Blind I | The Boutique Music Blog | Quality Over Quantity.

NO KNOWS DOPE | NO KNOWS BABIES | APRIL 20XI

Last Monday, April 11th at 10:43AM, my daughter Ajané arrived into the world. It was the most beautifulest thing in the world without a doubt. Being “on call” for the whole month of March & April kinda put a roadblock in my head as to what ‘theme’ I wanted to execute for Aprils NKD & as I pondered the thoughts I lowkey was already playing the soundtrack & not even knowing it. Playing songs that I felt related to what I was going through or have gone through or what I want to achieve as a man & as a father to my children. About a week before the 15th (sorry for the delay… been busy changing diapers n schitt. pun.) I finally decided to dedicate this months NKD to the babies. The children. The kids! But no… not on some Yo Gabba Gabba or Kids Sing Along schitt… naw… on some grown folks – grown biz – type of musical growth if you will. Whether you are a mother or a father, raising your sons or daughters, this edition goes harder to marauder & slaughter any biologicals that don’t bother. I breaks water! hahaha Naw pho trill tho… I’m on Cloud 9000 & 99! Blind I For The Kids… literally.

TL & DL after…

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Tags: Bilal, BRIAN MCKNIGHT, CHRIS ROCK, COMMON, CURTIS MAYFIELD, ED OG & DA BULLDOGS, Eric Roberson, GIL SCOTT-HERON, J DILLA, JAY DEE, JODECI, john mayer, Kanye West, Kelis, LAURYN HILL, LITTLE DRAGON, MARC DORSEY, Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, Musiq Soulchild, N.E.R.D, NEZ & RIO, NKD, ORGANIZED KONFUSION, SLICK RICK, SOJOURN, STEVIE WONDER, TALIB KWELI, TAPE MASTAH STEPH, THE BLACKBYRDS, THE TEMPTATIONS, Thenativesoul, TRACY MORGAN, XZIBIT, YAHZARAH, ZO!

NO KNOWS DOPE | NO KNOWS BOSSANOVA | MARCH 20XI

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We’re going to South America with this one! From Philly to Rio de Janeiro, from Cali to São Paulo, from the D to Pelourinho to Brooklyn to Salvador & right into your NKD collection! Those that know me, know that I am a  huge fan of Bossa Nova/Brazilian music. It blew up by mainly young musicians & college students in the 1960′s & since then has continued to be a influence in todays music from Koop to Nouvelle Vague & Jneiro Jarel. Bossanova rhythmically has Samba foundations , while harmonically the structure lies in Jazz going from sophisticated to dissonant. I am a sucka for dissonance, thus why Stevie, Dilla & Bossa Nova/Brazilian music are my all time favorites. I took my time with this one & hope you enjoy it as much I did putting it together.  No’s a boss on Bossanova…gone!

TL & DL…

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Tags: ANTHONY HAMILTON, ANTONIO CARLOS JOBIM, ARTHUR VEROCAI, BADEN POWELL, BLACKSTAR TALIB KWELI MOS DEF, BOSSA RIO, DJ Jazzy Jeff, DORIVAL CAYMMI, EDU LOBO, ELIS REGINA, ELIZETE CARDOSO, GINGA TRIO, HAYLING, J DILLA, JAY DEE, JNEIRO JAREL, João Gilberto, JORGE BEN, LUIS BONFA, Marilia Medalha, MILTON NASCIMENTO, NKD, NO KNOWS DOPE, NOAH DEE AKILI, PERY RIBEIRO, ROBERTO MENESCAL, SELIA BARBOSA, SERGIO MENDES, SHINEY'S FOOD, STAN GETZ, TAMBA 4, TAMBA TRIO, THE CLASS:SICKS, THE PHARCYDE, VINICIUS DE MORAES, ZIMBO TRIO

NO KNOWS DOPE | NO KNOWS DILLA 2 | FEBRUARY 20XI

No explanation needed. No tracklist either. Syke. It’s after the jump along with the DL. DILLA FOREVER!

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Tags: DIL WITHERS, DILLA DOGG, J DILLA, JAMES DEWITT YANCEY, JAY DEE, MC SILK, NKD, NO KNOWS DILLA, NO KNOWS DOPE, PAY JAY

NO KNOWS DOPE | NO KNOWS BEATS 2 | JANUARY 20XI

This year marks the 5th anniversary of my No Knows Dope series (HOLY MEGABYTES BATMAN THE FIF’ YEAR!)… blessed! Thank you all for your continuous support of the NKD franchise as well as all the other $tunta$tic original compilations that the rest of the Blind I staff offers. Last years NKD concept was fun being able to do each month dedicated to one of my all time favorite artists or themes. This years method to the NKD madness is simple. Genres & sub-genres (according to me that is) all mixed & glitched by my good friend/brother & DJ W1shOne. This months edition is a sequel to last years No Knows Beats & this one is str8 up exclusive thruout! FIAH! All purpose music right here! 110% skip proof! I want to send some special Jedi respecognition to all my friends (I, Ced & Black Spade of Hawthorne Headhunters, SquareWeezy of The Bangerz, Haz Solo, Max Kane, Teeko, Malaguti & Colin Brown of 4OneFunk/F.A.M.E., Seven Davis Jr., DJ Dskrybe of Trademark, REL of D2S, Hayling, Waajeed and W1shOne & Sol Plus 10 of Sub Ren who came thru for me by blessing me with never before heard or released beats. I hope you enjoy this mix as much as W1sh & I had putting it together. This is only the beginning… 11 more to go! Stay TUNEd.

TL & DL after the after… › Continue reading

Tags: 4ONEFUNK, 84 SKILLS, BLACK SPADE, COLIN BROWN, DEVONWHO, DISTORTION 2 STATIC, DJ DSKRYBE, F.A.M.E, FINESE, HAWTHORNE HEADHUNTERS, HAYLING, I CED, JNEIRO JAREL, JOOB, KLIPMODE, KNXWLEDGE, MALAGUTI, MAX JANE, NKD, NO KNOWS DOPE, Oriol, Rel, SAUCE81, SEVEN DAVIS JR., Sol Plus 10, SQUARE WEEZY, SUB REN, TEEKO, THE BANGERZ, TRADEMARK, W1SHONE, WAAJEED

NO KNOWS DOPE | DECEMBER 20X

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The final installment of the No Knows themes & what have you that I did for 20X has come. I set out with a mission, & mission accomplished. It was hard, it was challenging but overall, it was a  fun journey through my favorite artists catalogs throughout 20X. Whether it was the str8 up heat to kick start it all, or February’s Dilla, March(ing) 2 the Beats, April’s Love , May’s Stereolab, June’s Portishead, July’s Stevie, August’s Busta Rhymes, September’s Radiohead, October’s Outkast or November’s Slum Village, I hope that one of this years NKD’s complemented your freshness. For the heads who peep the cover, you already kNOw off top, that  for December, I decided to close it out with one of my favorite groups of all time, thus, No Knows Jamiroquai. The british founders Jay Kay, Toby Smith, Stuart Zender, Nick Van Gelder & Wallis Buchanan have supplied the ears with a new school version of funk meets electronic disco via the didgeridoo (commonly found within most of their earlier works as the main bass groove). If you aint knowing, then this NKD will hip you to the game, for those that DO know, you will not be disappointed. I put all the ones for us heads. In parting, as always… eNjOy & see you on the next idea I come up with for NKD 2011.

TL & DL after the you kNOw what… › Continue reading

Tags: ALI SHAHEED MUHAMMAD, JAMIROQUAI, JAY DEE, NKD, NO KNOWS DOPE, Q-TIP, SLUM VILLAGE, THE UMMAH

NO KNOWS DOPE | OUTKAST | SLUM VILLAGE

I know… I know… I know. It’s about damn time. & you’re right. It is. My bad for the delay. No excuses (even tho I got em). Last time I’ll be late for the rest of the year (only 1 month left jackass… not that difficult). Anyways the long awaited No Knows Outkast that was supposed to drop on the 15th of last month is finally here. It’s filled with all my faves & was a batch & a half to put together. As for this month I felt taking it to the slums, thus, No Knows Slum Village, same formula as Kast, same difficult task, all executed for the love of your support & your need for dopenaassss. TL’s & DL’s you know where…eNjOy!

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Tags: AB, ANDRE 3000, B-REAL, BAATIN, BAHAMADIA, BIG BOI, BLACK MILK, BREAKFAST CLUB, BROWN SKIN, BUSTA RHYMES, CEE-LO GREEN, DIRT MCGIRT, DJ Jazzy Jeff, DWELE, EIGHTBALL & MJG, ELZHI, Erykah Badu, FOCUS, FRANK NITT, Goodie Mob, ILLA J, J DILLA, Janelle Monae, JAY DEE, LACKSIDAISYCAL, LOCSMIF, MARSHA AMBROSIUS, MC BREED, Mystikal, NKD, NO KNOWS DOPE, ORGANIZED NOIZE, OUTKAST, PHAT KAT, PHIL THA AGONY, Q-TIP, RAEKWON, SLEEPY BROWN, SLIMM CALHOUN, SLUM VILLAGE, SNOOP DOGG, T3, Tash

LUKE VIBERT – BONAFIDE BEATS

Luke muthafunkin’ Vibert! The doode who made one of my favorite tracks that I ever put on a NKD…

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Well the good folks over @ Bonafide Magazine have been putting out a series entitled Bonafied Beats, and for Vol.6 they called on the talents of Luke Vibert. The schitt is like hoppin in a DeLorean of 1.21 gigawatts to late 98/early 99. In Bonafide’s words…

Fresh from carbonite, the next mix in the Bonafide Beats series is certified vintage, having been in storage since Prince was partying in 1999. Washing up on the silicon shores of Luke Vibert’s hard drive some ten or more years since it was made, this mix captures the vibrancy of underground hip-hop on the cusp of the new millennium. With the ‘golden-era’ fast disappearing in the rear-view mirror, here we see one-time independent outfits such as Company Flow and Slum Village take a breath and prepare to dive deeper, making way for Fiddy and co. to lurch in and plunder all that glamour and gold offered up to the new millennium ‘gangster’ rappers.

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Tags: A TRIBE CALLED QUEST, Company Flow, DJ SPINNA, Doug E. Fresh, Gang Starr, GRAND PUBA, HMM, J-TREDS, KOOL KEITH, LUKE VIBERT, NKD, ORGANIZED KONFUSION, PACEWON, PHAROAHE MONCH, POLYRHYTHM ADDICTS, Q-TIP, RAHZEL, SCREWBALL, SIR MENELIK, SLUM VILLAGE, SOULS OF MISCHIEF, THE BROTHERS, TRUCK TURNER

NO KNOWS DOPE | SEPTEMBER 20X

Let’s see here… so far we have had NKD’s on some str8 up heat to kick start it all, then Dilla, then Beats, then Love , then Stereolab, then Portishead, then  Stevie, last month we did the always vibrant Busta Rhymes & this month NKD is going Radio… Head that is. Radiohead has always been @ the forefront of cutting edge sight & sound. Their last album came out of  nowehere & was sold online for whatever you felt like paying for it & was even nominated for a grammy. Not bad for no label & no advertising & no set price… not bad @ all. This one (like every other NKD released this year is STRICTLY FOR THE FAITHFULS. I hope you will enjoy listening to it as much as I did putting this together.

You know the drill… TL & DL after the after…

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Tags: BJORK, ERRO, NEW ORDER, NKD, NO KNOWS DOPE, Osunlade, Radiohead, THE PIXIES, THE SMITHS, Thom Yorke

NO KNOWS DOPE | AUGUST 20X

Okay so, thus far we have had NKD’s on some str8 up heat to kick start it all, then Dilla, then Beats, then Love , then Stereolab, then Portishead, then we had last months double NKD for Stevie & for this month I had to go with my man Busa Busss!! So many people sleep on Busta Rhymes! I never see him any ANNNNNNNNNNNYBODYS top 10 or top 20 for that matter. I had to dead that by doing a No Knows Busta. 60 pinche tracks! & even THAT was narrowed down. These are just my all time favorite Busta songs of all time. The others will be saved for a sequel somewhere down the road, but for now I think these will suffice. If you’ve always thought like me… then this is FOR YOU! If you sittin’ there reading this like… “really No? Busta?” then stick yo’self Pretty Tony & hit the jump to DL like yesterday!! (my bad for the 1 day delay)

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Tags: A TRIBE CALLED QUEST, Artifacts, Black Moon, BUSSA BUSS, Busta, BUSTA RHYMES, CRAIG MACK, Flipmode Squad, FUGEES, GUILTY SIMPSON, HI-TEK, J DILLA, JAY DEE, Jill Scott, JOHN FORTE, Leaders of the New School, LL Cool J, M.O.P., MARIAH CAREY, MEKA, Mobb Deep, Mos Def, NKD, NO KNOWS DOPE, ODB, P DIDDY, PHAROAHE MONCH, Q-TIP, RAMPAGE, RAS KASS, Redman, REMY MARTIN, ROYCE DA 5'9, SLUM VILLAGE, SWIZZ BEATZ, TALIB KWELI, TEPHLON, THE NOTORIOUS B.I.G.

NO KNOWS DOPE | JULY 20X

Half way through the year & so far we have had NKD’s on some str8 up heat to kick start it all, then Dilla, then Beats, then Love , then Stereolab & last month was all about the P. This months theme is dedicated to my favorite artist of ALL TIME! STEVIE!!! Y’all don’t even know or can begin to understand the love that have for Mr.Wonder. I mean, to the point where I had to do not one but TWO NKD’s for y’all! Fiddy (that’s 50) songs & I will tell you right now before u even get to the jump that I went on som Mai Mai schitt by selecting ONLY MY favorite Stevie songs of all time. There are obvious ones I left off purposely & some of em I wanted to put on this round, but I will save those for the 3rd installment to round up the TRILL O.G. somewhere later on down the Blind I road, but for now… enjoy the wonder of the man, the myth, the living legend… STEVIE!

TL’s & DL’s AFTER THE AFTER

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Tags: DIONNE WARRICK, MADLIB, NKD, NO KNOWS DOPE, OMAR, SERGIO MENDES, STEVIE WONDER, TAKE 6, YESTERDAY'S NEW QUINTET, YNQ