Willie the Kid & Mistah F.A.B. On The Deal (Freestyle)

Willie The Kid & Mistah F.A.B. were blowing the mic up on BET.
About time BET is showing some real emcees!

BET: Bamboozled Entertainment Television

I remember the days when the show, "Video Soul" by Donnie Simpson were worthy of watching BET. I remember when Tavis Smiley had a show on BET bringing the through essence of the world at large to the point of view through Black Americans' eyes. Viacom monopolized the situation with buying out BET, and turning it into Minstel Show Network TV. BET has become the "black MTV," it is full of shows cheering on mediocrisy (hence "Jackass" and "Hot Ghetto Mess"). I remember three years ago when hip-hop group, Little Brother's video for the single, "Lovin' It" was banned from BET for being "too intelligent." Here's another link:

http://www.johnnygoodtimes.com/archives/003549.shtml

I don't necessarily watch "Boondocks," but this one episode (that was never aired) explains it all:

Micket Factz Interview

*Also featured on HipHopRemix.com*

From the Bronx, New York emerges an extremely talented emcee with the cadence and presence to take the music world by storm. He dropped a free for download LP/mixtape entitled “Heaven’s Fallout,” on his Myspace page with opening songs such as “Vietnam” and heart-wrenching songs such as “There’s Nothing Left.” This cat proves that a hip-hop emcee is eclectic in the music they listen to and also the music they make. Freestyling over electronic bands such as Royksopp and the Prodigy and even Fueled by Ramen’s Fall Out Boy, this Bronx-raised emcee shines on his song choice. Who else could I be talking about? Who else rocks Supras and spit a clean freestyle for the mainstream masses on BET’s “Rap City” a month ago? Mickey Factz, people; if you don’t know who he is, you will by the end of this interview. I sat down with Mickey Factz to get more incite on who he is, and what drives him to make music.

First and foremost, man I would like to thank you for thanking the time out of your busy schedule to do this interview with me. I wanted to ask you man, why did you pick the name “Mickey Factz?” Is there any significance behind the name?

Mickey-
The name Mickey comes from Natural Born Killers. He was a ruthless killer who loved Mallory Knox to death. Mallory is Hip Hop to me. Facts are all I talk about in my music, but since I have an edge to me, the 'z' is added.



Do you feel any stress on your shoulders being an emcee from the birthplace of hip-hop, Bronx, New York? Who were and are some of the emcee’s from New York that you grew up on and look up today?


Mickey-
No stress at all. I feel honored to be from this borough. I grew up on Big Daddy Kane, Rakim, Biggie, KRS-One, Big Pun, Big L etc. Any lyricists who could tear you apart in a cipher [as well].


Is “Heaven’s Fallout” an album or a mixtape?

Mickey-
It’s a conceptualized album. It’s my 3rd actually. The first one was “In Search of the N.E.R.D.” The second was “Flashback”


How would you define your music?

Mickey-
My music is the fork in the road to greatness. Everybody usually makes the right when you get to the fork. But if you want to be daring and feel like you’re REALLY getting somewhere, make that left and experience something life changing.



The internet is a powerful tool man for independent artists, and I can say that I would not even know who you were if it wasn’t for the ‘net. How do you feel about using the internet to promote and market yourself?

Mickey-
It’s a blessing for me. I have access to tons of people who surf the net and go on to blogs to find some of the hottest talent out. I use it to my advantage because I'm thinking outside the box when it comes to marketing and promotion.



When you were featured on BET’s “Rap City,” how did that feel to know that you were gaining more exposure to a grander and more mainstream audience?

Mickey-
It was amazing because the goal is to be seen by everyone's eyes. I can't wait for the next installment.


Brah, I can hella relate to “There’s Nothing Left” on the “Heaven’s Fallout” release; I wanted to ask you if that was all truthful accounts of what happened to you?

Mickey-
Yes. That was one of the realest songs I ever wrote. Every word is the truth. It’s one of my more favorite songs on “Heaven’s Fallout.” Really touching....


I had no idea what Supras were until I heard your song, “I Love Your Supra’s.” I had to go cop a pair after I seen them. Are you sponsored by Supra and how would you define your style of dress?

Mickey-
Supra and GFCnewyork have a continuous growing relationship. They understand the direction I'm going towards, and they support it 100%. My style of dress is definitely one to admire. Quite frankly, I'd call it breath taking.

I know that the Bronx is your hometown, but do you have any other place or city that you can call your second home?

Mickey-

The studio. [Laughs]. Homesweet home.

You are the only emcee that I have heard to use rock and electronic bands instrumentals to freestyle over. A lot of cats do not realize that hip-hop is a gumbo pot and is mixed of different types of music to make hip-hop. What bands do you listen to?

Mickey-
Currently it’s diverse. Vampire Weekend, Janelle Monae, Chester French, Aerosmith, Daft Punk, Telepopmusik etc. I try to broaden the sound that I listen to on a daily basis.


If you could work with any artist, band or composer (dead or alive), who would you want to do a project with?

Mickey-

I'd work with Jimi Hendrix. [He’s an] absolute monster when it comes to letting music embody him.


Are you touring this summer? How do you feel about the line-up for Rock the Bells? Man…I know you’re going, right?


Mickey-
Yeah, I’ll be doing a couple shows here and there. Keep your eyes open. I'll make a surprise appearance at Rock the Bells as well.



Are there any last words that you would like to leave with the HipHopRemix.com heads?

Mickey-

”The Leak” is available every week for free on my Myspace page at www.myspace.com/itzmickey.

”The Achievement” LP will be due out at the end of the year as well.

Mickey Factz has all of the charisma and talent to push him into the high-level plateau that he is destined for. Thanks, Mickey for taking the time out of your schedule to do this interview with me; “Heaven’s Fallout” is a free download on Mickey Factz’ Myspace page. Make sure you go download it and support this cat.

Damn, Erykah droppin' science!

*Also posted on Connoisseur533.com*

Erykah Badu speaks on how to "make it" in the music business

This is some real ass shit right here though; even through all the sarcasm that she is speaking through this montage you can tell that she is serious about how female R&B singers have become more like whores than singers. In the recent ten years, R&B, hip-hop, rock, pop, etc have all had this "commerce over art" makeover where you now get models that cannot sing singing and dancing on your television screens instead of truly talented artists. It has become truly disheartening nowadays when you finally do find an album that has songs greater on it than the singles you've been brainwashed into loving from the radio and TV, you feel like you've had a breathe of fresh air from a truly talented LP.

I'm sick of going to buy an 18 track long album for $15 dollars and finding out that only 3 of the tracks (usually the singles) are the only good songs on the album. The music industry is not about talent anymore; it's about commerce. It's about having models that cannot hold a note singing off key with the Roger & Zapp robotic voice over 80's enthused house beats and making up a stupid dance to get kids to download your ring tone rather than buy your album. Everything has it's time, and the music industry is due for a huge makeover when these house niggas on TV are tap dancing in iced-out nooses and shackles to ignorant songs. Everything is due its time; real music will takeover the fake hella soon.

Hip-hop Vs. Hip-POP

Hip-hop in the nature of the threat of capitalism is a problem that is not new to the culture. Venture capitalists such as Viacom, MTV, and BET have come into the hip hop culture and turned it into a cash cow. What a lot of people do not seem to realize about hip-hop is that it is much more than music, it is a culture. Break dancing, graffiti, and turntablism are the 3 other corresponding elements of the hip-hop culture that are often forgotten and misinterpreted. It has always been a truly interesting thing to me to see how conglomerate companies like Viacom could take a culture as raw as the day it was birthed in the streets of New York City, and strip down the music into a minstrel entertainment ground for the current generation that are now in there growing teenage and elementary years. But, the so-called genre of hip-hop that is portrayed through the mediums of radio and TV airwaves to the youth is what I like to call “hip-pop.” The whole message in the music has been lost; you now can turn on your television set to MTV or BET (both owned by the same conglomerate, Viacom) and see the 21^st century minstrel show for yourself. This diamond-laden jewelry that these cats worship and exalt so highly looks like an iced-out noose and shackles to me. The overly-gaudy clothing that these cats rock shuckin’ and juvin’ on the television sets looks like the stereotype of the Zip Coon here to entertain the middle-class white kids that consume 70 percent of hip-pop albums.

Viacom has stripped down the true hidden message of upbringing, pride, and self-awareness that was birthed and installed into the true essence of hip-hop music. Since Viacom and Clear Channel damn near own all of the television and radio stations in this country, they control the mainstream music market. Why would they distribute hip-hop music with a higher message and purpose when they can keep the youth in disarray and brainwashed with the minstrel show rappers out now? Exactly; it’s a huge cash cow to them. What sense does it make to be a “hip-pop” artist when you do not have the control over what can be placed on your album? The more ignorant the music gets, the more ignorant the youth become. Hip-hop music is a huge influence on people’s lives (our youth’s especially); as long as hip-hop artists still allow themselves and their talent to be stripped down and glittered up in the ridiculous jewelry, hip-hop will forever in Nasir Jones’ words be dead. But, to me, it will never be dead; it’s just on life support. Support the independent hip-hop music movement.

Another BS 'smash hit!'

Every year there's more and more commercial hip hop artists that come out with more and more plastic songs. These are the artists you can find on your local FM radio station and on MTV and BET in heavy rotation. Artists like the Shop Boyz and their 'smash hit' (I beg to differ) "Party Like a Rock star." If we as blacks in the U.S. didn't need more shit to be embarrassed about from ignorant Zip Coons like these tap dancing and minstrel flamboyant black males on TV. The more and more ignorant and degrading a song you come out with, the more promo you will get. But behind all the smoke and mirrors, the Shop Boyz like (D4L, Franchise Boyz, MIMS, etc.)are doing all this tap dancing, shucking and jiving on TV screens throughout the world, but are not making truly enough money for the degradation they put themselves for. I cannot blame the record label heads at Columbia and Universal for slaving these morons on TV and FM radio until their overly gaudy lyrics and Nintendo-like production are forgotten by the teeny-bopper generation who have forgotten what to "Walk It Out," "2 Step," "or "Chicken Noodle Soup" is.

MUSIC VIDEO CODES By Offuhuge.com

The underground scene has always been seen by large mainstream record labels such as Atlantic, Arista, and Columbia as a threat. There actually are a certain large number of artists that could careless about being on MTV's number one requested show, TRL, or being in heavy rotation by one of Clear Channel's radio stations. The main problem I have with the commercial music scene is that the artists don't have complete artistic control of what they can produce on their albums. They have to go through A&R's and then a board at their record company before their music can even be heard by the masses. If the music that they want to produce isn't of a "bubble-gum pop" nature, then it generally won't be made public.

The mainstream music scene is entertainment; the underground (independent) music scene is art. It's sad how music is an element of art (such as sculpture, drama, or dance) but in the mainstream circuit, has become more of an entertainment ground to produce some of the most untalented people that call themselves "artists." Since when did shaking your ass in a video like the "infectiously" popular Pussycat Dolls become popular? Oh...yeah...that's right...I forgot! They only became popular because "sex sells!" The mainstream music motto of 'showing a little ass" can be seen in both genders of male and female.

The independent and commercial music scenes are polar opposite, but when people choose music saturated with sex, drugs, and violence just because it's the popular thing to do, that's utterly sad.