The Nice AND Funny Guys
Besides being a capable Hip-Hop band and managing their own clothing line, it turns out the members of Nice Guys are also full of humor. This clip was filmed a few months ago but passed under the radar. Now that their getting some attention from their latest single “Mr. Perfect” and the voluptuous Maliah Michele, it’s worth another look. Their debut The Show will be in stores September 28.
If you’re in Houston, catch them at the House of Blues on these dates.
September 4th: With Talib Kweli
September 16th: Frontline 3 Tour
September 23rd: With Big Sean & Mickey Factz
The Nice Guys “10k Hours/Wire Road Studio”
Trek Life “Due West”
Singles that don’t have a chorus are always a risk. That’s why Trek Life believes his latest, “Due West,” may be the most important song on his Everything Changed Nothing album.
The song is a historical narrative that chronicles the journey of black people who migrated from the South to California. The track was challenge from producer Oddissee to move beyond the immediate history of Hip-Hop music and to the people and conditions of the preceded the music’s creation in the late 70s and 80s.
“I’ve always wanted to get into the history of Cali more and more since it seems like, from a rap perspective, Cali (LA specifically) only really goes as deep as the early 80’s,” Trek Life told The LA Times. ” “I talked to my family and the parents of my friends to hear the stories of their migration to LA and other areas and to get a good perspective on the black migration to Cali. You’ll find that most of us are first generation LA folks and of that we all really started in Central California and migrated North and South to the major cities…Oddisee actually presented the challenge after we had spent long hours on the road talking about the history of our areas and families. I came to the studio, he played the beat and presented the idea. I was 100% with it.”
Trek Life “Due West”
Apollo Brown Shares His Techniques
From his own 2010 album (The Reset) to soul remixes with singer Ayah, Apollo Brown has had a very productive year so far. But instead of resting on his laurels, he’s keeping up a tireless work ethic to finish collaborative projects with his group The Left (Gas Mask), Boog Brown (Brown Study), and Hassan Mackey (The Daily Bread). Although this video just dropped this month, it appears to be from earlier in the year as Brown states his album The Reset will be coming out (it was released in May). Anybody know the sample he used in this clip?
J. Cole Wants His Own Illmatic
“This generation never had an Illmatic, so they’re really looking hard for one.” –Phonte
J. Cole is the latest new school emcee this year to catch the Illmatic spirit (check out Fashawn’s Ode to Illmatic). While everyone is waiting on his debut album, Cole has decided to hold fans over by working on a brand new mixtape. For the beat, he borrows Kanye’s “Devil in a New Dress” to reflect on whether striving for a classic album will translate into commercial success. West’s track felt unfinished, but Cole puts a definite stamp on his interpretation. If this is the level of emceeing to expect on the mixtape, he might not have to worry about putting the album out in December like he’s planned. Still, I love to see young artists taking their art seriously. If Illmatic is your goal, you won’t make an bad album even if you come up short.
J. Cole “Villematic”
Beats, Boxing and Mayhem 