We Be Bloggin'

Sooo... Been a minute but I'm back to share a few of the tunes that have been my shit between posts. I've been primarily listening to a bunch of older material over new stuff but there are a couple of new releases that have still managed to pop up in rotation on my one ear working iPod classic in my work transit.


I'll kick it off with someone that's been doing his thing locally for a minute now and is still doing it well. Brissy staple Dwizofoz after holding the city and a lot of the country's best down with the Stand Up events (with Gil Goon and co-conspirators behind the scenes via 469 Mob/Wilful Damage) has dropped a hell of an album titled 'Bad Grammar' which features this gem repping the city we both love.



Dwizofoz 'Bad Grammar' is available through all the usual outlets, my personally suggested outlet however being Bandcamp. Hit up http://dwizofoz.bandcamp.com/ to get your hand on this Brissy goodness.


The bros A.B. Original (Trials & Briggs) have been killing it with their release 'Reclaim Australia' coming very shortly. They dropped an important and catchy track in the form of 'January 26' with a dope clip to compliment.


Pre-Order 'Reclaim Australia' now via http://www.goldenerarecords.com.au
Hit their facebook page also to keep in the loop with what the fellas are up to.


Some people are eternal Wu diehards (respect to the clan and the heads who support on that level) my vote for best crew of all-time is however D.I.T.C. (Diggin' in the Crates) who boasts legends in their lineup such as A.G., Fat Joe, Lord Finesse, Big L (RIP) and Diamond D among others. This track from their latest limited release album is seriously my shit. Classic boom  bap.



The limited edition D.I.T.C. Studios release is available through D.I.T.C. Ent directly through http://ditcent.myshopify.com/ - Digital Download and CD available (my suggestion is the CD which comes with the instrumentals from the tracks too).


Gang Starr is another that has been in rotation for me, here's one of my favourites from the fellas to close out the post.


If you would like me to check out your release and give feedback/post about it then get at me through one of the below and I'll give you details to send through to.
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/undadwella
Instagram: @undadwella

Shawn Lov is a bit slept on but has been dope for a long while and is one of those under-recognised and under-appreciated white figures in rap. A dude that clearly has participated for the love of the culture but has decided to call it a day with one final release and a bow.

Here's a preview from his up coming final outting "Escape From Never Never Land":




Be sure to check out his BandCamp page for more from his deep back catalogue and look out for this new release.
http://shawnlov.bandcamp.com/

... For those that managed to side-step the whole Afrika Bambaataa child abuse allegations scandal as it happened and haven't been watching the blow for blow from Star and through the other outlets OkayPlayer.com have put together a summary of events that outlines how shit has played out.

This whole thing is crazy, disheartening and mess, it will most likely be a polarising issue for a long time to come and possibly never have any real resolution at the end of the day. Bam has been stood down from being a member of the Universal Zulu Nation, the Supreme Council of the UZN has stood down with a new figurehead and council stepping in to lead in the next chapter and I dare say a whole lot of members have stepped out of the ranks over this. This kind of shit is pretty close to home on multiple levels and as a now former member I send respect to Randy Savage and the others for having the god-like/superhero-like strength to come forward and even talk on this shit. That of itself is a huge deal and I hope they are in a good place/find the healing they are seeking or whatever it is they need to continue on and finally have some form of release from this stuff. I also hope their strength inspires a lot of other silent sufferers to find their own voice and deal with their own feelings/find progress for others that have experienced similar horrific events.

Here's the link for those interested in having a read:
http://www.okayplayer.com/news/afrika-bambaata-child-abuse-scandal-universal-zulu-nation.html

... Aside from the lineup being fairly one dimensional for a tour called "This is Hip-Hop" and the lack of any elements other than rapping/MCing being represented (hey, I'm a Hip-Hop head not just a rap listener so I've got to keep it real), this show could still be worth checking out.

The draw-cards for me personally would be DJ Quik and Lady of Rage. I got to see Mobb Deep on their last tour and I enjoyed their show but could live with not catching them again. Honestly Bone doesn't do it for me any more and The Dogg Pound would either be awesome or lacklustre depending on energy given. If you get the chance check it out when it comes through.

... Sooo.. I've had the pleasure of moving house and have been MIA from posting for a lil' while. Between work, packing, moving, now settling in and getting the last of my lil' tribe's stuff over to the new house on top of finding and securing said house it's been 'fun'... I would happily never move house again in this lifetime. So, I think some serious plans need to be engaged to get things in order to allow the purchase of a house so that would be a realistic option. Haha.

I shouldn't complain too much tho, we got help from removalists who informed that the poor bastids out of the $70 an hour the company charges end up getting $20 an hour each. So, with a family of 6 our move (which didn't include every little thing - we're moving stuff ourselves in our car) took about 8 hours give or take a little, two removalists loaded the truck and unloaded the truck for three trips... for $20 an hour... Granted I was on that working club security but still, that's pretty screwed and makes me happy to be sitting in an air conditioned office doing non-physical labour for slightly more than that... We ended up giving them a reasonable bonus on the amount cause they were legends and it should've covered a meal and maybe a couple of beers after a long arse day for all in the equation...

... Anyway, this one isn't Hip-Hop related in the slightest, who said all my blogs had to be?...

On a side (and somewhat Hip-Hop related note) this Afrika Bam stuff has been interesting, if not somewhat unsettling to watch unfold. I'm really not in a position to state too much cause this stuff happened before my time breathing or when I was a few years old in an entirely different country, so yeah. Will be interesting to watch things unfold over the next while for Zulu and for Bam himself.

Hope you've been well, what've you been bumping? Feel free to hit me with some suggestions or even some of your own stuff to peep. Honest opinions given, I won't nut-hug or gas you tho so if you are already 100% convinced you're dope and can't improve then you should probably save ourselves some time and yourself some over emotional hater claiming... Haha.

As part of one of the dopest less typical West Coast sounding crews in Dilated Peoples, his brotherhood with Alchemist (Step Brothers) and with his ridiculously consistent solo work on both the boards and the mic Evidence is definitely evidence that real rap far from died out with the few departed legends.

While this is another example of an act that you should check out their whole catalogue, here are a few suggested vids to peep:

... If I was to believe memes then real rap would have died out with Biggie... I however know better than that as somewhat of a rap connoisour and appreciator of fine lyricism... Haha. Or, I just don't follow fucktards and can hold my own opinion...

Sooo... Just thought I'd post some artists that while a lot of my friends/acquaintances would be well versed on are a little less known by the broader rap market that gets their fix via 21 Pilots on Nova (of whom I heard last evening refer to Chingy as a "Hip-Hop legend"... The fuck out of here)...

I'll post a few of my favourite rappers that have been killing it for a minute in instalments kicking off with part 1.

First off let me kick this off with my favourite rapper breathing, Chino XL.

Chino XL - "Kings" feat. Big Pun (tied my favourite rapper with Chi, or vice versa) & DJ Romes.




Chino XL - "Father's Day"



Chino XL - "Wordsmith"



Chino XL - "B-Boy/Gangsta"