Here to shed light on a up and coming clothing line known as Ethik, is Matt Garrett  who is better known to be the “Overseer” for the brand. Ethik is ascending and for those who aren’t hip need to start paying attention; this is the type of brand that is slept on but ends up coming on top. RESPECT. linked with Matt and was able to break down the brand and the ins and outs of the industry. Check out the interview below.

RESPECT.: Where did the idea of Ethik originate from? How did you come up with the name for the brand come about?

The name “Ethik” was originated by a couple of kids who attended PACE university I actually was not on board at the company at the time, essentially the name represents strong work Ethik, persevering , never taking no for an answer, which he haven’t.

RESPECT.: With the rise of Ethik, have you guys been able to collaborate with any other brands?

We have been able to collaborate with other brands, as our name gets a bit more established we are able to tackle these collaborations, one in specific we have worked on recently was “ANIMAL BIKES” definitely the largest BMX company out to date, was super fun to work with them, we hold a strong presence in the BMX scene as well.

RESPECT.: How about artists and athletes to represent the brand?

That’s where I come into play, I handle all artist relations and PR. Most likely if you fit our style and are super supportive of the brand we tend to work with you, ultimately you reflect the brand. Our SXSW presence every year solidifies these connections.

RESPECT.: As a brand what is your goal?

Our goal is to prosper and grow however stay focused and do not step away from the vision never step away from the vision, ultimately to have longevity as a brand, you know your Stussy, Supreme, LRG. Within street wear most tend to see brands watered down towards the end of their run we are trying to stay clear of this.

RESPECT.: With all the different types of brands and clothing being released, what separates you guys from the rest and makes this product a must to cop?

I feel our style is different than most, we have a few core pieces that really stand out from the others, the culture and vibe of our brand as well makes a difference, our store events, heavy hip-hop influence really makes a difference.

RESPECT.: As for marketing strategies, which method works the best to spread the word of the Ethik brand?

Guerilla Marketing, usually events like SXSW as well as in-store events really work well, I hold a ton of in-store album releases, video releases, art galleries etc.

RESPECT.: What role do you play exactly for Ethik that makes your job such an importance to the brand?

I handle all Artist Relations and Public Relations for the brand as well as oversee events and marketing, it is a crucial position here because I essentially oversee how the brand “looks” to the public eye, picking and choosing how we should release information/visuals are extremely important.

RESPECT.: What made you guys set up shop in Toronto, Philly, Boston and New York? Are those locations the most profitable?

We decided to go the brick and mortar route, open up shop… make a name for yourself, make an imprint, which we have. We have a lot of love in Philadelphia I would say we have definitely started a nice little ripple in the pond out in the city of brotherly love. After Philly comes Toronto, great staff and an on-site recording studio from our friends over at KarmaXWave. After Toronto came Boston.

RESPECT.: What are some thoughts of change for the brand and what do you see for the future of Ethik?

Change for Ethik in my opinion is great, constant switch is needed, change is needed for a street wear brand, pushing the same garments, same material, same events gets a bit old.

RESPECT.: Talk to us about your input in the music industry?

On a side-note I am heavily involved in the industry as I run my own booking/consulting agency on the side @mgbooking, I incorporate my Ethik events with my agency and kind of piggy back off each, it’s a nice system and I have gained great relationships over the past years.

RESPECT.: Which artists are you working with?

Currently I am working with “Frank Castle” out of Staten Island, “History” from MogulClub from out in Brooklyn, “BuddhaGxD” from the East Side of Harlem , and Produce/MC “Eprosounds” from Rockland County just to name a few. I have curated meet and greets for artists such as PnB Rock, Private Club Records, Tsu Surf, Jimi Tents, The Doppelgangaz, J57 and Koncept from the Brownbag Allstars and more…

RESPECT.: How would you like to combine fashion with music?

Fashion with music go hand and hand in my opinion, we associate ourselves mostly with the hip-hop community, fashion is extremely crucial in that world, and I feel they are closely related.

RESPECT.: What does respect mean to you?

To “Respect” means to show and receive love mutually in my opinion, if you know me you know I am here for the culture, not for the bread that comes later.

The post RESPECT. Interview: Matt Garrett Represents Ethik & Breaks Down How the Business Works appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

We’re only two months in, and 2017 has already been one wild ride. After falling in love with Migos and their impressive album Culture, America unfairly cooled off on the trio due to some not so PC comments. We saw The Weeknd start dating Selena Gomez and Ether Justin Bieber. More recently, we were all witnesses to Remy Ma putting Nicki Minaj on life support, and well Donald Trump is exactly who we thought he was — which is a scary thought. Still, the music has been amazing so far. The aforementioned Migos project made me consider ditching the fries with my 2 piece chicken wing dish. Future is on his way to becoming the first ARTIST. EVER. to have two different number one albums on the Billboard 200 in consecutive weeks. Mix those in with solid projects from artists like Taylor Bennett, SiR, Big Sean and Syd and you’ve got a solid year. But in reality, does all of that really matter when Jay-Z and Beyonce dropped a catchy, yet FIRE new single where Jigga comes for Drake? I’ll let you answer that question. But in the mean time check out these 5 hot songs that I’m sure you’ve been snoozing on.

KiariTheStone – “Smile”

Las Vegas native KiariTheStone has been making waves lately. After releasing a string of solid singles, and headlining a show on the Vegas Strip, the Sin City product trades in the gun talk for a little bit of self evaluation on the smooth track, “Smile“. Produced by Ish Him$elf along with live trumpet assistance from Fendi $ean, Kiari takes on the topic of addiction. “I’m such a stoner, I can’t quit smoking/ but I don’t wanna/ but I couldn’t even if I wanted,” raps Stone over the smooth horns from $ean. They say the first step to kicking an addiction is admittance. In other words, coming clean about your problem is the key to unlocking the journey to rehabilitation. That’s all good and what not, but what if quitting isn’t in the plans? What if what one person perceives to be a weakness is something that you view as a strength? You’re either shockingly self aware, or incredibly naive in that situation; only time will tell. Check out the track below.

Tommy Paris – “Boys Who”

When you think of the Bay Area, and Nor Cal in general, what are some of the first cities to come to mind? Oakland? San Francisco? Hell, you might even throw Modesto in there just to pay homage to an underrated Ice Cube movie — don’t argue with me. One place that might not rush to mind is Salinas, California. Salinas native Tommy Paris looks to change that and he might be on his way to doing that with the banging single, “Boys Who“. Produced by buzzing beat maker Foe 5, “Boys Who” sounds like an ode to Travis Scott made in the year 2034. Paris laces the futuristic Foe 5 instrumental with an infectious flow dripped in creative wordplay. “I ain’t bilingual/ but I speak euros, that yen and that peso,” raps the Nor Cal native in a blistering opening verse. Check out, “Boys Who” below and be sure to keep an eye on Tommy Paris.

Jimi Tents – “Should’ve Called Pt. 2 (Feat. saidbysed)

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again and again until every single one of you open your stubborn ears: Jimi Tents has next. After a relatively quiet 2016 release wise — I say “release” because the man opened for Justin Bieber and ripped a mini-tour with Amir Obe and Eli Sostre — the Brooklyn boy releases “Should’ve Called Pt. 2”, a follow up to the fan favorite from his 2015 debut project, 5 O’Clock Shadow. Utilizing a contagious hook from Sleepercamp counterpart saidbysed, Tents fills the beat like a perfectly fit glove. The most impressive part about Tents’ flow is his ability to seamlessly switch from rapping completely on beat to melody driven vocals on the drop of a dime, all while staying in pocket with each bar, leaving no drum kick untouched. Check out the track below and get familiar with Tents and his 2015 debut.

YL. – “Dwele Song (Feat. Mello)”

When it comes to love songs, Dwele is one of the greatest. I mean, the man made a song where he completely fools you into thinking he’s cheating on his girl while the whole time it’s just her freak-in-the-sheets alter ego — no seriously, look. So to title your track, “Dwele Song” takes a certain confidence in knowing that your sh*t is just that nice. Luckily for us, rhymespitter YL. not only has the confidence, but the ability to back it up. The homegrown New Yorker takes on the topic of break up to make up in this tale of infidelity and remorse over the smooth Roper Williams beat. You can almost visualize the distressing remorse on Y’s face as he raps, “They say it never really hurts like your first one/ I did some did some dirt but, for what it’s worth/ I still have the picture of you pulling up your skirt/ and mental image with you naked on my shirt.” The track comes off of the wildly impressive new project from YL., which showcases a rapper ready to take New York over. Check out the track below, and the tape here. Don’t sleep on the Big Apple product, join the bandwagon now.

J.I.D. – “Never”

The music industry is a strange place. It’s a tough business that prides itself on it’s unpredictability and it’s chameleon like ability to always reinvent itself. Stars are made overnight and a lot of times come completely out of nowhere. But sometimes, just sometimes, you can see the writing on the wall. With Dreamville’s newest signee, J.I.D., the wall is completely vandalized. Though his ferocious single, “Never” is under 300K plays though being released a year ago, the Atlanta native is poised to make a huge splash on the rap game. “Never” starts off as a smooth, banging track that sees J.I.D. looking back on his shortcoming growing up; using a choppy on point cadence. At around the two-minute mark, the tranquil instrumental transitions to a searing, breakneck pace that allows J.I.D. to get all the way loose. “Okay, what you call a girl who don’t suck d*ck? You don’t,” raps the Southern native as he kicks off the second half of the track. If you listen closely, you can already hearing J. Cole lacing the first half with a self reflecting 32 about being biracial… No? Okay. Check out, “Never” below and see why J.I.D. was Dreamville’s first Atlanta signee.

There you have it! Let us know how we did, did we get it right? Are we still sleeping on your favorite local artist? Let us know in the comment section below!

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The post With All Due RESPECT.: 5 Songs You’ve Been Sleeping On (2/27) appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Queens emcee, Justin Rose, partners up with Brooklyn native, Jimi Tents, for their latest single entitled “Livin Right Now”, produced by TGUT.  Following the release of Justin’s Water White Mixtape, which dropped in July, the trio linked with intentions of creating a dope beat, ended up catching a vibe, and creating the record that very night.

I was in Soho when I made the beat, it was that point in the summer where the weather at night was perfect and I felt like I was in LA or Miami. To me, the beat has that West Coast vibe but still holds the high energy of New York City. – TGUT

Prior to working with Justin Rose and Jimi Tents on “Livin Right Now,” TGUT has crafted singles for Curren$y, Rich the Kid, Que and more. After getting his start DJing house parties and clubs in Norfolk, VA, TGUT moved to NYC where he launched his career as a producer, experimenting with a wide array of production styles as heard on DJBooth’s Bless the Booth series, where he’s collaborated with Slim Thug, Casey Veggies and Kirko Bangz, just to name a few.

“Livin Right Now” is one of the first releases on DopeRoots LLC, a music label that TGUT has co-founded where he owns and controls all aspects of his work. With “Livin Right Now” releasing as a loose single, TGUT adds on to his catalogue as a producer while continuing to host/DJ a variety of concerts and events.

Give “Livin Right Now” a spin at the top of the page, and feel free to leave us your thoughts.

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The post RESPECT. The Track: Justin Rose x Jimi Tents x TGUT Debut “Livin Right Now” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Last January when Brooklyn native Jay Bel dropped his video for his single “Kate” via Pigeons & Planes, it showed a young talent with an extraordinary raw sense for melodies and hooks. Like most, the song struck a cord when the now 19-year-old emcee rapped about his distaste for the hypocrisies of college and his adoration for weed. After such a strong debut solo single, and a strong collaboration tape with fellow Sleeper Camp rapper Jimi Tents, Sex You Can Dance Too, fans of the artist anxiously waited for his own tape to be released. Those fans go their wish May 3rd in the form of a spacey new aged EP named Bohemia.

Bohemia features 7 tracks which include the singles “Kate” and “Acid Lake” and boasts one of the strongest mixtape covers of the year which if you look closely can show art that represents song names like “Acid Lake”. The EP starts off with the suspenseful sounding “Intreaux” which features Jay flowing over futuristic synths about his struggle to get just to where he is now. The song does justice as the intro as he properly introduces the journey he’s getting ready to take us on with lyrics like “I’d like to welcome you/ to a place where a ni**a ain’t concern bout it.” just before the it transitions into a hard drop of drums, melodies and forward sounding muffed synths. Jay then takes us into “Acid Lake” which personally is one of my favorite songs of the year. The chorus shows Bel flexing his singing chops where he sings about taking it to his enemies in a soulful way. Jay also dives more deeply into his thoughts with the lyric “I ain’t never been the one driving the boat/ but they like how I flow/ when I rose they afloat” which in my opinion can be seen on him touching on his unselfishness. More on that later. The 3:52 track not only shows Jay’s frequent ability to ride the wave and the sonics of the production, it also shows his growth from previous songs he’s done. On Sex You Can Dance Too, Jay had impressive lyrics, but at times was overshadowed by Jimi Tent’s strong flow and presence on the track. On this track as well as the strong banger “Bullsh*t” Jay exhibits his progression as his flows are more tightly compact and his ability to command the track is more clear. On “Bullsh*t”, the 19-year-old rapper shows his patience being tested over hard hitting machine gun high hats and new age keys. “I been up too long for this bullsh*t/I been pondering how I’m too strong for this bullsh*t” says Jay on the chorus which is the overall theme of the track.

Though the aforementioned songs were strong in their own right, the stand outs from the strong debut EP were definitely “Kate” and “Often”. “Kate” aesthetic represents the overall aesthetic of the EP with lyrics that open the song, “Went to school it didn’t make sense/ but thank god that we made tents” which shows where his head was at. As said before “Kate” also showcased Jay’s potential to be at a higher creativity level than most others with bars such as “gang green like a bucks fan”, “pocket full of pot like I walk with a dish”, and my personal favorite, “They ain’t know a ni**a spit like he talk with a lisp”. If “Kate” showed his lyrical potential as an emcee, “Often” displayed Bel’s potential as an overall artist with his surprisingly good vocal chops on the wavy dance track. Though it’s not very dense in lyrical presentation, the melodies and electronic vibes carry the song and help Jay live up to his nickname Groove.

Overall the 7-track EP was exactly what I was looking for in an EP from the Big Apple native. The only track I particularly didn’t enjoy was “BGL” which I felt saw Groove settling for the norm instead of pushing the creative boundaries as usual. Other than that hiccup, the project is a perfect appetizer to a full length project from Bel as well as maybe another collaboration with Jimi Tents. It’s one of the stronger projects of the year so far and showcases Bel as an artist to watch for the near future and more. Stream the project above and let us know what you think yourselves.

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The post RESPECT. Review: Brooklyn Emcee Jay Bel Comes Into His Own On ‘Bohemia’ appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

With new music from Future to Drake and everyone in between, it’s safe to say that 2015 was a year filled with hip-hop gems. We took some time to compile our favorite hip-hop projects that dropped this year. Checkout our Staff Picks for the Best Hip-Hop Projects of 2015 and possibly introduce yourself to some new projects below:

 

Dreams Worth More Than Money – Meek Mill

The post Staff Picks: The Best Hip Hop Projects of 2015 appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

The post Jimi Tents Follows Up With “Problems” Featuring Tunji Ige & Kembe X appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

In a landscape where New York MC’s are boxed in as just bars, Jay Bel & Jimi Tents are opening the door for a wider understanding of East Coast’s potential. Follow Jay Bel on Twitter here to stay tuned to the next releases. 

The post Sleeper Camp’s Not Sleeping: Jay Bel feat. Jimi Tents – “TransEuro” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.