When
you think of Hip Hop music, the ideology of the Dancehall boom is a
natural blend in styles that should come to mind.
Rapping,
dancing, talking, chanting, and rhyming lyrics on rhythmic tracks is
a natural ingredient on any hip hop album set. The sounds of the old
school songs by the likes of Nat King Cole, Jackie Wilson, The
Drifters and Fats Domino coupled with modern day Dancehall sessions
by the likes of Beenie Man, Movado, Sean Paul, Shaggy and Damian
Marley infuse what is Kapital A and most notably, is what is laid
down on his latest CD entitled, Why Not: Special Edition.
The
full length 20 song album has extreme flair that dramatically grows
the art and style combining both formats in its complexity. Rather
than raps and shouts, the melody and color are what make up this
great set being released this week at Don Lichterman's Sunset Urban
label. Kapital A's music ingrains that colorful flair in those
melodies in every song all the way through the entire CD which is set
underneath the red-hot lyrics.
Kapital
A began playing at neighborhood parties and at festivals throughout
Ohio and in Jamaica while incorporating and introducing these two
huge influences while laying the groundwork for what would become
Rap/Hip Hop fusion with a Dancehall style. Today HipHop, coupled with
Dancehall music and even what can be described as a Reggaeton style
have carried itself across the globe into America and into Jamaica to
bring together new fans of both genres. "Hip Hop has gone
through many stages of growth with many sub-formats and sub genres
which is the not only the beauty of it, it is also the fine line of
it” says the head of Sunset (Urban) Don Lichterman. “As an Indy
label, releasing Hip Hop music into what is a wide opened field and
while garnering the roots of the deep culture from before say it when
it became commercialized into the mainstream is key, otherwise we are
competing in a field of major recording artists with a ton of money
behind its marketing push and as a matter of fact, most of rap and
hip hop today is all based on how much money is behind it” explains
(Don) Lichterman whose latest hip hop artist is a releasing a CD that
has received rave reviews since setting up its release this month
(January 2015).
"In
reality and in my opinion with regard to the music industry, the
early to mid-90's was one of the most creative periods of growth into
the mainstream marketplace for hip-hop music," states Don
Lichterman, who' was working at MCA (Records) back then while Indy
Labels like Interscope and Geffen were breaking HipHop bands in huge
ways and “from nothing to something” which is “our (Sunset)
business model” today.
"Hip
hop music today is basically Pop Music today and we are not competing
with it on that level and with what are artists that are on the THREE
(3) or FOUR (4) major labels,” Don Lichterman expresses himself
more about the landscape of the HipHop format and genre today. "And,
by adding that so called Jamaican flair and by incorporating what are
great lyrics with colorful melodies is a thrill to me rather than
working straight up pop Rap and this guy (Kapital A) is underground
and Indy, but he is also very melodic with his music which makes it
very easy for me to work!"
“The
other thing I love is working anything with added value and therefore
selling a 20 song CD for say $9.99 a unit is great for the label,"
Don Lichterman ends the conversation by reiterating the Why Not:
Special Edition CD is a bargain with 20 songs on a full length and
extended CD set.
1 Intro
2 Kapital
A
3 Fix
Ya Face
4 Aint
That Funny
5 En
Fuego
6 Lookin
At Me
7 What
It Is
8 Same
Window
9 So
Many Problems
10 Nod
Ya Head
11 Every
Word
12 Warreeyaz
13 U
R Fam
14 Talkin
Bout Me
15 Ran
16 I
Am
17 Doe
Rae Mi
18 Fly
Away
19 Um
Um Um
20 Fallen
Angels
The
album is in store on January 20th
and will be available at any place that sells CDs and that allows
plays with Streams along with paid Downloads. The song Warreeyaz is
also placed on the Tropical Party CD being released in February
(2015) and two videos (Warreeyaz and Doe Rae Mi) are being worked,
serviced and are now available at all popular video outlets (VEVO,
YouTube, WhoTune, Pure Volume, VHX, Amazing tunes, Amazon, Grammy
365, StereoKiller and NoiseTrade)
Sunset
Urban
Featuring
Multi Platinum selling recording artist Gina Thompson, the up and
coming artist, Kapital A and featuring compilation CDs like How Weed
Won The West and the HipHop Party CD, Sunset Urban is one of the
fastest growing Indy Labels.