White Label

Music, Stan Ipcus

I bootlegged my own shit. Sometimes that’s how you gotta do it, what can I say. White Label is a short collection of Stan Ipcus loosies (some new songs and some older ones) that I’ve been wanting to throw on streaming services. So I decided to put them all together as if they were an actual white label vinyl release from back in the day, when tracks that never made their way onto albums would get pressed up and circulated to DJs and neighborhood record stores. The title is a double entendre too, for those of you keeping score at home.

Here’s a quick track-by-track breakdown of White Label:

1. “Grizzly” – This is my latest release, a self-produced track featuring a sample/loop I’ve been sitting on for years that I finally turned into a song. This is me spitting at my optimal level, and I’m in love with the beat and how the vocal samples came together. Actually, I used the Memphis Bleek “I’m back on my grizzly” vocal sample for a crazy freestyle track my boy K-Wet did years ago over Cam’ron and Alchemist’s “Wet Wipes” beat, and I repurposed it for this. Bonus points if you can identify who’s saying my name on the hook.

2. “Cream” – Another brand new one, featuring a flip of the classic of all classic rock jams. My boy threw this on randomly during a late night hang and I was like, “Yo, has anyone ever spit on this?!” I went home, looped it up, wrote some double-time flavor to it, and boom—”Cream” was born.

3. “Pay U No Mind” – This song was recorded in 2004 at Sony Studios during my InYerFace Records days. It was produced by Joe Naughty aka Naughty Shorts, who also produced Kool G Rap’s “It’s A Shame” and Capone-N-Noreaga’s “Stick You.” Fun fact—this was the first Stan Ipcus song that was ever played on New York radio. Shout to DJ Eclipse!

4. “Halftime Show Freestyle” – Speaking of DJ Eclipse, this freestyle is from when I was invited up to The Halftime Show as a guest in 2008 after the success of “My Ferris Buellers.” Eclipse wasn’t there that night, but shout to Mars and DJ Skizz who threw on a couple beats for me to rap to, this being the second one. As someone who always just wanted to be embraced by the underground rap scene in New York, this was a proud moment for me. And since I never released this rhyme on anything else, I figured it was a nice live recording to pull out of the Ipcus archives and include on a bootleg-inspired release.

5. “Around The Way” ft. Hard White – This was a joint that my man Hard White from White Plains invited me to hop on. It’s produced by Pree, who actually is his barber. I think we did it back in the mid-10s, and originally we dropped it on NahRight back when I was writing over there. Then I threw it on the BIG IP DON’T PLAY project, but it never made it to streaming services. Again, another perfect candidate for White Label. We still gotta do a video for this!

6. “Bout My Business” – I produced this one a few years back myself and included it on the BIG IP DON’T PLAY project also. I was in love with this loop forever, and the first verse on here is the same one I spit live on Sway In The Morning with Matisyahu, which was one of the greatest hip-hop highlights of my life. It’s a rapper’s take on my daily life as a working dad, and I’d like to think I achieved the tricky feat of doing it in a way that didn’t come off corny.

Okay, that’s it! Gonna let this one exist in the world and open it up for discovery. Stream White Label HERE.

Isolated Spaces Freestyle

Music, Stan Ipcus

I had to jack this Alchemist beat off his new project A Doctor, Painter & An Alchemist Walk Into A Bar, because I’m in absolutely in love with it. In fact, I started writing this verse the moment I heard it. Thanks for the inspiration and the instrumental, Uncle Al!

*BONUS*

Here’s the one non-instrumental track off the new ALC project, “Stained Glass” featuring Westside Gunn.

Some People Hate (Live)

Events, Music, Stan Ipcus, Videos

Jay-Z took the stage at the new and improved Webster Hall last night for his B-Sides 2 show, and it was filled with highlights—including guest appearances by Nas and Cam’ron. Of all the footage that I’ve seen, this clip of Hov doing the Blueprint 2 sleeper “Some People Hate” with the live band is my favorite. Check it out above, and check out Tidal for the full set playlist.

*Bonus*

I had this idea years ago, but all this B-Sides 2 concert footage inspired me to dig in my bag and put together a mix of all my old Stan Ipcus songs recorded on Jay-Z beats. Enjoy the mix!

REASONABLE IP Tracklist

Mr. Maven (It’s Hot)
Get Ya Chi Up (La La La)
Don of Ogden (Squeeze First)
Snow Plains (PSA)
Almost Thirty (30 Something)
Bananas Stanzas (So Ghetto)
Still Got It (Reminder)
Sports Junkies Live Freestyle (Is That Yo Bitch)
Cheah (N***a Please)
Panoramic Picture (Dirt Off Your Shoulder)
No Mas NYC Freestyle (Ain’t No)
Lip Service Intro (It’s Hot)

 

Blue Sky Playground

Events, Interviews, Music, My Dudes, Stan Ipcus, Videos

Matisyahu’s album Undercurrent is out now! Check out our song off it “Blue Sky Playground” above. And below, watch extended footage of our performance at his album release party, as well as our appearance on Sway In The Morning (freestyle session starts 24 minutes in, don’t miss it).

Thanks so much to Matis for putting me on the album, and always setting me up to shine! And thanks for the mention in the Mass Appeal interview (what up Rob Kenner). Love!

*Related*

Funny, in the trailer for the new Judd Apatow-produced comedy The Big Sick, the word “Stonehenge” comes up as they’re discussing a game called “You Can’t Rhyme It.” But yo, I just rhymed the word “Stonehenge” on my “Blue Sky Playground” verse! Movie looks good, check out the trailer below.