 |
— By Shaheem Reid, with additional reporting by Rahman Dukes and Bridget Bland
Artists: Game, Vlad the Butcher and NJ Devil
Mixtape: The Devil's Advocate DVD and Mixtape
Representing: the West Coast and Atlantic City
The 411: There's really not much more to say about the man who calls himself "Rich Game Bitch." The fifth member of the G-Unit has been barnstorming the mixtape circuit for the past year and change and promises not to stop. Meanwhile, Vlad continues to display his production skill and DJing acumen. And NJ Devil, that's Game's DJ.
Joints To Check For
- "Love Dem Hoes" by Game and Tego Calderon. "Que, que, they want reggaeton!" DJ Red Spyda lays down a slow, winding beat that mixes Caribbean tinges with West Coast flavor. The most amazing part of the song is not only does the king of reggaeton spit en Español, but so does Compton's own Chuck Taylor.
- "Dear Mama" remix by Tupac and Anthony Hamilton. A thousand years from now, Tupac's words will still be relevant, especially his stirring firsthand narratives. However, Hamilton's singing and producer Frank Nitty's guitar strings give the song a different spin. "I appreciate you, I love you, I need you, oh mama," Hamilton sings in his tortured soulful melody.
- "All Bout U" verse by Tupac. Vlad says this is a lost verse from Pac that didn't make the original song. Shakur doesn't differ from the topic he broached on All Eyez on Me: He's trying to get up with an attractive girl who's caught his eye. "Let me take you to ecstasy/ You'll have the time of your life when you're next to me/ You'll see."
Don't Sleep: Other Notable Selections This Week
- L.G.'s Industry Co-Sign II: The 14 Tracks of Power
- Sickamore and DJ Neptune's Ignorant Shiiii ...
- DJ Clue's NY Giant
- DJ Drama and Nelly's Gangsta Grillz XIII
- Mark Ronson and Jay-Z's Fade to Black: The Mixtape
- DJ Smallz and Ciara's Dirty R&B III
'Hood's Heavy Rotation: Bubbling Below The Radar
- "Talk" by Ja Rule featuring Black Child
- "Soldier" by Destiny's Child featuring T.I. and Lil' Wayne
- "Rumors" by Main-O
- "Let's Get Blown" by Snoop Dogg featuring Pharrell Williams
- "Like Toy Soldiers" by Eminem
Celebrity Favs
Mike Shinoda, whose band, Linkin Park, mashes up with Jay-Z on the November 30 EP Collision Course, loves the Cali underground. "Right now I'm working with a group called Styles of Beyond," Mike said. "They're old friends of mine. I actually hadn't talked to them in a while, and I actually got with them just to work on some music — just because they're crazy. Ryu is crazy, he's crazy! When you listen to his lyrics, it's nonstop punch lines and dude is just out of his mind. The direction he comes from is not your conventional way of thinking. Another artist who is coming out of the West Coast is Bishop. Bishop is dope. I don't mind listening to some real gangsta stuff every once in a while, and Bishop is on that."
The Streets Is Talking: News & Notes From The Underground
Yes, your boy Roy Jones Jr. was forced to lean back (all the way to the ground) last time he stepped in the boxing ring. "So what?" he says. He's richer than the late great Rick James and has a hall-of-fame-caliber record. Recently Jones' Body Head Entertainment put out a compilation LP called Body Head Bangerz Volume One with a gaggle of artists he has under his wing, such as Choppa and Magic. Jones said he's so deep into making music right now, it's up in the air as to whether he'll ever box again.
"I've made enough and had enough fun boxing to where I don't wake up and have the same inspiration I have about music now," he said. "Now I'm more focused on music. I have a new battle. You can't be not wholeheartedly in boxing and try to do it. When I used to do it, I used to do it like it like it was my lifeline. Now I don't want to eat no more like that.
"I want to see artists from Body Head become superstars," he added. "When I do that, I'll be satisfied with this. But I'm not gonna be satisfied until I do that. I'mma just chill out for a bit till I feel I might love [boxing] again or I get mad and feel I want to kick one of their behinds. It ain't hard for me, I been doing it for 20 years."
In Brooklyn during the '80s and early '90s, one of the main names ringing out in the streets was Calvin "Klein" Bacote's. He's the guy Jay-Z is talking about in "Allure" when he raps, "I never felt more alive/ Than ridin' shotgun in Klein's green five."
Klein was recently released from a federal correctional facility after serving 13 years on drug charges, and one of his first steps in turning his life around was fulfilling his goal to enter the music business. He recently worked with DJ Clark Kent to put out the mixtape Streets Is Talking Volume One.
Klein has started his own label, Shut Em Down Entertainment, for which he currently has a roster of four MCs — including rappers Natural and St. Laz — and is seeking distribution. "I’m into hip-hop obviously, but I kind of like digging into the R&B and reggae," he said. "I’m open to music, period. I grew up in a family of music."
While growing up, Klein not only ran across a young Shawn Carter, he also rubbed shoulders with other icons.
"The original 50 Cent from Brooklyn, God bless the dead," Klein said, when asked who gave him his street moniker. "We would just hang out on the streets, and I used to wear a lot of Calvin Klein as far as attire — jeans, shirts, and stuff like that. My [real first] name is Calvin, and being that I wore Klein’s a lot, you just attach that on the back of my name. I didn’t really like the name, but it stuck at some point. It is what it is."
Klein said he hears the reality of his life in much of today's hip-hop, even from MCs who haven't been through what he's been through.
"Most of those guys have seen so many things that you can't live out most of these things rappers talk about," he said. "They living it out through the life they saw in their neighborhood. That's just like having your way of your freedom of speech. I don't knock them. If they don't tell our story the way the story supposed to be told, then no one is going to know where we are really coming from."
For more on the role of mixtapes in the music industry, check out the feature "Mixtapes: The Other Music Industry."
|
|
