By Aaris A. Schroeder
Editor-In-Chief
August 22, 2007
Pulling into B.J.’s in Natomas, I noticed a guy shaking his head at his car which had a small dent in the back end. With my windows rolled down, bumping The Literates an underground Latin hip-hop duo from San Diego, CA, Smooth immediately knew who I was. I dialed his number and he let me know I was parked beside him.
First time meeting TakeOva Entertainment’s producer and long-time emcee Smooth, I must say I was impressed. He lifted his trunk for me to examine the damage to his car which was filled with an array of pink little girl luggage, toys and clothes; obviously his daughter’s. Currently, Smooth is working with J Gib to get his newest album out the door.
We walked inside the establishment to meet up with J Gib and Smooth’s daughter. We met to go over a story idea for UBO Magazine and I learned the local commercialized street hip-hop, which is what J Gib represents is disenfranchised in media just as the underground, indie hip-hop artists are that you see wearing backpacks filled with $5 mixtapes.
According to Smooth, DJs on the radio are not to blame; Program Directors and Music Directors, claiming to be the “home of hip-hop and R&B” [KBMB 103.5] are to blame. So we can throw out the whole idea that DJ Supe was fired from the station due to his play lists and more so put the blame on the Directors for whatever reason they chose to give up his position.
Yes, local artists do get play – for about two weeks and even then that is a good run. If you do get play better bet that you were closely related or somehow involved with one of the two Directors. Doey Rock, Jay R and Senie of D.D.A. all received air play for this small allotted time. Is this enough time to market our local artists through the radio waves? You can roll up to anyone’s house in Sacramento who digs local hip-hop and hear them bumping Doey Rock’s album but it will not be courtesy of the radio rather an album that was released by Doey Rock.
Yet artists like Senie of the D.D.A. have an inside hook-up or shall we call it bias? With such unfairness in broadcast and indefinite difficulty in bringing independent radio to the public on a regular transmission, it is no wonder that our government is dumbing down the public with lies and stereotypes.
“The Bay [Area artists] get ‘rep’ because the local radio stations DJs are from the bay,” according to J Gib.
KBMB has a majority of Bay Area cats running the stations, proving they know little of Sacramento’s thriving hip-hop community.
“If you don’t want hip-hop, don’t play it at all,” says Smooth’s, concerning the difference between hip-hop and rap on the radio and in the clubs.
Another huge problem is lack of Sacramento venues open to booking hip-hop acts and an overwhelming market for Top-40 hip-hop/rap acts receiving paid booking jobs at places like Zokkus where inexperienced people run the shows, according to Smooth and still treat the artists and attendees as if they are foreign and stereotype them. Seems like a quick way to make a buck without caring about the community. If you drive down J St. or I St. any Friday or Saturday night, you will see police lurking in the corners or right in front of the clubs.
According to Smooth, once an artist breaks that “glass ceiling A.R. and music directors [are] coming.” These people begin to take notice of who is professional and about their music and game plan. Then they book their artists all over the U.S., including Sacramento, proving that Sacramento is a hear-all propaganda city.
J Gib is featured in Stash Magazine, http://www.knowallaboutit.com, IB Royalty and Boss Status most recently, paying high-end dollars to get his name out into the public with no acceptance from the radio as of yet.
Our hip-hop community needs to support artists on a higher level by attending events where local talents are featured, read media material that offer insight on artists and sharing the stories with friends, requesting the songs of local musicians on the radio for airplay and offering marketing support by joining a local street team and networking within your community. Artists choose their career because of the love and dedication to the art, period. Their fans and associates are their number one asset. Who are you supporting tonight?
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