Untitled Document

TECH N9NE – “SICKOLOGY 101”

TECH N9NE has spent his illustrious career making sure he’s been grinding harder than the average rapper. With eight solo albums and one powerhouse collaboration project under his belt, the Kansas City MC’s flow is sharper and slicker than it’s ever been. And the world is about to get a whole lot sicker when he drops the hottest collaboration album of the year, Sickology 101.

“This is another roller coaster ride,” explains TECH N9NE about the release. “When it came time for Sickology 101, I knew I wanted to do a collabo album based on the study of being sick. It’s a beginner’s course for people who don’t know how to be sick lyrically or how to choose sick beats. It all starts with beats because they tell me exactly what to do.” Epic beats from YoungFyre, Wyshmaster, Seven and Matic Lee set the stage for TECH N9NE to weave his introspective and sometimes roguish lyrics around.

Sickology 101 brims with stellar appearances from lyrical heavyweights. On the opening title track, TECH N9NE slays alongside Chino XL and Crooked I, pulling listeners into the Hip-Hop classroom for a lesson in murdering a beat. It’s a twisted vision forged on undeniable grooves and quixotic wordplay.

The single, “Nothin,’” is an inspiring, honest anthem that features Messy Marv and Big Scoob. Meanwhile, on “Midwest Choppers 2,” TECH N9NE and Krayzie Bone cruise to the depths of darkness. “Krayzie Bone came through and murdered it,” says TECH N9NE. “I modeled the song after movies. When you do a sequel, there has to be a bigger body count and more people have to die. ‘Midwest Choppers 2’ is Autobahn-style. It makes you want to speed.”

TECH N9NE’s inimitable flow and rhyming take center stage on solo tracks, including the haunting, hypnotic “Red Nose.” He doesn’t pull any punches on the vitriolic, YoungFyre-produced “Blown Away,” either. It’s an open letter to several prominent urban artists who refused to play before him at radio festivals despite his massive concert draw.

With hits like “I’m A Playa,” “Caribou Lou” (which boasts 7.2 million MySpace plays), “Riotmaker,” “Like Yeah” and “Everybody Move,” it’s no wonder TECH N9NE counts a total of over 4.5 million YouTube video plays and an average of 40,000 MySpace visitors each day. His success knows no limits. The July 2008 release, Killer, debuted at Number 1 on the Billboard Top Independent Albums chart and Number 12 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. He did it all on his own. There was no major label — just TECH N9NE’s own record company, Strange Music. TECH N9NE’s tracks have appeared in films like Gang Related and Alpha Dog as well as various TV shows, and he recently made his motion picture debut in The Life of Lucky Cucumber alongside members of MTV’s “Jackass” crew.

It hasn’t been an easy road, but TECH N9NE soldiers on and he’ll never stop. “They call me devil worshipper because I’m different. I give you music for my core. They’re the people that put me over the million mark. I raise my middle finger to everybody who judges me because my core audience is there for me. They will always love me, but I’m trying to reach others, too. It’s not over. My music is supposed to be for everybody, but some people just don’t get it. This album is the result; swallow it. It’s middle finger music, all-day and all-night.”

TECH N9NE never stops bringing that music directly to his fans, constantly reinforcing his status as one of the hardest-touring rap acts in the business. In 2008, TECH N9NE performed over 200 shows and he doesn’t show any signs of slowing down in 2009. In April, TECH will head out in support of Sickology 101 and spend two months on the road, performing live for his rabid fans.

Sickology 101 is prepping the world for TECH N9NE’s next masterpiece, K.O.D. “I want people to know that I’m getting better and better and I’m a machine. I do these collabo albums to give the fans more. This is a bridge record to K.O.D. It’s the farewell to the TECH N9NE you’ve known lately. It’s getting darker. A lot of people might not be able to go to the place I’m going, but this place is my specialty.”

“I don’t need people to kiss my hand,” assures TECH N9NE. “I’m not trippin’ on status, and I’m not a narcissist when it comes to rap. It’s my heart and soul pouring onto the paper. I write my life and I can’t hold back. This is what I know.”

For more information, visit http://www.therealtechn9ne.com or http://www.myspace.com/techn9ne.

Media Contact: Richie (Richie@juggernautsound.com)

KRIZZ KALIKO: GENIUS 07.14.09

It’s not every day a musical genius is born. With the release of his second solo CD,GENIUS, KRIZZ KALIKO convincingly claims that title. After working with Tech N9ne and Strange Music for 10 years, performing over 200 shows a year, KRIZZ KALIKO has earned a spot among Hip Hop’s elite. His solo debut, 2008’s Vitiligo, landed at No. 19 on the Billboard charts and he has been instrumental in Tech N9ne’s incredible success: In 2008, Tech N9ne SoundScanned over one million units, making him the most successful independent Hip Hop artist in history.

KRIZZ KALIKO is the sonic “glue” of Strange Music. “I’m Tech’s right hand man in writing,” he says. “It’s a weird, beautiful chemistry. Tech and Travis [O’Guin] handle the business, and Tech and I are the creative force at Strange Music. The yin and the yang. Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis. Tech and I have the same philosophy about the quality of music. We’ve been working together so long I know where he wants to go.”

Born in Kansas City, MO., KRIZZ KALIKO was raised by a mom who spoon-fed him music. As an opera and gospel singer, as well as being the choir director of their church, his mother sang to him and, fortunately, made him sing with his sisters. He performed in the choir all throughout his early teens and his mom often treated the family to live concerts from artists like the Gap Band and Run-DMC. By the time KRIZZ KALIKO met Tech N9ne, he was already trying to figure out how to fuse opera and Hip Hop.

“Tech’s music is dark,” KRIZZ KALIKO explains. “It was the perfect vehicle.” When Tech N9ne landed back home in Kansas City after touring and found his longtime producer Icy Roc working with a new talented voice, Tech was intrigued. He liked what he heard and hired KRIZZ KALIKO to work with him on “Who You Came To See”, from his Anghellic album (2001). Tech was so impressed by KRIZZ KALIKO’s ability to craft catchy, album-ready songs, he asked him to collaborate on his next project, Absolute Power (2002).

Powered by a fusion of funk, rap, rock, R&B and opera – a self-made style KRIZZ KALIKO calls “Funkra” – GENIUS covers the entire spectrum of genres, from the slow and seductive “Get Off” with Tech N9ne and the rock-flavored “The Chemical” to the street anthem “Back Pack” and the album’s crossover single, “Misunderstood.” KRIZZ KALIKO pulls from a wide variety of artists he enjoys listening to, from Billy Joel and Elton John to Prince, Cee-Lo and Soulja Boy, and in doing so, he has made an album that defies categorization. Along for the aurally eclectic rollercoaster ride that is GENIUS are Tech N9ne, E-40, Kutt Calhoun and Big Scoob.

As most fans already know, KRIZZ KALIKO offers a unique perspective on life that many can relate to. The husband and father of one was born with a skin disorder called Vitiligo, which he not only discusses openly in his music, but also used as the title of his debut CD. “I want people to get that people who look differently can actually be the coolest dudes,” he relays. “To come from being a freak to this dude that I am here is a wonderful and interesting story and makes you want to listen to the music even more.”

One of the GENIUS’s most poignant tracks sheds light on another of KRIZZ KALIKO’s conditions: “‘Bipolar’ talks about my experiences as a little kid, how I came to have anxiety problems and diagnosed as bipolar,” he explains. “Everybody I know that’s extremely talented or smart is a little bit crazy. I embrace that because without that I wouldn’t be as creative. I write songs about it and lots of fans identify with it.”

It’s important to KRIZZ KALIKO that his lyrics are not all about hardship and pain. “I want people to be excited by me, come into my world,” he adds. “I want you to have a good time when you’re around me. You gotta want people to want to be around you, want to listen to your music, want to be interested in you.” Judging by his scores of fans, KRIZZ KALIKO’s extensive grassroots efforts and inclusive musical philosophies are working.

INSERT BIG SCOOB BIO WHEN APPROVED

KUTT CALHOUN, FEATURE PRESENTATION, 10-28-08

Hotness drives hip-hop. The hottest albums, the hottest lyrics, the hottest beats, the hottest videos, the hottest clique: every rapper wants to have all of the above. Kutt Calhoun has them all and stands to be the next, hottest rapper. The Kansas City chief's debut album, the scorching "B.L.E.V.E." (Strange Music/MSC Entertainment), fires on all cylinders and introduces hip-hop's next star to the world.

Kutt got the album title from people who deal with heat on a regular basis. "It's a firefighter term that I got off TV," he explains. "It means Boiling Liquid Expanding Vicious Explosion. That's the most extreme hot that something can get. I figured I'd name it that because everybody's saying they're hot. I figured I'd come up with something that's above that category and have that as my album title."

"B.L.E.V.E." kicks things off with the sizzling "Bring Da Flames." A take off of Method Man's classic "Bring The Pain" single, Kutt's track summarizes the type of heat he'd be bringing on his album. "What I was looking for was a title track for the album," he says. "That Method Man hook was a catchy hook and it was what I was looking for and with what my album stands for, I had to bring the flames. I switched it up, put my own little twist on it and I love the way it turned out."

Kutt displays controlled energy on "Keep It Keebler," a funky, laid-back song sure to introduce the country to a new catch phrase. "It's about keeping it about money, keeping it green," Kutt says. "Get your money. Whatever you're out here doing, hustling, working, pimping, whatever you're doing, just 'Keep It Keebler,' in other words keep it real. I thought it was a catchy saying, kind of like how BG came out with 'Bling Bling.' I figured 'Keep It Keebler' would be a catchy saying that people outside of the Missouri area could catch on to. I figured it would be some new slang to introduce people to."

Indeed, one of Kutt's strengths is to introduce new perspectives and new ways of looking at old problems through his music. On the stirring "N A Whitemanzeyes," Kutt gives an impassioned look into the ways black are viewed in America, while on "To Whom It May Concern," Kutt teams with Skatterman & Snug Brim and BG Bullet Wound to give an unconventional look at the role various government officials play in our society.

These cuts showcase Kutt's ability to examine issues that dig beneath the surface of everyday life. "I'm more than just rapping about some bitches, getting some money, shooting this guy or just kicking it," Kutt says. "There's more to me than just that and I had to let the people know that that's how I feel. Nothing on a prejudice tip, but 'N A Whitemanzeyes' is basically saying that through the white, political eye of the government and certain legislations is that this is how they view black people. They just view us as angry, as people that'll never make it, people with no brains, people that sell drugs."

Yet Kutt still enjoys life's pleasures. He dedicates "Real Sex" and "Panic Box" to his female followers. The former features a warbling beat and frank sex talk, while the latter has Kutt rapping over the beat for Too Short's classic "Don't Fight the Feeling." As a long-time $hort fan, Kutt was itching to redo one of his songs.

"I always wondered why no one did a remix to that, man," he says. "That's such a dope beat that it's been 15 years since it came out and that beat will still get a party jumping, somebody's head bobbing as soon as they hear it. I wanted to bring it back on the freaky tip for the ladies, so the ladies would have something. Besides that, I figured that would be a beat to where it comes on, even if they don't know who I am, that beat is going to catch their attention. Once they get to listen to it, I think it will be a well appreciated song."

Kutt's album, at times celebratory, other times stinging, results from his volatile upbringing. Born and raised in Kansas City, Kutt Calhoun shuttled between his mother and his sister's house during his formative years. While at a Kansas City YMCA during the summer before ninth grade, Kutt realized that his ability to cleverly put words together could have benefits beyond the classroom. Kutt discovered that he could rap.

Even with his passion for music, Kutt turned to the streets once the instability at home became too much for him to bear. By age 16, Kutt was supporting himself by selling drugs, sometimes taking trips out of town to transport product. While in St. Joseph, Missouri, in 1996 Kutt got a wake-up call. He was shot in the back.

"It was like a big-ass smack in the face," he says. "It was like, 'Hold up, Kutt. You need to slow down.' I got shot in the back. The bullet richocheted off my pelvis. I had to get surgery on my stomach. They had to go in through my stomach and get the bullet out and I had to get 18 staples in my stomach. I could have died. I took that as a smack in the face, man, more or less like a blessing from God. This was my warning. I stopped selling dope altogether. I started chilling out, writing rhymes all the time and freestyling. Then I ran into some guys that noticed my talent and I'm thankful for that."

Kansas City businessmen Cory Lark and Derek Miller recognized Kutt Calhoun's potential in 1998 and gave him a chance to polish his rapping skills. For the first time, Kutt was in a recording studio, pursuing his musical aspirations. The environment pulled him from the streets and he was soon spending virtually all of his time at the studio.

While recording, Kutt started working with a producer who was also recording with Kansas City rhyme legend Tech N9ne. A long-time fan of Tech N9ne's work, Kutt made an impression with Tech thanks to his uncanny ability to rap for hours at a time. Impressed by Kutt's work ethic, Tech N9ne in 1999 enlisted Kutt as one of his hype men, taking him on several national and international tours and eventually signing to Strange Music/MSC Music Entertainment, home of Tech N9ne. Kutt's alliance with Strange set the stage for "B.L.E.V.E.," which features several guest appearances from Tech N9ne.

"I feel real privileged to be in the position I'm in," Kutt says. "I could have been somewhere else. I could have been dead or in jail. Everybody's life is designed a certain way and I'm glad everything happened the way that it did because if it didn't, I wouldn't know Tech, I wouldn't be at Strange, I wouldn't be in the position I'm in. I wouldn't have damn near traveled all over this world, getting to do the stuff that people only dream to do. There aren't too many people out there that can say that they've done the stuff that I've done. I don't take that for granted at all. I feel blessed and I'm thinking that it's only going to get better."

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