All hype aside, V-Zilla could honestly be the the most tenacious, driven person that i’ve ever met. He’s a virtual one-man street team. I met him (or rather, he approached me) years ago when he was in the process of releasing his E.X.H.A.L.E. CD. I listened and liked it, and soon thereafter talk of his album started popping up all over the place. I thought – “Wow, this guy has a really good street team.” I would soon discover that he was the street team. I obviously wasn’t working hard enough.

In the years since, he’s released a number of projects and toured the world on his own merits, and is preparing to release a slew of projects later this year. Get To Know the one who calls himself The Monster, V-Zilla.

Today we have a chat with Rob Quest, a member of one of the most influential groups from Houston, the Odd Squad. With new music featuring PZ of the Luv Bugs and Snap from The Niyat. More info after the cut.

Background music:

Rob Quest – “Ohh Yeah” featuring PZ of the Luv Bugs

Rob Quest – “In Ya Ear” featuring Snap

When most people think about pioneers of Houston hip hop, the first name that usually comes to mind is the Geto Boys – and rightfully so. But during that time, there was another crew that positioned itself as a more lighthearted alternative: Odd Squad, consisting of Devin the Dude, Jugg Mugg, and the undisputed personality of the group, Rob Quest.

He calls himself the “Stevie Wonder of rap” for obvious (and not so obvious) reasons. Although he’s physically blind, he’s a visionary in his own right. He learned to play a number of instruments once his sight left him. I was shocked years ago when I saw him operating an Akai MPC – without any assistance. The absence of physical eyesight is not a disability for Rob. I remember seeing the video for “Can’t See It” back in the day and doubting whether or not he was really blind. I’m still not completely convinced at times.

These days, Rob is staying busy with a number of projects. He’s working on a “Stevie Wonder” project with The Are, and has recently wrapped up his new album, The Age Of Quest, which will be in stores soon.

For more info: www.robquest.com

In this special edition of “The KO Show Presents”, we spend a few hours in the laboratory of King Coz, and our sanity is tested. King Midas and DJ Cozmos cook up a beat from scratch.

Catch The original “Get To Know HISD” and more after the jump.

Get To Know… H.I.S.D. from Ethos Music Group on Vimeo.

Some time during the making of his Taster’s Choice album, D. Rose emailed me a track called “The Caper” that he wanted Big Mon and me to hop on. No problem. We wrapped it up in about 24 hours and got it back to him. When I asked him who made the track, he said “This kid named King Midas. He’s one of the producers for H.I.S.D.”

Again with these H.I.S.D. cats! I still hadn’t officially met the crew, but they were definitely making their mark on the scene. A few months later, I receive a call from Midas, introducing himself and askig if I’d be willing to write to a track that he just created for their Summer Sessions EP. I’m always down to write, and i’d heard nothing but good things about him, so I said YES with no hesitation. I wouldn’t discover until months later that Justin “8 Months” Lewis was the one that referred him to me. Midas was looking for guest spots on the song, and after running through a laundry list of talent, 8 Months suggested that he let me take a crack at it. The rest is history. “Summer So Good” was created.

In the time since, i’ve probably spent more time around him than any other musician around here. King Midas is a fascinating study, because he epitomizes the term “student of the game”. It isn’t simply enough for him to know whether something sounds good or not; he needs to understand WHY. I’ve only seen 2 or 3 other producers that are as meticulous at music creation as he is. One of them is DJ Cozmos, who he aligned himself with to form King Coz. It’s amazing to see how these two, nearly a generation apart, seem to have been cut from the same cloth.

I don’t think Midas ever takes a day off. He’s always working on music. Sometimes working on tracks just for practice. Not too long ago, he worked on a track for about 12 hours, only to discard it at the end of the day. He understands that some of your greatest lessons are learned from failures.

His home contains “The Gold Room” where the HISD collective meets every week to write, record, and debate. It’s a haven for creativity, and they’re all fortunate to have a place where they can tap into that synergy and bring ideas to life.

A simple blog post won’t give you an idea of how far-reaching his talent is. I’ll let his body of work over the next year or so speak for itself. And yes – i’m documenting every move. He’s one to watch.

-Damien-

By the way, he co-produced the KO “Willie Turner” project with DJ Cozmos. Here’s a taste:

The Legendary KO “Ch 2 – Laid Off (Snippet)” from The Ballad of Willie Turner

Background music: Lower Life Form “Move To The Side”  (Produced by Soul One)

Lower Life Form is hosting The Standard. Coincidence? No.

More below:

Soul One was the person that introduced me to H.I.S.D.

I’d already known him for years as one of the “young boys” on the scene, an up and coming DJ who kind of studied under the wing of DJ Cipher. Kind of an interesting read because he started as a DJ with no real affiliation; he made a name for himself through his own accord.

He was part of the crew that played ball at a local YMCA on Sunday nights. This was when I had hops. I think it was one of those Sundays when he first told me about H.I.S.D.:

(Pulled from my fragmented memory)

Me: “So what are you working on these days. I see that you’ve started producing now.”

Soul One: “Actually, i’m working on an album now with this new crew. Kind of like a collective.”

“Anybody I know?”

“Maybe. You heard of Savvi?”

“Yeah, Savvi’s cool. I finally met him not too long ago. I told him we need to work together.”

“Well, Savvi kinda put this group together. It’s like 4 MCs and 3 or 4 producers.”

“Damn – putting together your own Wildstyle!”

{Muted laugh} “Heh. Yeah, it’s really kinda cool”

“What’s it called?”

{Pause to figure out how he’s going to explain it} “Okay. The name of the crew is H.I.S.D.”

“Like… the school district?”

“Yeah but no. It stands for Hueston Independent Spit District, But Hueston is spelled with an H-U-E instead of H-O-U.”

“Okay – I follow you.”

“The one thing we’re still working on is the ‘S’, because it can really stand for anything, like Soul or Slang-”

“Or Southside.”

{Very reluctant laugh} “No – not really.”

I may have embellished the last part of my story, but I credit Soul One with introducing me to this collective of talent. He functions as their DJ, and 1/3 of their production team.

Whatever you do, don’t ask him about the time he tried to throw me an alley-oop; he’s thought little of me ever since.

-Damien-

In the debut of The KO Show, we take a look on the set of Willie Turner, and Big Mon discusses his priorities – music vs. education. Co-starring D Rose, Brew and PhD from Lower Life Form, and DJ Remix.

The KO Show: Episode 01 – “On The Set Of Willie Turner” from Ethos Music Group on Vimeo.

The “Weekly Journal” is a new series from D. Rose and DJ Cozmos, that documents the creation of their follow up to the critically-acclaimed “Taster’s Choice”. We’re going to follow their progress every week; it’s an unprecedented look behind the scenes…

D. Rose’s Weekly Journal – Episode 1: “Sandpaper and Champagne” from Ethos Music Group on Vimeo.

Part 2 of our continuing discussion with Michele.

Today Michele anwers the question: “What was your worst show ever?” As a veteran of live performances, Michele has had a fair share of stellar performances. It takes a truly humble person to laugh at one of her most forgettable moments.

Michele Thibeaux – Worst Show Ever from Ethos Music Group on Vimeo.

Catch Michele live at “The Standard” – this Friday, Oct 2.

Join us tomorrow for part 3 of “Get To Know Michele Thibeaux”.

It feels like I’ve known Michele Thibeaux forever. Maybe it’s because I already knew her before I even met her. (The circumstances around that involve another story for another time, with Michele’s permission.) In fact, almost everyone who has the pleasure of meeting Michele have already known about her.

Get To Know Michele Thibeaux from Ethos Music Group on Vimeo.

Music Playing: The Legendary KO feat. Michele Thibeaux - “Be Your Addiction”

Additional instrumentation by Denis Cisneros of Neon Collars

Ironically, though I’ve known Michele for the better part of 15 years, I’m always surprised by the duality of her being. She’s a songstress with a style and presence that command attention – but she’s the sweetest, kindest person you’ll ever come across. She’s a soul singer with the sensibilities of an MC. Imagine Amel Lerrieux in an Adidas tracksuit. That’s Michele Thibeaux.

I always have a tough time “interviewing” people that I already know well. So when we sat down recently to talk about 1) Her being a southern transplant from the west coast; 2) What it’s like being a champion of the open mic circuit; and 3)What the near future holds, we spent an inordinate time discussing our affinity for Adidas sneakers and the pleasures of home-cooked food. That’s Michele Thibeaux.

In honor of her upcoming performance at the inaugural edition of “The Standard” on Oct. 2nd, we’re going to spend an entire week her. Today she gives us some insight on how she arrived here, the importance of experiencing the “open mic”, quick overview of her new project.

Get To Know… Niyat from Ethos Music Group on Vimeo.

Today – Get To Know Niyat. Tomorrow – Get To Know K-OTIX. (Trust me, you don’t wanna miss tomorrow’s episode.)

The story of my history with the Niyat takes us way back; about as far back as I can take it. It was our first public show as a group. We weren’t even going by “K-OTIX” yet – we were still “Guess Who”. (That’s a story for another time.) The show took place in a spot that epitomizes “hole in the wall”; it had to have been an abandoned home that had floodlights brought in to light it. There were no working utilities, but it was filled with people. Looking back on it, the “Soul Shack” was probably in violation of every building and health code that existed. But it was that show that introduced us to most of the people that we’d be working with throughout our careers, including two members of The Niyat – Snap and D-ology.

Back then they were part of a larger collective called the “Psycho Ward”, which rivaled Wu Tang in its size, scope, and talent. They basically had a lock on the scene at the time. Snap was a member of a subgroup called “Poetic Souls”; D-ology was a part of “Darkside”; Synato Watts started out with “Alphabet Soup”. (I’m pretty sure that I remember all of this correctly. If I need any correcting, please let me know.)

After that show, we chopped it up with everybody there; it was our first real introduction to the scene. As we were heading out the back we bumped into D-ology, who was just kind of freestyling to himself in the middle of the street. His freestyles sounded better than anything that we’d ever written. We stood there for about 3 hours, late into the night, watching him freestyle flawlessly about any and everything that came to mind. Wow.

A few months later, we were in the studio recording our first collaboration with them, on a track called “Up Next To Flex”, also featuring a young DJ Cozmos on the mic, as well as the cuts. If I can find a presentable version of this track I’ll share it someday, at great risk of public humiliation. Don’t get me wrong – the song goes hard, but it’s very early 90s.( I think I used the word “representing” at least 3 times. Yikes.)

As the Psycho Ward started going through its transitional period in the late 90s, the members began to splinter off and form other groups. One of the crews born from this was The Niyat. Their story is the same one that can probably be repeated in every city of this country: artists with limitless talent that eclipses who most people consider the greatest. Yes, we grew up listening to Rakim, KRS, Scarface, Nas, etc – but the lyrics that these guys were spitting at home rivaled anything that was being broadcast on the airwaves. They actually became the standards by which we would gauge our skills.

And we tell them this. It’s no secret. When I’m in a room with them I feel wack by comparison. I can listen to verses that they recorded ten years later and finally catch what they were talking about a decade before. It’s not fair.

They characterize themselves in the video, but these are my observations as an outsider:

Synato is the emotional center of the group. He’s the one that more or less dictates the direction of each sound and provides the emotional backdrop. Snap is a rapper’s rapper. FWMJ describes him best when he says that Snap makes the English language sound like a fun language to learn. His wordplay is sickeningly intricate. D-ology is the most ominous and enigmatic lyricist that I’ve ever worked with. He has a presence that humbles most people. The room shifts when he enters, and people cling onto his every word.

I’m not going to say too much more about them now, because they’re prepping a body of work right now that will support everything I’m saying about them – and more. Ladies and gentlemen – my favorite MCs of all time…

Damien

“Aintcha?” featuring D-ology, Snap, & K-Rino

“The Science Pt. 1″ featuring D Rose, Big Mon, Synato Watts, and Snap)

More Info:

Niyat On Myspace

Remaking Taster’s Choice: Part 2 – Laying The Vocals from Ethos Music Group on Vimeo.

We’re always doing 2-3 things at a time. So it’s no surprise that on the same day that we shot “Play It Cool”, D Rose and I met a little early to re-record some vocals for the remastering of Taster’s Choice, which was already in progress.

We didn’t have a lot of time, but got it all done. Here’s a look at the vocals for the “What You Want” remix, “Blues For Trust”, and a headstart on his next album.

Remaking “Taster’s Choice” – Part 1: Laying the Tracks from Ethos Music Group on Vimeo.

This was the mission: to not only remaster, but recreate D Rose’s instant classic of an album, “Taster’s Choice”. The original version was about 90% of what we intended it to be, and we needed to improve it. This meant re-tracking the music, replacing some vocals, and redoing the entire mix and master from scratch.

This video is the condensed version of a recent 8-hour session in which DJ Cozmos and I laid all the tracks for the project. You’ll also catch a preview of a track for his next project (already in progress) at the 3:35 mark.

Damien

Most people that know of K-OTIX / The Legendary KO came to know us with the release of “Universal” back in 2001. As great of an album as it was, some of the most frequently asked questions were about the cover. Whose idea was it to do the cover? What was the inspiration? Is it true that there was another version of the cover?

For the first time ever, all of these questions will now be answered…

And in case you didn’t fully understand how we felt about the situation:

FWMJ’s Editor’s Note after the jump.

We wrap up the first round of “Get To Know…” with a look into the world of K-OTIX aka The Legendary KO

The FWMJ Edit

Thanks to everyone who contributed their time for the making of this first round of “Get To Know” videos. More importantly, thanks to everyone who supported all of the artists over the last couple of weeks. “Get To Know” will return next month with more from the artists that you’ve come to love, along with batch of new artists!

We leave you with a new, exclusive track from K-OTIX – “Be ABout It”, produced by the ubiquitous King Coz.

K-OTIX “Be About It” produced by King Coz

More Info:
The Ko Show
K-OTIX Dot Com
KO Myspace
KO Facebook
Damien’s Twitter
Damien’s Facebook

Get To Know Mic Skills from Ethos Music Group on Vimeo.

Get To Know… Rad from Ethos Music Group on Vimeo.

Today we present a look at two rising stars in Houston, Mic Skills and Rad. Join us on Monday when we’ll wrap up “Get To Know” Week with The Niyat and The Legendary KO!!

One thing that I’ve learned in my “fifty-leven” years of making music is to recognize good music when I see it. I’ve come across a countless number of musicians who have been so consumed with their personal success that they fail to embrace raw talent that has the potential to shape the landscape of music to come.

Over the last couple of years, I’m grateful to have been introduced to some younger talent here on the Houston scene. Of course you already know about H.I.S.D, but today you get to know Mic Skills and Rad.

KO featuring Hero & Rad – “Destiny”

Mic Skills – “Criminal”

Mic Skills featuring KO – “Ultimate Weapon (Remix)”

More info:

Mic Skills (including info on his new album, “Defiant”)

Rad (including info on his new album, “Resilience”)

]]> http://thekoshow.com/index.php/2009/03/13/get-to-know-mic-skills-get-to-know-rad/feed/ 0 http://thekoshow.com/index.php/2009/03/12/get-to-know-hisd/ http://thekoshow.com/index.php/2009/03/12/get-to-know-hisd/#comments Thu, 12 Mar 2009 14:51:56 +0000 KO Show Admin http://thekoshow.com/?p=80

Today we present ?uestlove’s favorite group to watch for in 2009, H.I.S.D.

H.I.S.D.:

MCs – Savvi, Scottie Spitten, Equality, L Da Voice

Producers: King Midas, E. Classic, Soul One (Collectively known as GoldenSoulClassics)

I first became aware of H.I.S.D. a few years ago thanks to Soul One, who’s 1/3 of the GoldenSoulClassics triumvirate that shapes the sounds of the collective. I’d known as a DJ, and he was telling me about this new crew that he was a part of:

“It’s called H.I.S.D.”

“Like – like, the school district?”

“Well, yeah – but it obviously stands for something else. ‘Hueston Independent Spit District.’ Or you can switch out ‘Spit’ with ‘Slang’ or substitute with something else.”

“I… see…”

“Don’t get it twisted – the crew goes hard. We got team of producers, some emcees and DJs, and it’s all coming together pretty nicely.”

Despite my initial confusion with the name, I trusted Soul One’s endorsement. Weeks later, I attended a show to see D Rose, and HISD was on the bill. (Unfortunately, I caught the last song of their set.) But looking at the collective, I recognized Savvi because he’d been on the scene for a while, and we’d talked in passing a few times about doing some work together. While I didn’t know the rest of the group at the time, I did notice that they had a respectable crowd that had come out to see them. Mental note made. I needed to see what was up with this “HISD”.

When D Rose was in the pre-production stage of Taster’s Choice, he sent over a track that was in consideration for the album, and he wanted Big Mon and me to jump on it. It was tentatively titled “The Caper”:

D Rose featuring KO – “The Caper” (Demo)

I could tell that it wasn’t a DJ Cozmos track, and I initially thought that he was producing the entire project. He said that some young cat named King Midas produced it. I was like:

“Who is King Midas?”

“He produces for HISD.”

“I keep hearing about this damn HISD thing! I really need to see what’s going on.”

So I start to check out their myspace page and website, and lo and behold – they lived up to the hype. The first thing I noticed was that they had an energy and freshness that some of us more… seasoned artists may have allowed to slip away. At the risk of sounding cliché, they made me realize that making music could be fun again.

I caught up with E. Classic through a message board and set up a rendezvous to purchase their debut, “The District”. I think it was the last physical CD that I’ve purchased. If it ends up being the last CD that I ever buy, then it was worth it.

I expected an album with a “throwback” sound to it, which would have worked for me. But I was pleasantly surprised to find that while the sound of the album was very much in the now, the feel of it recalls late 80s / early 90s hip hop, when artists seemed to genuinely enjoy making music.

I think I’ve told them this before, but I can honestly say that they’ve renewed my vigor for making enjoyable music. I went through my phase of taking everything too seriously and being too analytical with what I created. As I began to infiltrate their camp and impose myself on tracks that may have been designated for the core members (just kidding… maybe) I started to understand why so many people were drawn to them so quickly – it’s just fun. They do it because they have an absolute passion for it. If you sit in a room with them for an hour, they’ll spend 55 minutes laughing, philosophizing, and arguing about music, and the final 5 minutes creating classics born out of those discussions.

In the coming months you’ll get to learn a lot more about them, as I go behind the scenes to document the making of their new album, along with a host of other things that I can’t really talk about just yet. Yes – ?uestlove endorsed them. There’s a reason why, and you’re going to find out sooner than you think.

Damien

H.I.S.D. – “Never Die”

H.I.S.D. – “Bang Out Music”

More info:
www.peaceuvmine.com
HISD on Myspace
Savvi on Twitter
King Midas on Twitter
Soul One On Twitter
Flash Gordon Parks on Twitter

“Get To Know…” Week picks up steam today with a double dose from Kay and Starchy Arch.

If you’ve been following Rappers I Know for a while, then you’ve probably seen Kay’s name pop up more than any other artist on this site. By far, he’s the most ubiquitous member of the collective, and not coincidentally one of the most sought after collaborators. I’ve gone on record as saying that he may be one of the most individually talented artists that i’ve ever worked with.

We met Kay around ‘95 or ‘96 through DJ Cipher. He’d just moved back into town from college, and the two of them had begun working together as Example. In the decade and a half since, we’ve collaborated with him more than any other artist. He’s been featured on every release of ours since 2001’s Universal.

In late 1999, we silently began work on a project that would eventually become Ethos, and over the next few years turned it into an exercise in self-development. The purpose of Ethos was to accelerate our songwriting skills while strengthening our production abilities. The result was a snapshot of our collective at the time, including contributions from DJ Cozmos, D Rose, Michele Thibeaux, V Zilla, and a host of others. (We’re going to revisit Ethos in the coming weeks.)

The momentum from that led to Kay’s work with The Foundation and Nicolay, as well as a host of other projects. He’s never been one to shy away from work with others. That work ethic has made him one of the most sought after lyricists that i’ve known personally. We’ll have to do a separate entry for his other projects; there’s not enough space here to discuss everything that he’s done.

Kay and DJ Cipher introduced us to Starchy Arch around the time that we began working on the 48 Seasons album. They would always play us verses from this young cat who could literally flow over any track – and do it well. He collaborated with us on one of the most poignant songs from that album, “Unemployed N****s”.

We went to DJ Cipher’s studio one night to record the track, and it was my first time watching Arch’s recording process firsthand. He came in just after we’d recorded our verses, and we were listening to the playback. After salutations, he listened to the song a couple of times. Then he stood up with a bottle of adult beverage and pulled out a cigarette. He went outside for about 15 minutes, and came back inside, heading directly for the booth. A few minutes later, this was the result:

KO featuring Starchy Arch “Unemployed N****s”

He’s definitely not an artist that feels bound by subgenres. He sounds equally as impressive on a track with Paul Wall as he does Kay. That’s a good trait to have. This dude is going places. As he puts it so eloquently in his own words: “My watch is jackin’ off; that means my time is coming.”

Damien

Kay Featuring Starchy Arch “Ms. Jones”

KO Featuring Starchy Arch “Swang”

For more info:

Kay

Kay’s Twitter
Kay Myspace
Foundation Myspace
The Foundation Website

Starchy Arch
Playa Music
Starchy Arch Myspace

Today we get familiar with Lower Life Form, a hip hop band from Houston, TX and part of the Rappers I Know family.

Don’t get it twisted – this isn’t drunken-frat-party-white-boy-rap. (At least, not anymore.) My first introduction to Lower Life Form was watching Ish and PhD perform at some dark, underground spot in Houston. Ish was doing his thing on the 1’s and 2’s, and PhD was…. well, PhD. He was slightly inebriated, to say the least, and I was absolutely certain that he was going to fall off the stage at any moment. (He didn’t.)

Talking to them afterwards, PhD explains that he just rolls like that – living the high life and enjoying it all the way. That’s been the mantra of the crew ever since, and they’ve put together a collective of musicians who share the same balls-to-the-wall attitude that has cultivated a growing following. When you’re around them you get the sense that they don’t take themselves too seriously, and that’s a good thing. Stick around long enough, and they’ll probably become your favorite band.

Damien

Check this out:

Lower Life Form featuring D Rose - “Elevate”

More info on Lower Life Form:

www.myspace.com/lowerlifeform

Welcome to Rappers I Know’s “Get To Know” Week!

First up, we’re featuring the Kashmere Don himself, the much-heralded D. Rose.

I caught up with D Rose on a windy Houston afternoon, interrupting his downtown video shoot for “Beautiful World” for a quick look at one of the most talented, hard-working lyricists out there. He’s been a staple of the Rappers I Know family since day one. Do a quick search for him on the site, and you’ll see how much work he’s put in.

D Rose, along with DJ Cozmos, released a classic album titled “Taster’s Choice“. If you don’t have it yet, you owe it to yourself to get your hands (or keyboard) on it. In fact, D Rose tells you how to get a copy on the video above.

Editor’s note: Brew of Lower Life Form is also one of the featured artists on Taster’s Choice. (Sorry, Brew – we owe you a beer. A cheap one.)

Damien

Check this out:

D Rose “Just Listen” (Produced by Chris Dave)

Coming soon – behind the scenes footage of the “Beautiful World” video shoot.

Follow D Rose:
www.myspace.com/drose
twitter.com/kashmere_don