Bay2LA Beatrock Music Dec. 17th

An evening of music and art; with live performances from the Beatrock Music family and a photo portrait series of Beatrock Music artists by Leo Docuyanan

Saturday, December 17, 2011

@ 2150 Folsom Street, San Francisco, CA 94110

ages 18 and up. Please bring photo id.
$12 door
8pm-12am
*cash-only bar*

PERFORMING LIVE:

Prometheus Brown & Bambu are The Bar
Otayo Dubb
Rocky Rivera
Power Struggle
Kiwi
Bwan
DJ Phatrick on the turntables

Visit:
http://beatrockmusic.com
http://www.leodocuyanan.com/
Video by Tony Rain (http://www.strivefilms.com)

Artist Spotlight: Infected by Generation ILL and Deep Foundation/Hydroponikz EP

It's time you DLed the new EP Deep Foundation & Hydroponiks present Generation ILL. The EP is an East Coast+South collaboration between the NY/NJ emcees of Deep Foundation/Hydroponikz and the Florida beat production crew Generation ILL. And what a sweet collaboration it is. The album also features cameos with Bambu, Rocky Rivera, and Ashley Robles.

The tracks touch on various themes, from the mellow dance hit "To The Beat" to the multi-meaning diaspora-inflected "World's Apart". The latter is one of my favorite tracks: it cleverly manages to portray the pain, angst, and contradictions involved in living as a Filipino in the U.S. as well as painting those same conditions as seen on the streets of the U.S. and the Philippines.

Peep an excerpt from Mugg Shot's verse in "World's Apart":

"Was mothered by a land
Where white stands for rich
And dark tans are brands
On backs that stand stiff.
When your status is defined
By similar outlines
Social classes divided
By aboriginal ties
Round-eye descendants of
European demise
Fetishizing a skin to avoid
Being deprived.
We lacking pride from
Where our people derived.
We came enslaved
The day they people arrived..."

Hip hop still speaking truth to power. Word. I was fortunate enough to catch up with illa and SoCo from Generation ILL to find out more about the geniuses behind the sound:

Who are the folks in Generation ILL? What's up with the name?

SoCo: Generation ILL is comprised of five members: myself, illa, PMBeatz, Eladbrit, and Sidewayz. I mean, it just kinda sounds cool, right? But really, there’s multiple meanings behind the name. Generation ILL is not only a music production crew, but we also represent a collective of like-minded individuals that recognize dope music and support the artists that make it.

illa: We wanted our listeners to realize that they are a part of that same generation that fell in love with the true spirit of Hip Hop. You are a part of Generation ILL if you listen to and support other artists that are making good music—especially in Hip Hop. We want good music, not just our own, to re-infect the masses and spread like an epidemic.

Describe the beginning stages of putting together this EP.

illa: In 2009, we heard Deep Foundation and Hydroponikz were working on a project so we sent one of our Gen ILL Beat CDs to their manager. As you can see, they ended up using most of our beats for the EP. As a matter of fact, "At Your Request" and "Worlds Apart" were specifically made with this project in mind.

SoCo: We use a lot soul samples in our production and the beats that DF and Dro chose for the EP elicit a lot of emotion and inward reflection—almost an escape to introversion, you know? As a result, it helped influence the amazing lyrical content they ended up writing about. Content that also reflected the reason behind the name for our company.

illa: At that point, they were like, okay, let’s present Generation ILL, the production crew, and at the same time describe what the state of affairs is for the everyman all over the world. After that, it was a wrap.

Artwork by Manila Ryce

How was the process with working with DF in NY? Was it difficult to work in together in the virtual world?

illa: It was definitely a new experience for us. It’s one thing to pass a beat to an artist who you may not be able to work with during the recording process but with this project, the music was just the beginning. As the EP evolved into a joint venture between us, DF and Hydro, we became fully involved in all aspects of putting the project out—everything from distribution to promotions, we were definitely grateful for the opportunity to work with those guys.

Soco: You know, thanks to smartphones and the internet, there wasn’t a lot of downsides to the process. Of course, if we were up in NYC, I’m sure it would’ve made things a lot easier. They shot a couple videos for the EP up there, too—we would’ve loved to be in front of the camera together with DF and Hydro. There’s still an opportunity for that, tho…we’ll keep everyone posted once they’re released. I mean, so long as there are planes, we’ll still be able to meet up in person.

How has your experiences being part of Filipino American community spaces influenced the energy and tone of the album (or your music in general)?

SoCo: Well, three of us actually met back at the University of Florida when we were part of the Filipino Student Association (FSA) there. We were actually pretty active in the organization until we started making music, funny enough. However, Filipino music had a big influence on our production—specifically old OPM soul.

illa: We’ve always been a huge fan of OPM music—the amazing vocals, instrumentalists, and arrangements. So whenever we hear some really good Filipino soul music, we’re like, "the world needs to hear this!” The thing is, outside of Filipino producers, most music heads (let alone those in Hip Hop) don’t realize the depth of emotion old, Filipino soul and folk singers delivered their lyrics with. It’s pretty awe-inspiring.

Soco: I guess we were fortunate enough to have joined the FSA in a year with older members that were big music heads. Some were DJs, others were really big into music in general and we learned a lot about other artists we normally woudn’t have had exposure to so soon. Like, one of the guys had just bought Blackalicious’s NIA and I had never heard anything like it. I remember, our friend Ray was part of Slum Village’s street team and that was the first time I had heard anything from Dilla. Our minds were blown away listening to Fantastic V2.

illa: And really, if it wasn’t for the UFFSA, we probably wouldn’t be here doing this interview. We started making beats and recording music while in college and later, when we were performing, it was that same organization—that same family—that came out to support us whenever we had a show. Now that we’ve evolved into Generation ILL, and since we’ve collaborated with Deep Foundation and Hydroponikz, we’ve seen that support from not only FSAs, but the FilAm community nationwide as a whole.

illa and SoCo prefer visual anonymity in order to impress your ears

Why do you think it is important for this collaboration album to be heard by Filipino Americans?

SoCo: Just as Deep Foundation and Hydroponikz draw from their own experiences of life growing up as Filipino Americans, we try to make sure our beats capture that same type of intensity drawing out those same emotions. Of course, as Filipino Americans, we have something to say. And as you hear in the EP, it’s not just about what we go thru here in the States, but what our families and friends go through in the Philippines as well. Most of our struggles, though they may be on different scales, parallel day to day. That’s what we hope to convey to Fil-Ams and Filipinos alike.

Who are some of your musical influences?

In terms of producers: J. Dilla, 9th Wonder, Pete Rock, DJ Premier, illMind, Just Blaze, Kanye West -- just to name a few. Many of our influences range from Jazz Artists like John Coltrane to soul artists like Curtis Mayfield or Gil Scott Heron.

In terms of beat and lyrics, what is the motivation behind "World's Apart"?

illa: One day we were listening to Pandora and the first song that came on was a track called, You by Marvin Gaye. When I heard the lyrics, "Worlds Apart...so close yet worlds apart". I immediately thought of Deep Foundation's track from earlier in their career, A Place Called Home. I immediately sat down, slowed down the sample, chopped it up, laid a Little Richard drum break over the sample and sent it to DF. I think the chorus obviously had a big influence over the concept of the song and that's actually one of my favorite tracks from the EP. Its another example of where we didn't even need to communicate our intention of making a particular beat, they already knew.

Why do you guys prefer to work in a crew?

illa: Well, the idea of Generation ILL as a production crew/company was a product of the jam sessions we used to have up in Gainesville. Every Thursday night, while the emcees would be freestyling, the producers would get together and chop up a single sample and present them once everyone was done. It was a chance for us to not only share production techniques, but also an opportunity to introduce each other to the different equipment and programs we used. The producers started to meet up more and it gave us a chance to build that camaraderie fueled by making beats.

Soco: One thing we all have in common, other than music, is that we all have separate lives in separate cities. Nine-to-five’s, school, family responsibilities—and as individuals, the fear is that you might get lost in reality. We all decided to come together as Generation ILL to represent that bond we share as artists and beatsmiths and to keep that passion alive—the passion to keep making dope music. It makes us better in our craft—iron sharpens iron, you know? Being part of a crew lets our individual styles shine from one point, which in turn allows artists to find a plethora of different sounds in one place.

Any future projects?

We're looking forward to some collaborations with several artists from the West Coast. Currently, we're working on a track with Bambu/Beat Rock Music on an upcoming project. We have a R&B/Soul- inspired beat cd in the works which will be available soon and we have plans to release a Generation ILL project with a series of featured emcees during the 2nd Qtr of 2011.

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Sunday Cipher: Rocky Horror!

Rocky horror!! Happy Halloween! Beware the Aswang, White Lady, Duwende, Manananggal, and all that...

Festival of Philippine Arts and Culture 2010- quick glimpse

FilAmARTS presents the 19th Annual Festival of Philippine Arts and Culture in San Pedro, California on September 11-12, 2010. As always, there will be an exciting line-up of artists, including an audacious collection of hip hop performers. And this year, Rex Navarette returns again with a fresh cache of side-splitters!

Below is a modest sample of the artists you'll be seeing. This doesn't even include the conglomeration of street dancers who always be wreckin that stage!

Hopie Spitshard aka the Diamond Dame is "kind of a, kind of a big deal" at FPAC!

The mysterious and magical Mista Cookie Jar appears before your eyes on the Saturday of FPAC

Rocky Rivera aka EyeASage gets grimy on the Main Stage


Flow Ethic's principle is to rock you right

Rex Navarette makes the sacred pilgrimage to FPAC once again! ("Pack dat sheet, pack dat sheet!")

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Hip Hop Showcase: Self-Revolution and a new generation continues...

Congrats go out to Kababayan at UC Irvine for another successful annual Hip Hop Showcase. Thank you for letting me be your opening act. I feel honored to be among the next generation of hip hop geniuses.

Bambu (and here) and Rocky Rivera performed masterfully, as always. But this time with their little one, Khalil, stealing moments of the limelight. Cop that Paper Cuts EP and Rocky Rivera album yall!

Tonight's show seemed to solidify for us here at Hip Hop Lives that hip hop is indeed living on. The next generation of Fil Ams is taking hip hop to a new level. And it looks promising. With extraordinary young acts like Ruby Ibarra, the funk frontier expands...





Don't sleep yall!

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SF: Rocky Rivera album release

FYI, Rocky Rivera aka EyeASage is droppin an album:

References:
New Video: EyeASage's "MRSHMLO"
ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: EyeASage ain't playin

New Video: EyeASage's "MRSHMLO"

MRSHMLO from Mikhail Shapiro on Vimeo.

Your favorite guerilla-busridin', grill-rockin 'Frisco Pinay EyeASage aka Rocky Rivera dropped her first single "MRSHMLO" on Tuesday. Don't be fooled, this txt-savvy, sweet-tooth song title is nothing soft. It's a hard-hitting, street-smart knock.

EyeASage's clever braggadocio is complemented well with 6Fingers' sharp, sample-heavy, head-nod beat, which uses an E-40 sample ("neva been a marshmellow"). It sounds sort of like a funkier Puff Daddy "Bad Boy for Life," spiced with a Bay Area vibe, and embellished with cartoony, quirky sounds. And you got to love that OG, boom-bap sound with samples or scratches serving as the chorus...an oh-so-sweeeet formula. 6Fingers' madman creations can also be heard on Hopie Spitshard's album from last year.

The video is interesting too, amplifying EyeASage's boss swagger. With a dark, anonymous background, bright studio lights, and extreme close ups, it kind of feels like a battle. To Rocky Rivera's opponent: good luck.

In the last 40 seconds of the song, the beat switches up to a slower, laid back, West Coast flavor. EyeASage gives a short bio of her (mis)adventure with Rolling Stone Magazine. For those who are not familiar, EyeASage aka Krishtine de Leon, who writes as a music journalist, won on the reality MTV show "I'm From Rolling Stone," where journalists competed to write for the magazine.

I'm curious to learn if EyeASage's Rocky Rivera persona (at least in this video) is in any way a reference to the stylin' Filipino zoot-suiters in the 1930s-40s? The feminist implications to this is geekily interesting.

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[Re]Presentation of the Filipin@ American

The KabaCon is coming! If you're near Orange County, CA on Saturday, February 28th then swing by the 10th Annual Kababayan Conference at UC Irvine. The venue is at the Student Center and registration begins at 9:00am. Pre-registration is $3, day-or registration is $5.

The conference is titled "The [Re]Presentation of the Filipino American." Kinda sounds intriguing, no?

The conference's featured presentations:

"Hip Hop: The Filipino American Impact on Hip Hop culture, and Hip Hop's Influence on Filipino American Culture" with Bambu & Krishtine De Leon (EyeASage)

"The Historical Experiences of Filipin@ Immigrants in the 1920s-1930s" with Linda Maram (professor at Long Beach State and author of Creating Masculinity in Los Angeles's Little Manila)

"Pinoy Pop: Aesthetics and Style in Contemporary Filipino Culture" with Christine Balance (musician, member of The Jack Lords, writer for OH! Industry webzine, and professor at UC Irvine)

"The Current and Historical Portrayal of Filipin@ Americans in American Media" with Patricio Ginelsa & AJ Calomay (Xylophone Films & Kid Heroes Production)

"Filipino American and Chicano American Migrant Workers Experience" with Gilbert Gonzales (professor at UC Irvine)

"PCN: The Filipino American Cultural Phenomena Its Origins, the Subculture Created, and How It Has Become an Outlet for Original Expression" with Xavier Hernandez (SF State Graduate Student)

(Those are some long ass titles)

Conference Performances:

Rhythm Natives

Kuttin Kandi

Son of Ran

The line-up looks nice. And the keynote speaker? It's none other than yo boy talking about some mess: "Yes! The Rhythm, The Rebel! Filipino Funky Hybridity and the Magic Trick of U.S. Empire" (and that's not a long ass title?)

And, later on the very same day, you need to check out my man Tad Nakamura's new film, "A Song for Ourselves" in Little Tokyo. Tad chronicles the art, activism, and passion of the late, great Chris Iijima, who sang the songs of revolution during the Asian American movement in the 1960s. I like how Tad ties in the art of the pioneers like Chris with the hip hop of Filipinos today. By the way, Bambu, Kiwi, and Blue Scholars will be performing after the screening (what!).

Festival reflections: When the fun is done

Ok, so the 17th Annual Festival of Philippine Arts and Culture (FPAC) is finished. Finito. Tapos na!

So many things happened in the past week, that it is difficult for me to process. Where to start? I don't know. Everything seemed HUGE, so it feels insufficient to just mention a few things. Since this blog is dedicated to hip hop culture, and I helped spearhead the hip hop programs for the festival, you'll soon read upcoming interviews and reflections about the following programs related to FPAC:

FPAC Hip Hop Circle at Lost Souls Cafe!
Sharing the table with the new and old school, this event hopes to be the start of some solid documentation on Fil Ams in Hip Hop culture. A night to remember! Among those present were filmmaker John Castro (The Debut), Oliver Wang (Fil Am DJ historian), Joe Bataan (the King of Latin R&B), Kuttin Kandi (Turntablist champion and activist), Krishtine deLeon (rapper and journalist), Bambu (rapper and community activist), Mark Pulido (veteran popper, LA Fil Am hip hop historian, and elected official--how you like that bro?), and Arnel Calvario (doctor, founder of Kaba Modern, and President of Culture Shock LA).







Boom mics and camcorders invade the cypher!










Joe Bataan on his rap record "Rap-O-Clap-O" success in Europe













The cypher at Lost Souls


Stacksvinyl.com FPAC Tribute to the Filipino DJ
Nice gold records (courtesy of homey Mary Rose)! Nasty Nes almost making us all cry! Congratulations Nes, Babu (and son), Rhett, and Kandi! Maybe future honorees were in the crowd, looking up and dreaming...one day?








Photo from pinoylife.com



Show and Prove Street Dance Showcase
Who had the biggest crowd at the festival? Could it be Show and Prove? Unbelievable!

Kiwi and Bambu live reunion
I had a hunch it was going to happen, and so did many other Native Guns fans. Then, booyah! Two bald-headed brothas with tattoos! Brrrrat!!








Photo from pinoylife.com




Did you especially enjoy any particular program at FPAC this year?

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: The Diamond Dame steppin up the game

Finally, just got the Diamond Dame album in the mail...


Top Ten Reasons Why You Should Buy Hopie Spitzhard's The Diamond Dame album

10. You need to support good Fil Am and women emcees. You'll live longer.

9. The albums is loaded with ill collaborations featuring Del the Funky Homosapien (what?), Bam (see verse below), EyeASage (“Supernova” verse is fire), Topkat (been sleepin on this brutha), Kid Static, Smigg Dirtee, and Madaleine Bolden.

8. 6Fingers is quickly becoming one of my favorite music producers. The combinations of colorful, quirky, fun Bay Area sounds together with a real deep thump (“Yummy” is ridiculous) packages the whole album real nice.

7. Hopie's lyrics and style, even down to the album art, brings a 80s / early 90s nostalgia that isn’t corny (like Lupe can be at times). It works! Gotta dig up that big ole' ghetto blaster...

6. Speakin of 90s nostalgia, sometimes likened to Lady Bug, Hopie does a cover of Digable Planets' "Rebirth of Slick," that's, well, a rebirth of that knock's slickness--for the new millenium of course. 6Fingers does it right. “Fresh Like Dat” is one of my favorite jams on the album.

5. Can't knock the hustle-this album is street! Hipsters and backpacker elitists can roll too, but know Hopie ain't a typical underground “anti-establishment,” fuck Bush, fuck the mainstream emcee. It’s cool if you just discovered Immortal Technique your second year in college and yeah hip hop finally found you, but Diamond Dame is g...she'll eat you alive.

4. Although she is politically-conscious, well-informed, brown and proud, Hopie isn’t necessarily preachy in her lyrics. It’s simply great emcee skills (and wise ones will identify the radical meanings in her content). Her flow carries the album throughout, and it’ll probably resonate beyond the leftist Filipino nationalist hip hop heads.

3. The Diamond Dame provides good, solid hip hop in a hip hop world that is overly machismo, misogynistic, and self-deprecating. Like she says: "Popular rap music seemingly propagates only one-half the human experience -the male half- and a narrow perspective of the male experience, at that." On top of her unmatched skills, Hopie gets the message across that she can hold her own without submitting to some pre-written script about what an emcee--or a woman emcee at that--should be like.

Mission Rock in San Francisco. Hopie is winner of the January Artist Showcase.

2. Hopie brings back a fresh fierceness that drives more toward a playful sharpening of emcee skills and not undeserved braggadocio. Don’t get me wrong, she got real swagger, but it’s the type you can really vibe to musically.

1. This emcee is hungry, and you can tell. Like the line in “Scene of the Rhyme,” she says, “I’m so hungry for the mic, I’m underweight.” And in her "Outro," "I'm the hungriest rapper, you on my plate ho." She might chew a poor suckas ear off. This drive really sets the tone for Diamond Dame.

So that's it! Why you slackin? Pick that shit up! Been waitin for good hip hop for a minute, and hopefully this album is gonna be a beginning of a lot more to come. Here's the Dame's interview with M.I.S.S. Crew.

For now, I just want to share some verses of the album that caught my attention, first one by Hopie and the second one by Bambu:

The first verse of "The Diamond Dame Intro." Check the back-to-back chain rhyme:

We ain’t neva gone be friends
Well it depends
Pretty soon I’ll make those ends
And yo ass will play pretend, then
When the Diamond Dame name
Come around the bend
Oh now we friends at last
Kissin ass so much
Put on some knee pads
We’ll back that ego*
Witness people will coppin*
Singles now yo lingo is in limbo
First you said you’ll neva make it
Hope is wack
Now you postin in the lab
Askin for collabs
Damn
What the fuck I told them
I would drop the Diamond Dame
Neva quiet since start
Neva pausin by my name
What they sayin*
They wanna underestimate me*
Choppin up my life
They investigatin me
Tryin to see who got me they bootlegs I get hand outs
Can a woman rap and put in worth
Who let the can out?*
Nope! I guess not
Hopie from the ground up
Slangin diamond rocks
Till your muthafuckin ears pop

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Bambu’s verse in “Kings” blew off the top. Can't wait for the next album to drop!

Take it back to fat laces and Ah-dee-dahs [Adidas]
La-dee-da
Slick Rick on yall
The ruler’s back (say what?)
Minus the eye patch
You make music for dumb fucks
“Why the fuck would I buy that?”
You ain’t neva eva eva in yo goddamn life
Gone catcha muthafucka throwin dollas in the sky
Not when a dolla can buy a bag of rice and some bread
I’d rather cop the newest milk and hit the shelf instead*
See that’s some real king shit takin care of my folks
Don’t try to be the king if your reason is broke
Stupid fucka
Yo so ignorant
If Malcolm X came back he’d look at yall like “What is this?”
Get serious homeboy
Recognize potential
This is not why all of those folks died before you
We the kings, we hold things
That don’t mean shit
This is cool if we only wannabe kings for a moment.

*Correction requested

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: EyeASage ain't playin

EyeASage spittin fierce

Peace to EyeASage (Krishtine de Leon) for puttin on a dope show at the UC Irvine TDB/Kababayan "Filipino Hip Hop Renaissance" Showcase on Friday. (Bambu wrapped it up right with the "Chairman Mao" acapella! I got you in part II bro).

One of my favorite songs on EyeASage's "Married to the Hustle" mixtape is "Macktivist," a song that perhaps many of us can relate to??? Krish's lyrics are sharp, cutting, and brutally honest. Let's take a look:

MACKTIVIST

"You can keep it movin
I ain’t the gullible type
I can give a flyin fuck about the poems you write
Got yo fist in the air like you just don’t care
Tryin to gripe about the system like
“It just ain’t fair”
Looky here
You’re kickin some predictable shit
Rock dreads in a cap that your grandma knit
Take a lot more than that to be down for the cause
And take way more than that just to get in the draws
I like to see you spittin' game to the next
Generation of sistas
That love salad but can’t stand oppression
Funny as hell but they’ll see
Activists can be as wack as other people can be
Don’t let the propaganda fool you if you’re tryin to fuck
And tell Huey P. Bootsy that he’s shit outta luck

Ha, anyways

You got Martin and Marley on the front of the line
But they cheatin on they wives like half of the time
Even Malcolm had to question on the movement himself
When he found out that Elijah was dickin the help
While he preachin’ bout respect
Puttin family first
But couldn’t tell between a woman
And a hole in the dirt
It’s funny how they wanna question how we livin our lives
I could push the titties up
And they be changing they minds
Cuz a man is just a man at the end of the day
Bet a hundred million dollas he won’t turn it away
Almost nine out of ten would rather barter belief
long as pussy gettin slanged on the regular, b
If Che Guevara wanna holla he can pump on the brakes
Cuz revolution separate between the real and the fake
You can hide a wedding ring in the palm of ya fist
“Activist” is just a word like “nigga” and “bitch”"


Wooooord? I know, I know, there are a lot of Fil Am activists who rock mad sexy flavor. I mean, who doesn't look cute rockin a revolutionary bandana at a Fil Am Vets rally? HOT! (Just as a note, I cannot be considered in the macktivist camp because grandma refused to knit my cap. And my dreads is a weave. Booyaa!)

Seriously, this important critique of patriarchy and sexual preoccupation within "activist" spaces reminds me of one of Kiwi's dopest lines in the first Native Guns Stray Bullets Mixtape (Track 23):

"You know the down brown man is a myth
Cuz even down brown men treat their women like sh-"

Wooord!

Make sure to peep the "Married to the Hustle" mixtape!


CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

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On another note, make sure to DL the new Heavy Rotation 2008 show for March. Bambu represents live from the Heavy Rotation Launch Party at the San Diego House of Blues. You can also hear Ms. Krish's jam "Sco Nails" on the playlist, along with a fresh set of jump offs.

Filipino Hip Hop Renaissance Showcase: See you there!

I'mma be reppin' "Hip Hop Mestizaje" at this event at University of California, Irvine on Friday, March 7. See you there Kaba! (Peace Antonio)




UDPATE (3-8-08):
Thanks for an incredible night Antonio, Jana, Doris, and everyone! It was a huge success, thanks for letting me a small part of it. TDB and Kaba fo lyfe. Ya'll are inspiring and give life to consciousness, art, and community. Keep on doin what you do. Anyone got pictures to share?