Ty Reads "Kanye West Owes Me 300 Dollars: And Other True Stories From a White Rapper That Almost Made It Big"

I just recently finished the book, "Kanye West Owes Me 300 Dollars...And Other True Stories From A White Rapper That Almost Made It Big" by Jensen Karp, and this book was fantastic.

I had heard about this book on one of Karp's many podcast appearances, plugging the book a few months back. I was looking for a new book to read, something light, but also nonfiction, and this was a great choice for me. First off, I enjoy stories about the entertainment industry. I think that that lifestyle is cool, but can also be hideous. "Kanye West Owes Me 300 Dollars" has plenty of both kinds of these stories. I am also roughly the same age as Karp, so there were a lot of things that he talked about that I could relate to. He came up in the late 90's and early 2000's, during my high school days, so a lot of the musicians and people in the music business he talked about, I knew all of them. He also talks about how you can have it all one day, but the next, it could be gone. I find these stories enthralling too. He also talked about his many personal problems and hardships he had to deal with, again, very relatable for me.

For those of you that don't know who Jensen Karp is, or was, he is now a writer, comedian, and owner of an art gallery in Los Angeles. He has written for many shows and websites and magazines, he has his own podcast, "Get Up On This!" on the Earwolf Network, and he is a stand-up. Back in the day though, he was a rapper that went by the pseudonym of Hot Karl. Well, he first got his start in a R&B/rap duo with his friend Rickye, as a pre teen. They performed at local bar mitzvahs, clubs and talent shows. They even opened for some big name acts as young kids, but they got screwed by their first manager, as always seems to be the case, and Rickye walked away from music, and Karp focused on school.

Karp could not shake his love for rap music. He grew into a DJ for local house parties all over LA. He would also battle rap people all the time. For those that do not know what battle rapping is, it consists of two emcees trading jabs over one beat, and it is all from your immediate thoughts. No one writes, it is all freestyle. Well, Karp was very, very good at this. He did it al the way through high school, and continued when he went to college at USC. He was so good, he called into a radio show one day on his way to work that had an on air freestyling competition called "Roll Call", and won his first battle. Then, he won the next day, the next day, the next day, it turned into a 6 month winning streak. He could not be stopped. They even brought him into the studio, something they never did, and the guys running "Roll Call" where shocked at his appearance. He is a nerdy looking white dude, he wore ripped jeans and rock band t shirts and had black wire-rimmed glasses. Still, after seeing him in person, they kept him on, and he dominated everyone that came his way.

He retired from "Roll Call" after his 6 plus month run, and he thought it would end there. But, big names in the music industry caught on to what he was doing, and thus, Hot Karl became a hot commodity. He took meetings with some of the biggest names in the industry. He met his idols. He met up and coming people that are now mega stars. It was incredible to read these stories. The time he met Missy Elliot on the street and was forced to free style for her was uncomfortable and hilarious. His meeting with Mack 10, who literally opened a briefcase full of money for him, was awesome. It was so interesting to hear about all that goes into picking a label and starting to record an album.

Karp eventually signed with Jimmy Iovine and Interscope Records. While on the label, again, the people he meets and the stories he tells are fascinating. He gets into fake fights with Pink and Tyrese. He met Bubba Sparxxx right before he blew up with his song "Ugly". He has phone conversations with the RZA. He gets to work with a young, and hungry, Kanye West. He recorded songs with Mark McGrath, who got him super wasted afterward, and Mya. He was a hype man for Gerardo, of "Rico Suave" fame. He is told constantly that money is no object, and he is one of their top priorities.

But, as a lot of people in the music business run into, he was signed right after Interscope signed Eminem. We all know who Eminem is, but not many people know of Hot Karl. We come to learn later that Eminem may, or may not have, but I'm pretty sure he did, tell Jimmy Iovine and Interscope that he did not want any other white emcees to be as big a priority that he was, and they obliged. From there, his life spirals downward. His trip to Jamaica is frightening, and scared me to my core. I share a lot of the same mental stuff that Karp has, so it was easy to relate to what he was going through.

The story ends happily, but the journey to get there is, at times, scary, funny, bizarre, lavish, corny and stressful. I loved this book and I cannot recommend it enough. Check it out, I think you will like it.

ed note: we originally posted the wrong title for the book. It has been corrected.

Buy "Kayne West Owes Me 300 Dollars: And Other True Stories from a White Rapper Who Almost Made it Big" here.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is the current king of the rap battle in west St. Louis County. Challenge Ty by following him on instagram and twitter.

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Relive, and Debate, Great Music with "The Rap Yearbook"

Time to download the book about all of our favorite downloaded songs

I just finished another book by another former Grantland writer, and, once again, I really enjoyed it. I just recently finished and reviewed the very excellent "Boys Among Men: The Preps to Pro Generation that Changed the NBA" by Jonathan Abrams. So, naturally I figured another Grantland writer would have an equally as good book. The book I chose was "The Rap Yearbook" by Shea Serrano.

"The Rap Yearbook" was given to me as a gift, and I was putting off reading it until I caught up on some other reading, but boy am I glad that I read this book. It is widely known that I'm a big hip hop fan. I've written about a lot of hip hop groups and have been listening to hip hop for many, many years. This book is a great read about the most important, not best, rap songs from the years 1979 to 2014. It was absolutely fascinating. Serrano is just around my age, so we have very similar taste in older hip hop, but very different taste in more recent hip hop.

Serrano picked the most important song for each year, so it wasn't necessarily the best. It was the most important/influential song during it's particular year. The early years are easy to agree with. In 1979 he has Sugarhill Gang's "Rapper's Delight". Obvious choice. Some other obvious choices that are very hard to disagree with, 1980 Kurtis Blow's "The Breaks", 1982 Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five's "The Message", 1987 Eric B and Rakim's "Paid in Full", 1988 N.W.A's "Straight Outta Compton", basically all the late 80's, early 90's stuff is easily and correctly chosen. He also writes a few paragraphs as to why the song is the most important. He points out what the song is about, why it's important, the influence it had, the message it sends, Serrano pretty much breaks down every legit reason why the particular song is the song of the year.

The author and I definitely differ when it comes to 21st century hip hop, and that makes this book great. Serrano seems to think that more popular artist put out more significant songs. I understand why he thinks this. The more popular the artist, the more people it reaches, thus making it more important. I just prefer more underground, lesser known hip hop artists. That's my particular taste. I'd rather listen to Murs or Mr. Lif or Dilated Peoples than Kanye or Drake or, god help me, Macklemore. But, as I said above, I totally understand why he picks those people. Serrano may like more lesser known artists too, but that would not make for a good book for more than half the hip hop listening community. So, in the 21st century, he picks some songs that I disagree with. In 2005, he picks Kanye West's "Gold digger". Yeah, it's a popular song, with a very good beat, but I don't think any song featuring an actor, Jamie Foxx, should be considered. Also, the song is very misogynistic. But, I don't know what I would put in it's place. That's where Serrano has me beat. Serrano also picks other stuff I don't agree with in the 2000's. Stuff like 2008 Lil Wayne's "A Milli". It's a fine song, but Lil Wayne had peaked already by that time and he was definitely on a down swing. It felt more like a lifetime achievement to put him in this book. For 2009 he picked Drake's "Best I Ever Had". Drake is a terrible rapper and an even worse bandwagon sports fan. Drake stinks, his music stinks and he will be irrelevant in about 5 years. Drake does not belong in this book. For 2012, he picks Macklemore's "Same Love". Sure, the song has a very good message, but it is not a good rap song. Macklemore is the biggest poser in the history of music. He is worse than Elvis. He calls himself independent, but he does nation wide commercials and carries himself like a jackass. "Same Love" is important, but not because of Macklemore and I'm sure there is much better, much more important songs from 2012. Macklemore, in my opinion, is as bad as Drake. They are corporate rappers that make corporate, shitty rap music. For 2013 and 2014 Serrano picked two songs I didn't recognize. For 2013 he picked Big Sean's "Control" and it wasn't until I read why he picked it that it was the coming out party for Kendrick Lamar. Personally, he could've picked any song from Lamar's debut album, "good kid, m.A.A.d city" as the most important song of 2013 and it would have been a better choice. In 2014 he picked a song I never heard of by Rich Homie Quan and Young Thug called "Lifestyle". His reasoning was more about the emergence and weirdness of Young Thug than the music. Ok by me.

Another thing that makes "The Rap Yearbook" a great book is the collaborations. In each chapter, Serrano brings a fellow writer or friend in and they give their rebuttal to what should be the song of the year. So, we get at least two different perspectives in each chapter. Serrano isn't married to his choice and that makes him a wonderfully gifted writer. He wants outsiders points of view and ideas. He's open to hearing why he is wrong and why someone else is right. I love that.

"The Rap Yearbook" is a must read for all fans of rap music and music in general. It's fascinating and it brings you back to that time in your life. I knew exactly where I was when I first heard his 1999 choice, Eminem's "My Name Is". I can picture 16 year old me bobbing my head to his 1998 pick, DMX's "Ruff Ryder's Anthem". I vividly remember arguing with friends and family that Jay Z was the clear winner in his beef with Nas, and Serrano picked "Takeover" vs. "Ether" for his 2001 songs. This book is wonderful. Go out, buy it and read it. You won't be disappointed.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is sorry to tell the head editor that 3rd Bass did not make the book. The head editor gave Ty the gas face. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

The Greatest American Band Debate: N.W.A.

Getting back to the greatest American band debate for me today, I'm going to dip back in the world of rap and nominate N.W.A.

N.W.A. are one of the most influential bands of all time. Their members were creators of an all new genre of rap music. They, for all intents and purposes, created listenable gangster rap. Their music wasn't just for the people from Compton, it was for everyone everywhere in the US. They made gangster rap accessible. Sure, people that lived in the suburbs of Missouri, Michigan and Tennessee didn't want to visit Compton, but N.W.A painted such a clear picture through their words, you knew what they were talking about, or you at least had your own idea.

What makes N.W.A. even better, they did all of this on one album. The group only released one full length record, but that record is so influential. Sure, they released other albums under the name N.W.A, but nothing compares to the magnitude of "Straight Outta Compton". That album is an absolute masterpiece. As I said, it gave the entire world a view of the gangster lifestyle and how tough it was to be a young, black man in the ghetto. I have not spent one single second in a ghetto, but this album gives me a vision of a horrible, scary and ruthless place. They do such a great job of portraying this. The album is also full of all time hits. Songs like "Straight Outta Compton", "Boyz in the Hood", "F&^k tha Police" and "Express Yourself" are absolutely phenomenal. When you open the album with "Straight Outta Compton", it lets you know and hear how great the members of this group truly were. Ice Cube explodes on the record, rapping with a vicious and ferocious rhyme scheme and it is awesome. He rips apart the lyrics and just crushes his verses throughout the whole song. When you hear the first lyrics, I get goosebumps and I'm ready to hear one of the greatest rap songs of all time. Dr. Dre kills it on the production and scratching of this song. He was/is truly a musical genius. He was pretty much the catalyst for this group to get started and you can hear his influence on this track. Eazy E is incredible, as he is on all of their songs. He has that high pitched, almost whiny cadence, but damn, it is infectious and he is a master on the mic. I really like his voice and I still haven't heard anyone like him to this day. "Straight Outta Compton" is the most perfect gateway song to the world of N.W.A. It tells you almost everything you need to know about this band.

Right after "Straight Outta Compton", we get what may be their most popular and most recognizable song, "F&*K tha Police". This track is a masterpiece. This song came from all the abuse that the members took from the police in Compton and, once again, they paint a very real picture that almost everyone can imagine, but not relate to. I've been harassed by the police before, in my teen years I had dreads and listened to a ton of Bob Marley, but I never experienced anything they rap about on the song. Once again, Ice Cube is at the forefront of this track and, once again, he is truly killing it. Ice Cube, who is very famous, and I will touch on that in a bit, but he is the most underrated person in N.W.A. He is just as important as Dr. Dre and Eazy E, but not everyone talks about him the same way they do about the others. On "F&*k tha Police", he comes out and calls the police racist and points out that, since they have authority, they choose to only go after minorities. His words and his lyricism are timeless and incredible. This song is so true and so bleak and so heart breaking, but it is so good. I, much like every fan of N.W.A, love this song.

"Express Yourself" is Dr. Dre at his best. He didn't rap a whole lot when he was in N.W.A, but his producing and beat making are top notch and this track is a primary example of his genius. He samples an old funk/rock song, that goes by the same name, and puts the emcees, Eazy E, Ice Cube and MC Ren, on full display. "Express Yourself" has one of the best beats in all of rap music and it is 100 percent due to Dr. Dre. It is a really, really good song.

Then, there's Eazy E's introduction to the world on "Boyz in the Hood". This song introduced us to the tiny, whiny, but super infectious cadence of Eazy E. When he starts rapping on "Boyz in the Hood", I can't help but rap along with him. When he starts out, "rolling down the street in my 6 4", I know that I'm in for a great time, accompanied by Eazy E's super unique style of rapping. This song is so great and Eazy E is so great. I love that he was a dope dealer, was friends with Dr. Dre and Ice Cube, and they just threw him on a track, and he absolutely killed it. I love that song.

N.W.A is one of the greatest rap groups of all time. Hell, they are one of the greatest groups of all time. They gave us gangster rap. They made it accessible for everyone. They painted a real picture of how tough it is to be young and black in the ghetto. They are pioneers and they did it on one record. Imagine what they would have become had Eazy E not gotten sick with AIDS. Eazy E was a great rapper, but he needed those other guys with him. He was the guy that bank rolled the group in their early years, but he became a star while recording with N.W.A. MC Ren was a very good rapper and was a perfect fit in N.W.A. He had a hard edge to his voice and was a great counter to the style of Eazy E. He has done some other stuff, like creating his own label, but he is most famous for his work in N.W.A. DJ Yella was a great DJ, but he pales in comparison to Dr. Dre. He's done other stuff, most notably with the group the Wrecking Crew, with Dr. Dre, but he will also be best known for his work in N.W.A.

Dr. Dre is ultra famous. I think we all know that. He was the driving force behind N.W.A and he was easily one of the harder workers and that shows in his later work. After leaving N.W.A, he and Suge Knight founded Death Row Records. In doing this, he discovered and helped some of the best talent to ever rap. He introduced the world to Snoop Dog on "Nuthin But a G Thang" on his classic record "The Chronic". Snoop was a very little known rapper until he met Dr. Dre and then he absolutely blew up. Dr. Dre also worked a ton with Tupac while both were on Death Row Records. They recorded some of the best rap songs of all time, most notably, "California Love". After leaving Death Row, he started his own label, Aftermath, and he has achieved great success. He discovered guys like Eminem and 50 Cent, just to name a few. Dr. Dre also created his own line of headphones, Beats by Dre, that have taken over the world. His hard work has paid off, and then some.

Then, there's Ice Cube. He left N.W.A after recording "Straight Outta Compton", due to not getting what he deserved, and went on to have an incredible solo career. He released many great solo records that went platinum a bunch of times. He solidified himself as a great rapper, but more so, a great lyricist and writer. He had a knack and a way with words that was incredible. He is a genius. He also has expanded into the world of acting with great success. He had a star making turn in "Boys in the Hood". He wrote and starred in every version of "Friday". Two of the three of those are very good, especially the first one. He has done some not so great stuff, but he usually delivers in the movies he has bit parts in. Just reference his small role in both "Jump Street" movies. He is hilarious and does a great job. So, yeah I'll deal with an "Are We There Yet" or a "Ride Along" if I can get a "Friday" or a "21 Jump Street". He has become a major, major ultra famous star in music, television and movies.

N.W.A. was incredible and they belong in the conversation. Side note, the movie "Straight Outta Compton", that came out last year, is so good and a great representation of what this group went through and how they dealt with their problems. It's a really good movie. I love N.W.A and I know a lot of people do too. They were great.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He thinks N.W.A. is 1000 times more deserving to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame than KISS. Gene Simmons has no idea what real rock music is. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.