What I'm Watching ... RoQ'y / TyRaiD "Woosah"

I chopped it up with this dude on Skyy Hook Radio last night. Good peoples. He didn't know I was a blogger and I didn't know he was an artist until we were off air. Funny how things work out sometimes. Anyway, I caught this video from him earlier. Fresh. Calm your nerves and woosah. Check it out and enjoy.

twitter.com/RoQyTyRaiD
roqytyraid.bandcamp.com

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Download ... MED "Bang Ya Head III" (Mixtape)

With a gang of fresh production and features, this joint from Cali's own MED is dope. Yes, it's just one long mp3 but it's kinda dope because it reminds me of the days of mixtapes, on tape. Enjoy.

1) Intro - prod by JRocc
2) Advice - LMD prod by Madlib
3)Misunderstood - MED prod by Madlib
4) Candlelight - MED feat/prod by Georgia Anne Muldrow
4) 50,000 Watts - MED prod by Soul Professa
5) Salute - J Rocc/MED feat WildChild & Baby Boogalu
6) Fall Back - Fred feat Med/Pok prod by FRED
7) R.E.M - Epsilon Project Feat MED prod by Oddisee
8 ) West Iz Back - MED prod by Khalil
9) Saga Cont. - Babu feat MED prod by Babu
10) O.U.T - Matt feat MED prod by Matt
11) Listen - Descry feat MED prod by Descry
12) Outro Prod by JRocc feat Daru Jones on the drums

Mixed By Dj Romes, Artwork by Plann B

Bang Ya Head III by MED

www.stonesthrow.com/med

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What I'm Watching ... e.d.g.e. "New Decade"

Edge - New Decade from Birch Concepts on Vimeo.

Fresh vid from the homie e.d.g.e.

twitter.com/​edge1981
edge.bandcamp.com

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Check It ... Homeboy Sandman (Prod. by Jinesis) "MAESTRO-MADNESS" (Artwork)

Homeboy Sandman is on the track. Fresh Daily does the artwork. Jinesis sends the email. But no one is gonna send me the track? Oh, it's not out yet. I see what they did here. Haha. Track dropping soon. Wait for it.

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EVENT: Beats & Lumpia, Tonight (Sacramento)

If you're looking for something fresh tonight in Sacramento, Beats & Lumpia has you covered. Kicking off at 5pm, it looks like an exciting night full of Hip-Hop and culture.

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Take Three: Nas "It Was Written"

"There's one life, one love, so there could only be one king."

There are some things I find hilarious day by day. Take into account this fact: people were actually disappointed with this album. Granted, most of us hip-hop heads were spoiled by mad releases the year Nas came out with his sophomore album, It Was Written (Reasonable Doubt, ATLiens, Stakes Is High, Hell on Earth, Illadelph Halflife, I could go on and on...). But long gone was the raw and brash production on Illmatic, and its lyrical focus traded in well written street tales for more mafioso styled themes. Whether or not that was a good or bad thing depended upon how Biggie and Junior M.A.F.I.A. affected your listening habits. For those who listened closely though, the detail was never lost, nor was its knack for storytelling. Sure, we all hate the fact that Trackmasters and Dr. Dre (many people I know were still confused about Dr. Dre and Nas together, and were expecting WAAAAAYYY too much) gave a little bit more polished efforts on the production side, and many questioned Steve Stoute's involvement with Nas, which would later rear its ugly head shortly after Puff had issues with some controversial footage in "Hate Me Now" off the I Am... album. But regardless, this was still a stellar sophomore effort by all accounts, and a hell of a lot better than sophomore releases after it.

So after all that spiel, another installment of Take Three is taking place. Take Three is an attempt to choose 3 cuts to give to a listener who may not either be familiar with the work of an artist, or the specific releases of an artists. Without further dudes (Peter Griffin, can you dig it?) let's get this thing underway.

1. I Gave You Power

Seems like everytime I hear about Nas, or about the best Nas cuts ever recorded, there's always a few that seem to grab my attention (I heard someone once include "You Owe Me" in their top 10 Nas cuts ever, weird). I continue to be surprised by the omission of "I Gave You Power," because it was everything that rested in Illmatic brought back for one tune. One of the lone DJ Premier productions that made the album, Premier draws in stark piano notes, and hard-hitting drums, while Nas personifies himself as a gun and his travails as this weapon. It's rich in its depictions and detail, has a stellar yet fucked up ending (jamming in his owner's hand, and being elated about having control, until another owner picks him up), and all the while, Nas weaves this tale intricately about his owner's rise to fame, and the macabre mentions of his own melodramatic treatment recieved as the gun. If there's some reason this tune isn't in your "Best Nas Cuts Ever" list, well then, that needs to change.

2. The Message

You might remember hearing a piece of this tune in the video for "If I Ruled The World (Imagine That)" and being like "where the hell can I hear all of this?" Granted, upon first listen, its a trickster of a tune; a lot of people upon release of the record didn't think it was the strongest introduction to It Was Written, but once they saw the video for "If I Ruled The World (Imagine That)," folks that hearlded Nas in the Illmatic days thought he was going off. Hilarious how this song works, and the trick that was played. We were listening to the introduction to It Was Written that whole time and didn't even notice the correlation. Regardless though, this is still a strong introduction, not only for the shot it took at Notorious B.I.G., but once again, Nas's battle stance is unfazed, and every word is delivered as clearly and bravely as it could be.

3. If I Ruled The World (Imagine That)

This song probably got the most mixed reaction in the world when it was chosen as the single for It Was Written. Sure, Lauryn's on the hook, how come not a verse? What's with Nas and this positivity shit? In the grand scheme it was a smart choice, and very well written song, still is much better than "I Can", right? Digressions aside, using Whodini's "Friends" as a backdrop to think about the ways of the world and what would change if Nas ruled it makes for a great song. And damn it, if Lauryn's voice on the hook and breakdown isn't heavenly, there's something wrong with your ears.

twitter.com/EgyptoKnuckles

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What I'm Watching ... Chuuwee "Post Mortem"

First off, Sacramento emcee Chuuwee is dope. Secondly, I'm a huge fan of one shot videos. This joint is dope in a simple way. Enjoy "Post Mortem", produced by ThugPoet and shot by Brian Ines. Both the vid and track are fresh.

twitter.com/chuuweeTUS

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Myk Dyaleks on ... Being Dumb

Dyaleks on Being Dumb from Myk Dyaleks on Vimeo.

Myk Dyaleks Make’em Yell(ow) coming November 1st. Get ready.

twitter.com/Myk_Dyaleks

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What I'm Watching ... J-Live "The Way That I Rhyme"

J-Live f/ Boog Brown "The Way That I Rhyme" VIDEO from J-LIVE on Vimeo.

Check out the official video to J-Live's "The Way That I Rhyme" featuring Boog Brown. The visuals are fresh. Directed by J-Live, shot by Anthony Alston & J-Live and edited by Eljay Williams. Enjoy.

twitter.com/j_live3tp
j-livemusic.com

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What I'm Watching ... The Noisettes (Live)

I caught this from my brother on FB. Sure the vid is over a year old but damn, tell me you aren't vibing to the London-based indie rock band Noisettes right now. Be honest. Enjoy. Oh, and you're welcome.

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What EMS Is Watching ... @DNeter - "Home" at @SambucaAtlanta

Another outstanding and incredible performer from the Atlanta's Next Best competition at Sambuca Jazz Café is D'Neter and let me just say... sometimes I don't even know WHAT to say about her. The whole time I watched her perform, she was great, but when she started singing not only one of my favorite but one of the hardest songs to sing, I could not contain my excitement. Originally sung by Stephanie Mills in the broad way production of The Wiz, and later sung by Diana Ross in the 1978 film, "Home" is one of the most notable and recognizable songs in the black community.

D'Neter created this air of anticipation with every note she sang. If you were there, you know exactly what I'm talking about. The only thing I can give you is a YouTube recording of her performance, and while this video still gives me chills, it doesn't do justice on the effect she had on everyone in that room. She literally took my breath away, so don't be surprised if you fall out of your chair!

To keep up with everything else D'Neter will be accomplishing in the near future, follow her on Twitter at twitter.com/DNeter and her website www.dnetermusic.com.



Enjoy.


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What EMS Is Watching ... Mark Gungor - Tale of Two Brains

So, my mom actually showed this to me one day last week. HILARIOUS. If you've even had the slightest interaction with the opposite sex, you'll completely understand this video. I personally wish I had a "Nothing" box. As a matter of fact, I'm going to go get some cardboard and make one.

A little humor for your Tuesday afternoon. Enjoy.


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