Do the Math

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March 20, 2012
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I listen to a lot of music online and I will admit, as a fan in the digital age, I’m spoiled. I read somewhere the other day that the average 10 year old with a smartphone has access to more information than the president 15 years ago, or something like that.

Similarly, anyone with internet probably has access to just as much music as a local radio DJ. While there is much debate on this ease of accessibility, one thing that post-internet fans won’t experience is the satisfaction of owning a library of tangible music. Trips to the record store are like going to the toy store. Literally, back in the day it meant a visit to the KB Toys next to Sam Goody. There’s a sense of pride in owning and collecting CDs, cassettes, vinyls, or whatever ancient technology, that you can’t get digitally. There was a time when I was the coolest kid in elementary school because I had a copy of the Slimshady LP with a parental advisory sticker.

Do The Math was released in 1996 by Tribal Music and is regarded as a staple of Seattle hip hop. I’ve heard it mentioned before from local hip hop heads, to the point where it became sort of an urban legend. It wasn’t until it was available digitally that I finally got the chance to listen to it in its entirety. It baffles me how something so raw and innovative has been kept a local secret. The 24 track compilation is a refreshing break from the mind numbing top 40. If the CD were available at a brick-and-mortar store, would I pay money for it? Hell yes I would. Actually, some guy on Amazon is trying to sell it right now for like 90 bucks. I’ll settle for a free digital download, but it’s definitely not the same.

-Vinny

Really though, listen to this if you haven’t already.

day 54

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March 17, 2012
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After meeting Raekwon and RZA in New York at Rock The Bells last summer, I found myself talking to Free, a.k.a. Lil’ Free, a.k.a. General Wah. Free isn’t your average member of Wu-Tang. He was one of the original members, and dealt with their earliest business encounters. Sharing a 1-bedroom apartment with RZA and Ghostface Killah back in the early 90′s, he remembers a life without iPod’s and electronic DJing gear; fondly reminiscing about RZA’s first DJ setup–stacks of records on the floor with two turntables on top.

Helping lead the way to Wu-world domination, he also managed his cousin, Ghost, from 1994-2004. It was then, while on the tour bus, he sat up and told everyone on tour he was leaving. With no regrets, Free left the music business for a long while, until he ran into female vocalist, Chanel.

Something unique, something different…”You need to hook ‘em,” Free states. “It’s all a psychological game.” Aside from the game, Free also pounds in the idea of strength in numbers. He attributes all of Wu-Tang’s success to the fact that there were so many of them. They came in, took what they wanted, and left.

That’s not the case anymore. Too much free music and general crap on the internet “fatten up the consumer.” This makes Free happy, because he will come in and kill the competition by using his old school mentality on producing and releasing tracks. His history with Wu-Tang and Ghost don’t lie.

Free is working side by side with his new artist, Chanel. He is using his tactics plus what he’s learned a long the way to give her the best possible album release. From what I’ve heard, it will be a successful release at that. Chanel’s voice reminds me of a few very talented singers, but we won’t get into who. Chanel is driven to do her own thing…to make it special, so comparisons will do you no good. Let’s just say she is on mark! You want proof? Listen to the track My Own.

-dt

Preview of The Otherside

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March 4, 2012
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It’s been a year since we uploaded the first trailer for the documentary, “The Otherside.”

After shooting interviews and concert footage over the last two years, we have found we have too much content to fit into an hour and a half movie. This is a  great thing, but also make its much harder to find the  most captivating pieces to capture the scene and the idea of what we want portrayed.

Vinny Dom has worked night and day to find the best interviews and lay them out in a timeline for what is needed, but most of this footage subsequently transitions into other footage.

What we decided was to take one of the live performances from this film and release that as a sneak peak. It’s true, this film spends a lot of time with Macklemore (from two years ago to today), but it also captures other areas and artists in Seattle hip-hop such as Blue Scholars, Massive Monkees, Sir Mix-A-Lot, Mad Rad, Spac3man, Dyme Def, Eighty4Fly, Grynch, Wizdom and many more.

Each interview has provided us with a necessary puzzle piece to complete this documentary. The clip we decided to release stands on its own. It captures everything we have done and everything we are continuing to do. It combines live performance with backstage footage, b-roll, and interviews.

Thank you for your continuous support. We hope that you enjoy the clip, and spread it around. Let word be known that we are still working hard at creating a masterpiece for years to come. We will release a new trailer that better reflects the finished movie in the next few weeks.

Until then, enjoy The Otherside.

-dt

Progress!

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February 22, 2012
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Hey guys,

Just wanted to send you all a quick update about the progress of The Otherside. I know it’s been a while and we apologize for not keeping you guys up to date on a regular basis thus far.

We are still currently working in the post production phase which includes editing (the most time consuming part), color correction, and everything else that will give this film the look/feel that we are going for. We have made some big steps lately as we have finally gotten the story line down to what it needs to be. Since we have been filming for almost two years now, we had a lot of content to go through and narrow down to create a story that we think will be appealing to not only music lovers, but anyone who is following the trends in the music industry today.

As you know, a wide range of artists from Seattle have been making massive leaps forward in their careers, whether it be headlining National tours to filling up the Key Arena (Bumbershoot), to releasing albums and creating noteworthy buzz around the country. Coming up in May at Sasquatch, Seattle Hip Hop will get their own stage (The Maine Stage) for the first time ever, which will showcase 12 very talented groups/artists based in the Seattle area: The Physics, Sol, Grynch, Fatal Lucciauno, Dyme Def, Fresh Espresso, Metal Chocolates, Scribes, SPAC3MAN, Don’t Talk To The Cops, Fly Moon Royalty, Katie Kate. The festival will also feature Seattle’s own Shabazz Palaces who have gained National attention since the release of their Self Titled EP in 2009.

Thank you all for being patient with us as we continue to work hard to create a film that Seattle and music lovers will be proud of. Your support is what makes something like this possible.

-JR and the MADNW team

day 53

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December 6, 2011
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MACKLEMORE X RYAN LEWIS in the Big Apple.

September 17th, 2010: The Blue Scholars headline a sold out show at Bowery Ballroom in NYC. Macklemore X Ryan Lewis opened. “Mackle-who?” asked one attendee, while most others there knew the name, but didn’t know much else about him.

We, at M.A.D. Northwest, laughed to ourselves and stated, “only a matter of time.”

December 6th, 2011: A little over one year later Macklemore X Ryan Lewis headline a sold out show at Bowery Ballroom in NYC. This time, fans young and old filed through the doors of the venue wearing My City is Filthy tees and chanting, “Macklemore…Macklemore.”

With Can’t Hold Us being released a few months prior, Ray Dalton was on hand to show NYC what Northwest Soul looks like. He was invited up for a few songs; every time leaving the crowd in awe at his big vocals. With a heart of gold and a genuine personality, this young man will go very far.

Some hip-hop writers were on hand to catch a glimpse of this so called Macklemore craze, and after the show they made a point of coming back up to the green room to tell him what they thought. As said best by one of the writers, “a lot of New York artists can’t even sell out a basement, not even this room (the green room), and for you to come out here…man, this is big.”

Even people who worked at Bowery said they haven’t seen a performance with that much energy since Kanye West recorded a surprise show there. Granted it was on a completely different production scale, but still the raw energy and love given from screaming fans (some in tears) was fanatical none-the-less.

-dt

These are the signs of the times.

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September 21, 2011
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Businessmen have been busy recently trying to find a legal, sustainable market for digital goods. Itunes is still the clear leader, but different business models have been springing up one by one. Sites like Pandora, Rhapsody, and the newly launched in the states, Spotify, allow online music streaming by obtaining rights from major record labels and generating revenue through paid subscriptions and/or advertisements. The future of the digital marketplace looks uncertain as each medium has its own advantages and disadvantages, but the people who hurt the most are the independents struggling to overcome the changing landscape.

The internet has given artists the potential to reach communities of millions of people with distinct musical tastes and preferences. It’s how Danger Mouse got famous overnight by mashing up a Jay-Z album with a Beatles album in his bedroom. It’s what turned a wobble sound from the UK into a mainstream genre. And of course it gave birth to Justin Bieber.

In a negative light, the internet has made it more difficult for up-and-comers by drowning them in a sea of mediocrity. Anyone can record a mixtape, design an album cover on Photoshop, and call it the next big thing. There’s no denying the positivity in the abundance of independent music, but what makes people believe that your shit is better than the next when there is so much SHIT?

Myspace changed the game when it first introduced band pages and allowed musicians to post their songs. Now Myspace is nearly dead, but there are plenty of other social media alternatives like Soundcloud, Bandcamp, and even Youtube. If you’re in a band, if you DJ, if you rap, if you make beats in your bedroom, and if you’re commited to take your work to the next level, your music is already featured on at least one of these sites.

Artists who invest their own money hoping to turn their passions into careers have to deal with improving their craft as well as marketing themselves as a brand. Even big name companies make the false assumption that just because everyone has a Facebook page, they need to have one too. People like Lil B, OFWGKTA, and even Seattle’s own Macklemore have been successful by using these sites as tools for leveraging their own identities. They’re on-the-clock even when they’re not on stage. These are ideas we will further explore on The Otherside.

It’s been exciting filming this documentary as our story has evolved with recent times. We’ve turned our snapshot of the booming Seattle hip hop scene into a lens for something much bigger and it’s all unfolding right before us.

- Vinny D

day 52

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September 7, 2011
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Enjoying the last of Seattle’s summer, we took a drive over to REI–Seattle’s mega-outdoor supply with a giant indoor climbing wall. We had a lot of interviews from the artists you know and love, but we didn’t have many interviews from the people connected to the scene and fellow hip-hop enthusiasts.

Throughout the course of filming this project we have met some very tech savvy, artistic people that use digital form and social networking to create careers for themselves. We brought Scott McLeod along with us, and interviewed him on the mountain bike trail that surrounds the store.

Scott is well trained in the realm of all things digital. He creates personalized websites, branding, and social networking platforms for a living. He does this in conjunction with maintaining his own internet sites, artistic fashion, and entrepreneurial endeavors. Scott is, in fact, the outcome of our digital revolution.

The great thing about Scott is that he infuses the digital world with his collective of local art and music. This is important, because it keeps us grounded within reality. We can go day-to-day and never have a real connection with someone. Our head’s are planted into our smart phones, tablets, and computerized devices, but it is the incorporation of our local culture within these digital platforms that can create something special geared toward community and the passions we might all share. These are the moments that build relationships with one another and create the ability to reach out to millions of followers and fans. This is…our future.

-dt

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