Behind The Beats: DJ Mars Interviews DJ Toomp

Good morning all...I'm off the get me some breakfast but I'm gonna leave you with something to snack on too. Here is a new interview series Behind The Beats presented by DJ Mars. In this webisode he's interviewing DJ Toomp about his latest contribution to Young Jeezy's The Recession album (I heard the album sounds just like its title.

Oh yeah...keep an eye out for The History of Mixtapes coming soon! Mars will probably kill me if I told ya'll about it before he did.

Ouch. Checkmate?

Alaska Gov. Palin is McCain's VP pick

"Shits chess, not checkers"-Alozno

This is about to get very interesting...She's definitely better looking than Hillary. Who knew McCain knew how to pick'em?

Kardinal Offishall @ TheRezidue.com

Earlier this week Toronto's own Kardinal Offishall stopped through Atlanta to have a listening session for his new album Not 4 Sale. It was pretty damn dope. And when I say he had a listening session, that's exactly what it was. He put the CD in and just let the entire thing ride from beginning to end, no interruptions.

Over the years, I've either owned or heard most of what he was putting out. Dude been dope, but I don't think alot of cats are up on him like that quite yet. He has a very unique style that blend Hip Hop with Dancehall and Reggae. He has this one song called "Set It Off" featuring the Clipse which is pretty dope. The beat does this sick ish with that bullhorn they be blowing at those flag parties. He also go a dope joint called "Bad Like We Bad" that you hear on the first video in the background. He also has tracks with T-Pain (not no obvious T-Pain ish though), J-Davey and a track he's pondering whether to put Rihanna or Nicole from the Pussycat Dolls on. Overall, the album I heard was dope. In fact, the album is 15 tracks, but I actually felt fulfilled after tracks 11 and 12. He had a sick ass freestyle at the end of the album though that gives some real food for thought. Don't sleep on this dude's album, I think you'll really enjoy it. There are already a few tracks floating around on the web including the lead single "Dangerous" if you wanted to check them out.

Crazy thing is, when I walked in I wasn't sure I was in the right room. Akon and Sean Garret was in there going back and forth listening to tracks trying to figure out what would work for that Ray Lavender dude. All I know is, I didn't hear any Kardinal playing...but they informed me that I was in the right place and the session was starting in 15 minutes.

Anyways, me and Kardinal chopped it up for a few minutes to talk about his new album, responsibility in Hip Hop and his world travels. It came out pretty dope if I should say so myself. Check out the vids and let me know what you think...

Part 2



Random Ass Bonus vid:

In searching for more Kardinal Offishall videos, I effed around and found one that I was in at the end. This was last year during BET Hip Hop Awards weekend. Ludacris, Rawse and Bun B had a video shoot out in the middle of nowhere. I was out there getting quotes and info for this story I wrote for XXL about video directors. I actually forgot "Down In the Dirty" existed.

UNN Report: Will Hip Hop Kill Obama's Campaign

www.THEREZIDUE.com (thats me) and the Urban News Network (UNN) are partnering up to hit the streets and do some reporting on some things that matter. In a nutshell, we're going to be pooling our resources to speak on some things that aren't always entertainment industry related that are relevant to the Urban (that means everybody in Urban areas, not just Black folk, Urban is not a race) community.

This video is our first collab. In it we're asking people if they think that Hip Hop's staunch support of Barack Obama is a good or bad look for him. Let us know what you think in the comments...about the subject and the video itself.

Oh yeah, there is a Bun B appearance at the end. To go along with it, here's a pic of Bun at the DNC. He's out there helping getting people registered to vote.

The Great Debaters Vol. 1 Rhymefest vs. Killer Mike

Pro-Chicago blog Fake Shore Drive is starting up a new series called The Great Debaters where they're inviting rappers to engage in debates with Chi-Town's own Rhymefest. The first guest of the series was Killer Mike.

This discussion sounded very interesting as both seem to know a lot about their surroundings and have great analytical skills. FSD founder Andrew said that this one was a random phone conversation that turned into a debate, which is why this one is typed out. The rest of the series will be streamed audio. Here is the convo...

I. Haterville. Economics or just Hate?

AB: So Mike, you were at the Ozone Awards a few weeks ago in Houston, right?

KM: Of course I was, I’m from the soooooouth.

AB: Okay, well you know that Chicago is referred to, by some, as “Haterville”, and a lot of people claim we don’t support our artists here. However, in the South, it seems like there’s a lot of unity and camaraderie – at least that’s the way it’s perceived in the media. But at the Ozone Awards it seems like chaos with all the fights and what not

KM: In the south, there’s always going to be internal squarmishes. Shit, it goes back years and years – Master P and Pimp C was beefin’. 10 years ago Suave House and Rap-A-Lot was beefin’. But in the South it appears we are able to rebound from our beef quicker – we get off that bullshit a lot quicker and get back to making money quicker, and it usually don’t take a death. We have gangs in the South, be we aren’t as married to the principle of gangs like in Chicago. See down here, we tend to call racism what it is, so we tend to self-segregate. If you put a bunch of us Southerners in Chicago, we probably ain’t gonna seek out Lake Shore Drive – if we comfortable in our neighborhood we gonna stay there. We ain’t gonna go out and try to mingle without our people, so our problems have to be worked out a little quicker.


AB: Fest, what are your thoughts on the unity in the South versus up here?

Fest: I think it’s interesting, some of the things Mike said. Some of the things I agree with, but one thing I don’t agree with – was “Man, if people down south came to Chicago, we probably wouldn’t go to Lake Shore Drive or leave our comfort zone.” I think that’s one of the biggest problems with Black people in this country is that they suffer from the ignorance of not knowing what’s outside of our community. Like a lot of us don’t know of programs that are available to us, like scholarships, because we don’t go out of our comfort zone. Look at Bill and Melinda Gates. Bro – they had a $1 billion dollar scholarship fund for black inner-city kids, and hardly anyone signed up for it, so they shut it down. We need to go outside of our comfort zone and not be confined to our own hoods

KM: Let me jump in here real quick. A lot of times you’ll hear me talk about “self segregation”. That is not the same thing as being afraid to leave your comfort zone. What I was referring to when I said “We probably wouldn’t go to Lake Shore Drive” is that in my city, we have a true Black upper, middle and lower class community. In the South, we’re self segregating and keeping a dollar in the community when we really need to.

Fest: And go to black to vendors and buy white products…That keeps the dollar in our community.

(Laughs)

KM: I didn’t say the dollars didn’t leave our community, but that it turns a few more times within our community. Because that keeps jobs in the community.

Fest: Yo, yo, you saying that, but if you look at the statistics, the South has the poorest black communities in the country. So how does that apply? You’re not saying Atlanta, you’re saying the South as a whole. If you look at South Carolina or Mississippi or Alabama – dollars aren’t turning in those communities.

KM: Dollars are turning in Alabama, because Mercedes are made there. South Carolina has a burgeoning industrial and manufacturing based economy, so money IS turning there. The south is no Utopia – but there is more room for growth in the South. You’re not going to grow Detroit, you’re not going to grow Chicago or Harlem – because they’re already gentrified!

Fest: That’s not true, bro. That’s not true. In fact, industrial and manufacturing jobs are depleting in America, while the technology profession is booming. Unless, Mississippi or Alabama can incorporate those jobs for our people, I can’t agree.

KM: What you don’t understand is there is a Martin Luther King Civil Rights Museum, there is a Children’s Civil Rights Museum, a Children’s Museum and there is the High Museum of Art, who through September is hosting a Civil Rights portrait exhibit. But 9 out of 10 black parents haven’t taken their children to ANY of these places. So instead of leaving my community to see the bigger world, I’d rather see the bigger world inside my community

Fest: I believe we suffer more from not knowing what’s outside of our community, and I think that’s the problem. We can’t keep justifying ignorance.

II. Chicago Hip Hop vs. Southern Rap

AB: Let’s switch it up for a second and talk Chicago Hip Hop vs. Southern Rap. (Fest and Mike immediately begin quoting various rappers from their region)

Fest: You know what I heard Kanye say on a single!?!? “And the white man get paid off of all of that”

KM: That’s a great line. But Kanye also said he wants head from a white girl!

Fest: So?

KM: Oooooohhhh...Okay I see how this is going

Fest: So you wanna go negative line for negative line? I’m not gonna get into the misogyny, because everybody is guilty of that. But if you’re looking for something you can grow from the most, line by line, you can’t say Jeezy is above Kanye.

KM: See, that’s your thing, if you’re going to use Southern rappers as examples, you’re always going to put Jeezy, Wayne and Boosie on display. Hold up – there ain’t nothing wrong with them – I listen to these guys, I’m friends with these guys, but they’re the new gangsta rap. How about I pull said something like, well “Bump J talks about drugs”, “The Speedknot Mobstaz talk about gangs”, “Do or Die talks about pimpin”. See you can’t do that, because Chicago is a more beautiful music experience than that.

Fest: Yo, you know when you can say that? You can say that when Chicago radio, or Atlanta radio play and embrace Bump J or L.E.P. the way they do Jeezy and Wayne, because those two are the ones who are really influencing our shorties and the youth in America, besides Kanye.

KM: Actually, what’s influencing your shorties more than ignorant music or gangster rap is not the presence of it , it’s the absence real role models. It’s the absence of the role models when they wake up in the morning, or the absence of the role models they see in the classroom everyday.

Wayne is from a city, that before Katrina, had a 74% black poverty rate. Jeezy, and this ain’t to let no cat out of the bag, is from a small rural town in Georgia. So my thing is, how terrific is it, that a boy can make it from that small of a town, come to Atlanta and musically takeover. That’s a great story!

Fest: That is a great story – I just wish it would be told more often. This ain’t about Jeezy, or Wayne, or Boosie because I’m not even speaking to them. It goes beyond the South. It goes to New York, the West Coast, wherever, and my thing is, the ignorance is prevalent in the absence of positive role models, which is the enemy of our people.

KM: But my thing is the South has only been on top for four years. Four years! We haven’t been around long enough to pollute the water! That didn’t start with us! That started in the 90s! Cash Money would’ve never rapped about jewelry had Biggie never rapped about platinum and jewelry.

Fest: That’s not the problem! Because then I’d have to go back and say I didn’t like Kool G Rap, I didn’t like the Geto Boys, I didn’t like NWA. I’m not saying that! I’m not saying negative or gangster rap is the downfall of our children in America. What I will say though, is that there’s no longer a balance between the positivity and the negativity. It used to be that I could listen to Scarface, but guess what, they’re gonna play Rakim right after that. I can go and listen to Too Short, but they’ll play A Tribe Called Quest right after that. Now, there’s no balance.

KM: If you look at most southern rappers who are successful, they walk in the room with a $70 pair of jeans, $5 white tee and a $60 pair of sneakers – with a chain, hat and sunglasses. Every successful “so-called” conscious rapper is usually rockin’ a $400 shirt, $600 jeans and some sneakers that regular people can’t pronounce or obtain. Who really reflects the value of the people?

FIN

Follow The Beep!!!

Ya'll know I'm not the camera time type...but it was only a matter of time before I messed around and flipped the camera on myself. I promise not to make a habit out of it.

Anyways, I just felt like I had to share something I noticed. Have you ever been at the gas station, or the ATM kinda late and felt like you was being set up? No, not watched, but set up. I do, often. It seems like something is always beeping. It beeps when you stick your card in. It beeps everytime you hit a number on the key pad. It beeps when it gives you a receipt. It beeps when the transaction is finished. It beeps to tell you goodbye.

Last night when I was getting some gas, the damn pump kept beeping. Its as if it was alarm to let robbers, bums, panhadlers, whoever know that someone was spending some money. That ish is kinda annoying and dangerous. I just felt like I needed to share it with ya'll and see what ya'll think.

T-Pain feat. The Goblin "I Can't Believe It"

Man. I really like this song. Pretty much everyone that knows me knows that I fux with T-Pain. Even since the first album...shied, even before that when he dropped that remix to Akon's "Locked Up" called "Fucked Up." I can't front though, I wasn't really messing with dude when he was a part of that group Nappy Boys.

But yeah, T-Pain been jamming to me. Alot of folks been hating on dude since day one. I don't care, I like his music. I happened to write his first bio for the Rappa Turnt Sanga album. I also happened to kinda sorta launch the trend of everybody getting him to do hooks for their song. I suggested to E-40 (whaddup 40 Water) that he get the then upstart sanga to do the hook for one of his songs...gave him dudes numbers...and later that night they came up with "U And Dat Booty." I'm not proud of that title, but I am proud of connecting them (*check please?*). I'll forever appreciate the shoutout 40 Water gave me on 106 & Park though.

But any way, dude always manages to come out with a dope ass first single and this one is no different. Shit is jammin. But "I Can't Believe" that they let The Goblin come on this song at the end and absolutely ruin it. Really man, what purpose does The Goblin serve on this record. You can't even decipher what he's saying as he absolutely abuses the vocoder/voice box thingy. Sounds stupid.

As for this video, its pretty cool. It gets a little cheesy towards the end, but over all, its cool. Pretty creative and visually stimulating. Reminds me of the occasional alt rock video that comes up every once in a while that has you scratching your head while bobbing to the song. Its not just another typical performance video or clubs scene joint.

Check it out for yourself and share what you think.

Killer Mike's Sunday Morning Massacre: "Never/The Judas Theory"

This week Killer Mike goes in on Scarface's "Never" track. Speaking on the illegal drug trade, the prison system and "Rule 35"...google it. We're also debuting some new artwork (above). There will be a new graphic each week. Let us know what you think...

The freestyle was originally recorded for Chamillionare's Mixtape Messiah 4. After a few listens though, Mike decided to go ahead and put it out there now. Here is some video of Mike explaining this week's Massacre. Song link is after the video.



Killer Mike's Sunday Morning Massacre: "Never"

New Devin the Dude Promo Pics

I wrote Devin's latest bio around last month (the one on his myspace page). The new album is going to be called Landing Gear. He explained the title by saying when he'd touch down in a city for a show, people would always ask if he was straight on the "coughee"...and he'd reply "no, I'm good, I got a little Landing Gear." People thought it was funny so, he decided to use it as an album title. Hear some of the early promo shots for the project. Hilarious.



Related Post:

A PSA from The Dude


High Y'all Doin (Episode 2 - PSA) from Devin The Dude on Vimeo.

T.I. @ Shawty Lo's House

Well not quite. But damn near. Tip shot a video for "What Up," the song going at Lo...in Bowen Homes, Lo's hood. Very ballsy. This dude has a knack for popping up in other niggas hoods.

Pics by Ben Rose
Spotted @ BLVDST