[MP3] #DK11 Project Interview with Emay – Dash

In my books, the homie, Emay is one of the most underrated rappers in Canada. Why his incredibly creative music and rhymes aren’t being talked about more in both hip-hop and alternative circles is completely beyond me but artists like him are part of the reason I even still keep doing this blog 11 years on.

The whole purpose of originally starting Different Kitchen was to champion and shine the spotlight on talent I thought was being unheralded and/or criminally overlooked by other outlets. In 2014, the hive mentality of much of that passes for music writing or journalism online and on social media has made that mission even more important. Suffice is to say, as with all the artists on the This One Goes To Eleven… compilation album project, I think Emay is dope and someone you should be paying attention to. Starting right here with this interview I conducted with him a few days ago…

DK: Hey Emay, good to finally connect. So my first question is: you’re still pretty under the radar on the scene even though you’ve been around for a while now. Even though your home town of Hamilton is super close to Toronto, can you talk about the pluses and negatives of being a rapper living there.

Emay: This is actually quite weird because I seem to be somebody that a handful of people know or have heard of, yet at the same time I’m somebody that nobody has heard of. I’ve been at some pretty random shows and other places where people have actually known who I was. Or friends have told me stories where they were talking about my stuff to other people and the other person had actually listened to one of my random releases. This is funny to me because I kind of like the idea of being a ghost. My goal is to be a very influential ghost though, so we’ll see how that goes. So far I think I’m doing a pretty good job of existing in non-existence.

DK: What about life in Hamilton?

Emay: In terms of my living in Hamilton, I actually love it here. The music scene here has been flourishing quite a bit over the past few years. We might not have the numbers, but the array of talent and diversity is pretty amazing. Artists and bands such as Lee Reed, Mother Tareka, Haolin Munk, and Canadian Winter that are situated here are great examples of that. It’s also a very welcoming scene. I’m not a Hamilton native, but I most certainly feel like one these days. I think it’s a perfect scene for me because it’s a great opportunity to generate a fresh sound that can be associated with such a unique, underrated, and misunderstood city. People tell me I relate to those adjectives.

DK: I first got up on your music via James from Hi-scores and your music treads a line between traditional underground hip-hop (that some might term ‘backpack)’ and what some would call alternative rap. Can you talk about your musical influences and how they inform the style of music you make?

Emay: In regards to rap, two of my biggest influences have to be AZ and MF DOOM. Listening to those two forced me to be really technical in terms of my flow. AZ’s style stuck to me just because of how smoothly the words flow when he lays them down. All you have to do is listen to the first few bars on “The Format” and you’ll see what I mean. The patterns he uses are just so goddamn crisp. ‘You know the chronicles, the shit that if mama knew, the stress the drama do, the tech’s phenomenal’. If I wrote that sh-t I’d have to put the pen down for a minute. The funny thing with DOOM though is that he’s more unorthodox with it, but still very technical. I actually never liked DOOM the first time I heard one of his tracks. I had never heard anything like it, in terms of his overall sound, so it took some adjusting. But once I got it, I got it. I think I converted after I heard “Accordion” and “One Beer.” Some other major influences are One Be Lo and O.C.

Now, when it comes to production there’s Lord Finesse, Prince Paul, Dilla, Kev Brown, Kanye West, El-P, Just Blaze, Stoupe the Enemy of Mankind, Flying Lotus, DJ Premier and the list goes on. I really stuck to producers that were able to create their own signature styles while still being very diverse in terms of what they sampled, the drums they chose and such. My goal on the production and rap tip is to be blatantly influenced by my favorites, but still fully original at the same time. When I create I don’t consciously attempt to do this, but it’s certainly something I strive to accomplish.

DK: Well, you’ve definitely done some really creative, original things musically, like the Karen O and the Kids EP which sampled songs from Where the Wild Things Are soundtrack and “Racist on Purpose” where you wrote from the perspective of a white supremacist. Where does that kind of creative inspiration come from?

Emay: I think it just comes from everything around me. I think that every “original” idea derives from older ideas that take newer forms. I mean, if you listen to early Rock music I’m sure you’ll hear remnants of what we now call Punk, Hip-Hop, Metal, and so on. Whether it comes to ideas for songs or concepts for entire projects, I think there’s a similar process of the mind taking what it wants and discarding what it doesn’t deem useful. Sometimes I make beats where an entire bass line is directly influenced by one that I heard from another song, but because it’s in the midst of different sounds, it takes on a new feel. Or it brings the same feel but just interacts differently with its new surroundings.

DK: Out of all your mixtapes and EP projects, which is your favorite and why?

Emay: I think that Adam was my favorite one because it was the hardest for me to make. Choosing to do all the production, writing and rapping took boatloads of time, but it was more than beneficial. I learned a lot about what it takes to create a full length project, and I think it helped me develop as an artist the most out of my projects. Adam, and everything before it was my attempt at finding my sound, or myself. Adam in particular was like the fusion of my rap self and production self. Now I feel a lot more comfortable making beats for myself and writing for those beats.

DK: “Dash” from the This One Goes To Eleven… album is a really good track, can you tell me what it’s about from your point of view and the process behind making it?

Emay: “Dash” was an interesting track for me because it was the first beat and song I made in Ableton. To me the song was just about an artist’s dreams being crushed. I wanted to depict that the persistence of individualism in our society puts a lot of pressure on people. There’s this notion that a person’s goals not being reached is entirely their fault, and it kind of blinds us from recognizing the societal factors at hand. For example I was having a conversation with somebody the other day about how a lot of what we call “conscious” rap can actually be very narrow-minded in that we see a lot of rappers blaming other rappers for not being as “righteous” as they are and such. This idea is also inherited by the listeners of said artists as well. This is narrow-minded because it blames the one individual for perpetuating a certain ideology but doesn’t look at the bigger picture. The bigger picture being that we live in a capitalist world, so the labels/businesses will only be concerned in what sells. The amorality of such a system is really what generates a lot of generic and formulaic art. A lot of artists feel the need to follow a certain format to be “successful” and then the emulation spreads like a virus. But yeah, the song is pretty much me depicting an artist or creator in a very depressed state.

DK: It’s not from your next full length project though, right which is the Sinner, Songwriter EP? Can you talk about what we can expect from that project?

Emay: Sinner, Songwriter EP is a project that I’ve been sitting on since late 2012 I would say. I had some of the beats since then and wrote for them as well but just wasn’t ready to do anything with them yet. Eventually I chose to go back and refurbish a lot of the verses and added a few more beats that I couldn’t turn down. This project is really different given that I’m working with a different producer for every track and only really had to write the lyrics for the songs. I also made some minor mixing adjustments, but all the beats were created by others. The lineup includes Giraffage, Star Slinger, Hut (who is also the drummer for Haolin Munk), RD (or Resolved Dissonance), and my dude, Hollow Pigeons from Toronto. I love this lineup because they’re all some of my favorite producers that I’ve known for quite a while, so I feel honoured to be flexing over their tracks on this project. I think this project will also cause people to focus a little more on my bars for a change. I know I’m not the only producer/rapper that gets a lot of compliments in regards to their production but gets their raps ignored at times. Although the people that really listen to bars know what’s good.

DK: Thanks for contributing “Dash” for the #DK11 comp. Before we wrap, is there anything else you’d like to add or share about what’s coming up for you or that you haven’t had a chance to let the world know via your music or previous interviews?

Emay: I have a couple of things in the works right now. My next LP being the most important, but I’m also working on some very interesting collabs as well. One is with my dude, l-spex who is somewhat of a jack of all trades and a really talented dude. Another one is with my friend Erynne who is an amazing soul and singer. We did a little EP late last year that I will get to focus on a little more now that Sinner, Songwriter is finally complete. Other than that, I have the tendency to make random projects here and there, so we’ll see what happens.

DK: Thanks again, Emay.

Emay: Much love for putting me on the compilation and it was truly my pleasure!

Follow Emay Online: Website | Facebook | Twitter

Haven’t heard it yet? LISTEN to the Different Kitchen presents This One Goes To Eleven… album HERE

Bonus: hit the jump for Emay‘s latest release, a remix of the track, “Congo” by Bear Mountain.

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[MP3] #DK11 Project Interview with Keita Juma – YRWEONTHISBEACH?

I’ve been a fan of Toronto-based rapper, Keita Juma (fka KJ) forever or more accurately since I moved back from NYC in ’09. He was one of the first of the new wave of local acts I got put up on after I came back home. I was super psyched when he agreed to be part of my This One Goes To Eleven… 11th anniversary compilation album. If you haven’t checked out his previous albums, Water and The Headphone Album, you need to rectify that immediately! KJ’s music is some of the best, most creative stuff happening in hip hop anywhere. Anyway, I was also happy that the homie agreed to answer a few questions about his music and in particular, the track, “YRWEONTHISBEACH?” that he gave us for the #DK11 album. Read on for what he had to say…

DK: You’re from Bristol, England originally, home of Massive Attack, Portishead (kind of), Roni Size, Smith & Mighty etc. How does being from home town of that incredible musical legacy inform your music?

KJ: I only recently went back and listened to a lot of those artists and found the similarity and was shocked initially. It wasn’t my intention to make a certain kind of music, only to make music that I felt reflected my personal experience. My memory of music in Bristol as far as that sound was at St. Paul’s Festival and through pirate radio stations. The hard part about that was I never knew any of the artists names, just the sounds. Upon reconnecting with these artists music now it makes complete sense why my sound is the way it is. To add to that, my favorite jungle song when I was younger was Shy FX and UK Apachi, “Original Nuttah,” such a big riddim. I think that was around the time I left England.

DK: There was a lot of great music dropping around that time (ed note: mid 90’s). I first got up on you though from the amazing one-take “Repeat” video which I loved. The track was from equally good The Headphone Album which is 5 years old now. What’s your thoughts when you think back on making that album or listen to the music now?

KJ: I just remember being super-inspired and it all happening in my bedroom in a short span of time. I had a lot of fun doing that record, thought I was going to take over the world. It’s crazy to hear the differences now though. I think that’s why I still love that album so much. It tells a few stories, mine as a producer, a rapper and a engineer. Everything is so different, the mixes were weak (laughs), the production was very raw and the lyrics were me at that time. I’m fine with that though, nobody has been able to rush being a good/great artist, it’s a process.

DK: Talk about the progress you made as an artist and/or person from doing The Headphone Album to recording the Water album

KJ: The Headphone Album was a happy accident. I felt a vibe and made a bunch of songs and they worked together. My understanding of mixing was very basic at that time because it was before I went to school, so I wasn’t able to sonically put it where it needed to be. Water was me understanding my process, creating and writing songs how I wanted to and in a way that I was comfortable with. I engineered that album but didn’t mix it, Noel Cadastre mixed and I watched & listened. That was a huge step for me in terms of learning, learning to create on a technical level as much as being creative in production and writing. After that I felt like I knew what I wanted to do and set out on that path and that’s where Chaos Theory comes from

DK: Speaking of Chaos Theory, which is your next project, can you talk about what that’s going to be about?

KJ: Chaos Theory is about the now, but my version of now, through my eyes. This is my masterpiece project, but to be honest I felt that way about Water. I guess the major difference with Chaos Theory is that I produced, wrote, engineered, mixed and mastered the entire project. That’s the first album I’ve done that with. The funny thing is I set out to collaborate more with this project but it just didn’t turn out that way.

DK: You’ve moved as of late to recording more EP length projects (the Peephole / Beach EP & Chaos Theory) rather than full albums. Why?

KJ: Well Chaos Theory is an album now

DK: I stand corrected

KJ: Well it’s an album now because its 9 songs and could easily be 10. I like EP’s though. I’ve had ongoing convos with friends about how people don’t listen to albums and we should just slow the releases down and keep them smaller and as far as the independent scene, it looks like its happening. I like flowing projects with themes but to wait a year to put out a project nowadays is too long plus you go to the soundcloud and the first song has the most plays and the last song is just out here looking grim!

DK: You’re a bit of a left-leaning rapper in general but your track on the comp “YRWEONTHISBEACH?” is even unusual for you. It seems to be exploring themes of identity and belonging but can you talk about the inspiration, meaning and process behind the track?

KJ: Peephole/Beach was loosely based on me going to Jamaica and “YRWEONTHISBEACH?” was supposed to be about getting lost on a beach in Jamaica. I didn’t get lost on a beach in Jamaica but it made me think about experiences feeling lost. It actually turned to be about being in cottage country and feeling like you stepped in a time machine because there aren’t any black people out there. Where does one go to find the Black people when you’re up north.

DK: You’re a frequent collaborator with Brendan Philip who’s also on the This One Goes To Eleven… album. Wondering if you can talk about why you guys click so well and maybe offer your perspective on his track on the album which you produced (called “Look”)

KJ: Brendan is my brother. I’ve known him since I was 14 and I’ve grew as an artist and person through our conversations and we’ve also been making music since back then. He’s one of the few peoples whose musical opinion I trust ‘cuz he’s been up on most of the music I’m just taking in now. A lot of it I made fun of him for listening to when I was younger and now I’m like “Damnnn B, I was sleep back then.” Brendan’s naturally ahead of the curve/times though, I think that’s his X-men type gift and now he can control it and is aware and about to take sh-t over. “The Look” is just a beat I sent him and Jahmal for us to work on. I ended up getting all the vocal stems back and put the mix on it.

DK: Well it turned out dope so thank you! You and Brendan were also both part of the 88 Days collective which is pioneering the development of the black weirdo/black boho musical & cultural scene in Toronto. Talk about working with them and what you think they bring to the table musically here in the city.

KJ: 88 Days was something Toronto needed because through everything you always ended up at the art. We were just pushing our art and trying to be heard, nothing too complicated. We couldn’t get shows so we came together to put on shows wherever we could, backyards, basements, bars, did the sound ourselves. I vastly improved as a performer while we were doing our monthly/semi-monthly parties, I felt so much love and trying new sh-t was welcomed. It sounds like some cliche hippie shit but it really was about getting love, creating a safe space and being a part of a community.

Wanna hear more from Keita Juma on The Kitchen? CLICK HERE.

Follow Keita Juma online: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

[News] #DK11 Project: Interview with Jai Nitai Lotus

As long time readers know, I’m a big fan of Montreal rapper, Jai Nitai Lotus and his Something You Feel album from last year was certainly that! Enough for me to lend my endorsement to it for nomination consideration for Canada’s Polaris Music Prize last year. That didn’t happen but I stayed cool with Jai and when it cam time to start putting the THIS ONE GOES TO ELEVEN… album together, he was one of the first artists to commit a track to the project. Not only that, it also allowed us to have a full length video attached to the album too.

Jai is not only a talented artist & producer, he is a spiritual & thoughtful person and that essence is infused in the music he makes. It was again an honor to have him be part of the #DK11 project and a pleasure to get to chat with him and get some insights into his music and the world view that informs it. Check it out here:

DK: I think I discovered your Something You Feel album totally by accident while randomly surfing the mostly-Toronto focused cityonmyback site one day. Despite wanting to support as much good domestic hip hop as I can I find it hard to find out about much outside of Toronto where I live. What challenges have you found getting your music out as a Montreal-based rapper?

Jai: Everything is so saturated. It’s hard to get your music heard period. So I really feel like it’s about time, place and circumstance… and being different, by being yourself. Who you know can really play a huge part of it too. We tend to know more people and outlets within our own cities, so I feel my reach is sometimes hindered by not knowing the right people elsewhere. That being said, Toronto has actually showed me some love and I appreciate it.

DK: What’s your thoughts on the controversy around fellow MTL rappers, Dead Obies being attacked for rapping in French and English?

Jai: It’s silly.

DK: OK. Most outsiders probably share your sentiment that it’s silly to attack the Dead Obies on that basis but obviously the issue is quite serious for some in Quebec. I’m wondering if you have any additional thoughts on the matter? Is this, from a language pov, a source of concern for Francophones who’ve made it an issue analogous to how the rise of Macklemore or Iggy Azalea is for those who see their success as diminishing the role of Black culture or artists in hip-hop?

Jai: I question the motives of whoever criticized Dead Obies for rapping in ‘franglais’ (French and English mixed). I have a hard time believing the criticizer gives a damn about the genre of hip-hop. I think it has other political motivation, and maybe someone just looking for an interesting angle for a story. Regardless, ‘franglais’ is being spoken on the streets all the time, and it only makes sense it would make its way into music, you can’t control that. The Macklemore/Iggy Azalea criticism is different in terms of the magnitude, it involves white privilege, and so many other factors. I also believe that criticism comes from within the hip-hop community, whereas in the case here in Quebec it’s coming from outside the community.

DK: Something You Feel was an amazing album especially because, while you covered a lot of musical ground style wise, it still felt like a cohesive body of work. Can you talk about your goals with the album and how you were able to do that?

Jai: My goal was to make a honest record that really reflected my thoughts and sound. Doing what I love with zero compromise when it came to artistic integrity. Everything happened very organically when it came to creating. It’s really about having a complete vision to how everything connects, from the music to the artwork to the videos…to how you feel. I’m grateful for the way people’s responses have been and how they have connected to it.

DK: The track you produced for Ian Kamau, “You, I” that dropped recently has been buzzing a fair amount. Kamau talked a bit about how the track came about in the PR blurb he blasted the video out with but can you talk about how you came to meet and work with him on the track from your pov.

Jai: The first time I heard of Ian Kamau was the phone message K-Os put on his album. Fast forward to early 2012 while working on the SYF project and I fell on a short doc on him. So I reached out to him and he had heard of me as well. Later, when he came to Montreal we met up and talked at lengths about music and art. When he came back this year I invited him to my home/studio and we made the “You I” song. It happened very naturally and I felt like it was a beautiful song right away. So I brought up shooting a video for it, and a few weeks later went to Toronto and shot the video. We made it happen all within a very short period of time. So it was a great experience, shout out to Ian Kamau!

DK: Your single from THIS ONE GOES TO ELEVEN…, “Pi (Brahma Built)” is also going to be on your forthcoming Acknowledgement mixtape which will actually be your first ever mixtape. Can you talk about the motivation behind the song, why you’ve never done a mixtape before and why you decided to do one now?

Jai: It took me a while to be open to releasing a “mixtape.” I would record over different cats’ productions for fun, usually with no intent to put it out. But the modern-day concept of a mixtape has really changed. Nowadays mix tapes are put together like albums, so it got me open to actually crafting one. It also gives me a chance to sorta acknowledge other cats that I appreciate and draw the connection to what I’m making. So when I heard Stalley‘s “Petrin Hill Peonies” and the way he worked the Charles Bradley sample, I was very inspired to write and had a complete vision for it.

I reached out to a good friend and collaborator, producer/DJ, Shash’U and went to him with the sample, and we recreated it. I laid the vocals down, and started a rough hook with intent to have the very talented Sam I Am Montolla sing it properly. Her style really matched it perfectly in my eyes. Then I’m like damn it would be great to put some visuals to it. I started scouting locations and began the audio/visual journey. The process of crafting the Acknowledgement mixtape was lots of fun for me. I’m used to producing, writing, recording most of what I do so it allowed me play with sh-t differently. It’s about half and half in terms of originals. I’m looking forward to dropping it Sept 5th.

DK: OK, finally: this might be a tough one but I’m wondering how you feel about the demonization of hip-hop around suspected ISIS member and James Foley beheader, Abdel-Majed Abdel Bary who is being labelled in the media as a rapper, ‘former rapper’ or ‘hip-hop jihadist’?

Jai: I’m no expert on this story. It’s a very sad, crazy circumstance. But, it’s curious the way media is playing the angle of him being a “rapper” in all the headlines, like that had something to do with his actions. If in fact he is the right guy. I think there are plenty of other things they could focus on that may have triggered this insane behavior. I always find it funny when hip-hop gets portrayed as a one-dimensional evil villain. Hip-hop music is a cultural medium that reflects society as a whole with many unique perspectives. Sadly, the music industry and media tends to only give you the negative one, which actually then fuels more of the same. It becomes a cycle and a sort of twisted formula that artists coming up often feel that they need to comply with in order to get attention. My hope is that, as the music industry continues to move in an independent direction, we’ll start hearing that unfiltered variety of music that is underrepresented in mainstream Hip Hop today.

DK: Thanks for your time, Jai and thanks for the “Pi (Brahma Built)” track for the comp.

Didn’t hear “Pi (Brahma Built)” yet? Click play right here or on the video above (then check out the THIS ONE GOES TO ELEVEN… album):

Song Credits:
Written by Jai Nitai Lotus & Sam I Am Montolla
Produced by Shash”U
Cover Art Design by Tiffany Pilgrim for Tiffany Pilgrim Art & Design
Audio mastering by Neil McDonald & Paul Kehayas for Echosound Studiolab

Follow Jai Nitai Lotus online: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Follow Sam I Am Montolla online: Twitter | Instagram

[MP3 + Interview] J.Nolan – Deluxe Edition

Gotta give the homie, J.Nolan mad props. He took getting down with the #DK11 THIS ONE GOES TO ELEVEN… album real serious and hustled to get his contribution to the album, a track titled “Deluxe Edition” on all kinds of blogs and sites. Shouts to DJBooth.net, All In A Day’s Work, CWMuzik, AyeBro, TOAN Magazine, Unheard Voices and all the other sites I may have missed for supporting the song.

We’ve been supporting ATL-based, J.Nolan for going on 6 years now here and on the old version of The Kitchen site so it was an honor, as with all the acts on the #DK11 comp, to have him be a part of the album. I asked him a few questions about the “Deluxe Edition” track and his prior work and this is the result:

DK: I can’t remember how I came across it now but The Up-Bringing 2.0 was the first music by you I heard and supported on the site. The title alone suggests that was not your first full length project? How long had you been making music at that point?

Jamar: That project was done in my 3rd year of actually recording music. The original Upbringing was an EP made exclusively for Myspace when the 5 track limit was still there, so we wanted to expand on that idea and gain some traction with the follow-up.

DK: Back in 2010 we premiered your Broken Dreams album as part of our Connoisseurs of Culture series. Looking back on that album what comes to mind and what are your recollections of making that album?

Jamar: Broken Dreams was my purest body of work, still to this day. I had just accepted God into my life and I was still young enough to not be bogged down from the business aspect of music. I recorded that album at my cousin, Yung B Da Producer‘s place in Colorado. The good ol’ days.

DK: You’re from Atlanta which nowadays is known for a very particular style of hip-hop which you don’t happen to do. Is it hard to be an artist whose sound could be described as more traditional, classic style hip hop living in the A?

Jamar: I’m originally from Connecticut, so that’s where I had my first encounters with music. My family only stayed a few years, but I always embraced the entire east coast sound because it reminded me of home. The Atlanta audience respects my craft, but I’m learning how to adapt my craft for those that may not listen to boom bap type records. My next project will showcase that.

DK: The opening ad-lib, “It’s that Rosenberg type stuff right here…” is a reference to Hot 97’s Peter Rosenberg, right? Did you shout him because he’s a champion of the kind of style of hip-hop you do?

Jamar: Well, I wrote the song around the time Hot 97’s Ebro was making his “Minors vs. Majors” declaration to everyone. At that time Rosenberg was still arguing on the behalf of traditional Hip-Hop at Hot 97 so yeah, I figured “Deluxe Edition” was the type of song he’d probably step up for.

DK: I also heard a reference to Jim Duggan on the track. Are you a pro wrestling fan? You know, ironically Rosenberg is apparently a massive wrestling fan too?

Jamar: Yeah, I’m a fan of pro wrestling too. I’m not as up to date as he is with the current cast of characters though, but I’ve always indulged.

DK: “Deluxe Edition” has been really well received and been picked up by a few other blogs. Can you talk a little about what the track is about and what the process was like making it?

Jamar: That song is about a year old, I’ve been performing it locally since last fall. Reese Jones and I formed a duo called The Humble Legends and that was one of the marquee songs I knew people would respond to. The concept of it was inspired by the deluxe version of albums being more coveted than the standard version, so I wanted to make a song that people regard as above the standard. I was listening to Only Built 4 Cuban Linx quite a bit at the time, too. You can tell by my choice of words on the record.

DK: It’s also slated to be on one of your upcoming projects. Can you talk a little about what that project is and when we can expect it?

Jamar: It’s gonna be on The Humble Legends full-length, Keep it Cordial. Reese and I have a great chemistry as a duo. People can expect that early next year. I have a promotional mixtape called Loose Files 2 coming in October for those that can’t wait.

DK: I haven’t really asked many of the other artists on the comp about this but the Ferguson situation around the murder of Michael Brown doesn’t seem to be abating. As a young black man whose been given this gift of being able to express yourself through the platform of music, do you have any personal opinions on what’s going on there or thoughts on how the hip hop creative community has addressed the situation so far?

Jamar: The Ferguson situation is disgusting to me, personally. I grew up being warned to be careful while out with friends just because we’re black. This is essentially what my elders warned me about, so it’s really disheartening. I don’t even understand why the police and national guard are at the site at this point [ed note: this interview was conducted a while ago when the National Guard were still in Ferguson]. All they have to do is leave and let the community nurse their wounds, man. Hip-Hop can’t do anything for those residents besides show gratitude for their courage. Ferguson is Hip-Hop, they don’t need some artist to put on a cape. But if anything, let’s actually display the struggles of our people instead of doing tribute songs one day out of the year. How about artists get back to speaking our truth as a culture?

DK: Thanks. Any final thoughts or things you want to share before we wrap up?

Jamar: Thank you for having me on the comp! Loose Files 2 is coming this October. Artists seeking a platform for their music can also check out the podcast I co-host called Fresh & Local Radio. Much love and respect!

DK: OK, that’s it! Thanks, Jamar.

Haven’t heard “Deluxe Edition” yet? Check it out right here:

Song credits:
Written by Jamar Nolan
Produced by Reese Jones
Audio mastering by Neil McDonald & Paul Kehayas for Echosound Studiolab
Art by Tiffany Pilgrim for Tiffany Pilgrim Art Direction & Graphic Design

Follow J.Nolan Online: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Somehow missed listening to the THIS ONE GOES TO ELEVEN… album? CLICK HERE to hear it in FULL.

[News] #DK11 Project: Interview With Rapper, Noah Vinson

The Kitchen has been a supporter of Bronx native, Noah Vinson for a while now ever since we stumbled upon his mixtape, The Life almost two years ago in our submissions inbox. Since then he’s proven to be an adept MC who can handle himself over new school, minimalist trap feeling tracks or classic style hip hop beats alike.

We were honored to premiere his single “Nation” featuring long time collaborator, Frank Ramz last year so of course, we had to ask him to be a part of the #DK11 project and contribute a track to the This One Goes To Eleven… comp. He gave us a banger of a track called “Ex” featuring singer, Isis Ash, a track he said was:

“Based on real life occurrences. I know a lot of guys who could identify with this type of situation so I thought it’d be a great idea to turn the tables. Often you hear records like this from a woman’s perspective and more often it tends to be a negative reaction. A lot of times people break up with their significant others and it’s a negative response but it doesn’t really always have to be. Sometimes you end on a positive note through it all. I never heard anything like that before in song format so I thought it’d be a interesting take on a breakup song where, I’m not wrong, she’s not wrong and I’m not constantly demonizing her or placing blame. Sometimes no one is to blame.”

You see? Grown person themes over a beat that both bangs and has a sophisticated arrangement & song construction. Check that breakdown and gospel house style piano coda at the end of the track1 I’d love to hear “Ex” done live with a proper band some time. Get them soul claps going and while you are, get onto our conversation with Noah:

DK: I was a big fan of your mixtape album, The Life. Tell me about making that album and how you think you’ve evolved as a person and artist since then

Noah: The Life was a good turning point in my life, at that point I was still kind of playing with the sound that I wanted to go for. I had some damn good recordings on there, and at the time working with the team I was working with I was having a lot of fun, and I feel like that’s where I really found my sound. I feel like now things are so next level with my music, my perspective on things in life have changed so all of that effects what you hear today. The Life was good, but It’s really only getting better from here on out.

DK: Frank Ramz is a frequent collaborative partner of yours. Tell me about what it’s like working with him, and your relationship?

Noah: Well the first time I worked with Frank Ramz, was actually on The Life album, he was on “H.I.H (Humans In Hollywood)” alongside Rich-P, and ever since then we just been working more and more and more. He’s become one of my favorite artist and one of my favorite people to work with, he’s a good dude, dedicated and one of the best rappers I’ve had the pleasure of working with so far in my career. So we decided to do a project together, it should be dropping this September, its called …And The Phone Was On Silent. I know Frank and a lot of people on twitter have taken to calling it Watch The Phone (laughs). I look at Ramz like a big brother in this rap sh*t, and just a overall good friend.

DK: There are 2 other Bronx NY artist, Mickey Factz and Joel (fka MaG) on the album which I’m happy but bummed about at the same time since I was a Brooklyn head when I lived in NY and there’s no BK artist on it, Do you know those guys and what does being from BX mean to you as a hip-hop artist and as a person?

Noah: I know about Mickey Factz. I don’t know about Joel, but I’ll check him out when I get the chance. I don’t know them personally but at one point I was a big fan of Factz, I think he’s super talented, and a smart individual. I follow his facebook account we often have a lot in common in terms of perspective and the type of things that we are interested in, (like anime, movies, games, etc.). I take pride in where I’m from and in what I’m doing with Frank collectively for the borough itself. Usually cats that come from where I’m from its Trap Music, and I feel like its so dope that we’ve chosen to do the opposite. There are a lot of REAL artist here and I’m proud to represent what I feel like is a borough forgotten. I like being the underdog. In reality I’m doing this for Noah Vinson, and I’m repping New York City. Period.

DK: Your track, “Ex” from This One Goes To Eleven… is also going to be on a forthcoming project of yours called Young & Proud but you also just dropped that new “On God” track from the …And The Phone Was On Silent Noah Vinson & Frank Ramz collab project. Can you talk a little about what each project is about and how they differ from one another?

Noah: Young & Proud is a little deeper than my up & coming project which is why I’ve kind’ve put my new project in the spotlight. Young & Proud is in a very delicate stage right now, the songs & content are very emotional and a more personal side of me: my thoughts, and the lives of the people around me. …And The Phone Was On Silent is more like a fantasy draft, like, “What if two of the most dangerous emcees coming out of the same area did a mixtape together?” It’s a different feel, it’s different music and all around engaging from start to finish so I’m very proud of the outcome thus far. “On God” was a complete GEM and we at the last moment decided to include it on our project. Ramz sent me the beat with his verse on it and then send it to ReQ and Wordsmiff and we all just made magic happen. They dropped it on Sunday (the Lord’s Day, get it?) which I thought was cool so I sent it to the people directly and within under 72 hours it got a lot of love from the twitter community so I appreciate and Love everyone who’s been rocking with us so far.

DK: Rockin’ with you no doubt! I know it’s a long time into the future but where do you want music, yours or the music industry as a whole, to go in the next 11 years?

Noah: Well we all know where the music industry is headed right now (laughs) as far as my music goes and where my catalog stands with all that is going on, I feel like I want it to be stand alone and actually WORTH something. I want my work to be well-valued, I want my recordings and lyrics to be valued more than anything. I want my core fans to be proud of the what we’ve accomplished, ten, twenty years from now. I may not live forever but these records will, and I want us to make an impact on the world as a whole through the poetry, through the art, and through the rhythm we create.

Haven’t heard “Ex” yet? The click play:

Want to hear Noah’s latest heater, “On God”? Hit the jump then CLICK HERE for the THIS ONE GOES TO ELEVEN… album featuring the single, “Ex” if you’ve somehow managed to miss it so far.

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