DJ and emcee from NJ, Emskee, has linked up with producer Easy Mo Bee for his next album, currently untitled. Mo has produced for Big Daddy Kane, The Notorious B.I.G., Busta Rhymes, 2Pac, and many others. Emskee explains how he met Mo Bee at the radio station and tells the story of how Mo earned the opportunity to work with Miles Davis.
Davey D is a DJ, producer, journalist, professor, hip hop historian, and community activist from the Bronx, NY. He started as an emcee in the late 70s with two groups, Total Def Krew and The Avengers. Davey moved to California and graduated from UC Berkeley. He co-founded and hosted several of the most cited hip hop radio and online news journalism projects to date. He founded Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner, which is widely considered one of the oldest and largest hip hop sites on the web. His articles are frequently referenced and quoted by journalists and professors around the world. Davey D is also the co-founder of the Bay Area Hip Hop Coalition which began as one of the first hip hop radio DJ collectives. Davey D is the co-author of 2 books, How to Get Stupid White Men Out Of Office (2004) and Be A Father To Your Child (2008). He’s a columnist for the San Jose Mercury News and a professor at San Francisco State where he co-teaches a course on hip hop history, culture and politics. He has been featured in about 30 documentaries and has written for many of the nation’s top magazines and newspapers. Davey landed a position with 106.1 KMEL where he launched the station’s newsletter and later joined the morning show. After 11 years, he went on to become the Urban Music Director at AOL Radio where he programmed and managed 15 stations. Davey D teamed up with Chuck D of Public Enemy to launch a Top 20 countdown show. He was featured in The Source Magazine in 2003 as one of the top 10 most influential people in the U.S. covering hip hop and politics.
Prince Whipper Whip is an emcee from the Bronx, NY. In 1978, he joined the group The Mighty Gestapo Crew, alongside Dot-A-Rock, DJ Kenny B, Count D, and The Funky Phase Four MCs. Whip and Dot-A-Rock battled The Notorious 2 (Grandmaster Caz and JDL) at the Intersession Church in Harlem. Whip and Dot were original members of the Cold Crush Brothers and more well known as members of The Fantastic Romantic 5. The Fantastic 5 released the single “Can I Get A Soul Clap” in 1980 on Tuff City Records. They never recorded an album, but they appeared in the film Wild Style.
King RA is an emcee from Jersey City, NJ. His father exposed him to music by playing guitar and piano. RA related to great storytellers like Kool G Rap and Ghostface Killah. It wasn’t until the late 90’s when he focused his efforts towards rhyming and producing. He has performed throughout the tri-state area and released his debut album, The RA EPic, in 2010. King RA has collaborated with DJ Brans, SciFi Stu, Rich Mahogany, and many producers around the globe. In 2011, he released Foot On They Necks V. 1, followed by The Last Dragon EP in 2012.
Stretch Armstrong is producer and DJ from New York City. He earned a reputation for spinning at many of New York’s downtown clubs and in 1990, landed a show on Columbia University’s WKCR station with Bobbito Garcia. On the four-hour show, Stretch played new music, breakbeats, early classics, and allowed many guests to freestyle. The show became an important figure in the hip hop community, with The Source Magazine naming the Stretch & Bobbito “the best hip hop mix show of all-time”. Many then-unknown artists went on to become some of the most successful icons in the music industry, including The Notorious BIG, Jay-Z, Nas, Eminem, Mobb Deep, Big L, The Wu-Tang Clan, Busta Rhymes, and more. Stretch has produced records for Lil Kim, Capone-N-Noreaga, Mobb Deep, Eminem, 50 Cent, and more. He continues to DJ in clubs in New York and around the world.
Snow Tha Product is an emcee from San Jose, CA. At age 6, she sang in talent shows and with her grandfather’s mariachi band. She later moved to San Diego and after freestyling with her friends as a teenager, Snow left college to pursue a music career. Her internet street team, Product Pushers, were mainly based in Texas, motivating Snow to move to Fort Worth in 2010 and operate her label, Product Entertainment. In 2011, Snow released her debut album, Unorthodox, which led to a record deal with Atlantic Records. In 2012, Snow released her mixtape, Good Nights & Bad Mornings, followed by a Vol. 2: The Hangover in 2013, featuring Tech N9ne, The Cataracs, Trae Tha Truth, Cyhi the Prynce, Dizzy Wright, and Ty Dolla Sign.
Illmaculate is an emcee from Portland, OR. At age 17, he won the 2004 Scribble Jam freestyle rap competition, making him the youngest winner in the competition’s history. In 2006, he became champion of Spin The Mic’s freestyle battle rap competition. In 2006 and 2007, he teamed up with The Saurus and won JumpOff’s World Rap Championships both years. Also in 2007, Illmaculate released The Rain Check Mixtape and formed a group, The Sandpeople, with local Oregon artists. Illmaculate has achieved most of his notoriety by competing against some of the best lyricists in King Of The Dot’s battle rap league. His latest album, Skrill Talk, features Tech N9ne, Krizz Kaliko, Inspectah Deck, Crooked I, and more.
Kevin Beacham is a marketing manager and hip hop educator/activist residing in Minneapolis, MN. He started as a DJ in 1981 while watching local DJs spin in Karlsrue, Germany. Years later, he met DJ Pill in Fort Riley, KS and learned how to work two turntables. Kevin also picked up rhyming and production, but his passion for vinyl collecting trumped the other art forms. Kevin later became an integral part of Rhymesayers Entertainment, Scribble Jam, Minnesota Public Radio, and others. He started his first company, Rage Production, providing an affordable studio for local artists to record demos and learn other tools. In 1992, Kevin’s career as a writer began, contributing to FifthElementOnline.com, URB Magazine, Ohword.com, and more. In 1995, he founded the Time Travel Show at Northwestern University radio station, which was an educational hip hop show teaching history of artists, regions, and cultural influences. In 1996, Kevin joined Mr. Dibbs and the Scribble Jam staff as a battle coordinator, and later became co-head organizer for the entire event. Scribble Jam was one of the world’s largest hip hop festivals and most highly influential battle leagues for 14 years. It was responsible for helping launch the careers Eminem, Brother Ali, Atmosphere, Sage Francis, Rhymefest, Eyedea, and more. In 2002, Kevin landed a Product Manager position with Rhymesayers Entertainment and moved to Minneapolis, MN. In 2006, he developed a curriculum to launch the Hip Hop Essentials class at The Institute of Production & Recording. Kevin teaches and coordinates the Rhymesayers staff and artists to provide an informative, real-world learning experience. He also the co-directs the Institute For Hip Hop Knowledge at Hamline University.
