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Sometimes It Just Feels Good

Life is a trip and all you can do is hold on until you run out of gas. In the meantime, before you get to that big Wallyworld in the sky, you might try feeling good every once in a while. You never know. It might become a habit.

Keep Dem Babies Out Da Street

I was really unsure what to make of what I witnessed this week. It shocks, and amazes me. If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it. Middle America has now officially finger-banged our culture without so much as a peck on the cheek. Check the story after the jump.

Take Me Drunk… I’m Home!

The Gunney Sarge aka The Sultan of Segue aka The Intro King aka Stretchito aka Marc Stretch is one year older. Check in with him on celebrating like a grown man.

Father MC

You think it’s tough putting together that hot 16? Trying doing it while raising a little person. Mondo gives you his particular perspective on balancing rap life and real life.

Game Time!!

Big Willie Dynamite is a trio of sports fanatics and the NBA is currently in full swing. Inspiration has struck so check out the official theme song for the 2010 playoffs!

Sometimes It Just Feels Good

Posted by admin on July 16th, 2010

I’m a lucky man. Sure. Things in my personal life aren’t stellar right now but I’m blessed to have had the experiences and smile about the lessons learned. Sure. I work at a place where I have to throw on the monkey suit every day but I’m blessed to have co-workers that I genuinely get along with. Hell… I’m blessed to have a job at all. Sure. My truck has to go into the shop, yet again… but I’m blessed to have it (and the job to pay for the repairs). Sure. I have to move out of the condo because the owners got foreclosed on and I may have to couch surf but I’m blessed to have friends that will help me out and family that comes through no matter what.

My biggest blessing is that I am still in love with music. I’m still has crazy about Hip-Hop as I was when I discovered it. Beats, rhymes, djs, b-boys, writers…. I still get excited about new music coming out whether it be the new Blu record or the Rick Ross/Big Boi mixtape collabo. I still get goosebumps sometimes. It’s amazing to me that I’m still on this ride. That I still care. That when I don’t want to put one foot in front of the other, Hip-Hop reminds me why I should. It’s magical.

Hip-Hop feels this good sometimes

I’ve spent hundreds of thousands of hours listening to patterns and reciting lyrics. I can tell you how many songs I have stored in my head that are taking up space that could be used for the cure to hives or assholitudeness, but the songs are just as important to me, if not more so.

Good Hip-Hop music doesn’t have to be complex or complicated to get my heart racing. It just has to be honest, heartfelt and of a high quality (see T.R.O.Y which was dedicated to dancer, Trouble T-Roy who’s death anniversary just passed. R.I.P.). It doesn’t have to be a deep ass concept. It just has to be right. Rather than get caught up in the pontification about the Illuminati or the plight of the North-traveling Sneech, sometimes you just wanna hear some muthafuckas spit with some genuine passion for this art form. Sometimes it feels good to just rap for the sake of rapping. No deadlines. No concern over sales and where will it fit on the album. Just rapping because you love it. Hopefully you can hear it in this song.

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Keep Dem Babies Out Da Street

Posted by Marc Stretch on June 10th, 2010

You know, I often proudly pronounce myself an advocate of/for Hip-Hop on a regular basis. Often times, I will go so for as to voice my concern over the future of this culture that I hold so dear. It means that much to me. I don’t always understand, or agree with, choices that are being made with today’s generation. This new bumper crop of would-be b-boys and b-girls are not only being left to fend for themselves emotionally, but actively being led in a foul assed direction, mentally (and sometimes physically). I mean, really… who’s keeping an eye on these kids?

I was watching America’s Got Talent and there was a little kid that walked up to the center of the stage. The kid looked like a Marshal’s manequin for 1998, complete with shopping mall chain. I wasn’t mad at that. We’ve all got our own Hip-Hop uniform and I’ve rocked a few 40 inch chains in my day.

When they asked him his name, he said his name was “SB Ceezy…” or something. No big deal, I mean… what can I say? My name is “stretch mark” transposed with a letter change cause I’m so damned clever.

When asked about his talents, Ceezy said that he danced, wrote music, and rapped. Okay… go head lil man, with your Fubu self.

Now earlier, Nick Cannon (yeah… that guy) was talk with SB and was informed that the young star had been rapping for 8 years. Normally i’d totally applaud that…. if it wasn’t for the fact that he’s now 11 years old!

Now, I’ll be honest. At this point, I’m starting to smell a faintly familiar scent. I do believe I detect the aroma of “teen mom” (it smells like a combination of Clinique, hair gel and weed). But every star has to start somewhere. Inhale open-mindedness… exhale pre-judgement.

So after chronicling his sorted girlfriend situation (erk!) And telling the judges that the only difference between him and Eminem is that “Em don’t dance”, the judges give young Robert Van Winkle the green light to dazzle them.

As the music builds, Ceezy gives the mic a couple “uh” and “yeah” checks.

(Somewhere in the ghetto, watching the show on a boosted flat screen on bootleg cable): Awwww shit. He bout to go in, nigga!

“I roll up in the club….”

WTF?

I could feel my eyes start to water as my soul was pepper-sprayed by eu de I Had A Baby Too Soon. Apparently, Ceezy drinks, rolls deep with his crew, gets excellent grades, drives big cars, gets it crunk in the club and gets bitches. Okay… I made up one of those… I admit it.

Man… somebody needs to kick his parents’ asses! They are setting this kid up for failure! The lyrics that this kid spat out were absolutely deplorable! I think he might have even grabbed is dick at one point. Maybe I’m getting old, but that shit was NOT cute. As I listened to him I swear his arrest record flashed before my eyes.

The even greater tragedy is that ALL of the judges loved this kid. LOVED his song and thought that it was adorable that this kid was rapping like a 30 year old repeat offender. They acually, unanimously voted Ceezy on to the next round. Not one of them took the opportunity to advise this kid that what he was saying was inappropriate, not to mention untrue. Maybe it’s not really their responsibility but damn, somebody could’ve stopped the social bleeding that he was unknowingly suffering from.

The real crux of the situation is … the kid really had some talent! His stage presence was on point and his delivery was pretty good, especially for a pre-teen. He even launched himself into a pretty Michael-esque moonwalk. With that in mind, I guess there may be hope.

Somebody get this kid a Little Brother cd, quick!

Take Me Drunk… I’m Home!

Posted by Marc Stretch on May 20th, 2010

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Click Here To Listen

So it was my birthday yesterday and I received a lot of comments and questions. The most popular being “Happy Birthday, wit your old ass”, followed closely by “What are you doing for your birthday?”. This question got me to thinking about all of the wild ass times I’ve had on my birthday over the years and the varying degrees of success I’ve had celebrating them. I’ve got some memorable ones and some not-so-memorable ones. Not because any of them weren’t special, but because I was so drunking funk! I mean, 14 Hennessey shots is excessive on their own but follow them with some Long Islands and Incredible Hulks and you’ve got a recipe for disaster. Thank Allah I don’t get hangovers (knock on wood).

It’s kind of crazy how much pressure people put on having a balls-to-the-wall blowout for their birthday. Like if you don’t do the most outrageous thing ever, then you’ve wasted the whole last year. Man, I’m happy just to be here another year so celebrating doesn’t start on my birthday, it merely continues. I know I’m talking like an old man but dammit, that’s just how I feel.

Well, for those that don’t agree and feel like they need to “do it big”, this song is for you. I know how you feel. I’ve been there. I just prefer to know why I woke up in my own bed, missing a shoe, wearing a “Kiss Me, I’m Irish” trucker hat with cake frosting smeared across my stomach. I’m just sayin…

We only use 100% gangsta candles around here!

Father MC

Posted by Mondo on May 7th, 2010

Father MC..not the rapper.

Father MC to me means to be a father and an MC without letting one affect the other.

I am sitting inside the Jolly Roger Hotel in Anahiem, CA. Laying on my bed watching Sportscenter digusted by the news of Lawrence Taylor getting arrested for accusations of Rape. Fool..

Anyways I have been at Disneyland all day. My daughters 5th birthday is Saturday; and after 3 years of promises her wish is being granted with a 3 day hopper pass to the “happiest place on earth”. The smile on her face when she saw the castle was worth every shitty diaper I ever changed. To quote T.I.

“what you know about that”?

They hate my music more when they find out that I am a daddy. Are my words less valid because I want my daughter to be able to listen to my songs? Earmuffs baby, daddy is about to get his Eminem on. I can’t let her listen to it because she does not understand lighthearted rape, drugs or murder. I don’t want her too; not right now. When it’s time I will let her hear him kill Jay on his own shit. Have you heard us? My crew is so sick. Is it really not hard enough? You don’t know hard boy..Hard is trying to discuss the joys of fatherhood to a cat smoking a joint who is so high that he REALLY is trying to make you understand how Luke Skywalker would have killed the Hulk if it were not for Yoda. WTF?? I MC because I love it. I get asked all the time how do I find time to spit and raise my child. Family and love. Kids don’t ask to be born dummy. Take care of your kids and stop using them as the excuse for why you grind so hard. If you really grinding, pop them paystubs and get yo ass a job to provide until this music paper actually pops off.

I work so she does not get left behind. No child left behind is an economic issue. I work a 9 to 5 so I can take the economics out of that issue. Again I MC because I love it. We recently drew #11 in a public charter school lottery that we entered. Last week I received a confirmation letter that my daughter got into this distinguished school and Kindergarten starts in August.

Now that’s hard!

“Daddy can we read two books tonight”? Yes honey..only two though daddy has to work on his music.

Game Time!!

Posted by Marc Stretch on April 7th, 2010

Yeah... it

For those of you that don’t know, Big Willie Dynamite is a group, made up of sports fanatics. We all played sports throughout or lives, even up to a semi-professional level. Football, baseball, futbol (soccer to you, pal), rugby, lacrosse. If you were able to be a fly on the wall, you’d probably figure out that our studio sessions resemble a cross between Sportscenter, Def Comedy Jam (when it was REALLY poppin’) and Teen Summit. Basically, it’s your local barbershop/salon with turntables, keyboards and mics.

After seeing the heartbreaking loss of Butler at the hands of the devilish Duke, we are now squarely focused on one of the most exciting things that happen all year… The NBA Playoffs. Look at the teams involved… Clevland, Orlando, Atlanta, Boston, Denver, Oklahoma City, San Antonio just to name a few. Everybody has their favorites. Everybody has a shot at winning it all. Seems like most people are rooting for Clevland. I can’t front, I’d like to see Bron-Bron get a ring and then bounce. I’m evil like that.

Everybody loves an underdog so a lot of the people that I’ve talked to, are actually rooting for OKC to come through. I can dig it. But clearly, the Los Angeles Lakers are the biggest underdogs. I mean… a 3 peat? Against that field? Good luck fellas. You’re gonna need it. So in the spirit of the underdog and the fierce competition that awaits us all, both on the court and in everyday life, we present to you this video. For all the people that go hard, no matter what they do!

Get ‘em!

Feel free to download this video in any of the following formats:

AVI
Quicktime
3gp (moblile)
mp4

Big Willie Dynamite

Posted by Marc Stretch on March 25th, 2010

Click here to listen:
Big Willie Dynamite

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This song came to life very early in the creation of the album and is ENTIRELY DJ Ray’s fault. The dude is always digging… I mean ALWAYS. It doesn’t matter what the weather is. It doesn’t matter how much/little money he has. This dude digs. Unlike a lot of newer producers, he puts a lot of stock in having vinyl to sample from (that’s those big black “cds” that you see some people with, youngins).

Real heads <3 samples. I’m not knocking anybody that doesn’t sample though. I mean, keyboard beats are cool and I know a few people that are extremely talented and make heat from original compositions (for instance, @gkoop… follow him), but for me, there’s something about using a sample that makes Hip-Hop special, for me. There’s a certain amount of “dirty” that’s in those old records that you just can’t accurately replicate with new technology. The limitations of the equipment in older studios, gives the sound character. Unless you have a bunch of vintage equipment to work with (like G Koop), there’s just no way to put that back in a record, in my opinion. You can emulate it but there’s a certain amount of sweat and desire that’s present in the music. The will to persevere to make a song come out the way your mind’s eye sees it, has to come from a deep place, especially when you’re working with equipment that may hum or crack or pop or distort right in the middle of your best take. There’s a love in that music and you can feel it. Samples carry an energy with them, and we do our best to add on.

So like I said… this song is ENTIRELY DJ Ray’s fault. You can’t be working on a beat like this, when I walk in the studio and expect me to not start writing to it. I think Ray and Mondo secretly call me the Beat Sniper cause I’ll walk into the studio and sit down while he’s working on a beat. By the team he has it sequenced out and is ready to transfer it over to Pro Tools, I done already wrote 16 bars or at least a chorus. Sorry Pal. Finders keepers.

Enjoy.

P.S. Doesn’t the pimp in that picture look like the love child of Common and Rza? Or is that just Will Hammond Jr. on the way to a show? Just a thought.

New Sunshine

Posted by Marc Stretch on March 23rd, 2010

Welcome to the first of many posts from the various members of Big Willie Dynamite. Rather than brag and boast about how dope we are and how wack everyone else is, I wanted to start by showing some love to Mother Earth cause it seems like she’s letting my favorite season come out to play a little early this year. Before you go any further, click on the link below and listen to that song while you read the rest of this post. Trust me. You won’t be sorry.

click here to listen:
New Sunshine

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The weather has been absolutely delightful and it feels like the summer has decided to give us an early look. People are taking to the outdoors in mass numbers… abandoning their Facebook profiles for more mobile friendly Tweets. This weekend has been a reminder that you better put those damned chili cheese fries away and get back on your program before it’s too late. I know that we still have April showers and May flowers to go through before the summer is officially here but dammit, it’s looking so nice outside. So be a leader… not a follower, smile, laugh and skip through the street. Beat the rush and enjoy the sun, now.

Stay tuned for more fresh music and updates on the 5 Heartbeats of Hip-Hop (Minus Choir Boy and Eddie Kane).

Recent Posts

Sometimes It Just Feels Good
Life is a trip and all you can do is hold on until you run out Read more »
Keep Dem Babies Out Da Street
I was really unsure what to make of what I witnessed this week. It shocks, and Read more »
Take Me Drunk… I’m Home!
The Gunney Sarge aka The Sultan of Segue aka The Intro King aka Stretchito aka Marc Read more »
Father MC
You think it's tough putting together that hot 16? Trying doing it while raising a little Read more »
Game Time!!
Big Willie Dynamite is a trio of sports fanatics and the NBA is currently in full Read more »