WHAT IT DO DOJO FAM!! IT'S MR. CALL ME SENSEI BRINGING YOU NEW CONTENT YET AGAIN, BUT THIS TIME ITS A LOT MORE PERSONAL THAN THE USUAL. THIS WEEK I'M GIVING YOU A LOOK AND LISTEN INTO MY LOVE JOURNEY WITH HIP-HOP. WHAT YOU WILL HEAR IS ME NARRATE HOW I FIRST MET HIP-HOP AND WHEN I BECAME CONSUMED BY IT. I HOPE YOU ENJOY THIS, IT IS NEAR AND DEAR TO MY HEART, AS ALWAYS DOJO FAM I AM THE SAMOAN SAMURAI: PHAT TONEY STAY WOKE!! LOVE LIVE LIFE...PEACE!!!
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WHAT'S CRACKING DOJO FAM??? AS I STRIVE TO GIVE YOU NEW AND CREATIVE CONTENT THIS WEEK WE HAVE A NEW SEGMENT "SENSEI SAYS". EVERY EPISODE WILL FEATURE A NEW GUEST WHO HAS A UNIQUE TAKE ON THE WORLD OF HIP-HOP. THIS WEEK'S EPISODE FEATURES FITNESS TRAINER AND HIP-HOP ENTHUSIAST JULIO VAZQUES. WE TALKED BREIFLY ABOUT HOW HIP-HOP HAS INTERGRATED ITSELF INTO THE SPORTS AND WHAT HIS GAME DAY PLAYLIST LOOKS LIKE. CHECK IT OUT AND LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK. AS ALWAYS I APPRECIATE YOU FOR STOPPIPNG BY ND KICKING WITH YOUR SENSEI, SIGNING OFF I AM THE SAMOAN SAMURAI: PHAT TONEY AND ILL SEE YOU NEXT TIME...LOVE LIVE LIFE!
Aside from running my own super DOPE blog site to share and educate you on the world of Hip-Hop, I also have a list of other sites I visit to get another view or catch a topic i may have missed. Now I will say this I don't do rumor sites, in research these sites have been vetted and provide legitimate information relating to the Wonderful World of Hip-Hop. So without any further waiting let's jump straight into it: 1. UPROXX About Blog: The most recent hip hop news, culture, and discussion on UPROXX. Frequency about 56 posts per week. Website uproxx.com/realtalk 2. HotNewHipHop.com About Blog: HotNewHipHop.com empowers artists by letting them showcase their music to real hip hop fans. Meanwhile, our members enjoy the latest and hottest in hip hop singles, mixtapes, videos and news. HNHH attracts over 8 million unique users monthly. Frequency about 168 posts per week. Website hotnewhiphop.com 3. XXL | Hip-Hop on a Higher Level New YorkAbout Blog A leading voice in hip-hop since 1997, XXL delivers the latest hip-hop music, news and features to a highly engaged urban audience in print and online. Frequency about 84 posts per week. Also in American Music Blogs, Music News Websites Website xxlmag.com 4. The Source | Recognizable Source Of Hip Hop Worldwide (online & offline) About Blog For 25 years, The Source has been the leading international voice for the ever-evolving world of Hip-Hop music, culture and politics. It is our goal to cover every aspect of this unique and vibrant culture–from the streets that spawn our increasingly creative music and fashion to the power players that direct the boardrooms and make our products into viable commodities and profitable investments. Frequency about 84 posts per week. Website thesource.com 5. HOT 97 | Biggest Hip Hop Radio Station | YouTube New York, NYAbout Blog HOT97 is the worlds biggest and most well known Hip Hop radio station. Recently it branched off and formed HOT97tv to bring you the best Hip Hop video content on the web! Frequency about 15 posts per week. Website youtube.com/user/HOT97NY 6. Rap-Up | Best Hip Hop Magazine Site Los AngelesAbout Blog Rap-Up is a national hip-hop and R&B magazine. Founded in 2001, the full-color, glossy publication has featured music's biggest stars including 50 Cent, Beyoncé, T.I., Ciara, Rihanna, Eve, Nelly, Pharrell, Mary J. Blige, The Game, and Nicole Scherzinger. Frequency about 56 posts per week. Also in Music Blogs Website rap-up.com 7. Pigeons & Planes NYC,USAAbout Blog New music and music news delivered daily, ranging from hip-hop and pop to indie rock and electronic. We're always listening. Frequency about 21 posts per week. Also in EDM Blogs Website pigeonsandplanes.com 8. Rap Radar New York, NYAbout Blog Rap Radar is the Premiere Rap Blog for the latest news, music and video in Hip Hop Culture. Frequency about 56 posts per week. Since Mar 2009 Website rapradar.com 9. Okayplayer Brooklyn, NYAbout Blog Okayplayer is the original progressive urban music site and maintains its position as the premier digital destination for music connoisseurs worldwide. Okayplayer delivers the full spectrum of groundbreaking music to your fingertips (and earphones) everyday. Well-established as the gold standard in online hip-hop and many more. Frequency about 56 posts per week. Website okayplayer.com 10. SwaysUniverse | YouTube Weekdays 8A-Noon On @Shade45About Blog Exclusive interviews from Sway Calloway and the Sway In The Morning/ SwaysUniverse.com team with some of today's biggest celebrities, like Kevin Hart, Kanye West, Eminem, Usher, Jessica Alba, Steve Aoki, Torey Lanez, Julia Stiles and so much more. Frequency about 11 posts per week. Website SwaysUniverse.com 11. Complex | YouTube New York About Blog COMPLEX is a community of creators and curators, armed with the Internet, committed to surfacing and sharing the voices and conversations that define our new America. Our videos exemplify convergence culture, exploring topics that include music, sneakers, style, sports and pop culture through original shows and Complex News segments. Frequency about 42 posts per week. Website Complex.com And there you have it Dojo Fam my favorite Hip-Hop sites, give them a look and tell Sensei what you think. As always folks I am your illustrious Sensei, the Samoan Samurai Phat Toney and that's it for this week on the Dope Dojo. Remember to STAY WOKE and LOVE LIVE LIFE!
POWER UP Hip-Hop Heads! Today marks a momentous occasion family, today I drop the first Podcast episode! These podcasts will touch on a variety of topics from week to week. Episode 1 of the Movement Podcast hosted by Phat Toney, featuring a variety of eclectic minds. On this week’s episode, we discussed the status of Hip-Hop. We touched on a few current artists and the impact they are having on the youth of today with their music. We also touched on some of these artists we grew up listening to and the message in their music. I will admit, the conversation was relatively one-sided due to the generation of Hip-Hop we grew up in but we tried to remain as subjective as we could. LOL. I’m hoping this is going to be the first of many and every time its going to get better. You can check it out for yourself here on Soundcloud. Leave a comment and tell me what you liked or didn’t like. If there are any topics you want me to touch on leave a comment with the #TheMovementPodcast. As always family, I am the Samoan Samurai Phat Toney and I’m signing off until next time, STAY WOKE and LOVE LIVE LIFE.
Simply put these are the four pillars or ELEMENTS of Hip-Hop, Breaking or B-Boying, Graff, DJing, and the art of the MC..... Hip-Hop isn't just a genre of music or dance, this is a lifestyle, a culture, based on these fundamental properties of self expression. LOVE LIVE LEARN-LOVE LIVE LIFE
What it is Dope Fam? Today I’ll be doing a spot light on one of my favorite MCs, Black Thought. Not only is he an absoluite beast lyrically but he is also the front man and one of the founders of the Hip-Hop band, The Roots AKA The Legendary Roots Crew. Recently Thought stopped by Hot 97 and dropped one of the hottest 10 MINUTE freestyles for DJ Funk Flex I have ever heard!
Here's little background info on the Rap Prime Minister Thought. Tariq Luqmaan Trotter (born October 3, 1971), better known as Black Thought, is an American rapper and the lead MC of the Philadelphia-based hip hop group The Roots, as well as an occasional actor. Black Thought, who co-founded The Roots with drummer Questlove (Ahmir Thompson), is widely lauded for his live performance skills, continuous multisyllabic rhyme schemes, complex lyricism, double entendres, and politically aware lyrics.
Black Thought was born Tariq Luqmaan Trotter, to Thomas and Cassandra Trotter, both members of the Nation of Islam. His father was murdered when Trotter was one and his mother murdered when he was in high school. In his youth He spent time tagging "DT" or "Double T" around Philadelphia. He sold crack cocaine briefly and was sent to live with family in Detroit for a few months in high school. Trotter attended the Philadelphia High School for Creative and Performing Arts and Millersville University studying Journalism. In 1987, Trotter became friends with drummer Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson and formed a drummer/MC duo performing on the streets of Philadelphia and at talent shows. Trotter would subsequently spend some time as one of two MCs in the group The Square Roots: the other one was Malik B., whom Tariq met in college. Most recently he and the Roots Crew have been the in house band for Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show. Aside from the occasional feature, he also does a lot for the community, mainly the kids of the inner city. As both activist and lyrical genius he continues to set the bar in many ways. As always Dojo Fam, I am your Sensei, The Samoan Samurai, Phat Tony, Signing off. ALWAYS remember to STAY WOKE and LOVE LIVE LIFE!!! The word BEEF is undoubtedly one of the most familiar terms in hip hop culture and I solemnly tell you, its meaning goes nowhere close to steak. WHAT IS BEEF, THEN? The term Beef is a representation of lyrical showdown between two emcees (or rappers as the case may be) aggravated by personal vendetta which if left to boil, breeds thorough hostility between the two emcees till one of them is tongue lashed to submission, hence dealing a probable deathblow of his/her career. Beef is almost as old as hip hop itself, though in the early days of hip hop it might not have been referenced by such. I wouldn’t say that the concept of beef is the only timeless concept in hip hop music but, it has never gone out of style even for a minute, neither has it ever been absent at any stage whatsoever in the growth of the genre.
Beef is one of the truest test of skill, lyrical ability (aside from actual Battle Rap) and most importantly a determinant factor of longevity which is in turn the yardstick for measuring greatness in hip hop music. Beef is war on wax and a brave victor is guaranteed a permanent spot not only in the hearts of the hip hop community but in the book of hip hop history at large. In 1992 when members the first gangster hip hop group known as NWA (Ice Cube, Dr. Dre and Eazy-E) fell out with each other, their disintegration was followed by a series of bitter comments on tracks directed at each other, but this war of words didn’t last for too long as both participants either relented or grew above it. Also, in 1993 the greatest hip hop duo of all time comprising of god emcee Rakim and his childhood friend Eric who were logically named ERIC B & RAKIM grew bad blood due to financial misunderstandings, the both embarked on solo careers, took shots at each other on media links and a few songs but they failed to fuel the flame until it doused down naturally. These instances highlighted above however do not the exact essence of BEEF, because they fell short of expectations in all ramifications. Take note, beef is not and should never be reduced to the scenario of a mere disagreement between two rappers, neither is it an indirect exchange of spiteful thoughts in-between deep lyrics without piercing precision and strong consistency. Now let’s talk about beef in its proper stance. Beef my friends, is when 2pac left the East Coast to the West Side and decided to wage war (supposedly over his rivals then wife) the undisputed King of New York, the Notorious B.I.G a.K.a Biggie Smalls, beef is when Jay –Z took an aim for the most critically acclaimed, multi-platinum debut launcher and illest lyricist on the scene in the person of Nas in 2001, beef is when hip hop juggernaut Dr. Dre unleashed a white-headed newcomer named Eminem on Boston’s hip hop flagbearer Ray Benzino with no holds barred, beef is when the notoriously disrespectful and unruly queens bridge hustle 50cent came through the door guns blazing shelling at the hottest rapper in the building at the time: Ja Rule, in 2002. Beef is when the shots go back and forth sporadically until a truce is called or one player is knocked off the top by the prowess of the other. Permit me to sever these listed feuds and highlight the biggest three showdowns in hip hop history separately, to give a better understanding behind them. 2PAC vs NOTORIOUS B.I.G: if there was a diagram for the word beef in the hip hop dictionary there’s no doubt these two hip hop immortals would have had their pictures pasted right beside the word. These are the two most influential rappers to ever roam the Earth, their bitter feud began when 2pac publicly accused Biggie and BadBoy Records owner Sean “Puffy” Combs of facilitating his being shot five times in the lobby of a New York recording studio on November 30, 1994, this was the beginning of an era of hostility which is today the locus classicus of beef in hip hop culture as 2pac migrated to Oakland California, signed to Suge Knights’ Deathrow Records and started kicking up all textures of dust on Biggie Smalls and Puffy’s personalities, this aggravated the highly egotistic Biggie smalls to let loose a track named “Who Shot Ya?” which contained lyrics like “Who Shot Ya?/ Separate the weak from the obsolete/hard to creep them Brooklyn streets” this track seemed to portray the idea that Biggie had finally owned up to 2pac’s accusations. With this shot fired the games had officially begun, diss tracks raced back and forth for two eventful years, but the most memorable track of these was 2pac’s war song titled ‘Hit’em Up’ as a reply to biggies ‘Who Shot Ya?’ with the line “Who shot me?/ But you punks didn’t finish the job/ now you bout to feel the wrath of a menace” also on that song were lines like “Biggie you claim to be a player but I ****** your wife”. This was the biggest diss song in that decade, no contest. Summarily speaking, this beef went furnace-hot till the mysterious murders of 2pac and Biggie on September 7, 1996 and March 9, 1997 respectively. While this war of wars raged on, both artistes grossed multi millions on record sales as an incentive for a beef well served. JAY-Z vs NAS: After the gruesome murder of Notorious B.I.G in march 1997, New York’s hip hop community embarked on a quest to fill the void Biggie small’s demise had left in the game, all fingers pointed towards Nas, one of NY’s top selling hip hop artistes and Jay-z on the other hand was beginning to build a career buzz for himself as well, both rappers made what was seen as thinly veiled references to each other’s status as “King of New York”. This was going to be the prologue of the most followed feud in hip hop history after the 2pac and B.I.G cold war. The Jay-z versus Nas beef can proudly boast of 31 diss songs from both camps professionally. The First blood was drawn when jay-z manned up and spilled the slime in 2001 as he came on stage at hot 97’s ‘summer jam hip hop festival’ with a song off his The Blueprint album titled ‘The Takeover’, a diss track directed at Nas, he left the stage by screaming “ask Nas he don’t want it with Hov, Nooo!!!”. Just a month later Nas busted back on NY’s power 105 FM with a radio freestyle over the beats of Eric B and Rakim’s ‘Paid In Full’, he furiously dissed the whole ROC-A-Fella crew on the untitled track, it was later christened ‘H to the OMO’, making jest of Jay-Z’s smash hit ‘H to the Izzo’, the beef was on full throttle. Later In 2001 the world welcomed what would be the biggest diss track of that decade titled ‘ether’ produced by Ron Brownz off Nas’s critically acclaimed ‘Stillmatic’ album, this song literally molested Jay-Z’s persona, I can never forget lines like … “how many of biggie’s rhymes gon come out your fat lips”, also others like “we rock hoes you rock fellas…” the whole world was left reciting these lines like Old Testament hymns. Nas also released Got Yourself A Gun’ of which Jay replied three days later on hot 97 radio, and Angie Martinez called for a voting poll on both disses on December 11. 2001, Nas won in the poll with 58% votes as against Jay-Z’s 42%. However, in 2003 when Jay-Z dropped ‘the Black Album’ and called it his last musical work, little did we know that he would make a surprise comeback two years later with a concert themed “I declare war” guess the surprise guest who jumped on stage at the closing performance of the night, it was none other than Nas. This event marked the end of 5 years of both lyrical and physical warfare with massive record sales to show for it. Jay-z went ahead to sign Nas onto Def Jam Recordings when he was named president of the label in 2006. 50 CENT vs JA RULE: The lyrical part of this beef which is what I’m particularly interested in began with a song titled ‘life on the line’ from 50cent’s debut street album titled ‘guess who’s back’ in march 2000, aimed at spiting hugely successful rapper Ja Rule and his label Murder Inc., who were on top of their game at that time, 50cent followed up with another commercial track titled Wanksta in 2001. Ja rule obviously the weaker link shied away from this career-threatening feud till 2003 when 50cent took it a punch further on the song ‘Backdown’ taken off the ‘Get rich or Die trying’ album, this song held mockingly spiteful lyrics like “the rap game is all ***** up now, what we gon do?, how we gon eat with 50 back around?/ that’s Ja’s little punk *** thinking out loud”. Certainly, Ja Rule could only take the humiliation up to that notch as he threw a counter punch on a diss track titled ‘War is on’, he also dropped further tracks like ‘Guess Who Shot Ya’ and ‘Loose Change’ all dissing 50 Cent bitterly. He had woefully fallen for the booby trap and was right where 50 wanted him. 50 Cent’s popularities helped him take control on the beef and he would eventually gain support from his rap crew G-unit, Eminem, Dr. Dre, Busta Rhymes and even DMX who used to be a close associate and friend of Ja Rule rode along. 50 Cent literally tongue lashed Ja rule out of the hip hop market by not just turning his fans against him but he also hoodwinked them to his own camp as well. As a result of this beef Ja rule went extinct while 50 Cent grew into a monster on the charts. Its only right that I stop with these three glaring gospels of hip hop beef and its productivity and merits in the game before you guys get bored and close this page right before the most important part of this post. All in all what I’m saying is that, beef is healthy as long as hip hop is concerned, even father would not dispute the fact that 2pac, Biggie smalls , Nas and Jay-z are the greatest hip hop artistes dead or alive, yeah I said it, and this is because they embraced competition and criticisms from each other the hard way, they slugged it out in front of the whole world like real gladiators, they drew all the attention in hip hop to themselves systematically through this medium; record sales and superstar personas sky rocketed to the high heavens as a result of this. What will happen? Where will this lead? What does the future hold? Who knows. The hope is great, lyrically charged Hip-Hop music. (And, of course, that there be no physical ramifications for any of this. Sticks-and-stones, everyone. Always remember: Words are just words.) There you have it Hip-Hop Heads, an in-depth look into what BEEF is and some of Hip-Hop's most iconic BEEFs
Power Up Family, as a lover of all things Hip-Hop, that rarely includes major motion pictures for the very reason is that a lot pf the very essence is usually lost to cinematic value (Step Up Series, Stomp the Yard, You Got Served). But every so often, Hollywood get is right, that was the case in Battle of The Year. For every real B-Boy, The Battle of the Year, which can easily be called the “Olympics of Breakdancing” is the ultimate goal. The competition, which takes place in France, every year, brings together the world’s elite breakers in one place to claim the gold but also bragging as the best breaking crew on the planet!
The movie which stars Laz Alonso, Josh Holloway, Josh Peck and Chris Brown, follows Dante Graham (Laz Alonso) a known hip-hop mogul and former B-Boy, who wants nothing more than to see an American team win the Battle of the Year, an international b-boy tournament. Dante picks former dancer and estranged friend, Jason Blake (Josh Holloway), a boozy, widowed basketball coach, to select, then train a worthy team. With just three months to whip a crew of 13 headstrong guys into a cohesive unit, Blake, his assistant (Josh Peck) and a choreographer (Caity Lotz) have a daunting job ahead of them. So, brace yourself as the world’s best B-Boy teams hit the stage in the most intense dance tournament. The Battle of the Year competition is an all-out war of mind-blowing dance moves, explosive routines and electrifying displays of skill and imagination. The American team, a group of underdogs, is pitted against the world’s elite as they tear it up in their struggle for the top spot.
What I loved about this movie was it authentic approach, directed by B-Boy enthusiast Benson Lee, and unlike a lot of the movies of the same genre, it pays homage to the actual roots of origin. For an actual former B-Boy this movie really hit home, especially when it came to the depiction of how much work actually goes into this art form. I’d be remiss if I didn’t point out the movie was a little bit cliché ridden but it didn’t end how most would, which I respected. Another small detail is that it referenced a documentary, also by Lee (which has been called the “B-Boys Bible”), called Planet B-Boy.
All in all, this is hands down one of my favorite Hip-Hop dance movies. From the actual moves to the plot its, a definite must-see. But don’t take my word for check it out for yourself, until Next time, this Phat Toney signing off always remember to stay woke and always LOVE LIVE LIFE! Power Up people, check out these super dope graphics I made to promote my post, My Top Five Favorite Albums-Black History Month Edition BLOG HEADER TWITTER
POWER UP FAMILY! THIS WEEK I AM ASKING YOU TO CHECK OUT MY NEWEST BUZZFEED ARTICLE AND SHARE IT WITH EVERYONE!! COMMENT ON IT AND LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU GUYS THINK. ITS AN INSIGHTFUL LOOK AT HOW REVOLUTIONARY THE NEW BLACK PANTHER IS. NOT ONLY FOR COMIC BOOK LOVERS BUT FOR BLACK PEOPLE AS WHOLE. SO CHECK IT OUT RIGHT HERE AND AS ALWAYS REMEMBER TO STAY WOKE AND LOVE LIVE LIFE!
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AuthorHi there! I'm the Samoan Samurai Phat Toney. I'm a lover of all things DOPE! WELCOME TO THE DOPE DOJO! Archives
March 2018
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