Twitter: @ShawnMorozza

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJC46uHEdgk

Twitter: @GhostMusic604

With Rhymes Like These: Exclusive with Jo Thrillz [Interview]

http://youtu.be/WLbFK9_fq-c

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With Rhymes Like These: Exclusive with Jo Thrillz [Interview]

Twitter: @JoelThrillz | @IllTalbeats

HipHopCanada caught up with Jo Thrillz to find out about his favourite rhymes, turquoise bicycle, and California video-shooting experience. Check out the interview after the jump.

Jo Thrillz: Q&A

Interview conducted by Sarah Sussman for HipHopCanada

HipHopCanada: What is the best rhyme you have ever heard or made?

Jo Thrillz: That’s a tough one. I’m not sure about my best rhyme of “all-time” but in this track it’s definitely the last one: “Twelve-inch subs goin’ ham, so big that Jared won’t try it, my style offends the Quran.” Best rhyme I’ve ever heard? That’s also a really tough one. Especially because I’m answering this on a flight while I’m many drinks deep. I’m [going to] pass. If I answer now I’ll probably regret my rhyme of choice.

HipHopCanada: What was it like to work with Alex [Lambert]?

Jo Thrillz: It’s funny because I went over to Jeff Eckert’s to record this track and I only had verses and wasn’t even sure [what] I would do [for] a hook. Alex just happened to be over and I asked him to try and think of a possible hook. Within minutes, he wrote the same one used in the song. We both layered our vocals and messed around with the pitching until [it] sounded really weird and dope.

HipHopCanada: How was shooting in California?

Jo Thrillz: Los Angeles was awesome. I was originally just [going to] go for a night after Coachella. But Nova Rockafeller offered me her couch, so I ended up staying for a couple more days. I met Kavan though Nova and we shot two videos while I was down there. The other one should be out in June sometime.

HipHopCanada: Tell us a bit about your turquoise bike from the video?

Jo Thrillz: I rented that for a couple bucks for an hour. It was insanely fun.

HipHopCanada: You’re a bit of a hipster hip-hopper – rocking your Ray Bans, and cuffed cut-offs.

Jo Thrillz: “I am whatever you say I am” – Eminem

HipHopCanada: You’re playing Boonstock this year.

Jo Thrillz: Goonstock is going to be ultra-goony. I was really excited to see Limp Bizkit but they recently took another show. So now Slash is coming in their place, which will be dope as well. It’s a really crazy festival—kind of like District 9 throwing a rager for a weekend before all the aliens go back to their own planet. I’m performing [on the] main stage this year on Saturday with my DJ, a drummer, and possibly some intoxicated hype-men. Just be there.

HipHopCanada: What’s next for Jo Thrillz?

Jo Thrillz: More videos. An EP. And shows outside of Edmonton.

HipHopCanada: Sounds dope. Any last words for the HipHopCanada readers?

Jo Thrillz: I’m opening up for Kyle (K.I.D.) on May 29 at Union Hall in Edmonton. See my Facebook page for more info. Stay Goony.

Click here to watch “Rhymes Likes These” now.

Interview conducted by Sarah Sussman for HipHopCanada

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Jo Thrillz – Rhymes Likes These [Video]

Jo Thrillz in Concert on May 29, 2013

Twitter: @JoelThrillz

Make sure you follow Puzzle on Twitter @Puzz416.

You can follow The Quater Inch Kings @QuarterInchKing and don’t forget to check out the official site, TheQuarterInchKings.com.

SoundCloud

You can follow Set2 and MegaMan on Twitter @Set2Music and @MegaManMusic.

SoundCloud

With pure creative freedom these Defenders have created a no holds barred album with a diverse mix of guest appearances that are sure to impress long time fans and attract new ones alike. Royce Da 5’9, Evil Ebenezer, hAZEL and Mia Moth – to name a few – add to the balance of upbeat party cuts and gritty, vicious bangers that make every track from Love & War a necessity on your summer playlist. The say all is fair in Love & War so it’s best to listen up. HipHopCanada’s KassKills had a moment to catch up with the pair to dish a bit about the new album and they gave a us a peek at their new video, “Congratulations” featuring Fizal Stars and P. Jericho – check it out after the jump.

Checkmate & Concise: Q&A

Written by KassKills for HipHopCanada

HipHopCanada: What was the inspiration for the title of your latest album, Love & War ?

Concise: The title stems from the saying “All’s fair in love and war” and it also refers to the dual nature of the record itself in that half of the record has a good-natured outlook and the other half is darker and more malicious sounding. I like to think of it as a vinyl LP with one side Love and the flip-side War. Songs like “Congratulations”, “Cosmic Luv”, and “YFL”  are definitely on the Love side for obvious reasons and “Big Time”, “Dreamworld”, and “Grand Alliance” are examples of the War side. The last three releases for us were theme mixtapes – “Killer Elite” was some mercenary geopolitical business and G’s Next Door 1 and 2 were more hustle oriented. With this album we wanted more freedom musically and as songwriters so the result…a lil’ love, a lil’ war.

[Love & War is available now on iTunes]

HipHopCanada: Love & War features some impressive guest appearances such as Royce Da 5’9, Evil Ebenezer and production from Hazel. Each of these artists bring a unique sound and style to the table. Talk about your experience in collaborating with these guys and how they enhanced your vision for this project.

Concise: When it comes to collaborations, basically we produce a song, record it and then we present that to our guest performer. That way we set a tone, and all the artist has to do is follow through with his/her skills.

In the case of “Big Time”, hAZEL presented us with like three or four beats and one of them jumped at us immediately, so we threw the hook on it. The horns dictate the whole track so we let them breathe and plugged the holes. After that we sent the track to Royce who had two days off in Detroit (Slaughterhouse is constantly touring) and a week later, Asar sends us Royce’s waves and the rest is a piece of cake.

Same with Evil. Cise made that beat and I threw the first verse down then we sent it to Evil. Evil passed through our studio a few days later and recorded his verse then Cise cleaned up with the third verse and the hook.

When you’re working with talented professionals like the guests we have on this album, it makes everything easier and better. Fizal Stars, P. Jericho, Realm Reality, Deli tha Genius, Olivia May, Darryl Riley, Kemo, Allen Rodger, Mia Moth, Ryan Dahle, Stef Lang, K-Rec, Drugz n Dreamz, and B. Morales – they all have crazy skills!

HipHopCanada: Do you have plans to tour with this album?

Checkmate: Honestly, we’re gonna do as many shows as are good for us…and by that I mean if it helps us reach a bigger audience or it pays accordingly. Nowadays, opening acts have to pay for a spot on a tour as well as cover their own expenses and promoters exhibit no quality control, so any little value there was in being an opening act, is completely gone. We’re gonna be selective and create a demand for a high end brand.

HipHopCanada: As Vancity hip-hop veterans, are there any up-and-coming Vancouver artists you would vouch for?

Checkmate: Not really. I’m sure there’s some talent and plenty of ambition out there but to be honest, nobody who isn’t doing it big already, has caught my attention. I’m not easily impressed and if we liked you that much we’d probably sign you.

Written by KassKills for HipHopCanada

Checkmate & Concise – Congratulations

http://youtu.be/Y5Y_udR3gIc

Love & War is available for purchase on iTunes and you can check out the official Defenders of the Faith (Checkmate & Concise) website at DefendersMusic.ca/.

Twitter: @DefendersMusic

Click the jump for several Shylock music videos and details from The Province, Sun Media and CBC about his passing.

Ottawa rapper gunned down in west end rowhouse

“I’ll see you later.”

Those were the last words 24-year-old Malik Adjokatcher said to his mother the day before he was gunned down at a Britannia housing complex on Wednesday.

The aspiring rap artist had promised her when he hit it big, he’d whisk her away to a better life.

“Every time I’m sad, he sees me and says, ‘mom, don’t be sad, everything will be OK,’” said his distraught mother at the Bayshore apartment she shared with him.

“He said, ‘one day, I’ll get you out of here.’”

But Adjokatcher, who had four brothers, loved basketball, posted rap videos and made his own C.D., became the city’s fifth homicide victim this year as shots rang out around midnight along Ritchie St, an area known for its gang activity.

“He’s my son. He’s not in a gang. He’s a rapper,” said his mother, surrounded by family friends who echoed the same.

But a friend of Adjokatcher’s — who went by the street name “Shylock,” — believes the killing was gang-related, and thought to be over a drug debt.

He also said his friend, who didn’t want his name used, was “a great guy” and had “a good heart,” but may have crossed paths with the wrong people.

“I told him, ‘if you start hanging out here, you’re going to get killed,’” said the friend, who was not surprised at the shooting. “It was about time something like that transpired.”

Adjokatcher, whose online hiphop videos show the Ritchie St. area where he was killed, had a history of violence and was known to police.

He was sentenced to 835 days in jail stemming from a 2008 incident where he’d been originally charged with attempted murder but pleaded to aggravated assault.

It is not unusual to see police along Ritchie St., where officers swarmed early Wednesday.

Neighbours said Adjokatcher was brought out from unit 3 at 119 Ritchie St, where a woman and several children lived.

James Larabie, who was staying nearby, said the shots sounded like “chip bags popping.”

He ran outside and filmed video with his phone. Several people were taken away in cruisers, said Larabie.

“I seen a body laying in the back of an ambulance,” said Larabie.

Police said the shooting is similar to the unsolved homicide of 22-year-old Levy Kasende, who was gunned down outside an east end housing complex in Aug. 2012.

“The similarities are that the victim was known to police, it’s a shooting death in a densely populated area,” said Ottawa police Insp. John Maxwell.

“Police are concerned about innocent victims (possibly being caught in a crossfire).”

Police combed the grassy area of the complex with metal detectors, while forensic identification investigators could be seen going in and out of the unit.

Police had not made an arrest Wednesday night.

Source: Ottawa Sun

Homicide victim served jail time for 2008 stabbing

Ottawa police are investigating the city’s fifth homicide of the year after 24-year-old Malik Adjokatcher was fatally shot outside of a home west of Britannia Park.

Police said they were called to a house in the 100-block of Ritchie Street just before midnight. Neighbours said they heard three shots fired.

Adjokatcher was shot in the chest, police sources told CBC News.

The shooting happened outside and the victim fled into a nearby home, where he died despite the efforts of a responding officer to resuscitate him using CPR, sources said.

He was known to police and was involved in gang activity, sources said.

Adjokatcher pleaded guilty to aggravated assault in 2009 and was sentenced to more than two years in jail after a stabbing in 2008. He had originally been charged with attempted murder, but pleaded guilty to the lesser charge.

He was also convicted of drug and breach of probation charges in 2008. Last year he was acquitted of a weapons charge.

Neighbour wants cameras in the area

Terry Klovin said he’s lived on Ritchie Street for 30 years.

“After 9 (p.m.), one has to be fairly careful along here,” he said. “These characters, every other night they come out of the woodwork.”

Shane Whelan, whose father lives next door to the home, said the street has problems with drugs and violence.

Whelan said he was once attacked for refusing to hand over cigarettes.

“They started rushing me, grabbed me, smacked me over the head with a golf club,” he said. “My girlfriend said that they stopped because they thought I was dead.”

His father Matthew Whelan said he’s scared for his own life after seeing his son almost lose his.

“I think they should put up a couple of cameras,” he said, referring to the fact there are none in the housing complex.

“Even if people think it’s an invasion of privacy, it’s not … the neighbourhood’s getting a bad name.”

Investigating links to 2012 shooting

Ottawa police said they’re looking into possible links between Adjokatcher’s death and the drive-by shooting which killed Levy Kasende in August 2012.

Kasende was inside his ex-girlfriend’s house in east Ottawa when he got a phone call, stepped outside and was shot dead.

Sources tell CBC News that Kasende and Adjokatcher ran in the same social circles.

Police said they’re still looking for the gun and hoping to find witnesses who are willing to talk.

Police are asking anyone with information to call the major crime unit at 613-236-1222, ext. 5493, or Crime Stoppers at 613-233-8477 (TIPS) — toll free at 1-800-222-8477.

Source: CBC

Aspiring rap artist gunned down in west-side Ottawa housing complex

A 24-year-old aspiring rap artist who wears the colours of the Bloods street gang in music videos was gunned down outside a west-end home late Tuesday.

Police and paramedics were called to an Ottawa Community Housing complex at 119 Ritchie St., north of Carling Avenue and west of Britannia Park, after neighbours heard three gunshots shortly before midnight.

Ottawa police were the first on the scene and attempted cardiopulmonary resuscitation until paramedics arrived. Paramedics say the man had serious wounds and no vital signs. He was pronounced dead in hospital.

Police have identified Ottawa’s fifth homicide victim of the year as 24-year-old Malik Adjokatcher. By late Tuesday, no arrests had been made in Adjokatcher’s death.

Sources say Adjokatcher was a member of the Ritchie Ramsey crew and was known by the street name Shylock.

Family and friends gathered at Adjokatcher’s mother’s Bayshore area apartment on Wednesday, stunned by the news of his death.

Adjokatcher’s mother, who didn’t give her name, said her son was a rap artist who made a CD with dreams of becoming famous.

Adjokatcher told his mother two days ago that he would take care of her when his rapping career got off the ground.

“One day, I will get you out of here,” Adjokatcher’s mother recalled her son said.

Adjokatcher’s mother said she last saw her son on Tuesday. He did pushups, took a shower and left after he said, “I’ll see you later.”

She said her son, one of five siblings, was not a gang member. Others at the Bayshore area apartment rejected police allegations that Adjokatcher was a gang member.

“He was a good son,” Adjokatcher’s mother said through tears.

Adjokatcher’s lawyer, Doug Baum, said police have repeatedly alleged his client was part of a gang, although he adamantly denied that he was a Blood member.

Baum said his client has never been charged or convicted of being part of a criminal organization.

Police sources say Adjokatcher meets the criteria developed by the Criminal Intelligence Service of Canada in 1991 to be labelled a gang member.

Videos on posted on YouTube show he and other known gang members were dressed in red clothing and bandanas — the colour worn by Blood street gang members — in videos that referred to drugs and guns.

Several comments were posted under the videos, such as “Ramsey in the house” and references to the “west-end projects.”

One of the videos was filmed in the area near the shooting scene on Ritchie Street.

In a song called Lights On, several young men were drinking in a stretch limo.

“Everyday I wake up it’s a — blessing,” Adjokatcher sang in one of the videos.

Another video produced by Hood Soldiers Records and posted on YouTube in August 2011 shows “Shylock” wearing a red T-shirt and baseball hat with a red do-rag underneath and holding a red handkerchief in his hand.

“I’m from the west so I got red on me like Michael,” he said, referring to the colour of Michael Jordan’s jersey when the National Basketball Association superstar played for the Chicago Bulls.

According to court records, Adjokatcher faced firearms charges last year along with five men after a gun was found in a car he was in during a traffic stop.

Adjokatcher was acquitted on all of the charges in December.

In 2009, he was charged with charged with attempted murder but pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of aggravated assault.

In March 2008, Adjokatcher was convicted of drug possession.

On Ritchie Street early Wednesday, neighbours were stunned to wake up to police guarding a homicide scene as forensic identification officers looked for any evidence that could lead police to a suspect.

Some children stopped to look at the crime scene before they boarded a bus to go to school.

Others who stopped by weren’t surprised about the violence on their street.

Marwa Elhakim, 19, said she heard three gunshots and saw three people running away, yelling, “The cops are coming.”

Terry Kloban was at home across the street from the scene when he heard what he thought was fireworks go off three times shortly after midnight.

Kloban said he heard a man screaming at someone to get away, then heard a man yell, “God, no.”

“It was dead quiet and the next thing there was ambulance and police coming down,” he said.

A woman who declined to give her name said she was glad she was moving soon and did the sign of the cross when she found out a man had been killed.

Many neighbours say the area is plagued with gang activity and drug use.

Elhakim says she’s afraid to walk on Ritchie Street, especially at night when the same group of men are outside drinking and doing drugs.

“It’s Ritchie,” she said. “You can’t do anything.”

Kloban said people “come out of the woodwork” every night in the area.

A man who didn’t want his named used said he was disgusted with the violence in the neighbourhood.

“Daytime arises and everybody just disappears,” he said. “Night time shows up, here comes all the zombies.”

He said he lost his own son to violence, but wouldn’t elaborate.

Source: The Ottawa Citizen

Shylock Videos

Shylock & KB Westwood – It’s Okay

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMJry5Mef90

Shylock – Watch Your Step

http://youtu.be/rQdbsYVWRVw

Shylock & KB Westwood – Setbacks

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=citLIoDX-Og

Shylock – Headlines (G-Mix)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_pZp9S25RY

http://youtu.be/Y5Y_udR3gIc

Twitter: @DefendersMusic

Vitali Moscow – Gotta Get Mine ft. Dubb

SoundCloud

Vitali Moscow – Anything Goes ft. Young Buck

SoundCloud

About Vitali Moscow

VITALI MOSCOW MOSKOV, Born June 4,1986 in Moscow, USSR, emigrated to the western world in 1989. Growing up in the “little Russia” neighbourhood in Toronto, the largest Russian community in North America second only to Brighton beach, Brooklyn, he was quickly drawn into the life of fast money and loose women. After numerous encounters with the law and witnessing the destruction caused by ill-informed actions, Vitali decided to focus on his passion, writing songs… lacing tight beats with an effortless lyrical precision.

A chance encounter or perhaps a divine appointment with MiiM, stealth classified experiments began and ultimately led to the creation of a new highly advanced secret weapon… Vitali Moscow… a.k.a. Mr. Moscow.

Cutting edge, no holds barred, epic sonic architecture combined with raw talent, drive and perseverance proved to be the catalyst of an unknown reactionary volatile fusion, thus emerging a sophisticated neo-type of gangster and a gentleman.

Be sure to check out VitaliMoscow.com.

Twitter: @VitaliMoscow | @ItzDubb | @DJSmallz | @DJShurefire