Chamillionaire & Paul Wall: Texan Heavyweights Release Back To Back Albums In June

Chamillionaire Venom on Chamillitary/Universal Republic arrives June 22.
Paul Wall Heart of a Champion on Asylum/Swishahouse arrives June 29.

Chamillionaire Venom announced earlier last month.

Paul Wall Heart of a Champion announced today, press release below.

April 20, 2010, Burbank, CA – Fresh off a month-long tour with former partner-in-rhyme, Chamillionaire, Houston rapper, Paul Wall, is all set to drop his 4th major label album, Heart of a Champion, on June 29th through SwishaHouse/Asylum Records. Almost half of the tracks featured on the album are produced by long-time friend and Expensive Taste band-mate, Travis Barker. The album will also feature several songs from Expensive Taste, the group which includes Skinhead Rob (Transplants) in addition to Paul and Travis.

Houston-based production duo, Beanz N Kornbread, are credited with the majority of the tracks not produced by Travis, including lead single "I'm on Patron", a lyrical documentary of a feeling that most of us have experienced - and greatly regretted the next day - that of simply having too much fun of the liquid variety. "I'm On Patron" is the perfect accompaniment to that 'blame it on the alcohol' kind of night and sure to be a party staple.

Feature duties for "Heart of a Champion" include a diverse list of cast members including Jim Jones, Yelawolf and Raekwon but do not ignore Paul's Houston roots; Bun B, Chamillionaire, Slim Thug, Devin the Dude and Lil' Keke each get their turn at the mic. Another Houston feature is Johnny Dang aka TV Johnny with whom Paul Wall shares a grills and jewelry business which caters to A-list celebrities and average Joes alike.

Always an advocate for the Texas music scene, Paul Wall was recently tapped as President of The Recording Academy's Texas Chapter. In this role, he hopes to educate and enlist the help of Texas musicians from every genre, to ensure that the state is well represented in the Grammy's voting body. The natural politician in Paul Wall makes him the perfect candidate for this role. He embodies his moniker, "The Peoples Champ."

With two #1 album debuts, a Platinum plaque and a Grammy nomination under his belt, not to mention having some of the hottest celebs in the nation rocking his signature diamond-encrusted grills at one point or another, Paul Wall is the embodiment of the Hip Hop success story. His journey began humbly enough as a promoter for hometown indie label, SwishaHouse, and culminated with him being largely instrumental in the growth of the Houston rap movement and its rise into the national arena.

There have been a total of 7 albums since then and the journey continues with no sign of slowing down. 10 years in and Paul Wall remains in the game and in the hearts of the people. Without question, he truly has 'The Heart of a Champion.'

Bun B Profiled For SXSW 2010 News Story

 

via KIAH-TV Houston 39 News

For music fans, South by Southwest is the chance to catch future stars of the music scene. But for bands, it's the chance of a lifetime that could turn them from amateurs to worldwide sensations almost overnight.

The South by Southwest Music Festival kicks off in Austin this week.

Seven of the bands officially playing are from Houston, and countless other acts will make the trip and play unofficial gigs. Musicians say just being in Austin for this is the biggest opportunity of the year.

Houston rapper Bun B has a song called "It Was All a Dream." It's about his early dream to one day be a successful rapper. After 18 years of cutting albums he's reached those successes, many of which started just down the road in Austin.

"I've gotten untold concerts around the country, my first national tour with a corporate sponsor I was able to book from South by Southwest. My first overseas tour was because promoters came to South by Southwest," said Bun B, whose real name is Bernard Freeman.

Bun B said even after all these years, getting invited to South by Southwest is still a huge honor and opportunity.

"There are opportunities out the wazzoo at this place man," said Bun B. "South by Southwest is the biggest music festival on the planet. It gives you an opportunity to perform in front of different people, people you may not have been able to perform for, so it helps you expand your sound."

Bun B takes the mic. Wednesday.

Devin The Dude 'Suite #420' Arrives April 20

via the press release

E1 Music is excited to announce the much anticipated release of Devin The Dude's appropriately titled new album, "Suite 420," on April 20th, 2010. "Suite 420" features The Odd Squad (Jugg Mugg, Devin & Rob), Smit D (originally from the Facemob), 14K, Tony Mac, Ced-B, Kory-B, School-Boy, Alpha-Bet-D with production by Mirawge & Big Baby, Mike Dean, Rob Quest, Luster Baker, C-Ray, Q-Stone, Reggie Coby, and Devin The Dude himself.

The first single, "What I Be On" will be serviced shortly.

The Houston rapper has laid down five solo albums that have highlighted his impressive storytelling skills and made him one of the most respected and sought-after artists in the industry. As one of the few emcees who have worked with the best in the underground, mainstream, East, West and South, Devin is your favorite rapper's favorite rapper.

He has released five solo albums: "The Dude" (1998), "Just Tryin' ta Live" (2002), "To tha X-Treme" (2004), "Waitin' to Inhale" (2007), and "Landing Gear" (2008).

Born in St. Petersburg, Florida and raised in Houston, Texas, Devin literally lived next door to music as a youngster. Living in a house in front of radio station WRXB in St. Petersburg, Devin found that one man's trash was another man's treasure when he'd discover and collect old records the station threw in the trash. Before long, he and his brother started pulling out their mom's record player and throwing parties in their front lawn. When he finally stumbled across Hip Hop, Devin found his first calling as a pop-locker performing for friends, family and even his elders at the neighborhood nursing home.

After his show-stealing appearances on Scarface's 1998 "My Homies" compilation, Devin dropped his solo debut "The Dude" to rave reviews including a coveted 4-mics rating in The Source, a rarity for Southern Hip Hop artists at the time. Inspired by the Quincy Jones album of the same name, "The Dude" introduced Devin as a unique voice that made you feel at ease instead of threatened.

Though the album didn't sell through the roof, "The Dude" won the hearts of both rap fans and rappers themselves. Devin found unexpected fans in Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre who not only invited Devin to appear on "F*ck You" from Dre's "Chronic 2001" album, but had him join them on their widely popular Up In Smoke Tour as well.

Dallas Hip Hop Artists Prep For NBA All-Star Game Weekend

The NBA and Hip Hop has always had a close connection. We will just see how close that connection is on February 14 in Dallas, Tx as the Mavericks play host to this year's 2010 NBA All-Star Game. As with any hosting city, the parties and events converge and literally take over the city. Dallas hip hop celebrities/hosts (Play N Skillz, Inertia, Bone, Treal Lee & Prince Rick) will not miss out on all the festivities and the in-coming celebs hitting town this weekend.

Mr. Collipark Finds Talent In Dallas, Tx With New Signees Treal Lee & Prince Rick (Interview)

via Dallas Observer

Can you tell us a little bit about the deal you've offered Treal Lee & Prince Rick?
They're signed to Collipark Music and my label deal is with Interscope Records.

What's the plan?
We're trying to play it in the middle of the road right now. You don't want to put it out there and have it burn out naturally. We're gonna blast it all over the country.

Is it a singles deal?
All deals now are singles deals.

Fair enough. But what turned you on to these guys?
I think they're entertainers. And that's what I saw from them that I didn't see from the other stuff that I saw in Dallas.

How'd you find out about them?
My brother, who's A&R for the company, was in Dallas last year, and we go back with DJ Bay Bay because of Hurricane (Chris). So Bay Bay was taking him around and showing him stuff. And he called me and he was like, 'Yo, there's this record..." And just the name of it--Mr. Hit Dat (Hoe)--it just sounded like it it had Collipark all over it. And then I went down the next weekend and I met them. To me, a record is a record. But I look for personality, showmanship, all that stuff. And we went around the city and people had love for them and all the intangible stuff that you wanna see in something that you sign.



Is it true that they drove all the way out to Atlanta to see you and you snubbed them at first?
(Laughs.) I was contacted from a guy I knew back in the day. And he told me he had a group from Dallas or whatever and they were coming to Atlanta. However, at that time, I didn't know that they were coming primarily to meet me. Second of all, I didn't know that they were driving from Dallas! And I was busy doing family stuff, so when they called me, I was like, 'Yo, man, I can't make it.' I had no idea that this was the same group. But they made it a point to let me know later that they were the guys who drove out there and stood in front of my office. When I found out, I was like, 'Oh, man! That was you!'"

What're your thoughts on the Dallas hip-hop scene as a whole?
I like it. To me, I like it because they remind of back when everybody was hungry. When you look at a market that hasn't been developed or exposed, you find a certain kind of hunger that comes with, y'know, when hip-hop was fresh. See, I'm in Atlanta so everybody is doing it here. Everybody knows that they can put a record on the radio and they're gonna get a record deal. So the creativity, the work ethic, it's not like it used to be. So when I went out to Dallas and I saw the level of support that I saw everybody giving each other and the amount of records I'd never heard before--it kind of reminded me of when I used to go to New Orleans back in the day and the bounce was the bomb. You would go into New Orleans and they'll play five local records and one national record. I like it. What I don't like [is that] it's very one-dimensional right now. (drops Big Chief's name) What I mean by one-dimensional is, you're gonna find different variations of it, but it's all basically going in one direction.

Read the full Mr. Collipark interview here:
Dallas Observer - Extended Q&A: Mr. Collipark On Dallas Hip-Hop

Killa Kyleon Ft. Z-Ro - 'Swang Real Wide'

Killa Kyleon Ft. Z-Ro - 'Swang Real Wide' produced by Sound Mob.

Download 'Swang Real Wide' courtesy of Keep It Treal here:
Killa Kyleon Ft. Z-Ro - 'Swang Real Wide'

See Z-Ro do his feature in the studio here:
Z-Ro Recording "Swang Real Wide" @Mad Studioz

Lil Flip 'Kim Kardashian' (Video)

The first single off of Lil Flip's upcoming 2010 release 'Ahead of My Time.'

Texas Rapper Chalie Boy Fills Us In On His Latest Activites

via the September 2009 press release

BATTERY RECORDS SIGNS TEXAS BREAKOUT ARTIST CHALIE BOY

NEW YORK, NY - Battery Records has signed rising hip-hop artist, Chalie Boy. The hotly sought-after artist’s first single, “I Look Good”

Neil Levine, GM and Senior Vice President of Battery Records, states “Chalie is a gifted artist who has already demonstrated his potential to breakthrough. We are now ready to nurture his talent and capitalize on a promising single that we believe can be a breakout hit.”

Chalie adds, “It feels great, I'm excited about the possibilities that lie ahead. My Dirty 3rd Records family and I look forward to Battery/Jive Records helping us take this thing to another level!” Raised in Calvert, Texas, Chalie’s musical tastes were shaped by various influences. Exposed at an early age to blues artists like Bobby Bland, B.B. King, and Johnny Taylor, he also gravitated toward the sounds of Run-DMC, Sugar Hill Gang, Grandmaster Flash and fellow Texas legends UGK. “I’m a big fan of Bun B and his whole style and how he brought words out. He’s an incredibly smart southern rapper.” Says Chalie.

Signed to local label, Dirty 3rd Records, Chalie Boy recorded the feel good song “I Look Good” in March and the video recently wrapped shooting in Houston, TX. The single is available on iTunes and all major digital providers.



Pick up Chalie Boy's - 'Greatest Hits 4' and more here:
dirty3rdstore.com

for more info click here:
Battery / Chalie Boy