All Or Nothing..Photo Recap

The All Or Nothing showcase turned out to be a success (yayyy). The fact that the crowd came to hear the performers and actually enjoyed them is what I call a successful show. When people come up to you asking who was the artist that was just on stage you KNOW the showcase served its purpose. I would like to sincerely thank EVERYONE for coming out and supporting the performers. Special Thank You to Barrel House BKLYN for sharing the artists they support with me. I won't write much about this night.. I'll let the pics tell the story!!

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Who Is Kraff Swagger?

 Recently I decided to show love to all those who deserve it and recognize the talent outside of music performers. Today I decided to recognize DJ Kraff Swagger. I first heard of Kraff exactly around this time last year through my friend WordSpit and actually got to know him personally as time passed. Having to always bump into Kraff as he dj'd many events I began to notice how hard he works and how much people just love him as a human being.  I just always wanted to hear their story on success an hard work so who brain to pick better than my own friend? lol :-p. I hope with this interview you learn something more about Kraff and get a little bit more inside a DJ's mind. P.S. I will be adding my own smart remarks in red... it's all love though lol. 

Allowing the readers to know a little bit more about you,  please
state how old you are, name, and where did you grow up.
* Age: Unknown :-p (oh brother lol)
* My name Dj Kraff Swagger (better known as just Kraff) (clearly people he's new to interviews and stating his government name lol)
* I was born an raised in Flatbush, Brooklyn.

1. So yes I do have to start off this interview with the most obvious
question of them all.. What inspired you to start dj'ing?

* Well, I've always been interested in learning how to dj. Music has been a major part of my life for as long as I can remember but I didn't know anyone that dj'ed that was willing to teach me. I ended up meeting Dj Dreadnaught and he taught me how to mix songs together. That started it all.

2. As a Dj you don't get as much recognition right off back as a
performing artist does. As the Dj behind the artists,  How do you make
sure you stand out during performances?

* When I dj behind an artist, I like to shine simply by having a seamless show. If I'm doing a mix in the middle of the show, I want the audience to be like "Wow, that was smooth!". If I'm scratching on a song, I want everything to sound clean and on point. I just make sure that everything that I do is perfect. With my past experiences, I've realized that people take notice.

3. You are apart of the Scratch Academy family. A lot of people may not know what you do there or what Scratch Academy is exactly. Can you explain it please?

* Sure! Well Scratch Academy is a school started by Jam Master Jay where people learn to dj. A lot of people don't think it really exists lol. I'm a teacher's assistant there. Basically, what I do is help the students learn the basic techniques necessary to become a good dj.

4. With our generation there doesn't seem to be much support, teaching and believing in others going around. Everyone feels like everybody is their competition. How do you view other Djs? Do you see yourself as a person willing to teach others that want the same career as you?

* I view other djs as teachers...even the bad ones lol. When I go to an event, I ALWAYS listen to the dj. If the dj is dope, I wouldn't hate, it just inspires me to do better. They actually make me want to go home and practice lol. Now if a dj is wack, I'm not going to front, I'd hate a little bit and think "Damn I should be spinning right now". But at the same time, they might play a song that I wouldn't play normally or do something dope (even if its by mistake), and I'd still be inspired by it.

5. Have you hosted any mixtapes for anyone? If not do you plan on
hosting in the future? Any artists you would like to work with?

* I haven't hosted any mixtapes yet. I did mix 6th Sense's "It's A 6th Sense Beat Yo Vol.1" though. I'll be doing a lot of work with a few artists on the rise within the upcoming months though so stay tuned for that. I have some surprises coming up!

6. I believe the music a dj's has in their laptop defines the type of
Dj he/she is and determines the events they get booked for.  If I
stole your laptop for the day and skimmed through your music what do you think my assumption of you would be?

* Lol if you went through my laptop, I think you'd be surprised to see what music I have. I have A LOT of music and I like a lot of different genres too. I think you say that I'd be prepared for a lot of different situations. I'm pretty sure you'd see a bunch on songs u haven't heard in a while too.

7. Has Kraff ever thought about being something else besides a Dj? Do
you plan on going into other fields?

* Actually yes. Its funny because I started creating music by rapping. Hard to believe huh? Lol as I said before, music has always been an important part of my life. Naturally, I'd want to start creating my own. I starting writing rhymes with my boy Swiph. Not to toot my own horn, but I got pretty good at it (toot toot -_- ). Later on, I kinda grew out of that and started making beats. That's where my passion is...I realized that I'm more drawn in to the music than I am the lyrics. I've been making beats since 2003 and I love it. So to make a long story short, my other dream is to be a producer. You'll be hearing some of my work really soon by the way.

8. One topic I always debate about with my fellow musicians is dating.
How do view dating in the industry that you are in?

* Hmmm, dating, especially in this industry can be really messy for two reasons: Being that its an entertainment based industry, a lot of your personal business would be out in the open. So arguments, fights, & breakups would be publicized for the world to scrutinize. The second reason is that everyone in this industry is connected in some way, shape, or form and people talk. Rumors spread and that could potentially cause problems in a relationship. On the same token, I wouldn't say not to pursue a relationship because you never know where you may find love. Just know that its not going to be easy.

9. For anyone who does not know where they can hear you or catch you at a event can you give them the information to the next few gigs you have and what radio station you are on?

* As of right now, I have a few events coming up but they are all private. If you'd like to hear me spin, check me on www.pncradio.fm Monday-Thursday from 8-10pm. Also, follow me on twitter because sometimes I do a ustream show with my crew The Trifecta (Me, Dj Max Carnage, & Dj Rampage). I always post the link when the show is about to go down. (His twitter is @Kraff )

10. Lasssttt question. To all the people who woke up today and decided to become a Dj. Any inspiring words for them?

* Practice. If you don't practice, you won't get anywhere. A lot of the techniques in djing are simple. The hard part is sticking with them and mastering them. Practice has much as you can .

Well there you have it people.. I hope everyone enjoyed the interview and learned a little more about "Kraff" lol. 

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A Evening in Illinois

Tonight was a amazing night and of course I was surrounded by nothing but talent. Today I took a trip to Illinois. Tonight was the night The Boy Illinois showed New York why he is so dope. FIRST OFF shout out to him for performing one of my fav songs off Inhale Part 3 called "Red I" (which I posted on the blog a few days ago). Allowing the crowd to hear his songs "Living Like i'm 20, his single "Join A Frat", "Cardigan Sweater" and few others. As I watched the crowd I seen people nod their heads, some rapping along with the music and even someone said he was better than Wiz Khalifa. It's great to see talent get love no matter where they are from. People who appreciate good music will recognize it and respect it. With that said, Thank You The Boy Illinois for coming out here and introducing the NY people to what you have to offer. AGAIN if you do not have his mixtapes download them at www.theboyillinois.com 

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Colin Munroe "I Want Those Flashing Lights"

O.k. so if you know who Colin Munroe is than you know i'm pretty late with it lol. Yea well I recently heard a song by Donnis called "Lightning" and the chorus is what really had me hooked. I did what any person would do.. I googled him and found a track he did over the Kanye West "Flashing Lights" song. Colin is a singer-songwriter from Toronto, Canada and has songs with Wale (video posted below) Drake, Mickey Factz, Joell Ortiz, Travie Mc Coy, Bun B, Dallas Austin, Diggy and more .. geesh i'm already impressed. CLEARLY this guy is on his A game. So let me stop holding you up from checking some talent. Here is the UNDERRATED Colin Munroe

"Cannonball" Colin Munroe feat. Drake 





"Will I Stay" Colin Munroe feat Wale 

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"With Me" Devlin Sirleaf Feat WordSpit and Kryz

Well isn't this just a "I'm just gonna take your chick" type of track? lol I love it though. I "borrowed" this track from my boy WordSpit's blog and it actually features him on it. I never heard of this artist before but I'm not mad at him at all.  His name is Devlin Sirleaf and it features Kryz and WordSpit. Hope you enjoy it!!

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The Boy Illinois

I recently heard about The Boy Illinois (who happens to be from Chicago)  through the promotion of The IMG Way (which happens to be a amazing marketing company) and because I know they strive only to deal with the most talented I just had to be nosy and see what this artist is like. I only downloaded his latest project "Inhale Part 3" and I already have some of my favorite tracks. Not one track reminds me of the other but they are all equally strong. From "Red I's" to his singles "Join a Frat" and "Like This".  I'm going to share those tracks with you and a video. I hope you enjoy his music as much as I am and download his music. WAIT!!! The Boy Illinois will be in NYC here is the flyer. ^_^

Red I's (Prod. Baron Boys) by beyondthebasement
This track made me make the "Cali crumping ugly face" (lol) when the beat came on.. The Boy Illinois did a great job on this song. 

Join A Frat (Prod. Baron Boys) by beyondthebasement


















 Like This feat. TCU (Prod. Baron Boys) by beyondthebasement





Check out this video from a freestyle he did for his project Inhale 2.5 that never got released.


                             DOWNLOAD HIS MUSIC AT     www.theboyillinois.com

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For Colored Girls

First and foremost I would like to thank Q from The Mad Bloggers for sending me this. The song is called "For Colored Girls" inspired by... you guessed it, the movie "For Colored Girls". I find this the lyrics to be very inspiring and the vocals were perfect for the tone of this song. Even if your life seems to be going very well right now the song still makes you feel for those who can relate to it. I am not allowed to post the song in mp3 format but here is the link to the beautiful track. 

Vocals: Melodye PerryMusic and lyrics by Thomas Niblack, Andre' Deyo, Jason Gilmore and Melodye Perry

http://forcoloredgirlssong.bandcamp.com

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