STARSKI (Bay Area, Ca) – "What Goes Up" ft. C-FOUR, NYBD, COACH NUBAY, PAUL ALLEN /// UndergroundHipHopBLOG.com
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Bay area rapper and producer, Starski burst on the scene in late 2005 with the regional radio hit, “Car Shinin,” featuring Mistah FAB. During 2006 and 2007 Starski honed his lyrical swagger and beat-making prowess by pumping out ten mixtapes via his Pimp Hop Records imprint. Starski, with an intense studio ethic, also contributed on dozens of other compilations overseen by the most prominent names in the game today.
Starski’s official debut album, “Tomorrow Ain’t Promised,” was released in 2008. He created, along with Pimp Hop production partner, Hutch Hefner, a signature sound that combined hyphy, old school East Coast, dirty south, Miami bass, and even new wave and pop-punk influences, stamped with his Cadillac-smooth rhyme delivery, hypnotic hooks and high-energy music.“Tomorrow Ain’t Promised,” is based on the belief that one must seize every opportunity, and live life to the absolute fullest – working hard, and playing harder. The album contains fifteen strong songs, each a potential hit, including the special guest appearances by rappers Keak da Sneak, Clyde Carson, Big Rich, Sonny Forecast, and Novakane; r & b singers Magnolia Chop, and Thelonious Jordan; plus collaborations with Spike Slawson from the notorious punk rock bands, Swingin’ Utters, and Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, and guitarist Ted Aguilar from thrash metal legends, Death Angel. One song from the sessions that did not make the record, “Stunnas On,” was leaked, and took on a life of its own, and produced subsequent remixes, including one featuring The Cool Kids, and a techno version produced by PFunkt.
Starski hit the road to promote “Tomorrow Ain’t Promised” on a coast to coast North American supporting West Coast hip hop legends, Tha Alkaholiks, as well as shows with E-40, Ying Yang Twins, The Hieroglyphics, The Pack, The Cool Kids, The Blue Scholars, Trackademicks, K.Flay, Hyro da Hero, Andre Nickatina, KRS-One, The Grouch and Eligh, Zion-I, and many more. However, working on limited resources and a meager independent marketing budget, the record did not become the chart smash that lived up to the quality of the songwriting.
After several internal set backs within the Pimp Hop camp, and disappointment over sales of “Tomorrow Ain’t Promised,” Starski retreated to “the lab” – Above the Bar Studios – and diligently went back to work to cook up new product.
Starski teamed up with DJ Switch from Ireland, and spent a year recording “Dub Rap Volume 1,” a ground-breaking compilation mixtape that was one of the first offerings to fuse the dark, wobbly beats of dub step with hip hop and reggae vocals. The core artists involved with the project (besides Starski and DJ Ricky Switch) include Rankin’ Skroo, Erk tha Jerk, Sky I, Vocab Slick and Maynee (of Distant Relatives), Sonny Forecast, Novakane, C-4, Mojack, TruthLive, Lavish, The Newjakz, Flyyy, Winstrong, Ominptent Penman, Kixx and Bootz, and Eyezone. Compared to a combination of a modern day Dr. Dre’s “The Chronic” with Dr. Octagon, ”Dub Rap Volume 1″ was a resounding viral success upon its release, and a second volume is currently in the works.
Starski then set to work on working with fellow artists on their mixtapes, including the recent “Mixellaneous” by Distant Relatives, and the forthcoming C-4 mixtape “The Legacy Begins”, which is due to drop later this spring.
Starski, forever on the grind, and always exploring new creative outlets, is currently placing the finishing touches on his next project: “The Bridge Tones,” a unique collaboration with Vocab Slick (of Distant Relatives) and producer Rick Vargas. This is an infectious genre-busting project, a “future throwback” sound, which fuses elements of hip hop, 60′s soul, reggae, electro, and emo/indie rock, and incorporates heavy doses of live instrumentation. The concept album is entitled “Belladonna,” and each of the songs is an ode to women.
Not stopping there – don’t forget, he’s noted for his insane work ethic – Starski has just released his newest mixtape “The Rockin’ Dead which is mixed by 106 KMEL’s Dj Rick Lee and hosted by KMEL’s Dj Knuckles. The mixtape is full of guest appearances including HBK Skipper (Beat the Pussy Up), legendary Bay Area rapper Ray Luv, the whole ADHD Clique (Vocab Slick, Top, CaliKidd Mav, Kye, & C-Four), Distant Relatives and more! There is also a full tour to go along with the mixtape called the Rockin’ with the Dead Tour and much more coming from this motivated and talented artist!
THE ROCKIN DEAD MIXTAPE – Download Links:
Fan Links:
twitter: @starskiyall
Instagram: @5tarski
clique hashtag : ADHD
