Black Milk Releasing Third Solo, Tronic

25-year old Black Milk, the accomplished producer, MC, and vanguard of Detroit’s rising hip-hop scene will be releasing his third solo album TRONIC on October 28, 2008 through Fat Beats Records.

Produced entirely by Black Milk and featuring only three guest verses on the entire album (from Pharoahe Monch, Royce Da 5′9″, and Sean Price), TRONIC shows Black Milk flexing his solo production and emcee skills through tracks that are more expressive and daring than his previous works. The album is a departure from the soul-sample driven sounds of 2007’s Popular Demand, as Black employs more live instrumentation, embraces the use of both vintage and modern synthesizers, and explores more orchestral song structure. Without abandoning his trademark Detroit hip-hop sound, he shows growth as an artist while clearly attempting to raise the bar as a pioneer of future hip-hop music. The album also features a short list of diverse players and vocalists including Dwele, rising YouTube star and new Universal Motown signee Colin Munroe, and the legendary DJ Premier who each add their signature creative nuances and textures to Black Milk’s sound.

In only a few short years, Black Milk quickly has become one of underground hip-hop’s foremost ambassadors. Realizing his vast reservoir of talent, both independent and mainstream artists looked to Black to give their albums a raw underground sound. Black has since produced and appeared on tracks for an impressive roster of hip hop artists including Genius/GZA, Busta Rhymes, Pharoahe Monch, Kidz in the Hall, Kardinal Offishall, Guilty Simpson, and Strange Fruit Project, among others. Most recently, Black released two albums, The Set Up with Fat Ray, Black Milk Presents Caltroit with Bishop Lamont. Black also handed nearly all the production on elZhi’s The Preface, an album that is making many critics’ Top 10 lists for 2008 and bringing serious attention to Detroit’s music scene. Black also produces and rhymes as a member of the ground Random Axe with Sean Price and Guilty Simpson and will release a full-length album in early 2009. TRONIC will be released on CD, vinyl, and digitally on October 28, 2008.

TRONIC track listing and credits:

1. Long Story Short ft. Dwele

2. Bounce

3. Give The Drummer Su

4. Without U ft. Colin Munroe

5. Hold It Down

6. Losing Out ft. Royce da 5′9

7. Hell Yeah ft. Fat Ray

8. Overdose

9. Reppin For U ft. AB

10. The Matrix ft. Pharoahe Monch, Sean Price, & DJ Premier

11. Try

12. Tronic Summe

13. Bond 4 Life ft. Melanie Rutherford

14. Elec (OUTRO)

Diamond D Coming with Huge Hefner Chronicles on Babygrande

Legendary Producer/MC/DJ Diamond D, constituent of the seminal
collective D.I.T.C. (also included Fat Joe, Big L. & more), has signed
a multi-album deal with renowned indie Babygrande Records. His
inaugural release with the label will be October 14th’s The Huge
Hefner Chronicles, Diamond’s third official release and first
offering in 3+ years.

A classic and respected talent, Diamond D got his start as a member
of D.I.T.C., but soon parlayed this success into a thriving solo
career, which included the release of the widely regarded classic
Stunts Blunts & Hip-Hop in 1992. His second solo offering, 1997’s
Hatred, Passions & Infidelity,”featured appearances from such A-list
luminaries as Busta Rhymes, Phife Dawg, Pete Rock & more.

Over the years, aside from independently releasing his subsequent two
LP’s, Diamond has remained an active participant behind the boards,
having contributed his trademark style to some of the most iconic
records in hip-hop history including The Fugees’ The Score, A
Tribe Called Quest’s The Low End Theory, as well as releases by Mos
Def, Pharoahe Monch & many more.

With The Huge Hefner Chronicles,”Diamond returns to form, with a
record that recalls the nostalgic stylings of the “golden age,” while
maintaining a contemporary sensibility accessible to the modern day
hip-hop head.

This duality of form is on full display on the first single from the
forthcoming LP, entitled “D-I-A-M-O-N-D.” A vicious head-nodder, the
track instantly explodes into a “golden-age” inflected beat,
produced by none other than the infamous beat maestro Nottz
(Notorious B.I.G., Busta Rhymes, Method Man, Scarface, J Dilla,
Snoop Dogg & more). Diamond answers with the lyrical fluidity that
only a vet of his stature can offer. “D-I-A-M-O-N-D” is the
feel-good back-to-school jam that hits the sweet spot for both
purists and modern day heads alike. Listen right here!

DJ Revolution, King of The Decks In Stores Tomorrow

Yup, I’m grinding today. But that doesn’t mean I don’t have time to spread some good news. DJ Revolution’s King of The Decks hits stores tomorrow so make sure you got out and support! Check this clip of him at his home studio courtesy of Hard Knock TV.

Do The Knowledge: Q-Tip & Black Ivory

Ahh, so the new Q-tip video for “Gettin’ Up” debuted on Nahright today. (Damn, the days of debuting on TV are  really a wrap, huh?) So I’m listening to it and think “this is hot.”

While most people are probably distracted by the crazy ass outfits Tip is wearing I’m all in this BEAT like, “what is that sample?” and “it sounds vaguely familair…” So I do some homework and find out that it’s Black Ivory’s “You and I.”

What I’m about to say will strike some of you as odd, but I don’t know that much about Black Ivory. Unlike some people, I’m not afraid to say when I don’t know something. So I went looking and found this on Wikipedia:

Black Ivory is the name of an R&B group from Harlem, which had a number of hits in the 1970s, including “Don’t Turn Around”, “You and I” (which featured Larry Blackmon from Cameo on drums), “I’ll Find a Way (The Loneliest Man in Town)”, “Spinning Around”, “What Goes Around (Comes Around)”, “Will We Ever Come Together”, and “Mainline”. The group featured songwriter and prolific disco producer Leroy Burgess, Stuart Bascombe, and Russell Patterson. They were managed by Patrick Adams, an executive at the Today/Perception record company. Burgess was the lead voice of the majority of their hits in the early ’70’s. With Today/Perception being a small label, the promotion of Black Ivory’s singles scarcely got beyond the East Coast. This lack of exposure, coupled with the rise of disco and the fact Adams was beginning to branch out into other projects, caused Black Ivory to lose steam.

Turns out 9th Wonder and Brother Ali have touched that wax as well.

Now, after some more snooping around I see that some of you in cyberspace recognize  this sample from Madlib’s Beat Konducta collection. For those of you who haven’t heard it or might have missed it (like me) here it is:

This is why I love hip-hop. Very different usage of the same sample. But now the question I’m trying to answer is, “Who produced it?” and at first I read conflicting reports. Some said Mark Ronson,(probably because he debuted it on his radio show over the summer) others said  J-Dilla (just cuz, hey, it’s dope and it’s Q-Tip, right?)  but Tip’s management says that the Abstract twisted the nobs on this one. Shout out to FWMJ at Rappersiknow for the investigative reporting.

Now I hope this means Tip will actually be dropping The Renaissance in November.

The Leak: Foreign Exchange’s “Daykeeper”

Phonte and Nicolay of The Foreign Exchange are giving away their new single “Daykeeper” f/ Muhsinah for free download on their site. It is the first single from their new CD, Leave It All Behind.

“It took us nearly two years to finish this song, ” says Nicolay. “Going through mix after mix until we thought we finally had it right. There’s about 64 different vocal parts alone. Truly a labor of love.”

Leave It All Behind is the follow-up to their critically acclaimed CD, Connected, which featured the hits “Come Around” and “Sincere.”

Be sure to tune into Sugatreats Radio on 90.3FM WHCR at 8pm to hear the on-air debut of “Daykeeper” but you can peep it below:

For more on the Foreign Exchange visit http://www.theforeignexchangemusic.com/

Green Lantern talks Obama, Million DJ March and Rocking With a Band

Green Lantern’s power ring could use a charge. The sleep-deprived mix master is barely audible over the phone but with good reason. He’s been bouncing from city to city moving the crowd as Nas’ DJ on the Jones Experience Tour. But if anything can perk him up it’s the prospect of the first African-American President of the United States.

“This is a historic time we live in,” says the New York native who produced the track “Black President” on Nas’ latest CD. “If I can indirectly have a hand it in that’s really crazy. He’s come a long way and fought for a whole lot of things his whole life and I’m just shocked and amazed that we’re at this point with it.”

Green Lantern was originally scheduled to make a trip to Washington D.C this past weekend to attend the Million DJ March, but scheduling with the tour made that impossible. However, he is still in support of the march’s mission.

“I support the idea,” he says. “Get some health benefits and organize to a point, hold people accountable. There’s strength in numbers.”

Green Lantern is also putting the finishing touches on a Barack Obama mixtape but has taken his time putting it out for obvious reasons. His friend Ludacris was lambasted in the press for calling Hillary Clinton a “bitch” in a pro-Obama mixtape song.

“The Republicans have their agenda which is to test [Barack] ‘That’s your homey, right? That’s your man?’ So he has to go ‘hold up.’ I think it would have been taken lighter if he was already in the office,” says Green Lantern. “Right now he’s under a lot of scrutiny to be the perfect person. But in hip-hop we use aggressive language. By saying stuff like that to a hip-hop audience they’re not flynching. But to larger society where everything is so proper they go ‘oh my God!’”

Nevertheless, Green has made the appropriate adjustments for his own collection of pro-Obama songs.

“I just wanted it to be something that he could stand behind all of the songs,” he says of the delay in making the tape. “I was getting verses from people and had to go back and say ‘yo, this is a little over the stop,’ so I was waiting for the revisions and a lot of them never came. I gotta keep it movin’. I don’t want to put anything out that he can’t be next to.”

Green also talked about the hurdles in rocking a show like Rock The Bells with a live band, as Nas has done at certain stops on the tour.

“I was just a little worried about the sound at the venue,” he shares. “Having all of those different acts and then a band, it’s so hard for a soundman to setup and get a sound check, that’s why it took so long. There was a big gap before we came on. Rock The Bells for the most part is two turntables and a mic. So when you have a bass player, keyboard and drums, all these different inputs have to be leveled before you start playing or else you’ll sound crazy. I was concerned with that but we pulled it off. We’ve been using the band sporadically. We did a show at Webster Hall in New York with the band it sounded better than at Jones Beach.”

After the tour Green Lantern will be promoting shows for the Grand Theft Auto soundtrack that he has produced, but you can check him every Monday night on his “Team Invasion” show on Sirius Satellite radio with host Sharon Divine.

Foreign Exchange Return with “Leave it All Behind”

Four years after the release of their critically acclaimed debut “Connected,” The Foreign Exchange returns with their sophomore set, “Leave It All Behind.”

Consisting of singer/songwriter Phonte and producer Nicolay, The Foreign Exchange came together via the online hip-hop community Okayplayer.com in 2002. After trading files through Instant Messenger for over a year, Nicolay (living in his native Holland at the time) and Phonte (a Raleigh, NC resident) completed their debut album before they ever met each other in person. The album, “Connected,” was released in 2004 to positive reviews, and was praised by legendary DJ’s such as Jazzy Jeff, King Britt, and DJ Spinna for its inventive mix of hip-hop, R&B, and electronica.

“Leave It All Behind” finds The Foreign Exchange much closer in geography (Nicolay has since become a resident of Wilmington, NC), but located much further from their hip-hop origins. The duo’s second full-length is a dark, multilayered affair that features Phonte showcasing his abilities as an exceptional lead and harmony vocalist, while Nicolay extends his musical palette to include sprinklings of jazz, downtempo, and house. The lush, Darien Brockington-assisted “Take Off the Blues” picks up where Connected’s sleeper hit “Come Around” left off, while the complex polyrhythms and dreamy synthesizers of “Sweeter Than You” are described by Phonte as “swing jazz for the next century.” Marc Mac (of legendary UK production team 4hero), also contributes a string arrangement to the duo’s glorious cover of Stevie Wonder’s oft-forgotten 1991 gem, “If She Breaks Your Heart.”

In addition to appearances from longtime FE affiliates Darien Brockington and Yahzarah, the album also features guest shots from producer/keyboardist Zo! and vocalist Muhsinah.

Tracklisting:

01. Daykeeper
02. Take Off The Blues
03. All Or Nothing/Coming Home To You
04. I Wanna Know
05. House Of Cards
06. Sweeter Than You
07. Valediction
08. If She Breaks Your Heart
09. If This Is Love
10. Something To Behold
11. Leave It All Behind

Read Nodfactor.com’s 2 Part Interview with producer Nicolay:

Rolling With the Dutch, Part 1

Rolling With the Dutch, Part 2

A Million DJs To March on D.C. This Weekend

Washington, D.C. - This Friday, August 29th will see the beginning of the two days of activities that make up the inaugural Million DJ March event. Consisting of a day of panel discussions and an evening celebrity basketball game on Friday at the D.C. Boys and Girls Club, and ending with the March itself on the lawn at National Mall on Saturday, August 30th, the 2 day event is expected to attract DJ’s from all over the nation.

The event will not only be an opportunity to protest unfair compensation practices but will help DJs organize their businesses, sign up for health insurance, and learn about the legal issues mixtape DJs face.

Saturday’s schedule, which begins at 11AM will consist of a day of speeches by the likes of The Wondertwinz, Jazzy Jay, Jeannie Jones (WKYS), Superstar Jay, Chuck T, CL of Digiwaxx, B Mack of Foundation Magazine, DJ Nabs, DJ Reg West, Roger Toussaint, the owners of RapMullet.com, members of the D.C. City Council and KRS One, tailored to issues pertaining to the DJ community with intermissions of live performance by artists and DJ’s such as KRS One, Dirty Harry, Joell Ortiz, Saigon, Keith Murray, Cory Gunz, Bang Bang Boogie, DJ Famous, Kia Shine, Gillie Da Kid and Nina B.

The entire event will be broadcast live on XM Satellite’s 66 Raw station (Million DJ March Mixmaster Weekend) and webcast live on http://www.thatshiphop.com

MILLION DJ MARCH TIME TABLE

Friday, August 29th - The Boys and Girls Club (2500 14th Street NW, Washington DC 20019)

4PM Panel Discussion with DJ Leggs

6PM Insurance Dinner with DJ Roz

7PM Celebrity Basketball Game

8PM - 3AM Official Million DJ March Red Carpet Media Kick Off @ The Felix (2406 18th Street NW, Washington D.C. 20009)

Saturday, August 30th - National Mall (on the lawn), Washington D.C.

11AM - 8PM Main event with special performances by: KRS One, Kia Shine, Lord Tariq and Peter Gunz, Cory Gunz, Saigon, Gillie Da Kid, Nina B, DJ Geometrix, Chuck T, DJ Self, Jazzy Jay, DJ Nabs, DJ Aaries, Joell Ortiz, The Dey with special unannounced performances planned.

Dr. Dre’s Son Found Dead

According to Allhiphop.com and the L.A. Times Andre Young, Jr. was found dead in his Woodland Hills Home on Saturday August 23rd. He was only 20 years old.

Young went out on Friday night and came in about 5:30 A.M., but his mother found him unresponsive when she checked on him at 10 in the morning. The cause of death will be revealed after a toxicology report.

For more on this developing story check allhiphop.com.

88 Keys and Q-Tip Buggin Out, Taking “Viagra”

In preparation for his debut CD, The Death of Adam, producer 88 Keys has released this commercial/news report on the demise of his lead character:

Now only if he can get Q-tip to put out that CD…Consequence seems to know something we don’t..

Also, peep the new joint from 88 Keys featuring Kanye West “Stay Up” (Viagra)

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