(No music playing)
today was a very slow day for me. Since i was working until 2am last night on the website (i hate to leave things unfinished once i really get started), I didnt wake up until 11 this morning. Which is a very unusual time for me to get up. The whole day i`ve felt kinda tired and lazy and not productive at all. I did do some more work on the website though and its almost finished. all thats missing are some pictures..and what else? hmm…thats probably it..
i did have a good convo last night with DJ Ras Cue (Cali Agents) from Oakland. He will mix the new tape I am working on, the under 21 tape, which some of you may have heard about (by the way, i`m still looking for music for that). I`m really excited to do this.. initially it was an idea by a friend of mine (yes, you mason!), who told me i should to something for the youth (or rather BY the youth) and the plans of doing a tape with artists who are all under 21 came up. I was sceptical at first because i personally cant recall any artists that young who attract my attention. So I didnt think that I would actually receive enough good music to put one whole tape together. If you know my tapes, you know that i will not put any bs on anything with my name on it! The funny thing is that during the submission progress I sent out a mass email asking for artists under 21 to send me their music, and damn, i got aloooot of negative responses.. that noone that age makes real hip hop, or what kind of stupid theme that is and so on..lol… i dont understand why ppl have to be so negative.. i mean, if thats how u feel, fine, but do u have to reflect that energy on me? while i`m trying to do something positive?
I believe this will be a great thing, and an opportunity to see and showcase where the next generation of hip hop is going. i also believe that alot of these youngens dont really receive our respect or our interest because of the souljah boy generation we see in them. But when you think about it, every generation in hip hop had a souljah boy. there was always an act that made you dance stupid and had a catchy hook that ppl got tired of after a while. so just because HE is on tv now (or whoever similar to him) doesnt mean that the whole generation is on the same bullshit. I think the exciting thing about rap music is, is that it constantly evolves and grows into different directions and we should not be so stuck in our ways and preferences but rather be openminded.
I have to admit I dont always practise what i preach. Because i feel like the balance is missing. I go to a club out here and all night long they play the SAME ish! the same “drop down on the floor, do the stanky leg, throw urself out the window” and the beats! OH MY GOD! they all sound the same! Its funny.. i got a mixtape by this dj who spins at a club i go to..i go home, pop it in, not expecting much, and damn…every beat on that tape sounded EXACTLY the same. the only way i was able to tell those songs apart was the different dance moves they were commanding you to do. other than that, it sounded like a 60 min loop… and it pisses me off, because i got sooo much underground rap that you can dance to and that got crazy, creative, outstanding beats. damn, just listen to the black milk tronic album! or at least throw the cool kids on or something..man… the weekend is about to come and i`m gonna be dealin with the same ish…
anyway…i kinda went off subject here..lol.. the point is..i am excited about the under 21 tape and i`m always happy to come out with themed tapes that you dont see everywhere else… so, be on the lookout for that one! :)
i have to get up early in the morning so i wont pull a late nighter tonight, i`m actually about to crawl into my bed..like i said, not a very productive day.. anyway, check out www.istillloveher.de if u havent…. god, i love hip hop!
The Spotlight: Blackreign & Ohkang
Blackreign and Ohkang
Detroit born, Detroit bred. Blackreign & Ohkang (aka Nicholas Thompson and Bomani Diop) have been creating musical 
mayhem since 2004. Over the years, the duo have worked together to produce five full albums and numerous other standalone tracks, combining their shared penchant for writing with their individual skills in engineering, artwork and design (Blackreign), and mixing, mastering and production (Ohkang). From The Greatest Hits in 2006, to The Oriental Ep and Bass & Brass Knuckles Lp in 2007, to The Booty Lp and The FunTouchables Lp (a collaboration with Blake Eerie) in 2008, Blackreign & Ohkang continue to develop and redevelop their style, simultaneously appreciating and exploding musical conceptions, and transcending all barriers of genre, media and time. And this is a style that has been called upon by many other artists – the duo have produced for D.S. Sense, Street Justice, Nomie, Smartalick, Engima, STR Entertainment, Blake Eerie, Leaf Erikson, CLS 500 and Fluent to name a few. Lying behind the eclectic blend of sound which resonates from Blackreign & Ohkang’s studio is a central goal – to reach out to all types of people by way of their music. “I think that in itself is success,” says Ohkang, “for everybody to know who we are, know what we do, and know that we create great music – that is a beautiful thing!”
Day 3
Day 3
(Dilated Peoples – Big Business)
I won the battle! Guess what? After the funk I was in yesterday, I pulled myself together and stayed up working til 1am. LOL.. I`m getting a feeling I can work better in the evening. I still didnt get the Reverbnation page together, but i got something better! I had been wanting to get my own website for the longest, I just never got around to it.. I have so many different pages with all my projects spread all over the internet that it only makes sense to have everything on one page. This was on my list of things to accomplish but i didnt think that i was gonna get that started so soon. Luckily, sometimes you run into situations that you didnt expect. As I did yesterday when I was online (as always lol) and a member of a hip hop group i had featured on one of my tapes before hit me up to see how i was doing. We talked for a minute and i told him about this blog. (Boot Camp Clikk – Here we come) After he had a look at it, he said that I should get a website on wordpress. I looked at the page, and thought it was a good idea (now, theres a difference between just the wordpress blog and an actual website u can create on wordpress.org). So he spent about 3 hrs talking me through getting a domain, setting up the host page and all of that (i dont know the tech lingo, so i wont try to break it down lol)..
I won the battle! Guess what? After the funk I was in yesterday, I pulled myself together and stayed up working til 1am. LOL.. I`m getting a feeling I can work better in the evening. I still didnt get the Reverbnation page together, but i got something better! I had been wanting to get my own website for the longest, I just never got around to it.. I have so many different pages with all my projects spread all over the internet that it only makes sense to have everything on one page. This was on my list of things to accomplish but i didnt think that i was gonna get that started so soon. Luckily, sometimes you run into situations that you didnt expect. As I did yesterday when I was online (as always lol) and a member of a hip hop group i had featured on one of my tapes before hit me up to see how i was doing. We talked for a minute and i told him about this blog. (Boot Camp Clikk – Here we come) After he had a look at it, he said that I should get a website on wordpress. I looked at the page, and thought it was a good idea (now, theres a difference between just the wordpress blog and an actual website u can create on wordpress.org). So he spent about 3 hrs talking me through getting a domain, setting up the host page and all of that (i dont know the tech lingo, so i wont try to break it down lol)..
So… www.istillloveher.de is now online!! Dont get too excited and jump on that page yet..lol.. its far from finished. I have been playing around with the design all day and havent really added any content. It is pain in the ass, to be honest, but i believe itll be worth it. Well, check it out if u want to, let me know what you would like to see on there, help me develope it :-).. (C.L.Smooth – American me)
That was pretty much all I did today, but seeing as it is only 6:30pm, i will probably get some more done ;-).. Somebody will have to break down reverbnation to me, seriously..i need a (Beenie Siegel – Die) tutor..lol..
Now, to get back on the website subject..i believe it is important for any artist to have one. Myspace pages and all of the other networking sites are very useful tools to get in touch with potential fans and followers, as well as other artists. but once you have established yourself to a certain degree you will need your own website for people to go to and see what you are up to. it just gives you alot more freedom of content. i was a lil bit worried about the costs, but i actually found a free website (i will let yall know how that is working out) and the domain only cost me 17.88 $ per year. thats 0,04 $ (had to get my calculator out ha!) a day…i think we can all afford that ;-) (Boot Camp Click – Go for yours).. I know that alot of people are worried about designing the website as well, and if you dont want to pay someone to do that (which i am not) there are ways to make it easy (or at least possible) for the average pc user to get a decent design. On wordpress you have different themes you can choose from, and if you know html a lil bit, you can change the colors and even the pictures used for backgrounds and slideshows (see mine). As you see, it is not as big of a deal as alot of us make it out to be. If i can get it done, you can too! (I know my friend had to be goin crazy over my blonde moments last night HAHA)
Speaking of him, check out his group NOVA INFINITE, they are DOPE! http://novainfinite.bandcamp.com/
That was pretty much all I did today, but seeing as it is only 6:30pm, i will probably get some more done ;-).. Somebody will have to break down reverbnation to me, seriously..i need a (Beenie Siegel – Die) tutor..lol..
Now, to get back on the website subject..i believe it is important for any artist to have one. Myspace pages and all of the other networking sites are very useful tools to get in touch with potential fans and followers, as well as other artists. but once you have established yourself to a certain degree you will need your own website for people to go to and see what you are up to. it just gives you alot more freedom of content. i was a lil bit worried about the costs, but i actually found a free website (i will let yall know how that is working out) and the domain only cost me 17.88 $ per year. thats 0,04 $ (had to get my calculator out ha!) a day…i think we can all afford that ;-) (Boot Camp Click – Go for yours).. I know that alot of people are worried about designing the website as well, and if you dont want to pay someone to do that (which i am not) there are ways to make it easy (or at least possible) for the average pc user to get a decent design. On wordpress you have different themes you can choose from, and if you know html a lil bit, you can change the colors and even the pictures used for backgrounds and slideshows (see mine). As you see, it is not as big of a deal as alot of us make it out to be. If i can get it done, you can too! (I know my friend had to be goin crazy over my blonde moments last night HAHA)
Speaking of him, check out his group NOVA INFINITE, they are DOPE! http://novainfinite.bandcamp.com/
(Clipse – Still got it for cheap) I also had a very good conversation from a former manager from Detroit..(Hello Hubert ;-)).. he manages an incredible group that yall should check for as well http://detroitcydi.bandcamp.com/ .. and we were talking about the business and how difficult it is sometimes to get artists to understand that theres nothing wrong with following ones advise (the managers of course), and more importantly, to ask the fans what they want and deliver it to them. This does not mean that an artist is supposed to stop being creative (Common – Soul Power) or to follow a trend, but to adapt their marketing strategies to the fans wants and needs. I think a common personal issue that artists deal with is that they have a certain image of themselves which they are not willing to bend. Or a fear of loosing credibility if they do certain things a certain way. This is where you as an artist decide if you want to make music your JOB (and a job always brings rules with) or if he does it on his own terms as a hobby.
Myself, I had to realise that (especially now) I cant do everything for everyone for free, because I do want my music related work to pay my bills. Its that simple. And it really has nothing to do with selling out (Busta Rhymes – Abandon Ship), it just means that you take what you do and love seriously.
Ok, i think this is enough for today, i`m loosing my train of though lol… actually getting another online lesson right now on how to put together this website… dont forget… www.istillloveher.de .. check it out..hit me up…
Song of the day:
