As Soulbounce announced last week, today marks the online release of new PPP starlet, Karma Stewart‘s The Karma EP. For those who don’t know, Karma is an up-and-coming singer from Austin, Texas now living in L.A., whose best known (so far) as the voice of PPP’s latest single, “On A Cloud.”

After the success of “On A Cloud,” some people tried to pigeon hole Karma as a “throwback singer.” While Ms. Stewart definitely has some classic Motown grace and gospel-tinged strength behind her voice, with this EP she presents a few alternative sides to the story with a sound that she describes as “experimental with an edge of funky soul.” And according to her, even this is “just a taste of what I’ll be bringing to the table.”

Produced by group founders, Waajeed & Saadiq, and mostly written by Karma’s fellow cast member, Coultrain, The Karma EP is definitely a PPP family affair. The 4-track CD was originally sold at PPP shows all across Europe this fall – but now Karma & PPP have decided to give the EP away for free as a preview of both Karma’s upcoming album, and more immediately, PPP’s second album, Abundance.

You can preview all 4 songs below before downloading them all in one convenient .zip file at the bottom. And after the jump, stick around for my liner notes interview with Karma herself.

1. Look
2. Waiting In The Wings
3. Love Games
4. Withdrawal

Produced by Waajeed,
except “Look” produced by Saadiq
& “Withdrawal” co-produced by Saadiq
All lyrics written by Aaron M. Frison (aka Coultrain),
except “Love Games” written by Karma Stewart
Backing Vocals on “Withdrawal” by Justin Pierre Bennett

Mixed & Mastered by Cedric Norah
Additional Mastering by Paul Layton
Vocals Recorded by Jeff Kuryak, Cedric Norah, & TeLuv
Artwork by Philip Crawford
Selected by KNNY FRSH for FRSH SLCTS

So when was The Karma EP recorded?
It was recorded In August ’08 right before I left to do the European tour with PPP in September and October. I wanted to make sure to have something extra for the fans overseas to listen to and enjoy!

What was the recording process like for this?
Recording The Karma EP (formerly titled Just like Faye) was a long process that needed to be done in a short span of time. But, I had all the motivation to complete it. Through my performance with PPP and this EP, this was going to be an introduction of me to the world. I wanted to give the people something different. There were a lot of emotions that were conveyed through the songs on this EP, which is exactly what i wanted to do in the midst of this music making process.

Can you give us a quick rundown of how all the songs came to be?
Coultrain had written “Withdrawal” and “Waiting In The Wings” prior to me starting to put in work for The Karma EP. When I heard those 2 songs I was like “Whoa!!” He’s such a prolific writer; I was more than honored to be the voice behind the genius of his lyrics, ya know?
Shortly after, Saadiq sent me a couple of tracks that he had produced and there was one in particular that stood out to me. I had told Saadiq that i wanted some straight up funky Vanity 6 meets Prince like track. And thats exactly what he did!! Lol…So I sent it to Coultrain and he reached into the depths of his funky soul and wrote the song “Look” which was inspired by the late Rick James. It’s actually one of my favorite songs on the EP.
Last but not least, I wrote the song “Love Games” which was produced by Waajeed (and is also one of my faves). This track is so sick I told Waajeed I had to have it!! Through listening to it, the first thing that popped into my head was “Sweet Dreams” by The Eurythmics. From that inspiration, “Love Games” was created and it was a done deal! I’m very happy with how it turned out.

Do you think this EP is a good introduction for people to get to know your sound and who you are as an artist?
Yeah, totally.. And this is just the beginning!! This just gives people an idea of my sound and what I can do. I have many musical influences from soul and funk to rock and because of that, it’s 2nd nature for me to incorporate all of the above. All in all, I just want people to hear me out and simply enjoy what they’re vibin’ out to.

What are you thoughts on the new PPP album, on which you are one of the prominent featured singers?
There’s a mix of various genres of music and all the songs cater to the senses. PPP’s Abundance album (which drops in January,might I add) incorporates all of the elements, from the production and lyrics to the voices and how the songs are conveyed. Abundance (like my EP) is an album with a different sound and everyone involved put a lot of hard work into it. And its definitely something to look forward to. It’s soooo Dope!!

What about your full-length solo debut, what can we expect from that?
That’s a good question. I’m writing a lot and coming up with a lot of different sounds and ideas. The next step is to just figure out which direction I want to take the album..I’ll keep ya posted…

Who will you be working with on it?
I’ll be doing majority of the writing on my album and Coultrain will be writing 4 songs as well. Maybe he’ll even bless us with his voice!! We’ll see. I’m working on having a few guest voices, writers, and lyricists featured, Its all in the works… Its definitely something to get excited about. So keep a look out!

Are you looking for a label deal for your album or are you doing it yourself?
Definitely shopping for a deal.. But until that time comes, I’ve got to be the one to make it happen, ya know? Me not having a deal at this point in time won’t stop me from making music and putting albums out. The rewards will come in due time..

As promised, here’s the first-ever Fresh Selects mixtape compilation. No, it’s not really mixed – its just a .zip full of tracks that I’ve been feeling lately, and/or been meaning to post about. I’m gonna be gone for the next couple of days so I wanted to put this up to hold you guys over until I come back. But if all goes well, I should be coming back with a bang. We’ll see…. but until then, bump this.

Tracklisting & download links below. Oh, and I also did some quick liner notes for each track after the jump, for those of you who are into that sort of thing.

Also, I just wanted to take a minute to say thanks to everyone who’s been spreading the word about the site whether it be through linking me on your own blogs, posting the link on your MySpace or Facebook, whatever it may be – thank you. This one’s for you.

1. Hi-Res – This World (Thrilla Music Group)
2. Black Spade vs. 88-Keys & Kanye West – Stay Up! (Viagra) (Stoney Rock Remix) (CD-R)
3. Mike Slott feat. DistantStarr – Boxed In (All City)
4. Georgia Anne Muldrow & Dudley Perkins – Shine On (prod. Black Milk) (Mello Music Group)
5. Devon – Hold Up Zelda (Thrilla Music Group)
6. SA-RA Creative Partners – All In The Kitchen (CD-R)
7. Black Spade feat. Coultrain – A Lil Taste (CD-R)
8. Finale – Ice (prod. DJ Final) (CD-R)
9. Dill Clinton (TaRaach vs. The G.O.A.T.) – LiveWire (Lovelution Prosper)
10. Knowledge – Relief (CD-R)
11. Ras_G & The Afrikan Space Program – Clair Huxtable (Brainfeeder)
12. Waajeed – Can’t You Feel It (Instrumental) (Bling47)
13. TaRaach feat. Mia Simone – Benjamins (prod. AmDex) (CD-R)
14. Noni Limar – Monogamy (prod. Black L.A.) (CD-R)
15. Finale – Run It Back (prod. Rashid Hadee) (CD-R)
16. DaveNotti – Get Real (prod. DaiN) (Thrilla Music Group)
17. Kissey Asplund & DistantStarr – Car Ride (To The Future) (prod. Jay Scarlett) (CD-R)
18. Troubleman feat. Steve Spacek – Without You (Waajeed’s Flash Gordon Remix) (Bling47)
19. Fatima – Wildchild (prod. VeeBeeO) (CD-R)
20. Donel Smokes – Got Me High (Bridgetown Steel)
21. Devon – Sleep Tight (Thrilla Music Group)

All tracks selected & compiled by Kenny Fresh for Fresh Selects.

Brand new episode of Waajeed & Bling47‘s podcast series, Bling47 Radio. This latest installment is the first of a two-part sneak preview of PPP‘s upcoming Abundance Mixtape – which will be available right here in the coming weeks. All of this will be leading up to the release of PPP’s new album, Abundance, in stores everywhere on January 20th.

Featured in this first part of the Mixtape preview are remixes of Triple P classics featuring SA-RA, Georgia Anne Muldrow, Tiombe Lockhart & more – remixed by either Waajeed himself, or blended & matched with beats Jeed gave to Seattle’s own, DJ Topspin. It also features exclusive new songs from PPP’s current line-up, including singers Coultrain & Jamila Raegan, that didn’t make the album – and even an unreleased track Waajeed & Coultrain did with J Records artist, Jazmine Sullivan. Download link below, with the full tracklisting & credits after the jump.

Stay tuned for Part 2 and much more from PPP and the Bling47 camp coming soon.

Tracklisting:
BLING47 RADIO EPISODE #5: Abundance Mixtape Preview Part 1
1. (Waajeed Intro)
2. PPP feat. Coultrain – Angel (Waajeed Remix)
3. Waajeed – Resurgence
4. (Angel Remix Commentary)
5. PPP feat. J Dilla – Shotgun (Waajeed’s Plinky Remix)
6. Waajeed – Fresh Boogie
7. (Plinky Commentary)
8. PPP feat. Georgia Anne Muldrow – Your Day Is Done (PPP vs. DJ Topspin Remix)*
9. (Day Is Done Commentary)
10. PPP feat. SA-RA & Rozzi Daime – Deep Inside (Waajeed Remix) %
11. PPP feat. Tiombe Lockhart – Stay With Me (Waajeed vs. DJ Topspin Remix)
12. (Deep Inside & Stay With Me Commentary)
13. PPP feat. Zeno – Fever (DJ Topspin’s Stay With Me Blend) ^
14. PPP feat. Jamila Raegan – Goodbye (PPP EXCLUSIVE) +
15. (Fever Blend & Goodbye Commentary)
16. Jazmine Sullivan feat. Coultrain – Jump Off (BLING47 RADIO EXCLUSIVE)
17. (Jump Off Commentary)
18. PPP feat. Coultrain & Jamila Raegan – Stand For Something (PPP EXCLUSIVE)
19. (Stand For Something & Pigeon Hole Commentary)
20. PPP feat. Coultrain – Pigeon Hole (PPP – ABUNDANCE PREVIEW)

Hosted, Mixed & Compiled by Waajeed for Bling47 Radio
All songs produced by Waajeed, along with:
* Co-Produced by Saadiq of PPP
% Additional Production by Selan
^ Additional Production by Zo!
+ Additional Production by Simon Katz

I know — its been almost a week since my last post. But no worries, I’m back I’m packing heat. St. Louis heat to be exact – in the form of two new tracks from Coultrain. If you’re not already up on him, then I’ve really got some shit for you. With his naturally vintage-leaning vocals matched with his very modern approach and his forward-thinking lyricism – Coultrain is quickly gaining a loyal following among both modern music listeners & nostalgic soul heads alike. Building upon the buzz created with his self-released solo debut, The Adventures Of Seymour Liberty (the first in a three-part series of concept albums released earlier this year), Coultrain has recently been in the lab both writing and recording with co-conspirator, Waajeed, for a wide range of projects they have lined up together. Among the first of which to be released will Abundance, the highly anticipated second album from Waajeed & Saadiq‘s rotating super-group, PPP – in which Train played a leading role in not only leading the new cast but also writing the bulk of the songs on the album.

While working with the PPP/Bling47 crew in Brooklyn, Coultrain is also staying true to his St. Louis roots through numerous collaborations with artists from back home. One such artist is producer, I, Ced (aka Cedric Norah), who released a single with Coultrain earlier this year, and also produced Train’s latest solo offering, “The Wandering”. Picking up where the Seymour Liberty saga left off, “The Wandering” is meant to serve as somewhat of an epilogue to The Adventures Of…, but also a prologue to the series’ next chapter. Train broke the song down to me as only he could, “Its not a lost track its an inbetween track. Its a track 2 continue the story. Check it, The Adventures Of… ends w/ The Sabbatical, while on the sabbatical Seymour becomes a Wanderer, u dig?”

And on the PPP side of things, I’ve got an exclusive download of Waajeed’s recent remix of the Coultrain-featured track, “Angel.” This version finds Waajeed providing a more hip-hop oriented, bang-heavy backbeat to Coultrain’s anthem, instead of the stadium rock-funk feel of the album version. This remix is off the upcoming Abundance Mixtape, which features new Waajeed remixes of all your PPP favorites album, as well as some un-used gems from the Abundance & Triple P sessions. If you missed out on the first leak off the mixtape, “Shotgun (Waajeed’s Plinky Remix)” featuring Dilla, then here ya go.

PHOTO: Coultrain live w/ PPP in Madrid Oct. 08, courtesy of One Dragones.

Coultrain “The Wanderer” (prod. I, CED) (rough mix)

After the overwhelming response to the Pay Jay post, and people hitting me up (whys everyone e-mailing me but not leaving comments here?! LOL) saying they donated off the strength – I decided it’s about time to start bringing out the exclusives. I still stand by my statement that new tracks shouldn’t be needed to convince people to give to a worthy cause – but I’m also a believer in rewarding those who give without expecting anything. So, thanks to Waajeed, here is a brand new remix to the PPP & Dilla classic, “Shotgun” featuring not only a brand new Jeed beat, but also a PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED DILLA VERSE. Yup, I’m as surprised as you are… I know there’s CD-R’s, DAT’s and tapes filled with un-used Dilla beats still left to uncover, but verses? Those are hard to come by.

This remix comes from the upcoming PPP – Abundance Mixtape that features Waajeed doing brand new remixes of all your Triple P favorites, as well as tracks from the new PPP cast that will be appearing on the Abundance album dropping in January of ’09 (and even some non-album exclusives). The mixtape will be available in the coming months – but you can cop it now if you catch em on tour.

And since I’m in such a good mood, I’ll even throw in 2 vintage Bling47.com exclusive remixes Waajeed did in ’06 that you won’t find anywhere else. Hope you appeciate it!