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By Cly! Host of "The 4/20 Lounge"!

5

Performers! All-Star or Benchwarmer?

I don’t even know what this shit is called…but me n PM in a good zone,

Fresh off a nice example of “Upper Cloud” life (see previous blog), hyped off of a couple successful meetings, we get to talking about what it’d be like when the label kicks off.

We hit the “Chance to Shine” showcase at the All Star Nightclub in Elizabeth, NJ, hosted by Rix Magazine’s D. Prados. PM and I have a rundown coming, judging the performers in detail, along with VIDEO within the next few days!

The grand finale of the night was a performance by Brooklyn’s own Joell Ortiz. I’m going to keep this to the point and say he might as well have got on stage with a briefcase and syllabus, as his intention was clearly to teach how to put on a show, for those who don’t know better.

From the entrance, to the interaction with the crowd that made this a cohesive show, rather than an artist performing song after song, the 10-15 minute set didn’t leave much to be desired, other than to hear more of Joell’s music, which I’m sure is the desired outcome, at this stage in his career. Performers lately have an urgency to get that “special record” that’s gonna knock in the clubs and get them the praise and admiration that they really are seeking, rather than trying to be great, and perfect a skill.

To each his own, but know that it shows when somebody sees you on a stage. Joell Ortiz gets a B, he’s dope, but there’s always room to improve. I’d like to see him use the stage more, and something more to separate him from the rest on the come up. Artists like Busta Rhymes and Ludacris are experts at using the stage til there’s nothing left untouched. P doesn’t think Joell is gonna be able to adapt to every crowd, versatility question. I'm sure Ortiz uses these ideas to become better every day.

When one claims to live this life, leaving it all on the floor has to be the only intention. Check out the Joell Ortiz Performance for yourself. It was poppin, shouts to Jersey!


5 comments:

DJ PM! Host/DJ of "The 4/20 Lounge" said...

WAHHHHHHH!!!! Yea Yea you know what it is your boy PM here, coming at you from Nine Lounge in Hoboken, NJ right now. Let's touch on this versatility issue real quick. Joell Ortiz tore the doors down when he performed at All Star Nightclub, but, he came in a little rough. Personally, in my opinion if you aren't VERY into hip hop his approach might come off a little strong. Performance and song wise Joell is dope, and as far as I am concerned his performance was everything that was desired, but if he isn't careful he could fall into a very small niche; urban nightlife. You need to appeal to all crowds as a performer and at this point all I can say is, I JUST DON'T KNOW IF HE CAN......WHY?! Well....simple as this...that's the only crowd I have seen him perform for. All I know is that it really screws with your income if you aren't versatile. The main objective shouldn't be Urban Nightlife, instead, well if it was me performing this is, I would shoot for New Years in Vegas. That's the money game, the money bookings, Vegas packing 6,000 strong on any given night, 10,000 on new years. That's a 20-40 thousand dollar booking. That's where he needs to be....just sayin ;0).

Magma Records Guys.....I own it....We are coming....It's going to be a problem.... remember I said it ;0)

June 6, 2010 at 11:49 PM
Katie said...

let me begin with both JERSEYYYY and SLAUGHTERHOUSSSEEE. okay.. i only got into joell because of slaughterhouse.. joe budden to be more exact. there isnt anything i dont like about him or those four men individually and collectively. but a big part of that is that i love hip hop. real hip hop. what doesnt get radio play. and with that being said, aiming for the fame will change his style, flow, topic.. so on. weve seen it happen time and time again, most recently with drake. the aim for entertainers should be yes, to make this a lifelong career and become well known but more importantly it should be to put out real music that the true fans get in to. im nowhere near the music industry personally, besides being a fan of versatile music across the board, but its plain to see that once you get signed record labels will put you into a mold that is only good for "popular" radio play.. which is too generic for me to support. right now hes doing what he does because he loves it. he flows the way he does because theres no one to tell him to change his style, hes doing what he knows how to do best in the best way he can. and for that, true fans will always be there feigning for new music. when it comes down to it, artists need to decide between being famous in order to make the money and be in the spotlight and being an entertainer to the crowd they attract. these days i dont see many artists able to have both.

June 7, 2010 at 1:32 AM
- said...

I NEED to see Mr. Ortiz! I am very fond of his work to date. He reminds me of Pun for some reason. Maybe because he just comes in storytelling about NY with such ease. Just gives me that back-in-the-day feeling. Next time you go to a show, let me know homie!!

June 7, 2010 at 9:42 AM
Cly! Host of "The 4/20 Lounge"! said...

I'm with Katie. I'm sure Ortiz doesn't give a shit about Vegas. According to him, and what he portrays, he's probably happy doing what he's doing. We need more of that in hip hop.

Everybody that gets on doesn't need to have Vegas aspirations. That's the reason the pop-culture that's become synonymous with hip hop is a double edged sword. The same growth that comes from the diverse audience is also killing hip hop because of the way artists are influenced by higher powers.

We don't hear rock bands making songs about blowing all of their $$ all the time, falsely selling drugs, or having a shitload of things they most likely don't have. When was the last time a new hip-hop artist came out that was talking about something relevant or positively influential? On their way to being established as superstars, artists in Hip-Hop are limited to creating that which EVERYBODY is going to like. Aiming to please everybody but the hip-hop connoisseurs that desperately hold on to the foundation of this Billion $ industry, as the money will soon be all that's left.

My point being, when hip hop wasn't about 'making everybody rich, a lot less people gave a fuck about it. Maybe it was better off that way.

June 7, 2010 at 11:27 PM
Cly! Host of "The 4/20 Lounge"! said...

But you're definitely invited to come out with us whenever! We MOVE!

June 8, 2010 at 12:15 AM

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