Method Man, Redman, Cypress Hill, Collie Buddz, Flatbush Zombies, Dizzy Wright, The Underachievers, Con Brio, The ReMINDers, Tatanka
Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom
04/20/2015 12:30 PM MDT
$40 GA /// $150 VIP Access
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Method Man
In the dark, womb-like sanctuary of Jimi Hendrix's Electric Lady studios in downtown Manhattan-a place that has birthed historical musical moments-sits the artist known as Iron Lung, Tical, Wu Brother #1, Johnny Blaze, and of course...Method Man. With a trusty, half-lit blunt by his side, he is lounging in front of white grand piano, his hands sweeping the keyboards, trying to remember a tune he memorized years ago.
Maybe the idea of one of hip hop's finest-and grimiest-emcees tickling the ivories sounds odd, or out of place, but Mr. Mef has never been the type to fit in. His husky, guttural voice is perhaps the most distinct in the game, his flow-dark and complex like the graphic novels from which he took his moniker from-can bury itself in cinematic tracks from RZA, complement the voices of R&B divas and or attack party tracks from Rocwilder. Whether he is trading verses with partner in rhyme, Redman, crowd surfing at a Wu Tang show, or stealing a scene in various television shows and films, Method Man is a true individual spirit. With his latest album, 4:21, The Day After, he is also focused on being a true artist.
Unlike some previous efforts-where Meth admits his priorities were different-on this new album, he says he's focusing on lyrics. After his last album, Tical O: The Prequel, he went through an especially rough time in his life-both personally and professionally-which provided him with a bulk of material. "I had a lot on my mind at the time and the second thing was, I decided to really talk about something and I had a lot to draw from and when the pen hit the paper it was like damn, remember this? And by the time I was done it was like shit, let's go." The result is his most personal and introspective work yet.
Doing the work behind the boards on 4:21, are Wu Tang mastermind and long-time collaborator, RZA as well as Scott Storch, Havoc, K1 and Eric Sermon. "With Eric, we did three songs in three days," Meth says with an amazed smile, "He just comes in with ideas of top. And with RZA, shit, I've watched him build tracks from scratch, so all I really have to do is put the pen to the paper". Eric Sermon provided the beat for Meth's first single, "Say", featuring Lauryn Hill. The track finds Meth addressing critics, fickle fans and haters for disrespecting him and his Wu Tang brethren.
"I've been venting about all this for years and [my manager] was like, 'Write about it, Eric has the perfect joint.' And, Lauryn Hill herself, she just had the raw emotion, the small things she said on the song was enough for me to push my pen and let myself be vulnerable." Meth says his ability to let himself be so open is in line with the entire concept of the album, and its title. "The national weed smoking day is 4/20, so I named my album 4/21 the day after. Because after that day, you have this moment of clarity when you're not high and you see things clearly." The Grammy-winner sighs and continues, a serious, determined look on his face. "You feel like you're not in on the joke, and everyone's laughing at you. I felt like no one was taking me seriously. I got real angry and I just starting writing."
Anger proved to be a great motivator, as the Ticalion Stallion wrapped up the album in a few short months. He says the creative process has been cathartic, and though his skin hasn't gotten any thicker, he's able to use his writing talent to inspire self-confidence. "It's real talk, I'm going to keep my spirits up and not let it get things to me. You know, if you start reading your own press and feeding into it, and you start questioning yourself, like, 'am I wack?' and you have to be like, 'No!' I learned to pat myself on the back, and that it's ok to pat myself on the back sometimes." We definitely agree.
Redman
You are now about to embark on a unique adventure where time, sound, and reality all have different meaning. No you won't be hanging with Pee-Wee Herman money, your guide for this ride is none other than Reggie Noble BKA Redman, and the place with all the bass just happens to be The Dark Side. There's no need to go into how Redman came on the scene housin' $%&! right ? What! Your memory is failing you? Don't ask somebody, I'm about to school ya. After years tearing it out the frame doing classic freestyles across the Tri-state area, Redman burst out upon the Hip-Hop scene in 1991 by catching wreck with his gift of vocab on the EPMD tracks "Hardcore and "Brothers On My Jock."
Soon after he gained more props by releasing his first funky single "Blow Your Mind" off the now Gold debut album "Whut? Thee Album." It contained gem tracks such as "Time 4 some Akshun" and "Tonight's The Night." Besides that, Redman was also a powerful force in The Hit Squad, a crew in Hip-Hop so revered any mention of the name brought instant respect.But that was two years ago, and a lot has happened in between. In 1993 Redman was voted by The Source as the top rap artist of the year. And Now Redman returns to reveal "Dare Is A Dark Side", his highly anticipated follow-up on Def Jam Recordings.
The title for the new platter came easily as the mc has gone through a barrage of stress, trials and tribulations career wise, in addition to the everyday struggle of maintaining out in society. After a quick trip to the corner store for a couple of phillips, he broke it down to me, "My meaning of the dark side is deep and real. All that shit I was GOING thou, I was like "This don't make sense." So you know what? I may just let shit go on this album to the dark side. Everybody's got a dark side, but they don't let it come out by pretending and grinning up in your face, and when they get home, they're on a whole different note. It wasn't about no gimmick. It's strictly real. The shit is dark but it's still funky."
Ah yes, the funk. That word combined with Redman go together like rice and beans. "Dare Is A Dark Side" packs the same quality head-noddin' funk the Hip-Hop nation came to love about "Whut...", but it also contains if possible a heavier bottom groove on 17 tracks. For example the first single, "Rockafella" contains hypnotizing bassline that symbolizes traditional east coast funk, cleverly merged with snippets of samples that will undoubtedly bring mad love from the west. "Rockafella" is also a personal special jam as it's dedicated to his man Rockafella, who was tragically gunned down just before the process of Redman putting him on. Redman states, "He had mad songs and he gave 'em to me because I was trying to let people hear him and stuff.
So I was like fuck it, I can't do nothing but let the world hear him (on the intro). The track "Cosmic Slop" features Redman gettin' biz with his present Def Squad family members Keith Murray and Erick Sermon the only way they know how. "Can't Wait" is a padlock to be a favorite in the rides as it carries the same vein of the previous butter track "Tonight"'s The Night." The joint "Green Island" finds Reggie Noble flippin' lyrics over a Caribbean -type beat to be believed. Other dope tracks such as "Da Game" and "Slide And Rock On" spotlights Redman doing what he does best, rhyming his ass of while even more importantly, showing us his captivating personality that gets heads open. Not too many mc's can lift the choruses from "Hey D.J." and a Prince jam, and in a comedic fashion, flip them, and be talking about blunts, But the treats don't end there.
The funkadelic devil does a wicked duet with Hurricane G on "Werun N.Y." and every single person that dug the first album "Sooperman Luva." Redman has succeeded again on the production tip. He knocked five joints himself, while benefiting from the fly skills of the Funklord Erick Sermon and coming Funky Noble Productions producer Rockwilder who completed the package with him.
Cypress Hill
Cypress Hill were notable for being the first Latino hip-hop superstars, but they became notorious for their endorsement of marijuana, which actually isn't a trivial thing. Not only did the group campaign for its legalization, but their slow, rolling bass-and-drum loops pioneered a new, stoned funk that became extraordinary influential in '90s hip-hop -- it could be heard in everything from Dr. Dre's G-funk to the chilly layers of English trip-hop. DJ Muggs crafted the sound, and B Real, with his pinched, nasal voice, was responsible for the rhetoric that made them famous. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
Collie Buddz
Light It Up, the new record from artist Collie Buddz, is momentous, gigantic and booming! It’s immediately undeniable an awe-struck song complete with an unforgettable sing-along hook, the kind of beats that pound in the chest and a vocal performance that's as uncommon as it is infectious.
A hit record is probably the only thing that makes Salaam Remi pause his day. Remi, most known as one of the top-selling music producers in the world [Fugees, Usher, Fergie, and Amy Winehouse] and Executive Vice-President at Sony Music knows an irrefutable song when he hears it. After discovering Light It Up, Remi made an offer to Collie Buddz to join his label imprint Louder Than Life, a division of Sony Music Entertainment.
"Salaam knows music. It feels good. I want to reach a certain level with my career and go places I haven't gone yet. Being with Sony Music definitely helps with that," Buddz says with some anticipation.
Light It Up, is a new anthem spreading across every college campus and radio stations, but the artist that created the tune has a name that may sound familiar to some music fans. Buddz exploded onto the scene a few years ago when critics and tastemakers alike embraced him - Spin Magazine proclaiming, "Buddz proves the pop rule: Catchiness transcends color." From Vibe Magazine to Entertainment Weekly, Collie Buddz made quite an impression with music critics.
Flatbush Zombies
Shocking, hilarious, sometimes revolting, and yet completely endearing, the Flatbush Zombies are a genuine mystery in a musical landscape where few still exist. Meechy Darko and Juice, Brooklyn bred youth with a penchant for gold grills, Charles Manson and dropping acid, make up the high energy trio alongside producer and lifelong friend Erick Arc Elliott. The Zombies rose out of complete obscurity on the back of a synth heavy, weed laced banger entitled "Thug Waffle," an ode to marijuana and breakfast foods which immediately propelled them to the forefront of New York's fresh crop of talent. Their seamless recipe of can't-look-away visual appeal and deft lyricism had them opening for Slaughterhouse and Schoolboy Q within a month while peaking the interest of everyone from Lana Del Rey to VICE, and garnering them a show stealing guest spot on the first A$AP Rocky single, "Bath Salt." Their first full length mixtape, D.R.U.G.S. (July 2012), released with over 50,000 downloads in the first week and provides the backbone for their hypnotically abrasive and off the wall live show.
Dizzy Wright
“You just don’t become a leader in one year. You’re prepped for it. When you’re at your lowest—but you got that faith—that gives you motivation. And when you have that motivation, that’s what makes you a leader,” says Las Vegas native Dizzy Wright. Beyond his years at 22, Dizzy has been one of the first Sin City rappers to grab the spotlight and carry it across the globe.
“My mom kicked me out when I was 17,” Dizzy reveals of the woman who both raised him and managed his career since childhood, “I was thrown out into the world.” With a similar story to his inspiration, Tupac Shakur, he took to local clubs to build a network and fan-base by being both skilled and flashy. “I was all about getting people to know my name. I knew the vision, but I didn’t know the gesture. You’ve got to live through this to get an understanding of it.” Along the way, Wright says that life taught him to keep a tight circle and to be concerned with how his music sounded in venues just as much as the writing. That dichotomy of substance and swagger has made Dizzy Wright an independent charting sensation with three 2012 releases, SmokeOut Conversations (along with the 200,000 times downloaded promotional mixtape), as well as a follow-up EP, The First Agreement. In turn, the youngest member of Funk Volume has been one of the most active.
Although SmokeOut Conversations could be dismissed as just marijuana music, the inspiration behind the concept is deeply personal to Dizzy. The rapper asserts, “I didn’t want people to perceive me as this weed rapper with a weed album.” Instead, he admits that a key moment in creating the album came from his first encounter with his father. “I did a show in Detroit with Hopsin, and I got to meet my father for the first time. I was trying to figure out what he was gonna be like. He went to jail a couple months before I was born, and then he got out 20 years later.” To buffer the circumstances, Dizzy and his Pops eased tensions with some help. “When I finally met him, all we did was smoke and talk.” “We just got to do a lot of catchin’ up, lotta talkin’, and lotta smokin’.” After his father traveled to several dates with the Funk Volume family, Dizzy left the experience with a title and theme for his debut album.
The independent album produced two multimillion-view videos on YouTube, “Solo Dolo” and “Can’t Trust Em.” Dizzy was specific in giving his expanding base both sides of his repertoire. The first was Dizzy’s most personal record, while the second had, what he calls “that now-sound.” Both resonated, and the rapper was able to go from “doing shows to doing concerts” in his relentless touring with label-mates. Reflecting, he notes, “I was just testing the waters.” Ready to fully jump in, Wright promises of his forthcoming work, “My next album will be the biggest one to date. It’ll be the perfect material for the fans, ‘cause I understand everything a lot more.”
Like his idol, Dizzy Wright embodies a do-for-self journey that’s magnetized listeners with his natural charisma. Perhaps with a cloudy chorus or a bassline to make it digestible, he’s leading a new charge. “’Pac’s passion gives me passion. I don’t wanna be just one of these niggas just talkin’.” In life and in music, already he’s saying much more.
The Underachievers
As members of the Beast Coast movement (which includes Joey Bada$$ and his Pro Era crew and Flatbush Zombies), The Underachievers are part of the new wave of rappers that have been coming out of New York. Rapper AK47 started rapping at 11 years old, and Issa Gold started 2 years ago. Raised together in Flatbush, Brooklyn, they established THE UNDERACHIEVERS music group last year, and have been creating music together ever since.
In May 2012 they released their debut music video for their song “So Devlish” and everything took off from there for the group. Since they have gained 8.5 million views on youtube, 35,000+ subscribers, and relationships with all of the top publications for music.
In February 2013 they released their debut mix tape INDIGOISM, which has been acclaimed allover the internet receiving a 8/10 from PITCHFORK and going GOLD on DATPIFF with 160,000 downloads and 430,000 views. It has been received as one of the best projects to be released in 2013, and has served as an excellent tool to establish the reputation of the group.
The main purpose of their music is to aide in the enlightenment of their generation by providing music from a perspective that all can appreciate and enjoy, but by still keeping it positive and “true to hip hop” as they can. By combining their strong points they have been able to establish themselves as a rising reputable force in the Music Industry.
They are due to drop their second project “Lords of Flatbush” produced entirely by producing extraordinaire LEX LUGER in August.
Con Brio
Con Brio is a living, evolving testament to the power of soul. Propelled by the young phenom Ziek McCarter - a charismatic, undeniably gifted showman - Con Brio's sound draws a clear lineage from the dance-heavy funk legacies of legends like Sly & the Family Stone and James Brown, while keeping one eye on R&B trailblazers like D'Angelo and Prince and the other on a psychedelic future.
Based in San Francisco and named after a musical direction meaning "with spirit", Con Brio has a relentless drive for experimentation, for pushing their high technical ability higher, for reaching beyond the familiar. The resulting dynamic fuses pulsating rhythms, blazing guitar-work, soaring horns, the warm peal of a Hammond organ, and the unforgettable stage presence of an inspired vocalist: altogether it's one hell of a party.
Thanks to a legion of dedicated fans (who reliably show up to tear the house down at every available opportunity), the band has shared stages with artists such as Karl Denson's Tiny Universe, Fishbone, Meshell Ndegeocello, and Trombone Shorty. The release of their Kiss The Sun EP in early 2015 marks the beginning of Con Brio's North American touring and ambitious performance and release schedule.
In 2013, the longstanding rhythm section of keyboardist Micah Dubreuil, bassist Jonathan Kirchner and drummer Andrew Laubacher joined forces with incomparable guitar slinger Benjamin Andrews and McCarter: a Texas transplant who as a 19-year-old had already begun drawing crowds in his new hometown. Add in the fireworks of the "Hallelujah Horn Section" (Marcus Stephens & Brendan Liu) and you have the skill and confidence that comes from years of stage time and deeply-established musical partnerships with the thirst and energy of a rising star - a bright light who's just getting started.
The ReMINDers
The Reminders are a remarkable hip-hop duo that is steadily rising to the top of the independent music scene. The team, consisting of Brussels-born emcee Big Samir, and Queens-born emcee/vocalist Aja Black, are definitely a creative force to be reckoned with. Big Samir, weaves intricate rhythmic patterns with a bilingual French/English flow, displaying his street-smart credibility in both his lyrics and cool demeanor. This is beautifully complimented by Aja Black's confident delivery, diverse cadences, and unique vocal stylings. The two have undeniably magical chemistry, as well they should. Sharing more than lyrical ability and stages, the couple is partners in both music and life, and have been married for almost a decade.
Releasing their debut album 'Recollect' in 2008, The Reminders have been launched into the spotlight. Recognized and applauded for their ability seamlessly blend magnetic rhymes and soaring vocals, the group pulls from a combination of musical genres, creating an array of sounds that resonate in the ears and hearts of many. Oft compared to the Fugees, Blackstar, and Digable Planets, The Reminders can definitely carry their own weight, and are more than able to standout amongst their contemporaries. Their stage presence wows crowds the world over, allowing the the duo to uplift and entertain all at once.
Their unique mashup of razor sharp rhymes, raw, soulful vocals, and reggae-infused hip hop beats form the perfect backdrop for their relevant and inspiring themes, leaving a lasting impression on listeners, with audiences always wanting more.
Having shared the stage with artists such as Snoop Dogg, Fishbone, Barrington Levy, Black Star, Big Boi, KRS-One, Rakim, K'Naan, and others, the Reminders have established a firm place in today's changing scene, garnering international acclaim while paving a path al their own.
More than a shade of the same color that we have seen time and time again, this group transcends the bounds of what is expected. More than a breath of fresh air, The Reminders deepen the roots of hip-hop's Golden Era, raising its soul up high, propelling it forward into the future. With the release of their new album, 'Born Champions' these two are truly headed for something incredibly special.
Tatanka
Tatanka sounds great and is a record that manages to pay homage to its roots, deliver a couple catchy singles as well as define Tatanka’s sound as an out of the mold band that is pushing the reggae-rock genre to a new place.” claims Tommy Dubs from The Pier.
This has been the sole aesthetic that Tatanka has strived for. Encapsulating the heavy roots rumble of the Caribbean while maintaining the pop sensibilities of the dance-oriented, electronic sounds of the Brittanica, American reggae scene. Providing a positive message throughout.
This fueled the sound of what became the newest album Tatanka. Written over the span of a year and a half, Tatanka recorded their Self-titled album at Imperial Sound in San Diego. Reggae rocker Ted Bowne from PASSAFIRE and the roots magician The Maad T-Ray of Tribal Seeds feature on a counter culture, wake up call entitled “The Yard”. Jamaican sing-jay Triston Palmer is heard on a bouncy number labeled “Give Green.” The song is a homage to never giving up on what you believe in. En Young of Tribal Seeds is also heard throughout the album. The album debuted at #1 on iTunes reggae charts and #4 on Billboard's reggae charts. The positive lyrics and heavy sounds garnered radio air play all around the globe.
Tatanka's Sounds In Technicolor racked up over 20,000 downloads and has attributed to the flourishing fan base. This recognition has led to tours across the US and spanning to Canada with acts such as: Tribal Seeds, Stick Figure, Lee Scratch Perry, Fortunate Youth, Easy Star Allstars, Passafire, and more. In conjunction with a heavy tour schedule, Tatanka has also played a multitude of festivals including; California Roots, Powell-a-Palooza, Desert Rocks, Arise and a plethora of others.
Formed in 2009 by a few college friends in Denver Colorado, Tatanka has been nominated for 'Breakout Artist of the Year' (2014) by The Pier, High Times 'Unsigned Band of the Month' (09/2011) and nominated by Westword magazine for 'Colorado's Reggae/Jam Band of the Year (2015)'. With 2015 providing a large amount of clout, Tatanka will be releasing a remix album of their Self-titled release along with several new singles within the year.
Tatanka's infectious live show is the bridge between the band and the fans. It unifies the crowd with the progressing, pulsing, positive perspective of Tatanka. Looking to further instill a global vision of unity with their pounding, dynamic sound and peaceful, harmonious message.
“We all go help them, People come together no selfish.”
Reward Them - TATANKA
Venue Information
Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom
2637 Welton Street
Denver, CO 80205
http://www.cervantesmasterpiece.com/