MIXTAPE 113 – SKEETER WAS BLACK

I was originally going to talk about something else here, illness but all of a sudden I like felt the holy ghost or something and was inspired to talk about this. Seriously everyone, contagion this is an important issue that I feel strongly about. I’ve actually had serious conversations about this.

Intro: Copywrite – Fuck A Soundcheck (prod RJD2)

Busta Rhymes – Packin Them Things (prod Kev Brown). This is just sort of a given. And even Busta Rhymes voted for Obama. You know where to find Busta, so go check out myspace.com/kevbrown.

Blu and Mainframe – Hold On John. Off of the Johnson and Jonson record, which you’ve been hearing bits of for the last couple years or so. Apparently the joint is actually out now, and it’s highly recommended. I don’t think there’s a single cut on this record that I don’t like. I’ve said enough about this record before, so I’ll leave it at that. Shouts to Steve for this one. myspace.com/jandjbabyproducts.

I mean, think about it. The only dude who seemed to be able to dance. He could beatbox. He wore rappidy-rap style clothing – well, comparatively. Oddly enough, I never felt like this was stereotyping – I just naturally internalized that Skeeter was Black. I seriously can’t wrap my head around the fact that some people don’t get it. To my white friends – I like you all a lot, but sometimes you miss things. Very important things. Like which cartoon characters are which race.

Stanza – Do. As heard previously on your favorite rap podcast, this is another selection off of Name This Album. The lyricism is sort of bizarrely great (trying to imagine the hand contortions in the beginning is alternately funny and amazing) and as with the rest of the cuts on here, there’s actually a message in here. And as I mentioned in the outro, Stanza has inexplicably put this entire record up online for free download – inexplicably because it’s easily worth the money. The record is dope. Go get it here, and check out the rest of the site at mqrt.com.

MF Doom – Rapp Snitch Knishes feat Mr Fantastic. Does anyone actually know anything about Mr Fantastic? I mean, I could google the dude, I guess, but after listening to this, I’m realizing that I haven’t heard much of anything from the dude.myspace.com/mfdoom.

This of course, is all based on when the show was on Nickelodeon. I quit watching when Disney took over. Actually I think at that point in my life I was a little busy to be watching cartoons (okay, it was just on at an inconvenient time. I definitely used run late for school because I wanted to catch the end of Pokemon).

Q-Tip – Gettin’ Up. On the Dilla rework – you might have heard this one, but for those who haven’t – dope. This really is a proper rework. myspace.com/qtip.

Marlena Shaw – California Soul (Diplo remix). For real, when I read the track title before actually listening to it, I was both excited and worried to hear what sort of destruction Diplo would wreak on this classic – but it’s oddly restrained. It’s good. myspace.com/officialmarlenashaw.

Outro: Qwel and Kip Killagain – Heliocentric (Instrumental). I actually like Qwel.

So, really. Doug was clearly white, Skeeter was obviously Black. The logic doesn’t really run across color lines, however – I mean, what about Bee Bee? She’s blue too, but I never got “Black vibes” from her, if that’s an appropriate word. And reversewise, come to think of it, Patti was sort of ambiguous – mixed ancestry, perhaps? She was sort of dark. Connie was Asian. I’m fairly confident about that one.

Am I overthinking this? Any other theories are welcome.

Oh yeah, and thoughts on the music. You know.

MIXTAPE 97 – WEST COAST WINTER

Why is it so cold? Anyway, order other news: Giveaways, rx son!

Yes, I do have 5 copies of 2K Sports’ NBA 2K8 for XBOX 360 (USA version) up for grabs. Merry Christmas, etc. Listen to the show to get details on how to grab your own copy and then post up your ideas in the comments. And as I said, 3 of them will be going out on the site, and two will be going out on the Mixtape Show Facebook Group – you gotta be in it to get the info on how to win one (click here to join up).

Massive, massive shouts to DJ Spaceboy at 2K for making this possible.

This ep – just West Coast all over the place. You’ll like it, I promise.

Strong Arm Steady – Steady Mobbin feat The Game. And Will Blast screaming random ignorant things in the background. No bad feelings though, that just adds to the bananas-factor of this joint. The funky Dago connection is in the house. I love this song. CHUUUUCHmyspace.com/strongarmsteady

Tha D.R.E. – Wild Child. I can’t necessarily vouch for the rest of the record, but for anyone who appreciates Bay Area rap, this cut is a gem. Oddly enough, dude is from Milwaukee.

Unagi – Mo Champagne feat Motion Man. Unagi hit me with this cut and I think I played it 8 times back to back. The dude really is just dope with the loops. unagi442.com.

Johnson&Jonson – La La La. Yes, Blu is in here. Seriously, how are they going to clear these samples? Jon, can you shed some light on this? Either way, this is really dope. (You’ve heard – and seen – Johnson & Jonson here before, by the way). Something to look forward to ’08 – the Powders and Oils album. myspace.com/jandjbabyproducts. I’m not pretending to understand the name, though.

Spice 1 – Playa Man. Again, get well soon, dude. I’m really just now getting into this cat’s music. myspace.com/spiceone.

Double F – Weed, Greed, and Chases at High Speed (prod. Dilla). This off his mildly controversial 2006 Welcome to Cali Jay Dee tribute tape (which almost made it onto the First Impressions tape). Short, to the point, and, well, great. myspace.com/mystadub

Dam Funk – December Sun – At some point the two of us are going to link up and just give you all a ridiculous show. Dam is just too funky with the beats. I know I talked all over this one, but you can go get yourself a listen at his myspace. Check for him on the new 2K8 soundtrack, too. myspace.com/damfunk.

Kam – (Untitled)?. This comes off of a Naam Brigade mixtape (the only one I have, actually). Yes, the Message revamped. You can hate all you like, but I actually dig this song a lot. Naam Brigade somehow pulls of these throwback beats that show the roots of this music without sounding contrived – on the contrary, a lot of their tape goes really, really hard. Kam is pretty great on this cut, and the combination of the NoI references, the commentary on the West Coast gangster rap market, and the parallels to the original cut are pretty interesting. In that vein, the “fag” lines are a little abrasive at first, until you remember that the original cut dropped them the same way. myspace.com/westcoastkam1

Hope you all dug this one. Good luck in the contest, and be on the lookout for a few special editions of the Mixtape Show coming your way very soon…

And on a related note, I know I’m kinda opening myself to the flames by calling anything a “West Coast” episode. Too much great music out here – again this is just a slice of the diversity out here. Feel free to let the recommendations fly in the comments.

Anyway, approved here’s another video, this time from my man Jon at Turntable Lab. Blu (who longtime listeners will remember from as far back as rap podcast ep 34) and Mainframe are Johnson&Jonson, with Bout it Bout it.

As of right now, it seems that aside from a prospective Q3 Japan release, the status of the Johnson&Jonson project is a little hazy, so I can’t point you to a purchase link or anythingupdate: this dude fred is saying that it’s gonna be out stateside in late april, early may. You can, however, get a listen to another track off of J&J’s debut in episode 56.

On the real though, I don’t understand this video. Granted, I don’t think there’s a whole lot to understand, as I’m pretty sure the entire concept was “hey guys let’s make a music video tomorrow! Yeah dog I got a white room, let’s do this shit”. Still though, it’s a cute joint, especially the fast cuts back and forth between whoever all these random cats are.

Also I’d like to publicly state that I do appreciate Blu reminding us that it’s okay for brothers to show up to a video shoot without combing they hair.

Hit the comments section!

MIXTAPE EPISODE 56

As noted in the last post, epidemic this episode was delayed because the earthquake that hit just off the coast of Taiwan not only put several cracks in my apartment wall, tablets but knocked out Southern China’s internet for a couple weeks. Sorry and shit, gynecologist on with the show.

J Blow – Cali Jam 3 w/ Busy Bee. J hit me up with this on my request – the beat was just that nice. allupinyourearhole.com.

C Monts and Jonny Simps – Inner Mind’s Eye (remix). I somehow fucked around and lost the email that this came with – I’ll have an update on the artist’s site later.

Sway – Little Derek feat Baby Blue. Sad to say, I slept on this – as in was totally unaware of its existence until Suburb put me up on it. The joint is ridiculous catchy, and this Baby Blue chick rips it up as well. I know it’s more than a few UK listeners on this site – how is Sway being received in the streets over there? Hit up the comments, I’m genuinely curious. In the meantime, I definitely recommend hitting dude’s site and copping the full album. swaydasafo.com.

Che Grand – Work Flow (The Beatmaker Clock Out Remix). About time for Che to make a reappearance on the show. I think the original of this joint passed me by, but the remix really has that soul to it. Shouts to Che – when’s that next album out man? loudminoritymusic.com.

JR – All Behind Me. Off the Sessions 2 album. I’ve said enough about JR here, so I’ll keep quiet on that, other than to say that this new album is definitely worth picking up. shamanwork.com.

Johnson&Jonson – Wow!. On the exclusive tip from my man Jon at Sound in Color, this is a side project from Mixtape Show veteran Blu. Pretty much the whole album is Blu ripping up funky-ass samples like this. I haven’t had a chance to really sit down with the whole thing, but I can say that it is ridiculous. No idea when/if this thing’s coming out officially, but it’s hot. soundincolor.com.

JR – Grandz. See above. Dig the sample on this one.

Akir – Again (unofficial remix featuring John Legend). Akir hit me with like 4 new exclusives two days ago – expect to hear all or most of them very soon. I like how Akir is switching up the flow on this joint. Again, if you haven’t caught dude’s album yet, you need to. myspace.com/akir.

(outro – James Brown – Give It Up or Turn It Loose). Rest in Peace.

Run DMC – Christmas in Hollis (DJ Slice Remix). I couldn’t help it. Shouts to DJ Slice and CYN for getting at me with this one.

There it is – hopefully I move out of this building before it collapses. Hit up the comments section and let me know what you thought about this one!