The Witzard

WalyO is a mysterious Connecticut-based producer and beat-maker. Sonically, his style of music often falls somewhere in-between remixes and mash-ups; almost like a musical version of Marvel's beloved zany WHAT IF...? comic book series. However, a press release asserts, "WalyO is NOT a remixer, instead, he creates brand new tracks by chopping up various acapellas from many different songs and re-arranges them into new verses on beats that are in the taste of the so-called artists." Following the success of his 2018 Diplomats-centric project Dipset, We Still Bangin', WalyO has returned with the first single from his next like-minded effort. N​.​W​.​A. Feat. Michael Jackson - "LA Riots" will appear within WalyO's upcoming sophomore project, his own rendition of Dr. Dre's fabled as-yet-to-be released magnum opus, Detox. Honestly, a collaboration between N.W.A. & The King of Pop is not as far-fetched as it sounds on paper... as Michael Jackson's...

Just in case you've been living under a rock for the past few months or recently awoke from a coma—we're terribly sorry for 2017!—Beat-maker Bedrock (BMB) is a new, recurring column here at The Witzard; initially, the brainchild of Baltimore-based beatsmith John "Jumbled" Bachman, BMB simply asks beat-makers and aspiring producers to highlight 3-5 of their personal favorite albums, which, early on, helped shape their overall sound and style. I'm proud to present to you our first Beat-maker Bedrock column 2018 and 14th overall features a playlist selected and meticulously arranged by New York-based rapper-producer and We Are The Karma Kids founder Lt Headtrip—or just "Headtrip" for production work. Following his critically-acclaimed 2017 album, Comedy of The Filtbeast , Lt Headtrip teamed up with The GreenHouse Studio/Backwoodz Studioz producer and engineer to curate LNYCHPIN; described on Bandcamp as "a full-length collaborative album featuring 16 ...

"Hello, I'm âtƒ (AKA all these fingers ) and I make beats and play music. There's a lot of dudes who have influenced me as a producer, but these are probably the ones I owe the most to... in particular, these records," Michigan -based producer all these fingers wrote within a recent email. I actually believe I met âtƒ through my buddy and frequent collaborator Darko The Super —they've collaborated on a few albums, as both Darko The Super & all these fingers and Doc Fingers . âtƒ has self-released a whopping 52 albums, mixtapes, cassettes, EP's, beat tapes, and digi-singles on his personal Bandcamp page since 2011. He's collaborated with the likes of Darko The Super , Mr. Muthaf**kin' eXquire, and Future Islands frontman Sam Herring 's rapping alter-ego Hemlock Ernst , as well as creating remixes for Roc Marciano , Sean Price, Beastie Boys , Nas, Raekwon , Biggie, and Slick Rick . all these fingers' latest Super Mario Kart -inspire...

"I'd like to think of this album as more of a home-made mixtape you could burn to CD and give to Trick-or-Treaters . It's what I've been working on the past few months; music is a labor of love. I love releasing albums and sharing them with my friends and I intend to never stop. Put Down The Candy & Let The Little Boy Go! furthers that narrative. Maybe one day, I'll embrace my outer-adult to the fullest and find a real job. Til then, this is all I have," Evan Souza , better known as Darko The Super or Doc Heller , wrote within a message included along with his Trick-or-Treat -ready Haloween -themed mixtape. The Witzard previously premiered the mixtape's Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg -inspired title track , which Souza says was dually inspired by Slaves' recent Mike D (Beastie Boys) -produced album, Take Control . Darko The Super clever re-appropriated a line pulled from Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg 's Eazy-E dissing "F*ck wit Dre Day (and E...

"I made the beat [last week]. It's the first beat I made actually playing everything through my MIDI keyboard. I usually never do that. It felt good to have something completely mine in a way. I was listening to the new Slaves album [Take Control] produced by Mike D of Beastie Boys , before I made the beat; maybe that inspired the sound," Darko The Super (Evan Souza) wrote within a recent statement to accompany his latest single and music video, "Put Down The Candy & Let The Little Boy Go!," which he was kind enough to let me premier right here at The Witzard ! "Not too sure what the verses are about, but the chorus describes envying a friend and being dissatisfied with yourself because you're not in a better position like they are, but at least you know them. I wrote the lyrics while taking out the trash, getting a shower, and doing the dishes. I get most of my writing done doing daily tasks," Souza continued. Darko The Super addition...

"I used to have tons of songs in my head, but since I couldn't play anything well and I didn't know how to use programs [so] I was never able to make them," Chicago emcee and former Cool Kids affiliate Hollywood Holt writes within his rather compelling Facebook Bio section. Now better known as simply HXLT (pronounced: "Holt" ), the former club-friendly rapper has returned with the lead-off single from his as-yet-untitled G.O.O.D. Music debut; " Holt 's manager told Billboard at the time of his singing that "it's like if Joy Division , The Strokes , and Dr. Dre made an album together."' Judging by "Live to Death," it would appear as though HXLT has somehow already managed to master the whole Psych/Punk Rock -leaning brand of Alt. Hip-Hop that Kanye 's former protégé Kid Cudi has spent the past five or so odd years aimlessly trying to hone and perfect. Although, prior to unleashing "Live to Death"...

"I'm the poster child for alleged drug dealers. These n***as mention my name with their little rumors and their little jewelers. That's no threat, that's no sweat," former Virginia Beach drug dealer and Clipse emcee Pusha T ferociously rhymes on his latest solo single; a Dr. Dre -sanctioned freestyle over Meek Mill 's "R.I.C.O," which notoriously kick-started Mill and Drake 's ghostwriter allegation-slinging beef. For the record, whether he in fact endorses and makes use of ghostwriters or not, Drake 's rapid-released double-header "Back to Back" and "Charged Up" absolutely slayed and effectively obliterated Meek Mill 's abysmal retaliation diss, "Wanna Know." "Real money ain't shy. No, lay it out... get a tan on it. They say numbers don't lie. Well, dope boy, put your bands on it," Kanye 's "Runaway" protégé poignantly rhymes elsewhere on "R.I.C.O," whic...

" ["Suede"] featured the LA -based vocalist's signature rasp and slick talk over a chopped up sample of Gil Scott-Heron 's "The Bottle" courtesy of buzzing beatmaker Knxwledge , his partner in the duo collectively known as Nxworries ," NPR diligently reported late Tuesday afternoon. Nxworries is Stones Throw 's latest Jaylib -style rapper-producer concoction, consisting of Dr. Dre 's R&B crooning Compton -assisant, Anderson.Paak and prolific New Jersey/Philly -bred LA beatsmith Knxwledge . Their lone February-released single, "Suede" is an undisputed Snoop & Dre -influenced creation that's almost reminiscent of George Clinton 's own unique G-Funk -inspiring Parliament-Funkadelic sound. Stones Throw founder and label-head, Peanut Butter Wolf actually briefly appears within Nxworries' newly-minted "Suede" video as his Alyssa Milano -obsessed, Prince -esque alter ego, Folerio . Like-minded ...

"Guess who's REALLY back? #VMAs ," Eminem Tweeted along with a KAWS -designed logo before the start of the 30th annual MTV VMA's ; while " Miley Cyrus was still TWERKIN,'" Justin Timberlake reunited with N'SYNC , Kanye performed under a lynching tree, Lady GaGa showed off her new-found fat ass, and Katy Perry closed out the show from a boxing ring/stage under the Brooklyn Bridge ... Eminem revealed news that he's prepping The Marshall Mathers LP 2 for a November 5th release (Shady Aftermath) . Eager and unknowing fans were treated to 2 Beats By Dre/Eminem commercials throughout the live broadcast, 15 and 30-second teasers between 9-11pm. Included within the #NewBeatsStudio commercials was a track preview presumably titled, "Berzerk," which is set for a wide release this upcoming Tuesday, August 27th. It seems as though Eminem has resurrected his angst-filled bleach blonde Slim Shady alter-ego, who's been largely in...

ANTWON 's beat-making buddies usually seem to conjure up some pretty emotionally-driven, hard-hitting borderline "Industrial-Rap" rhythms; But every once in a while, Nature Boy Gang 'll unleash a couple sun-soaked 90's New Jack Swing -reminiscent jams like "Darby Crash" (stacy Remix) , "LIVING EVERY DREAM," and now "3rd World Grrl." Since being re-released late Tuesday afternoon, the latter is currently serving as ANTWON 's second IN DARK DENIM (Greedhead) video-single... now has a hilarious [companion] puppet-assisted Live Circus & Alessio Avezzano -produced/directed clip to go along with it. Built around dimly-lit scenes of ANTWON rapping straight into Avezzano's camera, which are then juxtaposed against his puppet counterpart living his every sex, drugs & Rock "N" Roll -fueled fantasy surrounded by an entourage full of beautiful hunnies. ANTWON , channeling Rico Suave , smoothly raps during "3...

It took Kanye nearly 5 album's time to write something as densely-layered and reflective as Dark Twisted Fantasy . But Kendrick Lamar managed to achieve equally revealing results on his debut album good kid, m.A.A.d. city (if you don't count #Section.80 , Overly Dedicated, or Kendrick Lamar EP ) that quite honestly, rivals even Mr. West 's seasoned talents! What Lamar ended up penning is a semi-autobiographical tale based around his childhood, growing up on the "mean streets" of Compton . good kid, m.A.A.d. city's stone cold grizzly narrative briefly touches on slingin' dope, money, bitches, pizza, freestyling, bloodshed, etc. "Backseat Freestyle" is easily my favourite [non-]single pulled from the instantly CLASSIC album; Kendrick Lamar weaves a crazy/AWESOME tall-tale that's partially about a neighborhood chick with a fat ass, Sherane , and compares his manhood to the structural integrity of The Eiffel Tower . Lamar took the re...

"No matter what he does or with whom he does it, Kendrick Lamar always manages to put his stamp on a track. He is a force of personality who can influence even the static logoified personage of old Andre Young , whether through vibe or straight up writing his verses. The Rap Cognoscenti has a low opinion of ghostwriting. I don't have a problem with it, as writing like this is often a collaborative process and has been going on forever, like Tony Asher writing lyrics with Terry Sachen and Brian Wilson . I don't feel less emotionally invested in the line, "I can hear so much in your sigh" because Wilson didn't write it. Dr. Dre is known to work like Michelangelo , getting other dudes like Scoop DeVille to paint the ceiling for him when he is the one behind the blueprint. He sounds excited for the first time in years! Much has been written about the precedents for Kendrick Lamar 's style (with him, "style" must be italicized), writers combin...

Mysterious, Hip-Hop -loving Dream Pop duo, jj burst onto the Indie music scene sometime back in 2009. Elin & Joakim soon inked a deal with Sweden -based label, Sincerely Yours . In a similar vein to Nine Inch Nails' "Halo" system, each of jj 's major releases thusfar have been labeled, "jj n° 1-3." My personal favourite jj project, "kills" was quietly liberated over Christmas Break 2010-11; Elin & Joakim 's interpretation of "the mixtape" was pretty similar to the American ideal... and featured 10 well-done, lush flips of a handful of 2010's most Popular hits: Dr. Dre, Taio Cruz , M.I.A. Jay-Z , T-Pain, Diddy-Dirty Money , and Kanye. jj essentially released an album's-worth of complementary material online over the course of 2011, some of which may [or may not] eventually end up re-appearing on "jj n° 4" (IN ETERNITY) . A few weeks ago, I emailed a batch of 10 questions over to jj and just th...

VICE loves to party. And so does Snoop Dogg . For its newest video series, "PARTY LEGENDS," VICE teamed up with the upcoming feature film, Project X , and rounded up its favorite celebrities with legendary party pasts; Asking them to tell us their most ridiculous party stories... then we animated them. Boom! In the first [episode] of VICE 's "PARTY LEGENDS," Snoop Dogg goes to the Playboy Mansion , hangs with some Bunnies , drinks from his Pimp Cup , and then SHIT HITS THE FAN. - Meka @ 2dopeboyz

jj is an up-and-coming Hip-Hop tinged Swedish Pop group, consisting of Elin & Joakim . Already 2 full-length albums deep into their fledging career... It seems as though jj have started an annual tradition of releasing Grade A non-album content every Christmas . Last year, it was "kills" (mixtape) and this time, it's a double present: "eve of destruction-vi." Nearly a year later, "kills" is still available for download. The highly-recommended set includes dark Dream Pop re-interpretations of Dr. Dre, Taio Cruz, M.I.A. Jay-Z , Dirty Money , and Kanye -penned hits. Originally released around Dec. 15-20th, "eve of destruction" seems to be a quasi-protest song; Made famous by Barry McGuire and written by P.F. Sloan (1965), jj have re-purposed the track for reasons yet unknown. Even though parts of the lyrics are somewhat incomprehensible and the bulk of online content is written in Swedish ... You can sense the sheer passion an...

Not unlike it's infamous 1988 predecessor, "Film The Police" is an urgent call to arms... a call to the young people of the nation to right common injustices. Essentially, it's an anti-violent protest song against often overlooked senseless instances of police-citizen brutality. In recent years, police brutality has become a far-reaching worldwide problem; One which has remained null in the United States , until this recent ring of "Occupy [insert city]" protests. Since many Millennials (1980-2000) were far too young to recall the dramatic events surrounding the release of N.W.A. 's "Fuck The Police," they [we] have now developed an updated message to match the current state of the nation: "Film The Police." It's a quite simple concept... if you see police brutality taking place, keep your distance, whip out your cell phone, and document that shit! The time is now to take action and MAKE HISTORY, my friends! ["Film The P...

While stylistically, Indie Rock and Hip-Hop really don't have all that much in common, the 2 genres are actually fairly similar... aesthetically. Since their now "ancient" inceptions, Indie and Hip-Hop have always been marked by D.I.Y. roots and word-of-mouth promotion; It also seems as though the various musicians and fans of the respective genres maintain a mutual respect for each other's craft. All the while (since about 1980), they've somehow managed to co-exist and thrive as separate, yet similar entities. So, when Indie/Hip-Hop just so happen to intertwine, it usually isn't THAT much of a shocker. Speaking with NME back in August 2011, The Big Pink mentioned that Hip-Hop was shaping up to be a major influence on their upcoming sophomore album, Future This ... more specifically, Dr. Dre . A few months later, Cordell-Furze and 4AD then proceeded to recruit MPC Instrumentalist [beatsmith], AraabMUZIK to re-work lead single, "Stay Gold....