Yet another Strange Music banger!! Dope Beat and good lyrics. Thumbs Up!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Btp8dWMVS0I
Posted in Lo & Lette Shit, Music Selections
Archive Info
You are currently browsing the Lotekz.com weblog archives for 'Lo & Lette Shit' category
DOPE!! Strange Music Rocks! good song and pretty decent video. Big Props
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6uSj_m-UGk
Posted in Lo & Lette Shit, Music Selections
If you want the best magic show, you find a Master Magician. If you want the
wickedest, most momentous underground music, you go to Mike E. Clark. He’s
workin his mojo on some of Rap’s cryptic classics, and conjuring a new brew
of beats he calls the Psychopathic Murder Mix Volume 1. The legendary
producer’s bag of tricks includes mashups and remixes of ICP, Twiztid, Blaze,
Boondox, Prozak, King Gordy, and Esham! Mike E. Clark has drawn the curtains
from his mythical Funhouse studio, and you’re invited to the show, the first
performance in a spellbinding series of magical mixes!
When you see how much Violent J and Psychopathic Video put into this music video masterpiece, yer gonna feel some Jealousy! This flavor’s been a long time comin—it was the first song recorded for Violent J’s devastaing new album, The Shining, and the concept was developed by J himself, along with fresh debut director, Sugar Slam. It’s a different kind of sound, and maybe a different feel from what you’re used to, but it’s still all the Violent you expect from J! He even included his boys Mike E. Clark, Corporal Robinson, Razor Ray, & Eric Davie, so keep an eye out for them. It was shot at Clutch Cargo’s, site of many Big Baller Parties past, and features the breakdancing skills of the Hardcore Detroit crew. Peep this flavor and witness your homie J getting his Stalker tendencies on…
I watched both and I have listened to the album. As I listen more and more to the album I am actually starting to love the whole album and the videos, expecially love the ending on HA HA HA HA video. Let me know what your thoughts are. Click more for both videos
Insane Clown Posse
Posted in Lo & Lette Shit, News Mania
Adam Graham / Detroit News Pop Music Writer
It has become a Detroit tradition, like driving over potholes or getting suckered into rooting for the Lions: Every year, horror-rap duo Insane Clown Posse plays a hometown concert on Halloween.
The annual show, dubbed Hallowicked, celebrates its 14th anniversary this year. Forget pillowcases and Fun Size candy bars; every year the Clowns and their maniacal fans, dubbed Juggalos, celebrate Halloween with Faygo and greasepaint.
The ICP — group leader Violent J (real name: Joe Bruce) and his partner Shaggy 2 Dope (Joe Utsler) — started Hallowicked in 1994. At the time, the group’s “Dead Body Man” (from the “Terror Wheel” EP) was earning massive airplay on WHYT-FM (96.3).
“Dead Body Man” was the embodiment of everything the Clowns were about: It was filled with rude, pitch-black humor and violent slasher-movie imagery. Linking with Halloween was a no-brainer.
The first Hallowicked show was held at the Majestic Theatre, and that night the duo debuted several gimmicks that would become Hallowicked staples: Instead of wearing their traditional black-and-white face paint, they sported orange-and-black paint, and the audience was given a free, limited edition Halloween-themed song — then on cassette, now on CD.
That first sold-out show was a resounding success — “it blew our wigs back,” Shaggy says — and an annual ritual was born.
“After that first one, it was just natural,” says Violent J, sitting outside the group’s Psychopathic Records headquarters in Farmington Hills. “Detroit on Halloween night is Hallowicked.”
The next year, Hallowicked mushroomed into two shows, Oct. 30 and Oct. 31 at the Royal Oak Music Theatre. But in year three, Hallowicked didn’t arrive in Detroit until December, as the concert was delayed after J broke his collarbone while performing in Toledo.
It was just one of two Halloweens the Clowns missed playing in Detroit: A scheduling conflict and a curfew issue made them miss Halloween night in 1998, as well. (They performed at Harpo’s on Oct. 30, and ended up in St. Louis on Halloween.)
Since then, Detroit on Halloween has been ground zero for ICP and the Juggalo army.
The group did three Hallowicked shows in 1999 at the Majestic, and the 2000 show, at Saint Andrew’s Hall, featured an extra bonus: With the $100 admission price, Juggalos were given a limited-edition box containing a T-shirt, special editions of the group’s “Bizaar” and “Bizzar” CDs, and other ICP goodies.
After stops at the State Fair Coliseum in 2001 and a return to the Royal Oak Music Theatre in 2002, Hallowicked set up shop at the State Theatre, where it returns this year for its fifth straight Hallowicked. Juggalos the nation over are expected at the show, which for the Clowns and their fans is like Christmas in October.
“Hallowicked is like our other Gathering,” says J, referring to ICP’s annual summertime fan convention, the Gathering of the Juggalos. “The Gathering and Hallowicked: No matter what’s happening in our lives, we always have to play those and make them a big deal. For us, that’s the pinnacle.”
Hallowicked history
• Oct. 31, 1994: Majestic Theatre
• Oct. 30-31, 1995: Royal Oak Music Theatre
• Dec. 14, 1996: Palladium Music Club
• Oct. 31, 1997: Palladium Music Club
• Oct. 30, 1998: Harpo’s
• Oct. 29-31, 1999: Majestic Theatre
• Oct. 30-31, 2000: Saint Andrew’s Hall
• Oct. 31, 2001: State Fair Coliseum
• Oct. 30-31, 2002: Royal Oak Music Theatre
• Oct. 31, 2003: State Theatre
• Oct. 31, 2004: State Theatre
• Oct. 31, 2005: State Theatre
• Oct. 31, 2006: State Theatre
The ‘Jugganauts’ debate
On Tuesday, “Jugganauts: The Best of the ICP” hits stores. The album was compiled without ICP’s input and is being released by Interscope Records, and it only contains material from the Clowns’ three Island Records releases, “The Great Milenko,” “The Amazing Jeckel Brothers” and “Bizaar/ Bizzar.”
Though Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope were not involved with the creation of the album, they are wholeheartedly supporting its release.
“When we heard about it, we said, ‘Hey, we can be mad,’ but (forget) that,” J says. “We called them up and said, ‘How do we get involved?’ We want to help promote it.”
J says the album is an opportunity to reach outside the band’s core fan base, to reach more casual listeners. And he says the group is now in talks with the label about putting out a box set.
“We’re crazy happy about this record,” J says. “I know some fans were mad because we weren’t involved, and I can understand their position. But the truth is I’m all about this record. It’s all good.”
Also, check out these fresh new Videos of ICP at The Lotus Pod and MORE!
Posted in Lo & Lette Shit, News Mania
I C P
In their early years before Insane Clown Posse they were known as Intelligence and Violence and before that they were The JJ Boyz with Shaggy’s brother John Utsler nicknamed John Kickchass. The group was originally part of a larger street group known as Inner City Posse. The group’s rappers included Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope of Insane Clown Posse, as well as Shaggy’s older brother, John Kickchass, and several other members who didn’t make music. The group formed in 1987 and began to make music in 1989, where the group released their first single, “Party at the Top of the Hill”, and their first home-cassette tape, Enter The Ghetto Zone. In 1990, the group released two more tapes, titled Intelligence and Violence, and Bassment Cuts, the latter was their first tape to be released in stores. In 1991, the group was able to produce their first and last professionally-released EP, title Dog Beats. The album did very well in the underground music scene. The group finally split in 1992. Afterwards, members Violent J and Shaggy donned clown makeup and decided to form their own duo called Insane Clown Posse, still keeping the ICP initials.
Carnival of Carnage era (1992 – 1993)
In 1992, ICP released their first album, Carnival of Carnage, on their independent label Psychopathic Records, which they designated as “The First Joker’s Card”. The group hinted that the next five major-release albums would be numbered in this fashion. They also stated that “the end will consume us all” once the Sixth Joker’s Card was revealed, and that their fans would know all there is to know about the Dak Carnival (alternately referred to as “The Dead Carnival” on The Riddlebox)— something that the band refers to on every album as a powerful force which has spoken to them. On its release date, it sold 17 copies.
In 1993, the group released an EP titled Beverly Kills 50187 as a filler between the first and second Joker’s cards. It is known for being the only album to feature the third member called Greez-E.
The Ringmaster/Riddlebox era (1994 – 1996)
In 1994 the band released the second Joker card, The Ringmaster on Psychopathic Records, and was followed by The Riddlebox in 1995 on Jive Records.
Riddle Box was the first Insane Clown posse album to be released nationwide. They also released several more EPs between the albums, releasing The Terror Wheel and Carnival X-Mas in 1994, and Tunnel of Love in 1996. During this time, Shaggy 2 Dope also dropped a solo EP, titled Fuck Off, in 1994.
Around this time, ICP were frequently seen inside Ultrasound Music in Cleveland, OH handing out demo types and flyers for their shows at the Grog Shop. They said Cleveland was “like our second home”. The landmark was a cube truck painted black and parked outside with various simple clown markings.
Both The Ringmaster and The Riddlebox have been certified gold.[1]
The Great Milenko/Jeckel Brothers era (1997 – 1999)
In 1997, the duo released the 4th Joker Card, The Great Milenko.
The album was recorded at the studios of Hollywood Records, a Disney-owned record label. After recording was completed, a board of Disney representatives threatened to halt the release of the album unless some significant changes were made to its material. To ensure that their major-label debut would see the light of day, ICP obliged and removed three songs from the album and altered the content of others. However, just six hours after the album’s initial release, it was unexpectedly pulled from the shelves. ICP’s upcoming tour was canceled, and they were dropped from the record label. It was later revealed that Disney had received much criticism from certain religious organizations, and, in fear of tarnishing their reputation, forced Hollywood Records to drop the act.
A media frenzy soon followed, fueled by ICP appearances on MTV expressing outrage over their plight by Hollywood Records. Originally unwilling to nullify ICP’s recording contract and relinquish ownership of the album, a deal was eventually reached with Island Records to promptly release the album in an uncut form. In the end, the controversy turned out to be a blessing in disguise for ICP; the high-profile debacle had created huge public interest in the group and their music. The first single “Halls of Illusions” and the second, “Hokus Pokus” both received some, but very little airplay on MTV.
The Great Milenko has been certified platinum.[1]
Following that, 4 songs from the album were made into music videos, “Piggy Pie”, “Halls Of Illusions”, “Hokus Pokus (although it should be noted that the version in the video is actually the ‘Headhunta’z Remix’ found on Forgotten Freshness Volumes 1 & 2)”, and “How Many Times”.
In 1998, the group released the first of a series of compilation albums, titled Forgotten Freshness Volumes 1 & 2. It has gone on to be certified gold, and is their only non-studio album to do so.
In 1999, the 5th Joker Card, The Amazing Jeckel Brothers, was released.
The Amazing Jeckel Brothers debuted at number four on the Billboard charts, just beneath The Backstreet Boys during the boy band craze, two years after the Disney scandal. The single “Another Love Song” had a video made and it was put in MTV’s regular rotation. The duo also made an appearance at the Woodstock 99 festival. The Amazing Jeckel Brothers would prove to be ICP’s biggest success in the mainstream.
The Amazing Jeckel Brothers has been certified gold by the RIAA.[1] Insane Clown Posse press materials assert the album has passed the gold mark and achieved platinum sales.[2]
Big Money Hustlas (2000)
Big Money Hustlas
Insane Clown Posse’s feature film, Big Money Hustlas, was released in 2000. The film has gone on to become a Juggalo classic, as well as an underground hit for fans and non-fans alike. In addition to both Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope in the lead roles of Big Baby Sweets and Sugar Bear, the film also co-starred Jamie Madrox and Monoxide of Twiztid as Violent J’s henchmen, Big Stank and Lil’ Poot, and Harland Williams as Officer Harry Cox. It also contains cameo appearances by Mick Foley and The Misfits. The film featured music by both Insane Clown Posse and Twiztid, a large majority of it from The Amazing Jeckel Brothers.
In June 2007, Big Money Hustlas went certified platinum, having sold over 1,000,000 copies since its release.
The Bizaar/Bizzar era (2000 – 2001)
Bizaar
Bizzar
In 2000, ICP was disappointed by the way Island Records was promoting them. They didn’t want to release the final Joker’s Card with Island. Since they still had two more records left to release to end their contract with Island, they released Bizaar and Bizzar, as separate albums. Both albums were released on the same day.
Before the release of these albums, Sharon Osbourne, on The Howard Stern Show, bet Insane Clown Posse that their next record wouldn’t sell more than 200,000 copies, and that they would be dropped from their distributor. Violent J claimed the album would sell 500,000. Together Bizaar and Bizzar sold over 250,000 each, totaling over 500,000. ICP maintains to have won the bet, but it is ambiguous as to whether they are referring to the original bet, or the sum total of sales. Violent J also remarked on a later appearance on Howard Stern to promote The Wraith: Shangri-La that the bet was to be for this album, which incidentally sold less than Bizzar Bizaar. As well, ICP was in fact dropped from their distributor after the release of the Bizaar Bizzar albums, which Violent J attributed to them being so underground that they forgot to renew ICP’s contract. Regardless, ICP claims to this day to have won the bet and has asked Osbourne to just make a donation to charity in place of paying them. She has not responded.
ICP also clashed with MTV with the release of their videos “Lets Go all the way” (which was a cover song from the band Sly Fox), and “Tilt – A – Whirl”. MTV agreed to show the videos, but broadcasted them late at night. Eventually ICP requested that every Juggalo/Juggalette vote for the video “Lets Go all the way” on MTV’s Daily top 10 show, TRL. Despite the overwhelming amount of votes and the Juggalo attendance at the TRL taping, MTV refused to play the video. ICP was rejected in favor of more “popular” bands. This was also confirmed by Violent J’s brother Robert Bruce (A.K.A. Jumpsteady), who was in attendance at the taping. MTV was confronted with this and refused to acknowledge they had any part in it, but that assertion is contradicted in Violent J’s biography Behind the Paint. Although never played on TRL, the “Let’s Go All The Way” video was played on MTV late at night or early in the morning.
During this time, ICP released an EP with Chaos! comics entitled The Pendulum EP. The EP was originally released as a dozen singles in the ICP comic series from the same company but was later re-release as a EP in the graphic novel version of the comic series.
In 2001, the group released their second compilation album, titled Forgotten Freshness Volume 3.
The Wraith era (2002 – 2004)
The Wraith: Shangri La
When the sixth Joker’s Card was revealed, it was also revealed that there would be two versions. While the face of the Sixth Joker’s Card was “The Wraith” (or simply Death), The Wraith had two “exhibits” to present to all who will listen: Shangri-La and Hell. Each of the exhibits was given its own album.
In November 2002, ten years after the first Joker’s Card was released, The Wraith: Shangri-La was released. The album was frowned upon by critics, even to the point where it was somewhat labeled “The Worst Album of All Time” by Blender Magazine. Despite the negativity the album spawned a successful single “Juggalo Homies” which received radio airplay and a music video that was played on networks like MTV2 and Fuse. This album is also ICP’s most controversial album fanwise. On the album’s final track, it is revealed that the group follows God.
In 2003, Violent J released his first solo album, named Wizard of the Hood. The name and plot of the album is a parody of The Wizard of Oz. A single song based on the same idea had been previously released on the Carnival of Carnage album.
The Wraith: Hell’s Pit
In August 2004, the duo released the Wraith’s second exhibit, The Wraith: Hell’s Pit. The album was better accepted by critics, but did not receive as much media attention. “Bowling Balls” was released as a radio promo, and a video of the same song was released on the bonus disc included with the album.
The Calm era (2005 – 2006)
With the release of The Wraith albums, the Jokers Card era had finally come to a close. In 2005, the band released an EP entitled The Calm, which was set to be the prelude of their next album, The Tempest. The album brought a change in sound for ICP, who also fully produced the album themselves.[3] Due to its large negative response by the juggalo fanbase, The Calm is regarded as Insane Clown Posse’s worst album.
The Wraith: Remix Albums
Despite the negative response from The Calm, ICP also released their fourth compilation album, Forgotten Freshness Volume 4 in Novermber 2005.
Unlike their other compilation albums, Forgotten Freshness Volume 4 contained several new songs. The album’s single, The People, was made into a music video in 2006. The video features ICP rehearsing the song in their studio, with photos of juggalos and fans flashing on the screen. This marks the first time ICP has made a music video from a non-studio album.
In 2006, Shaggy 2 Dope released his first full-length solo album, Fuck The Fuck Off. It was his first full-length album, and his first solo work since 1994’s Fuck Off EP. Shortly afterwards, Insane Clown Posse released their first remix album called The Wraith: Remix Albums, which contained remixes of most of the tracks off both Wraith albums, notable exceptions being Thy Unveiling and Real Underground Baby, which were both contained remixes from other albums.
The Tempest era (2007 – present)
In February 2007, ICP were featured on a final episode of VH1’s The White Rapper Show.
On February 23, 2007 ICP released the sampler and first single for The Tempest entitled “I Do This” as well as an announcement that Twiztid would join them on their Tempest World Tour. This was quickly followed by a second track “Haunted Bumps” and a picture assumed to be the cover which features ICP riding a roller coaster and a new logo comprising of Insane Clown Posse written in lightning.
After a long delay, The Tempest was finally released on March 20, 2007. The Tempest was met with mixed response from fans. Many felt it was an improvement over The Wraith albums, and believed it was ICP’s best album since The Amazing Jeckel Brothers, while others felt it wasn’t “wicked” enough and felt it was a let-down. Despite the mixed response, most agreed it was much better than The Calm.
Inside the album, was an advertisement stating the group’s next EP, Eye of the Storm, would be released at the 2007 Gathering of the Juggalos. The Tempest debuted at number 20 on the U.S. Billboard 200, selling about 33,000 copies in its first week.As of June 2007, it has sold around 70,000 copies. On their Hallowicked Tour 07, They announced that they were currently working on a follow up from their Eye of the StormEP. Something dealing with “The destruction of the World” due to be released in 2008-2009. Reason for the long awaited years: They are currently working on a new film, and another Dark Lotus Album.