Have you ever saw someone across the room that reminded you of a love you once knew, a crush you never got to materialize? If after initial glances are exchanged and introductions made, you find yourself calling out someone else's name other than the person you just met. you know Victoria & Calvin all to well. Through out the night he kept pronouncing my name as Victoria, at first I thought it was a pronunciation glitch, but then I realized that I found myself addressing him by another familiar name to me, Calvin. His familiar features were comforting yet he was a complete enigma to me. He only tells me what he wants me to know. Fun was on the agenda but boundaries had to be set if I am to make a lasting impression of our meeting.
You know the one thing that has always bothered me about the validation and seeking approval thing is I have always been with someone that I felt was smarter, more secured and established than me because I wanted to learn from that, being that I believe you are a product of your environment and its influencing factors, but all the time I always secretly felt a sense of inferiority. I always wondered why we couldn't share a political, career, and ideology conversation, it was always sexual, domestic or vanity. I wondered if it was because you thought me not to be on your intellect level even though you always praised me on my smarts and quick wits. Now, that we are fighting all you want to do is put me down, which is normal, but along with those spiteful words comes some of the truth. Truth of how you feel about me, that's cool, vent. Your words stab my heart and reverberate in my thoughts, but unlike you I vent and I'm over it within two minutes later , maybe because I know dwelling is too time consuming and I or you will always be wanting to outshine the other. I'm accepting my failures and no longer living in denial, but see its not easy to see clearly when all my life I built facades and fantasies of what my life should be or I wanted it to be, instead of accepting what it really is. Alcohol and weed my choice of vice and disillusionment along with sex, never help the equation only provide temperamental escape or distortion. Fuck you, for wasting my time. Some say don't hate the player, hate the game, thing is, I never asked to play the game... its just part of life I suppose. Maybe that is why I cant seem to get along with anyone. I don't like playing games, I'm just here to make the best I can out of any situation I am in. I never finished my degree because I didn't want to sacrifice. Sacrifice is inevitable one way or the other, you pay now, or you pay later:) Nothing in life comes with out consequence, you are either rewarded or shit on by every thing that you come across. Oh, well, the world doesn't stop evolving, so why should I.
Getting familiar never sounded better than when it came from Boston native, Clinton Sparks. The man has tons of enthusiasm for life overflowing with positive energy with his daily affirmations. WhoUFeelin follows him via twitter, www.twitter.com/ClintonSparks respecting his grind, energy and ventures. Clinton Sparks first caught WhoUFeelin's eye in the summer of 07 with the song he produced and co wrote for Akon, "Sorry, Blame it on Me" Then again in the summer of 08 with his mixtape project with KardinalOffishall, Do The Right Thing, ever since then WhoUFeelin has been getting familiar.
There are few DJs that have that genuine personality that make you feel like you individually can be a part of their movement if you choose to be, I guess that is why WhoUFeelin is huge fan of Clinton Sparks. It's like Clinton Spark's mission is to work on a new project everyday, the man is the definition of hard work, look it up. He's all over the place when he is not in Vegas being featured at Body English in the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, he is on Smashtime Radio, associated with Pepsi DJ Division, posting videos on Vimeo.com/clintonsparks, doing mixtapes, writing a blog, making guest appearance on E! for the Daily 10 or endorsing Ciroc vodka.
Overseas he has joined forces with friend DJ Snake from Paris, France, to form a group called "Logan De Gaulle" which is a dance/electro production, so far they have produced for Lisa Lisa and Tyrese who are releasing their own separate albums. An anticipated mixtape project with Armando Perez aka Pitbull is in the works, so far "Shut It Down" was linked.
How is it possible for a man to sleep and accomplish all he is currently doing. I get dizzy just thinking about how busy he is, no wonder he apologizes in advance. If the youth is looking for a role model, I couldn't think of a better example of hard work, ambition and motivation. For those of you that haven't heard some of his mixtapes, they are available for download at http://www.clintonsparks.com/ , Get Familiar.
Happy being able to follow his dreams Garcia offers the following advice "If you get into music for any other reason other than the love of hip hop culture, stop. Don't get into a respected genre of music for the pursuit of riches and discredit what others have worked so hard to accomplish." With a lawyer by his side and Crazy Hoods Productions in his crew, he leaves the business matters to friend and business partner DJ EFN so that he can focus on making good music and being a father to his daughter. If you were to read his eulogy he would hope it would say "First, I was a good father, second, I was a man who dared to dream. Those are the most important things in life to me. Nothing else matters. I could die broke and happy as long as I have the love of my daughter and knowing that I followed every dream I ever had. "
In 2005, after years of hard work and perseverance, things finally began to spring board for Garcia's dream to work with the artist he had grown up admiring. Originally known in Kendall, FL as Gambit, Garcia changed his name to rep his last name and Latin roots. Venturing away from SOUTHBEAT,whom he was signed to at the time, he and friend DJ EFN were trying to push vinyl on DJ KHALED. Relentless, he approached the Diaz Brothers with an old school hip hop sample Planet Rock, again handed to DJ KHALED he later gets a call from DJ KHALED asking him to come into the station. "Clap Your Hands" was being put on rotation, played 15 times within an hour.
The wheels were in motion, featured on MTV's MY Block, TLC's Miami Ink, URB Magazine, UPN's face for urban marketing within local Miami, Garcia was living out his dreams. Labels were approaching but the deals weren't working in his favor nor was he willing to leave his family Crazy Hood off the contracts, so he decided to remain with Crazy Hood and further the underground movement. Even if he doesn't get the credit, Garcia is fine with it because he's proved to himself first that he's accomplished all he set out to do.
Remaining on his grind, Garcia is anxious to work again with his longtime friend and mentor, Nick Fury, who produced Garcia's first album Antisocial. Nick and Garcia go way back to 1995.
Currently, putting the finishing touches to his mixtape "Back From The Dead", to be released in two weeks. WhoUFeelin asks Garcia in which direction he is going with his upcoming album
The DYSFUNCT. From the visuals on his Myspace page, www.myspace.com/garciachp surrealism is the reply. Peep the visuals and tracks for yourself.
Granting WhoUFeelin's request for an interview
WhoUFeelin: Does It really come down to not knowing the right people? You once mentioned "its all dubbed out shit, nobody listens to good music anymore", How do you feel about the DOA statement?
GarciaCHP: I don't hate autotune...It can come off right when used in the right situations. It just got to the point that originality went out the window when everybody jumped on the bandwagon and over exploited the sound. But what can I say? I can't hate the game only the player. As far as knowing the right people of course that's important. But without talent eventually the people will cast you out.
WhoUFeelin: On a typical day in Miami, you can be found?
GarciaCHP: All over..I'm constantly on the street hustling..I get my grind on for real.
WhoUFeelin: Who do you associate yourself with?
GarciaCHP: Anybody who is true to their craft . My main squad is and has always been Crazy Hood Productions. That's my family and they are responsible for making me who I am today. Another crew I show much respect to from the 305 is MayDay (www.myspace.com/firstdayofmay). We came up in the same era and the music in my opinion is untouchable. Also, my friend Nick Fury.
WhoUFeelin: Who are some artist/producers you would like to work with?
GarciaCHP: I have been asked this repeatedly and one artist never changes, Andre 3000. As far as producers I would like to work with Danger Mouse, I love what he did with both Gnarls projects. A dream artist to work with would be Beth Gibbsons of Portishead.
WhoUFeelin: You were a guest on TLC's Miami Ink, what did you get a tattoo of?
GarciaCHP:That was a tattoo of the cover of my first album Antisocial. I got about 14 tattoos now and counting.
Garcia prides himself in staying diverse, lyrically speaking on things effecting many artist. Referring to a 2006 interview he did with South Florida's City Link, www.southflorida.com/citylink/sfe-cl-011106cover,0,616216.story Garcia's raps are all about YOU. He doesn't project an image of cash he doesn't have, his rhymes favor modesty over flash. In an analogy of pursuing success Garcia puts it this way " Its like a fucked-up haircut, you're waiting for it to grow out. You know it's going to eventually be good, but it's hell getting there. You're right here, almost where you want the hair to be"
As we speak, Complex Magazine & Grey Goose Entertainment are running a contest for "Rising Icons" featuring Garcia CHP, vote for the Rising Icons on the September 5th BET Network Special, www.complex.com/GREYGOOSE/Local-Market-Rising-Icons#Miami
For booking info www.crazyhood.com twitter.com/garciachp www.myspace.com/garciachp
It’s a lot of pressure to carry a name like “Mr. Offical”, especially in a musically driven city like Chicago. But when Chicago artists need their songs exposed to the world, there’s only three letters that come to mind……..E.L.I.! Starting his career as a live DJ for Billion Dollar Ballers Entertainment, DJ E.L.I. has quickly become one of the most popular and well respected DJs in the nation.
Not only does he continue to tour nationally with such acts as MARZ, Tech N9ne & Paul Wall, but he has also conquered one of the largest nightlife scenes in the world. With such credentials as Excalibur, Sangria, RadioStar, Zentra, Ontourage, Privilege and many many more, DJ E.L.I. has made himself a staple in the Chicago club scene, working alongside such world renowedDjs as DJ Nonstop, DJ Flipside, DjNephets and others.
Rest is not an option with the busy schedule that this 23 year old phenom takes on on a daily basis. Aside from his rigorous club and touring schedule, DJ E.L.I. seems to also be getting it done on the mixtape scene as well. His highly popular “2 Hot 2 Handle/2 Cold 2 Hold” mixtape series has become a stage for him to showcase his broad range of mixing techniques over multiple genres of music. From mashing mainstream artists with up and coming artists to combining such musical styles as hip hop, reggaeton, bachata, freestyle, house, progressive, euro, etc.
Aside from just Djing, E.L.I. has also widened his portfolio to include modeling and producing. Now under the CRUNK!!! umbrella, DJ E.L.I. combines his goal driven, over the top lifestyle with a company that matches him to a tee. When asked about his newly formed relationship with CRUNK!!!, DJ E.L.I. said “it’s basically like draining my personality, putting it in a can and taking me home with you.” With the sky as his only limit, DJ E.L.I. continues to soar high above the competition and break ground in ways that the entertainment industry has yet to see. Only time will tell what DJ E.L.I. has in store next…………
Out to prove that young people still have love for the Hiphop culture, Jhonny Martian aka Choze is filling up WhoUFeelin's airwaves.
After hearing Tru Quality and selecting "Weekend Lover" for the Myspaceplaylist, Whoufeelin stumbled across Choze and the rest is history in the making.
While Portland, Oregon, is filled with talented hip hop artists, it has also been known as a city that’s difficult to break out of, especially for musicians seeking more national and international attention. But in the last few years there has been a growing hip hop movement of young rappers and producers trying to make their niche in the nation-wide music scene. One of the central players in this movement is Choze, a young rap artist seeking to be one of the best in Portland and to bring more attention and focus to the talent in this city. His mission is both personal and altruistic, and the barriers that musicians face in this region only fuel Choze to push his own music and the larger music scene.
Of course, it hasn’t always been an easy journey musically or personally, and Choze’s authenticity comes from his experience as a young person of both the beauty and the tragedies of life. "I know that all of my family members in heaven are pulling for me and giving me strength to make a success of myself." This success includes moving forward to break out of the moniker of "Mixtape Rapper" Choze notes, "There was a point in my life, and I’m still trying to get out of it, being labeled as a mixtape rapper because I never really had a producer to be my right hand man and to help me craft my sound. I’ve always had to do industry beats up until this point."
Now gaining increased attention via the MySpace Music community and word of mouth in his hometown, Choze believes he has what it takes to be the first young rap artist to break out of his state. As part of this break-out, Choze has released 3 mixtapes, Appeared on over 10 mixtapes from various up and coming DJ's across the country and he is now back in the studio, equipped with new producers.
Currently working on a new mixtape as well as an EP titled "A Versatile Mind", All while creating his own record label NeuBeginin Records along with friends and fellow MC's Saint & Wingate (The duo are better known as Tru Quality).
Choze’s mission is to put his music, the local hip hop scene, and Portland on the map. This mission drives him to keep his music real and original, also to reach out to fellow artists and fans who share his passions and goals of making Portland bigger and better. Because of this, Choze is an artist of the people. His success is the success of his fans and other local hip hop musicians. His recognition will be Portland’s recognition. He represents the city’s best.
VA$HTIE I wouldn't rather go downtown with anyone else other than Downtown's Sweetheart, Va$htie. With an impressive resume for being a creative director in Young Dro's video and being a stylist for Pharrell at BBC, I just wonder why she never got more credit. She's got tons of creativity and Colorz, forever being a teenager. www.myspace.com/violettenewyork www.vashtie.com/blog
