The Recipe: Hip-hop as The Main Ingredient

Straight out of Dubai, UAE, embodying that breakbeat flavor through multiple hip-hop elements, is a crew known as The Recipe.  The ingredients being MCs, producers, DJs, and a beatboxer; the members go by the names DJ Flash B, Hirabeat, Jabbar, Kaz Money, Perfect Storm, and Swerte.

L-R: Swerte, Jabbar, DJ Flashbeat, Hirabeat, Kaz Money, Perfect Storm

They've rocked crowds with big international names like Snoop Dogg, De La Soul, etc. and have won over the hearts of their local listeners due to their collective high energy, original skills, and tastefully comedic live act.

Each contributor to The Recipe has a unique story of their own - from backgrounds to musical influences to achievements.  For this very reason, when you click on the "ABOUT US" portion of their website http://www.therecipedxb.com, they each have personal bios giving individual focus.  That being said, while it wasn't mentioned in his writeup, Manila heads may recognize half-Filipino, half-Indian member Hirabeat as one of the co-founders of Beatbox Pilipinas as well as beatboxer for People's Future. He actually has Manila to thank for birthing his passion for hip-hop and we have him to thank for giving us knowledge on this supergroup.

Check out their latest video "Shit Like This" front-lined by Kaz Money off his mixtape "The Ridicule - The Opposition", which can be downloaded via this link: http://www.mediafire.com/?lkidonw69pp7pat

Strictly reppin'. So much of what drew me to hip-hop in the first place was the self-expression, artists just going at it and not giving a what. Some humor in there never hurt either. These 6 heads bring just that, steady cooking up The Recipe, with hip-hop as the main ingredient.

For more info on The Recipe, check out their website (link seen above), on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/therecipe or on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/therecipedxb

Ruby Red Hot

I'm officially a fanatic of yet another female MC.  She isn't exactly new on the scene and some of you may have already heard of her, but I felt the need to give focus to a Pinay with exceptional English/Tagalog juggling skills over free verse - Ruby Ibarra.

This young lady has a pretty wide array of videos on youtube and through the same, she is now doing her thing with other artists that I highly respect like Rocky Rivera, Bambu, etc.  She has, in my opinion, the perfect blend of: poetry, venom and representation of her culture as a Filipina.  Despite not being homegrown, Ruby has definitely done her part in doing her heritage homework and it is very evident in one of my favorite videos/tracks by her titled "Who I Am".

Over Cormega's "The Saga" instrumental, in this song, Ms. Ibarra gives a detailed account of her acceptance and understanding of who she is and where she came from. The first thing that came to mind when I heard this was: Snap, I wish Kuya Kiko could have heard this.  Not only because "Mga Kababayan" was sampled in the song's intro, but because she seemed to embrace everything that he stood for in her words and in her actions.  Even without an official HD video, as a viewer and listener, I was able to absorb the sincerity and clarity of her message nonetheless.

To learn more about Ruby Ibarra, check her out via these sites/channels:

http://www.youtube.com/user/rubyibarra

http://www.facebook.com/rbibarra?ref=ts

http://www.rubyibarra.tumblr.com

Don't sleep on Ruby - red hot!

Gavlyn, Lyrical Javelin

So given that this blog is literally a day old, I thought it'd be a few days before I could gather my thoughts for a secondary post.  But sometimes hip-hop throws you these delightful surprises that just capture your attention and overwhelm you.  Thanks to my cousin Jason, who's based in LA, I woke up today to the slick sounds of his girlfriend/female MC Gavlyn through teasers for her soon-to-be-released debut album Habit That You Blame.  1 shared bandcamp link and hours later, I'm still glued to my speakers.  Simply put, every single track is on-point.


From content to delivery to production - Gavlyn's tracks are executed well with such fluidity and swag.  So much so that picking a personal fave has proven difficult.  However, if I'd have to choose, I definitely can't go with just 1 so I'll point out 5: 1) She really repped her stuff hard in #1 What I Do, 2) The title track #3 Habit to Blame is a heavy depiction of how she's been making her mark, 3) #5 Walkin' Down The Street is a smart take on a Dionne Warwick classic, 4) #6 Relentless, the title says it all, and 5) #10 is fresh from all angles, because even the featured artists are positive news to me and the beat is smooth as a baby's booty.

I highly recommend that you all check out Gavlyn Habit That You Blame so give that link a click and you'll have access to her complete track listing/promo length songs and other info on how to stay tuned to her movements, most especially the release of her full-length album.  This lady is an exceptional artist that I became an immediate fan of and I'm sure all of you will be too.

Gavlyn, like the light spear cast as a ranged weapon, is a lyrical javelin.