Child of the 80s - For Danielle

Child of the 80s - Chapter 1

For Danielle

Danielle aka 'D'.  

Our b-days are separated by two days, same year, 1981.  Aries!

Child of the 80s Chapter 1 Mixtapes

Original (Lee aka repshowhost) | Belinda

#HHbeAtz10

hiphopalumni.com/hhbeatz10

#HHbeAtz10

I was inspired early on by a love for beats.  At the turn of the century having access to Hip Hop vinyl, for me, was all about the instrumental versions.

Before that... when I arrived to college, the internet was just starting to pick up.  I heard about Napster but knew nothing about the internet, computers, or downloading.  In 1999, I didn't own a computer yet and knew very few people that did.    At the computer labs on campus I'd click Netscape and wander the world wide web reading whatever.  Using search engines I ran into a few corners of the web that had information about Hip Hop music.

In middle and high school, my Hip Hop collection was built from what I picked up exchanging cassette tapes with classmates, from the tapes my father brought back from his deployments overseas, from what I saw on BET's Rap City with Big Lez & Joe Clair, or YO!MTV Raps with Ed Lover & Dr. Dre... or from the few times I had enough to buy a tape or CD from a local music store or the flea market, and from rip off CD subscription plans like BMG and Columbia House.  The extent of my family's vinyl collection was the Soul that survived the CD wave now stuffed in a closet space and underneath the bed.   

Fast forward time, back to the college computer lab freshman year and I discovered a webpage called Da Vault that had a catalog of instrumentals and unreleased tracks. The guy running the site made about $15 per CD (money orders only).  I'd learn what a rewritable CD was through Da Vault but still had very little knowledge about the digital mp3 and how accessible it was.  When I was at the computer lab I spent a lot of time searching Da Vault's catalog, learning about some of my favorite Hip Hop songs without words, just beats.  I recall wondering where and how he was able to get all that music on one CD.  Prior to that time, the only way I knew you could make a copy of something was to do it on cassette.  The extent of how I shared music with people was all about filling up both sides of a 90 minute Memorex cassette tape.

My first Hip Hop 12-inch single w/ instrumentals was Ras Kass ((Jack Frost)) w/ B-Side ((Anything Goes Remix)) that I found at an Albuquerque record shop along with a compilation vinyl by The Originators that had a Big L track I wanted.  This was the beginning of a beat budget and an 8 year journey doing college radio.  Doing radio gave me access to more music than I ever knew existed.  I'd spend hours at the radio station.  Even managed to finesse my way into working on staff as a music director just so that I could have access to the promos coming in the mail.  Through the radio station I picked up the halves on digital media and editing.  Started learning about record pools and charting and picked up a lot from the collections of other radio personalities that would come through.  I also built a lil' web space for myself around 2000 called leehiphopshow.com.  Got a lot more familiar with the net too discovering sharing platforms like SoulSeek and online music stores like SandboxAutomatic, Dusty Groove, and spaces like Turntable Lab that always had serious supply of instrumental vinyls from some of my favorite producers.  That was my sole purpose for getting a set of turntables and other equipment I'd need to extract audio onto tape and later on into digital form.  Whether it was for talk overs or freestyles live on air, or to listen to for school work, or simply for my every day soundtrack, thinking through my headphones...everything I was learning was all for the BEATS.  Early on, it was instrumental LPs like Madlib's The Unseen, everything and anything by J Rawls, Pete Rock, the Liquid Swords Instrumental LP, of course J Dilla, everything by The RZA in the 90s, Mobb Deep (Havoc), all production out of QB, down south music from Dungeon Family & Organized Noize production, Death Row's music (Dr. Dre, Snoop), DJ Quik, MC Eiht's producers, and the genius of projects like Illmatic.  It got to a point where the only reason I wanted to make sure I kept my grades right and not lose financial aid, was so that I could continue participating in student radio and having access to free music.  One of the first online radio programs I set up was a strictly beats platform called InstrumentalLive365.  There was also an entire semester where I had the opportunity to host an instrumental only radio slot.  Also figured out how to setup automation so that towards the end of the night and on into the early morning, if you put on 91.5 FM, you were hearing nothing but BEATS.  Learning what I knew at this point about digital media and editing, I stuffed the radio station database with as much music as I could for anyone to access and play.

HHbeAtz10 is basically a homage to the Hip Hop instrumental.  It's my current top 10.  A charting of official Hip Hop projects without words.  It's a focus on today's Hip Hop beatsmiths.  I'm planning to do some interviews through twitter.com/hiphopalumni (@hiphopalumni) when I get the chance.  Plan to also post a few interviews I've done in the past with beat makers.  Will plan on posting thoughts on the latest projects I'm #listening to and keeping the top 10 as up to date as possible.  I want to send a shout out to my boy Dune and the Fresh Produce Online radio show, which is where HHbeAtz10 is inspired from.  If I thought I knew a lot about Hip Hop beat makers before, the Fresh Produce program put me on to a whole other world of beat makers out there.

To the Hip Hop instrumental chefs, thank you.  Ya'll are Hip Hop's pulse and the inspiration for MC's that got something to say, especially for those that speak from the heart.  Hip Hop beats are conversations, a lot of questions and answers.  Deep stories that many of us have memorized only to revisit time and time again.

Wish I knew how to make beats.

Introducing HHbeAtz10.

Check twitter.com/hiphopalumni #HHbeAtz10.

The first top 10 is featured in the image above and include:

Pete Rock - PeteStrumentals2

Large Professor - Mega Philosophy

IV the Polymath - When and Where

Damu the Fudgemunk - Public Assembly 2

Kev Brown - Brown Album Instrumentals

The Beatfonics Crew - Beatxploitation, The Blacktape Vol. 7

Apollo Brown - Thirty Eight

J.Rocc & Med - Theme Music Instrumentals

Crown City Rockers - Earthtones Instrumentals

Klaus Layer - For the People Like Us

More projects currently under review.  Within the week will definitely add the Lord Finesse SP1200 Project.  And next listen, Drasar Monumental & Ayatollah...

  

Child of the 80s - For Belinda

Child of the 80s - Chapter 1

For Belinda

An original from the 80s era.  Shout out to Belinda.  The photo features B' diggin' in Hollywood circa 1980s with combat boots!  For the story on the mix including track list click here.

To receive your copy of the mix send an 80s picture of yourself and some back story to repshowhost@gmail.com.  Include first name.

2015 LHHS Charts 10 | #LHHS10

 2015 LHHS Charts 10 | #LHHS10

It's been a while since the last LHHS Charts update.  A busy start to 2015 but never too busy not to put on some new music to start a day or close the night.  It's February 2015 now, and after hearing the latest from Raw Poetic and DJ K-Def from ReDefinition Records I felt it would be a good time for an update.  Their record, Cool Convos in Quantum Speech set off 2015 for me.  In thinking about that, it also had me reflecting on what came out at the close of 2014 that I've been listening to lately.  

This begins with talking about Good Morning Vietnam III, The Phoenix Program by MF Grimm and Drasar Monumental.  For me, I'm not sure I can be convinced of a better 2014 record than GMVIII.  Whether we're talking about wordplay, production, the creative process attached to this record as the conclusion of a trilogy, and everything else connected to why we consider what we consider great or better than the other... for me this record is in a Hip Hop conversation of its own, that perhaps is better left for people to listen to and absorb over time, rather than expecting for others to pick up on it.  I don't know.  What I do know, is as I change my top records list for LHHS (featured to the left of this write up), I got GMVIII above it all.  I can't even think of what it's going to take to replace this record from that spot.  While I listen to everything as its own project, if I'm asked, "what was your favorite record of 2014..."  I'm going with GMVIII.  Let's see what 2015 delivers. 

The next record is from an MC that deserves continuous praise and that's Junclassic.  Especially in his involvement with producers and what he's connecting through his music.  On his latest masterpiece, Words are Weapons, we got Maniac on the beats.  This record waste no time from one track to the next and with each feature.  Everything about it to me, is dope.  And if its your first time listening to Junclassic's music, its a perfect place to start as I encourage that listeners retrace their ears back to a discography worth listening to, sharing, and talking about.  Jun's also hard at work with the visuals providing fans with his physical presence if you look him up on YouTube.  

Other records I've enjoyed include the remix project by Ali Shaheed Muhammad with Souls of Mischief on the There is Only Now, originally produced by Adrian Younge, who's also attached to the real dope Phryme record between the legendary production of DJ Premier and Royce Da 5'9.  In addition, really loved the interview on The Combat Jack Show with J Cole and what we learned about his latest effort with the 2014 Forest Hills Drive record. Other mentions that I want to get into include what I've been hearing from MC Melodee of La Melodia through multiple projects she put out in 2014 including the Crunch Time EP and of course the Zion I crew who's latest EP The Sun Moon and Stars is on my list to check for.  People been active these days on EP projects.

On top of that, I missed out on a lot of other records I hope to hear soon.  But this is where I'm at for my charts and what I've enjoyed in the past few months.  You can see the lists to the left of this message (scroll down).  Having just got my hands on the Lord Finesse SP1200 Project, Large Pro's touch on the Mega Philosophy record, Apollo Brown's .38 project, and one I've got on repeat by the incredible production of IV the Polymath, When and Where, I've decided to separate a top 10 exclusively for instrumental projects called #HHbeAtz10.  I've accumulated a few projects to kick off the top 10, including some incredible work I've been listening to via the Fresh Produce camp with the Beatphonics crew.  

This post if anything, is also a note of thanks to all artist, groups, producers, eMCees that continue to bless our troubled times with the peace, joy, and creative therapy of music.  As Malcolm X said, "history is best qualified to reward our research"... this includes our music.   

Peace.    

Tapes & Wires Mixtape Series | repshowhost

Tapes & Wires

The Mixtape Series

I've been reppin' The Wire since episode 1 when it premiered on HBO.  I was in the formative years of my undergrad life living in the dorms resident halls at NMSU... I recall being the only one in the lobby with my bag of McDonald's during my summer & winter employment as a resident advisor anticipating the next episode off the TV attached to the upper corner wall.  

It's a brilliant show and something I found out about watching The Corner series, which involved Charles S. Dutton (who I was big on during the years of the TV show Roc and several films like First Time Felon & Convicted starring Omar Epps)... The Corner was pre-Wire with writing from David Simon and Ed Burns and my introduction to several cast members I was able to identify later on in The Wire.  Before that my interest in The Corner was locked in when I found out Sean Nelson was one of the leads.  I knew of Nelson through his debut in the classic film Fresh.

After finishing the final season of The Wire, I decided to return to the beginning and just lock in on each episode, chop up the dialogue and re-articulate the mood & tone through mixtape form, blending in & out of dialogue from the film and dialogue that connected with my own community, the drug war, and of course the messages & tones of Hip Hop, Jazz, Soul, Blues, spoken word, and any genre that was included in the film's soundscape.  My goal at the time as I arranged episode.1 was to create a Tapes & Wires series for each episode (one mixtape per episode).  And as the world binges on the HD Wire marathon currently being televised on HBO, I wanted to document this mixtape and share the tracklist on the web.

Until episode.2 through 60, stay tuned and follow updates at the HHA twitter.com/hiphopalumni and of course the Tape Decks blog here.

Tapes & Wires episode.2 in progress...

Keywords + Tag = The Wire | David Simon | Ed Burns | The Corner | Charles S. Dutton | HBO | Fresh | Sean Nelson | First Time Felon | Convicted | Tapes & Wires | episode | Stringer | McNulty | Avon Barksdale | D'Angelo Barksdale | Kima | Herc | Carver | Special Agent Fitzhugh | Wee-bey | Lieutenant Daniels | Deputy Ops | Operation Diesel | Bodie | Wallace | Bubbles | Johnny | Baltimore | El Paso | It's All in the Game

#kruxlife KRUX 91.5 FM Archive / New Mexico State University

#kruxlife

KRUX 91.5 FM

New Mexico State University

With more than a hundred cassette tape recordings of the KRUX 91.5 FM years 2000-2008, I've decided to make the Hip Hop Alumni (HHA) Soundcloud page home for recordings and clips from the show to include interviews, freestyles, rotations of specific songs, microphone time, shout outs, playlist run downs, jokes, debuts, drops, and anything else I can find going through tapes.  We will archive the recordings on Soundcloud.  I may also create a backup online to avoid the audios being removed or blocked for any reason.  We start with the Carlos Andres Gomez recording of 'Wordsworth'... a poem that was laid down over a lanline phone conversation after poet Monte Smith connected us to the opportunity.  You can hear the 'Wordsworth' piece at the link below and above.  With each update we'll also load up the MP3 download.  You can peep updates at Hip Hop Alumni's twitter.com/hiphopalumni page by searching #kruxlife. 

We weren't the first Hip Hop show there nor the last.  If you have recordings, especially sessions from days past (as I know there was a Hip Hop radio slot in the early 90s) shoot me a note at repshowhost@gmail.com.  Would love to listen and work on adding other recordings to the archive.

For anybody familiar and those that aren't... KRUX is a special place.  The only radio station around, other than Street Beat in ABQ, New Mexico where the rules of rotation are determined by the disc jockey themselves.  Our antenna's reach wasn't very strong but once the web stream opened up a lot of folks got the chance to be heard from all around.  The station has a lot of life because of the opportunity it presents to the student body and with that it has a really cool history too, though we don't know much about it.  Perhaps that'll be something I can use this blog to document if I get the chance to dig into past archives, articles, or anything that might be on record of KRUX's beginnings. 

#kruxlife

KRUX 91.5 FM Archive / Soundcloud: click here

Carlos Andres Gomez Rotation 'Wordsworth': Download / MP3

The Representation Show October 29, 2004 Playlist: click here

Waxpoetics Issue No. 1 & 2, The Hunt for the Quarterly Journal

Waxpoetics Issue No. 1 & 2, The Hunt for the Quarterly Journal

During a Friday Rep$hop radio show on KRUX 91.5 fm that I hosted with Stephon aka Moleman, he had a magazine.  He mentioned there were copies of the Waxpoetics issue over at the local Hastings that I should check out.  By this time (2004 or 05') I had grown exhausted of magazines like the Source and XXL.  Also lost touch with other subscriptions including Slam Magazine.  I could never figure out which issue they were on since the dates were always ahead of when I got them.  In one of their issues they explained why, but as a student with a changing address every four months, I got disinterested trying to keep up on my Slam reads, monthly, bi-monthly or whatever schedule they were on. 

Enter Stephon's recommendation of Waxpoetics.  

When he first told me about the magazine, I let time pass considering I'd already given up on magazines unless there was something unique about the cover story that related to stuff I collected.  I accumulated tons of Slam issues since 92', and sliced up my Source magazines to decorate dorm rooms and ceiling tile with Rawkus and Infamous promos when  ((Quiet Storm/White Lines)) dropped, followed by Prodigy's solo H.N.I.C... I also scissored and taped up anything else that I could detach from magazines like the Source that had already become publications thickened by paper commercials.  Music television had experienced a few deaths by this time and the digitization of music as we knew it started to takeover like track two from the Blueprint. 

I don't remember which issue it was from Waxpoetics that stopped me in my tracks.  I just know the rotation Steph and I traded live on air between our .45, vinyl, CD, digital collections reminded me of what I was reading in Waxpoetics.  It was a crate digger's publication, and an opportunity as a reader to anticipate and collect something again...  the stories in the publication were a perfect blend... each with its own music playing in the background of the reader's imagination.  

So I subscribed. 

About a dozen issues had already passed when I finally got on.  So in addition to getting on track, I started to dig into back issues of what I missed during those Rep$hop semesters... With each publication that came in, I'd reach back and purchase an issue until I got to no. 2.  I remember a time noticing no. 1 & 2 available on the Waxpoetics website and thinking there was no way I was going to pay a $100 for a magazine... I thought maybe someday I'd find the issue on another site like Dusty Groove or somewhere else... something had to come up to avoid digging too deep into my pockets.  

That day never came.     

So over the years I've kept up with my collection of Waxpoetics since issue no. 3.  I'm way behind on reading... some issues are still in the protective plastic they arrived when I pulled them from the post office box.  It took a resolution last year that I'd organize my reading routine and give myself more time to flip through pages of my books and magazines and listen to each track of my CDs, records, and downloads.  Otherwise, I'd miss out on what simply started to accumulate faster than I could keep up.   

So with a more patient and organized approach I'm finally reading my books & magazines, listening to my music and on occasion finding time to follow up with writers, artist, musicians, etc. to develop my own interviews, stories and write ups like the radio dayz.

Reading through issue No. 58 in its entirety, it made me think about those lost issues again... fast forward to this past month and I was able to locate issue no. 1 & 2 on EBay.  I've never used EBay to bid.  Never been interested in bidding as I don't trust the process it takes to try to outbid on a max amount you don't know.  Especially as the clock starts ticking.  But with issue no. 1 staring back at me through the laptop display, I decided to give the online bidding war a shot and won within the last minute.  I lost what became a ceiling-less dollar value for issue no. 2.  

When the smoke cleared, I did a quick search and found hope for issue no. 2 on Amazon.  By the next day my search for the lost Waxpoetics quarterly journals ended and I had both magazines ordered & on their way to a shelf that's been waiting for over a decade.  

This completes a Waxpoetics story I look forward to reading starting with issue no. 1.

      
Keywords + Tag = Waxpoetics | music | soul | funk | jazz | blues | Representation Show | Soul Session | Rawk$hop | Steph | Stephon | Moleman | Baron Von GuacaMølé | KRUX | KRUX 91.5 | radio | Andre Torres | The Source | XXL | Slam | magazine | publications | Hastings | quarterly journal | Hip Hop | reading | literature | music | story

Diggin' w/ Dune ((Trip 1)) / The Dig

Diggin' w/ Dune ((Trip 1))

November 22, 2014 marked the first of hopefully many diggin' trips with the homie/beatsmith Dune.  In the past, a majority of the time I went digging solo or picked up records when I was able to make a quick stop at a local Goodwill, music shop, estate sale, or word of mouth with people that wanted to give up their vinyl.

Diggin' w/ Dune is the first dig collab... the beginning.  We documented the trip through pictures and audio recordings at the Olde Post.  Working in the conversation with with what we decided to buy, I plan on piecing together an audio mixtape collage of Trip 1.  At the gallery link below you'll find shots of records we stopped to talk or joke about... While digging is of course a music thing, its just as much about the visual and what the covers communicate to us... whether it's a throwback to a show we use to watch or something nostalgic that reminds us of something else.  The search took time and was a cool experience collaborating with B.Dune.  Will post info about the mix once its available.  May take a while.

Diggin w/ Dune ((Trip 1)) Photos: click here


Follow Tape Decks's board Diggin' with Dune Trip 1 on Pinterest.

Keywords + Tag = B.Dune | Dune | New Mexico | The Olde Post | Rose | Roy Clark | Marvin Gaye | Camerface | Wizard of Oz | folk | soul | Scott | cha-cha | vinyl art | record cover | digging | record collecting | vinyl | wax | Herb Alpert | Al Green | Aretha Franklin | Miami Vice | Furious Anger | Shyheim | Big L | Pete Rock | Isaac Hayes | San Francisco | The Bay Area | Beatles | cards | card collecting | Steely Dan | Three Dog Night | Alice Cooper | Good and Dusty | Grandfunk Railroad | E.T. | DJ Digumsmak | DJ Q-Bert | Leon Redbone | Two Ton Machine | Chinatown | beat production | building | Ravi Shankar | Alex North | Lalo Schifrin | Richard Pryor | Walt Frazier | Pinterest | Sam & Dave | Teddy Riley | Teddy P | shamrock7 | Marty Robbins | Gloria Gaynor | Johnny Hoffman | Frederick Collay | Fresh Produce | Menace II Society | Burger King | Sonic | El Paso | Las Cruces | Alamagordo

Medley: SOUL MESSAGE - Diggin' w/ Dune November 22, 2014

Medley: SOUL MESSAGE

Going for a dig in the afternoon with my OGSV b.rother Dune.  To listen, I'm bringing along a favorite mixtape I put together about six years ago dedicated to the life of Isaac Lee Hayes, Jr.  It's part of the repshowdigital (RSD) file, subtitled Tape Deck Bound....the tape is split in two sides A & B and its tied together mostly by Hayes music and voice (interviews). The mixtape itself is titled Medley: Soul Message.  A long time fan of Hayes, I decided to arrange the music after finding out Hayes had passed away.

Included below... the covers with track list for both sides.

Keywords + Tag = Isaac Hayes | digging | New Mexico | B.Dune | ogsv | original soulverse | Isaac Lee Hayes, Jr. | Black Moses | Gil Scott-Heron | Sly & The Family Stone | Joe Bataan |  Nina Simone | The Dells | Shaft | medley | Soul Message | soul message | records | vinyl | documentation | history | Sly & the Family Stone | Marvin Gaye | podcast | Tape Decks | repshowdigital | repshowhost

Track-for-Track (TFT♪) Session: For What You've Lost

Track-for-Track (TFT♪) Session

For What You've Lost 

by Raashan Ahmad

In 2008, I took everything I accumulated during the college years in New Mexico back home to Texas and stacked it in storage.  Just a couple of years ago, my cousin's grandfather, with his bare hands as he would say (and show) built me a sturdy massive "vinyl" shelf from scratch painted black with multiple partitions where I could "organize" all my vinyl, CDs, and cassette tapes.  Before, all my music was stacked behind something, on top of something or inside of something... so the shelf acts as a space of access... a way to see what's there and to give those audios the light of day... especially now that I have the chance to pull out a record, reflect on it, and listen to it over & over & over again whether I'm in the car, at work, or exercising.  

During the radio years, the goal was to stay current and to highlight albums we wanted a listener to anticipate & support.  With the process of CMJ charting, receiving promos, spending money on records we wanted, downloading, sharing back at the dorms... before half the year was up we had already ran through more than a hundred projects.  So today, with the Track-for Track (TFT♪) Session, as I'm listening to records collected throughout the years (and now), I'd simply like to take some time to document & share info on specific records.  Whether its stuff I read about in the liner notes, find on YouTube, or discover on my own through potential interviews... I thought it would be a cool to leave a digital footprint of these records on free access points like Blogger and Twitter, especially for the web visitor out there stumbling through search engines or for anyone else that's down to  check for something they haven't heard.  I'm a big fan of book projects like Check the Technique by Brian Coleman and been following magazines like Waxpoetics since their inception... so this is just a fan's way of digging in the crates and files and sharing these notes on the world wide web.  Note that TFT♪ will focus on records I got up there as timeless and won't necessarily focus on just Hip Hop or current music.  These may also not be records familiar to the common classic album conversations we have or hear over and over again (same records, same points).  I plan to cover records of any period and genre that resonate with me and that are pulled out of this shelf my cousin's grandfather built.  So it will be my intention to deviate away from records we know we love and can't stop talking about (insert any of the Nas, Dre, Biggy, Wu Tang debuts here).

TFT♪ is also inspired by the first record I wanted to talk about and that's Raashan Ahmad's For What You've Lost.  This goes back to discovering the Mission album in the old KRUX 91.5 fm Archive room, and learning about the Crown City connection through an aol friend, and on to following the music careers of all its members, especially frontline lyricist, Raashan Ahmad.  As I mentioned in conversation, every time I hear Raashan Ahmad rhyme, I'm reminded that I need to reassess who I consider my "favorite" MCs.  I think everyone should, especially if you haven't heard of Raashan Ahmad or the band members he rocks with.

  

For What You've Lost was a difficult record to come by where I'm located.  The Twitter feed of TFT♪'s first session will highlight a couple of notes about that including a track for track break down of the artist(s) featured on this record as well as anything I'm able to find online (including videos, interviews, sounds, etc.).

To view the For What You've Lost TFT♪ Session you can click on the Twitter link below.

For What You've Lost (TFT♪) on Twitter: click here

Follow Hip Hop Alumni on Twitter at twitter.com/hiphopalumni

Peace!    

Keywords + Tag = Raashan Ahmad | Beautiful Ugly | Crown City Rockers | Mission | For What You've Lost | Trad Vibe Records | Hey Now | Musicast Distribution | Rumble | Headnodic | Stro the 89th Key | The Procussions | Katrah-Quey | Aloe Blacc | My Imagination | Gift of Gab | Blackalicious | Rita J | Understanding | Moe Pope | Taku | In Love with Wax | Adam Theis | trombone | Count Bass D | Hip Hop Alumni | Tape Decks | LHHS | Lee | Sunshine | Sylya Nymoen | Mitsu | Capital D | moog | DJ Hahf | Noelle Scaggs | Paper Plane Project | Remember | Ragen Fykes | Caitlin Meissner | Pain on Black | Soul Square | Dominic Lalli | saxophone | Katra-Quey | Falling |  Moe Pope | repshowhost | These Foolish Things | Bay Area | Boston | San Francisco | California | international | Woodstock | The Feel Good

((Southsiders)) by Atmosphere / 1Track@aTime 7.12.2014

1Track@aTime 7.12.2014
((Southsiders))

Until the return of the Fresh Produce show I'd like to highlight the last 1Track@aTime rotation this summer back on July 12th which we designated for Atmosphere's latest off the Rhymesayers Entertainment label, Southsiders.  The track, same title as the album, ((Southsiders)) was the focus with another rotation ((Mrs. Interpret)).  Enjoyed the record, shout to the Co-Sign Collective.  Below included some info quoted from the MC, Slug on the promotional file... 

"I'm starting to think, what is a post family man?  What am I supposed to rap about now?  I'm sticking to my roots, rapping about what I'm doing, why I think about.  This record is - much like the other ones - a very detailed look at my life."  

This one's for Dune's 22nd mixlr show of the year. 

Keywords + Tag = Atmosphere | Slug | Rhymesayers | Rhymesayers Entertainment | Co-sign Collective | Southsiders | Mrs. Interpret | The Fresh Produce Show | Fresh Produce | Dune | 1Track@aTime | 1 Track @ a Time | Hip Hop | Underground | Ant | Anthony Davis | Sean Daley | eighth | album | 2014 | summer | May 6, 2014

((Get Hip)) by PUTS / 1Track@aTime 7.5.2014

1Track@aTime 7.5.2014
((Get Hip))

PUTS.  People Under the Stairs.  This duo consist of Thes One and Double K.  I first heard of this group during our early years on KRUX from co-host and college radio DJs like Justin aka Kooch and the 12s people brought into the booth.  This group, PUTS... man.  One of the all time greatest.  The best.  They're a duo to reference anytime we're talking about HH legends, especially out of the state of California.  During the early part of the millennium right around 9-11, I started learning about a bunch of groups from out West, like Cali Agents, a lot of the Good Life artist, Madlib and the Lootpack... everything off Stones Throw including my favorite from Declaime AndSoItIsSaid... Emanon, the BLX crew, 4th Avenue Jones, one of my all time favorite MCs ever...OMNI (from BLX), of course J-5, Aceyalone, all the Heiro crew, Zion I, and the list goes on and on and on... radio rotation of music like this was well represented on 91.5 FM at the time.  

When it comes to People Under the Stairs... man... With 12 Step Program, this is their 9th record and I can't think of any disappointing PUTS albums...  It's not like some artist that experience sophomore slumps, or break up records, make up records, or those records that were caught in the creative lockdown of the "powers that try to be, but will never be" Hip Hop... PUTS music is simply dope.  When we talk about consistency... and the concept of creating from the core...that's what I hear when I'm listening to PUTS.  And if you've never heard of PUTS, you've got 9 albums to work with... so get familiar (doesn't count solo works/collabs, etc. when you start doing your research). 

You can hear rotation from the new record that ogsv brother Dune dropped on the Fresh Produce mixlr online radio program ((click here to listen)) ...peep the latest program Show#21 which broadcasted live July 6th.  You'll hear our 1Track@aTime rotation of ((Get Hip)) and what is the first single off the record ((1 Up Til Sun Up))...you can check out the video for the PUTS single on YouTube.

1Track@aTime's focus on PUTS was right on time for Dune to promote the upcoming event further North in Albuquerque, NM that will include PUTS, Lyrics Born, Afro Classics, and Scarub of the Living Legends... July 26, 2014 at Sister. 

Aside from that make sure to search the net, learn about PUTS through Google, YouTube the videos, interviews, and check the history...especially the PL70.net website to learn more about their mission and their approach to true independence from the corrupted music industry.  No other music has called to be independent from the traps of the music business like Hip Hop and I hope there is more to learn from Thes One's vision and artist that are connected to that mission.  I hope it lasts just as long as they have and that common fans out there come around to supporting these movements whether its through purchasing the music (whether hardcopy or digital), buying the merchandise, passing the word, checking for events, working the music into rotation somehow, TALKING about groups like PUTS and PL70.net, creating content around these ideas, etc.).

Set PUTS at no. 1 for the LHHS Charts this summer... the first time this has changed since Asheru dropped Sleepless in Soweto.

Peace.

Keywords + Tag = PUTS | People Under the Stairs | Thes One | Double K | California | Get Hip | 1 Up Til Sun Up | 12 Step Program | Michael Turner | Christopher Portugal | PeiceLock70 | PL70.net | Fresh Produce | B.Dune | Fresh Produce Show | Las Cruces | New Mexico | 1Track@aTime | classic Hip Hop | Los Angeles | eMusic | independent Hip Hop 

'The Good King' by Chris Rivers / 1Track@aTime 6.28.2014

1Track@aTime 6.28.2014
((Ain't Hard to Tell))

I signed up for DatPiff mixtapes last year to download the Busta Rhymes & Q-Tip, The Abstract & the Dragon mixtape.  I heard about DatPiff a while ago and most recently downloaded the app to my cell phone.  The app provides access to the audios that are available for download online (free) to stream through the phone which I've connected into an auxilary cable to the car stereo.  The app's first page opens with "Highlighted Mixtapes" and has other categories such as "Hot this Week", "Hot this Month", "Upcoming", and "All Stars".  For someone that spends at least 2 to 3 hours in their vehicle throughout the work week each day, its slowly becoming one of my first options when I'm looking for something to listen to either through Pandora, TuneIn Radio, Soundcloud, Slacker Radio, or The Combat Jack Show.

I've been listening to Chris Rivers' latest mixtape since mid-month June through the DatPiff app.  I accessed Wonderland of Misery last year after learning about Pun's son through one of the Hip Hop site's out there.  I learned of Big Pun's son through a clip on YouTube but these projects are my first introduction to the lyricism to the bloodline of a microphone master, Big Pun.   When I heard about the second installment I was looking forward to seeing what it was all about.  The first left a lasting impression... several tracks played like sparring match freestyles with a few tracks that demonstrated potential of the MC once referred to as Baby Pun.  Wonderland of Misery 2 has more structure, more depth, with several features from Chris River's camp, including feature by Hip Hop veteran MC  the Ghost, Styles P. 

Listening to Chris River's on tracks like ((My Ghetto)) and ((Toe 2 Toe)) with his partners and rhyme take me back to the lyrical exchange I recall from the early years of Terror Squad... just thinking back to the chemistry they had and getting the chance to hear the brilliance and power of a camp that was comprised of latinos & 100% Hip Hop.

In between the first mixtape and the second installment of the Wonderland of Misery, I started checking Chris River's on YouTube and the interviews to see what was next.  These two projects definitely set off what will hopefully produce an album, but as much as I've enjoyed these two mixtapes, I wouldn't mind a part 3, 4, and up.  As I mentioned to my brother B.Dune from the Fresh Produce Show, listening to Chris Rivers, one can only imagine the significance of being the child of someone as respected as Big Pun, and to be in a position where he can shape his own legacy for years to come.  In many ways, sons are an extension of what their fathers left behind, and with the way the music business is today, it's dope to listen to Chris Rivers as he continues to grow and create his own platform for himself, his team, and I would say what we remember about his father through the music.  I think he's the only one capable of carrying that from anyone else that was ever been affiliated with Big Pun.

For the 28th, for the first time on The Fresh Produce radio program through mixlr, I decided to submit a mixtape track.  From the Wonderland of Misery 2 we focused on my personal favorite ((Ain't Hard to Tell)) and added rotation of the mixtape's outro ((I Feel You)).  You can download the Wonderland of Misery 2 for free as well as his debut Wonderland of Misery.  I've included the download links below. 

Til' the next track, I want to leave you all with my all time favorite from Big Pun.  ((BOOMERANG))

Would be dope to hear Chris Rivers and Immortal Technique on the same track. 

Wonderland of Misery Download: click here

Wonderland of Misery 2 Download: click here

Keywords + Tag = Chris Rivers | Big Pun's son | The Good King | DatPiff | Piff | The Abstract & the Dragon | Highlighted Mixtapes | Styles P | Ghost | project | mixtape | New York |  Wonderland of Misery 2 | DatPiff exclusive | Big Pun | Capital Punishment | Wonderland of Misery | Ain't Hard to Tell | Boomerang | Terror Squad | Latino Hip Hop | Latin Hip Hop | Hip Hop | microphone checker | MC | mixtape | The Fresh Produce show | mixlr | My Ghetto | Bronx | Baby Pun | The Good King | official mixtape

((My People)) by J Rawls / 1Track@aTime 6.21.2014

1Track@aTime 6.21.2014
((My People))

For June, the main record to check out on my list above all others was The Legacy by J Rawls which I heard about after stumbling across the ((Bills)) track featuring Masta Ace on AllHipHop.com.  J Rawls, along with artist like Madlib, ID4Windz, Oddisee, Fat Jon, Hi-Tek, 9th Wonder, Damu the Fudgemunk, Tariq L, of course Jay Dilla, MF Doom, Algorithms, Kev Brown, DJ Spinna, Thes One, Alchemist and so many others were amongst beat makers I listened to post millennium after a hall of fame sound of the 90s that shaped the soundtrack of our lives.  My favorites at that time included producers like the RZA, Premier, Pete Rock, Havoc, Jay Dilla, the Large Professor, Organized Noize, E-Swift, Dr. Dre, Ski, Questlove, Muggs, Q-Tip, and other legends I'd learn about later from other collections such as DITC camp's Lord Finesse, Buckwild, Diamond D, and many others.

Amongst the producers of the 21st century, my listening collection of J Rawls was constant.  Each week at NMSU's KRUX 91.5 fm you could catch Rawls on Repshow rotation, either through a new vinyl single from 3582, the Lone Catalysts work, his solo/collaborative efforts, such as the classic Essence of J Rawls, and other projects through Shaman Work, side projects with MCs from West to East, and the list goes on.  Though I was a huge fan of Black Star, producer Hi-Tek, I identified the heart of Ohio's sound with J Rawls collecting both song + instrumental versions of what online retailers like Sandbox, UGHH, Turntable Lab, or Dusty Groove had on stock.  And as the use of digital sharing increased, it's how I got access to Histories Greatest Battles, Campaigns, & Topics, and other soul-focused projects such as the Essence of Soul. 

To this day, I'm amazed at the lineup of MCs/vocalist I discovered through Rawls productions, especially microphone front gunner J Sands, who represents Pittsburgh and is one of the dopest MC/poets you either know or don't know.  It's why when I decided to focus on J Rawls this month for the 1Track@aTime segment, I had to include rotation with his partner in rhyme.  In many ways, celebrating Rawls, we also get the chance to celebrate the best of so many other MCs/producers that are regarded as Hip Hop's alumni.  

For June 21st, 1Track@aTime on the Fresh Produce show focused on ((My People)) featuring production by Rashad, who prepared a beat supported by one of my favorite songs by Eddie Kendricks ((My People))... (listen here).  In addition, to ((My People)) from The Legacy album (you can hear it above through Soundcloud or click on links), host B.Dune also followed up with rotation from the Hotel Beats Vol. 1, tracks ((Casina)) and ((Standown)).  The online mixlr program then closed with ((La, La, La)) featuring Donte from Mood, Piahkahn and of course lead Lone Catalysts MC J Sands off the Good Music record from 2005.

The purpose of this 1Track@aTime for June was also to make sure we don't let the month pass without getting our copy of The Legacy, which you can purchase by visiting polarentllc.com.  Make sure you to see the About Us to understand the importance of the company for Ohio, and its connection of course to fans of J Rawls that want to stay up to date on new projects and purchase the latest from Rawls, The Legacy.

Once I've heard the entire record we'll return to discuss its place on the LHHS charts which you can view on the left side of the Tape Decks blog.  Currently includes Asheru's Sleepless in Soweto at the top of the list.  Best record I've heard so far this year!

You can peep the show reel for the June 21st Fresh Produce mixlr radio program with host B.Dune by visiting the following link: Fresh Produce mixlr Show#19.


Keywords + Tag =  J Rawls | Lone Catalysts | J Sands | 1Track@aTime | The Legacy | Fresh Produce | mixlr | Asheru | Rashad | Donte | Mood | Piakhan | Good Music | My People | Eddie Kendricks | Cincinnati | Pittsburgh | Essence of J Rawls | Hip Hop Alumni | Histories Greatest Battles Campaigns and Topics | Hip Hop producer | PhD | Bills | Masta Ace | ID4Windz | Lord Finesse | Diamond D | Fat Jon | 3582 | Hotel Beats | Hotel Beats Volume 1 | Hotel Beats Volume 2 | Pete Rock | DJ Premier | Madlib | Questlove | Ski | Buckwild | DITC | Oddissee | Polar Entertainment LLC | Casina | Standown | Fresh Produce | Dune | Deasy | The Radio Shack

The Process of a Greatest Hits: S.O.U.L.E.S.S.

The Process of a Greatest Hits: S.O.U.L.E.S.S.

As a collector, sometimes all it takes is a cover.  Regardless of the arrangement of songs.  So when I spotted the Volume 2 S.O.U.L. in the assorted CD tub at Wal-Mart, I had to get it.  I've never seen this photograph of Marvin, and after glancing at the back cover told myself it wouldn't hurt the extra lunch change I went there to spend.  The tracklist included a gang of my favorites, including ((What's Going On)), ((Inner City Blues)), ((Sexual Healing)), etc.  

I put the Volume 2 on ice until I was able to track down the Volume 1.  I have an unwritten rule of listening to my music in the order which it was arranged, so before I could even get into Volume 2 I needed to see what the Volume 1 was about.  It was a lot harder than I thought to track the other volume as bringing up a search of "greatest hits" by Marvin will direct you to all kinds of bootleg looking collections.  Once I found the time to look though I was able to find it, learning about the Volume 2 in the process which included a review that put the quality of this arrangement into the ground.  Neither the Volume 1 or Volume 2 had any connection or purpose for being connected. 

Listening through the S.O.U.L. collection of the first volume, I was pleased... running through the tracks I thought about what the process involved to piece together a greatest hits... what determined those decisions, how much the costs when it came to licensing, permissions, who owned the rights, how the money was distributed, etc.  Listening to Volume 2 I realized as a consumer I was lied to by Sony Entertainment and Cleopatra Records.  The assortment of tracks were actually a live version of one of Marvin's shows, which was cool, but it didn't say that anywhere on the CD, nor did it identify the tracks as live recordings.  While I'm cool with the cover and with the listening activity in getting into some of my parent's favorites and the melodies of my childhood, I couldn't stand how cheap of an approach Sony took to the legacy of someone like Marvin and how much of what a lot of these greatest hits do is a recycling process... and just as the Wal-Mart CD tubs signifies... just a disposable representation of what was once great.  It's just another part of their character and of the business of music that is complete trash.

Being intimately familiar with Marvin's discography, it would be a dream to be involved in the process of putting the people on to a series of greatest hits of what he released.  Of diving into the research, hearing what hasn't been heard, and getting the chance to tell a story.  It sparks an interest in me to just do it for fun, as a mixtape... call it the In Marvin's Lifetime: Tape Anthologies.


Keywords + Tag = Marvin Gaye | S.O.U.L. | Cleopatra Records | Sony Entertainment | greatest hits | bootleg | Wal-Mart | Marvin | mixtape | Tape Decks | Volume 1 | Volume 2 | What's Going On | Inner City Blues | Sexual Healing | compact disc | soul music | review | trash

((The Dark Trinity)) by The Roots / 1Track@aTime 6.14.2014

1Track@aTime 6.14.2014
((The Dark Trinity))

Back in March I got a $25 dollar b-day gift card from the folks I work with and I decided to save it for the next trip to my favorite music shop in El Paso, All That Music.  I had been holding off a trip to All That Music until I was able to make a copy of a mixtape I was working on for them... wanted to pass the owner George a copy of the Lee Jun-fan Tape, Tao 1 (click here for more info).  A couple years back after stalling on getting the mixtape together it was George who led me to a section in the store where I found the Xavier Cugat Viva Cugat record to start off the project.  I was waiting on a very specific sound and the Cugat LP was it.

With a  copy of the mixtape in hand, I made my way out to All That Music for a lunch break dig.  After greeting George at the counter I went straight over to the vinyl Jazz section to look for some Weather Report.  Found a piece from 72' and flipped through the discount LPs and found some Flip Wilson, Aretha Franklin, and a few other dollar records I set to the side.

One of my missions was also to pick up the new Roots album ...and then you shoot your cousin.  Though I know CDs are cheaper at a spot like Best Buy, I didn't feel like risking the chance of not finding a CD copy in the two disorganized skeleton racks they've got over there.  It's something I experienced when I thought they'd have the Kweli record.  I bet soon, on stock will mean the handful of CDs underneath the candy rack as you make your way out through the check out line.  If you gotta walk past refrigerators to get to the music section... then yeah, we're definitely in what theorist and financial people have been predicting would be the end of the CD purchase as we know it.

This past week I've been listening to the new CD from The Roots.  A fan going back to Do You Want More?!!!??!... I'm more than 20 years in listening to Hip Hop's longest running band and one of, if not the only band that can speak for a level of consistency that you just don't find amongst bands, not only in Hip Hop but any music for that matter.  Every Roots project is deep and connected to each other by this running track list that ends with track 181 on their latest effort.  Even back when records like Phrenology were catching flack from critics, it was experiencing the record live that helped me understand its value outside of how people were responding initially.   With their latest effort, The Roots challenge listeners, including fans like myself who may have had certain expectations.  And as consumers of music culture who doesn't have expectations?  Especially for fans who's expectations in many ways have been trained either by corporate marketing, region bias, or even the artist themselves who attempt to commit to the success they feel got them to where they are.

With ...and then you shoot your cousin, before I knew it the record was over.  It's short and my first rotation through I wasn't sure what track to pass on to the Fresh Produce show.  What I did know was I wanted to listen to it again and would need to give this record some time.  After viewing some the visuals below I liked what Questlove says about the record and its exciting to see a group like The Roots in a position where they could challenge expectations and give fans a work of art that is not defined by what other groups or artist in their position are doing to quote on quote, stay relevant.  The expectations with ...and then you shoot your cousin provoke thought in a time when it may not be expected from the channels we consider popular or commercial.  Especially for products we identify as commodities which has been the case with many artist that don't last.  And as a fan of The Roots, this record is a musical statement moving forward and it gives listeners the impression (and artist the option) that even at that level, there are choices that can be made for the sake of art and music is no exception.  Especially Hip Hop.

For June 14th on the Fresh Produce show, we focused on track no. 179 of more than two decades of The Roots.  It's called ((The Dark Trinity)) featuring Dice Raw, Greg Porn and of course Roots front lyrical gunner Black Thought...the all time greatest MC in my book.

You can hear a recording of the Fresh Produce show on the mixlr showreel and can peep other selections from around the globe at the Soundcloud archive show No. 18.

Here are several videos to check out for ...and then you shoot your cousin.

The Roots ...and then you shoot your cousin added to the LHHS Charts 6/15/2014.


Keywords + Tags: The Roots, Jimmy Fallon, ...and then you shoot your cousin, Black Thought, Ahmir Thompson, drums, Questlove, Tarik Trotter, Kirk Douglas, Captain Kirk, Kamal Gray, keyboards, James Poyser, keyboards, Frank Walker, percussion, Frankie Knuckles, Damon Bryson, Tuba Gooding Jr., sousaphone, Mark Kelly, bass, the legendary Roots crew, The Dark Trinity, Greg Porn, Dice Raw, All That Music, George Reynosa, Do You Want More?!!!?!, Fresh Produce, The Fresh Produce Show, B.Dune, repshowhost, repshowdigital, LHHS Charts, Hip Hop, hip hop, bands, hip hop bands, 1Track@aTime, 1 track at a time, mixlr, soundcloud, longevity

((Can't Stop, Won't Stop)) by Blu feat. The Step Brothers (Alchemist & Evidence), Tristate & Planet Asia of the Du Rag Dynasty, Donel Smokes, Chace Infinite of Self Scientific & Krondon from Strong Arm Steady / 1Track@aTime 6.7.2014

1Track@aTime 6.7.2014
((Can't Stop, Won't Stop/Summer Time))

The artwork for the single ((The West)) is what caught my attention... popped up on Amazon.com's recommended list... big fan of Blu's work since Below the Heavens... Been missing out since the Piece Talks and the Give Me My Flowers While I Can Still Smell Them project with Exile.  I was first introduced to Blu's music through the Exile produced ((Narrow Path)) 12' promo B-side ((Party of Two)). 

There was something about the announcement of Good to Be Home being a double disc, along with the artwork, that really put this project at the top of my listening priorities for the summer.  Being my intro to Bombay's production, I spent a few days on the first side... windows down sun up driving around.  Rides to and from are listening sessions for me so I gave Side B its time deciding on the pacific storm of ((Can't Stop, Won't Stop)) for the 1Track@aTime segment.  It features everyone listed on the subject title of this post.  Also rotated ((Summer Time)) from Side A featuring Arima Ederra.

With one of the dopest album art concepts of the year (credited to Joseph Martinez), this record is one to ride through track for track... the \/\/est was my first introduction to Hip Hop as I defined it after NWA's time and into the life's work of its immediate members Cube, Dre, & Eazy.  Their sound is embedded in how we remember certain experiences and through Blu's Good to Be Home, listeners hear that influence... Good to Be Home is a timeless record, creative and one to ride to. Its a concept worth packaging on vinyl, cassette, and the little bit of life left on CD.    I'll be returning to Good to Be Home in the future as a reminder of how much I enjoyed listening to the CDs the first time.

Peace to B.Dune for featuring the track on the Fresh Produce mixlr radio show... you can hear the 2-hour program at Fresh Produce/mxlr.  For a snapshot of other rotations check out the Soundcloud.

2014's the number, another summer...

Good to Be Home added to LHHS charts 6/15/2014*


Keywords + Tags: Blu, Good to Be Home, Bombay, Azulito's Birthday Cake, Joseph Martinez, Stop the Violence, Can't Stop Won't Stop, The Step Brothers, Alchemist, Evidence, Tristate, Planet Asia, Du Rang Dynasty, Donel Smokes, Chace Infinite of Self Scientific, Krondon, Strong Arm Steady, The West, Fresh Produce, Exile, Below the Heavens, 1Track@aTime, repshowhost, Pacific Ocean, Fresh Produce, The Fresh Produce Show, Summer Time, Arima Ederra, Bombay 

((Inner Monologue)) by Talib Kweli / 1Track@aTime 5.31.2014

1Track@aTime 5.31.2014
((Inner Monologue))

My intro to Kweli's discography began with Black Star, one of my all time favorite records, followed by Train of Thought.  Around the time of Quality and Beautiful Struggle I had the records but couldn't remember them like I could the Black Star debut and Train of Thought.  With exception to one of Kweli's biggest songs, ((Get By)).  In between Beautiful Struggle and Liberation record with Madlib our university was blessed with a free live show by Kweli which turned up my interests for the upcoming Eardrum record and the Reflection Eternal project that I gotta return to someday, Revolutions Per Minute with Hi-Tek.  Big fan of Hi-Tek's sound and the Teknology installments.  Similar to what happened between Quality and Beautiful Struggle, there's not a lot that stands out to me from Gutter Rainbows to Prisoner of Conscious. I need to backtrack and listen to Gutter Rainbows again. 

After listening to Gravitas, I'd like to get back to Gutter Rainbows.  Gravitas is a cool record.  For the 1Track@aTime, I decided to focus on my favorite track, the intro, ((Inner Monologue)).  One of the qualities I liked most about Gravitas was how it was packaged and the liner notes in the booklet.  Inspires more time and interest with the CD.  I learned the speech on the ((Inner Monologue)) track is from Neil Gaiman.  Kweli mentioned a speech he heard from Neil Gaiman at the University of Arts and how it inspired what he envisioned for Gravitas.  I also dug the production from NC's Khrysis of the Justus League on ((Inner Monologue))... overall an ill introduction to an independent release.

What drew me closer to checking for this record prior was the interview on the Combat Jack Show with Maureen "Ma Dukes" Yancey, James "JDilla" Yancey's mother and Kweli... Also it was ill to see Kweli on the Arsenio Hall show which was cancelled most recently.  Gravitas sounded incredible on TV and it was cool getting the chance to see Kweli on a mainline platform representing for an independent project.  It was also his introduction on Maurice Mobetta's project that pressed me to track Gravitas down.  It was available nowhere locally so I checked it out through Amazon.  If you're not sure about Amazon Prime and are shopping a lot online I'd definitely recommend it.  Overall savings with the free shipping and almost next day delivery options (2 days free).  It reminds me of a music store in Los Alamos when I was working there a few years ago during the summer...they had a store in town connected to a sandwich shop called Gordons.  Anything that popped up on the catalogue (which was just about everything from Lone Catalysts to Common's Like Water for Chocolate) would arrive within two days.  On stock, their collection was light but orders arrived quickly. When it comes to the disposable life of  retail, the CD is on life support today.  There are options if you still collect though.

Listed Gravitas on the charts (see to the right).  One for your collection or as a gateway to tapping into Kweli's past releases.  The hardcopy is worth the investment.  Cover art is dope... interested in knowing who did it.  Also Kendra Ross on the vocals.  If you don't know click here.  This one is going out to the old Soulshine radio show from back when... Make a note to check for her debut New Voice.

Since ((2000 Seasons)) for me.  Talib Kweli.

Check out the Sway in the Morning show, Kweli talking about the business of streaming and "extending the life of a record..."... Also below, the Rare Portraits video!

Keywords: Talib Kweli, Kweli, Inner Monologues, Neil Gaiman, Gravitas, Khrysis, Justus League, 9th Wonder, Javotti Media, Combat Jack Show, Maurice Mobetta, J Dilla, James Yancey, Brookly, Ma Dukes, Reflection Eternal, Black Star, Hip Hop, lyricism, Kendra Ross, Fresh Produce Show, mixlr rotation, Rare Portraits, Sway, Sway in the Morning, streaming music

Damu the Fudgemunk & Raw Poetic ((Hole Up))

YO!HHARaps
Video: ((Hole Up))

Damu the Fudgemunk and Raw Poetic! 

| click on the image | 

A Note on KRWG FM Schedule

A Note on KRWG FM Schedule

This small publication really caught my attention when I visited the East side library early June 2014.  There was one copy left in the section with free periodicals and bookmarks, so I took it with me.  

Though the schedule has a decent variety of shows, it's really too bad that FM radio (both KRWG and KTEP) haven't found a way to include Hip Hop rotation, or at least Hip Hop instrumental rotation or some type of Hip Hop rotation.  You may hear a clip here and there on some of the NPR shows or catch an interview every now and then.  I recall hearing an interview on Fresh Air with the Beastie Boys, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Prodigy from Mobb Deep and I really loved the natural approach Roy Choi took to his interview.  It's rare to hear these voices and the language that represent for present day generations on public radio in our area.  Whenever I tune in to public radio in my area, it sounds very exclusive and limited to a certain demographic (perhaps older) and its almost ALWAYS Jazz or Classical.  Even when I'm driving home, after listening to the news, who wants to listen to classical EVERY night (I think its the KTEP channel that broadcasts like this).  Who is this audience?  Not to say I don't like Jazz or Classical, I do, but can we switch it up sometimes?  Open up some room say on a Tuesday, Thursday, or Friday for something else?  Even if it is automation?  Even if it is instrumental based in case their music departments are worried about the content? Though these dials are public radio, they seem to function just as any other corporate radio broadcast would...confining its rotation for a certain listening audience (maybe the people that donate them the most money??) and an unmotivated approach to engage with other listeners or to at least represent for artists, especially Hip Hop artist that are also musicians.  This attitude they have is what prevents me from making any donations to public radio, though I've donated in the past along with recommendations for how they could potentially expand their listening audience.  If they ceased to exist, what would we really miss considering all of the options to access information these days?  Having done radio in the past, I've at times proposed these ideas in passing to the deaf ears of music directors.  But it's whatever.  Whether or not their is an audience, I think they can afford to take a chance.  Even if its just 1 (one) hour a week.  It would at least break up the monotony and open up a little room for creativity.  With more than forty years in, Hip Hop's demographic is aging and becoming older too.  So maybe that excuse that they broadcast for an older audience, won't be an excuse anymore someday.  Who knows.

I do have to extend props to the Fiesta! show which broadcast from 7 to 9 PM, Monday through Friday with Emily Guerra.  I've heard her show several times, especially back during my time at NMSU, but these days I really need to set a reminder on my cell phone to tune in.  I didn't learn until I moved back to El Paso that we can pick up the dial for KRWG.  Despite several blocked (?) attempts we were never able to extend the frequency for KRUX during my time. As far as Fiesta!, I recall one evening hearing a cover by a band from South America of the Sugar Hill Gang's 'Rapper's Delight'.  Her show is a great example of promoting variety within the genres she explores and a more open approach to broadcasting local, regional, and global sounds and giving listeners something unique and different with each broadcast.  She also has a really great radio personality and a bilingual approach that reflects our border culture in the Southwest.  I wonder if she's ever gotten an award considering how long she's been broadcasting.  If not, Emily Guerra definitely deserves one.  In reviewing the schedule that's printed in the Airwaves publication, its a show that I told myself I really need to keep up with.  Here is the link for the show http://krwg.org/programs/fiesta-krwg but if you're in El Paso/Las Cruces, 90.7 FM will tune you in.  We've linked the program in our ((Listening)) links to the right.