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Correspondent Melissa Francis demos the new Treo 90 and Treo 270, released as Handspring tries to battle back to No. 2 in handhelds.
Diverse (featuring RJD2 and Lyrics Born): "Explosive"
From the mailroom to "Move," to "One A.M." and beyond, Diverse innovates. A self-described poet, his rhymes are true. Shunning the pseudo-hard stance taken by some emcees in favor of everyday human experience, Diverse consistently ups the ante. Over the course of numerous releases and collaborations, his rhymes have shown that flash and substance don?t necessarily have to be adversaries. "Move" was released on Chocolate Industries in 2001, receiving a strong response from critics and listeners alike. A collaboration with Mos Def on the first installment of "Urban Renewal Program" followed soon thereafter; "Wylin? Out" would go on to dominate college radio airwaves for the better part of the summer. The "Certified/Build" 12" was enough to keep heads happy for a minute, but soon the pressure would be on. Diverse?s debut full-length "One A.M." dropped in the latter part of 2003 to critical acclaim, featuring collaborations with Jean Grae, Prefuse 73 and Madlib among others. The tour appearances and showcases that followed packed venues, seeing fans channel the same charismatic energy that keeps our guy in the studio late at night. With a grueling tour schedule and verbal delivery that would make UPS envious, Diverse has still found time to collaborate with other artists and work on fresh releases of his own. Be on the lookout for the next full-length, "Round About," in your area sometime next year.
Dragon Fli Empire is a Calgary-based hip hop duo that has quickly gained critical acclaim across Canada and beyond. The team of Teekay (emcee) and Cosm (DJ) aim to "bring the soul back to hip hop" with funky and melodic beats, thought-provoking rhymes and killer cuts. Originally formed as a side collaboration project, the DFE released their first album "Conquest" as a local CD-R in the summer of 2002. It featured "Mount Pleasant", now a Calgary classic. The song recalls observing life while riding the bus over an infectious groove. College radio, local press and countless music lovers gave the tunes rave reviews. The buzz only continued to grow in 2003, with CBC Radio 3 naming "Mount Pleasant" one of their top twenty tracks of the year. 2004 saw even more growth for the DFE. "Conquest" was cleaned up and re-released professionally with some new tracks including the popular "D-E-F". The group continued to receive support from CBC. This included performing on the Radio 3 "Connect the Dots" tour, appearing on the New Music Canada Vol. 1 compilation CD and taping live performances for ZeD-TV. More radio stations began to spin the DFE regularly including CKUA in Edmonton. The group also began to perform more regularly, and to date have opened up for established acts like De La Soul, The Beatnuts, Lyrics Born, Aceyalone, Lyrics Born, Zion I, Afu Ra, Planet Asia, Abstract Rude, Royce da 5'9, Swollen Members and Sweatshop Union. They were also invited to perform at the WCMA Industry Awards at the Palliser Hotel in Calgary. An important detail to note is that the DFE has accomplished all of this without a record deal, distribution or management; while working full time jobs or attending college. The DFE is still going strong. They have been featured on CBC's flagship news program "The National" with Peter Mansbridge and MuchMusic's "Going Coastal" for the prestigious "MUCH does Calgary" showcase. They have also started to take their high-energy live show on the road, playing cities like Victoria, Vancouver, Edmonton, Saskatoon, Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto. Recently, DFE finished their long-anticipated second album- "Invasion". Reflecting three years of added experience, it is a step up from "Conquest" and is certain to give the group even more momentum. The album goes from fun and funky to more serious territory, taking the listener on an enjoyable and diverse journey. Special guests (including Mindbender, Ndidi Cascade, Epic, Ohmega Watts and folk-singer Tariq) plus a sprinkling of live musicians are the icing on the cake for this fantastic sophomore project.
BlackBerry, rivals battle at TechXNY
Correspondent Melissa Francis highlights new products debuting at TechXNY.
Tekzilla: Turn Vacation Photos into Art
Vacations and holidays are a quick way to fill up a library of photos. In fact, you could have so many, you just might not know what to do with all of them.
Jin breaks down the top five emcees, dead or alive.
Emcee's "Seeing Red" can be found on the motion picture soundtrack for the film "Lucid."
Project Vector: "Out of the Closet"
Rock/techno artist Project Vector debuts in the realm of video with "Out of the Closet," a self-shot and self-edited video. With neither the time for extensive on-location shooting or the budget to hire a professional video production company, Project Vector's Dave Gastambide dived in with almost no experience in video and produced what many are calling a surprisingly good clip for a first try. "I basically just shot most of the footage in front of a green screen and used a lot of compositing and digital effects to try and create some interesting visuals," Dave elaborates. "I didn't really know what the heck I was doing, but it was fun." "Out of the Closet" is the opening track on REALITY SHOW, Project Vector's debut CD released earlier in 2005. The album has gradually been winning PV an enthusiastic following who dig the unusual stylistic hybrids and the willingness to intelligently explore controversial subjects.
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WRITTEN BY UNDERGROUND RAPPER ARMAGIDEON. Milwaukee, Wisconsin is not known for breeding hit emcees as it is a house hold name for brewing the beer that stretches from sea to shining sea. Armagideon has managed to shine through the stereotypes as he set to release his debut album Tryin' Times. The twenty-three year old artist could quite easily be the Midwest's best kept secret. Beginning his musical journey on his front porch writing rhymes and break dancing at the tender age of twelve, Armagideon paid his dues as a member of Kings Paradice Records. For over a decade Kings Paradice Records has been the Milwaukee/Chicago hip hop source for innovative artists and quality hip hop products. Armagideon began as a roady, selling merchandise and towing his writing skills. Now, Armagideon is getting a taste of his dreams by touring constantly, by self marketing and distributing his own product. Armagideon has performed with the likes of neighboring emcee Common, veteran artists Whodini and Afrika Bamm. Eager to succeed, Armagideon has taken advantage of every single opportunity to shine. During a Common concert, Common asked the crowd, "Does Milwaukee have any real emcees?" Before Common could finish his sentence Armagideon catapulted himself to the stage and before he could realize what was happening, he was rapping along side one of his favorite artists. Other notable opening performances by Armagideon include Dead Prez, KRS ONE, Lil Webbie, Professor Griff, Erykah Badu, Mike Jones, Black Eyed Peas, N.E.R.D.and Young Bloodz. The sound is original and the lyrics have substance, a perfect combination that is sure to promise a bright future for this young artist. Armagideon's Lyrics are in his words, "a piece of my experience and people of the struggle across the Globe...I have traveled to Cuba, Jamaica and Peru and no matter where I go struggle is struggle and poverty is poverty, I have to be that voice." Working with selfless dedication to his message, he spills his heart out in songs like "Shine" and "Crazy Lady". Overall Armagideon's sound is a breath of fresh air from all the emcee battles, bling bling and murder music. It is hip hop in it's truest form and if you can appreciate authenticity then you will love the musical message of Armagideon. for more info visit http://www/myspace.com/gideonsarmy
