Lack of support? Think again...

I've heard it a million times.

Man, look at how Atlanta blew up! Look at how Houston blew up! Look at the Bay! They all just came together and bam! Everybody got on.

Shut up.

Just shut it up. 

I hate to sound harsh but as a free thinking able minded adult, do you REALLY HONESTLY WHOLE HEARTEDLY believe that that's all it took? If so, where's your evidence for it?

This isn't the early 90s when you'd see the "super" song featuring like 9 artists...and I'm yet to see a whole slew of "super" songs featuring every hot rapper from Atlanta on the same track. Or every hot rapper from Houston, or wherever on the same track. Just as i'm yet to see Lil Wayne at an award show shouting out support local New Orleans hip hop and I've never heard Eminem talk about "Go check out (fill in the blank) for the other side of 8 Mile's new mixtape!" in an interview. It just doesn't happen that way.

Think about this...seriously: Where did you get the idea that in other cities people blew up because of city wide support? Also - and probably more importantly if you're from Seattle, like me - Where did you get the idea that there is a lack of support for local music?? MAYBE, just maybe what you're saying is, no one is supporting YOUR music for a variety of reasons such as:

a) You're not on hustle right or
b) Maybe you just suck and need to come to grips with that. 

I dunno - but I honestly used to think the whole "everyone supported everyone" was how it was done until I realized I had NO REAL basis for thinking any of it. I just kinda made that up in my mind and ran with it as I see tons of local artists doing.

On the contrary though, i've come to the conclusion that in Seattle this idea that no one supports local acts is soooo widespread, that we actually end up supporting them more then our counterparts in other cities.

We have TONS of GREAT blogs with good followings that support local music. We have internet radio stations that support our local music. We have venues that let locals perform night in and night out.

On the other hand i've performed in Houston, LA and Denver and I tell ya what - even in a sold out arena no one gave a damn about the local acts. Point Blank. No one was in the crowd singing the songs. No one was begging for CDs. There was no "buzz" about their performance - yet, these are/were the big name guys in that city.

The truth is this. Ludacris, Jay-Z, Eminem, Jeezy, Wayne, Drake...you name em. Even your new guys, Dom Kennedy, Stalley, LEP Bogus Boys...they didn't make it because the whole damn city loved em. They've made it because

a) they made music that a large amount of people connected to and
b) had enough business acumen to go out and execute a gameplan. They didn't sit and wait for the right amount of money or a label (threw up in my mouth)...THEY had enough entrepreneurial spirit within them and they didn't let the location or any idea of how they perceived someone else to make it influence them.

Next i'll talk about why the regional movement is your WORST enemy if you're an independent rapper.

Shout out to the homey Janay from www.naybesa.com for having this convo wit me earlier. She's got a dope ass blog too =)