What I'm Watching: Frank Ocean “Acura Integurl”

Frank Ocean “Acura Integurl” from Team OnSMASH on Vimeo.

Folks think of Frank Ocean as kind of the odd ball in Odd Future, if that makes sense. The Def Jam signee adds an interesting and sometimes edgy twist to R&B but nothing like the edge Odd Future adds to music. I think the dude is talented and with something like 80 cuts from him in my iTunes, I think what he is doing is pretty dope. Let's see how much Def Jam fucks up this already winning formula. Anyway, Frank Ocean's “Acura Integurl” has been making its rounds on the net. I caught and shared it the other day on tumblr. If you missed, check it out now. Enjoy. Chea!

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What I'm Watching: KENO x Rufio "Figure Four"

Keno is good people. He's like fam. I definitely dig his music, whether he's doing something solo or alongside Sauce Fonda (half of theOTHERSIDE).

A few months back he linked up with producer Rufio and put out a pretty solid project. "Figure Four" is one of the dope cuts from that project. Bobby Gee steps behind the camera and directs a pretty solid video. Enjoy. Chea!

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Scheme & DJ Scend - Two Turntables and a Mic : NO I.D. Series (video)

Saturday I hit you with the audio and yesterday the homie Scheme hit me with the video from the latest Two Turntables and a Mic episode featuring beats from NO I.D. It's dope. Enjoy.

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Daimyo "Sister Marcus"

A fresh instrumental from Daimyo by way of the World Around camp. Daimyo, 18, is the youngest member of World Around Records. This month he's on the road with Philly/Minneapolis emcee Witness, playing drums and keys with his live band. Enjoy "Sister Marcus", I dig it.


"Daimyo's music incorporates a strange bastard spectrum of techniques, usually based on live instrumentation and Reason, as well as Nintendo DS and some customized MPD controllers. Homey hails from Albany, NY and he wants to work with Death Grips more than anything in the world."




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What I'm Watching: Brown Bag AllStars - The Agenda (Marco Polo Remix)

Last week Brown Bag AllStars released Brown Bag Season Vol 1. Last night the crew celebrated with a release party. They also premiered the visuals for Brown Bag AllStars over at 2DopeBoyz.com. Enjoy.

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The Mad Bloggers Show Ep 36

New show tonight, old show today. I mean, catch up. Ha! Enjoy some dope music on EP 36 and be sure to tune in for EP 37 tonight at 7pm on www.skyyhookradio.com. Chea!

01. Childish Gambino - Not Going Back
02. Ryan Leslie - Glory
03. Chris Skillz feat. Al-Fatir and Nish - One Day
04. Pharoahe Monch feat. Mr. Porter - Haile Selassie Karate
05. Political Animals - Read Between The Lines
06. Elzhi - The World Is Yours
07. Elzhi feat. Eternia - One Love (Eternia Remix)
08. Jesse Abraham feat. Homeboy Sandman - Always & Forever
09. David Dallas - Say No More
10. Soul Khan feat. Akie Bermiss - Speeding Bullets
11. Skyzoo - Written In The Drums
12. Kaimbr & Kev Brown feat. Roddy Rodd, Hassan Mackey & DJ Marshall Law - Army Fatigue Rap
13. Rah Digga feat. Torae and Styles P - You Got It (Remix)
14. The Audible Doctor feat. June Haze - Church Night
15. Brown Bag AllStars - Crumbling Down
16. Dom Kennedy - Goodbye

Download



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EVENT: The Bury The Hatchet Show (5/28/11)

Milwaukee, if you haven't been paying attention to the blog, is a hot pocket of talented Hip-Hop. In my opinion it's better to work together than work apart or work against. These four dope acts are just the tip of the iceberg of what Milwaukee has to offer. I'll let JC Poppe explain the concept behind The Bury The Hatchet Show this Saturday night at the Cactus Club out in Milwaukee.

I wanted to let you know about a big show happening on May 28th at Cactus Club, beginning at 10PM, with a cover of $5.

Myself and Axtra (manager of Prophetic, and other UMG artists) are bringing together 2 UMG artists and 2 former House of M artists to do a show that symbolizes the end of the beef between these respective artists.

AUTOMatic, Prophetic, Raze, and Yo-Dot, will be taking the stage as peers on that night, the first time in over a year and for the second time in several years! There are no openers, there are no closers, there are just four dope hip-hop acts that are going to perform their butts off for those in attendance.

If you didn’t know there used to be a beef between UMG and House of M, there was a lot of bad blood between the two camps for years…going back to around 2008 and bridging deep into 2010.

When the House of M fell apart at the end of 2010, A.P.R.I.M.E. and Trellmatic of AUTOMatic, and Raze no longer wished to carry on any ill will because the issues were more with others that had been House of M, and the guys of UMG were tired of the cumbersome rigmarole beefing often presents. After several years, it was just stale and almost a cliche.

So, in an attempt to build bridges where they once were burned, I approached Axtra with the idea at the listening party for my albums Shadowlands/Tea Party and he was completely open to it!

As former manager of House of M (2010), and current manager of AUTOMatic and Raze, I’m very excited about this show because in my opinion these artists, AUTOMatic, Prophetic, Raze, and Yo-Dot, are some of the best that Milwaukee has to offer…and it’s going to be great to finally have them on stage with each other without any sour air in the building.

It should be said, however, that this show in no way reflects the feelings or thoughts of other former House of M members and UMG members and they are not included in this show’s line-up. Others have also burried the hatchet, but there are also some that are still very much leary of each other.

The night is going to be fun and is something that will help the Milwaukee hip-hop scene step closer towards the unification it once enjoyed in 2007.

The poster was designed by Dana Coppafeel.

Umbrella Music Group is a Milwaukee based label that is represented by artists like Prophetic, Ka$h, Yo-Dot, Tay Butler, and Adlib. No Half Steppin Crew is represented by artists like AUTOMatic, Raze, The Hollowz, DJ JDL, and DJ Bizzon.

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Hip-Hop Breakfast Ep 55

Let's see if I get this right the first time. Ha! It's Monday and you already know what it is. I hope Ep 55 helps you kick start your week. Chea!

01. Cee- Lo Green - Bodies
02. Drake - Dreams Money Can Buy
03. Dom Kennedy - Designer Sh*t
04. The Cranberry Show - Last Score
05. Soul Khan feat. Akie Bermiss - Speeding Bullets
06. Mos Def feat. Talib Kweli - History
07. Big K.R.I.T. feat. Ludacris & Bun B - Country Shit (remix)



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Jinesis "Maliah" (from Otisis)

Folks that know me well, know how much I enjoy the work of Otis Redding. Those who have followed the blog long enough also know how much I've come to respect the work of New York producer Jinesis. And so a few months back during one of our online convos about music I pitched him an idea to take Otis Redding tracks and flip 'em. Jinesis jumped on board with no hesitation and hit the ground running. Over the last few weeks I've been anxious and overly excited about this project and sharing it with all of you. Jinesis is a very talented producer and soon enough folks will understand and respect that. We are approaching one of his finest hours. And to intro the first preview from Otisis, I'll let Jinesis take it from here...

"Maliah mentioned on twitter that a lot of dudes are afraid to date her seriously because they dont want the attention that comes with dating a dancer/model/vixen. That candid, world weary and personal tweet came from a sensitive place and once Jinesis sat with the sample the sentiment echoed. This a glimpse into one of the beats from the Jinesis produced Otis Redding sampled project "Otisis" presented by The Mad Bloggers."



Entirely produced by Jinesis.
Mixed and Arranged by Jinesis & Frado

Single artwork design by Fresh Daily

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Scheme & DJ Scend - Two Turntables and a Mic: NO I.D. Series

Damn I really dig this series. DJ Scend and Scheme linked up to do a pretty dope series called "Two Turntables and Mic", presented by Molemen Records x SRNC x RubyHornet.com. The concept is simple - dope beats, a mic and two turntables. With their latest, they pay homage to NO I.D. and drop the audio first with a video on the way. Check it out and enjoy. Chea!

  Scheme and DJ Scend - NO ID Series (Two Turntables and a Mic) by SchemeMusic

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Naeem Oba "Nigger"

"Chew on this... then spit out ya broken teeth! SALUTE!" -Naeem Oba

I could probably begin and end this post with "this track is real." But I'll go one step further and say that it's dope and requires your immediate attention. I first heard Naeem Oba last year when he was featured over at iheartdilla.com. I was immediately pulled into his sound, both from a production and content standpoint. I appreciated his music. Some might classify it as conscious but I think it's just deeper than what you typically hear in Hip-Hop today. Naeem is currently working on his upcoming EP Nigger, guaranteed to be controversial with it's title alone. A few days ago he hit me with the title track from the EP produced by King Karnov and featuring brikAbrak. Hit play. Listen and enjoy. Chea!



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Acid Reign "Diversity"

A few months back Uncommon Records announced the addition of Acid Reign (Gajah & BeOnd) to the New York based indie label. With Uncommon the LA underground crew dropped Diversity, their debut LP, a few days ago. As the press release said, "Diversity as an album is just that, DIVERSE." And I agree. It's that diversity that makes it unique and enjoyable. The production (EQ, Nasa, OoloO the Wize and more) is solid. The content is fresh. And the features (Aceyalone, Abstract Rude, Myka 9, Nga Fish, Rifleman (aka Ellay Khule), Graves, Olmeca and Neila) are on point. At the very least the project is worth a listen. I vibed with at least 90% of it (and that says a lot based on some of the music I receive on a weekly basis). Enjoy.



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