WHAT’S THE DILLY DOE?March, 2002 vol.1

NOC ON WOOD Makes things happen.

The untapped market of Seattle is still full of movers and shakers…Noc On Wood Records put together a heck of a spread for their DJ Summit on Sunday February 17^th, 2002. It was an opportunity for the regional industry heads and cats looking to get in the door to kick the "convo" about how this region can accumulate eventual respect and recognition nationally. "It was cool, there were some good people there and there were some good ideas expressed at the forum. We just need to start supporting local music more instead of perpetrating like everyone is cool with each other, because cats are doing themselves sideways," said Steve O., Founder and Executive at Tacoma-based Ocean Records.

This kind of forum is what we need to have more of. The youngsters in Hip Hop culture need some leadership and guidance from the veterans. Other notables in attendance were: DJ Funkdaddy, Kutfather, Michael Clark, DV-One, DJ Supasam, DJ Scene, DJ J-Tyme, Azarel, Gene Dexter of Crazy Pinoy Promotions, Omari Salisbury of Noc On Wood Records and DJ Kun Luv.

Andre Nickatina, Mac Dre, Equipto, Ebony and Ivory, DJ Show, DJ Luvva J and the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Bobby Shaw tore the roof off at Thekla during their February visit. More than 600 people attended the downtown Olympia show sponsored by Fillmoe Coleman Records and Crowd Control Entertainment. The highlight of the show had to be Mac Dre bouncin’ his way onto the stage with his crew doin’ "The Get Low" to "Too Hard for the F***in’ Radio."

The show began with a cool set from the Olympia duo, Ebony and Ivory. The group consisting of Slow Poke, Uncommon and their DJ, Show, gave a solid performance, but it was noticeably marred by poor sound quality. Still, the duo held their own using well recognized instrumentals to rhyme over and had the crowd chanting "360, 360" by the end of their set, then they stepped off of the stage.

Finally, Nickatina and Equipto ripped a set consisting of tracks from their, much slept on, classic Midnight Machine Guns, Rhymes and Alibis. Then Dre sealed the deal performing "Killer Whale", "Smoke Dope and Raps" and "Pitbull Terrier." Nickatina’s cousin, Bobby Shaw of the Pittsburgh Steelers was in the house kickin’ with the socialites in the town and had a good time, even getting on stage with King Nicky at the end of the show – representin’ the ‘Moe the baby. And oh lawd, the groupie alarm was rangin’ loud at the West Coast Inn on Olympia’s Westside – ooohwhee!

Nickatina is scheduled to return to the Pacific Northwest for a summer tour. Look out for details on Seaspot.com.

Vancouver, B.C. is finally picking up the pace. Yes, the city of lovely international ladies and laid back Hip Hop heads has recently been blessed by The Focus Group’s effort to reformat 94.5’s bandwidth from dance music and some Hip Hop, to Hip Hop and R&B. Not hit music, Hip Hop and R&B music. And oh yeah, Tweet is picking up much rotation on the The Beat 94.5 FM. Check’em out. The Beat can be heard as far south as Everett, Washington.

The Bellingham scenery is picking up (and believe me…it needs to) with weekly Hip Hop crackin’ off at Christo’s Casino off of I-5 Exit 252. DJs Luvva J, J-Tyme and Intellect can be spotted in their mixing and scratchin’ and makin’ bodies move. Check out Thursday Nights, with Crowd Control Entertainment.

Big Shots out to DJ J-Tyme of KUGS 89.3 FM in Bellingham. J-Tyme was nominated as one of the top ten College DJs in the United States by The Urban Network Magazine based in California. The once small trade magazine selects college DJs who report to the UN and make notable efforts on the radio to play new and cutting edge music.

What’s up with all of these record labels in Washington claiming to be "Number one" and "the best" and all of this kind of talk? C’mon man. If it’s crackin’ like that, I’d see you on TV or doing collabos without having to cash out nationwide MCs. Let’s crawl, then walk. That’s real. One last thing…the Pacific Northwest has such little political power in the Hip Hop world, cats need to support each other to their face and behind their back. What do you think?

Hole up, hole up! Doug Wrenn…Dude is doing his thang for the Huskies. Being a Wazzu Coug, it goes against my morals to give it up large to the Seattlites, but no one can deny Wrenn. He has really carried the Huskies into a position to make the Pac-10 Men’s Basketball Tournament to be held at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Get it down Wrenn!

As for the Cougs out in the Pullman Town? The inside scoop is that Coach Paul Graham, one of the five African-American coaches in the Pac-10, may be cancelled out with such a dismal season and the recruiting tactics of the program have been scrutinized by local and national media. C’mon Cougs, get it down!

DJ Goldfinger of Hot 104.3 in Pullman smashed on suckaz at the recent Studio 54 Party at The Attic in the small metropolis. The Studio 54 parties that Goldfinger and Luvva J used to host, usually brought in 500 to 600 attendees. With more than 1,000 in attendance at his party and a traffic hour hot mix in a town of about 26,000, Goldfinger is becoming an undeniable force in the Northwest Hip Hop community. And word on the street is that Pullman’s legendary bar, Shakers, has been off the hook since he took over in January.

Who does Quincy Wilder think he is? Wilder, the former Washington State High School basketball star who signed to the University of Southern California with a full ride basketball scholarship and later spent time in jail after a foul up has led Olympia’s Evergreen State College Basketball program to their first post season tournament. Way to turn things around Quincy…Do the Damn Thang!

jgutierrez@seaspot.com