Scholarman is dropping a new album called ExiSTANCE in January, and this is the video for the first single "Lyrical Baptism."

Labels: ScholarMan, video

This week the Baltimore City Paper rolled out its annual Big Music Issue, and it's got a lot of interesting stuff in there, can't wait to read all the articles. The one I wrote is called Might Don't Make It: Baltimore hip-hop may never go mainstream--is it up to its iconoclasts to carry the torch if it doesn't? I hope it'll start some conversations and some arguments; it might seem like I'm trying to shut down all the talk about if/when Baltimore might blow up, but really I just wanted to debunk some of the more naive and dated theories and strategies and get people past them, so they can set more realistic goals and maybe make more meaningful accomplishments. Most of the article is kinda me ranting, but I also used it as an opportunity to talk to some of my favorite unheralded underground hip hop artists and get their perspectives on the subject: The Black Sunn, Sean Toure', ScholarMan, Kneel Knaris, Born King, and Singodsuperior.

(cover by Sam Holden)

Labels: Baltimore City Paper, Born King, magazines/newspapers, PX, ScholarMan, Sean Toure, The Black Sunn

ScholarMan - Free Spirit Of A Troubled Soul (Soganic Music)

I've already posted three music videos from this album, and reviewed it on the City Paper's Noise blog, so you I've already really told you all you need to know about this record. But I hadn't dedicated a post to it on here yet, and it's available now on iTunes.

ScholarMan - "Hood Stories Vol. 4" (mp3)
This is one of the hardest beats on the album and I always enjoy a good storytelling rap, plus there's no hook, which isn't really ScholarMan's strong suit anyway.

Labels: mixtape/album review, mp3, ScholarMan

Here's ScholarMan's latest video, which features "Hopes & Dreams" from his recently released album Free Spirit Of A Troubled Soul, and "So Origi-NOW" from a mixtape dropping later this year.

Labels: ScholarMan, video

My stuff on the Baltimore City Paper's Noise blog this month included a review of ScholarMan's new album, Free Spirit Of A Troubled Soul, and live reviews of Reina Williams @ Peace & A Cup Of Joe, Balti Mare and the Baltimore String Felons @ the Sidebar, and Bossman and Mullyman @ the Black Hole Rock Club with DJ Booman, DJ 5Starr, 100 Grandman, TestMe, Smash, Pork Chop, Skarr Akbar and others.

Labels: 100 Grandman, Baltimore City Paper, Bossman, DJ 5 Starr, DJ Booman, Mullyman, Noise, Pork Chop, ScholarMan, Skarr Akbar, Smash, TestMe

A couple months ago I posted the first video from ScholarMan's next album, Free Spirit Of A Troubled Soul, due out January 2010, and here's the second, "Reap, Sow."

Labels: ScholarMan, video

This is ScholarMan's new video, "I Love Hip-Hop Music" featuring K-Mynez and directed by Marques Green, from his upcoming album Free Spirit of a Troubled Soul, which will be out in January. You can also download a compilation with a new ScholarMan track on it here.

Labels: ScholarMan, video

ScholarMan & Jonesy - Distant Voices EP (Soganic Music)

The ridiculously prolific MC/producer ScholarMan released one album and three EPs last year, and he's already on pace to top that in 2008, with an album, an EP and this collaborative EP in just the last 6 months. Unlike his previous self-produced efforts, this one is all beats by Jonesy, a producer from London that he worked with over the internet, and ended up with the single "Maryland To UK" (which is included as a bonus track here) and the 5 tracks that make up the EP. Really Jonesy's production style is pretty similar to ScholarMan's, soul samples and all, though, so it's pretty close to his other stuff, other than the references to the transatlantic theme of the record. You can download Distant Voices and several other ScholarMan releases for free on his website, and here's a YouTube of him performing "So Vital" from the EP in New York earlier this month.

ScholarMan & Jonesy - "Well Suited" (mp3)
This right here is my favorite track at the moment.

Labels: mixtape/album review, mp3, ScholarMan

ScholarMan - A Meeting With Andre Kostelanetz EP (Soganic Music)

Before seeing him live barely 6 months ago, I'd never heard of Scholarman, but he's quickly becoming one of the most productive MCs in Baltimore, someone to really watch in '09. So far this year, he's released an album, a really impressive video, and put up two free EPs on his website. Apparently this record came out of ScholarMan picking up an orchestral record by Russian arranger Andre Kostelanetz and just deciding to chop up samples of it into a whole bunch of beats. I've always liked the idea of hip hop producers taking a particular record or artist and just finding as many ways as possible to turn that raw material into new tracks, so it's cool to hear that approach in action over the course of one release.

ScholarMan - "Not Give Up" (mp3)
There are some dope beats on here where I'm not totally crazy about the guest MCs, but this is my favorite solo track by just ScholarMan on this release.

Labels: mixtape/album review, mp3, ScholarMan

This is a video for "Our All" by ScholarMan, a song that I posted here in January having no idea that it was a single or he was shooting a video for it. It's really visually impressive, and he directed it himself, apparently. ScholarMan's relesed a couple EPs since that album, I need to post about those sometime soon.

Labels: ScholarMan, video