With only a little over a month left until Made in America, it’s only right we prepare you for all the greatness you are bound to encounter. This is RESPECT.’s guide to Made in America 2015:

-Be fully prepared to walk. A lot! Benjamin Franklin Parkway is a big location and MIA is making sure they use every inch of it. There will be plenty of artists to check out and most of them will be on different stages. You want to be comfortable but look fly? Get you some Yeezy Boosts (ya’ll like that huh?)

-Bring lots of money with you. You are going to want to drink, eat and then do it all over again. Trust us.

-Come with friends! MIA is an awesome festival and should NOT be enjoyed alone. Plus who is going to take all those fly pics of you?!

-Last but not least, expect to hear music from some of your favorite artists, not so favorites and many that you haven’t discovered yet. MIA is a mash-up of the best artists from all genres and it makes for a good experience. You come in expecting one thing and walk away with some really awesome, unforgettable memories. If you didn’t know, here are some of the artists that will be performing this year:

• Beyonce (YASSSSS)
• The Weeknd *Swoons*
• Meek Mill
• Future (DS2 Live? Umm, yes PLEASE)
• Lola Wolf (Who Doesn’t Love Zoe Kravitz?)
• Nick Jonas
• Mick Jenkins
• Grits & Biscuits (They get LIVE)
• J. Cole (Classic)
• Vic Mensa
• De La Soul (Hip Hop Vets!)
• Any So MANY MORE!

If you haven’t already, buy your tickets here! Let Made in America be the best ending to your summer.

The post Made in America Festival 2015 — What to Expect, Who to Be Excited For & More appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Deniro Farrar had a lot going against him. He was incarcerated a few years ago, he’s from Charlotte, which has never produced a prominent figure in rap, and he had two kids by two different women in the span of four months. The latter may have been enough for others to quite the pursuit of a dream and get a steady job to support their offspring. But one listen to the gravelly, baritone voice of the 24 year-old and its clear that his calling is rap. Cult Rap, to be exact. Farrar has pioneered what he deems a new genre in hip-hop, which focuses on soul-baring introspection, without much concern for material objects. That may not be enough to set him apart from other soulful rappers, but his left-field production is jarring and attention-grabbing. Working with the likes of internet darlings Blue Sky Black Death and Ryan Hemsworth, Ferrar has carved out his own niche lane and is hell-bent on demolishing any road bumps along the way.

RESPECT. caught up with Farrar to discuss Cult Rap, the Rebirth EP, his comparisons to Charles Manson, as well as his brother being locked away on attempted murder charges. Read on and stream the EP at the bottom.

You have a habit of making everyone at your shows put their hands together in a prayer. It’s a pretty striking image. How important is it to put on a memorable and exciting live show?

It’s just automatic, to be completely honest. Every time I come out and do a show I feel like I make that type of impact. It’s important. Everyone’s become accepting of shows not really being shows. They just come to hear the music. So what if they actually get a live show? It really sticks with people. That’s what I’m giving them every time: I’m giving them that show and the music and the pain I actually put in.

Tupac seems to be one of your biggest influences. What was it about him that you connected with so much?

I love Tupac’s music. He’s my favorite artist, for sure, but it’s not even the music that connected me to Tupac, it’s the kind of person he was. His birthday is two days before mine. His is June 16, I’m on the 18. We’re both Geminis. I feel like the mindset of Tupac was just crazy. Where I’m at mentally, that’s exactly where he stood. I connect to him on more of a mental level. As far as the music goes, nobody influences the music I make. That’s solely based off of my life. It’s all facts. When I hear other rap music today, a lot of people are sounding alike. I don’t have any type of influence other than my life.

In the past, you’ve said that you write 4-5 songs a day to perfect your craft. Do you still do that?

Not as much. I got two kids, man. I’m definitely still writing a lot, though. My only goal is to move towards the perfection side of my craft. Songwriting is a big part of what I do. Some days I have that spurt where I can write three songs and some days I may do one. Some days I may not be in the creative space to write at all. But my kids take up a lot of my free time when I got them. I got my son right now.

Kids are priority number one, for sure.

Most definitely, bro. This is what I do it for, so I can’t abandon that responsibility. You gotta have a good balance with everything, though. Balancing your career and still being a good father.

On “Tired,” off the EP, you talk about never keeping a job and always getting fired. What was your worst job?

Working at TGIFridays. I was the host. What’s crazy is, I was the fry cook and I got fired and I moved to Virginia and I came back and they hired me again as the host because they had no fry cook. It was the worst job because I didn’t even want people to know I fucking worked there and now I gotta stand right at the door. Girls I used to date would come in on dates, I’d see people I went to high school with and I’m working at TGIFridays and shit. I dropped out of school in ninth grade and thought I was gonna do something really big with my life and people would tell me the same thing, like, ‘This nigga dropped out of school to work at TGIFridays.” That was the worst job I ever had. I hated that shit, man.

When I see females I went to high school with now that I’m doing my thing — because I’m the biggest rapper in my city — so running into those females now is crazy. They’re like sick when they see me now.

You’ve mentioned how a lot of music we hear today won’t be listened to in ten years. What’s the one song of yours you’d want people to still be listening to decades from now?

Oh, god damn, man, that’s crazy. That’s a hard question. “So Many Days Go By” is one of those songs that I get an immediate reaction any time somebody plays that. That shit’s so catchy and so crazy. It’d probably be that.

Explain “Cult Rap” to those who might be unfamiliar.

Well, first off, I just want to let people know it’s a genre. I’ve created another genre of music. You have Hip-Hop, you have Trap Rap, you got Cloud Rap, Swag Rap, and then there’s Cult Rap. It’s a movement. It’s a genre of rap that’s substance-based. It’s music with an original message. I feel like all of the music from back in the day started with an original message. LL Cool J brought that shit out, talking about chains and muscles and shit, but before that the music had real substance. Not to say that his music didn’t, but earlier on it was real. Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane — people don’t even realize Big Daddy Kane never even cursed in his music. That’s substance for your ass, right there.

The only other rapper I can think of that’s had that “cult” tag put on him would be Tech N9ne, but he’s always shied away from it. You fully embrace it and even compare yourself to Charles Manson. Why?

Just imagine if he did everything in a positive light. The impact he could have had on the world. I was having a conversation the other day when I was at the gym and this dude was like, “I don’t see a lot of rappers at the gym, but I guess that’s part of your whole Cult thing. You incorporate discipline into your cult because most people are out getting fucked up. You don’t smoke or drink. That’s crazy. Imagine the type of impact you’re gonna have once you get to the next level. How many kids lives you’ll probably change based on the fact that you don’t smoke or drink. They’ll probably incorporate that into their lives, too.”

That’s crazy because I never thought about that but it’s actually true. Rap has a major influence and impact on today’s society and youth and everything. I’m ready to do some real impactful shit.

The Manson story turns very dark as we all know, but to focus on a lighter portion, he hopped in a van with a bunch of disciples and traveled cross country. If you had to do that, who would you pick as your traveling partners?

Damn [laughs]. I would pick Francesca. She actually has a really big blog called HeyFranHey. I would pick her, she’s one of the most positive people out there. I’d definitely take my manager. He’s so fucking funny. We share the same humor. My brothers, I’d take them. My cousin. And definitely Tupac since this is a hypothetical situation [laughs].

How’s your brother?

He’s good, man. That one line on the Rebirth EP (“Ain’t wrote my brother in a month / but I’m always texting with these hoes”), when I actually wrote that song, that’s where he were. I hadn’t talked to him in a while. It becomes hard to continue to give encouraging words — even though you still should — to somebody who realizes that their life is in the hands of someone else because of a mistake they’ve made. It’s hard to tell somebody, “Hold your head up. You’ll be home soon,” when they’re facing a fucking murder charge and attempted murder charge. He’s only twenty years old. It’s like, how the fuck do you tell somebody that? They don’t wanna hear that shit all the time. I don’t even know what to say a lot of the times I’m on the phone with him. It’s crazy. I can’t even explain it. He’s in a better space certain days and I’m sure the days I don’t hear from him it’s because he’s in a negative space and he don’t wanna put that on me. He’s holding on, though. He’s stronger than a lot of people probably predicted, being only twenty.

I’m sure that weighs on you a lot. How has him being locked up affected your music?

It definitely put a serious fire under my ass. My sense of urgency to attack the game? Bro, I have zero remorse for any rapper that I’m gonna kill along the way. I got a real mission. A lot of these niggas, I don’t even feel in this game because I feel like the reason they’re in it is selfish. I got a real reason and it put that fire under my ass. I kill all these songs I’m on, I approach it with confidence and dedication. It’s all because of [my brother] and my kids. I listen to my old shit before he was even incarcerated and it was dope, I’ve always made dope music, but the shit that I’ve been making? I call him and spit verses for him and he tells me it gets better every time he hears something from me. I just put my heart in that shit and I attack it.

Let’s talk about Rebirth. I know projects like Patriarch II were recorded during some really dark times in your life. What was the recording process like with this?

A lot of people think that, man. Patriarch II wasn’t even dark like that. It was my life at that time. I just hate when people think my music is dark. I don’t wanna subject my fans to that.

Well maybe you don’t want to use that word, but there’s a lot of real life shit on there.

Right. But [the darkness] isn’t what I want people to get from it. I just want them to hear the authenticity and hear the story because this shit is real life. But I’m in a much better space right now. The Rebirth EP was the end of all of that dark phase that people felt I was going through. Rebirth is the last of that. That’s me getting it out of my system. Rebirth is almost like a confessional EP. I just got everything out of my system. The next project I come out with, it’s still gonna have the same subject matter, but the records will be different. It’ll have more feel-good records and more creative records. I’m just opening up and giving them my different styles.

“Hold On” featuring Child Actor is a big standout record on here, to me. What’s the song you’re most proud of on this EP?

I love “Hold On,” that’s a good ass record. It’s fucking crazy. Well, it’s the whole first track, because the intro runs into “Hold On,” so that’s my favorite track.

And even “Notice,” where you show single mothers how much you appreciate them. What made you do that song?

I was getting my hair done before I flew to LA, and my homegirl was telling me, “You should have a record to uplift women. No rapper’s doing that shit. You really put me in the mindset of Tupac. Nobody’s making that kind of music.” And I was like, well, ok. I didn’t leave there like, “I’m gonna have this record on my new EP.” It just came about when I wrote it and it was so crazy. I knew when I wrote it that it was going to be a big record.

So if Rebirth was the end of that phase, have you started work on a new project?

I’m already working on music for an LP right now. I was in the studio in LA and they told me, “Deniro, you should just always make music.” That’s why I’m in the habit of making so much music. They were like, “continue to make music so that when it’s time to drop the LP, you won’t have to go into the studio.” I’ll have so much music that when the LP comes I can just select what records I want and maybe write a few new ones. But you never want to start an LP because it’s LP time. It’s LP time all the time. But I’ll be dropping an EP with Ryan Hemsworth first.

The post Interview: Deniro Farrar Talks Rebirth, Cult Rap, and Charles Manson appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

 Brooklyn duo The Underachievers have been grinding on the mixtape circuit, and now they are gearing up for the release of their debut album, Cellar Door: Terminus Ut Exordium, due out later this year. The first single off their upcoming project is “Incandescent,” produced by Canadian Ryan Hemsworth. The track has a darker, eerier tone than we are use to hearing from Issa, and AK. The menacing beat allows the duo to spit aggressively, and they let off an entire arsenal of bars. The Underachievers are also getting ready to hit the road on their first headlining tour, “Eyes of the World,” with a first stop in Boston on April 2nd. The tour will aslo feature Denzel Curry, Azizi Gibson and Dillon Cooper.

The post New Music: The Underachievers – “Incandescent” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

The latest batch of artists confirmed to perform at next month’s absolutely stacked Downtown Music Festival have just been released. The newcomers are Andrew Wyatt (of Miike Snow), Autre Ne Veut, Ryan Hemsworth, Kilo Kish, Ratking, Kingdom feat. Kelela, Mr. Muthafuckin eXquire, Va$htie, and Fat Tony, with even more acts promised before the month is up. If you were wondering, these acts join the already-cemented Black Hippy, Purity Ring, Earl Sweatshirt, Sky Ferreira, DIIV, Palma Violets, Trash Talk, Beach Fossils, Teengirl Fantasy, Inc., Ducktails, Royal Teeth, and Black Dave. Today on RESPECT. we have the premier of Ryan Hemsworth’s mix. Stream it here and get hyped for the festival.

This festival is huge, and will be blasting within the walls of the Mercury Lounge, Bowery Ballroom, Angel Orensanz, Pianos, Cake Shop, Tammany Hall, Element, Capitale, Rockwood Music Hall and more. Starting in NY, the Festival will be hitting up Phiadelphia, Toronto, Boston, Los Angeles, Denver and Las Vegas, with specialized lineups for each unique city. Two-day tickets are all sold out, but one-day tickets are still purchaseable for $75. Here’s the NY Downtown Festival’s day-by-day lineup:

The post Downtown Music Festival, Ryan Hemsworth’s Mix appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

“Bruiser be the clique I claim,” declares Danny Brown on EP-opener “Errthang.” The toothless Detroit wordsmith has returned, and he’s brought some of his Bruiser Brigade with him for the ride.

The four song EP features aforementioned track “Errthang” and “Jooky,” plus remixes from Lockah and Ryan Hemsworth. In-house producer/DJ madman Skywlkr provides the EP’s gritty sound, while Brown and Dopehead attack with furious rhymes.

The post DANNY BROWN’S BRUISER BRIGADE DROPS FREE EP appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Photo by Sean Berrigan

Ryan Hemsworth produces music because, “We all want Canada to be seen as cool someday.” “All” might be a bit extreme, but for those who do want to see Canada as a haven for hip, Hemsworth is taking his home country one step closer. His debut EP Last Words, released through We Did It, drops today and just one year after graduating college, he’s got himself on the map.

The 22-year-old’s music-career began in junior high when Hemsworth picked up a guitar and drums, even dabbling in a bit of singing. Thanks to a hip-hop inclined cousin, he started listening to Wu-Tang, “It kind of just blew my mind. The grittiness of it all,“ he says. Now, however, he refuses to give his music a genre. Not trap (the sub-genre of the moment) and not hip-hop, saying he gets inspiration from a range of musical styles, each track influenced by a different mindset and sound. One day R&B, the next gritty trap, the one unifying factor being a library of samples because, for Hemsworth, “The risk of making five really weird, fairly different tracks [is more worthwhile] then just five tracks that sound identical.”

The soft-spoken producer’s music seems to match his personality. The sound is closest to “chill-trap,” and Hemsworth himself is laidback and airy, but captivating. “I usually put way too much into it so I have to backpedal and delete crap,” it’s that control and understanding that makes each song feel complete and perfectly well-rounded. Listen to “Charly Wingate” and you’ll understand how each song comes full circle. No overwhelming bass or extra samples, it’s the perfect sound to play when you just want to zone out and forget the world.

But Hemsworth won’t settle with chill, when he can get edgy. His ideal musical partners are Danny Brown, Gunplay and Kenrick Lamar aiming to mix that airy feel with some aggressive rappers.“Slurring” from Last Words samples a skit from a Gunplay mixtape, five seconds of Soulja Boy, a freestlye that one of the Main Attrakionz recorded over a cell phone and Hemsworth’s own guitar.  He’s open to everything from Lil B (he made an entire mixtape of Lil B remixes) to sounds from video games to Radiohead. It’s a little bit of everything, but overall that’s Hemsworth, “It’s kind of just like recycling memories and stuff that I grew up on.” Sit, listen and lose yourself in the brain of Ryan Hemsworth.

Last Words out now.

The post “Making Canada Cool” — An Exclusive Interview with Producer Ryan Hemsworth appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Photo by Sean Berrigan

Ryan Hemsworth comes from Canada to bring us the best of chill-trap. Check out “Charly Wingate,” the first single to come off his upcoming debut label EP Last Words, out August 21. If you can’t wait till the EP for more Hemsworth jams, hit up his website for some downloads. There’s even a whole mixtape of Lil B remixes. Hemsworth listening spree, here we go.

The post New Music: Ryan Hemsworth — “Charly Wingate” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.