MyCypher.com recently released the first episode of their new web based series Hip Hop Worldwide: Brazil. The series will cover the events of the MyCypher team's trip to Brazil to take part in the Hutuz Hip Hop Festival, throw a MyCypher sponsored concert and sample Brazilian hip hop as a whole.
Hip Hop legend Bobbito, official U.S. Hip Hop Ambassador Toni Blackman and producer/MC Nobody Famous were all guests of MyCypher to not only foster some artistic interaction but also to capture their reactions to, and impressions of Brazil's hip hop scene.
Check out the first episode below.
MyCypher presents Hip-hop Worldwide: Brazil Ep. 1 from MyCypher - Hip-hop Worldwide on Vimeo.
deny
the power of hip hop. In fact, a key reason that I became an educator
was because I listened to it. Still, after 25 years of listening, it takes
a lot to hold my attention. However, I was recently turned on to
Abraham Borhóquez Sánchez of the Bolivian-based group Ukamau y Ké and
spent hours listening to his music and reading about his career.
Unfortunately, he passed away this past May. Yet I was so impressed
that I felt the need to help promote his legacy.
in
France, you were French. I was raised with Puerto Rican pride, but it
was empty. I didn't know a lot of the history and didn't speak Spanish,
which isn't our language anyway. A lot of Puerto Ricans claim all this
pride and nostalgia for the island, but many people here don't even
view them as Puerto Rican, that's where that whole Nuyorican idea came
from, that people are from New York, not Puerto Rican. Even though I
was born in New York, I'm not a Nuyorican. If you put a kitten in an
oven, that doesn't make it a muffin. I'm a Puerto Rican who was born in
New York. Across the board, on the island, if you were born in the
States, you were born "alla fuera," over there. I had a women today ask
me if I came from "alla fuera" and she asked me if I was Puerto Rican,
even though she knew I was. Coming from the United States, we're
definitely not seen as Puerto Rican, even if both parents came from
Puerto Rico. It's like we're mixed children; but that's not a bad
thing. I was exposed to a lot and I love my island, but I'm glad I was
raised somewhere else. There are certain things in the culture that get
ingrained into us that I don't agree with. For example, sometimes when
I've been at someone's house for dinner and got up to help wash dishes,
everyone would say something to me like "leave that to the women."
Never mind that the women already cooked and served all us. They still
look at me like "what's wrong with you?" Even though I'd be a visitor,
it's still gender related; they don't think I'm being a man. I'm glad I
don't think like that. It's like that in the States too, but it's
larger here. Not having grown up on the colony, I think it's been
easier for me to see how come the island is the way that it is and how
we got there. Many people on the island are too close to the situation.
It's like a relationship when everyone else can see the problems except
the people in it. I have the distance to sit back and reflect and
realize that not all of the problems on the island are due to its
people. On the other hand, when I see people do things like throw a can
out the window, it pisses me off that they'd disrespects this beautiful
island. Maybe you need to leave to appreciate it.
doing
and to stay right; on the path that was set for me. I always felt that
words were powerful and that they could change the flow of the world,
but having a child has made it undeniable. I'm much more careful about
what I say or what I put down in a verse. I've always felt compassion
for other people, especially young people, but having a child of my own
has led me to love all children as my own. That was a feeling that I
didn't expect. I never thought I could adopt because I feel that all
children deserve to be loved like they're flesh and blood and I didn't
think I could do it. Now, there's no difference between other children
and my own. I don't know how others feel, but I think the flesh and
blood thing is more about vanity; that they share our nose or look like
us, but that's really minute. When I write, I feel like I have to be
really careful of what I say as my children are listening, whether I
know them or not. I only want to speak positive and hope, of moving
forward. That's what I feel that we need.
first
album. I was 16 and I listened to it for a year straight. I listened to
what you said. I had times homies wanted to go out and do something and
I though about your songs and wouldn't go. They ended up getting
arrested. You helped shaped who I am." I hope that's the effect, but I
didn't' expect to see it. It's like being a teacher; you hope for
certain results, but you may never see them. You have to have faith
that your efforts aren't in vain. 
sax
player, would have guest MCs come through as they did shows. Zion from
Zion-I did it, as did Tommy from Felonious. There was a rotating crew.
He didn't know about me, but a lot of people recommended me so he
called me up at work one day, when I was still at Whole Foods. I went
to the studio and they liked what I was doing, but I wasn't feeling
them and told them I wasn't interested. Plus I was busy as I had just
released an album.
.
a
solo album. One with O-Maya, two Rico Pabon, a couple of side projects
with DJ Riddim and some compilation albums, I did two with Hard Knock
Records. I did one with Billy Jam some years back. He used to play our
demos on his show and was there since the beginning. I talked to him
recently and he says he still has the old tapes of when we were on his
show. I was like 17 at the time. Headnodic from Crown City Rockers has
produced quite a few tracks on my solo albums. I've done some stuff
with Raashan, lead MC of Crown City Rockers.
figure
anyone that has enough faith in me to put out an album without even
hearing a song, I figured I'd give them a shot. I knew they weren't
going to ask me to do any corny remixes for DJs. I hadn't even given serious thought to releasing "Louder Than Fiction."
I was just doing what I felt passionate about; maybe give it to some DJ
homies, but I hadn't really thought about releasing it. It came out how
I hoped. No negotiation, just straight inspiration. That's my favorite
album. Everything had a purpose and it's because I wanted to do it. I
wasn't thinking about the first single or radio; none of that.
teenager.
It was ran by some older white dude who wasn't into hip hop. He was
actually a playwright. He got the idea to have people connect with
inner city youth and take them on "toxic tours" in our neighborhoods to
learn about what was going on. Like in Richmond, rocket fuel was being
stored, which most people in the community didn't know. They used to
tell us stuff like that. The idea of environmental racism came from
this. They were focused on the problems with nature and we introduced
them broaden their idea of environmental racism. What about crack and
violence that's part of our environment? We ended up in Germany with
one dude from Oakland, one guy from Richmond, and one from San
Francisco. We performed for random people. Sometimes the audience
didn't know our purpose, they just wanted to see some rap. Sometimes we
rapped for environmentalists and lefties to private shows and night
gigs. We were there for a few weeks. We performed nearly everyday.