Do you remember the first time you experienced hip-hop? My brother and I were just little boys when we heard the local college radio station play rap music. What is this new music?! We didn’t know for sure, but we knew it captured us. It never let me go. Run D.M.C, LL Cool J, Biz Markie, De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, Common, Wu-Tang, Dr. Dre, D.I.T.C, Bootcamp Click, the list goes on and on an
d on. It continues to this day with artists like Oddisee, Kendrick Lamar, and Chance the Rapper. I started creating Hip-hop music when I was eleven. First, I learned to loop beats using cassette tapes. Then, I bought a two-track machine where I could record a beat on one track and record my raps on the other. Then, I got my hands on an 8 track, then a beat machine, and then a computer that gave me the ability to create a more professional sound. Hip-hop has been good to me. In addition to inspiring me creativey it has taught me a lot. Through Hip-hop I learned about African American history and the progress in science, architecture, and literature that black people have achieved for society. Hip-hop has created an educationally rich and musically diverse environment in my life. I am a better person today because of Hip-hop. I don’t want to simply make music anymore. I want to make a movement. And I want you to consider joining this movement. The goal is simple: to create authentic, inspired, thoughtful Hip-hop music. This music will be of the tradition of such greats as Dres from Black Sheep, Mos Def, or Skyzoo. In other words I want to create music that honors the past while progresses into the future. The progressive part is where you can play a huge role. Traditionally, music makers create the music and then ask you to buy it. But, people are rarely paying to consume music these days. If they do, it is typically a small fee for unlimited streaming. So, I’m not asking you to buy the music I create. I’m asking you to fund the creation of it. Making music with integrity and excellence takes resources. Marketing that music and getting it to the masses also takes resources. I want to create a movement where people provide those resources rather than a BIG corporation or business. So, I started Everybody’s Hip-hop Label. This is a small independent record label built on the foundation of Hip-hop’s rich musical history. It is a record label that values artistic integrity with full creative control going to the artists. Will you join this label? Will you give a dollar a month to fund a record label that values Hip-hop’s history by becoming part of its future? Simply go to www.everybodyshiphop.com to join.
