The underground hip hop scene is thriving in California. By underground I refer to a collection of artists that radio exclusive listeners will be unfamiliar with, perhaps the music is too gangsta or not enough, either way, no radio recognition for the underground. With the economy of the music industry drastically shifting to newer more creative consumption platforms, the underground rapper is beginning to enjoy the playing field being leveled. Tours and sponsorship have once again become the path to monetary success, and that’s one thing that the indie rappers have on lock. California underground kings Strong Arm Steady find themselves in the middle of the resurgence, and have teamed up with MadLib for their next project titled, Stoney Jackson. Check out some early leaks.

Strong Arm Steady-Get Started (Feat.Talib Kweli)(Prod. By Madlib)

Strong Arm Steady – Loose Girl (Feat. The Jacka) (Prod. By Madlib)

This album will feature a myriad of underground bredren, such as: Talib Kweli, Guilty Simpson, Little Brother’s Phonte, and Planet Asia. Strong Arm Steady has worked with Madlib on projects in the past and should find his beats cooked to perfection. Madlib is a master when it comes to tailor-made collaborations, some strong examples include: 2003’s Jaylib with J Dilla and 2004’s Madvillain with DOOM, as well as the Talib Kweli/Madlib album Liberation. This project was spawned by J.Rocc, Madlib’s trusty DJ, having given the Strong Arm gang a fortnight of beats catered for the rowdy clique.

At first glance Fashawn’s story would seem pretty typical. Growing up in Central California, Fashawn, or Santiago Leyva, was typically challenged with temptations of vice and violence. A product of boredom and economic hardship, Fresno is home to over 100 street gangs, and drug use is rampant. Fashawn’s mother was an addict and all the reasons in the world were there for Fashawn to fail at life whilst attempting to succeed on the street. However, rather than participate, Fashawn took an active role in documenting the life around him, his medium to do so was the old ink and pad. After catching the attention of fellow Fresno rapper Planet Asia, Fashawn went on tour, he was 17 at the time. He has since moved to Los Angeles and teamed up with So Cal indie stalwarts such as Exile and Evidence. Yesterday, Fashawn dropped his debut LP, titled “Boy Meets World”, produced entirely by Exile. I’ve been listening to this album for a week and can attest to the following: Fashawn’s new album is sonic excellence. Rap is back in L.A., even if the buck paused in Fresno for a bit. Check out some of the tracks on the LP and the lead music video. My review is after the jump.

Fashawn – Intro

Fashawn ft. Evidence – Our Way

Fashawn ft. Mistah Fab & Coss – Sunny CA

Fashawn – Boy Meets World (2009)

The first track, or “Intro” on this album is high energy, bass thumping Nor Cal flavor at its finest. Fashawn comes hard on the introduction and is quick to show off his fanciful word play. On “Our Way” featuring Evidence, Fashawn takes an opportunity to shed light on the rough world he found himself in, specifically the ghetto aspects of Fresno City. On that track Fashawn is significantly more lively than Evidence in both energy and content, spitting the following fire:

ugh, Cen Cal terrain soak up game
where Grafitters bomb trains and
poets is smoked out with dope in there veins
need a toaster to post where we hang
dialect unmatched, gotta apdapt to the slang thats spoke

There’s no doubt this LP  has a retro feel to it, the familiarity of Exile’s production is certainly a large part of that, however, Fashawn is a throwback MC, to times when MC’s were magnanimous, doused in gold and spit platinum ballads. That being said, at times Fashawn’s crispy clean intonations and ghetto swag have you swooning on memories of Big L circa 1999. His rhymes are by no means fluff, spitting with controlled ferocity and precocious confidence, Fashawn is clearly at a point in his career where he feels compelled to make the right moves. The move to L.A. went well, teaming up with Exile for this LP was also intelligently positive. What’s next?

Cover art for Vinyl Shuffle mixtape 10/09/09

Recorded on a Friday night after a nice Sushi date at our favorite Sushi restaurant in all of SoCal (9 Style Sushi in San Clemente).

The records on this track start with a rare Paul McCartney interview album, complete with random background noises.  He talks about musical influences, rambling into the Pepper years, and then gets confused by a memory of recording out of tune on Rubber Soul… Errr… Wait, Revolver.  Cut.  Next up is my favorite Madness song, “Michael Caine”.  You can’t go wrong with Michael Caine’s voice over a Madness song. Speaking of artists that begin with “M”, check out the Madonna “Give it 2 Me” remix on picture disk. How about more “M”s?  Like Mandrill’s  “Universal Rhythms” – not a song I’d put in a typical mix, but randomly, it’s a good separator between Madonna and Al Jarreau’s “We Got By”.  Well, that’s marks the end of the alliterative tribute to the letter “M” on this masterful mix.  Only a game such as Vinyl Shuffle could produce such an poetic beginning… I could say this mix falls apart from here… I mean… “Exile”?  After listening to this the next day, my thought is that it certainly does not.

Sad but totally-true day-after story: I left the last album of this mix, “Get Happy” by Elvis Costello, on the turntable last night.  And I left the dust cover off.  When I opened the blinds the next morning, the blinds fell and knocked down a wooden model ship (of the “Cutty Sark”) from the window sill. The Cutty Sark fell onto the record and cut a deep groove into the vinyl across four songs.  RUINED!  I raised my fists into the air, immediately thought of John Cusack, and blamed him!  Here’s why:

• John Cusack starred in “High Fidelity” in 2000.  A movie about an emo record collector and serial monogamist.
• The last song I played on this mix?  “High Fidelity”, by Elvis Costello.
• A different Elvis Costello song appeared on the soundtrack of “High Fidelity”… That song?  “Shipbuilding”
• What fell down and ruined my record?  The Cutty Sark.  A ship.

Well, maybe Elvis Costello is to blame just as much, but I’m pretty sure John Cusack had a hand it this.

Listen right now:

Or Download the MP3 here:
Vinyl Shuffle mixtape 10/09/09

Playlist:

• Paul McCartney. “Paul discusses Motown, Stax, The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds, Sgt Pepper, Rubber Soul / Revolver” (The McCartney Interview); Columbia Records, 1980
• Madness. “Michael Caine” (Keep Moving); Stiff Records, 1984
• Madonna. “Give it 2 Me #2″ (12″ Single); Warner Bros, 2008
• Mandrill. “Universal Rhythms” (IS); Polydor, 1972
• Al Jarreau. “We Got By” (We Got By); Reprise / WB Records, 1975
• Chic. “Everybody Dance” (Les Plus Grands Succes De Chic); Atlantic Records, 1979
• Exile. “Kiss You All Over” (Mixed Emotions); WB / Curb Records, 1978
• Run DMC. “Walk This Way” (12″ Single); Profile Records, 1986
• Sverre Holm med Frank Cooks Orkester. “Vi Drar Hjem” (Music From Norway); Fiesta Record Company, Inc, 19??
• The Sugar Cubes. “motorcrash” (life’s too good); Elektra/Asylum, 1988
• Robyn Hitchcock ‘n’ the Egyptians. “Madonna of the Wasps” (12″ Single); A&M Records, 1989
• Con Funk Shun. “Not Ready” (Candy); Phonogram / Polygram / Mercury, 1979
• Peanut Butter Wolf w/ Planet Asia + Madlib. “definition of ill Remix Instrumental” (definition of ill); Stonesthrow, 1999
• Phyllis Hyman. “Beautiful Man of Mine” (Phyllis Hyman); Buddah Records, 1977
• The Brand New Heavies. “Dream Come True” (The Brand New Heavies); Delicious Vinyl, 1991
• Brand Nubian. “Don’t Let it go to your Head” (Foundation); Arista, 1998
• Leonard Cohen. “Hey, That’s No Way to Say Goodbye” (Songs of Leonard Cohen) Columbia, 1967
• Elvis Costello. “High Fidelity” (Get Happy); Columbia, 1980

I’m not really a gamer so I don’t know if I can do this justice, but I just heard about this pretty cool project. So this video game Marvel vs. Capcom 2 is apparently the 4th installment of Marvel vs. Capcom games that just dropped this summer for Xbox360 and PS3. The game is set to it’s original jazz soundtrack, but the developers also produced an extra soundtrack for hip hop heads. Link and more info after the jump.

The mixtape is made up of tracks from a bunch of hip hop legends, like the above video of the Hiero track. Other collaborators include Planet Asia, Raekwon, Kweli, The Grouch & Eligh, E-40, Supernat, DJ Qbert, Havoc, and more. All the tracks are somehow inspired by the game and other old school fighting games.

In line with some of Ben’s Da Wh@t’s on my Mind posts, I’d be curious to hear what you guys think of this and these kind of collaborations in general. Do you guys think that branching out into other entertainment is good or bad? Does it help hip hop grow and challenge it’s artists to be creative and flexible? Or does it take away some of the purity of the music? In some cases you might think it does take away from it’s purity because it’s an financial exploit, but on the consumer side we’re getting it for free. Anyways, any thoughts about this or related issues would be awesome.

You can download 10 of the tracks from Marvel for now. The other tracks are apparently available from PSN, but I’m having trouble finding them. If anyone has a link to that please post it in comments! If not I’ll try and find it and add it as an update.

The latest installment from The Closers feat. Planet Asia….Go get this

DOWNLOAD

http://www.discogs.com/Self-Scientific-You-Cant-Fall-Three-Kings-Remix/release/937458

Artist……………: Self Scientific
Album…………….: You Can’t Fall 12”
Genre…………….: Hip-Hop
Source……………: Vinyl
Year……………..: 2001
Ripper……………: Audacity
Codec…………….: LAME 3.98
Version…………..: MPEG 1 Layer III
Quality…………..: Standard, (avg. bitrate: 200kbps)
Channels………….: Joint Stereo / 48000 hz
Tags……………..: , ID3 v2.3

Tracklisting

1. (00:03:06) Self Scientific – A1 – You Can’t Fall (Radio)
2. (00:03:06) Self Scientific – A2 – You Can’t Fall (Album)
3. (00:03:06) Self Scientific – A3 – You Can’t Fall (Instrumental)
4. (00:04:31) Self Scientific – B1 – Three Kings Feat. Krondon & Planet Asia (Remix) (Radio)
5. (00:04:31) Self Scientific – B2 – Three Kings Feat. Krondon & Planet Asia (Remix) (Album)
6. (00:04:31) Self Scientific – B3 – Three Kings (Remix) (Instrumental)

Playing Time………: 00:22:50
Total Size………..: 32.62 MB

http://www.mediafire.com/?guy2y0ymwmm

Tone Spliff - AUTHENTIC

What up, what up, what up!? So back in April I caught Hip-Hop fever and was determined to look for fresh Hip-Hop joints. That is when I came across this gem of an album entitled AUTHENTIC, by New York Turntablist Tone Spliff. Nowadays with Rap and Hip-Hop artists I hardly listen to their entire album. The last full album that I actually purchased in hardcopy CD form was Jay-Z’s Black Album and Kanye West’s College Dropout because they had solid joints from start to finish – no fillers, no bullshit.

I gotta say, this album lived up to its billing as being AUTHENTIC. The first song I listened to from the album was a joint between Royce da 5′9″ and Apathy called “If You Forgot My Name.” The song was a fast, hard hitting track that had some of the best cuts and samples to be used in a hip-hop song. The sample from Nas’ legendary song, “Nas is like…” never gets old and reminds you of the New York hip-hop roots of the album. Royce and Apathy just murdered it with their lyrical content and deliver. The anger, emotion, passion, and message of the lyrics on this track reminded me of the same passion and fire that Jay-Z and Eminem’s lyrics delivered on the “Renegade” track of the first Blueprint album. There was no letting down and both Apathy and Royce just let all go on the wax for this song. You would not forget their name…

Another track that packed mad heat was the track “Heartfelt” by Braille and Tone Spliff. “Heartfelt” was the opposite of “If You Forgot My Name” in terms of lyrical pace, beat, and content. The sound of the track was much more simple with a humming sample in the background and a slow and steady beat on top. The sample reminded of something that Kanye West would use. Braille’s lyrics over the track perfectly matched the mood of the track. The lyrics just reminded you of the daily hunger, struggle, and pain of the streets. This is a joint you just sit back, chill, and listen to.

The contrasting styles of “Heartfelt” and “If You Forgot My Name” show the depth and variety that Tone Spliff delivered on the album. Another notable tracks are “Act Like You Know Me,” “Respect Is Due,” “You,” and “The Right Way.” This is an album that is hot from start to finish. The tracks on the album start fast and by the end the tracks are slower paced, but in a good way. The samples and beats are just refreshing. For instance, “Respect Is Due” and “Live & Direct” are tracks that are wind instrument-heavy, but in each respective song they are utilized very differently. “The Right Way” and “Inside Out” tracks both have piano beats, but are different in tempo and beat. Its all creatively done and pieced together without duplicating the previous track. This album is the reason why I love Hip-Hop…and I did purchase this album.

Tracklisting:

1. Authentic Intro – Tizz

2. Do It For You – Krumbsnatcha

3. NSFW Skit – Tone Spliff

4. Funky 2 the Bone – Copywrite, Murdoc & King DOM

5. Act Like You Know Me – Baby Blak

6. Settin’ the Stage – Special Teamz

7. If You Forgot My Name – Apathy & Royce da 5′9″

8. Respect Is Due – Born Talent

9. Live & Direct – King Magnetic

10. You – Rise

11. Understood Perfectly – Irealz & Planet Asia

12. State of Mind – Shabaam Sahdeeq, Jukstapose, Chaundon

13. Heartfelt – Braille

14. The Right Way – Wordsworth & Okwerdz

15, Inside Out – Skyzoo, Copywrite & Pace Won

undergroundhiphop.com

Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 just became available on XBOX 360 this week, for the release they will also be dropping a mixtape.  Talib Kweli, Raekwon, Hieroglyphics, E40, Qbert, Supernatural, Havoc, Planet Asia and DJ Toure have all been tapped for the mixtape.  Planet Asia and DJ Toure recently dropped a video for their collaboration Superheroes from the upcoming Marvel Vs. Capcom mixtape.

Source/Fuente: Marvel vs Capcom 2 is Now Available on Xbox Live [http://marvel.com/news/vgstories.8984.Download_Marvel_vs~dot~_Capcom_2_Now_on_360].

Vancouver, B.C. – In some ways Planet Asia embodies a modern Faust: he’s clearly a seeker of knowledge but has the edge of experience to give depth to his search. He’s been rapping for decades, and while he retains a child-like devotion to his craft he comes hard in his music: lyrically aggressive and unabashedly righteous.  The Fresno boy is a strong advocate for the things that form his identity: his town, his crew and his spiritual persuasions.  He sees the world in terms of good and evil – a practically defunct paradigm in this day and age – and applies this filter to his music.  He’s been around for a minute and has a deep understanding of hip-hop’s ethos, having watched it grow from the ground up in his childhood.[read more]

By Amalia J. Nickel for HipHopCanada

Soul Assassins ft. Planet Asia – Like That Yall

New Soul Assassins joint, off their new album “Intermission”.


Check out the download below.


Download HERE


Source OnSmash

01. Gangsta Shit (feat. Bun B and M1) 2:44
02. Classical (feat. Sick Jacken and Evidence) 3:03
03. Gunshots (feat. Chace Infinite and Alchemist) 2:57
04. Do It (feat. La Coka Nostra) 3:28
05. Rep Yo Shit (feat. P.C.P. aka Sick Jacken and Necro) 3:00
06. Good Evening Los Angeles (feat. Self Scientific) 3:07
07. Meet Your Maker (feat. Reef The Lost Cause and Outer Space) 3:52
08. Intermission (feat. RZA, Rev William Burk, Planet Asia and 2:29
B-Real)
09. Champions (Remix) (feat. Prodigy and Big Twin) 2:51
10. Let Go (My Life) (feat. Fashawn 2:51
11. Like That Y’all (feat. Planet Asia) 3:05
12. World We’re In (feat. Cynic) 4:23
13. Call It Like I See It (feat. Chace Infinite and Krondon) 3:34
14. Matchbox (feat. Dust) 4:05
15. Figure it Out (feat. Young De, Xzibit and Mykestro) (Bonus 4:27
Track)

apawllo: Great production from DJ Muggs as usual, and many of the features compliment the beats well. Solid album.

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