The HighLife

Kid Cudi - Make Her Say Feat. Kanye West & Common (HD) from DP on Vimeo.

"I only like NYC
  as a friend"
- on a T-shirt


Roxanne Shante - Feelin kinda horny

One of the best groups you have never heard of.  Please do change that, by all means.

OUTLINES - Listen to the drums

It's the mighty Mos once again. Here he is performing an exclusive acapella version of the first single, from The Ecstatic, for Current on the streets of Osaka, Japan.  Plus, the conceptually genius official video for the track.  If you don't hear it, you'll see it.  One way or the other, this is...



Mos Def - Casa Bey

What it is people. Hope your mid-week is moving along well.  Today, the spotlight is on a talented duo of musicians/producers from right here in the bean.  Currently based in L.A. (Lower Allston, fyi) and headlined by brothers, Chris and Jonathan Reynolds, they've been plying their trade for a bit now, and have an album, Urbanomics, that's out right now.  I own a copy myself and it would behoove you to own one as well. 

Influenced by a wide spectrum of music from KRS One, to De la Soul to Zap Mama, their music provides deliciously varied flavors for the musical palette.  I caught them live at Harper's Ferry recently, and you know how there are cd's you listen to all the time, and then you see it live and it sounds even better than the cd.  Yup, that's what it was.  Do check them out if they happen to come by your way.  This is...

The Genetics




Check out TheGenetics.com for more on The Genetics.

The 2009 SoundCity Music Video Awards will be held on August 1, 2009.  "Rewarding Africa's Finest and... Best Acts".  It doesn't matter what continent you find yourself, the artists and acts being honored are well worth your interest and time.  I'll leave you to do the browsing yourself, but cannot stress this enough... 
VOTE for STR8 BUTTAH - The Last Stand (Best hiphop video)
**Look under "Categories & Nominees"

If you are longtime Highlifer, you know about The Jumpoff.  I haven't written one in a while, but it would behoove you to go through archives and check them out.  Regardless, i put up a track on the B-Side of The Jumpoff 10.23.08 post from a hiphop outfit (Str8 Buttah) based out of Lagos, Nigeria, called "The Last Stand".  Here it is again in case you missed it. 



So once again...
VOTE for STR8 BUTTAH - The Last Stand (Best hiphop video)

Also, if you like what you hear.  Find them on Facebook, you'll find a lot more to like.

This group from Washington D.C. is made up of a number of highly talented musicians and individuals.  They DJ, produce, remix, whatever, they do it. They released an innovative, and creatively inspiring album, Radio Free DC, last year.  Which should be a part of your music collection yesterday.  Here are a few tracks that they're responsible for to give you a taste.

 

Nope, it ain't coming. It's here. 
Requirements: Headphones on blast.

The time of thoughtless hiphop is over.  And thank goodness for that.  If this decade has proved anything, it's that the illusion of separation is just that, an illusion.  Whether geographic, cultural, ideological, or musical.  Things that at first seem disparate are really quite similar at the heart of the matter.  East coast, West coast; a president that's both black and white; African, Latino; North America, South America.  I could go on...

Here we have a work that aims to, no, it actually does, show that assertion in motion.  N.A.S.A , which stands for North America South America, is a collaboration by Sam Spiegel (Squeak E. Clean), of Bethesda, MD, and DJ Zedon from Brazil.  They absolutely break the mold of what some would call hiphop.  Yeah, it's been happening for a while, but please tell me when was the last time you heard Tom Waits and Kool Keith on a track together.  Truth is, most people forget that hiphop was created by pulling from every source and genre that was available at the time. Why? It didn't exist before that.  So back to the quote at the top.  It's a Yoruba proverb that simply states, "A river that forgets its source, will run dry."  I could list all the people that they worked with on this album, from the Wu-Tang, to David Byrne, to George Clinton, to Spankrock, but it would take way too long.  N.A.S.A have put together an album which proves that the sun shines on all of us the same.  Truly this is...