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The evolution of music is undeniable. Just look at this past Grammy’s and the fierce competition for Best Dance/Electronic Album. This can be attributed in a huge part to the Pandemic that kept us all inside, so it’s no wonder that now genres like Techno, Electronic, and House music have made a had a huge impact on pop culture. From Beyonce’s new album "Rennaissance" to Drake’s album “Honestly Nevermind”. This category of music is feeling the effects of a market being saturated due to a high demand. But the great thing about music is that the true fans can see through the bandwagoneers, and the real music, from the real artists, is usually the only thing that lasts. AP=Chem is one of the real bands that is looking to take their music all across the world and show why their true creators in this space and not just another band looking to ride the wave. Their looking to shock the world with new album Imed=2. AP=Chem is a collective of two collaborating songwriters from Oklahoma City. Anthony Mahon, who also was in the band "The Gentle Art of Floating". And Eric Gorman, who also was a band member of "The Gentle Art of Floating" and also the band "Trap Queen". They describe their music as Inexplicable Modern Existential Dread. They have released multiple singles as well as the 2021 EP "Imed=1 Inexplicable Modern Existential Dread" and their now follow "EP Imed=2". The first track off the album is called "Please Don’t Make A Dance Song (Out of My Plane Crash)", which is really ironic. This 70s infused high energy track just takes over. It’s like looking thru a TV cycling through 70s themed shows and commercials. Back when you could take drugs on a plane and be a part of the mile high club. The clashing of the sounds dance unapologetically in the listener's mind. How can you not dance to this? Throughout the you hear a voice that is seems to be a flight stewardess. Her fragmented voice layers on top of the beat. But near the end another voice comes, this time a male voice that seems to be an air traffic controller that guides the listener through the freeform nosedive of synthesizers and piano chords and crashes right into track 2.
Track 2 is called "Forensic Homicide". The track starts with an ominous bass guitar that blares through the speaker followed by the resting piano keys. But it’s the eclectic guitar that then pulling you as if cupid himself were playing. And it's the drums that let you know that your heart is still beating. It really gives off this forbidden love type of feel. Just listening to the track your mind elopes with the beat not caring of time nor space. This feeling grows as the infactuated crooner sings, “Disappear tonight, we’re never coming back here". The listener then rides the guitar cruising through the rest of the track. Forensic Homicide is a highpoint of the album.
By the time we get to track 3 "House Not Home" we are at the mid-point of the album. The track has this dark inviting feel to it. It plays out like the part right before the killer is about to make his move. The vocals tuck tightly behind the beat as support rather than the main ingredient. They go in and out leaving enough room and suspense that you have question will it return? This track highlights their songwriting abilities with a more lyric song structure. There’s a lot of ironic bars in this track for instance; “It’s a big house, off the interstate, a nice neighborhood, with an iron gate”. I just think there’s a lot of irony in having a big house that no one can see because it’s in this secluded area and neighborhoods are usually inviting but an iron gate suggests this one isn’t. But maybe that's also meant by House Not Home.
The 4th track on the album is "Tyrel Slide". The track brings the energy of the album back up. It’s pounding bass and synthesizers draw you in. The beat is beautifully layered which creates these special moments in the track. The elongated piano notes create these paths that the synthesizers can then go and roam, while the drums are like the barriers that keeps everything inbounds. The track takes you on a quest. I can imagine a montage of a hero training or the long journey the hero has to take before he gets to the boss at the end of the story. The track is short but that is also the beauty in it. Knowing it’s short means you appreciate it that much more.
The last track on the album is "Penny Dreadful". This is the finale, with that comes a combination of where we’ve come and also how far we still have to go. Maybe a Imed=3…? Penny Dreadful has this diabolical feeling to it. There’s a voice that layers on top of the instruments that sounds like an archeologist journaling his most recent discovery. Which would be this EP. Again a montage of a scientist doing calculations and writing down theories comes to mind. The hard-hitting drums keep the thoughts organized as the synthesizer's loop around the harmonized organs. This is how you want to end an album.
There you have it. AP=Chem's latest EP Imed=2. Here are some facts about the EP. There are 5 songs with a total playback time of 23 minutes and 49 seconds. The shortest song on the album Tyrel Slide comes in at 2 minutes and 42 seconds. My favorite track on the EP is Forensic Homicide, it’s just a vibe and kind of tugs at the heart strings, also Valentine’s Day is around the corner so this would be a good theme song. What I liked most about the EP is that it took you through highs and lows. That’s what a great album does. It’s able to be played through the highs and lows of life. All-in-all I think AP=Chem did what they set out to do create inexplicable music in these modern times of existential dread. And who knows. Hopefully there will be a Imed=3.
Make sure you stream the EP Imed=2 from AP=Chem and let us know what you think. Make sure you follow AP=Chem on their social media: Instagram: @apchemband Facebook: AP=Chem Spotify: AP=Chem YouTube: AP=Chem BandCamp: AP=Chem SoundCloud: AP=Chem
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Coming off the high of being a part of the historic album that was F.I.L.A. (Fire in Little Africa). What else would an artist have to prove? For Creo Cash it would be nothing. But at the same time that high can only last for so long before fans start to wonder what’s next. The gap between new music seems to get larger and larger especially when an artist is uninspired and also second-guessing his moves. Sometimes an artist has to just get out of their own heads. This is exactly what Creo Cash is doing with the release of his new EP called “More Than an Artist”. We supposed to be rich. It’s more than just a dope line or lyric from track 1 “Born Rich”. It’s actually something Creo Cash spoke about at his EP release party, and the fact that this line was was more that just a hot line, it was true. That's because he is actually a descendant of business owners who had their businesses burned down by the 1921 Black Wall Street Massacre. He wasn’t just rapping on F.I.L.A. He was actually going for what was stolen from his family. But back to the track “Born Rich”. The first thing you hear is that flute. It sets the stage for Creo Cash to talk his shit. It’s a high energy track where Creo Cash showcases his talent with melodic flows and some dope bars like this one, “Bye, bye, bye, I’m N’Sync with the cheeses.” It’s one of the best tracks on the project.
Track 2 is called Havanna and features the one-two punch that was Blaxcdanna Mafia whose members were Creo Cash alongside Foolie Foolie. The two are still tight as ever and still frequently collab including on Havanna. The track starts out with a skit from Next Friday where Uncle Elroy brags about being able to roll blunts tighter than Havanna women. Anyone familiar with the duo’s music knows that stoner rap is an easy lane for the two rap in. It’s a fun track that feels like you chillin with the homie and ya’ll reminiscing about all the hoes and weed and drank, just shootin the shit. Foolie Foolie is a great talent that has some dope lines on here and has lots of versatility as shown when he switches flows multiple times. Here’s one example; “Medicinal smoke overlookin' the mountains, she drivin’ the boat, she gonna fuck around and drown it”. You can tell the two have collabed before and each are comfortable being on the track together they seem to almost balance each other out.
Track 3 is Sticky. Cause you know how sticky it get. Or in Creo Cash’s version “Sticky situation, yea bitch we gotta problem.”. Creo Cash is in his bag on this track. He jumps from sticky situation to sticky situation. whether that’s how to deal with your woman or a side piece, to how to deal with haters. You can get lost in the melodic flow without even realizing that the track is filled with so many quotables, “keep a 10 and 42 like Jackie Robinson”. In the words of the late Virgil Abloh “Like, we weren't supposed to come up with something this clean. Like something happened”. Sticky is so clean of a track that it seems too easy for Creo Cash to crank this one out. But then again looking closer there’s so many technical bars and the way that they are perfectly structured to set up the next bar is something you gotta appreciate. Cause again he’s good. And being good makes everything you do seem easy.
Wishy Washy is the next track on the album. The beat seems to pay homage to Lil Wayne’s the Block is Hot with some of the same notable sounds in the beat and that up-tempo New Orleans bounce. Creo Cash is adamant about people picking a side and standing on it. The track drills the point home that there is no room for people playing both sides. I gotta shout out this line that pays homage to 2Pac and at the same time Creo Cash puts his own spin on the line. "No killa but don’t push me cause ur dead homies gonna have company." It sounds like rapping in the trenches.
The 2nd to last track on the project is “No Jewelry”. The track features Fr3sh who uses auto-tune heavily throughout his verse. Fr3sh has some highlights on the track and shows his versatility as he switches up his flow numerous times. His influence on the track is so heavy that it almost feels like his. I feel like there are parts of the song that are a little too laid back. On Creo Cash’s verse it feels like he turns it on and turns it off. It’s like seeing an artist jogging down the court and not getting back on defense. There are times where his flow seems lackadaisical. Then there’s these dope bars that seem like a slam dunk. Like this bar. “Got it out the mud without a mugshot. Wat!!” I just wanted to see him turn it on and keep it on.
The last track on the EP is Time Goes By. The track is more of a slower reflective track where Creo Cash pulls from all his talents, singing, rapping, and songwriting. He effortlessly is able go into singing and then switch to rapping, multiple times throughout the track you hear him doing this balancing act without ever stumbling. Again, this track has so many quotable bars like this one, “To add to my pockets, I'm subtractin’ from yo digits.”. Time Goes By is a high point to end the project on.
So there you have it. The EP “More Than an Artist” by Creo Cash. It’s important to go thru some of the facts about the album. The album is 6 songs with a total playtime of 15 mins and 33 seconds, which is just long enough to listen to on any ride through Tulsa. All the tracks on the EP were produced by 2Peece who was able to blend different sounds that contributed to the cohesiveness of the project. There are 3 featured artists on the project Foolie Foolie, CoWhan, and Fr3sh. My favorite track on the album is “Born Rich”, it’s a high energy track with all the ingredients of a hit. My least favorite track is “No Jewelry”, not to say this can’t catch on and be a hit, it just wasn’t for me. But overall, I think “More Than an Artist” is a dope project with great songwriting and quotable bars. It’s great to hear Creo Cash back in the studio making music, and I look forward to hearing more.
Make sure you go stream Creo Cash's new project More Than an Artist now streaming everywhere! Also make sure you follow Creo Cash on all social media: Instagram: @callmecreo Twitter: @CashCreo Apple Music: Creo Cash Spotify:Creo Cash YouTube: Creo Cash We've all done it. Went on to YouTube and looking through the millions and millions of instrumentals looking for that perfect one that inspires you. Sometimes that inspiration comes from a song you've already heard and from an artist you that everyone knows, but what happens when it’s the artist everyone knows that’s doing the typing? And what if he’s curios enough to type “J. Cole type of beat”? That’s exactly what J. Cole did with his latest single “Procrastination (Broke)”. We talkin’ J. Cole? Yes. Jermaine? Yes. Mr. The real is back, the ville is back. Flow bananas, here, peel this back? Yes. J. Cole. he actually typed in “J. Cole type beat”. And the beat inspired him so much that we actually wrote a song to it. And from his message, it seemed to come at a time where he truly felt uninspired. And looking at the views the song is doing well with over 2 million views on YouTube in its first 48 hours. So, let’s take a look at just how good this song is. The song was created by producer Bvtman. It uses his signature style of building the beat, it gives space for J. Cole to have fun as the electric guitar plays in the background and gives it that old school reminiscent feel. But the real feeling of the track comes when the bass kick hits. It gives the track depth and deeper emotions. You gonna feel these bars. It also gives it that hip-hop feel. That boom bap. That pure hip-hop track where you can hear the artist clearly because their voice is also an instrument that needs to be heard and when they have something to say, it should be the main instrument. The snare drum creates the pace for the track. At times it speeds up as J. Cole’s raps speed us. At times it slows down as J. Cole’s rap also falls in line with the pace the snare creates. The beat is good but what about J. Cole’s bars? The first verse starts out with J. Cole rapping about being uninspired. He’s being truly transparent. Artists have all been there. Writer’s block. Anyone can a song and just have bars in it, but those songs don’t last, that’s not the J. Cole way. J. Cole makes music that people can feel, but when you’re not inspired that’s when the procrastination comes in, hints the title of the song. The last part of the verse is where he explains that he’s no longer broke, and it leaves him thinking can he still make “struggle” music when he’s no longer struggling as expressed in these 4 bars. Or maybe the real is I’m so, um I think this is one of the dopest things that could happen to a producer. He hacked the system. Our maybe the system glitched. But wither way, J. Cole found this unknown YouTube producer (Bvtman), and overnight gained millions of streams and thousands of followers. And he was actually able to inspire J. Cole to write a song at a time when he was uninspired. Also, the song isn’t bad. It’s more conversational than a turn up track. But the curiosity has gained it more than enough listens to be considered a win. The next question of course is. Will he be able to make another hit? Who knows who will be the next to log on to YouTube and type in “type beat”. Tell us what you think of the song.
Gangsta Grillz, you bastards. If you’re a fan of DJ Drama’s Gangsta Grillz albums, then you’ve heard this line many of times. DJ Drama has created a classic mixtape series called Gangsta Grillz that some of the biggest artists in the industry have used to either launch their careers (such as Young Jeezy) or helped reinvent themselves (such as the mixtape Weezy aka Lil Wayne). But what about an artist from Oklahoma? Wait. That can’t happen. But one thing the Pandemic has taught me is that Hennything is possible (you read that right). And it did. With one of the most talented artists in Oklahoma Ayilla. And it was on December 16th that the world was introduced to Ayilla and her Gangsta Grillz “Kill Us Both”.
I follow a few influencers on Instagram in hopes to be inspired, entertained, or also for useful information. This time it was for useful information. That’s when Gary Vee’s video about ChatGPT came across my timeline. ChatGPT is an AI (Artificial intelligence) bot that you can use natural conversational language to ask it specific questions and do specific tasks. Gary V in his post mentions how AI can do a lot for blogs and writers. So I thought it would be interesting to see what ChatGPT knew about Oklahoma Hip Hop.
Men lie. Women lie. But numbers don’t. Everyone remembers this bar from Jay-Z’s song “Reminder”. And that’s because it’s true. But to lie to someone’s face that’s a whole nuther thing. Again, both men and women lie. But the numbers don’t. And two artists that have the numbers on their side are the SAIKKO Twins, made up of SAIKKOMIKE and SAIKKO 10. Who have dropped their new single “Lie 2 My Face”.
I came across this clip on SnapChat where Gillie was on his podcast Million Dollaraz Woth of Game talking about rap. What peaked my interest in this video was that he stated that it’s OK to get help. Not only is it OK to get help but the fact that most artists get help. He even goes on to ask, “Why when it say written by, does it never just say his name?”. Let’s breakdown some of the most iconic hit songs to see if there’s some truth to Gillie’s words.
Nas is Like.. I remember hearing Nas. The rapper who took the game by storm with his debut classic album Illmatic. Admittedly I was too young to remember that album. First of all, I was young in 94. I was listening to rap of course, but I live in Tulsa. We bumpin' West Coast rap like Snoop Doggs Doggystyle. But when Nas did come onto my radar was more around the album “It Was Written” with the hit track “If I Ruled The World (Imagine That)" that featured one of the queens, Lauren Hill.
She is K.O. This isn’t only a social media handle. It’s also the perfect phrase that describes the artist from Enid Oklahoma who has been nothing short of a knockout. From her style to, to her music, to her street marketing. Since her first record, she’s truly kept the game on the ropes while she has dropped hit after hit. All the while parrying from the snakes and the fake drama that artists use nowadays for clout. And it's with her latest release Sincerely that K.O. is truly showing the world how being genuine is enough to take you to the top of the game. And do it without compromising yourself and most importantly, your art. Let’s check out Sincerely from K.O.!
This past weekend was so dope. The rebranded World Culture Music Festival (now called Dream Land Festival) was filled with everything from a jog, to panel discussions, to live music, to vendors, to a film screening. It was really an amazing sight to see. And all this going on right here in Tulsa. With all that being said I think it’s interesting to see who were the WINNERS and who were the LOSERS of this past weekend's 1st Annual Dream Land Festival.
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