GabrielTeodros.com

...of Time Machines, spaceships, kind words, photos and release dates...

2012-01-31T22:45:00.000-08:00

There's been so much going on lately I've had a hard time keeping up with the blog! I do better with the micro-blogging... (find me on twitter if ya'll want all the up-to-the-minute details on life).

The biggest news at the moment of course is my newest album "Colored People's Time Machine" available on iTunes & CDBaby NOW!

We celebrated the release in Seattle last weekend with Meklit Hadero & her band, Spyc-E, DJ's WD4D & EarDr.Umz the MetroGnome, and special guests Amos Miller, Khingz, Piece & Mark Gonzales. The love in the room was enormous, even if it wasn't the biggest turnout (we had a last-minute reschedule due to crazy snow in the Town... and only 48 hours to get the word out about the new date) Much love to everyone who supported thus far!

We've been getting a lot of love in the press for the new record... definitely want to thank Okayplayer, This Is Africa, 206 Up, Seattle Show Gal, Rap Reviews, MTV Iggy, Street Date, Seattle Globalist, The Stranger for all the love and KEXP for adding CPTM to the rotation!

In other coolness... definitely check the homie Desta Haile's blog (live from Manila!) for an interview we did called Wot's The Word... as well this other dope interview with 206 Up called THE SIX. I forgot to mention it on here before but there was an end of the year wrap up I did with Platform8470 as well... I always appreciate the chance to tell the story in my own words!

Sometimes a picture tells the story better then words can... and to be honest I've had the hardest time ever with words, trying to sum up my first trip to Ethiopia in May of last year with The Arba Minch Collective. It was life changing, perspective altering, family building... basically I will never be the same. I have to tell you all more in the music... but for now you can get a snapshot of what our trip was like on National Geographic, thanks to my cousin Meklit Hadero.

The last (and maybe most exciting) piece of news: Meklit Hadero, Gabriel Teodros & Burntface present CopperWire "Earthbound". The spaceship will be landing April 17, 2012 on Porto Franco Records. We make soundtracks for intergalactic flights. This is your first warning. Peeyoom!

Shabazz Palaces "Are you... Can you... Were you? (Felt)" Music Video

2012-01-30T14:06:00.000-08:00

When I posted this video on my facebook page, one of the first comments was from my oldest friend in the world who had to ask if this was my Mom's old house. That kind of says it all. This is something like all the worlds we come from in one video... Maikoiyo calls it his "love letter to Seattle". If your also wondering that's not my Mom's house, but it is a few blocks from my Pop's old house. And the argument sounds exactly like my aunt and cousin... but it's all some type of coincidence... or maybe it just says something about how relatable Shabazz Palaces is to a lot of people... all I can say is it's deeply felt. Classic Ish.

The Narcicyst "Fly Over Egypt" Music Video

2012-01-25T17:14:00.000-08:00

Beautiful. Stunning. Inspiring.

Bocafloja "Patologias del Invisible Incomodo" (2012 / Documental corto)

2012-01-17T20:39:00.000-08:00

My brother Bocafloja breaking down what Quilombo is all about and the concepts behind his newest album "Patologias del Invisible Incomodo" dropping very soon! Our first collaboration is available now on Danny Beat's "Sinergia" and my upcoming project "Colored People's Time Machine" expect a lot more from all of us together very soon!

Aisha Fukushima "Believe In Reality" Music Video

2012-01-16T21:16:00.000-08:00

Debut video from the fam folks Aisha Fukushima... Seattle-raised, world travelling, Bay Area resident who's got a film and soundtrack in the works featuring some of the best independent Hip Hop voices from around the globe, and this one's produced by Ras K'dee of Audiopharmacy. Aisha reminds me why I do what I do, I'm so happy to know she exists... now you should be too!

Gabriel Teodros "Blossoms Of Fire" Music Video

2012-01-13T16:11:00.000-08:00

I feel like the last person to post my own video... if you haven't seen it, here it is! The lead track off "Colored People's Time Machine" which drops in less then one weeks time! If your in Seattle you get to see this project come to life LIVE @ Chop Suey this Thursday, January 19th. Tickets here.

So the song and video "Blossoms Of Fire" were inspired by a beautiful, inspiring film of the same name, which follows the extraordinary lives of the Isthmus Zapotec people in Southern Oaxaca, Mexico. The film gave me a new way of thinking about matriarchy among other things, as well as more fire to keep going in the fight for cultural survival. The lyrics reference the film in a few places, but it's still kind of just a kodak moment of where I was, the moment after seeing it. And when I wrote this? I was in Washington, DC letting something new blossom after something old went into flames... I'll just leave it at that. The video was directed by my amazing sisters Barni Qaasim and Shadi Rahimi who each do such important and inspiring work... around the entire planet! And I'm so honored that they took time out to do this piece (and Barni's organizing in like no time at all? whoa.) It's a very Bay Area video... that's The Mission in San Francisco, Lake Merritt and Fruitvale in Oakland, CA. Much love to all the sisters who are featured in the piece... and to Dume41 and to Khingz... wouldn't of been the same without you, for real! Track produced by BeanOne aka Beancognito aka that dude Khingz got a new project coming out with too (watch out!) ...Fresh Chopped Beats! This video is dope because of the people around me, word up. This is true for life as well.

Khingz "Get Ready" Music Video

2012-01-01T18:04:00.000-08:00

Brand new video for Khingz "Get Ready" off his classic EP Khake & Kool-Aid... download it now to see why this guys one of my favorites ever! This might be the most "20604" video ever produced. That skateboard fall looks like it really hurt tho.

"Beit / Home" - Gabriel Teodros & Sabreena Da Witch

2011-12-05T11:12:00.000-08:00

Fresh Chopped Beats / MADK Productions presents the first leak and video from Gabriel Teodros' new album "Colored People's Time Machine"

"Beit" - Gabriel Teodros & Sabreena Da Witch
Produced by Amos Miller, behind the scenes video by Scott Macklin

Beit (featuring Sabreena Da Witch) by Gabriel Teodros

"Beit" translates to "Home" in many languages, including Amharic (my mother's language), and Arabic (Sabreena's language), as well as Hebrew. In Arabic, "Beit" means "Verse" as well as Home. I met Sabreena Da Witch in 2009 as the film Slingshot Hip Hop toured through the Northwest, and this song was made on one of Sabreena's trips that year. The beat (composed by "Lovework" producer and my partner in Air 2 A Bird, Amos Miller) incorporates elements of an old Ethiopian church song done in Ge'ez (an older language my grandmother spoke). Here you have at least 3 worlds coming together to reflect on what home has come to mean to us now.
- Gabriel Teodros

"Colored People's Time Machine" releases January 19, 2012. If you’re in Seattle, tickets to the release party can be purchased here: http://www.ticketweb.com/t3/sale/SaleEventDetail?dispatch=loadSelectionData&eventId=4113395

For more information on all the artists check:
Sabreena Da Witch: http://www.sabreenanow.com/
Gabriel Teodros: http://www.gabrielteodros.com/
Air 2 A Bird (Amos Miller + Gabriel Teodros): http://air2abird.bandcamp.com/
Fresh Chopped Beats / MADK Productions: http://www.freshchoppedbeats.com/
Scott Macklin / Open Hands Reel: http://vimeo.com/openhandreel

Chev "Charles"

2011-12-04T22:11:00.000-08:00

Chev "Charles"

My homie Chev just dropped his debut album... and friendship aside, this is one of the best full-length debut albums I've heard from anyone all year. With production credits including some of Seattle's best including BeanOne, Sabzi and Def Dee and a few beautiful features including JusMoni, Hollis Wong-Wear and Phoneix... you can tell my guy put his whole heart into this one, and it is felt. Honesty, lyricism and raw skill from South Seattle. Whoever did the mixing and mastering on here did a great job too... kudos to you. Do yourself a favor and pick it up at Bandcamp or on iTunes today.

"Colored People's Time Machine" Release Party

2011-12-02T02:06:00.000-08:00

January 19, 2012
Colored People's Time Machine Release Party

Gabriel Teodros
Meklit Hadero
OC Notes
Spyc-E
DJ's WD4D & EarDr.Umz the MetroGnome
+ special guests

8PM | ALL AGES
$10 advance tickets

Chop Suey
1325 E. Madison St.
Seattle, WA

Ian Kamau "The Village" (Video)

2011-11-19T15:48:00.000-08:00

Ian Kamau_ The Village (One Day Soon) from Ian Kamau on Vimeo.

My Toronto family is beautiful! Go get Ian Kamau's album One Day Soon on bandcamp now. A triple threat... he made all his own beats too. Heat...

Khingz "Liberation of the Monster"

2011-10-26T12:06:00.000-07:00

Khingz "Liberation of the Monster"

Brand new long-awaited full length album from my brotha and favorite emcee ever, Khingz, and Vancouver-based producer Rel!g!on. Get it at Wandering Worx Bandcamp or on iTunes starting Oct. 27th, 2011. Big ups to Wandering Worx for putting out my family and the 2 most prolific artists i've ever met... Khingz and Moka Only... along with other good music like Jasiri X, Planet Asia, etc. Be sure to check out everything their putting out... NWup!

...also be sure to check Khingz and myself as Abyssinian Creole in Seattle November 5th at Showbox Sodo opening up for Black Star (Mos Def & Talib Kweli) and THEESatisfaction! more details on the events page...

Ayiti Resurrect

2011-10-18T19:18:00.000-07:00

My soul cousin Naima (of Climbing Poetree) is doing amazing work. www.ayitiresurrect.org

Air 2 A Bird "LIVE @ The Triple Door"

2011-10-15T14:06:00.000-07:00

Air 2 A Bird: LIVE @ The Triple Door

Thanks to our friend Andria Millie (who co-directed our video for "Let's Ride" last year) we were able to find the only copy of our recording from last summer's concert we did with Meklit Hadero at The Triple Door. If you didn't catch Air 2 A Bird in 2010... you missed a whole era of 3 part harmonies, pianos, percussion, theater and hip hop... all over Seattle. This is just a taste of what that was like... with Lara Davis and Estrella de Leon on vocals, Ivan Galvez on percussion, Amos Miller on piano and me & Amos together on the raps. Some crazy unplugged acoustic hip hop soul... download it off our bandcamp now!

Ian Kamau "One Day Soon"

2011-10-07T16:16:00.000-07:00

Ian Kamau "One Day Soon"

If you've been following this blog for any amount of time you've probably gathered I'm a huge fan of my brotha Ian Kamau's work. Phenomenal emcee, producer and educator... he seems to really like going for the heart with every track. Earlier this year in Toronto we had a listening party (meaning 4 people in a living room) and I heard this album in it's entirety, (played back to back with my own Colored People's Time Machine) and was completely blown away. To quote Kamau, "it's nothing like the mixtapes..." completely self-produced (and the production is dope, Kamau sounds at home the most here) with a lot of singing... and of course it's to the heart everytime... good music and medicine. Support the music over at Kamau's bandcamp today! This album has been a long time coming...

K'naan: Returning to Somalia after 20 years

2011-09-24T16:16:00.000-07:00

Read the article here.

The Physics "106"

2011-09-15T14:06:00.000-07:00

A classic ode to the Seattle Metro bus route #106, via The Physics. The South End is beautiful...

Jean Grae & Talib Kweli "Uh Oh"

2011-08-29T19:18:00.000-07:00

Jean Grae should be a household name. One of my current heroes in Hip Hop, for real.

Meklit Hadero + Quinn DeVeaux "Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)"

2011-08-29T16:15:00.000-07:00

Meklit Hadero & Quinn DeVeaux covering Arcade Fire's "Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)". This beautiful live performance is a sneak preview of Meklit & Quinn's upcoming collection of cover songs (and 2 originals) to be released on Porto Franco Records early 2012. Feelin good....

Random Abiladeze "Indubitably!"

2011-08-27T21:16:00.000-07:00

Random Abiladeze "Indubitably!"

I met Random Abiladeze back in 2008 on the UC Davis stop of a tour I did with Toni Hill (peace to Isaac Miller for that connect). I loved this brother's energy on stage, and his humble enthusiasm off stage was refreshing too. Very happy we stayed in touch, and he's proven to be an inspiration for me at this point, especially with the do-it-yourself tour ethic... as I took notes from him for my East Coast adventures earlier this year. He's only grown and grown as an emcee over the years... I call Random a "rap scientist"... always a pleasure to build with and to see rock live. I just recently had the honor of being a surprise guest at his release party for "Indubitably!" in Sacramento... which I also have a feature on alongside Random and Uptown Swuite. Check for the album on his bandcamp, and also look out for his upcoming collaboration project with supa emcee Ruby Ibarra! (just met/saw her rock for the first time too... that sista's doooope) good music.
&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://randomabiladeze.bandcamp.com/track/on-my-feet-feat-gabriel-teodros-uptown-swuite"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;On My Feet (feat. Gabriel Teodros &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp; Uptown Swuite) by Random Abiladeze&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Nnedi Okorafor

2011-08-22T04:45:00.000-07:00

Just read one of my favorite new books and have a new hero in speculative fiction... her name is Nnedi Okorafor. You should read "Who Fears Death" (a story full of magic set in a post-apocalyptic Sudan) and check this brilliant essay on how she got into the craft... Proprioception.

The Physics "Love Is A Business"

2011-08-06T14:06:00.000-07:00

The Physics "Love Is A Business"

A mixture of Thig Natural's flow and Justo's beats capture everything that is Seattle to me... more then any other group. I mean, one of our strengths as a scene in Seattle is we are so diverse no one could say we have "a sound"... but in the case of The Physics I know this music would not of been produced by anyone except for people who grew up in the Town. So you know what I bump on the road when I'm feeling homesick. I hear Tribal-influenced production, soulful and wet like raindrops in the city... and Thig's flow (all written in his head) capture the hood vernacular that is Town speech. If your from there you know what I mean... a Seattlite will casually use a 5-syllable word and "hella filthy" in the same sentence like it's nothing. My favorite verses on this album actually come from Monk Wordsmith, who made a return to the group after a several year stint in Philly... check "The City Never Sleeps". What these brothas capture is something much bigger then themselves. It's genuine, it's dope. And I'm excited i got some Justo beats on this next album too! Get the album on their bandcamp, now.

Black Stax "Spell On You"

2011-07-26T14:06:00.000-07:00

New video from Black Stax, easily one of my favorite groups from Seattle, WA

Shabazz Palaces - LIVE on KEXP

2011-07-07T14:06:00.000-07:00

Shabazz Palaces put out one of the best albums of this year... do yourself a favor and check a show when they come thru your town, and pick up the album Black Up! wherever fine music is sold... classic.

Prometheus Brown & Bambu "Walk into a Bar..."

2011-07-06T14:06:00.000-07:00

Prometheus Brown & Bambu Walk into a Bar...

Bambu and Prometheus Brown (aka Geo of Blue Scholars) coming with that molotov tiki torch cocktail rap! Do I even need to say this is heat? Get it from Beatrock Music now...

Bocafloja & Gabriel Teodros "Sangre Nueva"

2011-06-18T14:06:00.000-07:00

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://bocafloja.bandcamp.com/track/sangre-nueva-w-gabriel-teodros"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;quot;Sangre Nueva&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;quot; w/ Gabriel Teodros by Bocafloja&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;
New track off Danny Beat's "Sinergia" and a leak from "Colored People's Time Machine"... Seattle & Mexico City connect!

Casual "Mic Memorial"

2011-05-31T17:10:00.000-07:00

inspiring.

Ian Kamau "Misunderstood"

2011-05-11T16:16:00.000-07:00

New video for "Misunderstood" of Ian Kamau's Love & Other Struggles mixtape (one of my favorite releases from last year... still available for free download) check for more classics from Kamau at his new website www.iankamau.com

Gabriel Teodros & DJ Ian Head "Computer Parlor"

2011-04-19T02:06:00.000-07:00

Gabriel Teodros & DJ Ian Head present "The Lentil Soup EP"

2011-03-04T07:18:00.000-08:00

Gabriel Teodros & DJ Ian Head present
The Lentil Soup EP

"City blocks, good friends, old records, late-night recording sessions, and lentil soup. Over the past two years, Gabriel Teodros and DJ Ian Head have been on the move, but always managed some musical adventures whenever they found themselves in the same city.

The LENTIL SOUP EP is sampling of these journeys, that often found us back in Brooklyn, NY eating red lentils and freshly-baked pita bread.

We hope you enjoy!"
- everydaybeats.net

New era Black and Tan Club

2011-03-03T20:34:00.000-08:00

Friday March 4, 2011

GABRIEL TEODROS
with special guests

Air 2 A Bird (Amos Miller + Gabriel Teodros)
Dirty Scientifix (Orbitron, YZE, Mozest Lateef + EarDR.Umz)
Militant Child
DJ Seabefore
hosted by BeLoved1

New World Seafood Restaurant
1207 S. Jackson St.
Seattle, WA

8PM
$10 @ the door
All Ages / Bar with i.d.

So I haven't been as active on the blog this last month... but I've been really busy getting new releases together, new shirts printed, and booking my first "i booked my own tour" tour! Hitting the East Coast this month. Also on deck for 2011: 3 festivals in Ethiopia... and the long-awaited release of Colored People's Time Machine. To get you ready for all that... me & my brother DJ Ian Head cooked up an appetizer for you, that is really a collection of some of our favorite works we've done over the last few years... and you all can get a taste tomorrow. The Lentil Soup EP. To celebrate, in Seattle, we're having a show Friday night with some of my favorite folks... at a venue hardly any of ya'll have been to.

New World Seafood Restaurant is located on 12th & Jackson... a huge room next door and upstairs from where this building still stands. You may have walked by here hundreds of times and never have known that from 1922-1966, underneath what has been a corner store for as long as i can remember, was Seattle's leading jazz venue: the Black and Tan Club. Ray Charles played his first Seattle gig here. Other greats that have graced this venue include Eubie Blake, Duke Ellington, Louis Jordan, Lena Horne, Ernestine Anderson, Count Basie and Charlie Parker. We're honored to play so close and on the shoulders of giants. Hope to see you all tomorrow night!

...and there is ample parking in the garage underneath New World...

The Narcicyst & Omar Offendum "The Last Arabs"

2011-02-06T16:13:00.000-08:00

Dope video for The Last Arabs featuring Omar Offendum off The Narcicyst's self-titled deput lp. http://www.iraqisthebomb.com

El Général "Rayes Le bled"

2011-01-31T22:38:00.000-08:00

Meet El Général... an emcee from Tunisia that was arrested by security forces after uploading this video to Youtube... check his flow & the translation... dude's spitting. Hip Hop from the frontlines for real! He was released 3 days after the arrest and as the people united to overthrow the very president he's rapping to. In one of the first revolutions we've seen in a very long time. Courage is contagious!

Willie Joe ft. Dice "Coming Up"

2011-01-20T00:06:00.000-08:00

So I've met Dice several times now (she spits) and I don't think I've ever met Willie Joe... but this entire song speaks to me at a real personal level... and I know it's not getting the shine it deserves. With all due respect, this is truer to the Seattle I know, then a lot of the songs even my own friends are making. "...i guess we ain't all really in the same boat/ when i was younger me & my cousin shared the same coat/ we from the same place... we ain't the same tho/ almost made it, but i didn't/ who to blame tho... me" We're coming up.

Update: just found out he's from Vallejo and lives in Atlanta... no wonder we never met! hahahahaha... i still feel it all the same... and that's a Seattle video i don't even carrrre

The making of Air 2 A Bird's "Crow Hill" (Video)

2011-01-19T19:18:00.000-08:00

The making of Air 2 A Bird's Crow Hill. A behind the scenes look at what the process was like, in the form of several short episodes, as documented by Amos Miller. It's random, it's hilarious, it's classic. Amos was filming, editing, and uploading these videos as we were doing the album, exclusively for his students in Seattle who he was working with at the time. If we gave you a feather on the album there's a good chance your in one of these videos too... enjoy!

Photos from Wayna x JusMoni x Gabriel Teodros @ Chop Suey on Saturday Night...

2011-01-19T02:06:00.000-08:00

Love to Choklate Music, The Town Entertainment & Hidmo Entertainment for putting on such a beautiful evening... to Wayna, JusMoni, Big World Breaks, Mikaela Romero, Khingz, DJ's Introcut & WD4D, Lulu, Rogue Pinay, and everybody who came thru... Classic show... so much love in the building that night. More soon! Photos by Avi Loud.

1.15.11 :: Wayna LIVE in Seattle, WA!!!

2011-01-09T01:15:00.000-08:00

Saturday, January 15, 2011
Choklate Music, Hidmo & The Town Entertainment present..

Grammy Award Nominated Singer
WAYNA
(Pacific Northwest Performance Debut)

with JusMoni
backed by Big World Breaks
and DJ WD4D
hosted by Gabriel Teodros

8pm :: ALL AGES, Bar w/ i.d.
$12 advance tickets here

Chop Suey
1325 E. Madison St.
Seattle, WA

Audio: Wayna "Billy Club" Remix feat. Wale
Video: Wayna - Official My Love Music Video
Side Project: The Kafa Beanz (Burntface, B. Sheba, Wayna, AP, Gabriel Teodros)

Air 2 A Bird "Let's Ride" :: Official Music Video

2010-12-28T18:02:00.000-08:00

Debut music video from Air 2 A Bird! A film by Andria Ryan Millie & Lucien Pelligren. Air 2 A Bird's music can be found here, on iTunes or at http://air2abird.bandcamp.com

Let's Ride.

Hidmo's Goodbye Jackson Street Party :: VIDEO

2010-12-28T14:06:00.000-08:00

So if you haven't heard the news by now, Hidmo closed it's doors on 20th & Jackson last week. Before moving the ENTIRE restaurant in one day (and i mean everything... including several kitchen sinks) we celebrated 4 years and one month of life at Hidmo on Monday night. A classic celebration i hosted with DJ's OC Notes & Seabefore on the wheels, that at one point turned into an Eritrean dance party. It was the winter solstice (a.k.a. longest night of the year) and a lunar eclipse at the same time... which only happens every 450 years or so. Believe it or not, this video only captures a lil bit of the magic of that night (a huge statement coming from me, as this video gives me hella goosebumps... it was just so epic.) Peace to Scott Macklin for the documentation (...for years now) and everybody that came through that night, ESPECIALLY everyone who helped move the next day... and to all the lovely people in this video: Rahwa Habte, JusMoni, Felicia Loud, Dakota Kamacho, Storme Webber, Suntonio Bandanaz & Julie C., THEESatisfaction, Alberto Mejia, Luzviminda Uzuri Carpenter, Arielle Davis, Mark Gonzales... and really thanks to everyone that helped make Hidmo what it is. More information about Hidmo NEXT is at http://www.hidmo.org

PS: If anyone has photos of ALL of us outside during the eclipse... e-mail me. I'm trying to see those!

The Heartfelts: Act One

2010-12-26T04:15:00.000-08:00

The Heartfelts: Act One

Meet The Heartfelts. A lovely trio comprised of Hollis Wong-Wear (of Canary Sing), Amos Miller (of Air 2 A Bird) and Jahon Mikal. I believe they got their start at an Air 2 A Bird show sometime this year, but Hollis & Amos have been composing songs together for i think a year now? You might catch them these days anywhere in Seattle where there's a piano. The music is just absolutely beautiful. One of my favorite groups. You can get Act One for "name your own price" now at http://theheartfelts.bandcamp.com

Lah Tere "Crush" :: Video

2010-12-26T03:12:00.000-08:00

Official Music Video for Lah Tere (of Rebel Diaz) classic track "Crush"! Shot entirely in Lah Tere's old hood... Humboldt Park (a.k.a. Paseo Boricua) in Chicago, IL.

JusMoni "Ready For Life"

2010-12-26T02:06:00.000-08:00

JusMoni "Ready For Life"

JusMoni... the truth. Never Too Late with Khingz is one of my anthems of life right now. This album means so much to me. Moni is easily one of the dopest artists and inspiring human beings i've ever met... and she turns 18 the day before i turn 30. Her son turns 1 the day before that. When i think about JusMoni... i think she's gonna take what we've been doing with music in Seattle, farther then anything we can imagine right now. Pay attention. http://jusmoni.bandcamp.com

Interview with Cinetopia Pictures...

2010-12-26T00:06:00.000-08:00

A piece of an interview i did recently with Cinetopia Pictures... for a documentary about Seattle Hip Hop. Talking about my earliest memories of Hip Hop in Seattle, a little bit about what's going on right now (i barely scratched the surface) and then they asked me specifically about Shabazz Palaces.

MTV's $5 Cover: Seattle

2010-12-25T17:00:00.000-08:00

MTV's $5 Cover: Seattle

At long last, Lynn Shelton's Seattle installment of the MTV Series $5 Cover is available to view online! The show follows a day in the life of several independent Seattle bands, including THEESatisfaction and Champagne Champagne! As an added bonus, a series of "B-Side Docs" were produced about the Seattle scene, including ones about Gabriel Teodros and Vitamin D. You can watch it all online at http://fivedollarcover.mtvmusic.com/

Honoring an era: 4 years of Hidmo on 20th & Jackson

2010-12-20T02:06:00.000-08:00

4 years. The longest i ever lived anywhere was 6... and aside from that family house i never made it anywhere more then 3. 4 years is enough time to begin + complete high school; enough time to attain a college degree; a newborn child learns to walk, talk, develop a unique personality and is almost ready to enter their first school. The last 4 years was an era for us, one no less profound then any of these events in a person's life: 4 years of Hidmo. The 2nd longest time span I've ever called one place "home".

My understanding of home has never really been about places... as the first child in an Ethiopian family to be born in the United States, "back home" has always referred to a place I've never seen, that we always dream of going back to but it seems we'll never return to. But here, Seattle, WA? - this was never home. The United States never felt like home. Here we fight for equality and sometimes still feel like being called "American" is an insult. On top of this, the spaces we occupy here, have constantly been shifting as long as i can remember. From being forced to move every few years due to rent prices going through the roof, unemployment, and neighborhoods that if you are young still feel like a war zone... those years i spent on Beacon Hill, plus the years i spent going to school in the Central District... were just enough to build a community and get comfortable with the city i was born in being one way, and in so many ways now it's completely different. It's like: we make the neighborhood fresh, and then it gets jacked as soon as we do. There are people still holding on, of course, that still make the neighborhood feel like what it was, but it's not enough to say we're winning the battle. When talking about gentrification in Seattle... most people have come to accept it as the inevitable.

Then there's Hip Hop. The music and culture that has kept me alive, that accepted and saw me for who i am even when my own people didn't. The style... the dance that is present with my first memories of life. A traditionally Black & Latin form of expression like every form of American music that came before it, that is now being white-washed and taken away from the people that make it what it is - just like our neighborhoods, and every form of Black music that came before it.

Enter Hidmo. From the very first day Rahwa & Asmeret Habte took over this space (which also was my first failed attempt at bar tending) it was clear: Hidmo was the first place where every piece of me lived under one roof. Hidmo was hood, Hidmo was East African, Hidmo was Hip Hop, Hidmo was community organizers & activists, Hidmo was all these things and more. It was small-business owners who respected the space they occupied and the people who came before them. People who risked their business to do something positive for the community, time and time again. Despite police harassment, new neighbors who blamed crime in the surrounding neighborhood on the restaurant, the Habte sisters + the Hidmo family nurtured an entire community; several communities, in fact - that prior to Hidmo i never saw live in one place.

If you know me, inside the Hidmo you've probably heard me say the words "this place is more home to me then my house is", or heard me refer to it as "a community center cleverly disguised as an Eritrean restaurant"... and after the last 4 years, i honestly don't know who i would be without Hidmo. But also like i said before, "Home is not a place".

When i think of home now, i think of people. I think of my family, who have never been stationary for too long, yet wherever they go, that's home. I think of the true friends I've made in life, the people who have seen me for everything that i am, the people who have fought with me and still loved me unconditionally. I think about music and all the places it's brought me, and every single person that's welcomed me into their homes. And i will always think of the people that made Hidmo what it is, when i think about home. No matter where life takes us.

Hidmo is entering a new phase now... which involves closing the restaurants doors on 20th & Jackson, while working with 4Culture and Historic Seattle on plans to become an anchor tenant at Washington Hall. It's a very exciting transition, one that has the potential to leave an even deeper impact then the last 4 years at 20th & Jackson has. All the details, plus ways to keep in touch, are posted on Hidmo's website www.hidmo.org Sign up for the e-mail list!

Much love to Rahwa & Asmeret Habte, Heidi Jackson, and the entire Hidmo family (there's so many of ya'll) for supporting us all for this long... the years, the hard work, and the sacrifices you made for our community these last 4 years will never cease to amaze me. We all should be stepping it up now. Thank you for helping so many people's dreams come true. Thank you for making me believe anything is possible with love. I'm sure entire books will be written on the subject soon. Looking forward to Hidmo NEXT!

-- gabriel teodros

PS: Do check www.hidmo.org for more information... and there's lots of videos posted on this very blog - http://gabrielteodros.blogspot.com/search/label/hidmo

* Located in a neighborhood that used to be the only area where Hip Hop shows were allowed to happen, where by 2005 none were happening... and on a street with a rich history of jazz clubs dating back to the 1920's, where currently no music venues exist... it's a little-known fact that police often come to small-business owners in the CD and South End and "advise" them against doing any kind of Hip Hop music, because they think it will attract violence. (I doubt business owners in Fremont and on Capitol Hill are getting this same "advice" from the SPD) Yet despite all this... Hidmo is now known as an all-ages Hip Hop venue in the Central District, and a safe space.

Khingz presents "Khake & Khool-Aid"

2010-11-26T00:06:00.000-08:00

Been waiting for this one to drop for a minute now... one of my favorite releases from one of my favorite artists ever... Officially released today!!! Pick that up at Khingz' Bandcamp... bump it, love it & share it with all your folks! Still Here & Broken Heart Seattle are already personal anthems for me... but this EP is just heat from top to bottom!

WD4D: The Feel-Good DJ of the Decade

2010-11-17T14:06:00.000-08:00

WD4D: The Feel-Good DJ of the Decade

So good to see my dude be recognized for all the awesomeness he is!!! That's my DJ ya'll! Been honored to work with this brotha for at least the last 5 years (i actually don't remember exactly when we started doing shows together... just that my shows got a million times better ever since we did hook up) and my appreciation for who he is in this world still grows every day. Feel-Good DJ of the decade is no exaggeration. Love you WD!! Check the article in The Stranger here.

The Narcicyst - Mr.Asthmatic Mixtape

2010-11-03T02:06:00.000-07:00

The Narcicyst - Mr.Asthmatic

Fresh off the premiere of his first major film, City Of Life; the classic video for Hamdulillah last month; and after a very disturbing encounter with US Customs (which you can read all about on his blog - http://illuminarcy.blogspot.com) Narcy strikes back with this jewel of a mixtape... Let me tell you, this brotha can spit, the subject matter is always real and true, he stays entertaining, and his music always leaves me with a good feeling. Get the mixtape... matter of fact go get everything he's put out... and be sure to keep up with his blog too.

Scenes vs. Communities... a conversation

2010-10-14T14:06:00.000-07:00

Always critical... in a radio interview the other day, i couldn't answer a simple question about Seattle's Hip Hop Scene without questioning the idea of a "scene" vs. "community". I posed the same question i asked myself to my facebook world, and the answers i got back were nothing short of inspiring... click the image on the left, view it at full size, and get a taste!

How would YOU define a scene vs. a community?

Air 2 A Bird: we took flight this summer... thank you Seattle.

2010-09-27T02:06:00.000-07:00

It's been a busy summer... from community shows at Youngstown, Hidmo & The Vera Project, to a nearly sold-out (on a Monday night?) Triple Door concert with Meklit Hadero... to huge festivals like Capitol Hill Block Party & Bumbershoot... Air 2 A Bird took flight these last few months.

If you haven't had a chance to check our debut album, Crow Hill, it's now available on iTunes, most digital outlets, and in Seattle of course at Hidmo Eritrean Cuisine, The Station (on Beacon Hill), Everyday Music, Sonic Boom, and Easy Street Records. Peace to KEXP, KBCS & KPFA (in the Bay) for the radio support. We're doing this with no budget, no label... it's just air. Appreciate every single breath of support underneath our wings... It's nothing without you.

Here's a sample of our first few reviews...

"Air 2 A Bird is the latest brainchild of local MC/poet/activist/teacher Gabriel Teodros and his frequent collaborator, the very talented MC/singer/producer Amos Miller (whose own 2001 LP Amelation was a slept-on chunk of his conscious, home-baked cobbler). A2AB's sound is made of deep, emotive funk beats laced throughout with Miller's pulsing keyboard and prerecorded bird noises. If that sounds at all one-note to you, you'll be surprised by the immediate, soulful, and heartbreakingly sincere hiphop the two make (with the help of some gorgeous guest vocals) and the soaring perspective they bring to the scene. Flyer than most. "
- Larry Mizell, Jr., The Stranger

"Just 72 short hours after leaving the country for a three-month tour reaching Europe, the Middle East and Africa, local rapper Gabriel Teodros found himself back in New York City after being denied entrance to London's Heathrow Airport. The tour had to be cancelled, but not all was lost: 14 days in an NYC studio with Lovework collaborator Amos Miller resulted in a new 12-track record.

True to the name of the album and the group, each track samples the outbursts of a different bird ranging from the crow to more pleasant songbirds. But just as much as those songbirds, even the crows match their track's specific mood in a very impressive way. Less obvious are the electronic quirks laced throughout the record--no doubt either a benefit or consequence, depending on your angle, of the album's production tools being limited to GarageBand. But what makes the record more than just unique are the artists' trademark political poetics--at their sharpest, too--that prove great music can come from ruffled feathers."
- Nick Feldman, Seattle Weekly

"The spirit of Gabriel Teodros’ music has always resided in the space between oppression and uprising, in that delicate and fleeting balance called Justice. His musical philosophy is all-inclusive in that it considers perspectives from every walk of life, but its primary concern lies with those marginalized by overarching repressive forces.

So, in the Fall of last year, when the would-be world-touring emcee found himself detained in London’s Heathrow airport and eventually deported out of England and back to the States (specifically, New York City) there was a particular irony attached to the situation. The story was well-documented on local blogs and music outlets. Read GT’s own account here.

All’s well that ends well, however. That “space between” turned out to be 14 days in a Brooklyn recording studio, cooped up with creative and touring partner Amos Miller. The two literally found themselves grounded, and with nothing but spare time, some bare-bones recording equipment and a little aviary inspiration, the musicians were still able to migrate, not physically, but creatively. The duo (re-borne as Air 2 A Bird) created the soaring LP, Crow Hill.

Preview the title track below and then click over to the group’s Bandcamp space for the rest. For an album that was birthed by an unwanted detainment, it sounds suspiciously like freedom."

- Chul Gugich, Seattle Show Gal

OC Notes

2010-09-26T15:38:00.000-07:00

OC Notes is the homie from way back, whose music i'm ashamed to say i slept on the last year or so. Thanks to my brotha WD4D i got hip again... (speaking of WD, you should all be checking the new blog Traxploitation for more goodness such as this, the blog is maintained by some of Seattle's best producers, DJ's... think "Stop Biting" Tuesdays @ Lo-FI, the online version). Anyways, yeah... Doo Doo is some classic instrumental space music i now can't get enough of... and it's a free download for you & yours. Check OCnotes bandcamp for a lot more... my guy's a genius!

Rebel Diaz "Libertad"

2010-09-16T01:39:00.000-07:00

Brand new video from Rebel Diaz, filmed in Santiago, Chile!

The Narcicyst featuring Shadia Mansour "Hamdulillah"

2010-09-14T11:24:00.000-07:00

I've been waiting for this one... classic video for one of my favorite songs! If you don't know about Narcy yet check http://www.iraqisthebomb.com and get caught up!

DJ Ian Head interviews EarDrumz for EverydayBeats.net!

2010-08-29T19:18:00.000-07:00

Interview with Seattle Producer EarDr.Umz - everydaybeats.net

One of my favorite producers interviewing another... I love that this went up today as we're getting mixes done for Colored People's Time Machine (which EarDr.Umz produced the title track for) and an EP that i did exclusively with DJ Ian Head on the beats. Love it when my peoples come together. Be sure to check everydaybeats.net and EarDrumz.net for everything these 2 brothers have been up to. Good music! Coast to coast!!!

LIVE @ HIDMO: Seattle Fandango Project featuring Son Tequio, Gabriel Teodros & Mark Gonzales

2010-08-27T23:26:00.000-07:00

The Seattle Fandango Project & Son Tequio featuring Gabriel Teodros & Mark Gonzales... Live @ Hidmo! It's a true honor to get to build, and do music with this group. So excited for future projects! Check the videowork... peace to Scott Macklin. Later that same night i was at Neumos rocking a sold-out show with Khingz, opening for Digable Planets. Seattle is on fire right now! Look out for Air 2 A Bird all over the city this next month... starting with Bumbershoot (Upcoming dates are listed under the CD's on the right...)

Invincible + Waajeed - "Detroit Summer" / "Emergence"

2010-08-11T01:13:00.000-07:00

Detroit is the future.

http://emergencemedia.org

http://DetroitSummer.org

Khingz "Pho 99" Quicc Mxtape

2010-08-07T14:06:00.000-07:00

Khingz "Pho 99" Quicc Mxtape

Brand new Pho 99-themed Mxtape from Khingz, celebrating summer, friendships and Vietnamese Iced Coffee! This one has him rocking over some familiar instrumentals if you listen to my music, his music, Blue Scholars or The Physics... get it for free right now over at Khingz Bandcamp.

oh, and i made a Pho menu for the cover... cool huh?

"The Ronald Raygun EP" by The Beat Philanthropists

2010-08-07T13:49:00.000-07:00

The Beat Philanthropists "Ronald Raygun" EP

"Ronald Reagan was the president when i was younger... He was an actor" - Silky-E

Something brand new from Beat Philanthropy Music... from a familiar voice if you ever listened to Burntface or The Kafa Beanz... this is for you!

Air 2 A Bird: pictures from the Capitol Hill Block Party!

2010-07-28T19:02:00.000-07:00

Air 2 A Bird "Crow Hill"

2010-07-23T02:06:00.000-07:00

Air 2 A Bird "Crow Hill"

When Even Birds Need Passports:

In an era of auto-tune and sampling debauchery, Air 2 A Bird is wind to lungs starving for originality. Re-uniting hip-hop visionaries Gabriel Teodros & Amos Miller after their critically acclaimed Lovework collaboration, Air 2 A Bird was born in a manner similar to hip hop culture: amongst people attempting to fly in a world that only reminds you of gravity.

The synopsis begins with lyricist Gabriel Teodros, carrying displaced people inside his tongue, being detained at London-Heathrow Airport & deported. Sent back to New York with his world tour and contracts cancelled, he was given keys to a studio by a friend. His producer Amos Miller, who was to join him on the tour, now spends the next 14 days getting raw and open with the only resources available in the studio: Garage Band, a microphone, and live recordings of actual birds. Thus Air 2 A Bird was created: from two individuals determined to defy border patrol by lettings sounds fly over borders even when bodies are denied.

Beyond Barbed Wire Nests:

Musical aficionados understand the best projects are part invention, part audio ancestry. Air 2 A Bird does not disappoint: their collaborations are West Coast classic rap meets classical music. You would not be surprised to hear them channel early Organized Noise energy into sacred sounds. The movement of the crowd is architecture and indigenous in motion; it is South East Seattle & the C.D., Russian immigrant in a cipher with Hip Hop Pioneers, the Black Panthers, and displaced Ethiopians.

The first project literally is an experiment in flight, sampling a different bird per track. It is no wonder they say this project is wind to other people’s work and lives. Many have asked how do birds re-establish roots when displaced from barbed wire nests? In the words of Gabriel Teodros: "We needed NOT be broken what was in front of us- tour being cancelled- being deported. We needed to CREATE". Since the original recordings Air 2 A Bird has also grown, with the addition of a three part harmony via vocals of Lara Davis and Estrella De Leon.

Finding Roots Through Flight.

Air 2 A bird is an experiment in trust, friendship modeled through music, realizing you have everything you need, when you think we don’t have anything, It may be the first hip hop project focused on sharing stages, rather than monopolizing them. To quote Amos Miller: "Bird’s can’t fly without air; I can’t shine without a community of people, to support and hold me accountable".

For those whose greatest gravity is fear, Air 2 A Bird demonstrates through sound to not be weighed down by this world. It is an attempt to reclaim soul, self & freedom from a music industry that has more in common with border patrol than their listeners.

Should Gabriel and Amos’s tour have occurred, Air 2 A Bird would not exist. For many of us who write, dance, produce, we too know of the ways we are historically not supposed to be alive. Yet even if babies aren’t always planned for, it does not mean they cannot become beautiful. Thus is the way of beats, and the way of birds.

- words by Mark Gonzales

"Pop Star Is Dead" - Gabriel Teodros

2010-06-25T14:06:00.000-07:00

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://gabrielteodros.bandcamp.com/track/pop-star-is-dead"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Pop Star Is Dead by Gabriel Teodros&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;
My solo contribution to the 47N122W35N139E: Reunion On The I-5 album, produced by Simonal, and recorded last summer on the day Michael Jackson died. This song's not really about MJ... it's more of an answer to the statement "Hip Hop Is Dead", and it also represents me breaking through a personal wall. In the time after recording the Lovework album (Spring of 2006) and before August 2009 when i started recording the Colored People's Time Machine album... that whole 3 year period... i only completed a total of 3 solo tracks. The song Tizita for The Kafa Beanz project released in the summer of 2008, the song Me & You with Silver Shadow D in January of 2009, and this song right here, which came right as the floodgates broke... and i've been making music constantly ever since! You could say i took my own advice and started writing songs about issues i was scared of talking about. When i wrote this, i remember thinking how symbolic Michael Jackson's death was, as he was referred to as the "King of Pop"... and how that idea of being of pop star can destroy a person's humanity... and how even the little fame that came my way with the last album, nearly destroyed my desire to continue making solo music. Me killing the pop star in my head, needed to happen just so i could breathe free on a microphone again. More centered, more grounded, and more focused then ever before.

The project this track ended up on, is a bridge between Seattle and Tokyo, a beautiful piece of music made in the summer of 2009, mostly in Daichi Diez's apartment overlooking Lake Union and the I-5 overpass. Producers T-Bone Steak and Simonal came to visit from Japan, and got down with Seattle producer EarDrumz, as well as emcees like myself, Khingz, ORB, Yze, Lateef Mozest, Phreewil, SistaHailStorm, Daichi Diez, Maf Maddix, and more... in a crazy 2 week recording session, that turned into an ILL 22 track album. It's amazingly cohesive considering all the people that came together to make it happen, and perfect summertime music. 47N122W35N139E: Reunion On The I-5 was released in Japan on Vuestro Record / Shamrock, and it looks like it can be found anywhere in Japan where music is sold... it's pretty easy to find in an internet search... and i can tell you, the CD is definitely worth the purchase. If anyone can name the other 2 projects i'm featured on that were released in Japan only... you get props.

Toki Wright "By The Time I Get To Arizona 2010"

2010-05-15T00:38:00.000-07:00

"Teza" is showing in Seattle right now!

2010-04-30T23:47:00.000-07:00

Finally caught Haile Gerima's Teza, opening night of a one-week run here in Seattle's Southend at the Columbia City Theater. I missed it by one night in DC... traveled all around the country and then missed it again by one night in NYC... I'm so glad to have finally caught it in my hometown, and with family! Haile has crafted a masterpiece, i urge everyone to go support right now. This brotha is one of my heroes, and one of my favorite storytellers i've ever encountered... I hear him speak and feel a lil less crazy, encouraged, and not alone. Thank you Haile. If you are in Seattle you can get tickets here at Brown Paper Tickets and if if you wait one week from the date of this blog posting it's too late! Check what New York Times had to say about it, and the video posted above is part 1 a great interview he did with Al Jazeera last year, part 2 can be viewed here. More information about Teza and future screenings can be found at www.tezathemovie.com

I'm too overwhelmed to say anything more about the movie right now, other then i feel like he captured what my parents generation went through in a way never before seen on film, and beyond that i felt an acknowledgment to our generation too. It's a work of healing and there will be many more conversations to be had... let's go.

TEDx Seattle :: Scott Macklin "Convening Community Through Stories"

2010-04-24T14:06:00.000-07:00

Scott Macklin gave a presentation to set off the TEDx Conference in Seattle last week, a journey in film from South Africa to Seattle, all about community and the art of storytelling. If you ever wondered who that guy with the camera is at all of our shows this is a good way to get to know! my twitter feed blew up when he gave me a shoutout... check out more of his work at http://www.vimeo.com/openhandreel/videos Thanks Scott!

Meklit Hadero "Abbay Mado"

2010-04-20T15:21:00.000-07:00

Meklit Hadero's debut lp On A Day Like This... officially drops today! Be sure to check Porto Franco Records on where to purchase the album, and keep checking her website for a tour date near you! I know Seattle, DC and New York shows are all in her immediate future... my cousin is going hard right now! The video posted above interweaves clips from a new music video with Meklit explaining the process behind one of my favorite songs on the album, "Abbay Mado" the classic Ethiopian folk song. She's my hero for having a song in Amharic on her first album! So inspirational. I'm hoping to have one on my 5th album lol... but you can also hear Meklit on a few tracks off the Colored People's Time Machine dropping this fall! (it's done... for real.) Yay Meklit!!!

"Top Left" The Coolout Documentary... preview

2010-04-11T02:06:00.000-07:00

The 206 Morpheus, Georgio Brown, has the potential to make the definitive Seattle Hip Hop documentary based on his archived tapes alone... but he had to go and get new interviews from a who's who of Hip Hop artists from the town over the last 30 years first. Damn! This sneak preview of the Coolout Documentary "Top Left" kicks off with vintage footage from an interview with Silent Lambs Project to new footage with Canary Sing rocking H206... and it doesn't stop with interview clips with everyone from Ghetto Chilldren, Specs One, Mr. Supreme, Abyssinian Creole, Jonathan Moore, Piece, Emerald Street Boys, DV-One to Silver Shadow D and much more! If you want to know more about Seattle's Hip Hop History... the people to ask are featured in this clip. They even got a clip of the first time i ever performed "Third World Wide" in here... can't wait to see the full-length!

Meklit Hadero "Leaving Soon"

2010-03-25T01:37:00.001-07:00

My cousin is the truth! If your not knowing yet, please get familiar with Meklit Hadero... my amazingly talented, Arba Minch Collective spearheading, Global TED Fellowing, world traveling, beautiful, out of this world voice having cousin. This is her debut music video "Leaving Soon" (directed by the homie Salvatore Fullmore!) off of her upcoming debut album On a Day Like This... which is being released 4.20.2010 on Porto Franco Records. So excited!!! Also... check her interview that aired on NPR earlier today!

Porch Jams

2010-03-19T14:06:00.000-07:00

I'm a cartoon! So the homies Amos Miller & Mark Oi have been making these stick-figure animations for over a year now... and you can catch the whole last season on Ame's Youtube page. I made a guest appearance in the newest episode, playing a hater who gets turned into a lover, after checking out the homies show. On playing a hater: i tried to have fun with it, even quoted things i heard from other people that week! but let's be real... being a hater is never fun. somebody give that dude a hug!

Ian Kamau :: Love & Other Struggles (The Mixtape Vol. 3)

2010-02-16T16:16:00.000-08:00

Ian Kamau "Love & Other Struggles"
The Mixtape Vol. 3 :: Free Download

Ian Kamau drops the 3rd and final installment of his September Nine mixtape series... all building up to the release of his new album this summer!

Love & Other Struggles... My brother's writing is so personal on this one, so vulnerable, there's times when it feels like i'm listening to my own reflection. From the love of one's hometown, to love for a close homie struggling with mental health, to reflecting on grandparents passing, to times when a breakup feels like the apocalypse... to even feeling uncomfortable walking around in your city after you put your whole life on record... he even has his own version of Intl' Broken Hearts Anthem! Needless to say this whole mixtape is deeply felt, and i want to thank Ian Kamau for making music and putting it out there... and also for flipping K'naan's America track, and then coming back in with the original sample, and giving Tilahun Gessesse a shoutout! Kamau's probably tired of hearing it at this point but he's an honorary Habesha if i've ever met one. Support this brotha... he's the truth. "So love, we have to work at it instead..." - Ian Kamau

Ian Kamau on Facebook
Ian Kamau on Twitter

VIDEO :: Khingz "Blaq Han Solo"

2010-02-14T14:06:00.000-08:00

Brand new video for Khingz classic "Blaq Han Solo" off his captivating solo project From Slaveships To Spaceships! If your not already following him, be sure to check http://www.khingz.com and his blog http://flyingdragonpunch.blogspot.com for regular updates. That's my brother!!!

Gabriel Teodros speaks with "We've Got The Jazz"

2010-01-28T16:11:00.000-08:00

Gabriel Teodros speaks with We've Got The Jazz

Just did a pretty dope interview with this blog called We've Got The Jazz... reflecting on Lovework, Ethiopia, Abyssinian Creole, my early Seattle influences, the school system, Mexico City and more! Check it out here. Props to Juan for reaching out, and coming with some interesting questions! They also did an interview just last week with my cousin Moka Only... that's whatsup!

VIDEO :: Do D.A.T. ft. Melina Jones "The Bridge"

2010-01-26T22:27:00.000-08:00

THIS makes me miss The Bay!!! Do D.A.T. & Melina Jones on some Oakland to San Francisco Unity... look for Do D.A.T.'s Oakland In Blue LP sometime in 2010... and if your not hip make sure you check The Skinny EP right now! Spittas!

VIDEO :: Canary Sing "Freak Show"

2010-01-19T14:06:00.000-08:00

Canary Sing saved hip hop for me... being a part of their music and growth and life has been one of the most rewarding experiences i've had since i started making music, for real. This is their first video... my sisters are the truth!

love for gt's ethiopium... with a new link to download!

2010-01-18T01:01:00.000-08:00

Gabriel Teodros - GT's Ethiopium: A Jitter Generation Mixtape
free download... right here, right now!

Had to re-up the link for those who missed the release last month... you can also check out individual tracks at AddisTunes.com... Check out what people have been saying so far!

"Dang I'm not a mixtape enthusiest but this is one that caught my attention and kept it. Producer Oh-No recently released an instrumental album using old-school and rare samples of Ethiopian music. These beats are ridiculous! Fellow Ethiopian Gabriel Teodros caught wind of this and felt compelled to create a mixtape using these samples which represent the strong roots to his home country of which he still feels such a strong tie. This mixtape is kind of cool because its less than 20 minutes long hence the name 'Jitter Generation'. But believe me, he sure accomplished a hell of a lot in a 20 minute span. This release shines light on the realities of Ethiopia, touches on America's own imperfections & stresses the importance of exploring your own intelligence and spirituality. I have to say this is the kind of mixtape that could possibly offend you at times. But it does it in a very compelling and intriguing way forcing you to evaluate your own views and opinions. If nothing else let this be a way to introduce yourself to Gabriel Teodros, he is very relevant to the hip hop scene right now and I predict will stay that way for some time."
- dope Hug

"Yes. A thousand times yes. Noted globe-trotter, freedom fighter, and local dude made good Gabriel Teodros is back at it again. Our guy G Teezy just blessed the world with a new ep – free, downloadable, and all for you. The name? GT’s Ethiopium: A Jitter Generation Mixtape. The concept? Oxnard, California hitmaker Oh No put together a beat tape exclusively sampling classic Ethiopian songs – Gabe raps over them.
It’s a pretty ridiculous result. Gabe’s been holding down the Mid-Atlantic seaboard for the last couple of months, following his kerfluffle with the British authorities at Heathrow, and the experience shows in this recording. It’s pretty direct to the heart, which is saying something for Gabe: dude does not do anything without heart."
- Last Night's Mixtape

"What made Gabriel Teodros' Ethiopium: A Jitter Generation Mixtape one of my favorite records last year was, one, the passion he put into his raps ("the more emotion I put into it, the harder I rock"), and, two, the fact that he was rapping on beats produced by Oh No and collected on Ethiopium, an experiment that processed Ethiopian pop and jazz into hiphop. Not only was GT and Oh No a perfect match, but GT, a black Ethiopian, was in a sense giving praise to Oh No, a black American, for successfully processing parts of Ethiopian pop. It does not end with just that. Oh No's Ethiopium contains many samples from the fourth record in the highly regarded Ethiopiques series, Ethio Jazz & Musique Instrumentale, 1969-1974, which features compositions by Mulatu Astatke, the father of a form of music that processed black American jazz into new Ethiopian substances. And so what we find in Ethiopium: A Jitter Generation Mixtape is this rich complexity: a black Ethiopian rapper is processing the beats by a black American producer who processed Ethiopian tunes that were produced by processing black American jazz and funk. This is nothing but the very meaning of hiphop—processing, processing, processing."
- The Stranger

HAITI

2010-01-13T15:41:00.000-08:00

Prayers and love to all of Haiti's people...

Just a quick note about Aid... I feel it's extremely important that everyone give what they can to help out right now, but please think critically and research the organizations you are giving to. One that i've researched, donated to, and the one that impresses me the most is Partners In Health.

Check their website www.pih.org for more information!

update: 1/15... one-something am...

More reasons to donate to PIH? Check the homie Tse.Peaces article Don't Give Dead Aid, Give Well: Help Haiti - Partners in Health for a deeper Abyssinian Creole perspective...

and the new website Stand With Haiti - Partners In Health

On a personal level... this whole shit is life-shattering. my heart and my family hurts.

"Comfort keeps people controlled"

2010-01-12T21:11:00.000-08:00

Rebel Diaz interview from Russia Today. The homies Rodstarz, Lah Tere & G1 dropping jewels...

from mayors events to shabazz palaces...

2010-01-12T12:06:00.000-08:00

So... it's been a crazy couple of weeks. After moving into my new spot in Bushwick, Brooklyn, i go to spend New Years Eve with my fam in New Addis (a.k.a. Wahington, DC)... That morning i get an invite to perform at newly-elected Mayor Mike McGinn's inauguration party in Seattle. A free, all-ages event open to all, held at Showbox SoDo on Saturday night. My first response was "huh?... did they even listen to my music?" and then i got really skeptical as to why i was invited... But i've heard some cool things about Mike McGinn, and it felt like an important event to do... if not for me, for the communities i represent and the issues i talk about in my music... issues i feel like don't get addressed in a real way in the sphere of local politics... but to be honest it's a world i've never interacted with in my life. I, like a lot of people from my part of Seattle, grew up honestly feeling like our city is trying to kill us. So you can imagine my dilemna in being invited to perform at a Mayor's event. I kind of started looking at this invite as a grow-up pill... Like our music has an influence on people, we can affect local politics. But don't just be a tool. So I spent the morning calling on a lot of people who i trust, just to hear different perspectives in regards to this event... i have to say, my community is tight!!! And i was reminded of this piece of wisdom i got from a MAG-Net conference i recently attended in D.C... In community organizing, and in building a campaign, there are 2 things that can never change. Your values, your foundation, what you stand on, has to always remain in tact. And your goal, what your fighting for, it can not change... don't settle for less then what you set out to get. Everything, every tactic you use in between those 2... can, and probably will change. This just felt like one of those moments. I'm not co-signing on any elected official. But i will say i actually had an honest conversation with Mike McGinn... and he seemed like a really genuine dude. I hope the conversations continue... I chose not to engage in politics for so long, and even though i still feel like the system is inherently flawed... we still should have our voices heard and be present in every arena where decisions are made that affect our lives and the lives of our children. That was my first step. End speech. This was also the first venue where i played one of my new favorite songs, Mothershippin'!!

But the real highlight of my little 3-day trip home? Seeing cousins, and meeting Moni's baby. After that tho? Shabazz Palaces!!! You know how that was one of the dopest projects to drop last year right? And in the timeline of Seattle Hip Hop i would say it already made history. Well... the show was even better! Ish rhyming while playing the beats live, Tendai rocking the drums, mbira and vocals... the stage set... dancers... routines... Geechi Suede of Camp Lo coming out of nowhere to spit a few verses... Home. The town represented. "Was you there tonight?" I got my name shouted out in the first 5 minutes lol... Thanks homies. Now we all have to go harder. I love it. See ya'll next week. Oh, and check this review from The Stranger.

And if your in New York City, see me tomorrow at Noon at Judson Memorial Church, or on the 30th at Le Poisson Rouge. If your in Boston, see me Friday, i'm sitting in with The Debo Band! And Seattle, we got a dope show for you January 22nd at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center. yee!

My 2009 in Review...

2010-01-08T14:09:00.000-08:00

The homies at Platform8470 did a lil interview with me to wrap-up 2009...
check it out here!

Shabazz Palaces in Seattle!

2010-01-08T14:06:00.000-08:00

Taste That Crown
Shabazz Palaces' Monumental Hometown Debut
by Larry Mizell, Jr.

Just wanted to capture how excited i am about this show tonight, and to point out how ridiculous Larry is at writing feature articles... this is a must-read regarding some of the dopest hip hop coming out of Seattle right now. Ish is a huge inspiration to me. Larry is too.

VIDEO :: 2Mex "Back"

2010-01-01T20:49:00.000-08:00

Happy New Years ya'll! I spent mine in New Addis (Washington, D.C.) where this was filmed. On the bus ride down, i got hip to a new video from my brotha 2Mex! If your not hip to 2Mex... peep: he's kind of the king of alliteration and became a legend in the L.A. Underground since the first Visionaries album dropped back in '96-'97? One half of the crew Of Mexican Descent with my other good homie Xololanxinxo, an OG Good Lifer and Project Blowedian... and his fan base will destroy you. For real this brothas been one of my favorite emcees for a long time now, and a lot of my favorite moments performing over the last 10 years have actually had us sharing a bill... from L.A. to Seattle and back. Look for his new album in 2010 on Strange Famous.

Bambu "The Queen Is Dead"

2009-12-27T20:04:00.000-08:00

Bambu "The Queen Is Dead"

This is some NECESSARY heat from the homie Bambu! The first leak off his upcoming ...papercuts... EP, as posted on 2dopeboyz earlier today. If your not hip, to me... Bam has been one of the most consistent emcees of the last 3-4 years... dropping ground-breaking quality project, after quality project... get caught up at Bambu.la!

boom bye bye... the "queen" is dead...

VIDEO :: Khingz "Cloud City"

2009-12-26T11:53:00.000-08:00

A new one from my brother Khingz, in front of one of my favorite murals on Beacon Hill! This is the intro to his Cold Hearted In Cloud City EP which you can get on CD Baby or iTunes now! Also, Khingz is currently working on his new album entitled The Filth, and he's doing a video blog to show you the thought process going into this record as he makes it. So ya'll can get a deeper look into why i've been saying this brothers a genius for years! Here goes the first and second installment of said blog... stay tuned to flyingdragonpunch.blogspot.com for future updates!

PS: In the Cloud City video, check for the Sheba shout out! yeeeah

VIDEO :: Macklemore "The Town"

2009-12-23T16:10:00.000-08:00

This is so beautiful... if you want to know about where i come from, just watch this video. I literally screamed with excitement when i seen certain homies in this piece... Macklemore & Zia... you really made The Town proud with this one. 206up!!!

THE REVIVAL: A Tour Documentary with Roxanne Shante, Bahamadia + more!

2009-12-23T10:39:00.000-08:00

This is the homie Invincible's directorial debut, of what i would most definitely call a legendary tour. I'm super inspired by this... Pay attention. Invincible describes it better than i could on her website...

The Revival (Europe, 2009, 17 min)
Directed by Invincible. Produced by EMERGENCE Media and Iqaa the Olivetone.

The Revival gives a candid glimpse into the first meeting of legendary Hip-Hop pioneer Roxanne Shante and veteran Philly emcee Bahamadia, as they trade stories of their struggles and triumphs in the industry over their long careers. It also shows the exchange of lessons between them and up-and-coming artists DJ Shortee, Eternia, Stacy Epps, and Invincible. This short documentary, a collage of performances and behind the scenes footage, was filmed and directed by Invincible while on the road in Europe as part of We-B Girlz all women in independent Hip-Hop tour. The largest all female Hip-Hop tour of its kind, it spanned over three weeks, six countries, and featured dozens of female artists who performed for tens of thousands of supporters.

In support of the release of The Revival, The Fembassy is featuring weekly interviews with the artists from The Revival.

http://emergencemusic.net/The_Revival

M.anifest :: The Birds And The Beats

2009-12-20T15:44:00.000-08:00

M.anifest "The Birds & The Beats"

free album, download here

M.anifest, from Minneapolis, MN by way of Ghana, one third of A.R.M. along with the homies Krukid and Budo.... releases a new 16-track album for FREE. The Birds & The Beats. What i've heard of it so far is really dope... if you check his website, all he asks is that you make a donation online to Young Entrepreneurs, Africa, a nonprofit empowering youth in Ghana. Download the music, spread the word, and support that!

VIDEO :: Head Like a Kite featuring Tilson "Director's Cut"

2009-12-19T21:59:00.000-08:00

Something about the homie Tilson bouncing around in this video makes me hella happy. Whattup Seattle!!!

Gabriel Teodros - GT's Ethiopium: A Jitter Generation Mixtape

2009-12-15T17:01:00.000-08:00

GT's Ethiopium: A Jitter Generation Mixtape
download it here

So i had plans to be in Ethiopia right now with The Arba Minch Collective, but sometimes life makes other plans for you... and instead i ended up somewhere between Brooklyn, NY and New Addis (Washington, D.C.) for the last 2 months. While here on the East Coast, i've been able to start and complete a collaborative project with Amos Miller entitled Air 2 A Bird, fine-tune and record more tracks for the Colored People's Time Machine album and found time to do a little mixtape! If you haven't heard, Oh No dropped an instrumental project recently called Ethiopium, a really dope collection of beats made using classic and rare Ethiopian samples. On one hand, i was really excited to see a producer who i'm a fan of using samples from my mother's land... on the other hand, it's crazy as a musician, to know the struggles of other Ethiopian musicians, and how much harder it must be back home to create this music, that in 2009 people are sampling our classics left and right, and i know that very little, if any, of the money made off these samples ever actually gets back to these musicians, who can barely make a living off this music, and who back home couldn't make a living off of it at all. Not to say i'm against sampling, most of the hip hop i love is still based on samples... but if someones gonna do it, i feel like there should at least be an Ethiopian perspective to go with these beats! So when nobody was looking, i made a mixtape... GT's Ethiopium! I call it A Jitter Generation Mixtape cause none of the songs are longer then 2 minutes... download it, love it, pass it on!

-- gabriel teodros

Macklemore X Ryan Lewis - The VS EP

2009-12-15T15:23:00.000-08:00

Macklemore X Ryan Lews - The VS. EP

I signed up for a Vipassana Meditation course today, and then i download the homie Macklmore's new ep... just to find out the first track is called Vipassana! Life has a way of letting you know when your on the right path... anyways... this is my brother and his music is dope! Download it and pass it on!

Eternia "GET CAUGHT UP" Free Download!

2009-12-15T14:06:00.000-08:00

Eternia "GET CAUGHT UP!"
Mixed by DJ Law

Eternia as an emcee and human being makes me want to go harder in music and life, every single day. I honestly don't think i would be where i'm at now if it weren't for time spent with her and Bocafloja in Mexico this past summer. Download her new mixtape which just dropped today, bump it, love it and share it with all your folks!!!
-- gt

Geologic of Blue Scholars with KRS-One, Buckshot & Talib Kweli!

2009-12-13T22:30:00.000-08:00

KRS-One & Buckshot featuring Geologic & Talib Kweli "Oh Really (Remix)"
produced by Marco Polo.

So ill! Listen here.

VIDEO :: D.Black "Yesterday"

2009-12-01T14:06:00.000-08:00

Much love to D.Black! It's been so exciting to watch this brotha grow over the last few years, and his album Ali'Yah is a testament to that growth, as well as just one of the dopest projects to come out of Seattle this year! Check his new video for Yesterday which just premiered today! Onelove to the whole Sportn'Life family!!! Dropping quality project after quality project... and every artist on the label sets the stage on fire! 206up.

Gabriel Teodros Talks about Life, Music, and the Future with AddisTunes.com!

2009-11-21T13:23:00.000-08:00

Interview: Gabriel Teodros Talks about Life, Music and the Future

Peace to Diallo Hall for the interview! AddisTunes.com is an awesome website devoted exclusively to Ethiopian Music, downloads, videos and news. It's the also the only place you can get The Kafa Beanz album so far... Check the interview we just did... I'm leaking information i haven't even talked about on this blog about my upcoming projects... yeeeah!

11.20.09 :: The Kafa Beanz LIVE in Washington, D.C.!!!

2009-11-12T03:20:00.000-08:00

Friday, November 20, 2009

Andromeda: The Chronicles Of Blackopia Vol. 1

The Official Release Party!

Tabi Bonney

Wayna

The Kafa Beanz

(Burntface, B. Sheba, Wayna, AP and Gabriel Teodros)

Doors open @ 6pm / Show starts @ 8pm

$20 :: Advance tickets available at www.circle360entertainment.com

Zanzibar

700 Water St.

Washington, D.C.

Check this interview Tadias Magazine did with Wayna for more information... and this blog entry i posted a few weeks back... see you in a minute DC!

Zia Mohajerjasbi wins The Stranger's Film Genius Award!

2009-11-12T02:06:00.000-08:00

Zia Mohajerjasbi

The homie Zia wins The Stranger's Film Genius Award for 2009... after producing classic Seattle video, after classic Seattle video... from Jake One's Home to Blue Scholars Joe Metro, going all the way back to my No Label (Esma Remix) video... check the article and the film work! Big ups Zia!

...Brooklyn...

2009-11-11T02:06:00.000-08:00

With everything that's happened... and it's a trip to even say this... but i wake up everyday feeling like i'm exactly where i'm supposed to be! On an extremely deep level... like... i walk outside and get blessed by everyone i say hello to. I couldn't of had a better time in New York City if i planned it, and subleasing the homies apartment in Crown Heights is turning into one of the best investments i've ever made... just a couple blocks from where me & Khingz used to stay too! Amos Miller was supposed to meet me in Europe to rock those shows... After i got kicked out of London he changed his plane ticket to come to New York and we've been working on a new record ever since. This time we're both on vocals and Amos is still doing all the beats... As i type this we're about 9 songs deep... making beats, writing and recording every day... so far we've got some really dope features from SKIM (who's in New York fresh off the National Mangos With Chili Tour) and Suntonio Bandanaz (who's here in Brooklyn rocking a free show this Thursday at Sputnik with Black Stax, DJ Chela and myself...) We'll see who else comes through the house this week. My neighborhood is like being in the Carribean, vegetarian cuisine you wouldn't believe, the coolest neighbors you could ever ask for... yo i think i'm falling in love with Brooklyn all over again! But don't worry, i still hella, hella rep the west coast from my manner of speech to the incessant dub... it's just something about being in New York that makes me flash harder! W's up. anyhoo...
Had the honor of rocking the Rebel Diaz Arts Collective in the South Bronx on Halloween, along with Rebel Diaz, Las Krudas, YC The Cynic and Chris Diaz. The RDAC is like the New York Hidmo... if you took away the Eritrean food, and added a recording studio and a few bedrooms... although i did bring Ethiopian food that first night. =) A warehouse in the South Bronx converted into an amazing arts space, all-ages music venue, with walls outside for kids to paint, studio, kitchen, altar... everything you need! I fell in love. And the show!!! Small turnout, incredible people and energy... Chris Diaz is one of the funniest and dopest people i've seen do improvised stand-up in a while, and a great host... YC is an 18-year old spitter that's eating up most emcees twice his age... Las Krudas lived up to every bit of hype i've heard about them over the last few years... i believe we only met two-thirds of the group, from Cuba originally... incredible stage show... and Rebel Diaz remains one of my favorite groups around... i will never forget them rocking in costumes this year, i'm sorry if you missed out! I met a sister that night named Alicia Bell who is starting an after-school project for middle-schoolers in the South Bronx called The (Bigger Than) Hip Hop Project. It's a trip to think the same neighborhood that gave birth to Hip Hop is still the poorest district in the entire nation. She invited me to perform at a benefit show for her program at the RDAC later that week, so of course i said yes... and ended up rocking 2 shows in the South Bronx that week. I'm hoping to become a regular face at the Rebel Diaz Arts Collective but i don't know how your gonna get me out of this studio... or my neighborhood for that matter. I know my days here are numbered... and am still trying to raise funds to get to Ethiopia in December... but God-willing i'll be back in NY sooner then later. Amos has a blog that he runs exclusively for the youth he works with in Seattle... and he's been posting videos from our adventures out here every day... i hope i'm not blowing up his spot... but if you want a sneak-peak at the album and a window into our little world check NeonFresh.com

til next time... blessings
-- gt

Manifesto Club

2009-11-10T23:47:00.000-08:00

So if you haven't heard the news... I was planning a European & African Tour, flew halfway around the planet to make it happen... just to get arrested, detained and denied entrance at the London-Heathrow Airport ...and sent back to New York City. It's a long story that i wrote about a few blog entries ago, and it also was written about on Last Night's Mixtape, Publicola, KOMO News and it even got a shout-out in The Stranger... but that's not what this is about. In the midst of the madness, i became aware of an organization based in the UK that is organizing against the Home Office restrictions on non-EU artists and academics. Apparently, in November of last year, the Home Office issued a 158-page document of new regulations for visiting artists and academics. According to this document, for an artist or educator to do a single event in England... you have to submit biometric data in advance, fingerprints, have at least $1600 sitting in a savings account for over 3 months... and the hosting organization has to be aware of the artists or educators whereabouts, 24/7. It's the most ridiculous list of requirements for an artist to get into a country i've ever seen... So what happened to me is far from an isolated incident. According to this article published in The Times last summer, the new regulations have brought ballet companies to the brink of collapse and had an effect on just about every kind of artist you could think of. Moral of the story? Read and sign this petition. And if your an artist or educator who is not based in Europe, and planning to go to the UK for an event? Hit up The Manifesto Club first... and pass that info on to anyone else who might be travelling to the UK. Me personally? I'll never fly into London again, unless it's from somewhere else in Europe.

Again, that website is http://www.manifestoclub.com/visitingartists

peace
-- gt

VIDEO :: Sleep "Orchestra of Strangers" featuring Toni Hill

2009-11-10T21:34:00.000-08:00

My brotha Sleep of Oldominion's latest video, "Orchestra of Strangers" featuring Toni Hill! Sleep's new project Hesitation Wounds was released earlier this year on Strange Famous Records... it's his first project since the classic LP Christopher, and my dude is really spitting hard! Look out for Sleep and The Chicharones, coming to a town near you! (my folks stay on the road... i don't know many who grind harder) Good music... NWup!!!

The Narcicyst: Stuck Between Iraq and A Hard Place Vol. 3... FREE DOWNLOAD

2009-11-10T21:11:00.000-08:00

The Narcicyst: Stuck Between Iraq and A Hard Place Vol. 3

download here

Narcy drops the 3rd and final installment of his Stuck Between Iraq and A Hard Place series, for free download at www.iraqisthebomb.com I had the pleasure of rocking a show in Seattle with Narcy and Ragtop a few months back, where i got a copy of Narcy's self-titled album... and i can tell you this brotha is the absolute truth! This mixtape includes songs made for the album that didn't make the final cut, as well as tracks made to other people's beats. Featured guests include DAM & Shadia Mansour! Do yourself a favor and purchase his album, and you can download the whole mixtape series on Narcy's website.

VIDEO :: Hill B "I Swear" featuring Khingz & TC Izlam

2009-10-27T13:23:00.000-07:00

My brotha Khingz new video with Hill-B & TC Izlam, done completely in the Central District & the Southend. RIP TalkSick. 206up

...when it rains it pours...

2009-10-26T23:22:00.000-07:00

SO... this has been one of the craziest weeks ever... when it rains it pours!

First off, Rest In Peace to the homie TalkSick. A face you knew if you went to any hip hop show in Seattle in the last 5 years, a town historian, and he also ran this blog - The War of the Words. Words can't even express it... you will be missed, homie.

The show at Chop Suey last Thursday was a smashing success. I never felt so loved and so vulnerable at a hip hop show before... the new songs can be a little hard to do, i found out! I suppose that's just what happens when you push yourself to write something your scared of talking about every day for a month. Premiered 10 new songs off of Colored People's Time Machine that night while the homie Jonathan Matas started doing the coverwork live on stage. The homie-for-life Toni Hill came up from Portland to open up the show and to join me for a few tracks, Khingz killed it with new material off his Cold Hearted In Cloud City EP (look for that online soon) and we ended with a surprise: Abyssinian Creole as Sexual Chocolate! Much love to everyone who came throo, and helped make the show such a success: Amos Miller, EarDrumz, WD4D, Massiah, Rahwa, Lulu, Canary Sing, Dume41, Kitty Wu, Daniel Lint, Scott, Andria, and every single person in the audience that night! It was almost too much to handle. The next night, Rogue Pinay, Khingz and myself smashed up to Bellingham for a small show at Western. The new songs feel so good to do.

The weekend hit and i found myself caught between interviews and drowning in a million little details to wrap up before my flight to Europe on Tuesday... so of course i got sick and bed-ridden. Ugh. Determined to knock the flu out in one day i ate cloves of garlic, 5000mg of Vitamin C throughout the day, drank lots of fluid, had lots of rest.

On Monday i needed to run a couple errands so i left the house for a couple hours with my sister WongWeezy and in the 2 hours or so we were gone, the house i was moving out of caught fire and almost burnt down! It was a grease fire that started while one of the homies was cooking, the fire travelled up to the vent above the stove which then burst into flames, and it could only be put out with a fire extinguisher (which we conveniently stored right above where the flames were). My friend was able to keep the fire contained to the one part of the kitchen (and really risked her life to do that) before the fire truck came and put it all the way out. By the time we got home all the walls in the kitchen were another color from the smoke. My friend who was home alone, moving in the next day, and who basically saved our entire house from burning down was cleaning with my other roomie and friends, while coughing up smoke.... and i just had to pack. Horrible feeling.

Tuesday rolled around and it was time to go too soon... the flight to London was 11 and a half hours with a really quick change of flights in Reykjavik, Iceland. I had already heard my share of horror stories regarding UK Customs at the London-Heathrow Airport, and i've had a couple pretty crazy experiences crossing into Canada over the years for shows, so, i felt like i was prepared for it all. I had a family member meeting me at the airport, address and phone number of who i was staying with while in London, I wasn't carrying any merchandise, and i had a receipt from a $1000 deposit into my bank from earlier in the morning. "It should be all good" i thought.

Got to the customs check around Noon on Wednesday. The series of questions seemed to be pretty routine, except this guy didn't seem to believe that i was just in London to visit family, even though there was family in the hallway. He got to the question of who purchased my plane ticket, and indeed, the University of Kent did purchase that plane ticket, as well as my flight that was scheduled to leave London and go to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on December 1st. So it was my fault for not being completely honest about the fact that i was performing in the UK. I got detained, fingerprinted, arrested, for the first time in my life. I was in the holding room for 8 hours before being told that i'm getting sent back to the United States. But what's really frustrating? Is that since i was invited to participate in an academic conference, i didn't even need a work visa for the performance i was scheduled to do, and the University of Kent actually got UK Customs all the paperwork that was needed in the time i was being held. Apparently, i was kicked out because they didn't believe i had enough funds to support myself while in the UK, yet no one working there could tell me exactly how much money would be sufficient. So i didn't know why i was being held for so long, and the reason they gave for kicking me out is sketchy. The 2nd time i was interviewed the guy had a huge file on me, i couldn't see everything in it, but i noticed printed versions of my wikipedia page and other materials off the internet were in there.

What else i can tell you about my experience at London-Heathrow is that it was only people of color in the holding room, that they separate us from all of our belongings, phone numbers etc. And there is a pay phone in the room. The seats are uncomfortable... no windows, just flickering fluorescent lights... and it feels like jail for real. Everyone else i met throughout the day seemed to be really cool people with no ill intention whatsoever, just unprepared to get treated like a criminal when they come halfway around the world to see their loved ones. The first person i met was a younger Eritrean brotha from Toronto, who came to surprise his girlfriend who is attending school out there. The most surreal moment of the day for me was when this brotha realized who i was and he knew my music, and he said it was an honor to meet me... all i could say was, "likewise," and "i wish it was under better circumstances". Him and his girl coincidentally have the same last name... they are not married... this happens a lot in our countries, it's different because our last names are passed down from our fathers first names. Well the UK couldn't believe this (they looked at me like i was crazy when i didn't know my moms cousins last name too) and ended up sending that boy home. I wanted to cry they were so cold to him. (Update: my first cell mate found me on Facebook! So after he left Heathrow, they only got him a ticket to DC, and he lives in Toronto... so my brotha was stranded in DC for a minute! Then when he finally gets to Toronto they lost his bags! After he had packed for a 2 month journey... this all makes my blood boil)

My next cell mate was an older Black woman from Chicago, who was coming to visit her niece who actually serves in the military in the UK. More then anything, it seemed like she was being held for not understanding the questions, they actually gave her a 2 day pass to see her niece before deporting her too.

Hours later when they were finally ready to pass judgement on me it was so sudden... dude just burst in the room, barked that he's sending me home and that there will be no further discussion. Before i could even have time to ask anything he was telling me how i'd be on the next plane to Iceland, and that there were no more flights to Seattle from Iceland for 3 days. At the time i didn't know if he meant i would be in an Iceland jail or just sitting at the Airport so i said "Send me on the first flight to anywhere in the States then..." and i started listing cities: "Washington, D.C., New York, San Francisco, Oakland, Los Angeles..." I ended up not having a choice in the matter, but they did put me on the next flight to New York City and i only had to spend one night in Keflavik, Iceland... which wasn't so bad because they didn't lock me up there, and i found a hotel right next to the airport.

That hotel in Iceland was the first time i got to access the internet... if your following me on Twitter or Facebook you know whatsup. Before I had even arrived in New York City on Thursday night the homie Jonathan Cunningham already had an article written that was circulating all around the internet. To welcome me back to the United States, I had my bags literally taken apart and every single t-shirt examined while the rest of my flight passed me by. Only person of color on the flight, only one searched. What's hilarious is that i know i was also the only person on the flight that hadn't really left airport security in 3 days. Way to keep us all safe, amerika...

In New York, i was fortunate enough to crash at the good homie Budo's house the first night, and have been staying at him and Grieves studio since then. Grieves is already out on tour and Budo's about to join him after an A.R.M. listening party in Minneapolis this week. I checked out a few CMJ events, got to see a bunch of family... DJ Ian Head, Geologic, Adebe D.B., Isabella Du Graf, Grynch, DJ Nphared, iLL-literacy, Devon & Jen from Sportn' Life, One Be Lo, Karim, and much more... i got to make some new music... but have really just had some hard choices and am left feeling like "what am i supposed to do now?"

Imagine waking up in a city you didn't plan on going to, 3000 miles from home and 3000 miles from where you planned to go... that's where i am now. I moved out of my apartment in Seattle... everything is in storage, i planned on being gone til January, there's no reason to go back now. I missed the one show in Europe that was paying enough for me to get to the rest of the shows i had booked there... If i were to buy another plane ticket to somewhere else in Europe to catch the tour, it would all just be a huge financial loss. And i can't use my ticket from London to Ethiopia anymore. The University had to get a refund on that ticket since they lost money by not doing the show with me.

So obviously i'm still trying to get to Ethiopia in December with The Arba Minch Collective but now i have to fundraise all over again! I'm sub-leasing this apartment in Brooklyn until we go to Ethiopia, and i will be based here in New York... making as much music as humanly possible.

A lot of people have been reaching out this past week to lend support, i really truly appreciate every single message... i've just been really stressed out and wasn't able to respond to everyone yet. I want you to know how heartening it is to hear everyones support, and because of this experience, now more then ever i feel like this music and this work i do is something so much bigger then me... so thank you for even taking the time to read this. My faith isn't shaken and i know there's a blessing somewhere in all of this.

To answer everyones question: what i really need now is work. Some beats to write and record to... some paying gigs... any fund-raising ideas? anyone down to sponsor a trip to Ethiopia? holla!

i'll keep you guys posted.

til we free...

-- gt