On March 11th, 2011, an earthquake of magnitude 9.0 occurred off the island of Japan, triggering a tsunami that made its way across the country's coast and causing immense damage to nearby cities. The disaster took the lives of over 7000 people, and left countless others homeless or missing amongst their relatives.
★WHAT IS THIS EVENT? ----------------------------- "THE JAM 4 JAPAN ♫" - is a benefit show whose purpose is to support... Japan through musical entertainment. The event will bring together many singing and dancing talents from the local community.
★GET YOUR FREE TICKETS HERE! ------------------------------------------ http://jam4japan.ticketleap.com/show/
CONFIRMED TALENTS TO PERFORM (more on the way):
*THIS JUST IN : TERRY HE! (YOUTUBE SENSATION/RnB/hip-hop/pop) ♦ YOUNG AVZ(Hip-Hop/Rap) ♦ JASON RAY (Soul/RnB/Gospel)) ♦ DONSMOOVE (RnB/Hip-Hop) ♦ JAY LEGASPI(Acoustic RnB) ♦ ANGELA HUANG & JAMES HU (Canto-pop) ♦ T-SOUND (Hip-Hop/Rap) ♦ THE FUNKY KIDS (Hip-Hop Dance Crew) ♦ UNRATED SKILLZ (Hip-Hop Dance Crew) ♦ VANESSA YANG (Chinese Singer) ♦ W (K-pop)
♦ Sound/Music by DJ J-Fro
& More to be announced!!
★HOW IS THIS EVENT A BENEFIT SHOW? -------------------------------------------------- This is event is FREE ADMISSION. There will be NO COST to assist to this event. It is an open invitation to anyone of all age, elder or young.
☆ANY DONATION IS WELCOME TO SUPPORT THE CAUSE. (5$ donation is suggested)
☆ALL COLLECTED FUNDS BEFORE, DURING & AFTER THE SHOW, WILL GO TO THE RED CROSS ORGANIZATION.
☆ALL CONTRIBUTORS TO OUR SHOW WILL AUTOMATICALLY BE ENTERED IN OUR RAFFLES. WE HAVE MANY PRIZES AND GIVEAWAYS!
★WHEN & WHERE WILL THIS TAKE PLACE? ----------------------------------------------------- The show will take place on April 16th, 2011 at 6:00 PM
★WHERE CAN I GET TICKETS? ARE THE SEATS LIMITED? --------------------------------------------------------------------- Unfortunately, due to limited seating space in the Shatner Ballroom, a maximum of 400 people will be allowed in.
TICKETS ARE FREE AND CAN BE OBTAINED FROM:
http://jam4japan.ticketleap.com/show (No credit card required)
Print your ticket and bring it the day of the show!
Please present yourself at the venue the day of the show, starting from 5:00 PM, with your printed ticket and the number of people you are bringing along. A printed ticket is REQUIRED to assist to the show.
================== For additional information, questions or comments, contact us by FACEBOOK or EMAIL.
-Bret "The Hitman" Hart returns to the WWE -Jay Legaspi drives all the way up to CJLO, JUST to appear on my show! -The Als win the Grey Cup AGAIN -Met/talked shop with Masia One over smoked meat sandwhiches -I threw the biggest Asian-themed hip hop concert in Montreal's history, then had poutine with the stars (MN/TN, Jay Legaspi, TL Truong nad Nat Levy of Blueprint Cru, Jet Li from Poreotix, etc...) -DJ'd for Magnetic North and Taiyo Na -interviewed some of the most awesome people EVER (Angry Asian Man, Ellie from AA Theory, SueJin, Racebending.com, Kev Nish of Far East Movement, TL Truong, Brooke Taylor, Rocky Rivera, Rakaa, Krystle Cruz, etc...) -won the CJLO Diego award for Best Specialty show
For those of you who weren't there (and that's MOST of you), what you guys missed was the Asian equivalent of Live Aid, Wildstyle, Rapamania, Harlem World, Sedgwick Ave., and Cedar Park...Pioneers doing it for their community, their art, and culture in Montreal.
I cannot give you a play-by-play of everything that happened, since you just had to be there! But I will tell you what I take away from all this...
For those of you who chose not to attend, because you were skeptical that your own people were capable of rocking a party right, you are absolutely wrong! Not only did we enjoy almost 4 solid hours of entertainment, we broke every ignorant stereotype possible! And nobody wanted to leave, at the end, when the school's power-tripping security man came to throw us out! Man, what an ending...
On Dec.4, 6:45pm, I started off spinning some of my favorite cuts from Epik High, Dumbfoundead, Jin, Only Won, Paul Kim, Jasmine Trias, and Kero One.
Then at 7:30pm, with the crowd still filling in, I put on my radio drop from JIN and the crowd went wild! Then we went into the theme song of my radio show. From that point, the shovel was in the ground!
I came out to introduce myself to the crowd and told people about my radio show (most who've never heard of it...this will change soon, I hope!) and explained what my goals were, in putting together the show. Then I introduced TL Truong, as my co-host. She came out to the music of The Ting Tings - "That's Not My Name"...a trademark Blueprint Cru dance-tune. A hip hop show co-hosted by TL Truong? This was JUST the beginning!
She introduced an upcomming Montreal dance crew, called the Funky Kids, who set the bar for the evening with a stunning performance that even impressed TL herself!
And dance fans, if you thought seeing TL was enough, she brought along 2 VERY special guests from the dance world...Nathalie Levy (also from Blueprint) and Jet Li from POREOTIX!!! This was Heaven, for the Funky Kids, as they got to meet some of the very people who inspired them. And not to mention, I made the serious-reputation TL crack-up and helped her in embarrassing Nat (I hit on Nat...JC has NOTHING on me!)! lol
For me, it was a great experience, as I got to play the role of some of my greatest influences in comedy and late-night talk shows; Arsenio Hall, Donnie Simpson, William Shatner, and Ed Sullivan.
Personally, the biggest highlight of my show was that I got to back one of my favorite groups, as their DJ...Magnetic North and Taiyo Na! It's crazy to just be able to see them live. Crazier to have them perform at your show...but to be their DJ? What?!?!? Imagine a group that nobody in the audience is familiar with, belting out tunes that are only known in the Asian-American scene and still managing to make people scream and shout! Especially at the end of their Public Enemy-inspired banger "We Belong", the crowd erupted with the loudest cheer of the night! I was proud to have made so many people new fans of Magnetic North and Taiyo Na. Not only are they my friends, but their music really needs to be enjoyed by more Montreal fans than me. And I definitely succeeded, as many of my friends purchased their cd's. Even people who don't usually listen to hip hop!
Then it was time for our headliner to come out. And what a trooper she was! Making her way to Montreal in crutches, Masia One had the challenge of electrifying the crowd without the ability to showcase her electrifying dance moves.
She still manages to own the crowd with her dancehall-infused cuts, which will all be on her next album. She even opened up a dance-cypher with the Funky Kids doing their think on the dancefloor, with TL and Jet Li even joining in! All this at my show! WOW!!!
It's cool to see, in one of the youtube videos, that some of my most-square friends are even bobbing their heads to Masia's music! But just as everyone was really having a great time, some power-tripping janitor/security guy decided that our time was up and to throw us out..and nobody wanted to leave either!
Yes, I was pissed, but at the same time, it left people wanting more and not one person was unhappy with the evening of empowerment through entertainment!
After the show, the performers, friends, and I headed out to have poutine at La Banquise. It was quite fun to see our American friends (MN/TN, Jet Li, Jay Legaspi, and Amanda) stuff their faces with poutine...something that they've never before tried and all of us laughing about Direct's fantasy-statues and Battlestar Galactica DVD collection. Man, I am in a photo with MN/TN, two Blueprint Cru members, Jay Legaspi, and a member of Poreotix too! HOLY WTF!
Reviews on facebook came in the following day "eye-opening experience", "never knew so much Asian talent existed", "these guys know how to throw a party", "boost!", etc...
On Sunday afternoon, I had the pleasure of returning T-Vu, Taiyo, Dopey, and Masia to the airport. We had a very pleasure discussion and exchange. Also posed for an "illunimati" photo, all sitting in armchairs at the hotel. This picture, itself, is priceless to me as I'm sitting there surrounded by great artists who would've likely never met without my introduction. And if you ever hear of an MN/TN/Masia collabo, then you'll know how that came about :)
Our historical set:
1) Funky Kids dance crew 2) TL Truong intro 3) Budda Child 4) Ill Mestizo 5) Jason Ray 6) Jay Legaspi 7) Young Avz 8) Vinnie and others from his crew, with special performance from TL Truong! 9) Magnetic North and Taiyo Na 10) Masia One, accompanied by Sikh Knowledge and DJ Dopey
You guys are all pioneers and I am happy to have worked with you all. Same goes to all the audience-members and my closest friends who helped me out with various tasks. You are all pioneers of something huge. Let's continue to build and promote. If not us, then who will?
Since starting up my show in Sept'09, I've had a great time discovering new artists through my new best friend, the internet.
Without it, where would Beats From the East be?
And think about youtube...half you cats would still be complete nobodies without that site!
The internet is your friend and it is very easy to use, in order to get free publicity.
HOWEVER...there are a lot of upcoming artists who think that, by putting up a few videos, and a song on iTunes, that their job is done. Specifically, the rappers and a few RnB-singers.
I had emailed artists for tracks, radio drops, interview requests and rec'd no answer from many of them. I would like to name a few of you, but I'd rather promote you POSITIVELY.
Yeah, you might think "well, nobody's gonna hear me...this is some unknown local AM show in Canada"...well you know what? Most radio stations (including this one) are also broadcast online, where they are accessible from anywhere in the world! And a lot of DJ's (like myself), also PODCAST the reruns online!
I have rec'd tracks, drops, AND interviews from The Notorious MSG, Jin, Masia One, Carl Choi, Rakaa (of Dilated Peoples), TL Troung (Blueprint Cru), Hopie Spitshard, Rocky Rivera, Sabotawj, Taiyo Na, and the list goes on... ALL very-well established artists in the Asian hip hop world. And why is that? Cause they are willing to help out and they do not refuse free publicity!
Rakaa was in bleeping Hawaii, for crying out loud! I'm sure that he could've been doing a million other things while he was there...or just resting on the beach! But he took 20 minutes out of his day to talk on my show. Anyone, who knows hip hop, knows Dilated Peoples and this is exactly why!
Even if I were an artist as successful as Eminem and some radio station, run by eskimos up in Alaska, wanted to play my stuff... damn right I'd get them a drop and interview...even send them a signed-cd! Even if they could only reach out to 10 people, that's 10 more people who know about me...10 more people who might recommend me to even more people afterwords...Networking...internet...word of mouth...you name it!
I remember going to the Asian Hip Hop Summit in NYC, last fall. DFD, DJ Zo, Scatterbrain, Magnetic North, Taiyo, Lyraflip...as soon as they got off the stage, they'd grab a stack of cd's and head into the crowd to push the albums themselves. There was no roadie selling cd's for them. They did it themselves.
Asian artists, this is what it takes! We are in a field where a lot of people (including many our own) don't think that we belong. You're going to have to work a little harder if you want to make it. Good luck asking MTV or BET to play your stuff, especially if you're an indie. And if there's a station that is specifically ASKING you for material to play, then why ON EARTH would you refuse that? YOU SHOULD BE YOUR OWN BIGGEST PROMOTERS and that's the bottom line! You should not stop at youtube. Conquer every medium possible!
Look no further than Drake! Personally, I don't find that he's the best artist out there. But dude was all over the place, on every mixtape possible before his album even dropped! TV, radio, mixtapes...you name it! Now a lot of you might argue that "well, he's friends with Lil Wayne"...True...But how easy is it to get hooked up with someone like Lil Wayne? It ain't. And until you're chummy-chummy with someone like Lil Wayne, then you should take care of your own business!
When they began, nobody in England wanted the Beatles playing in their clubs. So what did they do? They went to Germany on their own money to play FOR FREE (pretty much)! Without taking those steps, would they have become the huge success, that still sells records even 40 years after their breakup? HELL NO. It's a new day and age...and thank heavens that you don't have to work AS hard to get publicity anymore. But you still need to put in SOME work, guys! Even if you're self-employed, you still need to build a reputation of a good, serious, and reliable worker, so that people WILL hire you for gigs and what-not.
You are a business! Without clients, you cannot survive. And without promotion, how the heck do you get your clients?
On a positive note... This coming Sept.11 episode marks Beats From The Easts' One-Year anniversary! And we have Jay Legaspi driving 6 hours north, from NYC, just to be on the show (and let's not forget that he has to drive 6 hours back too!). And I didn't even ask that of him...he offered it! Now, THAT is dedication, my friends!
I applied for one of CJLO Radio's mentor positions. They are holding after-school workshops for under-priveledge teens, starting this fall. I was pretty sure that I wasn't going to get it, based on a few factors, but I figured that I'd get my 2 cents in...
My goal was to, first and foremost, provide them hands-on training with preparing and running a radio show. However, I was also keen on inspiring them to "think outside the box" (something that I find is not encouraged enough nowadays) and to make use of the internet as much as possible. My own show is not technically the best show on the CJLO roster, but in a short period of time, I have gained listeners from all around the globe. Why is this? I am, by no means, the best DJ at the station, nor possess the best mic skills. I actually suck at that. But I put in a ton of effort to make my show as cutting edge as possible. From the music, to the guests, to the topics covered, etc. Kids are the future and they will, one day, have the power to make the much-needed changes around here. I was inspired by Arsenio Hall, plus the early 90's crew at CKUT's "Masters at Work" and "Weekend Groove". Without guys like that, I'd likely not be doing what I'm doing today. So, mentoring would have been up my alley.
However, with great power comes great responsibility, to quote a certain superhero. At this time, CJLO management doesn't know what kinds of kids are coming in, nor what their motives are (learning or playing around). If the kids wanna learn, then I would be your man...I was going to be the "Stu Hart" of CJLO. But for kids who just wanna goof around and just be there to kill some time, then I am nobody's babysitter. And this is something that I made clear to the management. That, plus my availability isn't the greatest, either.
So, seeing that I didn't get the gig, I'll share my tips, to any future college/university radio jock right now.
1) Don't kid yourself. Other than people in their cars or working out at the gym, how many people do you know, nowadays, take time out of their lives to specifically listen to radio? This isn't the 1940's when families gathered around the living room radio and listened to episodes of the Lone Ranger! People have so many more alternatives to entertain themselves and sitting down on the couch listening to someone spin records and yap isn't part of everyone's priorities anymore. Whether it's watching sports, playing sports, watching crappy "reality"-shows, clubbing, shopping, surfing for porn, playing Wii, etc, there are just too many different ways to escape your 9-5 life and listening to the radio isn't quite as prestigious as it used to be.
2) Build your following. Interview people...especially up-and-comers. Their followers will learn about your show and become YOUR followers as well. And they will bring others too. The reason why I mentioned "up-and-comers", as opposed to well-established artists, is that they are hungrier to climb the ladder and will make more of an effort to promote their appearances on your show. As well, their following will jump at the opportunity to hear their homie make his /her first appearance on a radio station interview! And if that first-appearance is on your show, then you just scored major points with that artist and his/her community! And anytime that artist is about to promote a new single, he/she will likely think of you first...EXCLUSIVES!
3) PROMOTE...remember what I said about the internet? Hit the blogs, forums, websites that also cover your scene, youtube, artists' myspace walls, etc...Sure, you can go downtown and pass out flyers too, but keep in mind that this is the digital age...which brings me to my next tip...
4) PODCAST... Keeping it local can be cool, but conquering the world is cooler! If your station broadcasts live via webcast, like CJLO, then you have every opportunity in the world (literally) to gather an audience. School-radio listeners are the children of TiVo...they like things on-demand and on their own time. Putting up your podcast allows people to catch up on your re-runs and stay up to date on your show. Some will even listen to multiple episodes in a row! Especially when you're doing a "niche"-show, like mine...you need to connect with as many people as you can, who feel the same way you do and who would enjoy what you do.
As well, if you're familiar with podcasting, people who don't even have radio shows can create podcast-shows from the comfort of their homes and many of them are very kickass...many of them have shows that are even better than what's on any radio station and they have the following to prove it! So, advantage to you if you have both a live radio show AND a podcast show at the same time. So why not kill 2 birds with 1 stone and podcast the re-runs of your live episode?
5) Don't copy other DJ's playlists! Sometimes, when an artists is hot, you can't help but want to play that hit song from him/her...but at the same time, you have to do what you can to stand out from the rest of the local stations that play the same tunes over and over. Scour the internet for indie/unsigned artists. You have the power to break someone in and give give him/her their shot! With a good following, you can make a very big difference in the state of your genre, as long as you've followed steps 3 and 4.
