....Although many have compared him to the likes of Eminem and Vanilla Ice - comparisons he hates - Beyond Belief has a lyrical flow and style all of his own. While his musical influences include a focus on Hip Hop they encompass other music genres as well. He says, “I take a lot of elements from whatever I’m listening to. I listen to a lot of classic rock, funk, R&B, new wave eighties music...”

The NY native got his start in the Hip Hop game by battling in the lunchrooms of his local high school. One of his classmates had connections with Kwamé Holland – emcee and producer who's responsible for the purple polka-dot fashion trend of the nineties, and the music for artists like Mary J. Blige, Will Smith and LL Cool J. Beyond Belief connected with the Hip Hop legend and the rest was history. Beyond Belief is the first artist signed to Kwamé’s new independent record label, Make Noise!!!.....

.....We were able to choose a continent almost anywhere in the world to tour. I said, “Let’s go somewhere that we have never been before and where we could really hope to make a difference; somewhere that we would possibly get a chance to return to as well.” We chose South East Asia specifically for those reasons. None of our band members had been to such exotic places and we were excited to travel to Vietnam, Cambodia, Philippines, Papua New Guinea (where I was told I was the first person in history to bring the cello into the country). We also went to Fiji which was breathtaking. We really lucked out weather wise on our tour because we traveled during NY Winter to be met by South East Asian tropical summer!

Before we toured we were told that we should expect minimal audience interaction, and it wouldn’t be like the states so we wouldn’t see people excited to get up and dance. However, we were very pleasantly surprised when everywhere we went, not only did it the concerts sell out strong with people waiting to get in, but people were excited by the music. I think it just had to do with the type of music that we play. We play music that’s really charged up. I call it music for situation, because it’s not the sit down and listen type of music that is beautiful, but more like the thing where it’s like it’s ok to have drink, it ok to say to your friend what you’re thinking, and it’s ok to yell out when you like the music. Our audiences where climbing up on the stage to dance.....

On September 7th the 80’s Rocks Fashion show hit the fashionably chic Lower East Side to rock Club Element with new, funky fresh designers along with an all-star lineup of performances by the likes of: Cheri Denis, Lil Mama and Carlos from Making the Band. Rising stars like Erika David definitely did their share in giving the crowd a taste of what to expect in the near future as rising r&b stars.

Before the show began Tai Chunn, CEO of MVC Productions promised “a night you’ll never forget” and delivered just that. With fashion showings from a diverse cast of designers such as Celebutante, Catou, 360 Swagga, and Cezar, this was definitely a night to remember....

With regular performances around the NYC Barack Yalad's been building a rep for witty word play and socially consciousness lyrics. He released his first full-length album, "A Loss For Words," in November 2007 on Rawkus Records and gained critically acclaim for his politically aware lyrics. Riding the attention garnered by that album Barack has been opening up for respected acts like The Roots, Mos Def and KRS-One, as well as getting on compilations like "The Boondocks" soundtrack. I first heard him on Hot 97's Who's Next mixtape where his song 'Bewitched' stood out. When talking to him what also stands out is his views on what it means to be a Hip-Hop artists...

Today, in a sea of whips and chains, bling, forties and video hos, hip-hop artists tend to blend together. Perhaps they get lost behind the booties shaking across the screen. But in a land of commercial, uniform rappers, Zion I stand out like a diamond in the rough. Or maybe a ruby, in a land of diamonds….

“If you want to do this professionally, you gotta keep on moving and innovating, and doing what you feel is right,” says DJ Amp Live of the Oakland, CA based duo. Throw on any one of their albums; listen to tracks like Silly Puddy, or Fingerpaint and you’ll hear what innovation is. What they feel is right has always been to push the envelope with their music and ideas, and remain true to themselves and to the music they are a part of.

Zion I is a group that has managed to change and evolve, while still paying homage to what we all fell in love with in this genre to begin with—hot beats, lyricism that will blow your mind, and a drive to keep the music fresh...

It all started at Guys. This is the L.A. jazz club on Beverly Boulevard where guitarist Scott Fivelson, saxophonist Zane Musa, and singer Mishka Spiro all met. Zane Musa was busy blowing away the Sunday night crowd with the house band, The Kids' Cotton Club, while Scott and Mishka were hanging out in the audience. Eventually, the three would go on to form The Mishka Spiro Trio. The rest, as they say, is history.    

In their silky smooth sound, The Mishka Spiro Trio has knocked the ball out of the park with their new, four song EP CD, Awesome in New York. The first three songs, "Swan Song," "Pair o' Dice," and "Song for the Brother That I Never Had" were all written by Scott Fivelson. The final song, "How Could You," was written by Mishka, Scott, and an Israeli musician. Awesome in New York was engineered by Michael Jost and recorded at Cosmic Revolution Studio in Venice, California, right over the Venice Beach boardwalk.  Fivelson mentioned that Musa "looked like a laid-back pencil with its legs crossed" during recording....

"The mix is not even close to being done," says Jay Deasel, the young producer. Shayna Zaid sits on a couch in a basement studio in midtown Manhattan, nervous about what she might hear. The studio is a part of music history, once frequented by Jeff Buckley.

"This is awful," she shrieks as she curls her body into the fetal position, but even the raw version of her new single, "It's You," could draw tears to the eyes of a woman in love. The words are authentic and the violin climax is mesmerizing.

Already a star in Malaysia, Shayna Zaid, a transplant to NYC, is trying to make it big in the states. Her self-proclaimed "melodramatic-popular song," east-meets-west style embodies the intricate composition of who she is...

The mixtape game has been a part of rap since it's inception, when the only way to hear your favorite emcee was through some DJ's live recording. In the last few years though mixtapes have played a large part in the marketing plan of many of today's biggest names in rap. The fact is you need to let the streets know who you are. You need to let them know that when they see your name on a jewel case they're gonna get their money's worth.

This fact is not lost on Brooklyn based emcee Labba who's been featured on more than his fair share of corner store and street merchant CDs. Like many rappers he fell in love with the culture at an early age, but unlike many he's been fortunate enough to come in contact with more than a few industry heads. People like Busta Rhymes and Kevin Liles have been sounding the call about Labba and the uniqueness of his music. That uniqueness in based on his West Indian heritage, evident from the moment he opens his mouth. Hard to find in the rap game, Labba's booming voice delivers lines to let people know about the culture he represents, and that realness has earned a lot of attention.....

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PLATEAU MAGAZINE: I REMEMBER FIRST HEARING YOU A FEW MONTHS BACK ON NEW CRACK CITY . THE BUSTA RHYMES MIXTAPE HOSTED BY CLINTON SPARKS. SO I'M CURIOUS TO KNOW WHAT YOU'VE BEEN INVOLVED IN SINCE THEN.

Labba: I did like two Kay Slay mixtapes. Then [a mix with] DJ Mor' fire, all three of those mixtapes came out and were real successful and started building my buzz. Then the real challenge came when Busta said "we just gonna put out a mixtape with Labba called New Problem, and we moved like 7,000 of that....