Over the last few months,
the West Coast Hip-Hop scene has seen some changes occur. Some were noticed yet
some might still be ignored as many happen to be uninformed. If you one of
those who don't know or maybe you haven’t been paying close attention, take a
look below:
1. Internet Exposure
With
artists like Goku from War3 Karak3tez, Big Twist, Tha Real U and Legacii on
Soundcloud and Reverbnation, Internet exposure has surely increased. Three
months ago, Tha Real U released 'Underground Kings' which quickly became one of
the top downloaded songs in West Coast Hip-Hop, by reaching 100 downloads in a
day.
Apart from
this, Goku has released a series of music videos online which accompany those
of Bizzy and Zayo, as well as the Major Playaz.
Other than
this Tha Real U happened to release a music video as well. For the coast, this
kind of exposure not only helps artists but it sheds light on the West Coast
Hip-Hop community as well. Online releases help artists get recognised locally
and Internationally quicker and more conveniently.
Last year
mobile-site Swag City, was released in favour of this, so that locally people
can download songs without having to hassle with computers, looking for links
on Google or better yet not knowing where to find music.
2. Collaborations
Recently
Big Twist collaborated with Goku. This created a banger along with Ivaan and
Lazy B who previous also appeared on one of Goku's songs. Not only did this
song ('We Made It') show how West Coast Hip-Hop steps things up, but so did Tha
Real U's 'That I'm Dreaming' and 'Long Nights' which got newcomers Jempas and
Lee Rick further involved in music.
General
and Young Fl!p gained access to the Hip-Hop scene as well when they debuted on
Big Twist's first mixtape, along with Prospect and Double D which gained added
recognition. These collaborations show how West Coast Hip-Hop is transforming.
The scene
is no longer monopolised by a single group of artists or band, but diverse,
with different perspectives, styles and influences.
3. Started From The
Bottom
Like
everyone in the industry, you have to start somewhere even if it is the bottom.
The past year has seen this happen. Not only did Twist come out of his shadow,
but so did Tha Real U who happened to be a mash-up DJ.
Legacii,
Illscripts, WBMG, also formed. These three groups soon started making music
with a passion and are yet fighting for some exposure. With so many
artists popping up out of no where, the West Coast community might soon see a
revolution take place. While other artists remain unknown, the little light
that has become the platform for West Coast Hip-Hop has helped artists grow and
release more and more songs. With this comes better sound quality, lyrics and
production quality.
Although
most artists pushing songs these days are underground and newcomers, their
support structures are constantly expanding. It's might just be a matter of
time until their music is everywhere.
4. The Platform
Before
2013, West Coast Hip-Hop lacked a serious platform. Artists seem to be hidden
in all places, some are popular yet the notorious, remain notorious. This
reality however is starting to change. With Facebook pages and groups, websites
like Swag City and communication structures between artists through these
tools, West Coast Hip Hop now has a growing platform open for new artists and
ready to support existing artists.
One
problem though. Somehow there's always a disadvantage and this is it: some
artists are promoting self with old, outdated procedures, rather then modernising
and keeping up with the new platform. Not only do they aim at creating
fan-bases or added support for themselves, they do this with no intention of
building up the West Coast Hip-Hop community.
Networking
tools like Facebook groups/pages, Websites etc... depend on the whole
communities involvement to become an true success. Not only do artists gain
exposure, while they lend exposure, they also help the whole West Coast Hip-Hop
scene gain exposure and this will either help them cutback at trying to win
fans cause they'll naturally gain support, or cause them to fade out if the
scene becomes quickly populated.
5. Performances
Recently
Big Twist and brand, started hitting a few popular venues. With performances
springing up in local places, West Coast Hip-Hop is becoming much more
engaging.
Although
some regular performances do happen in the West Coast community, they seem to
be aimed at one area, particularly a certain fan-base to please the supporters
of a certain group. This is remarkable as fans will keep coming back for more,
but it doesn't get the Hip-Hop scene to expand into unheard regions of the
coast.
The group,
ILLSCRIPTS took on this attempt however, by performing in a local High School
Talent show, which scored them 2nd place. Not only does this performance help
debut the group, but it also informs the general community about the emerging
Hip-Hop scene within its community.
While some
Hip-Hop artists (unknown to us) do also perform in popular places, it is yet a
mystery on how their music actually engages with the public.
It is said
that more events are being planned for West Coast Hip-Hop artists, especially
the thought of possibly seeing some of these current power-forces work
together. Will that happen? and is this even possible? For now we have no idea,
only the Lord knows.
West Coast
Hip-Hop raised the banner high this week as Saint Helena Bay rapper, Tha Real U
reps his town and region well. The conscious rapper released his follow up to
'That I'm Dreaming' which reached a record breaking 100 downloads in 2 weeks,
but that was nothing compared to this week’s happenings. The song 'Underground
Kings' was produced by Shaloma Muzik following a similar production procedure
of 'November 28 Girl' and a hard-core message echoing that of 'Long Nights' -
the West Coast Conscious Hip-Hop banger which left many speechless after its
release about 2 months ago.
Johannesburg
rapper, TiTan Kai from the Eldorado Park Christian Hip-Hop group, UNIQUE,
joined Real U on this groundbreaking new single. As another heat-seeker
following Real U's two successful releases, 'Underground Kings' rapidly gained
downloads and plays within just an hour of release. According to Shaloma
Muzik's posts on Tha Real U's Facebook page, the song gathered 12 plays within
45 minutes and 10 downloads within 50, a number which normally takes some
artists roundabout a day, sometimes a week or even a month to achieve.
The song
then went on to beat its sister, 'Long Nights' by accumulating 60 downloads in
just 19 hours, compared to the 56 — 'Long Nights' has after 2 months. Followed
by an abundance of thanks from Tha Real U, the song initially reached 98
downloads at 18h00 (GMT+2) on Wednesday, December 19th; 24 hours from when it
was subject to release. However, due to its actual release at 18h06 the
previous day this result did not reflect the full 24 hours which at just a few
minutes later saw the song officially reach the 100 downloads mark at 18h10.
In respect
to the songs release, mobile music-site Swagcity
(swagcity.wen.ru), introduced a new feature, entitled 'Featured Song' which
places a selected track located on the site, on its home page for a week.
Granted that 'Underground Kings' was a brand new addition, the song became the
first to be featured in this promotion.
Reflecting
some of Real U's work on his mixtape, the song is recorded on a Drake
instrumental of the same title. Real U stated that he found the instrumental a
few months back online and felt the urge to record on it instantly. He found
the title appropriate to the message he (at that time) wanted to present. This occurred
after he felt a little discouraged due to the fact that some suggested that
they disliked Real U's rapping in comparison to other local rappers. A few
others stated that his message is different causing him not be as good as the
rest. Real U however did not record this song as a response to his haters, but
rather an indirect message to other rappers and their fans, which vividly
compare his work to theirs.
The center
aim of the song is bringing consciousness to artists, particularly rappers in
the West Coast region. Real U states that he is an Underground King, not
because of status but because of his position. His message of faith through
Conscious Rap is a way of repping his superhero, Jesus as stated. As Galatians
4:7 in the Bible states that they are heirs in the Kingdom of God and co-heirs
in Christ, Real U suggests that they should be considered kings on Earth as the
Bible identities them as princes in Heaven.
This
Christian perspective is evident throughout the song and stretches till the
end, where Real U concludes that those who exalt themselves, considering
themselves to be better than the rest, will be humbled.
As
initially intended Shaloma Muzik will soon release a lyrical video for the song
on YouTube. Other than this, it has not yet been confirmed as to whether or not
the song will be uploaded on KasiMp3, as it will follow the release procedure
of its two predecessors, appearing on Zamob and other connected sites of the
Wapload network.
Just last
week, Real U's Vandalism
banger Hard Time For
Lovers was considered the 'Most Downloaded Song' from a Touch Radio artist,
after accumulating 100 downloads on Soundcloud,
the standard download limit for the online sound sharing website. This week’s
results took a turn as D33psoul's hot single
It's All About denies that.
Known to
be the very first release of Touch
Radio's prime House DJ, D33psoul, along with his legendary
radio-show mate, Ample-Goon, D33psoul managed to scoop an outstanding 155
downloads together with 15 plays for the single dropped just two months ago.
These results were gathered from it's primary download source of Kasimp3.com.
The single is yet to drop elsewhere.
As
D33psoul now takes the lead in numbers, It's
All About has officially earned the status of being the 'Most
Downloaded Song' from a Touch Radio artist as well as the 'Quickest Song To
Reach 100-Downloads' a record holding place in equivalence to Real U's Hip-Hop
release New Me (Miss Me Freestyle)
which earned 150 plays, the 'Quickest Song To Reach 100-Plays' within a period
of 2 months.
As
D33psoul's success remains in tack and still growing, the only question left to
ask is...
What’s
next for this young artist?
The 11 month old, Hard Time For Lovers (Afro-Deep
Blend) from DJ Real U's Vandalism
mixtape, has finally reached its peak of 100 downloads.
Featured on the online
sound-sharing website, Soundcloud, the House music bootleg from former Touch
Radio & Radio Shawty DJ, DJ Real U, slowly but surely met the Soundcloud
download limit of 100 downloads per song, as it escalated throughout the year.
Released November 2011, on
Real U's Vandalism,
the song quickly grew House fanatics attention as it embrends the sound of
Rocco & Robert C. Walker, well-known names in the Deep House industry.
Along with 491 plays, the
song has officially become the most downloaded song by a Touch Radio artist,
overstepping DJ D33psoul's It's
All About which instantly increased in download numbers since its
release in late August.
The mixtape howsoever, was
only fully released roundabout five months ago on realudj.tk due to Real U's
transition to the Hip-Hop genre.
His latest release 50/50: The Vision
attracted new audiences as Real U now focuses on consciousness in the music
industry. So far Thank You (Unforgettable Freestyle) is Real U's most played Hip-Hop track with 259 plays on Soundcloud, followed by New Me (Miss Me Freestlyle) trailing in second with 150 plays in 2 months. These numbers could greatly increase if they were by any means promoted.
Other excellent figures for
Real U is the famous Kwaito sensation Jezebel,
which earned him 21,153 views on YouTube for his 'DJ Real U Dub Mix', featured
on his earlier, 2010 double disc release entitled, Greenroom Mixtape. A
total of 29,426 YouTube views lie behind this once emerging, consistent, passionate
& skilful DJ. Real U's music is yet to peak elsewhere.
