LA

Let’s get to Know G-Que

| Equal Justice for SOME

By: Ariyana Griffin 

IMG_3D65ED82C553-1Today we introduce Los Angeles native specifically View Park, Dylan Kemp, also known as G- Que. He is in the music field but he is not only a rapper but is a producer as well. He has been in music for a few years now, and his sound has definitely improved and evolved. To learn more about G-Que and his talents keep reading, every link to contact him will be linked below!

Of course, we want to know where everything started so I asked, “when did you start rapping?”

I started rapping and producing my junior year of high school. I’ve always been creative and felt as if there was a void of how I could express myself creatively. So, I started rapping and making beats and people liked it. Then around my senior year, I wanted to focus more on making my production better. Since then, I’ve produced more than I rap.

IMG_D0DF0F114F68-1The music industry can be a complicated space to get in if you do not know how to networking. I asked G-Que “how have you put yourself out there so far?”

I rap less now and produce more so to get my name out I mainly just network and connect with artists that I want to work and create with. I perform occasionally when I feel like it.

Going to school in the Atlanta University Center has its pros and cons. but one thing is guaranteed and that is connections. So I asked, “do you think being in the AUC has helped with your career so far or not?

I think the AUC has helped me in certain ways, and also hindered me in certain ways. I’m from LA so a lot of my music embodies that LA sound. And, there aren’t a lot of rappers/producers in the AUC from LA who want those real west coast beats, so I’ve had to adjust my sound a little bit. That’s made me a very versatile producer and has helped me with my career. But, the AUC is full of talent and people in the music industry, and getting to know those people and make those connections has helped me a lot! I remember my sophomore year of college I took a producing and mixing course at Morehouse, and I can definitely say that course impacted my sound a lot. It taught me how to mix my own vocals and just overall made me a better producer so that I could put out better quality music.

The AUC has also helped me expand into different musical fields. In my sophomore year, a beat of mine was featured in a short film created by my homie Daniel Bailey. Originally we recorded a whole song but in the final cut, we only used the beat. And right now I’m doing the sound design for Spelman’s fall play.

IMG_41F7EC127200-1Everyone has a holy grail that they want to create with so I asked, “if you had a chance to feature one artist who would it be and why?”

Probably someone from the Westcoast, Yg or Kendrick Lamar. I have hella Westcoast beats that I feel  YG could go krazy on. I also make beats for skilled lyricists and Kendrick is my favorite rapper right now, I feel like he could kill on one of my beats.

What was the first CD you remember owning, and how did it influence you?

The first CD I remember owning was Kanye West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Till this day I think that’s the greatest album I’ve listened to, and the only two rap albums that are even that amazing since it came out are Good Kid Maad City and To Pimp A Butterfly. Both Kendrick albums. The production and quality on that album are damn near perfect. All the beats are different but they all still flow with the overall sound of the album. The level of quality of that album is something that very few artists in general, especially in rap, try to achieve. I think that album defined my trajectory as an artist. It made me more concerned with wanting to create a full body of work instead of a project with a couple hits and a bunch of throwaways. Overall I think that’s just a masterpiece of an album and it tells a story, something I want to do with my music.

IMG_31A854F676E4-1What is your favorite and least favorite thing about creating music?

My favorite thing about creating music is actually seeing a song come into fruition. Some beats I make I don’t see myself using them so I’ll send them to other artists. Sometimes multiple artists like the beat and I’m like well damn let’s do something with the beat. Then we get together and create a whole song and it ends up being really dope. My least favorite thing about creating music is when I create without a sound in mind or a purpose. Honestly, my best work comes when I have an idea in mind or when I hear a sample and get inspired to make a beat. But sometimes I’ll just sit at my computer for a couple hours trying to push out a beat and it ends up being garbage.

 

Links/ Social Media

https://lnkfi.re/realone

Twitter- @Thagque

 

WHO IS AIRPLANE JAMES???

| Equal Justice for SOME

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By: Ariyana Griffin

You may have seen the question floating around, “Who is Airplane James?” Well, today I am going to finally get the answer! I do know that he is more than just a rapper from the Eastside, he is truly an artist who puts his all into his craft. Airplane James is changing and embracing the Eastside sound, so if you haven’t listened already, you have to tap in! In today’s music industry it’s rare for an artist to have a great beat, lyrics with meaning, and visuals that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also have meaning. You definitely need his latest project, Eastside Project, in your rotation. Another dope new project is on the way and you want to tap in, it’ll be worth it I promise you! Make sure you check the links below for social media and music links.

I wanted to finally get the answer to the question “Who is Airplane James”  and his answer was: 

“I feel like I should have more intricate story on how I got the name, but I don’t. My middle name is James, and airplane is something my Grandma would really use as a playful insult to me being hard-headed and wanting to do things my way as a kid. She’d say “boy, your head is just as wide as fuckin’ airplane, you don’t listen to anybody” I just ran with it as an ode to her.

But as far as who I am… I’m just a regular nigga off the Eastside that just so happens to be good at music. When you listen to me…you’ll find out. I’m a father, a family man, a son, a brother. I go through the same shit everybody else do”.

As many Los Angeles natives know, the Eastside is very different, like any other part of LA. They have their own everything, style, lingo, you name it, so I asked, “How did growing up on the east side affect your upbringing and your style?”

Man, I had a cool upbringing. I didn’t have it “super hard”. Every rapper says that shit, those niggas be lying. I was raised by my granny, who taught me a lot. I wasn’t allowed to go outside my gate until I was around twelve years old, I had to ride my bike and shit in the backyard so when I finally was able to go outside that gate, it was like a kid in a candy store.

I got into everything you could imagine, except doing drugs or selling them. But everything in the streets was enticing to me. It wasn’t until my friend got locked up and they gave him a decade that I woke up and was like…. Wait, this isn’t what I’m supposed to be doing. I feel everyone weighs their options and I knew then I wasn’t a nigga that was supposed to be sitting in someone’s prison.

So from there I started mapping out what I wanted to do. The Eastside instilled in me a sense of pride though, I’ll tell you that. Any Los Angeles native knows we are like the bastards. People call us easy, dirty, and all that shit, but a lot of history started on the Eastside. So when I started doing this shit seriously, I made it my mission to put us on the map, the Eastside as a whole. Like YALL GOT US FUCKED UP, was really my mentality and still is. Anybody from the Eastside know it’s a vibe. We got our own lingo and everything. Every other sentence we start it with “boy”, so you hear that a lot in my music.

Since 2019 will be over in the blink of an eye, I asked, “what are some of your goals for the rest of the year?”

Man, I’m already in 2020 with it. Just keep perfecting the craft. It’s a couple things in the works that I can’t speak on at the moment, but we’ll revisit this… say October or so. 

91e263a9-f9ef-409c-a707-663279a040ebWho is your inspiration and what artist do you look up to

My inspirations are my kids, my woman, my homies, they all drive me. All these pictures I paint, they inspired it in some way. As of late, I don’t really look up to any artist. But back then, nigga USHER was the shit to me, I ain’t gon lie. I grew up on Hot Boyz, Bow Wow, and just whatever was out. It wasn’t until I was older that I went back and listen to all the classics. People will probably crucify me but, I just listened to Jay Z blueprint.

Who are some people you want to work with in the future ?

Snoop Dogg, Arin Ray, Kehlani, Missy Elliot, John Mayer, Frank Ocean, Kee Riches, 22Icecoldbishop, Rucci, and the rest of the niggas that got it going crazy right now.

What is some advice you would give your younger self ?

Everything you going through serves a purpose and I’d tell myself to finish school.

What’s something you want people to know about you that they probably wouldn’t expect

They probably wouldn’t expect me to be as hands on as I am with every single aspect when it comes to my career. I co-direct, co-produce, and I design my own merchandise.

download (1)Who is the GOAT??! Lil Wayne, Drake, or Kanye 

DRAKE!

 

 Airplane James’ Social Medias: 

Instagram-@Airplanejames354

Twitter-@airplane354

Spotify- https://open.spotify.com/artist/1JhNLx2aikUAHfnzuwVw4q

Apple Music-https://music.apple.com/us/artist/airplane-james/580368988

Soundcloud- https://soundcloud.com/airplane-james

Gentrification in the City of Champions

| Equal Justice for SOME

inglewood-ca-1200I’m from California, the sunshine state, specifically from Inglewood, the City of Champions. Some may know my city for the new Rams Stadium, The Forum (former home of the Los Angeles Lakers), Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles, Randy’s Donuts, and even the Hollywood Park Casino. Warm sunshine lights up the sky, palm trees line the streets and their fan-shaped leaves sway from the ocean breeze. As an Inglewood native, I know the city is so much more than what it appears to be. Slowly, I have been forced to witness gentrification demolish Inglewood in front of my own eyes,  killing our culture and community bit by bit. It is not only painful but it is heartbreaking as well. 

According to the Webster’s dictionary, the definition of gentrification is “the process of repairing and rebuilding homes and businesses in deteriorating areas (such as an urban neighborhood) accompanied by an influx of middle class or affluent people and that often results in the displacement of earlier, usually poorer residents.” It is no secret that in most cases the “poorer residents” in these urban neighborhoods tend to be African Americans and Hispanics. 

The dictionary’s definition raises several questions for me because who decides that our communities need outside help when it comes to repairs? Instead of pouring resources in the community where residents can participate in their own revitalization efforts, who determined that repairing means to break down instead of building and helping the structure that has already been in place? To repair means to fix. How can are you fixing something in a community when gentrification makes everything completely new, almost unrecognizable? The new structures, businesses, homes are now out of financial reach for many of the original residents. Why can’t the millions of dollars that are being poured into the community to kick us out be used to build, and educate the community that is already there? Enough with the questions because I could go on all day, but Inglewood is rich in culture yet it is being overlooked and torn down day by day. The community is being erased by people who flew here instead of thriving because of the people who grew up here. 

I feel gentrification hits even harder in Inglewood because for years we did not have rent control. Rent control is an essential component to renters because it stops landlords from spiking up rent essentially whenever they feel like it. In Inglewood, “64% of households rent rather than own.” In June of 2019, Inglewood’s City Council did approve a rent that would put a 5% cap on the increase of rent and in some cases 8%. Most of the time landlords even raise the rent without repairing anything for months leaving residents with the bare necessities that they need for a healthy living environment. According to Rentcafe.com the average price for rent in Inglewood is $1,856 and the average apartment size is 745 square feet. This is 200 dollars more than the average rent was last year, we are literally being choked out of our community because it’s becoming unaffordable. So now my question is where do the people from the City of Champions go now?

Supporting Links

https://www.rentcafe.com/average-rent-market-trends/us/ca/inglewood/

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gentrification

https://la.curbed.com/2019/6/12/18661454/inglewood-rent-control-approved