The Audacity of Dope

While in town for the “Ambition” tour on 11/25/11, Wale stopped by KUBE and the SNSS studio to chat with me for a few moments.  We talked about his Ambition album, years of grinding for success, what it’s like seeing fans quote his lyrics on Facebook & Twitter, and more.  Since he’s always known as one of hip-hop’s most fervent sports fans, we had to talk some football so I asked about his recent debates with Skip Bayless at ESPN, who is the best running back in the NFL, his take on Tebow-mania, and what we should do with the BCS.

If you’d prefer to just listen to the audio, download/streaming links are below:

Wale on Sound Session – http://www.mediafire.com/?hdqw9fmweo1trjc
(back up / streaming link – http://hulkshare.com/rosy83wfkyfi)

Ambition is in stores now, cop that.

Seeing footage like this from the promotional campaign for Frank is bittersweet.  While the challenges she faced a few years later undoubtedly contributed to the classic nature of Back To Black (her pain was our gain), it’s interesting to think what could have been if she never got too deep in to depression and drugs.  Frank is a more upbeat record — emotionally, not necessarily tempo-wise — though “I Heard Love Is Blind” is one of the more caustic songs on the album.  If the lyrics truly depict a situation she went through with her boyfriend at the time, I can’t imagine hearing anything more gut-wrenching coming from your lady.

We shouldn’t be surprised though, she was handing out ether left and right on that record.  Sorry ladies, but she got at a TON of y’all with this one:

RIP Amy.

If you’ve been coming to this blog for a while, you already know all about Shad. Even if you do, this interview actually gets in to some personal topics that you don’t often hear him talk about. And if you’re curious why folks think Shad is so dope, check the rhyme:

Spree tells the story behind the making of “Don’t Pass Me By,” his duet with Esthero off The Never Ending Now.  If you haven’t checked out the project yet, grab it here.  “Don’t Pass Me By” is one of my favorite records of the year, hands down:

First came the above interview at SXSW and with Curren$y recently completing his Pacific Northwest trip, Nardwuar posted the follow up:

Nardwuar is obviously legendary, but for his bits to work, he needs the interviewee to play along. There have been plenty of good examples, but the interaction between these two is on another level. Plus, Curren$y’s personality is high comedy, no pun.

This past week, J. Moore and I were joined in studio by the legendary Raphael Saadiq. While we thoroughly enjoy breaking new artists and conducting interviews with up and coming musicians, there’s always something special about chopping it up with someone of Saadiq’s stature. The man has been one of the brightest starts in R&B for over 20 years and yet couldn’t be a nicer, more down to earth dude.

In the first part of the interview above, we spoke about his new Stone Rollin’ album, the “neo” & “retro” soul tags heaped on his recent work, his creative process, his collaboration with Little Dragon, and more.

In the second half of the interview, Saadiq spoke about his fondest memories of the Tony! Toni! Toné! and Lucy Pearl days, his proudest moment in music, his advice for young artists, and even playing basketball with Prince.

If you prefer to listen to the audio instead, you can grab it below:

Raphael Saadiq on Sound Session – http://www.mediafire.com/?97cxf19frx4o7r7
(back up / streaming link – http://www.zshare.net/audio/891679810db2ee03/)

During our discussion, I mistakenly stated that Stone Rollin’ was in stores now (mp3’s have sadly rendered release dates somewhat moot…for listeners at least), when in actuality, the album will be released May 10th.  My bad.  Go support it when it drops!

If you follow me on Twitter (and if you don’t, you should…#humblebrag), you know that I was down at SXSW last week in lovely Austin, Texas. The first night that I arrived, the staff at MTV hooked up a pass for the MTVu Woodie Awards and I got my first experience on a red carpet. Aside from just enjoying the overall environment, I was able to chop it up with everyone who walked by. I grabbed a couple quick videos for y’all with Wiz, Yelawolf, Skylar Grey, and Lil B. Enjoy.

Shout to the homey Scribes, who has my vote for most underrated MC in Seattle, for coming through SNSS a few weeks back.  Here’s a little video recap of his visit in case you want the behind the scenes look.  You can check out the full show too.

Download his album NOW right here.

Long time friend of SNSS, Lupe Fiasco returned to Seattle to speak with J. Moore and I on 1-14-11. We broadcast live on KUBE93.com and talked all about his long awaited Lasers project, his rabid fan base, his life away from the stage/studio, and much more.  In the first half of the interview, Lu discussed how his lyrics impact listeners, how he’s often misinterpreted in the media, his hobbies when relaxing at home, and more.

In the second half of the interview, Lu discussed his car collection, his favorite albums of 2010, his plans to become an author, Lasers, and he even spit an acapella verse from the project.

Lastly, we opened up the floor to questions from viewers who were logged in, watching it live.

Hopefully you enjoy this candid conversation with one of our favorite MC’s in the industry and just an all around good guy.  I wish we recorded footage of the meet & greet we held right before this (remember when we gave out tickets?) so you could all see how Lu’s lyrics have really impacted the lives of his fans.

Support Lasers when it drops March 8th!

If you’ve listened to Sunday Night Sound Session at any point since our debut on KUBE six years ago, you already know that Lupe Fiasco is one of our favorite rappers.  Not only is he an incredible MC, but he’s one of the most forward thinking, intelligent, socially responsible, and innovative artists that we have in hip-hop.  On top of all that, he’s just a cool dude who has appeared on our show numerous times and always shows us, and Seattle, lots of love.

On Friday, January 14th, you…that’s right, YOU…can meet Lupe in person as he comes through the KUBE studios to hang out, sign autographs, talk with listeners, and discuss his highly anticipated upcoming album, Lasers.

If you’re able to come to the station in downtown Seattle from 11am to noon on Friday, the 14th, here are the details on how to win an invite to this meet and greet:

Tell us what your favorite Lupe verse is and why.  Email your answer to DJHyphen@gmail.com and if selected, we’ll notify you by Thursday at noon.

We’ll also pick a few random winners who retweet any of our announcements for this event on our Twitter feeds:

• twitter.com/kube93
• twitter.com/djhyphen
• twitter.com/jmooreseattle

Be creative and thoughtful!  Just like Lupe.  Hope to see you Friday!