Houston is the Seattle of Rap!

HOUSTON IS THE SEATTLE OF RAP

What it do, pimp! This is yuh gangsta Whissle Pimp droppin' the candy-apple down the body of my Impala, smokin' yak and packin' gats Cherry Picka! Listen up Homey Slice cuz I'm cuttin' dice and playin the devil in cards! But he ain't got no spades, so I'm layin' low with bankrolls in the pocket of my jeans!

I've always been into a wide variety of music. I am blessed to have been able to be in some form of music entertainment almost my entire career. I am enjoying my third year of 100% involvement with the urban music world as I manage a sales team for a hip-hop and R&B radio station in Nashville, Tennessee. (That's right: The home of country music is simply now better known as CASHVILLE! and I'm not talking about Johnny).

Over the years I have been involved with, put together and managed concert tours. I have taken artists that no one really new and helped manage and develop them to success. I have built marketing plans for successful (and some not so successful) albums and artists. I have spent years understanding radio and working in a progressive manner to try and make a difference in whatever I do. Overall, I've clocked over 20 years of experience with the entertainment world during my career. Some of those years were the darkest times of my life, and some of them brought great memories that I will always carry with me. But no matter what, everything I have done has led me to a better place and provided me with a well-rounded experience that equips me everyday to win.

Until I made a conscious decision several years ago to make a career shift by getting back into radio but on the sales side of things, AND doing this in the urban format, I really never knew how fulfilling a career could be when you are in the right place, right now. I also made the decision to get away from the Christian music world which I had been involved with for so long. I "sold-out" and "went secular." So one would think. I mean come on, I go from Christian music into hip-hop. And I go into the sales side.

It took me one day into my new career environment to realize I made the best decision of my life. And as I sit here today, this world of hip-hop is mesmerizing me every moment. Hip-hop is today's culture's music. I have said often that rap is the "new rock n roll." The analogy breaks down, but hip-hop is simply for today's youth and young adult culture, what rock n roll was to many who grew up in the 50's through the 80's. If you believe rap is a passing fad, you are wrong. It is here for a while, and will be the dominant, popular music in culture for at least the next three decades (Even if we are here by then. But, that's another topic for another blog).

As rap continues to explode and grow, I have noticed a very interesting segment building and now taking off: Houston. Houston, TX is a hot bed for a mix tape movement that has been going on for several years; local artists and dj's making tapes, chopping and screwing them and selling them independently through small labels or frankly, out of the trunks of their cars. Paul Wall, Mike Jones, Michael Watts, Chamillionaire, Slim Thug, Big Pokey, Cooterbang. They all are blowin' up on a national level.

The producers, studios, art graphics companies, all of it has created something very cool that is beginning to get outside of Texas.

The movement coming out of Houston is not that different from the vibe that was felt when Seattle dropped a Tsunami on the world with Nirvana's, "Smells Like Teen Spirit." That song single handedly changed everything in rock. Glam bands like Poison, Warrant, Ratt, Extreme, even Guns N Roses were basically done for after the more earthy, authentic sounds of Pearl Jam and Soundgarden found our ears.

Mike Jones hit the rap world like Nirvana hit rock. Now he's huge. Slim Thug has broken out with a huge album. And, Paul Wall "The People's Champ," and "Ultimate King of the Parking Lot," is poised to drop a CD in a couple of weeks that will hit rap like Pearl Jam's "10" hit MTV with "Evenflow."

Mixtape fans and Houstonians have known these people for some time. Their music and tapes have been on the underground or alternative side of hip-hop. Most of these artists look the look, but it is not glammed out with pimp cups and canes. It is real. There is something about it that is hard to put a finger on, but it is not as violent as the war ladened battle rap coming from the extreme coasts. The Houston thing does have violence, but it is life and business related and the music seems to reflect a more real sense to things. Eventhough the "N" and "B" words are all over the place, the Houston scene seems a little less derogatory in spirit than most of the thugged out gangster rap Memphis, Detroit, and Philly lash out. It is just a very, very cool side of hip-hop that crosses all boundaries.

So, I deem Houston as the "Seattle of Rap." I will write more indepth on this as the days go by, for I am enjoying this music greatly. It is fresh, the beats are incredible, and artists like Paul Wall and Slim Thug are some of the greatest poets and fantasy writers of our age. I picked up a copy of Paul Wall & Chamillionaire's "Controversy Sells" today and I can't stop listening to it. Smokin' Smokin' music.