Chris Shaban is back with Part V of his on going commentary on Drizzy, and yet it’s Part 1 of something new – The Flows Edition. To get the full ‘Footnotes’ experience of Shabby’s editorials, hit up his blog - FarBeyond.ca

In Defense of Drake: ‘Flows & Pawns’ – The Flows Edition

Is Drake the most important thing to happen to the city of Toronto in the last 10 years?

More on that in a second… First, let me briefly catch you up. The foonotes* idea is the same, just scroll over the words in red. I went a little trigger-happy on the links this time, still in blue. Let me know what you think.

Now, some quick personal house keeping…

Okay, so I’m just going to come right out with it…. I quit smoking chronicWow, it hurts even more when I write it.. Booze too… Hey, it’s not that funny, get up off the floorAshton… . I know, I’ve heard it before too, but the Lord gave me a Malcolm X type cease and desist orderYou know, By Any Means Necessary, so I had to ride. And straight up, I wouldn’t put it in writing if this were some sort of Snoop Dogg I hope you guys caught his show with Rebel Emergency on the 7th at Guv. exit. I will say this though, the plan is to stay the course till at least May 2011 and I’ll leave it at that“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take – Wayne Gretzky” – Michael Scott… Sucks that this is the last year for him on The Office, but it’s always better to go out on top… at least, that’s what she said. . God works in mysterious ways… but more often He uses the ever-popular ‘sledgehammer-to-the-dome’ technique.

One last quick thing before I dive into the new editionRonnie, Bobby, Ricky and Mike…. And Ralph, and Johnny… Word to Maurice Starr. of this Drake piece, I want to take a moment to tell you how much I love Manchester Orchestra. I am going to go on record and say that they could possibly be the best band out right nowAlthough I’ve known about them for sometime, their ‘Live from Soho’ album and recent Adam Carolla interview sealed the deal. The link to that interview is at the end of this article, flash up to the 57:30 mark. PS – I know I’m old when I didn’t realize how big Adam Carolla’s podcasts were until I read it in Fast Company like 3 months ago. You turn 30 and everything’s all Ensure and Depends.. I’m sorry F3’s that I’m bringing them two years too late, but if I could cook their tracks on a spoon and shoot it in my veins, I wouldGive up green and liquid but move to junk… nice upgrade Shabby. Do yourself a favour and cop the album ‘Mean Everything to Nothing’ immediatelyA little birdie told me that they are in Nashville at Blackbird studios boiling up that crack again, so keep your eyes wide for some new joints in the near future.. Peep game from the opening cut off the album, ‘The Only One’: “I am the only son of a pastor I know, who does the things I do. But if it was you, I don’t think that it would matter, oh and if it was true, then I just wouldn’t matter.” I’m not sure you can understand how deep that statement is, or how much he probably means it, but it’s that honesty that makes them tick. Funny thing is, the pastor he’s talking about is one of the coolest guys I’ve ever metMy guess is that Andy would agree with me on that… Also, on a completely related topic, the Hull’s have an excellent ‘no charge’ washroom deal if you’re ever in Atlanta. Thing is it’s only for the month of August, so that’s where I was from the 16th to the 20th. FYI – When I go away don’t rob my house… the Whitby one either… Pete will beat you up. If you’re able to beat him up, please make sure he cuts the lawn.. Shab Sidebar: Read ‘Pivotal Praying’

Now, for all you youngsters out there, right here on FarBeyond footnotes*, what you’ve all been waiting for, the return of ‘In Defense of Drake’.

Just to bring us back to the same page, I’ll RT the opening question, Is Drake the most important thing to happen to the city of Toronto in the last 10 years?

Read the full Shabby after the jump!

Previously: OPINION: In Defense of Drake Pt. IV (By Chris Shaban)

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Nice likkle editorial piece by Kern Carter about the city’s music scene (which is on fire btw).

It’s become clear that hip hop music is shining its spotlight north of the boarder, and particularly in the city of Toronto. Over the past few years, we have seen a number of artists and producers burst into the mainstream to become stars, and countless more waiting their turn to become the next big thing to make it out of the city. With so much rising talent to choose from, it’s no wonder Toronto has the ear of the industry and the attention of the world.

Toronto New City of Urban Music

Urban music has made its rounds across America, continually seraching for the next wave of talent to lead the industry with fresh sounds and new energy; from New York to LA, to Atlanta and the rest of the south, and now finally to the Canadian city of Toronto. In all of its travels, it has been the up and coming talent that have driven these cities to prominence; be it a young Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre, Outkast and TI, No Limit and Cash Money, it is the young talent that push their cities forward and eventually become household names.

Toronto Filled With Outstanding Young Musical Talent

Toronto is no different. With Drake leading the way, and K’Naan beginning to take off, there is a cast of rising artists anxious to step into the spotlight and capitalize on a booming industry. As far as rappers go, P Reign and JD Era are the most talked about in the city. P Reign is currently on the Canadian leg of Drake’s tour, while Era has what most will agree is the hottest single in the city with the Beat Merchant produced, “You Know This.” Page is another Toronto bred rapper that has already enjoyed some commercial success with his “So Fly” track that made a strong run on Canadian and U.S airwaves, and his recent feud with Drake has again thrust him into the spotlight.

READ ENTIRE ARTICLE HERE

Recently, I had the chance to speak with Saukrates at length for Sway magazine’s Caribana issue. We delved into a lot of topics including his childhood, his struggles, being a father and what to expect from his upcoming album Season One.

“It’s been a long time coming,” says Saukrates of Season One. “I was dying to find a way to start again and keep it fresh for those who aren’t familiar, but also to show the diehard fans that it ain’t over.”

Read the interview

Via HHC! from TMB!

Y’all already know my stance on this topic and the importance of always receiving TANGIBLE returns for your music.

Here’s some more practical fuel to the argument from Mic-Control co-founder Jon Ostrow.

At this point, most emerging artists are familiar with the (potential) benefits of giving their music away for free:

• Maximizes the possibility of discovery
• Free Advertising
• Can create viral-buzz about your music

But in reality, unless you already possess a large fan-base along with the subsequent reach, giving your music away will be the last you hear from most new “fans.” This situation is only ideal for artists who have successfully converted people from fans to loyalists – those who not only want to share this music with others, but who actively seek out others who share a common interest in the music. If you are not at this level on a large scale, consider using a slightly different strategy.

What you need, is a way to turn this seemingly one-sided transaction, into one that is mutually beneficial. You essentially want to continue charging for your product, but in a way that replaces value in terms of money with that of brand growth. Consider charging for your music using social currency, which would put you in the position to receive a tangible return that would increase your reputation and reach, rather than increase your bank account.

Full article after the jump!

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I recently posted this on my blog over at Vibes and Stuff, but since this is Canada Day and this site is dedicated to Toronto hip-hop, I thought I’d share it over here too. Since hip-hop from Toronto is garnering a little bit more attention these days, I wrote a brief introductory profile piece for VIBE on 10 of the hip-hop artists that have come out of this city in the last two decades or so. If you are from the Toronto these names (like Michie Mee above) will be familiar, but it’s worth remembering that these artists should command a lot of respect for their pioneering work and the music they have created.

Read the article

From DjATrak.com via HHC!

Montreal’s (and Kanye’s) Dj A-Trak tells the story of how he ended up doing the cuts on “Show Me A Good Time” off TML.

For those of you who checked out Drake’s album you may have noticed I’m scratching on song #5, “Show Me A Good Time”. Here’s the story of how that came about.

You could think that there was some sort of Canadian connection, or even a Kanye connection for that matter. But there wasn’t. When So Far Gone came out last year and Drizzy’s buzz went through the roof of the stratosphere of the ceiling of the galaxy, I remember thinking “wow, this is interesting, this is the first time there’s a Canadian rapper that I know absolutely nothing about.” Canada, while being a huge country on the atlas, has a very small music biz. Having been active in it for over a decade, I can tell you that usually everyone knows everyone. But the truth is, I left Montreal 4 years ago and Drake is pretty young, so in my view he just came out of nowhere.

Read the full story over HERE!

Previously: VIDEO: Dj A-Trak (Interview w/EIKENARF)

Seen on HHC!

Yahoo! Music’s Paul Grein puts Drake’s first week TML sales into historical perspective.

Drake’s first full-length album, Thank Me Later, enters The Billboard 200 at #1, with first-week sales of 447,000. This constitutes one of the biggest openings ever for the debut album by a rap artist. It’s bigger than Eminem’s first week with The Slim Shady LP in February 1999 (283,000). It’s even bigger than Kanye West’s first week with The College Dropout in February 2004 (441,000). And today’s sales climate is less favorable now than it was back then (to put it mildly).

Read the full article HERE!

Seen on P&W!

We make it a point to keep our posts local/CanCon around here but sometimes when what’s being said is sooo important, we make the exception, and Jay Smooth from Ill Doctrine has always been a welcomed one.

Peep more of his stuff at his new site Nil Doctrine

This is for all those artists that use the “I’m Not A Rapper…” tag line as an excuse for their musical mediocrity and blatant disregard for the culture; but most importantly this is for the ones that try to do right by hip-hop and need some inspiration to keep doing it.

Okay, things at footnotes* are moving well in 20T0, so I thought I’d throw in a little intermission this week to bring you a little ol skool flavour. We’ve been enjoying an increasing number of new readers daily at blog.farbeyond.ca and we’re very happy for that. Makes me think it’s time for a twist. I know I have mentioned this many times before, but back in the day I used to write a few articles for some different publications under various names between the years of 2003 – 2007 . To this day a couple of those pieces have helped shape the way the urban landscape in Canada is currently viewed. But you know, I never needed the millions of dollars and G4’s that would have come with the recognition , I’m just happy about where we are now . Feel free to count this as my ‘What The Dog Saw’ . This little ditty was written in the Spring of 2006 , right around the time I first felt the itch to get back into the business. I had just sold my share of SafeBridge and spent the next 3 months figuring out what to do. Below is the results of the research that I conducted regarding what I felt was the staleness in the industry . After writing this, I knew the time was not right for me to get back in. Lastly, I made a decision NOT to alter anything in this piece, so my style may not be as, shall we say, strong, as maybe you’ve come to enjoy, so please bare that in mind. Very important to note that the footnotes added are BRAND NEW, so we’re mixing it up a little bit, but I think you’ll have more fun this way. Anywho, nuff yapping… dig in and enjoy.

I know, I know but believe me, the pic makes sense when you read the piece (lol!)…  Actually reading any of these pieces at www.farbeyond.ca is also recommended to get the full pop-up experience.

Hit the jump for the ‘full Shabby’!

Previously: EDITORIAL: Famous – The Building Of A Brand Pt. I (By Chris Shaban)

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You know the deal by now…To fully experience this in all its Footnotes pop-up glory check it out here! Here’s Part III of Chris Shaban’s latest series: Famous – The Building of a Brand!

What’s Shakin’ F3’s?  Thank you for coming back to check out Part III of this Famous piece, it really has been a pleasure to write.  And not just cause it’s easy[i], the analytics are dope too[ii].  I want to take a quick moment in this intro to shout out one of the coolest and long-standing dudes in the game, Mastermind.  When I was growing up here in the GTA my only connection to what was cool in rap music[iii] was DJ Mastermind and ‘The Power Move’ show.  Along with each volume of his mixtape series, I was able to get a grip on not just what was good across the border, but, more importantly, here at home too.  Now, we’re talking like almost 20 years ago, long before anyone really gave Hip-Hop a voice in this country[iv].  He has done some truly incredible things for the culture and I know FOR A FACT that he does not get the credit he deserves[v].  Having been the Music Director at Vibe 98.5 in Calgary[vi] for almost a decade[vii], it’s sad that no one has even come close to replacing him here in Toronto[viii].  If you call yourself a Hip-Hop fan, please do yourself a favour and learn about this legend.  I know he’ll probably be mad that I said that, but it’s too late now, it’s true and it’s deserved.  You can count looking him up online as The Biz for this edition.  Oh ya, and follow him on Twitter @MastermindLive

Okay, on to the next one[ix]…

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