Don’t worry though. Although my status as a blogger is now almost nonexistent, I plan to make a comeback. Very soon.

So just hang in there a little longer, and I promise you I’ll be back. & Better. (:

-hannahrenee.

Wow.

So, last night I was at The Roxy rocking out to my favorite duo of the late 2000’s, Blu & Exile. My voice is husky, I woke up all clammy, and I think I’m going to be late for work, but I don’t care. It’s BLU & EXILE. I haven’t been to their show since…since January at The Key Club! Man, and the whole crew was there too: Mainframe (who I LOVE, that smooth-talker), Cash is King, Blu, Exile, his manager JK. Or was it JP? I can’t think of it anymore but the man rolls in a BMW. He’s either that good of a manager or it’s his Korean heritage coming to play, hahaha.

“But, Hannah, you’re BROKE. How’d you go to the show??”

I’m gonna tell you how. I won two free tickets + VIP through Twitter. Yes, TWITTER. I feel indebted to Twitter right now because The Roxy hooked it UP. All because I mentioned a favorite upcoming show. Like, word?! Plus, it’s the first show I’ve been to in…a while AND it was at my favorite venue. Why’s it my favorite venue? Dude, the stage is like, real low. That shit comes up to my upper thighs, and I’m a petite 5′2″. Yeah. I’ve had Talib Kweli’s sweat dripping on me and last night was no different.

The only thing I’m kind of mad about is the fact that I fucked up with the whole camera situation; I left my memory card at home and in turn left my battery (and the charger) at work (I forgot about the fact that I was charging it). But it’s okay, I still got some pictures that I’m just waiting on.

The opening acts were real good. I loved Ashleigh Haney; she’s one white girl who can sing the shit out of soul. The last song of her set, “Sweetheart”, went SO HARD. That girl had some runs in her too–great, great. Hopefully I can track her down and get an interview (or two) out of her. Cherry Pop were these two chicks who reminded me of M.I.A, Gravy Train, and Britney Spears put together. Kind of weird but dope at the same time. They had some ill ass beats to their songs, which were very sexually overpowering and full of feminism.

MIGUEL. I love this man’s voice, but I really wish he performed “Vixen”. BUT, he made up for it for singing “Quickie” as the last song of his set. That man has a lot of energy and definitely impacting stage presence.

And, of course, Blu & Exile didn’t disappoint. They never do. I love them, lol.

I was so happy I got to chop it up real quick with Exile, and I was so happy to have given both of them props on their shit. They’re so dope, like, foreal.

I can’t wait for the next time either (or both) of them perform!

-hannahrenee.

PS) Exile, I’m serious. Hit me up on Twitter the next time you’re going to be at Low End Theory!!

I want to apologize to everyone who’s been checking back to see if there were any updates since the announced hiatus of the blog. I originally planned to update once everyone was set and had at least three separate interviews lined up and ready to go. Unfortunately, that’s not the case! These are hard times, and I know I have trouble having money for transportation. Stealing out of my little brother’s piggy bank can only get me so far, not to mention the fact that it’s kind of fucked up to do so (and I know all of you with younger siblings have done the same). I also want to thank everyone for checking back to see if there were any updates, and I want to thank everyone who’s encouraged me to keep the blog going. I was honestly going to let it fade and move on to another project. All of you made me realize that I should keep this going, and I’m more than happy to oblige.

And, I have a few good people to interview, all lined up and just pending dates. Hopefully my financial state improves over the next month.

BUT, that’s not the whole reason as to why I decided to update.

I have come across a new addictive set of songs, thanks to Rek of IgnantWitted.com and I thought they were too good for me to be selfish with.

Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce to you the compilation of eight songs that blew me away from song one:

Click to listen and download.

Here’s the track listing for the…beat tape? I don’t know what to call it exactly.

Beatnick & K-Salaam presents Never Can Say Goodbye
1. Michael Jackson – I’ll Be There Remix
2. Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell – Ain’t No Mountain High Enough Remix
3. Stevie Wonder – My Cherie Amor Remix
4. Michael Jackson – Never Can Say Goodbye Remix
5. Marvin Gaye – What’s Going On Remix
6. Stevie Wonder – Uptight Remix
7. Michael Jackson – ABC Remix
8. Marvin Gaye – Let’s Get It On Remix

As you may have guessed, this is actually a compilation of remixes of various Michael Jackson (from his Jackson 5 days), Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder songs. When I listened to the songs, I was blown away. I think this is the best set of remixes I’ve come across yet, and I seriously had to go back and listen to the original songs to compare the two sounds. It made me wonder why the original songs weren’t produced like this!

I am now witness to the genius and skill of the two producers, Beatnick and K-Salaam.

Now, let me talk about my three favorite songs.

Michael Jackson – I’ll Be There Remix
The thing I like about this song the most is the little sample of what Michael says the beginning of the song. It’s a sample of an interview he did where the interviewer asks him: “When you go about writing, what happens?” His answer is what gets me, and I think the way he said it was beautiful: “I couldn’t explain the anatomy of why it happens.” In turn the interviewer asks: “There’s a formula?” And my beloved Michael Jackson says: “Not that I know of. I…it’s my heart, I put my heart in it.”

Now, tell me that doesn’t get you???

I guess it’s a little biased on my part because 1) I love Michael Jackson, 2) I spent the whole day today listening to Michael Jackson and watching the VMA tribute and funeral I recorded on my DVR, and 3) I am a writer. In any case, that little sample that lasts only sixteen seconds of the song made an impact on me. And so, I am hooked.

Michael Jackson – Never Can Say Goodbye Remix
Ah, the title of this compilation, and also this particular blog entry. Coincidentally enough it fits; I never can say goodbye to Michael Jackson, nor to this blog.

Anyway, compared to the original, I love how the two producers cleverly added the trumpets into the instrumental, on top of accentuating the bass and sounds of the synthesizer.

“Tell me why is it so…I want to let you go!”

Stevie Wonder – Uptight Remix
I love this song. As you can hear from each and every one of the songs in this compilations, Beatnick and K-Salaam have a way of stripping the song from their original sound, yet leaving the essence of the original intact while laying down a more contemporary instrumental. This song, “Uptight”, is the perfect example of their skill. “Uptight” was produced in 1966, heavily laced with trumpets and the whole Motown sound of that time period. When you hear  the original, you feel like Stevie Wonder is competing for the focus that the trumpets take away from his voice. However, Beatnick and K-Salaam’s remix totally takes the original instrumental away, accentuating Stevie’s voice with subtle trumpets, slight bass, and a bit of the synthesizer that overall compliments Stevie, while leaving the essence of the original instrumental intact.

All in all, I give this a 10 out of 10, and know that I’ll have this on repeat for a good while.

-hannahrenee.

Mixed by DJ Pickster One

West Coast Heavyweights Bash Bros.(Lefty & Piseas) & Afro Classics (Scarub of Living Legends & Very) are back at it again! WORKAHOLICS 2 is here!!!  This time they teamed up with DJ Pickster One to release the second installment to the classic mixtape series “WORKAHOLICS”.   Afro Classics & Bash Bros linked up to deliver all new material ranging from exclusives to songs from upcoming releases.  This here is for the employees of the month & this certified street banger is available for FREE download!

Enjoy Workaholics!

(Download also includes Workaholics 2 exclusive tracks full versions)

WORKAHOLICS 2 DOWNLOAD LINK:

http://www.divshare.com/download/8121030-044

TRACK LISTING FOR DJ Pickster One mix:

1 Workaholics 2 intro

2 Lemonade
3 Southern cali car music
4 On your best
5 Working my soul

6 Boom In it

7 Ryder shit (prod: Style Misia)
8 Rock the spot (Tokimonster mix)
9 Never knew me

10 Right Yeah
11 the Calm
12 Gotta Make Work

13 Hi ho (What you want)
14 Sponge Bob speaks on it

15 Get Free
16 Afro Mind Control

17 Slave
18 Eyes up
19 Work
20 I still love her?
21 The code

22 Let’s Go

23 Radio
24 World still burnz
25 Show me yours
26 Bada bing

27 Suck My

28 Workaholics forever

Visit Workaholics online at:

Bash Bros (Lefty & Piseas):

www.thebashbros.com

Afro Classics (Scarub & Very):

www.myspace.com/afroclassicsmusic

hey guys. this is going to be the last post until mid-September. the urban decadence will be going on a short hiatus due to some changes we’ll be making regarding the inner workings. sorry for the inconvenience, but we’ll be back soon (:

-hannahrenee.

If you don’t know who Percee P is, I suggest you read up on him here.

I know that for an artist like you, there should be no introduction, but just in case there’s anyone out there who isn’t familiar with you, could you tell us a little about who you are?

I am the monarch of the subterranean, legendary lethal lyricist, the rhyme inspector Percee P. Shout out to South Bronx, New York; you know what I’m saying, 718 area code, Patterson housing projects. Now I reside out here in the 818—from the 718 to the 818, keep it one-hundred, so I say I represent ‘Bronx Angeles’. (smiles)

(laughs) When did you come to L.A.?

Um, now it’s five years, I’ve been out here for five years, on the grind, moving into a new territory. I’m trying to build a new fan base and keep it going, you know.

And how long have you been in the game?

Uh, rapping I’ve been doing since 1979, and I was making records since 1988 so that’s twenty-one years I’ve been pushing albums. So, that’s why I called my album ‘Perseverance’ that came out through Stones Throw Records, which was produced by my man Madlib.

Wow, that’s a long time!

Well, you know, it sounds long but it’s not as long as Michael Jackson or James Brown, you know. So, that’s the mission really. I mean, to me, I look at music as something you do for longevity, so, twenty-one years is a long time but it’s not long because most people in other genres of music keep doing their music. Like, jazz musicians can still rock and they’ve been alive in the ‘30s or ‘40s and if they’re still alive now they’ll probably still practice their careers, their craft. But with hip hop, they think that if people be doing something for longer than twenty years they say ‘Oh, you old-school’. But, really, I look at it as more time to exercise your craft and develop your skill. So that’s how I’m looking at it, and as time goes on, I’m getting better with time like an unopened bottle of wine.

Mmm, that makes sense. And how long have you been under Stones Throw?

Well, um, before I came here, you know, I was in New York—I met them in New York, selling music. That’s how they met me and we stayed in contact. I was actually working on my album and I decided to move out here and kept going. I also had to wait for other artists to be released, you know what I’m saying, before my project came out, you know, like Jaylib, which was cool because of the promotion. So, I just basically kept my name out there and setting out my album, ‘Perseverance’.

That’s dope. How did you come to name yourself ‘Percee P’?

Well, Percy is my real name. John Percy Simon. My whole family always called me ‘Percy’; when I went to school, the only people that called me ‘John’ were my teachers, but ‘Percy’—my whole family called me ‘Percy’ so I got so used to it. I feel more used to saying ‘Percy’ than ‘John’, ‘cause ‘John’ is such a common name. And ‘Percee P’ is more like an old-school, like Busy-P…basically I’m from that era, so that’s how that came about.

How do you describe your sound, your style of rap?

I believe I just have my own style, you know what I’m saying, like a fingerprint. We all have our own fingerprints, you know, God gave us all our identity. So when it comes to music, I try to think the same, like, there’s a million artists out there but what is it about me that’s going to be different? So I try to have my own style, just like how back in the day with artists like James Brown, when he came out with a song you knew it was him. Michael Jackson, know what I’m saying, it’s him, and I try to think they same when it comes to rapping I want to be like, you know it’s Percee P. There’s a lot of good artists out there but I just want to have my own identity when you hear me. I just don’t want to be a carbon copy. I want to have my own style and own sound and hopefully people would just appreciate it.

Definitely. Since you’ve been in the game for a while, let me ask you: What direction do you think hip hop is taking right now?

Hm. Wow…I mean, there’s a lot of different things. It may feel positive, it’s getting more notoriety, it’s grown, a lot of artists became entrepreneurs. Back in the days more artists pursued record deals but nowadays people can start labels…you have the internet. Now, in my era, back in my time, you had to get on the radio to get known and all those things, but nowadays you don’t really have to worry about the radio. You have people who can put you on their own internet radio stations in their house and broadcast that way on YouTube an all that, still get worldwide. Before, people who would know me were the ones who would come to a show, but nowadays you can be in China somewhere and if you have a computer you can search me up on YouTube or whatever and see the footage of me whoever put up there. That’s what I like about it these days but also it makes the game cheap because you have people—like myself who have been around for years putting in work on the streets and putting out my name like the way the pioneers did it like Grandmaster Flash, Afrika Bambaataa, so on and so forth…they brought their sound systems outside, they brought their music out into the streets and built their reputations. I’m from that era where I would have to go out into the streets to put my music out there, but nowadays it’s all about, you know what I’m saying, it’s more about the internet. People take the fast way out, and I’m more about the streets. I feel like people take shortcuts.

Yeah, I see you almost everywhere and I think, ultimately, that it’s the reason why people are so familiar with you.

(laughs) I’m not really everywhere, I just try to do my field research and figure out where the people would be, so you see me at shows, selling my CDs in front of Fat Beats, you know.

Where do you draw influence or inspiration for your music?

Uh, I mean, I just try to hang around artists just to keep my motivation going. I come to a lot of underground functions like the Urban Underground. A lot more people need to know what’s up, so that gives me more of a push. I feel like a lot of the mainstream artists don’t try so hard ‘cause they already kind of made it.

Definitely! And if you can work with any artist, dead or alive, who would it be?

I mean, there’s so many artists, I mean, there’s a lot of artists I haven’t work with…Big L, I mean, that was my man, personally. I never got a chance to record with him but I would if I could have. Nas…me and him actually recorded a song but it never came out. Kept it real, and he never put it out. But there’s so many people I’d love to work with, and I’m not worried about what label you under, I’m more about the talent, you know?

-hannahrenee.

-hannahrenee.

I swear to whatever god you believe in that it’ll be up tomorrow.

-hannahrenee.

“Converse presents: 9 nights, September 1st – 9th, Peanut Butter Wolf on a 9-night tour of the 9 area codes stretching from Los Angeles, Orange County to the Inland Empire. Each night will be a different music genre from the 90s, with PB Wolf doing all video sets.

The first night, at Pomona’s Glass House, Sep. 1, will be a Stones Throw showcase with Mayer Hawthorne, Dam-Funk, Rhettmatic and Pase Rock. The final night, Sep, 9th, is a party we’ll be announcing in early September.

“999″ follows in the tradition of Wolf’s 888 and 777 events in the past two years, and an all heavy metal DJ set for 6/6/6 in 2006.

909 Tue 1st: Stones Throw Showcase at Glasshouse, 200 W 2nd St, Pomona CA. ALL AGES.
323 Wed 2nd: Low End Theory at Airliner, 2419 N Broadway, Los Angeles. 18+ $5
562 Thu 3rd: Party Weirdo at Club 149, 149 Linden, Long Beach. 21+ $5
626 Fri 4th: Footwork at The Terrace, 443 E Colorado Blvd, Pasadena. 21+ $9.99
213 Sat 5th: Fuck Yeah Festival at Los Angeles Historic State, 1245 N. Spring, L.A. ALL AGES $15 A/$20D
949 Sun 6th: Lovemade at Detroit Bar, 843 W 19th St, Costa Mesa, CA. 21+ $5A/$10D
951 Mon 7th: More Fire Mondays at Sevilla, 3252 Mission Inn Ave, Riverside, CA. $10
714 Tue 8th: The Continental Room, 115 W Santa Fe Ave, Fullerton, CA. 21+ FREE
310 Wed 9th: Private Party with special guest DJs to be announced.

PLAYING: Acid Jazz, Backpack hip hop, Big beat, Brit pop, Cheesy R & B, Commercial rock, Country rock, Dancehall reggae, Death metal, Drum and bass, Freestyle, Gangsta rap, G Funk, Goth industrial, Golden age hip hop, Grunge, Hip house, Indie rock, jiggy, Jock Jams, Keep it real hip hop, Miami Bass, Neo soul, New jack swing, Rave, Sexy house, Shoegaze, Southern rap, Speed metal, Skater punk, Ska revival, Swing revival, Techno, Teen pop, Trance, Trip hop, Turntablism, UK Garage. WHAT TO WEAR?: How about airbrushed overalls with one side down. Cross Colors. Boy London metal hats. a rayon suit with a turtleneck sweater. Tommy Hilfiger. Phillies Blunt t-shirt. a colorful rugby shirt. Rayon pants. polka dots. a denim button up shirt with a flower print tie and White Sox and X baseball cap. All shirts MUST BE tucked into those stonewashed jeans and show off those belt buckles and high top fades and gumbys. No backwards jeans allowed. There’s only one Kris Kross.” (source)

-hannahrenee.

Anyway, onto news I just found out about through Twitter (I love Twitter).

“In the wake of Busdriver’s ground breaking new album “Jhelli Beam,” the art rap progenitor is preparing to launch a North America tour, bringing his rapid fire virtuosic wordplay and exhilarating stage presence to audiences throughout the country. The Los Angeles Times remarked of a Busdriver performance: “Onstage, beneath his tongue-twisting mad-auctioneer rapping style, Busdriver’s b-boy roots come through in the form of his unimpeachable microphone skills and ability to mesmerize the crowd.” Joining Busdriver for all the shows, except in DC, will be fellow LA rapper and Good Life Café/Project Blowed alumnus, Abstract Rude.

Attached is the Busdriver single “Me Time (with the Pulmonary Palimpsest)” remixed by the talented Anticon duo Themselves consisting of Doesone and Jel. Listen here:

Busdriver North American Tour Dates

FRI 8/28 SACRAMENTO, CA – Blue Lamp
SAT 8/29 PORTLAND, OR – Rotture
SUN 8/30 SEATTLE, WA – Chop Suey
MON 8/31 BELLINGHAM, WA – Nightlight
TUE 9/1 VANCOUVER BC – Media Club
THUR 9/3 BOISE, ID – Neurolux
FRI 9/4 SALT LAKE CITY, UT – Urban Lounge
SAT 9/5 DENVER, CO – Bluebird
SUN 9/6 LAWRENCE, KS – Jackpot
MON 9/7 MINNEAPOLIS, MN – Triple Rock
TUE 9/8 CHICAGO, IL Empty – Bottle
WED 9/9 CINCINNATI, OH – Northside Tavern
THUR 9/10 COLUMBUS, OH – Circus
FRI 9/11 TORONTO, ON – El Mocambo
SAT 9/12 MONTREAL, QC – Il Motore
MON 9/14 BOSTON, MA – Middle East
TUE 9/15 NEW YORK, NY – Santo’s Party House
WED 9/16 PHILADELPHIA, PA – Kungfu Necktie
FRI 9/18 BALTIMORE, MD – Talking Head
SAT 9/19 WASHINGTON DC – DC9
SUN 9/20 CHAPEL HILL, NC – Local 506
TUE 9/22 KNOXVILLE, TN – Pilot Light
WED 9/23 BIRMINGHAM, AL – Bottletree
FRI 9/25 DALLAS, TX – Cavern
SAT 9/26 AUSTIN, TX – Red 7
SUN 9/27 HOUSTON, TX – Walter’s
MON 9/28 SAN ANTONIO, TX – White Rabbit
WED 9/30 EL PASO, TX – Black Market
THUR 10/1 PHOENIX, AZ – Club Red”

(source)

-hannahrenee.

I realize that I’m kind of late on this, just a tad bit, but Intuition’s “Stories About Nothing” is a really good album. I was at the laundromat today trying to get my clothes clean and my iPod shuffled onto one of the songs on the album. Now, when I received a copy of the album, I didn’t really give it a detailed listen, so I was really impressed when I started to really pay attention to the words of the song. So, naturally, I had to go back and listen to the whole album again. There’s just something about his voice and enunciation that kind of bothers me, and there are these moments where I just want to breathe for him, but otherwise it’s a pretty dope album (don’t forget, I have OCD). Again, I was thoroughly impressed! Equilibrium is always on point with his beats, it seems, and the two are really good. Like Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, Intuition’s style of rap and Equilibrium’s sound just go together like peanut butter and jelly. And the fact that the album cover is made up of Intuition’s own pictures is a total plus (you guys knew he went to school for photography, right?)

Oh, and if you want to learn more about him, check out the interview I did of him a few months back.

Here’s a few of my favorite tracks.

Story To Tell – Chill intro. I was totally vibing to all two minutes and forty-four seconds of it. & I think Intuition’s favorite phrase is “Oh, shucks” lol.

Forget Today – I feel like this song is describing my best friend, minus the “coked up & sunburned” part. The character of this song, whether it’s Intuition’s autobiographical take or not, reminds me of your average empty-hearted guy who searches for a purpose while not really accepting the fact that he’s a grown man. I’m pretty sure everyone’s been through this before, where they feel like everyday’s just routine, not wanting to accept the fact that you have to “act your age”, whatever that means. I know I’ve been through it before. Glad I’ve gotten over it.

Outside – I absolutely love this song. It’s about a waitress who works at a diner to support herself and her three kids, and it starts off by describing how her life was from her twenties to the “present”. By the way Intuition executes his bars, you can tell that she’s had it bad and even worse when the customers looks down on her for being a waitress. This song made me feel bad for every person I’ve looked down on because of their job–we’re all guilty of this, no matter how much of an understanding and compassionate person we are. It’s a beautifully tragic story and I’m absolutely hooked. “Because there’s only so much that a woman can take/before she bends over backwards and eventually break/so next time you notice something you don’t appreciate/take a step back to notice your mistake.”

Fix Her Up Her ft. Nocando – Lowkey, I think Nocando is starting to become one of my favorite rappers (Nocan, I’m still waiting on you to give me a copy of the Impatient EP!). Anyway, This song…everyone can relate to this song. Destructive relationship? Push and pull? Deteriorating feelings? Why bother to fix it, right? “The ferris wheel goes up and down/pitiful pouts when the other so much as frowns/his head’s in the sky/her feet touch the ground/and they both wonder when the other’s gonna come around/it goes hook up/hang up/hold up/wait/one comes too early/one shows up late/and there’s no real way they can cope today/but they both think fate’s gonna hold their place.” and “I bet your damn hands have callouses/from holding onto the granite skin of the man you miss/let me ask you this/do you sit with your head in your hands (???)/wondering what you used to do is tattooed (???)/If our relationship was a house we wouldn’t know where the bathroom is/we lay waste where we have to live.“

Bye Bye Baby – A fond farewell to our younger days! This joint had me reminiscing over my own childhood. “Goodbye to all the good times and bad times and sad times I’ve had as a (baby!).“

Pain & Pleasure – Story of hard lives and turning points. Intuition’s a pretty good storyteller.

Paint the Dawn – “We’re all blessed with different problems but cursed with the same ego.“

Well, these songs basically come one after the other, and I reallly like every song on this album, but for sake of time I’m only talking about a few tracks. I give this album an 8.5 out of 10! If you don’t have a copy, go get one as soon as possible!

And the Bar Exam!

I won’t be there, since I’ll be in Atlanta until the 22nd, and I’m kind of bummed that I’ll miss it and have to wait until the footage comes out on YouTube. Cadalak Ron vs Celestial? Rheteric Ramirez vs. L. Scatterbrain? Interesting match-ups I’ll totally be missing! Plus a live perfomance by Thirsty Fish? I’m just missing out left and right! But on the other hand, I’ll be at Battle of the Bay 5 up in Oakland, so stay tuned for coverage (and possibly an interview).

-hannahrenee.