https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drfLgAzlxyA&feature=youtu.be
I recently had the chance to go explore the Northern Lights in Tromso, Norway. I was able to interview my Air B and B host for some information on the Northern Lights, but unfortunately I could not capture the lights on video. Thankfully, I had my Photo camera with my as well, and was able to capture this image.
For my podcast, I decided to have a discussion with my roommate on who we would take in certain rap battles and why. I really wanted to do it on this topic because I have never done a podcast before. I was really concerned with saying the right thing and not messing up during the time I was recording, and I figured that if I did it on a topic that came naturally to me, such as Hip-Hop, it would be much easier.
In the podcast, my roommate and I discussed a possible rap battle victor between Tyler the Creator and 6ix9ine, had they had a beef. Even though those two rappers probably will never have a real beef, it is interesting to speculate who would win in a supposed battle. The other argument we had, that had a much more argumentative answer, was between Kodak Black and Gunna. These two rappers are both from the South in the United States, which gives them a much different sound than you would find on the West Coast, or even the East Coast. It was also interesting to pick these two rappers because I know how big of a fan my roommate is of both Kodak and Gunna. And although it was a hard decision for him, we were still both able to justify why the other would win.
This November, Vince Staples released his third studio album, titled “FM!”. This album is one of my most favorite projects I have heard over the last year. It starts with the song “Feels Like Summer” where Staples introduces the sound of the album thanks to a feature of Big Boy and the cast of Big Boy’s Neighborhood.
The album continues the summertime vibe with the song “Outside!”. When I first heard it, I felt it as a song that would hype up the crowd at a concert. At the end of the song, it sounds like the disk slows down to a halt, and transitions to the beat of the next song, “Don’t Get Chipped”. This is one of my favorite songs on the album because of how fast paced he comes rapping out of the gate.
At the end of the next song, “Relay” the disk slow down effect happens again and one of the cast from Big Boy’s Neighborhood comes in with a promotion for winning tickets to a Kehlani Concert. The beat carries to the next track titled, “New earlsweatshirt (Interlude)” but quickly is cut off by a clip saying, “New Earl Sweatshirt on Big Boy’s Neighborhood”. Although the song is 22 seconds, and Earl’s verse is only 19, the interlude adds a connector between “Relay” and the next song, “Run the Bands”.
At three minutes eight seconds, it is the longest song on the album. At the end of the song, Big Boy comes on continuing the radio theme of the album, and leads to the next song, “FUN!”. With a very upbeat tempo, “FUN!” talks about the view of most young people today, in the chorus. The song also features a Bay Area legend, E-40.
In the next song, “No Bleedin”, Staples has another feature from the Bay Area, in Kamaiyah. That song is followed by “Brand New Tyga – Interlude” and “(562) 453-9382 – Skit”, with the former being a short verse by Tyga, and the latter being a skit in the form of a contest call to Big Boy’s Neighborhood. The album ends with the song “Tweakin’” where Vince Staples has yet another Bay Area feature, with Kehlani on the chorus.
This album is one of my favorites because you can tell it is made to be listened to all in a row. Although there are a few standouts for catchy songs that can be added to the queue at a party, they are much more fluid as a whole project. I also like how he carried the Big Boy’s Neighborhood sketches throughout the entire album. In a recent interview, Vince hinted at possibly eight more projects from him in the year of 2019 alone. For me, as long as he keeps innovating and being creative, there is no telling how insane some of these projects may be.
For my second artist of my list of favorite rappers, I decided to talk about Vince Staples. I first heard Vince Staples when through his song “Norf Norf” off of his first studio album, “Summertime ‘06” released in 2015.
It came out a few weeks after I had graduated from high school in the summer of 2015, when my friends and I had no responsibilities and would mob around all day, every day of summer. Although I couldn’t relate to every part of the song, I spent most of my days rapping along to, “I ain’t never ran from nothing but the police”.
I went back to his first EP titled “Hell Can Wait” from the fall of 2014. Although only around 24 minutes long, the project still received positive reviews from the critics. None of that was much concern to me once I heard “Blue Suede”.
I was in my friend’s car when I was listening to the album and once the deep bass hit in the beginning, the whole car was shaking. I could not help but bounce back and forth to the beat while listening, even to this day. On top of that, he paints a picture with his verses that really pulls the listener in. Wanting to go even deeper into his music, I started asking my friend if he knew of any other Vince Staples songs. He then showed me a song that Staples was featured in back in 2013, off of Earl Sweatshirt’s Debut album “Doris”. The song was called “Hive” and although it had a much different feel than “Norf Norf” and “Blue Suede”, the change in pace made me focus even more on the lyrics and be even more impressed.
In 2016, Vince dropped his second EP titled “Prima Donna”. Although only seven tracks, it showed how much more refined and tuned his skills are becoming. It also shows his ability to be creative visually along with lyrically. A week after the release of the EP, he released a ten minute short film to go along with the project.
His second studio album, “Big Fish Theory”, was released in the summer of 2017, two years after his debut studio album. This album however, was much different than “Summertime ‘06”. It has more of an electronic music feel in the beats, and really pushes the invisible limit of creativity in Hip-Hop. One of my favorite songs on that album is the second song on the track list, “Big Fish”.
In the next installment, I will go into detail on his most recent album “FM!”, which is one of my most favorite projects of 2018.
In Hip-Hop, like in any other genre of music, the most consistent way to become successful in the industry is with marketing. There are the exceptions, such as artists who become famous off of a viral song or music video, but for the most part marketing is normally the deciding factor. Whenever artists start out, unless already famous or well known, they normally start out with a small following consisting mostly of friends and family. In the 80’s and 90’s it was about tapes, the 2000’s it was CD’s, and now it’s about the internet.
The start of marketing for a new artist today normally starts with forming accounts on different social media platforms to release music and information about their career and other events. With a supportive group of family and friends, an artist can start out their pages with at least a little bit of listening time and feedback. Using the social media platforms, they are able to promote their own music by sharing the link with different users on every platform. If they are trying to reach a target audience, they can even use specific hash tags (#) to make their art more accessible to those searching for new music.
Artists can also market themselves by making music videos to accompany some of their better songs. Although listening to the song is the main attraction of music, having the visual component can really get the audience more engaged and connected to the song they see, and connect them more with the artist themself. One example of that for myself, is the song “Yamborghini High” by A$AP Mob.
Although I liked the song pretty well when it came out, it did not really have any deep connection with me, and was kind of a song just for a party scene. However, seeing the video gave me a whole different perspective on the song than I had before. Even though this video is very high quality and professionally made/edited, that does not mean that every music video needs to be professional high quality. Many Chicago drill rappers have made excellent videos with nothing more than their house and neighborhood as places to record. A great example of this is one of the most famous drill rappers across the world, Chief Keef.
It is clear in the video that they are not in a big mansion, or a nice house in the suburbs. They are in their neighborhood where they hang every day, and this video 32 million views to this day. The money that an artists can save in making their music videos can add up over time.
Lastly, I wanted to leave this short clip by Gary Vee. In this clip, he brings up the point that the best way to market yourself is to have a target audience, and focus on growing that little by little everyday.
Currently, the niche of Hip-Hop journalism does not have anywhere near the size of mainstream journalism outlets. However, this doesn’t mean that this will always be the case. One thing that can contribute to the size of Hip-Hop journalism is mobile journalism, or Mojo. Mobile journalism is an approach of field reporting stories and multimedia content by using smart phones, or other connected mobile devices.
The simple definition of mobile journalism may make it seem like no other tools are needed besides a smart phone for a journalist to be mobile, but this is not the case. While the amount of add on parts that a mobile journalist might add to their arsenal is never ending, the necessary tools are actually limited. For one, a mobile journalist needs a microphone. While smart phones have recording capabilities, it’s important to at least have ear phones with a microphone already built in. If the video ever became corrupt, with a clear audio file, the story can still be told.
The next item that is needed is a tripod or monopod. No matter how stable someone’s hands are, since smartphones have limited camera capabilities, any slight shake will appear very large when the footage is aired either on television or any internet capable device. With a tripod or monopod, either the reporter or another person simply needs to make sure the device doesn’t get bumped by a passerby.
This is so important for Hip-Hop journalism because it opens the door for more and more independent journalists and journalism outlets to get out there. There is not a need for large cameras or a camera crew for an outlet to cover a story, simply the journalist and their Mojo setup.
Mobile journalism also has an advantage over normal journalism reporting in that people are more comfortable in front of a smart phone camera than a large “official” camera. It is quite common during an interview, for the subject of the interview to be quite confident and even crack a couple of jokes, but when the camera comes on they are like a deer in headlights. In today’s society, the majority of people own smart phones, or at least have been in a video recorded on one. This normality of smart phone cameras recording has made people not take them as serious as a big news camera that needs a van to transport it. Since people are so comfortable in front of the camera, it makes interviewing way easier, since people don’t have as intense of a barrier put up on camera.
With the increasing use of Mojo in everyday journalism, it is only logical to expect it to leak into the realm of Hip-Hop journalism, hopefully propelling it to greater heights than before.
In class this week, we had a guest speaker to talk about his journey and the use of social media for his platform. The speaker was Valentí Sanjuan, a former radio personality turned Ultraman athlete. Valentí worked in radio in Barcelona in the mid 2000’s and was also pursuing another business on the side with his friends. 
All of a sudden, he lost everything within an eight month period. In these eight months he lost his job, his business venture with his friends, his longtime girlfriend, and his mother, who passed away suddenly. With his life in shambles, he thought about his mother’s life. For as long as he remembered, his mother and father worked and worked so that he and his sister could have a good life. Their parents enjoyed skiing, and his mother had been planning to use the first retirement check to buy ski equipment since she would have more free time. 
As fate would have it, she passed the month before the first check would have arrived. This forced his sister and him to look at their life and realize that anything could happen at any time, and tomorrow is never promised. They decided to make a bucket list of sorts, and started crossing items off the list. The first of these items was an Ironman race. At the time, he wasn’t in the best shape, and definitely wouldn’t be who one would expect to do a competition of this sort. In the end, he and his sister finished, and thus struck an addiction. From that one race, he decided to re-brand himself, and continue to train and push his body to finish more and more of these events, eventually competing in multiple Ultraman races and other high intensity races. He took to YouTube and other social networks, back when they were still new, to start sharing his story and inspiring others to seize the day. From the very beginning he committed himself to making a video every day, even bringing his laptop to dinner events to finish editing before the day was over. He has now built up his following to 280K on Instagram, 260K on YouTube, and 120K on Twitter. He also has his own high endurance clothing line on his personal website, and is the co-founder of Gordon Seen, a content agency that specializes in web 2.0. Now a days, Valentí can be found giving motivational speeches to venues with thousands of people, and sharing his feats of endurance on social media.
His speech taught me to take the leap in what I want to do. Tomorrow is never guaranteed and you have to do what you truly want when you can. It also taught me that in order to really be successful in something, 100 percent dedication is needed every day to truly build a brand or company. As far as improving his social media, I wouldn’t change anything because the content of the posts are clear and the frequency of the posts being published is ideal.
In my journalism class, we discussed citizen journalism in society; Boston bomber witnesses on social media, the students in Parkland, FL during the school shooting, etc. It got me thinking about citizen journalism in reference to Hip-Hop. Although Hip-Hop journalism is a niche market, there have been only a few occasions of non-journalists with their phones on at a significant point of an artist’s life. The main case that comes to mind is the death of XXXTentacion, which occurred this summer. The late rapper was shopping at a motorcycle shop in Florida, and a car blocked his path. The occupants of the car got out, stole his Louis Vuitton bag, and shot him. The first reporters on the scene were pedestrians, who heard the shots and came over. Video of him unconscious and bleeding in his car quickly took to Twitter, leading to speculation as to whether or not they were real. The videos of him in the car are graphic and viewer discretion is advised.
It was not for another hour and a half that he would be declared dead by the county sheriff’s office. Some outlets such as TMZ and XXL broke the news of death then on twitter.
With the advancements of social media and the fact that a majority of cell phones have recording capabilities, it is safe to say that citizen journalism is going nowhere. However, the necessity for it in Hip-Hop community has yet to really be revealed. For one thing, the community of Hip-Hop itself is fairly connected. The media outlets that report on news in this community have enough connections to find out breaking news, usually before it drops anywhere else. One example is TMZ dropping the news of Mac Miller’s death in September.
Another argument against needing citizen journalists is that many rappers often break their own news. Most artists in the Hip-Hop community control their own social media accounts, interact with fans themselves, and posting their own content. Since social media can be accessed anywhere with an internet connection, artists are always able to stay connected to rebuke any false claims and share their thoughts with their followers. One example is when Vince Staples said in an interview that he thought the 90’s were overrated.
One Twitter user then tried to speak on music in north Long Beach, CA, where Staples is from.
On the other hand, simply because citizen journalism might not be necessary right now in Hip-Hop, does not mean that it should not exist. There are plenty of times where audience members are the only ones besides the artists who even have a clue as to what happened at a certain show or event. If Hip-Hop continues to grow like it has been for the last 10 years, it will be too big to not rely, at least a little bit, on citizen journalists.
Last week, Alberto Linares visited our class to talk about new augmented reality tech, virtual reality tech, chat bots, etc. Alberto is the main product developer for Everywoah, who make different AR filters and camera effects for Facebook. One example of a project that he has worked on is a promotional filter for the character “Big Shaq” created by Michael Dapaah.
He has also helped develop 360 degree apps for mobile journalists to better report in the field. One new piece of technology that he showed us was chat bots. The chat bots that he talked about were mainly ones used for food deliveries. However, he also talked about chat bots that can be used almost as a personal assistant. The user simply texts the action they want completed, such as arranging a haircut, and the chat bot works as an assistant to schedule it. He then went on to talk about how the same chat bots can translate a text or audio clip, add subtitles, or even add an intro/outro to a paper.
One piece of technology that he showed that particularly interested me is the Magic Leap 1. It is a pair of AR glasses that creators can use to make art that interacts with the actual space that the wearer is in.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5246156rcQ
As far as how these new technologies can be used in hip-hop, I have a few ideas. For one, when I saw the video of the Magic Leap 1, I instantly was brought back to high school. Specifically, I was reminded of a music video that I saw growing up, “Only That Real” by Iamsu, Sage The Gemini, and 2 Chainz.
I realized that this device could turn any music video into a whole new world, made completely from the artist. Since the lenses have the ability to record what they see, it could even be used to make extra videos that play during the artists’ performance. The same technology could also be used to enhance the concert experience. In smaller venue settings, where attendants have the glasses, artists could add an AR experience to the live shows. If they are all connected to the same network, they would then be able to fully interact with the AR art that the artist already created. Obviously the technology must be advanced a little further first, but I believe this could be a new path for not only hip-hop music, but for any genre.
The San Francisco Bay Area is home to some of the most creative and innovative people around, and has always been a place accepting of peoples’ creative differences. Because of that creative energy, the Bay Area sound and slang is something that has inspired artists from all over. To understand this energy, we must go back to the first rapper to make it big time from the Bay, MC Hammer. Hammer was born and raised in East Oakland, and made his rap debut with his independent album “Feel My Power”. (I bring up the fact that he was independent because that is a common theme amongst many rappers in the Bay Area, and a part of the hustle attitude in the Bay.) He later released “U Can’t Touch This”, which would become the song he is best known for and propel him to be the one of the first pop rap stars ever.
Although the first rapper to make it from the Bay Area, MC Hammer’s music style is not what the Bay is known for. Enter Too Short. Too Short moved to Oakland when he was in high school and started playing drums in the school band. Along with one of his friends, Too Short began making “special tapes” where people would pay him for a custom song that shouted them out on the track. During this time, Too Short’s persona as a rapper became synonymous with the Pimpin’ lifestyle that was prominent in Oakland at the time. Although not officially a pimp himself, he was able to express the pimp life in such a way that earned him the respect of those who did live the life. To this day, Too Short has released 20 solo albums, with his song “Blow the Whistle” being an iconic song for those of us raised in the Bay.
The next rapper, arguably the most influential rapper of all time, is Tupac Shakur. Tupac moved to the Bay Area from the East Coast in 1988 with his mom and sister. His first big appearance on a song came in 1991; when he was with the alternative Hip-Hop group Digital Underground. He was featured on the song “Same Song” after which his skills couldn’t be ignored. It was after this song, that he recorded and released his debut album “2Pacalypse Now” in Richmond, CA, a city 15 minutes north of Oakland. This album has been cited as inspiration by Nas, Eminem, The Game, and many other artists.
Shakur would eventually move to Los Angeles and join Death Row Records with Dr. Dre, and become an icon for West Coast Hip-Hop. Although he is seen by some as a symbol for LA, he would forever claim Oakland, where he learned the game. Oakland became his adopted home, and he became Oakland’s adopted son.
Spacey Life 