10.31.08: FF Halloween in NYC


In about an hour I'll be headed for NY on a bus with Nando. so he can perform at the Grungecake Crisis Mag "Treat Your Trick" party at Club Europa in Brooklyn. Nando. will be joined onstage by Providence's up-and-comer Theo and the DC-area group preHISTORIC. I'll be in the city until Saturday afternoon, so if you're around, feel free to give me a holler (gmail). I just hope I can remember how to get around without dropping dough on a cab! 
Posted by jben.ok

MP3: Panacea - A Mind On A Ship Through Time Sampler


K-Murdock sent me over a perfectly-engineered (that's what he does) sampler featuring songs from Panacea's new album, A Mind On A Ship Through Time, that dropped this past Tuesday. Take a listen in case you're still not sure whether or not you're ready to cop - and if you like what you hear, go ahead and pick it up at Tasteful Licks. Don't forget about the podcast and stay tuned for some K-Murdock exclusives I'm gonna drop next week!



Posted by jben.ok

MP3: Benji - Do U Ever Breathe?


X.O.'s talented accomplice Benji hit me with this new solo joint this morning, and I've got to say I'm pretty impressed. A lot of hip-hop artists have spoken to me about the sudden departure from sampling (what's 9th gonna do?!) - but Benji brings back that hypnotic, slow soul for this one. Chill out and take a listen.


Posted by jben.ok

MP3: D.Omen - Vote OR.....?!! (snippet)


Here's a new snippet from the homie D.Omen who put a track together in anticipation of November 4th. The lyrics are on point and no - this isn't simply an Obama track. It's all about the importance of speaking out during a very pivotal time for our country. Real music!


Posted by jben.ok

COMING SOON: RAtheMC - A Trip to Neptune


Just throwing it out there. Shouts to Judah, RAtheMC, and the whole Strange Music family. Expect to see them this Tuesday at The Political Report.
Posted by jben.ok

NEWS: Che Grand's Everything's Good Ugly Album Premiere!!!


Click it to make it bigger. Speaks for itself. The new FF.com coming soon, courtesy of my man! smokeYYY. Shout out to khal who posted this earlier.
Posted by jben.ok

PODCAST: FF 023 - Panacea


That's K-Murdock of Panacea at Red Bull Big Tune DC, the producer battle held last month at the 930 Club. Unfortunately he lost to DC hitmakers Best Kept Secret in the semi-finals, but the good news: both Panacea and BKS will be at our election night shindig next Tuesday. Anyway, yesterday K- Murdock joined me in-studio for a special interview on the release night of their new album, A Mind On A Ship Through Time. The emcee Raw Poetic couldn't make it out because he was sick, but if you know Mr. Murdock like I do, he's always a good interview on his own. (Probably because he hosts a very dope show called Subsoniq on XM. Whaddup KB?) 

Here's the podcast from last night's show - although there's about 10 minutes missing at the beginning. You won't really miss too much though; there's 44 minutes tacked onto the file below. We talked about the new album, K-Murdock and Raw Poetic's various collaborations (too many to list!), and the new XM-Sirius merger that will result with a DJ Jamad-Subsoniq back-to-back lineup! We played two cuts from the album - "Mustard Seed Celebration" and "Orange Pencillin" - plus a remix K-Murdock did for Nicolay & Kay's "As The Wheel Turns." Stay tuned later this week for some exclusive cuts K- Murdock blessed me with...


Posted by jben.ok

DOWNLOAD: KNOWxONE - Can't Noc The Hustle (mixtape)


Last night I spent the first hour of the radio show playing this SUPERB (my new favorite word) mixtape that the homie Ges over at KNOWxONE has been putting together with the 2-time (back-to-back) ITF World Champions Nocturnal Sound Krew. As I said in my previous post...this is 100% hip-hop. It's just about 49 minutes long (and far from being a snoozer, anyway) so please feel free to download. And I included both the front AND back covers because well...I think this may be the hottest artwork this year. (And most creative)




Posted by jben.ok

10.28.08: FF 023 - Panacea


Panacea's new album A Mind On A Ship Through Time is officially in stores today, October 28th. With that said, one-half of the duo will join us in-studio tonight - the producer and XM radio host K Murdock. Some may argue that this release is their best, although some may not even know it's out there. It's only available on Tasteful Licks at the moment; we'll ask Mr. Murdock about further distribution tonight. Be sure to catch that interview and album listening party tonight at 9pm.

During the 8-9 hour I'll be playing the first ever official KNOWxONE mixtape put together by Ges and the Nocturnal Sound Krew. Featuring an eclectic mix of today hottest's records (T.I., Kanye, Kid Sister) and some exclusives (Marky, FKI, a new Love Lockdown rmx), this one's sure to be in constant rotation. In the words of Ges, this is called keeping it "100% hip-hop." I'll post the full tape after tonight's show, and yes, I'm aware it's already out there - but it's just the way I'm doing it.

So be sure to tune in: same place, same time. We'll also be running through more details about the election night special - plus I'm gonna premiere that Che Grand flier. 


FF 023
With musical guest Panacea
Hosted by jben.ok
8-10pm EST
WRGW Radio @ The George Washington University
LIVE on gwradio.com and campus channel 22
Posted by jben.ok

DOWNLOAD: A Rosenberg Oddisee (EP)


I proudly present the first EP from NYC radio host Peter Rosenberg and DC producer Oddisee, A Rosenberg Oddisee. Recorded in one day, this one is special. Featuring Skyzoo, Buckshot, Nikki Jean, and O himself. Artwork by fwmj at RappersIKnow.com. Enjoy!

1. Gratitude (feat. Torae, Oddisee, & Tiara Wiles)
2. So Mafuckin Souful (feat. Skyzoo & Oddisee)
3. Jealous Niggas (feat. Daytona)
4. World War IV (feat. Saigon & Lil' Fame)
5. Where I Be (feat. Buckshot & Oddisee)
Posted by jben.ok

MP3: Lyriciss - Like Me (feat. Theo)


This just got sent my way minutes ago....and it's a great collabo track. Rhode Island's Theo links up with the DMV's own Lyriciss for "Like Me," a statement song over Reks' "Grey Hairs" beat. (I had to ask Lyriciss what beat this was, even though I spent all summer promoting Reks' album. My mind blanks sometimes, damn.) Anyway....I'll be venturing up to Brooklyn this Friday for a special show at Club Europa with Theo, Nando, and preHISTORIC. And yeah, that's Halloween, so you know I'll be getting it in. Head over to dylan's spot for more info.


Posted by jben.ok

DOWNLOAD: Che Grand - Breakfast At Wimbledon (Mixtape)


Z F T P! Finally, like I'm talking after weeks and weeks finally, Che Grand has delivered ZFTP volume 7, a.k.a. Breakfast At Wimbledon. It's project that he explains was originally a movie - including sex, drugs, illegal aliens, and high speed car chases across Brooklyn - and has since been molded into the dreaded artistic expression of a mixtape! With 22 tracks packed into one zip file, this prelude to Che's album Everything's Good Ugly is a certified banger. DO NOT forget to check out the EGU album premiere (party?) on election night before the big show from 7-8pm EST. Flier coming tomorrow!

01 Breakfast @ Wimbledon (The Movie Trailer ((Fuck-A-Mixtape))
02 R E S T A R T
03 Electric(Yacht)Brain In The Lab With A Stereo
04 Yoko Ono (Danny!)
05 Lessondary Busy feat. Von Pea, Spec Boogie & Donwill
06 Bink?! How Much?!?!
07 Swing (prod. Brain Brizzo) (Preview)
08 I Think (She Likes Me) (Fly Guys & The Luv Bugz)
09 Lunch (english.man.in.nyc)
10 City On Fire (Preview)
11 UFO Ninja (Class of 3000)
12 Usain Bolt Rap Shit (prod. Suhburb)
13 Bendable Poseable (Hot Chip)
14 And You Say (Tanya Morgan) (prod. Von Pea)
15 GitDown feat Aeon (Tango & Cash Preview)
16 Flawed (8th W1 + Von Pea)
17 Dinner (fear.not.for.man)
18 This Is Not America (prod. Diego)
19 Birthright (Elucid)
20 Too Much Good
21 Brunch (.nova)
22 I Love Cassie/EGU coming soon (Outro)
Posted by jben.ok

NEWS: FF Presents The Political Report w/ Kenny Burns!!!


Click here for the full flyer

Here we go! The rumors have been circulating for a few weeks now, but the flyer is finally finished and we're ready to officially send out the press release. On November 4th, a.k.a. election night, Funkadelic Freestyles will be on air for an astounding five hours! Here's what we have on tap:

Che Grand presents
Everything's Good Ugly Album Premiere (The Political Report Pre-Show)
Che joins FF live in-studio for an exclusive look at his new album EGU
Hosted by jben.ok
7-8pm EST
LIVE on WRGW Radio - the official campus radio station of The George Washington University
LISTEN at GWRADIO.COM and CAMPUS CHANNEL 22

The Political Report: Election Night Live From DC
Featuring Tabi Bonney, Marky, Judah, RAtheMC, X.O., Tre of UCB, AB The Producer, Southeast Slim, EMP, R.E.U.B., Best Kept Secret, D.Omen, Nando., Lyriciss, The Package, G*Two, and many more ALL IN STUDIO.
Hosted by jben.ok and the Lifestyle Specialist Kenny Burns (yes, that Kenny Burns)
Featuring election night updates, political freestyles, and artist interviews.
8pm - Midnight EST
LIVE on WRGW Radio - the official campus radio station of The George Washington University
LISTEN at GWRADIO.COM and CAMPUS CHANNEL 22


That about sums it up. Check for the Che flyer (shout out to smokeYYY) soon and...PLEASE, spread the word. Historical!
Posted by jben.ok

VIDEO/MP3: The ELs - The Boondocks Theme


I've tried to tell people time and time again, DC's hip-hop live band The ELs are the real deal. Featuring lead emcee Asheru and keyboardist Zo!, the band occasionally plays gigs around the metro area and has  created some of the wildest live performances around with guests like Grap Luva, Kev Brown, Roddy Rod, and many more. Peep the live video above from Zo!'s 30th birthday party at Liv on 9.13.08.

I spent Saturday morning at Zo!'s studio getting an exclusive preview at the new album he's putting out with Detroit emcee Asylum 7, Overdue Process, set to be released on December 16th. Before I hopped back on the metro, he played me a cut that made me drop my jaw. Let's take a quick poll; who's a fan of The Boondocks TV show? Yeah, pretty sure everyone that's reading this just raised their hands. Remember how Asheru did the theme? A few weeks ago, Zo! brought Ash and the rest of The ELs into the studio for a jam session and BAM!, recreated The Boondocks Theme with the full band. I asked Zo! if I could premiere it, and well, here it is!



Posted by jben.ok

MP3: dead prez - PolitricKKKs (feat. Malcolm X)


It's less than two weeks until the election and I found myself wondering, "wait...where the eff is dead prez?" The revolutionary-political-controversial duo of stic.man and M1 are back right on time with - yup, you guessed it - a political track. Off their new album Information Age. Featuring vintage audio from Malcolm X and a booming beat, "PolitricKKKs" might be an acquired taste for some listeners. DL and you decide.


Posted by jben.ok

VIDEO: A Rosenberg Oddisee Pt. 1


Following up on Friday's Oddisee on Vimby post, here's a quick peek at the recording process behind the much-anticipated indie collabo, A Rosenberg Oddisee, from Peter Rosenberg x Oddisee x dope emcees. In this first episode, Rosenberg wakes up late for work, meets O and Torae midday, and jumps in the studio with the aforementioned two and Statik Selektah.


Posted by jben.ok

MP3: Praverb - Ultimate Ability (prod. by Teddy Roxpin)


This post requires a sincere apology: Praverb, my bad for not posting this sooner. People forget that Pra is an extremely-talented Christian emcee, though I've got to stop referring to him as exclusively so. Just because he worships the man upstairs does not mean that he isn't strapped with the talent of battle rapper. I'll let him tell the story behind this new track, "Ultimate Ability," produced by Massachusetts' own Teddy Roxpin:

"Here is another new track that I recorded two weeks ago and it is produced by MA monster Teddy Roxpin. This track was motivated by my experience at the Scribble Jam Pre-Lims, battle lyrics, braggadocio rhymes blah blah blah. I hope you enjoy the track, I want to thank all of you who have supported me from day one, expect collabs with Donny Goines, K. Sparks, and more coming soon." - Praverb


Posted by jben.ok

VIDEO: DistrictFresh.com X.O. Interview



Before I head to sleep (gotta hear the new Zo!/Asylum 7 joint in the morning!), lemme send this well-produced interview your way. Shout out to the homie Andre at ABB video who put together this 41/2 minute joint for DistrictFresh.com. And if you haven't yet, go ahead and download X.O.'s US vs. THEM EP featuring Marky, RAtheMC, & Judah (among others). 


Posted by jben.ok

VIDEO: Oddisee on Vimby

If you've been paying attention to the New Music Cartel lately, you will have noticed the surprising amount of love DC producer and FF alum Oddisee has been receiving. He's been up in NY with Peter Rosenberg recording a series of EPs with big names (Saigon, Buckshoot, Skyzoo) and eskay got to visit him earlier this week. I guess I can't say I told you so since it's only been about a year since I became a believer, but I get points for being somewhat early, right?

Peep the video above as Oddisee takes you through the history of DC's historic U Street community. Plus I uploaded the podcast from last April with Oddisee in our studio, an mp3 you're really gonna wanna pick up. I know not everyone downloads the podcasts, and that's fine, but SERIOUSLY scoop this one. O plays highlights from his production catalog, plays about 10-12 UNRELEASED beats, and even finds some time to spit over the instrumental you hear at the beginning of the Vimby video.


Posted by jben.ok

VIDEO: The Foreign Exchange - Daykeeper (feat. Muhsinah)


Just minutes ago, OKP premiered the video for the first single off The Foreign Exchange's Leave It All Behind, Daykeeper (feat. Muhsinah). It's almost EXACTLY what I envisioned it to look like. Because I should be studying for a quiz I have in under 2 hours, I'll keep this one short and just remind you to go out and BUY Leave It All Behind.


Posted by jben.ok

MP3: Tabi Bonney - Go Hard

Photo courtesy Calypsotalks.Com

Actually, this is just a snippet. But let me tell you this: if you doubted Tabi Bonney before, don't underestimate him this time around. In our elitaste interview back in August, Mr. Bonney warned the people about the heat he's dropping soon. Looks like the album will be called Dope and in stores in January. (2 months before Wale's debut) Enjoy the 2 minutes and 8 seconds I was blessed with, and be sure to give elitaste some extra traffic by revisiting our interview. Oh, and I THINK Tabi will be joining us on election night...his name's on the flyer!


Posted by jben.ok

VIDEO: The Kenny Burns Show - Greetings From Washington, DC!



Yes, 'tis my first time posting a Kenny Burns video. It's not like I didn't know of him; his name is really all over the place in this area. But really I only expected to run into him someday or something...except that all changed last week. Mr. Burns will be my cohost for election night, and we've got HUGE plans for the evening. Everything about this above video is hi-lar-i-ous: his YEEEAHs, his CRUCIALs, and of course, the old guy at the end freestyling for money. Enjoy, and be sure to visit his vimeo account to catch up on the series.
Posted by jben.ok

10.21.08: FF 022


See that flick above? That'll be the scene tonight; me alone in the lab. Actually, I'm pretty sure my interns will be there, so at least I'll have some company. But seriously, we're gonna keep it real low key tonight as we have a fury of events coming up in the next 2 weeks. Tonight I'll be playing new music from Evidence, Che Grand, X.O., EMP, Saigon, Skyzoo, Statik Selektah, and many more. I'll probably hit the external hard drive as well.

Next Tuesday (Oct. 28th) I'm 75% sure that Panacea will be joining us in-studio for an exclusive album release party for their new LP, A Mind on a Ship Through Time. 

Tuesday Nov. 4, election night, Funkadelic Freestyles presents Live From The Nation's Capital hosted by Kenny Burns and myself. Featuring a plethora of DC/MD/VA hip-hop artists including Judah, RAtheMC, Nando., Lyriciss, D.Omen, R.E.U.B., X.O., and many more. We're waiting until this weekend to release the full list of artists, as not everyone is confirmed yet. We'll be giving away t-shirts and hats, giving you election night updates, and spitting political rhymes. 

Anyway, tune into the show tonight for more information. If you live in the DC area, you'll start to see flyers up by Monday.


FF 022
Hosted by jben.ok
8-10pm EST
WRGW Radio @ The George Washington University
LIVE on gwradio.com and campus channel 22


Posted by jben.ok

MP3: Evidence - For Whom The Bell Tolls (feat. Phonte, will.i.am, & Blu)


I just fell off my seat when I saw this had made its way to the internets. Ev, Tay, will, aaaaand Blu?! Oh, and Khrysis is on the beat. All other rappers, you've been outdone. Just give up!



Posted by jben.ok

MP3: Fly Guys - I Think [She Likes Me] (feat. Che Grand & The Luv Bugz)


This one comes courtesy of fwmj @ rappersiknow, featuring Donwill of Tanya Morgan and Kay of The Foundation as Fly Guys. Also featured on the track is Che Grand and The Luv Bugz, continuing on with our unofficial Che Grand week (now where's breakfast, though?) I would have uploaded the album cover fwmj came up with but Blogger doesn't really like pngs, I guess. It's a moody, somewhat haunting track with production from J "8 Months" Lewis of Neon Collars. Plus I included a bonus Fly Guys cut with Kay and Don called "Fly Guys With Glasses," which originally appeared on ILWIL's Beat Thieves Vol. 2.


Posted by jben.ok

DOWNLOAD: X.O. - US vs. THEM EP


It gives me great pleasure to present to you the new EP/mixtape from DC's Uptown favorite X.O. Joined by his cronies Judah, RAtheMC, Benji, Tragic, Nightmare, & Marky, the scheming rapper is back after this summer's surprising The Takeover Pt. 2 mixtape. If you don't know, he started out with Low Budget (Oddisee, Kev, yU) and has since branched out on his own as a legitimate force to be reckoned with. If you think you're a DC emcee, consider testing this man before you run around the streets shouting out your name.

And as more info comes in on Election Night, looks like X.O., Benji, Tragic, & Nightmare will all be joining us in-studio. And in case you're wondering what they might bring to the table, take a refresher course by hitting the 13-minute cipher they did on Funkadelic Freestyles back in September. Peace to modi at DCtoBC.com for premiering this one in the morning.



Posted by jben.ok

DOWNLOAD: EMP - Vol. 5: The Prerequisite


Here's the brand new mixtape from DC's own EMP, featuring Southeast Slim, C, Zo, & Eights. It's a whopping double disc with an astounding 29 tracks of quality, go-go inspired hip-hop. And as promised, Slim sent it out at exactly 12:00 AM this morning, clearly telling of how incredibly dedicated he is to this music thing. PLEASE download.


Posted by jben.ok

VIDEO: The Real - Don't Buy Albums PSA



Here's the latest video from Jeff and Eric Rosenthal, otherwise known as The Real. It's a great reverse psychology technique to get you to ACTUALLY buy albums, I think. Take a look yourself and decide whether or not you want to support the artists you know and love (depends on they are, though). This one's not as long as last week's Fallout Day, which was simply phenomenal and had me clapping my hands and cackling. 



Posted by jben.ok

MP3: ProVerb - The Rapture (feat. Lyriciss)


Here's a track recorded over one night this weekend during Howard Homecoming. Lyriciss linked up with Proverb, the man responsible for this year's Jay-Z/Lebron diss track that ignited quite a fire during the Wizards/Cavs playoff series. Both emcees come HOARD on this one, so be sure to download and spread the love. Peep Lyriciss' latest print interview, and be sure to listen into his FF podcasts if you haven't already.



Posted by jben.ok

MP3: Saigon - WW4 (feat. Lil Fame and prod. by Oddisee)


Yes, I stole eskay's flick...but it's the only picture of Rosenberg and Saigiddy I could find. In a week and a day, Peter Rosenberg (of Hot97 fame) will be dropping a six song EP called A Rosenberg Oddisee featuring music recorded all in one night with exclusive production from the DC homie Oddisee. For those who don't know, Oddisee is part of the Low Budget Crew along with notables Kev Brown and Kenn Starr. And as far as I know, Mr. Rosenberg is an honorary member. 

Here's the first track off A Rosenberg Oddisee featuring Saigon and Lil Fame (of MOP). Peter says the other five songs have features from Buckshot, Skyzoo, Nikki Jean, and more. Looks like O finally got to work with Nikki (inside joke...shakes head, walks away...)



Posted by jben.ok

MP3: RAtheMC - The Annoucement


Here's a brand new one from my favorite female DC emcee, RAtheMC. She spends about 2 1/2 minutes rocking over Com and Pharrell's "Announcement" beat with ferocious skill, just a few days after Che Grand rocked over the "UMC" instrumental. I should also mention that RA will be joining us in-studio on election night (11.4.08) along with her friend and producer Judah around 9pm. 

I can't really say too much about election night, considering that not EVERYTHING is set in stone yet. We're trying to make it the BIGGEST collection of DMV artists in a looong time, and we're gonna take over the radio station for a full four hours (8pm - Midnight EST). So when you're back from the booths, you can kick back, mute CNN, and turn on our internet radio. Kenny Burns (yes, that Kenny Burns) will be my cohost and we have a very exciting preshow planned from 7-8. And since this post was originally about RAtheMC, it's a good time to mention her recent collaborations with DJ Mick Boogie. On election night, we'll be giving away the Obama x ATCQ tshirts for free99. Click below to download the mp3, and to download Mick's Can We Kick It Yes We Can mixtape.


Posted by jben.ok

MP3: Statik Selektah - So Good [Live From The Bar] (feat. Naledge, Reks, & CL Smooth)


A few days ago I "tweeted" (sigh...) about how ridiculous it is that Statik Selektah has leaked damn near his whole album. This was before, it should be noted, the album ACTUALLY leaked in its entirety. While I like to hear albums from front to back rather than track by track, week by week, this song is waaaay too hot not to be shared with the people. Plus I spoke to Reks this weekend and I've just been waiting to hear his appearance on the album - little did I know it would be a track with Naledge (of Kidz in the Hall) and the legendary CL Smooth! All three come correct - and the pure greatness of the track will hopefully remind you that you need to BUY (cop, whatever) Statik Selektah's Stick 2 The Script next Tuesday (October 21st).



Posted by jben.ok

MP3: Jazzanova - Look What You're Doin' To Me (feat. Phonte)


Man, when's the last time I heard some new Jazzanova?! I was aware of the collab between the German-based DJ collective and Phonte of Little Brother, but completely forgot about it. If memory serves me right, Tay met Jazzanova at the Red Bull Music Academy a few years back. And a few years later, we finally have a product! Very funky, sample-based, fast-paced. 


Posted by jben.ok

PREVIEW: EMP - Mixtape Volume 5: The Prerequisite


Available for download Tuesday, October 21st at midnight EST. Is that a fresh cover or what? Go back a few posts and download the new EMP single plus the new LCD remix with Southeast Slim and Wale. And of course, for a more in-depth profile on EMP, feel free to stream/download last September's in-studio interview with Slim and crew.


Posted by jben.ok

PODCAST: FF 021 - Nando.


Great show tonight, despite the technical difficulties (The stream was working, but gwradio.com was down for the full 2 hours). We spent the first hour playing new music, and I spent about 20 minutes on the phone with a Warner Bros. rep discussing a very cool event coming up in a few weeks (details on the way!). Nando. and Lyriciss showed up right on time and we covered history, DMV artist relations, and Nando.'s SNES mixtape. Nando. also decided to premiere two new tracks: "Do Me (prod. by Best Kept Secret)" and "Kick Flip." And of course, Nando. and Lyriciss went HARD on the freestyle. Because I feel really bad about the site being down (modi, thanks for trying at least lol), I'm throwing up the podcast earlier than usual. Pshh, I'll be up all night anyway...

P.S. Ajani Truth was in the building. Spectacular photos coming soon.


Posted by jben.ok
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