11/14/2008:

Rapper: The Insomniaks (Illecism & Nicatyne)  Location: Sacramento, CA  Age: 19 MySpace: Myspace.com/sleepingisforbitches

Sleeping is for bitches. At least that's how this Sacramento duo sees things; it's their mantra. The Insomniaks and I met this past May in Los Angeles. I flew into the left coast for only 22 hours just to meet with talent. NY to LA to NY; 5 1/2 hours each way. So I can't say I disagree with them. Sleeping really is for bitches.    Meeting with them was a little bit of a trip in itself. They were introduced to me by LA Famous Firm rep Markus. First, Illecism sat through the whole meeting with a "these-A&R-guys-just-wanna-change-my-sound-so-I-don't-wanna-hear-shit" cockiness. They told me about how they met ("in class 4 years ago"), what they both do (Illecism is the rapper, Nicatyne is the producer/rapper) and how they came up with their name ("We make most of our music at night"). But while they kept their answers short, Illecism more than says a mouthful (pause) in his raps. Lyrically these guys are incredible. Check out this verse about high school life on "When The Alarm Clock Finally Stops Ringing":    "Since y'all sell like crack music who's potency's really less then weed  While what I spit equivalent to ecstasy times meth and speed  I'm going to rape this game it is doggy dog see dog you're just in heat  But god threw me this wishbone so excuse me as I fetch my dream  Momma always told me not to bring home any grades that were less than Cs  A genius at heart with a report card that was full of Fs and Ds  She aint know if I was lazy or simply belonged in Special E....  ....Football practice I couldn't hack it fuck the coaches and referees  players told him 'I'll see u later' found something just for me  And all I brought for rap was my butterfinger tendencies  Couldn't catch the ball look at me now, I cant catch a Z"    Don't sleep on their new mix tape masterpiece, Who Sleeps Anymore  whosleepsanymore.com, either.  'Indo' is a ode to *greenery* so good that it would make Devin The Dude proud. Ozzy Ozbourne gets sampled on the sleep diss record "Mattress In Heaven".   Then the duo sobers up to poke fun posers and hipsters on 'Hypebeast'. "Its more a play on words. Anyone who wakes up in the morning and looks on the blogs, HipHopGame is a hype beats," counters Illecism. "I'm a hypebeast. They were hating on us a little bit on HypeBeast.com but its all good". He then spits cynically at the Karmaloopers:    "In OG Jordans I'm hardly ballin  Still break bread on Lamar & Dauley  Say I pass gas I'm aint talking 'bout farting  My jeans are Supreme pardon me darling  All of you posers have got to get a life  They're clean yes I know but stop jockin my alife  The girls wanna play in the sheets  Since I started rocking playing for keeps  Hi I'm Ills...this kid that you're groupin  The kid who was a cool kid way before The Cool Kids"    In the end, The Insomniaks prove that the new generation can be lyrical, fly and make great SONGS. Not just blog freestyles. Download their mixtape @ whosleepsanymore.com. I promise I'll be way more prompt on next week's entry. As amatter of fact I'll start working on it now. I'll sleep when I die! Or get sleepy.

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10/25/2008:

Rapper: AP Location: Washington, DC Age: 22 MySpace: Myspace.com/ap202

The Redskins. The Wizards. Politics. Rayful Edmond. All things that I associate with DC.  With two  Famous Firm reps down in the DMV (Phella & Sakwe), I travel there quite frequently. Back in my Atlantic A&R days, I even attempted to sign DC's biggest hip hop export (Wale). But it was the buzz of a new rapper that brought me back down to the home of the Terrapins: A.P. With emails about A.P. flooding my inbox, I sent Sakwe his manager's info. Turns out it wasn't all hype. He really had a good buzz down there. After a conference call, we set up a meeting date. I left LA, flew into Dulles airport and crashed at the old school 19th century styled hotel (THE HAY ADAMS). When I checked in, they thought I was the bus boy instead of a guest. Woke up early, checked out, jumped in Sakwe's car and headed over to see A.P. When I got to the Plug Entertainment studios, A.P. was already recording. Recording himself. Literally. Just him in the studio with his manager, Dre Hopson. They then proceeded to play me about 12 songs. My favorite of which is "Laughing At You" (Interestingly, the one song A.P. was most critical of):    "Fuck you I’ma be myself It don't sell? Then respect gonna be my wealth If I fail...then my ma said I can't do that Cause well, my family wasn't raised like that Some niggas said I'm fake on a internet blog But won't say it to my face he a internet thug But that really ain’t the case Cause now I’m getting’ gigs while that nigga backspace"  Other joints to check out: "Better Than I Ever Been" , "If I Die Alone" and "Be Somebody". The latter showcases questions of his doubters over the Jorgie Porgie sample: "Can I spit flow?/Will I make hits?/How good's my show?/Will I take trips?/What’s my angle?/What’s my topics?/Listen to mainstream/Can I top it?"  The next step for A.P. is his mixtape "Free.99", which features production from Best Kept Secret, the same producers on Wale's "The Mixtape About Nothing". All A.P. needs now is the right producer (not beat maker) to cultivate some bigger (re: mainstream) records. But when it comes to raw talent and overall star potential, he's the best thing to hit DC since Gilbert Arenas. Can't wait ‘til he's famous. One more song from AP:

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