In music, an Artist shares his/her thoughts through a song, but at times it’s just not enough. Seeing that he has a lot to talk about, Montego Bay based Rapper MoulaUE steps outside the booth and shares his “Conversations With MoulaUE” series. In season 2, he speaks on his Artistry, getting his name out there, dealing with criticism, giving and earning respect, making music, and much more. The Rapper is currently working on a follow up to his “All U Go Get Until…” EP, so the converations should hold you until 2018. Check out season 1 here, and season 2’s clips below!
Recently, Recording Artist Royal Blu and Producer Tim Foresta finally released their long anticipated project, the “sinG with God EP“! Featuring 5 tracks, listeners were treated a mix of awesome lyrics, melodies, and production that will have you rocking and rewinding to catch the lines. Recently we got a behind the scenes look at the creative process with Blu and Foresta, more specifically the situations that led to the making of each track. Tune in!
Royal Blu: For “Let’s Get High”, I remember being in studio and one of my Engineers who helped with recording the session was intentionally smoking near the booth so it could aid in me capturing the feeling of the song (haha). Leno Banton and some of the REM crew was in the studio session as well, and they’re like the Ganja gurus. So it made even more sense.
Tim Foresta: “Let’s Get High” was a very interesting process. I only had this rough loop of the hook part of the beat. I had no clue where this could go, but it had a vibe, so I sent it to Blu. He then was able to write an entire song with three verses, hook, basically a whole arrangement on this simple loop. He sent it to me via voice note. I was blown away and it instantly became clear what kind of a song this will be. Within an hour most of the ideas you hear now came to my mind. That’s also what I like about working with Blu. The process doesn’t follow the simple pattern of I send a beat, he writes a song – done. It’s always different.
Blu: I haven’t really said this anywhere else, but the song “Believe” was actually written out of me being hurt. I had a song called “Wrote You This Song” that was originally set to be a part of this EP, but didn’t make the cut. It was the first song Foresta and I ever did, but we didn’t work in studio together for it. He was still in Germany. But basically, that song was about singing to my past self and letting him know that things get better in the future. Because the past self I was singing to at that time lost all the files for his song, the studio I was working with got ripped down, I was betrayed by friends, lost loved ones. It was a depressing time. So that energy carried over into writing “Believe” because I wrote those two songs very close together.
Foresta: Believe. In 2014 I was in South Africa shooting a Documentary about Zimbabwean refugees, living in the streets of Cape Town looking for work. It was an idea by director Thandi Sebe, who at the time wanted to write a Theatre play about it. Growing up in Cape Town, she always saw these groups of men gathering and always wondered who they were and what they do. So, while doing this Documentary I composed some music for it as well and this is where the idea for Believe came from. In the end I didn’t use that beat in the documentary, but interestingly enough the topic Blu found for it perfectly fits the scene of the film that inspired me coming up with it.
You’ve seen him mix it up at events, and you’ve heard him play on one of the top Radio stations in Jamaica (Zip 103 FM), it’s all about ZJ West! We’ve worked with him over the years, and you can hear some of his work in the Mixtape section. Recently we got a chance to interview him and we spoke about his work, Yung Gunnerz, being a Dad, and much more. Without further ado, GET TO KNOW the Zipjock named West below!
ZJ West’s Daughter makes an appearance at times (lol)
13thStreetPromotions: West! Give thanks for having a chat with me. We’ve been working together for a long time but we’re finally getting this Interview done. For starters, many have heard the ZJ, heard him play at events, but who is Zipjock named West?
13thSP: How long have you been DJing for? How did you get your start?
A project that has been in the making for quite some time, the duo of Jamaican Recording Artist Royal Blu, and German Producer Tim Foresta finally release the “sinG with God EP“! Featuring 5 tracks, Blu brings the melodies and witty lyrics, while Foresta provides some wonderful Production to compliment them. Tagging along for the ride are Recording Artists Runkus (“sinG with God“) and Lila Ike (“Believe“) as they contribute fuel for the fiery project. Adding to the experience is Taj Francis as he provided the amazing Artwork for the project and the title track. Royal Blu has been having a great year so far, dropping an EP is the icing on that cake. The EP is available on all your favourite digital retailers/streaming services. Stay tuned to the Blog for more content in regards to this project! Prepare for something wonderful by checking out the EP below!
Montego Bay has been holding their own in the Music scene in recent times. From Hip Hop acts like Moula UE, Trapic$ The Troop, Slim I.D., Daley, to Dancehall/Reggae acts like Tommy Lee Sparta, Teejay, and Jeeby, their eastern counterparts should pay attention. Rapper Karma Crew however, has been staying busy with his own share of releases this year, and recently he kept at it with a new video titled, “Lyrical Majesty“. Shot/Directed by 876 Media Ent., Karma keeps the visual simple, but stays on fire when it comes to the bars! With plans to drop a new project in 2018, and possible treats for the Christmas season, salute that man and the music he’s bringing to you. Check out the video below.
2017 seems to be the year for the one named Safaree. Despite a few bad moments, he has been doing well thanks to his released singles, surprising many with his Hot 97 Freestyle, and his various TV appearances. With the year coming to a close, he wants to ensure that fans get a lot more music with his latest Mixtape, “Fur Coat Vol. 1“. Featuring 15 tracks, SB continues to let folks know that despite all the things his name has been attached to good and bad, he can hold his own when it comes to making music. With DJ Self, Sean Kingston, Philly Swain, Bowe Jack, DJ Norie, and Mayday Carter making appearances, this is the right companion while you catch Safaree on your favourite VH1 reality show! No Fur Coats and Coconut Oil included. Check out the project below!
