De La Soul Release Discography For Free
De La Soul celebrated Valentine's Day and the 25th anniversary of their seminal album, 3 Feet High and Rising, by releasing their entire library of music for free on their website today. Beginning at 11 a.m. EST, the full discography of one of the most iconic and progressive rap groups of all time for 25 hours. It's an unprecedented dumping of music by the NYC trio and a furtherance of major artist's use of the Internet to market their music and keep their names in the news cycle. In December of last year, Beyonce dropped her latest album, a 14-track 'visual' album by surprise on the web without any prior marketing or advertising around it. That project went on to shatter sales numbers for the year.
With this move, De La Soul really isn't tearing down too many borders (their discography is easily available via illegal torrent sites), although it could go a long way in re-introducing what many consider a 'golden age' of hip-hop music to a new generation. It's crazy that De La is celebrating a 25 year anniversary, and it would be a fitting homage to their first project if the re-release of their initial offering to fans causes a resurgence in younger listeners. Click here to pick it up for yourself.
[Video] Mike Golden & Friends: "Every Morning Love"
Well, if you haven't heard, love is in the air. Adding to the Valentine's Day spirit is Mike Golden & Friends out of Chicago. The soul rock group adds another layer to the already heightened sense of the four letter word with another well-crafted video from the talented Elijah Alvarado. Never one to do things the same twice, Alvarado begins the video with Golden beginning a wall of dominoes, which then pace the first few moments of the visual depiction of the band's song "Every Morning Love", eventually sparking a mechanism, seemingly out of the opening scene of The Sandlot, that announces the title in one of the most creative ways I've ever seen it done. Remember when the song title and artist name were just white writing in the bottom left corner? It's 2014, people. Basically, Golden and Alvarado set up a girl's dream Valentine's Day morning set to a single off the band's latest project, Utopia. Check it out below.
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[Songs of the Day] Peter CottonTale's Valentine's Day Love Jams
Valentine's Day is nothing without the music. Sultry sounds and smooth beats can go a long way towards setting the perfect mood on your February the 14th, and few know this better than the one and only Peter CottonTale. When deciding on who to turn to for a romantic mix of music to get listeners in the mood for tonight, CottonTale, who evokes thoughts of old school jazz and soul music with his own production, seemed like a logical choice. With an eclectic taste, the Acid Rap crafter put together a group of songs that can give even the stiffest of dudes some swagger in their step. The playlist is available on Spotify, so feel free to take CottonTale with you as you venture out into the night. Without further ado, I give you "Peter CottonTale's Valentine's Day Love Jams".
[Video] ShowYouSuck: "Flip Phone"
Clinton Sandifer, affectionately known in many circles around Chicago as ShowYouSuck, knows how to turn a party up, and has proven that much at just about every show he has played in and out of his hometown. Mixing punk and hip-hop aesthetics, Show very well have the most live hip-hop set in the city. On Valentine's Day though? Show's a little more mellowed out, as he demonstrates for us on his latest video for the track "Flip Phone" off his 2013 project One Man Pizza Party 4: Slices After Death. Directed by Chris Beauchesne and animated by Benjamn Marasco, the video is wildly entertaining as the animations coincide with the lyrical content and the simple shot of Clinton by himself in a love seat, in what is becoming his trademark white dotted shirt, as the cartoon world wreaks havoc on him. ShowYouSuck has proven himself a capable artist in myriad situations and he's one artist we should see get his due in 2014. Check out the awesome video for "Flip Phone" below.
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[Songs of the Day] 2/13/14 (Feat. Jeremih, Kirk Night, Little Dragon & More)
There are a few over-arching themes throughout February that seem to dictate much of the music that is made in the thirty-one days that make up the second month of the year, and it seems each is touched on in our latest entry of today's "Songs of the Day". Leading off our list is Pro-Era affiliate Kirk Night, who lays down what's real in his latest track, "Pussy Facx" while EDM queen Odesza teams up with Madelyn Grant for a dance-inducing romp in "Sun Models". The Game and Problem showed that Midwest slang has finally hit the coast in "THOT", Vulkan The Crusader touches on the important questions this time of the year, offering up, "Do You Remember How To Love?"and Jeremih teamed up with EDM act Shlomo for a new track in "No More". MØ takes things back to "Spice World" on "Say You'll Be There" while Little Dragon gives us "Klapp Klapp". Chicago's young gunners got some play today too as Michael Christmas and Alex Wiley got together for "Step Brothers" and Jams Dean continues the Valentine's Day sentiment with "Why Do I Love You" where he reprises his positive collaboration with producer Netherfriends. Wrapping up today's tracks are RiFF RaFF going country in "Take You Away" and CyHi The Prynce offers up "Coretta" in honor of the wife of Martin Luther King Jr. Check it all out, streaming below.
Track of the Day: CyHi The Prynce: "Coretta"
Kirk Night: “Pussy Facx”
Odesza: “Sun Models” (Feat. Madelyn Grant)
The Game: “THOT” (Feat. Problem)
Vulkan The Crusader: “Do You Remember Love?”
Jeremih & Shlomo: “No More”
Jams Dean: “Why Do I Love You” (Feat. Abbi Rajasekhar, Epic Of BBU, Netherfriends)
Michael Christmas: “Step Brothers” (Feat. Alex Wiley)
MØ: “Say You'll Be There”
Little Dragon: "Klapp Klapp"
Riff Raff: “Take U Away”
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CyHi The Prynce: “Coretta"
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[Video] whysowhite Performs on AudioTree
Chicago funk band whysowhite has been incessantly working their way up the music rungs with their vibrant, fun combination of dance-inducing funk and hip-hop flows that come together to create one of my personal favorite live shows in the Windy City or elsewhere. Led by a trio of vocalist/MCs Davis & Charles Haines and Nick and Nick McMillan, the seven-piece band brings it every time they take the stage. Recently, they linked up with fellow Chicago outfit AudioTree to film a session for the website. Their set, perfected during incessant practice takes at their home/rehearsal space in a converted 'FireHaus' on the north side of the city, is wildly fun and imaginative, and available for purchase via AudioTree. The band has played gigs with the likes of George Clinton, Joey ChestnuTT and Macklemore, among others, and should turn this year's SXSW into a jump off moving forward. whysowhite has been boiling for a minute, it's about time they popped. Check out the full video, streaming below and if you're in Chicago be sure to catch whysowhite and Marrow on March 1 at Martyr's in Lincoln Square.
[Video] Jhene Aiko Performs "The Worst" on Conan
Songstress Jhene Aiko continued her tour of late night TV sets, last night making her rounds at the Conan O'Brien Show on TBS to perform her song "The Worst." The beautifull, charming Aiko killed the track, as was expected with her having performed the song now on Jimmy Kimmel, Saturday Night Live with Drake and on Jimmy Fallon, maybe she'll also help Seth Myers settle in next week? Anyway, it's always a good day when you can wake up and hear Jhene sing, check out the full video streaming below.
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[Video] RH First Look: ZMoney
The temperature continued to drop, hitting seven degrees as my photographer, Bryan Lamb and myself pulled up to Emma's, a restaurant on the west side of Chicago. As we drove west from the heart of the loop of Chicago down Route 64, the landscape began to change. Amongst a neighborhood with more storefronts closed or shuttered than not, Emma's is a bright light, with it's freshly-painted windows and well-kept exterior, a hand-written sign braving the bitter cold to announce the day's special of catfish. Walking in we were warmly greeted, with unexpected laughter erupting when we announced who we were there to see. "They here to talk to Z Money!" his aunt shouted in somewhat disbelief from behind the counter. It's hard to blame her, too.
The first thing I remember about Z Money is how frustrating it was to find a photo of him this summer when trying to post his music. Employing a homegrown marketing scheme, the west side artist, who only started rapping something like a year and a half ago and his team decided to drop two mixtapes, Heroin Musik & Rich B4 Rap side by side on the same day. The release and the songs it contained made Complex Magazine's David Drake take notice, quickly branding Z Money as an artist to know by including him on their list of "25 Artists to Watch Out For". No on had heard of him before that, he hadn't done an interview, few had seen his face; Z Money was largely a mystery.
To solve some of that mystery, Lamb and myself now found ourselves in front of two steaming plates of shrimp n' grits, the special at Emma's. The restaurant is owned and operated by Z Money and from what we could tell, staffed as well by family members. Named after his Grandma, the cozy spot serves soul food with a smile and some home made Kool-aid. You don't hear about a lot of 20-year-old aspiring rap artists who own their own company, let alone a restaurant. But, contrary to much of his lyrical content, Z Money is out to better those around him as his name continues to grow. Thanks to the folks at Vice, much of the country now in one way or another refers to Chicago as "Chiraq", a 'clever' marketing scheme to sell individual's realities as a product. Talking to Z, one can feel his passion for showing a different route, his penchant for being a role model and his hunger to continue to climb. There is talk of upping the game and releasing a trio of mixtapes later this year. For now, though, this young Chicagoan is reveling in life and preparing himself to be the next big thing from a city that has steadily produced some of the top up and coming artists in hip-hop over the past couple of years. Check out the full conversation I had with Z Money, below.