Ladies and Gentleman, I am proud to present our latest artist in our Artist Spotlight series - Tona.
Hailing from Toronto, Canada, DJ Alamo had the chance to speak with him a few weeks ago all about skills as an MC and what it was like come to Canada from Africa. Tona was recently nominated for a Stylus award for single of the year for his track "Dial Tone." Toronto
To this date, Tona has made a numerous amounts
of features and also has three mixtapes underneath his belt, and a 2007
release, which was the Ep, entitled
“Don’t Holla” so he as definitely made a contribution to Hip Hop in Toronto. The most recent project is an LP titled “The
Rap Game Makeova” and will be the 5th major release off the Da District
Entertainment, his own label.
As you know, the Undisputed Hype Man Throwdown is on. Artists have been
calling the WeMix Hot Line to lay down their best 16 Bars for a shot to be
Luda’s Hype Man on a remix of his hit song “Undisputed”.
The calls and the rhymes have been right on. We’re also getting reports
of problems with the phone lines.
Relax. It might not sound as great as you want on the phone, but that’s
just an error in the system playback. We’re getting the audio loud and
clear on this end. Luda is already plugged in and tasting the product.
If you’re worried that the system isn’t giving you the best chance to shine,
there are 2 things you can do:
1) Call back and give it another try. You can
enter as many times as you want - just make sure to give as much info as you
can so we know who you are.
2) You can also record your own audition and enter it
into the contest directly at WeMix, just like any of our other contests.
We’re gonna listen to all the entries, so whatever you’re comfortable
with, go get it.
Thanks for staying up on the site, and make sure you keep it here because there
are many other opportunities coming.
I know election day is over, and we can now call Barack Obama, Mr. President, but I thought you may be interested in check out what Luda did on Election day.
Have you seen the latest WeMix contest? Last week we brought you the Utah Jazz Mountain Jam, and this week, it's ALL about LUDACRIS!
Do you really think you have what it takes to be on a record with Ludacris?
You either have the skills or you don't!
Show us and you might get
featured on a remix of the "Undisputed" single. Call 888.598.3534 and
lay down your 16 bars over the phone.
You can try as many times as
you'd like. The 5 finalists will be chosen by Luda himself and the WeMix
community will decide the ultimate winner. What are you waiting for???
Remember to pick up Ludacris' new album "Theater of the Mind" on November 25th.
I'm sure by now, you all know that it's Election Day in the United State.
The WeMix staff just wanted to URGE you to GO OUT and VOTE!!!
It's very important to have YOUR voice heard!
I just wanted to highlight some of the WeMix artists who wanted their voices to be heard by making songs about the election. These tracks to not reflect the views of WeMix.com or WeMix LLC, but they do reflect the views of these particular users.
And this spotlight is all about.... SNEAKY PETE!!!
Check out our boy Sneaky Pete. You can listen to his interview w/ DJ Alamo right here.
Just as a reminder, we're going to be doing our best to feature 1-2 artists per week in our Artist Spotlight Podcast. So, just keep an eye out, because you never know, you may be next!!!!
Also, Sneaky has a new album coming out REAL soon
Also, check out this clip from when Sneaky Pete opened up for LUDA at the Webby Awards After-party.
I just wanted to post a reminder that at WeMix, we are open to ALL opinions. We are committed to YOU and what YOU think, so we don't want to sensor that. We don't believe it it. Whatever your opinion is, you are entitled to it.
We recognize that not everyone is going to love WeMix. And that's okay! Just don't be afraid to tell us if you think we can improve something or if you think we rock.
With that being said, all we ask of you is to remember what WeMix is and what it is about.
This is matt again. Been reading the blog posts - good bad and ugly. We love the passion and the feedback, so keep it coming. if we don't hear from you we can't make this place any better.
A few quick thoughts and ideas:
1 Perception is reality. If people out there think WeMix is a scam, or that we're not working hard enough, we need to hear it and we need to respond. All I can say is, we have never charged artists a dime for anything at the site. Lots of sites out there are doing that... there's a fee to get your song "analyzed", whatever that means... or a charge to set up an account to sell music. Not here.
2 WeMix is a partnership. Our end of the deal is simple: we will provide as many opportunities as we can for new artists to elevate their careers and put a little $ in their pockets, even if we can't afford $25,000 advances like some people expect. But artists need to work at it too! You can't expect everything to happen over night. Even if you don't win a contest, or even if someone else has more plays at WeMix, that doesn't mean we are giving up on you. So please don't give up on us. Try another contest, try building more fans - cause next time you might just win that shot.
3 There's more coming. For real. In the next few weeks we are launching at least 3 new contests and competitions with real upside and opportunity. We're also going to launch WeMix distribution channels at several big websites with a chance to get ringtones, photos, and videos out there - and to promote your music to bigger audiences.
There might not be a whole lot of money in it up front - for you or for us. But we're giving you the chance to build your fan base, expose your talent to new audiences and collaborate with each other.
Most of all, we're giving you respect and a bigger slice of the pie than anyone else.
So hang with us. Give us some time, and see what happens.
There's recently been a lot of back and forth about the site. A lot of comments and ideas and questions about what we're doing and also what we're not doing for artists at this site.
We've spent a lot of time trying to create as many opportunities for our community as possible. We had the Torii Hunter contest which produced a great new song - and national spotlight for Tazuh and Ripchord, the artists who made it. We're about to choose finalists for the Mike Shinoda contest, and we're launching several big new contests in the next few days.
Contests are important because it's the same game for everyone. Even if you don't have 1,000,000 plays at the site, you can enter a contest, win it, and fast-track your musical career. It's about quality and talent. So don't get caught up in the hype about how many plays you have at WeMix - take advantage of the contests and opportunities, because that's still the best way for you to get your music onto the scene.
But WeMix isn't just contests. You're telling us that you want more ways to communicate with each other, and you need more ways to get props and recognition.
We're listening. And here's what else is coming:
* Yesterday we launched Artist Spotlight Podcasts, hosted by DJ Alamo. Our first featured artist is Phokuz, who has already won our first Open Mic Throwdown and continues to do it for WeMix at all times. To hear the podcast with Phokuz, click here.
* We are also building more artist spotlight features into the homepage so that new talent can promote themselves to the community - look for WeMix Artist Billboards right on the homepage. And if you know a hot artist, you have to tell us and tell us about it so we can get them a shot in the spotlight.
* Also, this very blog is about to change. Due to popular demand, it's no longer going to be Luda's blog. It's going to become the WeMix Blog, controlled and run by artists who are really feeling the site. We're still figuring out how to open it up to as many people as we can. As soon as its done we're gonna give you the power to promote artists and make public comments about what we can do better.
* In the next few weeks, we're also launching the WeMix Widget which will enable artists to take the WeMix experience off site - to myspace, facebook, and other communities.
* We're also planning to build a WeMix Shoutout Board where artists can promote themselves and put up digital flyers about upcoming gigs, songs, and collabs. Just another public venue for you to communicate.
* Finally, don't be surprised if Luda and WeMix sign an artist or two by the end of this year - we have our eyes on people and are getting ready to make some noise.
This is just the first step toward making this a better site. You spoke, and we heard you. Remember that it takes time to make everything happen. We're still growing, and more than ever we need your help to make it work. Don't ever forget that.
We’ve decided to do a new kind of artist spotlight. You are
all very familiar with Luda’s Picks as well as Who’s Next and all the other
categories on the home page. But we want you to be able to learn a little more
about some of your fellow WeMix members, so we have decided to feature hot and
upcoming WeMix artists with individual PODCASTS!!!
Bex (your lovely site manager) and DJ Alamo, of the hip hop group Brand Nubian, have
been working hand in hand to get this all together for you. Each artist is
interviewed by DJ Alamo, who gets all the answers to the questions YOU want to
know.
Each week we will do our best to feature 2 artists in the
Artist Spotlight Podcast. We have decided to kick off our ASP with none other
than top WeMix artist PHOKUZ! So check it out! Right here! Right now! You can listen to DJ Alamo's interview with PHOKUZ!!!
After almost a decade - Queen Latifah is back in the game and coming out with a new album. She has been really focused on acting and pop music, but come December, the old school rapper Queen Latifah will be BACK!!!!
And guess who is on her album? That's right, none other than our own LUDACRIS! You probably also know that he's on Jennifer Hudson's track "Pocketbook" from her latest album.
Also - check out this interview on Sixshot.com about DTP's newest artist - I-20.
Here's a video of Luda in the studio making Theater of the Mind
And here's a bit from the Vibe Yardfest in Atlanta this past weekend
This is the second part of the Yardfest.
Lastly, Luda has taken on ANOTHER new role - as a cap designer. He just released a limited edition of a New Era hat. The cap is totally designed by Luda, the signature black fitted will show-off his hometown team Atlanta Braves "A" style crest along the side-front left glistening with both half-clear and half-black crystals on their own side.The cap also features red piping plus his iconic "Disturbing Tha
Peace" logo within the flocked lining and under visor flip along with
the "Just Getting Started" logo resting in the back.
Despite the rapper's vast fan base, there will only be 200 caps available worldwide and will sell for $125. It will be released on October 17.
Check out this AWESOME article about Luda's new album "Theater of the Mind" - and what BET is called his "Lyrical Supremacy."
He said" “Whenever it comes to the competition level,
I’m just letting people know that I’m back in the game, I’m getting
healthier, I’ve been working out, I have healthy mind and my flow is
all the way right,” he clarified. As far as his placement on any of hip
hop’s “lyrical” lists, Ludacris candidly claims Theater of the Mind
will relieve all non believers of their misgivings, “This album is out
to prove exactly that point; that there are certain places on Top 5 and
Top 10 lists that I need to be and Theater of the Mind is definitely
proving that.”
Maybe Luda isn't on fire...exactly. But his pool house was yesterday.
According to the Associated Press, yesterday his pool home was destroyed by a fire outside Atlanta. Luda was out of town when tehre fire happened, although one relative was in the main home at the time. The fire was put out in about 30 minutes but destroyed the entire structure. No one was injured.
More pix here from Luda's video shoot for Undisputed.
Hittin' the bag:
Hittin' the Mic:
Hittin' the streets:
And check out Bam Bam's one-two:
Undisputed is another track off "Theater of the Mind", Luda's upcoming new album. The track and video showcase Luda's re-entry into "the ring".
The video is directed by Parris who also shot label mate I-20's videos "Down South", "Flickin' Ashes" and "Come See Me." The video is themed after the Oscar De La Hoya and Floyd Mayweather series 24/7 and was shot in Las Vegas.
The video is gonna drop at WeMix in a few days, so keep it right here.
Bex here and I wanted to tell you about the SWEET opportunity that I just heard about. If you are in the New York city area, and want a chance to perform live in front of a huge rock audience...check this out!
The story? MTV2 and Time Warner Cable are presenting Rock Battle NYC - to give local bands a once-in-a-lifetime change to open up for the ROCK BAND LIVE TOUR featuring Panic at the Disco, Dashboard Confessional and more!!!!
To have you chance, click here to check out the contest and enter.
All you have to do is rally your friends and fam to get them to vote - and the top 20 artists will battle it out in NYC, which will be shown on MTV2. ACT now because the artists entry period is only until September 12.
