Saturday, May 31, 2008
Friday, May 30, 2008
Talib Kweli, Rakim, And KRS-One To Headline Summer Tours In “The Roundup”
Summer’s right around the corner and hip-hop artists are poised to hit parks, theaters and stores near you starting in June. In celebration of Black Music Month, Apple will be holding in-store performances in New York City, San Francisco, Santa Monica, Miami, Chicago, Detroit and Atlanta throughout June.The concert series will kick off with Tiffany Evans in NYC’s Soho branch this weekend (June 1st). Wyclef Jean, MC Lyte, Mistah F.A.B., E-40, David Banner, Talib Kweli, Pastor Troy & Killer Mike, Yung Berg, B.o.b, Janelle Monae, Dwele and Michelle Williams are also slated to hit the stage. [Live at the Apple Store]
Meanwhile, Rakim will embark on the Paid Dues tour in NYC next week (June 4th). De La Soul, GZA, Blackalicious, Little Brother, Hieroglyphics, Murs, Buckshot & 9th Wonder, Supernatural and Kidz In The Hall round out the lineup. The festival will also make stops in Ft. Lauderdale, Denver and San Francisco. [Paid Dues Tour]
Last but not least, KRS-One, DJ Premier and Boot Camp Click’s Buckshot will headline the 4th Annual Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival on July 12th. The fest will actually kick off two days before with various events and other performances leading up to the main show. More performers will be announced in the coming weeks. [Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival] —XXL staff (xxlmag.com)
Game Talks About L.A.X. & Being Harrased In Jail
Full Story: MTV
http://www.mtv.com/overdrive/?id=1588371&vid=237052
ANNOUNCING THE 100K BATTLE - BROUGHT TO YOU BY URSESSION.COM & THE WAKE UP SHOW
Via press release:
ANNOUNCING THE 100K BATTLE - BROUGHT TO YOU BY URSESSION.COM & THE WAKE UP SHOW
The word on the streets is hip-hop is dead. The word in the boardrooms is the music industry is dead. Sway & King Tech of the legendary Wake Up Show are on a mission to prove the world wrong on both counts with the 100K Battle, a revolutionary competition that, in conjunction with the innovative new social networking website urSession.com, may just end up being responsible for the discovery of the next great rapper – and the next great record label – of the future.
Power to the people. The Internet has transformed the world by operating on this simple premise, and it’s the same philosophy that drives the 100K Battle. 28 brand new beats are ready for download at urSession.com from top-shelf producers like Pete Rock, DJ Muggs, 9th Wonder, Rick Rock, Alchemist, DJ Babu, DJ Q-Bert, Evidence, DJ Revolution and the late, great J Dilla by any emcee who creates an artist profile. Rappers record the best song(s) they can on their picks and upload a maximum of three to their profiles, at which point urSession non-artist members are free to listen and vote for the songs they enjoy. The artist with the most votes by the end of the competition gets $5,000, a round-trip ticket to Los Angeles to appear on the Wake Up Show, and all the exposure one can expect from the first, longest-running and most influential hip-hop specialty radio show in the world, which graces the ears of 11 million people in 19 markets across three countries every week, and has been instrumental to the careers of everyone from Eminem to Xzibit.
Says Sway:
“The industry has been shrinking recently in the conventional fashion. Major labels are consolidating, radio’s narrowing their playlists - it’s getting harder for the independent artist. For the Wake Up Show, the 100K Battle was an opportunity for us to tap into our resources and allow independent artists who aren’t getting breaks because their music isn’t compatible with what’s out there. They don’t have access to Grammy award-winning, well-respected, proven producers like all these different guys that we got to donate their beats. We can give you access as an artist to music that can make you competitive with artists who already have that kind of access for free. You just gotta be able to write the song, and if you got what it takes then you’ll get that break. Not only that – we’ll give you the exposure that’s hard to get. These independent artists can’t get on commercial/mainstream radio. You get enough votes, and we’ll fly you to LA to be on the Wake Up Show, which means a ton of exposure. Plus, we’ll put money in your pocket.”
“Every and any independent artist across the genre should be building profiles on urSession,” Sway concludes. “And any hip-hop artist that really believes they got what it takes - because everybody believes it, but not everybody’s got it – show and prove, and enter the 100K Battle. Where will you get the opportunity to download this caliber of music from this caliber of producer – for free? And if you can’t create a noise beyond that, with those type of resources, then you might wanna question what it is you’re doing. If you get a beat from J Dilla? The Alchemist? Pete Rock? And you can’t make a hot song outta that - what are you doing? So it’s like, show and prove. Get it poppin.”
DJ Doo Wop Responds "Fuck Lil Wayne!" With Video
DJ Doo Wop [click to read] is one of the most famed mixtape deejays in Hip Hop history. His '95 Live tape was deemed as one of Hip Hop's 10 best by Ego Trip's Book of Rap Lists. Presently working as a deejay for Guru [click to view], Doo Wop, leader of Da Bounce Squad, took offense to Lil Wayne's comments, including, "Fuck mixtape deejays!" to a Foundation Magazine writer earlier this week [click to read].
Doo Wop told HipHopDX, "Basically Lil Wayne made a statement disrespecting all mixtape deejays. I understand if he's sour at a few dudes who exploit the game by leaking too many songs from your upcoming album on their CD, but that doesn't justify him shitting on the whole culture." The veteran added, "Lil Wayne wants to separate himself from the very thing that helped him become a household name, and it needed to be addressed. He made a million songs and freestyles last year, but the radio mostly played the commercial releases. How the hell do you think the rest of his joints got heard?"
The New York mainstay defended his peers and made an enduring case for the mixtape, in a message directed to Wayne. "Nowadays the game is what it is. Downloading is at an all time high and CD sales at an all time low. So even if mixtapes didn't exist, sales still wouldn't be what they should. Don't blame the deejay, homey. Thank the deejay. You don't hear 50 Cent shitting on mixtapes. He's a product of it, and never denies it." Doo Wop was among the top deejays instrumental in 50 Cent's rediscovery, with a collaborative freestyle appearing on 2002's Guess Who's Back?
The New York deejay has put his acclaimed mixing abilities to new mediums in a video just released (posted below). The edited clip, which includes various punch-ins of commentary against Wayne, along with an array of images of the work he's done, shows adoptive father and Cash Money Records CEO Birdman commending deejays for their hard work at the Core DJs Retreat two months ago.
Narrative editing of interview clips and song excerpts goes on to mock Lil Wayne for the leaked pictures of him kissing Baby on the mouth, hypocritical statements about New Orleans awareness after Hurricane Katrina, and drug addiction.
The clip closes with Ronald "Slim" Williams, co-founder of the Cash Money label, affirming mixtape deejays at the same retreat, "Y'all created a monster in Lil Wayne."
Judge Orders Suge Knight To Sell Death Row Recordings
After filing for bankruptcy in 2006, a judge has ordered Suge Knight to auction off all assets for Death Row Records to the highest bidder on June 24.
The document, obtained by TMZ.com, describes what must be sold as "substantially all of the recorded music business assets of the estate, along with substantially all of the music publishing business assests of the bankruptcy estate of Marion 'Suge' Knight..."
The minimum starting bid is $24 million, and bids must be made by June 10.
Those interested may possibly include Afeni Shakur, who has tried to get her son's original work in the past, and Dr. Dre or Snoop Dogg, as many artists have expressed their desire to own their master recordings and publishing rights.
Nas Unveils "Be A Nigger Too" Video Last Night To Press
Amidst all of the controversy that Nas has amassed with his controversial and ever-changing Nigger/Nasir campaign [click to read], you would expect the Queens-bred lyricist to fall back after his latest incident of having to change the name of his much-anticipated album from Nigger to reportedly titled Nasir effort
But Nas has never been the type to follow the same stream of thought as others and last night (May 29th) at the Tribeca Grand Hotel, a private screening was held for “Be A Nigger Too” for invited audiences. Directed by Rik Cordero [click to read] – whose videos for Consequence, The Roots and Jay-Z have garnered widespread attention – stayed true to his guerilla film style.
“I thought it would be just the cast and crew who came,” Nancy Mitchell, assistant director, said exclusively to HipHopDX. The video which depicted a hanging, had a child holding an uzi and showcased a mixed bag of races all to be “niggers” too proved its point in being controversial. These images play while Nas raps to a mirror, a style reminiscent of his "One Mic" video several years ago.
“Nas’ album is very important to him and this first visual off the album proved its point,” Cordero began. “The easy answer would have been to just compile a bunch of stock footage of people, of slave, of any racial prejudices and just stick it in the video and have Nas rap in front of a green screen.”
As of press time, 3/21 Films is still waiting on word from Def Jam as to when and if the video will be shipped out to run on the major networks.
Nas attended the screening for approximately 10 minutes, before exiting.
Busta Rhymes Former Bodyguard Shot Dead
A man who used to work security for rapper Busta Rhymes was shot multiple times and found dead in the back of his pickup truck on Wednesday (May 28th), AllHipHop.com has learned.
Jermaine Williams, 35, of the Bronx, was found dead from multiple gunshot wounds in Ozone Park, Queens.
Police found blood dripping from the backseat of his SUV when they discovered Williams' body, which was wrapped in a blanket in the backseat of the SUV.
Sources have confirmed with AllHipHop.com that Williams, also known as “Black,” was once Rhymes' bodyguard, although he had not been employed by Rhymes for almost eight years.
Busta Rhymes has been on a tour of Europe and was not in the country at the time of the incident sources told AllHipHop.com.
Williams, who leaves behind two children, reportedly went to Queens to visit his grandmother and ended up missing for almost 24 hours.
Police are still seeking the suspects who committed the murder.
Busta Rhymes' former bodyguard Israel Ramirez was shot dead on February 5, 2006, outside of a warehouse, where a music video for the remix to Rhymes’ single “Touch It” was being shot.
Ramirez, 29, was shot in the chest in front of the building, where as many as 500 people may have witnessed the shooting.
To date, a shooter has never been identified and Rhymes has denied any knowledge of Ramirez’ shooting.
50 Cent's Son Escapes Blaze, Intruder Was Allegedly In House
It has been confirmed that 50 Cent’s ex-girlfriend Shaniqua Tompkins and two of her children, including 50 Cent's son, were among those injured in an early morning fire this morning (May 30).
The $1.4 million dollar mansion in Dix Hills, Long Island, was burned to the ground around 5:00 am this morning, just days after a confrontation between Tompkins and 50 Cent.
Six people, including Tompkins and 50 Cent’s ten-year-old son Marquise were taken to Huntington Hospital, where they were treated for complications from smoke inhalation and released.
A firefighter was also injured and treated for an eye injury.
According to the Associated Press, Dix Hills Fire Chief Larry Feld has deemed the blaze suspicious, because of the intensity of the fire, which lasted for almost 45 minutes.
The pair are currently involved in a court battle over the mansion, as 50 Cent is attempting to evict the woman from the residence.
Tompkins claims that 50 Cent bought the mansion for her, a claim the rapper, born Curtis Jackson, disputed in court.
"To have her living there with her boyfriend and several other people is inappropriate," 50 Cent said. "She's in the house with people I'm not responsible to pay housing for."
On Monday (May 26), the pair were involved in a violent confrontation inside of Tompkins’ Manhattan attorney’s office.
Tompkins' lawyer, Paul Catsandonis said an "extremely dangerous incident" took place inside of his office but did not elaborate.
50 Cent was not in New York at the time the house burned down and is currently on location in Louisiana filming a new motion picture.
“Curtis Jackson expressed deep concern over this fire at his property,” a representative said in a statement. "He is extremely thankful that everyone including his son, Marquise, escaped the burning house safely. He is confident that authorities will be conducting a thorough investigation of the incident and is eager to review their findings."
TMZ.com obtained exclusive footage of 50 Cent and Shaniqua Tompkins arguing on the street on Monday, just days before the house burned down.
Tompkins said she heard an intruder around 4:00 am, just before the inferno erupted and burned the mansion to the ground.
The dispute over the mansion will be heard again in State Supreme Court in Manhattan on June 10.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
“That Ain’t The Way It’s Supposed To Sound!”
You know what the worst feeling in the world is, when you have this incredible beat that you’re shopping around to everyone in the game, and you just know that it’s a hit record waiting to happen, and the one artist who records to it and actually has the bread to pay you for the track spits some horrible shit on top of it. And I don’t mean just bad lyrics, I mean the whole concept of the song is wrong, the way they deliver the rhymes is wrong, they don’t ride the beat right, they put some horrible ass singer on the hook. Truthfully, it’s like your beat is your baby, and someone’s fucking with your kid. But you gotta eat, right?
It’s really a touchy situation when this happens, particularly when you’re a newer producer and you’re sort of just breaking into the game, because one hand you wanna get the best possible song out of the situation, but on the other you don’t want to say something that will a) make the rapper not like the song anymore b) feel like you’re some young ungrateful dude who is too opinionated and c) start earning a reputation as being someone who is hard to work with.
So what do you do?
In my opinion you’ve got a few options, and they all differ depending on what your attitude is. If you’re like me, and generally think that most artists with record deals are hot steaming garbage, you’ll probably dislike anything you hear done to your beats. That’s not cause it’s wack, it’s just cause you’re pretty adamant about knowing what’s good and what isn’t, and let’s face it, most shit that industry artists do isn’t that good (why else would the industry be 3 album flops away from foreclosure at this point).
You can just flat out tell the artist that you think they can do better, that time and money permitting, the song should be re-recorded, and that you envision it being in X fashion. Do it in a nice way, don’t tell them their version sucks. You gotta always be ego-stroking in this biz, at the end of the day it’s an industry full of dick blowers. Offer any assistance you can in making it a better song, whether that be reproducing parts of the beat for them, or coaching them through the vocals. This is part of being a producer, and not a beatmaker.
You can just keep quiet, take the money and run. Which isn’t always the worst idea. It is a business, and depending on how much you’re being paid, it’ll probably dictate how much time you want to put into the song. You can make a million more hot beats.
Have some dialogue with the artist’s creative team- management, executive producer and A&R. Ultimately, these guys may have a vision for the song that differs from the artist as well. So you may not be the only one who thinks the artist’s version is weak. Songs can go through many incarnations before the final version is settled on, and if the artist is hesitant to re-record, usually their creative team can talk some sense into them.
Trust the artist. Hey, the guy got a record deal somehow, he must sort of know what he’s doing, right? Well, not always. But still, there’s a certain amount of respect you should have for the artist’s craft. Let them do what they do, and don’t try to impose too much. When you’re at superproducer level and the artists are all coming to you, that’s when you can really call the shots.
And finally, what I think is the best option, just don’t give your hits to anyone. Either be very selective with the artists who’s albums you try to place them on, or find an artist who can articulate your vision the way you want them to and put the records out yourself. If you think that isn’t the driving force behind great songwriters like Sean Garrett, Bryan Michael-Cox, The Dream, Neyo putting out their own records, you’re mistaken. Doing things for other artists is cool, but everyone gets frustrated when their vision isn’t executed properly. So either record the songs yourself, or find someone who is talented and have them do it. Worst case scenario, you end up selling the whole idea- beat and lyrics (100% publishing, woo hoo!!!)- to another artist, and that’s generally a win-win situation. Because you can always go back and make more music, whereas a generally untalented pop star or rapper who can’t play an instrument or write a song to save their life can’t do that.
Busta Rhymes Comments On Star-Studded Remix, Album
Busta Rhymes' Blessed, is on its way and he's already got various guests appearing on the album. Recently, he spoke on the guests, the topics and what it all means to his career. For a remix, Busta has enlisted some A-list help.
"[The original] 'Don't Touch Me' is a record that I love very much because it's a song that kind of brings me back to the feeling of vintage Busta Rhymes," he told MTV. "Like that hyperactive, feel-good-energy, wilding-in-a-club, carefree, free spirit. Throwing up drinks around and wet up people and just have fun. The remix [click to listen] consists of Reek Da Villain, who is a new artist from Flipmode; Spliff Star, the official street corner colonel; Game; Lil Wayne; Nas and Big Daddy Kane. So this remix is definitely a movie, and I had a fun, fun time putting it together with them guys. I definitely want to salute them artists because I'm definitely a big fan of all the dudes that came through and participated on the remix. We're more than likely to be having a phenomenal video for the remix as well, so, you know, you got a lot to look forward to from the kid, Bussa Bus!"
We've already heard his recent single, which features guest vocals from Linkin Park. For another track, he's got even more assistance from top emcees.
"The record was inspired by the situation that transpired with T.I. right after the BET Hip-Hop Awards. My legal situations were current, and his legal situations were current, and Akon had his, you know, history of legal situations in the past ... We wanted people to — as bad as things might look for us sometimes — just know that it ain't over until you say it's over at the end of the day. 'Cause nobody can really dictate what the outcome of your destiny, what your life is going to end up becoming, unless you let it happen that way."
Blessed is going to be out in July.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Hip Hop Album Sales: Week Ending 5/28/08
After the tragic passing of his UGK counterpart, Pimp C, Bun B is back at it again proving that he is still an Underground King. Bun's first album [click to read] since Pimp C's death, titled II Trill, came in at #2 on the charts this week with just under 98,000 copies sold. Bun took second place to a new debut album from 3 Doors Down, respectively.
A little further down the charts at #7, newlywed Mariah Carey creeps towards platinum with a total of 931,000 copies of E=MC2. Rick Ross' Trilla [click to read] climbs the charts five spots this week and landed at #22. The self-proclaimed "Boss" sold 17,800 copies this week. Meanwhile, Lyfe Jennings takes a fall from #17 to #37. Lyfe Change sold just under 14,000 copies. Following right on his heels is a comeback from 90s staple Keith Sweat, who sold 13,800 copies of his new effort Just Me and took the #38 spot in his 2nd week on the charts.
Despite positive reviews, The Roots Rising Down [click to read] dropped from #38 to #67 on the charts this week. The Philly mainstays sold 9,300 copies. Atmosphere's When Life Gives You Lemons... [click to read] also took a fall from #65 to #96 with just over 7,000 sold. The Cool Kids [click to read] managed to enter the Top 200 at #152 with 4,200 digital presale copies of The Bake Sale sold. Despite airtime from MTV and tons of buzz surrounding group Kidz In The Hall [click to read], the duo hasn't been able to make top 200, selling 2,400 copies of The In Crowd. Wu-Tang affiliate Killah Priest [click to read] debuted his Behind The Stained Glass to dismal sales totaling 840.
With new albums on the way from KRS-One, Usher, and Twista who can top the charts? Stay tuned to DX as we give the play-by-play.
Nas And Green Lantern Set To Release "The Nigger Tape"
a week after announcing he will rename his controversial Nigger album to simply Nas, word has spread that Nas is scheduled to team up with DJ Green Lantern to drop a mixtape titled The Nigger Tape. "I guess it shows you the power of Wal-Mart and Target," Green Lantern told Rhapsody's Play blog. "If that was the case, it's definitely scary because it kind of fucks with your artistic vision.
But Nas and DJ Green Lantern are coming out with a mixtape called The Nigger Tape. Can't nobody hold that back." The tape will feature remixes, outtakes, exclusive tracks, and also an unreleased verse from Nas' recently released "Be A Nigger Too." A new version of "The Last Real Nigga Alive," originally a track on God's Son, is also expected to to be on The Nigger Tape.
As previously reported by HipHopDX [click to read], Nas initially was to title his next effort Nigger, as announced during a New York performance at Nokia Theater last year. After hearing the uproar of both positive and negative feedback, he then decided to change the album's spelling to the more eyebrow-raising Nigger. Although he was supported by Def Jam Records Chairman L.A. Reid as well as then-president (and former foe) Jay-Z, many large-scale retailers including Wal-Mart said they would boycott the album and refuse to stock it on their shelves , thus forcing Nas to fold and change the controversial title.
Nas' newly self-titled album is tentatively slated to drop July 1st.
There is still no word as to when The Nigger Tape will hit streets.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
"Notorious" Cast Speaks About Film
Playing the Notorious B.I.G. in a feature film based on the late rapper's life is a daunting task. This is especially daunting for an actor from Brooklyn. But, Jamal "Gravy" Woolard is not backing down from the challenge.
"He's still living, through me. I'm going to let y'all know: I'm not going to let y'all down. Put it down for the borough. This is for the borough. BK, stand up," he recently said, while filming the LP.
Woolard also gave some insight to how he is going about the portrayal.
"We're targeting every corner of it — from Christopher to Biggie Smalls to Notorious B.I.G," he said. "He's a funny dude. That's the part in the film that you'll see. He's a comedian all the time."
Derek Luke, who plays Diddy in the film, also spoke on the movie.
"What kind of criticism [did] Puffy give me? Oh, man, I tried to stay away from him," he said of Diddy's praise [click to read]. "You know, 'cause I just wanted to get a heart. I was inspired by who he is today but mostly how he started. But to be honest ... man. He just looked at me, and he was like, 'Yo, you do something wrong, trust me, I'll let you know.' So, I believe, that was good."
"The preparation I took to play Puff was I was going to talk to Puff's mom," Luke told MTV. "Puff opened the office to me, but I was like, 'Man, if I get to [meet] his mom, it's all good.' I went to his mom, and she kinda set me into the right place about who he was, how he started out as a child, who he is today."
Lil' Kim also appears in the film, played by Naturi Naughton, who fans may know from her stint as a former member of 3LW.
"Well, people have been critical. A lot of people don't expect me to be able to fill these shoes and play the role that's so different than what they've seen, because people know me. They think, 'Oh, she's sweet. She's little. She's a little girl from 3LW.' I'm a grown woman now, OK? Things have changed. It's a little challenging, but I'm willing to take this challenge and prove everybody wrong. All the naysayers, all the haters, I'm going to show them what I'm made of."
Apart from DJ Enuff, Mister Cee, D. Dot and a few others, Lil' Cease is on board to assist others with their acting.
"I've had to show him how to roll blunts. That's important to the story," he said. "You got a lot of 16-, 17-year-olds who probably hear their mother or siblings or something play Biggie all day and don't have background on him. This movie, you get to see his background. It's bigger than music. You see his personality. You get to see how he treated his kids, how he bonded with his moms, how he treated Junior M.A.F.I.A. It's something special, something good."
"The reason why I think this story is important to be told is because this is a story about two dreamers, and I love the fact that one is from Harlem, one is from Brooklyn, and [they] came in this world with nothing — only but a dream. So what I got from this story is that if you got a dream, you're rich. That's enough."
This only builds anticipation for a film that has already generated serious buzz.
MC Lyte Launches New Group Almost September
Hip-Hop veteran and pioneering female rapper MC Lyte has launched a new group, Almost September.
The Hip-Hop/Soul group, which is comprised of MC Lyte, producer/writer/vocalist Whitey and producer/writer/vocalist Jared Lee, will debut six songs from their upcoming album via iTunes today (May 27).
The new group and album release is part of a flurry of activity for MC Lyte, who is also the “voice” of the BET Awards, which will air June 24 at 8:00 PM on BET.
“I love where I am at right now,” MC Lyte said. “The hustle is on and I am grateful to still be busy, and still have a love for the business. On top of that, to have my fans still showing love and supporting me for years, feels like nothing else in the world! I know without them, I wouldn’t be able to survive doing what I love.”
The group recently released two singles, “Beautiful” and “Love” featuring fellow pioneer KRS-One.
Almost September will make their debut performance on July 5th, at The Bob Hope Concert for the Troops.
Over 70,000 people are expected to attend the concert, which takes place at The Los Angeles Coliseum July 5th - 6th.
Songs from Almost September’s album are on sale now in the iTunes music store.
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Miss Info Exclusive: Nas’ “Be a N—-r Too” Poster
Fans who felt disillusioned by Nas’ pragmatic decision to unname his album “N—-r,” can look forward to Nas’ taking the politically incorrect, unsubtle approach with his upcoming “Be a N—-r Too” video. Rik Cordero and Nas shot the video last week in LA (and some parts here in NY) and the concept will be very familiar to movie buffs. I can’t give away any more, but I’ll say that there will be some celebrity cameos. And not the usual “hey, these are random rappers that I don’t know that well but who will show up when I shoot a video and pretend to party with me in this rented space with the rest of my casted modeltypes” cameos.
There will be more preview posters tomorrow, but this one is especially striking, and horrifying, and powerful. Next week, there will be an exclusive viewing of the video. I definitely look forward to it.
(thanks to rik and steve)
Bruce Williams: The REAL Doctor's Advocate Pt 3
“Detox is the concept Dre had been trying to fully conceptualize for years. He was so serious at one point just after the second Chronic album that he had T-shirts made up…It was the farewell album he would walk off to, the one that might show him graduating from gangsta rap, basically. It made sense, going from The Chronic to Detox , because that’s what Dre had done, basically. The problem was, he didn’t know what to write about. Who wanted to hear about his stable, suburban life?” pgs 144-145
HipHopDX: Detox. You already know my question…
Bruce Williams: People are on Dre about Detox and Dre never really wanted to do Detox. He’s 40-something [editor's note: 43] years old, what’s he going to talk about? He’s gotta relate to these 13 year olds buying records. What is he going to talk about? He can’t come out here saying, "Fuck the police," he can’t keep talking about smoking weed, he’s been there and done all that. Where is there to go now? But it has to be done and he’s going to make sure that shit is right before he puts it out.
DX: Will we have to wait much longer to wait for Detox?
BW: I don’t think so. If it comes out, I’ll be shocked - and I’ll also know that it has to come out.
“…But Rakim was not the rapper he once was. He didn’t even rhyme in the studio with the crew hanging out. Dude was writing only at home. Dre wanted to do tracks in a way that allowed you to feel the camaraderie. Rakim’s a legend, but he was a legend in his day. The chemistry between these two just wasn’t there…” – pg 128
DX: So what exactly happened with the whole Rakim ordeal?
BW: Oh My God album? Every time Dre did an interview, they asked him what emcee he would love to work with and his response was always the same: Rakim. We went through all this stuff trying to get Rakim and finally, Dre got Rakim. And with a title like Oh My God, the public was waiting on some astronomical shit! And they just never meshed together. A few of 50 Cent’s songs on Get Rich Or Die Tryin' were Rakim songs. Like “Back Down” and “Heat;” there were quite a few of them.
I’ll put it to you like this: Rakim is a legend…let a legend be a legend. With all these new emcees and things sometimes the world is not going to appreciate this. We appreciate it because we grew up on it.
DX: What is the deal with Aftermath and the “revolving door” of artists?
BW: Look at Aftermath. Are they a household name? No, they’re not. I can say Aftermath, and people will say, “Who is that?” but when I say Dr. Dre, 50 Cent, Eminem then they get an idea. If you say G-Unit [click to read], everybody knows G-Unit. If you say Shady, everyone knows Shady. Aftermath is not a household name because we don’t put out enough stuff.
Everybody’s catering to Dre and he don’t have time to nurture new artists. Why do you think Game had so many problems? Game couldn’t do hooks. But for two years he was hustling by himself.
If you don’t push the acts that you have in your company, then your company will never be made whole. Dre is doing records for everyone else on Interscope and not building his own company up. That contributes to not really being a businessman.
“When that beef between 50 Cent and The Game went public, Al Sharpton called over and asked for a half a million dollars. Otherwise he was going to bring the heat on behalf of 'The Community.' We gave him $250,000. Then we had The Game and 50 make up in public, holding an elaborate press conference.” Pg. 148
DX: In your book you basically say that Al Sharpton hustled you guys for money in order to not go and publicly march about the Game/50 Cent beef.
BW: He said if we didn’t have a million, we marching. It’s that easy. Look at C. Delores Tucker back in the day. They was sitting up there talking all that bullshit when behind closed doors they was trying to start their own label. But that isn’t what they were telling motherfuckers in the street! We got a lot of black leaders that don’t do shit to me. I don’t see what they do. In the [Game vs. 50 Cent] situation, you are going to come and say, "We need ‘X’ amount of money,” whether you are going to give it to charity or not. Why don’t you come and say, “Hey, let’s all of us sit down and figure this out;” don’t come and say, “Give me a half a million dollars or we marching!” That didn’t even get the situation resolved. You seen it. They didn’t even look like they squashed anything.
DX: So the so called squashing of the beef…
BW: The entire thing was orchestrated by Al Sharpton.
DX: Come on…are you serious? “’You know what?' asked Busta Rhymes after taking in one particularly take, ‘When you’re rappin’, sometimes your shit is just so borderline disrespectful. I mean you really take it there!’ Everyone busted out laughing. That’s what’s great about The Game. And that’s his problem too. His 2004 album, The Documentary, is the sound of someone struggling to keep up with the talent around him. He didn’t always respect his place in the process…” – pg 140 DX: So back to 50 Cent and Game. How real was this beef? But you gotta understand that Lloyd Banks and Tony Yayo were soldiers for 50. Game already had a deal with Aftermath. Game already had his own people. Game and 50 are very similar in their ways, and never really did like each other. But they understood the game. 50 gave Game a few of his songs for Game’s album and those were Game’s biggest hits. [50 Cent] did the hooks. But 50 wanted Game to be a soldier and Game did not want to be a soldier. That’s just the way it was. 50 wanted to be the boss. You gotta think about the timing of all this. At one time, everyone was talking about Game. 50 was pushing up his album. All the beef stuff was a little orchestration of jealousy. The video for “This Is How We Do” was supposed to be like this: one side of the street would be Cali and the other side would be New York. 50’s on one side and Game would be on the other. 50 didn’t want to do the video. Reason why? [50 Cent said] “Game wasn’t on my level if people see me and Game doing a video together they will think that he’s on my level.” DX: Damn… DX: So did you ever hear all these so called projects that were supposed to come out that never did? DX: Are there that many songs in the vault? DX: What about the rumored Helter Skelter album with Ice Cube? DX: So what finally led to your departure from Dre and the industry? “In hindsight, things have gone down between me and the biz exactly as they are supposed to. I’m happy where I am now. I helped make history with my man Dre. And I got to witness the strengths of street knowledge – and its weaknesses. And even if a part of me wishes I could have been there to watch the Doctor struggle through another album-patient, I’m not complaining in the least. It ain’t all bad being the man next to da man.” – pg 164
BW: Yeah, they do that shit all the time man! [So-called activists] don’t want nothing but money.
We had to go to New York for this big meeting. Quincy Jones, Colin Powell, dude who runs Black Enterprise magazine [Earl G. Graves, Sr.], one of Malcolm X’s daughters, Puffy. When Death Row was big. They were trying to tell us how to use our power and use our money. Where were you when we were trying to get this money? None of you were trying to get us a record deal, yet, all of you talk shit about us and then you don’t put a foot forward [in helping us]. They try to tell us how to use our money but they weren’t fucking with us before that.
BW: Game and 50 wasn’t cool with that situation from jump. Jimmy Iovine was the one who was the brainchild of putting Game in G-Unit because that gave G-Unit a bigger presence on the west coast, plus Game had a bigger buzz on the east than the west at the time. So that way Game could ride with G-Unit and vice versa. Just for bigger album sales.
BW: I felt Dre should have stepped up to the plate on that. He’s the icon, he could have shut that whole thing down. Sometimes you have to take that role. But if you don’t, the beef is going to go where it’s going to go.
BW: Did I hear it? Shit, I still got it!
BW: He has a whole bunch of songs that never made it out. I still have Rakim songs.
BW: We didn’t finish the Helter Skelter album. If Dre ever decides to put out the shit that he has in the vault, you’d be like, “Wow!”
BW: I want our whole crew to make it. Dre was supposed to be the roots of that strong tree and we were supposed to be the branches. Don’t tell me what we’re going to do. Seventeen years went by and nothing materialized. I got three kids and a wife. He didn’t want to hear my mouth anymore so he had me doing stuff for his wife. I started thinking that I was going to be a retired-ass dude who never got to do what he wanted to do. You want to step out on your own but you think about being around Dre for so long and how is the rest of the world going to accept me? I just finally made that decision. My last conversation in Aftermath with Dre was me telling him I had to go to a meeting…I just never came back.
Experience was the salary at both Death Row and Aftermath. My genius friend can be irresponsible and self-absorbed, but the cat can teach a lesson in his own special way.
Bruce Williams: The REAL Doctor's Advocate Pt 2
Cont'd from Part 1 HipHopDX: Who do you think was at fault for the east coast/west coast beef? The media, the artists or the fans?
Bruce Williams: With that east coast/west coast thing, a few things happened. Media did what they had to do. Hip Hop is the only entertainment connected to the streets, so therefore, street niggas take that shit serious. We had a bunch of rappers that couldn’t sell a record. When beef time came, every west coast rapper that couldn’t sell a record would just say, “Fuck the east coast,” so people can jump on the bandwagon and get their name out there. Same thing happened on the east. It made things escalate way higher than we thought of. The street niggas really wanted to be in it.
DX: Was there any conversation between B.I.G. and Suge before things happened that night at The Source Awards?
BW: It’s always like that. It was always about peace. This is the music game and you gotta sell records. Suge felt that Puffy copied The Chronic and didn’t give Death Row enough props. He was upset about that. With him being upset and nobody saying anything, he was going to find a spot in that show to take the spotlight. He said what he said. That’s just the way things work.
DX: Did Suge ever make a pitch to sign Biggie?
BW: Suge would have brought anybody that could sell to Death Row. He ain’t crazy. He’s all about making some money. He could have said, "Fuck B.I.G." all day, but if he could have gotten him on Death Row? "Come on baby let’s roll!" That’s the name of the game. We see it every day. These cats denounce each other all day long. Next thing you know they are all hugged up. That’s how it goes. Take all the personal stuff out of it.
“Sam Sneed had been on his way to a meeting he’d been hastily informed of by a sketchy-sounding Death Row underling. He stopped along the way because something just didn’t feel right to him. We were telling Sam that he was right to trust his gut instinct.
‘Sam,’ Dre told him, ‘you’s a dumb muthafucka if you go to that meeting.’
‘Dude, don’t go there,’ I cosigned. ‘You know what’s about to go down.’
…‘Seriously, don’t go to that meeting,’ I urged Sneed.
‘You know we left Death Row,’ Dre chimed in. ‘You know them niggas know you wanna be with us. I just don’t think it’s a good idea.’
Well, the kid wasn’t trying to hear this. He was trying to be a stand up guy. So he went out to Can-Am [Studios] to screen that (1994’s “U Better Recognize”) video.” –pg 101
DX: Was there really beef between Suge and 2Pac with Dr. Dre?
BW: Just imagine Dre and 'Pac without Suge. [2Pac and Dr. Dre's] beef was manufactured. There was nothing really to that. We’d see Suge out in Malibu and we’d just talk and go on about our business. If Suge would have done anything to us, [the people] would have been on his ass. It wouldn’t have been nice.
“The stylized black-and-white footage rolled, and there was Dre rapping in close-up, just as expected. Negativity sucked the conference room empty, just as expected…
…But the music sounded like a Death Row track, by which I mean it was a Dr. Dre track. And Dre was doing the hook. That was bad enough. Then the East Coast niggas started showing up in cameos. First some East Coast basketball cats, big and impressive names if you’re from Brooklyn. This was the San Fernando Valley, though. And there was a war going on.
Tupac said, ‘If I see one more East Coast nigga in this motherfucker…’
…Then Kool G. Rap entered the video frame.
‘What the fuck!’ shouted Tupac.
And everybody began to beat the shit out of Sam Sneed.
…Suge made Sneed put in an appearance at a party for Snoop that night. He even gave a toast. Then he flew home to Pittsburgh. Sam was never the same. Death Row never released the album. Not too long ago the nigga had brain surgery, just to get his ass back to some semblance of normality.”
DX: As a centerpiece in this beef, was Tupac the man that was portrayed in the media?
BW: 'Pac was a real level-headed dude. You could talk to him about everything. The only thing about 'Pac that was fucked up was that he had too many “yes” men. He had nobody to pull his coat and say, “We’ve clowned enough, let’s move on.” 'Pac was going to be a politician. He would rap on wack beats and make them dope. You listened to 'Pac to see what he said. How many rappers do you really listen to what he has to say. Like Eminem. Nobody really listened for his music. They want to hear what he’s got to say.
DX: Was there ever a time when you thought the Pac/Suge/Dre beef could be reconciled?
BW: Before the stabbing incident at the Vibe Award show, Dre turned to me and said, “I think I’m going to do something with Suge, we’re young black men that did so many great things together, maybe we can turn it around,” and then (the Vibe Awards stabbing) happened.
DX: So what was the atmosphere like when trying to figure out the next move after Death Row?
BW: We would go back and forth to Jimmy Iovine’s house trying to figure out what to do. Then Dre called a meeting at his house to say he was going to leave Death Row. His mom was supposed to start a clothing line. Me and Phillip Atwell were supposed to do movies. I was going to help putting Aftermath together. I was the guy who started Aftermath with him.
We was first going to be called Black Market. There was a company in San Francisco with the same name and wanted a million dollars for it. So we changed that and came up with Aftermath.
DX: So what was your role now?
BW: What I did for Dre was far beyond what an assistant would do. He wasn’t just my boss, he was my best friend. I did everything. Everything that everybody does at Aftermath, I did by myself for Dre at Death Row. When we went to Aftermath I hired some people to make my job a little easier. My title at Aftermath was VP of operations even though Dre said I could have whatever title I wanted.
DX: What about the money? Did the financial situation improve?
BW: Dre was never signed to Death Row. He was just a co-owner. He was always signed to Interscope and to Jimmy. When Dre walked away the money didn’t change. He got more at Aftermath. Suge used to have a garage full of cars and Dre would have only two. He didn’t really start making money until he started Aftermath.
DX: In your book you say “Dre is not a businessman.” Some may think that’s a shot at Dr. Dre in the music biz…
BW: When I say Dre’s not a businessman, I say that because he’s a producer and a man that loves music. Dre loves the studio. He didn’t want to do anything else. He’s outgrown Hip Hop. I’ve got ideas that he had of blending Opera and Hip Hop together that’s phenomenal. At one time he wanted to make an instrumental album about how the planets sound.
He really wants to be known for something more than just Hip Hop music. He wants to be studied by professors on his music. Since he has started to play guitar and learn to read music, it showed him an entirely different world.
“You might think it was all hunky-dory, escaping from the everyday Blood rawness to form Aftermath but you would be wrong. The game was still dirty at Interscope, only the beatdowns took place in boardrooms rather than alleys. “ – pgs 112-113
DX: What were the differences between Death Row and Aftermath?
BW: With Suge, he was a figure that everyone was scared of. With that being said, it keeps a lot of bullshit away. No pettiness. That wasn’t happening at Death Row. When we switched to Aftermath, you didn’t have that big presence so everyone went their own separate ways. Everybody wanted to be the man. People wanted to be as close to Dre as I was. It just got so fake and phony and I didn’t want to deal with it anymore. Even though it was gangster at Death Row, it was a little bit better. At Aftermath, what Jimmy says, goes. That’s the bottom line.
DX: Were there any other deals on the table for Dre? And why stick with Jimmy Iovine?
BW: Dre has turned down deal after deal. Jimmy is the dude he’s going to stick with through thick and thin. And the reason he’s going to stick with Jimmy is because after Dre did “Deep Cover,” he went to every record company out there. You know none of them motherfuckers gave him a deal? Sony told Dre “I don’t see nobody else knocking down your door.” Jimmy was the only one who would give him a deal.
I got a lot of respect for Jimmy; he’s smart as a motherfucker and he understands that this is a business. He knows the things he has to do in order to keep his business.
“’I don’t wanna talk to that guy,’ Jimmy told the secretary. I was shocked. Gerardo, with his ‘Rico Suave’ song, made stupid money for Jimmy, back when Interscope was on shaky ground. That should have been my first lesson that it was never about personal relationships around there. Just business. My second lesson was what went down next. Jimmy fielded a series of phone calls with abrupt put-downs. In a nutshell, each query got answered with the equivalent of a gruff, ‘Hell, naw!’ I asked Jimmy what he would do if one of the Interscope staff had talked to him like that. ‘I’d give him a raise,’ Jimmy said. ‘Give him a raise?’ I asked out of confusion. ‘Yes, a big raise and then I’d encourage him to buy a big house. Then after he was fully committed financially, I’d demote him. I was starting to get the picture. ‘Because after that,’ Jimmy continued, ‘his family life would be fucked up. His pussy would be ruined. Everything. Yep, I’d give him a raise.’” – pgs 152-153 DX: There have been numerous rumors about Dre not producing his own music. You were there when some of the greatest songs in Hip Hop were made. What’s the real deal? Mel Man is phenomenal on the drum machine, their fallout wasn’t really about music, it was about money. Mel and all of us were like family. We did everything together. Mel had gotten pretty low on his funds and he had just felt Dre should give him some money. Dre didn’t give him what he wanted and the fallout started from there until Mel rolled off with Big Chuck. Mel thought that when he bounced with Big Chuck that he’d be able to come back to Aftermath. We know Dre said that he and Mel Man wouldn’t work together again. Recently, Mel has been back working with Dre for the last three or four months. Dre’s biggest problem is his communication skills. Dre was the good guy, I was the bad guy. He’s not going to tell you bad shit. Dre never really charged like that. If he liked you, Dre didn’t charge you like that. Look what he did for Xzibit [Man Vs. Machine]. He didn’t have to executive produce his album when he was on Loud Records. But he liked his whole vibe and what he was doing. Part 3 reveals why the Rakim and Dr. Dre relationship didn't work out, Al Sharpton's role in the 50 Cent/Game beef, why Game and 50 had problems in the first place, why Bruce left Dr. Dre and if Detox is EVER going to be released.
BW: Dre is a hell of a producer and a mixer. A cat could do a couple of sounds inside of a beat and Dre could come and change the whole thing around and make it sound phenomenal.
DX: So how often did you have to tell people who wanted a beat from Dre “No”?
BW: All the time man. From Madonna to Michael Jackson. Dre would rather work with a new artist than an old established artist. Dre is not going to have Madonna or Michael Jackson tell him, “I don’t like that, give me another beat.” Michael Jackson didn’t get any beats for one simple reason: If you can’t roll with Dre and go kick it, then we can’t do no music. I would have to tell everyone no. Sometimes I would hike the price up to a million dollars and they would say, “Let me talk to my people and get back,” and I would sit there and go "Oh no…they aren't really thinking about paying that are they?’”
Bruce Williams: The REAL Doctor's Advocate Pt 1
From HipHipDX.com
By Andreas Hale
There are two people in this world. There is “The Man.” And then there is “The Man Behind The Man.” For every George Bush there is a Karl Rove. Michael Jackson had Quincy Jones. Richard Pryor had Paul Mooney crafting those brilliant jokes. Behind Dave Chappelle’s cult show was Neil Brennan. And for Dr. Dre there was Bruce Williams.
Spanning a time period of nearly two decades, Bruce Williams was the proverbial fly on the wall during one of the most heinous, accomplished, controversial, successful and infamous situations that one could ever be a part of. He was the man who did all the grunt work for Dr. Dre. He answered the phones, dealt with the artists and was the buffer between Dr. Dre and the world. There’s only one man who knows everything about Dr. Dre aside from Dr. Dre. And that man is Bruce Williams.
HipHopDX engaged in an extensive dialog with Bruce Williams dealing with his recently released book titled Rollin’ With Dre: The Unauthorized Account. In the book, Williams sheds light on various situations that have never been previously discussed regarding his time by Dre’s side. Whether it be the unfinished Snoop album that made it to the public, the truth about the Death Row/Bad Boy beef, Al Sharpton’s involvement with the 50 Cent/Game beef or what really happened with the Rakim situation, Williams has all the answers the doctor has yet to provide.
In part 1 of this exclusive interview, Williams talks about the his beginnings with Dre and his time at Death Row right up until the infamous 1995 Source Awards debacle that shook up the Hip Hop industry for many years to come.
HipHopDX: Give a little background on yourself for those who don’t know you.
Bruce Williams: I worked with Dre for over 16 years. I started off with the Death Row era. I came out to Cali to be an actor and I met Dre through a chick named Robin. Robin was a girl that was interior designing Dre’s house. I went with her just to kick it for a minute. Me and Dre started talking and the next thing I know he was like, “Yo, what are you fittin’ to do now?” and then just said, “Why don’t you just roll with me?” We’ve been rolling ever since then.
He wanted me to roll with him to learn the business. And since I was already going to be trying to do movies, it just worked out like that. I was his right hand man from there. There was a time where you couldn’t speak to Dre unless you spoke to me first. It was that deep. I learned the music business from working with him.
DX: So why a book at this point in your life?
BW: My inspiration behind writing this book was because I wanted to do this TV show but they decided that I should do a book first to get some interest.
DX: In the book you mention a paltry salary of $300 a week while working at Death Row. What was that all about?
BW: I didn’t get a raise until we started Aftermath. I don’t put that on Dre at all because, at the time, I didn’t really need money. Everywhere I went, everything was taken care of. I stayed in a high rise building. Dre couldn’t give me as much money as he could help me make.
As time went by, we got deeper and deeper into the music and then Dre started Aftermath as well as got a new accountant, and I remember the accountant called me in and was like, “Uhhhh… Dre wants to give you a raise," Dre was astounded and didn’t know that I was making $300 a week and never opened my mouth. But to me, at that time I didn’t have no dependents or a wife or kids so it didn’t really mean much to me because everything was taken care of. "
"Spacey as he could be in those early days, Dre made one smart business decision that would make forgivable his countless bad ones to come: One day we jumped into my man’s ride and he took me to his accountant. There we completed paperwork that made me an employee only of Andre Rommel Young. I didn’t work for the label, Death Row, or for its distribution crony, Interscope.” – pgs 19-20
DX: How did you meet Suge Knight?
BW: Me and Dre has been rolling for a month or so before I even met Suge. We was in this nightclub and all of sudden I’m standing next to Suge, and this guy walks up with a gun and pointed it at him. My instincts had me talking to the dude – trying to calm him down - and next thing I know the gun is on me. We made a couple movements and dude dropped the gun. I picked the gun up and passed it off to Sam Sneed.
DX: And that situation led to you earning Suge’s respect?
BW: That wasn’t me trying to earn his respect. That was just natural instincts from me just being in the military.
DX: How was it having Hip Hop’s most feared figure in your entourage?
BW: It was chaotic to the point where the people made it bad. Everywhere Suge went, people would say, “Oh man, there’s Suge!” and everybody was scared of him. The more people that say that, the more Suge was going to stick his chest out.
DX: What about the horror stories saying people got beat down during that era? Isn’t that part of the reason why people were scared of him too?
BW: Yeah, people got their ass whooped. But the ones that got their ass whooped was because they were doing some bullshit. I couldn’t understand why certain people would come to a crew that they knew wasn’t going to take their bullshit and after trying to do some work with us would try to beat us in the end. How can you not expect no repercussions?
Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t just running around jumping on people. It wasn’t that type of thing. Going to clubs, Suge didn’t really give a damn. When we came to the door it was “Fuck security, fuck the bouncers, everyone move!” He just wasn’t out there fucking with people for no reason. A lot of shit that went down were because people were on his turf. Why were you on his turf?
“I walked to the suite down the hall. Inside was Suge, Party Man, and a couple of Death Row thugs. As soon as he saw me, Party Man had this look on his face like, ‘Please, whatever you can do, help me.' And I’m lookin’ back at him like, ‘Ain’t a damn thing I can do for you, man. You just fucked with the wrong niggas.’
‘Bruce, how much money in that thang?’ Suge asked.
Man, I don’t even wanna say it, but I have to: ‘We short.’
‘How much?’ Suge asks
‘Forty Gs.’
…They took Party Man to the bathroom and fucked him up so bad he didn’t even press charges.” – pgs 62 - 63
DX: Aside from the obvious, what were the differences between Suge and Dre?
BW: Dre was that laid back dude, but Suge was that go-getter. With Suge, if he got respect for you and you show him respect, it’s a whole different ballgame. You don’t have to deal with him on a bullshit level. When it came to business, when Dre said he wanted to do something, Suge was already hooking it up. But when it came to Aftermath, those things changed.
DX: I’ve heard that there was actually a different version of The Chronic. Is there any truth to that at all?
BW: A different version of The Chronic album? Nah. Dre will make a song like this: you have a beat then some lyrics on top of it and everyone will think that’s the record. Then Dre will switch the whole beat up. People kinda got mixed up around the time when we left Death Row, and we had a beef with Suge when he wanted the masters. People got it misconstrued then but there wasn’t ever two different Chronics.
DX: What was it like being in the studio with everyone on Death Row back in the day?
BW: The first day I stepped in the studio and saw everyone work was phenomenal man. Just imagine this: Dre’s going to be the first one in the studio and the last one to leave. He’ll start messing with a beat. As the beat starts pumping, the guys start filtering in. Everybody will get their little drink and smoke in. Soon enough the beat starts to make a presence. You’ll look around the room and every cat that was a rapper – from Kurupt to Daz to Snoop – will grab a pen. They would start writing while Dre is making a beat so by the time he’s finished with the beat, they are ready to hit the booth and start spittin'. To see those young cats – they were all hungry and wanted to make something dope. The atmosphere that was there, you couldn’t be wack.
DX: Anything that nobody knows about that you can bring up?
BW: Snoop’s first album [Doggystyle]. A lot of people don’t understand that the album was never finished. They were demanding that album so much that it came to a point where the distributors said, "We’re going to cancel our orders if you don’t get this to us." In 48 hours, Dre mixed the album and did all of the skits. So they had to record all of that and it was done in 48 hours straight. For me, that was the most phenomenal shit in the world. You could just see a line of Hennessy bottles in the studio. You saw lobster and stuff everywhere. But nobody touched it. Everything for that 48 hours was all about music. I remember that Dre laid on the sofa for about 15 minutes and Snoop looked up and saw him laying down. All I remember is Snoop with a pool cue hitting the sofa saying, "Come on Dr. Dre! Get your ass up! You gotta mix my album!” So in a 48 hour period we went from mixing the album from top to bottom, putting the skits in and getting it out there.
DX: What exactly is Dre’s mentality when making an album?
BW: If you really listen to a Dre album, Dre doesn’t make an album to bump in the club. His songs crossover to the club. All of his songs are riding albums. It’s something you can throw in your tape or CD player and roll with. Never have to take it out. What a lot of producers don’t understand about this game is the flow of your songs. You can have dope songs but if you don’t have that one to lead off, then you don’t have anything. Your songs can’t jump from one place to another. With Dre, each songs levels out to the next song. They all blend in good. A lot of people didn’t understand that. He made the game different and nobody could stop him or top him because he had those ears. Even when an album wasn’t finished, it was dope. Everyone always asks why does it take him so long. He will - still to this day, in the studio - go over a song word for word to make sure it is pronounced exactly right. You’ll be listening to it and say that you don’t hear any difference but he does.
DX: I’ve heard Dre uses his car to test a record's sound. Is that true? DX: Explain the atmosphere of the now infamous Source Awards incident. When Suge walked up on that damn stage and said what he had to say about Puffy; The whole crowd erupted. It was about to be some shit. I looked around and said “Man, how the fuck are we going to get out of this spot.” You know how there’s chaotic tension? Where you feel like something may jump off but it doesn’t? It had that feeling. It took us to the point where we thought the whole arena was ready to throw down but it never got past that point. Part 2 discusses if Suge would have signed Biggie, the truth about Tupac, the false perception of the Pac/Suge/Dre beef triangle, the departure from Death Row to launch Aftermath, Dr. Dre’s ghost producing and two artists you’d never believe Dr. Dre would say ‘No’ to,
BW: It has to bump in the whip. When he mixes a song, he always rolls with it in his car. For Dre, that’s his peace of mind. It’s just him and the song. Then we used to hit a spot called the Red Rock on Sunset Boulevard. Like an old dingy white people spot, you wouldn’t think we’d ever be there. We’d go to the upstairs area that had its own bar. And we would always play music up there. People would come up from all different nationalities. We’d test music that way also to see what they would be jamming to.
BW: I’ve been to hundreds of award shows. But [The Source Awards] was by far the number one. It had a stigma where some shit was going to go down. But it also had some excitement to it. You know how they have an intermission in between filming? Usually it would be quiet at other award shows. But here? You heard “fuck Queensbridge,” “Brooklyn!” You would hear all of this conversation “Wu-Tang!” and you’d hear people saying, “Fuck them west coast niggas,” and we’d be like, “Aw shit. It’s going to be some shit up in here!” We started the show off with everybody locked in cells like they were stranded on death row.
DX: How did you get out of there that night with all that hostility?
BW: We stuck out like a sore thumb. We are looking like L.A. niggas. I came out of the arena looking for that limo and all I could see was a sea of east coast brothers hollering, “Fuck Death Row! We gonna catch them niggas!” I’m hoping one of them doesn’t find out I’m from Cali. I find the limo and I go back to get Dre. So we walk outside and things changed. They were now like, “Fuck Death…oh that’s Dr. Dre, man! He’s cool. Ya’ll go ahead on then. That’s Dre. Fuck them other niggas though!”
“We got to the (1995 Death Row Christmas Party) and it was not a good look. It was a straight up hood rat convention. All the top-shelf drinks were on the second level, so we get to steppin’, but we heard some odd noises as we got to the top of the stairs. And who revealed himself but Suge, clearing everyone out of the room…
In comes Tupac with Suge’s boys and a dude from Puffy’s camp. Tensions had risen even higher since The Source Awards. Tupac was accusing Biggie of having set him up and shot prior to his prison stint…It was a hectic time, so if you’re in Puffy’s camp, why be at a Death Row party?…They sat dude down in the chair and just started punchin’ him in the grill. Blam, Blam, blam. ‘Where’s Puffy’s mom live?' Suge asked.”
Friday, May 23, 2008
The Loud Finalists Video
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Miss Info Exclusive: Nas’ “Be a N—-r Too” Poster
Missinfo.com
fans who felt disillusioned by Nas’ pragmatic decision to unname his album “N—-r,” can look forward to Nas’ taking the politically incorrect, unsubtle approach with his upcoming “Be a N—-r Too” video. Rik Cordero and Nas shot the video last week in LA (and some parts here in NY) and the concept will be very familiar to movie buffs. I can’t give away any more, but I’ll say that there will be some celebrity cameos. And not the usual “hey, these are random rappers that I don’t know that well but who will show up when I shoot a video and pretend to party with me in this rented space with the rest of my casted modeltypes” cameos.
There will be more preview posters tomorrow, but this one is especially striking, and horrifying, and powerful. Next week, there will be an exclusive viewing of the video. I definitely look forward to it.
Famed Hip Hop Journalist Calls Out Urban Radio
May 23rd, 2008
Veteran Bay area Hip Hop journalist Eric K. Arnold is unhappy with urban radio. Arnold, a longtime writer and urban music culture critic for The Source, VIBE and elsewhere, has explained his grief with urban radio through a recent piece he's written.
"Let's cut to the chase: urban radio sucks. You know it, artists know it, and programmers know it too. It offers little room for creative programming, tends to favor established artists at the expense of new voices, and kills any halfway-decent song that does manage to land in rotation by playing it as much as three times an hour. Most of all, urban radio sucks because it rarely meets the needs of the local community from which its listeners are drawn," he wrote in a piece for The Future of Music Coalition.
The piece also described some historic context for the state of mainstream radio, explaining that the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which made it easier for big companies to own radio stations, creating a slew of stations all owned by the same people. This in turn, has created a chain, where many radio stations around the nation play the same music and the same artists all day.
"Urban radio programming has become stagnant, alienating many hip-hop heads who once listened religiously to mix shows," he wrote.
In the article, radio staples form the early '90s, like Julio G. and Bobbito Garcia also voice their complaints on the issue.
"It's become national radio, not urban radio," noted Garcia, who with DJ Stretch Armstrong, held post as one of Hip Hop's most seminal radio shows, the New York 89-Tech9 show.
"I started with a passion to find the best record," Julio G. said. "Why do I gotta be just another guy playing [chart-topping rapper] Plies?"
Finally, the article demands key points listed below to be followed by radio listeners:
"* Help remind Big Media that it broadcasts on public airwaves. Community members have the legal right to examine radio stations’ public files upon request. And commercial radio licenses must be renewed every eight years. The FCC does accept comments from the public during the renewal process; any station which is found to be operating outside the public interest can be fined or have its license revoked.
* Get Involved. Becoming a part of an organized effort seeking more community accountability in commercial radio is an effective way to put pressure on stations. At the very least, undertakings like the CCMA’s campaign or R.E.A.C.’s crusade have let urban radio’s corporate bosses know that somebody’s watching them, and at best, have hit these companies where it counts – in the pocketbook.
* Become an active listener. Without community feedback, MDs and PDs can only rely on research and consultants. If a station gets enough requests for a song by a local artist, it could result in increased mixshow spins or even being added to rotation.
* Use the Internet. Usually, Web addresses for key station personnel can be found on that station’s homepage. It only takes five minutes to send an email to every urban station in your region!
* Inform urban stations of events they should be covering. Most of the time, a commercial station’s idea of outreach is to send their promotional street teams to clubs and concerts. If you know of an event promoting positive community values, don’t hesitate to contact the station and let them know about it."
The piece can be read in its entirety at The Future of Music Coalition.
