Kevin “A & R” Shine of The Firm came to Memphis and sponsored a Tastemakers Music Networking event at Zodiac Monday August 15, 2011. Lots of local industry people were there, including DJ 007, Wes Phillips and DJ Bay of Select-O-Hits, Miscellaneous, Trap House Studios, and probably some I forgot. Ultimately, it was a very informative event, and a great way for Memphis artists to build their network.
hip-hop
Drumma Boy’s Listening Party at R. Sole Memphis
Drumma Boy had the listening party for his new mixtape at a hip-hop clothing and shoe boutique called R. Sole in the Laurelwood Shopping Center, and that was really great because I wouldn’t have known about that shop otherwise. A lot of Memphis rap artists, producers and promoters were in the house, including DJ Bay and myself from Select-o-Hits, First Degree, G.K. and Li’l Pat.
Join me in St. Louis for the Independent Music Marketplace in St. Louis, MO September 9-11, 2011
Join me in St. Louis for the Independent Music Marketplace in St. Louis, MO September 9-11, 2011
Hearing Colt Ford on a studio album is one thing, but hearing him live, with the enthusiastic cheers of his fans and backed by his first-rate band is something altogether different. Recorded at a live gig at the lovely Suwannee River Music Park in 2009, Live at Suwannee River Jam shows Ford at his best, comfortable in a backwoods outdoor venue performing for an appreciative audience. Most of the songs are familiar to anyone who has heard Ride Through The Country, but the cover of Charlie Daniels’ “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” is noteworthy, as is “Saddle Up”, on which each band member takes a solo. “Dirt Road Anthem” is here, too, of course, and the overall feel of the album is an odd mix of love of God, love of country and love of raising hell. But it’s great fun, and you’re left with the feeling that Colt Ford really loves the country, really loves his fans, and means every word he raps. And that’s ultimately what it’s all about.
Hearing Colt Ford on a studio album is one thing, but hearing him live, with the enthusiastic cheers of his fans and backed by his first-rate band is something altogether different. Recorded at a live gig at the lovely Suwannee River Music Park in 2009, Live at Suwannee River Jam shows Ford at his best, comfortable in a backwoods outdoor venue performing for an appreciative audience. Most of the songs are familiar to anyone who has heard Ride Through The Country, but the cover of Charlie Daniels’ “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” is noteworthy, as is “Saddle Up”, on which each band member takes a solo. “Dirt Road Anthem” is here, too, of course, and the overall feel of the album is an odd mix of love of God, love of country and love of raising hell. But it’s great fun, and you’re left with the feeling that Colt Ford really loves the country, really loves his fans, and means every word he raps. And that’s ultimately what it’s all about.
At the Dj Zirk 2 Thick Records Block Party at the Bear Cave, Memphis, TN, August 6, 2011
At the Dj Zirk 2 Thick Records Block Party at the Bear Cave, Memphis, TN, August 6, 2011
Album Review: Colt Ford’s “Chicken and Biscuits” @coltford
The marriage of rap and country is not as contrived as one might first imagine. For one thing, if hip-hop was born in New York, that doesn’t change the fact that many of its originators were the children of African-Americans who had recently migrated from the South. Furthermore, there is a fairly long tradition of “talking records” in country, a tradition that might have been influenced by “talking blues” from Black rural communities. So what Colt Ford is doing with his sophomore album Chicken and Biscuits is not a divorce from the grand tradition of country music, but a contribution to it. Songs like “Cricket on a Line”, “Nothing in Particular” and “We Like to Hunt” celebrate the classic pastimes of the traditional South, but from a younger perspective. The title track portrays the ideal woman, comparing her to the goodness of a plate of chicken and biscuits. “Ride On, Ride Out” is a collaboration with DMC of Run-DMC, and “Hip-Hop in a Honky Tonk” deals with some of the ambiguities of country’s attitude toward rap. “Convoy” is a remake of the classic 70’s trucker anthem, which was itself a sort of rap. Ultimately, while Chicken and Biscuits may not be every country fan’s cup of tea, it is great fun, and masterfully conceived.