X- Files

“I take glee in the fact that I’m ME!” A cool reminder from Del The Funkee Homosapien that we’re all we have besides family of course. I know for me at least, this song always brings me around full circle when I’ve drifted off into the doldrums of self-conscious thinking. Self-conscious thinking is something we all deal with on a regular basis, the thought of can I really do this thing I’ve set out to do can overwhelm us all. The uncomfortable feeling of being overwhelmed with what ever it is, introduces the worst feeling of all, FEAR. I’ve been listening to Del for awhile now, I first heard him on the “You Never Knew” track by the Hieroglyphics from their album 3rd Eye Vision (I recommend this group). The song is amazing but his deliverance was one of power and lack of fear “Del. been rhyming for more than a decade
Onto the next stage/ while emcees need aid/ Stay paid, I'm still grade-A None of that tomfoolery
As you can see this shit ain't nothing new to me.” Since then he’s been one of my favorite rappers and for those who have seen him live unlike me unfortunately but soon, I think you can attest to the lack of fear in his deliverance and most importantly his personality. He’s a nutty guy but he’s himself, leading by example letting all his listeners know to be you.
His album Future Development features songs that instantly intertwine thought and rhythm, X-Files for example has one of those up tempo beats that gets you moving a little. When I first heard the song it sounded like a song for the ladies, but surprisingly Del kind of let you into his thoughts and his beliefs about the industry. Del in some ways knew his record wasn’t going to hit the airways so why not divulge some accurate details about Hip-Hop and the “Plastic ass rappers, who get smashed like crackers.” by his lyrics, his beats and most importantly his astute personality. Hopefully listening to a couple Del tracks will spark the notion of thinking that we are who we are and trying to change that is only hurting ourselves and preventing us from leading by example for a friend, a family member, a workplace and the next generation who walk in our footsteps. Let the world stress you, not the other way around. ENJOY YOUR DAY!!!

Long Strides to the Finish Line

Life should be taken in strides, a little motto I’ve been living by recently. Although we deal with life and the many hidden obstacles encountered everyday, some people approach those obstacles with baby steps. Baby steps are great for people who live in the box and like analyzing things before they do them, but for a guy like me I don’t think it gets you anywhere or at least somewhere you need to be fast. It’s funny to see people who tread murky waters and are scared of the plunge to failure. Honestly, life is too short to be scared of outcomes and failure. Sending your resume to fine women around the way, adding your two cents to a project at work, paying for an expensive meal, the experience of trying something new is in front of you, like NIKE ” Just do it.” So what, if that girl isn’t down with O.P.P, there’s Otha’ Fish, at least you know now, because you took the leap with confidence in self to approach her (she was probably a biatch anyway) and trust me all opinions matter, if you feel you can make a difference in your workplace do it, earn the promotion you deserve. Live life because you’ve never eaten Salmon head and Sea-urchin before, something new is something you will never forget especially when it cost 50 bucks to eat. Most of what you do wont fall under regret,regret finds it's course when we fail to take chances and sulk over what could have been.

I’m only offering a suggestion a good one to, why not live life to the fullest, we all only have one life to live. Anything could happen to me tomorrow (hopefully nothing bad), it’s always dope meeting someone new, teaching someone a new skill or learning a skill for myself, it’s beautiful to see and be involved with unity between groups of diverse individuals learning from each other. Keep it Beautiful is a song by Shock G from the infamous Digital Underground, we can keep it real but instead lets keep it beautiful. I love this song and the overall message he portrays, “His special special gift was his love side/So many try'na be Pac but only cop the thug side/How come yall don't wanna be Shock? I survived, And I ride for everyone/It's what you make it, so I made mine fun” listen to his solo album Fear of a Mixed Planet guarantee you’ll think he’s looney, but with this song there’s a confidence in his own style. He’s taking the strides to be successful and because of his nuttiness we all know who Shock G a.k.a Humpty Hump is and what he’s done for Bay area Hip Hop. Responsible for the production of the Luniz and co- producing Tupac’s album 2Pacalypse,this dude has a melting pot for imagination and the balls lyrically to be who he wants to be. Maybe you can get down to Shock G like I can, catch a Cinnamon Wave to feeling powerful and confident in everything you do. Always take the stride necessary to finding happiness within you.

Beauty is Everywhere

The Time is now to recognize beauty when we see it. For me, I tend to curse myself after the many missed opportunities to be a part of or intertwined with Beauty. Recognizing the beauty of our surroundings is a partial illustration our own portrayal of beauty, where we’re from and where we’ve been can help us paint the picture of beauty. When I vision beauty in my head it isn’t always Stacey Dash welcoming me into my home after a long day, it’s a moment in life when I can smell, taste, see or hear something and the result from my simple positive reaction makes me overjoyed to be alive. The smell of a cured youngin’, the taste of the best Ahi Poke’ on The Big Island, viewing an Island sunset from the confines of my home with a brew chillen, these are some beauty tips for finding positivity in our lives. Despite the ability to heighten my senses, the movement within me will forever be for the love of music, the sound and words of harmony and poem or story make me the most high on life. Music is universal, there is a Binary Star in the sky we all can see, coming together as it feeds sounds of rhythm and harmony to our souls.

I can say and be proud of becoming a diverse music listener. Last month I went with my homeboy SpencJah to a Thievery Corporation concert in Chicago, one of the craziest experiences I’ve had in a concert. Acid Jazz, Dub-Step Reggae, Electronic, Rock and Trip Hop and a whole bunch of other stuff mixed together makes for a crazy sound. If you want a psychedelic sound that makes flowing with the rhythm easy for a newbie to the Thievery scene, listen to these guys. I was blown away by their cunning chemistry and the originality of sounds from around the world, making music of energy that the world can unite to. The Thievery Corporation set a tolerable mood for living in Chicago, I knew I wouldn’t like the Mid-West because of the non- existence of scenery, all my life I’ve gazed upon scenery, beauty like none other. South I get Mt. Rainier, north I get a beautiful downtown Seattle mixed with some water to the west and the Olympics, Safeco and Qwest Fields shining from the Sista’ Sun, east I see Lake Washington and the beauty of the Cascades. Point being, I’m going to need scenery throughout my life along with different indigenous musical genres and groups the world provides. Thievery definitely opened my eyes to music of the world, seeing some of the beauty world possesses and listening to the music the world makes the mind wander toward places in the Atlas book in my life that I wanted to embark a.s.a.p.

Hawaii!!!!!! I made it, it was good to see the people I care about most for a second, but being here is the escape I needed. MGMT taught me how to enjoy myself and take only what I need from it, with that I credit MGMT for making me feel alive, I’ll listen to Kids or Time to Pretend and after get that Electric Feel for a long day on the courts, teaching dope people who enjoying life. Over the years it seems like every day I’ve been blessed by good music, music that despite the weather of the day, soaking in the easy sounds of Acid Raindrops, or in the car on a Fonky Expedition with Somethin’ to Ride to seems to make life and music a marriage never to be separated within me. I Used to Love Her, but now I love my music and everything about her.

Q-Tip The Renaissance

Damn, I’ve been gone for awhile. No worries though, I’ve been thinking of that good music to bring to you the whole time. Hawaii takes a lot of my time but I can never stray away from what’s truly real to me, MUSIC. Lately I’ve been trying to find the artist who can match the view I wake up to every morning, I’ve been searching for the artists I can wake up to and listen to from track one to track twelve. The abstract one, Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest has been my answer. The Renaissance is the album I am bringing to you, the most diverse album I’ve heard in awhile, I don’t think you can compare his diversity to any artist of late. Q-Tip, with every song brings a vibe of, c’mon everybody feel good and let’s unite. Since I’ve moved to the islands I’ve played his album religiously, my roommates love him and I caught some of the locals nodding their heads to his vibe when I drive by. It’s such a Vibrant Thing that you can’t help but share it with the world; his music is honestly the therapy to my non-existent homesickness. I can’t help but feel every word he spits, whether it is Raphael Saadiq or Norah Jones and even D’Angelo, the chemistry he has with featured artist is amazing. My favorite song on the album happens to be Life is Better featuring Norah Jones, this song sends chills through my spine simply because I didn’t feel like life could get any better then Seattle. I mean there’s a reason why I named my blog Emerald City Lights I have mad love for my city and everyone and thing in it, but there comes a time when people can become stagnant and content with there present being. Not I, I remember when I first listened to Life is Better every word and sound put me in a place where I was at peace with myself. Norah’s sound took me down a couple notches from my day and my over thinking of life.
In Seattle I was content with my being, I was working and writing a lot but in the back of my mind I didn’t like the fact that I wasn’t exploring my outer limits. Honestly, Q-Tip and Norah Jones gave me the confidence to find out how much better life could actually be. No doubt I was a shook one when I was approached with the opportunity to relocate, but listening to this song eased my worries and made me Believe that there are greener pastures out there to graze. Believe, which is the next track on The Renaissance after Life Is Better, is the perfect one two punch for your confidence. I listened to these tracks all the time, until it was time for me to make my decision and because of these songs and Q-Tips album, I feel like I made the best decision I could have made. You never know what life has in store for you it takes a belief in self and the confidence that you can make life better for yourself. Thanks Q-Tip for instilling faith in those who needed a boost to chase their dreams.

Paying Homage to J Dilla

J Dilla thank you for your beats of tranquility, throwing on a Dilla track sets the mood for any occasion. Partying with friends, socializing with people over wine and cheese or alone with that special person, Dilla can make the mood right. J Dilla to me is a cornerstone of Hip Hop, the essence of beautiful music, if you were to look inside a CD case of a Hip Hop artist and open up the book of the artist and view the people responsible for making the song J Dilla might be one of those people. Dilla started as a producer coming from Music city Detroit, in the early 90’s he stepped outside of his boundaries and embarked on a musical mission to open the ears and minds of Hip Hop artists and listeners. During his mission he was able to connect with artists such as Common, Talib Kweli, De La Soul, Busta Rhymes, Mos Def and many more. Dilla’s music and vibes along with the brilliant artists he’s worked with painted Mona Lisa’s with sound, the Leonardo da Vinci of music is my comparison of Dilla. No one else in the Hip Hop world was making beats and rhymes of life and had an entourage of highly acclaimed artists who could attest to Dilla’s contribution to Hip Hop.
I only have three Dilla albums Donuts, Ruff Draft and The Shining and all three albums are dope, dope because of the sounds and samples he can lay over tracks, along with Dilla’s rhyming skills he was constantly turning over leaves to stretch his imagination along with the Hip Hop game. One trait Dilla has is the ability to absorb people from different cultures and have them dancing to his sounds, Dilla’s music is universal, it’s very sad we lost a pioneer and an innovator if alive today maybe would have a stronger influence on the music and artist we hear today. If Dilla had one thing to say to every artist in the Hip Hop game I believe he’d say stay true to self and good music will follow. I don’t know J Dilla but I know him through his music and even though I only have three of his eleven albums and EP’s, the three I have, paint a picture of where Dilla comes from when he makes music. Hopefully you to can enjoy J Dilla as much as I do and recognize real music for what it is. Rest in Peace J Dilla and thank you again for leaving your mark as one of the best to ever do it.

Little Brother & Jake One - Home

Home is where the heart is. It’s our safety net, it’s where our families reside, it’s the place we come back to when we’ve been away for some time. No matter how hard life can get or how boring a place could be, coming back to Seattle or any city you come from brings upon an instant feeling of revival or a sense of renewal of life. From my experience, every time I had the chance to go home from school, I relished at the opportunity to see the beauty Seattle posses and also catch up on the things in Seattle I’ve missed. I loved coming back and seeing all the new structures and sights Seattle added to the beautiful artistry it contains. After a weekend or a break spent here, going back to school was a cake walk because of the determination of finishing school that consumed me, all that matters is that I make it home. After graduation the first song I listened to leaving Cheney and the first song I listened to arriving back to the homeland were two songs about home. The first home track is entitled Home by Little Brother (LB) featuring Joe Scudda from my favorite LB album Separate But Equal. Whenever I listen to LB’s Home track, I’m always in the mood of wanting to get home as quick as I can. For me wanting to be home was a weekly thing but playing this song was like medicine for me to exhibit some patience until I got my chance to bounce. I listened to this song at least three times a day for a month straight, counting down the days until I was free from my five year sentence over east. “Home is where the heart is and that’s real, cuz you don’t appreciate home until your gone.” Although we hear this phrase everywhere it remains true and engrained in those who value home. LB made a banger for those who have that itch for getting back home and need a scratch, quality music that enlightens the soul and mind.
Home track number two features artist from the Pacific Northwest all residing in the beautiful 206. Home by Jake One features Vitamin D, Note, Maneac B and Ish, a collective 206 sound that needs no visuals to know what they’re rapping about. I love this song because it’s hard to paint a picture on some of the things they spit about but since I’ve lived here my whole life I know exactly what they’re saying. When Maneac gets on the track talking about things that are relevant to me and the city like “ At qwest field 12th man my Seattle dude, Nate Burleson wearin that Seattle blue, Bosworth made all of Seattle boo, The Sonics let Kemp go, Seattle’s threw.” Just hearing that takes me back to the ’95- ’96 season when we were ill on the court, and showing love to the town and the Hawks is a plus. To me Jake One made one of the best hometown songs, listening to songs like Empire State of Mind by Jay-Z or artists who like to mention in a verse about where there from although it sounds tight and has a good vibe, it doesn’t have the description and wordplay Jake One and the hometown artists display. I was driving on I-90, came out of the tunnel, hit the bridge with nothing but blue water and a bright blue sky and the best landscape imaginable. I played this song and felt an instant overwhelming sensation of accomplishment, I graduated from Eastern and I Finally made it HOME!!!!!

People Under The Stairs

If you want something done you got to do it yourself. People Under The Stairs (PUTS) embodies that phrase; Double K and Thes One have done it since 1998, recording their debut album themselves entitled The Next Step. First of all dope album, I don’t know about you but the sounds and the vibes of a debut album show me that the artist put 100% into their music. Which they did, but many Hip Hop heads can agree with me, one of the best debut albums ever to surface was 50 Cent Get Rich or Die Tryin’. You could tell in each bar of each song, 50 was serious. Patiently waiting, I was right in the middle of the herd of faithful sheep waiting for his next album expecting it to be nothing short of a banger. The Massacre was more like a disaster for those who were expecting the same punch lines and delivery 50 had in his first album, leaving you probably as disappointed as I was. When money and bright lights flash and record exec’s make the decisions, I cant place the blame on 50 for making money.
There in lies the difference between Hip Pop and Hip Hop, some do it for the cash and quick fame and some do it for the personal pleasure and the people who feel the music and dig where they’re coming from. PUTS do what they do for sole purpose of making good music. Music that makes you move, think and relate to everything they have to say. Another underground group who are content with their place in Hip Hop, PUTS sounds are rhythmic pulses directed to the heart and conscious of a Hip Hop fan. I’ve been listening to PUTS for a couple of years now, as some of you know I’m very relaxed and laid back, Mr. Nonchalant is a name I was given by a friend. Listening to songs like The Cat from their second album Question in the Form of an Answer or Road Beaters from Or..Stayed Tune EP released in 2003, PUTS keeps me in the tranquil mood with their Jazz sounds and laid back lyrics, which only bring out the fun in your day. Hook the Ipod up and add PUTS to the play list, after listening to them you’ll understand why I’m mellow my man. PUTS continue to share their talent with underground Hip Hop listeners who are searching for that feel good music . I heard they have a new album releasing later this year or early next, I’ll be on the lookout, hopefully you will to.