I have to say, at, 24, I was probably one of the youngest people in attendance. even thoughI saw a few kids running around and even heard a baby crying at one point.

I don’t remember when I met Jason Noer or his wife Bethany, probably at Soundset or another rap event. Jason was a friend of Eyedea’s and has been an intergral part in the Twin Cities hip-hop scene since the early days. He spends his time living the life of a b-boy and teaching the art to the next generation. He also appears to have at least 47 pairs of Pumas.

I came to the show alone, mostly because I wanted to experience the night with no attachments. What I thought was a good seat at Cowles turned out to be taken by someone else, as someone in the front row had messed up the arrangement and made it so I couldn’t grab my seat. The staff at the venue was great and let me sit in the “accessible” seat at the top of the stairs with plenty of leg room and a great view. No complaints here. The usher who assisted me comments on my new Nike Air Max 90s and told me he was ready for a good show. I was down with him.

The night started out with an introduction of each of the dancers. Each member of the troupe had a “day job” and this was all part of their routine during the night. They each also had their individual style of dancing whether it be classic breakdancing, “tutting”, “waacking” or other styles. Despite having many friends who dance, I learned a lot about the various styles this night.

As an independent hip-hop kid, my favorite part of the night was seeing several people at once dance to some of my favorite artists and songs…Ghostface Killah of Wu-Tang Clan, Busdriver, Eyedea & Abilities, Aceyalone (at least 3 times), KRS-One, and more were all on the playlist. The same feeling I get when a DJ puts on a favorite track of mine was felt all over in my body, the feeling that someone other than you knows a track THAT GOOD is a very special one. With breaking being one of the elements of hip hop, that shouldn’t have surprised me. I guess I’ve seen too many orchestral shows in fancy theaters…

The pinnacle of the performance (besides the incredibly entertaining beginning and ending) was when the lights went out and Jason came on stage, all one. With only a dim spotlight shining upon him, he answered a phone call and then began to cry, apparently in complete shock of what he had just been told on the other end. Not completely unexpected, the call was to let him know of Eyedea’s tragic and unexpected passing in the fall of 2010, a shocking blow to the worldwide independent hip-hop scene.

Behind Jason was a wide swath of empty canvas, which was soon filled with VHS-style video from a projector. The images projected (with only the sound from the video – no background/venue music) were those of Micheal Larsen breakdancing as a youth and young adult. Jason watched 3 or 4 different dance sequences and proceeded to copy the dances movement by movement. My friend Janessa (a lifelong friend of Eyedea’s) and his mom were sitting up in the balcony at this point, and I could both hear and feel their reactions to this display of love, affection, and admiration from Jason. 20 years deep in the breakdancing game – and it was almost impossible to copy what Mikey was doing in XXL t-shirts and pants, just as no-one will ever be able to match his intensity, skill, and passion on a microphone 100 years from now. There’s something special about what Mikey gave to the world, and I can’t think of a better way to honor it than pure, public imitation as Jason displayed in front of a full house at Cowles.

I left that night with an incredible sense of realization of just what this city has to offier. I moved here almost 21  months ago but haven’t really explored everything I probably should be exploring. For little or no money, every night of the week, there is something alive and prospering in the Twin Cities. Minneapolis and St. Paul are incredibly special places that are aching to be explored, and I’m glad watching people dance and listening to my favorite music was a catalyst for me to explore this.

Thank you Jason, Bethany, and all of the people involved in the production. See you soon!

I guess I missed the boat on this not being from France, but they celebrated their 20 year anniversary of a group in Egypt in 2008 in front of some pyramids, with a complete live band and plenty guests. Some of the most beautiful hip hop I’ve seen performed. Check out everything I could find on YouTube below…

Enjoy these two live videos shot and produced in a way that only La Blogotheque can seem to make work. Incredible website – I’ve gotten lost for hours in their sea of music.

Buck 65 | Part 1 (Gee Whiz) | A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

Buck 65 | Part 2 (Paper Airplane / Cold Steel Drum) | A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

First video off of the new album dropping March 8th. Pretty damn fresh. Very cool how they mix the real-life with old-style illustration and mix the modern with the vintage. Wuuuu.

Check these out, and the videos below. Props to Lookout for posting these up for the internets to hear.

Download Hovatron’s Mix HERE. Read the article, too.

Tracklist:

• Lil B – Birth To Life
• The Bangz & The New Boyz – Found My Swag (instr)
• Lunice – Hip Pop
• Traximillion ft. Smitty Grands – Get’cha Ass Up
• Hovatron – Super Soaker
• R Kelly – Club To A Bedroom
• Timbaland – Try Again (Bass version instr)
• Lazer Sword ft. Turf Talk – I’m Gone (Low Limit remix)
• Mosca – Tilt Shift
• Lil B ft. Stunnaman – Wet
• Hovatron – Young Blood / Bad Blood
• Sean Kingston ft. Nicki Minaj – Letting Go (Kingdom dub ft. Nicki mix)
• Mosca – Nike
• El-B – Express
• Ramadanman – Work Them
• Breach – Fatherless (Doc Daneeka’s MRR SNRZZ remix)
• Millimetrik – Jackafire (Hovatron remix)
• The-Dream – Yamaha
• Velour – Booty Slammer
• Keri Hilson – Slow Dance
• Noaprie – La Casa De Todd
• T-Pain ft. Young Jeezy – Reverse Cowgirl

Download Poirier’s Mix HERE. Read the article, too.

Tracklist:

• Scientist - When I Love Dub
• John Holt - Police in Helicopter
• Alborosie - Rub A Dub Style
• Mr Vegas - Mus Come A Road
• John Holt - Strange Thing
• Chezidek - Bun Di Ganja
• Spectacular - Badder Than Dem
• Junior Byles - Fade Away
• Million Stylez - Fade Away 2006
• The Tamlins - Baltimore
• Milton Henry - Gypsy Woman
• Augustus Pablo - Cassava Piece
• Roots Manuva - Brand New Dub
• Poirier - Mangnen l’boulé feat. Nik Myo (Riddim Wise Remix)
• Mikey Dangerous - Don’t Go Pretending
• I Wayne - Living In Love
• Richie Spice - Youths Are So Cold
• Miike Snow - Animal (Mark Ronson Remix)

>>> Video Treats <<<

Bridge Burner 2009 from Anne-Marie Bergeron on Vimeo.

Ghislain Poirier – Don’t Smile, It’s Postmodern from Notice Bureau on Vimeo.

[ GPG : POIRIER - GET CRAZY ] – 2009 from GABRIEL POIRIER-GALARNEAU / GPG on Vimeo.

Skye Rossi made this video, and I inserted a little bit of Final Cut Help. Not much but I’m happy that I could help with something this beautiful. Enjoy, and Rest In Peace Mikey.

I haven’t really written anything about this because I’m still not sure what to say. I never knew Mikey that well as a person, but I really believe his art helped me become who I am – someone who loves music and appreciates the various packages and forms it comes in. We all interpret things in a different way, and music should be just the same – our own.

The wake was tough for me. It really hurt me to see my new friends and artists I’ve admired for years crying in front of me, and to cry in front of them was pretty humbling for some reason. I never thought I’d be in the same room with all these people, let alone in THAT situation.

Tonight’s going to be interesting and difficult for many reasons, and I just hope that my being there can help my friends, coworkers, and new family deal with the loss and sudden emptiness.

Details:

First Avenue will host the Celebration of the life of Micheal “eyedea” Larsen tonight. Tickets will be available at Fifth Element (2411 Hennepin Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55405) until 5:00PM this evening. There will also be a limited amount of tickets available tonight at First Avenue so make sure you get there early.  If you’d like to purchase your tickets online you can do that: HERE.

Please note that if you purchase tickets at Fifth Element, the maximum you can buy is four tickets.

Date: Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Location: First Avenue Mainroom, 701 1st Avenue North, Minneapolis, MN 55403
Doors: 5:00PM
Ages: All Ages
Donation: $20
Buy Tickets at Ticketmaster
RSVP on Facebook

There is no guest list. All donations will go to the family of Micheal “eyedea” Larsen.

*NO CAMERAS ALLOWED*
More info at http://www.rhymesayers.com/Eyedea

Grabbed this player and link from The Fader’s post right here.

I can’t recommend this song enough. Mark Ronson and Ghostface have an undeniable chemistry in the studio. “Ooh Wee” anybody? Buy the album!

Download: Mark Ronson f. Ghostface Killah, “Lose It (In the End)”

10.08.10
7th St. Entry
701 First Ave N.
Minneapolis, MN
Tickets: $10
Ages: 18
Time: 9pm
Performing: Grieves & Budo, Grynch
More Info
RSVP on Facebook
Buy Tickets

Complete Tour Details here

Grieves: Twitter | Facebook | Myspace
Budo: Twitter | Facebook | Myspace
Rhymesayers: Facebook | Twitter | Youtube | Myspace