Sid Sriram - "Blood on the Leaves Rendition"

Sid Sriram drops his own version of of Kanye's "Blood On The Leaves" while he works on his full length project "West Coast Nightfall pt. II".



Follow the madness: twitter.com/TheMadBloggers_
Check out more from The Mad Bloggers

Download: Mr.Ivory Snow - "Rugged"

Been bumping "Rugged" on and off for the last few weeks after purchasing this joint off dude's Bandcamp page. I remember watching him talk about making this album. The struggles that he was going through, the pushed back dates, the perfectionist in him delaying the finalization of it, the constant status updates about tweaking tracks, and the video uploads showing you his progress and method of creating it. From his last album to this one, he puts in hard work and I extremely respect that. He wants to win. Bad. But not at any cost, which is yet another thing among many to admire about Mr.Ivory.

What I like about this album is that it is almost entirely written, produced, and performed by himself. But that's not all. I really dig the content and lyricism he brings to the project. Even though we've lived different lives, I easily find tracks on this joint that I can relate to. He's an emcee that's kind of reminiscent of the golden era of Hip-Hop. Not following the likes of some of the much less talented, much more gimmick laden artists looking to find commercial success, this mid-20s emcee follows suit with the love and respect he has for the genre in hopes that he'll break through like a Kendrick Lamar, Big K.R.I.T., or a Joey Bada$$ has.

Peep what he recently had to say about "Rugged" and why you should listen to it! And check out the brief description written about the album as well. If you're anything like me, you won't regret it.

I know alot of y'all have been sleeping in the deep abyss of all things with no substance. However due to the recent events going on in the world my album has music that is cohesive to what is going on the world currently. From unemployment, the disconnection of the black race, hate crimes towards gays, high crime across the country and overseas as well as real life situations that you can all relate to. You'd be surprised that my music can effect you in a really positive way if you'd just take a listen and invest in someone that actually cares about the culture of music. So do yourself a favor, turn off the radio and listen to something real for a change. - Mr.Ivory Snow

Mr.Ivory Snow's second album #RUGGED embodies the true art form of hip-hop. Take a journey as he explains his view on the world around him. Everything happens in threes so the first third of the album is about not having money, second part is about selling your soul for the money and the consequences of success, and third is about losing money but regaining your true identity as a person. As Americans, we idolize the intangibles and often we get lost within our idols or other forms of media that create a false sense of person. #RUGGED is made for you, the people and most of all it is God's will that these messages shall influence you to make the right choices in life through any scenario. Don't want to give too much away so enjoy the album.

Support the music!

Follow the madness: twitter.com/TheMadBloggers_
Follow The Genius: twitter.com/OCSupreme
Check out more from The Mad Bloggers

Fair - The Beginning of "After The eNd"

"After The eNd" is the first solo project from Fair, one half of Mook N Fair, set to release in September. I was able to hear a sneak peek of the album at a listening party a couple weeks ago and from what I've heard, Fair is definitely trying to kick open yet another door in music. As an artist, he's used to working in groups most of his career, from back in the Wolfpak days to his recent two man team with Mook. Having met a level of success with the latter, he now decides to set his focus on trying to conquer the same game in 1-Player mode. I recently spoke with Fair about his upcoming project titled "After The eNd", his expectations on his first solo project, the meaning behind the name, and a few other things.


OC Supreme: What's up, Fair. Tell me, you got a project coming out. What's it called?

Fair: The name of the project is actually called "After The eNd". I do have a way of spelling it and I mean that’s something that a lot of people are talking about because it’s spelled regular with the first two words and the last word is eNd with a little a capital N and a small d at the end. It's kinda raising some eye brows right now.

OC: Have you explain the meaning behind that to the people yet?

Fair: No, I actually haven't. I just been running with it. What I did was I wanted to think of something to pun of the old Mook N Fair stuff, really just think of a dope title to kind of work with that so it does have a double meaning. Mook N Fair is spelled M-O-O-K, the letter N, and F-A-I-R. And my name Fair is after the "N", so that's where I came up with that.

OC: So what inspired you to come out with this project?

Fair: I had a lot of material that I've just been working on through the years of the group. It came to a point that it was so much stuff that I was sitting on, so why not just put it out. I think, it started out during the Wolfpak years. There was a point where it didn’t matter who was on the song. Whoever was there during that time puts out that song and it’s still under the Wolfpak umbrella. So that’s where this comes from. It’s mostly just me but it’s still under the Mook N Fair brand.

OC: How many tracks do you have on this project?

Fair: Between 15 and 17. Debating on two tracks.

OC: Are they all new tracks? Prerecorded?

Fair: Actually two are fairly old. But I re-recorded everything. You wouldn’t be able to guess which ones were old because I really tried to make this sound not really different, but more me. Because when you hear Mook N Fair, they’re used to a more upbeat, hype type of style, party anthems, songs for chicks, and songs like that. But with just me, I try to show some content. A lot of the times, I hear people saying “I like that Who’s Your Daddy?! Song but them dudes can’t rap, They ain’t got no lyrics.” And for me, that hit home, that hit my heart.

OC: Did that make you feel like a challenge?

Fair: I felt disrespected. (Laughs). And I think the people who said that didn’t really listen to a whole project from Mook N Fair. They only heard the radio songs. They might not have understood the plan that went behind that. So that’s one thing I really tried to do, and that’s one thing that’s really gonna stand out the most is people are gonna say “Damn, this motherfucker got a lot of content, there’s a lot of substance in what he’s talking about. He ain’t just rapping about random stuff.” That’s what I want people to take from this the most.

OC: Who are you trying to reach with your solo project?

Fair: I think at the beginning of this process, I would’ve said my demographic that I’m looking for is around 23 to 30. But right now, it opened up and I have to give credit to cats like Kendrick Lamar , J. Cole, and Wale because I feel like they are doing what it takes to bring in that young crowd into listening to some of the older music as well.

OC: Who did you end up working with on this for the production? Did you stay in-house? Networked outside your circle?

Fair: P Boogie actually did two joints on this project. We’ve worked with him on some of the Mook N Fair project, recently on the “Secret’s Out” project on a track with Chris Webby. Also DJ Semi, who we’ve never worked with, only on a DJ level and never on a production level. He has 4 joints on the project, as well as some scratches on other joints on this project. I even went way, way back in the crates and even got a D-Lux beat. If you’re a Waterbury head, you know who D-Lux is. I felt like I had to work with him because he has that essence in his beats. I have one from a major as well with NO I.D. There’s even an unreleased J. Dilla beat that I used. Rest in peace to J. Dilla. Obviously, I don’t have a full authority to use that, I felt like I needed one to get that extra Hip-Hop type of feel on this cd. I also got Meese Forbes out of Hartford is on it as well. I try to keep it as close to home as possible with who I chose for production. There are also tracks from Ralphie O from Royce Music Group (also under Justice League), Weezer Rascal, G-Whiz and Sandman.

Click to read more of the interview.

Tech N9ne - "Fragile" feat. Kendrick Lamar, ¡MAYDAY!, and Kendall Morgan

New joint from Tech N9ne with the help of ¡MAYDAY!, one of my favorite bands out now, Kendrick, who goes off lyrically, and Kendall, whose voice seems perfectly matched for the mood of this track.. "Something Else" coincidentally drops on my born day. Gotta mean something big, right?! Haha. Press play and enjoy!



Follow the madness: twitter.com/TheMadBloggers_
Check out more from The Mad Bloggers

Rome Clientel - "Guts & Glory"

Rome Clientel with a smooth, jazzy cut off his new project. He keeps the good music coming.

Elmira emcee and Golden Era recording artist Rome Clientel has taken a bit of a sabbatical following the release of The Empire 2: The Battlegrounds EP. As he continues to work on The Empire 3: The Coronation EP, the third one of the series, Rome is embarking on #TheConquest, a campaign of singles to demonstrate what he has in store moving forward.

The first release from #TheConquest is "Guts And Glory," a mellow offering produced by Damien Cornwell. Adding to the smooth beat is the live saxophone playing of Scott Mayo, known for being a member of the band for American Idol. Mayo has worked with other legendary artists including Sergio Mendes and Earth Wind and Fire.

Follow the madness: twitter.com/TheMadBloggers_
Check out more from The Mad Bloggers

DJ Premier Discusses The Roots

One legend in the game sits with Okayplayer TV to talk about a few other legends.



Follow the madness: twitter.com/TheMadBloggers_
Check out more from The Mad Bloggers

What I'm Watching: Wrekonize - "Neon Skies"

I'm late on this so maybe a few of my people are too. Peep Wrekonize's video to a track off his latest "The War Within".



Follow the madness: twitter.com/TheMadBloggers_
Check out more from The Mad Bloggers

What I'm Watching: ¡MAYDAY! - "Believers/HighRide"

Believers is out tomorrow! Here's a quick reminder of what to expect.

¡MAYDAY! - Believers


¡MAYDAY! - HighRide


Follow the madness: twitter.com/TheMadBloggers_
Check out more from The Mad Bloggers

TMB Presents: JohnNY U. x Lafayette Stokely x Motel Eola "We Three Kings" (EP)

I'm excited to finally share this joint with our readers. It's hunting season from Brooklyn to the UK and back! Doubters are the prey; JohnNY U., Lafayette Stokely and UK producer Motel Eola are out for the hunt. The three track EP, presented by TMB, showcases the talented trio, highlighted by solid production and hard hitting rhymes. Just over 13 minutes, press play and enjoy the vibe.

Follow the madness: twitter.com/themadbloggers_
Check out more from The Mad Bloggers

What I'm Watching: Jinesis "Critics" feat. Fresh Daily

Critics ft. Fresh Daily from Jinesis on Vimeo.

New visuals from the Jinesis produced Otisis, the A-Side Remixes.

The Jinesis produced Fresh Daily song "Critics" from Jinesis's latest endeavor, "Otisis, the A-Side Remixes" gets an animated treatment for this short but concise banger. Relying on minimalism used in everyday commercial art and signage, the message is punctuated by highlighting the lyrics in sometime the most literal of ways. Animation by Marc Steinberg.

Follow the madness: twitter.com/themadbloggers_
Check out more from The Mad Bloggers

MacGuyver - "Leo Jackson"

Oh yes! This guy seems to never put out unsatisfactory music. Though borrowing production from J. Cole, MacGuyver leaves his own lyrically identity all over "Leo Jackson".

MacGuyver is back with heartfelt verses layed over J. Cole's "Kenny Lofton" beat. Prepping the world for his first official project "ImMaculate" Macguyver is just giving the world a taste of his worldplay and charisma.

Follow the madness: twitter.com/TheMadBloggers_
Check out more from The Mad Bloggers

Allen Poe - "Gina" ft Basement Up & Von Pea (produced by Nemo Achida)

Finally playing a little catch up on some music with this smooth, summer feeling, upbeat joint by the homie Allen Poe (1/3 of KY's MC trio Basement Up). With Von Pea of Tanya Morgan assisting on the mic, "Gina", produced by Nemo Achida, comes as Allen's first single off his upcoming LP "Pocket Full of Ohms" set to release Fall 2013. As Allen Poe puts it, "It is a comedic recounting of the frustrations of high school nerds misfiring with the ladies." Check it.



@Allen_Poetik

Follow the madness: twitter.com/TheMadBloggers_
Check out more from The Mad Bloggers