“This is for the county and the area surrounding DC, Maryland and Virginia, know i’m witcha”. Producer and rapper Oddisee moved away from DC years ago, but he refuses to let the deep roots wither and die in assimilating into his new Brooklyn digs. His newest must-listen album The Iceberg on Mello Music Group is a well-timed bomb of defiance and resistance to our current political climate. “NNGE”, short for Never Not Getting Enough, gets verbal assist from DC rapper Toine, who grew up in the same neighborhood as the Sudanese-American Oddisee. Video director Zak Forrest, who also recently helmed both videos by Nappy Nappa, captures both rappers living it up in their native Prince Georges County, with landmarks and local food as visual anchors showing that Oddisee will never give up on the DMV. Grab tix to Oddisee’s world tour stop at the 9:30 Club on 4/20 before the inevitable sold out sign makes you cry.
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Tag Archives: Mello Music Group
The 1978ers – Far video
Unflappable rapper yU “The Humble King” and producer Slimkat‘s collaboration The 1978ers (so named after their mutual birth year) recently premiered another music video from their debut full length album People Of Today, out on the almighty Mello Music Group label. The clip for “Far”, directed by Jay Brown, reminds me that we rarely see the stars in hip-hop videos, and I like the notion of yU and Slimkat looking to the heavens for inspiration.
Kenn Starr – Say Goodbye video
DC, please welcome Kenn Starr back to our hip-hop scene. An alum of the influential Low Budget crew that included Oddisee, Kev Brown and Sean Born, Starr’s sophomore album Square One, on the influential Mello Music Group label, represents a fresh start coming a full eight years since his debut full length Starr Status. On “Say Goodbye”, Square One‘s lead off single, Starr reflects on his career and his current aspirations over a crafty beat by Detroit’s Black Milk. That thoughtful, swank Low Budget vibe sure hasn’t gone out of style.
Top 5 Videos of 2014 #5: Diamond District – First Step
For years the rap trio of Uptown XO, yU and Oddisee promised us another Diamond District album after 2009’s landmark In The Ruff, but with Oddisee’s move to New York, would it really happen? Turns out these MCs keep their promises, and the first single from their sophomore album March on Washington, “First Step”, whet our appetites for the deft lyrics and Oddisee’s notoriously ecstatic production. Video director Jay Brown crafts this slick reintroduction to DC’s rap Voltron, showing XO rapping in Meridian Hill Park before meeting yU on a Metro train, and then joining Oddisee at his home in Brooklyn. DC rap has always hustled hard, but these three make it look easy to conquer.
The 1978ers – Without A Clue video
Liv, the popular club space above Bohemian Caverns, serves as the backdrop for director Jay Brown’s visuals for “Without A Clue”, the second single from yU and Slimkat’s team-up The 1978ers. It’s totally appropriate for this jazzy, thoughtful track featuring live trumpet, trombone and clever use of the vocal sample providing the title of the song. Grab The 1978ers’ debut full length album People Of Today on the Mello Music Group label for more goodness.
Diamond District – A Part Of It All video
The excitement for hip hop trio Diamond District’s long awaited sophomore album March On Washington hasn’t died down since its release in October. Today Mello Music Group announced an official remix album March On Washington Redux featuring mixes from Oh No, Apollo Brown, L’Orange and lots more, teasing the December 16th release with a stream of Black Milk remixing “Ain’t Over”. Oddisee, Uptown XO and yU also recently dropped this visually appealing video for “A Part Of It All”, each talented MC taking a verse while laser light streams past at about the speed of their verbal gymnastics.
The 1978ers – OneNine7-T-8 video
One week before Mello Music Group releases People of Today, the debut album from DMV hip-hop duo yU and Slimkat, we get a brand new video from director Jay Brown for the origin story single OneNine7-T-8. As both were born in 1978, together the pair are The 1978ers. The energetic, funky and uptempo song thick with rhymes is set to video of yU and Slimkat driving a pedicab around DC, with their friends partying in the back.
Diamond District – First Step video
Diamond District‘s figurative March on Washington continues with a brand new music video for the first single “First Step” from their upcoming full length album March on Washington. Directed by Jay Brown, this video deftly accomplishes its goal of introducing the three MCs Uptown XO, yU and Oddisee as each gets a verse of the attention-grabbing song. XO begins in Malcolm X / Meridian Hill park before catching up with yU riding Metro, which should be just about impossible to pull off. Who can actually meet someone IN a metro train? Then suddenly the duo appears at Oddisee’s Brooklyn studio, as if the literal distance between DC and NYC is a short subway ride away. Even though Oddisee departed DC back in 2010, it’s fantastic to see that his ties back here can’t be easily cut. We featured Diamond District’s newest single Lost Cause on this week’s Hometown Sounds podcast, and couldn’t be more excited for this album to drop October 14th on Mello Music Group.
The 1978ers – People Of Today trailer
For yU the “humble king”, when it rains it pours. A lot of attention remains focused on the upcoming Diamond District full length album with XO and Oddisee on October 14th, but less than a month later Mello Music Group drops the debut release People Of Today from yU and producer Slimkat under the name The 1978ers. yU’s understated delivery and thoughtful lyrics make this a release that’s sure to impress those in the know. Check out the short trailer below for a taste before the album comes out November 11th.
Uptown XO – Finding My Way video
Yesterday hip-hop label Mello Music Group dropped a new video for Finding My Way (FREE download!) from Uptown XO‘s newest album Colour de Grey. Lazlo, the video’s director, offers this statement:
“The video for “Finding My Way” takes cues from the boom bap style production of the track and imagines Uptown XO as two sides of the same young man, coming of age during the mid-nineties in Washington D.C. During the first verse XO takes on the persona of a street minded hustler, spending time in alleyways, shady housing, and rooftops. While for the second verse he portrays the role of a government insider, working to enact change through the political system on Capitol Hill. These twin lifestyles echo the flip side of the same mindset, much like the dichotomy of the District itself.”
Couldn’t have said it better myself. Stay cool out there DC, both sides of you.
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