Hyphenated-Life: November 2007

From the guttas of Brooklyn, Tek and Steele of Smif-N-Wessun hit the streets with a fresh installment of ski mask music with, “The Album.” Out the gate Tek and Steele allow you to, “See The light”, an ode to staying strong through their trails and tribulations, “You wanna live this lifestyle, you gotta be tough/…The number one rule of making it is never give up.” From Smif N Wessun to Cocoa Brovaz and back again, Tek and Steele leave the listener with a “Buck Town” back hand to the face, as if to say “Nigga we ain’t goin’ no where!”

Along with the nostalgic rhymes of Tek and Steele, reggae vocals supplied by Chuckii star bless the first single, “Gotta Say It”. Sadly this album falls short of an all around hit. Poor beat selection leaves them with no stable platform to showcase their hungry lyrics on. “The Album” will get a few spins for the guest appearances (Loudmouf Choir Church, Million Stylez, Joell Ortiz), and the few beat burst of life (“Still Fighting”, “Stomp Thru”, “Gotta Say It”), but despite the lyrical effort, “The Album” has little playback value. The album is cool, in a “this is underground” way, but from vets in the game I would expect more. If you’re into hard lyrics from the heart, I highly recommend buying “The Album”, if not cop the single, it’s Hot!

Peace.Love.Hlife

-J. Poakwa

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Los Angeles-The birthplace of gangster rap finds itself taking the opportunity to strike the game with some newfound flavor.

The “New” West movement has spawned many talented MC’s whom stay true to the format of the God Fathers of Hip Hop. Ill beats and hot rhymes from the Southern California city have been catching the eyes and ears of many Hip-Hop fans around the United States. The young musicians have taken it upon themselves to not only save Hip-Hop, but also change the “Gangster Rap” stigma placed on the west coast. One of the many talented artists leading the charge against whack music is triple threat producer and Loyola Marymount Junior, Jason Madison, also known as J Skillz.

Growing up in Los Angeles is one of the main reasons J Skillz is a jack-of-all-trades. “I grew up in just about every part of Los Angeles…I’ve seen it all.” Having the benefit of being exposed to different surroundings in his early years of life has really helped mold Skillz to the triple threat artist he is today. “The people and things I was exposed to, from going to Marcus Garvey, an all black school until 4th grade, to an all white school with Priscilla Presley’s son being my best friend in 5th grade, and still living in the hood, was definitely an eye opener.” The opportunity to see life on the many different sides of the spectrums of life, allowed Skillz to figure out what he wanted to do for a living at an early age.

Like most artists on the come up, Skillz started out producing on sub-par equipment at the home of a relative. “The first [official] beat I made was probably in my grandmother's garage in the summer after my 8th grade year.” Feeling good about what his future had in store for him, Skillz began to make beats non-stop. “Around the age of 13, I started making beats in my room. I didn’t have a program where I could save them, so I would hook up a microphone and point it at the speaker after I made the beat. I would record on tape and do this every chance I got. I would go in my room close the door and just go to Work; they were really shitty.”

As Jason grew up, so did his talent; the once sub par records of his childhood, soon became great pieces of work that had heads nodding with delight. He saw his talent begin to blossom in high school when he started to sample classic soul records, a style popularized by producers like Kanye West.

This newfound success was highly attributed to his family musical connection. He began to make songs with his cousin Dom Kennedy in high school and sell the finished product to his friends at lunch. The impressive upgrade in production quality of the songs, hooked his target audience, and J Skillz began to make a name for his self as a legitimate producer in Los Angeles. Being one with a hustler’s ambition, Jason found any free time he could to promote him self as a producer. While Djying high school dances, Skillz would throw on one of his records. The feedback from the crowd was usually positive, giving Skillz the confidence he needed in order to approach the big league of producing.

“I have produced for Kurupt of the Dogg Pound, Dom Kennedy, Raquel, Rose, Lite, and I also scored a video game for my friend Gary Washington.” His early success as a DJ and producer has opened many doors for his young talent to grow. “I've been in the studio with Kanye a couple times, I worked with J Wells for a summer and learned a lot of things from him. EP who has a lot of credits on everything from Blueprint 2 to Ne-Yo is my main mentor and whom I look to whenever I have a question about anything concerning the industry or music in general. I’m influenced by all these people and every artist I’ve ever liked.”

Now in his junior year at Loyola Marymount University, Jason Madison finds himself perfecting his other areas of interest. If one were to look in the dictionary and look up the term component lifestyle, Jason Madison’s face would surely be there. J Skillz is no stranger to innovation. Like other triple threat veteran artists such as Sean ”Diddy” Combs and Sean ”Jay-Z” Carter, Skillz also, along with being a Music Producer for his label Ten West Records, he is also a Clothing Designer, and Film Director. With his clothing line Shoes Over Bitches (S.O.B) and numerous student film credits, Skillz covers all bases. As a Film major, Skillz is learning how to bring his beats to life on screen. He has directed a couple of music videos for other “New” west artist such as Pacific Division and his cousin Dom Kennedy.

At his current state, Skillz is on his way to making a big name for himself and the west coast. “I make good songs. A lot of people focus on the wrong things when it comes to music. All of that other stuff is secondary to making good songs that people like and connect with. I don’t care how that song gets made, heavy sample, no sample, whatever it may be, that’s what I do.”

Skillz is a rare breed in the music industry. Many artist become detached from the world once they make a little change, however Skillz is very grounded. When it comes to music, family and close friends come first. These family values are one reason why he is the leading producer for his cousin Dom Kennedy’s album. Avery Irvin, friend and fellow LMU student, said, “Jason is headed in a good direction. He shows hunger that other producers don’t, as well as not conforming to what’s hot. That’s what gives him his edge. His unique style and humble attitude will take him far in life.”

When asked about the current state of the music industry and his place in it, Skillz said, “All the people I used to like, I don’t like anymore. I don’t know if it’s because I’m getting older or what. I used to DJ for 7 years and I’ve seen a lot of trends and sounds come and go in that short span of time, but a lot of things are everlasting. Using a lot of Producers on a CD killed the game; People wanting to do everything Jay does killed it. I could really go on Forever and its kind of a loaded question but Jay said "People from a distance can't tell who is who" and that's so true, its o so true when it comes to rap music.”

The face of Hip Hop is ever changing, and with this change comes the good and the bad, the weak and the dope, the whack and the fresh. Finding an original talent is a hard task. With an overflow of gimmick rappers to the market, Hip-Hop finds it self under mass scrutiny by its loyal fans. An outcry for good music is being heard around the globe, leaving industry heads in a crazed search for new talent that will feed the hunger of Hip-Hop Heads. J Skillz hopes to be one of the men leading the charge at the end of the road, keeping Hip-Hop and good music alive.