the i-power story

I-Power is a hip hop crew from Westbury, New York. Crew members are P.S. a.k.a. Pure Sound a.k.a. Da Supervisor, Allceein a.k.a. All a.k.a. Solutions, and Melodious Fonk a.k.a. Mo'Funk aka Modini. We are friends who grew up on hip hop in the 80's. All of us used to break-dance and draw graffiti back then. Anyway, I guess our major influence was being in New York. New York City in the 80’s was crazy. Hip Hop was everywhere. We used to take the bus to Jamaica Avenue in Queens to buy records and sneakers etc. In Queens, we would see the latest gear and hear the latest songs. On weekends, we would go to the roller-skating rings to break-dance or we would just hang out and listen to the radio. We listened to show’s by Mr. Magic, Kool DJ Red Alert, Chuck Chill Out, Hank Love and DNA, The Awesome 2, P-Fine, and Dr. Dre’s Operating Room. I remember when All saw the movie Wild Style in 1982 and how it changed him. He has had his book out ever since and P.S. has been rhyming just as long if not longer.



I started djing in 1984. Back then, All and I were in a crew called A Force Beyond Control or F.B.C with our man Freddie D. We performed at local talent shows and radio stations like WBAU in Long Island. Guys like Flavor Flav and Jam Master Jay hosted our local talent shows so we got a first hand education in real Hip Hop from the start. Dr. Dre and his crew The Original Concept were from Westbury as well so we would see them at shows and they inspired us. They were on Def Jam and Red Alert and Marley Marl were playing their songs on the radio. Their DJ EZ G. Rockwell was the first DMC World Champion. Their bass player Mike eventually became our first manager after he heard our demo tape which we produced with a 4 track, a Casio SK-1, and Roland TR505 which was my first drum machine. He was the first person to bring us to a real recording studio. Everything was moving fine until our manager got Freddie D. a solo deal with Sleeping Bag Records. He jerked us because they felt it would be a better look to drop the black kids (think Beastie Boys) but that’s another story.

Anyway, P.S. was in another crew called Universal Sounds. I remember going to the studio with him when he recorded his early demos in 1988. He was even good back then. By 1989, we were all in college. PS and Allceein moved to Philadelphia and I went to Minnesota.

In summer of 1992, I came back to New York. I linked back up with P.S. At the time, I had a group in Minneapolis with my man Brother B. called Egghead and P.S. was working on his solo project under the name First Eye. Before this he was in a crew called Now & Laters with Sha Now The Remedy Man who later was in a group called Rumpletilskinz. Anyway, P.S. loved my Egghead demo and asked me to produce songs for his First Eye demo. So we went to the studio and started to work. At First, we were local recording at our man D’s studio and then we started to travel. We never had our own equipment back then but D showed me how to use the MPC 60II.

P.S. and I officially started recording songs as I-Power in fall 1993 after my man Brother B. from Egghead got shot. We got the name from our favorite restaurant in Brooklyn which closed down. It was a Rasta ital spot. We figured First Eye and I-Power meant the same thing. So I-Power we became. At the time, Allceein was still in school. He joined the crew a year later. I remember opening up for Leaders of the New School and H2O at Crystal’s in Queens and Redman, The Beatnuts, and Common at Nassau Community College. We also did shows like Cream which was a spin off of the Lyricist Lounge and shared the stage with artist like Talib Kweli, Half-A-Mil, Da Ranjahz, The Jigmasters, A.L. Skills etc. We continued making songs at D’s.

By 1996, we were doing paid college shows. We still didn’t have our own studio yet but the money from the shows we used to pay for our studio expenses. This is the pre MPC 2000 era and MPC' 3000’s were like $3500 back then so we would go to the studio and make the beats live. Then our friend Greg bought an MPC 3000 so we would visit him in Philly. It worked because we would travel down to Philly to make beats and those same beats we made songs out of later. We decided to make a 12” next.

We released our independent 12" titled “I-POWER” in spring of 1997. It featured 3 songs; Under Da Sun, Da Breakthrough, and Da Madness. We recorded the songs at Sample Kings Studio's in summer of 1996. The mix engineers were Doc and PM. We also recorded other songs in this period including Seen a Vision remix, and 1 Life 2 Live. To tell you the truth a lot of money went into recording Under Da Sun. We mixed it several times and even did a mix at Quad Studios but we didn't like it so we went back to Sample Kings for the final mix.

Under Da Sun was given to DJ's like Marley Marl, Pete Rock, DJ Premier, Da Beat Junkies, DJ Etch a Sketch, etc. P.S. flew out to Los Angeles and put it in Fat Beats and got it on the radio etc. The NYC Fat Beats fronted on it. Back in summer of 1997 this 12" got a lot of plays on hip hop radio shows on the east and west coasts. I got a tape of one of those shows somewhere. DJ Premier played it on NYC's Hot 97 when he did a guest spot on Stretch and Bobbito's show. I will always love Premier for that endorsement. To me that is still my ultimate hip hop experience.

In spring 1997, a dub of our song Systematic was given to Black Sean a friend from around the way. Black worked at a new label called Rawkus records and gave the song to his boss to listen to. The heads at Rawkus loved Systematic and they wanted us to do a 12" deal. We were with it but they didn't like our B-side Free Da Dome. So we decided to do a bunch of songs so they would have a lot to pick from. We went back to Sample Kings and recorded 6 more songs. These songs were crack.

When we finished recording our last song called True we went out to party. I remember going to the Palladium in NYC. We stayed there for like 30 minutes. When we got back to my car someone had broken into it and stole our bags. In my bag, I had all our DAT tapes and like 300 MPC disk and 20 rare records. The DAT tapes were our masters and they contained all our material from 1995 through 1997. We took a major hit. One that I still can't comprehend. I have no idea who stole our stuff but it really set us back. I mean to us that bag was priceless. Years worth of music were in that bag. Some fool probably stole it looking for money or something. They probably threw it away. I searched all the streets of the lower east side that morning. I didn't even go home that day. I remember going to flea markets in the city looking for those master DATs or MPC Disk. However, no luck.

Consequently, we had no material to hand into Rawkus. All that was left were our cassette tape copies and demos. We had to start all over again.



Afterwards, we decided to buy equipment. Since we had jobs, we saved our money and set up a studio in my basement. We got back to work. Around this time, we added our friends to the mix and I-Power became L.I.F.E.Force (an acronym for Long Island's Finest Emcee's). L.I.F.E.Force members were Pure, Allceein, MoDini, Murdoch Elohiem, P.M., Kwam Cabral, Utasi, Jaywalk, Rick DeVille and Israel Joseph I. We recorded hundreds of songs in the basement from 1998 through 2004 but never released another 12". We tried but never we’re able to save enough money to get it pressed. We recorded 2 more I-Power songs at Sample Kings in December of 1999 but we never released them. I got the songs on a DVD ram disc which is a format that no one uses anymore. But I’m still looking to bring them back. However, L.I.F.E.Force songs were recorded on tape only. I wish they were on CD but we didn't have a burner back in 1998. Remember, this was still the analog age. However, from 2001 on our material made it to CD. Not quite as polished as the I-Power studio recordings but hip hop nonetheless. We came from the boom box tape era so to us it didn’t matter. We just wanted to record and express ourselves. To us it’s always been for the love and passion. One thing about I-Power/L.I.F.E.Force is that you get the truth. Universal rhymes with a positive message.

One day I was cleaning up and I find a DAT tape which says "Systematic" on it. I couldn't believe it. A missing dub. However, I recently had the tape transferred and it’s a studio out-take mix of the song. The wrong version with mixing mistakes etc. That sucks!!! However, this led me to search for other DAT tapes and I was able to find more. The master to Under Da Sun was one of them as well as an I-Power demo DAT from 1994, our show DAT from 1996, as well as a DAT from my Minnesota group from 1992 called EGGHEAD. Were still missing 4 other DATs with our 1994, 1995 and 1997 material but I’m grateful for finding something. I really thought all was lost. GOD is good.

12 years later Under Da Sun has been rediscovered by a new generation and thus I-Power has been resurrected. We are so grateful. We thank everyone out there who has supported or has an interest in this record and I-Power. We really appreciate the love. It’s a testament to the fact that the truth must come to light. Real Hip hop is timeless. Infinite. We are planning a re-release of Under Da Sun in the near future. Get at me for more info.

As usual, I’m still in the basement making beats. The only things that have changed are the walls and my equipment. My MPC tanked in early 07 so I switched over to Ableton Live in search of inspiration. It worked!!! Currently, I’m mixing my debut album Pyromaniac which will be available on iTunes and CD in March. It’s been years but I’m rhyming again. I got 2 bangers with Allceein already. I just gave P.S. some beats. He’s writing to them. These days he's hard to catch up with. To pay the bills he works as a professional drummer/procussionist. He is usually on tour with his band The Pimps of Joytime. Yes, my man is multitalented!! Check them out if you get a chance at a venue near you. They rock!! www.myspace.com/pimpsofjoytime.


We are working on a new I-Power album for summer 09 called Build & Destroy. Allceein is working on his new album The Art of Raw. His last album Music and Da Madness was produced by me and Prev Maes in 2006. It features L.I.F.E.Force and is available at www.cdbaby.com/allceein or www.myspace/allceein.

Look out for classic unreleased I-Power material this year as well. Also, we are now selling I-Power branded T-shirts, hooded sweatshirts, fitted caps, and slipmats. . They have our logo on them. Some shirts have classic I-Power lyrics on them as well. Get at me for more info or for CDs and vinyl 12”s at:

djmofunk@hotmail.com

www.myspace.com/djmofunk



1ne

djmofunk

[hanDJob talks to] edk

For the first interview in 2012 we connected with producer EDK residing in Hollywood these days. Not sure how many of you ever heard of him or the Seeds Of Evolution so let the man speak for himself: 

hanDJob:   Please introduce yourself to the readers. What does EDK stand for and who are the Seeds Of Evolution?

EDK:         EDK was formed in 1998 by twin brothers Jon Weiss aka Iceman and Scott Weiss aka Easy Andy. We teamed up with fellow producer/engineer Jack Horner in 2002 to form Nod Records. EDK has many different meanings. We‘ve been using it since 1998 and leave it up for interpretation. Seeds Of Evolution was an underground hip-hop group based out of Philadlphia, PA (USA) that consisted of Producers EDK and Rapper Shaun Abu.

 [shaun abu]

hanDJob:   Apart from maybe one site I haven’t found out much about your discography. Please let us know what you’ve done, especially in Hip Hop as well as your influences.

EDK:         Of course our underground cult classic album Seeds of Evolution. We have also worked with Malik B of (The Legendary Roots Crew), we produced a track called „Different“ on Kool Keith‘s Mr.    Nogatco „Nogatco Rd.“ album released on Insomniac Records in 2006. We have worked with many  underground and indie rappers from all over. You can check out and download some of our back- catalog. We are influenced by any artists making good music.

hanDJob:   What’s up with the full length S.O.E. album being available over at bandcamp.com? was that ever officially released on cd or even vinyl?
 
EDK:         Yes. Both S.O.E. albums were released on 12“ vinyl and cd. They are very rare and hard to find these days. We may re-press both of them on 12“ vinyl again through Nod Records sometime in the near future. Stay Tuned...

hanDJob:   During earlier conversations you mentioned a reissue of the Ep maybe even some bonus cuts. What would it take to make that happen?

EDK:         If the demand is there... Nod Records will make it happen for the true fans.

hanDJob:   Feel free to let us know about upcoming projects and things you’re working on.

EDK:         Make sure you check out all these links for our past and present music projects. Lots of material available for Free Download and lots of New Material getting ready to drop. Don‘t sleep...

        http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/masta-buildas/id425480689

       http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/reptilian-body-snatchas/id341898978

        http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/mars-single/id376341094

        http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-sicko-cell-theory/id315373500

        http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/walking-coma/id275992509

        http://edkmusic1.bandcamp.com/album/seeds-of-evolution

        http://nodrecords.bandcamp.com/

        http://edkmusic1.bandcamp.com/album/edk-reissued-from-vinyl

        http://iceman1.bandcamp.com/

        http://easyandy.bandcamp.com/

        http://jackhorner.bandcamp.com/

        http://www.youtube.com/nodrecords

        http://www.youtube.com/leibweiss

We appreciate all the Love & Support! Thanks for taking the time to interview us!

hanDJob:   Thanks for taking the time!

[hanDJob talks to] dbs

Another slept on artist! For our next interview we’re heading over to New Jersey and have a talk with DBS. A BIG shout goes out to Keith Wright his manager for making the contacts possible.

hanDJob:    Please let us know what DBS stands for as well as how it all started?

DBS:          First off let me say Peace and thanks for even taking the time to do this. Ok... I say the mid 80s...we had a crew called S.B.C. (Superb Brilliant and Capable of anything) My cousin and I were emcees....we had two DJs and a couple of dancers. Zamn (cousin) ended up going to the army which forced me to become a solo emcee. I named my new crew Da Bade Snachaz. We did our thing  for a minute.....shit fell apart for whatever reasons.....I was by myself....so I started going by R.I.M.P. DBS. (Rude Intelligent Mutha Phucka Da Bade Snacha). Then I went by DABADESNACHA and a few years later when I hooked up with Kryme (Keith) and deciced to do the record....he suggested that I go by DBS and it was on.
  
hanDJob:    Maybe you can share the story about the label Word Of Mouph Entertainment? Who was behind it and how did it come together?

DBS:    Kryme (Keith) was working as an intern in the Marketing/Promotions department when I really started to develop the DBS sound. We tried to shop it to a few labels but we didn‘t get the response we expected to receive from A&R‘s. The only option was to put the record out ourselves, create a buzz and let the labels come to us. Word of Mouth Entertainment was created solely to launch DBS.

hanDJob:  Since your voice is quite remarkable and the production is dope i wondered why your single didn’t make more noise when it got released. Do you remember how the Any & Everybody record got distributed back in the days? Did it get played at radiostations or/and mixtapes? 

DBS:          Well at that time....everything on the radio had the name brand clothes and the expensive ass liquor in it.....when the pimp and player game was blowin’ up. I was never off that. It was fine that they made that type of music...but I make this type of music....and believe we would’ve had a huge following.
Money issues..... I mean the people in our circle that were in the street was doin’ it for their own reasons....the people in the circle that were into the music worked...so....all that greasin’ DJs pockets and paying for airplay wasn’t happening with 9 to 5 money. We ran it in every go-go spot we could get to.....hit up different parties and had it played....sent it to all the radio stations but with no success.

hanDJob:  Who influenced you back then? What other artists were you working with or did you feel? 

DBS:           When it comes to production and the way I record my vocals I would have to say Prince.. I know that may seem crazy but that’s why I wanted to do music in the first place..listening to his music. Hip Hop made it possible because I didn’t have to sing. Now when it comes to writin’...I’m lucky to be around back then because what Hip Hop is missin’ now is a variety of music....my list could go on forever...Big Daddy Kane....De La Soul.....IceCube......Public Enemy.....Scarface.....and Kool G Rap. That’s not even scrathin’ the surface. G Rap was and still is the biggest influence on me....we speak the same.....and I was always embarrassed talking with a lisp until I heard him goin’ extra hard and was better than anybody I had ever listened to before....and he still puttin’ out bangers ‘til this day.
Then their was my own crew. Zamn, Kryme, UHG, World, Warmonger, Krystal Klear, The Wanderers, Kontagus...local but known emcees from Jersey.  I‘ve done shows with Raggety Man....Lil 7 (BKA 7)...Has The Ripper.....The Outsiderz.....and a few familiar crews like Nice and Smooth, and De La Soul just to mention a few.

hanDJob:   You sent me some unreleased material, any plans to get that out on vinyl?  Even though the vinyl market is constantly shrinking it seems like a lot of fans of that mid 90s independent rap are still buying vinyl so there might be a market for it; especially in Europe and Japan.

DBS:           Well the HIGHDADEATH song and BRICK CITY (you know this is where I‘ll be) was a single cd I put out on the streets...which did pretty good. Fed me for the summer and half of the winter. I’ve been in touch with Kryme  and if we start to see a demand for DBS then it’s on. Vinyl and everything else. I always believed overseas was the place for my music. They appreciate the art form and have a better respect for the music.

hanDJob:   What are you working on right now and of course, how do you feel about the current state of the Hip Hop culture ?

DBS:    Right now you can see some of the work I did back in 2000 to 2005. youtube.com/DABADESNACHA. I was in the mix of putting a cd together...and doing what I ever I had to do to get it overseas. I did some production and I’m featured on a cd entitled GHOSTSTORIES by my man Caspa....also from Newark. I’m on the song “Time Clock” under the name GNE. I‘ll be hookin‘ up with Gov Matic soon to do some work. We’re hopin’ we can get a buzz goin’ off of this. Right now we are still in a daze because we cant believe after all these years somebody is interested in the single. Years of hard work has to pay off one day. So they say. As far as the culture of Hip Hop goes.....the true meaning of it has been lost like every other culture. Newbies dont respect the oldschool artist.....the DJs dont give the oldschool artist that are putting out the music that I would like to listen to the airplay....on the radio, mixtapes ect. I have to dig and google and go thru all this crazy shit to find what I like. Most people wont do that...so they just settle for whatever.  I would like to bring what I consider real Hip Hop back to life and be the leader of an uplifting to obliterate this watered down POP HOP shit.... mistaken for what I grew on. HIP HOP.

hanDJob:       Thanks for taking the time !

DBS:                “37”

                         woke up this mornin‘ with a head full of thoughts/
                         thinkin of the victories in the battles that I fought/
                         the shit that kill me is bein nice makes you soft/
                         feel me but it aint right to blow a nigga head off/
                         I smile and I take it with a grain of salt/
                         smarter now goin‘ back and obtainin what I lost/
                         you see it in my eyes as the boy gettin‘ older/
                         givin less of a fuck and my heart is gettin‘ colder/
                         (so what‘chu gonna do now) Time to make a switch/
                         I dont lead my horse I ride that bitch/
                         til the shoes fall of cause the stakes are high/
                         love coughin off the treez ‚cause it makes me fly/
                         sometimes life hits me hard and while my insides cry/
                         I‘m outside stuck between X and Z like Y/
                         who what where when/
                         I‘ve seen yall starin‘/
                         team was supreme like Malcolm Mclaren/
                         it seems I dream more than the average figure/
                         problems get smoked in blunts with a glass of liquor/
                         every since I touched a mic I was a nasty nigga/
                         in the cut with chick with an ass that won‘t quit/
                         I still get hyped/
                         Im Ol‘SCHOOL gemmed rims and three stripes/
                         Kangaroo on the hat, cat on the sneakers/
                         alligators on the shirts, cutters instead of heaters/
                         never ever thought it would go this far/
                         my introduction to producin was beatin on cars/
                         spent on my back and had a mean robot/
                         when Ladi Dadi dropped I mastered the beatbox/
                         move to East Orange and wrote my first rhyme/
                         and after that day, I was writin‘ all the time/
                         I still got it and will bust yo ass/
                         goin for the Gusto straight out of Lowcash.

                        PEACE....and big up to yall for givin’ me the time.

[hanDJob talks to] perv of da low livz

This time we’re going to have a talk with Perv from DaLowLivz out of Philly and before we start I gotta say BIG UP to Alkuttraz for introducing me to this dope Crew and their Ep.

hanDJob:   How is it going Perv? Since a lotta people outside The US probably never heard of DaLowLivz please introduce yourself to the world and share some background information on how DaLowLivz started out.

Perv:   Hey, Dalowlivz was a group we formed in Philadelphia back in the 90’s. We met up as individuals and groups working in my studio. We merged our efforts to do a group thing, pressed it up and put it out. We knew each other for a while. We did shows in Philly, college radio, talent shows, that whole circa and wanted to just put something out for fans of our underground stuff and people outside of Philly.

hanDJob:    It’s been about 14 years since the Fam And Squad Ep was released. What have you been up to in the meantime?

Perv:    I sort of chilled after that. I had enough of the bogus music set. In Philly, as far as rap goes, it was political all the way. When we actually took our E.P. around to local radio it was astounding how much bullshit there was to get it played. We even were told that we could get more play if we did a little under the table action. I was like that’s illegal and was shown the door. And that was the biggest station that promoted local talent. Another station put us on a contest versing Cru on Def Jam. Though we were local talent and got majority of call votes, Def Jam of course came out on top. I was told before that, that we would get played but Def Jam was who buttered the bread at the station. After that I wasn’t interested anymore. We got a great response from colleges and the underground but didn’t have cash to pay off the radio. I sold all my equipment and said fuck it. Unfortunately for everyone else in the group, I had the studio and did all the music for the group’s stuff. But after all we went through amongst the group member’s and the stations, I think it was agreed enough is enough. I did some stuff afterwards to pass time and just got back into doing some stuff but wouldn’t go through the shit we went through again.

hanDJob:   Munk Wit Da Funk is featured on the Ep as well. Is he from the same neighbourhood or how did that collaboration come about?

Perv:   I was actually introduced to Munk by the group GNC. Corleone, who is on Niggaz Got Beef, is his younger brother and I used to talk with him and Bruce aka Little Gotti. He was from West Philly and I was North Philly. We talked here and there and I asked them all to do a track. At the time it was a Perv track that I was doing to diss various people on (which is why there aren’t many members on it). Instead I cleaned up my lyrics, gave a copy to Munk and GNC. They loved it and threw some lyrics down. Munk knocked it out in one take. His lyrics were so good that he reused them on one of his own tracks. I gave Munk another track after that called “F Ur Style” which he loved also but it never got done.

hanDJob:   Something I always ask is how do you feel about the state of the (Hip Hop) Culture these days? Are you still listening to Rap Music? If so, who are you feeling?

Perv:   I listen to Hip Hop, sparingly. I get so tired of what is put out now. I can’t tell the difference between pop club or hip hop anymore. If I gotta listen I try to keep it underground but I don’t know, nowadays my IPOD is filled with other sounds overseas. Out of all the people I know there aren’t too many that listen to mainstream hip hop. I like off the wall stuff. Chino XL (if his stuff ever hits again), Royce Da 5’9 and Slaughterhouse, DJ Shadow even Childish Gambino. I’m waiting for the start up of new La Coka Nostra or Dan The Automator projects. I just need lyrics and something different. There is other things besides how much drugs I sold and the last I checked these people live out of the neighborhoods and haven’t sold if anything in years.

hanDJob:   Any upcoming projects or plans you’d like the readers to know about? Furthermore, is there any shelved DaLowLivz material that hasn’t seen the light of day yet?

Perv:   When you set up this interview I searched all around for stuff and came up empty and I was the one with the reels and made the music. To tell the truth I got fed up when I quit and threw most stuff in trash and gave the other stuff away. So if there is stuff it would have to be unearthed by a trashman somewhere. Only track I found that I might unearth was an unfinished copy of “F Ur Style” that never got done…no vocals sadly. I don’t even know if I could do anymore projects. The group disbanded but I am in touch with a couple of members, so who knows. However, the whole point of Pervert was to say anything I wanted, you know take it to the limit. Nowadays even if I censored my stuff it would be politically incorrect, protested, I would have to write various groups an apology letter and have to go to rehab for insensitivity counselling. I’m starting to write again but for now I’m forced to do instrumental music. It’s music that I’ve been experimenting with but noone’s ever heard. I’ll add stuff from time to time on youtube just to get a feel. Some hip hop, some clubbish, some alternative but I know not to call them all Hip Hop. I’m still Pervert but for this I’ll be… thepsychosexuAL…..

hanDJob:   Thanks for taking the time to answer those questions!

[hanDJob talks to] t.r.o.o.k.u.l.a. of brainwash 2000

This time we’re going to interview Troo Kula aka T.R.O.O.K.U.L.A. producer of the two famous Brainwash 2000 records. I doubt that there’s any introduction needed about Brainwash 2000 so let’s start straight away.

hanDJob:   Please introduce yourself, tell us how you got into the (rap) game and what your name stands for.

Troo Kula:  First let me say Peace to you and all the real Hip Hop fans all around the world and thank you for this opportunity. T.R.O.O.K.U.L.A. stands for The Root Often Oversees with Knowledge Understanding Love and Acceptance. Once upon a time I was a member of a group called 3rd Eye. One of the first acts to be signed by Puff Daddy (P. Diddy). The group consisted of myself and Jesse West. We recorded „Ease Up“ on the „Who‘s The Man“ movie soundtrack for Uptown Records. I even have unreleased recordings with Biggie, ODB, Naughty By Nature and Onyx. After several failed record deals we parted ways as artists and I hooked up with my boy Naut Jugga who was looking for his own solo deal. Since I felt everyone was Brainwashed and this new millennium (year 2000) was approaching I combined the two concepts. Troo Kula was always conscious so all our songs had to be on that vibe. We didn‘t care what anyone else was saying. 

hanDJob:   Since Brainwash 2000 still remains a big name when it comes to the 90s underground scene, how come there’s so little info (on the internet) about you guys?

     

Troo Kula:  I was never an internet dude. I‘m still trying to be one now since life is a little better now. I have a career outside of music. You need money and a lot of time for this independent Rap Game.

hanDJob:   I think I became aware of Brainwash 2000 when I heard NY Reality Check for the first time. As for you, was that your breakthrough in the underground scene or did it happen before? Furthermore, did Primo get in touch with you before releasing that mixtape? I think Stretch Armstrong gave you guys quite some airplay as well back in the days.

Troo Kula:  Stretch was the first to put „Break It Down“ on his „Lesson One“ CD. I respect that dude. He‘s dedicated and respects real Hip Hop. He gave us mad spins. Primo used to be on Hot 97 and burned the joint like crazy. Actually the first person to spin the track was Funk Master Flex. After he consigned it everybody followed.

 [naut jugga]

hanDJob:   How come there was never a Brainwash 2000 album or at least a 3rd single?

Troo Kula:  We have a lot of albums but never released any probably because this shit is a financial grind. You have to live too. I‘ve seen many rappers forget about making a living and today they‘re struggling because they never thought about the future.

hanDJob:   Since you told me earlier that you got unreleased material are there any plans to put that out? Maybe even on vinyl?  As far as I’m concerned you got lots of fans in Europe and Japan as well, who’d definitely buy the wax.

Troo Kula:  I have numerous Brainwash albums I‘m putting out on vinyl first then on CD. You guys don‘t know what your responsible for. You just gave me crazy inspiration to hit the world with some unheard heat.

hanDJob:   What other projects or groups were you involved in back in the early-late 90s? I think I read somewhere that someone named Troo Kula was rapping on PMDs first solo LP, the 3rd Eye Ep and a sampler called NBA Jam Session.   

Troo Kula:  Since we were running with Diddy back in the day he put me on the NBA Jam Session with Heavy D. and Biggie produced by Jesse West. I also did a track for Parish on his solo joint. I think it was called „No Shorts No Sleep“. Parish managed us for a minute as Third Eye.

hanDJob:   To finish this, what you’re working on these days? Still doing music? And how do you feel about the hip hop culture today?

Troo Kula:  Today I‘m a licensed Radiology Technologist working with doctors and nurses in ERs and ORs. I have some ill projects slated to be released. One of them „The Legend Of T.R.O.O.K.U.L.A.“ I‘m still doing beats and about to get back a SP1200. I‘ve been using Reason on my IMAC for several years. As far as the music today, I think what we‘re hearing today is just modified Hip Hop. It‘s temporary and will come back to the real raw art form the way it was originally. Peace!

hanDJob:   Thanks for taking the time to answer those questions!

hanDJob talks to dj gerard

What’s good y’all?

This time we’re going to have a talk with Gerard Gibson aka Brother Black. To be upfront with it here’s an introduction which can be found on his myspace page (http://www.myspace.com/brotherblack):

“Gerard Gibson a.k.a. Brother Black grew up in Lefrak City Queens, New York. Music has been a big part of his life since he was a youngster. That is when he first set his hands on two turntables and a mixer and started DJ(ing) with various groups out of Queens. Groups like Realistic Sounds and the Casanova Crew. Sometime in 1986 he joined the famous Uptown Crew, which featured various artists like Heavy D and the Boys, Marley Marl, Groove B Chill and Finesse & Synquis. These artist formed a compilation album, which was recorded on MCA Records under the direction of Andre Harrell, CEO of Uptown Records and previously world renowned Motown Records. Along his music journey, he has production credits along with developing artists such as Akinyele/Interscope Records and Loud RCA Records, also Volcano records, Freedom Williams/C&C Music Factory, Reggie Capers/RSGM Records, Final Chapter/Thugged out entertainment. Kia (PUT IN YOUR MOUTH) Jeffries, Her group 4Kast/RCA Records. Gutter Ratz/Qwest Records. Since the 90‘s he teamed up with Marshal Cooke a.k.a Dj Marsh Groove for a production company called Black and Outta Control Productions. The company has since changed its name to „WHY NOT ENTERTAINMENT“. Why not entertainment services include remixing, music production, hip hop, r&b, gospel, gospel rap, Mixtapes and Dj services including weddings etc.”

hanDJob:   To start this, please share some history about the time you got into music, like how it was back then. How it all started.

Dj Gerard:  I started DJing at 13 years old, in Lefrak City Queens NY. This was where and when I received my first DJ set, It was BSR TURNTABLES, AND A UP AND DOWN CROSS GEMINI MIXER AND A REALISTIC AMP FROM RADIO SHACK. To this day I haven’t lost a Dj battle, but those days are long over. I used to get my hands on old tapes of Grandwizard Theodore, Infinity Machine, Disco Twins, Grandmaster Flash, and was blown away about this new art form. I used to get in trouble because a lot of these free park jams ended late at night which led into a lot of punishment.  Growing up in New York we all had music crews, in some ways it could have been called a gang. My first Crew was called Realistic Sounds. And then the Casanova Crew. We hung together, protected each other, and played music making tapes, doing parties, we all at one time break danced, wrote graffiti…it was our life in NYC. Reggie Capers was in another crew at the time and he was a DJ then. Before turntables we would make pause tapes on a cassette radio, this was one of the way we could extend, or loop a break beat without two turntables and duplicate records. We used take collection from all members to buy records weekly, wow I wish I still had some of those records. I still have a mean collection though. Legendary Downstairs Records is where I used to collect my records from. The record store in the subway station, not the one on 43 & 6th ave, the original record store with Elroy selling you the records.       

hanDJob:   When I checked for that Uptown Crew compilation it says “The BrotherS Black”, what is that about?

Dj Gerard:  The Brothers Black group consisted of Gerard Gibson aka DJ ROCKIN ROD & Darrin Robinson AKA MC POSEY. Check out the Uptown is Kicking It Video on Youtube. We were the first group signed to Andre Harrell’s Uptown Records. At that time we was the only hardcore group they ever signed & managed. Other artist on that album was Groove B Chill and Marley Marl, Heavy D & The Boys, Woody Rock, Finesse & Synquis. The Brother Black eventually left Uptown Records to sign with Bill Camera of B-BOY Records and label mates of BOOGIE Down PRODUCTIONS. But thing didn’t work out well.

hanDJob:   What was your function with artists like Reggie Capers, Final Chapter, Gutter Ratz?

Dj Gerard:  Reggie Capers is a long time friend!!! I was responsible for production and the overall sound of the Reggie Capers projects. The Gutter Ratz I did a remix with them called Cops & Robbers with a rapper called M.A.G. aka Mad ass Gangster from Minnesota.  The company I was working for at that time was Set it Off Records C.E.O Pookie Gist the Brother of Kay Gee, of the world famous Naughty BY Nature. Final Chapter, I was the first producer to put them in the studio, and showing them how to arrange their songs into 16 BARS FORMAT.  Algado was my solo artist; I still have a hit song I never released with Algado going solo on it.  Final Chapter will always be my group, they’re on my CLASSIC MIX TAPE CALLED BROTHER BLACK PRESENTS CHRONICLES PART #1 LEFRAK FINEST.  

hanDJob:   You decided to share some unreleased Reggie Capers tracks with us. Please give the readers some history, maybe explaining why it never got released back then.  

Dj Gerard:  These songs never were released because we all had so much things going on in lifes at this time, Reggie moved south and Marshall moved to Jersey and Sam of Sound Rhythm started a computer business.

hanDJob:   What’s the deal with the Sound Plus Rhyhtm Label (Reggie Capers, Felix Cruz, Da Silver, Thief In Da Nite)? Please share some history about how it started and the artists that were involved.

Dj Gerard:  I don’t really know their history but Sam was part of Sound Plus Rhythm and did some production with me for Reggie Capers. And Felix Cruz is an Entertainment Lawyer that I used once for some legal work. Thief in da Nite and Breeze Everflowing were the main artists.

hanDJob:   As I always have to ask, how do you feel about the whole culture these days, compared to when you grew up?

Dj Gerard:  It’s a new ball game !!! I’m old school so of course I don’t like everything but I still love HIP HOP. The main thing is respect the art form, know the history (check the Founding Father documentary on Hip Hops Origin) a must see. And keep creating.

hanDJob:   You told me that you’re still doing beats. Is there anything the readers should check for?

Dj Gerard:  I’m in the process of rebuilding my studio so stay in touch. I’ll launch a new web site giving all details were I might be   DJing or what’s new as far as songs and the artist I’m working with. The first group I’m going to be in the studio with is COLLITON CARTEL from IRAQ, LEFRAK QUEENS, One of my old groups I used to lace with truck beats.   

hanDJob:   Any last words?

Dj Gerard:  If anybody would like to talk to me directly here’s my number 917 213 6926. Good luck to all, I’m in my 40’s and it feels like it’s brand new. I have a lot of projects coming up. Please explain to me how did y’all get your hands on the Reggie Capers stuff !!! We only pressed 500 copies of every song y’all have of his????????  IF you have more questions I interview better live!!! Make it happen. RODY ROD TO ROCKIN ROD TO BROTHER BLACK TO DJ GERARD– PEACE !!!!!!

hanDJob:   Thanks for taking your time doing this Gerard.
 

hanDJob talks to jasson turner of the ruph headz

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hanDJob talks to shaquan d.o.n.

31. december 2009– Today we’re going to have a talk with producer and Baltimore resident Shaquan D.O.N. If you’re not familiar with the name he’s the man behind the famous Breakin’ Thru 4 Delf ep and the 2000 D.O.M.E.S.W.E.L.L.A.S. 12”

When I called Shaquan for the first time he was very excited that someone from Switzerland knows about his work and even more excited when I told him that he (or the Domeswellas) have fans not only in Switzerland but also in other parts of Europe, Japan and of course the US.

hanDJob: Shaquan, please introduce yourself to the readers. Meaning where you’re from, what you’ve done and of course what you’re up to these days.

Shaquan: Shaquan Don from Baltimore, founder of the Domeswellas which back then was me Shaquan Don, Infinite & Nic. Our debut was the Breakin Thru 4 Delf ep back in ’95. From then on and later with the “Indian Summer” 12” we had radio airplay on like college radios, Music Monthly, 92Q Rap Attack etc. We were also featured on mixtapes like the ones from DJ Concrete (Annexx Click). Back in ’99 i produced a song on the Architects Street Soldiers Compilation. D.O.M.E.S.W.E.L.L.A.S. was featured on D.J. TIGHTEN MIX TAPES.



hanDJob: Concerning vinyl releases how come there was such a large gap in between Breakin Thru and the ’00 Indian Summer 12”?

Shaquan: Well, we always loved the artform, the vinyl, but there was no real business with that. Besides we were not really focusing on getting it out, we just recorded. Back then I was still in college and had a lot of other issues to take care of as well.
The people that contacted us because of record deals etc. didn’t have the expertise; we had deals offered but they didn’t look good. Most of those deals would’ve made us lost creative control plus their way to handle the marketing didn’t seem right to us.
These days I’m running different businesses but I’m still doing music. I got a live band called S.D.G.E. Experience (Surreal Dramatical Groundbreaking Experience) plus I’m still producing. I'm planning on releasing unreleased material From the D.O.M.E.S.W.E.L.L.A.S 90's music at its finnest.

hanDJob: It’s a common question but I’m still wondering what or who got you into hiphop?

Shaquan: Drums! I Couldn’t even remember what exactly got me into it but it was mostly artists like A Tribe Called Quest, Run DMC, Stetsasonic, LL Cool J., Big Daddy Kane, Beasty Boys, NWA, Eazy-E…

hanDJob: Since a lot of our visitors are fans of that mid 90ies Baltimore rap, please tell us a bit about the scene in Baltimore back then.

Shaquan: It wasn’t really a productive scene. Plus technically we weren’t as prominent as today, we didn’t have the infrastructure to grow. Most of us were following New York, not really creating something new. Same with like the radio stations around here, if it didn’t sound like coming from NYC there was no airplay.

hanDJob: Who were your influences when you started producing? On the phone you mentioned Jay Dee a few times.

Shaquan: It was mostly people like Pete Rock, Marley Marl, Quincy Jones, Rick Rubin etc. As for Jay Dilla, back then I didn’t even know that was him producing The Pharcyde, ATCQ etc. it took me a minute to put the pieces together.

hanDJob: How did that Breakin Thru 4 Delf project come together?

Shaquan: We (The Domeswellas) got approached by this certain person who wanted me to do the beats, put together the whole project and I was young and believed pretty much everything he said. He wanted to have an overall control and I wrote the songs and did the hooks. It took me some time to realize that he was lying and pretending to be someone he’s not. As a fact one night on a party I called him out in front of everybody. As a result I ended up doing the whole project on my own. I got the Emcees together which happened to be people I was down with. Back then I think I started to realize that I don’t need anyone else to make my music happen; I can make it work myself.

hanDJob: How many copies did you press up btw?

Shaquan: I can’t remember exactly but probably not more than 200.




hanDJob: Besides the artists on that ep who else have you worked with during these years?

Shaquan: I did production for Kevin Mack (Annexx Click), New Testament, Kwabeni, Big Cat, Other of Snow, also mixed with Jay Funk… too many to remember. Most of it was done for radio shows, mixtapes etc. but never came out on vinyl.

hanDJob: What’s your opinion on hiphop these days? Are you still listening to rap and if so who are you feeling?

Shaquan: I listen to everything whether it’s coming from the East Coast, West Coast, Dirty South you name it. I’m open minded and not one of those people who get upset about music.

hanDJob: Earlier ago you told me about a lot of unreleased Domeswellas (and other) material. Do you have plans to release any of that stuff? Maybe even on vinyl?

Shaquan: As for the States I doubt it that a lot of people would care but if there’s an overseas market I’d definitely like to make it happen; taking it global. I don’t want to put time and money into something that’s not going to work but if there’s enough people interested I’m definitely down to make it happen.

hanDjob: To finish this, what are your future goals and plans?

Shaquan: I want to run a successful company, going global with my music. Hopefully within 6 months. I thought to myself that if you’d produce music like we did back in the 90ies (mostly the heavy drums) you can still be successful, you just have to aim at a specific market; people who still care how the music sounded (over) a decade ago.

hanDJob: Thanks for taking the time to make this happen! I’m sure the readers will appreciate it as much as I do.


If you want to get in contact with Shaquan you can reach him at: shaquandon@yahoo.com or just use the comment section to contribute.