Souljah Boy vs. Ice-T

June 23, 2008

In case y’all haven’t been following Hip Hop’s Clash of the Generations…

Ice-T: “Souljah Boy single-handedly killed Hip Hop.”

Souljah Boy responds:

Kanye chimes in:
“Soulja boy is fresh ass hell and is actually the true meaning of what hip hop is sposed to be. He came from the hood, made his own beats, made up a new saying, new sound and a new dance with one song. He had all of America rapping this summer. If that ain’t Hip Hop then what is? A bunch of wannabe keep it real rappers that ain’t even relevant, recycling samples trying to act like it’s 96 again and all they do is hate on new shit? *****s always talk about the golden age but for a 13 year old kid, this is the golden age!!! That song was so dope cause everything he said had a hidden meaning… that’s Nas level shit… he just put it over some steel drums which is also some Nas shit if you had the 2nd album cassette with the bonus track “Silent Murder” on it. In closing… new *****s get ya money$$$$$$$$$$ Keep this shit fresh and original…. ain’t no fuckin’ rules to this shit and that’s what real hip hop is to me”

Ice-T apologizes:

Pizon’s thoughts:

Last night, I was talking to Timid about this before the show, and we agreed that Souljah Boy got the better of Ice (this was before he issued the apology). I’ve met Ice-T before, and he showed me love and gave me some positive career advice. He’s a legend in Hip Hop and I have nothing but respect for him. But he sounded like a bitter old man in that first clip, and was out of line for telling a 17 year-old boy to “eat a dick.” I agree with most of what Kanye said, although comparing Souljah Boy’s lyricism to Nas’ is almost as insulting as, well, being told to eat a dick. It’s not exactly hard to decipher the double meaning behind “Superman dat hoe” but at the same time it’s funny/sad that young girls across America were singing along, completely oblivious to what it meant. I don’t know if that’s a testament to Souljah Boy’s brilliance as much as it is America’s stupidity, however the point stands that the kid hustled his way into the game and should be commended for that. The reason Souljah Boy won with his response (sophomoric gripes aside) was that he 1) didn’t try to rap, and 2) challenged Ice to stop complaining about Hip Hop and do something positive with his time. There’s really not much of a better defense than “so give me some pointers” when being told by an elder that you suck. At least the kid has perspective.

Now, Ice’s “apology” video changed the dynamic of the situation. Having his 16 year-old son repeat the eat a dick line at the end renders the apology itself useless, but the rest of what he said is hard to dispute. As a true artist, and someone who holds the artform of Hip Hop so close to my heart, how could I NOT fight the battle of trying to bring lyrics back into prominence? Every time I write a verse, I’m fighting that battle. I think that’s the underlying point here. It’s easy to sit back and say “XYZ killed Hip Hop” but what good does that do? Shouldn’t we focus our energy on “saving” it by doing positive things instead? When so-called activists march in front of record labels complaining that they’re only putting out “negative” artists, they aren’t helping matters any. Why not march in favor of a good artist? March for me. And someone should sit down with Souljah Boy and teach him how to write a rhyme. He may be garbage, but he wants to learn how to do better. That’s more than we can say for most people.

2 Comments | Thoughts on Hip Hop | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by Pizon

It may be bullshit, but we can fix it.

June 23, 2008

As you may be aware, the homie EJ recently wrote a blog called “The New York Hip-Hop Scene Is Bullshit” in which he had some pretty harsh things to say. Obviously frustrated by a lack of fanfare in the birthplace of Hip Hop, he went as far as wishing that those who didn’t come out to shows would get ran over repeatedly by a bus, bitches (his words). Now, I understand you’re just trying to rile people up, E… but I won’t wish that on people. Not a bus. Maybe a two-door Coupe de Ville. But not a bus.

In all seriousness, I understand where he’s coming from. We’ve had conversations about this. The first step to fixing a problem is to acknowledge that it exists, and I think we can all pretty much agree that NYC Hip Hop is on life support (other regions as well, but New York is the mecca). Yes, the fans’ refusal to come to shows has a lot to do with it. This relates to the “chicken-and-the-egg” argument about buying music and serves as a microcosm of the entire music industry. Consumers say they no longer support artists since their output isn’t good enough. Unfortunately, even the good artists are affected by this trend: They stop putting their all into the music since people aren’t going to support it anyway. In the end, no one wins. I often hear, “CD sales may be down, but at least artists can still make money off shows.” When people stop coming to shows, it’s easy to see why we’d be tempted to put the mic down and get behind that wheel. Don’t do it, E. Not just yet anyway.

IF YOU’RE A FAN…

Here’s my plead to the fans: Support the artists you like.

As much as we like to hear how much you love us, that doesn’t pay our bills. You may look at it as a selfish thing on our behalf, but it really isn’t. More than anything else, we want to do our part to entertain you and improve the state of music. Unfortunately, we can’t do that without tangible support. I’m always hearing things like, “I wish more people like you would make it to the mainstream.” Don’t wish. Do something about it! You know that business is all about the bottom line. Record companies (ie, the corporations with the real money and influence to impact change directly) are only concerned with numbers. By purchasing my album, you’re not just putting money in my pocket so that I can continue to make music, you’re also showing the industry that there’s a demand for good Hip Hop music — every sale gets scanned and tallied.
I realize I’m largely preaching to the choir since many of you reading this have already bought my album, but if you haven’t: What the hell are you waiting for? And it isn’t just mine you should be buying. It’s any artist you like and want to see succeed.

More than that, come to the shows. Some people are going to claim that they don’t have money for a CD (lame as that may be), but everyone goes out sometimes. Let’s stop with the excuses. If an artist you like is doing a show in your area, go. I’m tired of people telling me they’re my “number one fan” yet I have not once seen their face at a show. Conversely, there’s a dude from Baltimore named Brian (what up, Truplaya?!) who has traveled to see me perform in THREE states — NY, PA, and MD — joined the street team, purchased every project I’ve released since day one, and not once claimed to be my “number one fan.” Don’t tell me you love me. Show me.

The power to turn this around is in YOUR hands. I think people are short-sighted and don’t understand how their contribution makes a difference to the big picture. Barack Obama just became the first African-American to be nominated for President by a major party. He beat the machine because people believed that every vote counted. Which leads me to my next point…

IF YOU’RE AN ARTIST…

Artists, don’t half-ass it.

Senator Obama was only able to beat the machine because he convinced people that he could. I’m not going to try to convince you that you aren’t the next great hope, but give people reason to be excited. There’s a reason fans aren’t buying music and coming to shows anymore. Yes, it’s easy to get discouraged, but it’s our job to turn up the heat. Use the recession as inspiration. This game is ripe for the picking.

Now, beyond those vague pointers, there are fundamental things you keep doing wrong. First of all, stop empowering these wack “promoters” by paying them money to perform (this includes audition fees, having to sell tickets to your friends, and any other scam they can cook up). Have some respect for yourself. You’re the artist. Your job is to entertain. The promoter’s job is to promote. Sounds crazy, right? I’m not saying you’ll cake off every show, and you should absolutely promote yourself, but don’t be conned into doing someone else’s job for him. The reason I stress this is because this has much to do with the Hip Hop scene going to shit. I’ve not once paid anybody to get on stage. It’s always been the other way around. And if you’re thinking, “Yeah, but Pi, you’re signed to a label that was a subsidiary of Universal with gold and platinum albums, you’ve been on MTV, you’re a star,” consider this. Back in 2004, when my biggest claim to fame was producing some songs that got played on the radio in the Bahamas, I was getting paid $500 to do college shows. Don’t believe me? Here’s a paystub:

If the thought of anyone paying you money to do your thing on stage seems weird, step your game up. If you aren’t able to perform your songs live (adlibbing over your recorded tracks like a fool doesn’t count), you aren’t ready to take the stage. If you don’t have original production, you aren’t ready to take the stage. No one wants to see you do karaoke. If you don’t know how to engage a crowd and give them their money’s worth, elevate your craft. My first show was in January 2002. I recorded my first song in 1999. I waited three years before I got on stage because I wanted to be ready, and there’s nothing wrong with that. When I did think it was time to get on stage, I flew myself to Tallahassee to perform with people more experienced than me in front of a Hip Hop crowd who could give me some real feedback. Why? Because I cared about what I did. Granted, I was a little tentative my first time and didn’t have much showmanship, but I held it down. Running drills won’t get you the same experience as spending time on the court, but that doesn’t mean you should skip training and start as a pro. The difference between me and many artists is that they haven’t been doing it three years and already think they’re entitled to be a star. Pay your dues.

If artists took their craft more seriously, the fans would come back. Quite honestly, if more artists realized what was expected of them to be an artist, many of them would go back to being fans themselves. This is a full time job. How are you gonna treat it like a side hustle and expect people to spend their hard-earned money on it? Even when I get on stage in front of a crowd full of haters who wished they were in my position, they grudgingly show love because I’m well trained in the art of moving the crowd. There is not one group of people on the planet who I can’t get to shout “I’m getting head from my homegirls” back at me, and I take pride in that.

For real, son. I could do a show at the Vatican and get that response.

So, the solution is two-fold. One, fans need to support the artists they like (buy my album, bitches), and two, artists need to stop being douchebags and try harder. There’s no reason to keep your arms folded and front like you should be in my shoes. You shouldn’t. Or else you would be. I worked hard to get where I’m at, and I’m still working harder than you now. Embrace that fact and leave this alone, or step it up and provide that healthy competition that kept us all hungry in the good ole days. Then we’ll start seeing more fans at shows with their hands up, rushing to the merchandise table between acts.

Let’s make Hip Hop fun for everyone again.

Peace,
Pizon

1 Comment | Thoughts on Hip Hop | Permalink
Posted by Pizon

Show Recap: Side Street Lounge, NYC

June 23, 2008


Show date: June 20, 2008
@ Side Street Lounge
Ozone Park, Queens, NY

If you’re sitting by the bar at one of our shows, don’t think you’re safe. If you’re in the club, you’re fair game.

At tonight’s show in Queens, my dude EJ saw some people getting drinks at the bar when I called him on stage. He asked how long the mic reached, and I told him, “Not that long.” So he said, “You know what? I ain’t even gonna use this motherfuckin’ mic.”

This dude dropped the mic and went behind the bar. He’s almost 7 feet tall. Who was gonna stop him?

Then he walked back and forth and screamed his lyrics at the top of his lungs to the people who were getting drinks, while Timid and I backed him up from the stage. Definitely a classic Fam moment.

Not to be outdone, Timid went to the bar himself (only he sat at it like a regular person) and spit his “Dreams Come True” verse to a girl who was sitting down.

She turned bright red and buried her head in her hands.

We performed for an hour straight. Did 3 new songs off the Fam album for the first time, and plenty solo material. It was mad fun, but my head’s about to explode. I need some rest. Shout out to everyone who came out tonight.

Leave a Comment » | Show Recaps | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by Pizon

Show Recap: Baltimore, MD

June 23, 2008


Show date: December 29, 2007
@ Turntable Club
Baltimore, MD

It was definitely a good weekend for The Fam. Timid rocked a show in Brooklyn with Cee Rock on Friday, and EJ and myself hit up Baltimore on Saturday. Of course, these things never go down without some sort of drama. Every Hip Hop experience comes with an action adventure story, so here it goes…

RAWKUS SHOW IN BALTIMORE

This was a show that was put together by the Low Budget Crew from Maryland, whose members are also part of the Rawkus 50. I got an email last week about a Rawkus show going down in Baltimore on Saturday and got in touch with the promoters. I had never performed in Baltimore before, and being a part of the Rawkus roster, I wanted to get down. They were enthusiastic about adding me to the show, even though it was last minute. Right off the bat, I have to give major props to DJ Roddy Rod, Cy Young, and Kaimbr for showing nothing but love.

On Thursday, I called EJ in New York and asked him, “What you doing this weekend?” He said, “Nothing really, why?” I said, “Come down and rock this show in Baltimore with me.”

So the plan was for EJ to catch the Chinatown bus from New York to DC, where I would pick him up on Saturday afternoon and we’d only have a few hours to rehearse the set. He ended up missing the bus, and assumed he wouldn’t make it in time. Finally, I was able to convince him to catch a different bus, and even offered to cover his fare since the ticket he bought was non-refundable. Since he just moved to NY and doesn’t have a cell phone yet, I didn’t know for sure if he ended up getting on that second bus or not. Hours were going by with no word from anyone, so I started preparing for a solo set without him. Then, at 4:00, I got a text message from his fiancee saying he got on the 1:30 bus. That meant I’d have to pick him up in an hour. When the bus came, he wasn’t on it. I waited around until 6:30 to see if maybe another bus would come in, but it never did. I was told the bus that came was indeed the one that left NY at 1:30. With no phone on him, I had no way of reaching him, plus MY cell phone battery had died so I left it home to charge. I was thinking, “Wow, life without cell phones, this must be what the old days were like,” before realizing this is what it was like just 7 years ago.

I ended up going back to my apartment to check my phone, and I saw I had 162 missed calls. Somehow, his bus left him off a block away from where I was waiting for him, and when I was leaving, he saw me drive right past him. He was down to his last quarter on the payphone, and was pleading for me to “come back and STOP this time.” 15 minutes later, I was back in DC and finally scooped him up. By now, it was 7:45. The show was supposed to start at 9. Neither of us ate all day, and the set still had to be prepared. Baltimore is an hour away. Not good.

Luckily, The Patriots saved the day. I called DJ Roddy Rod and let him know the situation, and he said not to sweat it because everyone was watching the game and no one was there yet.

He wasn’t kidding.

We got there after 10, and the club was COMPLETELY empty sans the homie Truplaya who catches all of our east coast shows. This dude has seen us in New York, Philadelphia, and more, but he’s from Baltimore so I knew he’d be there Saturday, even with a flu. He’s the man, plain and simple. (He even took the pics for us.) The club itself was nice, though when we turned onto the block we thought we were lost because it was in the middle of the ghetto with abandoned buildings, rats walking the sidewalks, etc. But there it was, The Turntable Club, the only sign of life amidst endless yards of neglect, its vibrating walls pumping a different kind of bass into the street.

The game finally ended, and by 11:30, the club did pack out. They were ready for a show.

So we gave them a show.

We came out to a “NY State of Mind” instrumental and let the Baltimore heads know that we had love for them, but we rep New York wherever we go (me being born and raised, EJ as NYC’s newest proudest resident). From there, I did one verse and hook off “Drastic Measures” from the Rawkus album, and one verse and hook off “Don’t Know Where to Lie” from the new release. Still being in the Christmas spirit, I gave out a t-shirt, CD, and DVD to the heads who were the loudest. EJ got some shine with a performance of “Bad Man” and then we debuted the new Fam song “Get Off My Ass” produced by and featuring Mr. Porter (aka Kon Artis from D12), but EJ cut me off 2 bars into the first verse, saying we should save that for 2008. We made up for the tease with the bounce track “Baby Baby” which served as our first collab of the night.

After my “Is you is, or is you ain’t my homegirl” line at the end of the verse, I cut it off, explained to the crowd the significance of the word homegirl in that sentence, and proceeded to teach them the “Homegirls” hook: “I’m trapped in my own mind, caught up in my own world/ No wifey, I’m gettin’ head from my homegirls.” We then launched into the “Homegirls” remix (with the EJ verse and mine where I say a variation of “back to the car” on every line). That song ALWAYS gets the crowd hype at shows, and Baltimore was no exception. It’s always great to see the dudes who were trying to act cool all night lose it and end up in tears from laughing at the punchlines and concept of that song. I don’t care where you’re from, getting head from your homegirls is something every man can relate to. It’s just the perfect fun, feel good song to do at shows. People were saying that should be a single, but we’d never get it on the radio without having to censor it beyond recognition. I ended the set with an acapella verse I’d never performed before, thanked Bmore for the love, and we left the stage. I was very pleased with the performance.

Next it was time for the Low Budget cats to do their thing, and they killed it. Kev Brown even came out and performed, which was a pleasant surprise to me because he’s another established artist. He used to get a lot of love on my radio show. When we were about to leave at the end of the night, he came up to us and said, “Hey, you guys were good.” I gave him a pound and said, “Thanks, you too.” Even the bartender thanked us for coming to Baltimore and performing, and when she had trouble swiping my credit card for the drinks we bought, Kaimbr told her, “Just put it on my tab. They came from New York to perform, I’m not going to make them pay for drinks.” It was just love all around.

We chopped it up with Truplaya (seen above) outside the club for a bit, and he was still excited about the show he’d just seen. He came to see us perform, but didn’t know who else was on the bill. It turned out to be an extra special night for him because he was familiar with Kev Brown, the other Rawkus 50 artists, and said he even knew about Cy Young before he got signed.

Overall, the show was dope, and the energy was crazy all night. 2007 was the best year of my professional career, from signing the deal with Rawkus to making my first magazine cover to seeing my name in XXL and more. This show in Baltimore was the perfect way to end it. As every year has brought me more success than the last, I can’t wait for what 2008 has in store for me. Or should I say, what I have in store for it.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!

3 Comments | Show Recaps | Tagged: , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Pizon

Show Recap: Family Reunion 2007

June 23, 2008


Show date: December 1, 2007
@ The Creek and the Cave
Long Island City, Queens, NY

You know you had a good birthday when… you lose your pants and your keys.

I can explain. Well, kinda. My keys just disappeared sometime last week in the middle of frantic last-minute preparations for the show. I had a change of pants backstage at the show for a costume change, and when I returned after my first set, they were gone. Apparently someone thinks there’s value in Pizon’s slacks. If you see them on Ebay, holla at the kid.

I’m back at the office in DC with no keys to my apartment, so I had to get a hotel last night. The King bed all to myself felt nice. Saturday’s show was off the hook, but I’m so burnt out right now that I just want to play dead. It was great to spend the last week and a half in NY, but these have been some of the most stressful days of my life. You don’t appreciate how much aggrevation goes into putting something like that together until you actually do it. In the end, it was all worth it, but I don’t want to do it again EVERRRR (at least not until next year).

There will be lots of pics and video recaps, but here are some of my highlights of Family Reunion 2007:

-The club being packed before I even got there. If you’ve ever thrown a show before, you know that’s a good feeling.

-Performing “No Closure” with Analyze and an all-female step team dancing on stage (shout out to April and the Mount St. Vincent steppers!).

-New Pizon project “And Then There Was One” to be released before the end of the year.

-EJ driving 12 states from Texas for the show (26 HOURS), and absolutely murdering every verse he spit. I never saw him so focused.

-All the out-of-town love. EJ from Texas, Truplaya from Baltimore, I-Dog and Cho-Sun from DC, Krukid from Illinois, Janely and Dee from Miami, Randy and Wynter from Jersey, Barbara from PA, Timid’s mom from VA, etc. It seemed like there was someone from every state there, all coming together for Hip Hop.

-Yes, Timid’s mom was there. So was mine. It really was a Family Reunion.

-Timid’s performance of the new material from his album, particularly the third verse of “Bringing the Awe” (produced by Domingo) acapella. Scratch that… Timid’s whole performance was a highlight. It was his night to shine, and his album is STUPID DOPE. Go pick that up right now.

-Timid having to be literally carried off stage by EJ (WHILE STILL RAPPING) because he wouldn’t put the mic down.

-Cee Rock “The Fury” providing the beat box and comic relief throughout the show. He even busted a Hip Hop rendition of the wedding song (more on that later…).

-The Rawkus 50 cameos (shout out to Barak Yalad, Krukid, and Mr. Metaphor). Mr. Met’s acapella was retarded.

-The costume change for the Fam finale. My pants disappeared, but Timid’s furry hat saved the day.

-The birthday cake. To give you an idea of how big it was, it said: “CONGRATULATIONS PI, TIMID, AND E, AND HAPPY BIRTHDAY PIZON” on it. In large font.

And, of course, the best moment of the show came at the very end:

-After the performance of “Dreams Come True” EJ got down on his knee and proposed to his girlfriend, Phoebe. She said yes! We said this would be a life-changing event, and we weren’t lying. When was the last time you saw a man propose at a Hip Hop show?

If you missed it, joke’s on you.

Leave a Comment » | Show Recaps | Tagged: , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Pizon

Show Recap: Album Release Party

June 23, 2008


Show date: December 2, 2006
@ The Creek and the Cave
Long Island City, Queens, NY

I know y’all are expecting a recap from 12.02.06, so I’m going to attempt one right now without being too verbose. For the record, it’s currently Tuesday afternoon and I am still recovering from the weekend’s events. I have footage from 6 different video cameras that were set up in different places (on stage, backstage, in the crowd, in the back of the club, right up front, etc.), and in 2 weeks I’m going to spend the entire weekend in an editing studio putting the DVD together. There were also plenty of pictures taken by various people, but unfortunately I don’t have any of those yet. So for now, here is a summary of what went down from my point of view. For the past few weeks, I’ve been constantly on the phone with the CD pressing plant, making sure they would have my project done on time for my release party. First the issue was with my album inserts. I spent a long time designing an 8-page booklet with a Pizon poster in the middle and everything, and they were telling me that booklets took longer than folders to print, and to save time I should use folders instead. No. I wanted my booklets, and I was going to get them one way or another. The folder would throw the whole design off. Then the issue was with a sample they recognized on the album and freaked out over. They refused to continue with the duplication unless I changed the track and submitted a new master, which would hold everything up even more. The end result was that I got my CDs the way I wanted them (despite the changed track) but I had to pick them up from the factory in Connecticut on Friday afternoon. Friday, 12/1. The day before my big party. The day I had to pick up my artists from the airport.

So I drove to Connecticut early Friday. The factory is about an hour and a half from my crib. When I got there, they said they had just finished the job 5 minutes ago. Good timing. I loaded the CDs in my car (and they took up the entire trunk and backseat) and headed back to NY. I was actually passing by La Guardia Airport at the time I was supposed to pick up the first batch of artists, but I had one problem: there’s no way they would fit in my car with their luggage and all the CDs. So I had to drive home first to unload the CDs (by the way, they look SICK! I’m so glad I fought for the booklets), then back to the airport. That was like a 2 hour diversion right there. Back at the airport, I picked up EJ, his hypeman Bam Bam, and their camera woman Amanda, straight off a plane from Houston. As it was, they barely fit in my car with just their luggage. The first place they wanted to go was White Castle, being that this was their first time in NY and I guess that damn movie got them interested in trying some. EJ (standing at 6’6″) and Bam (also a big dude) managed to put down 10 hamburgers each. After that, they both agreed to never eat at White Castle again.

I took them back to Timid‘s spot where we were supposed to rehearse for the show. It didn’t take long for the consummate artist to come out in each of us, as before long we had a beat playing and were writing verses. EJ went in the booth and laid a hook right away. Not long after, Timid had his verse recorded. Bam followed Timid up, then I followed Bam. By that time, we had to pick Aday up from JFK Airport (which isn’t far from Timid’s spot). When we got back to Timid’s, Amanda had laid some back-up vocals under EJ’s hook which really brought it to life. Aday heard what was going on, took out a pad from his pocket, and began writing bars. Within a half hour of touching down in NY, he was in the booth recording a new verse. EJ then spit a verse to follow up his hook. Shortly after that, I-Dog‘s bus arrived from DC, and he was in the spot writing a verse as well. We even got my girl Maria to say something in Spanish at the end of the song. That makes 8 people on the track. I think it’s a keeper for the upcoming Fam album.

It was now well past midnight (making it officially my birthday), and we realized we had to shift our focus to the show later that night. In just a few hours, we would be making history. The adrenaline started pumping through each of us.

So, before I knew it, it was Saturday, December 2. I was 24 years old, and my album release party/birthday bash was that night. I went home and got some sleep in my own bed before having to wake up and head back to Timid’s. Since we had 7 people with us (me, Timid, EJ, Aday, Bam, I-Dog, and Amanda), there was no way we’d all fit in one car, so the original plan was for Maria to meet us at Timid’s and take some in her car. Being that doors to the club opened at 8, I wanted to be there before 6 to make sure everything was set up and running smoothly. This meant that Maria would have to be at Timid’s crib by around 5. While awaiting her arrival, I got a phone call from an unknown woman informing me that Maria was in a bad car accident on her way to meeting me. She put Maria on the phone, and I asked her if she was OK. She said no; she couldn’t move her legs. Unfortunately, that was all the information we got,* as she was too shaken up to say much more than that. The ambulance was on its way to take her to the hospital, and needless to say, she would be missing the party. That put an immediate damper on the rest of the night, but the show had to go on, so Timid and I hopped in my car while the others jumped on the train. They would have to meet us at the club later.

By the time we got to the Creek and the Cave in Long Island City, the band was already set up and doing soundcheck. (Yes, I said the band, bitches… I told you this was some serious business.) I got the mics plugged up while Timid took I-Dog’s laptop to the DJ station and made sure it worked with the sound system. We did have our music on CDs just in case, but since this would be a long night, we figured it would be best to play everything off iTunes to avoid having to keep switching CDs out in the middle of the show. I unloaded my albums and t-shirts out the car and set up the merchandise table that my mother volunteered to work (really she just wanted a place to sit down). The club had a backstage area leading to the outside, but it was blocked off. I made sure we unblocked it, so artists could get on stage from the back instead of coming up through the crowd. Everything seemed to be going well. At 8, people started coming in, and I thought to myself, “Wow… the time is finally here. I really did it.”

As I predicted, the club filled up fast. People were getting restless, because doors opened at 8, and they expected the show to start early. However, EJ, Aday, Bam, I-Dog, and Amanda had still not arrived and I did not want to start without them there. Knowing that the show itself would have to be over by midnight, I calculated that we could start no later than 9:30 to be finished on time. At 9:25, I told Timid, “That’s it… if they’re not here in 5 minutes, we have to just start without them… we can’t wait any longer.” No more than a minute after I said that, they arrived. I showed them the backstage area and made sure they knew their cues, and we were good to go. Let’s get The Council on stage.If you didn’t know, The Council was the group that won the opening act contest I put together. They had their peoples voting for them non-stop when we did the online vote, and even more so when we took it to radio. They really deserved that spot. After rocking a short set, ending with the “Diddy Bop” song that won them the contest, they introduced Casino Rhyme Family, the group they narrowly defeated for the slot. It was like a Jay-Z-makes-peace-with-Nas moment when they gave each other love on stage, because they were previously at each other’s throats during the contest. Casino Rhyme Family then ripped through a short set of their own, ending with “HaterBlockerz, ” the song they were pushing in the contest. I thought it was ill how they started the joint a capella, then by the time the beat dropped, their whole crew was wearing their sunglasses (ie, haterblockerz). It’s the little things like these that make shows exciting. I have to give extra love to these cats because The Council drove from upstate NY to do the show, and Casino Rhyme from south Jersey (over 3 hours away). That’s a beautiful thing.

After the openers, the now packed club was probably wondering which act would be introduced next. My man Randy from Labirynth (co-promoters of the show) got on the mic and said, “This man needs no introduction, but I’m going to give him one anyway… Give it up for the man of the hour, Pizon!” I don’t think heads expected me to come out so soon, but I told y’all this was going to be different. My intro beat dropped before I was even able to get to the mic, so I started yelling without it. “Hands up now, put your hands up! Hands up now, put your hands up!” I grabbed the mic and spit a quick 16, then while the beat rode out, I explained to everyone that I put together a special show… I think they were already starting to see that. After doing one verse off “Streets Never Change, ” I told the crowd that I needed a girl on stage for the next joint. “It’s my birthday… I’m getting a girl on stage.” I then debuted “Dreams Come True, ” the first single off the upcoming Fam project dropping next year. My friend Christina danced with me on stage. I stopped the music and said that was love, then noted how love could make you do some pretty outrageous things, like the time I drove 10 hours to give someone a 3-page letter… that might seem crazy, but with everyone going crazy for real (the cops shooting people 50 times, OJ quasi confessing, Kramer heeling a heckler, etc.), the fact that this kind of passion still existed let us know that maybe we’d be all right afterall. That’s not crazy, that’s love… and that was the type of love I felt in the room that night. Driving a few hours is one thing… there were people who flew across time zones to be at my party (H-town in the house). The mami Janely bought a plane ticket from Miami. The homie Truplaya drove from Baltimore, and went back home the same night, before catching a flight early the next morning to start training for a new job. That’s “crazy” but it’s not really. It’s L-O-V-E.

And the reason I get that kind of love is because people know I’m the real deal. Despite what someone who grew up 8 blocks from the club would have you think, Hip Hop is not dead. I was proving it was alive and well. With that, I went into the Scrappz-produced “We Got This” which brought Timid out from the back (Scrappz couldn’t make it but his mom was in the house). After Timid and I did our first collabo of the night, I left the stage for 20 minutes and let him do his thing. Timid killed it as usual, even incorporating a costume change into his set, revealing the “Bush Don’t Care” t-shirt with Kanye‘s face on it before doing “Let Freedom Ring.” He then kicked the first verse off “Hip Hop 2 Me” which brought me back out for the second verse. Instead of doing the third verse, we went right into “I Am Hip Hop” off my album. I asked Timid if he’d hang out while I continued my set, and he obliged. “Do You Ever” started to play, and I-Dog emerged from backstage to kick his verse (Skheme couldn’t make it due to family issues). Though I wasn’t quite drunk enough (I actually hadn’t drank anything yet), I performed that silly “Drunk” song next and to my surprise, I heard people in the crowd shouting the lyrics back at me.

Question: What’s the first song I ever spit? The crowd didn’t know either. I heard someone say “Angel Wings”… “The First Bar”… “Song After Song” (what?!)… before someone finally came up with the right answer: “Dozo Dawgs.” I told the crowd I was going to attempt to spit that verse, for old time’s sake.

“As soon as we came out the box, y’all knew we hard……………………………………that’s all I know.”

But since that day in 2000, I’ve been writing song after song to get to where I’m at now. With that, “Song After Song” dropped and EJ and Aday (with Bam) hit the stage. This led into their set, which gave me another 20-minute break. I went backstage and drank some water. I-Dog was waiting back there with his camera, and he interviewed me about how the show was going so far (everything was lovely). I was getting a little nervous, however, because the band had stepped out earlier and weren’t back yet, and they would be needed soon. I called Dave the bass player on the cell, and he said they were just coming back to the club. So I told them to meet me backstage. As soon as EJ and Aday finished their set, the band was on stage setting up again. At this point, the crowd was like, “ahhh… a band? What are they doing here?” They had no idea what was about to hit them.

Timid got back on stage to keep the crowd entertained while the band got into position and made sure the levels were good. Once they were ready, I hit the stage and said, “The album may be called I Am Hip Hop… but tonight, I’m a rock star!” With that, the lead guitar riff from “Homegirls” (produced by Domingo) rang through the club, and whoever had stepped outside for a cigarette or went to the bar came back upstairs in a hurry to see what was going on. This was the finale… Pizon performing the songs off his new album with a live band.

I did “Homegirls, ” “Say Goodbye, ” “Angel Wings, ” “Sittin’ On the Bench, ” “Four Letters, ” and “I Feel You” with the band. Before each joint, I told the story of what it meant and how it played into the album, which takes me through my progression as not only an artist, but as a human being throughout the past few years of my life. For “Angel Wings, ” I was joined on stage by Linda for the chorus; for “Sittin’ On the Bench” and “Four Letters, ” I was joined on stage by Nashirk. Guitars, drums, bass, backup singers, MCs, hypemen… this was no longer a “show” but a full-fledged CONCERT EXPERIENCE. Finally, EJ and Aday retured to the stage for the last joint of the night: the “Give It Up” posse cut off my album, played by the band, featuring all four of the artists that performed sets earlier. There could have been no better way to end off the night.

Well, that’s not entirely true. We still hadn’t had the cake.

The show ended at 11:50 PM (remember, we had to be done by midnight), and we took it downstairs to eat the enormous cake and keep the party going. The load was finally off my shoulders, and I was finally able to relax. I sold some more CDs and t-shirts, signed some autographs, took some pictures, and had some fun. Even though I was dead tired and had no voice left, I felt great. The best night of my career was over, and although going in I was a little scared that I wasn’t going to want to continue doing music after this (because how could I top an event like that), I knew at that moment that this was a milestone, and as great as that night was, it was only going to get bigger and better in the future. We packed a club out with no flyers (strictly MySpace, radio promotion, and word of mouth). Next time, we’ll sell out a larger club, and step it up even more. But until then, this is something to be proud of. The night was an overwhelming success; my pockets were not mad at me at all, and neither was anyone who came through. Just check my comments if you don’t believe me.Believe it or not, I got up early on Sunday and took my Houston peoples sightseeing around Manhattan. This was their first time in NY, so they wanted to see the tourist attractions. We took a cruise around the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, and lower Manhattan, then hit up Times Square and Rockefeller Center. After a brief excursion to EOW (famous Hip Hop open mic in NYC), we went to Wynter Star from Labirynth’s birthday party at Negril Village. Being a co-promoter of 12.02 and a fan of my music, she was still excited about what transpired the night before. Her exact words were, “That was the concert event of the year… I was bragging to my peoples about it all day today.” Those who picked up my album the night before were also impressed, and it was a main topic of discussion on Sunday night. For those wondering, it will be available in stores shortly. Give me a few days, and I will hit you with the info of where you can pick it up.

After partying hard on Sunday (I felt like it was my birthday celebration too, because on Saturday I was so focused on the show), EJ and I got back to Timid’s crib at about 6 AM (everyone else had either caught their flight home, gotten on the bus, or went to sleep). I didn’t even bother driving home, because I knew I’d have to bring EJ and Bam back to La Guardia on Monday afternoon. So I crashed on Timid’s couch, and got up at around noon to get dudes to the airport on time. That’s why it took me until Tuesday to recover. Actually, I’ve been moving kind of slow all week, but it was more than worth it. We’re planning another big concert for April. What’s the occasion? We don’t need one. Just make sure you’re in New York for that one, or you’ll be feeling like a dumbass for missing out again (like you are now, unless you were there… in which case you can’t wait to do it again).

To everyone who supported… thanks for the love. I can’t begin to express how much it means to me. I feel like the first phase of my career is now complete… it’s time to take this thing to the next level.

Holla at ya boy,
-Pi

* Maria did get injured pretty bad, but after a successful surgery she is now on the road to recovery and should be able to walk again in the near future. Let’s keep her in our prayers. For those wondering what happened to Analyze, he also missed the show due to his father’s recent death. Despite these unfortunate circumstances, we carried on and made those who couldn’t be there proud.

MySpace comments left about 12.02.06:

“Your CD Jamn…Your Stage Performance Is Off The Chisel. I appreciate all the luv you showed me while I was out there….we gotta do it again…..til then Keep Blazing the MIC!”"A-YO, thanx for havin a dude up @ ur party man, enjoyed myself….i need to get ur album cuz i 4got to buy one….u know i dont use pay-pal…call me old skool…lol…holla @ me”

“Hey Pi… Just comin thru to say… THANK YOU

For everything… We had a WONDERFUL weekend!!! New York is DEFINATELY WASSUP!!!… The album release party was off the chain & you guys did a GREAT job!… Cant wait to come back… but Thanks Again for makin our trip a memorable one! Much Luv”

“Hope you had an awesome time at your b-day! Awesome songs!! you worked real hard for this, I hope you make it big one day!!”

“hey pizon,

great album release party man, i had a great time. get at me soon.”

“yo we had a good time the other night man…holla at us let us know how it finished up ….”

“PIZON! You’re shit was soooo hot!!! I’m not frontin! You guys put on a hot concert!!! The band was OFF THE CHAIN! Very sucessful! If you’ll weren’t there it was your lost…it was FIRE!!!! I love Drunk by the way!”

Big ups to The Council for winning the opening act contest and rocking at my album release/b-day party last Saturday. Here’s their recap, taken from their blog. Enjoy:

So its the next moring after the Pizon album release party, and we sit here thinking it was a good night. We met up at the Council Lab, Skells, Les, Dawn, Julia and left around 6:30. Figuring it would take us a lil over an hour to get to the show, which was at 8:00 we planned ahead and gave us some time to get there. No Traffic except the Motha Fucking George Washington, which if you from NY you know about 87 and the GW. After going over the Triborough Bridge and down the BQE, we arived at 31st. After a couple of false turns wasted gas and time, we finaly found Jackson ave. If someone would of told us its by the Pulaski Bridge we would of been there probably sooner. So we arive at The Creek and The Cave, they scratch our name of the list and we move inside. At this time its around 8:30 and Pizon and his crew was setting everthing up and getting ready. Pi told us we would hit the stage around 9:00. which was cool, so we diped down stairs to get a Heniekeen in the system, and make rounds introducing ourselves. Looking around we see, The Casino Ryme Family playing pool. These are the cats we beat in the competition to get the show. We figured it was a good look for hip hop since east coast is back on the rise, So we let them get busy after us. Our homegirl Dawn wants to play some pool so Les and her played a game against Casino. After the pool game, Pi showed us the backstage, which you had to leave the club, go around the back and up a fire excape through the lil doorway. Kinda gangsta but on some real hip hop shit. After about another hour we finaly got introduced to hit the stage. As an opening act, your spot is the tuffest, you need to get the crowd popping, i mean the last song played before we came to the stage was Jay-Z and Beyonce record, so if that not a hard slot to follow we dont know what is. The First song came on was “Monsta” very high engery song with alot of potent words and ryme play, the crowd seem to be enjoying it they hands was in the air rocking and swinging so we was off to a good start. After Monsta came “We Be TC” a real street record and alot more energy. Finally we endend our set with “Diddy Bop”! Figuring this was the song that got us here we had to perform it. A, 7 minute set goes real quick …after “Diddy Bop” we introduced the Casino Ryme Family to show them love. They had the other 7 minuttes to the show, them niggaz traveled 3.5 hours to get there, on some real dedication shit. Les’s Phone was ringing off the hook after we got off stage, his cusin and her friend were lost and going into long Island (no not that way, this way..lol). As Pi got ready to take the stage We went out for a quick bogie and see Our DJ.. Face Arive. Slaming a bottle of henny right on the street corner getin his, Skells came out and so did Casino, everyone feeling good off they drink we played the corner took some pics on some real hollywood shit. Pi was inside with a live band Ringing off the song “Homegirls” from his album. As the night closed we gave love to everyone and bounced. Following Face to the BQE doing close to a 100mph on the sidestreet and thinking this could be the new version of Crash Music again, we get over the Triborough and half way home we stoped and got some grub and an extra Henikeen for the road. All in all we made it home safe and it was a good night. thanks to everyone who showed love to us there and on myspace. Lets DO IT AGAIN>..INTENSIVE CARE UNIT NEXT!!!!!!!!!!

1 Comment | Show Recaps | Tagged: , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Pizon

Show Recap: Karma Lounge, NYC

June 23, 2008


Show date: October 3, 2006
@ Karma Lounge
New York, NY

Watching the video footage from tonight’s show (thanks Josh!), all I can say is… Jesus. We killed it.

Anyone who thought I was going to phone my performance in tonight because I’m focusing on 12/2 left the Karma Lounge with their foot planted firmly in their mouth. When will y’all learn? I put my all into everything I do.

As you are well aware, a Pizon show doesn’t go down without some kind of drama. I spent my morning taking care of my grandma, who hurt her leg last night and couldn’t walk today. Horrible timing for that to happen, because I had so much running around to do (no pun intended) in order to get everything straight for the performance. Nonetheless, I got everything done in time and was good to go.

My first time at the Karma Lounge… it’s a hookah bar, y’all! Right there on 1st Avenue. Never been to one in NY before (I don’t smoke), so that was neat. The show was downstairs, and it looked grimey as hell. Think Fight Klub meets The Shelter from 8 Mile. With hookahs lining the walls. Fuckin’ incredible… I loved it. This was that real gritty underground shit (literally).

More drama (with a little bit of action adventure thrown in the mix) came when it was discovered that the club was in need of a connector piece for the second mic. Since all the Radio Shacks in downtown Manhattan were already closed, Timid and I had to hop in the Pi-mobile and trek from 1st and 3rd to Lex and 85th – that Radio Shack closed at 9. We left at 8:30. 82 streets up and 3 avenues over in 30 minutes. We just made it in time. I double-parked in front of the store, Timid ran in and bought the piece, and we drove back to Karma. Side mission completed.

Back at the club, me and Timid set the night off, because who can get a party started like Pizon and Timid? (It should also be noted that an online poll determined who would open this show, and Timid and I won by a landslide, with 50% of the total votes.)

After our intro provided by Herve Villechaize, I broke into I Feel You, a cut off my album produced by my homie Jusbeats of Versatile Music Productions. My mans got beats on the new Cam’Ron album, but more importantly than that, they made my LP with this song. Lyrically, it’s also one of my favorite joints on the album. The second verse in particular really drives the central theme of the record home. Without giving too much away, let’s just say there’s a reason I chose to perform this song at the Karma Lounge. Next, we went into Timid’s Free (Remix) featuring Cee-Lo. I know y’all bump that on his myspace page all day. It’s also one of my favorites:

We should be ashamed that
Mr. Wendell is still here, we spent billions to go there
The solution is so clear, but not profitable – we don’t care
Polluting our own air, getting the truth is so rare
Institutionalized by fear, for the future – it’s not fair
If we’re teaching history in order to learn from the past
Then it seems, in the present we’re presenting the wrong class

Church! Those lyrics send chills up my spine every time I hear them.

After the crowd favorite Just Being Me, it was time to step aside and let some of the other artists do their thing. We’d be back. Afterall, we’re the stars of this show – we may open, but that don’t mean we shouldn’t also close. It’s all about that primacy and recency.

I wanna take this time to give props to the other artists who did their thing tonight. Dev and Sug Mac killed it as usual… Scorpio… Bumpy Johnson… N.A.N.… all y’all held it down. So much talent confined to such a small space!

Finally, it was time to come back out and take it home. Let’s not waste any more time… I promised a special guest, and I delivered.

Ladies and gentlemen… SKHEME!!!

Even Timid had to get out the way as Skheme emerged from the shadows and we busted into our third-ever live performance of Do You Ever (the last time was last October – one year ago). And yes, it’s confirmed… Skheme will be performing a full set at my album release party / b-day bash on 12/2.

And for old times’ sake, we ended the show with Hip Hop 2 Me / Hip Hop 2 Me (Remix). Pizon and Timid, with the new and improved Skheme remaining on stage for the assist. It don’t get no better than that.

BIG UPS as always to the whole Labirynth for continuing to help push this movement forward. Everyone involved, all the artists, all the fans, everyone who’s reading this right now. You can’t even imagine the state of bliss I’m in right now.

I fucking love this shit, man.

Leave a Comment » | Show Recaps | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by Pizon

Show Recap: Parkside Lounge, NYC

June 23, 2008


Show date: September 19, 2006
@ Parkside Lounge
New York, NY

Zero hours of sleep going into my last show of the summer. How was I going to pull this off? It was the afternoon of Tuesday, September 19, and the last time I had slept was the night of Sunday, September 17. I desperately needed some rest, but time wasn’t on my side. There was still much to get done before the big show, which as EJ says must… go… on. This is the life you wanted, right Pi? Fuck it… I knew I had to make it to that stage or die trying. And I wasn’t ready to die just yet.

So I hopped in the whip and hit up Modell’s. Afterall, what’s a season finale without a fresh new outfit? Having grown up in Queens, I was proud that the Mets won the division title on Monday, so I decided to cop a Pedro Martinez jersey with the matching fitted. Even after knowing I was wearing a hat to the show, I wanted to get my haircut, because, well, I need to not only look, but feel fly on stage. However, by the time I got to the barber shop, all I was feeling was cranky.

I don’t wanna rap tonight… I just wanna SLEEP!!!

Luckily it was only a 20-minute performance… As I reminded myself that and exhaled a sigh of relief, my 2way vibrated to alert me that I had a new voicemail. I called it up, and it was Wynter, the show’s promoter: “Hey Pi, just wanted to let you know that we had some artists cancel on us, so we need you and Timid to go twice as long tonight.” As much as it sucked to hear that at that moment, the consummate artist in me considered that good news.

Let’s just hope I don’t collapse sometime before or during the show.

So I got my clothes, my haircut… I was ready to go. Well, kinda. I still hadn’t slept in 2 days. And since the performance was now extended, we’d have to put together a long set on a moment’s notice. It was now 5 PM, and I realized I hadn’t eaten anything all day. After scoffing down two cheeseburgers and fries from McDonald’s (word to my all around healthy lifestyle), I called Timid to ask him if I could take a nap in his apartment. I was already in his hood because that’s where my barber is, and we’d be rehearsing and leaving from there later anyway. He didn’t pick up his phone, so I parked the car on the street, reclined my seat back, and closed my eyes. Just as I fell asleep, his call back woke me up. He’d be in the office until 6, but said I could pick up the key from him and sleep at his crib until he got back. As I layed down on the leather couch in his living room, I thought to myself, “I really hope he hasn’t done anything freaky on this.”

I might have gotten 20 minutes of sleep before he got in and we had to start going over the set. I tried to drag the nap out longer, but it was time to get to business. We put together a sick show, burned the CD, and started driving into the city. Well, I was the one doing the driving. It would be too easy to let the guy who had a full night’s sleep drive. I didn’t care, though. I was in rare form: delirious from not getting enough sleep, yet convinced that my short nap was enough.

Sleep is for mortals. I’m Pizon, BITCH.

Yeah, I was loopy. Switching four lanes, I opened the sunroof and told Timid to scream out “money ain’t a thang.” Then I rolled down the windows and blasted Spanish music, and waved back to everyone signaling for taxis on the street as if they were waving at me.

We pulled up to the Parkside Lounge and found a spot right there on Houston Street. I hopped out the Lex with a superstar swagger. I was looking and feeling fly. One of the female performers who shall remain nameless said, “Damn, you look good tonight, pa.” You already know.

Now, here comes the fun part.

Pacing ourselves for a long set, we were going to start slow and bring out the bangers later. But someone started screaming for me to do the song “(Head From My) Homegirls” and I’ve learned to give people what they want, so I went right into it. It was probably the most energetic performance of that song ever — Timid climbed on top of a piano, and I literally leaped off the stage into the crowd and bounced all over the place without missing a word. Well, I guess that’s not so hard when you’ve got the whole place shouting out the words with you. After the song, I was in physical pain from giving more energy than I actually had in my body.

Then… we introduced our special guest. Soce, the mothefuckin’ Elemental Wizard. If you didn’t know, he’s an openly gay MC — but he’s dope as hell! He’s brought us out to rock at his shows before, so we had to return the favor. And what better time than after a song about getting head from your homegirls? We ran the beat back and had him spit his own version of the song, called “Suckin’ Dick.”

Suckin’ dick, suckin’ dick, suckin’ dick, WHAT?
Suckin’ dick, suckin’ dick, suckin’ dick, WHAT?
Suckin’ dick, suckin’ dick, suckin’ dick, WHAT?
Suckin’ dick, suckin’ dick, suckin’ dick, WHAT?

The song is actually a metaphor about having to kiss ass to get ahead in the industry, but I think most people were just fixated on the fact that there was a gay rapper on stage proudly telling everyone he sucks dick. It also just so happened that there were a number of individuals in the crowd who were recently released from prison, so I guess Soce’s song hit a nerve with them.

We were later told that people thought Timid and I were gay, because we had a gay rapper on stage with us.

What?

It’s funny, because we talk about girls in our songs all the time, but the second we associate with a gay dude, we’re fags too. I find that hilarious. I later pointed out to Timid that no one asked to take a picture with us after the show, and he said, “Nah… I think they’re pretty much done with us after tonight.” HAHAHA!! I love it how we can push people’s buttons sometimes, but we always get people talking. And thinking. And they love us for that.

Eight of us gathered at the Spanish restaurant down the block from the club and talked about what had went down. I took out my video camera and shot some good footage for my DVD. One of the girls who came to the show to see us lived in Brooklyn and was going to take the train by herself at 3 in the morning, so I offered her a ride home. By the time I dropped Timid off and got myself home, the sun was coming up. It was already Wednesday, and I’d slept a total of 20 minutes since Sunday. But it was all very much worth it. This is what I do. This is who I am.

Leave a Comment » | Show Recaps | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by Pizon

Show Recap: Crown Heights Park Jam

June 23, 2008


Show date: August 12, 2006
@ PS 191
Brooklyn, NY

Man. If y’all missed that show tonight… You know what, I can’t even call it a show. I don’t think I’ve ever felt better about myself than I do right now.

The joint was in a school yard in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. PS 191 on Sterling and Buffalo. The stage was built out of plywood and assembled before our eyes. The electricity was run via extension cord from someone’s house. No security… no bouncers… I’m talkin we outside, in the middle of the ghetto, mics in hand, let’s do this.

The place was packed, and as time went on, more heads started coming in. Who needs to pass out flyers when you’ve got loud speakers thumping in the open air? The entire hood knew what was up. Kids… teens… young adults… parents… grandparents… People in nearby buildings even climbed out windows and watched from their fire escapes. Does it get more Hip Hop than that?

When the promoter (shout out to The General) asked the kids who their favorite rapper was, one of them said Cassidy, to which she promptly responded, “Cassidy? Does Cassidy come to the hood and rap for you like this? I didn’t think so.” That sent chills up my spine, cause honestly… it’s one thing to perform at Hip Hop clubs in front of people who can see shows every day. But to do something like this… I mean, this is how Hip Hop started. The park jams. Everyone coming together, putting all the BS on hold, and having a good time. This is why I treasure Hip Hop so much. I was actually feeling so charitable at that point that I decided to change up my performance to make it more wholesome for the kids (I was later thanked by a grandmother for making that decision).

AND I ROCKED THAT SHIT. I noticed most people there were repping Brownsville and Sterling in particular, so the usual “where Brooklyn at” chants were replaced by “say Brownsville!!!” and “Sterliiiiiiing!” I think that invoked the crowd to near-riot conditions. Over the years, I’ve learned what I need to do to move crowds, and it’s always the little things like that. After I got off stage, a 2-year-old girl came up to me and said “that was good” and gave me a high-5. Then an elderly man in a wheelchair told me he loved my rhymes and that I was going places. Looks like I’ve got all bases covered.

Just wanna shout out The General (again) and N.A.N., my dude Timid, Agallah from Dipset, Jam Master Jay’s nephew (sorry I didn’t get your name), and everyone else who rocked tonight. That was a truly special moment that I’ll never forget.

It’s good to be Pizon!!!

Leave a Comment » | Show Recaps | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by Pizon

Show recap: Philadelphia, PA

June 23, 2008


Show date: June 19, 2006
@ Undisclosed location
Philadelphia, PA

Sup sup. It’s 7 AM right now and as usual I figured I’d hit y’all with the “Pizon just came home from doing a show but he’s too excited to go to sleep so he’ll tell you about his night” thing.

First of all, this was my first time doing a show in Philly. The last time I was there, I was throwing up cheesesteak in a toll booth after drinking too much at Chrome (do NOT try to hold one of those joints down if you’re liquored up). The time before that, Analyze hit a pothole while driving my car and busted the tire. So… my luck in Philly hadn’t been the greatest. But I always loved that city anyway. It really is the City of Brotherly Love. You can say hi to someone on the street and they’ll say hi back to you. How crazy is that?

OK, so getting there was no problem. About two hours from NYC. No biggie. We actually got to the club before the promoter did (shout out to Jalima!). When we walked up to the spot, our dude Brian from Baltimore was waiting outside with a few of his mans. That’s love! Their drive was almost as long as ours. Now the pressure to put on a good show was really on.

I don’t wanna give too much away about the actual show, cause we might wanna do the set again, and damn it, you need to get your ass out to one. But I will say that we killed it. It was actually a Timid solo gig, so it was mostly his material with me backing him up, but I got to do my “Hip Hop 2 Me” verse, and our chemistry on stage was bananas as usual. I was supposed to perform some solo stuff in our second set, but due to time constraints that didn’t go down. Honestly, I wasn’t even mad, because by that point it was about 2 AM and I knew I had a long drive ahead of me.

But not so fast…

We decided to hit the highway and pick up some food at a rest area on the way home. Timid called Brian to thank him and his mans for coming out. He told us they were eating at the Wawa right by the club. Hmmm… OK, change of plans. U-turn, back to the club, let’s meet up with them and get some food there. As we were walking back to our cars, an SUV pulled up with three girls in it, who started screaming “TIMID! PIZON! YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME!” Worrrrrd? They were trying to get us to go to the afterparty at one of their houses. Timid was on some “nah, we gotta get back home” shit. I played the “well, I would, but TIMID HERE would rather go home” card. Yeah, we ended up following them to the afterparty. With Brian and friends following us.

After driving around Philly for what seemed like a long ass time, our 3-vehicle caravan finally pulled up at someone’s house. There were like 20 people there, and they were about to start barbecuing. It was close to 4 AM by that point. I think this is some sort of weekly ritual for these people. At the house, we were greeted with more love… Everyone went out of their way to tell us they were feeling what we did on stage, which is always good to hear.

Fast forward some…

I knew getting home would be a bitch, because after following those girls around the city, I had NO IDEA where I was anymore. Luckily, someone knew how to get back to the Pennsylvania Turnpike, and I jotted down the directions in my Treo. As I was driving and reading them off at the same time, a stop sign crept up on me and I kinda half-stopped, half-rolled through it, RIGHT IN FRONT OF A COP.

Just so we’re clear… It seems that EVERY TIME Timid and I are in the car together, we get pulled over. Tonight was no exception. Except, this time, the cop wasn’t a dick. He actually let me off without a story, or a ticket! Just told me to be more careful next time. See, this is why I love Philly.

By the time we got close to NY, the sun was already up. But wait… apparently NY didn’t want me back, cause just as I was about to cross the Goethals Bridge, I ran over a big chunk of metal that got stuck underneath my car, and was making sparks as I was dragging it on the pavement. DAMN! I stopped and put the hazards on. Now, keep in mind that the bridge is right in front of me, so we’re on a two lane road with absolutely NO shoulder or median, cars swerving trying not to hit us, and a big piece of metal stuck under my car that won’t budge. I decided I would try to lift the car up while Timid removed the object. Hahaha, what was I thinking. OK, next plan… Try to jack the car off the ground. The problem was that the piece was more on the right side, and we were in the left lane, so there was no way we could get to the right side of the car without getting run over. Thankfully, someone called the cops, and for the second time tonight, I saw sirens. Except this time, I was happy to see them. He parked right in the middle of the two lanes, blocking traffic to the bridge, and we were able to get to the right side of the car to remove the chunk of metal.

Another crazy night… It was close to 7 when I got home… Now it’s close to 8… The exhaustion is starting to kick in. I think I am going to place myself in a well-deserved coma for several hours.

Leave a Comment » | Show Recaps | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by Pizon

« Previous Entries
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.