The Set Up Giveaway!!
To celebrate the release of Black Milk and Fat Ray’s
The Set Up, Audible Treats has partnered up with some websites to offer a banging giveaway. SitDownStandUp, Drop Magazine, Basement Flavor, RenSoul and Smoking Section are all offering an autographed copy of The Set Up, a vinyl LP of the album and a personalized voicemail that Black Milk will set up on the winner’s cell phone. The winner will be chosen within the next couple weeks so look out for the contest to go up! Get On It People!
Bay Area’s Best Kept Secret
After many years of honing his craft in the Bay Area scene, Shaya is finally set to make his official introduction to the world of hip-hop with his forthcoming release, Fallen Awake. Shaya is currently under the mentorship of iD, the same A&R guru who introduced the world to Little Brother.
Fallen Awake is Shaya’s long overdue, debut musical statement, inspired by years of difficult times and a lack of deserved attention. The production by Jake One (50 Cent, Freeway) and The ARE (Lords of the Underground, K-Otix) on Fallen Awake provides a solid foundation for Shaya’s lyrical attack. “Proud,” a provocative dedication to his mother told with unwavering honesty, has already garnered underground attention. Under the manifesto of resurrecting “thinking man’s music,” Shaya considers Fallen Awake to be not only an open-palm to his listeners, but a chance to lay to rest the pains of his own life. Fallen Awake will be released on Interdependent Media on July 29.2008
Little Vic Joins With A Legend
“Caked Up”featuring Kool G Rap is the latest track from Little Vic’s newest album Each Dawn I Die. Starting with a shot of funk in the beginning, the song grows from there, layering turntable scratches over a raw New York City beat. Little Vic shows off his versatility on this track by blending the dark side of battle rap with a cocky swagger. He rhymes, “Cats are living street dreams / and wake up when they get pinched / if a king exists / peasants biting on my lyrics like dead skin on their finger tips / bring a wrist to slit / or sing a quick verse whistling past the cemetery / Little Vic hearse.” Kool G Rap, one of the early legends of New York hip-hop, brings it full circle by bringing back his legendary mafioso lyrical prowess.
Check out the track here.
Bisc1 at the Mercury Lounge
K’Naan Comes Out With It
“Soobax,” (pronounced “soobah”) the first single from K’Naan’s upcoming album The Dusty Foot Philosopher Deluxe Edition, is percussion-fuelled music at its finest. Set in K’naan’s native Somalia, the song is a fervent look at life in a war-torn country ruled by competeing warlords and their gangs. Says K’naan, “The term ’soobax’ actually means to ‘come out’ so when I recorded it, I imagined myself being in front of gunmen and I’m communicating directly to them.” He adds, “Sixty-year-old women in Canada jam to that song because it says things they couldn’t say. When my brother heard the song he said that it’s the first song he’d heard of mine that could get me killed.”
Emphasizing the message behind his music, K’naan sees “Soobax” as an anthem to lift the spirits and minds of his fellow people out of surrounding violence. On the chorus, K’naan speaks directly to the warlords and provokes them to leave the country. Sung in Somali, K’naan says, “You have exasperated the people so come out with it / The troubles have increased so come out with it / You’ve spilled the blood so that it drains on the roads so come out with it / You’ve burnt the root of the earth so come out with it.”
The King Breaks It Down
DJ and producer King Most’s new Genius Music Megamix podcast is a collection of remixes, b-side and original samples from the hip-hop super producers who are currently running the game. With tracks from Kanye, the Neptunes, Timbaland, Ghostface, Rakim, Biggie and others, this mix gives the opportunity for listeners to hear what goodies these genius producers are working on outside of mainstream radio. The podcast is a 15 minute sneak peak into the full length Genius Music Mixtape, which is available here.
Fade to Black Milk
Black Milk, Detroit native and heir to the J Dilla throne, has teamed up with Fat Ray, to put out another banger, The Set-Up LP. With 11 tracks, each produced by Black Milk, and guest shots from Guilty Simpson, Elzhi of Slum Village, Phat Kat, Nametag and Scorpion, this album represents the best of the underground Detroit hip-hop scene. Stand out tracks include the hypnotic synthesized layerings of “Take Control,” featuring a catchy female vocal hook and lines from Fat Ray such as “Might as well face the facts we spit the crack / even Jay-Z had to Fade To Black…Milk that is/ till we filthy rich, better make room like 50’s crib.” On “Get Focus” Black Milk’s production shines when he decides to use a hard-hitting beat juxtaposed with a dreamy piano motif. This duo is blowing up so check it out !
Head Over Heels
Truth & Soul have dropped another soul gem. Covering Al Green’s classic
“I’m So Glad You’re Mine,” off his I’m Still In Love With You LP, Truth & Soul vocalist Timothy McNealy puts down a laidback groove that lulls the listener into a soulful state of mind. McNealy’s voice, simultaneously calming and commanding, triggers memories of Al Green and Bill Withers, while the guitar, drums and keys gently bounce off McNealy’s vocal stylings, creating a sound strikingly characteristic of the golden era of soul.
“I’m So Glad You’re Mine” appears on
Fallin’ Off The Reel Vol. 2, a Truth & Soul compilation, which is available now on both CD and double LP.
A veteran of the Texas funk scene in the late 60’s, McNeally played slide trombone, Hammond organ, sang and wrote songs with the Mustangs. After their disbanding, McNeally created his own record label in 1970 as an avenue to produce his own material. His song “Sagitarius Black,” was an underground funk classic.
Bringin’ It Back To New York
Little Vic is dropping his album, Each Dawn I Die, on April 8th. Hailing from Long Island, Little Vic is ready to bust out a gritty energy that the New York rap scene has not seen in a minute. His EP features 2 singles that have already seen great success on the college radio charts: “The Exorcist” featuring DJ Premier and “Caked Up” featuring Kool G Rap. Rapping in a style that is a throwback to the 90’s NY rap scene, Little Vic picks up the storytelling tradition made famous by Nas and adds hard-hitting beats. Armed with the release of his long-anticipated follow-up to those singles, Little Vic is proud to release Each Dawn I Die on his Orena Records.
Hit Parade
To celebrate the release of their new album TIME:LINE, Nicolay and Kay are giving way a new 80 GB iPod preloaded with hours and hours of music from their respective catalogs (a dope mix of recent albums, b-sides and re-mixes) and several unreleased tracks that your pretty little ears will be the first to bump in your headphones. To enter the contest take a photo of yourself or your copy of TIME:LINE and send it to contest@nicolay music.com. The most original picture wins! Be sure to check out the contest website for details.
Born and raised in the Netherlands, critically acclaimed producer Nicolay has launched his own label, Nicolay Music, in partnership with Premium Blend Music Productions. TIME:LINE, a concept album featuring Kay, one of Houston’s most promising emcees, is the first album released on the new label.
Switch It Up And Reverse It
Here’s a musical wet dream for you. Take the vintage soul sound of Brooklyn-based El Michels Affair, the legendary flow of Raekwon (of Wu-Tang Clan), and “PJ’s,” a classic Pete Rock track, and you get the latest from the
Truth & Soul crew. The cover incorporates live instrumentation and highlights the distinctive assets of both El Michels Affair and Raekwon. El Michels adapts their funk/soul/R&B sound into the track’s hip-hop beat while Raekwon spits with gritty energy about life in the projects, heavy artillery, and street-life.
“PJ’s” is one of the tracks on
Fallin’ Off The Reel Vol. 2, a Truth & Soul compilation.
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