True Vibe Records is set to reach a new milestone, as
it gets ready to release its newest and hottest single yet,
titled "Give It All U Got!" "It will be the
lead track of the upcoming album "Give It All U Got!",
which is scheduled for release later this year.This will be the third in a series of CDs, following the
highly acclaimed "Paradise Presents Jazz Funk Hip HoPoetry"
and "Jazz Funk Hip HoPoetry-Phaze 2".
As the title suggests, according to True Vibe Records
owner/producer Bill Jackson,"this fast, upbeat,
inspirational song is a celebration of life, encouraging
people to live life to the fullest." And this phenomenal
trailblazing track guarantees to thrill the listening
public with its unique dazzling mix of various genres of
music and performance art, including: Afro-Cuban, Latin
jazz, R&B, funk, hip hop, and spoken word.
A line up of top flight artists affiliated with the
non-profit organization Urban Voices Collective were
recruited to lay down this slammin' new joint. Elegant
songstress extraordinaire Shavone Pickett grabs your
attention and engages you right away with her dynamic, rapid
fire delivery of the chorus, penetrating through the fanfare
of hard-accenting horns, pulsating funk-style bass, and
Latin rhythms. Then lovely and talented background vocalists Chayla
Smith, Derekah Jayne, and Ardra Taylor
pave the way for lead vocalist Bill Jackson to take
this irresistible groove to new heights, as he and Chayla urge people
to "Be real with ya self."
Listeners get a special treat as the red hot, new on the
scene Salvadorian MC Kalizay (pronounced Cal-i-zay)
prompts them to pursue their dreams and aspirations with her
smooth flow and exotic style of hip hop lyrics in both
Spanish and English. She also praises"my brothers
for breakin' the cycle away from stereotypin'."
Then the party continues as charismatic San Francisco Bay
Area slam poetry icon and legend Paradise captures
your imagination with his lofty visions of a "cultural
world fair in Oakland" and a "United States of Africa."
To take it on home, accomplished pianist Ben Ball
(he plays other instruments too) and veteran tenor
saxophonist Melvin Bell (both graduates of the prestigious
Berklee College of Music in Boston) really light things up
on high note with their blazing solos, leaving you wanting
more.
On Tuesday, March 25th, 2008,
TrueVibeRecords released Jazz Funk Hip
HoPoetry-Phaze 2, the follow up to the
highly-acclaimed CD Paradise Presents Jazz Funk Hip
HoPoetry.
The Phaze 2
release, a CD double set, will also be the debut
for Oakland Ca.-based spoken word/hip hop group Sounds Of
Urban Life Soldiers or S.O.U.L.S., as the acronym
is spelled and their bulging fan base refers to them as. The
group members and song writers are poets Raquel Ramsey,
Keith Thompson,
and President L. Davis, rap and hip hop
artist Keldamuzik and songstress
Shavone Pickett. Together, they have a very
unique and diverse blend.
According to
TrueVibeRecords
owner and producer Bill Jacksonregarding
Phaze 2 he says, “as the genesis of the first CD was my
pilgrimage to Senegal’s Goree Island (a United Nations
historical site in West Africa which was a holding pen for
slaves), this music was born from the compelling social concerns
that continue in America and is musically upbeat funk with jazz,
hip hop, R&B and Caribbean influences.”
The lead single Squash It! featuring Keldamuzik with
guests D Labrie and Rufus Wonder
certainly supports the concept of “social concerns” as it
addresses the grave problem of violence in America’s urban
cities, and from early indications this seems to be the song
that radio will embrace and help Squash It! be a
part of the solution! Following that theme is On The
Street, outlining the conditions and perils in some of
our urban communities.
There are lighter
more playful moments on the CD as with All The Above
that again features Keldamuzik at the mic running
down a love and relationship theme. Then there is the
Caribbean-flavored I Can with vocalist
Shavone Pickett delivering a very tender vocal with an
almost dancehall track. Associate ProducerJam G
"JR" Tallintensifies the groove with his lead guitar riffs.
(He also was the chief sound engineer for this album.)
The jazz lover isn’t
forgotten here with contemporary tracks like The Man
Upstairs with its hip hop /trip hop feeling and a
scorching tenor sax lead from guest artist Ben Ball and thepulsating drum work from Lorca
Hart, son the legendary drummer Billy Hart, and on What kind Of Dreams Have You whichfeatures guests such as the smooth-talking
percussionist/spoken word artist Bill Norwood,
renownedguitarist Calvin Keys,
pianistextraordinaire Michael “Spiderman”
Robinson, tenor sax man
Ben Ball again,and veteran drummer
E.W. Wainwright. This isa track
that swings with the best of them!
All three poets are
full of fire and earth moving emotion here addressing issues
such as fatherhood with the piece The Role of Men
by Keith Thompson and coming of age with
Rites of Passage by President L. Davis,
while Raquel Ramsey delivers supremely and
passionately with a piece titled Connections and
again on the exalting Apology, a duet with bassist
Nelson Braxton (Braxton Brothers). There is
more contemporary conscious-raising spoken word from the three
poets of Sound Of Urban Life Soldiers on other
tracks as well.
This album also
showcases the talents of a host ofhighly-talented
and dynamic guest spoken word artists such as Roxanne
Hanna-Ware and poets Big Dan and
Alejandra Mojica running down a Latino perspective.
Jazz Funk Hip
HoPoetry- Phaze 2 is a well-balanced, well-crafted, and
cleverly-written collection of urban life experiences and
feelings delivered with the often pulsating bass line that locks
everything in place and drives it home. With all the tracks
above and more this will no doubt be a radio, retail and down
loading favorite!!
___________________________
This is what Urban Buzz Internet magazine
wrote:
"Sounds Like Life.
'Squash It!' is the anti-gun violence single by Sounds Of
Urban Life Soldiers 'Squash It!' is getting airplay at
WJJN, KWZA, KJMH, WESE, WBAI and more!
Plus new this week
at WLYX! 'Squash It!' is from the forthcoming CD, "Jazz Funk Hip
HoPoetry"-Phaze 2 on
TrueVibeRecords."
