Jake One's new album is getting a lot of buzz in both the streets and underground scene. It's beautiful that Rhymesayers is putting out an album of this caliber.
Brother Ali and Freeway on the same track!? HERESY!
Anyway, the first single from Jake One's White Van Music is "Truth Is" which features the two aforementioned rappers and is getting a video shot by the one and only Rik Cordero. If you've seen Mr. Cordero's work before, you know that he has a unique visual style that sets his videos apart from the rest of the pack, which is perfect to be the first video shot for such a unique album.
Here are the previews for the video. The first one was released a while ago, but the second one with Freeway was just put out today. Check it out.
Well now, seems like P.O.S. was featured on UoM's Making Music series too! Rhymesayers' YouTube Channel has the videos up, but I'll post 'em here to make it easier on you cats.
Time for another Ant post! I found this interview a while back, but I figured I'd share it with you guys today.
The University of Minnesota was doing a string of interviews with local artists that were called "Making Music" where they asked how that particular artist got started, what production techniques they use, their philosophy on making music, etc. Here, our main man Ant breaks it down on how he first met Musab (Beyond) and Slug, why he started touring in the first place, (but we already know that answer--to get a new house) and how he handles production between Atmosphere and Brother Ali's projects. Actually, I sent him that same question in for the Paint It Gold Show and he never answered me. :(
Interview links below. Check it out, it's a pretty funny and informative thirty minutes.
Those Doomtree cats are really making some noise, aren't they? HipHopDX has a new interview with RSE's own P.O.S. and Dessa of the Minneapolis collective.
Anthony Davis, the other half of Atmosphere, is one of the realist men on Earth.
I seriously can't it put any other way. Ant is the realist of the real, and that's some real shit.
I know that may sound kind of goofy, but it's the truth! It's rare that you can find entertainers -- much less members of rap groups -- who keep it so real that you are in awe of their of their honesty. Ant is one of those people.
Before 2005 Ant wasn't really in the spotlight at all; Slug was the man who went out and toured, effectively becoming the public face of Atmosphere while Ant chilled back home in Minneapolis. In recent times however, Ant has been seen all over the place spreading his realness across the nation, leaving Atmosphere fans in complete astonishment and admiration.
I may be going out on a limb here, but argue me this: if everyone kept it as real as Ant does, terrorism wouldn't exist. Dane Cook would actually be funny. And most importantly, that damn George W. Bush most definitely wouldn't have been elected for two terms in a row.
The first two were jokes.
Anyway, I've compiled a little list on things about Ant that add to his overall realness. Read on.
1) Ant likes to smoke and drink beers, so he fucking smokes and drinks beers. Chances are if you've seen Ant in person, he more than likely has a beer in his hand or a cigarette in his mouth--or both. Essential to his overall cool and realness, Ant has to be smoking or drinking a budweiser.
Think I'm joking? Take another look at the picture at the top of this post. How many other DJs do you know that can canspin records and smoke at the same time?
Kid Capri? No. DJ Q-Bert? Nope. Tony Touch? Hell no (does he even DJ anymore?). DJ Abilities? Better think twice. Ant? Yes, motherfucker. He probably has a six-pack of Budweiser right by his feet when he's performing. Why?
Because Ant keeps shit real.
2)Ant gives you brutal honesty. If you don't like it, fuck you. This is just self-explanatory right here. Ant tells you the truth, and nothing but the truth. You do know that Brother Ali's second LP, which Ant produced, is called The Undisputed Truth right? Who do you think came up with that title--Ant did. His truth is indisputable and he tells it like it is, how it was, and how it shall be.
Here's my evidence for this claim (notice the Budweiser and cigarette in his left hand):
Did you hear that? Here are some real ass quotes from that video:
"No fuck you--you're retarded. Slug is a motherfucking gawddamn genius, fuck you."
"I don't take it serious because nobody else does. I don't think anybody else takes this shit seriously, so why should I?"
Interviewer: "Is there a number on the years until you retire?" Ant: "Kidney failure."
And here's a bonus quote from Atmosphere's Paint It Gold Show: Slug: "So Ant, what made you decide to start touring with a live band?" Ant: "When I needed a new house."
That's some real ass shit.
3) Ant maintains his cool at all times, no matter what else is going on. Seriously, he does. No matter what Ant may be doing his cool is at a constant.
I can explain it better like this:
The sun rises every morning.
Birds migrate south for the winter.
Slug's female fans hate Lucy.
Ant is the coolest motherfucker within a 20 mile radius.
Look at these pictures for instance, taken from the Sad Clown Bad Dub 13 DVD:
What's Slug doing? Being silly making snow angels. What's Ant doing? Keeping it real, being cool smoking a fucking cigarette. Because that's what the fuck Ant does and he's a cool ass motherfucker.
Again, we see Ant being cool as hell. Standing on the corner of a street, holding up a sign for a song called "Panic Attack" (which he is immune to, simply because he's Ant and panicking isn't in his repertoire), but still being cool. See the look on his face? His ever present cigarette? It's all cool baby. Constant cool. Classic Ant. Now we see Atmosphere performing. Look closely: Slug is rapping. The bass player is playing. The fans are cheering. Ant? Ant's being cool. He's got his cigarette, and he's clapping along with the music in the coolest way possible. Everyone else is on edge, focusing on something that their full attention must be given to, except Ant. Ant's not on edge--Ant's focused on being cool, which is something he doesn't even have to focus on being. It's natural. It's Ant.
Do you see what I mean now? Ant is the realist of the real, keeping it real with himself and all others on a definite basis. He is the epitome of cool, not changing his attitude or opinions for no one. So Atmosphere fans: when Ant's around, you need to know that he's cool, so be cool around him. He's a real dude who keeps it real, so keep it real with him.
If we all follow Ant's lead, the world will truly be a better place.
Doomtree/Rhymesayers artist P.O.S. (and heartthrob to many teenage girls) and his fellow Doomtree members got a mention today over at Wired's Listening Post.
While browsing the interbutts trying to dig up information on Mr. Anthony Davis (Ant from Atmosphere) for an article I'm working on -- which I promise that you guys will absolutely adore -- I found a very interesting interview from City Pages with Brother Ali detailing his early years growing up, how he got his start with RSE and his relationship with his fans.
Here are a few snippets:
"I saw Ali struggle so much when he was young," says Nick Newman, who is four years Ali's junior. "With the vision, with getting treated so shitty when he was little. We went sledding one time, and these kids teamed up on him and beat up on him just because of the way he looked."
Ali studied to become an imam, giving lectures on Fridays, and inviting Arlene El-Amin to dinner with his family in New Hope. "I think they were probably taken aback," she says. "Not only did he embrace Islam, which was something that they were not familiar with, but he chose to embrace Islam in a predominantly African American community."
One day in 1998, Radio K's weekly hip-hop program, The Beat Box, featured guests Slug and fellow Rhymesayers rapper Eyedea (Michael Larsen). Unprompted and uninvited, Ali headed down to the studio with a demo tape. Milwaukee-raised BK-One (Brendan Kelly), the show's co-host, soon became his DJ. Everyone else became his friend.
Rhymesayers Entertainment is an independent record label out of Minneapolis, Minnesota, being responsible for releasing some of the best rap music that the Hip-Hop has to offer. Like so many others, I am an avid fan of their music and overall contribution to the culture; RSE is the best alternative for rap music compared to the systematic, stale dogma of the mainstream music industry.
I've been a fan of Rhymesayers since 2004 when my friend popped in Atmosphere's God Loves Ugly one day. When Onemosphere first came on, I was taken aback by this group--for one, because of the unconventional beat he was rapping over, and because he was white; for two, I was a firm believer back then that if you were a white rapper and your name wasn't Eminem, you were whack.
Oh, how ignorant I was.
After a few listens of GLU, I was a fan; it was refreshing to hear something different from the usual rap music I was used to listening to. But it wasn't until that I heard Brother Ali's Shadows on the Sun that I turned into a die-hard fan of the crew from Minneapolis (just for kicks: I didn't know he was white, not that it particularly mattered, but still). Every album after that I subsequently devoured and passed on to my friends, promoting the music as something "different," which is something I still do to this day as a a part of Rhymesayers' Street Team. Sweet, right?
I started this blog as a service to the fans of RSE and to hopefully attract newcomers. Occasionally I'll write in-depth articles on RSE and their artists, but I'll always update with news, any interviews I run across and interesting videos I see. The one thing you won't get from this blog are illegal songs--it's just not going to happen so don't bother asking. If you guys really want to make me feel giddy inside, send me any links you may find on the net and I'll forward them to the right people, effectively shutting them down.
So that's it, folks. Subscribe, tell your friends, and spread the word.
"So put your hands up if you feel the music. Because all that matters is the bass and the movement." -- Slug
