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

YAY OR NAY: JADE

Jade – Beautiful Problems

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As taken from her Myspace:

“Jade is passionate about her music. She lives and breathes it.” Jade’s father replies when asked about his daughter’s chosen career. “She was born to sing. She’ll die doing it.” Nepotism aside, after hearing her voice it doesn’t take long to see what he’s talking about. Jade has a giant spirit to match her giant voice and the ability to transport her listener to a transcendent state of head bobbing and lip sync-ing very few artists can do.

Born and raised in Brooklyn, a pastors daughter, Jade grew up in a non-traditional Puerto Rican household, “I wish I knew more Spanish and how to cook rice. Mom made Chinese food and blasted Gloria Gaynor.” Music is something that came very naturally to Jade early on, “especially in the shower…at the top of my lungs.” Soon, she began to sing in places outside the confines of her bathroom, and it wasn’t long after that, she began to write her own songs and create her own soundtrack. “It is the process of telling stories,” which she says, “is one of the most amazing gifts anyone can have.”

More info, the poll, and Jade’s “It’s My Heart, Cookie: EP after the jump.
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TUNE IN TO DUBLAB TODAY!!!

Tune into www.dublab.com today as Mochilla will be doing a special broadcast in dedication to Mulatu!!!

Mochilla celebrates Mulatu! A special dublab live TUESDAY TRANSMISSION broadcast exploring the music of Mulatu Astatke.

January 27th
10am to 6pm
PST(imeless)

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN LIVE

with amazing DJ family + guests:

B+
Carlos Nino
Coleman
Egon
Plandru
and Surprise Guests……….

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THE ORI-GO-NA-TORS

Yeah you have to say the title like Jazo did in “Ni**a What.”

Back in the day going to Costco was the move because of Saturday which =sample day. You could literally spend hours walking up and down the aisle of the warehouse and pick and choose whatever you wanted to eat. Employees even handed to you on a toothpick with a smile. Everything from frozen yogurt to hot links. Costco hoped you’d be impressed enough to bring that item with you to the checkout line. But more often than not, folks (including myself) continued to be greedy and sample without buying. You know I am random with the posts, but trust me I am getting somewhere with this one.

I feel like Music is Costco and right now hip-hop is enjoying the benefits of sample day. Producers are going around and putting their hand in the *free*cookie jar and getting full without *paying* homage to the hands that labored. Bear with me.

I love Keyshia Cole to pieces. But the fact that she and Missy Elliot reincarnated “Juicy Fruit” for the umpteenth time kind of makes you want to bang your head into the wall. It takes me to that era where Diddy would take the most obvious sample on the planet (see: Diana Ross’ “I’m Coming Out”) and for lack of better term fuck it up. The key to doing a sample is to improve it or disguise the original and I feel like some producers are mad lazy with taking someone else’s hit and not even attempting to flip it. One night I was at Lotus and ?uestlove played current hits and segued into the original song. This provoked mixed reactions. I was like wow that’s where that came from, surprised or how good it was hidden. Or, I was like wow the original was way better. And usually it was the latter.

Don’t get me wrong I am by NO MEANS anti-sampling. I’m just anti-sampling when there is no talent involved. The likes of Dilla, Madlib, 9th Wonder etc. do a helluva job. Magnificent. I’m thrilled for the happy medium. Kanye’s “Stronger” is an ill rebirth but sadly the masses will give Daft Punk no credit for that. I think it’s kind of wack when a newer artist gets full credit for something that was technically someone else’s brilliant idea without giving due props (i.e. taking a HIT from the 60s or 70s and merely adding a new drum line and going platinum). Same applies to song covers.

Music was DOPE back in the day because people actually brought ideas and instruments into the studio and beasted them out. Recently, there was a beat contest for producers for Vh1 Hip-Hop Honors to have their music featured in the show. I immediately alerted all of my producer heads so they could get the exposure. Then to my disappointment there was a *no sample* rule that made every single one of them ineligible.

So all of my rambling was just to say that producers should think of themselves as musicians. You don’t have to be a part of a six-piece band to create an original beat. A sample-free one. Or if you do want to keep the dabbling going, hit up a record store or cop some unfamiliar albums. Branch out. Explore. Get ballsy. Now not original like Soulja Boy because a toddler could bang on a keyboard and I could snap in the background and make that. Ahhhhh…Yoooouuuu (need to stop)! But go Timbo and Pharrell on em’ and get a keyboard or something! Invest in yourself and your craft if nothing else. Because just like Costco you can sample and be full but if your fridge at home is empty you are shit outta luck!

And email them to us. If they’re dope enough we could post them. And *ahem* we get hits from important people! *Beep-beep. Toot -toot.*

DROPPED BY ericw1