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whaddup my people,

my apologies on not being able to keep you better updated on the goings ons of all things me, but I’ve been a little under the weather recently.  anyways, i just wanted to take a quick minute and let you know that we at United States of Mind (the group I have the utmost pleasure of being a part of) have just launched our new website www.usmdetroit.comso I wanted you guys to be the first to know about it.

The site in its inception stands pretty simple as of now.  As we are actively trying to promote our new album “Kill The Bullshit” you can go to the site and listen to every track in its entirety.  If you like what you hear then you can purchase the album directly off the site.  As all those proceeds go to us we would prefer you dl the album there but it will be on itunes soon for those of you who like to digest your music that way.  In the future we will attach a blog and other cool ish to the site, but for now it is our hope you enjoy the music and tell your friends about it.

As an added bonus for visiting the site, you can download the first 3 volumes of our sampler series, “Transmissions from the Guerilla Base”.  These are short cd’s filled with exclusives and never heard befores so enjoy that.  It was us hand pressing and releasing these samplers that initially helped us get our name out there.  Anyways, take a listen, spread the word, and always and I mean always…KILL THE BULLSHIT.  (click the USM logo above to jump to the site)

Tags: Kill The Bullshit, United States of Mind

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"When you do something, you should burn yourself completely, like a good bonfire, leaving no trace of yourself." --- Suzuki Shunryu


What’s up my people,

I know I usually reserve this space for many things music.  Of course, I write about myself musically, and my friends musically, and just music in general.  This is because music is a huge part of my life, however, it is far from the only part of my life.  There are many things I see on a day to day basis that inspire me and the work of my man Wendell happens to do just that.  I don’t know what it is about that photo of his I posted above, but I really would like to write a whole album around the emotions I get when I look at that photo.

I’ve spent the day looking at the work on his website and flickr account, and was moved to shine some light on what he is doing. (http://wendellsummerville.com/splash.html and http://www.flickr.com/photos/wen-sum respectively so click on these links now or after you read this).

Now as with all things I write about on here I’d prefer for you to be the judge so I don’t like to cloud your observations with my opinions and critiques (if I am writing about it, that should already tell you i dig it) but I will say this.  What I am absolutely in love with about Wendell’s work is his shots of Detroit and the light he shoots the city in.  So often, people that photograph Detroit show the gritty, hard, and dark aspects of our city.  As that definitely has its place, Wendell opts to show a very beautiful side of Detroit which is not often seen through the medium of photography.  Here’s a couple examples.



If one were to ask Wendell where he took these photos, it is my belief that you would be quite surprised.  I have had the pleasure of asking him and getting a response.  As I could write that here what fun would that be.  The fun would be in contacting Wendell and finding out for yourself (The Internet is more and more interactive so meet a new person and let him know that you are looking).  These pictures are just a quick sample as he has a vast body of work, but I posted the above because this is the Detroit I often see, and I feel I am not alone when I look at these.  As a lot of my friends that have moved from Michigan ask me why I still stay here, I can now show them these photos.   As a picture says a thousand words, Wendell has definitely given me good reason to save my breath.

Tags: Detroit, Photography, Wendell Summerville

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let's go


whaddup all,
As you know it’s approaching that time of the month again so let’s go. April 25th is the date. 2125 Michigan Ave. is the address (across the street from Slow’s BBQ in corktown - it’s the street sign with grafitti - how hip hop is that). It’s Crate Digga. It’s Sleepy Biggs. It’s DJ Sicari, and most importantly it’s YOU. As a special guest this month Alf Won will be coming through to represent so that’s exactly what he will do. If you don’t know this man, he is one of the best I’ve seen on the turntables and he always spins a fun set.

Special shout out to all that have supported thus far, and shouts to those that will support in person, and shouts to those that support in spirit (i know we can’t make it out to everything even though we may want to). It’s been a beautiful thing to see this event grow since we’ve brought it back and I imagine it’s gonna be a great summer. And on a side note that’s less cooler but nonetheless true. I AM BACK IN TOWN SO I WILL BE AT THIS ONE WITH BELLS ON. I know I haven’t been able to see everyone since I’ve been back sans a few drunken nights at various spots so let’s all have a good time together. See ya there.

Tags: Alf Won, Crate Digga, DJ Sicari, Elements Gallery, Kill The Bullshit, Sleepy Biggs

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Whaddup All,

Got a bit of free time here so I thought I’d give you another recap of one of my tour experiences.  This one takes place in Austin @ SXSW.  It was during a show me, dante, and chief did at Shiner’s Saloon compliments of www.stayindie.com  Of course we all did our thing (or in my mind we did. lol.).  The phrase “Chance favors the prepared mind” comes to mind as well as the phrase “Always stay around to consume mass quantities of alcohol after you perform”.  So I get done with my set and the owner of the bar, (I was drunk so the name doesn’t come to mind now), seems to have really enjoyed my performance.  Therefore, he orders me a ton of shots and various beers so it would be remiss for me not to stick around so here’s where the chance comes in.  Another act couldn’t make the show so they needed someone to fill the slot so here I come, but let me back track for a minute…

It’s the afternoon of the show and as we are able to meet up with other DJ’s in every city I realize I don’t have a DJ for this particular set and it is SXSW so I can’t come half ass on my performance.  And although I can perform without a DJ, it is just very un hip hop to do so.  Therefore, I find myself calling around to my fellow peeps to see what DJ’s are in Austin.  After awhile, I discover Franki Banks is in town.  We’ve known each other loosely for quite sometime as we share many mutual friends (Dial 81, Mobil, 2040, and the list goes on) and he also spins on Fridays at The Bosco where I bartend back in Detroit (Shameless plug but grab a drink here and you’ll have a good time).  Thankfully I am able to get in touch with Franki and he was gracious enough to come out and hold me down on the 1’s and 2’s.  Thank you so much Franki and you killed your set.  Click on the photo of Franki to go to his myspace and see what he is doing because he is doing some amazing things.  Ladies and gentlemen, Franki Bank$ (that’s how you really spell it cause son is Money).


this is Franki stretching before the show


Alright so back to the second set I get at Shiner’s.  As I’m feelin’ real nice already I am already feeling the energy and since I’ve already had some practice in the venue it helps the performance.  At SXSW people come and go so I got to play for a whole new crowd as well.  And in the crowd I notice an Albino gentleman in a track jacket nodding his head so that could be none other than Brotha Ali.  It was real dope to be able to perform in front of a man that I am personally a fan of and the added bonus was that he enjoyed the set.  We got to chat for a bit after the show and that made my night.  Hopefully, our paths will cross sooner than later.  I would give you links to him but I’m sure you already know who this man is.  Comment if you don’t and I’ll shoot you more than enough links to satisfy you.  Moving along.

Later, I was doing my hustle game and ran across this gentleman here…


we share a similar addiction beyond the music.


He bought the cd and showed mad love, and then he gave me a flier with a free project download on it.   It was an album by this artist named Dumhi called “Flowers”. As I already had this project because I frequent a site called www.potholesinmyblog.com (amazing Hip Hop site name) I was like “what you know about this?” (many street teams in Austin for SXSW) , and he’s like “That’s me”. He couldn’t believe I was quoting the joints on the LP and when all is said and done chances are we’ll keep in touch. Beyond that being a cool little anecdote depending on your cool compass, it taught me some things. I think he was surprised I knew the project for the same reason I’m surprised with the Internet. You put things out there on the net, but you’re not really sure if people are picking up on it. Sure, I get the occasional email and that (know that makes my day every time I get one), but for the most part I’m just putting stuff into this limitless world and hoping somebody hears my story. This is an example of when I heard somebody else’s so in turn it gave me hope that somebody is hearing mine.  But back to the story at hand, like Franki and Brotha Ali, Dumhi is a cool as dude and I actually have done a blog on this project in the past.  But for those of you just checking in download his project “Flowers” and find out more about him as WWW.DUMHI.COM.  That’s all for now folks but I’ll keep you posted.  There are also some more dope things going on in the present so there’s more to come.  Until then…

Tags: Brotha Ali, D. Allie, Dumhi, Franki Bank$, Potholes In My Blog, Sweat Equity Tour

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whaddup folks,

Since I wasn’t able to update you regularly from the road I decided I will give you some recaps on the tour.  They will be out of order and probably a bit jumbled, but whatever…just meet Rob already.


haven't we taken this back pack thing a little too far already. lol.


I had the pleasure of meeting Rob Viktum down in Austin at SXSW through my man Chief who I will have to do a whole other blog on later (google the name for now and get familiar or follow him at www.twitter.com/mr_chief.  As you meet about 5 million people at SXSW it is admittedly not the best situation to really build with someone.  Fortunately, the monday after SXSW was a day off on the tour and we told ourselves we would maximize everyday and Rob resides in Dallas so as we had gas to burn…

When we got to his spot we (me, Dante LaSalle, Chief, and Rob) just shot the shit for a little and then we went up to the lab to see what he was cooking up in the studio.  He played the first beat and I was like DOPE.  He played another and I was like DOPE.  This continued more times than I feel like typing.  At some point I ran downstairs for the weaponry of a pad and pen and to get some beer from the corner store (it’s not a problem I swear. lol).  When I got back a beat was going so I cracked a tall boy High Life and wrote out a verse.  As we were writing he asks us if he can work on another beat as he likes to stay busy.  We all had the tempo down so this was more than fine.  So he pulls out a record and starts finding another sample.  I finish my verse (I’ve been becoming a quicker writer these days) so me and Chief go down for a cigarette and chill out for a minute.  He finishes his verse outside and then we head back up and…..

HE’S ALREADY DONE WITH THE OTHER BEAT AND IT’S BANGERIFFIC (yeah I said that).  From the original record I couldn’t believe that beat came from that, and then I think he starts working on a new beat cause it was sounding completely different, but he’s like “I just think the beat needs a break”.  I’m just thinking I need to pick the pad up and get to another verse.  10-15 minutes to write and it had nothing to do with me.  I was inspired by the work ethic and had to show and prove.  Sometimes others can just push you to work harder without saying a word and Rob’s beats did that for me.

Outside of the beats, we had a great time in Dallas.  We went to a bar after the vibe session and just hung out.  The bar had a kick ass juke box (but I had to wait until bar close to hear my killer selections…don’t you just hate that. lol.) and dope pizza.  We also got to meet his beautiful wife who is a B-Girl (that’s right folks…girls do listen to hip hop even if the ratio at shows is a little sausage centric).  Hilarity did ensue at the bar and after the bar but some things are just gonna have to stay secret’s of the bRoad.

Now the reason that I’m writing this blog at this time is that I was on my favorite site outside of mine (www.potholesinmyblog.com and saw that they just put up a project of his for free download entitled, “Rob Viktum Presents: Snack Pack Vol 1″ so I had to go download it and it was just as I suspected.  He still hasn’t made a beat that I wasn’t feeling.  All you gotta do is click the album cover at the end of this blog and it will take you away to the potholesinmyblog article with info on how to download. They will also give you all the fancy writer stuff on him like what he sounds like and all that ish. In my opinion, if you like what I’m doing, this will definitely not disappoint.  And as your listening check for track 5 and track 14.  5 was the first beat I started writing to and 14 was the one he made while I was having a cigarette.  A fucking cigarette folks.  Thanks for the inspiration brotha.


CLICK HERE TO GO TO POTHOLE IN MY BLOG AND DL THE PROJECT FOR FREE


Tags: Free Download, Rob Viktum, Sweat Equity Tour

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whaddup my people,

just getting back to Detroit after some time on the road sharing my music with some beautiful people.  i know i haven’t been so quick on these updates as i have not had internet access everywhere.  just know i had an amazing time.  Dante Lasalle is my brotha for life and me and Chief were able to build as well (he joined the second leg of the tour after SXSW).  I will try to recount my road memories in the coming weeks (the alcohol was flowing so this might take a minute. lol).

Anyways, it is good to be home and on top of that I came home to some amazing news.  I have been nominated for 2 detroit music awards and United States of Mind is up for 1 as well.  I have copied the instructions for how you can help me out below.

go to www.detroitmusicawards.net


Final Voting today through April 10th!

You must be registered to vote on the final ballot! If you’re not already registered to vote you can still do so - just go to the website and click “Register”. Happy Voting… Good luck to all of the nominees… See you on Friday April 17th at The Fillmore!


Now most people would give you the spiel about how it’s just nice to be nominated and all that, but i feel me and you have a deeper bond and you would see through that bullshit anyways.  I want United States of Mind to win Outstanding Hip Hop Artist / Group and I want to personally win Outstanding Hip Hop MC.

I must admit I kind of like award formats like this because I don’t have to be in the “in crowd” or any of those other groups to win this.  The way i always wanted to make music was to give it to the people unfiltered so i have done my best to avoid the middle men and naysayers and communicated directly with you.  In return you have gotten me this far and I already know you will take me further.  2009 has been a good year so far and i have a feeling it will get a bit better before the inevitable crash and burn. lol.  if you’ve read this far i know you’re already on my team and i’ve been on your so let’s go.   Let me know you voted for me on the gmail and i’ll do something special for you.  Rumor has it i have a few projects that i’d like to give some sneak listens on.

Tags: D. Allie, Detroit Music Awards, United States of Mind

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Hey all,

only at the computer for a sec so i can’t really give you the full update like I want to but I wanted to give a shout out to the Backbeat Online and a writer I had the pleasure of meeting named Eryc Eyl.  He reviewed the show we played on Friday in Denver with Pirate Signal.  You can hit the link here to read more of his work and see what’s going on in Denver and you can read the concert review here.  You should already know we put it down.  And it goes a little something like this…hit it.

Over the Weekend: The Pirate Signal at the Marquis Theater

By Eryc Eyl in Last Night’s Show

Monday, Mar. 16 2009 @ 8:03AM



Photo by Chad Fahnestock
DJ Beretta, D. Allie, Dante, Air Dubai, Mane Rok and the Pirate Signal

March 13, 2009

Marquis Theater

Better Than: Puking up green beer outside Scruffy Murphy’s

Entering the Marquis Theater on Larimer Street on Saturday night was like stepping into a warm, dry bungalow after being drenched by freezing rain. In this case, however, the warm, dry bungalow was the eclectic, soulful mixing of DJ Beretta — which provided the ideal ramp-up into a night of exceptional live hip-hop — and the freezing rain was the melee of stumbling, staggering St. Patrick’s Day revelers who transformed Larimer into a cacophonous, turbulent sea of green.






Photo by Chad Fahnestock

D. Allie and Dante

Beretta’s unobtrusive yet creative set warmed the stage for the appearance of Detroit rappers D. Allie and Dante, two exceptionally hardworking MCs who deftly balance between good-time party music and conscious rap. As the only out-of-towners on the bill, the Michiganders were at a distinct disadvantage, but they overcame it with easy stage charisma, impassioned delivery, forceful flow and an irrepressible sense of fun. Most important, the visitors made sincere efforts to connect with the people of Denver. Dante wrote names on the back of his hand so that he could shout them out from the stage. He also led the crowd in a little Stroll-like slide step, choreographed to James Brown’s “Please Please Please,” for no reason other than crowd engagement. Both rappers ended up in the crowd at various points during their sets, and could be seen before and after the show, talking to random passersby on the street, handing out postcards, stickers, T-shirts and even CDs while getting to know folks and being good-natured hustlers. These talented, talkative wordsmiths definitely made their mark on Denver.



Photo by Chad Fahnestock

Air Dubai

Next up was the blazing Denver duo of Air Dubai, who caught me completely by surprise. While the vibe of the pair’s stunning 2008 debut, The Early October, is largely jazzy, R&B-inflected and laid-back, Air Dubai’s live energy was invigoratingly different. Looking more like a strung-out hipster than a thugged out hip-hopper, Oslo (Julian Thomas) kicked a number of his rhymes in a caffeine-fueled, awe-inspiring double time, capturing the crowd’s attention with his unique style and incisive rhymes. Meanwhile, like a throwback to the G-funk era, Rhias (Jon Shockness) bounced back and forth between rapping and soulster crooning with dizzying skill. Combined with vaguely electro backing tracks, the overall impact was reminiscent of the Spank Rock/Benny Blanco collaboration, Bangers & Cash. While there were a couple of rough patches that revealed Air Dubai’s relative inexperience, the set was still a knockout, and proved that this young duo is bound to leave Denver with deliciously deep scars. It’s going to be a treat to watch this act develop.



Photo by Chad Fahnestock

Mane Rok

ManeLine frontman Mane Rok rarely performs solo, so Saturday night was a special treat for fans of his potent and pumped-up style, and he did not disappoint. The introspective yet expressive MC hit the boards forcefully over a heavy rock beat from DJ A-What!, gruffly delivering his vitriolic and insightful rhymes. Performing a few favorite ManeLine tracks as well as some fiery new songs, Mane Rok acted as the ideal energetic bridge from the opening acts to the headliner, further heating up the crowd without peaking too soon. Though his own energy flagged a bit as the evening wore on, special guests like 3 the Hardway’s A.V.I.U.S. boosted the MC up and gave his set the powerful thrust it needed. Occasional technical difficulties made the vocals difficult to discern at times, but thanks to Mane Rok’s confident, intense stage presence, the meaning remained largely intact.



Photo by Chad Fahnestock

Yonnas Abraham of the Pirate Signal

Speaking of confident, intense stage presence, there are few Denver performers in any genre who can touch the Pirate Signal’s Yonnas Abraham. Like a man possessed, Yonnas simultaneously menaced the crowd and beckoned them to come closer with his infectious energy. Watching him perform, it’s not to hard to imagine Yonnas as an award-winning actor or the leader of a sketchy religious cult. Given his talent for wordplay, the latter seems more likely. His eyes blazed, veins bulged and syllables flew, while A-What! adroitly pumped up his tracks and scratching to keep pace with the incendiary MC. Though Yonnas apologized to the crowd for being “more passionate than precise,” nothing about the Pirate Signal’s set seemed haphazard. Yonnas bobbed and weaved between the profound and the playful — quoting Tribe Called Quest one moment and Rob Base the next — while A-What! athletically scratched up thunderous beats, almost effortlessly accomplishing what many conscious hip-hop acts strive for: engaging both the body and the mind.

Personal Bias: While I’ve found the sound at the Marquis to be hit and miss, I really appreciate the venue’s commitment to hosting all-ages events. The energy can’t be beat.

Random Detail: When the Pirate Signal was booked to play the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, A-what!’s schedule didn’t allow him to go along, so DJ Beretta filled in.

By the Way: The Pirate Signal — as well as Yonnas’s new project with DJ Hot to Death — are opening for a diverse bunch of touring acts in the weeks to come: Zion I, the Presets, Crookers and Too Short! Visit the group’s MySpace page for more info.


Tags: Air Dubai, D. Allie, Dante Lasalle, DJ Awhat, DJ Beretta, Mane Rok, ManeLine, Pirate Signal, Yonnas Abraham


Tags: D. Allie, Dante Lasalle, Denver, Eryc Eyl, Pirate Signal, Sweat Equity Tour

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whaddup all,

where we last left off I have decided to complete this 10 hour drive to Boulder, Colorado.  Dante was a little tired since he had been up since 9am and since I am a night owl to begin with the drive has fallen on my shoulders which was more than fine.  If there’s one thing I know its that you gotta pull your weight in this world.  Anyways, you know how when you make long trips you start thinking to yourself if I just increase my speed by 5mph then I am cutting time off the total trip.  Then you start thinking 10 mph.  Then 20 mph.  Then you see police lights flashing in the back ground and you’re parked in the median with your hands on the steering wheel.

At first the cop was very cool.  I knew I was in the wrong so I was just down to get the ticket and get back on the open road.  I was thanking him as I got my ticket for being such a cool guy and I asked him if he liked hip hop because i wanted to give him a cd.  Mental note.  Don’t ever ask a police officer in South Dakota if he likes hip hop.  Next thing I know I’m in the police cruiser and I’m getting a breathalyzer.  Since I knew that I might be driving after the set at Nutty’s I didn’t have anything to drink.  However, as I was getting sobriety tests I started wondering if I did have a drink and that right there is what I can’t stand about police officers.  They make you feel guilty instead of protecting and serving.  Protecting and serving who is what I ask.  I can’t think in my head the last time I’ve ever felt safe around a police officer, and if troubles around the last thing I’m thinking of is calling a cop.  It’s mind boggling how quick one can go from being a victim to being a suspect.  Anyways, as I told the officer it would the breathalyzer came back 0.00 and I was on my way.

At first Dante was staying awake to keep me company, but after a bit he passed out and I was on the road alone.  I was a little sleepy so I grabbed a redbull as I stopped for gas and kept it moving.  On a side note it is amazing how much the gas light has gone on in my car.  We really push it from full to empty on the Sweat Equity Tour.  Besides the Red Bull another thing I had going for me was company from a dear friend in the form of a cd.

Although I love sharing my thoughts and experiences with you guys I like to respect the privacy of others so I can’t delve too far into what this cd meant to me.  All I can really say is its good to have friends and love is real.  The love from the cd definitely hit me and I found myself waiting for the next track to see what each one would tell me about myself, about her, and about the relationship we shared and the relationship we share now.  Music speaks volumes more to me than just the words and melody and I hope it does for others as well.

I also kept the flip camera going to keep me awake and here’s a little late night footage of it here.  Driving Through Nebraska trying to Stay Awake.  Thankfully, Dante eventually woke up and was able to keep me company and what better way to stay awake then through going off the top of the dome (that’s freestyling if i wasn’t clear enough). Well I don’t even have to explain because i have video footage of that too.  Props to DJ Grafitti for providing the instrumental cd.  Me and Dante going off the Top of the Dome in Colorado.

Just when I was feeling good again you know what I see…fuckin’ police lights in the rear view mirror again.  This cop gave me the pleasure of being a complete dick from the jump.  I was also in a construction zone so you know that fine wasn’t nice.  What would be nice if you police officers could be a little more human.  I’m not talking to all police officers but you know who you are at the end of the day.  I’m sorry your high school football career didn’t pan out, and Cindy the varsity cheerleader ended up marrying the nerd you used to bully around, but I got nothing to do with that.  Needless to say I relinquished the wheel to Dante and don’t believe I will be driving for the next week or so.  On the count of 3 my hip hop heads know what to say so…1,2,3 (I’m screaming it at the top of my lungs as I write this).  However, what I won’t do is let these people get me down because I have the ability to decide my happiness and a cop will have nothing to do with that.  At the end of the day we got to Boulder, Colorado crossing South Dakota, Iowa, and Nebraska, and there is more fun to be had.  Nice try guys.  Until Next time.

Tags: D. Allie, Dante Lasalle, Police, Sweat Equity Tour

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So I believe we last left off with my man Tack Fu.  We were supposed to go strait to Colorado after leaving Iowa City, but on the Sweat Equity Tour we don’t care where we travel as long as there is some good music to be heard and an opportunity to share our music.  Fortunately, another opportunity was found in Sioux Falls, South Dakota by the help of my man One Be Lo.  He was playing a show out at a venue called “Nutty’s” there and was down with having us come down and perform.   This action truly meant a lot to me.  Allow me to birdwalk for a quick second.

Besides being a huge fan of One Be Lo, he has greatly assisted in guiding me along to where I am now as an artist whether he knows it or not.  Some of these mentor sessions as I call them were taken from personal conversations we have had, but many more were just taken from watching and observing what it is this man does.  I do this with a lot of my peers on the scene as well because the minute you stop learning…(go ahead and fill in the blank for yourself)

Anyways, it took us about 6 hours to get there which landed us there around 10:30 and that also meant we missed our scheduled set time.  However, if we were there we were gonna make the most of it, so I went around, passed out flyers, gave out and sold cd’s (word to Hakeem Olijuwan it doesn’t cost a fortune to chase a dream), and just built with cats in general.  There was one cat there I had the pleasure of meeting named Otec and I have a little video of him doing what he does here.  He kinds of reminds me of my brotha 5 ill but you be the judge.

Otec doing his thing (he..’s also a pretty dope dj

There was also a cat out there that saw the USM logo on my flier and was asking how I knew those guys.  I was like I am one of those guys.  That made me feel good because that means the message is spreading whether I’m out on the road or not.  Often as I am making music, I feel that no one is listening (it might be my self depricating personality).  Therefore, it is nice when someone I have never even met shows love, and even more of a bonus when this cat is in another state.  I don’t consider myself one who has fans, but I do have a lot of friends, acquaintences, and just supporters in general.  moving along…

The openers were pretty dope, and it was time for Lo to hit the stage.  At first glance it almost seemed to me like he was tired (think he just stepped off the plane a couple hours earlier).  However, when the beat hit his whole personality changed and he was immediately in rare form.  Now that Lo lives all across the globe I don’t get a chance to see his performances as much (back in the day it felt like Sub had something poppin’ every other week) so I forgot how much I enjoy his sets.  He played a lot of new songs which I was able to take footage of but I might keep most of those for the personal collection (I’m a greedy sonovabitch I know).  However, here is Lo performing Grey.  For one, I love this song.  Secondly, my other mentor DL Jones who produced the bulk of “The Cooperative” produced this so I want you guys to hear how my fam gets down on the production.

One Be Lo performing Grey in South Dakota (produced by DL Jones)

Really and truly it was enough just seeing Lo and I believe this was the first time I had seen him out of the mitten.  However, going above and beyond the call of duty One Be Lo introduced me and Dante and allowed us to perform at the end of his set.  It was nice being able to get on stage and add something to the occasion, and you know I’m always trying to make the most of every opportunity.  I remember when I was just watching Lo wanting to do what he did, and now when the moons align and some other hippie shit happens he calls me on stage to share my music.  I say it often but believe me when I say  ”THAT’S WHAT’S UP”.  To top things off he also gave a shout out to the Sweat Equity Tour which you can check out here.

One Be Lo showin..’ love to the Sweat Equity Tour (or the Sweet Equality Tour lol)

After the high from the show came down and we were all done building me and Dante had to figure out what to do.  As this was not an official stop on the tour we had no accomodations.  There was a lovely lady that seemed like a possibility but I lost her somewhere in the midst of the evening.  Therefore, we had two options.   Either get a hotel, or make the 10 hour drive to Boulder, Colorado.  Well getting a hotel is no Sweat and it definitely ain’t on Equity.  Although I had just drove 6 hours to get to Sioux Falls it was time to balls up and put the keys in the ignition.  I am writing this safely from Colorado, but that’s not to say that the drive was a cake walk.  It has many ups and downs for a span of 10 hours but we’ll talk about all that in the next update.  Until then…..

Tags: D. Allie, Dante Lasalle, One Be Lo, Sweat Equity Tour

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