Can-rap Explosion in the CGY...

Look out for an onslaught of Canadian hip hop artists touching down in Calgary over the next little while... it seems like by coincidence we're getting our own spread-out version of the Manifesto festival. So who do we have on deck?

MAESTRO FRESH WES - FEB 10
The Can-rap Explosion starts off appropriately with the Godfather of Canadian hip hop, Maestro Fresh Wes. He blew up the spot in 1989 with his hit single "Let Your Backbone Slide" and will be at Mile One on February 10th.

SHAD K - FEB 14
Next up is the man who the National Post calls "the best rapper in Canada"- Shad K from London, Ontario. His Fresh Prince of Bel-Air inspired video for "The Old Prince Still Lives At Home" has caused his buzz to soar and he'll be rocking the 2009 Warped Tour as a result. He will be playing on Valentine's Day, February 14th at the HiFi Club.

KARDINAL OFFISHALL - FEB 24
After Shad comes Canada's biggest pop-crossover hip hop artist at the moment, Kardinal Offishall. Kardi has become more well-known in the States thanks to his summer hit collab with Akon, "Dangerous". Canadian rap heads know Kardi has been around for 'nuff time and has an impressive track record since the mid-90s. He will be in town on Feb. 24th at the Tequila.

K'NAAN - MAR 13
Following Kardi is another Toronto resident, K'naan, who is preparing for his major worldwide release of Troubador on the A&M/Octone Records label. His African-styled hip hop will be in full effect on March 13th at the Marquee Room.

DL INCOGNITO & RED1 - MAR 17
The final piece to the Can-rap Explosion will be a performance by Ottawa veteran underground emcee DL Incognito along with Red1 of the Rascalz from Vancouver at Mile One on March 17th.

TheLIGHT review of Dragon Fli Empire - Redefine

Another great review for Redefine, this time courtesy of Florida's Miss Long of music blog TheLIGHT:

Reppin’ for Calgary, Canada, Dragon Fli Empire keeps hip-hop right vs. “real” on their third LP, Redefine.

“They’re gonna take over the world. That’s right. They’re gonna take over the Chrysler building. You’re gonna see them all over there. You’re gonna see them at every major record label in the world.” – Intro to “Fastbreak”

While this statement may be saying a bit much, this album definitely doesn’t fail to flaunt their potential to do so. Veering away from the world of cerebral lyricism and big words, Dragon Fli Empire is about spreading the gift of that feel-good music we all used to love back in the day. Possessing the style of the heavyweights Blackalicious and Jurassic 5, DJ Cosm and Teekay pay homage to what hip-hop used to be through the art of storytelling of real life and past experiences.

Perhaps one of the best elements of this album is the duo’s ability to seamlessly blend other genres into their music. “Floor to the Roof” sounds like something off of Jamiroquai’s 2001 release, A Funk Odyssey, while “Paradise” is reminiscent of the Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth era. And Dragon Fli Empire doesn’t do it alone. This time around they’ve invited Masta Ace, Cadence Weapon, Ohmega Watts, Josh Martinez, Moka Only and Raashan Ahmad of the Crown City Rockers.

With tracks like “Fastbreak,” (a high-energy, heart pumping track that brings it back to the roots) and “To The Sky” (an inspirational number about holding your head high and appreciating the positive in times of distress), listeners will not only be convinced that this duo knows what they’re doing, but they will also be lead to just relax, kick back, and let go.

Raashan Ahmad ft. Gift of Gab - Stick Em (Audio)

Check this new 80's flavored cut leaked by Raashan himself.

http://www.zshare.net/audio/53811435aee0ac34

U-N-I - Before There Was Love Mixtape Presented by Mick Boogie (free 99)

Don't sleep on this LA based dou. Check this predecessor to their upcoming album "A Love Supreme". Guest appearances include Shawn Jackson, Tunji, Black Milk, Talib Kweli, Chen Lo and more.

http://www.zshare.net/download/54759600bd68dafb/

DJ Pump - Sevonte Swang (free 99)

Calgary's DJ Pump (of the Eh! Team DJs) blesses the masses with a disco boogie-funk mix of early '80s jams.

Dragon Fli Empire feat. Moka Only - Paradise (Audio)

Here's a heater off of the new Dragon Fli Empire album Redefine, "Paradise" featuring Canada's most prolific, Moka Only.

Mos Def - Quiet Dog (Audio)

New audio from Mos Def... his new album drops Feb. 24th on Downtown Records.

Megaphone - Danger Danger Remix w/ Oh No and Gift of Gab (Audio)

Hot new remix from slept-on duo Megaphone (which features Headnodic and Moe Pope, two original members of Mission, the precursor group to the Crown City Rockers). If you like it, check for their self-titled debut album released last year.

DFE news update...

We thought we'd give you a quick update on everything that's going on with our new album "Redefine"... it's continuing to pick up steam. Here's what's going down:

A) MEDIA
The album is being serviced to campus/indie radio via Terrorbird across Canada and the United States, so be sure to help us out by requesting the album as often as possible! Our video, "Outside Inn featuring Cadence Weapon" has also been added to rotation on MuchVIBE, so request that too. The album is going to shipped off for reviews soon after, although some are already trickling in! One cool review we came across comes from the station WLUR in Lexington, Virginia:

The first track on Redefine lays old-school rhymes over horns, record spins, and what sounds like morse code. I'm not complaining. Crisp and clever album from these two Canadian boys, DJ Cosm and Teekay. The Rhodes line on "Just That Nice" is absolutely heavenly and these two know a whole heck of a lot about arrangement. Enough masterful hip-hop to make Will Smith stop making films and start rapping once again. Parents just don't understand.

B) RETAIL
The album is available now in select stores in Calgary (Megatunes, Play, Giant 45, Sloth) and on CDBaby.com (online physical/digital orders). Shortly it will be available for order anywhere through Scratch Distribution, plus other online outlets like iTunes and Amazon.com.

C) MIC ROCKING
Saskatoon, check us out on Saturday February 28th at Amigo's. Calgary, check us out at the prestigious Alberta Sessions concert series on Thursday March 19th at the Engineered Air Theatre. More concert dates to be announced soon!

Ohmega Watts & Jneiro Jarel - Eyes and Ears (Video)

Off of Ohmega Watts' latest album "Watts Happening"... look out kids! And as I'm sure you're all aware... Watts is on the new DFE album.

Bored Stiff - @ A Distance (Video)

Cool new track offering a retrospective of this underrated Bay Area crew.

Obama Inauguration Tribute design by Ohmega Watts

The master of chop, dig and design himself Ohmega Watts posted up a smooth Obama Inauguration Tribute piece on his blog Brokin Nglish. You can also check out Mr. Watts on the new Dragon Fli Empire album, Redefine on the track "To the Sky", also featuring Atlanta-based soul singer VelBen. Big up!

CGY Hotspot: Cafe Koi

Cafe Koi - #100, 1011 - 1st St. SW
Enjoy a relaxing dinner with friends at this chique Japanese-themed cafe which has some killer live DJs on the weekend. Former home of DFE's "Super Fli" DJ night, we give 'nuff respect to owner Phil Wong and his staff.

CDBaby review of Dragon Fli Empire - Redefine

As DFE slowly but surely fully gets our 'marketing blitz' on for our new album Redefine over the next few weeks, we'll keep you updated with reviews that are coming in. This stellar one comes from the editors at indie music site CDBaby:

Having spent a handful of years making some serious noise around their hometown of Calgary, this Canadian hip hop duo seems more poised than ever to make their name known around the globe. Following on the heels of last summer's extremely solid Intermission EP, this full-length follow-up proves they're clearly not in the business of slowing down. Every one of these 14 tracks is densely patterned, blending percussion-rich beats with bass-laden grooves and a vocal presence that rounds out the sound with style and precision. Not afraid to genre-mash, the amount of musical and lyrical ground they cover yields tracks that manage to be both challenging and fun– a tough vibe to pull off, but they nail it. It allows their sound a multidimensional feel that can't help but appeal to the casual listener, as well as the devoted hip hop purists. Throw in some guest spots from high-caliber artists who are on the same page (Masta Ace, Moka Only, Cadence Weapon, Josh Martinez, among others), and you've got yourself an album that demands some attention.

Make sure to buy your physical or digital copy of Redefine at CDBaby... coming soon to iTunes and a whole host of other online retailers. You can also order it in at your favourite CD store, it is distributed by Scratch, and the catalogue number is MBR005. Calgarians can cop it at Megatunes, Play, Giant 45 or Sloth.

Cadence Weapon presents the Separation Anxiety Mixtape

Our main man Rollie Pemberton III (who is featured on the new DFE album Redefine plus the Outside Inn music video) has put up a digital mixtape of exclusive material including remixes, live covers and collabos up for download on his website. The price? "You can pay whatever you like..."

Tracklisting:

01 - Roll With The Winners (Prod. Herve & A-Trak)
02 - The Cansecos “Rise Up” (Cadence Weapon Mix)
03 - Pretty Girls Make Raves (Prod. Stuffa, Mapei and Sinden)
04 - Mini T.V.’s (Chad Vangaalen Cover, Live ft. Final Fantasy)
05 - Sailboats Are White “SAW” (Cadence Weapon Hi-Speed Edit)
06 - Sally Shapiro “He Keeps Me Alive” (Cadence Weapon Mix)
07 - Bad Graffiti (Prod. Murge)
08 - Roland Pemberton III “Rupture Vers Le Haut”
09 - The Morning After (Prod. C-Sekshun)
10 - RJD2 “Sweet Piece” (Cadence Weapon’s Ladykiller Remix)
11 - Kennedy Curse
12 - Kid Sister “Damn Girl” (Cadence Weapon Remix)
13 - Shout Out Out Out Out “Coming Home (We Do Acid)” (Demo)
14 - Busdriver “Sun Shower” (Cadence Weapon`s Raleigh Remix)
15 - Junior Bloomsday “Your Perfect Gene” (ft. Cadence Weapon)
16 - The Wet Secrets “The Chinball Wizard” (Cadence Weapon’s Samir-Themed Remix)
17 - House Music Medley (Bird Peterson, A1 Bassline, The Cansecos)
18 - Super Extra Bonus Party “Radar (Demo)”
19 - Roots Manuva “Buff Nuff” (Cadence Weapon Tuff Mix)
20 - The D.B. Buxton Revue “Sex With My Ex” (Cadence Weapon’s No Sex Mix)

It's official, #44 is here!

403's finest: Kris Demeanor

403's finest sits down with talented folk artist and poet Kris Demeanor, who opened for Dragon Fli Empire' release party on January 10th.

What were your personal highlights of 2008?

Highlights of 2008- being in a bed and breakfast on the Washington coast in the week leading up to the U.S. election, alternating between walking the beach and being glued to CNN, crossing our fingers that Hope and Change would prevail! Some great professional moments for me in 2008 were opening for Ray Davies at the Jack Singer, and playing 'Chocolate and Lust' with the philharmonic at the Jubilee.

What's on deck for 2009?

Coming up Feb 5-13 at the Ironwood in Calgary is 'Buzz Job- The True Story of Cal Cavendish', a wild musical theatre piece that I've got to remember 35 pages of text for (time to push out all my spoken word songs for a while to make room). In April, a new Kris Demeanor and his Crack Band CD is coming out, and we'll be touring it during 2009. It's a live-in-the studio rock and roll record!

What are your own CGY Hotspots?

Let's see...Marquee Room of course for the atmosphere. The Big Secret Theatre in the Arts Centre for the class, and the Hi Fi Club for the BIG SOUND.

For more information on Kris Demenaor, please check out www.krisdemeanor.com

T.R.O.Y.'s "Sounds Like The 90's" mixtape (free 99)

Philaflava's T.R.O.Y. blog is trying to get "old school heads" into hip hop made past the year 2000 by presenting a mixtape that highlights new rap that sounds like the "good old days"... we're down with that. Peep the tracklist below and download it.

T.R.O.Y. Presents - Sounds Like The 90's

01. Prince Paul Intro
02. Large Professor - The Entrance
03. Elzhi - That's The One
04. Praverb - I'm The King
05. Murs - The Science
06. Jay Electronica - So Whatcha Sayin' (prod. J Dilla)
07. Dela - Viberate feat. Blu
08. J-Live - The Understanding
09. Kam Moye (Supastition) - Welcome To My Life
10. Shawn Jackson - Feelin' Jack
11. Blu & Exile - So(ul) Amazin'
12. Percee P - Two Brothers From The Gutter feat. Diamond D
13. Prodigy - Catch Body Music
14. Cormega - Fresh feat. DJ Red Alert, PMD, Grand Puba, KRS-ONE & Big Daddy Kane
15. DJ Revolution - The DJ feat. KRS-ONE
16. Presto - Conquer Mentally (Large Pro Remix) feat. Sadat X, O.C. & Large Professor
17. Souls of Mischief - Tour Stories (prod. Prince Paul)
18. Tha Connection - Take It Higher

Photo Recap: Dragon Fli Empire's "Redefine" release party @ The Marquee Room

Fun was had by all. When we get more flicks we may post them too! Thanks, Calgary.

Redefining martini-rap?

Dragon Fli Empire's new album "Redefine" is here! And the Calgary Herald had this to say about it:

Dragon Fli Empire, Redefine - Hip-hop for the martini lounge? That might be construed as an insult by some hip-hop fans, but in Dragon Fli Empire's case it's not meant to be. It's just that the duo's flowing mix of jazz, funk, soul and vibrant, clever rap is so smooth it makes you wanna chill out all night long in a dimly lit urban lounge sipping your favourite cocktail while drinking in those groovy grooves.

We'll take that as a compliment, and big ups go to the Herald, Sun, FFWD, Beatroute, Swerve, CKUA, CJSW and any others for plugging our release party last Saturday at The Marquee Room with special guests Kris Demeanor and DJ Cadence Weapon. The night was amazing, the the energy was high and the funk was kept alive. Photos from the event will be posted soon. Available now in Calgary at Megatunes, Play, Sloth and Giant 45. Order online at CDBaby.

MegaCityHipHop.com Mixtape (free 99)

Check out some of T-Dot and area's finest underground hip hop talent on the new MegaCityHipHop.com mixtape, peep the tracklist:

1. Tru-Paz - Young Nation Remix ft. Blessed
2. Shad - Brother (Watching)
3. Solid Mas - Who ft. DJ IV
4. The Messenger - Fearless Litre
5. The BoomAddicts (Matic & Big Tweeze) - Time Is Now
6. Capeech - God Bless Pt. 2 ft. Theology 3
7. Louwop - One 2 Check ft. Shad
8. Plex - The Way It Should Be ft. Wab Kinew & Sarah Podemski
9. the SHOW DOCTOR - I Was Homeless
10. Mayne Ishu - Hold It Up ft. Everton Blender
11. Izm - Far Away ft. Michie Mee
12. Miles Jones - Time ft. Promise
13. Ngajuana - Heartless
14. Relic - Out There
15. Es - Closed Curtains
16. Dylon - I Love My City
17. Exit Only - City Dirt ft. Lionize
18. Freeze - About A Bitch ft. Psy & Doxx
19. Idrees Majeed - New Face of Hip Hop
20. Masia One - New Love ft. Junia-T
21. Kehmak - Taken Back ft. Casper

403's Finest: DJ C-Sik

In this edition of 403's Finest we check in with DJ C-Sik, a 3-time Calgary DMC Champ and member of the Suns of Boey crew (alongside DJ Fatrok and Statik). This guy knows his way around the ones and twos.

What were your personal highlights of 2008?

Hard to say. 2008 was a pretty big year for me. Pre-2008 I was still predominantly a battle/turntablist DJ. In 2008 I kind of made a decision to make party rockin' more of the forefront in my DJing life. Robey Stothart (Sabo Forte of Thought Express and Blist) put the Suns of Boey (my DJ crew) on once a month at Juilliard and we just had some of the craziest parties man. I think practically every party we had at Juilliard was a personal highlight of 2008 for me; shit's been MAD fun! The Original Rudes 10 Year Anniversary was mos def another highlight. Fatrok (my brother) and I are HUGE fans of b-boyin' (we were b-boys before DJs) and the whole weekend was a blast. 3 crazy nights of parties, 2 days of shows and battles...cyphers everywhere...hip-hop at it's fullest. I guess another one was this "Old School" jam I did up in Edmonton put on by DJ Archie and Harman-B. It was Archie's birthday and he brought me up to rock it for him. Them people in Edmonton know how to party! Lights were on @ 2:30 and they were rockin' hard 'til 3 until they were forced out. Wish we could have more jams like that here in Calgary...

What do you go on deck for 2009?

Always gonna keep rockin' at our family Thought Express' nights @ Juilliard once a month. Got more plans for new hip-hop nights w/ the fams Illmovements (stay tuned). Gonna keep doin' shows and rockin' parties around Calgary but more importantly, I think 2009 is gonna be the revival of my turntablist roots. I kinda took a break from all that but it's a shame to turn my back on it after all those damn years of practicin'.

What are your 3 favourite spots in Calgary (any place)?

Juilliard (Thought Express) on Saturday night...different DJs every Saturday, keeps it mad fresh. If you haven't been yet, you HAVE to, best parties in the city. Cruz Bros. (Fatrok and C-SIK) are rockin' there January 17th. Nectar. . .lol, actually I've only been there once but it is most def' NOW my favourite spot, haha...best dessert spot ever. And my apartment...where all the ideas flow.

For more info, please check out sunsofboey.com

CGY Hotspot: Megatunes

Megatunes - 932 17 Avenue SW
One of Calgary's top independent music stores in the heart of the city on 17th Ave. SW. Over the years they have been DFE's top selling music store, in fact you can stop in there (or Sloth or Giant 45) now and be among the first to have a copy of the newest Dragon Fli Empire album, Redefine... or you can just wait for the release party this Saturday at The Marquee Room (featuring a DJ set by Cadence Weapon and a performance by Kris Demeanor).

The Shad is Shining... (Video)

Vintage ATCQ on the Sinbad Show... (Video)

Intermission is #11 on the Canadian campus charts for 2008!

Dragon Fli Empire's Intermission EP hit #11 on Earshot's Top 20 Hip Hop of 2008, reflecting Canadian campus radio airplay. Charts are weighted according to broadcast range and market size. CGY represent! Make sure to check out the release party for DFE's new album Redefine this Saturday night at the Marquee Room, where the #1 hip hop album artist Cadence Weapon will be doing a rare DJ set. Check it out!

Photo Recap: Thought Express New Year's Eve @ Julliards

Skillz - 2008 Rap Up (Video)

Skillz returns with another brilliant, thorough wrap-up of the year's events through a hip hop lens, covering everything from Ice-T beefing with Soulja Boy to George W. Bush's "ashoessination" to Kanye's camera smashing. Download it here.

Mental Illness playlist DEC 28 2008

This past Sunday on CJSW's "Mental Illness" DJ Cosm hit you up with some of 2008's most amazing hip hop... stay tuned next week for more of the best of '08. See right column for airtime.

9th Wonder & Buckshot – Ready (brand new day)
EMC – EMC (what it stands for)
Blue Sky Black Death & Jean Grae ft. Chen Lo – Threats
Jake One ft. Alchemist, Evidence & Prodigy – White Van
Immortal Technique ft, Rass Kass & Diablique – The Payback
D-Sisive ft. Guilty Simpson – Like This
Guilty Simpson ft, MED – The Future
Opio – Some Superfly Shit
Del the Funky Homosapien – Funkyhomosapien
Tame One – J Dilla Summer Camp Unplugged
Large Pro – In the Ghetto
Craig G & Marley Marl – Deep Down
Sadat X – Make it Happen
EPMD ft. Skyzoo – Left 4 Dead
Diamond D – Bad/Good
The Program(K-Def & Diccapo) – The Article
Pete Rock ft. Lords of the Underground – Best Kept Secret
GZA – 7 Pounds
RZA – Try Ya Ya Ya
Jay Electronica – Anikans’s Prayer
Shawn Jackson – First of All
New Jack Hustle – Theme Music
C.R.A.C. – Respect
The Alchemist ft, Evidence, Blu, Kid Cudi & Talib Kweli – Therapy
Johnson & Johnson – Up All Night
Raashan Ahmad – Peace
Moe Pope & Headnodic – Happiness
The Mighty Underdogs – Want You Back
Buff One – I Know the Secret
Devin the Dude – Thinkin’ Boutchu
Tanya Morgan – Got 2 Get Done
Kidz in the Hall ft. El-P – Drivin Down the Block(el-p remix)
Q-Tip – Life is Better
The Roots ft. Mos Def & Styles P – Rising Down
Nas – Sly Fox
Black Milk ft. Dj Premier, Pharoahe Monch & Sean Price – The Matrix
Ludacris – MVP
Touch –Grown Men Always Prevail
Cadence Weapon – In Search of the Youth Crew
Moka Only – I Mean Biznizz
Lexington & Whatevski – The Machine