With DJ Yemi being well, of course, a DJ, “Automatic” is a club banger. “Up and down, up and down, let me see you do it slow,” Lerch raps. Check out the song below.

The post DJ Yemi Debuts “Automatic” With J. Lerch appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

The cover art, designed by Jitta On The Track, draws inspiration from the popular board game Monopoly. The cover depicts Mr. Monopoly breaking the traditional game rules by robbing the break. The track, engineered by Donne Smith, is set to have visuals later this year. Check it out below.

The post Virginia Artist Anweezy Drops New Single “Investments” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Retired NBA veteran J.R. Reid had a lengthy career in the NBA. With stints with the San Antonio Spurs, Charlotte Hornets, New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers and Milwaukee Buck. Drafted 5th overall by the Hornets in the 1989 NBA Draft, Reid, a product of Virginia Beach, VA came as advertised after a stellar high school career after being named Gatorade and USA TODAY’s player of the year out of Kempsville High School. He’d later be an All-American under Dean Smith at the University of North Carolina.

What’s always been cool about Reid is his journey and who he’s been around in locker rooms during his NBA career. He was teammates with 16 year NBA vet Dell Curry and would watch Dell’s son’s, Seth and Stephen grow as children. The boys are now all grown up, Seth is a guard playing for the Dallas Mavericks and Stephen is the Golden State Warriors star point guard.

Reid knew back then that Dell’s kids were special.“Steph was shooting that thing at nine,” Reid told me in an interview last year.

“He was putting the work in. You can tell. When a little kid has form, you can tell. The NBA now, you see so many former NBA players’ kids now playing. It’s a lifestyle. These kids are around this lifestyle. They see the dedication…these kids are already ahead of the game. We loved him…Steph was always tagging along. He was just a source of entertainment for us.”

Speaking of second generation ball players. Reid was a member of the Los Angeles Lakers during the 1999 season and was teammates with the now retired Kobe Bryant. Reid knew back then that Bryant was growing into a special player. “Kobe was a great teammate,” said Reid.

“We tried to get him to shoot some craps with us in the back. We started cracking jokes. Kobe was put together differently than a lot of other guys. I might be reading some stock stuff, computers, car stuff and Kobe is over there reading about the art of war. He’s trying to be a mental assassin.”

Reid served as a mentor to Kobe through parts of that season as per the advice of Jerry West, the guy who drafted Bryant. What’s significant about that is that Reid has always been a mentor of sorts and wise beyond his years. How do I know? Back in 1997 I chronicled Reid when he was a member of the Charlotte Hornets during my days hosting Nets Slammin’ Planet on the now defunct 620 AM One-On-One Sports here in New York City. He was recently a subject in the Scoop B Radio time capsule series. Give it a listen below.

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The post J.R. Reid On Young Kobe: “Trying To Be A Mental Assassin” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

As of lately, Virginia has been really showing out with all of the new influential artists coming out of the state. Now that we are going into the year of 2017, it is time for one VA artist to shine and no longer be overlooked. It is apparent Virginia artist and producer WXLFGVNG PVVLI has been putting a lot of dedication and hard work into his craft. Now, he is ready to show and prove in his new mixtape Virginia Lottery. The artist is an open book in the 17 tracks as he shares stories revolving around his lifestyle of being a young black male living in the commonwealth state. You can envision his reality the most while giving his two stand out tracks “Vicarious” and “Demand” a listen.

WXLFGVNG PVVLI has been in his bag all throughout 2016. While he’s building a buzz for himself, he has effortlessly released dope music while showing off his ability to create a distinct sound for himself. You can stream the Virginia Lottery mixtape below.

https://soundcloud.com/pvvli/sets/val

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The post WXLFGVNG PVVLI Releases New Mixtape Titled ‘Virginia Lottery’ appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Ahhhh The Vampire Diaries has returned. The 8^th and final season of The CW show gave a slow and steady build in its premiere hour, ultimately revealing the face of our final big-bad. The biggest bad we have ever seen according to executive producer Julie Plec. “Hello Brother” kicks off with Damon and Enzo kidnapping a couple. The young girl dies quickly while her male counterpart gets tortured.

Steroline is back in full swing after reconciling in the season 7 finale. Therefore Bonnie is writing to Elena now; the three friends are taking turns writing to her. Not soon after she finishes up her journal entry, the police find the body of the young girl. Later in the episode we find out that Enzo left the girl’s body as a clue. Guitar wire was found around her neck and candle wax was found in her ear only 3 miles from an abandoned warehouse with drainage issues.

Bonnie has flashbacks of her and Enzo’s relationship. Him teaching her how to play the guitar and reading the Odyssey and a book on sirens to her. She then puts two and two together and realizes he is leaving her messages at the crime scene based off stories of the sirens; the wax, how he setup the girl’s body. Enzo wants them to help fight the creature. That’s why he is leaving clues. Enzo wanted Bonnie and Stefan to find them.

Damon has switched off his humanity again in order to survive. He has it in his head that there is no such thing as redemption. However, he still has flashbacks of the first time he and Elena met. Damon is calling out to Elena for help. He doesn’t know how long he can fight. Stefan learns this the hard way when he finds the warehouse.

Damon says his famous “Hello brother” line [God I love when he says that!] and proceeds to tell Stefan to give up and walk away. The banter between the Salvatore brothers continues but is cut short when Bonnie arrives and Damon realizes Stefan won’t leave without him. Stefan then stabs Damon with a broom stick in an attempt to kidnap him. Enzo comes out of nowhere and punches Stefan as Damon takes Bonnie hostage.

Stefan and Bonnie leave without Damon and Enzo. After seeing Enzo, Bonnie has regained her hope however Stefan may have lost his. Stefan is afraid Damon may never forgive him.

Understandably so, Damon did tell Stefan that his life has been over for over a century when Stefan took it away from him; when Stefan forced him to become a vampire. However, this was one last blow in hopes to keep his brother out of harm’s way. Damon is trying to protect Stefan from the creature that has Enzo and him under its grasp. Damon shut off his humanity because “You care for nothing, it can see nothing.” The creature will hurt or kill what you love.

Later on in the episode Damon and Enzo take another victim. This time it’s a painter who paints with human blood. As we learn the creature can sense evil/darkness in people and feeds off of that. It knows your darkest secrets, even if you try to hide them. The creature is revealed to be a woman toward the last act of the episode. She is singing and apparently has had enough to eat as she was strong enough to introduce herself to the boys.

Georgie and Alaric’s intern discover a place in the armory where you can go through the wall. The same wall that Damon, Enzo and the creature used to escape the armory. This wall leads to another tunnel, which leads to a hidden door with hidden treasures. While Ric is uncovering treasures his children and nanny (Seline) are being attacked by Virginia; the girl who escaped from the mental institution in season 7 and knows everything there is to know about the woman controlling Damon and Enzo.

Virginia slices Seline’s throat and goes after the twins. Caroline quickly arrives and knocks out Virginia. She then gives Seline her blood, saves her and has her take the twins out for ice cream so she can interrogate the deranged woman. Virginia lets Caroline know that the creature (siren woman) wants the twins. But why?

Before we can find out Virginia swallows her own tongue and dies.

Ric returns to the house and tells Caroline to go live with Stefan. He will move into her childhood home with the girls because it is what she wants. It will make her happy. Georgie may end up making him happy but he isn’t up for trying anything…yet.

Steroline moves in together and Stefan writes to Elena telling him that he thinks he lost Damon but promises he won’t give up on him.

Next week:

The siren comes out to play. Hello Sybil.

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The post ‘The Vampire Diaries’ Season 8 Premiere Recap: “Hello Brother” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Inside of Evan Barlow’s commitment to raise the bar of sound in art, he pushes the envelope with the release of his emotionally surged new single “Come Together,” from his forthcoming project titled FABRICS. The rising star unveils his real life struggle as a recovering drug addict in the new bona-fide banger, dropping lyrics that bring vividness to the dark corners of drug temptation.  This is  clearly a personal and important record to Barlow, peep some of the lyrics you’ll listen to on the single.

I lay I’m restless I cannot believe I questioning going back second guessing myself, I know the answer is no! Know what the answer is, know that this demons cancerous, know that I can’t sustain it impossible to maintain it, but I can’t the sickness is too much for me to handle my stomach is doing flips this picture up on the mantle is fucking with me inside!”” Barlow belts out in reference to the picture of his deceased mother’s photo over his mantle.

The Richmond, Virginia native is known for shattering genre-barriers and effortlessly merging different types of music to achieve a new sound he’s coined as “music of the day after tomorrow.” Barlow is currently in the studio working on his highly anticipated upcoming mixtape FABRICS. He has worked with an incredible group of artists on his new project, which include the talented producer Bink (Kanye West, Jay Z), Pop Wansel producers Some Randoms, Chally who is signed to Timbaland, Macklemore’s horn players Greg Kramer and Ouwor Arunga, as well as Andrew Hypes, Will Perry and more.

Listen to the latest single below and keep up with Evan Barlow’s latest moves on Twitter and Instagram: @evanbarlowmusic.

https://soundcloud.com/evanbarlowmusic/evan-barlow-come-together

The post Press Play: Evan Barlow Delivers New Single – ‘Come Together appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

There are many areas that are making hip-hop proud currently – “DMV” being one on the list. For those unfamiliar, it’s the area where Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia mesh, which naturally developed the now-universal byname. With its rather central location along the east coast, it’s safe and evident to say that musicians by way of the DMV area draw influences from above and below – and it’s something beautiful. It’s a bit tough to pinpoint a sound or specific influence as a whole when you hear it.

To name a few from surrounding pinpoints, do recall Wale, Pharrell, Clipse, Oddisee (as well as a good portion of Mello Music Group recording artists), Missy Elliot, Skillz, D’Angelo and many more. We’d say that’s quite a beautiful hybrid of artists, right?

Tef Wesley gave us the original “Gametime” treatment last year (2015), having released a video for it as well. Fast forwarding a year later to now Tef decided to round up fellow partners in rhyme Jered Sanders and Cane to paint the triumphant, guitar riffed, heavy drummed Grussle canvas. Grussle is an electrifying beatsmith, always paying homage to the traditional, neck snapping and atmospheric boom-bap-esque sound that we all love and want more of. DMV’s Dj Ragz (of the Jazz Addixx) brought his sharpest Ginsu knives to the table, per-usual. Do be alarmed. This joint is potent.

Lets not turn this into a long, exhausting review. Enjoy the record and be sure to keep up with the fellas as 2016 unfolds. Peace and love.

Tef Wesley | Jered Sanders | Cane | Dj Ragz | Grussle

The post Tef Wesley Drops Off His Latest Remix Of “Gametime” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.