#Ashlee Haze

[sxrgripp]

I said, "No"

and it was political

stream + like + reblog + share + support

[songsforthepierce]

Album Showcase: DATALEAK i - gripp, Ashlee Haze, & curveBREAKERS

Uh, Well hi there. It's been awhile hasn't it? I got pretty busy with at first artfight, work, then loosing my job, school, and then getting a new job. But I finished this year's artfight, school has been more manageable, and I have been adapting to my new job. Starting with my first request. Now, I am semi-open for requests and the reason I say semi is because I have a HUGE backlog but also it depends if I am interested in what is being requested.

I like the cover for the EP, it is eye catching with what looks like a decaying nigh time city but torn into the picture is the sun setting above the water while someone is dancing. It gives off the feeling of there is hope in the world despite everything.

This request was from @sxrgripp and it is eeir first EP. I never really expected someone making music to come to me this early on to request me to review their stuff but hey it's cool regardless. DATALEAK i was released on June 6th, 2023 making this the most recent album I have reviewed so far. The record label for the album is called glassEyeballs, LLC which is owned by gripp, one of the musicians behind the album and the one who produced the album. According to the post ee had been alluding to the making of this EP for six months which I take it as it took six months to make said EP. Gripp is the owner of glassEyeballs, LLC which is not just an indie music label but also a media investment and holding company. It is connected to Construct College of Creative Pedagogy and Philosophy Media Group . According to the about page on Construct,

"The Construct College of Creative Pedagogy is a digital learning community dedicated to offering free educational opportunities to students marginalized from traditional academia. Through online classes and workshops, the college encourages participants to develop skills and scholarship whose utility are born from sustainable material value rather than association with colonial and imperial systems. Construct is anti-bigotry in all its forms. We endeavor to create spaces that resist classism, misogyny, transphobia, white supremacy, and the social structures that support discrimination."

Which I think is super cool and I do notice one of the classes being offered is an introductory course on javascript. In an age right now where we kind of need to know how to work with javascript to CSS when making our own websites since a lot of the big social media sites are falling apart I do like this is being offered openly. Philosophy Media Group which according to their about,

"PMG is a network of southern creators and creators of color committed to creating innovative art and meaningful media."

What started as a way for Ashlee Haze to make art without worrying about access to a stage since Covid19 grew into this group to help promote voices that would not be heard otherwise. You know as I mention gripp and Ashlee Haze lets talk more about the musicians behind this EP.

Starting with curveBREAKERS which at first seemed like their only music experience was on this EP but that was far from correct. They have a soundcloud and they are electro-classical music collab duo made up of gripp as the writer and producer and Dylan Griffith as composer and educator. Within their soundcloud it states,

"The collective has produced several commercially-released recordings, created musical cues for independent theater and short film projects, and taught college-level music production classes. Their work focuses on the juxtaposition of different styles and artistic elements: classical with hip-hop, analog with digital, and oppression with joy."

So far they have one track out and I have been listening to it as I wrote the section about the duo and I like what I am hearing so far. Also, their site having little color blocks to click on which each make their own sound is really cute.

Ashlee Haze is a poet and spoken word artist who was the main person behind PMG but was also a feature on Blood Orange track, By Ourselves, on the album Fleetown Sound. She released the book Smoke, a collection of poems about grief and the strength it takes to sit with it. There is her spoken word album of the same name as well which I wonder if it is meant to be the audio book form of the book. I do want to check out both at some point to see.

You may have noticed I have been mentioning gripp a lot throughout the review so lets talk more about eem. Marshall "gripp" Gillson is a writer, programmer, and educator based mainly online. I have talked about the fact ee is part of curveBREAKERS, works with PMG, is one of the educators at Construct, and is the founder of the label glassEyeballs, LLC. I decided to look more into eeir other musical ventures and I found this site called deezer which I never heard of before. According to eeir page on the site ee has been involved with many different projects which I will check out in the future. From what I have seen gripp goes by ee/eem/eeir pronouns and I ask everyone to be respectful of that. I won't tolerate someone being a dick about that.

Now before I get to the album proper I should state that my familiarity with hip hop is well limited. You may have noticed most of my music reviews so far have been on rock, punk, metal, and such in the broadest sense. That is mainly because I grew up with those genres. My exposure to hip hop was through big hits like Whoop there it is, U can't Touch This, and Baby Got Back. Sure I grew up with the ringtone era I would hear play on the bus' radio to middle school but I only started to go out of my way to listen to rap by the time I was in high school when I would start watching reviewers such as Toddintheshadows and The Rap Critic. Even now I am still learning and expanding my horizons on the genre. So I do hope I can do this EP justice reviewing it with the perspective I have.

Track 1: Greens & Water - Ashlee Haze

First track starts out strong with a nice and catchy beat. It would not be out of place in a club, bar, or a hookah lounge. It can keep the party going and I do appreciate that in songs like this. Ashlee's singing voice is nice and can carry the song. When I started writing this way back in June the only place to read the full lyrics is Spotify which I don't use. Lyric Genius has not made a page on this song as well as I am writing this in November of 2023. Because of such I have to play it by ear about a lot of the lyrics. That and usually me posting lyrics would be easy, however I knew once I would get around to songs that feature the n word I would have to do the lyrics differently. I'm white and I want to be careful when talking about this topic. Some have told me that if I am quoting then I can post the N-word just as they say it since it would be just quoting it. However I am not really sure that is the right course of action for me to do. So I'll go about this to the best of my abilities and PLEASE feel free to like critique me on this stuff because hey I want to improve.

Anyway, from what I can gather from the song on my own and with some help from a friend of mine since I do thinking having a second set of years does help with lyric deciphering. I know this first track is about the narrator in a club setting trying to have a fun time smoking weed though lame guys can’t really keep up or are a bother. The narrator brags about herself which hey good for her. Bad girls have every right to hold themselves up and have a good time partying. They shouldn't have to deal with shitty guys being pissy at them. Though there is a transition within the song that changes with the lyrics,

Eat your greens and drink your water and and keep your third eye open

Which comes off more like a nice reminder of keeping yourself well fed and hydrated as you are smoking weed. At least this way you don't have a bad time while getting high. Especially afterwards talking about floating up and such.

Track 2: Cop the Summer - gripp

What stood out to me about this track was the instrumentals, it has a chill atmosphere yet something about it scratches the right itch in my brain. I began tapping my fingers along with the song as I was listening to it. I think the reason it scratches my brain a bit in the right spot is that something about it reminds me of reggae which I could be incorrect about the music comparison since sadly my knowledge on reggae is rather limited. But I don't know, something about it reminds me of that genre.

From the lyrics it seems like the narrator is enjoying the summer drinking while buying whatever he wants. Like he has something to prove with showing off his wealth. One of my friends also seemed to have also gleamed that as well from it. But the ending line

She's bad for you block her number

It then makes me wonder if he is buying stuff for this girl? That in a weird way they are using each other. For him he gets something physically and emotionally from the girl. While she in turn is just using him for money. Which this would have an effect on the high wealth the narrator has. Or maybe not.

Track 3: Upset (feat. Rhayne Thomas) - curveBREAKERS

This track features blues vocalist Rhayne Thomas which is very fitting for this song. This track stood out to me the most because it is not just slow song but is more grounded being about economic struggle. The first line being,

Oil man gotta bail out, Banker got a bail out, slaver got a bail, and I got debt

What follows afterwards is places such as airlines and Chrysler also getting bail outs while the narrator continues to be in debt. Clearly tired and hurt from the reality of capitalism prioritizing these businesses over the common people.

They're closing down the schools but opening the bars, they'll put you in a cage for getting free

Promise salvation to keep you working praying for a day you'll never see

The line about the schools got to me since growing up I went to an elementary school in a pretty poor area of the city. It's budget was limited and the parents along with the kids there struggled greatly financially. Many of the children relied on free lunches since their parents could barely make enough to feed themselves. That and I know the schools that tend to close down are those in low income areas and those in towns that barely get any funding from the government. Leading to people living there making the choice of either leaving for better opportunities or staying and pushing through it. Bars do bring in the most money from working in food service and while bars do have their place it there are critiques of it from the more negative aspects of bar culture with people using alcohol as a coping mechanism from the pains of reality. Which a lot of those pains are caused by economic strife brought upon capitalism. A lot of unjust arrests happen for just existing be it if you are homeless trying to sleep somewhere or if police think you look "suspicious" outside a store. Within prison you are made to work as basically slave labor with the condition of you'll eventually be let out. Which not all get to see since a lot of prisons have terrible living conditions. All of this has the repeated line, "And I'm upset", throughout the song. Which is an understandable emotion that I feel when I see stuff like that happen.

This EP was a pretty good and fun listen. To be honest, I like all three tracks equally. While the third one stands out the most stylistically since it takes a more blues approach (which is appropriate for the them of the song) and the fact there is a bit of what sounds to be an electric guitar in one part which surprised me. The first track is a fun club song it jam out to while getting high. The second track would be my pick for my absolute favorite if I had to only choose one song. The instrumentals of it really clung to me and I won't forget it.

You can listen to the whole album through streaming such as Youtube Music, Spotify, and Apple Music. You can also purchase the album through Amazon and itunes. I do want it to eventually be put on bandcamp as well since I would think that would help get more the word out about this project but here is hoping! I highly recommend checking this EP out along with all the other projects the artists behind this have done.

[ukdamo]

Temple

Ashlee Haze

the pastor says

we are having church

and I begin to wonder what it means to

possess a thing you cannot touch

I caught the holy ghost once

after chasing him in the back pews

held onto him long enough to convince my mother of salvation

then went home and set him free in the wild

how pompous of man to

think himself temple

don’t you know I have called out to God

in emptier structures?

the doors of the church are open

come, sit

lay your burdens at the altar

eat the body and its crumbs, sip the blood

until you are satisfied

I am unlearning how to erect myself

as a stained-glass home

this pipe-organ heart is guilty of calling out to the godless

especially men who peek during prayer 

[legion1227]

DATALEAK iii EP Review

A short collection of tracks that evoke thought-provoking reflections.

DATALEAK iii, if you're unaware, is an EP consisting of three tracks performed by three different artists. The newest entry in the DATALEAK presents three artists delivering impactful lyrics in a poetic melody with lo-fi instrumentals accompanying in a slam poetry reminiscent format.

The first track, I Said, "No," by Ashlee Haze, sets the tone for the next tracks to follow. Haze starts the track by establishing how it transpires and takes inspiration from "I Woke Up" by poet Jameson Fitzpatrick. While Fitzpatrick's piece delves into themes of intimacy and societal violence, Haze delivers a spiritual sequel that stands well on its own, even if you're unfamiliar with Fitzpatrick's version. Haze asserts herself with power concisely in her delivery. Her opening lines follow the essence of Fitzpatrick but have her set off on her own path as she navigates through setting personal boundaries and offers contemplation when thinking about one's own autonomy or societal structures. The criticism and controversy stemming from her actions follow in the poem. "They still called me a tyrant/ called the distance a war." From there, she shifts more into her personal identity, which challenges perception. The track deserves a full listen to witness Haze's lyrical steering as she floats through simplistic instrumentals.

From there, let's transition toward the second track, "Voice Kink" by sxr gripp. The vocals sxr gripp harbors are deep, raspy, and harbor an allure that itches the brain, a notion the artist points out in the track while also making an appropriate comparison to Isaac Hayes and Barry White vocally. The sound definitely helps to get the point across about the appeal a mighty voice contains. Sxr gripp challenges perceptions with remarkable lines and superb delivery. "See your most sensitive sex organ is not between your legs but between your ears." While sxr gripp spends the beginning of the track laying the foundation and providing lyrical food for thought that also doubles as pillow talk, there's expert subversion when playing up the "Voice Kink" as the terms of endearment used aren't what one would expect to hear in the intimate, hedonistic setting. Another must listen to hear clever wordplay.

The final track to round off the EP is I Love It When Black People Ask, "How You Livin'?" by Maya Williams. William's record expresses a deep connection with her experiences in the Black community. There's an earnestness felt when she gushes about how much she loves that phrase and the comfort associated with it. Williams also manages to capture incredibly well a conversational and friendly tone as every line is followed with a light-hearted back and forth between Williams and another. Warmth and its desire radiate throughout the work to its end as the final lines reflect on prayer, alluding to strength in spirituality as well. With sxr gripp composing, the instrumentals prove to be the most compelling, inducing feelings of whimsy. While I wish the track harbored more lyrics to coincide with its runtime, it's wonderous nonetheless. With each track offering something different, DATALEAK iii deserves a listen if you're looking for poignant lyricism across the board.

[hall0ween-twn]

LITTLE MISS STRANGE lyrics prompts

choose between corey, eddie or steve for a prompt with angst, fluff or smut. one lyric at a time please.

a/n: i'm not good at angst or fluff but i really wanted to use this as a practice. also, i just love this au and the story i've gotten to create with clemkruckinnie so much!! these songs are from my playlists and thought that fit the au a lot.

1 “your face on my ceiling, i fantasize.” 🎵 prisoner, miley cyrus feat. dua lipa

2 “i need somebody with a human touch.” 🎵 stop, spice girls

3 “but i made up my mind, i'm keeping my baby.” 🎵 papa don’t preach, madonna

4 “i'm the reason why you can't get to sleep.” 🎵 tangled up in me, skye sweetnam

5 “why do you only promise underneath the stars?” 🎵 in the dark, ava max

6 “i wish i’d never seen your face.” 🎵 change, pale waves

7 “if you really did care about me, it wouldn’t take another man to make you understand that you want me.” 🎵 same ol’ same ol’, pyt 

8 “the only thing i’m guilty of is giving you too much love.” 🎵 this is me, dream

9 “it's as if you know me better than i ever knew myself.” 🎵 pieces of me, ashlee simpson

10 “is there someone else? is there a place for me?” 🎵 summer night town (english version), coconuts musume

11 “but then i understand, the friend i’m dreaming of is far away.” 🎵 show me how, men i trust

12 “darling, if you only knew, all the things that flow through my mind.” 🎵 fantasy, mariah carey

13 “i'm more than willing to rot in hell with you.” 🎵 eternally yours, motionless in white

14 “does your mother know that you’re out?” 🎵 does your mother know, abba

15 “they’re bringing up my history but you weren’t even listening.” 🎵 lavender haze, taylor swift

16 “i fell in love with that person i see everyday.” 🎵 romantic ukare mode, miki fujimoto

17 “you take my hand, and you say you've changed.” 🎵 too little too late, jojo

18 “it’s useless crying over how i was too late to be honest with you.” 🎵 bitansan, juice=juice

19 “you're not the one i'm supposed to love.” 🎵 tell my mama, christina grimmie

20 “we were right 'til we weren't.” 🎵 flowers, miley cyrus

21 “i thought it was a one-sided love, but was i wrong?” 🎵 crazy about you, minimoni

22 “no one else has made me fall as hard as what i have for you.” 🎵 no one else, reachback

23 “baby don't be gentle, i can handle anything.” 🎵 right where you want me, jesse mccartney

24 “and i only need a little time to satisfy this craving that i'm feeling inside.” 🎵 scary, britney spears

25 “i want to treasure my smile for the person i love.” 🎵 i wish, morning musume

26 “i hate the way you still know everything about me.” 🎵 unforgettable, the best week ever

27 “i can't contain my joy 'cause i finally found the boy i've been missing.” 🎵 i can hear the bells, hairspray

28 “guess mine is not the first heart broken.” 🎵 hopelessly devoted to you, grease

29 “shut your mouth and lose them tighty-whities!” 🎵 dead girl walking, heathers

30 “possible she wants you too.” 🎵 kiss the girl, the little mermaid

[omegalomania]

hiiiii i'm sorry i may just be dense but what is the ten years line in kintsugi kid referencing?

well after the tracklist leaked and got officially released i saw a lot of people speculating that "ten years" was in reference to the hiatus (since 2023 marked ten years since it ended 2013) or something to that effect, or maybe it was about a relationship (by 2021/2022 when this album was being written, pete would've been with meagan for about ten years at that point)

so turns out the refrain is "i spent / ten years in a bit of a chemical haze / and i miss the way that i felt / nothing" which doesn't seem like a reference to any of those things.

pete has spoken a bit about his struggles with different substances. this started up during cork tree era (the track "atavan halen" references that he was on the anti-anxiety drug ativan, which is what he tried to overdose on prior to the album's release, and if you read gray it details at least one other attempt and a lot of trial and error with various substances, some formally prescribed and some not). he tapered off some after his kid was born in 2008 but this followed him all the way through the hiatus and he says he relapsed pretty hard after that. this was reportedly one of the reasons he was doing so badly around the time he and ashlee split (he dropped to something like 95 pounds during this time period because of how badly he was taking care of himself).

so i have no idea how exact the "ten years" time frame is. but i'm pretty sure "chemical haze" is in reference to that.

(by mania era he's talked about how he's no longer doing any prescription meds and that he does a lot of talk therapy now, and by the present day he still mentions attending therapy and has mentioned taking gummy shrooms for his anxiety.)

[blackfemmecharacterdependency]

A: The Entertainers Pt 2

Andrea Bordeaux Actress | Andrea Lewis Actress | Anesha Bailey Actress | Angel Coulby Actress | Angel Haze Rapper | Angel Parker Actress | Angel Theory Deaf Entertainer | Angela Bassett Actress | Angela Lewis Actress | 

Angela Meryl Stuntwoman | Angela V. Shelton Comedienne | Angelica Joy Model | Angelica Ross Actress/Activist | Angelique Noire Model | Angelique Perrin Voice Actor | Angely Gaviria Colombian Actress | Aniela Gumbs Child Star | Anika Noni Rose Actress |  Anita-Joy Uwajeh Actress | Anjela Lauren Smith Actress | Anjelika Washington Actress | 

Annarah Cymone Actress | Ann Ogbomo Actress | Ann Wolfe Professional Boxer/Actress | Anne Amari Adult Entertainer | Antoinette Robertson  Actress/Model | Antonia Thomas Actress | April Bee Blogger | April Kae Musician | April Weeden-Washington Stuntwoman | 

Ariel Alexandria Davis Actress | Arlene Hawkins Model | Armelia McQueen Singer | Ashanti Singer/Songwriter/Dancer/Actress | Ashlee Blackwell Writer | Ashleica Edmond Actress/Voice Actor | Ashleigh Morghan Model/Actress | Ashleigh Murray Actress |  Ashley Blaine Featherson Actress | Ashley Madekwe Actress | 

Ashley Nicole Black Actress | Ashley Nicole Williams Actress | Asjha Cooper Actress | Asmara Blogger | Assa Sylla French Actress | AsToldByKenya Blogger | Aube Jolicoeur Model | Aude Legastelois Actress | Audra McDonald Actress/Singer/Theater | Augusta Savage Sculptor | 

Aunjanue Ellis Actress | Aurora Burghart Actress | Ava Duvernay Director | Awar Mou Model | Aweng Chuol Model | Ayisha Issa Actress | Ayo Edebiri Actress/Voice Actor |

[austennerdita2533]

Ashlee! How are you? You’ve probably been asked this before, but which Taylor songs do you associate with a modern day Darcy/Elizabeth? And, while I’m here annoying you, which Taylor songs fit a modern day Jane/Bingley? Thanks for making my time here so much better :)

Hi there! Here are some songs I associate with both those pairings:

Darcy and Elizabeth:

seven

this is me trying

Delicate

Maroon

Ours

This Love

Sparks Fly

Jane and Bingley:

Come Back...Be Here

Enchanted

Sweet Nothing

Love Story

Holy Ground

Lavender Haze

Our Song

Paper Rings

Lover

[carleyplays]

Caught up in the emotions of the night and the haze of alcohol, Briar and Ashlee found themselves upstairs, away from the noise of the bar. The world outside faded into insignificance as they looked at each other, both yearning for comfort, for something real in the midst of the chaos that had become their lives.

Without words, they moved closer, and before they knew it, their lips met in a kiss that was charged with years of unspoken feelings and unresolved tension. For Briar, it was everything he'd ever wanted, a moment he'd dreamed of but never thought would happen. The kiss was soft at first, hesitant, as if they were both testing the waters, but it quickly deepened, becoming more urgent and passionate.

In that moment, nothing else mattered. All the pain, the loneliness, the stress of the past few years melted away. It was just the two of them, lost in their own world, where the only thing that existed was the connection they were sharing. It felt like all the pieces of his life that had been scattered were finally coming together.

[freetowns0unds]

Freetown Sound does not only allow pleasure to coexist with pain. For Blood Orange’s Freetown Sound, the past also coexists with the present. Freetown is not only a place in West Africa where Blood Orange’s father was born, but Freetown exists within Blood Orange’s life as an artist in NYC. 

In Western culture, it is hard to reckon with time in a way that does not engage with the idea of moving forward or some type of chronological linearity. When critics saw the name of Blood Orange’s 2016 album, they believed it would be historical, ancestral. Entertainment Weekly described the album, “This record is steeped in history: the title refers to Freetown, Sierra Leone, where your father was born. But the album feels really current, too. Songs like “Hands Up” reference the killings of unarmed black teenagers.” For the Western music critic, Africaness signifies a type of past while Blackness operates in the present. There is a lot to be said about the critic’s idea of Freetown as a pre-modern site for the album while the theme of being black in the States brings it to the present. Similar to how Marcus J. Moore believes Blood Orange deconstructs West African sound, Entertainment Weekly seems to suggest that the artist modernizes, refashions, and revamps the album’s Sierra Leonean “roots.” The publication attempts to position (West) Africa within a Eurocentric construction of history that parallels James Snead’s explication of Hegel: “The African is also always already there, or perhaps always there before, whereas the European is headed there or, better, not yet there” (Snead 650). Entertainment Weekly positions blackness in Blood Orange’s album as a type of Europeaness that gets the album to its modernity; the publication argues that the blackness of the album is what gets us to the present.

However, the blackness of Freetown Sound does not provide a linear transformation of its West African references. The historicity of the album does not solely come from the title. When it comes to blackness and historicity, Snead continues to write about understanding the notion of time in black cuture through “those occasions when history ‘jumps the rails and has to be restarted at the point where it goes wild’” (655). The album situates itself in a complicated, unmappable history. There is no origin, although some people would argue that the origin is “obviously” Freetown. That fails to be true when we look at the construction of the album. Freetown Sound begins with a sampling of Ashlee Haze’s 2015 spoken word “For Black Girls (The Missy Elliot Poem).” Then, as the album plays through each song, Blood Orange interupts them with cuts from Boogie Down Production’s ‘Why is that?" (1989), the documentary Black is… Black Ain’t (1994), Venus Extrvaganza in the documentary Paris is Burning (1990), and Ta-Nehisi Coates “Is Violence a Function of Our Culture” (2015) alongside so many more.

Freetown Sound is neither a current or historical album. Time is scattered within the album and exists outside a linear, chronological conception. Blood Orange jumps back and forth, neither here nor there. Through samplings and interpolations, clippings and recordings, Blood Orange disorients our sense of place and time. He describes the record  as “ADD” in response to Entertainment Weekly, saying:

“I was really intentionally trying to make things move quickly to keep [people’s] attention…I used to do that stuff when I was younger, like on VHS. You’d cut out the commercials and press record again. It was such a mixture of different things. But the more you did that over a month period, just trying to make a perfect tape of some kind, [the more] you realized it created such a real sense of you and where you’re at. That’s what I was trying to do musically with the album”

What Blood Orange does not realize is that unintentionally, in his attempt to capture the attention of others and piece together where he is at, he placed himself in a type of sociality, a play between different histories and experiences. In Freetown Sound, Blood Orange evokes what James Snead refers to as the “cut.” Within what appears to be his album’s progression and development, the artist interrupts himself, only to get back on where he left off later. What Blood Orange refers to as “ADD” in order to express his inability to focus on one linear train of development, Snead calls “a kind of cultural coverage, this magic of the ‘cut’ attempts to confront accident and rupture not by covering them over, but by making room for them inside the system” (652). Freetown Sound figures more like a sonic collage than a map or chart of Blood Orange’s identity. The songs don’t seamlessly transition to each other on the album. The artist once compared the record to flipping through the same few radio stations in a singular car ride, and there is no better way to put it. 

Blood Orange tends to repeat melodic schemes within his record. These schemes aren’t strategically placed, but happen randomly, where one song sounds reminiscent of another, but you are quite sure where it is picking up from.  There is no trace to help us understand how we got here, but we are somehow back where we left off. Each song evokes a fragmentation, not necessarily complete, but left waiting for Blood Orange.

Music criticism loves to evaluate albums on their ability to progress and develop. No artist wants to hear from Rolling Stone or Pitchfork about how each song on their album sounds the same. When making their albums, musicians strive for cohesion born out of constant invention. Repetition is tolerated, only if it is re-invention, something new must be born within each occurrence. I was at least conditioned to believe that. Every time I noticed a repetition, I was determined to find the differentiation. I would say, “Yes, this reoccurred, but it also transformed,” because I was apprehensive about the idea of suspension. Where am I, where is the music, if not progressing? To answer this question, I look to the song “E.V.P” off Freetown Sound which goes like this:

Two step in the cut Spotlights in the cut Chances are you never saw What made you who you are

These are the first lines in the song, but you hear it broken down and repeated throughout. They are not extended, or even developed, but pieces of the sound echo in the back. Similar to the repeated melodies and the samplings, the repetition of these lines does not hide in the background, but we cannot predict when they will arise. The “cuts” come as a surprise.  An alternative to progression is seeing the potential in the surprise, the jolts, the interruptions. Not as a means to move us toward the future, but find that the present, what we deem as “current,” is interlaced with hints and pieces of the past. 

[archanarana33]

[sxrgripp]

i barely remember recording this. who even knows what i said!!!

[legion1227]

Ashlee Haze "Green & Water" Song Review

Upon a recent request, I listened to a newer track released this year by artist Ashlee Haze.

Ashlee Haze's song "Greens & Water" made a powerful first impression on me. Instrumental and production-wise, the track is at its strongest as it starts with simplistic piano notes playing. Accompanied by her vocals telling the listener to "hol up," Haze immediately establishes a gravitas that demands the listener to pay attention. The song doesn't take long for the beat to follow suit and accompany notes, making the song even more of an earworm. Haze soon takes the mic to rap and delivers a solid performance.

Haze's first verse delivers a decent lyrical scheme, rapping braggadocious and impressive so far. Haze's flow and delivery bring an air of legitimate confidence as Haze puts down lame guys and gasses herself up. As an empowering track for women, it works incredibly well also. The chorus calls for "bad bitches" (essentially) to turn up while lame or broke men step aside. With an unwavering first verse and a superb hook, Haze provides a wonderful jam to play at summer functions, parties, clubs, and otherwise. The anthem harkens back to songs of a similar vein from over the years. To me, the verse reminds me somewhat of TLC's "No Scrubs," more so in message and delivery rather than sound.

The second verse leans more into braggadocious and arguably surpasses the first. The rhyme scheme and flow are even smoother the second time around as Haze boasts money, elevates herself, and puts down any and all haters or doubters.

The last third of the song ties the whole song together as the beat is played around, while Haze tells the listener to "Smoke your greens and drink your water, Keep your third eye open." The song, all the way to the end, remains an infectious bop that will play incredibly well and should be added to certain playlists. As we head into the Summer, there is no better time to be playing this song as it works as a Summertime jam, though it will also work all year round.

( 4/5. A great song, hard recommendation.)

[buttonpoetry]

Oh Fuck Boy, how did I live without you? Why didn’t I know I needed someone to drink all of my Hennessy?

Ashlee Haze, “Ode to Fuck Boys”

[simba-bonfamille-lyons]

"If he's nice," Simba said with a shrug. "If he's good to you." He shrugged again as he started peeling a few bananas to cut up.

"If he breaks your heart, I'll kill him, though. I don't care if he's famous." Simba grinned and took a bite off the top of the banana before putting it down on the cutting board.

"I'll be fine. You don't have to worry about me." In fact, he was a little hurt, just a little bruised to think that Ashlee wasn't bringing her boyfriend around because of him. He didn't want to be the kind of parent that kids didn't want to bring their partners around. She said it jokingly, but...he didn't know how much of it was a joke,really.

"Ask Kiara. I hazed all her girlfriends."

Baking a Feelings Pie /./ [Simlee]

[inhernature]

“For Colored Girls (The Missy Elliott Poem)” is the work of Atlanta writer Ashlee Haze.

"For Colored Girls (The Missy Elliot Poem)"

a brief history of womanhood in hip hop or your favorite could never or for colored girls who don’t need Katy Perry when Missy Elliott is enough

3rd grade. I’m in the hallway, when I’m sure I shouldn’t have been and Cory White comes up to me and asks “Yo! Have you heard that new Missy Elliot track?” I reply “Who is Missy Elliot!?!” at the time my parents only let me listen to the gospel and the smooth jazz station but that day… i went home, ran upstairs to my room and closed the door (a cardinal sin in a black mother’s house) and waited on TRL to come on then it happened. metallics and a black trash bag fill my TV screen and I hear the coolest thing I’d ever heard in 8 years of living *beep beep, who got the keys to my jeep… Vrooooommm!* at that moment I had my life figured out I was going to grow up to be Missy Elliott I spent the next decade of my life recording and rewinding videos to learn dance moved passing that dutch getting my freak on and trying to figure out what the hell she was saying in work it there were so many artists I could have idolized at the time but Missy was the only one who looked like me It is because of Melissa Elliott that I believed that a fat black girl from Chicago could dance until she felt pretty could be sexy and cool could be a woman playing a man’s game and be unapologetically fly if you ask me why representation in the media is important I will show you the tweet of a black teenager asking who this “new” artist is that Katy Perry brought out on stage at the Super Bowl I will show you my velour adidas sweat suit and white fur kangol I begged my parents for I will show you a 26 year old woman who learned to dance until she felt pretty feminism wears a throwback jersey, bamboo earrings, and a face beat for the gods feminism is Da Brat, Missy Elliott, Lil Kim, and Angie Martinez, on the “Not Tonight” track feminism says as a woman in my arena you are not my competition as a woman in my arena your light doesn’t make mine any dimmer

Dear Missy, I did not grow up to be you but I did grow up to be me and to be in love with who this woman is to be a woman playing a man’s game and not be apologetic about any of it If you ask me why representation is important I will tell you that on the days I don’t feel pretty I hear the sweet voice of Missy singing to me pop that pop that, jiggle that fat don’t stop, get it til your clothes get wet I will tell you that right now there are a million black girls just waiting to see someone who looks like them”

(Text Source: The Fader)