If you don’t maximize your down time, it will minimize your lifetime.
Back with another special, exclusive interview – this time with famed musician and author: Fonzworth Bentley. You undoubtedly recognize Fonzworth Bentley in many music videos from the likes of Kanye West & OutKast, but what you may not realize is that Fonzworth Bentley is a man filled with thought-provoking ideals. These ideals were spilled out in our interview at the Pepsi Refresh Project’s stop at the Harold Washington Library here in Chicago (no pun intended).
We first discussed all about the Pepsi Refresh Project where Pepsi is donating millions of dollars to help make the ideas of today’s youth a reality. There’s much more details to the project that Bentley talked about, including his role in the events. We then had to ask Fonzworth about his recent leak of “Fireside Chat”, inspired by FDR’s Fireside Chats in the 30s and 40s. His insight about the messages behind the song are not only eye-opening but also educational. Bentley goes on to describe his upcoming experiment with colors and geometrics for his next music video and tells us about an impactful personal experience with a U.S. troop currently overseas in Iraq. The meaningful, yet also humorous story acts as another pleasant reminder to be thankful and to pray for the safety of our troops overseas.
Many thanks go out to Fonzworth Bentley for his time and insight in the interview above, leading by example with positive change and education for our culture. Also many thanks to Pepsi for putting together the Refresh project, which educates and gives back to the community by creating opportunity in places where there once was none.
Singer/songwriter/producer Ryan Leslie joins Sgt. Tibs for an exclusive interview at the Pepsi Refresh Project event at the Harold Washington Library in Chicago. R-Les talks about his role in the Pepsi Refresh Project, where he speaks words of inspiration and performs to the students. He also discusses alternative meanings of his upcoming single “I Choose You” and what to expect from the video that is soon to come. Finally, Ryan Leslie leaves us with some insightful advice for the aspiring youth about getting your college degree, surrounding yourself with mentors and like-minded peers, and pursuing your passion. The Harvard grad couldn’t have said it any better! We were impressed by Ryan Leslie’s candor and genuine love for everyone throughout the event and continue to look forward to a BIG year to come from R-Les in 2010! Stay tuned for more coverage of his performance at the Pepsi Refresh Project in the days to come. Enjoy!
Here’s our second official GWHH radio segment on Vocalo Radio with host Mz Shenita from earlier today! Tibs and I talked to a caller about whether Chicago artists like Kanye West and Common can be considered local, issues of authenticity between major/local artists, our interview with Scoop Jackson and how hip hop culture can move forward, and finally some of this weekend’s upcoming shows. Feel free to stream the audio by clicking the link above; any thoughts/comments are appreciated. Thanks for the support and enjoy!
This weekend we got the opportunity to meet and interview one of the greatest athletes of all time, none other than the legendary Bo Jackson! You may remember Bo as a multi-sport athlete who played professional football in the NFL and Major League Baseball simultaneously, while also being named an all-star in both sports - accomplishments that have never been met to this day. Bo was so popular that Nike launched a Bo Knows campaign in the '90's promoting the first ever multi-sport trainer shoe: the Nike Trainer SC. When the shoe came out it immediately became the most popular shoe on the planet, as you could use it to train for any sport. Bo himself played almost every sport possible in those shoes going head to head with stars like Michael Jordan on the court and even Wayne Gretzky on the ice. Just check out some of the classic Nike commercials below and you'll see what I mean.
Now after 20 years, Nike revamped and gave rebirth to the all time classic Trainer SC. In our interview Bo Jackson talks about how transcendent that shoe was when it was originally released and also gives a nice comparison between the 1990 Nike Trainer SC to the 2010 re-release. Lastly, we couldn't let Bo leave without asking him, Does Bo Know Hip Hop? Find out in the interview above and be sure to get your pair of Nike Trainer SC's while you can not only for your collection but for your multi-sport training.
We feel very blessed to have meet a living legend who has forever impacted sports and to have heard him drop some words of wisdom at his Elite Sports facility outside of Chicago. Take a look at the video below of Bo giving advice to young athletes who now have the ability to practice all year long thanks to his indoor sports complex. Also be sure to check out the slideshow below to recap some highlights from the day. Not only was Bo Jackson there, but we were blessed to see legendary hip hop and sports writer Scoop Jackson as well as Chicago Bears defensive end Alex Brown! Stay tuned for more amazing interviews to come. Big shouts go to Cindy, thanks Nike! Enjoy!
Last week, we caught up with fast rising R&B artist Rotimi right here in Chicago for another exclusive interview. Fresh off of his debut video for the soon to be smash hit "Beautiful Music", Rotimi talks to us about the balance between college life and a music career, the aforementioned single, an upcoming collaboration with Dawn Richard former member of Danity Kane, and future plans in 2010! We definitely see no ceilings for this young artist, and can be so bold as to say that he has the potential to be the new Trey Songz! In case you missed his Valentine's Day premiere of "Beautiful Music", watch the video below and don't hesitate to follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and his personal website. Be sure to keep it locked on GWHH for more fresh joints due to hit later this month! Enjoy!
GemStones is back onto the Chicago music scene and we caught up with him in thisexclusive interview. The man himself reveals some news about what he’s got in store for us in the near future. The interview covers everything from what he’s been up to while on personal leave, to news on his long awaited Troubles of the World project, and even an upcoming tentative March street album release titled On The Road To Glory, My Story.
We’re excited to see what records begin to surface in the near future with revealed song titles by the names of ‘Do Angels Cry’ and ‘Crazy’! Oh, and did we mention that there’s going to be a better balance of singing to rapping? The multi talented artist once named ‘Gemini’ will show his true dual talent on what long time fans have been waiting for over a year! The excitement is boiling, so stay glued to Gowhere as we are sure to premiere something fresh within the coming week or so! Check the video above for more on what GemStones had to say and hit the bonus footage below from Gold Coast TV on his most recent performance. Enjoy!
Gowhere Hip Hop – back once again with another exclusive interview – this time featuring the duo, Playaz Circle! We discussed the origin and meaning behind the name Playaz Circle and similarly with their album Flight 360: The Takeoff, in stores NOW as of yesterday. Finally, they leave us with some uplifting messages about overcoming their personal hardships to get where they’re at today. We would like to thank Tity Boy (TB) and Dolla Boy (DB) for their time and cooperation as well as Kirsten T. for setting it all up. In addition to the interview, peep their latest video for “Turbulence” and purchase Flight 360: The Takeoffavailable at Amazon for only $5.99 below. Enjoy!
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GWHH:The first question I have for you guys is actually about the name ‘Playaz Circle’. Some of our readers and fans may not know the story behind the meaning of the name so could you guys enlighten us about that meaning and how you guys came up with it?
TB: Well, we started off in the late 90s outta College Park, ATL, you know what I’m sayin’? So we wanted to come with somethin’ that best represents us and came up with Playaz Circle What Playaz Circle actually means is ‘Preparing Legal Assets for Years from A to Z’ – A to Z which means from beginning to end. And ‘Circle’, 100% of the game, which is all aspects of life. We try to play the game of life; we’re all players in the game of life and the circle is symbolic to bring things around.
GWHH:Cool exactly. When I first read that I know people would appreciate the meaning behind the name Playaz Circle. And to keep with the whole meaning behind the name theme, you guys got the Flight 360: The Takeoff album in stores now! How does that name represent what is on the album?
DB: Well basically, you can expect a lot of maturation with this new project. Duffle Bag Boyz: everything on here is the Duffle Bag Boyz success. We did the whole album in our own studio on the south side. It was a different comfort zone for us compared to previous albums. It allowed us to rest and sleep on the records. On the recording side, we recorded 60 tunes for this album and we narrowed it down to the best 15 or 16 that conceptually fit the album. ’360′ is another analogy for circle. We always felt like we’re two of the fliest guys in the game on that level [analogical level]. If you ever been to Atlanta once, when you land, you’re actually get in up back there as well as when you take off. So the album has dual meaning; we got kind of like turbulence – things of that nature. Not just turbulence on a plane, but turbulence in life, things going up and down. We put a lot of thought into the album and we’re excited about this September 29th release date.
GWHH:That’s awesome and sounds really creative. So yeah, let’s talk about the singles you got off the album. Right now, there’s “Can’t Remember” f/ Bobby Valentino; what other single could you guys talk about that are on the album?
DB:Yeah, “Can’t Remember” is only one of the singles off the album. We also put out the “Stupid” record featuring OJ Da Juiceman that was a summertime jam. We put out “Look What I Got” – we shot a video for that, we got almost a million looks on that on World Star [Hip Hop]. And “Hold Up”! It’s actually building up right now; it’s goin’ crazy in the ATL right now. And it’s definitely a club type of record that’s bangin’ right now. So we tryin’ to get a lot of different looks for all the different consumers right now: the streets, for instance, try and give them what they want to hear and would expect from us.
GWHH:Good, that’s perfect. That’s the way you gotta attack it and satisfy the various types of fans out there. So I definitely want to ask if you could leave our readers with a positive message, you guys have gone through a lot of adversity to get to where you guys are today, could you guys talk a little bit about your experiences and how maybe our readers can take that and apply it to their lives?
TB:Well, basically, the mindset behind Playaz Circle, speakin’ for Dolla and myself, is that we went through those experiences for a reason and we try to learn from each experience that we go through, whether it’s negative or positive. So whether it’s trouble with the law, or gettin’ into shootouts or whatever, we try to learn from them. And as you can see right now, being able to actually do something that we like, and we think, ‘Man, that just keeps our drive going!’. So basically, lookin’ forward to what’s next. From where we come from, people get shot or shot at, go to jail a lot of times. So we almost get to that part of the adolescence process for us, growing past that. We just keep it movin’ and we look forward to what’s next and just build off those situations. Then we turn it around and stay optimistic about stuff.. which is really important to do.
GWHH:Awesome, that’s the type of mindset that will propel you past adversity and I hope that our readers can see that conveyed through Playaz Circle. So lastly, where can our readers follow you more closely?
DB: Yeah, we got the website – dufflebagboyz.com – where they can follow us in what we’re doin’. We’re tryin’ to get our internet presence up with the social websites. You can hit our Twitter – twitter.com/playazcircle. And all our videos are over at WorldStarHipHop.com– they just have to search ‘Playaz Circle’. We shot about six or seven videos for this new album to try and paint the whole picture of ’360′ so get at us!
Gowhere Hip Hop is proud to introduce another exclusive interview with the up and coming Chicago duo, Bijou! We caught up with the talented singers, Chiara and Ya-Yah, fresh off their performances at the InnJoy! I’m really excited about what I’m hearing from their unique sound, as you may remember their singles “Reaction” and “Three Missed Calls” being featured here in the past. This time we get a bit more personal with an introductory interview as Sgt. Tibs speaks with the two about their sound, how they came together, and their upcoming album! I’m really excited to hear more as their album wraps up, but in the meantime pay Bijou a visit on their MySpace or Twitter. Enjoy!
GWHH back again with another exclusive interview as Sgt. Tibs sits down with Grammy-nominated R&B singer, Trey Songz! We discuss details on Trey Songz’ upcoming album,READY (in stores August 4th), the concept and inspiration behind the album’s current single, “I Need A Girl”, more information on Songz’ new group with the likes of Jermaine Dupri, Nelly, and Johnta Austin: Ocean’s 7, and Trey Songz’ favorite part about Chicago. Definitely a MUST-WATCH for any fan of music to get to know one of the most talented artists doin’ his thing today. Trey Songz doubles as one of my top 5 artists ever and it was a great thrill for Max G. and I to meet and talk to him so candidly. We would like to thank Trey Songz once again for all his cooperation along with Bobby Fisher and a special thanks toNicole Pierce for setting it all up!
As an added treat for Trey Songz and new fans alike, make sure to hit the jump for the Top 5 *Tibs Favs.™ for Trey Songz RMXs. Songz seemingly jumps on every hot instrumental, showcasing his versatility and his talented rapping skills. If you don’t have those tracks andthe current single, “I Need A Girl”, simply scroll below for the FREE downloads. Enjoy!
Reppin’ Limited G, from left 2 right: Max G, Trey Songz, Sgt. Tibs
Yes Swizz, you shoulda put Trey on this one. Songz flips the iconic Swizzy lines into some of his own that u can’t help but sing along to: “Chillin’ in the Rover, listenin’ to Hova…”
Jeremih’s “Birthday Sex” gets the RMX treatment for another clever interpretation from Songz. Highlights include Trey crooning “Beat It” like MJ and allusions 2 recent hits from Jamie Foxx & The-Dream.
Interesting how the top 3 are Kanye West productions, (hmm…) The first line is delivered with an unmatched amount of swag in the history of swag: “Who you think could do it like I does it, let’s discuss it, G’s respect him worldwide and the women wanna f*** him?”
This is a perfect illustration of Trey Songz’ growth as an artist, more specifically as a rapper. Songz seemingly fails to take a breath in the last 2 minutes with break-neck raps and a ridiculous flow to match. He blows away some of his already solid efforts back when he started the mixtape tracks back in ’07 with an interpretation of Pharrell’s album, In My Mind. Throw on some chilling background vocals to Kanye’s original for the first couple minutes and I can’t even touch the original anymore.
Songz’ interpretation of Lil’ Wayne’s “Comfortable” narrowly edges “Bad News” for the cake. The production is a perfect compliment to his voice as Trey Songz creatively sings some rhymes and croons different choruses throughout to tell a very relatable story… and u get a clever ‘Family Guy’ reference 2 boot.
GWHH back again with another exclusive interview as Sgt. Tibs sits down with Grammy-nominated R&B singer, Trey Songz! We discuss details on Trey Songz’ upcoming album,READY (in stores August 4th), the concept and inspiration behind the album’s current single, “I Need A Girl”, more information on Songz’ new group with the likes of Jermaine Dupri, Nelly, and Johnta Austin: Ocean’s 7, and Trey Songz’ favorite part about Chicago. Definitely a MUST-WATCH for any fan of music to get to know one of the most talented artists doin’ his thing today. Trey Songz doubles as one of my top 5 artists ever and it was a great thrill for Max G. and I to meet and talk to him so candidly. We would like to thank Trey Songz once again for all his cooperation along with Bobby Fisher and a special thanks toNicole Pierce for setting it all up!
As an added treat for Trey Songz and new fans alike, make sure to hit the jump for the Top 5 *Tibs Favs.™ for Trey Songz RMXs. Songz seemingly jumps on every hot instrumental, showcasing his versatility and his talented rapping skills. If you don’t have those tracks andthe current single, “I Need A Girl”, simply scroll below for the FREE downloads. Enjoy!
Reppin’ Limited G, from left 2 right: Max G, Trey Songz, Sgt. Tibs
Yes Swizz, you shoulda put Trey on this one. Songz flips the iconic Swizzy lines into some of his own that u can’t help but sing along to: “Chillin’ in the Rover, listenin’ to Hova…”
Jeremih’s “Birthday Sex” gets the RMX treatment for another clever interpretation from Songz. Highlights include Trey crooning “Beat It” like MJ and allusions 2 recent hits from Jamie Foxx & The-Dream.
Interesting how the top 3 are Kanye West productions, (hmm…) The first line is delivered with an unmatched amount of swag in the history of swag: “Who you think could do it like I does it, let’s discuss it, G’s respect him worldwide and the women wanna f*** him?”
This is a perfect illustration of Trey Songz’ growth as an artist, more specifically as a rapper. Songz seemingly fails to take a breath in the last 2 minutes with break-neck raps and a ridiculous flow to match. He blows away some of his already solid efforts back when he started the mixtape tracks back in ’07 with an interpretation of Pharrell’s album, In My Mind. Throw on some chilling background vocals to Kanye’s original for the first couple minutes and I can’t even touch the original anymore.
Songz’ interpretation of Lil’ Wayne’s “Comfortable” narrowly edges “Bad News” for the cake. The production is a perfect compliment to his voice as Trey Songz creatively sings some rhymes and croons different choruses throughout to tell a very relatable story… and u get a clever ‘Family Guy’ reference 2 boot.
