Jadakiss: Better Business
"Hello!?!...Hello?!?"...Great, I thought, Jadakiss is giving me the brush off by pretending not to hear me, as the Yonkers born emcee continued his string of hello's before hanging up about seven minutes into our interview. Ehh-heh, I muttered to myself, and returned to my desk thinking of the various ways I could turn an unfinished interview into a full article. I had just got back to listening to the new Finale LP (A Pipe Dream And A Promise) when my Blackberry started vibrating with another 212 number. It was KI-double, who had called back to finished the interview.
"To be honest, out of the times I’ve been disconnected during interviews, maybe 1 of 5 or so call back and finish," I told him towards the end of our interview. "I understand the importance," he replied. "I know that the interview wasn’t finished. That’s like half-assed business. We were in the middle and you were asking me a question, that wouldn’t have been right to not finish that."
Doing things the right way is something Jadakiss has spent a lot of time on. His longevity as a Hip Hop artist, and mentions as a top emcee prove that's he's accomplished that feat musically, while the cluster f**k that was J. Hood as well as the Free The LOX campaign are also evidence of his struggles and imperfections. He puts his hat back in the Spike Lee ring in promotion of his new LP, Last Kiss, an album that was originally going to drop with the title, Kiss My Ass. The title was scrapped based on a business decision by Kiss, rather than label pressure, yet another indication of Jada's business practices.
In this exclusive interview, Jadakiss talks about the his new album, rap in the recession, work ethic and much more. Check out the full interview below.
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RH First Look: Hey Champ
I learned a few things about Lupe Fiasco's venture into Electro Rock, otherwise known as Hey Champ! over the last week. They hail from Rockford, IL, they eat a lot of Sultan's Market, and they're damn good at photo shoot ideas. You can also learn about the Chicago-based trio currently burning up Chicago's underground in this new edition of RH First Look...Check it out below.
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The Black Lips: Damn...They Did What?
Atlanta's Black Lips have been dubbed the hardest working band by The New York Times, as well as completely kicked out of India for their raucous live show. In a rock n' roll band's hierarchy of achievements, I'm not sure which ranks higher. The self-described flower-punk band has readied its new LP on Vice Records, and 200 Million Thousand hit record stores, online retailers and the like on February 24th. We caught up with the Black Lips to talk about the new LP, how it stands measures up to Kanye West's swagger of 100 thousand trillion, as well as their now infamous trip to the land of Slumdog Millionaire. Check out the full interview below.
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RH FIrst Look: Shawn Chrystopher
Ever since I've been on this earth my parents have drilled into my head the importance of education. You know how it is when you're younger and you take what they say for granted but as you grow into your own you begin to really notice how important attaining an education is. Many people believe that this concept has been abandoned in the Hip Hop community. It seems that critiques tend to draw conclusions on the entire community. Many believe that at a time in Hip Hop it wasn't "cool" to be an intellect or "cool" to have something positive going for yourself. Personally I disagree with that. Hip Hop has always been about bettering yourself as a person, whether that being mentally or socially.
With the "New Age" of Hip Hop hitting the scene, we are starting to notice a growing trend of college educated artists, artists like Wale, Asher Roth, and Shawn Chrystopher. Graduating from a California high school at the age of 16, Shawn Chrystopher then attended the University of Southern California. The kid also plays 5 different instruments, brings paintings to the studio, and says he doesn't really listen to Hip Hop at all besides Kanye and Jeezy. "Other than that I listen to Coldplay, Radiohead, Nina Simone, John Mayer, Jackson 5, Queens of the Stoneage, Brazilian Girls, and The Killers, "says Chrystopher.
Read what these influences have lead Shawn Chrystopher to cultivate in his own music and more in an in-depth First Look below.
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B-Real: More Than High Hopes
"I’ve done the platinum records, I’ve done the gold records, it would be great for it to achieve that. Am I expecting that? No," B-Real says about his expectations for his solo album, Smoke N' Mirrors, coming soon on Duck Down Records. It's hard to believe that after nearly 20 years as a Hip Hop artist, it is only now that B-Real is readying a solo record. While some may have expected B-Real to lean on DJ Muggs, the producer who ushered in a new sound along with B's nasally voice, B-Real purposefully decided to do the full LP sans any beats from one of Hip Hop's best producers.
"I needed to set the tone of my solo record and put it on my back. With that I had to stay away from any sound that would have been compared to Cypress Hill at all," B-Real said. "I had to take the challenge and do it without him. His tracks are hot. He’s one of the greatest producers in Hip Hop, and one of the most underrated at that, but I had to take the challenge by producing some of the stuff myself, by going to other producers who would give me a sound that’s not at all in anyway like the Cypress Hill sound."
Cypress Hill's sound is one that not only stood out for it's uniqueness, but also it's ability to reach a wide audience. The labels that came with it, and claims that Cypress Hill sold out are all topics of discussion in this exclusive interview with B-Real. Read on as he also speaks on the hidden keys to his success, and the nasally voiced super group that never was.
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RH First Look: Melanie Fiona
She lives out her suitcase. She sounds like a star. her last name is the first name of Ms. Apple. She's probably listening to Bob Marley tributes right now while I type this, and she just rocked the Canal Room in NYC and a little guy named Jay- Z stopped on by as well as Steve Rifkind. Her name is Melanie Fiona, and by the beauty of her name, it just grabs me already. Does it grab you? It's graceful...She's Guyanese..and well...no one has her card yet..How many singers you know can be compared to KRS-One? Her album The Bridge will definitely not be over anytime soon. it has only just begun...
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RH First Look: K. Salaam & Beatnick
This week we put the RH First Look microscope on the production duo of K. Salaam and Beatnick. The two have made major way for themselves in the last calendar year. With production credits ranging from Pharoahe Monch to Young Buck, the NYC base team now turn their atention towards their first proper album being released later this year. Get to know them a little bit better here.
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