Got that new 'Kast???????

Ok here's a few facts for you:

1) OUTKAST are the best rap group ever. I don't even care, if you think different, you think wrong. EVERY SINGLE ALBUM HAS BEEN A CLASSIC...if the Source had a single ounce of integrity left they woulda given em all five mics after the fact just to make up for some of their many many slipups. Yeah I said it. Benzino you know where to find me.

2) My favorite music bloggy newsy site-y thing ever, Spine mag, has posted some preview treats from the new 'Kast Idlewild album. Go there. Listen. Be happy. Personally, I like the Big Boi joint...I"m just a big Big Boi fan...what!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

3) Lord, this track is good. Did you expect anything less than FIYAH? Thank me later.

4) BIG UP SPINE MAG CREW ONCE AGAIN always there for me when I need them...

5) When you're done thinking about how awesome Outkast consistently are, peep the Pharoahe Monch track too. You can't go wrong with dude...he's one of the sickest lyricists of all time IMHO and i think i'm not alone on that one

You ain't listening!

It's only just over two weeks away now, and some more artists have been added to the NYC Listen concert lineup, so here's a peek at the updated flyer...don't forget you will score yourself a free t-shirt, some dope music (i'm guessing in the format of a CD, but you never know with these guys, might be a 45 or a cassette tape or an 8-track even), posters and stickers and such...that's if you purchase your ticket thru us that is...

Oh yeah and word on the street is, there's gonna be some real treats for all the audiophiles out there...unreleased Dilla tracks bein spun, Dudley P performing a new track over a Dilla beat, some unreleased Bob Marley chunes spun by the Listen Recovery crew, and some never released footage of him too...the only way to enjoy all this is to show up...

i love the golden age.

Since Serv and Blogzilla have been diggin' for old videos to bring up nostalgia..i felt like doin the same...but with my golden age...i'm about 3 yrs younger so this is the stuff that makes me teary eyed.


Del - Catch a Bad one

who could deny this album?!? ill cello samples...dels ill delivery...raw bay hip hop.




KRS-ONE - Rappaz r in dainja

i dont really think i should have to explain this video.





Buckshot - I Aint no Joke '97/Follow Me

This was the rawest cut on Funkmaster Flex's 2nd commercial mix tape. Raw video..raw emcee.




Cella Dwellas - Perfect Match

Gettin' played in the 90's

Mos is chillin, Gore is chillin...

Any presidential candidate (winner?) who sits down with the Mighty Mos Def is good in my book, plus "Inconvenient Truth" was crucial...albeit somewhat reminiscent of sitting through a lecture...

From LA to the Bay reppin' it all day.

Sup gungstas....yeah you read that right...gungstas...well ColorNinja aka Ya Mamas P.E. Teacher went back home up to NorCal this weekend...one to see the fams...two to partake in a multi brand shindig on Haight. Diamond, Mama, Huf, and BB$ threw a party at Milk. If you wanted to catch all your bay area cool people this was the spizznot. Gabi from Mama..a majority of the BB$ girls...super pimp Nick DIamond....ultra emcees Diz Gibran and Basik from Bleu Collar...Mega and all the Huf cats...sup JB! All in all it was a super hyphy night bringin together both sides of the CA. Heres some action for you...

super conspicuous ColorNinja with ultra conspicuous Mega from Huf.






This is the scene at 11:15...they only had the door open for 20 minutes..and this is what it looked like...






and this is what it was like from 12 - 2...retardo hyphness mixed with a little leanin and rockin..with some LA cool guy posin'...along with too much alcohol on the premises for 6 bucks per mixed drink! WTF! LA needs to learn a little something from Yay Area drink prices.





so like i said...here's a quick clip of muh fukkas gettin slappy in the club...everyone you can see in this video is most definitely goin manny, silly, coo coo, bananas.




but till then...this was the final group picture of the night....roll call nukkas...(L-R: ColorNinja, Maria...one of my favorite BB$ people, Diz Gibran the Authentic, Mega from Huf, Basik from Bleu Collar, and a whole mess of the homies...sloppy and lovin it.

Keak the sneak

Oh. Snap.

Man... you never know what might happen around here...turn your head for two seconds and next thing you know, some ill stuff just pops up on your desk like BAM! This is a very small taste of things to come...not available just yet but hold on, it's coming...lemme just say we liked the samples a lot and the real deal looks even better...oh and yes that's my desk...i be wood grain grippin all day just like Mike Jones. Who!?! You read me the first time holla.

Coming soon to a DG near you...

The Sky's the Limit!

I'm not gonna front...I enjoy living vicariously through Jeff Staple's blog: To Darrin Hudson. Dude gets to travel to great places, and meet talented people, and he shares this with the world on his blog. But this latest post might just be the craziest air-drama story I've ever heard. Read it now before the movie comes out...oh and you get to find out how this one dude had to be taped to his chair. Straight up horror-story...

Numberonewickedselecta!

A short chat with Serv uno about the good old days of Smif-n-Wessun completely made my whole day when Serv dug up this video for the "Sound Bwoy Buriel Rmx" which was the very first wax I ever copped in my life (yes, two copies) and I really had no idea there was even a video at all. Hey I was in Japan ok? It wasn't that easy to find these things out...Anyway I'm now convinced that Youtube is pretty much the best thing ever invented during this so-called "civilization" yet. I'm sure you can use Youtube on your lonesome but I couldn't help myself...peep some pre-bling East NY hotness...

But why stop here when you can watch Jeru kill it too? Aaah the good old days...

Have a good weekend hip hop nerds!

NYC: In A Girls World

Here's the heads up on a spectacular art event we're sponsoring in NYC, In A Girl's World, Featuring the art, design, and clothing of these fine and talented Grafitti and Street artists who all happen to be female:

Queen Andrea
Toofly
Blair Wear
GMO$
Daina Higgins
as well as a co-exhibition of sneaker collector Migdallion's kicks.

Showroom Gallery
117 2nd Ave.
2nd Floor
New York, NY 10003

We won!

Unfortunately it was the "Who's most likely to make the world a less safe place?" contest. 17,000 people from 15 different countries (including the US) were surveyed and, "A majority of people in 10 of the 14 countries outside the US surveyed said the war in Iraq had made the world a more dangerous place." No big surprise there I guess but it IS nice to win something every now and then isn't it?

Aaron LaCrate is really famous

Peep this! I was doin the usual Monday morning wakeup websurfing...and hit up the first site I check on the daily (aside from DG ofcourse). I'm talking about Spine Mag...the UK's answer to Allhiphop.com in a way...only much better ofcourse. They post links, news, and mp3's - the best of hip hop from both sides of the Atlantic (the ocean silly, not the record label).

www.spinemagazine.com

Anyway they had posted a link to this interview on Allhiphop.com with our longtime homie Aaron LaCrate...entrepreneur, DJ, producer, Milkcrate Athletics founder, allround rennaissance man. Peep game:

Listen & DG present J-Rocc, Dudley Perkins, & more

Listen hollered at us about this concert they're hosting at Southpaw in BK, in July. They asked us to help out with selling the tickets...and when we saw the lineup we couldn't say no. To sweeten the deal for us and you, for the ticket price of $20, customers who purchase through DG will receive a free gift package at the concert, including a commemorative t-shirt, and music, posters, stickers etc. World class musicians AND a free t-shirt? Yes please! Please read the item description for all the details...

'Music Is My Weapon' concert tickets: July 18th, NYC

Greg from Mishka is famous

Greg is one half of Mishka. Aside from being one half of Mishka, Greg also happens to have the biggest collection of Mr. T memorabilia on the face of the earth, maybe you saw the Mass Appeal article I did on his collection about a year or so back. Together with his partner in Mr. T-collecting-crime, Mike Essl, these two fellows have amassed the undisputed largest collection of this stuff ever, and have shown elements of it at gallery shows and on their website: Mr T and me. Not content with being internet stars, Greg and Mike are on TV now. And here's some links to prove it. These guys take unhealthy competition to a whole new level when Mike gets a mohawk on VH1. You just gotta see it. I hope Greg doesn't forget about us now that he's a household name. Now don't do drugs and stay in school (this seems to have worked for Mike)!

 

EBay short

 

VH1 short

 

Los Angeles: Whoest?

Crewest!

TERRIBLE T-KID 170 EXCLUSIVE BOOK SIGNING @ CREWEST IN DOWNTOWN L.A.!!

This Saturday June 10th, 2006: 4pm - 6pm T-KID will be in the house signing his new book as well as limited edition prints and giclees. Early arrival suggested.

Crewest is located at: 110 Winston St., Downtown Los Angeles, CA 90013

New York City: Grafitti Art Overdose

About McCaig+Welles
McCaig-Welles Gallery officially opened it’s doors on March 3, 2001 on the Southside of Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Four years later, and a few blocks further North, McCaig-Welles has continued its focus in championing street artists rather than career-minded art-school graduates. Many of McCaig-Welles’s artists are mid-career and well known, but a large emphasis is focused on up-and-coming, edgy artists who are just beginning to exhibit in NYC. McCaig-Welles Gallery repertoire includes Shepard Fairey, The Goldmine Shithouse, Andrew Schoultz, Greg Lamarche, SEEN, Dalek, Tristan Eaton, David Stoupakis, Martha Cooper, and more. McCaig-Welles is a member of The Williamsburg Gallery Association and was cited for "Best Graffiti Art" in "The Best of Manhattan" issue of The New York Press. Recent reviews and articles have been featured in The New York Art World, Art and Antiques Magazine, The New York Sun, The New York Press, AM NY, The Village Voice, The Wooster Collective, The Columbia Spectator, Paper Magazine, Artnet, Flavorpill, The New York Post and more...
Website: WWW.MCCAIGWELLES.COM

DIRECTIONS TO MCCAIG+WELLES
McCaig-Welles is located at 129 Roebling Street. Take the L train to the first stop in Brooklyn, "Bedford Avenue". Walk two blocks South to N. 5th Street. Make a left on N. 5th and walk one block to Roebling. Make a right on Roebling, we are located between N. 4th and N. 5th Streets. 718 384 8729 .
Click here for map

San Francisco: Jeremy Fish & Aesop Rock

Here's a nice nice event I figgered I ought to share with you guys:

UPPER PLAYGROUND CELEBRATES THE RELEASE OF "THE NEXT BEST THING"
WITH JEREMY FISH ART EXHIBIT AND AESOP ROCK BENEFIT CONCERT



WHEN: Thursday, July 6, 2006, 7:00 p.m.
Followed by a live concert from Aesop Rock and Rob Sonic with DJ Big Wiz, Murs with Magi, and Blockhead benefiting San Francisco's 826 Valencia.

WHERE: Jeremy Fish Art Exhibit at Upper Playground's FIFTY24SF Gallery
248 Fillmore St. (at Haight),
San Francisco, CA
Phone: (415) 252-0144

Launch Party and Benefit Concert at The Independent
626 Divsadero St.,
San Francisco, CA
(for tickets please visit: independentsf.com)

WHAT: Musical and visual artists Aesop Rock and Jeremy Fish release their latest collaboration "The Next Best Thing," a picture book focused on the creative process featuring illustrations by Jeremy Fish and accompanying music by Aesop Rock. The 24-page book is a visual and audio exploration of the how to overcome the "creative block" artists often face. Each page of the book coincides with a special 7-inch vinyl album featuring the music of hip hop artist Aesop Rock and is in the format of a traditional children's book. The limited edition book will be available for sale at Jeremy's art show, the Aesop Rock concert at the Independent, and via Upper Playground at upperplayground.com.

WHO: JEREMY FISH is an illustrator, artist and designer based in San Francisco. He is the Art Director and Co-Owner for the Unbelievers skateboard company and he just finished a board series and short film called "Fishtales" for Element skateboards featuring a soundtrack by Aesop Rock. Jeremy is also a toy creator and his second vinyl toy "Turtlecamper" with STRANGEco will be released in June and the release of his signature sneaker with Nike will debut in July. In the art world, Jeremy is the godfather of the infamous
Sillypink Bunnies Gang. His artwork is narrative, using icons as well as the equally cute and creepy characters as symbols to tell a story.

AESOP ROCK is a hip hop musician and producer whose albums have been critically acclaimed for their originality and depth. Aesop's style blends a varying tone and delivery with subject matter that focuses on intricate sequences of widely varying imagery, metaphors and pop culture references, while including the occasional touchstones of traditional hip hop storytelling and self-promotion

Do Good

I believe in good.
And I lose my important stuff a lot.
Well, I shouldn't say lose. I misplace my stuff...or leave it behind.
And it always comes back to me, except for this one time my lovely North Face wallet fell out of my pocket in the Loewes 84th St. Movie theater. I was watching X-men.

One cannot believe in good, without doing good, so I return the left behinds of others when I can identify their proper owners. Cell phones, pagers, wallets, identification, even umbrellas, if they're nice ones.

In shallow memory (deep thoughts are overrated) I have had my cellphone returned to me by 3 different NYC cab drivers, and one employee of Active Warehouse in Soho, and my cash filled wallet returned to me by some mysteriously hyperactive Quizno's employees near the DG offices.

So along with my boring nostalgia of karma not being a bitch to me, I present the saga of the Stolen Sidekick.

In less than 24 hours, this guy's saga of a Sidekick changing hands has like Paul Wall, "got the innernet goin nuts." Which just goes to show, if you're an asshole, somebody else will find out about it. In this day and age, a lot of somebody elses.

Do good, or Digital Gravel will hate you.

Support your local family

You might recall that we really like these rap guys Nuclear Family, outta Brooklyn.
They're a fun and happy, intelligent positive raptastic crew, and they always put on a good show. Like this one time, SNAFU, that guy in the back with the bandage on his face got new eyes! At a show! It was sick. Literally.

Plus they're nice, and they won't steal your girlfriend (unless you want them to, I'm sure one of them will be happy to oblige.) Anyways, they're opening for The Coup at Bowery Ballroom this thursday. You know who The Coup is, right? If you don't you're an idiot, and I'm tired of talking at you. But seriously, I'm nice, so here's some info on both of these groups.

Nuclear Family on myspace
The Coup on myspace

Here's what NukFam Emcee Baje One has to say about the event:

For all of you who've been rolling with The Nuk, you know how big this is for us, and how much we will appreciate your support on Thursday. It's a serious gift to be able to share the big stage with The Coup. Boots Riley is one of the realest emcees ever to pick up a microphone, and that's the truth. If you haven't heard their new record, you need to go get that, you won't be disappointed. So here's the info, one last time:
THURSDAY June 8th At the BOWERY BALLROOM (Delancey and Bowery, NYC)
THE COUP NUCLEAR FAMILY and MYSELF
DOORS at 8PM
TICKETS are $15
Ages 18 and up
Tickets are available at the Bowery's box office at THE MERCURY LOUNGE (Houston and avenue A) and online at www.ticketweb.com
We strongly recommend that everyone go cop tickets online as the scene at the Ballroom may be totally nuts on Thursday.
Ok guys, that's it for now. Go out and cop the new Coup album, Pick A Bigger Weapon, it's bananabread fresh. peace, and hope to see you there,
- baje

Jamaica Me Happy

I sincerely believe that the only people who don't enjoy reggae are the people who are too uptight to get in touch with their ab muscles and hip flexors. I just tried to find a nice animated .gif of a gyal winin just to illustrate my point, but i failed. I'm over it though.

So there's a really dope store in NYC's Chinatown that you might not know about, called Deadly Dragon Sound. Last week, I went to one of their events to check out a live performance by Dancehall legend Carlton Livingston at Happy Endings,. You may remember Carlton Livingston from old-school hits such as Trodding Through The Jungle, and Rumors, and if you don't know...now ya know. Give the man a likkle listen.

I saw some familiar faces belonging to a few of the men behind the brands you know and love on DG, such as 10 Deep and King Stampede, but I won't be blowing up their spots because dis post is about the music. The place wasn't very crowded which was great for dancing and generally joyous patronage, and there was a very cool and relaxed vibe.

First up, some Japanese cats got up on the mic, and had the crowd going wild. I love the dedication of the Japanese. If I'd just heard these guys on say...an Audio Daily Double, I wouldn't have known they weren't Jamaican.

I got some video, but it was too dark for my camera to pick up anything unless other flashes were going off, so these video clips serve more for audio purposes.
Chekkit:

This guy

sounded like this:


and this guy

sounded like this



And then Carlton gyat up pon de mic and belted some lovely chunes.








Trodding Through The Jungle

and

Hot Summer (in new york, he sure got that right!)

and here's Carlton, the man of the hour, chillin with my boy K~Swift, of NYC based underground rap crew NRO. You should check them out.

We danced all night, broke some laws, and generally had a fantastic time. It was better than any lame open-bar party I've been to in at least a year. I thank the people of Deadly Dragon Sound for keepin it so real.

And don't forget, for your classic, and modern reggae needs.....check out Deadly Dragon Sound online
and at
102-B Forsyth Street
New York, NY 10002.
Located between Broome and Grand Street in Chinatown.
It is easily accessible by subway (B or D to Grand; J to Delancy, 6 to Canal).

Reggae helps ya fux real good. Memba'dat.
Booyakasha.
Respect every time.

Made you stumble

Yo dunnies and ladies and everyone else in blogworld. If you're a Firefox user (and I honestly think you should be) then peep this new extension called StumbleUpon 2.78:

Click me to stumble


Yo...I might have been sleeping and the whole world already knows about this...but shiiyat...it pretty much made the internet fun again for me yesterday when I installed it on my mac daddy. Basically there are 500+ categories you can choose from as your interests, and if you hit the "stumble" button, it directs your browser to a new site that people with similar interests have rated positively. You can give any site on the internet a thumbs up or down it seems...to help others see what you like and to help fine tune your interests....but this is too much writing and not enough stumbling. For real, i came across some incredibly sick sites last night thanks to stumble and i'm all about sharing and whatnot so you guys should all peep it.

Guess what? I'm Bi....

coastal.
Kangsta Do Good here, reporting from NYC.
So, I'm out walkin my dog the other day, makin sure as shit that she gets them poops out, and lo and behold around the corner from my house, literally on the same block that I live on, I stumble upon this:

So, you're either like "So what, a light post?" or "Wah!! I can't see what that is!"
Shut up, baby. I got closer.

You see now?

It's custom Reason tape, wrapped around a light post! Who did this? Is Reason stalking me? Are they my neighbors? Alls I can say really is that I am flummoxed by this discovery. I need to know....what's the reason?!?!!

Typical

Dear Blog,

You are exceedingly high-maintenance. Has anyone ever told you that before? First it's, "post on me, post on me." Then it's, "more photos, more fun stuff to look at." Then it's, "my bandwidth is hurting...wahhhhhhwahhhwahh." And now you want us back? TYPICAL. I hope I don't come of sounding like a blogist or something (because I'm definitely not blogist) but if you'd stop acting like such a blog, we wouldn't have to treat you like one...

Thanks,
B-zilla

PS - this is totally unrelated to just about everything on the planet, but here's a picture of Chuck Fender, because he's Jamaican, and so am I in my imagination. BUMBOCLAAAT.

Wah!

dear public and digital gravel employees,
nobody loves me.
what did i do to deserve this virtual invisibility?
Just like Nelly Furtado, "I'm like a bird" and this is what it sounds like when doves cry.
Also, this is what it looks like when dogs cry.

i hate you all. i hope you never come back.
-blog