Sunday, December 28, 2008

Legends


The Death of the legendary Catwoman Eartha Kitt was a complete shocker to us.
We had no clue she was even sick.

At age 81 Kitt was working almost until the end taping a PBS special six weeks ago in Chicago, Illinois. The show is set to air in February. Kitt was best known for her one of a kind voice and made a name for herself in her portrayal of Catwoman in the television series Batman which produced Kitt’s recognizable sultry cat growl. Throughout the six decades of her career, Kitt had won two Emmys as well as several nominations for Tony and Grammy awards. Her multiple talents included dancing, singing and acting on stage and screen. She will truly be missed.
Here are a few clips and songs from her career





BOOMERANG!!!!




R.I.P.
Eartha Kitt


With Love,
Gabriela

Friday, December 26, 2008

Interview with a Hip-Hop Star

ANSWERS PROVIDED BY FATSO
VISIT FATSO AT
WWW.FATSOWORLD.COM & WWW.MYSPACE.COM/FATSONJ

What inspires your work?
TODAY, YESTERDAY, TONITE...MY LIFE & YOURS!

Who's had the biggest influence on your style?
CAN'T SAY WHO IN PARTICULAR BUT MOST DEFINITELY THOSE ARTISTS AND INDIVIDUALS WHO PRACTICE FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION THRU MUSIC AND LIFE.

Which producers would you love to work with and why?

RYAN LESLIE...HE HAS A GIFT OF MUSICIANSHIP AND A VERY BRILLIANT MUSICAL VISION TO MATCH.
THE NEPTUNES...HOW COULD YOU NOT WANT TO WORK WITH THEM!
JOHN MAYER...I HAVE FOUND A PLACE IN MY MOOD SYSTEM FOR EACH PIECE OF MUSIC HE CREATES.


What do you think about the state of Hip-Hop today?
NEVER BEEN THERE, IS IT WARM?!

Do you have any guilty pleasures as far as music?
LMAO...MAN HOW CAN YOU DENY SARA BAREILLES,
"I'M NOT GONNA WRITE YOU A LOVE SOOONG!"




Describe your writing and recording process...
I'M A LITTLE WEIRD WHEN I WRITE...I FEEL I PRODUCE MY BEST CONCEPTS WHEN I CAN BE ALONE TO FREESTYLE LYRICS AND TEST THEIR FEASABILITY IN MY DELIVERY AND IN THEIR MEANING FROM ME TO YOU.
I USUALLY SECLUDE MYSELF SOMEWHERE WHERE I AM FREE TO BE LOUD AND SOUND STUPID UNTIL IT ALL COMES TOGETHER.
RECORDING IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE PARTS OF THE PACKAGING PROCESS...I NORMALL
Y AM PREPARED WITH ALL OF MY LYRICS IN MY HEAD BY THE TIME I LAND IN THE STUDIO. NEVER FAILS THOUGH, NO MATTER WHAT I TAKE IN THE STUDIO-IT WILL PROBABLY COME OUT SOMEWHAT DIFFERENT ONCE I AM SATISFIED WITH THE WORK. I LOVE LEAVING ROOM FOR CHANGE AND IMPROVISATION.

Of the songs that you've recorded, which has been your favorite to date and why?
I LIKE ALL OF MY SONGS MORE THAN THE OTHERS AT SOME TIME OR ANOTHER BUT RITE NOW...MY SONG "I CAN FIX IT" SITS REALLY WELL WITH ME. THE PRODUCTION IS FANTASTIC AND I ENJOY DOING THAT PIECE LIVE BC THERE ARE SO MANY WAYS TO REINTRODUCE THE SONG.

Which is one of your songs is the most personal?
REAL EYES. IT IS ONE OF MY SHORTER SONGS BUT I PICKED THE WORDS VERY CAREFULLY. IT HAS 2 MESSAGES IN IT AND THEY ARE BOTH VERY PERSONAL TO ME.

If you weren't a recording artist, what else could you see yourself doing?
LOL...BEING A COWBOY.

Name one artist who's footsteps you'd like to walk in?
THESE ARE REALLY GOOD QUESTIONS! I'D HAVE TO SAY CAREER WISE, LL COOL J. SEEMS LIKE HE'S HAD A LONG, FRUITFUL MUSIC & ENTERTAINMENT CAREER...NOT TO MENTION HIS PHILANTHROPIC EFFORTS AROUND THE WORLD.

Describe yourself in three words.

CRAZY, SEXY, COOL

What would you like for a listener to take from listening to your music?
THE GOOD. AND KNOW THAT IT DOESN'T COME FROM ME...I AM JUST A FUNNEL FOR IT. I AM TRULY BLESSED AND HONORED TO EVEN BE USED.

I LOOOVE THESE QUESTIONS!


Questions Provided by:
Micheal Ashton for Stoic Audacity Magazine Blog

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Fatso: The Up and Coming

Rapper, singer, songwriter, fatso™ is a fresh and extraordinarily talented rising star in the field of entertainment. His unexpected yet highly treasured honesty, intelligence and wit make him an artist to watch in a sea of predictability and mediocrity. For fatso, music is life and without it we cease to exist.



fatso™ has graced stages all along the east coast. His high-wattage stage show shutting-down non-assuming venues in his path. While his 1st major independent project was a compilation CD, fatso has opened for many artists. Some signed with major record companies including Carmon, D’wayne Wiggins from (Tony, Toni, Toné), Ruff Endz, Cap One and Grenique. One major highlight, his performance with Washington DC’s own Backyard Band courtesy of Big G from HBO television series, The Wire.


When asked what next, this young dynamo suggests complete song production and honing his musicianship on the guitar and piano. The rare ability to see and speak life as it is, while finding humor, simplicity and beauty in the truth, makes fatso™ an avant-garde gourmet entrée in a stale chicken-box world. “Show me one person that doesn’t listen to music and I will show them pity.”



You can find out more about Fatso at
WWW.FATSOWORLD.COM

Micheal Ashton


Saturday, December 6, 2008

Human


Almost fifteen years into her music career, Brandy has evolved from the young and sassy teenager singing out her wishes of wanting to be “down” to a refined, mature and sensual chanteuse.

Human
, her fifth solo album and first for Epic Records, finds Brandy reunited with longtime collaborator Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins (the solid “The Definition” as well as the first single “Right Here (Departed)” and other newcomers such as Toby Gad (Beyonce), RedOne (Trina, Usher) and Midi Mafia (Fantasia, Jennifer Lopez).

Vocally versatile and never missing a single beat, Brandy consistently weaves melodious textures around each of the fifteen songs, centered on the growth from being in love (the excellent “1st and Love”), the fear of heartbreak (the eerie “Shattered Heart”) and personal anthems (the relaxed, but slightly trite title track). But when the album drags through plodding or near-lifeless material (“Piano Man”), it is her voice never lets up, making one wish that the production equally matched her emotive and impassioned performances. Additionally, the material leaked to the internet over the past year (notably, the Timbaland-sounding “List” and “Porcelain Doll”, the pounding and captivating “Sweet Nothings”, and percussive “Maximum Risk”, among countless others) begs the nagging question of why those tracks weren’t put in place of the weaker inclusions.

There are very few, if any, sleek or sexy moments that match the peaks displayed on 2004’s Afrodisiac. Still, Brandy is likely to keep many satisfied with a back to basics formula with her latest release.

Here's the Video to her second single "Long Distance"



As heard by...Michael Tilus.

808s & Heartbreak


Gone are the usual high walls of sped-up R&B-soul samples and melodically clobbering beats. In their place, Mr. West favored sweeping strings, sparse programming, auto-tuned vocals, quirky keyboarding and, yes…808-assisted drums for his fourth studio album 808s & Heartbreak. Lyrically, he abandons his socially-conscious leanings in an effort to deliver the unloading of emotional baggage accrued from a the loss of his mother and a broken engagement over the past year (thus, explaining the absence of the mascot ‘Dropout Bear’ in support of the expressionless promotional pictures of Mr. West and a deflated heart-shaped balloon on the album cover).

Recorded over three weeks in Hawaii, the 12-track opus provides ample ground to convey his late-night introspection, confusion, loss and heartache. “Love Lockdown”, the album’s first single signaled a new chapter in Kanye’s musical career, puzzled fans and critics with its troubled lyrics, rumbling tribal drums and shuffling keys among other effects. With its shift from popular hip-hop towards downtempo, 80s-tinged electronica, the album is somber (the dragging and indulgent opener “Say You Will”) and at times difficult to take all in one sitting (the lazy “Amazing” featuring Young Jeezy).

Nevertheless, West is focused in his lauded inventiveness to challenge his listeners and his contemporaries to expand their capabilities. Case in point – the highlight “RoboCop” takes an arresting, machinery-sounding track awash with swirling strings to make humorous yet striking jabs at his longtime girlfriend Alexis Phifer, (“You’re just an L.A. girl/You need to stop it now/Oh, you’re kidding me/Oh! You must be joking/Oh! You are smoking.” he ad-libs with a smug tone). “See You In My Nightmares” (featuring a guest spot by Lil’ Wayne) meets an annoyed Kanye snarling over an insistent electronic beat with pulsing synth blips. But the most affecting moment comes from the final track, “Pinocchio Story”, free-styled and recorded live in Singapore with a mellow acoustic accompaniment (reportedly added at the last minute after Beyonce’s request). It is here that he delivers his most touching lines. “There is no clothes that I could buy that could bring back the time/There is no vacation spot I could fly that could bring back a real piece of real life/Real life, what does it feel like?” It is here that Mr. West strips down the ego that buoyed most of his past three albums and brings an inherent insecurity that fame brings to the fore. It has been reported that he has begun recording his 5th studio album, tentatively titled A Good Ass Job for release in 2009. Apparently, he has already accomplished the feat.



As heard by...Michael Tilus.

The Kick Off