More Music, Less Bullshit

reminder

2009-06-09T09:33:00.003-04:00

I've moved to http://printmaticmusic.com

please update your bookmarks and subscribe to the new rss feed over there.

thanks

NEW WEBSITE: time to migrate

2009-06-03T10:11:00.002-04:00

After what seemed like an eternity, I've finally finished the new website and would like to kindly ask all of you to please move over to:

http://printmaticmusic.com

I've tried to transfer the RSS feed as well but that will take a couple days to get straightened out, so many of you may not get notified until it's switched. Otherwise please check out the new site and join the mailing list over there or subscribe via rss. I'm going to start blogging again this week now that the new site is up.

Thanks for the support. See you there!

word is blog.

I'm seriously in the matrix right now.

2009-05-09T04:26:00.004-04:00

Fools dont even understand. Its one of those weeks. I been in my normal beast-mode with the kicking it and then tonight i'm headed home from the spot, and i see a cop hawk me. they bust a u turn because i didnt signal, then they follow me more because i was dippin out at 230am from the spot.

so i'm on the freeway and i see this bogie gaining on me, and i think to myself, "fuck it, this is it. its about to be my first dui"

now, i was at the spot with my dudes not drinking liquor, drinking pitchers of pbr, so i knew i was drinking and maybe somewhere near or over the limit. so in my mind when i saw this bogie roll up i was like fuck it, bust an exit. i took the first exit i could and then it was immediate swoop, lights on, done deal.

i'm looking for my paperwork and i cant find a current insurance card, so i get noided. meanwhile 3 more cop cars roll up. we're downtown on 4th and fulton about 2 blocks from the jail and police headquarters so i knew it was a wrap for me. cop takes at LEAST 5 minutes then walks up to the whip. asks me where i was at and i told her straight up i had been drinkin since 10pm and had 2 pitchers but that's it. they check my paperwork, etc. and then they hit me with the extra hard whammy and ask me to get out the car and get in their car while they search my shit.

they ask me if anythings in there and i tell them nothing but some hedge clippers and shit like that because i'm a landlord, but no weapons or drugs. they dont find shit, ask me to get out the car, then tell me that they want me to take a field sobriety test. at this point i'm shook as fuck because that means its curtains, even though i got hawked for failure to signal.

meanwhile, while im in the back of the cop car i'm texting my people like "yo, its a wrap for me. your boy just caught his first DUI"

so these two female cops start administering the sobriety test, and i'm like lets go. now, i had been drinking but i wasnt faded, so i had a little bit of confidence that i wouldnt be looking like Bob Huggins when he took his shit and caught a DUI. So shes like watch the pen, and i was watching that shit move with presicision. i couldnt be stopped. then she's like ok, take 9 steps one in front of the other then turn then take nine back. so i started doing my nine steps and was LOOKING HER IN THE FACE like "7....8...9" and she was like "DONT LOOK AT ME DO THE TEST" and i was like "yo, i just wanted you to know that i got this shit". and she didnt apprecaite it and it almost got heated for a second.

so then she hit me with the "hold up your left foot for 30 seconds" joint. and she tried to demonstrate, but she was counting super fast, not really seconds, and i called her out on it, like "yo you just counted 30 seconds in 15 seconds. that aint right. is it 30 seconds, or how fast i can count to 30?" and she got defensive. so i looked at the cop with the stopwatch and was like "START COUNTING. IM READY" and they both were lookin at me kinda strange like wow, is this dude really asking for us to bring on the tests, and i'm like lets do it. so i do my 30 seconds, albeit kinda buzzin, and during the last 10-15 seconds I look this cop in the face and count as if to say "yeah i got this shit". she was like "dont look at me, look at your foot" and i was like "what difference does it make? i'm just lettin you know i got this shit". now i did wobble a little, but even for a sober person, standing with your left foot 6 inches off the ground for 30 seconds isn't easy.

so then they ask me to get in the back of the car again, and these two officers are outside of the window debating. and i'm in there shook as fuck texting people just to let them know it might be a wrap for me.

but as i notice their tone it looked real inconclusive. so they open the door and the officer who i had been giving the most shit was like "look, we know you've been drinking because you admitted to it, but the tests are inconclusive. we cant really arrest you or test you further, but we cant let you drive home like this because we would be liable, so if you can get somebody to come pick you up then you're free to go"

I'm thinkin HELL YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Called up Seance like Bro come and swoop me, i need you. He came and did me a solid. Took me home and helped me park my whip so they didnt impound it, and I'm home right now writing about this shit and NOT in jail for DUI.

So I say that to say this: i cannot be stopped in 2009. Your boy is in the matrix, dodging bullets and whatnot. In no way, shape, or form am I condoning driving drunk or even saying that you can beat a DUI like i did tonight, but i am saying that based on the amazing week i have been having, this shit is par for the course. Basically, THERE IS NO SPOON.

So yeah, good night. Unfortunately i might not be able to visit my moms for mothers day because of all this shit and how long its gonna take me to get my car back tomorrow, but fuck it. Lesson learned, dont drink and drive, it aint worth it.

PEACE.

THERE IS NO SPOON.

For your own protection

2009-04-30T14:56:00.003-04:00

So today i go to best buy to buy a new laptop and some other stuff so i can get my studio back up and running. I knew exactly what i was going to buy before I got there so i made sure that my account had plenty enough money to cover it.

The entire thing comes to about $1100 bucks, so i swipe my card and get transaction declined. Try it again as a credit card instead of debit and get the exact same thing. At this point the clerk asks me if i want to call the bank because maybe there's a limit to the amount i can spend on my card i dont know about, while i sit there holding up the line.

I call the bank, and they confirm that yes, there is a limit on my purchases and that it's $1000 dollars. I ask why and she says "it's for security purposes"

I say "that's understandable, so can you authorize this transaction so i can buy this laptop"

And she says "unfortunately we cant sir, the limit is there to protect you from fraud and theft, for security purposes"

I say "well, that's cool and all, but since you've already verified that this is actually me trying to buy something for myself, shouldn't you be able to just authorize it?"

She says "no sir we can't. the limit was placed to protect you, so we can't change it."

WTF?

Protect me from what? Buying something that i really want?

Thanks a lot.

Word is blog.

Why i can't be stopped

2009-04-29T08:00:00.001-04:00

I've been telling everybody around me that i can't be stopped this year. At anything. From gettin money, to music, to girls, to finding the best parking space--I'm operating with unparalleled focus and determination right now. But as i was doing some work today, i realized another reason why i cannot be stopped this year. This puppy right here:

that's a cannon mx700.

it prints.

it copies.

it faxes.

it scans.

It cannot be stopped. And since it cannot be stopped, neither can I.

I have to admit I underestimated how useful one of these things were until i picked one up a few weeks ago. But after owning it for 3 weeks, I cant imagine going back to life without it because life without it caused me to make a lotta trips to Kinkos and spend tons of money. I used to dread doing dumb ass paperwork-related activities, but no more. Your boy is kickin ass in many different arenas. Your boy can't be stopped

Word is Blog

more auto-tune funniness

2009-04-28T09:40:00.006-04:00

ok. I've been gone for a minute trying to get the new site launched, but since it's taking longer than expected I figured i would get back on my mission. This shit is funny:

2009-04-13T21:16:00.001-04:00

So as i sit here in the house on a Wednesday night, trying to not go get drunk, the wildest thought pops into my head that has never occurred to me before: people who don’t drink and don’t go out must have an insane amount of free time on their hands. Because i most certainly feel that way right about now. I feel like the guy who just upgraded his phone plan and now has twice the minutes he use to have and is still paying the same thing, then realized that he doesn’t have anybody to use those minutes on.

So what is it that all you people who don’t drink do with all that extra time you must have on your hands?

Seriously, somebody tell me.

Do yall posse up and play cards? Watch movies? Ping-pong? Couples bowling? Fill me in.

Because as i sit here bored as fuck, I really feel like I’ve ran out of options–not that there were many to begin with. While it’s true that I’ve got just as many problems as the next man i wanna forget about (and drinking does make that happen), the fact of the matter is that if i go drink tonight it would be primarily because i don’t have shit else to do.

Hell, not wanting alcohol is easy, but finding something constructive to do during the times when I would typically be out drinking is hard work, feel me?

I gotta step my hobbies up.

Word is Blog

have no fear

2009-04-12T21:50:00.003-04:00

I'm still blogging, but I haven't posted much lately because I'm in the process of moving this site. The new site is almost done and should be launched sometime this week, and I'll get back to business as usual.

word is blog.

The Results

2009-04-07T06:33:00.001-04:00

I was gonna write about how my attempt at not drinking last week went, along with details about how each day went, but as i was writing it seemed to be pretty boring, so i deleted it. Instead I'm going to simplify it like this:

Everybody has things they do that they wish they didnt do so much; whether that be shopping too much, smoking weed, drinking, cigarettes, driving fast, sex, whatever. We all have struggles and none of us are perfect. But I truly believe that only when we take these things out of our lives for an extended amount of time can we actually see and admit what it was that caused us to become so dependent on them in the first place.

That's what I gained last week.

Word is blog.

They dont make em like this anymore (classic older joints)

2009-04-06T08:14:00.001-04:00

Sophia Lauren

Requel Welch

Lena Horn

Pam Grier

Word is blog.

Pictures from the Final So What Wednesday (By Ed Luna)

2009-04-03T11:00:00.000-04:00

As many of you know last Wednesday was the final night of our weekly event So What Wednesday. Here are some pictures taken by Columbus resident and excellent photographer Ed Luna. He posted these on his facebook page and since they're really good I figured I would repost them here. Enjoy!

New Montly Event: Check The Rhyme

2009-04-02T10:02:00.002-04:00

For all my people in columbus that fuck with classic hip-hop, and don't have plans this saturday night, please come check out the new monthly event that I'm starting up:

7 days without alcohol

2009-03-31T10:53:00.005-04:00

I was at the bar Saturday and told a friend i was gonna take a week off drinking and his response was "that's it? a week aint shit, anybod can do that". I replied with "cool, then you should do it with me". He thought about it for a second then went silent. Then he asked me to do a shot with him. I said no thanks. I was already near the end of the pitcher i ordered.

So I decided that I needed to take a week off the bottle. After being out 4-5 nights a week for the past 6 weeks promoting events I've began to feel like I'm in a weird downward spiral, that begins with every day starting later and later, and never ends before 5 or 6 in the morning. I've also noticed that things around me involving other people seem to be equally depressing, and that all these things can be traced back to alcohol. I feel bad enough physically, but people around me seem to be having an even worse time. So i think it's time for clarity, to step away from drinking for a while.

I hate that everything around me that's fucked up--from the way people treat people they know, to public conflicts between strangers--seem to almost always involve alcohol. I hate this fact. I hate that I'm even around when all this petty shit is going on.

On the other hand I am somewhat conflicted because i truly believe that I have had some amazing conversations over a pitcher of beer, and the prospect of not having that to stimulate my mind makes me uneasy, but still.

So while i do realize this blog is pretty fucking depressing I also hope that you all can see its necessity. This is why i asked how many nights a week some of yall drink a couple weeks ago. It as already on my mind.

Keep drinking your drinks and partying, but i gotta take some time off. But i know it's going to be hard. So I'm gonna blog about it.

Word is blog.

I shoulda knew the scoop

2009-03-31T04:16:00.003-04:00

I have no words for life right now. Other than this song, which will serve as the soundtrack to what I'm feeling right now to this highest degree:

Its wild how sometimes you can speak things into existence.

Word is blog.

a gem of an interview from a columbus band

2009-03-27T09:00:00.002-04:00

The lead singer in the Columbus band called Psychedelic Horseshit is interviewed in the washington post, and there are so many funny (and completely correct) quotes in this intervew I have to post it here. While their music isn't for everybody, this interview is, and you don't even have to know anything about them to appreciate it. I wish more hip-hop people would do interviews like this. Shit, maybe I might when my next album comes out.

One of my favorite quotes from the interview is this:

"No one tells the truth because everyone's so afraid of what everyone else is gonna think, and their image. Everyone's afraid of being pretentious. And it's like - pretension is necessary to advance art. And honest criticism is necessary to advance art. Failure is necessary to advance art. And everyone's so afraid of all of those."

Peep the full interview here:
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/postrock/2009/03/sxsw_leftovers_talkin_expletiv.html

Word is Blog.

Really good rappin

2009-03-26T13:59:00.001-04:00

Slaughterhouse "Move On" [Remix] feat. Joe Budden, Royce Da 5'9" & Crooked I:

Shit makes me wanna sit down and write some shit.

Word is blog.

The Last So What Wednesday

2009-03-25T12:09:00.003-04:00

If you live in Columbus then you probably know that I've been a part of a weekly hip-hop night called So What Wednesdays for about 2 and a half years. It goes down every week at Cafe Bourbon Street. The night was created and named in remembrance of our dude Daymon Dodson (aka So What) and we have held it down for a while hopefully in the spirit of what he was about. I host it and DJ Detox has been there on the turntables since day one but we've also had Rare Groove and POS 2 helping out as well at certain points. We've also had performances from One Be Lo, DJ Abilities, Mac Lethal, The Catalyst, J. Rawls, Illogic, myself, and many others that i can't even remember right now. It has always been a good time and a good outlet for people who wanna hear classic hip-hop shit.

At any rate, tonight is the final So What Wednesday. Since I've announced this last week, a bunch of people have been asking why its ending, which is understandable. The only thing that bothers me is when people who haven't come out in a year ask. They'll be like "why is this ending? i havent been there in like 2 years, but it was great when i went" And i have no words.

What I'm sayin is this: things are special not because me and detox are there every week and Detox is playing good music--things become special when you decide to make it special, because then memories are made. if something is special then it's because you and your friends made it special and decided to make it happen. So to all my people who came out and made this shit special--thank you. I don't regret doing it at all and had fun every week i was there, whether there were 15 or 150 people there.

So that's all I got. I'll be there tonight doing what we've been doing for the last couple years, having fun.

Word is blog.

My agenda

2009-03-23T09:15:00.004-04:00

What this blog IS about:

Entertainment
Drinking
Dancing
Jokes
Making fun of everybody
Bizarre shit that happens around me
Music (but not that much)

What this blog is NOT about:

Uplifting messages
Support of any political agenda
Positivity or positive reinforcement of any kind
Telling stories about boring shit that happens on tour
Being a role-model.
Explaining what motivated me to do a song, beat, or any of that shit.
Enlightenment or betterment

Just wanted to clear that up before anybody out there got the wrong idea.

Now, Check this shit out and tell me it aint funny as fuck:

While I'm generally not about violence. The entire concept of a dude trying to put hands on his woman and her kicking his ass seven ways til sunday is amazing. That alone makes this shit ROFLworthy.

Word is blog.

I didn't go to SXSW

2009-03-21T03:26:00.001-04:00

sue me.

i was in limbo, and was like nah brah, i'mma chill at the crib. what i look like the guy who's last record is 4 years old and whose new record doesnt have a release date, hoppin on stage feeling optimistic about shit like he unsigned hype from when the source meant something, feel me?

but i do have fond memories of it. first time i ever went was the 2nd or 3rd soul position show ever. we opened up for mr. len. remember when mr len and big jess had props from company flow? now none of yall fuck with them dudes. well me and rj's first time at sxsw we played a showcase with them in front of maybe 50 people max...this was long before i really knew how to rock a fucking show. i was a youngin. me and lif were walking around downtown austin with Prefuse 73. I didnt know who he was at the time or what he would turn into...nobody did, safe to say. Me and RJ didn't even have a room, so we slept on Mr. Lif's floor. He had a room and looked out. Real rap. Never say print didn't pay dues or was always on some "i made it" type shit. i dont even understand the concept of made it because the struggle stay kickin my ass every year or two.

but yeah, sxsw is a cool conference. but now, there's WAY TOO MUCH RAP. no novelty. i would be one of 200 people spittin bars at you this weekend.

but i dont wanna sound negative, because AUSTIN TEXAS is the shit.

6th STREET is the shit.

TEXAS WOMEN are the shit. jonny baker feels me on this.

So i dont want this to come off like I'm too good for south by southwest because i'm not. i'm at the crib drinkin pbr wil dudes are out there goin for the gusto. I just need to get my shit together, so that when i do get on my grizzly and go for the gusto it means more and resonates more. i figure if i'm excited then maybe everybody else will be...who knows. its only life. dont take yourself so seriously.

I dont know where i was going with this other than to say that i miss my rse dudes; young max (abilities), mikey (eyedea), sean (he posts here so he dont count but miss him too), ali, ab rude (shhhhhh), bk one, toki wright, etc. comraderie is hella important. stay motivated. dont surround yourself with people who aint about the fuckin art. if they aint about the art then fuck them. dudes be about bitches, props, free drinks, and stupid ass shit like that more than the art nowadays. but if you're about the art, the craft, then all that shit will come your way anyways, feel me?

so i'm on vacation now. really its a "staycation" as they say because i aint went nowhere. i'm chillin but i'm not. i'm not doing shit but i really am. i'm on it mi amigo. dont front on su hermano.

(This shit aint even slightly blog worthy but i might just post it over there too when i wake up and read this shit i'm about to forget about. Until then, never forget that Printnificence is a mutha fuckin boss, whether the tide is for or against him)

GOOD NIGHT.

A good interview

2009-03-20T08:30:00.001-04:00

Last fall when i was on tour with atmosphere i did an interview with the Western Carolinian Magazine about everything from the future of hip-hop, to digital production, to the fate of vinyl. It's pretty in-depth but a pretty good read. I actually forgot we talked about so many different things.

Either way the interview is HERE

DIY Shit

2009-03-20T08:05:00.001-04:00

Finally got Illogic's CDs in the mail today:

Already had the clear cd trays:

Got the artwork in the mail a few days ago:

Picked up the instrumental CDs from my dude Philly Phil this morning:

Finished product:

If you live in Columbus, hope to see you all out next friday. I'll probably be working the merch table trying to sell these joints:

Lovrub Commercials

2009-03-19T08:10:00.000-04:00

Just might be the funniest commercials i've seen on tv in a minute (and by funny i mean bad):

I just wanna know what Lipluv is.

word is blog.

Why dudes dress bad

2009-03-18T07:26:00.002-04:00

It's not because they're bad people who think fashion is for sissies.

It's not because they're too lazy to really know what's hot, or what people like.

It's not because they try too hard to impress everybody and end up impressing nobody.

Dudes dress bad because they simply don't understand the hierarchy of dressing. See, there's an order to this shit that you need to understand before you go out there all willy nilly with your flea market fitted and 100 dollar pair of jeans. Or you rush out there with those 100 dollar shades and that ridiculous 5x, multicolor tshirt, looking all ridiculous. Particularly my fellas. Feel me on this shit my dudes.

It ain't about dressing good. It's about not dressing bad.

Let's be honest here; women know way more about fashion that us. It started way earlier for them. Their use of color alone is way beyond ours. Back in elementary school when we were given the box of crayons with 12 colors in it, all primary, they were given the joint with like 50 colors in it. Three different blue's, 4 different variations of red, etc. Weird ass colors like "cyan" and "magenta" that to this day you will never hear a man say out loud. This is because we were deprived as kids. We don't know shit about colors for real, and if we do then we learned it way later.

But anyways, men tend to think that they have to actually dress up to impress a woman, or that being extra fly is the only way to look good, but the reality is that really you just need to not dress bad. And to not dress bad you need to understand the hierarchy of shit...feel me on this.

I was buying some pants today and it dawned on me that while i do think that having some nice jeans on is important, that it's not the most important. What is you ask? Shoes and shirt. Trust me on this. Keep your shoes right, keep your shirt unoffensive and you will be ok. Obviously your face matters, but I'm just talking about gear here. So as I'm coppin these jeans I realize that I wouldnt even be coppin these nice jeans if i didnt already have some nice shoes on, feel me? Like who in their right mind buys some jeans then tries to find some nice shoes, or wears them with shitty shoes? Nobody with any sense of style. And neither should you. However, it's very important to understand how these things work together.

Case in point, the white t-shirt phenomena. The white t-shirt proves that the shirt isn't nearly as important as a mans shoes or jeans. See, the white t-shirt is a team player. If the white tshirt was a basketball player it would be the guy taking all the charges, setting the picks, and diving after loose balls. It defers the eye to other more important parts of a mans wardrobe (because honestly its hard as fuck to figure out what shirt to buy), so when the white t-shirt started poppin i would bet that 75% of men felt relief. Happy they would never have to worry about picking out the most difficult, yet least important part of the wardrobe again.

Basically I'm saying this. If you aren't a "great" dresser, then here is the ranking of what you should be making important to not be a bad dresser:

a. Men who wear white tshirts

1. Shoes
2. Pants - to show off those nice shoes
3. Hat / Skullcap / Fitted
4. Shirt - you're rockin a white tee so it dont matter. you win.

or

b. Men who DON'T wear white tshirts

1. Shirt - if your shoes aint hot then you might as well rock a nice shirt
2. Shoes - 2nd only because the eyes arent sent there by the white tee
3. Pants - if your shirt and shoes are nice who cares about your pants. you got the top and bottom joint on lock.

(sidenote: please understand that dudes who rock solid color polos or shit like that are basically like dudes who rock white tees. you win by keepin it simple)

So, what I'm basically saying is that you can avoid being a shitty dresser by simply knowing what's most important and doing just enough to get you by. Don't try to compete with these clowns who wanna color-coordinate from head to toe (sunglasses, shades, beltbuckles, suspenders, ect.)--fuck that. Do you, but respect the hierarchy, that's what I'm sayin, you shitty dresser you.

Word is blog

Mike Tyson Documentary coming soon

2009-03-17T08:00:00.003-04:00

Anybody who knows me know's that I consider Mike Tyson one of the most entertaining people on the planet. Well, apparently there is a documentary coming out soon about his life, that I will be at the first day it comes out. But before you watch the trailer to the movie I would like to beg of you to watch this below footage of the best Mike Tyson quotes. Dude is truly amazing. I like to watch this shit whenever i'm feeling down:

(sorry about the false start, apparently they took the last one off the net. this ones good)

Here's the movie trailer:

word is blog.

How many days a week do you drink?

2009-03-16T15:44:00.001-04:00

I'm curious.

Random thoughts about condoms

2009-03-16T08:00:00.006-04:00

In high school, I had a friend that referred to Lifestyle condoms as "L styles". So I did too. Ever since then when I walk into a store and see Lifestyle condoms I have fond memories of high school and usually buy them, even though I think trojan condoms are far superior. I even refer to them as "L Styles" sometimes but nobody else understands what I'm talking about.

Every now and then, when I'm single I'll put one in my wallet before i go out. Not because i actually think I'm gonna get laid, but because I think having one in my wallet gives me a positive mental attitude about things...a weird optimism about all things in life takes over and I walk around with a "can do" attitude the rest of the night no matter what happens.

I find it sexy when a woman isn't afraid to admit she has condoms. Whether that be at her house or in her purse. I think it implies confidence.

I think its funny that most women who actually do have condoms have brands that men would never choose; weird ass colors or patterns, circular packaging, glow in the dark neon joints, etc. Most dudes stay loyal to one or two brands pretty much. Women get way more funky with it.

I've noticed that some women feel weird if you say you've got condoms before you're completely naked. Any sooner and they feel like you're assuming you're getting some, which never turns out well. As a result, I think things go better when a woman asks, but honestly all things related to sex go better when a woman asks, so I guess that makes perfect sense.

I once dated a girl who absolutely refused to keep condoms in her house. We dated a year and still no condoms. So we would have to leave her house in the middle of the night and go to some corner store to buy them whenever I spent the night. That shit completely ruined the moment if I had to go get them by myself, but if she went with me it felt like we were on an espionage mission. I never completely understood it, but im guessing that she didn't want me to assume she was gonna put out.

The worst sex I ever had in my adult life was when a friend lent me a Magnum condom. Between the anxiety of having sex with this chick for the first time, and being worried that the condom was entirely too big for me--I'm pretty sure that she remembers me as the worst lover ever. I've tried to forget that experience.

This is some strange shit to blog about but i swear these thoughts were on my mind when i woke up this morning. Safe sex yall.

Word is blog

The return of D'Angelo?

2009-03-14T08:00:00.004-04:00

The other day while I found myself trapped in the depths of Youtube, I stumbled upon some random D'Angelo recordings that had been posted, most of which had very few listens, and all seemed to show up between spring and fall of 2008. The wildest thing is that the majority of these songs are covers of really unexpected shit like "Funky Drummer" by James Brown, "Super Man Lover" by Jonnie Guitar Watson, "Everybody Loves The Sunshine" by Roy Ayers, and even hip-hop shit like "Ex to the next girl" by Gangstar.

It made me wonder why these would show up now, as opposed to when he first went to jail? My guess is that these recordings are probably him and his band sharpening their chops, and that more importantly D'Angelo is doing music again and is actually going to come back out soon.

So i figured I would compile all the songs for all the D'Angelo fans out there.

D'Angelo "Funky Drummer"

D'Angelo "Ain't it funky"

D'Angelo "Joe Texan"

The Iskabibbles

2009-03-13T08:00:00.003-04:00

Back in the day i was in a crew called the Iskabibbles. It consisted of illogic, Plead the Ph5th, and my crew Greenhouse Effect. In later years we would find out that there was an older rock band from Columbus with the same name. We did music at the time but it never really came out.

At any rate, this is an old Electronic Press Kit put together for The Iskabibbles (Greenhouse Effect, Illogic, & Plead the Ph5th) created from old performance clips of our various shows together around 2000. This one got dug up from VHS so enjoy. For those from Columbus, or those interested in seeing some footage from a classic time in columbus hip-hop, enjoy.

The Iskabibbles album is available at HERE

If the shoe doesn't fit then don't wear it

2009-03-12T12:40:00.002-04:00

To all the women who feel like I was talking about them in my last post, even if NONE of the shit in there applied to them--RELAX. Don't take yourself or this blog so seriously.

Sheesh...

Have a good day.

Top Ten Reasons Why SOME 21-23 Year Old Women Suck

2009-03-12T08:01:00.009-04:00

1. They never live alone

At first glance this may seem ridiculous, or even arrogant, but trust me on this; if you're trying to get at a woman in this age bracket the worst thing to deal with is going to her house and deal with her dumb ass roommates. No grown ass man in his right mind wants to deal with this shit. I'm grown, I'm not on that shit no more. I wanna be able to walk around butt ass naked to the bathroom, or even have sex without somebody walking in the room on some random shit, but that ain't gonna work.

2. They act like they "might" go somewhere.

Young girls always be on that coy shit. beat it. these chicks are notoriously flakey. They're always on some "we might" go there...or on some "well if my bff calls me we're probably gonna do this.." Fuck all that. Just pick something so i can know whether I should go there and get at you or to avoid it completely because I know you're there and i don't wanna see you.

3. They blame shit on their friends.

cant even walk to the bathroom without your girlfriend in tow. grow the fuck up. i dont care what your friends are up to or are about to go.

4. They look down on all guys for hitting on them

When chicks get 25-30, being hit on aint shit, yet for a chick in this age range they seem to almost look forward to dudes hollerin at them--knowing all along they're not gonna holler back. Hell, I think they even look forward to bragging about who hit on them the night before and who they rejected. Shit is ridiculous and annoying. Shut up.

5. They think every man is trying to fuck them.

the only thing worse than looking down on dudes who wanna fuck them is assuming every dude wants to fuck them in the first place. shame on you young girl.

6. They don't pay for shit.

I'm gonna keep it all the way funky here; i have NEVER met a 21-23 year old chick that was actually down to bust out her credit card first. ever. I'm not talking about when there's 6 people there splitting a dinner bill, I'm talking about that moment when you order a drink together and she can either say "I got this" or play dumb. These chicks always play dumb.

7. They aren't particularly good in bed.

Yeah i said it--yall suck in the sack. But i do wanna say that the reason you suck isn't your fault, it's because you're fucking a bunch of dudes in your age bracket who don't know what the fuck is going on. However, at least show some initiative and some commitment to becoming a better lover at some point, and stop blaming it on dudes. step your shit up ladies.

8. They can't handle their liquor

How do i begin? I dont even think i have to. But yeah, 90% of 21-23 year olds fail to boss up when it comes to alcohol, even though they've been drinking since they were 15. Probably because they're always drinking fruity ass shit like washington apples and fuzzy navels, but still, champ the fuck up.

9. They have no direction in life

zero. none. lost in the sauce.

10. They have no story

look girl, lets keep it honest here, you haven't been through shit. a bad week to you is when your best friend actually goes through something and you've gotta listen to their bellyaching all week--not when you actually go through some real shit. while this shit is a generalization you have to admit that most 22 year old chicks life is on autopilot. you and "the struggle" have never crossed paths. shit, you probably dont even really know anybody who's struggling. beat it.

ok..i'm out. dont front like you dont feel me on this shit.

Word is blog.

In cased yall missed it: Blueprint vs Funkadelic

2009-03-11T08:00:00.003-04:00

Last year I released a project called Blueprint vs Funkadelic. Basically I sat around with all their records and made beats out of a bunch of their stuff, and then put some rhymes with it. It was free to download and the CD version w/ instrumentals came with a free poster. Here's the link to the free version:

Click HERE to download:

And in case you're unfamiliar with the legendary band Funkadelic, check this song "Friday Night August 14th":

Word is Blog

A great blog to check out

2009-03-10T08:01:00.000-04:00

http://25thingsaboutmysexuality.blogspot.com/

It's all your fault

2009-03-09T08:00:00.001-04:00

So I went out tonight to Ladies 80's.

Yeah, i know what you're thinking; "print you soft...how you gonna go to Ladies 80's night, I thought you were a real rapper?" Well, you know what? Fuck yall and fuck all that rapper shit. I'm a fuckin man. I have a penis, and i like vagina. Nothing wrong with that. I've lived in Columbus the past 5 years and I've never seen more fine ass women than in that spot tonight. It was one of those nights where everything magically comes together, and you just happen to be there, nahmeen? Where the weather goes from 35 degrees to 65 degrees, and you just gotta bask in that shit and enjoy it. Hell, as i was headed to the spot i knew it was gonna be on by how many fine chicks i saw walking to the spot looking good as i tried to find my parking space. But i digress. I'm drunk and I'm gettin off topic.

What i decided tonight, through careful analysis, and extensive field testing is that we as men are our own worst enemies. Feel me on this shit. When we don't get laid we tend to blame women..."aw that chick was hating!" or "man, those chicks was frontin!" but let me tell yall straight the fuck up why 90% of dudes don't have success with women:

Because we always have too many of our boys around.

Let me hit yall with some truth here. So tonight, as I'm seeing a record number of amazing chicks at the spot, I also see a strange crowd of dudes at the spot that i never seen before--big ass body-building, bouncer, guido lookin ass dudes. Just as some background we have the Arnold Schwarzenegger convention in town this weekend so that's to be expected, but here's the thing. Dudes were standing in packs dancing with dudes. What part of the game is that? Its bad enough they're dancing with dudes, but then they even got the nerve to be knocking bitches down and being all agro with it? I seen some dudes in there knocking bitches over...just doing some bastardized version of the crip walk...dudes so big that NOBODY wanted to scrap with them or tell them they were outta line. Shit man, it looked like the WWE was having a convention in there tonight, and i for one only likes to fight when he thinks he can win. I dont know about yall but i actually think before i throw hands.

But my point is this: what the hell makes you as a dude think that you can really come up on a nice young woman when you rolled out to the club 4-deep? You trippin. You trippn even more because you actually have the nerve to stand in a circle and dance with your boys like chicks really like that kinda shit...the only people who like to see buffed dudes dance like that are homosexual men. Which is NOT what you seem to be aiming for.

So I'm gonna speak from experience when i drop this jewel on yall. The most action i ever get is when i roll solo or bring (listen up here) at the most ONE cat with me. Anything over that decreases your chances of coming up, tremendously.

So from the bottom of my black ass heart, I would respectfully like to ask all of you dudes to STOP BRINGING DUDES TO THE SPOT. Please. Its for all of us. The more meatheads you bring the less pussy all of us get. Not because yall have more game, or are better looking, but simply because when women are outnumbered they feel uncomfortable. Because of you and you're meathead friends. So the more chicks the better. If you're gonna go out, then bring ONE dude with you. Not 2, not 3, not 8--ONE.

I'm tired of pretending that it's ok to roll deep to some shit just because your homie hasn't been out in a while. Fuck that, take his ass to a strip club. Leave this shit for us. We got this shit. This is what the fuck i do. I do these things quite frequently and I'm here to tell you that you're fucking up the game. So for the love of God, please stop bringing hardlegs to the spot. That's not hot on the streets.

Word is blog.

Face Lift

2009-03-06T16:23:00.003-05:00

Yeah, had to give the blog a little facelift. Yall thought I was gonna rock the basic layout forever, huh? We do these things. Still working on it.

Word is Blog.

Pictures from my "Keep Bouncing" Video Shoot

2009-03-06T08:00:00.006-05:00

I shot a music video for a song off my upcoming album called "keep bouncing" a couple months ago. Since the song is pretty much about the dumb shit that goes through your mind when you're drunk and bouncing around from bar to bar, I figured it was only right that I shot it at some local Columbus bars. We shot it in one night at three seperate bars: Skullys, Cafe Bourbon Street, and Carabar. Although about 90% of it was shot at Carabar. My homie Bridget had her camera and took some pictures. As you may or may not know, shooting music videos involves a great deal of standing around waiting for your part to come up, so it should come as no surprise that these pictures are of us doing just that--standing around and waiting.

I figure I would post this because the videographer just told me that he's really close to being done and should have a draft to me soon. I'm excited.

All photos by Bridget Brown

My dude Zero Star...

Me and Envelope:

Justin, the director:

Cara behind the bar:

Wes and Envelope:

Detox, somebody whose face is covered up by Detox's hand, me, and Ron:

Video for "Keep Bouncing" and my new album "Adventures in Counter-Culture" coming soon.

Word is Blog.

GREENHOUSE (Blueprint & Illogic) in the studio

2009-03-05T08:00:00.004-05:00

Illogic and me in the lab, working on the new greenhouse album.

Also, Illogic has a CD coming out on march 24th called "Diabolical Fun". This is the flyer for his CD Release party in Columbus, if you happen to be in our area. I'll be there probably working the merch table:

Yes, I do actually make music sometimes.

Word is blog.

last night = bugged out

2009-03-04T08:00:00.004-05:00

(originally written dec 19th, 2008)

i had to tell this story...

so last night me and seance are at ladies 80s drinking beer, waiting to pass out some flyers for the new years show. we're off in the cut standing right between the two bathrooms kickin it and this little ass dude walks up and just posts up next to us. dude was looking real serious. so we keep talking and clowning and dude is still there. dude is like "man, yall clowning over here!" but he still had that serious look in his face..real focused. at first i thought he might have thought we were in line for the bathroom, so i was like "we're not in line for the bathroom" just so dude would know. and little dude is like "nah, i'm not going in the bathroom, i'm waiting on somebody to come out. i gotta handle some shit". So i'm like "damn, you look real serious, is it about to go down?" and he's like "yeah man, a muthafucka disrespected me and I'm about to handle that. hes in the bathroom, so i'm gonna wait for him to come out and see whats up." so me and seance are like cool, we're gonna post up here because this shit is about to get entertaining.

we ask little dude what happened and he said that big dude kind of pushed him aside and was like get out my way lil dude. he said he didnt appreciate it, so he was gonna confront him.Little dude was so focused and bout it and he couldn't have weighed more than 125 pounds, max...and he was maybe 5'8 or so and didnt even look like the kind of dude who was on some scrappy shit.

so little dude goes back to waiting for another couple minutes, so you know the suspense is building on our end like whats about to go down, and then finally this BIG ASS DUDE walks out. This cat was like probably around 6 foot 2 and weighed at least 225 pounds. and soon as he walks out the bathroom, little dude rolled up to him and starts wispering some shit in his ear, talking to him real gangsterish. we cant hear what he's saying to dude but you know something real is being said. i'm expecting the big dude to either fuck little dude up, or be on some leave me alone or i'll fuck you up type shit, but what happens? BIG ASS DUDE BACKS DOWN AND WALKS AWAY.

So we ask little dude what happened and he's like "dude said he didnt want no problems with me and just wanted to have a good time. then he apologized." I was like "holy shit!"

I woke up today laughing about that shit. Little dude had the heart of a lion. That shit could've went real bad for him, but big dude saw that he was gonna be fighting this little cat to the death and didn't want no part of that drama.

thought I'd share that with yall...

Best quotes from yesterday's conversations

2009-03-03T08:00:00.013-05:00

1. "She's like the ODB of cooking" - me referring to this girl who cooked possibly the best 3-course meal I've ever had in my life, while being completely hammered and high the entire time.

2. "I'm tired of everything right now man. If I wasn't such a pussy I'd actually kill myself." - friend of mine speaking on being depressed.

3. "no bad vibes. heard ya made it with my x, congrats.. i couldn't take her back, she was not too happy." - random myspace message

4. "Between the stress of work and the meds, my libido is pretty much gone."- girl that I was actually out on a date with.

That last one had me like this:

Conspiracy Theory Revealed--Women's Health Magazine

2009-03-02T09:00:00.008-05:00

So I'm at this dinner party tonight, drinking wine and eating some amazing food, and while the food is cooking I pick up a magazine on the dinner table; Women's Health magazine. I figured it couldn't hurt to kill some time while we were waiting on the next course to be served.

So as i'm reading this magazine to myself, i instantly realize that some (if not most) of the articles in it are actually pretty funny if you read them out loud. So for a while i was reading them out loud and we were cracking jokes about it.

See, when i was younger i used to sometimes read women's magazines in my search to learn more about what women write and think when men aren't around, you know? It's like locker room talk for men, where we get to see what they really think about us. Probably the same reason I was always a fan of Sex & The City. So none of that shit was new to me. I actually find that magazine as well as other magazines like Cosmo extremely entertaining on some bugged-out shit. You just have to not take them so seriously and they're pretty damn funny.

So as I'm flipping through this magazine the craziest thought occurs to me, that i will get to a little later, but peep this.

Here are some titles of a few articles in it and some direct quotes:

GIRL TECH MAD EASY - here's what technology does for us: simplifies, improves, and adds more gigabytes of power to our insanely busy lives. Here's what technology does to us: makes us feel like morons."

The entire article goes on to explain such cutting edge concepts as defraging your harddrive, backing up your harddrive, "3 amazing tivo tricks", and the ever important "buttons you never press but should!"

The illest quote in the entire article is "the answer to lots of tech problems: reboot". Really? Wow.

CAN HE READ YOU? Get Your guy to match the face with the feeling"Whether you're at a family dinner or an office bash, being able to wordlessly commmunicate with your guy is crucial to surviving the stressful holiday season. But does he really know how to decode your facial cues? If he cant tell the difference between "Let's Stay Longer" and "get me the hell out of here", pass him this page--pronto"

15 MOMENTS THAT DEFINE A RELATIONSHIP
This almost seems like an interesting concept, but its the most ridiculous shit I've ever heard. Here's a couple of ground-breaking "moments" that define a relationship:

The First Kiss
The First Morning After
Finding the nerve to say "i love you"
The First time he lets you control his car/remote/ipod (WTF?)
When you notice yourself no longer primping for him.

Here's another amazing quote from Women's Health magazine:

"Republicans are better at partying. They have more money, and they have more vices. They're dirty birdies"

I promise I'm not making this shit up, but think about this quote from an article titled "Male Brain Explained":

"Get Inside His Head - New research shows that when it comes to emotions, men and women really are wired differently"

Really? There's scientific data that really proves men and women are different? My mind is completely blown...after all these years of thinking we were on the same shit, my brain is about to explode. And since you've got scientific data it must be true, right?

Now, I know yall are gonna think I'm crazy for this shit right here, but here's my theory:

After reading this magazine, i truly believe that it is written by men--not women.

Stay with me here.

I think that if you visited their headquarters all you would find is an empty factory with a bunch of dudes, sitting around smoking cigarettes, smoking weed, drinking beer, and writing shit that sounds girly and insulting to women just for kicks and to make money. I truly believe that there is no way a single woman works for this magazine. No way.

Let that marinate. Then go back and read the magazine and I promise you will feel me on this.

The shit in this magazine is so insulting to the intelligence of women in general that there's no way a woman could be writing it, let alone a building full of women. If women actually wrote it, they might actually think that the implication that technology "scares them" is insulting, or that taking time to try to train your man to read your non-verbal cues defeats the entire purpose of communicating in the first place. They might actually find it insulting that somebody wrote 500 words dedicated to the fact that men and women are "wired differently" when we all know this is obvious without scientific data to back it up.

Hell, I would even go so far as to say that magazines like Women's Health are more damaging to women than all the really blatantly "boys will be boys" magazines like Stuff, Blender, FHM, and shit like that because at least those magazines don't present themselves as anything other than what they are--excuses for dudes to talk about dude shit and look at hot chicks. It's a wolf, you know it's a wolf. Whereas Women's Health actually looks like a sheep but is really a wolf, feel me?

Marinate on that shit for a second...let me know if you feel me on this.

Word is blog.

Notice anything "unusual" about this picture?

2009-03-01T08:00:00.004-05:00

(Besides me looking pretty goofy, of course)

Don't front, you see that shit.

Click on the image to enlarge it if you need to.

Shit's funny, right?

Word is blog.

The worst thing about being cockblocked

2009-03-01T05:47:00.008-05:00

It's not the fact that you have to go home by yourself.

It's not the fact that somebody stopped you from doing what you wanted to do, and from fucking who you wanted to fuck.

It's not the fact that the person you wanted to fuck with totally backed down and left you out to dry when their friends questioned their decision-making.

Truthfully, all that shit is pretty easy to accept.

However...

The worst thing about being cockblocked, is that moment when you get home, and you lay down in your bed, and you realize that the person who stopped you from having sex is actually at home right now having sex and you're not.

Be honest, that shit burns, don't it?

Word is blog.

The wrong way to give somebody your demo

2009-02-28T14:00:00.002-05:00

Gotta have some theme music for his one: EPMD "please listen to my demo"

Now, this is a sensitive one. Maybe the most sensitive blog I've written yet. Not because the topic in itself is controversial, but because undoubtedly there are some cats out there that read my blog and are artists. There's a chance that yall do beats, or rhyme, or sing. And maybe some of you I have met before, and maybe at some point one of you has given me a CD to check out.

So let me be completely honest here first--there are a LOT of artists out there that aren't trying to hear your shit. I look at new rap music like i look at meeting new people at the bar--the more new interesting shit the better, even when it goes bad. In general, I'm a fan of interesting--which has nothing to do with good or bad. It might sound shallow but I'm just being honest here. So I actually try to check out cats CDs, even if it isn't until the end of the tour...but I do try.

But i digress. Anyways, tonight as i was choppin' it up with this cat i realized that there are a few things that you should absolutely, positively, never, ever, ever do when you're giving your CD/demo to somebody. This shit may seem very trivial and obvious to some of y'all, but trust me--there are a LOT of artists out there that don't know or don't even think about this shit, so I'm gonna go in because maybe this particular blog will be helpful at some point. So please don't get mad at Printnificence for this one because he has good intentions, and I probably wouldn't even be writing this shit had i not heard ALL of these things tonight.

So here we go. Here are the absolute worst things you can do when you're about to give somebody your demo (and trust me, I've heard each and every one of these dozens of times):

1. tell me that "you're about to change the game"

On one hand I have to admire your confidence to be able to say "look the game is fucked up and i got the answer!", but on the other hand it's kind of comical to hear somebody that has never released a record for real, or done a real show, tell me that he's going to shake up the world. To be honest, it kind of makes you look like an arrogant asshole. Not to say you shouldn't believe in your shit but come on, a little humbleness never hurt anybody.

2. tell me that "heads ain't ready for you" or "your too advanced"

This goes hand-in-hand with #1. You say you're going to change the game, but then in the same breath you say the game is not ready for you and fans are probably not going to understand where you're coming from because its too deep/advanced for them? Hmmmmm...as soon as you say this to me, I'm thinking "cop out" because usually it's just a way to rationalize being terrible at what you do. What's worse is that the entire thing is speculation! You have no idea whether you're too advanced or not because these people you're referring to have never even heard your shit! When people say this my brain starts to shut down.

3. Invite me to your car to listen to your shit right now.

Gross violation of protocol and personal space. Now, I'm not saying that I have never been in a car listening to some new music with a friend before i walked into the spot. I'm not above it. I'm even known to cipher with the gods occasionally, particularly if I'm bored. But this is some other shit. Number one, I just met you so the thought of me being in an isolated awkward situation with you isn't appealing at all. Number two, I haven't heard your music before. What if it sucks? Do i sit there for 30 minutes and pretend your shit is bangin? Bad scenario all around. Number three, the entire reason i came to the spot was for girls or music; you know, the reason ALL dudes go out. So me going to your car, when shit is poppin inside, while girls are around, when i haven't heard your shit before, is out-of-the-fucking-question. It goes against all the reasons I went out in the first place. Plus i don't know you dog. Slow down.

4. Ask me to collab w/ you before I've even heard you.

This might be the most ridiculous shit ever. You say "you should check out my shit", I say "give me a cd to check out", and you say "I'll do that, but we should collaborate on some shit". Then my face says WTF? I'm not even gonna go into how wild this one is cause y'all already know.

5. overly explain what you're trying to do.

I'm oldschool. I come from the era where you picked up a CD or album, looked at the artwork, paid for it, then went home and listened to it. At no point in that process did I ever have the artist who created the art telling me what it is they're doing down to the most minute detail. Music is to be heard and felt, and it shouldn't come with an instruction manual. Either you feel it or you don't, and no amount of words is gonna make that shit sound good. Just give me the CD and let me listen for myself.

6. Ask somebody to do a show together before they've heard you.

This goes with #4. Can't fuck with you until I've heard you. Wow @ you for even asking.

7. Ask me if it's ok to rhyme right then on the spot.

Now, I have a love/hate relationship with this one. On one hand, when a cat just spontaneously busts out into rhyme on the spot, without being asked, there's a part of me that flashes back to when i would go to battles and open mics and rhyme for the glory. I think its dope that cats are hungry and down to get theirs and I'll always have a soft spot for that kind of shit. But i gotta keep it all the way real here, there's another part of me that HATES that shit. Why you ask? Because if I'm chillin' at the bar, or kickin' it in a normal situation and you just bust into rhyme it totally fucks up the vibe. Maybe I'm hollerin at a chick, or maybe I'm just about to order a drink, or pass out a flyer, or go take a piss, whatever! Either way, you're on some shit that is pretty selfish, on some ole hey-look-at-me type shit so i can't feel you.

The worst part about this one is what happens after you spontaneously bust out into rhyme? Then next thing you know 10 more dudes think its okay to share their unfocused bars, when i didn't even wanna hear the first one. Nothing good ever comes of this one.

Ahhhhhhhhh.....feels so much better getting that one off my chest.

I know somebody is gonna get mad about this shit, but on some really real shit, y'all know I'm right. Don't front. Cut that shit out. Just tell a muthafucka you do this shit, give him a CD, and slide off. If you do that, you will be remembered as a class act and I guarantee you'll be heard. Otherwise it might be a wrap for you.

So take these words home and think em through. Or the next blog i write might be about you!

Word is blog.

The difference between being talented & being a genius.

2009-02-27T13:30:00.000-05:00

Every now and then when I'm on the road somebody will say something to me like, "such-and-such indie rapper or producer is a genius!".

Then my face scrunches up.

And they say "what, you dont think so-and-so is talented?"

And i say "yes, they're talented, but if I can't say their name in the same sentence as Stevie Wonder then the word Genius shouldn't be used fam."

The above clip is Stevie Wonder on the Talkbox--not to ever, ever, ever, in your entire life, be confused with Auto-tune. There is a reason why there are very few people who are Amazing at Talk-Box, and so many people who are using autotune.

Here's another one for good measure:

And one more just to let you know what time it is:

That's genius. Leave me alone with that other shit fam.

Greenhouse "E-F-F-E-C-T" snippet

2009-02-26T18:48:00.000-05:00

For those that don't know, Illogic and myself are working on a bunch of new Greenhouse projects. Here's a snippet of what we've been working on:

Why do people hate hippies so much?

2009-02-25T21:27:00.000-05:00

It's not because they travel around the country for months on end, following bands as if they have nowhere to be.

It's not because they wear tie-dyed shirts, clothes that never fit, flip flops in the coldest of temperatures, and have absolutely no sense of style.

It's not because they have dreads, claim rasta because of their love of weed, and talk about peace & love to the point that even the most peaceful person would want to smack them repeatedly.

And it's not because they never shower and smell like hot dog water, oh no.

It's because of this:

Hippies can't dance for shit.

Word is Blog.
Shout out to Possum for diggin this one up.

Handcuffin' Hoes is Universal

2009-02-25T08:29:00.000-05:00

I remember the first time i heard the term "handcuffin". It was definitely a west coast rap record. I can't remember who it was but they were talkin about cats "handcuffin hoes" (i.e. trying to stop girls from talking to other dudes by any means necessary). I used to think that shit was restricted to insecure hip-hop dudes, but trust me that shit is universal.

Black, white, asian, latin--all these dudes be handcuffin' their bitches, and ain't shit you can say about it. They do all do it differently though.

Here's why i feel that way. So tonight I'm at this metal show. Don't ask why i was there. I didnt know what it was until i walked in there. Not that i dont dig some metal but I went there for the $1 grilled cheese sandwiches and beer, but when i walked in it was on some other shit. I'm not trippin. My dude introduces me to this chick (goth looking white chick w/ black hair of course), who was kind of socially weird and not interested (of course). I don't think this chick smiled the entire time she was talkin to us. Everything about her said "leave me the fuck alone" so i did. I'm like cool, go back to my grilled-cheese, red beans & rice. Metal bands keep playin, they go smoke some weed, then I see her down at the other end of the bar 10-minutes later talking to some other cat, but this time she was different--smiling and giggling and actually looking like she had some personality, God forbid.

So here's when it gets strange. I'm talking to another chick and i see this very same girl who was cold earlier say to me "HELP ME! GET ME OUTTA HERE" while the dude she's talking to is hollerin at her. She said this shit when his back was turned and he couldn't see her. I think to myself, fuck it i dont give a shit, then motion to her to come here and get the chick i'm with to do the same so it looks cool. She comes down there and says thanks. Me and her start talking, but every 5 minutes dude from the other side of the bar walks down and walks up behind her like I'm violating his territory...handcuffin. Old boy was clearly not trying to let me live. I laugh about the whole shit shit and so does she. We ignore him but this goes on for another 30 minutes to an hour.

Then it occurs to me, why is this cat handcuffin this broad? Granted when I'm drunk I'm known to be on some funny shit when it comes to chicks, but if a chick a) walks away from me, b) sits down next to another dude, and c) buys a drink with that other dude I would be inclined to believe that it was a wrap for me and her. But what does dude do? He continues handcuffin! Real strong. Dude was on a steak out like he was po-po or somethin. It got to the point where he was making other DUDES uncomfortable with his actions and they were askin me "who is this wierd ass dude standing over my shoulder making me uncomfortable?" I'm like "I dont know that cat, he's just here handcuffin this chick because he don't want me to talk to her."

So my conclusion is this: handcuffin girls is not some hip-hop shit at all. We ain't the only suckas out there. There are sucka ass suckas in every race and economic background. We gotta be fair with that shit. They some haters, but lets be real here, haters never prosper like that. But the most important thing to recognize here is that handcuffin girls is universal. Young people get they handcuff on. Old muthafuckas be handcuffin they old ass companions from other old ass dudes in the nursing home, you know? They don't wanna see nobody shine! Every culture and creed got some player-hater in em. Shit's natural i guess. I'm not sayin it's right, I'm just saying its natural.

Hell, I might even believe that other cultures handcuff worse because they don't even have a term like "handcuffin" to make them feel guilty about shit.

Ok...time to pass out. Word is blog.

Blueprint "Numb"

2009-02-24T20:41:00.000-05:00

Every now and again I guess I should actually talk about music on here. So here's a new song from my instrumental album Sign Language now pre-ordering from Weightless Recordings. The song is called "Numb". Enjoy, and spread the word.

If you like it order the CD or tell a friend to do the same:

http://www.divshare.com/download/6647714-fdb

Because I'm a basketball fan

2009-02-24T04:25:00.001-05:00

I had to post this. I was the bar when this shit came on:

Even if you don't like the NBA, don't front. That shit is amazing. Pay particular attention to how he gets that shit off right before the red light on the announcers table lights up behind him.

Nike Boots Revisited (Wale was right)

2009-02-23T16:53:00.000-05:00

I used to own some Nike Boots back in 2002. I remember I was on tour in Seattle and it was my first time seeing a "real" Nike store. See, I'm from Columbus, OH. We have plenty of shoe stores that sell Nikes, but no real Nike stores; you know, the ones that are like 3 levels and have tons of shit you don't see anywhere else? Those are the ones I'm talking about.

Even though they were pretty expensive, i bought the Nike boots, and loved them immediately. Unforunately I made the cardinal mistake of touring--never buy shoes you really like on tour, because you'll wear them on stage and in the club and they will get completely ruined. At least that's how broke dudes like me do it. So anyway, my Nike boots were ruined by the time i got home with them, and in some strange way I fell out of love with them.

That being said, you have to imagine that I was never really moved when Wale's song "Nike Boots", took off. I didn't dislike it, I was just like whatever about the song, but it did remind me of my past love affair with Nike boots; although short-lived. So about a month ago, when our first REALLY cold spell hit, i went out looking for some boots and ended up buying some Nike Boots again, the joints above. They cost over 150 bucks but I'll be damned if those muthafuckas don't feel anything less than AMAZING when i put em on. They feel so damn good...it's like I'm learning how to walk all over again, or like I'm walking in 4-pair of socks all the time, or walking on freshly laid 3-inch thick shag carpet, feel me?

So with that, I just want to say thank you Wale. Thank you for reminding me how amazing Nike Boots are--because even though your song has very little to do with how amazing Nike boots actually feel on your feet, it did remind me that I needed them in my life again. I mean, sure Wale says they look good, but who buys $150 pair of shoes just because they look good? Not me!

Word is blog.

What the hell have I been up to?

2009-02-23T02:02:00.000-05:00

VIDEOS:
In preparation for my new album I have shot a couple of music videos; one for a song called "keep bouncing" and another for a song called "radioinactive". The video for Keep Bouncing was shot at my favorite wateringhole in Columbus, Carabar. The video for Radioinactive was shot in New York while i was on tour this past fall with Atmosphere. I've noticed that a lot of cats will talk about shooting "low-budget" videos, but that can be very decieving because low budget is relative. One man's low budget might be another mans feature film. Therefore I've decided that there should be a new term for shooting videos called "no-budget". That's how we've been rolling so far, and I want to thank the videographers (justin and shankar) that I've worked with thus far for believing in my music enough to do it. I have another shoot scheduled for March. I hope to shoot 1-2 more videos since I don't have any shows for a while...might as well be productive.

COLLABORATIONS:
I don't know how many of you have heard of an artist named Supastition (Kam Moye), but me and him did a song together for one of his upcoming projects. I have always been a fan of his, and I hope that those that haven't checked him out before will do so. He's got a free EP for download on his myspace page if you need an introduction.

GREENHOUSE ALBUM:
Since my album is done I've been trying to plug away at the new greenhouse album that Illogic and I have been working on. I'm doing all the production on the record, but me and illogic are both rhyming on it. The name of the album is Bend But Don't Break. We wanted to release it last year but I ended up touring with Atmosphere during that time so we pushed it back. At any rate, things are sounding nice. If you haven't added the Greenhouse crew yet, please do so! And if you haven't added my dude Illogic please do. He has a new album coming out on March 24th on our label weightless Recordings (http://www.weightless.net). He and I hope to tour together when the greenhouse album comes out.

Also, we wil be releasing 2 FREE Greenhouse EPs very soon. Please stay tuned, and add us if you haven't already (http://www.myspace.com/greenhousecrew), or just subscribe to the blog so when we start blogging you can be in the mix.

BEATS:
I've been posting new beats instead of songs because it seems more interesting. Coincidentally i still get at least 4-5 messages a weak from dudes trying to sell me "industry standard" beats, or just regular dudes who want to just give me beats. Cut it out, I'm good.

BAD NEWS FIRST:
The release date of my album was originally April 21st but its looking like it's going to get pushed back a little bit. I'm not completely sure i can speak on why but hopefully everything will be in place soon to get it out, although slightly delayed. Until then yall can find me in Columbus wishing i was somewhere warm...at least the record is done, and has been done for a while, which brings me to the GOOD news...

NEW MUSIC (2 new Blueprint projects! OMG!)
I have two production projects that I am going to release in in a LIMITED run. They are both instrumental projects. One is the follow-up to my Chamber Music instrumental album called "Sign Language". The other is more of a straight up hip-hop beat cd type of thing called "Weightless Radio". There will only be 500 copies of each of these CDs, and they will be sold only on weightless.net. I repeat, there will only be 500 of each title, and they will only be sold at www.weightless.net, but you can also buy them off this page as well. The reason I repeat this is because when i did the funkadelic project it sold very quickly, and i still had many many many people come to my shows this past fall asking why i wasn't selling the CD. Shit was gone by then. Then when i tell them that it was gone a long time ago, they tell me i should press more. So i want to tell everybody now BUY THE SHIT WHEN IT'S AVAILABLE, because i dont want to get a shitload of e-mails and people walking up to me saying they saw it for sale and thought it should still be for sale a year or two later when they passed up the chance to get it the first time around. While there are instances where i can save certain titles for the road, i can't gurantee that happening. but on the brighter side, we will be doing presales. These presales will ship out on average 3-4 business days before the actually release date, therefore you will have it in your hand before everybody else does.

This is the first one:

Blueprint "Sign Language" CD from weightless recordings on Vimeo.

Forbidden

2009-02-22T05:40:00.000-05:00

Had to repost this. My man Jest One from the Atoms Family put this together. Shit cracks me up:

Discretion Rant

2009-02-22T04:29:00.000-05:00

It's about 4:30 am, the time when i usually start thinking about crazy shit, and i decided that I wanted to write about something that's been on my mind for a while--discretion...and privacy.

So i'm out thinking about all the shit that goes down on a daily basis (you know, all the wild ass shit that maybe you and your homies do or did that you wake up laughing about the next day), that only a few people know about. My belief is that shit is awesome. Shit, i think that shit is amazing. the fact that people can go out to God knows where, and do God knows what, with God knows who is some shit that i think is beautiful.

I went out last night, and had one of the most hilarious and amazing nights i've had in a long time. The people who were there knew what level of madness was poppin off, but those who didn't missed out. Honestly i think that shit is what makes the shit so special. That a few people in a spot can witness more amazing moments than a few hundred people in another spot. If that's not some amazing shit then i dont know what is.

But let me cut to the chase, because this shit that I'm getting at is more about relationships than anything else.

First of all, i think men and women do the same shit. No sex is more slutty or more moral than the next. We all do dumb ass shit and fuck people we wish we wouldn't have fucked. And we all fuck people who we feel good about fucking. You know, good shit for the resume if you will.

But my thing is this: stop bragging about that shit. If you fuck somebody that is hot then you should only share that with the people who knew what it was or were there when it was about to happen. See, people make the mistake of thinking women gossip more than men, but I'm here to tell you, no they dont. Shit is the same. hell, i might even believe that dudes gossip MORE than women. Why? Because we typically feel like we have less to lose. Women don't want to look like sluts, but men are completely cool with looking like sluts because society thinks its amazing that men are out there adding notches to their belt.

However, tonight it dawned on me that dudes need to start keeping that shit under wraps. And i know you might be thinking to yourself that i'm on some humanitarian, we are the world, women's lib shit when you're reading this. But let me assure you that my reasons are far less altruistic and far more selfish: I want yall to keep that shit under wraps because it completely fucks up the flow of pussy. Feel me on this shit before you judge me--there is NOTHING good that can come from you having sex with somebody and telling your homies about it, NOTHING. Unless that is to tell your homie NOT to do it, but that's about it.

Maybe to feel me you have to look at sex as a commodity. Some shit that is publicly traded. The market for that said commodity is defined by those who want it and those who want to make it available. The worth of said commodity is somewhere in between those two extremes. So think about it: what happens when you dont use discretion and have all your business in the streets? You slow down the rate at which said commodity exchanges hands because the value of said commodity becomes volatile, feel me? Its no different than the stock market buddy.

For example, say a girl is a snob who is known to fuck only NBA players and dope boys, then what happens to her stock, simply because the rumors not because she is a quality woman? Shit skyrockets. Same chick who probably cant cook for shit and has a shitty attitude is now in high demand. Now on the opposite end of things, say theres a girl you've wanted to bone for years. Yall go to all the same parties, and have some mutual friends. Then you hear that she fucked some other cat last year that you didnt know about. This is the tricky part. Her stock could go up and down depending on what YOU and your social scene think about dude. If dude is a chump it goes down. If he's got some status then it goes up. But its the same piece of ass that you wanted from jump.

What I'm gettin at is this--don't let the market dictate the value of a quality piece of ass for you. You need to define that shit for yourself, without all the rumors and insider trading tips. Decided for yourself what it's worth because otherwise you could a) be purchasing something that is inflated in price and truly not worth it or b) walking away from something that is actually pretty slick because of some shit somebody else said. The same shit Warren Buffet does, just with your penis or vagina.

So I'm going to end this shit here, because if yall feel me then yall feel me.

Word is blog.

Beat of the week

2009-02-18T17:53:00.000-05:00

Did this beat two nights ago. It will probably end up on one of the new Greenhouse records I'm working on with Illogic. Enjoy.

Getting Boo'ed

2009-02-18T05:26:00.000-05:00

Tonight i was on that familiar mission--flyering. For those that are unaware, there are people who go to events, people who perform at events, and people who promote events--I just happen to wear all those hats sometimes. So tonight, with my promoter hat on, I left my house promptly at 12:45am, which should indicate my excitement level for flyering tonight, on a mission to pass out flyers.

I got to the spot and from across the street i hear people arguing; fuck this, fuck that, etc. The usual bullshit when you go to this kinda show. People yelling but nobody getting manhandled, and no cops, so i was cool. I roll up to more arguing and wait for my dude who works the door to come back so i can creep in on the low and get my flyers off (the club is nice enough to let me pass out flyers for events i have there without charging me cover, i just gotta go to the right doorman.)

But i digress. As I'm outside one of the cats working there tells me that an opening act got boo'ed. opening from the out-of-town band. And not only that, he says they got shit thrown at them. Now, I've seen a lotta shit in my day in the Columbus music scene/hip-hop scene, but getting bottles thrown at you, is some OTHER shit. So much so that i didn't even believe it and went on in and ordered a pitcher of that hipster shit, pabst.

In the next 30 minutes i get word that there were two fights before i got there, and confirmation that yes, bottles had been thrown at cats.

Now, I didn't start writing this to defend or accost those that threw bottles tonight, because that's neither here nor there, and since i wasn't there i have no idea what really went down. But i was taken aback by the mere mention of shit getting thrown at the stage...ahhh the sweet memories...ain't nothin like gettin heckled or having some shit tossed at you from the back of a dark ass room from somebody that you can't even see. Gotta love it, right?

Anyways, what came to mind was this question: how bad does the opener have to piss you off before you do some shit like that? See for me, i consider it almost a mathematical equation that goes like this: my willingness to boo or throw shit at the openers is equal to my desire to see the headliner divided by the number of quality opening acts on the bill. Obviously, I'm failing to take into account the time factor (i.e. headlining acts going on stage at 1:45a.m type shit), but you feel me. My point is just how bad does a muthafucka have to be before you decide to air him out?

This fall i opened for Atmosphere on a 10-week tour. One night i will never forget was in Burlington, Vermont. There was this group of girls that i met at the end of the night who had never seen me before and said something like this when we met, "We never heard of you before but you killed it tonight. Usually we can smell the fear in opening acts, and we usually get ready to boo them immediately but you had no fear and that really impressed us". So i said "thanks". Yeah i appreciate the props but i also appreciate that fact that they saw me seeing them not seeing me being scared, feel me? That shit is important. Because if a group of three harmless-looking chicks can see the fear in an openers eyes, it makes me really assume that everybody in the room might be able to, you know?

So as i lay it down this fine tuesday night/wednesday morning i will think on these things, and wonder what my personal breaking point is with an opening act, and just how much (or how little) i can take before i act-a-fool, because obviously a few people reached that breaking point tonight, nahmeen? I'm not sayin' it's right, I'm just sayin.

Word is blog.

Exceptional Art

2009-02-14T07:34:00.000-05:00

so i'm here thinking about music and shit. drunk. as usual.

and it occurs to me that as an artist our entire struggle is to write something "great". something that defines US. we struggle to come up with fly shit, angry shit, expressive shit, etc in hopes that the common muthafucka that gives a rats ass about art hears that shit and believes in it enough to believe in us, right?

so as i'm warming up my rice and throwing a turkey burger on the foreman grill the thought occurs to me:

what if its not about the song, or the art?

what if how we look at this shit, is all fucked up?

specifically i mean this:

what if, we as people who do art, are EXCEPTIONAL people. Not exceptional artists. Just really interesting, fun, cool people. People who would be interesting to drink with whether or not we were on stage, right? so the thought occurs to me, that exceptional people will be that regardless of whether they write a fucking good song, right? wtf does writing a good song have to do with being a good artist, is my point. Its not about the song, or the painting, or the fucking art--its about the person. exceptional shit is done by people with the aptitude to do so, is my point. not people who are average. or people who dont have it in them. so i look at this shit like "why the fuck am i defining great artists by the great art they created, as opposed to defining great art by the great PERSON that did it.

Look. There's a LOT of AVERAGE joes in this fucking world. we all can agree there. all of which can do some aight shit. but what happens when an exceptional cat steps up? exceptional shit.

i am now rethinking everything. this shit is some drunk shit, but not without merit so bear with me.

lets take an example. people consider some people "one hit wonders" right? and we look down on them right? but what if a one hit wonder is a regular person who was able to pull some exception shit out of himself? so the question then becomes, what the fuck are YOU? and why aren't you able to pull some exceptional shit out of yourself? at least to the point to where you don't feel like a fucking loser ass loser.

but i digress. my point is this: instead of defining great artists by the art they create, we should look at great art as a subset/expression of great person who do created it, feel me?

probably not...but fuck it.

good night. happy valentines day and all that other hallmark shit.

Milk

2008-12-21T15:38:00.000-05:00

If you have any time to go to the movies this holiday season, i would like to recommend seeing Milk, the new movie starring Sean Penn. It's an independent movie, and will probably not be at the main movie theater, but trust me, it's well worth seeking out.

Simply put, Milk is amazing. The last time I saw a movie that moved me this much was Malcom X, which is ironic considering that after watching this movie the first thought that popped into my head was that Sean Penn is to Milk (and the gay rights movement) as Denzel Washington is to Malcolm X's (and the civil rights movement). From the moment this movie started i immediately forgot i was even watching Sean Penn. Instead i was completely pulled into the character Harvey Milk. Penn is that good. I would be shocked if he didn't win a ton of awards for this movie.

I would also like to add that this movie has really put a lot of things together in terms of the gay rights movement and really challenged a lot of things i never understood or thought i understood. It will also put many things into perspective in terms of american history as well. I think that is what getting older should be; a constant evolution and changing of our beliefs and challenging ourselves.

I don't want to talk about the movie too much until you all go see it. But if anybody has seen it already, post a reply and let me know what you thought. I'd love to discuss it with those that have.

Take Care & Happy Holidays.

Yall Studio

2008-07-17T16:12:00.000-04:00

(photo by Bridget Brown)

There's a hip-hop term called "studio rappers". Somebody is a studio rapper if the stuff they rap about in the studio isn't what they do in real life. Mostly this refers to rappers who talk about how many people they shoot, and the amounts of drugs they sell, when in reality they don't do any of that shit.

I always liked this term.

Last night as i was walking home from this show and party at like 6am in the morning when the sun was up, i realized that there is a completely different studio rapper out there that has yet to be exposed; the studio rapper that talks about partying, getting girls, and how wild their life is on record but doesn't do any of that shit.

We need to rid hip-hop of these people immediately, because they might be worse for hip-hop than the studio gangster.

So as i walked home drunk i said to myself "Al, you really do this shit for real. If you say you're going to be out partying and dancing and drinking, then that's what you actually do." What i'm saying is that I am NOT a studio party-er; i party for real. I like people. I like parties. I like drinking, and dancing. All that shit.

Here is the problem...there are rappers who talk about that shit on record but don't do it. They go home right after they get off stage. They really don't drink but talk about being drunk or high all the time. This creates a couple problems for the world; first is that when you (i.e. fans/supporters) meet them after hearing their records, they are boring and usually anti-social. This is because they truly are anti-social and boring, not because you as the fan are making them uncomfortable by trying to have a conversation with them at said social event.

The second, and most important problem is that the records they make about partying and going hard lacks perspective. It's not grounded with reality. They will tell you about how much they drink when they're depressed, or how many girls they get every night, but they wont tell you the reality of those situations and how fucked up they can be for everybody involved.

That is why they need to be stopped. So i need all of you to really look around, and identify studio party-ers in your life. Sometimes they can be hard to spot and sometimes they're NOT even rappers, but if you pay attention to their actions they will make themselves known. You may have been dismissing them as "flakey" for years because they always back out of shit at the last minute, or because they never show up when they say they are. Or they show up when the party is over, or they wanna talk you into leaving said party when its at its apex--even though they talked all week about how much they needed to party and release.

Watch them, they are very slippery.

Beware the studio rapper; and the studio party-er.