So I realized I’ve been slacking—we’ve got some real business
to take care of here. We lost some HUGE heroes of this hiphop shit in
recent weeks, and I want to say rest in power to Grandmaster Roc
Raida, one of the most innovative turntablists of our time—in
fact, one of the key reasons “turntablist” is even a viable descriptor.
With his crew the X-Ecutioners (fka the X-Men), he
revolutionized the way a Technics Direct-Drive could be driven, and
from all accounts he was a good, stand-up dude. RIP, and much
love to his family and crew. I’d also like to dedicate this to Mr.
Magic, WBLS radio host who founded the original Rap Attack,
who with Marley Marl by his side was the first to bring hiphop
to mainstream radio. Without his influence, who knows what would’ve
happened? Hiphop, as powerful a force as it was even then, might have
died on the vine, written off as a local phenomenon. (Take a lesson in
this!) RIP!
On a more hopeful note, I want to send a shout to my homeboy
James “Talksick” Sullivan—get better, G. We need you here
to talk that shit and rep the true school (and 206 Zulu) right.
I hereby promise to buy you a pitcher of beer, and if I could give you
an old-school tape you didn’t already have, I would.
On another hopeful note, I wanna shout out Federal Way MC/producer
Q Dot, a very talented cat who has found his name on the
2009 Grammy ballot for Best New Artist, Album of the Year, Best Rap
Performance, Best Rap Album, Best Rap Song, Best R&B/Alternative
Song, and Best Short Form Video (holy shit). This doesn’t mean he’s
nominated, but it means he’s in the running, which I must say is pretty
fucking major for a NW artist. Q Dot was kind enough to send me his
recently released Underground Railroad album, and I see why it’d
make their short list—it’s commercial in terms of quality,
production value, and wide appeal, but still not your typical emulatory
radio rap. There’s the expected odes to good living, but it’s never at
the expense of honesty, a balance I wish more cats round here could
manage. Dude got bars, style, and soul, and is quite the double
threat, as he handles all the production (which quite admirably bridges
club-bangers and OutKast-bluesiness) himself. Just peep the cut
“Music,” which is a particularly great example of just that. He’s on
MySpace—go find him at /qdotmusic and get you some.
Lastly, I just wanna say how goddamn proud I am of this town and
everything going on. If you’re sitting there grumbling, you’re doing it
wrong—contribute something dope for public record, grind behind
it, and uplift the shit if you’re not feeling it. This year started
out at its darkest for the local community, and now look. So don’t
a single motherfucker let the strides being made be tainted by petty
grievances and fractiousness, no matter who you are—if
there are issues, fucking figure it out for the good of everyone.
Because that shit is done, period. Climbing off soapbox…
now 
.
YO Larry! Right you are – you have been, and are still – sleeping on the local business!
You know those anxiety nightmares, like when you can’t scream when you need to, or someone’s hurting your mama and you can’t do shit about it? Well that’s how I felt on Wednesday Oct. 14th when I was flipping through The Stranger and realized:
I MISSED THE MOTHERFUCKING ZION I SHOW @ the Croc on Sun 10/11. HOW THE FUCK DID THIS HAPPEN?
I read The Stranger religiously and am privy to hip hop happenings in the area. Zion I is WITHOUT A DOUBT one the most profound and incommensurable acts in the game. I have seen them live in three different states and every time they BLOW ME THE FUCK AWAY.
HOW DID THE STRANGER NEGLECT TO PROMOTE THEIR SHOW? Had I not seen the itty-bitty square in the Croc listing after the fact, I would have never known that they had even come (AND GONE). It seems like I can’t turn a page without reading about that joke of musical act – Gentrification’s teeth – Mad Rad, and then the real thing comes to Seattle and not a word is written about them.
Which brings me to my next point: GABRIEL TEODROS’ LAST SHOW IS TONIGHT (with KHINGZ and WD4D – which basically makes it a motherfucking AB CREOLE REUNION! SEXY BEAST? IS ANYBODY OUT THERE?!) and here again The Stranger ain’t got love…
Larry. I’ve been loving you since I was too young to even know why I was too young to enter the Off the Wall on the Ave. I’ve been loving you since the days when I would comb through cellophane square (R.I.P) to find something you had recommended I cop. All I’m asking is how and why did I miss my favorite hip-hop group of all time on your watch? And why isn’t Gabe’s last hurray getting the attention it deserves?
YO Larry!
You know those anxiety nightmares, like when you can’t scream when you need to, or someone’s hurting your mama and you can’t do shit about it? Well that’s how I felt on Wednesday Oct. 14th when I was flipping through The Stranger and realized:
I MISSED THE MOTHERFUCKING ZION I SHOW @ the Croc on Sun 10/11. HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?
I read The Stranger religiously and am privy to hip hop happenings in the area. Zion I is WITHOUT A DOUBT one the most profound and incommensurable acts in the game. I have seen them live in three different states and every time they BLOW ME THE FUCK AWAY.
HOW DID THE STRANGER NEGLECT TO PROMOTE THEIR SHOW? Had I not seen the itty-bitty square in the Croc listing after the fact, I would have never known that they had even come (AND GONE). It seems like I can’t turn a page without reading about that joke of musical act Mad Rad, and then the real thing comes to Seattle, not a word is written about them.
Which brings me to my next point: GABRIEL TEODROS’ LAST SHOW IS TONIGHT (with KHINGZ and WD4D – which basically makes it a motherfucking AB CREOLE REUNION! SEXY BEAST? IS ANYBODY OUT THERE?!) and here again The Stranger is sleeping.
Larry. I’ve been loving you since I was too young to even know why I was too young to enter the Off the Wall on the Ave. I’ve been loving you since the days when I would comb through cellophane square (R.I.P) to find something you had recommended I cop. All I’m asking is how and why did I miss my favorite hip-hop group of all time on your watch? And why isn’t Gabe’s last hurrah getting the attention it deserves
hey #1 (& #2)-
yr absolutely right, i should’ve gotten something in about both of those shows. the fucking jacka was on that zion-i show and Tear Gas is absolutely profound and incommensurable, possibly my rap album of the year. thats why i had him on street sounds that night. i love the zion-i single, thats why i’ve played it to hella times on the radio, on street sounds and on variety. shouted it and gabe’s show out on the kexp.
but we’re not talking about that, we’re talking about the column, and you’re 100% right, the gabe show i totally slept on! i actually feel bad about that. but i’ve felt like that so many times- it’s inescapable. even with 500 words a week, that shit is gonna happens sometimes. i sit down to write the shit and sometimes i get caught up trying to say this or that about the homie or the town or an artist cats might not be up on. i might forget to check every concert calendar, or the email i got about it slips my mind.
bro if i got called out for every crucial show i forgot to plug over the last five years, you’d forget that i’ve been plugging everybody’s shows for the last five years. which i know you haven’t forgotten, since you’ve been reading for a long time. (and thanks for reading.)
so i say that to say this, Murph- bear with me dude.
#3 – Underground Railroad-themed Payday Loan spambots? THATS RACIST
Word, Larry. And my word choices were a bit too curt, didn’t mean to bust you. Perhaps irrelevant, but this fan is female, though I dig ya gotta pick an article.
Keep up the fantastic work!