After speaking to a friend (Sumeet Paul) about the previous New Music blog about sidekicks and he mentioned a few that deserve their own spot.

1. 
   Magoo. This artist used to be attached at the hip to Timberland. They had some amazing hits and a couple albums together. His high pitched voice and staccato cadence is really catchy. But for whatever reason Timbo started working with Justin Timberlake and started producing some major hits and Magoo got left alone.
   Timbaland feat. Missy Elliott & Magoo – Here We Come
2. 
   LaTavia Robertson. Former member of Destiny’s Child. Who really knows why they broke up. Some posit that it was an image issue, others say the money was getting spread out too thin. Either way all I know is that I had to google her name to find out who the “Other” members of DC were. We still love you.
   Destiny’s Child – No No No
3. 
   Farrah Franklin. Former member of Destiny’s Child. Again I had to google this singer. Apparently she tried for a bit to push the solo career and below is one of the projects of that endeavour.
   Extraordinary Love
4. 
   Sheldon Haley. When I looked up this third member of rock rap group N.E.R.D I spelt his name wrong. Then had to go to the Wiki N.E.R.D entry, scrolled down to the bottom of the page to find the first and only mention of his name. Then I clicked on his name for his Wiki entry and it is literally only a few lines long. This truly exemplifies a third wheel. It is obvious that Pharrel  and Chad Hugo get all the credit and accolades but it is not obvious what Sheldon even does. After some basic research I found out he plays drums and does back up vocals, for real? We know StarTrek production knows a thing or two about beats and background vocals? I hate to say it but it seems Sheldon was put there because he knows them, or because three people are a “band” and not a duet. Something seems shady. Nonetheless – here you go.
   N.E.R.D – Rockstar
5. 
   
   The Band from the Dave Mathew’s Band. I am not going to bother looking up their names but when you think of Dave Matthews you think of the white guy singer with the raspy voice and the cool talented band of black musicians behind him. This is for them. In fact my favourite song from the group.
   Dave Matthews Band – #41
6. 
   Milo from Prozzak. If you are from Canada and watched Much Music in the 90′s you might remember a group by the name of Prozzak. Well before groups like the Gorrilas and others only performing as cartoon avatars there was Prozzak. Made up of two of the members from another Canadian classic band The Philosopher Kings, these guys had a couple of great hits. Ok so if you passed the test of even remembering this band, or remember their songs of videos you would most likely remember the main character and singer (Simon) however there was always a buff, blonde guy who didn’t seem to do much in the videos except save Simon from unfortunate incidents. Here’s to you Milo and all the other sidekicks out there.

Thanks to my friend Sumeet for the help.

Peace and Pomegranates
Ian

Like I’ve said before in this blog a poet or spoken word artist can have many sources of inspiration and many styles of delivery. And even though it is not a necessary condition to study other spoken word artists, poets or writers to improve your craft or understand it, I believe it does help. By studying and examining other forms of this field you are able to better get a handle of what it is that you do, how you do it, how it is effective or not.

Despite the fact many poets believe their work to be completely original material (especially in slam) they are wrong, someone has been saying the same things, sometimes in the same way for years. So not only do I find it important to study whatever craft you are in but also essentially for the growth of oneself as a poet.

I was interviewed a few months ago regarding this topic and apparently said some unconventional statements which not everyone agreed with. Which in my opinion is fine, but does not change the fact that having knowledge about your craft only makes you better.

Find the interview here – http://www.raiseit.ca/spokenword/recipe-course-1/#more-152

There is a method to this seeming madness I assure you. The reason I mention this is because the other day I was really thinking hard about the processes of how I write and how that differs from many of my peers. In addition the topics that my friends and I write about are also starkly different. I often say to myself, “Daymn I wish I wrote that but I know that topic would never come to my mind,” or “Yeah, that is so a (insert dope poet’s name here) thing to do,” or “I could never get away with that.”

So I was wondering about what defines my style, how do I categorize my special blend of poetry? And even though I might be wrong and perhaps my colleagues would say something different, there are a few aspects of my life and learning which really influence the way I spit and what I spit about.

1. Hip Hop: Without a shadow of a doubt, hip hop and rap is a major factor in my delivery. I have always assumed myself as an MC and only recently accepted my identity as a poet. I was writing rhymes even before I really knew what poetry was. I love rhyming, I love delivering quick lines and I really love punchlines.Punchlines are like extended play’s on words or sometimes jokes (not all jokes are funny) using metaphors or similes. There is a poet here in Ottawa by the name of Synonymous and he is a beast at writing them and quoting them. For example, “The Bling Bling era was cute but its about to be done/ Ill leave ya full of clips/ like the moon blocking the sun,” – Immortal Technique.Hip Hop originally began as the voice of the down-trodden, the fed up, the vocal anarchist in a sense. And despite the glitz and glam of mainstream hip hop I still feel it has that edge. Even the stories on the radio are mostly about rags to riches.

   I also started my musical career as a battle MC so poetry Slams are right at home for me.
   Here is a really cool interview with Tupac who talks about the link between poetry and rap.
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vigPk9n5-50

2. 
   African-Canadian identity:
   I speak a great deal about Africa but in a manner and accent which is very North American. I think it gives a unique voice and perspective on the issue. I was also raised by Ghanaian parents but went to a very “white” school with a European curriculum. So this identity struggle which many 1^st generation Canadians face is something I hear in Canadian poetry. In addition, West Africans speak loud and use their hands so this is also evident in my poetry. Some critics have said it exudes a bravado, or macho when actually it is part of my cultural upbringing.
3. 
   Journalism: Apart from being a poet I am also a broadcast journalist. I did my masters in journalism about a year ago. For the past few years, I have had to opportunity to travel around the world telling stories. Many of these stories have become poems. When I write poetry or a journalistic piece I do tones of research. So my poems as well as the publications I produce have to be accurate to the best of my ability and knowledge. As a result, some pieces come across as history or recounts of an event, this style can be off putting to some.
4. 
   Theater/Dance: Theater and dance have been a major part of my life since high-school. I was in drama and musical theater and did considerably well. I took a few theater classes during my undergraduate degree as well. In turn, my stage presence involved a lot of theatrics: choreography, body movements and dynamism in voice.
5. 
   Humour: I am known as a jokester (most laugh at me instead of with me). However, I find it effective to throw a little bit of humour in my pieces. I have a few pieces which are straight jokes from the first line to the last. Even when tackling a serious issue I find the use of humour allows the subject manner to be more digestible and comprehensible. This has had the adverse effect however of audience members laughing when I step to the stage if they know my body of work because they expect to laugh, even when I am about to drop a serious piece. Sometimes audience members laugh at parts that were not intended to be funny.
6. 
   Theory: A few months ago I came across an article about Saul Williams. It was dissecting the process of what the author called Conjuring Culture. Whereby writers and thinkers would use old texts and historical references to “conjure” a new meaning for them. The author used a quote from Saul Williams who said, “The stuff that I’m reciting, they’re incantations, spells – we spell words – that we’re putting . . . that I’m just putting out there because I want that rippling effect to create the world I want to live in.”

   I attempt to do this trough my poetry. I feel there are a number of interpretations and messages in any event, word, metaphor, image or artifact so seeking a new found meaning is something I try and do, especially with words. Here is an example of one of those pieces, it is called Temple, hope you enjoy!

Lately I’ve been prone to migraines.

It is a searing, stinging troubling throbbing torture like 200 jets in my head.

Visiting  and breezing through military camps like I tour NATO
But I don’t mean those fighter stealth broad bombers
dropping oblong, abominable, bang buzzing
blasting, bursts of boom!

I am talking about the gang crew clik of jets
in that Broadway play snapping and stomping on the bob fossey of my existence
200 tap dancers
Ttttt tap dancing on the stain glass ceiling of my consciousness

The pain is right here.
Behind my eyes and over to the left
my temple hurts.

It was about the same time I walked away from God.
Undid the seemingly useless moral fibers of my soul
You see, I wasn’t cut from the same cloth so I thread lightly
into…

wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony

I was given warnings
Sharp pains in the side of my head and behind the windows to my soul
But I didn’t take heed
Brushed the dirt off my shoulder like a disgruntled paleontologist

And now they are back
with thunderous ovation
relenting encore for the 200 stars of West Side Story
Tonight they’ll dance on my ear drum like celestial collisions

And my friends don’t understand this pain
We are not on the same plane
Flying so low I cant see anyone around

My blood is boiling and I cannot see my own self-esteem

This period in my life came too late like expectant mothers

It is like God took away the music of my life and left me decomposed
My temple is breaking
The god in me is dying

And if you think this is blasphemy you are not paying attention
And if you think this is a metaphor you are not paying attention

The temporal lobe is home to the primary auditory cortex
The place of hearing, comprehension, speaking and language
So when you read a spiritual text
It is the temple which gathers, analyses, stores and makes sense of it
When you pray
is it the temple which relays the information to God

And if the temple is where God works
And if the mind is where your temple is
Then God works in your mind

My temple is aching

John Chapter 1 verse 1 in the bible says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

Our words derive from our temples.
I haven’t been praying as much so
My temple is damaged
I don’t read my Bible as much so
My temple is tainted

Proverbs chapter 18 verse 21 says, “Death and life are in the power of the tounge.”
It is only God who can bring life or death
But our temples is where our tounges garner direction.

And if you think this is a metaphor, you are not paying attention

You see the church of God does not reside in the buildings of stone and granite
But in the hearts of mankind
Unfortunately lately I’ve been wearing my heart on my sleeve and have suicidal tendencies

My temple is bleeding
Right above my pineal gland
Also known as the third eye
It stopped secreting die methyl tripta mean which is used in meditation, and prayer
And induces dreams
I have not been sleeping well lately
This is not a coincide
So God if you are listening
My temple is broken
And I am need of some help
I understand that Rome wasn’t built in a day
But word temple derives from the Latin temporas
Meaning both time and place of worship
This is time is ours
Lets rebuild

This post is less of a self-righteous exercise to illustrate how dope of a poet I think I am but rather an explanation of why I do what I do when I spit. Of course this is not a comprehensive list, there are many factors that go

Peace and Pomegranates
Ian

This blog is dedicated to the other guy, the side kick, the fifth wheel in musical groups or collaborations. You know that one rapper, singer or instrumentalist who is always around the crew and sometimes does things with the band, but wasn’t really ever a member? Or that guy who’s only job it seems is to be a hype man? Or that artist that is forever doomed to be “second place” to the star whom he or she associated with.

1. Dj Spinderalla.

   Lets start off with the old school. Everyone born in the past 40 years has to know the Jam “Push It.” It comes with a dance move and everything. Most anyone can sing the chorus, hum the melody and I know a handful of people (male and female) that can spit the whole song top to bottom without missing a beat. However, most will attribute the song to the 90’s female rap duo – Salt and Peppa!

   There is also a reality show about the two. Interesting enough only true heads would know that there was another member of the group, Spinderella. She acted as the group’s DJ and to be frank I don’t know if she had a job beyond that. Did she produce beats? Did she rap?

   Anyways check out this song called “Spinderella’s Not a Fella” somewhat of an ode to the “third” member of Salt n’ Peppa.

2. 
   Sweetback. Anybody that knows me knows that I loooove me some Sade. And although I am intensely enamored by the beauty and hypnotizing voice of Sade herself, the credit for the instrumentation, writing and overall product of a Sade record should go to the band that backs Sade – Sweetback. It is a shame that I love their music with Sade so much but I have no idea of any of their names. Nonetheless I found that they have a different group outside of Sade and put together records. Their albums are probably the most underground amazing records I have ever heard. Here is a taste Hope She’ll Be Happier Ft. Leroy Osbourne
3. 
   Dj Jazzy Jeff. IN WEST PHILADELPHIA BORN AND RAISED… If you cannot finish this sentence perhaps you should not treat your self to some ice cream tonight! It is part of a song by the DUO Fresh Price and Jazzy Jeff. In the 90′s around the time of the show Prince of Bel Air these two were dropping hits; Summer Time, Parents Just Don’t Understand. But over the years as Will Smith started becoming a mega superstar in both film and music the two disbanded. Will Smith went on to unprecedented success and we didn’t hear from Jeff. There have been rumors about what caused the split up or how Jeff actually feels about Will and his current status. Regardless of the hearsay, Jeff has been doing shows, producing records and albums which have a sound different from the music he was making with Will. The new neo-soul smooth vibe works well on Jeff. And trust me, his albums are classic. Don’t believe me, check this tune, DJ Jazzy Jeff feat. Raheem Davaughn – My Soul Ain’t For Sale.
4. Jermaine Jackson. It is no secret that none of the siblings in the Jackson family could even attempt to match the celebrity status of their brother Micheal. People often forget however that Joe Jackson ensured that every sibling was talented performers and musicians, even Latoya got a song. But IMO the sibling felt the shadow of MJ the worst was Jermaine. I mean he is really talented, really tried for a music career and continues to drop music. Alas, who listens? This one is for you Jermaine. This song called Word To the Bad and I think addresses Micheal’s stardom.
5. Megan White. I am not saying Meg is less talented than her ex-husband (I used to think brother) and band mate Jack White. But it seems Jack is getting all the gigs, gets most of the press when a new project comes out. He is also the one joining new bands and creating what seems like a new project every few months. I am just saying I remember you Megan and I hope the public does too.
6. Stephen Marley.

   No he doesn’t have an album with Nas, no he doesn’t have a major hit played in all the Toronto clubs all the time, no he did not marry a member of the Fugees but he deserves our attention. Traffic Jam.

7. Fonzworth Bentley.

   I know this artist as the guy who held up umbrellas for Puff Daddy a few years ago. Since then Fonz has been featured in magazines, music videos published books and albums and even had his own television show training young G’s how to be Gents. I still don’t know his full story, how we went from house maid to millionaire but his story should be an inspiration for all side kicks, personal valets and hype men, one day you too can be famous!  Everybody by Fonzworth Bentley

8. Spliff Star.

   Flipmode Squad aint nutting to F with. I can name most of the members of the legendary squad and name a single from many of the artists on the roster. However probably the most visible of all the label’s members (apart from Busta Rhymes) is Spliff Star. He is in every Busta Rhymes video mostly ad-libling and providing a comedic character foil to Busta, he also acts as a hype man in live shows. While many members have left Flipmode to pursue their artistic career as it seemed Busta was the only one gaining notoriety or popularity from Flipmode, Spliff is almost forced to stay. He has attempted to put out a couple mediocre singles like Spliff Star – Lives on the Line. We will forget this song but we will try to not forget about you Spliff.

9. J.R Writer.

   When you mention the rap group Dip Set, you might think of Juelz, Camron and Jim Jones. I am not sure on the status of Writer, is he an actual member, affiliate? Either way it seems this brother (and one of the better spitters in the group) gets overlooked.  Bird Call
   

10. Broken Social Scene.

    This last docket on the list is homegrown. Broken Social Scene are a big deal in the world of indie music. They are like Canada’s supergroup. As a result they have propelled the careers of a few big names including Feist and Jason Collet. The reason I put BSS is because such a band shows us a lesson. The no matter how big or how famous you can get, there is always home, always a home musical entity you can call your own.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GpXkNWZRnc&feature=channel

    So if you are feeling as a sidekick in your own life, or can’t stand the shadow position you are playing in your job, school, social group or family, remember that they need you, you are essential for their existence. You are the Penny to their Go Go Gadget, the Pinky to their Brain, the Winnie to their Nelson (Mandela), without you there would be no them!

Have a great week.

Peace and Pomegranates

Ian

Since I’ve been professionally doing spoken word poetry I have been amazed at the type of shows and performances The Recipe and I receive as a result of what we do. We have performed at hip hop concerts, church events, fashion shows, community organization meetings, schools, festivals, etc. Sometimes at a performance venue, you stop, look around, take in the surroundings are realize that if it hadn’t been for poetry you would have never found yourself here.

Last night I had one of those moments. I met a new friend and fellow musician downtown as she was my ride to this show I was to perform at. The venue is a town called Wakefield Quebec. It is about 30 minutes from Ottawa. I had been there a few times before for concerts at the legendary Black Sheep Inn.

This time however was something a little different. I was part of a launch of a naked calendar featuring members of the Wakefield community. I wasn’t in the calendar but I was part of the entertainment for the launch. The launch and performance was part of a bigger festival called Wakefest which features music, dance, films, comedy and workshops.

Getting to Wakefield was a wonderful drive. There are miniature but beautifully chiseled mountain ranges in Quebec. It was like on your way to a Swedish spa. The sun was shining and hit the stone in just the right way to make them twinkle. The town sits on the Gatineau river to the front and to the back by a plethora of vegetation and forests, absolutely stunning.

When I arrived in the town there was a huge event with hundreds of people gathered around two TSN tents. Apparently Wakefield received a $25,000 community gift from Kraft Canada that goes towards completing facilities at the new Wakefield Community Centre.  Wakefield is a small village in the Outaouais region of Quebec with a population of 1,000 and I think everyone was at this event. There was free burgers, cake and kool aid. I was also on TV for a few seconds as part of the crowd when the town was getting their cheque.

Later in the evening most of the the township went over a few doors down for the launch of the naked launch. The event was super fun. It featured a number of comedians including an elderly Scottish clown man dressed like a woman. He was hilarious, busting jokes about the plights of senior citizens. There was also a a live, original soundtrack to two short films by Norman McLaren.

I was joined by Graeme Loh El and Array of Words and together we rocked Wakefield hard. We had a very short set but mixed rock, afro beat, poetry, comedy and hip hop all in one. It was really fun. As I was performing I noticed the unique way the moon light hit the adjacent water and created almost a streamline path of illumination towards the horizon.

And we are back at it tonight.

The big cities and big shows are fun and something any artist strives for but sometimes it’s the unexpected, unpredictable moments that define your career.

Peace and Pomegranates

Ian

Not all poets are musicians and not all musicians are poets. But this edition of New Music Sunday’s (double version because I missed last week) is dedicated to the musicians who are poets. Those who can rock out with a guitar or ride a beat and still offer audiences a healthy dose of lyrical madness. So let us begin.

1. Regina Spektor.

Regina has been a favourite of mine for nearly a decade now. A high school girlfriend put me onto her. Someone said to me the other day that she has a very “typical” contemporary pop-music sound. The only problem I have with that statement is that she has been doing her thing for over a ten years. So when your favourite hipster female vocalist was just earning her chops, Regina was rocking sold out indie crowds. She was born in Moscow and spent a majority of her life learning classical piano which is very evident in her piano heavy tunes.  I had to look at wiki for this but she has mastered a vocal singing style called the “Glottal Stop.”  For an example check out her smash hit Fidelity!

I however really am feeling this joint called “Lauging With.” The poetics are astouding, check em out. ”

No one laughs at God in a hospital
No one laughs at God in a war
No one’s laughing at God
When they’re starving or freezing or so very poor

2. Cee Lo Green.

Ok you might of heard this new viral jam called F You by an artist named Cee Lo. If you haven’t check it out here. Anyways many people have not made the connection to this amazing singer. His full name is Cee Lo Green and he was one half of the incredible duo Gnarles Barkley who delivered to the world this track if you don’t remember, Crazy! He’s been around for a while, even his daughter was on MTV’s My Super Sweet 16. But even before that Cee Lo got to fame with the legendary Atlanta based rap group – Goodie Mob which together with Andre 3000 and Big Boi from Outkast created the Dungeon Family. Not only is Cee Lo an amazing singer, rapper and performer but he is a crazy poet. Two tracks for you – All Day Love Affair

Yeah the sun is shining.
Looking like another wonderful day.
Look for my CD collection. Trying to find some good music to play.
While I am getting ready to face the world doing what I must do.. no sugar..
Nothing compares to waking up this morning to you.

White Boy’s Plan Freestyle - Boom

3. Radiohead.

One of the first concerts I went to by myself was a Radiohead concert. I took a 16 bus ride from Calgary to Vancouver. I don’t need to tell yall about Radiohead. If I do, you need to catch up a little. Sall good, the internet is a wonderful place. One of my favourite new jams from Radiohead. Reckoner

4.  Hawksley Workman.

Probably my favourite Canadian performer. You can catch him at a number of frosh weeks all across the country. I haven’t been following Workman for the past few years but this guy can write. He is originally from Hunstville Ontario. His performance shows are incredible. Doesn’t matter if he is solo on his keytar or with a full band, this guy rocks out hard! Anyways in my opinion the best example of his poetical stylings can be found in the track “Smoke Baby” from the album Lover/Fighter released in ’03.
Smoke baby, smoke baby
More alcohol baby
Cocaine in Montreal
And back out on the plane baby
An early flight will leave
And on it will be me, yeah
I’ll be half asleep
And you’ll get up at three

5. Cat Power.

Oh man do I love her voice! Raspy and soothing, soulful and heavy. Cat Power’s voice is absolutely hypnotizing but if the voice doesn’t get you the lyrics will and if the lyrics won’t this video will. Probably the best video concept I’ve seen in a while, enjoy! The Greatest

Melt me down
into big black armour
Leave no trace
Of grace
Just in your honor

6.  Timber Timbre.

I am sure I will be writing more about this brother as I only recently found out about him. Fellow poet and musician extraordinaire Brad Morden put me on just a few days ago.  All I gotta say is Wow! And they are Canadian! Check out Oh Messiah

7. Sondre Lerche.

I must of had the coolest ex because the aforementioned “copain de passe” also introduced me to this singer songwriter from Norway. I have no shame in saying this guy would have been a teen heartthrob in any decade. Kind of works out because his music runs through various genres and also styles. He is a multi-instrumentally proficient musician. He plays almost anything and everything and he records most of his albums himself in his room. In regards to his poetry, Rolling Stone wrote, “His weakness is his words. Lerche clearly puts effort into his poetry, but the results are often vague, and at worst they suggest a nonsensical translation of what might have been eloquent in the singer’s native tongue.”

I disagree and the song Two Way Monologue is one of the reasons why.

8. Turbulence.

When it comes to Reggae music I am very specific. I am not too sure why, probably the daily onslaught of Bob and Jimmy that my Dad would blare when he got home from work. Either way a recent trip to Rwanda rekindled my deep love for the music. I was working at a hip hop/youth magazine called BLINK. There the employees were very into Rasta tunes and put me onto who is now one of my favourite artists period. Turbulence is what you would call a conscious Reggae musician. He lives his words and although his words can be sometimes controversial he has made it his mission to educate and enlighten humans about the plight of Babylon.  Check out Ital Stew

I wouldn’t eat that if I were you/
Run pig run cow, run for your life
See the cannibal them come with the knife

9. Floetry.

This duo, I think now disbanded were tearing it up in the 90′s. One would sing the other would spit spoken word or rap. The two of them put out some remarkable gems and even wrote Butterflies for Micheal Jackson. I love concept tracks and this one does incredible justice. There is a big twist in this song/piece of poetry. Take a close listen and see if you can figure out what it is. Sunshine

10. Sade.

There will probably be a few people reading this that will disagree but I am the biggest SADE fan EVER! No one wants to test me on lyrics, on features, projects, her band, her life I know it all. A few years ago she was going on tour and I bought a ticket to see her Vancouver show, which was going to be her last show on her last tour ever. IT GOT CANCELED. True story I cried for like two days (ask my Mom.) I await the day that I can see her live. Anyways what I love about Sade’s lyrics is the simplicity of them. They are also often dark, deep and complex. Enjoy King Of Sorrow.

Next week I got your mix for the freshest most amazing saddest breakup songs ever!

Peace and Pomegranates
Ian

This week I’ve been making some pretty impulse decisions. And all of them have to do with seeing amazing female musicians. Arguably three of the best female artists of our generation.

1. Nneeka.

I last minute jumped in a car with some friends and headed to Toronto to watch this African talented bomshell drop. It was in this smaller sized club called El Mocambo. The event soon sold out and many of my friends were idling around the entrance attempting to get in, hope for a scalper to show up or be fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of Nneka through the patio corridor.

The opener was this Toronto based artist named Tanika Charles. I had known of Charles previously (I think we were Facebook friends) but I hadn’t actually heard her music. I was really impressed by her stage presence. He had a no hold bars approach to the microphone. She was fearless on stage and so was the crew she came with. All black, all female, all dope cast of characters on stage. If I could describe their set in anyway it is; Erykah Badu had a child with Diana Ross and went to school at the James Brown school of Rock and funk and then married all the members of the cast of Beat Street.

I am not too familiar with her catalog but she was dropping some gems. Her voice is powerful and she put all her emotional energy into every song. She was a great opener as she really got involved with the audience and got them pumped for Nneka. The one highlight of her set which totally sold Ms. Charles for me was when she dropped some lyrics over a Madlib beat (the headz will know what I am talking about) BOOM!

The Dj – E-Clair (of Bedouin Soundclash) was killing it all night! So people were ready to paaaarty!

The crowd was major hyped to see Nneka. She came out in an African print and looked stunning. Nneka is very easy to look at but what really gets me about this artist is her voice, both musically and naturally. She has a thick Nigerian accent and it is very high pitched. When she sings her high notes can break sound barriers, not in a Mariah Carey sort of way but in a whaling, crying, hurting sort of way. It as though she can only live or speak what she needs to whithout whaling it out and belting her voice, it is truely beautiful.

A friend of mine did an awesome review of the show Char Loro who included some video and fresh pictures so check it out here – Love Hard.

I don’t feel exactly the same way that Char did about everything. Although an exciting performance I think it took Nneka seemed tired in the first half and really didn’t get into the show till the latter half. However, I didn’t go to the show because of the songs necessarily (which are good) or go because of her smash it single Heartbreak. I went because Nneka is on some next level stuff. The combination of her ancestry (German and Nigerian), her lyrics, her passion and her media promotion right now I believe will make her a voice of our generation in a big sort of way. In a Bob Marley, Bob Dylan sort of way. I think she can be and is becoming the Tracy Chapman of this upcoming decade. She will be huge. And I know I will have an opportunity to recount the story of how I went to see her in Toronto. Nneka will be a legend (remember you heard it here first).

2. Janelle Monae

After just a couple days in Ottawa from the Nneka show a friend on Facebook mentioned in his status that Janelle Monae is opening for indie superstars Arcade Fire in Toronto. I have been following Monae for the past two years and have listened to all her catalog. I know this woman’s music in and out and I am absolutely in love. She is on some neo-spaceman, robot, dance party, soul-funk! Each one of her albums is a concept, a story and each album connects with each other which is absolutely amazing! My musical friend told me that her harmonies are different out of this world! I mentioned her in a previous blog.

So on a whim after seeing that she would be in Toronto I didn’t hesitate in buying a ticket. The show was on Toronto island and could hold thousands of people. However only a few hundred were crowded around the stage to see Janelle Monae. Most of them were there to see the headliners Arcade Fire and a majority didn’t even know who she was let alone her songs. I squeezed my way to the front to stand front row between hipster tweens who were secruing a good space for Arcade Fire.

When the band for Monae came out the first thing I noticed was the SWAG with a capital S.W.A.G! There was a drummer, a guitarist and a pianist. They were all dressed in black and white and had small accesorries that accented their own sense of style. The pianist had on white sunglasses and a bow tie, the drummer had on a WW1 pilot’s helmet and the guitarist with long silky hair had on dark sunglasses and a skinny tie, the nails on his one hand were painted white while the ones on the other were painted black, style!

Some errie, opera ballad type music began the set as all musicians had their backs turned to the audience. The figures cloaked in a black garment so as to not see their face came on stage. One of the phantoms removed their cloak to reveal the face of, Janelle Monae! And anyone that knows her knows that her hair is immaculate. The other two women with similar hair styles were back up dancers, not very good ones, they were just having fun on the stage but it was nonetheless entertaining.

Janelle  is the NEXT BIG DIVA (I said it!)

The show was incredible. She dropped all the hits and entertained the crowd with a spectrum of musical talent from ballads which illustrated her vocal range to dance tracks which exemplified her hot-stepping techniques. She even included a James Brown impression with a velvet robe being placed over her. I am not the first to say it but people have been calling her the next James Brown. Except she doesn’t seem like the type to hit women and have a drug problem.

Everything from the dancers multi-costume engagement to the donation of balloons and kazoos to the crowd made converts out of the mass majority who had no clue who she was prior to the show. The young kids beside me who began her set squeaking, “When is Arcade Fire coming on? Who is this chick? OMG I hate hip hop!” were now saying “OMFG she was good. What’s her name again? Wow this is like a Broadway musical!”The few hundred soon turned into a few thousand people in awe of what was going on onstage.

I was really excited that I got to see her. I guarantee it will not be her last time in Canada. And not the last time you hear of her. She is shooting for the sun and I know she will reach there. She just was way too much talent and understands how to put on a show. I learned a lot from her performance.

You can watch some of the performance here – http://www.toflo.com/category/all/live-performances/live-performance-janelle-monae-toronto-olympic-island/

Now I have to decide pretty quick if I am going to New York next week to see, guess who?

Lauren Hill at Rock the Bells!

Peace and Pomegranates

In celebration of international left-handed day I decided to post this poem I wrote about my blessing. It is called So I Left and is going to be on my upcoming album Re-Evolution (Christmas time). Enjoy

Because she was left handed

She was left handed

A wooden stake up her spine and a cloak of sulfuric coloured flames

As they claimed She was a sorcerer

Left right over an oval aura of odor

This sickening stench of sizzling skin, its disgusting

The order,

To have her life left right over

Cuz she chose left over right

Now her spirit’s right over

What’s left over

Of her charred corpse looking like some meatloaf leftovers

Its disgusting

It wasn’t that long ago when children were killed for using this hand.

Beaten in orthodoxy

Tied left behind back

or left behind back of the class because they were different

But this systemic systematic subjugation of those with a non – sequential processing style is deep seeded in our semantics.

Such as in Latin – the word for left is sinister

In Greek skaios – meaning awkward

In Hindi – Ulta Haanth – meaning wrong hand

In German links meaning weak

Portuguese, canhoto, was once used to identify the devil

In West Africa.

They will not eat with you if you use your left.

I’ve been slapped around more times than I can count for using this hand.

They say you only clean and wipe your ass with the left –write and eat withyour right

But I mix it all up So no wonder why I talk so much shit.

10 percent of the average population

but die on average 10 years earlier than our right handed counterparts

from Accidents -Scissors, fridges, cars, bridges, roads, knifes, saws, ridges

And in a world of right angles, we have trained our minds to think out of the box

We are the architects, mathematicians, musicians, mensah members and cricket players

profiles of prisoners, predetors,pedophiles and political pundits

5 out of the last 7 American presidents.

They say that you should know your rights but I know my lefts

Like: Einstein, Newton, Beethoven, Ghandi, Napoleon, Caesar, Aristotle, Joan of Arc, Hendrix, Mark Twain, Lewis Carroll, Nietzsche

Disproportionate disposition to mental illness.Like stuttering andschizophrenia schizo schizo schizo -

Who the hell is looking through my window?

Dyslexia – so I’ve found myself writing sentences that make sense the sameway forwards as they do backwards. Like…

live not on evil

Do you know what it feels like to have every love poem you  have ever written

erased the second you wrote it because it smudged?

Because we are left to write left to right

not right to left

except in Iran a country left of our political right

where they write right to left

We have a right to write right to left or left to right

But here, to write right to left is wrong

write left to right is right

So I left

To right wrongs

To write wrongs

two lefts make a right and two rights make a left

but two wrongs don’t make a right

and being left doesn’t make you wrong,

cuz it doesn’t make you right.

This is for the charismatic, iconoclastic, cats

Who cant catch a clear cut case of non – cold conversation

Cuz they claimed we were classless, like school on Sunday

But someday

Those individuals will begin to understand That only left handed people arein their right mind.

Somebody better tell these jokers that life is not like a game of cards

There is no such thing as wrong hand

And if being left is wrong I don’t wanna be right

I’ll be glad to be the only one left!

Peace and Pomegranates

Ian

Because I am a poet who slams occasionally I sometimes do not realize how tight-knit and close the community is. Meaning some of my friends have no clue what slam poetry is, how it works or why I do it. Some believe it is just rapping without rhyming (weirdly enough some poets think the same thing.)

These are all misunderstandings of the art form. Spoken word and slam are not the same. Slam is the competition and spoken word is the form of artistic expression which slammers use to compete. Nonetheless the two fields are very diverse and varied and poets draw from a wide source of inspiration for their poems. Some study the craft while others study the world around them. Like anything there are a number of artists I look up to in spoken word, either because they have influenced my writing, improved my art or I just think they are really dope.

So… In no particular order here are my top 5 favourite spoken word/slam poets.

1. SAUL WILLIAMS (ZIGGY STARDUST)
   One of my greatest memories as a performer was opening up for Saul Williams in 2005 in Edmonton, Alberta. I was so excited to share the same stage with him, I brought out a 10 piece band to play with that night. During the day I see him on Whyte Avenue at a thrift shop rocking a nice tweed jacket (it was in the middle of the summer.) I was too shy to say much but we chatted a bit after the show. He is a really cool fella. The weird part about this tale is that I was not a “poet” at that time. I did write here and there but my artistic identity was rooted in emceeing. Although his set was explosive and phenomenal it wasn’t the moment that spawned my spoken word career but weirdly serendipitous that my first exposure to spoken word in this form was opening for Saul Williams.

   From what I understand Saul got fame over the years from slam. He is the 96 Nuyorican Grand Slam Champion and he was in a documentary SlamNation. And he was also in the film Slam which I think solidified his staple on the ground of spoken word pop culture. Then his second album Amethyst Rock Star was produced by Rick Ruben and really sealed the deal. None of these facets of his life is what puts him on this list for me. Now hearing many spoken word artists you can tell where much of the metaphors, the manner of spitting, the allusions and similes come from, they come from Saul. He really put New York on the map in this art form and it shows. I can go crazy deep into the literary, religious, spiritual and philosophical methodology of his poetry but that might be boring for some. But essentially Saul Williams poetry is an outward examination of the Afrocentric space-age demi-gods which he believes some humans are. But I am really only scratching the surface.

   Nonetheless check out this wicked poem – Saul Williams – Sha-Clack-Clack

2. Amir Sulaiman
   Almost a year later I began to take spoken word more seriously than I had before and I owe a big part of this inspiration for instigation to Amir Sulaiman. The brother was doing a show at the University of Alberta in Edmonton with the Muslim Students Association and guess who opened one of the sessions, you guessed it. I did. The experience was both humbling and dramatic. I had never seen anyone live command such a diverse and large audience with just his words; no dj, no beat box, not guitar, NOTHING, just his words! I was immediately hooked. You know sometimes there is a song that you cannot stop listening to. That you can loop on repeat from days because it is that damn good. Well after I found this poem my life changed.
   Amir Sulaiman – Danger
3. Queen God Is
   Do you ever have those moments where you hear about someone, see them on TV and you know they are working on a different brain frequency. This woman right here is exactly that for me. She is not only an amazing poet but her spirit comes through in her words. Her demeanor is magical and marvel to watch. In terms of performance she is able to do it all, dance, sing, rap, beat box and spit dope poetry. From what I understand she is not a slammer but she does coach young slammers. It is evident in some of her work that she maybe a student of Saul Williams but she brings her own unique flava. When you listen, pay attention to her metaphors and punchlines, not a word is wasted. Even her name is crazy.I haven’t had the pleasure of seeing her live but one day that will change, check her out.
   Queen God Is – (Its in three parts – so watch all three
4. B. Yung
   This young brother from Brooklyn is one of the direct students of Queen. He was also the lead character in a HBO documentary about the youth slam called Brave New Voices. The film was released years ago and Brook has grown incredibly. He is the epitome of straight gutter spitting. He truly brings out the emcee in his spoken word. He likes punchlines, alliterations and wild imagery. I had the pleasure of bringing down Brook to Ottawa for a feature and it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say he really had an effect on a majority of the poets who saw him.
   Brook Yung – I am Queen (pay attention)
5. Nikki Black
   Edmonton based poet Titi Sonuga put me onto this woman from LA just a few days ago. I don’t know much about her but all I know is that she is gooood! Well at least this piece is.
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJbkUH11W8k&p=EB89485F8D178157&playnext=1&index=49
6. Bonus – Just because I love you check out another favourite of mine. His name is Anis Mojavi and is a 2 time American slam champion and the 2007 World Slam Champion.
   Shake The Dust

Eh yo yo!

Every Sunday I like to chill, write, relax and get my ear in touch with some new music or old music that I need to be acquainted with. I could go off on all the great music you all should listen to but for the sake of myself and your time I will reduce my list to ten. The following are in no particular order but they are just an small road map of whats cracking my Blackberry Bold (where I play my music). Stay tuned for episode 2 next week.

1. Mos Def – Taxi
   For those that know me know that Mos Def is my favourite rapper of all time! The unfortunate thing about having an artist like Mos as your number 1 is that he doesn’t produce a great deal of stuff so you are in a perpetual state of waiting for some new stuff to drop. The fortunate thing about having an artist like Mos as your number 1 – is that when he does drop something new, ITS A HEATER. I know this track has been on the interwebs for a while but it is still worth a listen. The track is smooth and Mos rides the beat like only he can, enjoy!
2. Fleet Foxes – White Winter Hymnal
   So I first saw this group perofming at a series put on by BBC called the basement. Check out there performance here – http://www.fromthebasement.tv/artists/fleet-foxes/performances/english-house . Anyways these guys definitely take you to a place and time. I have to admit, it is probably a time before I was born and a place my parents would not allow me to go to but no matter who you are you are still able to go there. The wonderful thing about this group is their harmonies. They carry every tune with a serious cadence and each one of them can sing. It might seen odd to hear a fully bearded man drop such lovely soprano harmonies but embrace it, it is good for you. Also they also rock the heaviest beards I’ve seen on a band.
3. Ian Kamau – Say It Aint So
   I am not jealous of most of my friends but Ian is one who I humbly admit I am of. I had only become pals with him recently but have been aware of his work for sometime. He has been on a few K-os records in a cameo fashion. Then a couple years ago someone mentioned there was another “Ian K” poet/musician/artist in Toronto. I didn’t make the connection at first but later did some research, after all I thought I had the Ian-artist monopoly on lock. lol WRONG! Either way I have had the pleasure of hanging out with Ian since then a couple times and most recently in Harlem. This is a renaciance man of art. He is a graphic artist, MC, poet and has an amazing, soothing voice.
4. Nomadic Massive – Moving Forward
   In January 2009 when Obama was inaugurated there was an event at the Governor General’s house in Ottawa. She invited a number of youth to lay witness to this momentous event. I was invited to perform and so was this large band from Montreal (Nomadic). They rocked the show but their set was very short because of time. We were reacquainted this past weekend where I hosted a show where they were the headliners. AND OH BOI – THEY BROUGHT THE HOUSE DOWN. They have like 10 people in this band and have everything you can want: they spit in like 4 languages, beautiful singers, a horn section, dancing vibes, conscious lyrics.
5. Phil Ade – Try Out
   I am a punchline guy! I love and use mad punchlines in my raps and poetry. Recently there has been influx of 1st generation African rappers based in America and they are killing it. Phil Ade’s parents are from Nigeria and he brings that heat. I can sit and listen to him for days, hes mad witty with the lines and gives you that “Oh snap I wish I wrote that.”
   Phil – “I am trying to make a million man like Farrakhan.”
6. Esthero – Black Mermaid
   Norah Jones, Sade and Esthero (from Toronto) are my three favourite contemporary female voices. Again much like the musicians I like they drop new stuff very sporadically. However, a few months ago I found this song and it might just be my favourite song from her. It even inspired an epic poem I am writing for my new album Re-Evolution (out this fall.) I am also going to remix it for an upcoming mixtape. If anyone knows Esthero please tell her I am going to do this. I love the simplicity of it and the hook is just phenomenal. It was produced by Chin Injeti who is also a big time Canadian producer (Drake, 50 Cent, Slaughterhouse).
7. Mayer Hawthorne- Just Ain’t Gonna Work Out
   You might find it weird that this nerdy looking, youthful, Jewish white kid has soooooo much soul. This whole album is amaaazing. It is that Sunday afternoon driving or taking the bus music, that corner-bench gellato music, that two-seater bike music. Don’t be fooled. Mayer has been around for a while as hip hop dj, producer and casual MC. And it doesn’t hurt that he is on one of the freshest underground hip hop and soul labels out there – Stones Throw.
8. Rick Ross – Freemason
   I explained this song in my last post about music and Masonry. I like it because of the controversy that this song was centered around. But more particularly because I think Rick Ross just bodies Jay on this track. I mean many of my friends don’t understand why I listen to this kind of music and why I have enjoyed Ross from time. Rick Ross for me is simple and sometimes that’s all you need. Yes it glorifies a lifestyle that I do not agree with but on this song Rick is saying something different. This is one of the first times he is saying something profound and he still has his classic flow which I like.
   “Free Mason
   Free Lancer
   Free Agents, we faster
   Big contracts, big contractors
   built pyramids, period
   We Masters”
9. Theophilus London- Humdrum Town
   Is it 80′s, is it hip-hop, is it electronic, is it fresh? The answer to all those questions is YES! It’s hard for me to compare this guy to any rappers but his music reminds me of the Smiths, David Bowie, Duran Duran (who he actually collaborated with.) It’s upbeat dancy, electro groove and its wicked. Very hipster but his lyricism also holds it down on a MC level.
10. Janelle Monae – Many Moons
    I am not one to care who listened to who first or who was a fan of who first. BUT I do have to say many people are only recently jumping on the Janelle band-wagon. Which in a sense is good because she is an incredible artist. However her latest album in my opinion is not her best work. I am not saying I’ve known her for a long time but the last album she released was markedly better. Nonetheless check out her latest video Cold War it is heavy as well as the aforementioned track from her previous album Metropolis.
11. Me – Emcee E
    I know it’s been a while since I posted something new on that page but don’t worry enjoy some of the old old old tunes because they will not be there for long. As I said the album is coming out soon and with that means a good number of sneak peaks and preview tracks. Enjoy!

Hope that hols you down for a while.

Peace and Pomeganates

Ian

I know exactly what is going on! And some people, music critics and bloggers are going to be hypnotized once again, bamboozled like the many times before. What am I talking about? The new Kanye video! If you haven’t seen it here – brfbslPmrDsCqTlk

Now there is already a whole lot of buzz going around on the internet describing Kanye, Jay-Z and other rappers and musicians as Free Masons, part of the Illuminati and a number of other conspiracy theories. I have had this debate with close friends of mine. In fact, Komi (a member of the Recipe) actually has a poem about all this stuff and we argue for days about what is real and what is fake.

When I took a class in philosphy in my undergrad, they talked about this thing called an illogical fallacy. Meaning just because your roof is wet doesn’t mean it is raining. But if it is raining your roof will be wet. In turn, just because Kanye has a God complex or uses angels in his video and stands on fiery mountains in performances does not mean he is a Mason or part of some illuminati. However, the illuminati do use such symbols.

So there lies our dilema. The absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence. BUT Kanye is a hardworking producer/rapper from Chicago. At what point did the Masons or whoever ask him to become part of their group? Was it when he made the Work out Tape When he said Bush doesn’t care about black people? Or when he took the microphone away from Taylor Swift?

I have a few basic theories as to why we should be careful about including Drake, Jay-Z, Kanye and others into this conspiracy of fear.

1. The guys are from the hood. Grew up with not much. Kanye is an admitted drop-out. Most financial, religious and secret cult members have university educations. Not saying that those who don’t are incacable of running a secret organization but I wonder why they would go to the hood to seek out their membership.
2. They are black. And as much as we want to believe times have changed, these organizations still see colour. I mean if Abercrombie and Fitch and Walmart still see colour at your everyday when it comes to patrons and the way they treat their employees, how about the upper echelons of the Illuminati?
3. The fallacy. It is true that the Masons use the symbolism of the diamond but so do Egyptians, so do baseball players, so do some yuppie New York business men and women and so do rappers. When they say “Its the Rock!” And put up a diamond sign their label has been called Rockerfella for decades or they are talking about “the rock,” crack! So when Dame Dash started the label and his sister was on the Cluless, he brother was a Mason? Or when Jay was talking about Big Pimping he was a Mason? When did this happen?
4. These guys are rap superstars. In my opinion they have too much fame and haphazard behaviour. They bring too much attention to whatever secret society we assume them to be a part of. Why does a secret society need public popularity? Are they looking for members? And the way Kanye is, he is a verbal powder-keg, I doubt he would be able to keep his mouth shut about the group.
5. Many critics and proponents of the rapper in secret society theory look to the lyrics of a song to support their claims. But if we are looking at a section of lyrics let us take a look at ALL THE LYRICS. People are going to tear apart the song as they did with “Run This Town,” but on the real take a look at the whole picture – one of his lines he says

   With some light-skinned girls and some Kelly Rowlands
   In this white man’s world, we the ones chosen

   and
   
   They say I was the obamanation (abomination) of Obama’s nation
   Well, that’s a pretty bad way to start the conversation

   
   I mean the first lyric pretty much disses those individuals whom are assumed to run these secret organizations. The second lyric says people thought he was an antithesis to Obama which is odd because there are many videos out these stating that Obama is also part of these secret organizations (which is more likely to believe). And again why would the Illuminati want crazy subliminal messages in a rapper’s song? Does it increase membership? Does it hypnotize the masses to believing that they are there, that they exist, that they don’t? This is coming from the same guy who made the whole world sing “Jesus Walks.”
   

6. We are being fooled. No one man should have all that Power! It is true! We give it to them and they feed off of it. If there were no rumous about Kanye to begin with, who knows if this song would have been made? The beat was originally for Rhymefest. Who knows if this video would have been made? But we gave him the power and the fauder to do it! They are playing off our fears and insecurities.
7. Jay-Z has a track where he responded to the Mason rumours. It is surprizing that even after he released the song people got deeper in their belief that he really is a Mason. Just because he addressed it so he has something to hide.
   
8. When Obama came to power many journalists, writers and critics alluded to the fact that the public of the world has a God Complex with Obama. That we treat him like a holy, spiritual saviour who can do no wrong. Obama did cocaine! I am just saying. But I argue that we the public also have a Devil complex. Whereby we need to place people as evil, people with power, people with money and influence. I believe it helps us deal with the real forces of evil. If we know who they are and know how they exist (music videos) then we can better protect ourselves. But I argue that the real forces of evil are working even deeper. Using such distractions to take us away from the real demonic powers. So we are focused on Mr. Louis Vutton instead of battling the real Shatan.

I am a poet and musician myself and I just wonder what people will say about me as time passes.