The Cipher

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122: Thembisa Mshaka Sep 28, 2015

Show notes

This week, we talk to Thembisa Mshaka. Thembisa is an author, journalist, copywriter, filmmaker, and pretty much anything else you can imagine. In her career, she’s given the likes of Common and D’Angelo their first magazine covers as the rap editor of The Gavin Report; helped people like Nas, Lauryn Hill, and Beyonce sell over 150 million records during her time writing ad copy at Sony; and wrote and directed multiple film projects, from shorts to documentaries to features.

As if that wasn’t enough, she also found time to write the definitive how-to book for women in the entertainment business, Put Your Dreams First: Handle Your [entertainment] Business. Her latest film, Biscuit, has its New York City premiere this Saturday, October 3rd, at NYC’s Ocktober Film Festival.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/122/ for full show notes and comments.

121: Baje One/NIKO IS Sep 21, 2015

Show notes

This week, we have a two guests for you. In the first half of the show, we talk to Baje One, the rapping half of the long-running underground duo Junk Science. And in part two, we sit down with NIKO IS, a Florida-by-way-of-Brazil rapper whose world-class freestyling skills put him on the radar of none other than Talib Kweli, who signed Niko to his Javotti Media label.

Baje One and his group’s producer, DJ Snafu, first met in in their native NYC in the mid-1990s and have been making smart, funny, and ambitious music together since 2003. The success of their 2005 debut album Feeding Einstein led to a deal with El-P’s seminal Def Jux label, which put out their 2007 follow-up, Gran’dad’s Nerve Tonic. The album, in the first of a long run of packaging innovations from the group, came with its own beer, brewed by Sixpoint Craft Ales. Since then, Baje has released three more albums with the group, and several solo and collaborative projects.

NIKO IS was born in Rio De Janeiro, but has spent his rapping life in sunny Orlando, Florida. He made a name for himself in his adopted city as a teenager with his almost supernatural freestyling skills, and started releasing mixtapes in 2012 with Chill Cosby. The following year, he would cross paths with Kweli, and eventually sign to the rapper’s label. NIKO’s first album on Javotti, Brutus, was released earlier this year.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/121/ for full show notes and comments.

120: Masta Ace Sep 14, 2015

Show notes

Duval “Masta Ace” Clear is a rap legend whose career dates back to his time with the Juice Crew in the late 1980s. That historic rap collective, led by producer Marley Marl, included stars like Big Daddy Kane, Biz Markie, Roxanne Shante, and Kool G. Rap.

Ace made his recording debut on what is arguably hip-hop’s greatest posse cut, Marley Marl’s “The Symphony.” The success of that song led to Ace’s debut album, 1990’s Take A Look Around, which featured the comic hit “Me and the Biz.”

After leaving Marley’s orbit, Ace successfully reinvented himself with critically beloved albums like SlaughtaHouse and Sittin’ on Chrome - the latter of which, with its West Coast-sounding beats and songs about car culture, got him in a little bit of trouble with a few of his fellow New Yorkers.

After several years of career ups and downs, Ace reinvigorated his career with the 2001 album Disposable Arts. The success of that album, and the renewed audience it brought to his live performances, led to a career upswing that has continued to this day. Ace has released numerous solo, duo, and group albums in the ensuing decade and a half, and tours heavily by himself and with his group EMC. His latest album, with eMC, is called The Tonite Show.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/120/ for full show notes and comments.