Monthly Archives: June 2009

Decipher & Johnnyphlo interviews w/ Aegis Apparel

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Muzo Entertainment MC’s  Decipher & Johnnyphlo both had interviews with Aegis Apparel, a clothing brand and lifestyle blog. The interviews got some great tidbits on their inspirations, daily grind and future aspirations. Definitely worth the read.

Here’s a cool q&a from both artists:

Decipher:

Q: What is a typical day for you?

A: Hop up out of bed, turn my swag on, and then my laptop. I write everyday when I wake up and when I go to bed. On a bad day it might just be a line or two but I try to be disciplined about writing daily. I make whatever breakfast is available. Right now I got blueberry Eggo’s in the freezer. I check my email and whatever other accounts people might be trying to contact me on and try to make sure I hit them back. Like I said, they took time out of their day to show their support so it’s only right that I show my appreciation. Then I get clean, get fresh and get money!

Johnnyphlo:

Q: Johnnyphlo I notice you rap switching freely between Korean and English, is one language harder than the other to flow in?

A: Haha well, neither one is harder to flow with than the other, per se. I mean, lyrically, I think it’s a great advantage to be bilingual and have the ability to express my thoughts in both languages. There are some things that I can’t fully explain in Korean but can in English, and vice versa. But from listening to my songs, you could tell that I prefer to rap in Korean more than in English. Korean is my first language and maybe that’s why I can be more creative with the language and I can definitely put more swag on with it. Also, I don’t know… It just feels like I can be more sincere when writing lyrics in Korean. But then again, when I first started writing lyrics, I started with battle rap and it was all in English so I’m pretty comfortable writing lyrics in English as well. I guess it’s all about preference, haha.

Lookin’ Back: CoCo Lee – Do You Want My Love

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Before all these artists started trying to cross over to the US after huge success in their home countries (BoA, Se7en, Wonder Girls, Utada Hikaru, etc), CoCo Lee tried to do it 10 years ago.

Although she tried to channel her best 90′s inner J.Lo with her album ‘Just No Other Way’, major success never happened for her. A couple years later the western audience got another dose when she sang the theme for the hit film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. In my opinion she had two huge detractors that resulted in her non-start of a career in the US.

1) Her label was too hesitant in giving her proper backing. The music and presentation is too generic and the marketing push was nearly non-existent. The only thing that made her stood out and it was the fact that she was asian… which leads me to the next point.
2) She was asian. A lot can happen in 10 years, and while the yellow community is still facing the same struggles, I imagine some of the tensions and predicaments with trying to break cultural barriers have eased somewhat.

Regardless, Ms Lee deserves her props for making the effort… and although she’s active only in Asia now, today’s stars with similar aspirations can learn from her journey.

FM featured on Clinton Sparks x Lil’ Jon mixtape

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As another prime example of just how big FM is getting, their hit single ‘Girls on the Dance Floor’ has been included on the new Clinton Sparks & Lil’ Jon mixtape entitled Smashtime Radio vol. 6.

Another great placement for the group!

Check the full tracklisting and free download link after the jump.

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Tila Tequila x Ray J = <3 ?

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AmpedAsia is reporting that Tila Tequila, the questionably famous pop culture star, is now an item with none other than r&b quasi-star/sex video superstar Ray J.

I’m not even sure why I’m posting this other than its a slow news day and I had nothing better to do.

If you’re so inclined, feel free to read the details at AmpedAsia.

WTF: Shogunna Discography

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What’s going on folks. We’re bringing you the Weekly Thursday Freebie a few hours early this week but really who’s gonna complain =P.

Similar to last week, an artist has made his material available online for free download.  Rather than make a separate post about it I’m gonna be lazy and incorporate it into this weeks WTF. That’s wassup haha.

Anyways, Queens representative Shogunna has announced that you can download both his albums for free from his website. Previously, only one of the two albums was legit free (The ‘Free Hip-Hop’ mixtape). The other album (‘Signed 2 the Streets’) was originally available for purchase.

So if you haven’t gotten either yet, no excuses. Links after the jump!

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Sam Geunjin Kang shooting MV w/ Wong Fu

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Singer/Songwriter Sam Geunjin Kang is collaborating with Wong Fu Productions for a new music video. Check out the Wong Fu blog for a sneak peek at the video shoot and stay on the lookout for the video in the near future! I’m a big fan of Wong Fu’s work and although this is the first I’ve heard of Sam, he seems to have a pretty cool style. Lookin forward to the release.

dumbfoundead & crew to go on college tour

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MC dumbfoundead has just announced that he and his LA based underground crew will be embarking on a 40 stop tour all over the southwest. If you’re a hip-hop fan and in the area of any these schools make sure you check it out!

The Open-Enrollment Tour will feature also feature Thirsty Fish, Nocando, Thavius Beck, K the I, Serengeti

Check the tour dates after the jump.

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Wheesung & Lena Park concert in LA

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KPOP stars Wheesung & Lena Park are holding a concert in LA this friday. I wish I could be there since I’m a huge Lena fan but 3000 miles is kind of a long commute.

Popseoul has all the details but here’s the gist (plus a way to win tickets):

Date: June 19, 2009 at 8:00 p.m.

Venue: Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 South Grand Avenue, Los Angeles

Tickets: $30 – $85

In Person – Walt Disney Concert Hall Box Office,111 S Grand Ave

Online – www.ticketmaster.com

Phone – Ticketmaster Phone Charge: 213-365-3500 (English),
213-368-2511 (Korean)

Students and Seniors 50% discount for a pair of tickets in Terrace East and Terrace West sections only. Proper ID required at time of purchase. One pair of tickets per ID, limited tickets available. Can only be purchased at WDCH box office. Offer does not apply to single tickets.

Far East Movement interview w/ Seoulbeats

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Seoulbeats brings you an interview with none other than the Far East Movement.  They sat down with Prohgress and picked his brain.

Here’s a sample:

SB: I know you want to raise the Asian-American profile in the US, how do you go about that?
I think a lot of it has to do with us putting in the work that we do. Because when we were younger we didn’t have a lot of Asian-American representation, other than, like, Mr. Miyagi and Bruce Lee . So something like being a musician or an actor or anything like being an entertainer other than, you know, the more typecast roles, is hard and didn’t seem like an achievable goal. It’s really grown a lot in the last few years and it’s not just us doing our music and doing our best to represent our people, but also through supporting other people; which is why we have things like the International Secret Agents concert [with Wong Fu Productions], where we showcase Asian-American talents. And there’s people like, you know, Wong Fu productions and David Choi, who have built these fan bases, and by us being able to create these platforms really helps with that. I think it’s worth noting too, I think that dance, the Asians that are representing in dance are huge right now. With Quest and the JabbawockeeZ, the Jabbawockeez are pretty much as mainstream as you can get.

Chloe Wang feature w/ CRIEnglish

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ABC (American Born Chinese) teen pop star Chloe Wang was featured on the CRI English website. It offers great context behind this rising sensation as she embarks on dominating the charts overseas. You can check out more material on her over at MTV Iggy as well.

Interesting to know:

Although Wang’s father is Chinese, the American-born teenager grew up in Chicago and did not begin learning Chinese until March this year.

Source: AmpedAsia