CHICAGO, IL –  More often than not, the inspiration for Ola’s music happens while he’s asleep.
 
As many people around the world do, Ola falls asleep at night with music in his ears. Sometimes he plays a beat over and over again through the headphones in his ears and falls asleep to it – which he said almost always affects his dreams. And whatever he wakes up to – whatever feeling or emotion or thought process – becomes the foundation for a song.
 
“That’s how I wrote my first song,” he said. “It was after I watched the movie ‘8 Mile’ and I woke up that night and wrote down some rhymes. I would come back to it every once in a while after that, but I never really took it seriously. Then in about 2009 I was in Florida listening to music and freestyling with a friend and he said I was really good and encouraged me to keep going. We got into it so much that we bought some recording software and a $100 mic at a local store and just recorded stuff for days and days. I had caught the bug, and I couldn’t stop.”
 
When he moved back to Chicago, the real world hit and he had to get a full-time job in order to pay the bills and support himself. But all the while that he was working the job, he said he was never really happy. And every time he would sample some of his music to family and friends they would tell him how excited they were about his music and how much they liked his freestyling.
 
“I figured if people like it, then I should do it,” he said. “I know now that I’m made to do this. This is what I’m supposed to do. Like so many other things, I woke up one day and it was like a revelation. So I found my old engineer and we started working together.”
 
Today his music career is starting to take off. He currently has two songs that are getting regular radio play throughout the Chicago area – “Check (feat. Chris Hasty)” and “On My Mind (feat. Jay Arroyo).” The first is a song with a “grimy” sound to it, he said, but which also showcases his skills as a lyricist.
 
“It’s basically a song about money,” he said. “It sounds a little bit trap-oriented, but it’s definitely lyrical. And Chris Hasty is lyrical. I feel like it’s a record that’s animated and super eccentric.”
 
“On My Mind” on the other hand has a much different feel to it, he said. It’s a lighter sounding song with a subtle pop melody. It, too, is a song that talks about money, but from a different approach that Ola said is “a little more personal – like I’m talking directly to someone.”
 
These singles are two of 22 features on his album “Preparation.” He said this is an album that announces his music to the world and is the start of him taking his music career seriously.
 
Fans who want to sample some of his music can visit his Soundcloud page, or follow him on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter for updates about new music releases or live performances.
 
 
 

 
SEATTLE, WA – When Savon York was a child, most of the stories he would hear would be about his rapper father, who went by the stage name Rick Rated. His father lived what York describes as a “street life” filled with violence – so much so that he was shot and killed when Rated was only 8 years old.
 
Growing up, Rated wanted to do what his dad did. So at age 8, when his father died, he started rapping. He became known as Baby Rated, which eventually evolved into Lil’ Rated when he was in high school and today has become the adopted moniker of his father, RickRated.
 
Though he didn’t have the occasion to listen to much of his father’s music, he did recently get his hands on four of his father’s songs. Those songs gave him an insight into his father’s style and how he might adopt some of that same style into his own music in a way that would bring a unique flavor to the hip-hop world in his region of the Pacific Northwest.
 
“He was a very visual rapper,” RickRated said of his father. “He lived a different lifestyle than I do. I’m not the gangster type, and when I listen to his music it has a different direction than where I want to take my music. But when I hear his imagery and storytelling, those are things that I want to carry on with my music. There’s one song in particular where I’m describing my car, and I’d never have been able to get that description without hearing his song and hearing how he described his own car.”
 
Rated said he also wants to make sure his music has depth and strong messages with underlying themes. Everything he creates has a message and more often than not tells the story of something he’s gone through in his life.
 
“My best ideas come in the morning as soon as I wake up,” he said. “I’m the type of person who will wake up and stay in bed and play a beat over and over until I can’t come up with anything else in that moment. Then I’ll set it aside and move on to the next song. I try not to force the music out. If I get blocked in a song, I’ll set it aside until I’m refreshed and feel like I can be inspired.”
 
His new single “Bye” is one of those songs that came through a moment of inspiration. He said it’s a song about a breakup after a relationship of two years and the experience of being single after such a long relationship.
 
“It talks about the girls I dealt with and the changes in the dating scene since the last time I was in it,” he said. “It has an upbeat, trap kind of vibe to it – that feature vibe that everybody listens to today with a catchy hook. What I try to do with all of my music is to be a mainstream artist with mainstream music with a message.”
 
Fans who want to sample some of his music can visit his website at RickRated.com, or check out his Soundcloud page. He also has music videos on his YouTube channel, and fans can follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for more about upcoming music releases or live performances.
 
 

 
SAN DIEGO, CA – If you were to describe DJ Yolo in one word, it might be “persistent.” After a chronic battle with depression and run-ins with the law, the artist found himself behind bars yet again. Dedicated to his fans, his priority upon his release was letting his fans know of his remorse and his renewed sense of dedication to his music and the people who have supported him. “This time I really messed up bad,” he said, “but even though I’m going through some serious legal and psychological problems, I want fans to know I am still 100% dedicated to the music – no matter what happens to me.” While in jail, it was uncovered that the artist suffers with psychological problems – hearing voices, and music, for starters – and while he has much to sort out in his personal life, it doesn’t take away from the fact that he is first and foremost a relentless and talented artist.
 
DJ YOLO’s music is as he puts it “lit”. He elaborates, “I make music for people to turn up to.” His most recent project, a song entitled “VIDEOS” is a clever and laid back song about a modern dilemma: When you’re out with friends and people are recording videos you might not want others to see. With Instagram, SnapChat, Facebook Live and all the other platforms that chronicle events, one might rather stay private.
 
Fans can visit DJ YOLO’s Soundcloud page to sample “VIDEOS”. The song was also most recently featured in a YouTube video by a talented dancer Matt Martin (find him on Instagram at @Matt_Swag1).
 
Though the artist has mountains to climb and obstacles to overcome, he remains committed to his true love, and business, his music. “I have a newer focus – I was already trying to be careful because of past legal issues, but now, my entire life is going to be music and my online presence. I’m not going to let anything stop me from being successful in the industry.” DJ Yolo also says he is currently seeking out management, and a booking agent to further build his team.
 
To learn more about DJ YOLO, follow him on Instagram and Twitter.
 
 

NY female rapper Serious Voice has been on her musical grind for several years. During her travels to SXSW recently, she crossed paths with International Hip Hop personality and historian Sway Calloway and was invited to take part in his Live taping of a "Sway In The Morning" Cypher. 
 
In the video, Serious Voice, decked out in her usual garb, black tie, white shirt, and bright colored jacket, is clearly the stand-out.  

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Serious Voice also released her debut album Shofar recently to great reviews.  
 
Shofar is not short of great producers. Award Winning Producer Geeda lends to the Anthem track, Brooklyn based producer MooreBeats aka Lenny Moore contributes S.O.S, THIRSTY RMX, CAN'T STOP WON'T STOP, while So Fo Real takes the baton and runs with Mind Games, Product of the Street, Woah, Dance and Take It To The Altar, and up and coming producer Adam Hill gives the title track Shofar it's grittiness and just the right attitude to educate the listener on fighting the battle of life.
SHOFAR STREAM: https://play.spotify.com/album/0OTmVg8X7ff9TSMFliotus

 
COLUMBUS, OH – When Richard Kamara was a child growing up in the country of Sierra Leone, there wasn’t a lot of American-made hip-hop music around. So when 50 Cent released an album and his singles “This is how I Do” and “Candy Shop” found its way to the African country and to Richard’s young ears, he was immediately hooked on this new style of music.
 
“It was because of his music that I started writing my own songs and practicing rapping,” said Richard, who today goes by the stage name Richard Wealth. “In high school I played soccer and after practice I would go home by myself and start writing songs and practicing doing beats on my own. It was a hobby, but I loved his style of music.”
 
In 2008, Richard’s father brought the family to the U.S. so that his children could pursue a better education. By then, however, Richard had developed a thick accent associated with his first language of Creole. And though he poured himself into soccer, he continued to pursue his passion for music and often found a reggae vibe mixing its way into his hip-hop sound because of that Creole background.
 
After high school, he took on a full-time job to pay the bills, but still wanted to pursue music as a career. In fact, during his breaks he would grab a notepad or blank sheet of paper and write lyrics.
 
“It was always in me,” he said of his passion for music. “Music, music, music … it’s all I ever wanted, even when I was at my 9-to-5 job. I remember hearing 50 Cent and thinking, ‘This guy is really dope. He’s really good’ And when I create music, that’s what I want people to think of me. I just want them to love my music – the vibes and all of it. Eventually I want to go mainstream and have my own record label and sign other artists and just generate wealth for myself. That’s why I chose the name Richard Wealth.”
 
He has already started down that path by launching his own record label, Off Price Music Records, while also releasing his first single. It’s a track called “Run Me,” and it was inspired by the song “Run Up” by American electronic band Major Lazer, featuring PartyNextDoor and Nicki Minaj. Richard Wealth said he heard that song and immediately talked to his friend, who is a producer, about making a similar beat. After working together in the studio to create something original, the result is his new single “Run Me.”
 
“It’s a party song about a girl who dances,” he said. “It’s about seeing this girl dancing and wanting to dance with her. It was produced by Mantra and Matt Hagberg and it’s my first single. I’m working on my second single that will be released this summer.”
 
Fans who want to find out more about Richard Wealth and his upcoming music releases can follow him on social media on Twitter and Instagram.
 
 

On repeat we have, Neva lost... the first single off ATL's Independent artist, Anakon The Jedi and his highly anticipated and unreleased EP, Under Pressure. This teaser certifies the flame that's expected from the full project. Listen to Anakon, comfortably lace this beat by YSMbeats while you wait for Under Pressure.   


www.facebook.com/anakonthejedi/
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www.instagram.com/anakonthejedi

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BOSTON, MA – Sim, AKA Sim-EEE, is not a rapper. He’s an artist.
 
His art includes rap … and R&B, and pop, and funk, and sometimes even soft-rock, if the mood calls for it. His art is the whole canvas of music and all its various genres, and he hopes fans will come to know him as a master of every kind of music there is. And as they get to know who he is as a musician, he hopes to pass along a positive message to the world that could influence generations to come.
 
“I want to spread love and create music that anyone can relate to,” said the Boston-based musician who originally hails from the Mississippi Delta. “I want to give people the scoop on what’s going down socially and how we can come together to affect change. I have kids and I see the way society is set up at this moment and it’s not conducive to anyone who wants to progress in life and who has a dream. I want to show everyone through my music that whatever you want to believe in and focus on, then do that.”
 
His new single, “Work,” is a good example of the kind of message that he hopes to send out to the world. While its lyrics address some of the issues going on in the world today, it’s underlying message is a call to everyone to put in the work that it takes to realize dreams. Sim said the vibe of the single is a combination of trap and club – a “radio and dance song” that he hopes will be catchy enough to grab the attention of new fans.
 
Sim is also working alongside Fashion designer and artist Nili Jicho to help produce the Nili Jicho (Mijini Collection) clothing line. Mijini means “urban” in Swahili. The clothing line is scheduled to launch in mid-April.
 
Sim is also a motivational speaker with the current campaign #Youthsneakerchallenge, in which he gives a fresh pair of sneakers to children who maintain good grades, demonstrate obedience to parents and are respectful to others. He hopes to continue to get more donations to this campaign so as to give as many shoes to children as possible.
 
Music is second-nature to him, he said. As a child of the 1980s and 90s, he said he was heavily influenced by the rap and hip-hop coming out during those decades. He recalls that his first introduction to hip-hop was through the cable channel BET.
 
“Once I saw it, I like the way the rhymes relayed and the dress codes,” he said. “I liked it all around and decided it was something I want to do.”
 
Over the years since that initial inspiration, he’s studied the greats of hip-hop, such as Tupac, 50 Cent, Soulja Slim and Three-Six Mafia. He has also studied other genres and said that when he writes today he often pulls from the influences of other sounds, such as rock and EDM. At the end of the day, though, it’s his unique voice that he said sets him apart from the crowd.
 
“My aura is No. 1,” he said, “and my voice itself is a very distinctive voice. If you study rap, a lot of people with distinctive voices have gone on to do great things. Combine that with my delivery and my versatility and it’s almost harder to try to find what isn’t unique about me.”
 
“Work” is currently available for purchase on all digital download sites, such as iTunes, Spotify and Google Play. Fans can also check it out on his Soundcloud page, or visit his YouTube page to view some of his music videos. Fans can also follow him on Facebook, or @Sim_eee on Instagram and Twitter for more information about upcoming music releases or live performances.
 

 
 
RICHMOND, VA – There were two constants in Mitchell “Hollywood Boogie’s” home as he was growing up in Richmond, Virginia: music and basketball.
 
His father was a professional basketball player who played for the Houston Rockets. He was also an amateur musician and often sang or played around the house. His mother was a singer who served as a choir director for their church. She used to sing to young Boogie every day, using new words over the top of old records to modernize the lyrics in a way that would appeal to him. He started singing back to her as a child, developing a sense of rhythm that has evolved into a unique style and sound that today sets him apart as one of the hottest rising hip-hop artists in the country.
 
In many ways, Boogie sees an evolution playing a key role in every step of his music career. From the moment his brother – a local rapper with a modest following – showed him that anyone could be a rapper if they had talent and were willing to work hard, he was dedicated to his craft.
 
“So I began to write lyrics to instrumentals and say them to my friends to see if I was good enough,” he said. “After seeing their reactions, I decided to pursue a music career. But I also played basketball at a high level. I even played for the ABA for awhile until I broke my ankle. I had a choice to rehab and continue to do basketball, or focus instead on music. I’m a hard worker and I decided to put the work that I was putting into basketball into the music.”
 
About four months ago he released a mixtape called “Evolution,” – named as a nod to the way he views his approach to music and his journey as a professional hip-hop artist.
 
“When I started doing music again, I didn’t want to just make any old trap or urban record,” he said. “I wanted to expand peoples’ minds. ‘Evolution’ was my way of talking about a lot of things – education and sports and perseverance.”
 
His new single, “BoogieMan,” is a bit of a return to the urban sound that put him on the map in the first place. He said he was intentional about choosing that sound because he wanted to pay homage to the fan-base that has stayed with him over the years. But he also wants to use the success from that single as a launching pad for his new mixtape, “Relapse,” which he said he hopes to release later this year.
 
To sample some of his music, fans can visit his Soundcloud page, or check out any digital streaming site such as iTunes, Spotify or Google Play. Fans can also follow him on social media on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date on new music releases or live performances.