At the most fundamental level of The Hustle, there is so very little separating the haste of the investment banker from the dude on the corner selling [enter product name here]. Jon Jon captures Tacoma MC Clemm Rishad’s backpack grind with simple but romantic flourish in this clip. “Back to the Paper” is from CR’s latest, Close Your Eyes and See, available at fine online music establishments everywhere.
Tag: jon augustavo
VIDEO: “Pass You By” – Scribes
From Scribes’ most recent LP, What Was Lost, which you can grab for free here. Jon Jon gets behind the lens again on this clip.
WWL might go down as one of the most overlooked SEA rap albums of the year, so make sure to be cooler than your other friends and check it out.
VIDEO: “Stop & Go” – Lace Cadence
I actually enjoyed this. Mostly because of Jon Jon’s too-cool-for-school camera work, not Lace Cadence’s mediocre sing-rapping.
VIDEO: “Confession/Destiny” – Eighty4 Fly
I’m not a huge fan of Eighty4 Fly’s music. His flow is second hand Drake and his radio-targeted steez is too passe to be fully enjoyable. Still, I appreciate dude’s hustle and his videos are always on point (thanks in large part to Jon Augustavo, the talented man behind the lens). The night shots look great in the “Confession” part of the clip and Eighty’s humble grind depicted in the “Destiny” half is endearing. (Apple Jacks for dinner? Yeah, I’ve been there before.) Everybody got their hustle and it’s hard to knock Eighty’s.
VIDEO: “Upside Down” – J. Pinder
Maybe it’s all in my head, but when local emcees go ex-pat from The Six and I hear them again later after so doing, their voices sound much bigger than our humble hamlet. Like our area code can’t contain ’em anymore. Such is the case for J. Pinder, whose transition to the ATL has left the SEA feeling a little colder this winter.
Check the new video, “Upside Down,” directed by Jon Augustavo.
VIDEO: “Hip-Hop Shit” – Eighty4 Fly
I still contend Eighty4 Fly is a mediocre lyricist. An off-brand version of Drake for the 2-0-6 Clear Channel rap heads. Still, I really dig his cut “Hip-Hop Shit,” where the rugged production makes him at least sound more interesting. Not that he cares, but if Eighty kept it grimier, 206UP.COM might become a believer.
(Jon Jon behind the lens, yet again.)
VIDEO: “Wishing On A Dream” – Avatar Young Blaze f/Isabella Du Graf
Mainstream x Gangsta. It rarely works better than Avatar’s “Wishing On A Dream.” Two questions, though: 1) Why did director Jon Augustavo choose to shoot in b&w with the beautiful California coast (not to mention the lovely Isabella) as a backdrop? 2) Think that Porsche was a rental or does Avatar just got it like that?
DOWNLOAD: “The Eighty4Fly Project” (Eighty4Fly)
The eight tracks on The Eighty4Fly Project are big, anthemic paeans to club life. In Eighty4Fly’s world, emcees get dissed and their girls get scooped on the regular. Sometimes he sounds like Drake, and sometimes he sounds like an emcee worth his weight in jewels. Either way, the sh-t’s undeniably catchy. Download for FREE below.
Click image for D/L link
And the video for the single “So Cool” (directed by Jon Augustavo):
VIDEO: “Roll My Way” (Scribes)
2Pac, Scribes is not, but at least he knows it. This in-the-wind dedication to pulling shorties borrows a hook from Mr. Thug Life. The track feels like the mid-90’s and the video looks like the Seattle summer. Directed by (who else?) Jon Augustavo, from the Summertime Sampler EP.
VIDEO: “Moonlight” (Lace Cadence)
I’m not really feeling this track by Lace Cadence; in fact, I feel like it barely constitutes an actual song. What I am feeling, however, is jazz singer Isabella Du Graf. Goodness gracious, gorgeous. Someone get her some guest vocals on a track, pronto.
Once again it’s the hardest working man in Town videos, Jon Augustavo, with the visuals. Download Lace Cadence’s very Mike Posner-ish Launchpad Mixtape, here.
A SEATTLE HIP-HOP BLOG 