Hired Gun one of the ILLEST MC's from NYC and a good friend of mine has been featured on the site iHipHop.com. So, what I need ALL my Hip-Hop heads to do is go onto the site and check out the feature, leave a comment and spread the link around. Also, if you do that you can get some free downloads of some of HG's music too! (You know how much we LOVE FREE DOWNLOADS!!!)
One other thing to mention is the track "Unforgivable Blackness" This track is amazing it really is and guess what, you get it for FREE! (See how we treat you here we're so good to our Hip-Hop heads!)
Lyrically in the ranks of Jay Z, Nas, Eminem, Atmosphere, and Mos Def, Mike Faceless has made his mark in the underground. From Free styling on street corners in VA beach and Southern Cali to performing with the likes of Pharcyde and Dilated Peoples, Face is known to be a contender in the hip hop world. His Charisma is matched by few live or in the studio and his heart is indeed truly dedicated to music. Mike Faceless is also an accomplished producer, writing tracks for his group project Pocket Change and working on putting together his own production company.
He has just released his album, “Heir To The Throne”.
The album as a whole includes skilled precision, witty lyricism, nice production, nicely constructed beats and you can sense the work that went into this album.
The Track “The Coming” has a real nice beat and melody and the lyricism blew me away. It was fast, precise and witty.
The beat is not too complex but it works well and this is going to be a definite club banger and works as an Introduction to the album. Setting up the listener to expect more of this lyricism and tight production.
I’ve known Faceless for a while now and I know that all of his work is on point. Sometimes, the beat may be a little off-key but, the lyricism always makes up for it and he puts his all into every single project that he works on.
Track 3, “If You Don’t Know” is an explanation of who Faceless is. Faceless describes who he is and the way he rhymes.
The track isn’t aggressive it just emphasises the point that most Underground artists don’t get the recognition that they deserve, which is true with Faceless.
Some of the lyrics are a little juvenile I have to be honest but this was a very small part of the track when Faceless talks about being “Cuter than Jigglypuff.”
The beat is simple, which is good as some artists use a complex beat to cover-up the fact that they cannot rhyme well. So, by using this simple beat it allows the listener to actually take-in what Faceless is saying and helps to appreciate the “Swagger” of the artist.
Track 5, “Say My Name” has a really nice beat, has a catchy hook consisting of “Say My Name/ Say My Name/ Say My Name”.
The way Faceless rhymes shows that as an Underground rapper, he wants recognition; he’s been working hard and wants people to take notice of him. This theme is apparent throughout the whole album and it’s plausible.
Faceless rhymes with passion and I have to say this is one of my favourite tracks of the album just because of the sheer work that’s gone into it.
One line in particular that I like is, “Call me the David Beckham of rap” I’m not sure if you want to compare yourself to David Beckham as he’s not the greatest of footballers. (Just a little note for you Mike!) But, I understand the concept. The track is well produced and the beat is a little bit more complex than the beats used in previous tracks.
“Fire And Ice” is an amazing track and tries something buy using an electric guitar as the main focus of the beat, teamed with some fast-paced drums and a fast-paced rhyming style.
This track stands out for the sheer fact that it is something new which works extremely well. Faceless again sounds as though rhyming comes natural to him and as if no effort is needed and he sounds relaxed.
The title track “Heir To The Throne” is well-constructed, Faceless’s lyricism is nice and relaxed. But, I was expecting more with this track. I was expecting a more complex and sinister sounding beat, the beat was simple and I’m not too sure if it really pulled the track together. I feel like Faceless could have had a more complex beat which would have definitely made this trac
k a lot more enjoyable.
One track that stood out to me due to Faceless’s lyricism and the beat being complex and making this track very enjoyable was, track 12 “I Remember” the track is very well produced and put-together and stood out as one of the best tracks on the album.
“Heir To The Throne” is a very well produced album teamed with an extremely talented Hip-Hop artist.
The lyricism is relaxed and is clear, Faceless doesn’t sound like he’s trying and that emphasises the fact that Faceless has a raw talent and could well be one of those names you hear a lot in the future.
We don't know if the phrase "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" has its origins in Kentucky, but what we do know is that rap superstars Nappy Roots apply it regularly. It was a little known group of rappers from Kentucky and a rough around the edges crooner from North Carolina who took the rap game by storm in 2002 when Nappy teamed up with now R&B superstar Anthony Hamilton to introduce the world to hip-hop from a Nappy perspective. That song, "Po' Folks" went on to become a smash hit and delivered Nappy Roots a platinum album for their freshman endeavour, the highly acclaimed "Watermelon, Chicken, and Grits" which also garnered the gang a pair of Grammy nominations.
What better way to follow up a smash hit than with another smash hit. "After seeing the response we got from the world, and the way our fans were able to relate to 'Po' Folks', it only made sense to reconnect with A. Ham for 'Sick 'N Tired'," says Skinny Deville, the self proclaimed Blues Traveler and Captain of the Nappy movement. Once again, the formula worked and Nappy Roots and Anthony Hamilton earned a gold album with "Wooden Leather", Nappy Roots' second and final album on Atlantic Records.
Fast forward 5 years... a new album, a new label, and a new sense of connection to their millions of fans, the Kentucky quintet returns with "The Humdinger", released on their own imprint Nappy Roots Entertainment Group, distributed by Fontana/Universal Music Group. Despite all that is new, there remains one constant, Anthony Hamilton returns to the fold once more to round out the collaborative trilogy with Nappy's second single "Down 'N Out".
Organix Part One is finished. The topic was, Summer Holidays wanna say thanks to all the MC's who took part check the video on here or visit the HipHopInformant's youtube channel to see more videos!
Welcome to the authentic face of British hip-hop! Welcome to the world of Authentic Bros! Consisting of multi-talented brothers, Babak, a Sound-Engineer (Vocals, Mixing, Beats, Production), and Reza, a Video-Producer (Vocals, Beats), the duo have been steadily forging their own unique brand of multidimensional, emotive urban soundscapes. Raised from a young age on a diverse palette of influences ranging from commercial big-beat rap, explosive indie hip-hop, UK grime, drum’n’bass, R’n’B, reggae, ragga, dubstep, reggaeton and traditional Arabic and Persian music, the duo searched extensively for a creative outlet to realise their ambitions of fusing these base elements into a new breed of music. Frustrated by the lack of diversity on the UK urban scene, they set about creating a new vision and a new sonic journey for the people of the world.
HipHopInformant: How long have you been involved in Hip-Hop and how did it all begin?
Authentic Bros: We've been involved in Hip-Hop just over 10 years. It all began from school field to the streets where we used to spend a lot of time beat boxing and free-styling away with friends. At that time we never thought about pursuing music as a career, though we always knew there was something there to nurture. It was approximately 6 years ago when we started attending production classes, from then we realised that we can specialise ourselves in specific fields, consisting of Video Production (Reza – TV Technology & Production BSc) and Audio Production (Babak – Sound Engineering & Production BSc). We aimed to establish our career not just as artists or MCs but also as producers, giving us the advantage of expressing our form of art in an audio and visual format.
HipHopInformant: Where are you from originally and, does that influence your music and sound?
Authentic Bros: We're originally from the Middle East, southwest Iran to be exact, historically known as Elam within the kingdom of Mesopotamia. The style of music hailing from those areas is very oriental, spiritual and philosophically driven, this has definitely had an influence on our music and sound in various ways as it can be heard on the majority of records we produce. Though it is obvious that we still keep the hip-hop genre alive within our productions and at the same time carrying the British style, but as a whole we have a world and oriental concept.
HipHopInformant: How would you describe your music to people that haven’t heard your music before? Authentic Bros: A twist of world music within Hip-Hop/Rap simultaneously converged with soul. Keeping it as real and genuine, hence authentic as viable. Therefore providing the listener with what we would expect to hear. So long as it is truthful to us then it would definitely be truthful to the people. We try as much as we can to bring back the main elements and the real essence of not just Rap, Hip Hop etc. but rather the music. People can expect to hear variable poetic contents, from spiritual to physical, worldly matters to life and the list can go on. Though at the end of it all we highly recommend everyone to check our music and off course the videos and derive their own decisions and conclusions. HipHopInformant: How do you feel about the state of Hip-Hop in the UK at the moment? Authentic Bros: Quite good, definitely taken to another level in comparison to last year, which can only result in a higher level for next year and the following years.
HipHopInformant: Tell me about your new EP, “For You”- what can listeners expect?
Authentic Bros: The EP consists of 3 diverse productions and their instrumentals. The first song ‘For You’ is based on a true loving relationship, to love for real rather than for lust. Inspired by real life and mainly aiming to convey the message of keeping the love like it was the first time. We shot the video in Majorca, since we felt it was definitely a suitable location for the song and the particular Electronica/Trance sound that it carries.
The second song ‘Same Rules’ is more about life from a world perspective. When we produced ‘Same Rules’ our aim was to put forward the message of peace, unity, care and harmony. The production it self has a Middle-Eastern sound to it much like the Reggaeton genre. The video for ‘Same Rules’ is currently in production, based on mainly a 3D graphics along with oriental set designs.
Finally the third song ‘True Light’ is more of a Hip Hop production from an electronic sound palette. With ‘True Light’ we wanted to convey the message that rather than entering the music industry for solely fame and games, we actually here to represent on a real perspective and aim to put soul within our form of art, hence ‘True Light’, being the light of God.
HipHopInformant: How did the name Authentic Bros come about?
Authentic Bros: The name came about due to the fact that we're brothers and also the fact that we’ve incorporated our roots and culture within our art, therefore aiming to give the productions authenticity, hence Authentic Bros.
HipHopInformant: Does your music have a message, if so what is that message?
Authentic Bros: Definitely has a message as all music has whether positive or negative. The messages mainly revolve around life, humanity, love, peace, respect, unity and everyday events within our lives.
HipHopInformant: Finally what does the future hold for Authentic Bros?
Authentic Bros: At the moment we're working on an album, which should have a large number of styles in terms of beats, sound, poetry and generally the music as a whole. We’re not sure exactly when the release date will be, though hopefully by the end of 2009 or early 2010, but keep us in your scope as we will be announcing the release date. We also have a number of videos in the production line so definitely check out our myspace, youtube, etc.
HipHopInformant: Any shout-outs?
Authentic Bros: A shout out to yourself Nikhil for reaching out to us, and much respect to britishhiphop.co.uk.
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