[Giveaway] Adam Vida, Mikos Da Gawd & More @ The Independent, SF 5/13

’Adam Vida – Tomorrow Land (Prod. Mikos Da Gawd)’
’Adam Vida – Sifu (Prod. Mikos Da Gawd, Mr. Carmack and Woostaar)’

Combining agile flows, refreshing lyricism and Bay Area flavor, emcee A-1 has built a career out of ingenuity. Recently, the San Francisco native announced that he’d be leaving the A-1 project behind in favor of Adam Vida, representing a new, “more worldly” chapter in his artistic journey. Based on the releases thus far, which you can peep above, Vida certainly takes a step forward but one that fans of his early work will most certainly appreciate. Building off Thurlian, his final project as A-1, Vida’s style finds a balance between clever, comedic bars and laser-focused commentary. With producers like Mikos da Gawd, WooStar and Mr. Carmack laying down the backdrop for his message of positivity, the sky is the limit for Vida.

With that in mind, we couldn’t be more excited to be giving away 2 tickets to his first ever headlining show under the new moniker. Enter below to win a pair of tickets to catch Vida along with Mikos Da Gawd, Richie Cunning and Dregs One at The Independent this Friday, May 13th. Tickets for the show are also still available here.

ENTER GIVEAWAY FOR A CHANCE TO WIN 2 TIX TO ADAM VIDA AT THE INDEPENDENT

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A-1 – Doing The Most (prod. Mikos Da Gawd & Left Lane) [TMN Premiere]

A-1
Doing The Most (Produced by Mikos Da Gawd & Left Lane)

Bay Area hip-hop, with its unique style, slang and sound, has long been a pioneering force within the genre. Casual fans may be most familiar with the explosion of the hyphy movement in the 2000s, but the scope of the Bay’s influence goes back much further than that and continues to expand on the foundations laid by the scene’s legends including Hieroglyphics, Souls of Mischief, Mac Dre, Andre Nickatina, E-40, Too $hort, The Jacka (RIP) and many more. San Francisco native, A-1has been carrying on that legacy for quite some time pushing the music of his predecessors forward all the while fusing elements of electronic music into his sound. As he prepares for his upcoming album, A-1 has been putting out new content every Thursday and we’re excited to be premiering the latest in that series.

“Doing the Most,” titled after a common Bay Area term for letting your guard down and being yourself to the fullest, features a minimal instrumental driven by steel drums, rolling percussion and rumbling 808s crafted by fellow San Francisco natives Left Lane and Soulection‘s Mikos Da GawdThe backdrop fits A-1’s style to a key and, unsurprisingly, everything about the track is delightfully Bay, from the lyrics and production to A-1’s vocal inflections and delivery. Although “Doing the Most” definitely fits the party vibe, there are more serious undertones about being proud of who you are in the song, further enforced by an airy, thought-provoking monologue about the human experience during the outro. It comes as little surprise that Mac Dre served as an inspiration for this track, and more broadly for A-1’s music–read what he has to say about the late legend below:

Mac Dre was sort of like a teacher to my generation on how to be yourself and do whatever the hell you want to do in the name of fun. As youngsters he showed us that we could wear whatever we want, dance however we want, and speak however we please as long as it makes us feel good, and as long as people in the Bay live their lives that way his legacy will always live on. Whenever you hear me in a rap song at my silliest, goofiest moments, that’s something I got from the Mac.

Slap this one above and look out for more tracks from A-1 in the coming weeks leading up to the release of his album, Thurlian, on March 5th. Head to A-1’s website for some more content and info.

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The Hip-Hop Dojo [Vol. 8]

While last week’s playlist managed to keep things on the lighter side in preparation for the summer, this week’s load is a bit heavier. Featuring a wide array of crafty wordsmiths and lyrical masterminds, the eight edition of the Hip-Hop Dojo is bound to get your head nodding and your mind racing. While I won’t be elaborating on every track this week, please note that we do have quite a bit of diversity in this group. Most of the names on this list should be familiar to you already, but there are a few newcomers this time around too.

First off, we’d like to welcome you to “Get Inspired” by 16 year-old rap phenom, AkonoMiles. Over a soulful sample of James Brown‘s “Sunny“, the eager young emcee shows us he knows just how to have fun, while also displaying skills far beyond his years. Another new name to the mix is Nike Nando, who lets us know exactly why he’s not one to be messed with. The SAVEMONEY crew makes a return this week as well, providing a brand new song “For The People.” This was definitely a stellar week for Chitown’s Thelonious Martin, who put his production skills to the test on a multitude of different tracks, including Naledge‘s “Arthur Agee Freestyle” and Alex Wiley‘s “Icky Woods.”  

The title of this week’s most unique sound might go to Weekend Money, as Ne$$ tries to exorcise his inner “Demons” over some creepy, lurching production courtesy of BaghdaddyA-1 might have the strongest track in this week’s lineup though, with “Summertime Sadness.” Spitting over the Ryan Hemsworth remix to the Lana Del Rey single of the same name, A-1 takes the song’s title to heart, highlighting the spike in violence that occurs in Oakland as a result of the scorching heat of the summer. On “Ol’ Skool Pontiac,” Jeremih tries his hand at the rap game, opting for a more chopped and screwed, Houston sound alongside Big Sean and Paul Wall. We’ve got a few more bangers right beside that one as well with A.J. Crew‘s “Don’t Ask Me (Crafty)” and “Hate Me On The Low” from Tory Lanez2 Chainz and Wiz Khalifa bring us the theme song for Fast & Furious 6,  with “We Own It,” a song that seems more appropriate for Eminem and 50 Cent circa 2005. Finally, we end things off with Yonas, who invites us to “Feel The Love” over a sample of Rudimental‘s single of the same name.

We hope you guys enjoyed our eight edition of The Hip-Hop Dojo as much as we did. As always, send all submissions/suggestions to baseer@themusicninja.com.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD ALL THE FREE TRACKS

’Dessy Hinds – P.E.nlightenment (Prod. Backpack)’
’Akono Miles – Get Inspired’
’Willie The Kid – Mainstream Freestyle’
’Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire – Noble Drew Ali’
’Nike Nando – Wrath Of A God’
’Kami de Chukwu & Tokyo Shawn – For the People (Prod. Thelonious Martin)’
’Naledge – Arthur Agee Freestyle (Prod. Thelonious Martin)’
’Alex Wiley – Icky Woods featuring Action Bronson (Prod. Thelonious Martin)’
’Tito Lopez – Diamonds & Whips (Feat. Trae Tha Truth & Jameel)’
’Jon Connor – Michigan $h*t Feat. Royce Da 5’9″‘
’Slaughterhouse – House Gang’
’Havoc – Favorite Rap Stars (ft. Styles P & Raekwon)’
’SIN – Eye For An Eye’
’Weekend Money – Demons’
’A1 – Summertime Sadness (Prod. Ryan Hemsworth)’
’Andrew Milicia x F. Virtue x Juan Deuce x Falside x DJ Emoh – Stickers’
’Jeremih
Ol’ Skool Pontiac Feat. Big Sean, Paul Wall’
’A.J. Crew – Don’t Ask Me (Crafty)’
’Tory Lanez – Hate Me On The Low’
’2 Chainz & Wiz Khalifa – We Own It (Fast & Furious)’
’Emilio Rojas – Make A Move Ft. Emanny’
’Yonas – Feel The Love’
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