Crib Notes

SMOKE ONE: Decatur's own Bobby Ray gets lit Friday at Smith's Olde Bar.

(Photos courtesy Dustin Chambers. More after the break.)

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B.o.B has been busy. He’s had his hands full addressing his name change from B.o.B to Bobby Ray, an aggressive tour schedule and with the release of his latest mixtape, B.o.B vs. Bobby Ray. With news breaking Wednesday that he’ll headline the URB stage at the A3C Hip Hop Festival in Atlanta, Bobby Ray followed up with a new music video: “Put me On.”

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Released yesterday, the mixtape B.o.B vs. Bobby Ray follows a format similar to T.I.’s T.I. vs. T.I.P. Pure coincidence? Not hardly. Atlanta’s own Bobby Ray (also known as B.o.B) happens to be signed to T.I.’s Grand Hustle label.

Rather than T.I.’s face-off between his inner thug and industry personas, Bob struggles with his rapper (B.o.B) vs. inner rocker of sorts (Bobby Ray).

Here’s what Complex had to say about B.o.B’s contribution to the mixtape:

The project is evenly divided between B.o.B and Bobby Ray songs with coinciding interludes to explain each side of the rapper’s personality. Things start off strongly with “One”, the mixtape’s first full song. We’re immediately thrust into the middle of B.o.B’s firmly positive agenda and remain there for the tape’s duration. Often times, rappers with the same focus make the mistake of coming across as preachy, but B.o.B puts his personal flaws on display as well. The young emcee arguably bests his mentor, T.I., on the standout “I’m That Nigga.”

And on Bobby Ray:

The Bobby Ray portion of the mixtape is a bit harder to warm up to because of its experimental nature, but still impressive. It seems like Bobby Ray has a stronger personal connection to these songs too, self-producing all but one. We definitely dig the left-field approach, but as much as he hates the comparisons, Bobby does occasionally come across like a The Love Below-era Andre 3000. It’s cool though. It’s easy to hear the kid honing his own unique sound and we like what we’ve heard so far.

DOWNLOAD B.o.B vs. Bobby Ray

B.o.B vs. Bobby Ray mixtape listening party. Free. 8-10 p.m. Wed., June 24. Strivers Row, 744 N. Highland Ave. 678-973-0045. See flier.

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Spotted at Nah Right.

Is that a sample from one of Kanye West’s emo-laden live performances of “Pinocchio Story” from last year? Speaking of which, check out CL A&E editor Debbie Michaud’s post about Kanye’s new book (Thank You and You’re Welcome) and his “Proud non-reader” Reuters article.

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BEHIND THE MASK: Bobby Ray comes clean.

B dot O dot B was the name
I ain’t like Bobby Ray ’cause I was ashamed
But you can call me Bobby Ray from this day forth and
I could give a damn about the fame and fortune
— Bobby Ray, “Generation Lost”

Rapper Bobby Ray Simmons is one of Atlanta’s most promising young talents. His feverishly anticipated debut album is due later this year, and his soaring, OutKast-evoking smash “I’ll Be in the Sky” is approaching 5 million MySpace spins.

But what to call him? The Decatur 20-year-old now prefers to go by Bobby Ray, despite being signed to Atlantic Records at age 17 as B.o.B. and going on to grace the covers of magazines including Urb and XXL under that moniker.

His name change reflects a change in philosophy, both musical and personal. It was years in the making but crystallized last year after he was catapulted into the public consciousness with his mixtapes My Name Is B.o.B. and The Future, the latter of which spawned the local radio hit “Haterz Everywhere.”

Continue reading “Bobby Ray by any other name”

(Photo by Terrence Tyson)

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Since aligning with T.I.’s Grand Hustle label for major distribution via Atlantic, Atlanta rapper Killer Mike has been on his studio grind. Hip-hop writer Maurice Garland recently posted exclusive footage of Mike in the studio with producer No I.D. (Kanye West’s mentor) after the two completed material for Mike’s upcoming release. But don’t expect to hear any music; they’re being real protective.

The video above, from UNN, shows Mike interviewing versatile producer Jim Jonsin (Lil Wayne’s “Lollipop,” T.I.’s “Whatever You Like”), who’ll also contribute production to the album. In the interview, Jonsin says his mother was into R&B and disco and his father was a rock and roll head — which accounts for the hybrid sound he’s been lending to hip-hop via production for such artists as Decatur’s B.O.B.

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Decatur MC, B.O.B., and Atlanta transplant Asher Roth cover December’s XXL as part of the magazine’s Freshmen Class issue.

The song “Change Gonna Come” (below) features B.O.B, Asher Roth and another XXL cover subject Charles Hamilton of Harlem rapping over a sped-up vocal sample of Sam Cooke’s classic. It appears on The Unclearables, the upcoming mixtape by B.O.B. — who earned Best Mixtape honors in CL’s Best of Atlanta 2008 issue.

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How do you prepare to walk the red carpet at hip-hop’s biggest media event of the year?

“I just drunk a few Budweisers,” said Attitude (above), a rapper/songwriter who’s penned songs for Nelly Furtado, Timbaland and Keri Hilson. The Birmingham native and Atlanta resident was one of hundreds ranging from big-name to no-name artists who fed sound bites and swaggerlicious poses to the zoo of photographers, bloggers, journalists and video crews for three hours before the show.

Some, like newcomer Jay Rock, sounded outright clueless. “I ain’t really even know I was gonna be here, man, it’s crazy,” said the Watts, Calif., native, whose single “All My Life” features Lil Wayne, the night’s three-time winner. “Like, all I did was got dressed, threw my clothes on, and they were like, ‘Man, you finna go to the BET Awards.’ I’m like, ‘Oh, that’s what’s up.’”

T.I., on the other hand, spoke with sober appreciation to be in the right place one year after making a detour that earned him federal gun charges and a year-long jail sentence that he begins serving next year. “It feels like a long road traveled, and it feels like a lotta hard work paying off. And now we came through it bigger, better, stronger. Period.” When asked what after-party he planned to attend, T.I. responded, “I’m working, no time for that.”

Forget the over-hyped performances (though the old-school medley featuring Salt N Pepa, MC Lyte, Yo-Yo and Lady of Rage was the night’s best) and over-the-big top fashions (how many top hats does show host fill-in T-Pain own, anyhow?); the BET Hip Hop Awards — like all celebrity-driven media events — is all about being seen and heard, pushing your agenda and promoting your next drop date.

So if you want to see who won what, tune into BET at 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 23 and labor through the two hour show. But if you want to see the stuff that’s too bootleg for TV, check out our list below:

BEST BIGGIE BLOOPER: The biggest blooper of the night came when Jamal “Gravy” Woolard — who plays deceased rapper Notorious B.I.G. in the biopic due to hit theaters January ‘09 — slipped and called Notorious “hip-hop’s first biological feature” instead of first biographical feature. They shot a retake.

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