Tyler wins VMA

When i heard Tyler the Creator won a VMA, i was not surprised. I was stoked for that kid. At first when my homie OJ put me on to Earl & Tyler i was like “what the F’ these kids are ill”, then the general idiots got wind of them and started claiming them as “the new Wu-Tang” and all kind of accolades. Then i remembered that i met majority of OFWGKTA when i visited LA and was spocking out RESERVE on Fairfax in LA.  I have to say they some cool kids, didn’t know they rapped but i remembered the faces.  What i do love about dem is they remind me of me, skate, reckless, rapping all abstract, so anti-rappers, and just making their own music with what they got.  After i stopped reading all the revues and took their music face value and not so serious, i dig it.  Gotta let the kids play.  You could say im bias because they down for skateboarding and at the same time i could be a hater and dis like them for supporting Supreme (i experienced the worst customer service there and the workers were mad snotty).  So in the words of the next generation we gotta let the boy cook.  With idiots like Souljah Boy & Lil’ B we good with digging on the odd future of Tyler and the crew.

Hype Machine.

The internet is outta control.  I say that cuz every rapper thinks their the hottest thing since Nas.  Every producer thinks their the next Swizz.  Every Graff writer, well thats a whole other bag of gummie worms.  I aint the best and i aint the worst. I can rock a show and make solid tracks i know that, but do i have to let everyone else know that every hour?  Do you really have to ask people to “LIKE” my artist page?  Honestly, don’t like my page unless you really do like me.  I rather have 500 solid people who genuinely support my music or Lightsleepers, than 1500 people that are trigger happy on Facebook.

Yes we all need to promote, and Yes as a rapper or dj you do need an air of confidence that borderlines arrogance, cuz if not why you rapping if you don’t think you are better than the next?  The thing is some of us have to compensate by letting us all know that they did a song. OK, let us know a few times, but not on every damn post. FB post is now 50/50 spam.  I rather hear about how you ate crappy food and then check out my new track by the way….not “YO CHECK OUT MY NEW TRACK” x 10000!

Diggers: Chicago!

 

 

So i was plotting the new color way for the Diggers shirt and i figure lets take it to Chicago.   Now i got the bright idea to make a free mixtape, maybe not mixed but with breaks/rare groove/funk/soul/ all from Chicago.

So i went on the Facebook and posted that i needed help on the Chicago Dustys! I actually hit up Meaty Ogre of Galapagos 4, but so far no response.  Like lightning the homie John Book came through with a simple & straight to the point site of Mid West funk/soul/gospel.

One of the gems that i found on that site is The Decons – Sock it to me. Man i’m getting schooled right now, and loving it. So either im gonna cop all these records or hopefully a homie from Chicago can do a mix for me in exchange for some shirts. Stay tuned.

Holes

Had to go to a 1st birthday party at Star of the Sea in Kahala.  Went to go find the bathroom and realized that i was right behind one of my old skate spots..HOLES. Why it was called Holes is beyond me, but there is an awesome story that goes with this spot.  But before i get into the story the spot is basically smaller drainage ditch that someone cemented the gap to make it more of a transition than straight bank to flat (you’ll get it if you skate).  Anyway, the myth of this spot and i could be totally blowing this story..but here we go.

Supposedly, a bunch of my older friends were skating Holes.  These guys were 1 to 2 years older than me and who come to skate the spot…Christian Hosoi.  Well one thing lead to another and my homie called out Hosoi to a game of skate and won.  For some reason no one confirmed that happened but the story kept getting passed on.  On that same note, supposedly Hosoi aired out of the ditch to the top of the fence, go figure.  We were all young and impressionable, oh well it was dope back then thinking someone i knew beat Hosoi.

Bomb Atomic-ly

I got a atomic family, wife, and 2 kids, one boy and one girl. Whats crazy is that as much as i thought that music would slow down it actually has picked up even more. I got offered to rock a couple shows in the mainland this year and next.  Also, been finding time to do music, crazy right! How is that possible, don’t ask, but God Blesses families, straight up!  I really don’t know how i am going to do the shows in the mainland but i don’t want to short change what God has planned so as always i am planning to rock shows, period!  I don’t know about you but i have less time to do Lightsleepers and my personal music, but now i find time, i think i am going in bubbles.  God Loves the kids.

Sponsor Me Tape?

I always thought i was going to be a pro skater.  It started in elementary, but i found Hip-Hop and skateboarding had to fight for my time.  Actually, it was a match made in heaven.  I would listen to my walkman on the bus as we moved to skate spots.  When i wasn’t skating i would be on the turntables, writing raps, or learning about records.  So around 1998-99 i got an opportunity to get sponsored by Osiris shoes.

In 1996, Osiris came out swinging with a sick team and the most bulkiest skate shoes to date.  They also made a G-Bag which was a bag with radio speakers attached to the bottom.  The rep was looking for someone that was down with both cultures – Skate & Hip-Hop.  Big ups to Jeff Oshiro, he was asked who would be the guy and he said me.  At first i was getting flow from the local rep, but i would bother him with club flyers, gigs, newspaper articles, mixtapes, anything to prove my worth.  The rep got so irritated that he told me one day, “you know what, im gonna set you up with sponsorship from the mainland”.  Enter my homie Nate Elders, he was my region rep for Osiris and i knew the importance of “show and prove” so everything i sent to the local rep i did for Nate, and at the time i was traveling a grip so i was promoting Osiris outside of Hawaii.  This was a dream come true, boxes of shoes, clothing, stickers, etc…came every month. In the skate world it was known as “the box”.  C-rap, i was NOT one of the best skaters in Hawaii, i do believe i was one of the most hardest working MC/DJ/budding producer in Hawaii at that time, plus i had the LIGHTSLEEPERS show!  Who would of known that in the late 90’s & early 2000’s skateboarding and Hip-hop would find identity within each other and i reaped all the benefits.  As much as Osiris had that Hip-hop feel to its company it started to change and Osiris started to get “Punk”.   It was obvious there was a back lash on the bulky D3-ish shoes and all the companies started to slim it down.

One day i got that call from Osiris saying….to be continue….