 “Mr 360.” The only justifiable way to describe the verble antics of Mr Live.
Born In the borough of Brooklyn, Mr Live developed a way of speak that would set him apart from the average M,Cee. In 1990 Mr Live (then JAELIVE) was signed to PROFILE RECORDS under the group E&JAE and was embraced by such artist as RUN DMC, DANA DANE, and SPECIAL ED. After this, the group changed their name to BLACRAYN and spent this time on the New York underground circuit where they received many accolades for there live performances. At this point Mr Live had performed with such artist as LEADERS OF THE NEW SCHOOL, EPMD, PETE ROCK AND CL SMOOTH, NAUGHTY BY NATURE, GANGSTARR and many more hip-hop luminaries. In 1995, Mr Live broke off from BLACKRAYN and went solo, hitting every open Mic and show case in New York City.
At this time, He joined a hip hop/poetry group called THE VIBE KHAMELEONS and then touring Europe, (ENGLAND, FRANCE, and SWITZERLAND) with SHA-KEY, and RAZEL of THE ROOTS..
After this, Bobbito Garcia (89.9 Tec 9 radio show) released the under ground hit “SUPADUPA” on his FONDLE EM record lable, Becoming one of the hottest selling singles out. Following this, Mr Live, Big Ves, and EARL BLAIZE (ANTI-POP CONSORTIUM) established a lable called GET THESE RECORDS and proceeded to put out such underground hits as ”PLACEBO”(88 Whatsanames featuring TONY BONES), “ALL DAY” and “SPLASHING OVER MONICA”. In 2002 Mr Live teams up with MR LEN, (formally of COMPANY FLOW) and releases the single “WHAT THE FUCK”. Mr Live then teams with EARL BLAIZE, STEELO, BIG TRAP and BIG WILL to form DRAMA CLASS. Deep, melodic flows, meaningful lyrical content, and a blunt translation of life, makes Mr Live one of the most versitile and explosive MCees coming out of New York.
Discography.
“SUPADUPA”, “RELAX YA SELF”, “HUNGER STRIKE”(Fondle em Records) USA.
“PLACEBO”, “STILL RELAXIN”,”DEAR JOHN”(Get These Records) USA.
“ALL DAY”, “THROW YOUR MITTS”,”SPLASHIN OVER MONICA”(Get These Records) USA.
“FLYING PUPA”, “NONE BETTER”(Guntez Records) Japan.
“STEADY LOUNGING” “GOOD LIFE”(Fat City Records) England.
“GUMMY SMACKS” Mr Len. “ WHAT THE FUCK”(Matador records)USA/EUROPE
“THE BANG THEORY” France.
MR. LIVE Audio Section
Get to know MR. LIVE better @ :
http://www.myspace.com/mrlive
 When it comes to emceeing and the essence of hip-hop, Journalist 103 showcases the form of an emcee evolving from a person who simply puts words over beats, to a speaker in tune giving life to his tracks. One of the sole survivors of a dying breed, 103 has emerged from a student studying the art of emceeing to teacher of hip-hop fundamentals. He started professionally emceeing around ninety-seven. After 'spittin' in a few cyphors and open mics around the city (Ebony Showcase, C Note lounge, Napoleon retreat, to name a few) he eventually bumped into Strike who was currently 'putting in work' with a group called "PMO" (Poor Mans Orchestra). Journ and Strike inevitably formed the legendary group "Mountain Climbaz". 'Mountain Climaz" is renowned as one of Detroit's most respected live performing Hip-Hop groups. Accompanying his group efforts 103 has graced a number of mixtapes that have gained worldwide recognition. Such as underground classics like "Broken", and "Broken Again" featuring Mu, Proof, and Marvwon which received an award for best hip-hop group song of the year (2003-2004). Displaying master crowd control and lyrical delivery, that captures and elevates listeners to new heights 'the' Journalist entertains the audiences, bringing back that true feeling of genuine emceeing. Just like any great artist; Picasso or Van Gogh his work is a timeless classic leaving us in awe of his precise delivery, dominant voice, and dynamic ability to 'ride a beat'. You'll fall in love with hip-hop again listening to his 'old school' work ethnics which many 'so called' lyricist lack today. Journ's hard work, dedication, and intense studying of the art form brings the materials which leads to teaching the 'new skool' the values of being a true lyrical emcee. Journalist 103 is without question a valuable asset to today's Hip-Hop culture.
Links: http://www.myspace.com/journalist103
 SoulKlap is a young, gifted and black Hip-Hopper from Cleveland, Ohio. He has been a fan of music since BEFORE he could remember. “My mother told me, I used to dance to music while I was still in her womb, so I guess music has always been a part of me.” Soul started rhyming when he was thirteen, inspired by the likes of Jay-Z, Notorious B.I.G., Nas and DMX. He originally rapped about what he heard his idols talking about, the guns, the ‘bitches’ and the money. “I was basically doin whatever was hot at that time. I look back now and laugh about it, but it was serious back then.” Eventually, SoulKlap stopped rapping, and started MCing. He decided that no matter what, he would rhyme from his soul, and tell the truth in his rhymes. “I just realized, that guns, hos and drugs…that’s not who I am.” SoulKlap has collaborated with the likes of Divine Minds, Black J, Simo-B of Bulletproof, Lew among other talented unsigned acts. Although Soul is unsigned, his ultimate goal is to “sign himself.” “I want my own label. I don’t want to have to manufacture sounds of a media conglomerate, I want to make authentic music from my soul, and make listeners’ souls clap.”
Source: http://www.myspace.com/soulklap
http://soulklap.blogspot.com/
 iCON the Mic King - Catalyst of a Renaissance
iCON the Mic King is not a movement. No one man is. Instead, he is the catalyst for a crusade much bigger than himself. A Renaissance is approaching. It’s a Renaissance linked to a culture that spans over a quarter century’s time. A generational art form, that rose to prominence in a well-documented creative surge in the late 80’s. A culture that achieved economic importance in the trend-minded upswing of hip hop’s popularity in the mid to late 90’s. A culture that turned inward as it subsequently collapsed upon itself, growing too big to support the rapidly swelling ecosystem. In a staggered genre that has arguably seen it’s glory days come and go, there has risen an enigmatic figure that will lead us into yet another age of artistic prosperity. Allow me to show you the many sides of the lyrical Rubik’s Cube that is iCON the Mic King.
On a balmy late August night Michael King took his first breaths in the maternity ward of the Pennsylvania Hospital. He would be the first grandson born to either side of his family. Declared the “the chosen one” by his great grandmother who, living to be 104 years old, proved to be as resilient as she was wise.
iCON’s status as one of the chosen would be tested in numerous ways as the years carried forward. Even death made an unexpected attempt. At the age of six, Michael King, having no concept of mortality, was involved in a life altering car accident that threatened to take him away from the world before he came to realize his purpose.
On a rain soaked night in Philadelphia Michael’s uncle made his way to the local hospital. Michael’s mother was pulling an 11-7 shift there. Ambling to a stop at a traffic signal Michael gazed out of his passenger side window. While he took in the sea of city lights that drenched 29th Street in a swirl of colors, his uncle twiddled the knob on the car radio. Settling on the easy R&B of WDAS, the wafting sound of synths and sultry voices is overtaken by the dissonance of screeching car tires. A large Cadillac slammed forcefully into the back of the Honda driven by Michael’s uncle. Inside the car, a split second passes before the impact, but it seems like ages. His automatic reaction was to try and brace himself. Clutching the armrests on either side he realizes that he isn’t wearing a seatbelt…
Michael went barreling through the windshield of the car. That kind of trauma should have killed a boy his size. But Michael wasn’t killed. In fact he walked away virtually unscathed. That night, something was made deadly clear. It was not his turn to go. There were bigger things in store for the boy who would become king.
In the streets of Philadelphia iCON the Mic King is more of an idea than an actual person. There are plenty of stories, all lending to an indelible mystique that makes him as intriguing as he is critically heralded, and perhaps even more misunderstood. iCON is no stranger to paying dues. His work ethic is evidenced by a recording catalogue stretching back to 1995, as well as an impressive international touring schedule yielding passport stamps on three continents in seventeen countries. Delivering powerful hypnotic and awe-inspiring performances with DJ Fishr Pryce at the helm, Mike King’s legend grows with each show-stealing concert date. His most recent projects: “Mike and the Fatman”(Uprising records), which saw him teamed up with Chum the Skrilla Guerrilla on production, with features by Killah Priest and Blue Raspberry, as well as “Rent Money Music 2: C-Notes for the Car Note” were to released to critical acclaim. Unfortunately the scope of those projects was hindered by a lack of resources. But with the proper push…
Upcoming projects and testaments to the Renaissance include “The Season of Our Discontent” produced by Blastah Beatz, and genre-bending electric/hip hop hybrid group Robots With Hearts with Ninja Tune Records’ black sheep, Animals on Wheels. Chum and iCON are also reuniting to release a new progressive set.
A dynamic and compelling emcee, iCON may better be placed with the likes of Dostoevsky, Philip K. Dick, and Franz Kafka than that of his rhyming peers. As one of the City of Brotherly Love’s Premier talents, iCON the Mic King is a man with a purpose. Laying the framework for a new generation of credible artists, using his love of creating timeless music to fuel his epic and visceral rhymes, and leading hip hop into its next golden age by example. Of course, that’s what any good king does.
-A. Sabreen
Biography from: Iconthemicking.com
 Artist Hood Blues is the united rebellious spirit of hip-hop. Coming from humble beginnings that began in Watts and later in South Central, Blues became enthralled in West Coast gangster music. The lifestyle was affluent with the music but foreseen traps are deeply entrenched in the music. The devastation was the murders of Tupac Shakur and Christopher Wallace that woke Blues out of the haze and he UNDERSTOOD music reflects life.
Blues began honing his skills while in the Army but decide to go to film school before starting his music career "I’ve always seen the vision of direction, and after being told what to do for twenty two years, I did my thing". As the road looked bright, a ridged dark valley was ahead for Blues. God said diamonds are purified through fire and that was Blues’ focus. With no time to be hopeless and fall in the traps that were set before him, Hood Blues delivered a feast for rap heads "On Hell’s Edge".
On Hell’s Edge is a storyline album about life, direction, choice, god, heartbreak, hustling, making up and making it. "I banged this one out. I had got my sentence and I had two months before I had to turn myself in and I just hammered it out. I was going through so much but I felt strong. I didn’t let anything shake or move me I just kept at it. When I got out, I gave my peoples a copy and they couldn’t believe it. All my faith was in God."
Hood Blues is in the studio recording with the UnIon and his follow up album due in 2008
CHILLENEUM™ Born William S Johnson III to north side St. Louis was moved by music at an early age. Through his parents influence his early childhood was flooded with the compositions of such greats as: Isaac Hayes, Grover Washington, Herby Hancock, Rufus and Chaka Kahn, Donald Byrd, Curtis Mayfield and many other live music legends that have become a sampler’s dream in these modern times.
Never having much instruction with any live instruments back in the day, poetry was his only out let besides just listening to music, beating on anything that would make a sound and make anyone listening nod their head except the grown-ups of course.
CHILLENEUM™’S adolescent years in hip hop were spent deejaying parties, competing in local talent shows and wowing any young MC’s that felt they were up for the challenge.
After his high school graduation, CHILLENEUM™ was presented with the opportunity to record and he took it.
That first recording session became the anthem for Atlanta’s Freaknic, a college celebration where college students and vacationers came from all over the U.S. for spring breaking and releasing the stress on their daily lives. The single was released by Coastal Records a leading distribution label based in Atlanta and CHILLENEUM™ gained his first experiences as an independent selling artist. That sold single sold for 3 years straight during the Freaknics to follow and the video to Freaknic Freak-out was an underground success.
CHILLENEUM™ latter signed to a local St. Louis label with fellow members of the FEP SQUAD (Full Effect Productions) with his life long friend and hip hop partner BELOW DREWP, who had teamed up with him on the Freaknic Freak-out single. The FEP SQUAD would later release themselves as an entity of the label due to non-progress.
Upon going solo CHILLENEUM™ started his own production and publishing company and continued collaborations with his fellow squad members THYCK CLYCK, DOUBLE CEES, and BELOW DREWP who all are featured on his sophomore recording "CHILLENEUM™: LOVE OF THE CHA$E". The album depicts the struggle to become wealthy and live one’s own dream against dim odds. "My first internet marketing was a free site named Audiostreet.net." Chill states. "That’s where I first met fans and artists from all over the world some who showed me first hand the value of MP3 and ring tone downloads." He laughs. "Don’t get it twisted though, I still love the stage and being face to face with the crowd and through this medium we’ll meet the crowd abroad!"
CHILLENEUM™’S "CHILLTONES®" now reach across the globe from California to Australia, from the Ukraine to Japan and he enjoys responding to fans personally.
CHILLENEUM™’S goals are to perform collaborations with other independent musicians all over the world and give artists world wide the ability to sell their music and products independently and see over 95% of their profit.
 Bio
In homage to hip-hop’s empirical formula - one DJ & one MC, and duos such as Pete Rock & CL Smooth, Gangstarr and Blackalicious, the Blue Scholars embody the chemistry that made these groups so consistent not only on wax, but live on stage as well. What results is the blend of poetic, raw vocal delivery with melodic boom-bap and turntablism, painted with politics and preservation. Residing where the hustle and the struggle coincide, Blue Scholars craft the soundtrack for everyday folks with everyday problems seeking everyday release.
After dropping one full-length album (Blue Scholars LP, 2005) and an EP (The Long March, 2005) the Blue Scholars have emerged as the latest in a long line of torchbearers for Seattle and greater Pacific Northwest hip-hop scene. The duo formed in early 2002 after ciphers and sessions in a makeshift attic-bedroom-studio in Seattle’s University District, where emcee Geologic and DJ/producer Sabzi came from vastly different musical approaches to collide. One a distinguished battle emcee and poet, the other a former punk/ska drummer and jazz-trained pianist, the duo’s backgrounds laid the foundation for a versatile combination of beats and rhymes at once political and personal.
Since 2002, the duo has become renowned live show veterans, rocking nearly 200 shows with the likes of De La Soul, Immortal Technique, The Coup, Zion I, One Be Lo, Soul Position, Slick Rick and Spearhead. The mass appeal of their live show has brought them to many diverse venues - from labor organizing conferences and youth-run community center shows to playing the main stage at Sasquatch! (2006) and Bumbershoot (2006).
In June 2006, Blue Scholars joined forces with Common Market (emcee RA Scion and DJ Sabzi) and emcee Gabriel Teodros (of Abyssinian Creole) to launch MASS LINE MEDIA, a new artist-run independent record label.
 Bio
Dashah knows the moment his life changed. He was in the 6th grade; his teacher was out sick and the students wanted to let her know how much she was missed by putting on a show. Some kids wrote poems, some painted pictures and Dashah decided to write a get-well rap. He put pen to paper and soon had enough lyrics to take it to the stage- or in this case the classroom. "The other kids went crazy, "Dashah recalls." Everyone loved it and I was up there, feeling the love and that’s when I knew. This is what I’m gonna do."
Armed with an insightful, lyrical quickness and fervent belief in hip-hop’s power and possibility Dashah’s goal is simple. He wants to remind folks why they fell in love with Hip Hop in the first place. "These days everything is processed and plotted out, "Dashah says. "It’s lost a lot of its intensity .I wanna bring it back to where it’s real again. "
The first real taste of that came in March 2007 with "F*ck Da Majors"- a mix tape that put Dashah’s tough insightful rhymes front and center.
That focus drives cuts like "Holiday." Set to a snake charmer back beat and flavored with R&B "Holiday" is "Inspiring. Even I get the chills because it’s from such a deep place. It’s about celebrating the small things, cause they mean a lot. I treat every day like a holiday because you never know. Nobody’s promised tomorrow."
Just as persuasive and undeniably confidence is "Undisturbed," which Dashah explains "Represents how I feel when people try to get in the way of my success. I also hope the song is a warning to be leery of the company you keep. There’s a lot of haters who act like they’re your friends."
Another standout is the ambitious "Inkaholic". Anchored by 70’s funk, and deftly utilizing metaphor, "Inkaholic" breaks down the relationship between MC and pen. "It’s very emotional. Everything starts with me and my pen that I hold in my hand, that connection. The subject is symbolic but also very relatable on so many levels."
Born in Alabama, Dashah was raised in Long Island, a long time Hip Hop Mecca. As a kid he was surrounded by music- schooled to funk by his DJ dad and rap from the fellows on the block. Dashah loved everyone from Digital Underground to Big Daddy Kane and the Native Tongues posse. In the mid 90’s D and his family (he’s the middle of 4 kids) moved further out on the Island and, coincidentally their new neighbors were the families of old school legends Rakim and Erick Sermon.
By junior high D had gone from fan to player, joining forces with local MCs. "None of us knew how to make beats. We’d freestyle over other folk’s beats because we were young dudes trying to get into the game. We must have done 100 songs just two turntables and a little mixer. Real basic."
In high school Dashah and his boys started making homemade mix tapes and by 1997 he was in his first MC battle and then his very first show. "I was 17 and I was getting a little local buzz." The next year D and his crew Long Island Trees came through with another tape and then just as things were heating up, Dashah went down south to spend time with his dying grandmother. "All my grandmother wanted was for me to finish school and succeed in music. After she passed, I decided to get serious because it was what she asked me to do."
In 1999 Dashah moved back home and two years later dropped the Unexplainable First Edition: which lead to opening slots for Ja Rule, Fabolous and Naughty By Nature Even though things were going well, D decided he needed a change of scene to push his career even further. He moved to Cali in 2002, dividing his time between LA and San Diego. Money was tight but that didn’t stop Dashah from spending his last dime on a hip-hop convention. His hope? That he’d make some connections and get his music into the right hands.
He did and soon D had a manager who hooked him up with producer Chris Warrior. After two years creating hot songs Warrior introduced D to Yon Styles, a young industry vet (Black Eyed Peas) and product manager for Fuzz Artists- an indie digital label. Styles dug what he heard and offered D a deal but Dashah admits, "I wasn’t sure. It was so new but then I figured, why not?" In 2006 Dashah signed with Fuzz Artists, formed his production company Top Shelf Enterprises, and headed back to NY: ready to reaffirm his hometown’s legacy. After dropping "F*ck Da Majors" D and crew headed back to the lab where they are currently cooking up his Fuzz Artists debut.
Hip-hop is driven by the desire to make your mark and elevate the game. Ask Dashah what he wants his music to represent and he answers, "Creativity. What I do has a vibe and energy and more than anything, it’s real. When people listen to me I want them to know and feel that I poured my heart into hip hop."
 “If you ask me about my day I’m going to tell you about the weather, my job, my financial condition etc., but when you get up under that, that’s where the real expression is. I just make sure whatever I’m experiencing I just try to get to that point of myself to experience it.” Jay Electronica
There has been so much a said about this individual that without sounding like a broken record this will be brief. Jay Electronica is not your average emcee. His methods are different and with the sounds of Madlib, the late Jay Dee and Mr. Porter, the New Orleans nomadic wordsmith who tends to move which ever way the wind moves him has arrived. With ancestral lyricism that is hypnotic, simple and complex simultaneously, the immediate acceptance from the people is a testament that good music is still sought after by the true hip-hop heads and fans of good music alike.
Words from: mindbenderfuturama.blogspot.com
 Biography:
Derek Andrew "Sway" DaSafo is a British hip-hop artist of Ghanaian origin who gained attention through a series of independently released mixtapes before winning a 2005 MOBO (Music of Black Origin) award, which positioned him as one of the leading hopes for U.K. rap. Born in London -- albeit unintentionally, when his mother was on a stopover between Amsterdam and her native Ghana -- and mostly raised there as well, DaSafo hails from Hornsey, a North London neighborhood positioned in between posh, middle-class Murray Hill and the slum Wood Green. His carefully constructed rap persona reflects this polarity by combining a literate, reflective approach with a savvy, street-smart sensibility. Together with his broad, cagey sense of humor and often nervously kinetic delivery, it amounts to a fascinatingly complex and undeniably charismatic style, comparable to an intellectual Ludacris or a more ruminative Twista -- it's not hard to hear why he generated an underground buzz that developed quickly into wider awareness.
Despite his unique and captivating talent on the mic, DaSafo's initial focus was squarely on production. He got his start in London's underground hip-hop, at age 15, by making beats for other rappers, before his peers encouraged him, on the strength of his battle freestyles, to try his hand at writing rhymes. A pair of mixtapes that he recorded on his home computer and released through his own Dcypha Productions -- This Is My Promo, Vol. 1 and Vol. 2, released in 2004 and 2005, respectively -- garnered airplay on London's pirate radio stations and, eventually, the BBC's urban-oriented digital station 1Xtra. He captured the public eye in September 2005 when he was named Best Hip-Hop Act at the tenth annual MOBO awards -- a surprise upset over 50 Cent and the Game -- despite being unsigned and before he'd even released an album. Despite the slew of label offers that predictably followed this triumph, Sway chose to remain independent, but his proper debut album did arrive the following year, after the teaser single of "Up Your Speed" (a posse-cut remix of a track originally featured on the Promo mixtapes), with the release (by DCypha in conjunction with the indie All City Music label) of This Is My Demo. Its title is a continuation of the overarching meta-conceit to Sway's oeuvre; as he explained it: "my whole career is going to be based on my career."
All did not go quite according to plan (selling successfully enough to pave the way for a major-label release of the eventual, hypothetical This Is My Album) -- as Demo stiffed at number 78 on the charts, falling to number 152 in its second week -- though it did spawn a handful of underground hits including "Flo' Fashion" and "Little Derek" (a bottom-of-the-Top 40 hit) in addition to "Up Your Speed" (the reggae-tinged "Products" and the humorous, anti-file-sharing "Download" were also released as singles). However, it was critically hailed, making the shortlist (of 12) for the 2006 Mercury Prize, and led to another MOBO nomination and a BET award for "Best U.K. Hip-Hop Act." Sway supported the Streets on their 2006 U.K. tour and appeared alongside Mike Skinner on the Mitchell Brothers' single "Harvey Nicks," but he has also been active in the global hip-hop community beyond the U.K. -- collaborating with Lupe Fiasco, Chamillionaire, and Small World (of Ludacris' DTP crew) -- and in music beyond hip-hop, working with ska veterans Madness and electronic duo Stanton Warriors.
In 2007, Sway signed with Akon's Konvicted label; released the One for the Journey EP, a harder-hitting collection than his debut that featured several of the aforementioned collaborations (and came clearly labeled: "This Is Not My Second Album"); discussed collaborations with Akon, Doug E. Fresh, Mark Ronson, and Pharrell; and announced plans for The Signature, to arrive in 2008.
|
RSS Feed