Fresh Selects » Phonte

FRESHclusive: Low Budget Crew – Budget Is Low Mixtape Vol. 1Mixed by RODDYROD & Marshall Law

Kenny Fresh — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 11:47:50 +0000

Here’s the official debut of the brand new mixtape from the DMV’s finest – the Low Budget crew. If you’re really up on your Twitter game (twame?), you might’ve caught the leak of an early, rougher mix yesterday – but this is the official, tracked-out and finished version with artwork by LB’s own, DJ RODDYROD, who also mixed the “tape” along with fellow Low Budgeteer, DJ Marshall Law.

This first installment of the Budget Is Low mixtapes debuts a handful of new tracks from upcoming projects including the official release of Kev Brown’s Random Joints, as well as his concept-collabo with Kaimbr, The Al Green Project, RODDYROD’s Cuba After Market 1.5, Blunt Park Sessions re-release, and more. Also thrown in are some older tracks in case you missed em – plus some never-before-released rarities from the crew thrown in as well.

I’ve also included some footage from Low Budget’s 4th annual DC Loves Dilla fundraiser event this year. Included are performances from RODDYROD, Kev Brown, Grap Luva, Kaimbr, Kenn Starr and Alison Carney – all performing original songs over covers of classic Dilla beats by JLaine and his band. You can peep the tracklisting below, download the mix and then catch the live videos after the jump.

DJ RODDYROD & DJ Marshall Law present…
The Budget Is Low Mixtape Vol. 001
1. Kev Brown – Another Random Joint
2. Oddisee – Hip Hop Is Cool Again
3. Sean Born – Go Hard (prod. Kev Brown)
4. The Al Green Project (Kaimbr & Kev Brown) – Grits
5. Kenn Starr – Say Goodbye (prod. Black Milk)
6. Kev Brown & RODDYROD – Down By The Riverside
7. Grap Luva feat. Kev Brown – Git Mines (prod. RODDYROD)
8. Diamond District – I Mean Business
9. RODDYROD feat. yU & Finale – Neva Find Me
10. RODDYROD – Take In Stride (prod. JLaine)
11. RODDYROD feat. Phonte & Carlitta Durand – This Time Around
12. Kaimbr feat. Kenn Starr – The Truth (prod. RODDYROD & Kev Brown)
13. RODDYROD feat. yU & XO – UNI-VERSE
14. Sean Born – Take It & Run (prod. Kev Brown)
15. The Al Green Project (Kaimbr & Kev Brown) – Songs (Hands Up)
16. Oddisee – Camera
17. Critically Acclaimed – Appreciation (prod. Sean Born)
18. Kev Brown feat. yU – Marvelous
19. Isaac Jones (Sean Born & Kenn Starr) – Keep It Movin (prod. Kev Brown)
20. Kev Brown feat. Raheem DeVaughn & Kenn Starr – Hennessey Pt. 3
21. Critically Acclaimed – Triple D (prod. Kev Brown)

DOWNLOAD: Low Budget Crew – Budget Is Low Mixtape Vol. 1

COMING SOON: New releases from Kev Brown, RODDYROD, The Al Green Project & more

BONUS VIDEOS: RODDYROD, Grap Luva, Kaimbr & Kenn Starr @ DC Loves Dilla tribute

Grap Luva & Alison Carney “Jealousy”

Kaimbr & Kev Brown “Gobstopper / The Official”

RODDYROD & Kaimbr “Fuck The Police”

Kenn Starr & Kev Brown “Let’s Take It Back”

FRESH PREMIERE: RODDYROD presents Cuba After Market “This Time Around” (feat. Phonte & Carlitta Durand)

Kenny Fresh — Fri, 22 May 2009 10:43:30 +0000

Brand new video & song from producer, RODDYROD, featuring two of North Carolina’s finest, Phonte & Carlitta Durand. Since we were the first to give you a preview of the track, “This Time Around,” back in March – it’s only right that we also be the first to hit you with both the video, as well as the official leak of the track.

The video was done by RODDYROD’s own Humble Monarch collective and the song will be appearing on the new expanded release of Rod’s concept album, Cuba After Market, dropping soon – so stay tuned for more on that.

Check the video below, download the track and let me know what you think – all below.

DOWNLOAD: RODDYROD “This Time Around” (feat. Phonte & Carlitta Durand)

SUPPORT: RODDYROD presents Cuba After Market One.PointFive coming soon

ALBUM PREVIEW: RODDYROD presents… Cuba After Market One.PointFive (w/ Phonte, Carlitta Durand & Nicholas Ryan Gant)

Kenny Fresh — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 12:15:55 +0000

With the expanded re-release of his Cuba After Market project on the horizon, Low Budget producer, RODDYROD, has blessed us with 4 new tracks as a sneak preview. The original album was Rod’s audio tour guide to/history lesson of Cuba made from chopping, stretching & twisting Havana-inspired sounds to form his own brand of latin-infused broken beat. The journey was mostly an instrumental one, but also featured cameos from some of the DMV area’s brightest soul stars – Muhsinah, Bilal Salaam and Wayna. And Cuba After Market 1.5 carries on that tradition by adding additional instrumentals and also expanding the guest list to include North Carolina’s Phonte & Carlitta Durand (on “This Time Around”) and current Brooklyn resident Nicholas Ryan Gant (on “Let The Rain Fall”). By the way, if you’re not already up on Nicholas, be sure to check out MOOVMNT’s great post on him last week.

As for RODDYROD, you can expect to see a lot more from him in the coming weeks – as he’ll releasing the video for “This Time Around” with Phonte & Carlitta in late April/early May before dropping the full Cuba After Market 1.5 on May 26th, as well as the second version of his Rawkus 50 album, Blunt Park Sessions (which was highly slept on, in my opinion) soon after that. He’s also been making some major moves with his graphic design & filmmaking venture, Humble Monarch, as well.

You can stream the two vocals tracks from the sampler before getting the full 4-track download (with both tracks & two more instrumentals) below. Also, be sure to check out the Videos section to see some of the music video work Rod has done for the likes of Muhsinah, Kev Brown, Green Tea, Kaimbr, Cy Young, JLaine and himself.

RODDYROD “This Time Around” (snippet)
(feat. Phonte & Carlitta Durand)

RODDYROD “Let The Rain Fall”
(feat. Nicholas Ryan Gant)

DOWNLOAD: RODDYROD - Cuba After Market 1.5 sampler

SUPPORT: RODDYROD - Cuba After Market 1.5 drops May 26th

VIDEO: Humble Monarch’s YouTube Channel

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:Trackademicks – The [Re]Mixtape Vol. 2

Kenny Fresh — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 10:10:24 +0000

If it isn’t already – the name Trackademicks is definitely one that you should get familiar with. Track is a Bay Area-based producer/MC whose recently been making a lot of noise with his unique sound – a certain 808-laden, slaphappy knock that blurs the line between hyphy and hipster without falling into the stereotypes of either. His white label remixes and work with his crew, the Honor Roll, plus work with local Bay Area pillars like Mistah FAB (Thizz Entertainment) and Lyrics Born (Quannum) have laid a strong foundation for his more recent, out-of-town placements. Highlights from those collaborations include innovators J*DaVeY, indie-rock favorites Editors, ’80s revisiters Zo! & Tigallo, my not-so-unbiased favorite, PPP, and most recently, Timbaland’s latest signee, Izza Kizza.

Back in April of this year, Trackademicks released the [Re]Mixtape Vol. 2 as a free download on his MySpace page. But just in case you either missed out on it then, or it has since gotten lost in your over-cluttered hard drive – consider this a reminder. Included in this second installment of the series are Track’s unofficial remixes of everything from slow jam classics by Sade and Ready For The World to more recent works by blog-favorite Janelle Monae, radio staples Pharrell and Snoop Dogg, and others – matched side-by-side by Track’s official placements with house resurgents Windmoto and singing pseudonym Victor St. Clair (recognize the voice?), Bay Area funk band Honeycut, exclusives with Phonte, his Honor Roll family members and more – all mixed by the Roll’s own DJ Tap.10.

And like we always do about this time – stay tuned after the jump for some more background info & extra freshness. This time the focus is on the solo artist/rapper side of Trackademicks’ work, along with that of his fellow Honor Roll members, plus his latest remix video for his reworkings of Kenna and Janelle Monae.

Raphael Saadiq feat. Teedra Moses “I Want You Back (Trackademicks Remix)”

Editors “Bullets (Trackademicks Remix)”

Yummy Bingham “Come Get It (Trackademicks Remix)” (feat. Trackademicks)

DOWNLOAD: Trackademicks – The [Re]Mixtape Vol. 2

SUPPORT: You can get the [Re]Mixtape Vol. 2 on CD and other merchandise from Trackademicks and the Honor Roll crew at The Giant Peach

BONUS TRACKS:

Trackademicks “Grocery Bills” (feat. Josie Stingray)

Trackademicks “Topsidin’” (feat. Moxmore)

Trackademicks “Sperry’s & Stunnas” (feat. Mistah FAB)

BONUS VIDEOS:

Kenna “Say Goodbye To Love (Trackademicks Remix)” (feat. Mike Baker The Bike Maker)

Janelle Monae “Many Moons (Trackademicks Remix)”

The Foreign Exchange – Leave It All Behind album preview

Kenny Fresh — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 13:21:55 +0000

Brand new sneak preview to the follow-up to Connected, the geography-defying debut from Phonte & Nicolay as The Foreign Exchange. Connected, as misunderstood by certain hip-hop heads as it was, has always been a personal favorite of mine – so I have high expectations for their new album, Leave It All Behind.

I’ll reserve judgement until I can hear the album as a whole, since the first album’s strongsuit were its sonic cohesion and its completeness as an album rather than a collection of hot songs. But with that said… this sampler sounds pretty damn promising. The subject matter is painfully relevant and the quality of songwriting and musicianship is so necessary in this day and age. A break-up album for the digital area with an organic-leaning sound – now that’s whats up.

Sampler Tracklisting:
1. The Foreign Exhange – LIAB Sampler
a. Take Off The Blues (feat. Darien Brockington)
b. All Or Nothing (feat. Darien Brockington)
c. Something To Behold (feat. Muhsinah)
d. If This Is Love (feat. Yahzarah)
e. If She Breaks Your Heart (feat. Yahzarah) (co-prod. Marc Mac)