Post by Lachi I'm often not impressed by live rap. It's usually a group of anywhere from three to ten guys yelling over a prerecorded track into distorted mics with a pinch of classic off key vocals during the refrain. And being that I rarely go out to concerts these days, it's a wonder that I came across this ridiculously awesome rap artist/producer and photographer, Lawrence Turner. The name sounds like just some typical black guy name, but I was undoubtedly blown away when he took to the ICU Network stage and rapped "Jim Crow Complex," a song highlighting the cognitive dissonances of a post-race yet race-torn America. I'm far too self-absorbed for external stimuli to bring tears to my eyes; however the song's refrain "Why you here boy?" along with the #BlackLivesMatter video projections, I could hardly keep my makeup from running. I connected with Lawrence as soon as he got off the stage, asking him for a card and adding his JustSumBlackGuy handle on instagram. When I dove onto the internet to find his music, he wasn't on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, Pandora or any sites I frequent, though his website offers either a free download of his album, or a signed DVD copy for purchase. Though the music was well produced and the website itself was amazing, my first thought was I'm not buying a whole DVD, that's too much of an investment even if it is only $5 or $10 bucks...then I watched his videos! Lawrence produces his own music videos, and they are high production, top quality and super artistic, telling stories and adding another layer to the lyrical canvas. Once I got it...that it's not about the music but about the audio-visual experience...I bought the DVD....and you should too! Youtube Facebook Twitter Soundcloud Some people just deserve having a random person blog about them, follow them, share their art, and be an oldschool fan. Any artists with amazing singles that should be getting real love, send your music to me on twitter, instagram or facebook so I can check you out, buy your music, rate it, share it and blog about it on any given #musicmonday. No strings, just love. Comments are closed.
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