I could ramble for hours about J57, but for the sake of keeping this short and letting the record speak for itself I will not do so. He’s stomping from the well known, acclaimed [Brown Bag AllStars] crew alongside Audible Doctor, DeeJay Element, DJ E-Holla, Koncept and Soul Khan. For those of you who already follow him you can agree that we mainly know him for his production on records. His production alone is enough to carry him for years, but the bar has been raised and J57 decided to let loose in the rhyming department. This was a shocker to us fans but the results are pretty stellar, as the Ep gained amazing responses.

This is the first visual from J57’s acclaimed ‘Wax Aesthetic‘ Ep (with features from Co$$, Johaz, Choosey / production from Exile and much more) – released in 2014. It is available for free download here. You should probably set aside one minute and add this to your collection if you know what’s best for you. J57 always delivers, as does the whole [Brown Bag AllStars] squad. Let this fun, stress-free visual take you as close as you may ever be to partying with the crew, and be sure to keep up with J57 and all his future moves:

Official Site | J57 Facebook | J57 Twitter | J57 Instagram

The post New Video: J57 Feat. F. Virtue, Mike Maven, Katiah & Akie Bermiss – “Helmut Lang” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

What does it mean to you as an artist to be playing the Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival? What does it mean go you as a Brooklyn resident?

What is your approach for putting together a set for this crowd?

The BKHHF has one of the best audiences around. They’re real, actual hip-hop fans, not just festival grazers that show up because it’s something to talk about. The audience is genuinely interested in the artists performing so it’s really a great feeling knowing I don’t have to play to the audience. I can do what I do naturally, and because this is a real hip-hop crowd, they’ll appreciate it.  What can we expect from your BK hiphop fest set? Is it any different from a regular Audible Doctor show?

Who’s playing at the festival that, as a fan, you’re most excited to see?

I’ve seen a few of the artists before but it’s always dope to see Raekwon perform. I’ve never seen Jay Electronica or Cyhi so that will be really dope to see. CJ is an ill emcee too so I can’t wait to see him do his thing. And Rob Swift always KILLS it…honestly, I don’t think there’s anyone I’m NOT excited to see.
What are some of your favorite BK Hip-Hop Festival memories?

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RESPECT: So [J57] you rap as well as produce, but for this project you’re just producing. Why’d you make that decision?

J57: We were already gonna do an album where I produced the whole thing anyway and I kind of just brought the idea that we could it make it a little different from regular Koncept albums if we set it aside and just do Koncept and J57 and he was like, “I’m with that.” And then when we were in L.A., I remember we were going to do a show and we get to the venue and we were chillin’ because we didn’t want to go into the venue and talk to people and lose our voices. So we’re chillin’ outside still and he’s like, “Yo, I don’t think I want anybody else to do my beats.” And I was like, “Done!” So we were just like from here on out we’re gonna do this as a group. So now it’s a group dynamic. It’s always been fifty-fifty when we work on stuff anyway, but now it’s like official.

Koncept: And the sound is different as well from the previous stuff that we’ve done –

J57:  – Yeah and that’s why I thought it would be cool to separate it from all the other shit because it doesn’t sound like Awaken – and those are incredible records – but it just doesn’t sound like the other shit. It’s just bigger sounding.

Koncept: It’s the best music we’ve ever made. I feel and he feels and we feel like everything else – I’m proud of all my previous work – was learning. At this point I feel like I’ve really found my sound and my delivery and how to use my voice. And just how to make better music. Again, all that stuff, I’m proud of it, but it was just all to learn, to get us to where we are now. So with this new music it’s just bigger and better. So being a group will just make it stand out a bit more and make people see, before they even hear it, that that’s different from what they’ve done previously because now it’s actually a group dynamic.

Did you two come with a name for the group?

Koncept: Well the name is just gonna be Koncept and J57. The album is gonna be called Flight. And we have an EP we’re gonna drop before that called The Fuel.

You said that it’s always fifty-fifty when you two work together. Is there ever any overlap between your roles as producer and rapper?

J57: Oh yeah! Totally, totally! When we’re in the studio, he’ll come up with ideas for beats as well. It’s not like it’s all me. Or even just a creative idea in general. It’s not like a hundred percent half and half.

Koncept: It’s fifty-fifty in the sense that we do everything together. He may be like, “Yo, I love that verse, but what if we switch it up and have you do a bridge here instead of that?” Or, “What if you flip this line a little bit?” And I’ll be the same way. I’ll be like, “Yo this beat is crazy but what if we have this change-up here.” So it’s fifty-fifty in the sense that we’re both involved in everything.

J57: Like a real group! [laughs] It’s more than a rapper and a producer linking up for a real quick project. It really is like a group, like all the classic duos like Gang Starr. It wasn’t just like Premier made the beats and he was like, “Guru, go do some raps!” [laughs]. [Guru] was in the lab next to him. That dynamic is dire. There are people who are doing it, but they’re doing like one-and-off albums. We wanted to bring more to the table than that. That’s why we’re keeping it kind of old school with just “Koncept and J57.” It’s modern, but it’s old school at the same time because cats aren’t really doing that anymore, where there’s just two names together…well they are, but it’s just for those one-and-off projects, not for a real group.

Yeah like for an EP.

J57: Yeah, like me and some random dude link up for an EP, which we do all the time because that’s dope, but we’re not trying to do that anymore. We’re not trying to just make some shit. We’re trying to bring it to the next level.

Do you feel like that interaction that you have is possible only because of your previous relationship?

Koncept: Yeah, we’ve been close friends for years now, so our relationship in general just allows us to work together. And we both have the same goals and the same place that we both want to reach. So that forms the chemistry right there.

 So before we started the interview you mentioned labels that you’re possibly working with for this album. Is Fat Beats one of them? You two both used to work at the store.

Koncept: Yeah, we worked there together for awhile. For these projects, we’ve been talking to some majors and just different outlets. We recorded the album with Red Bull, so we’ve obviously been in contact with them to figure out some different options. And we’ve been in contact with Interscope and some other majors. And right now everything’s looking good. We’re just trying to find the best place for us to go.

Why did you name it Flight?

Koncept: So the album is my autobiography and it starts with me and J in Brooklyn, getting into a cab to go to L.A. and record the album. And I wrote the album like a movie, so then throughout the whole album, I talk about my childhood and my dad passing and growing up with a single mom, then high school, then moving out of the city to live in Vermont for a little bit and then moving back to the city. So I talk about everything in my life and the album ends with me and J recording the album in LA.

So it’s like a journey.

 Koncept: Yeah, exactly.

J57: And we recorded a lot of sound-bites, when we’re on our phones, when we’re taking the actual flight, when we’re at the airport, getting into the cab, the whole nine, from beginning to end while we were traveling. And we chopped them out and sprinkled throughout the whole album so it’s really cohesive. It has a real story.

So before you two even flew out to L.A., you two already had a very coherent idea of what this would be.

Koncept: Yeah yeah, exactly.

Koncept, you mentioned your dad passing. On “Awaken,” you said that his death scared you straight. What did you mean by that?

Because my dad died of drugs, so basically his death sent me in the direction of not going down the path.

The post Interview: Koncept and J57 Prepare For Departure appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Though Soul Khan did a near-perfect (and accidental) paraphrasing Jay Z‘s “Izzo” intro as he addressed Webster Hall’s basement crowd, that’s about where the similarities between the mogul and the mortal end. When Hov noted that his audience had infinite options besides him, the seemingly-humble words came through his mic cord already doused in flammable panache and self-congratulations. Soul Khan‘s realization and thanks-giving, however, sprang from a much more genuine realization. “You could really be doing anything else,” he insisted, stopping just short of telling the audience they had better things to do. Instead, he opted to soak up the support.

In other words, Soul Khan is a kind of an everyman. He has a sense of perspective. He’s a humble dude. That’s not to say his set lacked confidence, or even ego at times, though. Among the best moments of the night were Khan‘s ferocious runs of “6:30 AM” and “Hold On,” (the opening tracks of Soul Like Khan and Pursuance respectively). Though quite a bit of Khan‘s music is focused on exposing and eradicating the ills of the world, it’s (especially) dope to hear a smart and selfless guy just go off. Soul was especially invigorating when it became time to talk his shit.

Another peak moment for the show was when Khan treated the crowd to a glimpse of what’s to come–a brand new, completely unheard track. The production was theatric, the rhymes were grandiose, the aura was bigger and more polished–it was the best possible incarnation of what Soul Khan can achieve on a record. This new material had all the humility and human connection of a man who can laugh at himself combined with all the righteous fire of a man who’s lost his appetite for laughter.

The second the intense records cut off, though, it was always right back to Khan‘s mix of self-deprecation, rambling, and still-funny dad humor. The funniest moment? Khan spending a solid minute or so recounting a debate he overheard between two friends over who had the “smoov skill,” which Khan insisted be spelled with a “v”. The comfortably uncomfortable MC had the crowd in consistent fits of laughter, proving himself as an all-around entertainer in addition to being a politically-minded rap nerd’s dream.

Another welcome surprise in the all-around entertainment category: even though he brought frequent collaborator Akie Bermiss along to handle most of the singing duties, Soul tackled the prayer-like hook to “Van Gelder” by himself, his vulnerable hum proving impressive live. Khan also made the wise move of turning the hook into a “clap along” experience, adding to the religious magnetism. His increased (and still increasing) comfort on stage doesn’t only show in his ability to utilize ferocity and tenderness, but also in his physical showmanship. Khan‘s been known to cling to his water bottle for a performance’s entirety, but he notably cut down on that this time around. His motions on stage are still a little stilted, and though he doesn’t have all the smoov skill in the world, it doesn’t take too much away from his set. At the end of the day, it’s about if the content is there, and it damn sure was.

Aside from the jokes and boasts, at the heart of Soul Khan‘s art is thoughtful social commentary. It was inspiring to see how much Khan cared about the inclusion of “Not Like That,”–his dissection and execution of sexism–in the setlist (they almost forgot!). The song is a master class taking down a societal ill with humor and precision, and to know that he still holds it dear in spite of his admittance (in our interview with him) that the song is perhaps too preachy and direct is a beautiful thing. It didn’t hurt that Akie was there to sing the crazy smooth hook and the sections of the song where, in an inspired move, he croons Khan‘s lines as he raps them, adding a whole lot of texture. As a final outlet of passion, Soul ended the night by thanking the crowd for attending and letting loose a dizzying, athletic acapella. It was raw. The whole performance was raw–grizzly, soulful, unprocessed, (somewhat) unpolished, unapologetic–word to Push–and real. A real human being who happens to know how to work a mic.

Make sure to catch Soul in concert whenever you can. Also, check out our interview with him (below), his latest track, as well as Khan‘s video for “Morning Alone,” (also below) which we premiered here on RESPECT.

Interview: Soul Khan The Wise Part 1

Soul Khan (Feat. Nicholas Ryan Gant) – “Morning Alone”

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Check out our video interview with Soul Khan here, here, and here.

Watch Soul Khan‘s “Morning Alone”, which premiered right here on RESPECT.

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