Across the parking lot from our event were the ruins of a night club called Murphy’s 2, which had been the premier reggae club in Dallas before a sudden fire erupted in May on a night when 200 people were inside. Remarkably, everyone made it out alive, but the fire quickly demolished the structure.
The 10th Anniversary of the Texas Summer Music Conference was held at Heroes Sports Bar and Grill on Upper Greenville in Dallas, July 16, 2011.
Step Brothers (Starlito & Don Trip) “Life” (2011) (prod. by Lil Lody)
Unexpected boom bap turn for M-town’s rising Luger disciple. Perhaps this guy has a bit more range than others have given him credit for.
Unrelated, but related: Another post-Lugerite, Southside, was unveiled as a contributor to Watch The Throne today. More haute gutter production en route.
-SM
(via DGB)
I must confess that I misjudged Don Tripp. I am impressed with this.
Before the conference, I grabbed a lunch at Elevation Burger, a new, eco-friendly chain of fast-food restaurants. The beef is grass-fed, and recycled materials are used for cups and even tables and chairs. The burgers are good and juicy, although they don’t have bacon, because so far they have been unable to find an organic supplier.
As I posted previously, Griff’s of America was born in the late 1950’s in Kansas City, but somehow it gained a real foothold in Dallas, Fort Worth, Shreveport and Ruston. This location in Southeast Dallas is the oldest location I have seen.
For breakfast, I decided to try I place I have often heard about in Dallas called Breadwinners. The place was sheer pandemonium with the Saturday crowds, but the food is really good. They are also a bakery, and the desserts were really tempting, even at 9 AM!
Morning view from my balcony, Dallas, Texas Summer Music Conference, July 16, 2011
Memphians probably first noticed Teflon Don when he composed a song for the Memphis Grizzlies of the NBA, but he goes far deeper, as evidenced by his debut album God, The Government, The Game, an album whose title seems to reflect the three ways that inner-city residents have historically tried to make their way. Although Teflon uses a traditional Memphis style of delivery and fairly standard beats, his lyrics come from a more positive direction, trying to warn young people to take advantage of opportunities (“God, The Government, The Game”) or reminding them about the struggles that African-Americans have faced in the past (“Let’s Talk About”), a song that was written for Black History Month. While God, The Government, The Game offers little that is unexpected, it is a credible debut album from a hard-working artist that sees rap as a way to improve the city of Memphis.
The Dallas-based label Hulk Entertainment threw a private set on the Friday night before the Texas Summer Music Conference at the Hotel Zaza in Dallas, which is quite a happening place.
The Texas Summer Music Conference put me up in a suite at the Sheraton Market Center in Dallas. The view of downtown from my balcony was really cool.
