Artist Spotlight

BK-One has been, and always will be, one superb DJ.  Since the days I used to watch him across the mixing board at Radio K when I was just being trained in on The Beat Box, he has always been this way.  Me and him were lip-syncing “Oh No” by Mos Def, Pharoahe Monch and Nate Dogg when he played the 12″ one time.  Now, along with up-and-coming beatsmith Benzilla, they have put out Rádio Do Canibal, a project to show the worldwide influences of music when the funk, jazz and samba rhythms and tones of Brazil match up with Hip-Hop across different areas of the United States.  I was able to get BK-One to do a track-by-track of Canibal, so without further delay, HERE WE GO!

As someone who was born and bred here, I can promise you this: Rhode Island gets a lot of flack. Most people think it’s an actual island. Or they assume it is part of Connecticut or Massachusetts. Sometimes, you get people who think you are from Long Island. Nope. It’s Lil’ Rhody, people, and we have some emcees and producers primed to make a mini-splash on the hip-hop scene. Though they aren’t the first to make a name here, the likes of Theo and Jon Hope are on the come up. And to commemorate both that and his free EP Somekind of Wonderful, I had Jon Hope answer some questions to provide some background on just why he deserves your attention.

Download Somekind of Wonderful from illRoots now!

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Marty: Hey, Jon, thanks for taking the time to do this. As a fellow Rhode Islander, it is, above all, a great feeling to see someone creative and talented getting some brand name recognition.

Marty: Now on that point, it’s very interesting and gratifying to see two newer Rhody emcees – you and Theo – gaining exposure right now, particularly because you both represent different niches in hip-hop. What are your thoughts on that?
Jon: I think it’s a beautiful thing. It shows the diversity within R.I. and how different our approaches are towards music. I am really enjoying this ride that Theo and I are on. We both come from the same neighborhood and worked very closely in the infant stages of our careers and to see us both blossom step by step is really great for our city.

Who is Blame One? Well, where does one begin answering that question? Blame One has been rapping since he was nine years old, performing and working with some of the industries best including; King Tee, Madlib, Oh No, KanKick, Blu, Black Milk and a whole bunch more. Although Blame has been kicking it for some time, March 31st marks the date of his first mastered solo album release, Days Chasing Days. The album features a slew of hip-hop greats, but the spotlight shines on Blame. His endless grind has finally paid off with an album that hip-hop fans can cherish for a long time. But with his amazing talent as an emcee, there is one thing that stands out; his humbleness and character as a human being, something that lacks in just about every rhyme-spitter these days. With all that said, Potholes In My Blog welcomes Blame One to our exclusive Artist Spotlight series. Join me as I chop it up with Blame in a Q&A format and get the low down on his career, music and brand new album.

Be sure to go cop Days Chasing Days March 31st in stores and digital dialers near you!

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Reyn: Hey Blame, appreciate you coming by. How are things?
Blame: Everything is good man, can’t complain…thanks for having me.

Reyn: Congratulations on Days Chasing Days, how did the recording process go?
Blame: Thank you. The recording process was a lot of back and forth with Exile. I record rough draft versions at my crib first and then go from there. Johaz, Sha Dula and Sean Price all recorded versus at my crib as well.

Reyn: Now you have been in the game for a very long time, but I feel like this release was your first real time to shine. How does this joint stand out from past releases that you have had in your career?
Blame: I think it stands out because Exile helped to hand pick everything we thought would work together as a whole. This is also the first album that I have had mastered. My last three albums were ground level. The creativity was definitely there but I mixed the whole Priest, Thief album from home. Big shouts to Recworm for mixing days chasing days!

Potholes In My Blog presents west coast emcee TiRon as our very first Artist Spotlight feature of the month. Los Angeles has become a hotbed for fresh, new hip-hop artists as of late. The list of dope artists coming out of there right now is endless, and TiRon tops that elite list. I first heard of TiRon from his Handshakes & Pounds Mixtape and most recently his Ketchup mixtape that dropped only days ago. It seems to me with each project this guy puts out, he comes closer and closer to becoming a top emcee in hip-hop. With amazing talent and such a bright future ahead of him, TiRon is under the Potholes Artist Spotlight for the month of March.

Join me as I kick it with TiRon in a quick Q&A, getting the low down on TiRon’s career moves and much more.

Also be sure to check out TiRon’s latest mixtape, Ketchup.

Reyn: What was your first encounter with music?
TiRon: My first encounter with music was just hanging around my uncles basement.  He’s a blues musician so I just always used to listen to him jam out with his buddies and watch him record.  After that I picked up a viola, then a trumpet, then started playing drums, then started playing keys and I just started to learn about the structure of compositions.

Reyn: When did you decide to take your music to a professional level?
TiRon: Around 2001 is when I decided to take this music seriously. I had been writing and making music just to prove I could do it, then after a while I said fuck it and started trying to rock shows and get paid.