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50 Years Of Hip-Hop! To celebrate. Meet Us Saturday August 12th at the Center of Public Secrets! Date: August 12th, 2023
Time: 1pm-5pm Location: Center of Public Secrets Address: 573 S. Peoria Ave. Tulsa OK 74120 This Saturday!!!! To celebrate 50 years of hip-hop, we gonna celebrate the South with our own Swap Meet called “Chop & Meet”. All artists that want to sell physical copies of your music or merch, pull up and network. For more info contact: tulsalines@gmail.com If you want to trade CDs or Vinyls, pull up! We’re gonna also going to be selling physical copies of our New Mixtape called “Tulsa Lines Presents: “The Purple Tape”. Also. we have a special edition mixtape to go along with, called “Tulsa Lines Presents: “The Pink Tape”. Purple drank provided by @shaascreations / donation based/ pay what you can. We will also be taking donations to help sponsor a student to go to the @raps101 summer music program. An immersive songwriting and music production experience that supports the local arts program here in Tulsa.
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When you think about famous people in Tulsa what comes to mind are the athletes and the rappers. Who could blame you? They’re literally on the big screen. Whether present or past, the common narrative has been pushed that if you want to make it to the big time then you either have to play some form of music or you have to be an athlete. Hank Byrd is a Tulsan looking to literally change the narrative, all the while making it to the big screen without having to rap or dribble a ball. Hank Byrd is a screenwriter from Tulsa, whose reputation speaks for itself. The self-proclaimed “army brat” also served in the U.S. Army, which gave him a more worldly lense, and is something he invites audiences in with each script he writes. Throughout his career he’s proven why his pen is just as mighty as his sword. The Tulsa screenwriter has over 14 years of industry experience and has recently released the 3rd episode of Blerds that was picked up by the popular streaming service Tubi. Hank not only saw this project as a labor of love, but believed in it so much that he paid out of his own pocket the capital needed to make the first episodes of Blerds. Some of his other accomplishments include; Won the Bare Bones International Film Festival Best Live Screenplay Reading honor in 2010 for his film “Dinner with Harry”. Audience Choice winner for best mini-feature for the film “The Take”. Also an official Selection to the HorrOrigins Film Festival 2020 for his film “Adjoining” and multiple quarterfinalist selections for his film “The Fae”. This brings us to his latest accomplishment, co-writer of the recently announced film Boneyard. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Inspired by true events, Boneyard tells of an FBI special agent, played by Mel Gibson, who along with the Albuquerque police department, is hunting for a serial killer nicknamed “The Bone Collector”. Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, will be playing the chief. Alongside will be veteran actor Bran Van Holt, who plays the officer who is connected to the case through a missing niece. Although details of actress Nora Zehetner role have not been released, moviegoers will be sure to be in line to see her performance. Filming has already begun in Las Vegas and more details about the movie are sure to come out later. For Jackson, this comes at the heels of his most successful years as a producer; anyone who follows Jackson knows he’s not ashamed to share what’s on his mind, “I just realized there is not 1 African American person with green light Power in all of television. 👀 WTF , I gotta turn it up now !”. Hank shares the writing load with Vincent E. McDaniel, Koji Steven Sakai and Asif Akbar, who will also be the director as well as one of the credited producers for the film. This is the big time. This is the big screen. A moment not too big for Hank Bryd who interned on the blockbuster hit Kiss Of The Dragon that starred world-famous actor and martial artist Jet Li. This is another opportunity for Hank Byrd to show why he’s had such longevity in the here-today, gone-tomorrow world of Hollywood. The next big script is right at his fingertips. So, lookout for Hank Byrd the screenwriter that is writing his way into Tulsa history.
Another accomplishment Hank Byrd has added to his list is that of an author. He recently released his book "HANKISMS: Everyday Quotes About Life, Love & Everything Else That Falls Through The Cracks". You can order your copy here: HANKISMS on LULU Here's what Hank Byrd had to say about his book:
Few rappers are actually story tellers. You might be thinking. Give me an example. Well, here are a few. Slick Rick and his song “Children’s Story” or Lupe Fiasco’s “Hip Hop Saved My Life”. Then you have Nas with his song "Rewind". Nas spit a whole song backwards. Crazy. So, as you can see you really gotta have a pen to tell a story and put it into a beat. But can you do it for 3 songs? And can you make all the stories fit into this amazing epic that keeps your audience wanting more? Well, that’s just what OTS J. Huncho did with his 3-part series called “Calvin’s Story”.
OTS J. Huncho seemingly came out of nowhere in 2019 just before the Pandemic and unlike most he didn’t let the Pandemic slow him down, it actually made him put his feet on the petal more. And if you know his music then you know you get some bars, you gonna get some hard beats, and by the end of the track you gonna be saying just like his tagline. “I like that one. Huncho on the beat bitch!”
The series starts with “Calvins Story Pt. 1 (Cali)” which appeared on OTS J. Huncho’s debut album “Guerrilla Warfare”. The track sets the stage and introduces the main character of the story, Calvin also referenced throughout the track by his nickname “Cali”. Also mentioned in the track is the damsel of the story Tori, who is Calvin’s love interest and together have this Bonnie and Clyde relationship. Tori is also the one who introduced Calvin to her uncle who then became the plug. Later on in Pt 3 we will see how the uncle is an intricate piece of the story as well. The story gets crazier as Calvin and his brother end up in a shootout with 4 robbers. They end up killing Calvin’s brother Cameron during an exchange of fire that also leaves Calvin with 3 shots in his arm, which the robbers mistake Calvin for being dead. The only thing that is on Calvin’s mind is revenge after that, of which he does catch one slacking at a gas station. The plot thickens as final scene rolls Calvin rolls up on a car with one of the other robbers and to his surprise, he finds Tori!!!! DAMMMNNNN!!!
The next track in the story is called “Calvins Story Pt. 2”. The track starts where Part 1 left off. Calvin walking up on one of the robbers and the woman who betrayed him aka Tori. But before Calvin pulls the trigger, why not take all his shit too? But money can’t buy you everything and, in this case, it was a life. Calvin unmasked shot the guy and chased Tori out the house. Then shot…..“This nigga fuck around and hit a cop”. The police radio plays as a trembled voice calls out for help. This story getting crazzzyyyyy!!!!
Last but not least we have “Calvin’s Story, Pt. 3” starts where the last story left off. Calvin coming to the realization that he forreal just hit a cop, and that he’s not gonna be brought in alive. During this track OTS J. Huncho really shows his writing skill as he raps from the perspective of Tori. First off, she was talking to the police where she revealed that she was pregnant. Secondly, she told her uncle. You remember the plug from Pt. 1? Yea she told him that Calvin had killed her baby daddy and then tried to kill her. This made the uncle furious, so he put 200 racks on Calvin’s head. Two weeks later. Calvin chillin at the house smoking when the door gets kicked in and two masked gunmen came to collect the bounty, but luckily Calvin had that Mac on him. And that bitch sang. He killed both gunmen and even took one of their phones to get the drop on where the uncle was. As soon as the uncle got out the benz… A gun to his head and Calvin replied as he took the 200 racks “this is all you could put on me?” Calvin walked him in the crib where guess who was waiting? Tori. He replied “This shit is sweet”. Took the 200 racks and all the uncle’s work. Then eventually killed both the uncle and Tori, even after she told him she was pregnant. Calvin couldn’t vast in his revenge to long, because before he knew it, he was on a highspeed chase with the laws. And this time around there was no getting away. There was a pit maneuver, and the car flipping 8 times….
"I miss my nigga Cali"
What makes this series of songs so crazy is that you can literally play them back-to-back and see the story play out. The intensity in the raps and his vocal tone matched with each scene. The production of each track created an environment for OTS J. Huncho to really get creative with the way he told the story, for instance when he rapped from the perspective of Tori. There's no doubt that OTS J. Huncho has a crazy pen game. And if 50 Cent can write "Get Rich or Die Tryin’" and turn it into a movie, then Calvin’s Story can be just as great a movie. But is this the last installment of Calvin’s Story? Who knows. In the words of OTS J. Huncho:
“And that’s still my nigga Calvin.” Listen to each track back to back and let us know what you think.
When it comes to Tulsa music few artists have evolved and made their own lane as much as Dialtone. The Tulsa native has proven he’s a master of many talents, with the first talent being rap. The real shift in his career came when he also decided to take up a second skill, art. His No Parking Studios empire is one of the biggest brands in the town, and it’s taken him all over the country. But when Dialtone gets that itch to start making music again, that’s when no beat is safe. And that's exactly what's happening as seen with the release of his EP Texture Test 001. Dialtone is back in album mode and like we tweeted, “Yo Tone dropped this like to say "Don't think I still don't do this rap shit!". So, sit back and let’s dive into his latest single “Tulsa Bounce”.
“Bouncin’ thru uptown,
Anybody that knows Dialtone’s music knows that he’s more than a rapper, he’s more like Tulsa historian at times, just in the way he drops names and tells stories that are like insider trading secrets that only Tulsa people who grew up on the northside would know. These are the same stories he paints into his art. Tulsa Bounce is one of those tracks where the stories are woven into each bar. This track also highlights his mastery of rap as he shows that he can rap in whatever flow ya’ll think ya’ll favorite rapper can. And do it better. It’s almost like watching a runner set the pace of the race. When he switches flows it’s like pockets or speed bursts where he proves he’s still so ahead of the competition. One line that stands out is, “I gave up tryna convince, either you with, or get”. This line symbolizes a major shift in Dialtone’s music. He has nothing to prove, he’s put on for Tulsa since the beginning, he has a song with Charlie Wilson. What more can he do? What more does he have to prove? “The Fuck! From Round.”. Another thing to point out about this song is just the way he strings these moments together. It’s cohesive and at the same time these moments play out like different timelines in the multiverse. “Jukin, manuverin, the game what I’m fluent in, landin like superman, Goku super saiyan, what me do my dance, on you dog hoes.” We can't forget the instrumentation on the beat. Which is crazy. It’s like mixing the nostalgic sound of the pianola and the unpredictable beat making of Timberland, and last but not least, that bounce. It’s so Tulsa. So much of a feeling that if you ain’t feeling it then you just hating. Get that hate out your heart. Because Tulsa Bounce is one of them ones.
Dialtone has built a life where he doesn’t have to do rap anymore, but the sport and the competition is what he still loves. Tulsa Bounce is that love that will never go away. It’s an example of him lettin these rappers know I can still push a button and fuck up the game. “Bouncin’ thru uptown, but I can go uptown, in 4 minutes, niggas out of breath, tired of Tone winnin’. Niggas is winded, niggas is finished, niggas was timid, I made a template.". Checkout Tulsa Bounce by Dialtone below and let us know what you think!
Make sure to follow Dialtone on all social media:
Instagram: @tonesbeach Twitter: @tonesbeach Spotify: Dialtone YouTube: Dialtone BandCamp: No Parking Studios Remember when we wrote, rap battle ain’t dead, these rappers just scared. Well, someone was listening. And to our credit, I think the sports analogy of the most well known basketball players don’t participate in the NBA dunk contest, still applies. But what we didn’t add is that battle rappers have broken through, be it Serious Jones, Cassidy, and of course there’s the Eminem’s and the Chocolate Drops. And who could leave out the biggest of them all Supa Hot Fire. OK. Not the last two, but you get the just of it. Battle rappers can make quality music that the masses will support. One person looking to make their mark in both the battle rap industry as well as the music industry is the up-and-coming artist Elo. So we had to ask Elo a few questions to see just who, is the new kid on the block. How did you get your name? So I actually got my name from playing chess. I wasn’t the greatest player but I always compete, in anything I do. So I like to gauge myself vs others. The ranking system in chess is Elo. That is also true for most match making games/ competition. So really off the back off me being a competitive individual and always wanting to be better than the next guy up, so Elo was fitting. I am the standard. I set the bar. If someone else sets it. I wanna clear it. What inspired you to get into music? My whole life has been Music. My father was a big rap head and living with a single dad most of my life that’s what we had in common. Music. So through him I was exposed to a lot of different genres. I’ve been in metal bands / pop punk bands/ but my roots are hip hop, my dad was a rap head more than anything so that’s what I latched to. My dad was a street dude so we were always outside with him and his homies and watching them do dumb shit lol. I’ve just been around the block and hip hop my whole life. But as a musician I do enjoy almost every genre of music. I can find positive qualities in all of it. My debut single will be released as of April 23rd [TBD] with a full video and all. Mixtape coming early summertime. Self-titled as of now. What was the first album you bought? D12’s “Devil Night” and Chingy’s “Jackpot” were the first 2 albums I ever purchased lol. I’m actually bout to run them both hang on. (a big smile comes over Elo’s face). Been to long. What got you into battle rap? So before December I had only ever watched battle rap with a homie of mine because he battled and was into the shit. I didn’t care much for it at the time but it was Ight to watch. But when he told me I should give it a shot and I just started writing and being more bar focused. I could feel my skill set developing and boom. Addicted. So I’m still very new to the culture. I don’t see myself as a battle rapper as much as others do though. Yes I do battle but my main love is music. I know the battle rap tag will get thrown on me but the truth is my music is my number one focus. Just I was able to skyrocket into some crazy situations in my 4 months in battle rap. Now I’m battling s-drop in my debut with KsharkTV, which is a wild opportunity. This is my debut on beat so to get a name like that is definitely un heard of. I also will be debuting on Verbal Warzone which is the URL of on beat battling inlay 27th in Baltimore. So that’s huge! Where do you see the future of battle rap? Being so new to the culture I’m not qualified to guess tbh. I do see on beat battling being on the rise. It’s more digestible and anyone and everyone can enjoy it. Same level of bars, just added measurements. Anyone can pop on a verbal warzone battle and enjoy it. Can’t say the same for accepella. How do prepare for a battle? Write my ass off. That’s really it lol. Write and spar. Peep game. Take criticism. Learn from mistakes. Battle rap can be toxic, only a few are really built to handle it. I don’t get lost in that though. I focus on me and what I can handle. If I do that I’m a problem for anyone. Tell us about the event happening on April 29th. I’m the co-main event in my debut vs S-Drop on KsharkTV. Ksharktv is well known for there, cyphers and all the artist that have blessed the platform from NYC. Respect to NYC and KsharkTV for allowing me to come do my thing. Ima put on for my city state and give NYC a show. What are you going to be doing in Harlem Outside of battling? Networking. Tap in with anyone and everyone I can. Hopefully get a chance to go to the iBattleTV event and see the homie Jay-R do his thing. The kid is nice nice. Even being so young compared to me he’s got a lot to offer when it comes to the battle side of shit. He’s ranked in the top 10 in iBattle with 2 battles for a reason. He’s a problem for sure so hopefully I get to tap in with iBattleTV and them. I think it's important to restate that Elo is not just a battle rapper, he's a real artist. Elo is proving this with the release of his debut track called "Track 1" that will feature none other than Benny The Butcher. This track will be apart of a mixtape called "North Gate Vol. That's a hell of a feature for a debut track. It's also a dope move seeing that the Griselda artist also has ties to battle rap legend Eminem, as the group was signed to his label Shady Records. So who knows, maybe this will also mean an Elo and Eminem collab. Who knows how the universe will align. But make sure to look out for "Track 1", it's a promise that you won't be disappointed. I expect bars so cold that the purest of hip-hop aficionados will shed a tear. THIS WILL BE HIP-HOP!!! Checkout Elo's Oochie Wally Cypher Verse video below. 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
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”.
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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