[However,] the word play and gen- shows. Plus) is at work on their
eral content lack correlation, rel- Thompson’s suggestion for those
evance, and unified themes.” going the indie route is to take
Looking back, Thompson said, advantage of the barter system, or
“I was very uncomfortable at the exchange favors.
time recording [the EP] because “If you’re doing production
I didn’t know where I was going for somebody who can’t afford it
with it. You hear other people rap because they’re paying for studio
and you’re like, ‘Yeah. I can sound time and other things, just work
like that too.’ I listened to myself something out with that person,” he
on there [now] and I sounded like said.
how I don’t want to sound.” This includes “trading off
He took what he learned from shows;” or opening for artists in
the criticisms and applied them to other states in exchange for them
his latest release, “When Nothing coming here and performing. [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [
EP,
“Fistful of Plutonium.”
“It’s going to be more experi-
mental stuff,” Thompson said. But
unlike his first EP: “This time it
will be me sounding like how I
want to sound on the beats.”
Fellow emcee Glenn, who per-
forms as Jade Fox, described their
sound was “a mixture of rock and
hip hop.”
She said, “The way they come
off is very energetic and very dif-
ferent from what you see in regular
For hip hop.”
Goes Right” (2007),
[
a direct cor- example, The group is also part of “The
relation to what he’s gone through Food Chain Collective” (http://mys-
while living in D.C., such as money pace.com/foodchaincollective) – a
issues, dealing with promiscuous crew of about a dozen artists that
women and kicking people out of includes Jade Fox, Rosetta Stoned,
his house. The production process Cubbiebear and Caverns – that
was also added to the list of things work to promote one another.
gone wrong when Thompson lost The collective also includes
the previously recorded material for Educated Consumers, Flex
the CD to a computer crash. Matthews, Mathpanda, Blak Lungz,
The 16-track album also address- Future, Cuer and Teddy Faley.
es common struggles encountered Overall, “he’s a good person –
by indie artists, like finding afford- a real cool guy,” said Norris, who
able studio time and dealing with performs as “Mental Stamina”
shady promoters for shows. from Rosetta Stoned. “He knows
“I’ve had people that I know, and Thompson said, “If I do a show in everybody. If you’re doing hip
I’m cool with, who’ve never said: Philly or Ashville, North Carolina, hop on the East Coast, you know
‘Yeah let me help you out by getting they [the artists] come up and do a Artemis.”
this opening show that I helped so- show here.” Considering D.C.’s fragmented
and-so get,’” Thompson said. “It doesn’t necessarily have to be music scene, Thompson would like
He added that those who did strictly hip hop artists,” he added, to see various cliques – go-go, mix-
promise him shows didn’t always but also rock, jazz and blues bands” tape, hip hop and neo-soul crews –
deliver. – another way of exposing one’s self work together to take the full flavor
Along the way, he linked up with to various audiences. of D.C. to the national level.
various groups including his former Another tip for indie artists is to “I know a lot of people that want
rap crew at Howard, called the be resilient in any situation. to put DMV [D.C., Maryland and
Latter Day Saints, who helped him Last year, Thompson bounced Virginia] on the map,” he said. “My
hone his craft for emceeing. back almost immediately after thing is unless people come togeth-
Thompson’s gotten some expo- being robbed at gun point. He took er as artists then you’re probably
sure with Spoken Resistance, a out his aggression at a hip hop not going to reach that goal.”
workshop and performance troupe battle that same week.
of Sol y Soul, a non-profit that pro- “The prize money was $200,” For updates on Thompson, or to
motes art for social change. Norris said. “He got in, destroyed hear samples from his new album,
He’s also teamed up with pro- [the other emcees] and won the visit him at http://www.myspace.
ducer Metaphysical, who in addi- battle.” com/sumadra; visit his group’s
tion to doing the production on the At present, his group Ardaplus page at http://www.myspace.com/
current album, got the emcee two (Thompson with emcee Double ardaplus.
A publication of the Afro-American Newspapers Trends 13
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