<< You Already Know What It Is - Reviews of 9/11 Releases | Polos, Tuition, and Jesus (Why I Believe I Can Fly) >>
Rather see the above links in your inbox or feed reader?
Subscribe to our Links for hand-picked items from around the web
Bless 1 - Starving Artist · by Fresh
A little over a year ago, I received an e-mail from some kid out of Chicago going by the name Bless 1. Attached to the e-mail was a link to his MySpace page containing a handful of instrumentals that were so good, they convinced me it was actually possible to find hip hop worth listening to on that site. At the time, the idea that talented musicians could be found on MySpace was a bit of a revelation to me.
About a month later, Bless was announced as the winner of Ohword’s t-shirt contest after submitting a freestyle over one of Dilla’s beats. As R.H.S. said back then, it was filled with some beautiful rapping. When I heard the freestyle, I was convinced that Bless 1 was the real deal, an unsigned artist that had the potential to make a career out of his music. Having now listened to his first full album, Starving Artist, my opinion has only been further solidified.
In many ways, the Starving Artist LP is a testament to the power of the Internet. Work started on the album several months ago, after Powell, a producer out of Paris, France, began passing beats to Bless 1 through their MySpace accounts. As the initial release date for Starving Artist approached in early June, Powell’s hard drive crashed, taking with it a large portion of the nearly completed album. After eventually salvaging the majority of the lost tracks, Bless called on two more of his MySpace friends, German producer Suff Daddy and Swedish soul singer Kissey Asplund, to put the finishing touches on the album. Though the four of them were never able to meet in person, you wouldn’t know it from how cohesive this album sounds from start to finish.
Here’s my favorite track off of the album:
On “The Hunger”, Bless takes the stereotypical drug dealer/baller anthem and flips it into an exposé on the paper chase that everyone, from the innocent bystanders to the Stringer Bells of this world, can relate to:
They say the goons carry heavy in June
Making the block boil like a heroine spoon
Chi-town where the winters are cold as Siberia
It takes more than inches of snow to cool the temperature
Stuffing our face, never thought about grace
Sounds great if you’ve already ate, but we can’t relate
Taught by police, thieves and ministers
Praise the dollar and chase it in ways sinister
Deep speeches are lost without a listener
It’s hard to open ears of the deaf in my perimeter
‘Cuz a stomach that growls is more powerfully loud
Than the voice calming it down
After competing at the Skribble Jam prelims this summer, Bless is now hard at work on his next project, a mixtape that will feature original beats produced by himself as well as a few remixes, including one of J Dilla’s Man’s World. To get in touch with him, stop by his MySpace page.
Link to download Bless 1’s Starving Artist LP
Link to the full lyrics for the Starving Artist LP
To any other unsigned rappers or producers out there, I’m always looking for new artists to profile. Feel free to drop me a line at: deefresh AT gmail.com. I can’t promise I’ll put it up on the site, but at the very least I will listen to whatever you send me.
Fresh blogs regularly at his site, 33 Jones.
Comments for "Bless 1 - Starving Artist"
Bless has also been sending me his lyrics for OHHLA, and you’ll be able to see them there soon.
— DJ Flash Sep 13, 10:12 PM
likin the song. dling the album…
— drew Sep 13, 11:53 PM
I mean this as a compliment, but Bless 1 sounds like Rhymefest mixed with those two undie rappers in Cyne. That’s not a bad thing, either! More Rhymefest than the Cyne dudes, though. I’m really feeling this track, with that said.
— Renato Pagnani Sep 14, 02:05 AM
As a Chicago resident, I suspect Bless would take the Rhymefest comparison as a compliment. A few people have said that he sounds like Killah Priest.
— fresh Sep 14, 08:12 AM
she fell into bootleg/trash scene of ghetto crime on the internet. of course even the worst ghettos are mostly white folks or brazilians but although there isn’t much racial diversity there is diversity of outlook. their outlook forces them under: take what you want. mandy sampled pat’s snoring, his talking in his sleep, his phone conversations, her own phone conversations, mixed them together into new conversations. it is the culture of “take what you want” she wanted documentation. she could’ve had all the software and kits of samples from sony and whatever cos pat had that nice connection cos of his nice rich dad who gave him the money to do what he wanted
there’s boys there who’re afraid of talkin to girls or anybody in the real world and share their lives with these other people an yeah
the only way to complete a sentence is to lock yourself away in a digital waste pit of data and the products of mind and the glory of dead days that have been abandoned by the people who loved them there’s not even any monuments there’s only leftovers and remains and even those go away. always on the outside circle with inside glances that un
— 6billionghosts Sep 14, 11:36 AM
oh no… a literary spamming.
no offense 6 billion but bless 1 has much nicer lyrics than you.
— rafi Sep 14, 12:09 PM
bless 1 taught me everything i know.
but i am still a disciple
— 6billionghosts Sep 15, 01:19 PM
I went to your site 6billion, fascinating. But “bootleg/trash,” Mr. Kern? I feel slighted by your categorization.
— fresh Sep 15, 09:22 PM
fresh, i did not intend for that to be a categorization, merely a name for the piece i posted here.
“bootleg/trash” are two words from the text i posted.
it fondly reminded me of jet set trash and no star or whatever the sonic youth album is called.. so i chose those woords. no offense intended my friend.
— 6billionghosts Sep 16, 01:58 AM
This is great. But how do I pay this guy for his stuff? I hate stealing from people not named Kanye or 50 Cent.
— rkm Sep 17, 08:23 PM
No stealing involved, Bless has made the album available for free download. He has plans to eventually start selling his music, but that will be sometime in the future. So feel free to pass that sendspace link along to anyone you’d like.
— fresh Sep 17, 09:07 PM
Then consider me the intern on his street team. Thanks.
— rkm Sep 17, 09:24 PM
Teddy Boy Music Group/The End Records/Sony Red Independent here in New York City, NY has open their doors to all unsigned hip-hop acts. Each artist need to submit a press kit (3 song EP, 8×11 photo, bio, quote sheet) to the A&R of our newly formed hip-hop division.
Submit all press kits to:
Attn: L. W. Sutton
Nuera Media Group LLC
1722 Edgewood Drive
Elizabeth City, NC 27909
Please bare in mind that we recieve over 500 press kits daily, so to guarantee your artist a review by our experienced staff and record execs please enclose a $75. 00 money order made out Nuera Media Group LLC with all packages.
Thanks.
We look forward to recieving your music. For all question please email me us at cisumconsulting@live. com.
— L.W. Sutton Apr 18, 02:06 PM
I’m intrigued by your business model. Traditionally, record labels haven’t been able to rob artists of their money until after signing a contract.
There went our dreams to cool with golden limos, and alls we kept sayin’ was please listen to my demo!
— fresh Apr 18, 02:38 PM
hey was up My Name is Tysone A. k. A Young T and im a r&b singer And very serious about my music i been singing 4 a long time and i have what it takes 2 be the next big thing im 18 i live in yonkers ny 10701
you can contact me at (914)375-6727
thanks
— tysone Apr 28, 05:01 PM