andPOP » rap

Twista’s Category: F5, A Vicious Vision

Jeremy Singer — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 05:49:01 +0000

In life (and in the hip-hop industry especially), there’s an unwritten code: as you approach the veteran years of your career, you’re expected to lose a step in your game.

Twista did not get that memo.

In fact, with 18 years of experience in the business so far, the Chicago hip-hop legend doesn’t see a career decline anytime soon. Nope, on the contrary. He says that some of his best work is yet to come.

Think about that for a moment.

This is coming from the guy who’s had two of his past six studio albums go platinum and crack the top ten list on the U.S. Billboard top 200, collaborations with some of the music industry’s finest talent including Kanye West, Snoop Dogg, Mariah Carey, T-Pain, Lil Wayne, T.I, and Akon, and not to mention, this is also the former Guinness World Record holder for the fastest rapper in the world.

But despite all of his accomplishments, the 35-year-old is still confident that there’s room to improve, and has thus named his seventh studio album Category F5, the term for the most severe and dangerous Tornado level known to mankind on the Fujita scale.

“When all is said and done,” Twista tells andPOP, “I want everyone to see Twista as a timeless artist.

“I really want people to see that ‘this n***a came into the game a while back and was blowing away people with his lyrics from the beginning all the way until the end, and still at 35, he’s still competing with some of the hottest n***as in the game now.”

With stakes so high and something planned to be so colossal, the rapper thought it was necessary to be more involved in the production of this record.

“There were a lot of things hands-on this time,” recalls Twista. “I used to have some people do some stuff for me, but this time I really dove into the mixing and listening to the first cuts.

“But this hands-on thing really challenged me, so it was like I was sitting somewhere in the basement going crazy like mad scientist, hard at work, trying to get the album the way I wanted it to sound.”

But hard work isn’t foreign to Twista. Born and bred on Chicago’s West Side, Twista- real name Carl Mitchell -is quite familiar with the feeling of grinding through the ranks, networking, and continuing to push forward. In fact, it’s safe to say that Twista is one of the best networking artists in the entire industry.

Case in show, at the time he released his third album Adrenaline Rush in 1997, Twista’s services as a rapid-tongued lyrical speed-demon were constantly desired by the majority of the biz. Kind of like the way someone requests a special hot sauce to give their food that extra spike, Twista was indeed that secret sauce, and the industry couldn’t get enough of him.

Timbaland, Ludacris, P. Diddy, Kanye West. The list goes on and on.

“Everyone knows I’m happy to help them out anytime,” explains Twista. “I put my heart and soul into everything, and the tracks that they ask me to jump on. So it feels good to know they have my back and can return the favor.”

And the original favor returned was well worth it. His 2004 album Kamikaze attracted, upon many, the likes of longtime Chi-town friend Kanye West and actor/singer Jamie Foxx, who all together created the album’s Grammy nominated star pupil Slow Jamz. The album’s popularity was so hot that it not only reached platinum status, but also earned the No. 1 spot on the U.S. Billboard top 200.

Ever since Kamikaze, however, Twista has yet to generate as much success.

The following two projects, The Day After (2005), and Adrenaline 2007 (2007) did do fairly well- the first going platinum and the second going gold – but somehow their growth was stunted.

It’s one of Twista’s main hopes that F5 will break that trend, and help reclaim his spotlight.

“When people hear this album,” says Twista, “I just want them to see me, and how I’m still a part of what’s going on.”

Helping him hopefully meet that goal are the A-listing cast that he attracted once again- no surprise there. Throwing out big names such as Kanye, Akon, Busta Rhymes, R. Kelly, and longtime friend on the production side, The Legendary Traxster, the cast can only be assessed as simply more fire power for this already machine gun rapper.

“I’m still so phased by it now,” says Twista. “It’s a great group to have in the studio, such top artists all working together to achieve excellence- nothing better than that.”

Dig deeper, and you’ll find that his allegiances with some of the guys go further than just past one-time gigs. Take him and Trax for example. Like peanut butter and jelly, they both go all the way back to when Twista first began spitting out beats on records. Or R. Kelly, who was a guest at Twista’s original release party in 1991. Or even Kanye, who Twista recalls spending tons of time with, at his house, while they were younger.

“Man, I was chilling with him when he was still getting into trouble with his mother,” Twista says laughing. “But overall, I guess I’m just lucky to have a great relationship with everybody.”

F5 also gives Twista a chance to put his career on a path towards “longevity”- a dream and word that he cannot repeat enough throughout the interview. Almost like a four syllable mantra.

“Hip-hop artists’ careers end way too quickly,” says Twista. “It’s sad, and it would be great if they can last as long as the way R&B artists do. Just like James Brown.”

Then he pauses.

“You know what, I wanna be like the Jason Voorhees of rap,” he adds, chuckling, referring to the machete-wielding hockey-masked fictional character in Friday the 13th who just never dies.

And for someone who has seen it all over the years- from the CD to the MP3 era -Twista points out the evolution of his playground, and the current “impure” state of the industry.

“Right now,” he explains, “everyone’s trying to make money off of it. It’s more impure than it has been in a long time.”

“But I think that everything has the potential to do a 360. Like there’s a lot of negatives that have come from the whole technology aspect in the music industry, but there’s also a lot of positives. You’ll hear a lot of raw talent from the internet.”

Adds the rapper, “I guess it’s that I like being a true artist, so I like when a person can really play an instrument, or is really talented to put together a release, or someone who can really rap their ass off. I would like to hear more of that. I’m not against the fans view, because that’s what they love. But I wanna even it out a little bit.”

GLC Stays True To The Game

Ilan Mester — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 18:01:57 +0000

What do GLC, Ludacris and Macy Gray have in common? They’re all featured artists on “True to the Game,” an album that celebrates everyone who played in the Negro Baseball Leagues and helped set an example for African Americans of today.

Rapper GLC (short for Gangsta L. Crisis) has the track “Big Screen” on the CD and he describes “jumping at the opportunity” once he received a phone call to be a part of the album. But he isn’t alone on the track. Non other than Kanye West is featured on his song, which would be a pretty big deal for any artist but not for GLC. The man clearly has some connections having met West growing up as a teen in Chicago.

The two were introduced to each other through a mutual friend in the early ’90s and became pals. “Back then we was trying to rap. We were young, super young but still had these dreams and these ambitions,” GLC tells andPOP.

These ambitions led the two to grow as rappers and West landed on the worldwide stage. The rapper remained supportive of his friend and eventually was asked to collaborate on the track “Spaceship” off West’s “The College Dropout” album, giving him an official introduction to Hip-Hoppers around the globe.

He’s also done a few mixtapes, most notably “Hood Celebrity,” a compilation of old records GLC put together while he was touring in 2004, and the “Drive Slow” mixtape, which he compiled with five-time world champion DJ A-Trak.

And when West invited GLC to join his label G.O.O.D., it was pretty much a no brainer. “I decided to sign to his label because he’s my best friend, and we’ve been working together since the ’90s…we pretty much knew the ins and outs of each other’s rap styles,” GLC admits.

But being signed to G.O.O.D. doesn’t mean G.LC.’s rap is similar to West’s. In fact, he insists his style is unique. “Anybody who’s a fan of GLC or listens knows it’s different,” says the rapper.

GLC says he tries to see the positive aspects in what would normally seem like negative situations, and this is something the rapper can personally relate to.

He started writing poetry at a very young age, and for one very specific reason. “I started writing poetry when I was a shorty because you know buddy,” says GLC, “I found out that women, they were always captivated by a man that had, you know what I’m sayin, a way with words.”

But poetry also became an “escape” and a “departure” as the rapper describes it, from tough situations. Having lost both his parents as a kid, poetry became a tool for GLC to express his anger and emotion in a non-violent way. “But it also helped me get me some girls at a young age,” he jokes.

So where did he get the name Gangsta L. Crisis from? GLC explains:

“The name came when I grew up as a shorty. I was part of a street organization and they used to call me Gangsta L. you know, that’s what my rap name was. So people just call me Gangsta L. or Gangsta Love cause I got love for women.”

The “crisis” part came from many tough crises in his life, such as losing is house and losing his parents at a very young age. But it’s not just crisis that influences his music, GLC says growing up in Chicago has had a great impact on his rap.

“If I grew up in Alabama, if I grew up in Africa, if I grew up in Colorado, it would definitely influence my rap. The things that influence my rap are the things that I’ve lived, the things that I’ve seen, the things that I’ve witnessed.”

So what’s next for G.LC.? Fans can listen to his latest single “Flight School,” featuring Kanye West and T-Pain. G.LC. also plans to release a long-awaited album this summer.

“As long as people are sayin when’s that GLC comin out, when’s that G.LC. comin out, GLC come on with it!’ that’s when it’s gonna drop,” says the rapper.

As for the ladies, GLC has a couple in mind that he wouldn’t mind teaming up with. “I like Keri Hilson, she look real sexy. I like Ciara, she look real sexy. I like Keyshia Cole, she look real sexy,” and the list goes on.

To buy “True To The Game,” go to Amazon or iTunes and for more on GLC check out myspace.com/glc and follow him on Twitter.

Side B: Sounds Like BS

Dan Busheikin — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 19:35:19 +0000

It is with great pleasure that I have been asked to write a feature on one of my favourite new bands, Sounds Like BS. Hitting the Toronto scene in 2008, the pop-rap duo has garnered an impressively large and loyal fan base. BS has just released “3″, their third full-length album, online as a pay-what-you-can digital download.

Incidentally, I am one half of Sounds Like BS, but do not let that discredit my praise for this (my) band.

Over the past seven months, ‘B’ and ‘S’ (our alter-egos), have written, recorded, mixed and produced the album completely on our own. “3″ is a ten-track dance party, filled with pop, rap, rock, and a lot of auto-tune. Themes that are explored include partying, ladies, drinking, partying, how awesome we are, and so forth (WARNING: [im]mature language). We emulated and exaggerated pop music as intensely as we could, and the result is… well, you tell me. Our goal was to create an album of hits, and I’d like to think we succeeded. Have a listen, take a look, and it won’t take very long to get what BS is all about.

More importantly, this has been an opportunity for us to make a real album completely independently. Nobody has touched this record but us – we even made the album art ourselves and took the photos on a self-timer. We are distributing the album independently online, so it is available worldwide. Could we have pulled this off ten, twenty years ago? Definitely not. Without digital technology and broadband Internet, small bands like us would never have the resources to produce and distribute our own music completely autonomously. We are very thankful to be living in such an exciting time for independent music. And we have a twitter, so we’re practically celebrities.

The moral of the story? If you love making music, make it. Make it however you want to. We can all do it now.

More importantly, go to www.soundslikebs.com to experience the latest in underground pop-rap, and pay-what-you-can for “3″!

Rep Insists Phoenix’s Rap Career Is Legit

Ilan Mester — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 00:50:43 +0000

Last year, actor Joaquin Phoenix claimed he would retire from acting. Now he says he’s an aspiring rapper, but is it all a hoax? Not according to Phoenix’s rep.

“The transition from one career to another is never seamless. It should come as no surprise to anyone that Joaquin came from a musical family, in addition to winning a Golden Globe for his portrayal of Johnny Cash,” the actors rep Susan Patricola wrote in an email to MTV News. “He intends on exploring his musical interests despite speculative, negative or positive reactions.”

But according to a source, the “Walk The Line” actor’s rap career is nothing but a hoax, “He said, ‘It’s a put-on. I’m going to pretend to have a meltdown and change careers, and Casey is going to film it,’” said the source to Entertainment Weekly.

It has been reported that Casey Affleck is making a documentary of the actor’s transition to a career in music. Affleck was spotted at Phoenix’s debut performance on January 16 in Las Vegas.

Waitress Sues Jay-Z For ‘Paying Below Minimum Wage’

andPOP Staff — Mon, 28 May 2007 12:58:56 +0000

Rapper JAY-Z is being sued by a woman who used to work as a waitress at his New York nightclub 40/40 – for allegedly failing to pay employees the minimum wage.

Celeste Williams has filed a lawsuit in which she accuses Jay-Z – real name Shawn Carter – and the company that owns the club, Twenty Ones Inc, of not paying staff the tips left for them by customers.

The suit claims a percentage of tips were kept from staff and accuses the club of “willfully failing and refusing to pay them at the legally required minimum wage” since it opened in 2003.

Williams is seeking unspecified damages and claims around 100 staff were treated in the same manner.

40/40 spokesman Ron Berkowitz says, “The allegations are false.”

Too $hort – Blow The Whistle (Audio)

andPOP Staff — Thu, 20 Apr 2006 18:46:40 +0000

Too $hort “Blow The Whistle” Audio Streams

Windows Media:
Clean:
Windows Media 64k
Windows Media 96k
Dirty
Windows Media 64k
Windows Media 96k

Real Audio:
Clean:
Real 64k
Real 96k
Dirty:
Real 64k
Real 96k

Who is Mad Philosopher?

andPOP Staff — Mon, 24 Oct 2005 00:43:10 +0000

“That track was on fire,” one of the callers to a Phoenix hip-hop station said after hearing Mad Philosopher?s newest track, “Hey.”

New York born and raised, currently residing in Phoenix, Mad Philosopher (real name: Shane Pollock) is no newcomer to the spotlight. Being a published novelist at 16 and selling two films to HBO by the time he was 19, the home-schooled ?kid? has his sights on conquering the music world.

?The easiest way to describe my music is hip-pop,” he says. Pollock?s music is a blend of up-tempo rap without any profanity, big hip-hop drums and a little bit of rock, all with a pop feel.

Shane released his first album, “Never Peak,” independently two and a half years ago and had a three-month tour (the ?Judgement Round?) in France, performing in some of the biggest nightclubs. He was the next artist to perform in the VIP Room in St. Tropez after a P. Diddy concert.

He is now gearing up to make his major push stateside. ?The music is fun, commercial and clubby. I just want to make records that have a lot of energy, a good vibe, and are positive.?

Shane is off to Las Vegas and Texas to record new material, and will then return to Los Angeles to work some more. He soon plans to shoot his first music video, which he hopes to film in Paris.

“The music is at a point where I feel good enough to share it with the world.”

Cam’ron Shot During Attempted Carjacking

andPOP Staff — Sun, 23 Oct 2005 22:53:39 +0000

Rapper Cam’ron is recovering in the hospital after being shot and wounded early Sunday morning. The ?Oh Boy? artist was leaving Washington, D.C. club H20 in his blue Lamborghini when men tried to carjack him, according to the rapper?s representatives.

An unknown number of men approached Cam?ron at about 2:10 a.m. Sunday morning and demanded that he turn over his car. When the rapper refused, the men fired shots into the car, hitting him once in each arm, said Lynn Hobson, a spokeswoman for Cam?ron?s label, Diplomat Records.

The star is now said to be resting and doing fine at Howard University Hospital. Cam?ron is currently promoting his new movie and album, both titled “Killa Season,” due in February.

Obie Trice Not the Smartest Rapper

Adam Gonshor — Fri, 26 Sep 2003 11:38:48 +0000

Obie Trice was on Jimmy Kimmel Thursday night to promote his album. Kimmel asked Trice, out of all the countries he had visited, which was his favourite.
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“London,” said the rapper.
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Kimmel didn’t know that to say.
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“I mean Europe,” Trice said, breaking the silence.

“You’re getting closer,” Kimmel said, before throwing to break.
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You thought allegedly videotaping sexual activities with a minor was the stupidest thing a hip-hop artist ever did? Well, it is, but this is still stupid.