Hip-hop album sales reached commercial supremacy in the mid-’90s. It was the most decadent era in hip-hop culture, and music producers took home a substantial share of profits. It’s the era that made Kanye West, Just Blaze, The Neptunes and Swizz Beatz household names and filthy rich. Even the original…
When thinking about how significant a length of time 25 years is in the music industry, Bowling for Soup lead singer Jaret Reddick points to the evolution of how their music has been released since it began. “We released out first album on cassette tape,” he says over the phone…
Ramon Mallow is a self-proclaimed hippie who says he’s been living like a 19-year-old for the last 50 years. People know him as Mr. Troll in the Dallas-Fort Worth music scene, a moniker from his biker days. Faye Price, his sister, says that family calls him Danny, after his middle…
Seventeen artists from nine countries came together to record Song Dynasty’s debut album Searching. The band’s music blends American jazz with Chinese influences to create a sound that’s out of this world. Sharp notes burst from a three-piece brass section. Electric guitars scream and whistle, floating over roaming lines on…
It’s been about a decade since the disbandment of Ghosthustler and the beginning of Noah Jackson’s solo career. We haven’t heard much from him since then, but now, after years of reinventing himself and searching for his sound, Jackson says he’s found it and that a new EP is just…
When the 16th season of NBC’s The Voice came to an end, a local singer won her shot at the big-time. North Texas added another notch to its reality show winner belt last week when Frisco’s Maelyn Jarmon won the 16th season of the NBC singing competition The Voice along…
Last year, if you followed the social media activity of Dallas rapper-by-way-of-Waco DQ Hampton, you probably noticed his regular use of the phrase “The Build Up 2018” as a mantra and/or hashtag. This referred to a series of activities he planned for himself to further his career: honing his craft,…
Mr. Pookie, author of “Crook 4 Life” and “Smoke One,” a couple of ’90s-era megahits that lent hip-hop cred to Dallas — North Dallas, at that — when conventional wisdom deemed South Dallas the origin of all our rap. Before speaking to us on the phone, he apologizes and asks…
Jade Nickol hated her first single. Looking back on the song, titled “Best Friends,” the 19-year-old singer-songwriter seethes with palpable frustration. “Even my mom didn’t like it,” Nickol says. “And when your mom doesn’t like it, that’s like, damn.” “Best Friends” is a country song Nickol felt forced to make…
The hip-hop scene in North Texas is as vibrant as ever. In terms of skill and diversity, local artists can hold their own against any major market. Rappers are signing with major labels, producers are winning Grammys and are sought after by A-list figures in rap and R&B. It’s no…
Hailing from Louisiana, Dallas-based rapper and R&B singer Topnotch4real is on a mission to bring his brand of soulful R&B sounds to the forefront. Born Louis Taylor, Topnotch4real is multi-talented, but he focuses his time on writing songs and producing his own instrumental tracks. This summer, he plans to share…
Tucked away on the far west side of an old Dallas office building is a spot where the Deering family helps bring music to life, through a space called Acoustic Kitchen Studios, fit for small live shows and recording sessions. The studio itself is in stark contrast to its own…
Hip-hop is a genre where established artists become talent scouts and use their bully pulpit to develop the careers of younger artists, continually filling the genre with rising stars. Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, for instance, rose from obscurity after Eazy-E took them under his wing. Kanye West got his feet wet as…
If you’re a music fan in North Texas and you’re not following your favorite record store’s social media accounts, you’re missing out. Sure, it’s nice to know which new releases the shop has on its shelves every Friday, but that’s not the real gold to be had in most cases…
If you’re a local music lover, chances are you’ve seen The Effinays playing somewhere. They’ve done their time at festivals, outdoor shows and venues. And with major successes, sometimes come public fallings-out. Audiences were saddened to hear of the news that they were calling it quits in fall 2018 after…
Oscar-winning director Spike Lee is officially a fan of Dallas hip-hop. Four years ago he selected Buffalo Black’s song “Enter the Void” for the soundtrack to his movie Da Sweet Blood of Jesus. Yesterday, via Instagram, Dallas’s prodigal emcee So-So Topic, announced that Spike Lee has chosen his song “Expl0de!”…
Hip-hop lends itself to collaboration more than any other genre. You’re not likely to find a rock, pop or country song with four lead singers from different bands, a scenario commonplace in rap music. When information is first released about a new song by rapper A featuring rapper B, it…
It’s a dream scenario for any band trying to get off the ground: You cut some demos, pass them around and wind up working with a respected producer who digs your sound. That’s what happened to Holy Roller Baby, a rock band made up of Austin and Dallas musicians. There…
This Sunday, Sue Ellen’s on Cedar Springs will host its 20th annual Suesapalooza Festival. Every year, Sue Ellen’s hosts a variety of musicians and vendors for a queer-friendly music festival held in the parking lot of the famous lesbian bar. Over the years, Suesapalooza has become a household name in…
Every independent artist — at least those who want to make a living at music — must climb a mountain that seems insurmountable at best as they figure out on their own how to produce, protect and monetize their art in an industry that grows more complicated all the time…
Fort Worth’s Vincent Neil Emerson has plenty of famous supporters, like his friends and fellow singer-songwriters Leon Bridges and Charley Crockett. But the country artist’s newest fan has both DC-granted superpowers and been a Dothraki leader: Aquaman and Game of Thrones star Jason Momoa. If you have “Vincent Neil Emerson…
Hear ye, hear ye! Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings has announced that he likely has good taste in music, as one of his last acts in office will attest. On Friday, Rawlings and Dallas City Council elected to grant special recognition to the native Texans that make up the band ZZ…
