What’s up people? Allow me introduce myself. My name is Zuka, the latest addition to the Dubcnn staff. You might know me from www.hoodstars.net, for which I among others interviewed artists like Akon, Killah Priest, The Outlawz (with a huge video feature) & Young Noble, Lil Eazy, Clinton Sparks, Chopper Young City, Avant, Flipsyde, Guru & Solar, Dutch hip hop group Opgezwolle, Yo Gotti and Apathy. Also check out this TQ video feature provided by ThugPoetry.com & Hoodstars.net.
This week I’ll it ya’ll with my first Dubcnn (video) interview, but before that I have a press release about West Coast rapper/singer/producer Tyrese & his new Best of Both Hoodz mixtape:
Multi-platinum, Grammy nominated singer, songwriter, actor, writer and producer Tyrese has officially launched his rap guise Black-Ty and has found support among rapﾒs elite including Method Man, Snoop Dogg, The Game, Mannie Fresh, Kurupt, Chingy, Paul Wall, Erik Sermon, David Banner, Ice Cube and Battlecat. Black-Tyﾒs debut mix-tape CD The Best of Both Hoodz Volume I (available on www.hiphopwest.com) also features tracks from DJ Warrior. Tyrese recently made his debut as Black Ty on June 25th at a performance in Los Angeles and fans came in droves to witness it.
Tyrese is approaching his rap career as if he were a new artist as proven when he personally handed out his The Best of Both Hoodz mix tape CD at the recent BET Awards and other high profile events. Tyrese has been rhyming since before he was singing, growing up in Watts. His roots were in hip hop, having been in a rap group called ﾓTriple Impactﾔ prior to the success of his solo R&B career. Tyrese has chosen to take a humble approach to his rap debut, ﾓI never question the order of Godﾒs blessing so Iﾒm lucky to be able to rap and sing and I have been successful with R&B first. With regards to Black-Ty, heﾒs broke and not established and I have been grinding like a new artist. I want to work hard on my rap career from the ground up. I donﾒt want to be the biggest rapper out of the West Coast, I just want to contribute to the groundwork thatﾒs already been laid out and do my part,ﾔ says Tyrese.
Although many of Tyreseﾒs colleagues in the music industry acknowledge his singing skills, they were taken aback by his delivery on the microphone as a rap artist. Says Method Man of Wu Tang Clan, ﾓI was pleasantly surprised I must say. I did not know that Tyrese could rhyme so well but I should have known better. I am not just saying that because heﾒs the homie. His swagger is crazy. Everyone should give him a second look on this rap tip.ﾔ Snoop Dogg, who lent his support to the Black-Ty project by recording a track with Tyrese says, ﾓHeﾒs really got it cracking to the point where he didnﾒt seem like he was out of his range. It seemed like something that he was naturally born to do. Thatﾒs when I welcomed him to the game, being the king of the West, you know what Iﾒm saying? He got my blessing as far as from the rap style of it, the rap side of it. This is one of the best albums Iﾒve ever heard. Anybody who ainﾒt behind it, come see me.ﾔ
The Game, his co star in Waist Deep (Rogue Pictures/ Focus Features) which is in theaters now, has been an avid supporter, and has already laid down 4 tracks with Tyrese. ﾓTyrese is a good friend of mine and he has my support in whatever it is he wants to do. He’s been successful on every scale from singing to acting, so what would make anybody think that he couldn’t do rap? I heard some Tyrese sh– and it’s crazy.ﾔ
Tyrese has also enlisted Chris Lighty, founder of Violator management (50 Cent, Missy Elliot and Busta Rhymes) to officiate this Black-Ty hip-hop movement. Lighty will help launch Black-Tyﾒs superstar rap career, staking his reputation on Black-Ty and is confident that Black-Ty is poised to become a household name in hip hop. Fans can listen to more music from Black-Ty with the upcoming release of the Ghetto Royalty Volume I Mixtape hosted by NYﾒs own DJ S&S which is slated for release the first week of August 2006. Tyrese has released his mix-tapes through Headquarter Entertainment, his own multi-media enterprise which is based out of Los Angeles, California. Headquarter Entertainment is – Home of The Frontline BoyZ, his in house production team. The Frontline BoyZ can be heard on various tracks on both mix tapes and on his highly anticipated album ﾓAlter Egoﾔ scheduled for release Fall 2006 on J Records.
