Fat Tony's Love Life Available Now! Entire EP & Individual Tracks Available as *FREE DOWNLOAD* www.zshare.net/download/8444653db47ce0/ [copy + paste the link into your address bar]
1. Faith (You Never Know) 2. Stand High ft. Tom Cruz (of Supreeme) 3. Love Life 4. She Glows ft. Smash Bro + Tom Cruz (of Supreeme) 5. Much Accomplished ft. Smash Bro 6. Goodbye (Outro ft. Errbody, nigga!)
At the age of twenty-three, I have learned much about myself through the many interactions and hardships that I have encountered with peers within my age range (of 21-25). I have learned that I am definitely older in the mind than I am physically; I have been told that I have an old soul and I am really starting to believe that this is true. I realize that I interact much easier with those that tend to be in their late twenties to early thirties. A lot of times when I talk to people my age, I feel like I am talking to little kids; the things that they do without any kind of regard for anyone else shows a true lack of maturity. My mother even said this last week, "You need an older woman; you need to talk to a woman in her early thirties." Could you imagine me (at the age of 23) hearing my mother saying that I should talk to women 10 years older than me? It was not so surprising that I heard this from my mother seeing as I get along easier with people already ten years older than me in the first place. It seems that people that are much older than me tend to understand me much more than my peers whom seem to be consumed with bullshit most of the time. I have even noticed with my male peers the lack of maturity is truly infectious. Being at the age where most are extremely immature and are struggling to find a balance between late night bar binges and paying rent, I have felt like I was talking to little children when friends of mine talk about particular things that they have encountered in their lives. Listening to twenty something college graduate friends of mine complain about living on their own sounds almost elementary to me. We all struggle at some point in our youth to find a balance between paying rent and having a dwindling childhood, but I have realized that I have grown so much faster than those around me. It is sad, and I am thinking of engaging on more interactions with those humans that are physically ten years in stature ahead of me in age, but obviously with minds that should parallel each other without a problem.
What more can I say about what has occurred this weekend other than it was an eye-opening experience that I will never forget. I drove over 2 hours on Friday to get to Sacramento from my home here in the Bay Area to visit a "friend" of mine that I was dating at the time. We argued on Friday and Saturday night after alcohol was both in our systems; I will take the brunt of the reason for the argument on Saturday. But, when someone drives so far to see someone, you would hope that they would not leave you at their apartment by yourself in a strange town. So then, here I am, Saturday night, half drunk and belligerent as fuck stuffing my clothes into my overnight bag getting ready to drive back home. I drive 30 miles, call a friend of mine in Vallejo, and receive a call from the "friend" whom had left me in the first place. I decide to turn around and try to work things out with the friend back at their apartment all the while thinking to myself, "I gotta bad feeling about this." Let's not forget the open pregnancy test box I had found in her cabinet which obviously wasn't for me seeing as we never had sex. But, let's not go off on a tangent; so I pull up to her apartment and it is about 1:30 AM now Sunday morning and I am tired as hell from the alcohol that I had consumed previous hours before. She wallows into the apartment all drunk and changes into her pajamas; we begin to talk. All the while, I have noticed over the time that I have know this girl that she is completely nonchalant about our quarrels whether as if I was present of not, it didn't really matter to her. I told myself repeatedly that I would not give up the next great person I would meet (like I had done before with Shean in DC). We mend things, so I thought and preceed to go to sleep. She awakes me at 8AM and I go back to sleep after a bit of fooling around. I arise back again at 12 noon that day (Sunday) to call my father while she prepares breakfast. Now this is where it gets a little fucked up! I am standing in the living room of her studio apartment where I hear someone rattling keys in her door. The chain to the door is latched and I see another man peering into the door looking dead at me. I don't fully realize whom this could be. She seems a bit startled by this, and I ask whom it is. She merely replies the biggest piece of shit for a lie I have ever heard,"It's nobody important; it's an old friend." She goes outside to talk to the guy and I say,"Fuck this!" to myself and proceed to get dressed. She immediately walks back into the apartment and locks the door and I ask her once more whom it is. This time there's a different answer,"He's an old friend; he is my ex-boyfriend." I proceed to ask her,"Why does he have a key to your house if he's your ex?" Mind you...a little back story on me and this girl....I met her in May...she allegedly "was going through some shit with her family" and stopped talking to me without and calls, texts, or anything....she calls me a month ago in January to make a mends....we begin to date. I knew all the while even back in May that she had a boyfriend she was not telling me about. She was always distant, and would disappear for days at a time without a trace. Now it all makes sense.... When I met her in May...she was also seeing this guy (the door guy)....she put me on the back burner for this guy....I stopped talked to her....things didn't work out for them...so she decided to comeback to me in January....now the ex boyfriend is back in her life....
I am pissed the fuck off! I have no idea how I should feel right now. Long story short, I drove home; I am so confused. I guess I'll have to charge this to the game and keep movin'
Girl: I'm voting for Obama; he's a black man that will give this nation great change.
Boy: Is that change he will give a great one in the era of despair or will the change be brought from a greater source of racial tension in this nation resurrecting the white/black Jim Crow-esque ideals of the earlier half of this nation's birth?
Really, truly think about your vote today. Does it even matter in the first place? Is there already a winner picked out? Could all this "America's Choice in 2008"advertising all be a PR ploy? I'm not the most political person in the world when it comes to this thing they like to call "democracy," but I will say this....I believe that this country is in for a whole heap of trouble this year. Regardless of whom you vote for today, the political candidate that will be placed in office this time next year will be guaranteed to be the scapegoat of all of America's economic, military, and political problems. Doesn't this make complete sense to you, people:
A hundred years ago, black men and women (of whatever color) were seen as subsidiaries amongst their alleged "superior counterparts" (white men). Isn't it the least bit ironic to you that a black man (who is already the most hated figure in the world especially in this country) and a white women (a hundred years ago, women were fighting for the right to vote) now are the two figureheads for the 2008 Election? The irony of a black man and a women being the flagship talking heads for the seat in the "grandest house of them all," the White House is remarkable to me. I don't believe in this "America is ready for a change" PR campaign bull that is being saturated throughout the core of this country. From the shiny Obama stickers imprinted on college kids book bags in Seattle to the Clinton pick-it signs posted proudly in America's heartland of the Mid-West, the PR campaign is everywhere.
Even if either one of these political figures are truly "just" people, they are being voted into America at the time of being on the brink of a recession, economic depression, and even under the talons of the most feared war of them all, World War 3 with differences amongst Russia, Korea, and China. And what would this make the next president, whom happens to be possibly a black man or women...obviously, this makes them a scapegoat! Seen as scapegoats, (women and black men have been for centuries) what makes you people think that the next president won't be a scapegoat not only for America's problems, but the world's problems in general?
If Obama wins, we are in for a heap of trouble. A race war maybe only a few months away. Seriously! If Clinton wins, she will be scapegoated for America's future travesties. It's a double-edged sword regardless of whom the winner is of the two.
“I don’t want some wood grain for Christmas,” Jahmal Tonge belts out on the Carps’ drum-induced song “All The Thugz I Know” on their EP, “The Young and Passionate Days of Carpedia Vol 2.1.” I was originally introduced to the Carps by a friend of mine, and I can recall the first song I heard by them literally catching my attention in the most vibrantly and rhythmically authentic of ways. Coming from the frigid tundra (better known as Toronto, Canada), Jahmal Tonge (drums and vocals) and Neil White (guitar) are making a solid impact there and beyond their local music scene. Imagine this: a progressive rock duo with elements of punk rock, soca, hip-hop, and soul blended together and you have the Carps. Jahmal and Neil are the complete mix of rock, soul, funk, and R&B to quench even the most eclectic music aficionado’s acquired taste.
First and foremost, who are the Carps (collectively and individually)? How did you guys meet?
Neil and Jahmal: [Our names are] Neil White and Jahmal Tonge. [We] met playing music at a youth group in Flemingdon Park, Toronto, ON. Neil [was]on bass and Jahmal [was]on guitar.
The first time I heard of you guys was on your EP entitled “The Young and Passionate Days of Carpedia Vol 2.1.” Why did you guys pick the band name the Carps anyway? Is their any significance behind the name?
Neil and Jahmal: The band is named after the saying “Carpe diem” a motto from a poem by Horace meaning, “Seize the Day.”
On the song “Compton to Scarboro” was there any significance behind the premise of the song? Was the song actually made for an individual that you guys know, or was it made to show a dynamic of people that choose to walk their lives down the wrong path?
Jahmal: It’s a bit of both. I [Jahmal] grew up [as a] black boy in a middle-class neighborhood, and right on the other side of the freeway was government housing. I knew a lot of cats who thought Toronto was Compton. It was made for all those guys. The ones I knew, but more so for the ones that are coming up.
I had heard a remix that the Bay Area producer, Trackademicks did of your song, “The Tumultuous Adventures of JJ Iscariot & the Insatiable Booty Fanatic” and I thought it was hella good! Are you guys acquainted with Trackademicks, and how do you feel about the work he has done on other remixes for other artists? Did you guys enjoy your remix that he did for one of your songs?
Jahmal: We LOVED it! Track is a great dude, and the Bay recognizes him for sure, but the world is sleeping on him. His beats are out of this world. [And] more than anything else, he’s just a great dude. Bayyyyyyyyyy!!!
Jahmal, you have a vocal style that reminds me of Lenny Kravitz. You have a very strong singing voice. What are some of your musical influences that helped mold your cadence?
Jahmal; Definitely not Lenny. I would credit M.J. and Otis Redding. After that, I really don’t know.[I am] just trying to do my own thing and [I] hope I don’t sound too much like Omarion.
Is either one of you in any other side projects other than the Carps? Are there any other projects coming out soon that your fans can be watching out for?
Neil: I produce on the side. Nothing [has] slated for release at the moment, but there will be some cool remixes come ’08.
You guys put together a collective sound that is definitely hard to put in a genre. How would you guys define your musical sound?
Neil and Jahmal: We don’t, and we wouldn’t!
Neil, you have a great talent on your guitar. Who are some of your influences (musically) that made you want to pick up a guitar in the first place?
Neil: Definitely would have to be Les Claypool from Primus; he’s a tremendously inspiring performer. When I started playing bass, I was really into punk rock music, and artists like Fat Mike (of NOFX) and Matt Freeman (of Rancid) usually supplied my favorite bass lines.
I have never seen you guys live, but I hear that you guys have one hell of a great live set! What can people expect to see when they come see the Carps perform?
Neil: Well, [before] Youtube, answering that would be difficult. But, it’s all on there for everybody to see.
If you guys could do a collaboration with any musical artist or artists (dead or alive), who would it be with?
Neil: Pharrell Williams, Stevie Wonder, Cody ChesnuTT, Jackson and his computer band. Jahmal: Shawn Hewitt-.The actually talented version of myself.
What can Carps fans expect from the Carps in the future? Are there any future albums coming out in the near future and when?
Neil and Jahmal: We’ll definitely have something out in the U.S. in ’08, and tours and tours and tours.
You guys being from Toronto, how do you feel about the music scene there? Are there any local Toronto artists that you guys enjoy listening to?
Neil: [There is an] incredibly vibrant music scene in Toronto. We have a great collection of venues and a number of excellent festivals: Canadian Music Week and North by North East. From Scarborough, (just north of Toronto) I really enjoy Shawn Hewitt (www.myspace.com/shawnhewitt). There is also an excellent prog-rock group called dd/mm/yyyy. Others I enjoy include MSTRKRFT, Death From Above 1979, Crystal Castles, and Let’s Go to War Jahmal: Shawn Hewitt. Thunderheist.
"Compton to Scarboro"
The Carps are a bright set of individuals with an even brighter future. If you haven’t already, go cop “The Young and Passionate Days of Carpedia Vol. 2.1.” I would like to thank Jahmal and Neil for taking the time out of their busy schedules to participate in this interview.
I sit here at this desk; I sit here watching the Sun die in the clouds. The Sun being suffocated by the clouds succumbing to the darkness. The Sun almost a dead light drawing the parallels of one single firefly in the darkness of Autumn on the Eastern Shore to which I lived for a few years. The Sun no longer blazing in the sky of blue that it creates; the Sun set from a blazing yellowish-orange to a dull dirty-snow white through the thickness of the clouds. Nothing being porous through these clouds; hell, not even a star as powerful and bright as the Sun can burn off the mundane gristle of the clouds. Only once will the Sun gasp to darkness to be born again tomorrow...perhaps.
I've been a little busy lately trying to figure out what it is entirely I am going to do in the next year, and I have come to the conclusion that I am meant to do something with music. Not even on the musically side of the spectrum, but more or less, on the management, marketing, or public relations side of the business. I am learning that from meeting different artists, DJ's, and producers in the music business from interning with the underground hip-hop group, Zion I that I have the potential to do fairly well in this business. I don't think that I would be able to work in any other industry other than music because this is what drives me to do certain things throughout my daily routines of my life. Only at the age of twenty-three, I am learning that I have a much more different mind state than my peers that share the same age group as I do (ages-19-25) whose highlight of the week for the most part is wallowing in local dive bars at the financial expenses of their parent's credit cards. You know, that age when you are pretty much out of college, and are trying to figure out what the hell it is that you exactly want to do in your life. That indifferent part of one's life when they choose whether to grow through (what I like to call) "grown child syndrome" or to take the big chance in actually doing what is inevitable, growing up. School seems to be the major element that I need to finish in the next few months. But, I have realized that through the many blessings that have been given to me by God that I am meant to be a force within this industry of music.
God, please just grant me the strength and vision to progress in the industry; I will need it.
I'm headed to Southern California to a Time Share resort with my family later on this week. The interesting thing about this is that my grandparents (on my mother's side) do not celebrate Christmas at all. I remember being a young child and asking my grandfather, "Why don't you celebrate Christmas!?" He would answer, "Why would you open gifts on someone else's birthday?" It did not make complete sense to me until the past few years.
Isn't it completely logical that Christmas is more of an economic holiday than it is a religious one? People say they celebrate this day as the birth of Jesus Christ, but they continue to buy extravagant gifts that they can not truly afford to show their "love" for the recipient of the gifts. Buying children these hundred dollar video game systems that they will only play until March just does not seem logical to me at all. It's interesting how the Nintendo Wii, PlayStation 3, and Microsoft's XBox 360 cost more than most people's monthly car payments. You save up a tremendous amount of money from months past to make sure that little Billy and Sarah have a great Christmas on material bumkum that won't hold their attention even until the forthcoming Summer.
Maybe buying your loved ones something that will actually stimulate their minds rather than annul their minds such as novels is a better purchase than a set of pearls or a toy that will be lost and forgotten. Buying that gift item that will lose its luster after many years is not always the greatest investment you would want to make. So, this Christmas, buy your loved one a book or a musical instrument rather than something that will hurt you financially. An investment for your well-being is a much greater gift than jewelry or a toy. Happy Holidays!
So it has officially been a year since I have first started this blog page back in last November. I never would have thought that I would have gotten over 7,000 hits in the time that I've been writing in it. It's been a tremendous experience to write things that I used to consider private for people I do not know to take the time to read. I thank those that have taken the time to contact me (via instant message, e-mail or comment) to express your comments about what material has been published for you to read.
I wanted to write about something today that I have noticed on Myspace and on other online communities as well. Why is that males and females alike both feel the need to exploit themselves on their personal pages? Why do certain males feel they need to promote this machismo role of taking pictures in mirrors of their firearms, and counting money? Why do females exploit themselves with pictures of themselves spread-eagle on their beds exposing their body parts? It's very simple; these individuals do these things because they need attention.
Males feel the need to exploit themselves with pictures of them counting hundred dollar bills and toting guns in their palms to attract women. Taking pictures in front of their overly-gaudy cars to attract women has become the norm on Myspace, Facebook, and other online arenas for people's interactions with each other. If you need to show off the money you have to get a female's attention, nine times out of ten the female that is attracted to you for these reasons is definitely not going to be worth the time and effort. You only attract what you put out.
Females taking pictures in pornstar-esque poses in front of bathroom mirrors of their homes only do this to get guys attention. Taking pictures of your breasts and buttocks only will only attract the raunchy guys that you are broadcasting yourself out to.
When did it become normal to exploit yourself for personal attraction? When did it become cool to take pictures of your guns, cars, clothes, and body to attract other people? Maybe, I am different in my approach to women, but I see absolutely nothing attractive about a female that has the audacity to broadcast explicit pictures of herself via the internet to gain popularity amongst their peers.
It's very simple; if you are looking for attention through material things that you possess, then you have a tremendous problem with your securities. If someone cannot be attracted to you for whom you are, then they should not be worth your time. Some of us need to grow up; taking pictures of yourself with guns and counting money will only attract the most plastic females. Posing with your ass in the air will attract the most raunchy males. Let's think a bit harder, people.
Monday, November 19, 2007
I'm surrounded by the assimilated niggas. The token black kid in the sea of whites that takes all the subliminal racist bullshit with hella strife, laughs and takes in the jokes of their own skin color, not realizin inside the heart they bother, the father of the kid feels their son and daughter, has lost their sense of pride because they crash and flatter, the agony of perplexity it seems to gather, within the kid's sternum of his body not recognizing the matter, dying inside his own skin wishing genocide on his own has to be the answer, dying their hair color blonde and wearin' blue contacts just makes it feel badder, looking at your own kind from the other side of town with hateful eyes just makes it sadder, until you're 45 years old walkin aside another black man or women and you hear the word screamed "NIGGER!," then you turn around and look because you think they're not talkin about you, damn, you've slipped and crashed for 45 years into gray matter, you're whole life you hated your skin color and wished you were lighter, Just a little more shades of blue or green in my eyes you wanted them brighter, the assimilated nigga movement is all amongst us making class ism amongst blacks thousands of times harder, you went to all the brown paper bag parties where they wouldn't let blacks in if there skin was darker, the uncle tom and tragic mulatto complex is set within these niggas and this to all of you it should bother, because they will live their whole lives trying to be white then die a fool of a pseudo movement towards self-hatred, a bullshit martyr.
