E-40-- "Nice Guys" [video]

check out my favorite video from E-40's most recent album Revenue Retrievin' Overtime/Graveyard Shift

keepin it fresh in the bay...

Violin, Kora, Accordian Fusion

-Simply beautiful music -

Check out more of Regina Carters music here, www.reginacarter.com
Violin tunes inspired by European classical, bebop, Afro-Cuban, African folk and Southern blues music.

Lions will roar, swans will fly, angels will wrestle heaven, rains will break

I'm back from my awesome trip to Brooklyn (thanks Petra!) and realized that an inspiring dancer I just found about lives and performs there. Nora Chipaumire was born in Zimbabwe during the Chimurenga Chechipiri, or second war of liberation and portrays her life, struggles and response to the war through choreography and dance. This clip is from the movie Nora which was released in 2008. I can't find out where to watch or rent this movie but the clips are beautiful, strong and inspiring.
If anyone finds out let me know!

More about the movie
http://www.movementrevolutionafrica.com/nora/

Asa-- "Jailer" [video]

I can't get enough of this song, and the video is beautiful. "Jailer" is by one of my favorite young songwriters, Asa (pronounced Asha). Thanks to DJ C Boogie, I recently discovered her 2010 album Beautiful Imperfection.
Check her out at www.asa-official.com

Petra's Album of the Week: "El Juidero"

This week, my favorite album is
"El Juidero"
by Rita Indiana y Los Misterios

This new group is coming out of the Dominican Republic with an unprecedented fusion of merengue tipico, electronic, reggae, rock and techno. Their album covers a huge range in sounds, with a heavy dose of wild and imaginative lyrics from Rita Indiana, already an acclaimed novelist before she started making music. Each song is a journey, and the whole album is an expedition into uncharted territory. My favorites are "Como un Ladron en la Noche," "Oigo Voces," "Dulces Suenos," and "El Blue del Ping Pong."


Check them out at Dutty Artz.
Buy this album on iTunes


Oh, and their music videos are a.w.e.some.

This one's like a VJ set, one big mash up old video footage edited to the beat of the track:


This one's like a 1970's gangster film:


This one's like a Salvador Dali painting come to life:

CubaCaribe festival-- "from katrina to port-au-prince"

This month is the 6th annual CubaCaribe Festival.

This weekend there are dance performances at at Dance Mission Theater by Alafia Dance Ensemble, Las Que Son Son, Liberation Dance Theater, Los Lupeños de San Jose, Paco Gomes Dancers, and Tata Kaya Art.

Tonight, April 22, there's a showing of Faubourg Tremé : The Untold Story of Black New Orleans, a film by Dawn Logsdon and Lolis Eric Elle, at the Museum of African Diaspora.

ngugi wa thiong'o-- benefit for revolution books

Last night, I went to see Ngugi Wa Thiong'o speak and read selections from his autobiography, Dreams in a Time of War. Last year, I read his theoretical book on language, identity and colonization Decolonizing the Mind, it changed the way I understand my relationship to language. I was moved by his voice, both powerful and delicate, whimsical and deep. I was inspired by his stories; they transported me to another time and place, while connecting strongly to my present situation.

This was a benefit for Revolution Books a fantastic resource for literature and non-fiction that is changing the world, located on 26th street between 6th and 7th ave.

kalae all day-- "AFROMATIKNEOHIPPIEROCK​*​SOLEMUZIK" [album]

This bad young woman is bouta take the hip hop world by storm...

I met Kalae All Day at one of her all-woman cyphers, the Fem'Fetale jam sessions, down in the east village. She regularly brings together New York's best underground women MCs and singers.

Her newly released AFROMATIKNEOHIPPIEROCK​*​SOLEMUZIK is just that, with extra soul and a wide and clever variety of sounds, moods and ideas, unified with Kalae's vibrant personality. She's got more swag, honesty and love than anyone out cheer right now.

Inside all her humor and sparkle, Kalae speaks a strong feminist message. Finally! A rapper who's unapologetic about her female reality, addressing a wide range of issues (consumerism, exploitation, female solidarity, sex, family, identity...) with passion, integrity, insight and charm.

listen (free) or download ($10) AFROMATIKNEOHIPPIEROCK​*​SOLEMUZIK here

kil ripkin-- "the balancing act" [leak]

Kil Ripkin, a leader and legend in the Brooklyn underground hip hop circuit, is coming out with a new album, The Balancing Act, produced by Mikal Evans (Deep Rooted) Raticus and Eric G. Kil Ripkin, called The General and The Ghetto Correspondant, is keeping alive hip hop's tradition of keeping it real, and mixing hot beats with heated political comentary. As Chuck D said almost 20 years ago, "Hip Hop is Black America's CNN" and Kil Ripkin puts this philosiphy into practice, speaking about issues we should see adressed on TV (but don't). His beats are fierce and his lyrics are on fire.

Check out the General's newest pre-release leak "Aftermath," off his upcoming album, The Balancing Act:

yo majesty-- "futuristically speaking... never be afraid" [album]

My new favorite group is Yo Majesty.
I picked up their album "Futuristically Speaking... Never Be Afraid" at a Sound Fix record shop in Williamsburg, just because the cover caught my full attention. "The end of captain misogyny" I mean really, how could I pass that up?

And this is truly a GREAT album. Rapper Shunda K and singer Jwl B put down lyrics that are tight, hilarious, deep and infinitely complex, over crazy-hot beats by the electro group HardFeelingsUK. Finally, an album I can play that makes people move, think and feel good all at once. Yo Majesty is breaking down the traditional barrier between good lyricism and dance-able production, and the barrier between "conscious," uplifting, positive messages and funny, sexy, wild beats. and its about time! Thank you, Yo Majesty, for giving a woman dj some great dance music she's actually proud to slap at a party... Keep it coming!

world funk at the shrine-- harlem [live]

The Shrine is one of New York's best live music spots, and a few weeks ago, they had the dopest world funk show. Loud Apt, a neo-funk band with all original songs and a diverse sound, coming straight from uptown Manhattan, rocked the house with special guests Angel Rodriguez (percussionist) and Garrison Hawk (reggae vocalist).
Later, Spanglish Fly killed it, with hot mambo-soul.

dj chela at "the rub" party-- brooklyn [live]

I went dancing with my friends at a monthly party called "The Rub." DJ Ayres and Cosmo Baker were cool, but DJ Chela rocked the house.



She killed it, had everybody dancing and screaming all night, exactly how I like it. She had her finger on the pulse of the room, and took us on a ride. Mixing classics with newer hits, crossing genres like they don't matter, she had me dancing til 4am. I mean, really, I couldn't sit down.

I met DJ Chela last year, at a CMJ Panel (which I snuck into) with KRS-ONE and Immortal Technique. She was the first DJ I had ever heard speak about women in hip hop. She inspired me to get my turntables, so to see her play was really inspiring, motivating. She didn't come extra fru-fru or fancy, just the best of really really good music, with smooth transitions and creative mixing, perfectly in tune with the bodies in the room. Yea girl!

buraka som sistema-- black diamond

My aunt Marie gave me a new album: "Black Diamond" by Buraka Som Sistema.They are from Portugal and Angola, and they play kuduro. It sounds like M.I.A. mixed with early 80's house, mixed with samba and zouk rhythms, mixed with hip hop lyrics: great dance music!

erykah badu-- at the paramount in oakland [live]

last Friday, I saw Erykah Badu, Mos Def, The Cannabinoids and Jay Electronica at the Paramount in downtown Oakland. I really went to see Erykah. Not that I don't respect Mos Def. I've never doubted his skills, but I just don't really enjoy his music. It's not groovey enough, not enough funk, not nearly enough soul. But when it comes to grooves, funk and soul, Erykah is the reigning queen.

She performed tracks from her new album New Amerykah Pt. 1: The Fourth World War, like "The Healer" and "Soldier", mixed in with her good-old classics, like "On & On" and "Love of my Life", and plenty of jamming on the beat machine. She started her set with the room shaking "A Milli" produced by Bangladesh, originally on Weezy's Carther III. She even mixed in some classic West Coast raps from Ice Cube.

She was wearing a simple, sleeveless red cocktail dress, and black high heels. Talk about stage presence; no one in the full house could take their eyes off her, or stop tapping their feet. Her movements are simple, clean and purposeful. Somehow, she is both down to earth and queenly. she doesn't have to prove anything, and she stays on her audience's level. Somehow, her slim frame filled the entire stage, and her energy leaked out onto Broadway.

At the end of the show, she mistakenly addressed the audience as "san francisco." The response from the oakland crowd was overwhelming. People almost rushed the stage, yelling "oakland!" She responded "God damn! well no one in here from Frisco?" we yelled back "hell no!" so she said "Well since this is Oakland make some noise! and where's Berkeley?" My cousin and I were the only ones screaming for the B-Town.

But I'll never forget her closing words. Her music and personality had the whole room open, wide open. And after her set, she explained the title of her album, why she titled it "the fourth world war." She talked about the world wide struggle to take back land from occupation. She told the story of the zapatistas in Mexico. In so many words, she concluded: "We all already know that we're in the third world war. But I see the fourth world war coming. This war won't be country against country, or the people against the power. It will be the people against the people" Here she touches her head. "As the human race, we owe it to each other and ourselves to fight the war within ourselves, conquer our personal demons. Just remember this: A smile is the most powerful thing in the world. Cause one can make a milli!" and the Cannabinoids dropped the millie beat.

graff in greenpoint [pics]

(all pics by petra)

mobile graff-- trucks [pics]

Petra's Friday Top Eleven--"Feel Good" [charts]

It's April and I'm feelin the spring energy.
These tracks will pick up your mood, shake off the winter blues, feed you positive energy, direct your feet to the sunny side of the street...

1. JILL SCOTT "it's love"
neo-soul force from philadelphia
from her 2000 album WHO IS JILL SCOTT?
listen on youtube

2. SIZZLA "be strong"
jamaican reggae and dance hall giant
from his 2005 album SOUL DEEP
listen on youtube

3. LYN COLLINS "Mama Feelgood"
old-school soul diva from kentucky
listen on last.fm

4. TIMBALADA "Cancao de Paquerar"
bahia's most popular afro-brazilian bloco
from their 2005 album MOTUMBA BLESS
listen on zshare

5. SUGARHILL GANG "Rapper's Delight"
one of hip hop's founding groups,
this song is sometimes credited as the first rap song, from his 1979
watch video on youtube

6. THE ISLEY BROTHERS "Fight the Power"
the classic
listen on last.fm

7. OLIVER MTUKUDZI "Hear Me Lord"
zimbabwean artist, singing in shona and english
listen on last.fm

8. COLEMAN HAWKINS "Dinah"
saxophone legend from back in the day
from his album BODY AND SOUL
listen on last.fm

9. ZAPP & ROGER "More Bounce to the Ounce"
listen last.fm

10. ZOLA "Shosholoza"
south african hip hop artist
listen on last.fm

11. Talib Kweli "Get By"
watch the video on youtube

character graff [pics]

uptown graff-- "it's just paint" [pic]

petra's friday top eleven [chart]

spring is starting to warm the city and it's got me in a funky-chill mood.
these tracks are perfect for cruisin around town or hangin out on a sunny afternoon.


1. THE TEMPTATIONS "sweet gypsy jane"
from the 1976 album WINGS OF LOVE
listen on youtube

2. AZ "sugar hill"
laid-back rap from east new york, brooklyn
from the 1995 album DOE OR DIE
listen on undergroundhiphop.com

3. BLACK UHURU "party next door"
the classic jamaican reggae band, going strong since 1977
listen on last.fm

4. OUTKAST "ain't no thang"
rappers big boi and andre 3000 from atlanta
from their 1994 album Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik
listen on last.fm

5. MAC DRE "something you must know"
gangsta rap legend from vallejo, ca
listen on imeem.com

6. SOUND DIMENSION "real rock"
old-school dub from the studio one in-house band of the 1960's
listen at last.fm

7. SANTOGOLD (FT. SPANK ROCK) "shove it"
new, eclectic artist from brooklyn
listen on imeem.com

8. T.I. "ride wit me"
established rapper from atlanta
from his 2006 album KING
listen on youtube

9. DIGITAL UNDERGROUND "freaks of the industry"
throw-back funky hip hop from oakland, ca
listen on last.fm

10. STEVIE WONDER "higher ground"
classic from his 1973 album INNERVISIONS
watch the live performance on youtube

11. DR. DRE "let me ride"
gangsta rap legend from compton
from his classic 1992 album THE CHRONIC, sampling PARLIAMENT'S "mothership connection"
watch the music video on youtube