motivating w/o hating...

i maintain a few blogs in various places on the web. i was motivated to create the last post by a new opportunity made available by blogger.com & amazon.com. many online retailers offer affiliate programs. the way this works is like sales. if a reader clicks on a link to buy a product at amazon from this blog, i get a commission. the process is essentially transparent.

me being the honest dude that i am, i want to make this clear. i will not be posting up products that i do not own or have an interest in owning. if i post up something that i plan to own or would like to own, i will make the effort to make this clear upon posting. i've been using amazon for over 10 years & i have no complaints w/their customer service.

i'm not in this to hustle cats. i'm doing this because i am an artist & people generally do not willingly pay for creativity. this is not a bitter artist sentiment. it is a historical, observational fact. as an artist who intends to live as 1, i have to find whatever means i can to maintain in this capitalist society that will allow me to continue to be financially free enough to be truly creative. if i can survive off of my art/creations, solid. until that happens, i have to make the necessary moves to maintain self & 4fam.

steal no...

lie no...

hoard no...

hustle yes!

since i personally purchase many items from amazon myself, i'm making this happen. it is an opportunity that will hopefully facilitate other opportunities...

get at me...

PEACE
...be calm...

is it a y or an ies...

i'm pretty proficient at mangling clichés. as such i generally tend to avoid them. when i'm relating science to the godren i'll usually create my own metaphors & whatnot. to communicate universal lessons in a fashion that is most clear & effective for the listener is my goal. this is especially true w/them.

1 of the clichés that i do recall correctly is opportunity only knocks once. i'm going on record stating this cliché is a reflection of a half empty (another clichéd reference!) mentality.

a single opp may present itself in a singular way at a singular point in humanly defined time. that i will not dispute. the problem seems to be the suggestion that only a single opp exists.

an opportunitY may knock once, but as life is traveled, many opportunitIES present themselves. it is not too productive to focus on the missed 1's. IMO the only real negative associated w/a missed opp is the unwillingness or inability to draw the lesson out of the experience.

what is more important than the continued learning process?

knowledge is infinite...

from this perspective the idea of a missed opp almost doesn't exist. consider that an opp missed for whatever potential life change/advancement is still a learning opp...

there's always time to learn the new & refine more clearly what is already known.

clichés are often like stereotypes. they can be true, but they are not always accurate & can be quite dangerous to try to live by in any strict sense. they have their uses. like all things they are subject to observation, question/investigation, & testing for #truth.

just some AM waup thoughts...

get at me...

PEACE
...be calm...

it is #musicmonday...the list...so far...

waup!

+ vibes & energies for this #musicmonday.

i'm kinda in flux mode, so for now i'm going to post a sort of rehash of the list for the uninitiated...

2000

Both Sides of the Brain - Del The Funkee Homosapien

2001

Bon Appetit - O.C.

2002

The End of the Beginning - Murs

2003

The Movement - Inspectah Deck

2004

Milk Me - The Beatnuts

2005

Fully Loaded w/Statik - Da Beatminerz

keep in mind, this list is not static. it changes based on continued research. it's still not all inclusive, but it has grown since its original inception...

i'm actually working on some updates to it before i post up the '06 albums...

get at me when/if you can...

support the culture's music...FIND it...PEEP it...COP it...

PEACE
...be calm...

Diesel Funkin' 10

i'm doing things a little differently this year. 09 was an experiment in production capacity. 10 is going to continue to be experimental, but in other areas that will vary as necessary...

this year's catalog is now 21 tanks & growing...

i'm working through some things before i start updating Pipeline again. i will also be posting more youtube (The Refinery's I) versions of the fuel that is made available online. welcome to Diesel Funkin' 10:

1. DieselF - Kopaque Doimp
2. DieselF - Qita Ontir
3. DieselF - Jionilphoktor
4. DieselF - Raltourpeq
5. DieselF - Izo Aldeock
6. DieselF - Sibaugh Osnaut
7. DieselF - Heboli
8. DieselF - Ungot Ingot
9. DieselF - Gidauch Idoarh
10. DieselF - Tobangsumwa
11. DieselF - Fegortocs
12. DieselF - Dinta Spoutac
13. DieselF - Vomgomilit
14. DieselF - Engoli
15. DieselF - Wengolagesse
16. DieselF - Bilonkpiol
17. DieselF - Xorgont Fironk
18. DieselF - Cobitogil
19. DieselF - Yeockaiont
20. DieselF - Ziaok Pweotique
21. DieselF - Angtok Gosplip

the Refinery continues...always more to come...

PEACE
...be calm...

watis WACK...

something i've noticed w/sadness over the years is that people are encouraged to either not express or not develop tastes in media consumption.

i'm not w/that.

it's like telling me not to think. WTF is that about?

i can relate to the general distaste for critics because they seem to have been given this power of opinion that is really undeserved, but does this mean that opinion should not be expressed at all?

maliciously trashing the creative output of any human doesn't do much. what is that for?

seems this is the real problem w/criticism. few take the time to offer constructive reasoning as to why something is not interesting to them. even when that reasoning is offered the person's perspective is still just that: a personal perspective. 1 human's opinion.

there are over 6.8B humans on this planet. based on current events, it's abundantly clear that we have some difficulty w/sharing singular opinions.

although some of us have similar tastes, we generally don't all like exactly the same things. we're not robots. sheep behavior can be very problematic in this regard. i'm not falling in line w/that kind of thinking.

i'm not going to say i dig something just because i'm supposed to according to whatever standard, especially charts & sales figures. i dig what i dig. if i don't dig it, THAT IS NOT HATE!

if it is wack to me, that's it. IT'S WACK TO MEEEEEEEEEE!

you may think it's hotter than hot...

can't we just agree to disagree sometimes?

what's wrong w/that?

PEACE
...be calm...

the list...2005...

Experience & Education - Sadat X

for the record [no pun] this list is kinetic...

i updated the 2001 list post to reflect the light of new discoveries. there are artists that i was not aware of before working on the list. the result has been that i've been updating the list & the posts accordingly...

here's the '05 business:

• A.W.O.L. - AZ
• Be - Common
• Chemistry - Buckshot & 9th Wonder
• Classic - Living Legends
• D.I.T.C. Presents: Street Talk - Showbiz
• Experience & Education - Sadat X
• Felt 2: A Tribute To Lisa Bonet - Murs & Slug
• Fully Loaded w/Statik - Da Beatminerz
• Good Rap Music - Bahamadia
• Grandmasters - DJ Muggs vs. GZA
• Hiero Imperium Presents: The Corner - Hieroglyphics
• Joint Special Operations Task Force - The X-Ecutioners
• New Whirl Odor - P.E.
• Nuntype - SupremeEx & Tajai
• O.G. Bobby Johnson - Tame One
• Pleemix Volume One - A-Plus
• Plexacade - Mr. Complex
• Reason - DJ Honda
• Return Of The Ox - Cannibal Ox
• Smash Rockwell - Casual
• Smoke And Mirrors - O.C.
• Starchild - O.C.
• Street Education - Street Life
• Tek & Steele: Reloaded - Smif-N-Wessun
• The Best Damn Rap Show - Vast Aire
• The Citrus Sessions - Mikah 9
• The Diamond Mine - Diamond D
• The Foundation - Pep Love
• The Minstrel Show - Little Brother
• Triangulation Station - Opio
• Version 7.0: The Street Scriptures - Guru
• Veterans Day - MC Eiht
• Walk Like A Man - Murs

again F.P.C....

FIND...PEEP...COP...

we don't all like the same things. that's fine. cop what you dig & support the artists who do what you want to hear...

PEACE
...be calm...

Tobangsomwa

greetings...

check out the latest from the Refinery...


get at me w/reflections, feelings, notions, & emotions...

it will be unquestionably appreciated! #truth

PEACE
...be calm...

no excuses, no abuses...

i am a proponent of sampling.

it is a craft.

not everyone can do it. it isn't an easy thing to do in a truly artistic way.

i'm a little bent today, so i'm going to try not to ram...

IMO the DMCA is bullshit.

there are artists who never have & never will be properly paid for their creative contributions as musicians. it seems the majority of the people complaining about or opposing sample use are not really worried about these cats getting their $$$.

i don't have a problem w/clearances. i have a problem w/the lack of standards for clearances.

i generally do not use samples when crafting Refinery fuel. this is not for the reasons that would seem obvious either.

because of the nature of my approach to pursuing my artistic endeavors, i try not to put self in a position where clearances are an issue. why let that stop me from creating new hip-hop music?

the problem for me is that there are patterns & sounds that essentially cannot be created w/o using samples. the whole idea of music is the arrangement of sound in ways that the human ear finds interesting & pleasing. sampling is another way of doing this.

there are creative ways of mixing & using samples. when you are unable to even tell that a sample has been used, how do you handle that? i suppose then it is a moral issue.

my personal approach is this: if i can tell it's from 1 of my works, then i should get compensated based on the time length & frequency of use. seems this would be a fair standard for compensation based on use. the popularity of the original song could possibly be a consideration, but all in all this needs to be standardized.

there needs to be a chart of some sort that can be referenced by ALL ARTISTS to determine the rate(s) for sampling.

what's wrong w/that?

#imjustsayin...

on that note, the list '05 will be up before the end of the daily cycle tomorrow...

get at me!

PEACE
...be calm...

the list...2004...

Mirror Music - Wordsworth

waup...

i haven't checked on the most current news yet, so i'm still sending PEACE & BLESSINGS for full recovery to Guru.

i tend to feel some kind of way when creatives i dig are harshly affected by the course of life.

i'm continuing on in that spirit to put up the '04 albums from the list...

• A Long Hot Summer - Masta Ace
• A Work In Progress - Mikah 9
• Chilltown, New York - Erick Sermon
• Coup De Theatre - Haiku D'Etat
• Creative Differences - Living Legends
• D.I.G.I.T.A.L. - KRS-One
• Diesel Truckers - Kool Keith
• Fire in the Hole - Brand Nubian
• Grade A - Aceyalone
• Humboldt Beginnings - Pharcyde
• Look Mom... No Hands - Vast Aire
• Masterpiece Theatre - Opio
• Megabite - P.E.A.C.E.
• Milk Me - The Beatnuts
• Mirror Music - Wordsworth
• Murs 3:16: The 9th Edition - Murs
• My Own Worst Enemy - Edo G
• Official Space Tape - Kool Keith
• One Monkey Don't Stop No Show - Goodie Mob
• Power Movement - Tajai
• Rahzel's Greatest Knock Outs! - Rahzel
• Revolutions - The X-Ecutioners
• Soul Survivor II - Pete Rock
• Still Shinin - Smif-N-Wessun
• Street's Disciple - Nas
• The Building - Hieroglyphics
• The Chittlin' Circuit - The Mixtape - Little Brother
• The Grind Date - De La Soul
• The New Danger - Mos Def
• The Pioneers - MC Eiht
• The Pretty Toney Album - Ghostface Killah
• The Revolution Of Yung Havoks - Vordul Mega
• The Slickness - Prince Po
• The Tipping Point - The Roots
• This Week - Jean Grae
• Tical 0: The Prequel - Method Man
• Twisted Mister - Mr. Complex
• Yung World - Vordul Mega

as i have been thus far, i'm suggesting looking at the list for each of these years & seeing what you own or not. make the effort to peep the jawns that are not familiar to you.
 
COP...COP...COP...
 
support the artists you dig by providing them the means to continue to record quality hip-hop music...

FPC = FIND it...PEEP it...COP it!
 
PEACE
...be calm...