Entries categorized as ‘Digest and Progress’
Matt Koza and His Crew
A few weeks ago, I got a phone call from Matt Koza asking me if I’d be interested in doing behind the scenes interviews for the latest Foreign Exchange dual video that he was directing. “Of course.” I replied, but I think he already figured as much. We’d forged a friendship our first year at Drexel over the usual partying and bullshit, but so many conversations led us to a group that would ultimately be a vital part of his career: Little Brother.
Crazy to think how much has changed since freshman year. But if you’d balled up and thrown the passion our group of friends had about their respective dreams, Koza found ways to be the first one to go get it.
(more…)
Categories: Digest and Progress
Tagged: Comeback, Delightful Bars, Director, Foreign Exchange, Hip-Hop, House of Cards, Leave It All Behind, Matt Koza, Nicolay, Phonte, Rapper Big Pooh
ATEtraks Photography
Some may call her offensive, some call her hilarious and some may say she’s just being honest– what is clear, however, is that Azealia Banks is setting herself up for a long career of controversy. Through her blatant honesty and subtly sexed up image, she’s definitely drawn crowds to lend their eyes and eventually ears to what she has to give to the industry. She started rapping only last year but since then, has been featured on The Fader, gained a roaring fan-base through radio play and internet hype and has subsequently been shopped around by labels. They’re all itching to latch on to the rare gem that is a skilled female emcee, but Banks has no plans to rush it– at only 18, she understands she needs time to steer “unguided America” towards this generation’s Lil’ Kim hopeful. Without any unwarranted praise or reservations, we present to you: Azealia Banks.
(more…)
Categories: Digest and Progress · W.O.E.
Tagged: 17, Azealia Banks, Gimme A Chance, The Fader
When did it happen to you? When did you fall face first onto the hot pavement…?
Love struck.
Was it when her beautiful eyes met yours as she floated passed you? Maybe her long dark legs moving to a beat that matched the rhythm of the ventricles inside your chest. Could it have been the purity of her grin as she revealed the essence of your existence upon opening her mouth? Or was it the way you felt every. single. word. she uttered…sweep past your ear, penetrating deep as she slowly stole the virginity of your neurons. Firing them off…
one.
by.
one.
Sending cold vibrations that gripped your spinal chord. You’re entire body was an action potential. Your skin covered in raised hairs and your right foot began to tap…
tap tap tap to the beat. Thinking to yourself:
HOT DAMN.
The fuck was that?
HIP-HOP. She likes it raw, lives loyal, and is unquestionably…one of them life altering bitches.
My affair with her has made me a fiend for books written about her.
The following book has been a part of my library for quite some time and whether you are the conscious, pop, southern, gangster, or hard-core fan… I recommend adding it to yours as well. It is an account of the culture that hip-hop created and how it’s changed over the last few decades. Everything from the gangs of the Bronx to the swag of the Cali movement and the artists in between.
So Phat kids… do it how the nerds do. Walk into your local Barnes and Noble (I should pay rent there) and pick it up. It is slightly but respectably opinionated, YET incredibly informative. Jeff Chang’s Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop: The History of The Hip-Hop Generation gives you the history lesson we all wish we got junior year of high school.
-Dr. Sanchez
Categories: Digest and Progress
ATEtraks Photography
Humpday is no longer a problem for Philadelphians. While the rest of us grumble with nostalgia of past weekends or anticipation of those to come, an enlightened many have no problem taking the day in stride– and they’ve got every reason to. Every Wednesday night, about 350 bodies wander into O.N.E. in Rittenhouse Square, aching for an outlet to rid frustration, catch a buzz and most importantly– to dance. They’ve caught on to Philly’s newest party epidemic.
Click the jump to read more…
(more…)
Categories: Digest and Progress
Tagged: DJ Phsh, FAME, O.N.E., Philadelphia, Superdope, tU pHACe, Vanache
ATEtraks Photography
As far as city life goes, New York is characterized as a fast-paced, refreshed and cynical sea of opportunities. Philly, in sharp contrast, could be argued to have quite the polarizing effect, equipped with a laid-back, intimate and a quick-to-hype audience.
Perhaps that’s why Saure Benitez, better known as DJ Ultraviolet, moved from her family’s home in Spanish Harlem to the city of Brotherly Love at age 17. Perhaps that’s why Bee Eater Records, UV’s digital label, finds its home here (for now, at least). And perhaps it’s why success, despite its conception only a few months ago, seems like the label’s destined direction.
Find out more, after the jump…
(more…)
Categories: Digest and Progress · W.O.E.
Tagged: Bee Eater Records, Ethel Cee, Fel Sweetenberg, Hu$tle Simmons, Ultraviolet
You’ve already heard our take on W.O.E. (Women Of Excellence), so allow us an introduction to a woman who’s worthy of such a title. Tamara Albertini hails from the almighty BK, but finds residence nowadays in Long Island. She’s 1/2 of the fashion duo of Albertini Addiction (AA), a jewelery/style brand that she founded along with her twin sister, Tamika (together, they’re known as the Albertini Twinz). They tackle anything from original jewelry pieces to accessories (including hair clips, headbands and bags), and even some clothing, debuting their first collection this fall. On top of that, their services also include wardrobe styling and the artistic direction for photoshoots. You might have already been acquainted with them in their photo spreads in OneWay2 Magazine and various fashion shows, including their most recent showcase at the StonyBrook’s Black Womyn’s Movement. We weren’t able to interview Tamika, who handles the clothing design aspect of AA, but we were fortunate enough to shoot Tamara and have her let us in on the secrets and future plans for Albertini Addiction…
(more…)
Categories: Digest and Progress · W.O.E.
Tagged: Albertini Addiction, Jewelry, W.O.E.
We searched, clicked, listened and resurfaced with a smile. Chiddy Bang’s music had generated a buzz so thick that it’d spanned across states from its origin in Philadelphia all the way up to Maine and caught the attention and collaborations of industry heavyweights The Roots and Mr. Lif. But the most impressive part of their growing fanbase was their formation only a mere few months ago.
Sitting down, they physically resembled what their music translated to: diversity. Besides the obvious racial differences (two are Black, three are White), the five 18 to 19 year olds came from individual places in the musical spectrum and somehow met up in between to create Chiddy Bang. (more…)
Categories: Digest and Progress
Tagged: Chiddy Bang, Electronica, Hip-Hop, Indie, Philadelphia
atetraks
SamSun
nakeyab