up to cops right there. She didn’t even try to do the ol’ R.Kelly with the vid. She was charged with two counts of felony b#########. She said she did the acts when she was drunk and tried to delete them when she was sober. She must have still been drinking when she thought she was sober.
SIGNS THE WORLD IS COMING TO AN END
You might have seen this yesterday. It was all over the news. A woman gave birth on a flight to New Zealand and guess what she did? She left the baby on the plane. That’s right, I repeat..SHE LEFT THE BABY ON THE PLANE IN A TRASH COMPARTMENT IN THE PLANES TOILET! Did my all caps get the message across!? The baby was discovered by a person sent in to clean the plane. Sad. How she had a baby on a plane and just walked off is beyond belief. At any rate, she abandoned the baby, but did eventually come back. They were taken to a hospital in the maternity ward. (I wonder if they meant mental ward?) The police are now on the case though. I don’t know about post-partum or whatever they call it, but that’s just wild!
SLEEP SCARE – GOOD ONE!
This poor guy was off to get married and his buds pranked him on the way from the bachelor party.
QUEEN PEN SPEAKS OUT ON DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
Queen Pen speaks out against domestic violence
DEVI DEV INTERVIEWS RICK ROSS!
Yall don’t know, but Devi Dev is like the biggest thing on the west coast! Why did Rick Ross trying to get her to admit that 50 Cent was gay? Watch this!
CAPTION THIS!
Email me at allhiphoprumors@gmail.com …tips, information and other stupid stuff.
For more, go to illseed.com. Or just follow me at http://twitter.com/illseed
DILLA, WE LOVE YOU!!!
They keep us talking, but if we stop talking about them then they should worry!
-illseed
WHAT: Rumors
WHERE: AllHipHop.com, MySpace.com/TheIllseed
HOW: Send your rumors and ill pics to illseed at allhiphoprumors@gmail.com.
T La Rock: The Super Rapper Is Back
T La Rock is certain to befuddle Hip-Hop conspiracy theorists. The Boogie Down Bronx-bred rapper isn’t often mentioned when it is time to pay mainstream homage to heroes of the genre. It almost seems like an overt snub by the powers-that-suppress. Yet, the man born Terry Keaton finds himself in one of the best positions of his stellar, history-making career. Despite the ignorance, both Bad Boy mogul (and part-time actor) Sean “Diddy” Combs and movie producer Bonnie Timmermann are interested in retelling T La Rock’s life story in an untitled film project, which has already been penned by Antwone Fisher.
But, the man who deemed himself “the super rapper,” is as influential to Hip-Hop aficionados as any rapper you can name. T La Rock was the first act Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin worked with on their fledgling Def Jam imprint with the iconic “Its Yours.” His wordplay influenced their young upstart LL Cool J and he never had to worry about rapper’s challenging his incredible skills when he was at his peak in the 80’s. Heck, his brother is Special K of The Treacherous 3 and he introduced the world to an intense, intellectual approach to hardcore lyrics. Then, there is the tragedy that made headlines in the mid-90’s. But, that is a tale only T La Rock can tell with some help from friends in high and lower places. Just maybe, the conspiracy theorists can momentarily put their mind at ease as one of their idols gets his just due.
AllHipHop.com: You have a situation where people like Sean “Diddy” Combs have expressed interest in a movie on your life.
T La Rock: Diddy is not 100% secured, but he’s further along that anybody else besides the main producer Bonnie Timmermann. Diddy is almost locked it.
AllHipHop.com: What “sells” them on this story? People are obviously interested.
T La Rock: There’s a number of reasons. Of course of who I am – T La Rock. I have several huge records. Everyone from Diddy to people in the movie that barely listen to rap know who I am. And the other part of it is the injury that I suffered back in 1995, which had a whole lot of press. Everybody from the Daily News to the New York Times to CNN [covered it].
AllHipHop.com: I read that New York Times story and I found that very interesting. The details that capture that moment…
T La Rock: …Which I don’t too much a recollection of. The people around me are actually telling that story, because I don’t remember much about it. That’s going to be about a quarter to about half of the story. It may even go back as far as when I was 15 years old. As far as the injury is concerned it’s the people that were around me – like my mother – and people like that that’s going to fill in those parts. Now way later on, as I started to regain my memory, I’ll start to fill in some of those parts. That’s why I barely talk about that, because I it would be guess work and it was so long ago. It’s not like this happened last year of the year before. The injury took place in 1995.
AllHipHop.com: When you talk about the aftermath, the rehabilitation and recovery. Do you remember any of that?
T La Rock: No. I have no recollection of what happened. What I was told is that I was on my way to the recording studio. A friend of mine or somebody I knew was in trouble and I intervened to help the person or separate them or something. When that happened, I was struck one time [with an object] and that was it.
AllHipHop.com: I read a interview on you and you said you had no influences so can you explain that a little bit?
T La Rock: Well actually the question was did I have any influences within the Hip-Hop community. And I had said, no not really. I mean I come from a family of educators. And people in the family are into entertainment and, the actual, if I were to give any credit to anyone who, inspired me as far as rhyming would be two people that would be Muhammad Ali, and a white comedian actor named Danny Kaye. Now as far as Hip-Hop is concerned that would probably go, directly to Kool Herc.
T La Rock – “Its Yours”
AllHipHop.com: Aside from “Its Yours,” one of my favorite records was well, “Breaking Bells,” which we thought was a diss to LL Cool J who had “Rock The Bells.” Can you get to the truth behind that?
T La Rock: Which record is that?
AllHipHop.com: “Breakin Bells.”
T La Rock: OH yes, yes, well the reason why people looked at it as a diss record to LL, was because LL had a record called “Rock The Bells.” And my record just happened to have the title “Breakin Bells.” And it was really about the bells that was on the record which me and [DJ] Louie Lou played. Cause that record was actually produced by me and my DJ. And as far as the lyrics go, that was just . I was just actually just flowing with beat and showing skills it wasn’t really aimed at any particular rapper. It was also, to catch the ear of certain rappers. But it was never intended to be directed as a verbal assault against LL Cool J.
[Editor’s note: LL Cool J was also the first artist to release and album on Def Jam, whereas T La Rock’s “Its Yours” was the first song for the brand.]
AllHipHop.com: Do you think rappers in general were a little leery about approaching you since you were so lyrical at that time?
T La Rock: Oh of course, oh my goodness. I mean these are rappers, I don’t know if I should say their name they might be embarrassed, would actually walk up and stand next to me and after a while I would get so tired and I would just turn around and say what’s up and a sigh of relief would come on their face. You know I don’t mean to sound cocky or anything but the truth is the truth.
AllHipHop.com: You can say their names if you want.
T La Rock: Excuse me?
AllHipHop.com: I said you can say their names if you want.
T La Rock: I know you’re dying for me to but I’m not. (laughs) I mean I can name a few, there were, like put it this way. KRS-One, for example his DJ (Scott La Rock), who was a very good friend of mine his name was Scott, he actually lived right in my neighborhood. I knew his mother, me and his cousin were best friends his cousins name was Dwayne Burgess and Scott, he was into playing basketball and those things but he was also a counselor. And he wasn’t really into Hip-Hop but he liked Hip-Hop. And I remember him telling that he said there’s a person that he wanted me to meet that he met where he worked. That was sin a shelter and that persons’ name was KRS-one. And I remember when I first met KRS-One, you know nice guy. I can’t remember where we were going, but I know we were on the subway. We might have been coming from record I’m nor sure. And me and KRS one were actually. I wouldn’t say battling but were free styling for quite a while. And we were (inaudible) with each other.
AllHipHop.com: You were both what?
T La Rock: Impressed, you know by each other’s style and our way of rapping. So when I was, it was, I would call it a friendly battle you know what I mean? We didn’t start with, “I’m better than you, no I’m better than you,” so you know. And another one was Big Daddy Kane. Me and Big Daddy Kane would be on the phone just rhyming literally for hours.
AllHipHop.com: Wow, that’s incredible.
T La Rock Goes Home
AllHipHop.com: I heard the rumor that you were in litigation with Rick and Russell over “Its Yours.”
T La Rock: Yeah that actually, with that, we kept running into a dead end with that until finally you know. And then it also turned out that, it wasn’t really Rick and Russell. Wound up beating, I mean, I have some pretty powerful attorneys, see I wasn’t handling things the street way like a lot of these rappers do. Like you don’t get anywhere to go down there huffin’ and puffin’ and making threats. You know I did it in the legal way and it turns out that as far as that record is concerned, it was umm Warlock Records. Warlock records actually held the “It’s Yours” master for years. And you now but like I said it took a whole for me to really start seeing the real money from “It’s Yours”. It was worth the wait, even up to today. Royalties is good, publishing is where you get the big checks.
AllHipHop.com: Now, do you have people out in the field looking out for your interests as far as samples are concerned?
T La Rock: Yes. I have that. It took a while because actually over the years, there are organizations now, where that’s actually all they do. I mean that’s their job to track samples and track you know remixes and that type of thing. So I’ve been getting quite a few checks over the years.
AllHipHop.com: Speaking of Lyrical King Sleeping Bag records. That album is classic bonafide classic.
T La Rock: Right, cause I was surprised, not surprised as in “Wow that album’s not that good”, but I was surprised on you know just how it fell in that category.
AllHipHop.com: Man that album is serious man, that was one of my favorite albums of that era.
AllHipHop.com: Why didn’t you sign to Def Jam though? That’s has always been a weird like nobody really, it never connected to me.
T La Rock: Like I said I just didn’t’ like he way “It’s Yours” was handled It wasn’t a middle finger type thing it was both people, not Russell, I never had a problem with Russell. I didn’t really have a problem a big problem with Rick either. It’s just that when “It’s Yours” had such a long run I just thought we weren’t handled properly. Or I wasn’t. Now Jazzy Jay wasn’t too worried about it. He actually went ahead, me and Jay were working on another record but I kind of shied away from it.
AllHipHop.com: Ok, now lets discuss the state of Hip-Hop. What are your thoughts on how Hip-Hop is these days, both overall and the emcees?
T La Rock: Well nowadays the emcee – wow. Especially a lot of the mainstream rappers, and I don’t really feel comfortable saying names but you’ll probably figure out whom I’m talking and they probably know it themselves are not realty using any lyrical content now. Just on the mic just talking. And it’s so watered down. I mean there some there’s still a few real emcees out here. But the really talented ones that’ll rally come across as products of the real Hip-Hop, you would have to listen to underground stations or that type of thing to hear them.
AllHipHop.com: Now after, the 2 or 3 albums you kinda stopped recording. Most artists of your stature might keep on going or either about recording or some have ruined their legacy, doing sub par material.
T La Rock: Yeah I stopped recording back in maybe 92′ or 93′. I just stopped. And this was right after Sleeping Bag records. Cause I had said I was gonna take a break for a while and I just got comfortable. But I was ghostwriting for a lot of people also producing for a lot rap artists. A lot of people don’t know that and every time I say they say, “C’mon just tell me who.” But I’m loyal, it’s like I honor, you just can’t. Some people like to brag about that you know “Well I wrote!”, and I just don’t do that.
AllHipHop.com: You know I thought about it. You know you were so ahead of your time, I’m thinking the world might just be catching up right about now.
T La Rock: On myspace, I get so many messages that go into my inbox, I’m blown away. And it’s like some of the peoples are hearing these records for the first time. I’m talking about rap’s new generation. They may have heard about me by word of mouth and when they listen they’re blown away.
DIGITAL TREATS
T La Rock “Breaking Bells”
T La Rock and Mantronix are credited as the first artists to use the 808 bass drum on a rap song.
T La Rock and the Treacherous 3 – ’85 Live at Hempstead – Part 1
Rappers Lil Wayne, Kanye Profiled On ‘Behind The Music’
VH1 has announced it will revive its popular Behind the Music series, with 10 new episodes being produced, including an episode on rappers MC Lyte Kanye West and Lil Wayne.
The rappers are featured along side a number of popular artists, including Britney Spears, Guns & Roses front man Axl Rose, Julio Iglesias, M.I.A., Coldplay, Radiohead, Depeche Mode and others.
Behind the Music, which debuted on VH1 in 1997, chronicles the careers of various artists, who experience fame, fortune, set backs, tragedies and triumphs.
Hip-Hop artists have always been profiled on the series, which featured revealing episodes on personalities like Aaliyah, Mary J. Blige, Dr. Dre, Vanilla Ice, Run-DMC, LL Cool J, Notorious B.I.G., P. Diddy, Ice-T and Snoop Dogg.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, VH1 will slightly update the format for 2009, although it each episode is consistent with the earlier version of the show, which ceased airing in 2006.
Other artists featured on VH1’s upcoming season of Behind the Music include Any Whinehouse, David Byrne, Seal and Elliot Smith.
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Get a look at Gorilla Zoe’s new album Don’t Feed The Animals