Diamond Snares

Released 15 January 2010 
All tracks written and produced by Richie Cunning 
All songs recorded and mixed by Richie Cunning at the Rec Center, Santa Cruz, CA. 
Additional mixing consultation by Rob Rush 
All cuts performed by DJ M.F. Shalem 
Saxophone on "Night Train" performed by Mani Vafaei 
Mastered by Dave Cooley for Elysian Masters 
Layout and design by Shalem
Photography by Trevor Traynor (trevortraynor.com)

The City

Savannah, GA microphone monster DOPE KNIFE is set to drop his self-produced full-length SFdigi debut “NineteenEightyFour” (featuring Sage Francis, Ceschi, and more) on January 27, 2017! 
Get your MP3 download, CDs, + 7-inch Records exclusively at http://tinyurl.com/DopeKnifeSFR 

Perhaps it was the euphoria of the first time he heard a rhyme collide with a beat. It may have been the gruesome civil war that touched his young life, and that war’s impact his family. Likely, it was the fusion of the two experiences that inspired a young Kedrick Mack to develop and refine his sound into what is now the intense, distinctive art of emcee/producer Dope KNife.  

“NineteenEightyFour”, KNife’s Strange Famous Digital debut, effectively demonstrates his style in ferocious, focused bursts, fused to form a gritty boom-bap soundscape littered with dense wordplay. Within this world, the listener has the opportunity to come to learn who Dope KNife is, but only if they choose to: “I think of this album as a character portrait; it's like the movie Taxi Driver in rap form,” says Mack. “It’s one man’s experience with the world, laid out for society to see, but there’s no guarantee the world will understand it. You either vibe with the experience and accept that it has a reason for existing, or you just think its a collection of songs that you like or dislike individually. I’m fine with either.” 

The son of a US diplomat, Mack's childhood was spent hopping around the globe in the course of his father's work. Most of that travel was within the continent of Africa, including a residency in Liberia, his mother's home country. Liberia's civil war broke out, and while Mack and his immediate family were able to evacuate, his mother's extended family were not so fortunate, leaving them to live amongst the chaos of a decade-long conflict.  Mack would learn of his family’s tragedies and hardships through the tears on his mother’s face, an almost daily ritual that left him feeling isolated during his teen years. His discovery of music, and hip-hop in particular, gave him a way to reach out: he began to immerse himself in the culture, finding inspiration in artists as disparate as Rakim, Nine Inch Nails, and Ice-T. He began fronting a rap/rock band and spending time on the freestyle battle circuit.  ￼ 

Mack forged strong friendships through his foray into music, friendships which lead to the formation of a DIY record label that allowed him to release 2 full-length group LPs under the crew name Dope Sandwich.  

Remaining true to his collaborative roots, Mack invites a gang of indie emcees to contribute to “NineteenEightyFour”; rappers with whom he built a mutual respect over years of extensive touring appear on the posse cuts “#SQUADGOHARD” and “Tombstone”. KNife uses the solo album format to display his sharp wit and a knack for social commentary, and to explore heavier subject matter and experiment with his own music production. Moments of note include the first single, “Name Up”, and the introductory mission statement “Nothing To Lose”. Strange Famous label boss Sage Francis makes an appearance on “Cult Personality”, and indie rap troubadour Ceschi pops up on “Fear and Loathing”.  

The title “NineteenEightyFour” refers to both the year of Kedrick Mack’s birth, and to the year of an experience that helped to set him on his path - an event captured by artist Pat Jensen on the album cover. Mack explains: “When I was a baby, I fell into a water well in Sierra Leone. I have a scar on the back of my skull from it. How it happened became one of those stories that my mother would reveal to new acquaintances as they became friends. As a result, as an adult, for me, the story is like the last barrier of information I give a person as an affirmation of our relationship. If a person has known me long enough for me to tell them how I fell in a well as a baby, it's a sign I’m opening up to them. “NineteenEightyFour” is that last barrier for me as a musician.”

NineteenEightyFour

Buy CD/Vinyl

"NOTHING TO LOSE" - Dope KNife

Cage Ft. Aesop Rock, El - P, Tame1 & Yak Ballz - Weathermen

Stream/Purchase: http://smarturl.it/KossBornToLive

New single from Belgian producer Koss featuring J-Live.  "Straight Up Pretenders" will appear on the forthcoming full-length "Born To Live" (to be released via Below System Records on 9/8/17 on CD/Digital).  The album will also feature hip-hop heavyweights including Torae, Masta Ace, Craig G, Blaq Poet, Ruste Juxx, Large Professor, Keith Murray and more.

Follow Koss:
- twitter.com/DeejayKoss
- www.facebook.com/DJKossOfficial

© 2017 Below System Records
www.belowsystem.com

Stream/Download

Koss - Straight Up Pretenders (feat. J-Live)

Del The Funky Homosapien & Parallel Thought - Attractive Sin
Out Now http://parallelthought.bandcamp.com/album/attractive-sin

Del The Funky Homosapien  & Parallel Thought - Different Guidelines

Lead single from Parallel Thought's "Art Of Sound" Available 7.24
Itunes Pre Order : http://itunes.apple.com/us/preorder/art-of-sound/id529637569
LP & CD Combo Preorder : http://www.undergroundhiphop.com/parallel-thought-art-of-sound/PTLP22006LP/

Ice Cold feat. Breeze Brewin (Juggaknots)

Album details and merch package deals: https://www.strangefamousrecords.com/news/twstbf/
TOUR INFO: https://www.strangefamousrecords.com/events/

Sand Dunes - Epic Beard Men (Sage Francis / B. Dolan)

This is the debut vocal EP from The Audible Doctor. Download the REAL version here: http://www.mediafire.com/?m6w3dvz3iejamdz or Download the CLEAN version here: http://www.mediafire.com/?8vh4mmuohshl7kf

Success (Part 1) Feat. Chaundon (Prod. By Audible Doctor, Cuts By DJ Brace)

Gang Starr Foundation member and rhymesayer Hannibal Stax along with Brooklyn’s leading boom-bap purveyor Marco Polo have teamed up for a collaborative project entitled Seize The Day (the duo’s mixtape/precursor, The Honorable, was released in December of 2012) which is now available via Soulspazm Records.

Originally discovered by DJ Premier, Stax has been a staple on NYC’s underground scene for years and was featured on two Gang Starr LP’s and numerous tracks that were lost in major label recording vaults. Although Stax is undeniably a veteran, Seize The Day represents his long-overdue solo debut.

Previous:
Link to Hannibal Stax & Marco Polo “46 Bars Of Death” video: youtu.be/MNE0xixTxCI

twitter.com/Hannibalstax
www.facebook.com/HannibalStaxMarcoPolo
www.twitter.com/marcopolobeats
Instagram: MarcoPoloBeats
www.facebook.com/MarcoPoloBeatsPA


Hannibal Stax & Marco Polo - Warriorz Drum f. Torae

Jeff Blacker & Adam Calman otherwise known as the production duo Parallel Thought have been making Hip Hop music since 2000, based out of Freehold New Jersey