Interview: Tha Soloist

1. Peace family! Who are you & where are you from?

Peace. I go by Tha Soloist, and I’m from Jersey City, New Jersey.

2. What inspires you?

I’m inspired by so many things. Inspiration can come from anywhere…

but if I had to choose a few of them it would have to be film,

instrumentals, and everyday life. The good and the bad times.

My music usually comes from a deep place, so I’m always inspired by

the events that are life changing. One more thing that inspires me is

the fans that hit me up every day to tell me that I inspire them.

That’s the best feeling in the world, just knowing that they can

relate to the joy and the pain. It makes it all worthwhile.

3. If you could work with any producer who would it be & why?

I’d have to pick two, not one. Mr. Green and Apollo Brown.

They both have mad soul. You can’t fake that. My stuff is soulful too,

so it’s only right. Green is very talented, and Brown’s beats fit me

just right. Check out my track with C-Lance, “Heart of Justice”

so you can get a better idea.

4. Top 5 Dead or Alive?

I don’t really like to pick five flavors out of the melting pot,

but I’ll give you a list of five emcee’s that are great to me.

Nas

DOOM

GZA

2Pac

Eminem

and I gotta add ODB!

5. Greatest musical group of all time (outside of Hip-Hop)

I like Bob Dylan, Billy Joel, and Elton John. As for groups though

I’d have to say The Beatles. I also like Aphrodite’s Child, The Beach Boys,

and Green Day is up there as well (I grew up listening to all their stuff)

As for soul singers, I really like The Stylistics, The Miracles, and The Isley Brothers.

I almost forgot Johnny Cash! Sorry, I could go on for days.

I know I’m forgetting a lot of them.

6. Who is your favorite upcoming MC right now?

That’s a tough question. I like what Focus is doing right now.

Ron-Ron was dope too, but he disappeared. But yeah, Focus got lyrics.

The boy can spit. Trust me. I gotta throw Coal in there. I know he’s been

doing it for a minute, but he’s extremely gifted. Shout out to Dead Rabbits.

7. I admire your drive. Do you have any advice to give other artists?

Thanks. I’m always busy. I’m dead if I’m not creating. It’s as simple as that.

My advice is this…NEVER get too personal with anyone right away.

Take your time. A lot of these guys are out for blood. A lot of them want

to see you fail. It’s that crab in a bucket mentality. Just do your thing,

work hard, and be kind. Never give up on your dreams. And remember this,

a lot of the artists you admire are watching, so handle yourself like a

professional. Don’t do anyone dirty in this game. There’s enough of that

going around anyway. Try not to jump the gun, paying for verses right away.

Earn your respect and pay your dues first. Let them come to you. I’m not

saying it’s bad to support the artist, but try to build a catalog.

8. What project’s should we be looking forward to in the near future?

I’ll be on Disturbia Music Group producer Sultan Mir’s debut album dropping

in the winter (Sultans Empire)

I’m working on an LP with Focus (untitled)

I got an EP with Tone Liv on the way (Spill Ritual)

Rated R is another emcee I’ve been working with.

Me and Trilian need to get back to work on our LP (Exit Thru Gift)

and I got an album already out (The New Terrah) with Mark Deez,

Edd Bundy and DJ TMB

You can download my free LP on Audiomack (The Glorious Bastard)

Last but not least, got some tracks with Joell Ortiz, Planetery,

Death Star and more.

9. Any last shout outs?

Shout out to every DJ, Emcee and Producer that’s keeping Hip-Hop alive.

I had a good time answering your questions. “Be kind, for everyone you meet

is fighting a hard battle.”

P.S. Appetite and Mister Digital are two of my favorite producers right now!

Plus massive respect to Billy Ballantine for putting me on stage last minute

at Diabolic’s listening party. Shout out to Ixion Form, Pryme, Godilla, Eff Yoo,

Ghetto MC, UG, Lord Digga, Maze, Cliff, Coal, Tabs, Grim, Dro, Mercy Gang,

and Tones.

Peace to TMB, Madhandz and Trickalome

Ty Black – “Killer Cops” (R.I.P. Eric Garner)

“Killer Cops” (R.I.P. Eric Garner)

Ras Ceylon “Here & Now” (Music Video 2014 HD)

FOLLOW RAS CEYLON ON TWITTER

http://www.rasceylon.bandcamp.com
http://www.soundcloud.com/gideonforce

“Invest In A Dream” #inVESTid by Africano

HELP FUND THIS PROJECT HERE

SHORT SUMMARY

“HELLO!

My name Shidaun Campbell, popularly know as “Africano.” I’m a professional dancer, beatboxer (vocal percussionist), poet and actor currently living in NYC. Over the past 12 years, I have the opportunity to dance with two national dance theater companies including Chicago’s Deeply Rooted Dance Theater, perform with Kenny Leon’s “True Color’s Theater,” receive a Drama & Dance degree at Morehouse College, completed my own beatbox & spoken-word CD while selling over 300 copies during my first one-man show tour, performed at nationwide venues including the world famous Apollo theater in NYC, and organized community arts efforts for the empowerment of children and youth in the United States and Brazil.”

(More about Africano:  www.TheHumanBeatbox.com )

“INVEST IN A DREAM!”

I am now producing a one-of-a-kind 45 minute one-man show.

Beatboxing and dancing are my 2 things I can’t see myself not doing. So, bringing the two together made sense. During this show I will be beatboxing and dancing to my own soundtrack while including high-tech LED lighting and sound technology. I’ll also be covering various music and dance genres such as breaking, house, popping and locking. Not to mention, this is all being done by one person…at the same time!

“inVESTid” tells the story of Alex, an introverted high-school sophomore who loves to play video games in his free time. Every day Alex goes to school, he’s bullied and picked by his peers. He doesn’t have many friends and spends most of his time alone. One evening, while going through some of his late father’s things, he stumbles on an old, dusty vest. But, this is no ordinary vest. The vest gives him the ability to beatbox and dance while travelling through time and space. In one night, the vest takes Alex on a journey where he experiences different styles of music and dance while facing some of his greatest fears. With a newfound sense of confidence, he returns to school the next day, and stands up to the school bully in front of the entire class. He then realizes, he doesn’t need the vest to be amazing.

This story is a very personal one because, through it, I am telling my own story. I was the target for bullies on an everyday basis. By middle school, I was contemplating suicide. By high school, I contemplated joining a street gang to gain more respect. It was around that time I started dancing, and my life took a complete turn for the better. Dancing gave me a group of peers who accepted me for who I was. Before I knew it I had a newfound sense of confidence and I began to stand up for myself.

I never knew that simply persistence and hard work on my passion would give me confidence and recognition. I was just doing something I loved doing. Since then, I’ve travelled, performed, taught and met many awesome people along the way. From that point on, I decided to make my passion my career and share it with others.

“INVEST IN OUR CHILDREN!”

 I truly feel that my life’s purpose is to connect with the hearts of others and to help them connect with themselves. This is why I will be teaching community-based workshops targeted towards children and youth in every city that I travel to. These dance and beatbox workshops will focus on building self-esteem, character and cultural awareness.

(READ THE REST HERE)