New music from one of Ann Arbor’s finest, 14KT, off of his upcoming free download project, Nowalataz. The project is a batch of Donuts-inspired beats from 2006 that he will be dropping tomorrow.

As a last minute preview of the project, KT blessed us with the third leak from it, “Cherish.” Below is what he had to say about the track:

“Cherish. I remember I made this one for my bestfriend for her birthday. I was just thinking about how blessed I am to have people in my life that genuinely care about me, hence the title of the joint, Cherish. Craziest thing too is a little after I made this in April, I went to Shoes’ House (A Night @ Northern Lights club). It was packed. Classic night. DJ HouseShoes & Dez were playing Dilla records basically all night and I was on stage standing right behind them RIGHT next to Proof! I got to say whassup to him and tell him I really appreciated him and his music. A little after that, He passed away. Cherish. The next month me & Buff had a show in LA and Karriem Riggins came to it. I was geeked! I little after that show I sent him some beats. This beat was on the CD. A few months later, I was in LA and I got up with him and he gave me a REALLY rough copy of a song he did on it. WHAAT?? lol. He rhymed about how he found his love for jazz music. CRAZY. Maybe one day I can get the final copy and play it for ya’ll.”

And to go along with it, he also threw in the non-album exclusive “The Stylus,” which he said is from the same 2006 batch that the Nowalataz tracks were culled from. 14KT’s debut solo album, The Golden Hour, is out now on MP3 and CD – look out for the self-released vinyl version of the LP coming next month as well.

Here’s the exclusive premiere of some live footage from both Invincible & Finale‘s performances from SXSW last week. With Invincible dropping the delayed “Ropes” video soon, “Looongawaited” is too fitting of a track to pass up (the video will be well worth the wait – trust). Similarly anticipated, Finale will be dropping both his T.I.M.E. pre-album soon and his official solo debut, A Pipe Dream & A Promise on April 7th. From T.I.M.E. we have a live version of the track, “Jungle Music” (which was previously posted as a free download with its official music video here).

Also, be on the look out for an exclusive King Most megamix of Finale’s T.I.M.E. album coming next week, and a special Finale edition of Fresh Selects Radio with even more from the album coming soon after that.

You can check both live videos below and you can also read-along with the lyrics to the Invincible track after the jump.

Note: the volume’s a little low on the videos so turn your speakers up & pay attention!

Two new previews from soul singer/keys player, Ab & producer/drummer, Daru‘s upcoming album together, A Work In Progress. After both working on successful solo & group projects separately, as well as playing in backing bands for both Slum Village and Black Milk together, Ab & Daru will finally be releasing their album together later this year. They project has already been making waves with its first single, “On Deck” (featuring a guest verse from Black Milk) and the leaked video for “Soul Can U Feel Me.” Keeping the anticipation for the project growing, they’ve laced us with two new tracks from the project, “Soul Dirty” (featuring T3 of Slum Village) and a new remix of “Soul Can U Feel Me” courtesy of another Fresh Selects favorite, 14KT of the Lab Techs.

“Soul Dirty” finds T3 flowing like only he can over some of Daru’s patented stuttered & chopped clap-bounce, leading into Ab’s layered & varied vocals and accented keys. And on the “Soul Can U Feel Me” remix, 14KT adds a new, more laidback vibe than the original, while still maintaining the OG’s headnod factor. KT had this to say about the track, “This remix is a big deal to me because this was the 1st time I ever worked with AB. Its crazy cuz AB sent me the accapella for this joint to see what I could do with it. I listened to it about 2 times all the way thru. By the 3rd time, I had beatboxed the melody and record it. All the rest of history. I made this joint in like 45 mins, which is FAST to me..lolol..but it came out really dope. Much love to those brothas.”

You can stream “Soul Can U Feel Me (14KT Remix)” & then download “Soul Dirty” (as well as “On Deck,” for the sleepers) below.

Ab & Daru “Soul Can U Feel Me (14KT Mix)”

Credit due to MOSologist & MichiganHipHop.com for providing the track.

One of the most consistent MC’s in the game right now, Ann Arbor’s own Buff1 is back at it again. This time it’s with an exclusive new track for DJ Graffiti‘s brand new mixtape, Hipsters Need Soul Too. Keeping up with the concept of the mix, Buff’s “What Does Hipster Mean?” hilariously addresses just what the title implies, over a dope, breezy beat by French producer Astronote.

If you’re not up on Buff1 (that’s probably what that empty feeling you’ve had inside your soul has been), he’s been putting out release after release (each as dope as the next) as a part of the hip-hop collective, the Athletic Mic League, since 2002, and in the last year has dropped the impressive back-to-back solo albums, Pure and There’s Only One.

At the same time, Graffiti is another Ann Arbor native whose been putting it down for years now. His slew of mixtapes and work both behind the scenes and at the forefront have earned him the title of Michigan Mixtape King. He also holds down duties as the official tour DJ for Detroit’s own Phat Kat.

Below is a free download of “What Does Hipster Mean?” – and after the jump I’ve provided two personal highlights from Buff1′s now out-of-print mixtape, The One And Only (featuring production from Samiyam and a guest spot from Guilty Simpson), plus one of his most recent guest appearances, from his A-Side family members, Now On‘s new album.

For those who have been sleeping, 14KT is a producer/MC/DJ from the Ann Arbor, Michigan-based collectives Athletic Mic League & the Lab Techs. And, quiet as kept – he’s also one of the most consistent producers in the game right now. Recent productions include about half of his AML fam, Buff1‘s, new album, There’s Only 1, and 2 of my personal favorites from Invincible‘s ShapeShifters (“Sledgehammer!” & “No Easy Answers”) – as well as placements with One Be Lo, Phat Kat, Now On, Wildchild, and others.

Anyway… these are the first 4 of 6 leaked tracks (1 a week until the release date) from KT himself, off of his debut solo album (the soundtrack to his life, as he puts it), The Golden Hour, dropping October 14th.

And they even come with liner notes!

“This version of this song featuring Stones Throw artist Aloe Blacc, is actually NOT going to be on my soundtrack. However, without telling Aloe Blacc the real inspiration behind the track, one day he sent me this version, which happened to go with the concept and I liked it so much I HAD to share it EXCLUSIVELY with you.

My inspiration for this joint was going through a relationship that became so trying & serious that it was hard 2 just have fun & chill again with that person, U know? I freaked the sample as symbolism for how I felt. Tried 2 make the song sound “new” again in a sense. Kinda like how I wish I could do the same with the relationship. Enjoy.”

“First of all, I LOVE trying to flip records like this for fun. Hope you enjoy it.

I’m a night person so I needed some theme music! Ha!
I took every aspect of “the night” & chopped it into this joint.
I think I chopped 4 or 5 different sayings of “the” from the singer. How intricate is that? Yep, too much time on my hands.
Theme music for all my true night owls. No Sleep. Freaks come out at night. Slow Jamz. Just crusin’. Chill Time. Me Time. All wrapped in one beat.”

“This is BY FAR my favorite joint off the project and yes that is me TRYING to sing on it. HAHA!
Years ago, I asked my bestfriend Keri to name one word that described me. She replied “Illustrious.” I was like WHOA!
When I made this, I was listening to alot of late 70s/early 80s Rock music. I wanted to make a Gospel song, but I didn’t want to do it in the traditional sense sonically. So I wanted to make my version a 80′s Rock Gospel Song!
Even though Keri described me as Illustrious, I could never ever come close to letting my little light shine without the Grace, Love, and Power of GOD! So I dedicated this joint to GOD and how I feel with Him in my life!!
If you feel the same way, hopefully you will feel the song. I know I’ll get criticized for my singing, but I don’t care.
I was expressing myself!! That’s what music is about right?

Lyrics:

Verse 1:
“Illustrious/ I feel/ When you’re in my life
So Heavenly/I feel/When you’re in my life

Verse 2:
“You are the only way, please show me (the way)
I want to shine, shine, shine, Divine (divine continues to echo)

“God, I need you in my life (repeats at the end)

“Much love to my brothas Zo! on additional keys/bass, my mans Ab on the Vocals, and my mans Sam Beaubien who came through and laid trumpet for the track. I appreciate it ya’ll”

(Taken from an IM conversation)

A.L. says : can i ask what inspired this one?
14KT says: divorce.. hate crimes.. disrespect.. people getting killed.. relationships..
A.L says: it’s wrapped so eloquently though, with much respect
14KT says: yeah..I wanted the track to sound more contemplative than sad..but its really based on negative things…
A.L says: yeah it feels that way…. sad isn’t really my emotion… it’s just emotion-full in a way.. the way that there’s a tinge of sadness in “I fall in love too easily” – that’s what the trumpet reminds me of..
14KT says: “This hate that I see…is less than enough to detect any love/This music I hear…is less than enough to detect any love/These relationships I see..are less than enough to detect any love/This respect that I get…is less than enough to detect any love..”
A.L says: man… i feel u.. that’s deeper than….
14KT says: its actually simple..just me thinking on things…and seeing how they could be so much better if people had more love.. but instead they have “Less than Enough..”
A.L says: yessir. wow… thank you so much for sharing this with me……… ”

“When I started putting the soundtrack together, there was a scene in my “life movie” where I was reflecting on important memories, people, and situations that made me who I am. I envisioned a tiny purple spaceship,slowly flying inside of my brain (kind of like the movie “Innerspace” haha)… where you see snapshots of different moments….giving you a tour of everything that was going through my mind. I wanted the music to sound spacey and introspective to capture the vibe of the scene. Much love to my girl Tiffany Paige for the beautiful vocals to illustrate the scene more..hope you can see it..”

“I wanted to make theme music that gives you the feeling of where I am from. Ypsilanti..Ypsitucky..Ypsilanta.. is a small city in Michigan. There are areas of it that are somewhat hard and you can hear it in the drums, but the overall vibe of Ypsi is very simple, laid back, kinda country, and chill. This is theme music for anyone who is from Ypsilanti, ever lived in Ypsilanti, loves Ypsilanti, or just knows about Ypsilanti…its for you.. “