July 2012: 92YTribeca hosted the first of a three-part installment, titled Sound & Vision, featuring legendary mixer and DJ Young Guru. During this, Guru moderated a discussion between The Hitmen alum Sean C and LV.

Check out the full breakdown of the event here.

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Earlier this month, Arts At MIT and TapTape, a new MIT-based music start-up kicked off their MIT Hip Hop Speaker Series and Young Guru served as the guest lecturer. The prized engineer and producer is most known for his work with stars like Jay Z and Kanye West. For nearly two hours, he spoke to a crowd of students, faculty, and media about various topics, ranging from his upbringing in Virginia to his start in music to the future of technology.

A significant portion of his lecture was his thoughts on there needing to be some type of micro-payment system for creatives. In terms of music, he felt that artists should have complete control of how their music is distributed as opposed to the control being in the hands of streaming companies such as Spotify, which are not in the best interest of the artist. Using Pharell’s Billboard charting single “Happy” as an example, a song that got streamed over tens of millions of times but paid out less than $3,000, he discussed how the current systems that are in place don’t accurately reflect the value and worth of an artist’s work.

You can listen to Guru talk about this and more below.

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The Summer is coming to a sad end but as New Yorkers we very well know that we must go out with a bang first! And we sure will with the hottest party to happen in NYC. Forever Fresh, S.O.B.’s and Noizy Cricket have put together a ’90s VS Naughts Yacht Party to take place this upcoming Saturday, August 16th at 10:30 p.m. on the Luxury Infinity Yacht at Pier 40, 353 West Street.

As you can see on the flyer above, it’s going to be one hell of a night! And we are prepared to give one lucky person a pair of tickets to attend. All of you high rollers that enjoy a good time on a yacht, hit us up on Twitter and enter to win! The contest is running from today up until Thursday, 12 p.m. EST. You must hit us up on Twitter and tell us what your favorite ’90s hip hop song is. And for those of you that don’t win, you can always purchase tickets to attend. Good luck!

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Photos by Emanuel Wallace

On Thursday evening, Cuyahoga Community College’s Center for Creative Arts played host to Young Guru, Aalias (producer of “The Monster“) and Jonathan Mannion (photographer and frequent RESPECT. collaborator) The three participated in a panel discussion on the past, present and future of hip-hop, specifically the importance of building connections, learning how to apply your talents and remaining motivated in the field.

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Some of you may have gotten the chance to witness Rich Kidd crush it at this week’s SXSW alongside producer Young Guru. Or maybe you remember him stealing the show during Just Blaze’s set at the Boiler Room. Most likely, you’ve seen the video of him being crowned winner of the SXSW Champion Sound instrumental battle. No matter where you heard his name first, it goes without saying that Rich‘s buzz level is sky-high right now. Many are branding him as the next big hip-hop talent to blow up from Toronto, and it’s easy to see why. As an MC he’s been catching new fans at every turn. As a producer, he’s already worked with Raekwon, Busta Rhymes, DMX, and Talib Kweli, just to name a few. His press coverage has been growing, especially in the past year with Kiddstrumentals 2 and his solo mixtape In My Opinion, with this video being the last one to drop from this project.

With all the momentum surrounding Rich, his newest video “The Valley” is a landmark for him that paints a chilling image and challenges the standards of a hip-hop video with its cinematic undertone. Regarding the concept behind the video, director RT! said the following:

“With ‘The Valley’ visual I really wanted to make a video that kept throwing curveballs as you continue to watch it. Everyone knows about late-night missions after the club, so I took that simple relatable idea and flipped it into something dark, Kubrickian and unexpected. Hip-hop videos have a stigma of being predictable to the point of parody so we fucked with peoples expectations, while indulging some of those elements (who doesn’t love lingerie parties?) Rich is that new type of artist outta Canada that makes that real hip hop but ain’t afraid to try different concepts both visually and musically. When I heard the drums on this and the valley chanting I knew it had to be something twisted.

Check out the video below and be on the look out for more from this promising young rapper.

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Back in 2007, during Jay-Z’s American Gangster period, a brief, unfinished version of “Dead Presidents 3” leaked. The full version was never released until now. Hov decided to take advantage of his Twitter account and hold an extended Q&A with fans, during which the full version of the aforementioned record was requested by many. Young Guru then decided to treat the fans. This is the original version of the record, and you’ll notice a few lines off “Moment of Clarity“ in the second verse. Listen below.

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“Remember where you heard it first!”

That was Young Guru’s war cry before unveiling the jewel of a record he must have been waiting all night to spin.  The Jiggaman’s engineer treated his crowd at SXSW to a revamped version of Kendrick Lamar’s hit “Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe,” now featuring a sharp verse from Jay-Z.  Never one to be slack on a collab—he is the reigning champ of “Renegade-ing” after all—Kendrick brings two fresh verses to this version, each one longer and more technically flashy than anything he spat on the original.

If you’d rather see the lyrics than watch Young Guru and the dudes in the front row sway back and forth, they’re posted below.  At times it is hard to understand K.Dot and Hov due to the video’s quality, so following along will help decipher their intricate bars.

(Chorus)

I am a sinner who’s probably gonna sin again
Lord forgive me, Lord forgive me
Things I don’t understand
Sometimes I need to be alone
Bitch don’t kill my vibe, bitch don’t kill my vibe
I can feel your energy from two planets away
I got my drink, I got my music
I would share it but today

I’m yelling bitch don’t kill my vibe, bitch don’t kill my vibe
Bitch don’t kill my vibe, bitch don’t kill my vibe

(Verse 1)
Look inside of my soul and you can find gold and maybe get rich
Hol’ up, Trinidad James in four weeks but now my album platinum and shit

So what, y’all keep the numbers I’m more than another statistic, my nigga
This courtesy of Compton Brooklyn go hard, motherfucker
Bevy on the East like I’m Chuck D, Dominicans wish that I was born there
I’m lookin’ to be the god MC, you look at my hat and see thorns there
I look at the game and see porn there fuckin’ this industry hard

[inaudible]…yo honey, you thought I was fresh out the yard
Don’t cry to me dummy, you’re lightweight
They tell me you nice and I’m like, wait
Go get me a knife, you’re looking like steak
And when the stakes are high, I stake out for days
When the water beside ya, make the pool shake
When we thirsty nigga, never alert me, nigga
I got a P89 in a suitcase I hope you heard me, nigga,

This is the burpie, nigga lyrical exercise
Right now, homie, I’m in the extra vibe
Bite down on the curb when you heard that I got these words
To the upper echelon, that’s extra vibe

 

(Chorus)

(Verse 2: Jay-Z)
Up in the clouds, me and my spouse
Rumors on the ground gettin’ too loudwe turn them shits down

Can’t hear myself think, turbulence, shit, almost spilled my drink
In the West with a mink runnin’ through that bitch like it’s my house
All up in the hall with a mall
Told you motherfuckers, all I do is ball
No, I don’t ‘member you, I don’t intend to empty my memory bank
There’s a million dollars in it, baby, Hilary Swank
Sittin’ next to Hilary smellin’ like dank
President Carter, name one nigga out there harder than him
I’ll wait…

I’ve been on my weight like 20 years straight
I’ve been on my vibe like 20 years straight
Don’t fuck up my high, fuck up my high
Nights like this, I don’t fuck up the pies
Still keep straight and still be straight
Fall back, bitch, I got a lot on my plate
Don’t waste my breath
I don’t know how many moons a nigga got left
Back to this joint

Smokin’ this shit like I’m tryna’ prove a point
I’m the highness, the highest title, numero uno
Kill my vibe, that shit’s a walkin’ funeral

(Verse 3: Kendrick Lamar)
Between you and me, turn eulogy to urinals
Niggas pissed off, I’m in this lil’ bitch and I just showed my fart
Leader of the new school, on my toes like a ballerina
Who knew I’d be the black swan, world in my palms
Ironically, I am the Ghost Rider’s vest when I don’t write the bomb
Told niggas when I was 16 that I’d write a 16 to put a nigga right on the big screen
In the paddy wagon at 16 should have been in the pen but then my pen

Ran with morphine, I heal niggas, touch down with more fiends

I kill niggas, audio crack, Khakis to meal ticket

Cardio lap rap–

After that Young Guru cut the record off.  Stay tuned for the release of the full, high quality version of this anthemic track’s remix.

The post Video Preview: Kendrick Lamar – “Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe Remix (Feat. Jay-Z) appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.