“She’s Fine”
homepage
Lil Scrappy & G’$ Up
“Cellphone Watch”
Left Eye Ft. TLC and Missy Elliott
“Let’s Just Do It”
No Gimmick Ft. T-Pain [Heater Of The Day]
“Everybody Else”
Freeway Produced By Erick Sermon
“Tell U Something”
Q Da Kid Ft. Anthony Hamilton
“Forgive Them”
Klassik
“Shell Toe Addidas”
Curre$ny
“Look Up To The Jets”
TRACKING SHOTS: EPMD
EPMD isnt really looking for
radio play. We wasnt gonna
play the politics, explains Erick Sermon of their choice to pass on
sweating over spins in the Big Apple. Just straight
underground. We feel that the web, people like AllHipHop
[the worlds most dangerous site],
[REDACTED, though a good site],
[REDACTED, kinda suspect site]; we feel that thats where the people are at. Rock The Bells had, 40,000 50,000
people a night out there. It was
not one radio commercial, not one magazine ad. It was all Internet.
True. Surely some radio love
wouldnt hurt, but who are we to argue with the E-Double or his partner Parrish
Smith? The rap duo are certified rap pioneers,
legends, icons or any other similar adjective appropriate to describe their
dedication to the boom-bap. So holla at your local
DJ/payola receiver to get on their job.
Nevertheless, EPMD just dropped
their seventh album, We Mean Business,
and beforehand we met with Erick and Parrish at Fat Beats Records NYC outpost
(shout to Mark for the hook up) and played them some joints. Of course, their
commentary was golden, like the era they rep.
DMX Get At Me Dog
AllHipHop.com:
When this first dropped I immediately thought of EPMDs
Get The Bozack but this was all
new to younger kids at that time. Thats
happened a lot to yall where people would re-flip samples yall have
previously rocked.
Erick Sermon: Ill tell you the truth I aint really like the beat when I first heard it. (laughs) PMD made the record it was a one bar loop. I was
like thats kinda weird, you
know what Im sayin? But then of course Ima rock with it cause its us. We did
it. You know it was crazy but I heard D do it, it was ill, it sounded even
better.
AllHipHop.com:
Did y’all know X personally, you were label mates at that time at Def Jam right?
Parrish: Yeah kinda, when he was grinding with Atlantic records too, before he got
to Def Jam. E always say that too with the beat, cause it was so simple, but
then when DMX used it, you know it kinda [helped] us
too. It kept us current when we wasnt here.
The Notorious B.I.G. Going
Back to Cali
Going Back To Cali – The Notorious B.I.G.
Erick Sermon: Easy Moe Bee chopped the s**t outta that record.
AllHipHop.com:
Same deal with yall version [You Gots To Chill] and
flipping the loop or did yall use the LinnDrum?
Erick Sermon:
That was a loop
Parrish Smith:
Yea thats before the LinnDrum, thats like, we
looped it to the tape and then went around on a chair with a pencil.
Erick Sermon: A
chair like, with a ½ inch, quarter inch tape.
Parrish Smith:
Quarter inch so we had to cut, splice it, before the machines.
Erick Sermon:
They didnt really have loop machines back then (laughs).
Parish Smith: You
get it? Like you tape it to tape, then Charlie [Charlie Marotta,
engineer], got the sample then you put it around a chair with a pencil. And thats
how it was looped.
AllHipHop.com:
Damn. So did y’all have the record and bring it to the studio knowing you
wanted to use it?
Erick Sermon: Yeah, but on a cassette. It wasnt a record it was a
cassette (laughs)
AllHipHop: Its a Zapp record and now heads are
ODing with the vocoder and autotune
effect. Whats yall take on that?
Erick Sermon: Its dope now cause me and P
get to come back with our sound you know and luckily it just killed two birds
with one stone. We aint tryin to reach the youth we tryin
to reach 25 and up. We dont
really care about the sales and people be like, Whats up with y’all tryna compete with now? We aint tryin to compete
with nobody. We dont need it. I would be happy if it happens though but
we not really stressing it. Since thats our sound and for us to come back with
the single Listen Up with Teddy Riley it makes it even better
AllHipHop.com: On that Listen Up joint yall mentioned DJs kind
of being cool on yall
Erick Sermon: Even though Im def I hear DJs is saying Im washed
up and I aint playing it.
We drop our first single ‘Its
My Thing’ and then ‘Youre a Customer,’ boom, we was out.
Then they wanted the album, we got Strictly
Business and we was on the Runs House tour. Lookin
at Will Smith. -Parrish Smith
AllHipHop.com: So have DJs actually said, ‘Yo were not playing your stuff’?
Erick Sermon: Some of em still gon front ’cause again, they not used to it. You know they gon want to jump on something cause they quote unquote
fitting with the playlist. But luckily me and P are
who we are and we really dont care, we just doing a Hip-Hop album. If
you hate this CD, then you dont know what it is, and not to just be boastin but the CD is dope. It got Raekwon, Mobb Deep, Red, Meth, Keith Murray,
Teddy Riley, KRS-One
Parrish Smith: Teddy Riley, Vic Damone
Das EFX Kaught in Da Ak DJ Premier Remix
Kaught In The Ak Remix – AllHipHop
Parrish Smith: We ran into DasEFX in
Virginia on the EPMD promo tour for Business As Usual in 1990. And you know, basically we had our
first Gold album and a lot of success, and we had Redman so
Erick Sermon: Two Gold albums.
Parrish Smith: Yeah we had two Gold albums, so because the Hip-Hop
community was good to us, Eric and I just wanted to give back.
Erick Sermon: It was a rap contest we saw them at. It was a battle
on the school grounds [Virginia State] and it was a bunch of
groups up there. These other guys
were good too, the ones who we gave the first prize to. We didnt give it to
Das we gave it to some other guys but we knew that we was gonna sign Das.
AllHipHop.com: So what made yall go with second place Das instead
of the winner?
Erick Sermon: We just knew, from the way that we never heard
that. The world was gonna be shocked with that. We was like what is that?
Parrish Smith: They had the style like right there.
Erick Sermon: They had the swagger they already had the look and
everything already and they had that new flow. First we went to Def Jam and they
wasnt with it cause we was rockin
with Redman. And then we went to Sylvia Rhone, at EastWest
and she totally got it quick. You know Sylvia, she signed, Missy, DasEFX, K-Solo, Busta Rhymes.
Anything that was unique, she signed it.
Isaac Hayes A
Few More Kisses to Go
A Few More Kisses To Go – Isaac Hayes
Parrish Smith: Thats one of the things that I was like, YO!!! When
I first heard that That right
there?! Thats something. Me personally, we was doing
like a whole bunch of stuff and then E came over with that track and Redman
rhyming on it, it was like What the f**k!?
Erick Sermon: It was a 45 I had some 45s and it sounded good and I
sped it up.
[Redman] got signed off of one line. -Erick Sermon
AllHipHop.com: Was it a beat you had in the stash for Redman?
Erick Sermon: Nah it was just 45s, just digging.
AllHipHop.com: I didnt even realize its been 9 years since the
last proper EPMD project.
Erick Sermon: Its been 10 years for everybody, it aint just us.
The whole industry is held up, except Georgia. So EPMD thats not us not having an album.
You cant even say that. Nobody did nothing.
Parrish Smith: We coulda came back and
played ourselves without knowing.
Erick Sermon: We was gonna
play the game like everyone else until we realized we playing the wrong game, we with the wrong people. You know what Im saying? (laughs) We got the wrong team jerseys on.
Parrish Smith: In the beginning we
had to come to Manhattan. Before
we even got to think other people was on us. Now we here like, Oh wow, this is how this goes. And if you notice, 88, 98, 2008.
Every 10 years…
Erick Sermon: Every 10, new
beginning. Thats what happens. Thats why I cant be
mad, like my daughter likes Soulja Boy. This is their era. The youth is what it
is now, this is their Hip-Hop. When Flash and them came out it was them, when
Run-DMC came they had theirs, after Run-DMC then EPMD came, after EPMD came
Wu-Tang, after Wu-Tang came Bad Boy, Murder Inc. after them came No Limit, then
after them came Cash Money, took them, after them came Lil Jon, after him,
came, this whole s**t.
When they took it out, it lost
what the form was and turned into rap music. You know its corporate. But again like me and
P dont even look at that part. We be out
there. I dont know where these
other cats be. We go to any country go to any
borough. Like Reggie [Redman] said, I could
go to the hood and smoke a blunt with any n***a. I dont know no rappers that could
do that without getting robbed and getting beat up. You cant go to one of them n****s neighborhood and just go
in there and just be chillin in they hood without
them disrespecting you. How many
cats done came here or the A and got robbed, in New York, or get robbed in L.A. or get taken out
and disrespected in certain places? Its a whole bunch of em. Cause it ain’t
nobody really believing, aint
no respect in that. Nobody gonna rob nobody who they
respected. Or even disrespect
nobody who they respect.
AllHipHop.com: Was there a certain point where the switch flipped
and yall said no more major labels, were going independent?
Erick Sermon: 2007
really, 2006
we was still touring.
Parrish Smith: B.B. Kings.
Erick Sermon: Yeah B.B. Kings. My
sister had came up and was like, Yo,
I thought I was going to a play.
Cause the line was so [long]. So me an P got a
little gassed. (laughs) But we knew that Hip-Hop was
still alive. Same
thing with the Kane 20th anniversary.
Leaders of The
New School Sobb Story
Sobb Story – Leaders Of The New School
Erick Sermon: What was that?
AllHipHop.com: That’s Leaders of The New School’s “Sobb Story” with Busta on that first verse.
Erick Sermon: I dont remember that.
AllHpHop.com: You dont remember that joint?
Erick Sermon: Nah.
Parrish Smith: I remember that. The Long Island movement; Busta Rhymes, Charlie, Dinco D, you know and thats when it was authentic-ness in Hip-Hop, before it started to go in different
directions. Thats when it was innocent, thats when it was EastWest
DasEFX, Elektra. And it was basically the same building, so you know you had
the Das EFX then you had the Elektra with Busta Ryhmes [and L.O.N.S.] before he went solo.
AllHipHop.com: Repping L.I. must have
been very important for you?
Parrish Smith: I think its real important cause like if Run-DMC
didnt do what they did or KRS-One didnt do what they did and then us being
from Long Island and its EPMD, people even to this day believe in Strong
Island. You know Long Island is very big its not only Suffolk County, its
Nassau county, its not only the normal towns you know? People be
sleeping on Riverhead, Bellport.
So when we go out to the Hamptons and we do a show, thats who shows
up. So you know that Long Island
movement is and still, especially with the independent scene. We got a lot of independent and
underground cats. You know Cory
Drums, stuff like that cats thats really on the come up. So I think EPMD just by us being us,
not trying to be something different just by doin
us, people follow suit.
AllHipHop.com: Did people ever front on yall because yall were
from Long Island?
Parrish Smith: We never got a chance to see that. Cause we just
came with Its My Thing, brought in the choppers and we was always aligned with
Hip-Hop. Between the Latin Quarters, Special K, Teddy Ted and them and Afrika Bambaataa and them. So when we drop our first single Its
My Thing and then Youre a Customer, boom, we was out.
Then they wanted the album, we got Strictly
Business and we was on the Runs House tour. (Laughs) Lookin
at Will Smith.
AllHipHop.com: So no demos or anything like that?
Parrish Smith: No. Like every song we made, through our whole
career, we put on a album. We went in and did a song, thats how it came out and we put
it out.
Erick Sermon: We were used to it, not having no
money in the beginning. The studio time costs, so whatever money we had we had
to use it and use it well. So, whatever record we made stayed on the CD. And we
kept that, we kept that philosophy thats why the records were done quick
Parrish Smith: We didnt like the philosophy some people go in and
do 20 songs and pick 13.
Erick Sermon: No. 60, 50. Even Jay- Z had told one of my boys, he
was like How many records they got? 60 records? He was like thats not good cause if you doin all that then you aint
confident on nothing you doin.
Parrish Smith: Thats too much cause you stretch yourself. And an
album is just a snapshot of what you going through at that time.
Erick Sermon: So we didnt have nothing
extra that we had we only had 12 records and thats what we had.
AllHipHop.com: So there aint
no lost EPMD tapes?
Erick Sermon: Aint no lost nothing for this. Not a piece, not a verse or a sentence, nothing.
Redman Funkorama
AllHipHop.com: When yall first connected with Redman did you have
an idea of what he would become?
Erick Sermon: Well, yeah. Me and Parrish we put
him on stage, we had show at Club Sensations in Jersey.
Parrish Smith: With Biz Markie.
Erick Sermon: And he came in there with Doitall
[Lords of the Underground] and some other DJ. He wasnt even supposed to be rappin. But
one of his mans said, Yo my mans raps. Redman stood up, hes like, I float
like a butterfly sting like the rock group, process cuts whatever it was but
the one metaphor sting like the rock group, we put him on stage that night.
Parris Smith: That was enough.
Erick Sermon: He got signed off of one line, put him on stage. Cause we knew that his delivery and the
way that it was that he going to be something. And Parrish said that: Yo E you
should sign homeboy.Photos courtesy of YARDY PICS PHOTOGRAPHY.
Bill Bellamy: Addicted
In an era of countless viral videos and sour attempts at humor, we still have
some funnymen who make us lmao effortlessly. Bill Bellamy is one comedian who
has had his hand in all things comedy since the moment he stepped on the scene.
From his comical VJing on MTV Jams, to his stand-up, movies, and sitcoms, Bill
Bellamy knows what it means to chase a joke and actually catch it. So whats
his key to making you laugh? One word. Addicted.
AllHipHop.com
Alternatives:
So, talk about a couple of the projects that you have going on right now.
Bill
Bellamy:
For those who may not know right now Im the host of NBCs Last Comic
Standing,
and then I also host my own show, Bill Bellamys Whos Got Jokes on TV One so check your
local listings for that. Ive been traveling the last two years all over the
country looking for young talent. People that are talented, funny, different,
interesting and super-duper humorous thats been one of my things
thats been consuming some of my time.
Then
also two, Ive been really working hard on a TV show that Ive been writing and
trying to get the premise right for a family show for next season so thats
been a passion of mine. Ive been working on that cause you know, we dont
really have anybody thats really representing the family right now. I think
just doing it funny like I would want to do it. So I said Ima do it my damn
self.
AHHA: Like The Cosby Show style?
Bill
Bellamy:
Yeah, like The Cosby Show for our generation, just real fun, family,
different, great values, funny situations, some bugged out kids you know hooked
up like that. I think that would be a lot of fun and then also you know picking
the right movies. Ive just been lucky realistically in my career to be able to
do a little bit of everything.
Like
if you look up the stuff that Ive done, its a lot of fun stuff and some of it
is totally different. I did Fastlanes, which was a dramatic action kind of show, then
I turn around and host Last Comic Standing and you can look back and see me in The
Brothers,
Love Jones,
Getting Played,
Def Comedy Jam.
You know a lot of people didnt even know I was a comedian sometimes, so its a
trip.
AHHA: Of course one of my
favorites was your spot on MTV Jams.
Bill
Bellamy:
Yeah, MTV Jams was the jump-off you know? Out there interviewing Tupac and Dre
and Snoop and ahhhh man everybody in the 90s, man. I mean from Nirvana to Kurt
Cobain, Collective Soul, Hootie and the Blowfish, Madonna Beyoncé when she
first came out, nobody even knew who she was, [sings]no, no, no, yeah yeah,
yeah, yeah. I was there; I was right there.
AHHA: Its interesting
because you were a VJ at a time when music in general was starting to really
embrace
Bill
Bellamy:
Hip-Hop. Like this is a thing people dont even really know unless you know
your music. I think I was in the right place at the right time. I was actually
right on the explosion of Hip-Hop going into pop culture, into mainstream
America. Like when MTV finally started playing Hip-Hop videos all the time, not
just on Yo! Because for a minute they were only playing Hip-Hop on Yo! MTV Raps
but then Hip-Hop blew up and it was being played everywhere. That was the bomb.
AHHA: Did you ever have any
bad experience with any rappers that you had interviewed or encountered along
the way?
Bill
Bellamy:
Nah, Ive been really really lucky in that case. I mean I got love from all
angles especially since people like respect and love what I do. The weirdest
thing that ever happened to me, I remember when I was interviewing Dr. Dre and
he was producing Snoops first album, Doggystyle and Dr. Dre was under
house arrest at the time, he couldnt leave his house.
So
they was working out the studio and that was the first time I was like in
California and that whole gang stuff. I knew Snoop was like gang affiliated and
all of this, I aint know what to wear. So I think I wore beige. I was like
nobody can be in the beige gang. Beige is neutral, cause someone might be in
the white gang, someone might be in the all black gang but no ones ever been a
beige thug so I was like Ima wear beige and that should work.
AHHA: Yeah, that must have
been kinda weird.
Bill
Bellamy: Yeah neutral
colors. No one was mad at Bill.
AHHA: [laughs] No one will
shoot you in earth tones.
Bill
Bellamy:
[laughs] No one can say you come up out tapioca.
AHHA: So, in traveling around
checking out all of the new talent, how do you go about telling someone theyre
not funny?
Bill
Bellamy:
Its real easy, kill yourself. Nah you just gotta be like, Look dawg
you just dont have it man. You
know, theres a lot of trades like electrical work, you can always be an old
school librarian they still have those, Internet maybe. Internet that can be a
forte for you but comedy is not.
AHHA: Does it annoy you at
all that youve got have these viral videos going on around YouTube where
somebody will say something thats really actually not funny and then they get
their 15 minutes for kind of doing something half-heartedly funny?
Bill
Bellamy:
Youre right. The crazy thing is that its only 15 minutes, and I mean if
youre in it just to be famous or just to be popular for a few minutes then
thats what it is. But if youre really trying to be around, be a veteran and
still be relevant, you know you gotta have talent. You gotta write material
that resonates with people, that people dig thats memorable.
I
was just listening to a T.I song off [Paper Trail] and I was just
listening to his music man and he said some kind of rhyme that had my name in
the joint. I was like thats kinda gangsta just the fact that the cats,
the younger generation still know who I am or that Im still around and cats
got love for me, I so appreciate that man, its like wow. You know and its
really hard you gotta get lucky you know, you gotta be in the right place,
right time, you gotta stay on your grind.
I
mean you look at somebody like Jay- Z you think its easy to stay in the game?
You look at a chick like Beyoncé, I mean this girl is working; shes coming out with
a new album every two months. Look at Lil Wayne, when you look at a cat like
Lil Wayne right, cats wasnt really respecting Lil Wayne about six years ago.
This dude is the number one hottest dude right now hes coming so hard with it
and people love him for it. You cant tell me people dont respect his hustle
and hes really bringing fire right now.
AHHA: Thats so true. It was
kind of interesting and you saw it firsthand at MTV when Lil
Wayne came out it was like okay, hes that little kid in Ca$h Money.
Bill
Bellamy:
Right, he was like Tito Jackson in the Jacksons. But now look whos the star
now you know what I mean? Thats what I love about our business; its like if
you work real hard and you have your talent and you persevere through the rough
times, you can really get it and really really get yours. I feel like the best
has yet to come from me. I feel like I definitely hit some nice little homeruns
here and there, but I never really got the out the park joint yet where I just
blow up like crazy where its just like, Oh my God. I think my Oh my God
moment is on its way.
AHHA: Youve been everywhere
in your career.
Bill
Bellamy:
and Im really thankful. Im really really thankful. I swear Im keeping it so
real. Its like Im out here hustling getting on these planes, traveling all over
different cities, working for this show, that show, working and writing on my
TV shows, working on scripts and stuff. It requires a lot of work just to get a
little bit of shine. So you dont even know if its gonna work or if people are
gonna dig it.
I
took a chance with Last Comic Standing; I didnt know if people would really
dig me hosting that show, but I just thought it would be kinda fun and I just
went with the heart. I was like this could be fun so I went out and did it and
it worked. Whos Got Jokes is another fun move and right now people need
to laugh, like our life is crazy, economically its retarded right now. I think
Im in a really good place, providing laughter for folks, giving people a place
to come out, relax and really really enjoy themselves.
AHHA: Which do you like
better, standup or situational comedy?
Bill
Bellamy:
I like standup the best because Im totally free to be me and do what I need to
do. With TV, youre always dealing with subject matter constraints, how
do you deliver the joke, this, that and the other. But I mean Ive done TV for
15 years so I know what that is but its still hard. Its nothing like going on
stage and being able to say whatever you want.
AHHA: Besides yourself, who
would you say is the funniest standup comedian?
Bill
Bellamy:
Well I cant just say one. I mean its a lot. You got Dave Chapelle, Chris
Rock, you got Cedric [the Entertainer], D.L. [Hughley] You got Steve [Harvey],
Bernie Mac the late Bernie Mac, oh my god. I like Katt Williams too.
AHHA: How were you affected
by the passing of Bernie Mac this year?
Bill
Bellamy:
Man, devastated. [Bernie Mac] was like a mentor to me, great friend, we did Def
Jam tour together and he basically adopted me like his little brother man. It
was really difficult for me to really wrap my head around it cause I just
didnt think stuff like that would happen you know? Especially with cats that
youre working with, youre out here on the grind, youre proud of what theyre
doing, and he was only 52 or 53 or something like that. It just makes you
realize man, you gotta grind out baby. You gotta go get it man, you never know
how long you gon be here so go for it.
AHHA: Definitely true. Do you
see the new comedians possessing that same level of humor that you and Bernie
Mac possessed as well as others?
Bill
Bellamy:
I dont know man. It takes time to get to that level cause you gotta be in the
game. I mean I dont know whos got it like that. All the guys that I know that
are actually good like that, theyve been doing it for so long. Like I said,
Rock and Chapelle and Cedric, Steve, D.L, these cats. I mean a guy like
Earthquake hes hilarious. I think Lavelle Crawford is hysterical. Nobody can
talk about being fat better than him, I mean he just makes being fat so funny.
The way he talks about it; it is hysterical. He makes you wanna eat, he make
you wanna be overweight like man, I could do it too.
AHHA: So with Last Comic
Standing
and even with Whos Got Jokes, youre offering opportunities to younger comedians
to get in the business. In the earlier days when you first started doing
comedy, you really had to grind to make your name and it worked ten fold. But
for a lot of the newer cats, do you think that the hustle and quality is
instilled in the newer comedians as much as it was in the past for people like
yourself?
Bill
Bellamy:
Yeah, I think it is, but the difference with these cats is theres a lot of
ways to get quick fame and not longevity. Like they can be on the Internet and
do some stuff or they can get on these reality shows and be funny and stuff
like that. We were one and out like you had Def Comedy Jam and maybe
two other moves and if you didnt blow that up, it was a wrap. You back in the
club kind of like just trying to prove who you are again.
So
I think with these guys, what they gotta be careful of is understanding what it
is theyre doing trying to build a career and not trying to be a hot flash. You
want to be around, you want to be able to say youve been doing comedy 18 years
and people still love and come out to see you; you dont want to be hot for one
summer. I think cats is like yeah whatever, been there, saw that.
AHHA:
How is
it being a dad?
Bill
Bellamy:
Its a beautiful thing. Ive always wanted it. I knew I was gonna wait til the
right time and really really got blessed. I have two beautiful healthy kids and
they just make it worth everything from being with them and seeing them learn
and just really start getting real good with everything; its gangster. Its
really a wonderful feeling to be able to teach, to learn from them as well and
they keep you young. They keep you fun.
My
kids have me doing stuff I would not do unless I had kids. Im rolling around
on the rug, fighting and wrestling with these kids, just chasing them all over
the house. Theyre running from me, hiding in the same spot 20 times. Im like,
dude, I know where you are, you always hide there! I know thats your spot.
Its fun and I just think everything comes full circle in my life. Ive had an
opportunity to start my family and I always wanted to be able to spend time
with my wife and my kids. I didnt want to just be a workaholic and not enjoy
the fruits of my labor.
So
when people are like, Yeah what happened to you? I aint seen you man,
whatever man, Im just like you know what? Im kicking it with my kids man and
Im being a father and really being a part of their young days because theyre
not gonna be little forever; it goes so fast. So Im just really excited that I
was able to really be in this part because its so important that you nurture
them when theyre little like that and also when they get big. Before you know
it theyre like in school and theyre not babies anymore.
AHHA: Yeah, and your daughter
is getting big. She started school now.
Bill
Bellamy:
Yeah, shes in kindergarten.
AHHA: Does she have a sense
of humor? You really get to see personalities in kids around that age? Are you
seeing it?
Bill
Bellamy:
Shes definitely got it going on. I mean she not as funny as her daddy though,
but shes decent. Shes kinda hot for a five year old though. She got skills,
she got skills.
AHHA: If your life depended
on it and you had to make someone laugh, what joke would you tell them?
Bill
Bellamy:
Ahh man, I got so many. I just heard this joke its so funny. You ready?
Whatever word I said you say addicted.
AHHA:
Got it.
Bill
Bellamy:
Sex?
AHHA: Addicted.
Bill
Bellamy:
Alcohol?
AHHA: Addicted.
Bill
Bellamy: What
hit you in the butt last night?
AHHA: Addicted (a-d**k-did).
Jadakiss Replaces Gillie At Beanie Sigel Unity Concert
While Beanie Sigels one time rival Gillie Da Kid recently backed out of an upcoming Brotherly Love Concert due to schedule concerns, the Broad Street bully has landed another former nemesis to headline the concert.
The Loxs Jadakiss will join Sigel and other Philadelphia rappers on stage during the concert, which is being presented by Sigel and Nike ACG.
Sigel and Jadakiss engaged in an infamous feud that started after Jadakiss accused Philadelphia rappers of stealing his style in published interviews in 2001.
Jadakiss, who claimed his words were misquoted, was still on the receiving end of a mixtape diss from Sigel.
As a result, both sides released diss records aptly titled “F**k Beanie Sigel” by Jadakiss and “F**k Jadakiss” by Beanie Sigel.
After numerous radio, mixtape and disses on albums, the beef between Sigel along with State Property versus Jadakiss and D-Block teetered on the edge of violence.
The climax came when Jadakiss appeared at a concert in Philadelphia and berated Sigel in his hometown.
Around this time, Jadakiss battle with 50 Cent and G-Unit, as well as a host of legal problems for Sigel helped cool the beef.
The pair eventually patched up their relationship and even recorded the Roc Boys remix with Roc-A-Fella boss Jay-Z.
Sigels Brotherly Love Concert is his latest attempt to end old beefs and promote unity in Philadelphia, a city known for its in-fighting amongst various rappers.
Gillie Da Kid was unable to keep a commitment to the concert because he is shooting The King of the Avenue with actor Ving Rhames in Puerto Rico.
Other performers confirmed to take the stage include Freeway, E-Ness, and local artist Reed Dollas, Joey Jahad, and Voka.
The free concert begins tonight (December 11) at 6:00 pm at the TLA on South Street in Philadelphia.
Hip-Hop Rumors: Soulja Girl Returns! Def Jam’s New Pres, Usher’s New Son!
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.
TODAY’S RUMORS!
MY DAILY TWO CENTS
My girl Shelz wrote a super ill editorial on the presumed death of the New York rapper. Obscurus Rappus Maximus: Is The New York Rapper Becoming Extinct? Click here to read it.
Email your rumors and sightings to [email protected] or lets be buds at http://twitter.com/illseed
K-FED IS INNOCENT
On December 10, 2008, The Kevin & Bean Show podcast did a segment dedicated to the rumors and the comment on the page! Shout out to these dudes for started that BS with K-Fed! They said they werent trying to make fun of Black people, but wiggas that want to be Black. ANYWAY. Thanks for shouting out the site. The Afro Government, eh? Nobody ever listened to K-Fed lol!
DJ KHALED NOT THE PREZ?
I was almost sure this one was true, but I am getting a different intel coming in. DJ Khaled will not be the next president of Def Jam South. I am hearing that Max Gousse will be officially announced sometime this week or next week. Ive been told that Max has a great deal of experience working as VP of Music World under Matthew Knowles and played a key role in the development of Beyonce. He also has years of experience as an A&R signing artist such as B2K. He also had a label deal with Elektra and Epic and signed such artist as Adina Howard and Jon B. Gousse is heavy on the inside and will do well, a lot of people think he’s more of an R&B dude, but Gousse is from Brooklyn he has a Hip-Hop ear. Some have suggested that Jay-Z played some role in getting him this gig since they do have a relationship through Beyonce. All that you just read was given to me by an anonymous source.
CHARGES DROPPED AGAINST SOULJA GIRL
One of the most joyous moments in 2008 was when I saw the video of Soulja Girl. I mean, eventually it wasnt so funny, but I enjoyed it until I knew better than to laugh in public. Good news. Nafiza Soulja Girl Ziyad was seen very wild on an Atlanta MARTA train as she threatened a 65-year-old passenger. Well, the elderly woman helped in getting the charges dropped against Soulja Girl. She momentarily fell victim to bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, which she has since gotten under control. She is totally sticking with her medicine this time around. According to local TV she said, I do and say things I don’t really mean. This chemical imbalance is an ugly thing but when I’m on medication, I am able to focus on one thing. Thing is, shes got a pretty extensive history of this, but they let her slide.
Click here for the dedication to Soulja Girl one more for the year 2008!
I am now counting down the years zaniest stuff at illseed.com!
HE MIGHT WANNA SAVE IT!
Diddy is done with the bling bling for now! The rapper mogul said that hes paying respect to those of us that are out here struggling in the world. Wow, thats genuinely commendable. There are so many other rappers and entertainers still flaunting their fake and real jewels. SMH at the king of excess showing up the actually broke rappers. Puffy told Page Six, “Out of respect, I’ve been trying to dress less flashy. It’s one thing to be stylish; it’s another to be over-the-top. You gotta know when to hold back and not rub it in.” THANKS!
X TO THE Z IS A REAL CAT!
I agree with Xzibit! Let’s get 2008 outta here! This was one weird, good and bad year! I think Barack was pretty much the only shining beacon we had aside from making it!
HERE WE GO… I can’t lie people, I’m ready for ’08 to be over with!!! This was a ruff year for myself and alot of other families as well. I know I’m not alone on this one. I won’t waste your blog reading time with a re-cap of all this years wack events, better yet I will sum it all up like this: “When you are good timing and having fun EVERYBODY wants to roll with you, when you have to deal with REAL LIFE, you tend to realize how many REAL people are around you. Not many.” That my friends is not a bad thing. Over this year my circle has become smaller, my focus has become sharper, I’m motivated. I have been in the studio with Bishop Lamont and Jay Rock, tons of producers (Terrance Martin, DJ Khalil etc. etc.) not just working on my sh** but giving support to their body of work. I met Young De from B-real’s new record “DON’T YOU DARE LAUGH” the other night at the studio. Good dude ya’ll seems like he’s got a good head on his shoulders, keep a look out for him branching off that CYPRESS HILL family tree. I am just chillin getting ready for X-mas other than that, I’m going skiing for NEW YEARS (and yes muthafu**as I know how to ski …so keep your Sonny Bono / watch out for that tree! jokes to yourself!!) I will drop some more words to you guys before I vanish for the holidays, stay focused.
Alvin “XZIBIT” Joiner
ILLSEEDS QUICKIES
I heard Ice Cube and Trick Trick had a great show in Atlanta. But at the end of Cube’s set someone with Trick came on stage wearing Yung Berg’s Transformer chain. Damn..this was December 9, 2008. Click here for the display.
Well, Kanye West has a new song and there is no autotune on it. Click here for the goods!
Alicia Keys might be on tap to sing at the inaugural for Barack Obama!
Rumor has it, George Bush will pardon Micheal Vick. I also heard hes going to pre-pardon himself and Dick Cheney. SMH.
I heard Tomeka and Usher had another boy! Congrats, guys!
Want to know who Slim Thugs Top 5 Dead or Alive Rappers are? Click here!!!!!
Michael Jackson is really doing it. Dude is auctioning off his famous glittery glove as well as 2,000 other items.
JANET IS PREGNANT!
Janet Jackson and Jermaine Dupri ARE expecting. Janet is 42 and ready to go! Life and Style brings out the facts even though you can expect Janet and JD to denounce the talk like they did on Monday or something. Anyway they are saying that Janet Jackson is in the earliest stages of her pregnancy. If that is the case, I hope I am not stressing her out or anything, because we want that lil JanDe to come out .peep:
EPIC FAIL OF THE DAY
Here is the pitch for all you circus people.
Mike,
My family owns Big Top Rentals a tent rental business in Northeastern Pennsylvania, we are a seasonal company working in the summer. We are the largest in our area and our basic job is setting up and tearing down tents of all sizes for different events such as fairs, weddings, bazaars, and such. the job is physical, hard, and demanding. We would love to see you come out on the road with us for a day and help us put some of these tents up. If you would come out I would try to schedule it so you got one of our larger jobs with our largest tents.
P.S. the best e####### title is our slogan for 25 years now, “For the best erections call”
Thanks for considering us.
Mark
EPIC FAIL OF THE DAY PART 2
Im not doing a Signs The World Is Coming To An End today since The Atlanta Journal-Constitution hit me with this one. If you are going to smuggle drugs in an airport through clothes hangers put clothing on the hangers! A wanna-be drug smuggler was caught on Monday night at trying sneak cocaine through in coat hangers. The 28 year old Julio Alejandro Almonte had mad wooden hangers just lying on top of his clothes in a bag. Any red flag would definitely stick out if you have clothes hangers in luggage without the clothes on them, a police said. Customs double checked the hangers with an X-ray machine and busted dude! He had hollowed out the hangers and put coke in them.
THIS WEEK WITH JASIRI X
Im going to have to get my label together so I can sign Jasiri X. Another one Week 11.
RANDOM QUOTES
Jay-Z might have to take it back to Marcy for a few, because actor Adrien Brody talked about kissing B in the new flick:
I insisted on a lot of takes [for the kissing scene].
Beyonce didnt even denouce the man and even recalled another dastardly deed he did.
“It wasn’t so bad. I remember when he kissed Halle Berry. He’s not shy! Not at all.”
Jesse Jackson, Jr. says he will work with investigators:
“I did not initiate nor authorize anyone, at any time, to promise anything to Gov. Blagojevich on my behalf. I never sent a message or an emissary to the governor to make an offer or to propose a deal about the U.S. Senate seat.”
I told you so. Katt Williams retires:
Ive been able to amass enough money to put all eight of my kids through college and thats what I was aiming for. Now that Ive done that, I can continue to do movies, TV and my music label.
Peep:
Katt also said that JD hasnt gone to see Da Brat in jail and Lady of Rage is in his rap thingy.
COLDPLAY STEALS A SONG?
Did Coldplay copy Joe Satriani? Thats all the rage in the pop world right now! You know in the rap world, we allegedly steal all sorts of stuff..lyrics songs dances chains lol. Well its cool too see that maybe this is ass popular in the pop world. Coldplay is well respected, but this sounds like somebody remixed somebody. I heard somebody is also suing somebody too.
SHELZ IS HERE YESTERDAY! LMAO!
I’m sure you have seen this quote or heard someone talk about it. A few folks got their panties in a bunch over this.
“Tupac was not a good rapper .” Joe Budden
Check the whole interview here.
?uestlove Co-Signs Jim Jones and Ron Browz
DJ Semtex caught up with the Roots ruler and asked him about those he expects to pop off in 2009. He mentioned some emcee collective out of Houston. But the stunner was his idea that Jim Jones was going to “hit the bullseye” with his album if he has a few more joints as awesome as Pop Champagne. He also feels like Browz is going to be right there with him, I guess as long as he keeps creating joints as hot as Pop Champagne. Hell, I guess I need to listen to that song again. Maybe its one of them joints that grows on you.
Cannon and DJ Drama Split
I think there was some change in management a minute ago, but it appears Drama and Cannon are no longer buddied up on the business tip anymore. Cannon is now with Chaka Zulu, Luda’s dude leaving LA the Darkman who has had some words of late for Jeezy and his CTE folks after the supposed fight at the Dirty Awards. Drama has been very diplomatic about all this stuff which is good but I’m just saying. The Aphilliates were like an ATL staple. Hate to see ish like this happen.
Berg’s Chain is on Tour
Yung Joc Must Really Like the Stanky Leg
He signed those dudes who did that song to his Swagg Team Entertainment Label. Am I the only one who thinks he’s going to regret naming his label that soon?
SHOUT OUT TO KENT STATE
Lookin Boy Jim sent me this song. I wasnt going to use it, but then he said he went to Kent State so I had to use his remix of Whatever You Like.
Kent State is the party place to be, but Hip-Hop might not be your fortay! LMAO!
SKILLZ DOES IT FOR THE FELLAS!
Ive been waiting for a dude to remix this song by Jazmine Sullivan, but Skillz went and took the softie approach. Oh well. Aint nobody bustin windows out of my whippa whip!
JEEZY SPAZZES OUT!
I Put On gets Jeezy so hype. Check out him rock to his own record!
CHARLES HAMILTON RESPONDS TO SOULJA
Somebody though I didnt like Charlie Hammy, because I posted a Soulja Boy vid. Not. This is what he had to say about the Soulja Boy comedy routine:
I was called the new Soulja Boy you dont think that would p### you off if you were NOTHING like Soulja Boy. I wasnt tryna diss him I was talkin aggressively out of frustration
Charles new mix CD is called The Pink Lavalamp and it can be downloaded all over the Net for freeeeeeee .. New album which you can download for free came out Dec. 9.
ILL PICS!
Birds of a feather
For more, go to illseed.com. Or just follow me at http://twitter.com/illseed
XZIBIT, WE LOVE YOU!!!
They keep us talking, but if we stop talking about them then they should worry!
-illseed
WHO: illseed.com
WHAT: Rumors
WHERE: AllHipHop.com, MySpace.com/TheIllseed
HOW: Send your rumors and ill pics to illseed at [email protected].
– allhiphop rumors
RZA In Upcoming Judd Apatow Flick; New Wu-Tang Projects
The Wu-Tang Clans main strategist and creative overseer the RZA has announced plans to kick off 2009 with three high-profile film and music projects.
On January 27, the Abbot will release Afro Samurai: The Resurrection.
The LP serves as the soundtrack to season 2 of the critically acclaimed animated series Afro Samurai.
Voiced by Academy Award-nominee Samuel L. Jackson, the series debuted in 2006 on Spike TV and went on to become the best selling anime DVD release of 2007.
The original, well-received soundtrack featured guest spots from Q-Tip, Big Daddy Kane, and Talib Kweli.
The project will mark RZAs second full length album for the series.
In hopes of creating a diverse musical experience for Hip-Hop fans and avid watchers of the show, the RZA has secured guest appearances from Sly Stone, Kool G Rap, Rah Digga, Killah Priest, Inspectah Deck, Ghostface Killah, Rah Digga, and the late Ol Dirty Bastards son Boy Jones.
The Resurrection will be a continuation of Wu-Tang Music Groups partnership with The Orchard to digitally distribute and market the entire labels catalogue worldwide.
In Summer 2009, RZAs talents moves to the big screen with a high profile role in The Funny People, an upcoming comedy from writer/director Judd Apatow (The 40-Year Old Virgin, Knocked Up).
The film revolves around the story of a famous comedian coping with a near-death experience.
The Funny People also stars Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, and Leslie Mann.
Fans of the Wu-Tang Clan can also catch the legendary group on tour at select dates throughout December 2008 and January 2009.
Tale Of The (Mix)Tape: Another G-Unit Brick, Sandman Forgets To Re-Up
Whats good people? Welcome back to another edition of Tale Of The Tape. Its another week, and with that, another group of mixtapes for you to love, hate, or ignore like a new AZ album.
And there is plenty to ignore, word to Tony Yayos Black Friday. Sandman smacks the world with his delusion of grandeur on The #1 Suppliya. Serious Jones actually surprises with Serius Bizness. Common does have good music coming out this week on S.T.O.R.Y. (Stories Told Over Remixed Years). To round out the five is Colin Monroe, who tries to get you to believe he is the Unsung Hero. Lets get it.
Tony Yayo
Black Friday
One & Done
I hate boring rappers. I know I just said this about Sheek last week, but let me reiterate this for you. Tony Yayo couldnt stand out at Jimmy Henchmans family reunion and thats rather tough. Maybe thats why he called it Black Friday. Maybe he meant he would be invisible in the background while 50 Cent steals the show with two songs (Get Up, 50 For President). Either way, you wont remember this just like you didnt remember his last mixtape.
Sandman
The #1 Suppliya
One & Done
Dear Sandman,
What up man, I wanted to talk. When listening to you in tandem with The Clipse, it sounded like hot fire. But this The #1 Suppliya tape you just put out made me, along with others, realize youre probably best in small spurts, instead of across one mixtape. Roscoe P murders you on your own track (City Wide). While some things are interesting (The Rain), if you were The #1 Suppliya, Hip-Hop would truly be in a serious drought.
Concerned,
The Honorable Adam Thomas
Serius Jones
Serius Bizness
Peep It
The only way you heard of Serius Jones is if you saw him battle rappers on grainy street DVDs. Thats why when DTP signed him; I thought Luda was losing it. We all know that battle rappers only do triple wood. Think of a modern battle rapper that had success? Ill wait. Here are two aspirins for that headache chief.
Anyway, after the deal being dropped like a dead microphone, Serius Jones actually dropped some listenable songs (J-One-S, “I Smell A Rat) with Serius Bizness. If he keeps this up, he might just get the attention of people who buy albums.
CommonS.T.O.R.Y. (Stories Told Over Remixed Years) Heavy Rotation
Man. If there is an artist that cannot throw three strikeouts in a row, its Common. Did he really just make some sort of party Hip-Hop album that comes off more hit and miss than a sniper with tourettes? Universal Mind Control criticism aside, for those who want to take it back to when he had Sense, and the period when Kanye was mixing behind the boards, take a look at S.T.O.R.Y. K-Salaam & Beatnick do their thing (The 6th Sense & The Light ’09). When youre tired of that new ish, let this remind you why you go to his shows.
Colin Monroe
The Unsung Hero
Heavy Rotation
Sometimes you just need something new. Colin Monroe provides that with The Unsung Hero, which features work from popular new jacks Wale (Will I Stay) and Drake (Cannonball) for those who need some sort of name to listen. For those who have an ear for the eclectic, this is a tape that features Hip-Hop (Brick In The Wall), R&B (Last Cause) and a dash of Bob Dylan (Who Killed Davey Moore). It melds quite well, take a chance on the kid.
Tale Of The Tape
Akon Addresses Allegations of False Criminal Background
Dogged by allegations from the The
Smoking Gun that his criminal background is fabricated, superstar singer Akon has decided to come clean regarding the accusations
against him.
In an interview with Access Atlanta, the singer clarified
his previous statements that he was incarcerated for three years.
“I got caught up in cars and this and that. Kept going
in and out of jail. Three months here, six months there, two weeks here,” Akon explained. “And it was to a point where I was
like, This really doesn’t make any sense. What am I
doing? And the last stretch I did was six months in Dekalb
County (Georgia) after I was pulled over in a stolen car.”
According to the multi-talented artist, his previous
statements of doing a three year bid in prison
represented the accumulation of all of his run-ins with the law, not one
stretch.
“So I guess when I was being interviewed, and I would
say, Yeah I did about three years, I wasn’t saying I did a three year
stretch, I was calculating the time from when I started to get in trouble to
the time when I said, Enough is enough. And I think that was mistranslated in
the Smoking Gun article and other stories.”
Akon also dismissed the story of
him being jailed for being a leader of a car theft ring, revealing his time in
prison was always for receiving stolen goods.
“The majority of the time I was in jail was for theft
by receiving. I was always receiving stolen cars,” Akon
states. “I mean, honestly, if I was, they would have had enough to make it
stick. They tried to convict me as (a) ringleader and they didn’t have enough
evidence.”
For Akon, the most important
aspect of his story is that his persona was a vehicle for him to inspire those
who are and have been incarcerated to turn their lives around through hard work
and personal accountability.
“And to give those people who I met behind bars who
were so talented. Locked Up was like an anthem to them, before it was a hit
record,” Akon adds. “I’m not trying to
glorify convicts and jail life and gangsters.”
Akon’s statements come as he
celebrates the December 2 release of Freedom, his third studio album. The LP
features appearances from Lil Wayne, Young Jeezy, Wyclef Jean, and Kardinal Offishall.
ALBUM REVIEW: Musiq Soulchild – On My Radio
Sensual, alluring, and uplifting these are
just some of the words used to describe the type of music that Musiq Soulchild
crafts. Aside from being one of the frontrunners in the Neo-Soul genre, Musiq
is also one of the most consistent singers in the game. Some call his first
album, Aijuswanaseing, a classic. His follow-up, Juslisen, kept him at the top, while Soulstar helped him crack the commercial
market and Luvanmusiq knocked harder than debt collectors on a Monday morning. However, on
his fifth album, On My Radio (Atlantic), Musiq takes us in a completely different direction.
Opening with Backagain, its old skool production
gives Musiq a fresh backdrop for him to drop some knowledge on a woman once
lost. Embracing the fact that his lady has returned to him, the chorus which
repeats, Welcome back, welcome back, admittedly does have a poppy kind of
Ma$e feel to it. While it might remind you of the once shiny suit wearing
rapper, its still a dope introduction to the album. Following this is the swing-worthy
Until. Its smooth yet hard instrumental lays the foundation for classic Musiq
Soulchild to appear and get his rocks off. His slick vocal flow and mid-tempo
persuasion aids this joint in being one of the albums finer moments.
The Soulchild has opened up many new avenues for which
this album chooses to follow, even dabbling in some reggae on Iwannabe
(featuring Damien Marley). The only problem is that all of his longtime fans
might have the sudden urge to use the skip button more than theyre used to
when it comes to their street laureate, but hell draw in a new demographic
with his new direction.
Missing a few steps along the way, Dearjohn fires
blanks due in part to the badly acted female introduction, slower than slow
production, and Musiqs less-than-believable passion. Another track that is
ultimately less than impressive is the Dirty South inspired Radio. What is
Musiq doing thinking he can come off like a Southern D-boy? Cmon man! The beat
is horrible in fact it borderlines on snap music and we all know what
happened to that. A lighter remix might work, being that the subject matter
seems interesting, although the first verse where he brags about how fresh he
is might be slightly corny.
While On My Radio delivers mostly slow jams (and
Musiq can do it better than most), his obsession with this new route will make
you miss the mid-tempo funk youre used to hearing from the Philly heartthrob.
Duo Live Ft. Joell Ortiz, Red Cafe, M.O.P and Billionz
“Shootin”
Yung Joc Signs New Rappers To Swagg Team Entertainment
Atlanta rapper Yung Joc has signed the second act to his Swagg Team Entertainment imprint, he recently revealed to AllHipHop.com.The Grammy-nominated artist recently picked up the Dallas, Texas-based group GS Boys, who have already generated an impressive regional and web-based following with their single Stanky Leg.I walked in the house one day, and my five-year-old daughter and my nephew asked me if I knew how to do the Stanky Leg, Joc recounted. It was a dance they learned off of YouTube. But when they pulled up the video, it wasnt the group doing it, it was this little girl and her dad. And thats what really caught my eye.After being told about the group, also known as G#####, and their popularity from two other business contacts, Joc did some research and was floored by the amount of attention they had garnered through their own grassroots effort.By the time he reached out to them, they had already received over 2 million views on YouTube.The GS Boys had also landed on the Billboard charts, with Stanky Leg appearing on the Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles, Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay charts.Of course at that point they had attracted the interest of other labels as well.I told them, First and foremost, you need someone whos gonna go in there and fight for you. Cause you know, a lot of times if you just sign directly to a label and aint nobody there to fight for you, they gon do what they do. You need somebody theyre gonna respect as a businessman. And although Im a rapper, the way I got my deal set up at Jive, they dont see Yung Joc the rapper, they see Jasiel Robinson, the businessman.Like Jocs first signees Hot Stylz, the GS Boys debut will be released in 2009 through Swagg Teams partnership with Jive Records.The group will also be developed through BMG Label Groups incubator imprint Battery Records.Despite running both projects through Jive, Joc points out that he does not have an exclusive deal with Jive when it comes to Swagg Team.I give them the first option to look at my artist, he shares. Other than that, if they pass, I take them to my next option. Actually, I would love to run some of my artist through Atlantic, which is my home. Because I think they do a good job with their artists. But I just dont want to put all my eggs in one basked. I would hate to have my relationship with the label affected because I felt like they dropped the ball on one of my artists.In addition to launching a more mainstream campaign for GS Boys and planning the release of Hot Stylz next single due out in January, Joc is also putting the finishing touches on his next album, Mr. Robinsons Neighborhood, which is also due out next year.In related news, Yung Joc was one of several Atlanta celebrities to join local NBC affiliate WXIA-TVs 26th Annual Holiday Can-A-Thon on Friday (Dec 5).The event, which is the largest televised food drive in the Southeast, drew in the support of the community and thousands of children in the Atlanta Public Schools system to raise hundreds of thousands of canned goods for the less fortunate.
Obscurus Rappus Maximus: Is The New York Rapper Becoming Extinct?
I tend to think of the NYC absence in the Hip-Hop mainstream as our
fault. It’s like putting grandma in a home and never going to visit
her. You have heard all the stories. You remember all the lessons and
have applied them to your day to day. You don’t think there is anything
else she can say or do that you haven’t already experienced. So you
tend to your own life, forgetting that she is one of the reasons you
are here in the first place. Damn ungrateful ass brat.
I
don’t think there is anyone in this culture who can’t trace one of the
reasons they love Hip-Hop to someone from New York City. Waxing
nostalgic tends to be an exercise in futility in such an evolutionary
genre, but looking back on New York Hip-Hop of yesteryear can be quite
the romantic experience for people. Not that New Yorkers particularly
want folks to do that. It’s probably in giving too much credence to
the past that we lose what these people are doing today. Kind of like
with grandma. If you think what she has already given you is all she
has to offer, then you wont pay attention to anything new she’s trying
to present.
There are some folks I’ve spoken with who really
believe the fall of New York is New York’s fault. Defrosted and warmed
over “heard it before” production; a serious lack of creativity and
maybe a bit of the crabs in a barrel mentality have plagued the once
great city and its artists. This, I have issues with as the South
seems to have a more cookie cutter pattern than any region I’ve ever
seen, yet it works. If creativity was the problem then 90% of rappers
wouldn’t be rapping, regardless of what area of the country they are
from. That leaves a lack of unity, but that of course would be a
symptom of the fall off, not the cause.
So what is it? Jay,
Nas, 50 and Busta have all been around for a long time. While they
still put out stuff their respective fan bases enjoy from time to time,
how much longer can we expect them to? And who exactly are they going
to will their crowns to? Maino? No disrespect to dude, but he wouldn’t
be able to carry 5 boroughs on his back too far. And speaking of the
one new ray of light emanating from the black hole known as the New
York mainstream, the attention didn’t shift in his direction until he
got a southern co-sign. So could that be the fix? Does T.I. need to
start a label just for wayward, under-appreciated New York emcees? Is
the North East in need of a down home southern fried rescue? I really
hope that isn’t the case because tainting the boom bap with leaning and
snapping is just ass. Really, it is.
Maybe it’s the
onslaught of participants. I haven’t been to New York in years, but I
swear it seems like every other guy is a rapper these days. It might
be the saturation of the industry with decent talent that leads to
everyone getting a paper thin slice of the attention pie. Hell if I
know.
Maybe New York is just a done deal. That wealth of
talent will simply have to sit on the sidelines and accept their
minimal consideration as the best it’s going to get. It does appear
that the rest of the country has moved on in a major kind of way.
There is a southern arrogance that talks some of the artists down here
into believing their reign is perpetual, but most of us know better.
I’ll bet a million dollars there were plenty of New Yorkers thinking
the same thing 10 years ago. So what is there to do? Short of finding
and removing the screws they used to install that glass ceiling that’s
keeping the north east out of the spotlight, all we can do is pay a
little attention and respect to the birthplace of the music. Support
the folks that you feel by actually purchasing their music and last but
not least, find some time to go visit grandma.
The Game Ft. LeMarvin
“I Ain’t F***in With U”