Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Afro-Classics Release LP, Classic Rock!

Afro Classics, a hip-hop group consisting of Scarub of Living Legends and Very of Us Pros, represents feel good music that makes you want to bob your head, dance, laugh and think. This fall, they are readying their debut LP, Classic Rock.

The album is 12 tracks deep of hard-hitting, thought provoking,body moving, trunk rattling California independent hip hop. The production is handled by Eligh, Fat Jack, Scarub, Style Misia, Mustafa, Thavius Beck, Jonas Hurst and Andrew Scott! Cop this one!



Thursday, October 8, 2009

The Busiest Rapper You've Never Heard Of: SOLE

Hip-Hop -experimental artist Sole (one of the founders of Anticon) has spent the last two years living in a cabin in the midst of the Coconino National Forest in Arizona with no mayor, no phone lines, broken cell phone reception, just books and environmental canyon sprawl.  


The return to analog life inspired much his latest album Plastique along with an EP: Battlefields, a national tour, and a website that boasts 1-2 million hits a month! Check it: www.soleone.org/stats


"Everywhere man goes he is in conflict, and such conflicts are found throughout the album: the interpersonal, the political, the anti-social, the city, the desert, the industries and the anti-ideologies wherever they are found." Sole touches on everything from touring in a recession, media and war, race, rap, wildlife, space, identity politics and the insane tightrope one must walk to talk about such issues without sounding like a book report.   


Also, don't miss Sole and the Skyrider Band on TOUR this month!


ITINERARY: 
10-15 - LA Knitting Factory 
10-16 – San Diego - Kava Lounge 
10-17 – Oakland - The Uptown 
10-18 – portland - Rotture 
10-19 – seattle - The Nectar 
10-20 – missoula - The Palace 
10-21 – boise, id - Neurolux 
10-23 -  SLC – Urban Lounge 
10-24 – Ft. Collins 
10-25 – Denver, Co – Hi-Dive 
10-26 – ABQ – The Launchpad 
10-27 – LV, NV – The Bunk House


 

 

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Hip-Hop Emcee and Producer K.FLAY Mashes it Up on Her New Mixtape!

While putting the finishing touches on her debut album, 24-year-old rapper and producer K.Flay is releasing a mixtape teaser, MASHed Potatoes. Mixed and produced by the San Francisco-based artist, MASHed Potatoes is a re-imagining—both sonically and lyrically—of eleven different tracks from artists like Kanye West, The Gossip, Missy Elliott, and more. The project features fellow West Coast artists Zumbi (of Zion I), Eligh (of Living Legends), and MC Lars.

“MASHed Potatoes is a blend of hip-hop, electro, and indie rock,” explains K.Flay. “I listened to everything as a kid—George Clinton and Snoop Dogg to Talking Heads and The Zombies—and you can hear all of it my music.”

Indeed, K.Flay’s sound reflects the eclectic influences in her life growing up. Born and raised in the soulful state of Illinois, she spent her childhood reading Ronald Dahl books, jamming out to Sgt. Pepper, and rocking Air Jordans a size too big.

At 18, K.Flay ventured to California to study at Stanford University. While in college, she discovered the power of midi interfaces and began writing, producing, and performing the unique blend of hip-hop and indie rock that has come to characterize her sound.

Hailed in URB Magazine’s “Next 100” issue as a rap girl with “a bad-ass style that comes straight from a feral and natural talent,” K.Flay has been making her mark on the music world, giving fans shins splints on both sides of the Mississippi.

Most recently, K.Flay is featured on Zion I’s Coastin’ video and she is working with acclaimed DJ/producer Amp Live.

http://www.kflay.com

Atlanta, GA., Based Emcee Rita J Readies Artist Workshop

Don’t let the petite frame or striking brown eyes of this female emcee fool you. Rita J. is rugged and raw — and she can hold her own with any rapper in the game today. This fall, Rita J. is releasing her debut album, Artist Workshop on the Chicago-based independent label All Natural. Organic and soulful, Artist Workshop features Steph Staa, Cap D., Guilty Simpson, Yaw, Ka-Di, Adad, Mr. Greenweedz, Rashid Hadee, and Dylan Jones.

Born in Chicago, IL, Rita J. credits her father's massive collection of soul, pop, rock, r&b, disco and hip-hop records for instilling her with a love of hip-hop. While living in Chicago after college, she connected with the underground icons DJ Tone B. Nimble and MC capital D of the group All Natural. In 2002, she joined the collective officially. Rita J. was featured on numerous compilations and was part of the collective Family Tree for a few years honing her skills, studying and gearing up for her debut solo album.

In 2005, after fleeing a number of hurricanes, including Katrina, Rita J. ended up in Atlanta. She is also a dancer, actor and producer. Rita J. was featured in the independent film What Ever Happened To Hip-Hop? (directed by Sonali Aggarwal) alongside KRS-ONE, Nikki Giovanni, and Jean Grae. She is also featured in an upcoming film entitled Pathways directed by Eljay Williams.

Production on Artist Workshop is shared by Black Spade, Kenny Keys, Yuani, Rashid Hadee, Tre Styles, Willowtreez, Vick Lavender, and K-Kruz.

Artist Workshop drops November 10, 2009.

A BEAUTIFUL HOUSE...