To define anyone by the tragedies they’ve experienced is a mistake. The world is made up of those who have suffered. The ones we view as survivors and not victims are the ones who handle tragedy with grace. Until her life became tabloid fodder, Monica Arnold was considered one of the successes in this industry – a singer whose natural talent was discovered early on who was making the transition to an adult career with relative ease. Her first album Miss Thang (1995) was a smash with classic joints like “Don’t Take It Personal” and “Before You Walk Out My Life” and her second The Boy Is Mine won her a Grammy for the title track with duet partner Brandy. Then tragedy hit in 2000 when her boyfriend, Jarvis Weems, took his own life in her presence. (She has a tattoo on her left arm in his honor.) A romance with No Limit’s C-Murder also went awry when he married someone else and then landed in jail on a murder charge. Despite that, Monica seems more old soul than helpless victim of wayward romances. Slim and approachably beautiful at 22, she exudes both serenity and an ease with herself and others that belies her age. Her current hit “So Gone,” with its 70’s feel, is a perfect fit for her untrained yet powerful voice. Out promoting her new album After the Storm, we caught up with her recently in New York. AllHipHop: When did you know you could sing? Monica: I was seven and I sang “The Greatest Love of All” for a king and queen contest for our church and I realized kind of then that something sounded different. That’s it and that’s all to it and I sang in church and that was it I enjoyed it and I had fun with it and after doing the talent show I met Dallas and that was pretty much the start of all of this. AllHipHop: How do you give gospel music a secular feel? Monica: It happens naturally. It happens, because its so out of my control it comes from one place and that’s my heart its easy for me to incorporate the two. AllHipHop: How was it like working with Missy Elliot? Monica: We hadn’t worked together before and it was so weird to have worked with her before and have the kind of relationship we had in our friendship. It felt normal to go to Miami and work at night and sleep all day because that’s her schedule. That kind of creativity is something that you can’t find everywhere. She definitely worked different with some of the other producers that I worked with but not that I needed adjustment sometime we’d do two songs a night. I just picked what I felt best reflected me and what best reflected the album. AllHipHop: How is she? She had that easygoing type of relationship with me. She may have to think about how to word things with other artists, but she would give me her opinions and we would go from there with no hesitation. If at any point if it would have been hard I would have really stopped the sessions, because I didn’t want it to put a strain on our other relationship. People didn’t know what we were working on [and] we kept everything to ourselves until we were finished. She likes to do things herself without any outside influence and by the time you [say], “Where is it?” its ready to go AllHipHop: What do you do offstage? Monica: Real relaxed. I love vacations. You have some people in this industry that are so high strung they don’t know how to vacation when they have the chance. I’m big on resting and eating well because of all the change of climates and the travel. I’m never in any of the pictures in the nightclubs, because that’s not the stuff that I’m interested in I like the real relaxed environments and I’m a big movie person. AllHipHop: Have your views on eating and health changed these days? Monica: Yes, I’ve changed my style of cooking because it was really southern – lots of rice and fried foods. It’s changed quite a bit. If I get the urge to have something like that I do it but I try not too my biggest weakness it cakes and pies. I have an aunt who bakes. Both of my parents are high blood pressure patients and most people think that its weight that makes you sick but she’s four pounds heavier than me at 53. Hollywood is obsessed with being thin and though I used to hate (being skinny), now I can eat and it’s fine. My mom changed the way she eats, my mom doesn’t even cook anything but turkey and maybe no meat period. My stepfather is a diabetic. I eat [what I want] if I get in that mood, if I get a craving, but I won’t overdo it. If I have mcdonalds to day I won’t do fast food for another four weeks. AllHipHop: Why you are attracted to the men you are and do you think current trends make young women believe that it’s a good thing to date thugs? Monica: I think for me that it’s become a trend for some people when I’m attracted to a person its never because of any one thing. I find things in those people that people never got a chance to see I think people always use us (celebrities) as a scapegoat for whatever they believe. If you like this person you consider all the issues that come with them. I considered that in my relationships with Corey (C-Murder) and in my relationship with Jarvis (Weems, the drug dealer who committed suicide) and you see because of the tragedies that happened that I had to deal with the repercussions. AllHipHop: Are your personal friendships are more important than business? Monica: I don’t allow music to affect […]

KRS can make you think. Chuck D can make you act. M.O.P. can make you hit your momma in the mouth, but who can make you experience a feeling? Is it Tupac? Is it Mary J. Blige? Well, Science Fiction, an instrumental hip-hop producer has found a way to convey emotions to his audience through sound alone. With his album, “Walls Don’t Exist” slowly becoming a conversation piece in the underground, Science Fiction may be the next to reach a peak formerly known as the best kept secret. All biting aside, this record leaves listeners with many questions, like a good movie. AllHipHop sat down with Science Fiction to get some of these answers, and the behind the scenes details. We think this is an artist, and an album worth learning. Science Fiction is an artist who carefully crafted out every last detail of his album. The righteous pay a sacrifice to get what they deserve, and Science Fiction is climbing upward. Allhiphop: I’ve been reading how you call your music “broken jazz”, you invented this, let’s get into that… Science Fiction: Well, that’s what I do, I guess, right now. When I first came up with the term, I thought “you don’t want to put the word Jazz into anything.” Because it’s such a huge genre, and you’re gonna get so much hate and so much flack because that’s like quoting the Bible or something to certain people. So one hand, I was pretty hesitant. But if you look at hip-hop, it came out of sampling Jazz breaks and Disco, whatever. I’m a big Jazz fan right now. That’s primarily what I sample from. My favorite song of all time is a John Coltrane song. To me, it’s just to pay homage to what I think is a huge influence on me. The broken section is all hip-hop: sampling, and chopped beats, and like taking something – disassembling it, and rearranging it until it becomes your own interpretation of it. Allhiphop: Jazz is improvisational, does that carry into your work too then? SF: The live show is a completely different thing. But the recording aspect, like the vocals, a lot of people don’t know that I sang on the majority of the album. The stuff people think are samples are really just me. And that just comes from putting random music together and seeing what feelings you get from it. The music speaks to you, all the crazy titles and stuff like that just is me vibing out to the music and seeing what I get from it. If I feel like it needs an angry tone, I’ll feel an old angry white dude or chick singing, that’s what I’ll pull out of my voice. It’s definitely a lot of letting the music talk for itself. Allhiphop: Track titles, yes. You have the best track titles I’ve seen on a record in years. How’d you name them? SF: I hate when cats talk to you about an album and say, “track 9 is great, track 6 is hot”. Allhiphop: Word to Little Brother. SF: Exactly. I know, I was playing their record today, they’re great guys. But yeah, it’s like people don’t really pay attention. Especially in a genre like instrumental music, what do you have to describe it besides the titles. The titles came from a lot of the music. The album, being a concept album itself, kind of really held that together. ‘Cuz all of it was entirely made by accident. I was messing around for a while, and then I was like, “oh s###, I have this thing and it sort of weaves itself together chronologically.” It’s a kinda like a direct message to someone. But I kept it kinda anonymous because the whole love story is something everybody has experienced, or will at some time. Allhiphop: That person, have you received a response from him or her? SF: Not yet. It’s about one person. It’s about many people as well. I pulled from general experiences. And people always ask me about the track, “Christine”. That’s actually a real chick. I haven’t heard from her yet. Allhiphop: Your track “Sunshine” is just incredible. The liner notes b###### away too… SF: Yeah, that’s the first single. The album is basically split into four sections. That’s the prologue. “Sunshine” is about after going through whatever it is you go through: be it relationship trouble, or life troubles, whatever it is – there’s always something there. Even if it’s just music, coming home after a rough day and playing a favorite song. There’s always a silver lining. And to me, that silver lining is the sunshine. Allhiphop: You sang incredibly on that cut. How much musical training do you have? SF: I’m not formally trained at all. When I was growing up, I used to play in little Grunge bands in the 90’s. I was a drummer in the band, and the guitar player taught me guitar. That’s the extent of my training. I kind of regret not learning to read music. Knowledge is something you could always use more of. So I’d probably like learning as soon as possible. For the most part, I have a pretty good ear for stuff. Allhiphop: And you’re relatively new to production… SF: Yeah, probably in the last four years, I think. Allhiphop: So with a great record, I ask you – in production, how much is skill and how much is passion? SF: You could argue that to be a great producer or musician you need formal training. But I don’t know how much training a Timbaland or a Dr. Dre…you know, they didn’t go to school for music. I didn’t go to that much school for music. So a lot of it is passion. Technically training is what separates the masters from everybody else. ‘Cuz you look at Pete Rock and Preemo, and they have the technical skills down to the point that you can’t fathom what it is they […]

With three rap albums (Illmindmuzik, Andsoitisaid, Mad Men On Arrival), numerous quality singles, and assorted collaborations to his credit, Dudley Perkins, aka Declaime, is set to unveil his most personal work to date – a record under his real name, with no rapping – strictly him singing over his man Madlib’s beats. Heads got their first taste of Dudley’s unique vocal displays on "Flowers," a Stones Throw 7-inch released last year and later featured on the Peanut Butter Wolf’s Jukebox 45s compilation. Currently touring Europe, Dudley talks about coming up in Oxnard, working with the best producer on earth, and his forthcoming LP A Lil’ Light. AllHipHop: For the people that haven’t heard you yet, how would you describe your vocal style? DP: Um, it’s in the key of everybody. Everybody can sing it. AllHipHop: Did you sing growing up? DP: Me and my cousins used to always sing, we’d walk home from football practice or something and sing songs, you know, it was a while ago, but I don’t sing, you know what I’m sayin? (laughs) I love music and I know the keys of music, and the sound of music resonates from me. It wasn’t planned at all, the album came from the angels or something you know? Cuz I didn’t plan that, I didn’t put effort into it, I didn’t take it seriously. AllHipHop: Was "Flowers" originally a one-off that blew up, or was there always a Dudley album in the works? DP: Well one night, me, Madlib and Peanut Butter Wolf, we all stayed at Madlib’s house cuz we was out late. Early in the morning we were smoking weed and Madlib played a mellow track and he said "hey, you wanna mess with that?" and I just sung over it (laughs). AllHipHop: Were you surprised at the response to it? DP: It was a surprise to me, you know, people told me when it came out "that song is so different." AllHipHop: The album is so unlike what most people consider "R&B" these days, or even the so-called neo-soul, your joints come off a lot more raw and sincere. What’s your take on the current state of the game, singers who are out now? DP: Well, when you got a category like that, neo-soul, R&B and stuff, that’s just what that is. So people tend to wanna be in those categories or that structure. So being neo-soul, you have to sound like Dwele, you have to sound like Erykah Badu, you have to sound like Cody Chestnut. You gotta sound like them dudes to fit in, that’s what they wanna be. See I didn’t wanna be anything. If you wanna categorize my album, you gotta categorize it under illmindmuzik. That’s my own genre of music. Anything I do is mine. I get my own messages from God and myself, and no two messages are the same, so I can’t sound like nobody else no matter what I do. AllHipHop: Oxnard – what’s going on there that spawned you, Madlib, and everybody else? DP: Well, we used to think of it as the Bermuda Triangle, we couldn’t get out. I mean, we paid dues. We can write a book on the dues we paid. We really paid dues. Madlib ain’t no joke. We’ve learned, we’ve built, we honed our skills so that we are the last day people in music. Madlib is the head of the orchestra right now, he’s the pied piper, leading people to the doorway of heaven and that’s no joke. Music is the harmonious sound you know? AllHipHop: Madlib did all the beats on your album, and it’s obvious you guys have a really good connection. Are you gonna work primarily with him – Guru and Premier style – or are you hooking up with other producers too? DP: I got other producers already, I have the trinity. I called em the trinity. That’s Kankick the Funky Asthmatic, Kanthrax, Kanzulu. Kankick is one of the most soulfulest beings you could probably ever meet. I got Oh No the Mischievous Rebel on the next level — Madlib’s little brother, and I got Madlib the Bad Kid, Beat Conductor Sensei. I don’t really need to go nowhere. Ever. (laughs) Cuz I know these dudes man, I know how their soul runs through their bodies. I know it, I see it. I been around them since we was young, to the point where, Madlib used to glow just about, with the harmonies coming out of space, to his hands, you know? He’s a bright dude, kinetic warmth. Madlib is possibly the greatest producer ever to walk this earth. In fact, in my heart he is. He’s the culmination of every single producer on this planet. I’m talking about classical, country, rock, everybody’s soul is in that dude. He can flip every single style there is…in two minutes flat! (laughs) you know what I’m sayin?! That’s no joke man. AllHipHop: You’re touring Europe right now, how have the crowds been? DP: Well I take em to church every night (laughs). We end the show with "Flowers" every show, and last night, half the crowd, well not half the crowd, but enough that can fit on stage was on stage with me and everybody was singin it. It was crazy, church was there last night. I can’t wait for the next show. AllHipHop: Any plans for a new Declaime album? DP: Yeah, September. Well it might be pushed back to October, November, but if it goes that way I’m just gonna drop it in January. But it’s done, I’m just waiting on a couple more tracks. I don’t have that many guest appearances on it this time, I got Medaphoar and Grand Agent and Lil’ Dap. AllHipHop: I know you did the artwork on the Lootpack record, are you still drawing? DP: Art, that’s my first love, drawing pictures and stuff. I tried out for Marvel comics one time. (laughs) The Lootpack cover is not that, it’s […]

Hello, haters, critics and general detractors. She’s still here. After a solid year, Ashanti, the princess of the Murder Inc crew, returns with her second coming – Chapter II. The lovely songstress takes a few moments to answer some brief questions about the turbulence on her flight to fame. AllHipHip.com Alternatives: What’s up with your new album and what differences are you going to have this time around? Ashanti: The new album is called Chapter II it’s coming out July 1st and we kept the first formula as the first album. I think what we did was take everything up a level vocally, musically and lyrically. I’m 100% satisfied, I’m loving all the records we had a little more time with this one and I’m really feeling it so I’m kind of excited. AHHA: Any special features or appearances on the album? Ashanti: Nah not really, I have a verse of [Murder Inc producer] C#### Santana. AHHA: He’s rapping now? Ashanti: He’s going to be coming in a minute. AHH: Can you tell me what has changed for you since last year as far as your outlook on things? Ashanti: I guess I can say I just learned a lot. AHHA: In what ways? Ashanti: Everything, definitely about the game, the rules, the pros and cons, life in general, dealing with people and politics, everything. AHHA: Does the politics get on your nerves? Ashanti: I think it’s kind of unnecessary but it’s politics everywhere. AHHA: Are you worried about the sophomore slump? Ashanti: Nah not really I honestly think this album is a little better than the first album. I’m so content with everything that happened last year I don’t think anything is going to have me too upset. AHHA: I felt that the hate was excessive for no reason, how did you deal with that? Ashanti: I enquired like, “Ohh, what are they saying that for?” It didn’t bother me like that ‘cause it was too many positive things going on for me to get caught up in all of that. AHHA: What was your most favorite thing that you did outside of the music? Ashanti: I definitely enjoyed the whole Buffy experienced and the little T.V shows that I did, just meeting people and knowing how that works on another scale. I really think it’s the whole book thing because I know that when I wrote the book it was all out of inspiration to inspire other people to do things that they want to do in life and I know that everything that I wrote in there was 100% real and 100% true. When I was doing book signings people would be like “I didn’t know you did that” and it just felt like it brought me closer to the people. AHHA: On Buffy you were a vampire right? Ashanti: Yeah C: How was that? Ashanti: That was a lot of fun and I liked it ‘cause your not looking at it to see Ashanti being Ashanti or Ashanti the singer on a show, it was something totally different and that was really me fighting. I broke 2 nails that day. AHHA: Last year it was a little controversy with BET and the boycott, were you mad at BET and if so are you still mad at BET? Ashanti: There was a boycott? What kind of a boycott? AHHA: The whole online thing. Ashanti: The Lady of Soul thing? AHHA: Yeah. Ashanti: That wasn’t BET that was Lady of Soul (Soul Train boycott) stuff. It was crazy because it was kind of like I was prepared for it only because I knew everything wasn’t going 1000% perfect. I know along with the good comes the bad so about a month before that happened I was mentally preparing myself like alright “I know something is going to give any minute now”. It was crazy because the way that it started was real small and it turned into this off-the-chain petition joint. It was cool because I know I didn’t ask for the award, it was given to me, it’s not like I went up there and was like “ya’ll need to give this award to me”. It came from them and it was a lot of people that began to slowly understand that. There wasn’t a lot of argument because like I said, I didn’t ask for it. There was a bunch of other artist out and this is Don. It was cool because when I showed up I had all my guys with me and they had the army gear on, everybody was ready but it was nothing. I walked in and everything was well received so I was cool. AHHA: Are you worried about how things are holding up on your end as far as the Murder Inc/federal probe situation? Ashanti: Nah, I’m not. I’m all for the peace. We need peace over there with Bin Laden and them and we need peace over here too. AHHA: Getting in the game starting out doing hooks, was that a good way or do you think you could of just came in with an album? Ashanti: I think that was a great way to be introduced to the industry ‘cause what better way than to be paired up with to megastars like Ja and Fat Joe and of course Big Pun? They’re going to be like we know who this person is but who is this other chick so it definitely propelled my career.

What do jazz cats know about hip-hop, anyway? Plenty, if you ask Soulive. Comprised of brothers Alan and Neal Evans, and Eric Krasno, this East Coast band’s been blazing audiences worldwide with their distinctive brand of funked-out groove soul. In the few years since their inception, Soulive’s toured with a dizzying array of music icons: The Rolling Stones, Parliament/Funkadelic, and the Dave Matthews band, just to name a few. They’ve even managed to catch the ear of the underground elite—Talib Kweli, J-Live and Black Thought are just a few MC’s who’ve given Soulive’s instrumentals a lyrical workout. But it’s the undeniable mix of musicianship and creative synergy Soulive bring to their live shows that attract a diverse and devoted fan following. AHHA caught up with Eric and Neal to discuss their new self-titled album and the relevance of their music to the rap game. AllHipHop.com Alternatives: What do you feel is the connection to hip-hop and jazz? Why do you feel your music is relevant to hip-hop? NE: Well we grew up listening to hip-hop and all that’s in our music, I mean it’s all there. EK: Oh it’s huge. When we’re on the road traveling, we listen to primarily hip-hop. As long as it’s soulful and fresh, that’s what we love. Back in the day a lot of so-called jazz musicians would be playing the dope Stevie Wonder cut that was on the radio. We’ll bust into whatever we’re listening to at the moment. We’re listening to a lot of the stuff that got sampled and to the people who are sampling them so we’re coming from both places and combining all of that. A lot of the stuff we’re playing could be rhymed over at any time but we like to play instrumentally. We like to improvise with it and not necessarily stay to a standard format. AHHA: You have collaborations with Black Thought, Talib, and J-Live. Could you tell us a little about how each of those came about? NE: We did a show with with Ahmir and he was like “Yo, we need to get together.” That’s how every collaboration has kind of happened. We meet people and it’s been “We should do something in the studio” Like with Talib we knew about him and he knew about us. AHHA: How does it work? Do they write the lyrics first or do you guys have the instrumentals beforehand? EK: Well (for “Clap”) Tariq had written his beforehand. NE: With Talib (“Bridge to Bama”), he just walked in the studio and he just vibed out for like a long time. He had to split to do this TV show and he was like “Yo I’ll be right back” and literally he was right back. He blazed us so hard that night. EK: Yeah, Talib is a true professional. He came in, wrote to the track right there and Hi-Tek added a new drum track to it and added some different effects and samples and stuff. Then we played over that. While we were playing, Talib was writing the lyrics. It all happened in one night. We mixed it the next day. NE: He was just so humble and so appreciative of us feeling his lyrics. He’s like, a true artist. Really very conscious of what he’s saying. EK: J-Live is another guy who is just amazing. I think he’s one of the best. He did something on our remix album and wrote to one of our songs. I’m working with Live on his next record. AHHA: You also have a cut (“All Up In It”) on the new DJ Spinna cd. How did that come about? EK: We chill with Spinna a lot (laughs) He lives in Brooklyn, not too far from me. He’s got a studio. We all produce beats too, so he’s like one of our cats we check out. NE: He’ll call and be like ” What you doing? Come over and lay some keys.” EK: He really vibes off the musicianship and we vibe off of how he puts stuff together, his whole production. ‘Cuz you know there’s a lot of people who call themselves “hip-hop producers” that can make a beat but he’s a true producer. AHHA: Who do you consider to be a true producer? NE: Some of these cats–they’ll sample somebody and be like “Ok, here’s the rimshot.” EK: This is one of the things ?uestlove was talking about. He was like “I hate it when people are talking about ‘I did this beat in five minutes’”. It’s all about spending the time making the s### sound good. A lot of guys have a keyboard that does all their stuff. They program everything on their keyboard, and that’s it. NE: That’s why I have a lot of respect for cats like ‘Dre, his whole camp–he’s into using musicians. DJ Quik is another one, using musicians and making hip-hop, creating something. Timbaland’s another one–that’s a musical cat. I think he’s more on being on the frontier of a sound—he’s pushing sound. EK: Nothing gets me more hyped than Premier and Pete Rock. Honestly when I wanna hear something against one of our records, that’s what I want our records to sound like. At least for me I’ll play it up against the Pete Rock instrumental beat and try to match up how it should sound. AHHA: So let’s talk about the new cd. This is your first live album and it was all recorded from your Fall 2002 tour. Are you happy with the finished product? Do you think it catches the essence and energy of your live performances? EK: It’s never quite like being there obviously but I think this is the closest representation of any of the albums we’ve made. NE: Except kind of like our old album …there were live cuts on it. EK: Yeah, “Turn it Out” NE: We actually wanted our first album on Velour to be a live album but they didn’t wanna do it. […]

Kindred The Family Soul – Feature and Q&A Seandra Sims – AllHipHop.com Alternatives (March/April 2003) [An overzealous lighting technician has raised the house lights too soon.] "Why are the lights up? Are we done?!" "No!" yells back many of the more than 500 members of DC’s grown folk and bohemian set. The lights drop, and once again Aja Graydon takes control of this house she’s made a home – for the night at least. Then Graydon, a native Washingtonian and the livelier half of husband and wife duo Kindred The Family Soul, smiles as wide as her Afro, absorbing their approval because she really is home. Seconds later, Fatin Dantzler, her shell-top Adidas-wearing husband and slightly more reserved backbone of the Family, ushers in the song "Spread the Word." It’s a go-go inspired track certain to win over the local crowd at The Saint. Most of them don’t know the words to the song, but they do know ‘the pocket’ on percussion when they hear it – and they love it. Kindred’s 10-piece band shines while the track rocks the audience for more than 12 minutes. From the full horn section reminiscent of Earth, Wind & Fire a generation before, to the talented drummer whose arms take on a life of their own, everyone in the Family gets a turn. It leaves you wishing that they’d release a live version of the album. And that’s cool with Aja and Fatin – after all, it’s their live shows and the band’s signature sound that have helped to catapult them into the spotlight. Surrender to Love, the group’s debut album released on Hidden Beach on March 25 is an eclectic blend of neo-soul harmonies and touchingly raw lyrics. Its first single, "Far Away," is a rhythmic, guitar-heavy anthem for hardworking young folk, exhausted parents, and anyone who needs a break from the grind. Allhiphop.com: The album recently came out. What will the next few days and weeks be like for you? Aja: Well right now we’re just preparing for our kickoff performance in Philadelphia, Tuesday the 25th at the TLA. We’re gearing up and rehearsing for that and some other performances that we’ll be having in New York, Washington D.C., and also in Atlanta. We also have some up and coming performances in Richmond and the St. Lucia Jazz Festival, so we’ll be quite busy for the next two months. We’re just trying to relax with our family and get some good family time in before we go on the road. AHH: You’ve been connected with Jill Scott, The Roots and other members of the growing neo-soul music family in Philly. And I remember, even a year ago, the industry was anticipating your album. With all of the advance press you’ve gotten, do you feel any pressure that you’ll be lumped into a category with Jill and other artists with a similar sound? Aja: Well, what an illustrious category to be lumped into! I guess more than anything we just want to be associated with good music, whether that’s Jill Scott or any other genre – we’re not opposed to that. It’s not something that we’re nervous about. We’re just nervous about the reception more than anything. We’re just glad to be associated with good music, whatever it may be. AHH: I know Jill and her husband introduced you to the folks at Hidden Beach. And since we really haven’t heard anything like your sound in years, how receptive was Hidden Beach when they first met you? Fatin: They received us very well. They were very helpful in the beginning, as they are right now. Steve McKeever, the president, came down to see us when we were at The Black Lily. He was right there among all of the rest of the crowd, and he enjoyed it. He hung out with us and made us feel real at home, real comfortable. We got a chance to go out to the record label and put some things on the table. They really wanted to make sure that we got to do some things ourselves as well. But at the same table, they had ideas, too. It has been a really good experience so far. AHH: There hasn’t been an article that I’ve seen yet that hasn’t compared you to husband and wife teams from the past – Ashford & Simpson, Ron Isley and Angela Winbush, etc. While we can see the similarities, what do you think most sets you apart from them? Fatin: The fact that we’ve grown up with hip hop. That we’ve grown up in the times that we’ve grown up in and had that experience. We just live in a different world today. We’re very influenced by [hip hop], and we’re trying to carry on the tradition. And then we have those people that we’re compared to as our inspiration. It’s like we have the blueprint already made out. AHH: This album is what I call a ‘rider’ – in other words, yesterday, I drove from D.C. to Delaware without changing the CD and without skipping any of the tracks. How difficult is it to create an album that has such continuity? Aja: Actually, I don’t know if we tried. You don’t try – you just hope that it is. I don’t think you go at it like ‘hey, let me make the record like this.’ You just express yourself creatively, and pray that’s what it is. AHH: Is this a glimpse into your daily lives as performers and as parents? Aja: Yeah, that is our daily life! Sometimes our lyrics get realer than you real think! As a songwriter, if you can’t get inspiration from your own situation, I mean, then you really are just telling other people’s stories. Some people are very talented at that. Obviously, you have rappers who do that. But most times, if you interview a rapper, they are like, ‘yo, these are my experiences.’ They seem to be the kinds of artists you describe […]

The year 2007 was the year of the good, the bad and the ugly for Amy Winehouse. With her trademark beehive hairdo, soulful vibe and retro production, it’s easy to see why she fascinated music lovers in need of rehab for the soul.   And she delivered. In more ways than one as her latest album Back to Black proved to be a platinum plus introduction to fans who had yet to discover Amy in her early Hip-Hop, jazzy form on her freshman effort Frank. Even rap fans had to bow down as the singer received co-signs from Prince, George Michael and The Roots’ ?uestlove as well as Ghostface Killah, who appears on the remix to Winehouse’s “You Know I’m No Good,”and Pharoahe Monch and Jay-Z, both of whom officially expressed their love and respect for Winehouse by showing up on remixes to her hit single “Rehab.”   That song, which detailed Winehouse’s refusal to take her management company’s advice to go to an alcohol rehabilitation center, would go on to be the theme song of the singer’s year as Back to Black went multi-platinum overseas and in the U.S. and earned the highest debut entry on the Billboard charts by an British female solo artist. Even Amy’s personal life fell in line as she married her boyfriend Blake Fielder-Civil in a secret ceremony in May.   To many observers, the union was the beginning of a downward spiral for Winehouse, as her personal life gradually overshadowed her professional triumphs. Drug use started to emerge in August when Winehouse nearly died after collapsing from a three-day binge of heroin, ecstasy, cocaine, alcohol and ketamine, a horse tranquilizer. As a result, the singer briefly spent time in rehab, where she was released after five days. Soon after, reports surfaced about a bloody fight between Winehouse and Fielder-Civil after he found her preparing to do drugs in their hotel room. Winehouse later admitted that her husband was in the right for trying to stop her as she proceeded to harm him and herself with cuts and scratches.   The madness of the singer’s personal demons eventually spilled over into her live shows as Winehouse was noted for showing up late to concerts as well as slurring and forgetting her words while singing. She was later banned from entering the United States after being arrested with her husband in October for possession of marijuana. Winehouse later admitted that she was “duped” into confessing to the crime. And to further insult to injury, photographs of the couple surfaced from the night of the hotel room fight.   While fans suspected that Fielder-Civil had a negative influence on Winehouse, the songbird’s mother Janis spoke out against him in hopes her daughter would come around.   “Thank God he’s gone inside,” Janis, Winehouse told Britain’s First magazine about her son-in-law’s current stint in jail. “Everyone else can see it, but Amy chooses not to.”   In November, Fielder-Civil was arrested and charged with trying to pervert the course of justice in connection to an alleged assault on a bartender in June. He is currently serving time in jail after bail was denied. The investigation is still pending as Fielder-Civil will spend the Christmas holiday and New Years Day behind bars. According to reports, Winehouse is not involved in the incident.   Janice Winehouse wasn’t the only parent speaking out on the couple. Giles Fielder-Civil led efforts to administer some tough love to his famous daughter-in-law by urging fans to quit buying Winehouse’s records. During an interview with the British Broadcasting Corp. radio, the elder Fielder-Civil revealed that he believed the songstress and his son had used cocaine, crack cocaine and heroin and were in “abject denial” about their problem.   “Perhaps it is time to stop buying records,” said Giles Fielder-Civil, who thinks fans should send a message to Winehouse “that her addiction and her behavior are not acceptable.” “It’s a possibility to send that message.”   As 2007 draws to a close, things don’t seem to get any better. Winehouse recently cancelled her remaining tour dates and public appearance for the year under doctor’s orders as well as being distraught over her husband’s incarceration.   Janice Winehouse recently wrote a letter, pleading for her daughter to come home and get some help. The plea comes days after the singer was photographed wearing a red bra and blue jeans as she walked the streets of London in the early hours of the morning.  And while it’s easy to get caught up in the never-ending twists of the Winehouse Chronicles, let’s remember what brought Amy to the table. Winehouse recently confirmed that she will get back in the to work on the follow-up to Back to Black, which is set to be released in 2008. And judging by her six Grammy nominations, Winehouse ends 2007 the same way she entered it…being noticed for her music.

In a world of annoyingly catchy radio hits, but little quality albums and overused synthesizers, sometimes you need to hear the real thing. Despite a year of declining album sales, good old fashioned touring is still in style. Yes, you can easily go to You Tube and watch snippets of your favorite artist performing, but nothing compares to the feeling of seeing and hearing it live.   There were many acts to choose from, but a few of us avid concert goers at AllHipHop Alternatives got together to list our favorite concerts of the year. From New York to London, we chose both big and small concerts where these artists took us out of our writer uniforms and made us happy to be music fans.     Lollapalooza- Grant Park, Chicago August 3-5, 2007   In the dead of summer, trekking to a park full of thousands of fans and running from one side of it to another doesn’t sound very appealing. But when it’s Lollapalooza, it’s worth it! The three-day concert was held at Chicago’s Grant Park in the midst of almost 90-degree heat. Artists included The Roots, Paolo Nutini, Pearl Jam, and Lupe Fiasco.   Among my favorite performances was Amy Winehouse. Watching her slyly sing the lyrics to songs off her American debut album Black to Black was unforgettable. Though Winehouse was clearly over “it” (the performance and perhaps even the fame) she belted out soulful notes so easily that it looked she was talking. Wearing thick black eyeliner, her signature bouffant hairdo and looking thinner than ever before, Winehouse completed her set by walking off-stage unannounced. The audience was left a little confused, but judging by her recent performances and cancellations this was tame. – Latifah Muhammad       Keyshia Cole/ J Holiday- Nokia Theater, New York August 19, 2007   Keyshia Cole is dope. You know this. Accept it. Her concert at the Nokia Theater was an appetizer leading up to her sophomore album release Just Like You, but you wouldn’t know the difference. Cole sang nearly every song from her debut The Way It Is, and the crowd followed behind her every move. Since Nokia Theater is such an intimate setting, the audience could not only see Cole clearly, but connect with her performance. Even during an awkward dance number, she bounced back.       J. Holiday wasn’t so bad himself getting ladies in that slow jam mood performing his hit “Bed” and a few other singles from his debut album Back of My Lac. It’s nice to see that R&B still going strong. – Latifah Muhammad The Beyoncé Experience: Chicago Style August 18, 2007   You never know what to expect when Beyoncé hits the stage, but the odds are her performance will bring forth something unique and one of a kind. While performing in Chicago for two hours and transitioning through several set and wardrobe changes alongside her all female band “Suga Mama,” Beyoncé displayed her ability to sing, dance, and entertain while making a keen connection with the audience. Of all the songs Beyoncé sang, the most memorable performance was when she introduced “Irreplaceable” and asked that the audience sing along. It was then that I realized that “Irreplaceable” is a song recognized whole heartily by many because Beyoncé didn’t have to sing a word; the audience sang it for her. In all, seeing Beyoncé perform live was an experience beyond exceptional. – Nia B       Alice Smith- Mercury Lounge New York City November 6, 2007   If you haven’t heard of Alice Smith, you’re missing out. The Georgia born, artist is a hybrid of old-school soul mixed with alternative-funk flavor. Performing songs from her debut album For Lovers, Dreamers & Me, Alice hit the stage looking like she belonged on a fashion runway. But don’t let her beauty fool you; her musical talent was so powerful it was surreal. Drop dead good looks and a coy smile quickly took a backseat once she opened her mouth to sing. Performing to a sold-out crowd behind a live band, at the dimly lit Mercury Lounge, Alice’s performance quickly convinced me that she is an underrated extreme talent.     – Latifah Muhammad   Honorable Rap Mentions   Kanye West Benefit Concert: House of Blues (Chicago) August 24, 2007   The Kanye West Benefit Concert at The House of Blues in Chicago was an evening to remember. It was the last time I got to see Dr. Donda West and Kanye together – both very happy, smiling raising money and awareness for their Loop Dreams Foundation. Even though the actual concert didn’t get started until about 11:15PM when doors opened at 8PM, I will say the time I waited was well worth it, but I can’t say I felt the same way on the actual day. I actually contemplated leaving the concert because Kanye took so long to grace the stage, but now when I reflect back, I’m glad that I stayed.   Being able to see Kanye perform songs from his catalog and latest album Graduation alongside an orchestra and DJ was simply priceless. From the flashing lights to the special appearance from Mos Def, the show was incredible. If you’ve ever seen Kanye perform you know how passionate he is about being on stage.   Overall it was a party with a purpose, and I will always cherish the moment. After interviewing Dr. Donda West back in May of this year for AHH, she became very dear to me reminding me of my own mother. To have this concert be the last time I saw her and Kanye together will always be a memory I cherish. I mark this event as one of my favorite concerts of all time. – Nia B   J.A.M. Awards & Concert: A Tribute to Jam Master Jay- The Hammerstein Ballroom- New York City November 29, 2007   This concert was classic. Held in the memory of Jam Master Jay, Rev Run and […]