Comment On Music, and Society by Trent Reznor!

I will be tuning out of the social networking sites because it's now doing more harm than good."


Well, it was fun while it lasted. According to a lengthy post on the NIN message board yesterday, Trent Reznor is "tuning out of the social networking sites because it's now doing more harm than good in the bigger picture and the experiment seems to have yielded a result. Idiots rule."
It's a shame because Reznor's online persona is one of the most engaging in rock; his interest and participation in the web helped changed his image from a nihilistic angst machine to something more well-rounded and interesting over the last few years

Russell Simmons Lobbies For Gay Rights

As Hip Hop music’s popularity has grown over the years, so has the controversy surrounding the genre. Although most seem to critique Hip Hop for its overt misogyny, homophobic lyrics have remained a constant within the lyrical content of Rap songs. Besides Kanye West, many within the Hip Hop community have remained silent on the matter. However, Russell Simmons has now added his name to the short list of those within Hip Hop who sympathize with the gay community.In a blog written for GlobalGrind.com, republished by The Huffington Post, Russell Simmons explains his deep contempt with the fact that the California Supreme Court has decided to uphold Proposition 8. Simmons is not only bothered by the outcome of this, but he is also furious with how the civil rights of oppressed individuals have been either granted or denied based on the outcome of votes placed in a ballot box. Simmons explains: “If President Johnson had to take a vote, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 would not have passed. If Congress took a vote in 1920, women may still not have the right to vote today. And if President Lincoln went to the polls, blacks would definitely have endured many more years of slavery. We trusted our government to make the right decision and protect the minority, and yesterday we, as a nation, failed.”Simmons then goes on to challenge those within the African American community who are opposed to gay rights. “As an African-American, I urge my own people to take a deep look at our own struggles and not wish them upon anyone else. Simply, civil rights for all is about being connected as humans, united, tolerant, loving and brave.”Although Simmons is disturbed by California’s upholding of Proposition 8, he remains optimistic. “In my heart, I know that marriage equality for every human being isn't a question of if, but only a matter of when. I ask those who feel that giving freedom to others somehow binds you, to please take a good look at what you are standing behind. It is only through opening your hearts will you be able to see that by promoting freedom for all, you are unchaining yourself. I guess I'm an optimist. I have faith in people and our government ultimately to do the right thing. And to my brothers and sisters in California, I'm there with you every step of the way until that day comes...”

HipHop DX

Mic Terror...Im Good.

The Mic Terror is tearing up Chicago, I guess. He is doin his thing and with Fake Shore Drive and M.I.A coin'in him a talent I guess he will be the next to blow right beside GLC, but I am not buying it. Terror is, I assume another Villan in hip-hop, who is not capable of dethroning the villan- aka DOOM, but he is more of a poppy version who is openly embraced by Chicago.

New Single- heres the link: http://limelinx.com/files/ee2eb3e72d09f31495a6d5d1c1e2e623

"Mic T returns with his own interpretation of Drake's smash "Best I Ever Had". And yes, Mic murders it per usual.Off the Phedz (yes the Phedz - Hollywood Holt, Mano, Lee Majorz, etc) upcoming mixtape, Phuck Ya'll With A Vengeance" Fake Shore Drive

Edmonton names hip-hop artist latest poet laureate

Roland Pemberton, the 23-year old hip-hop artist who performs as Cadence Weapon, was named Tuesday as the City of Edmonton's third poet laureate.
"I believe it's a valuable resource to have this post in the Edmonton arts community and I will make the most of this appointment," he said at the city's announcement Tuesday morning.
Pemberton has accumulated high-profile awards and recognitions in his music career. He was nominated for the prestigious Polaris Music Prize in 2006 for his debut album Breaking Kayfabe and has won the Canadian Independent Music Award for best urban artist/group.
His second studio album, Afterparty Babies, was released in 2008. Pemberton is also a DJ and producer and has written a music column for one of Edmonton's alternative weeklies.
Pemberton was raised in Edmonton and still makes his home in the city. His father was the late Teddy Pemberton, a CJSR radio host who is widely credited for introducing rap music to Edmonton. Pemberton's grandfather is Edmonton Eskimo great Rollie Miles, who played for the team from 1951 to 1961.
Pemberton was nominated as poet laureate by Edmonton filmmaker Trevor Anderson.
His initial reaction to the nomination was, "as if", he said, but he reconsidered as he thought more about it.
"I mean I'm an Edmonton guy, I'm a community guy. I talk about Edmonton in most of the pieces, work, I do," he said.
Pemberton said he would like to use his role as poet laureate to change people's perceptions about poetry.
"I'd like to broaden what people consider poetry to be. Basically I plan to do a lot of weird poems that people will definitely not think are poems and I'd like to … maybe make the idea of poet laureate something that people think about," he said.
Pemberton follows University of Alberta professor emeritus Ted Blodgett in the position. Alice Major was Edmonton's first poet laureate between 2005 and 2007.
Pemberton starts his two-year term on July 1

The Problem w/ Hip-Hop (Just Read)

Murder Inc. head Irv Gotti recently spoke on the rhyming skills of Nas and why he felt the lyrical emcee sounded better when he's on "his arrogant sh*t."
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Having worked with Nasty Nas on records like "The Pledge," Irv described his preference to the less complex emcee side.
"I like Nas," Gotti said in an interview. "First of all, Nas is my brother, another one of my brothers. But I personally like Nas when he's ignorant. Whenever Nas gets political or he starts thinking or he wants to change the world, it's good, but I personally like it more when Nas is on his QB, ignorant n*gga sh*t. When he's on [a] 'Made You Look' you know when he's on his arrogant sh*t. When Nas dumbs himself down, he's nicer to me. I tell him that sh*t all the time. Just over a break beat. When he's on some n*gga sh*t, he's nicer." (MTV)
On the other hand, lyrical emcees like Lupe Fiasco have addressed today's rappers and their lack of rhyming skills on tracks like "Dumb It Down."
"You goin' over n*ggas' heads Lu (Dumb it down)," his chorus rapped. "They tellin' me that they don't feel you (Dumb it down)/We ain't graduate from school n*gga (Dumb it down)/Them big words ain't cool n*gga (Dumb it down)/Yeah I heard Mean And Vicious n*gga (Dumb it down)/Make a song for the b*tches n*gga (Dumb it down)/We don't care about the weather n*gga (Dumb it down)/You'll sell more records if you (Dumb it down)" ("Dumb It Down")
Nas has been known throughout his career for mixing advanced lyrics with urban stories of street life.
Despite dropping out of school, Nas developed a high degree of literacy that would later characterize his rhymes. At the same time, though, he delved into street culture and flirted with danger, such experiences similarly characterizing his rhymes. His synthesis of well-crafted rhetoric and street-glamorous imagery blossomed in 1991 when he connected with Main Source and laid down a fiery verse on "Live at the Barbeque" that earned him up-and-coming notice among the East Coast rap scene. (All Music)
Nas was recently chosen to headline this year's popular Rock the Bells international tour.
Rock the Bells 2009 performances by KRS-One, Nas, House of Pain, Reflection Eternal, Damian Marley, Tech N9ne, K'Naan, RZA, Big Boi, La Coka Nostra, Slaughterhouse, M.O.P., Slum Village, Buckshot, Common, Big Boi, Evidence, Alchemist and more. It will be hosted by KRS-One, Supernatural, Murs and Pete Rock. Additional artists to be announced. The North American portion of the tour will run from June 27 to August 9. (Guerilla Union).

Blackout 2 Redman/Method Man +

Redman To Eminem, "I Will Leave [Def Jam] Right Now For Shady" [Video]

http://www.sohh.com/2009/05/redman_considers_joining.html

"Even like Shady, even to have that idea, or Eminem to even have that idea like thinking Redman was gonna be off Def Jam and he coming through is a privilege," Red explained. "Like, I will leave right now and go over there to Shady. I don't care, 'cause they still doing hip-hop and I love it. Anybody supporting it, I'm there. Big up to Shady though, but I ain't off Def Jam yet, f*ck. But I'm there though. I'm still rockin'. Come get me for a record though, let's make it happen." Redman!!

I am wondering a lot how these industry cats are pushing albums, and how they reflect sales, look at Ross-Kanye -Jadakiss and everybody...50 brought it up last year in the Good V. Bad (if you can call it that) battle but I have yet to get a full answer from anyone...

Will research this and get to the bottom of it, but this is a nice vid-talks heavy on dropping a LP, and show some love on May 19...Grab the album!!

Chester French....What Happened?

I am one who stands strong agaist the industry, and proud when I see small acts make it big...or get pulled up to the bigs by someone who is true to there art form in the industry. So, when Pharell grabbed two Harvard grad's and signed them to Star Trek, I said to myself what happened to Roscoe P.
But these two men are perfect for 2009, and should be a standout, at least I thought. It is really shitty that good music doesn't find its way to the top of the billboard charts. I blame marketing all the way. Clipse is another out of the Star Trek camp, who I believe put out a classic in Hell Hath no Fury!

THIS IS A CLASSIC!!!

HiphopDx gave the new album a solid review, 4/5 stars but somehow after Rolling Stones calling them the next Beach Boys, not the best comparison but I would take it, now has called them the next Vampire Weekend...WTF!!
This is a fresh album that snaggs some hip-hop flavor and its fresh-different-and orginal. I am not mad that they didn't get great reviews, or that they didn't sell a mill in the frst week...but the fact that they crash in burn in sales/reviews.

77 (opening in on the charts)
Chester French
Love The Future
6,300
6,342

A Source in Chicago stated it clearly!!

Music is dangerous: Legislation planned in secret affecting the Chicago Music Scene Category: Music
"At E2, they said, 'Okay, guys. You're renting my venue. Here's the keys to my house. I'll see you tomorrow.' That doesn't happen with a responsibly run venue. It's vastly different than the way we operate," Mickelson (of Jam Productions) said.Its Shocking how the city is pushing the responsibility of the venue off on the promoters. This will not only create a climate where less events can happen, but a higher price on the ones that do...When promoters need to pay for a license, (which venues already have) insurance, (which venues already have) and security (which venues already have)Instead of fixing a problem the city has chose to legislate against those who have the least money in the situation (only events with less than 500 people), and the least ability to fight back, and still they passed this legislation in secrecy...The city of Chicago I am told has more bars Per capita than any major metropolitan area, and apparently they find the effects of music more dangerous that alcohol.What all of this means, still remains to be seen, but when you hear things like:"In a major concession to Chicago's thriving concert industry, venues with a fixed seating capacity of 500 or more would be exempt from the new requirements."Its obvious that this isn't aimed at what remains of the limping corporate music machine, but at the independent music culture that make Chicago great. We have to ask ourselves, is this creating a climate in Chicago where an artist can thrive?

THEMSELVES IS BACK

Download the new mixtape from Themsleves

at http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=12529041&blogId=477201432

Below is a track from a older album.

Album of the year...MF Doom Born Like This

They are called Japanese Cartoon, with 1st and 15th, Lupe's label...RAW!!

Is this one of the few artist that have not fallen in the Jay sickness. A lot of artist take pride in putting down tracks in the booth, in and out, but where is the polished hip-hop at. That is one of the sound differences in todays hip-hop than yesterdays, the smooth tracks, that don't sound like they were free styles....

Mos Def - The Ecstatic - in stores Spring 2009

Hot Mixtape!!

Hot Hip-Hop check it out...

New Mixtape!!

From: Kooley High

The Robbery

Who are The Robbery,

Band Bio

"We are The Robbery. We were born in January of 2007 weighing 8 lbs 2oz. We play hard. We melt faces. We shake bones. We wet pants...yours, not ours, but try not to wet yours cause it smells.
We are young, but our hearts are in the right place and our heads are on straight. We are the underdog, but our dreams are big, and our drive is out of this world. We want nothing more then to live the life we have all chosen to pursue... "
"...but we've got everything to prove

I actually got a chance to chill with the bands drummer Anthony, Kool cat F.Y.I, and then got to preview some of the new album that they that just came out with, a rock/ambient sound that is pretty fucking RAW!! They proved enough to me, buy material.

check them out on myspace.com/therobberymusic

HOT SINGLE: SILVER AND GOLD

Never Better

So, I always thought that hip-hop and punk music is one and the same. Its drive, the outcast of the community, the people making statements. So, I always thought there should be a sub-genre Punk-Hop, a genre that at the least should emerge. I got into a few conversations with a couple of punk kids, and they were confused of what that would sound like, one kid said that is two styles of music that should not marry.

I guess you can say Rage is Punk-Hop or maybe even Rancid, but I think those were small stepping stones that shows I am not mad. P.O.S, well... he has showed me that punk-hop is here and here to stay. HipHopdx.com makes a point by saying Linkin Park and Limp Bizkit (thank god he is gone) are forced attempts, and P.O.S delivers this blend of work effortlessly, but they don't really put a finger on what it is...Punk-Hop people! Kick-ass hard-hitting drums and a Flow that undoubtably gives him a MC 12 gun salute is on point. The lyrics say what they are suppose to say, do what they are suppose to do; no metaphorical illusions, smoke and mirrors...simple and tightly woven together.

What pisses me Off...Pitchfork "From front to back, the album's an acquired taste, and even if it's not the big paradox that an album mixing punk ethics with rap virtuosity might risk becoming," Some Jag is saying that this is a paradox, as if fusion of musical taste is absurd. HELLO, hip-hop at the least means 100% expression, all art is...that means full freedom, the fact that pitchfork gives it a 7.0 after saying it is solid for the most part, but very different is a paradox in it self.

I call this a milstone in music, coming from another artist staying true to his art form, thank you P.O.S. I love it!!

Freshness: 5 out of 5

Content: 5 out of 5 and twenty-five thumbs up Love it!