June 27: What the classic Houston freestyle might have sounded like with Christian rappers

June 27 is a historic date in Houston hip hop.

The video above contains DJ Primo‘s tribute and imagining of what that classic DJ Screw freestyle might have sounded like if H-town connected rappers (including Lecrae, Tedashii, and Trip Lee) from the 116 Clique were a part of it.

Carlos “DJ Primo” Avila was the Houston-based DJ who perhaps best exemplified the spirit and legacy of DJ Screw within Christian hip hop. Today is also Primo’s birthday. He would have been 32 years old. #RIPDJPrimo

Lecrae joins local artists for Christian rap love letter to Houston

Lecrae, the Houston-born rapper at the top of the Christian hip hop genre, recently joined local artists Von Won and Shei Atkins for a remix of Wit & Dre Murray's (also from Houston) "Welcome to H-town" song.

The sequel is a part of the Episode 2: Welcome Home series of the duo's Hell's Paradise II: Mask Parade project.




Peep the lyrics below and see how many Houston-specific shoutouts and slang you can identify. There's even an audio "Easter egg" of sorts in Lecrae's verse if you catch it.

Sung refrain: Von Won
(from first version of song, with some slight changes):
Welcome to H-Town, yeah; welcome to H-Town, whoa;
Said ‘em boys ridin’ clean…but without the King, what does it really mean?
Cup full of lean, got a Sweet full of green, wake up, boy, this ain’t a dream!
Welcome to H-Town, yeah; welcome to H-Town, whoa;
I’m prayin’ for H-Town, yeah, yeah; welcome to H-Town, whoa, yeah.

Verse 1: (Dre Murray)
Roamin’ round the earth, thinkin’ bout my city, yeah, the place of my birth
Every time I hear that name, I feel this pain in my shirt
Right next to my heart, like a flame, and it hurts!
Ignored it at first, but now I think it’s something I must address

The right spot to get this thing off a my chest,
The caged bird won’t be able to sing until it rest;
You just gimme a chance to explain, I do my best;
Explain to you why I left—He orders my steps;

To expound any further would be a waste of breath.
This story’s a little bit more than it seems; it has some depth
It’s like I haven’t waken up from a dream, quiet as kept
Nevertheless, baby, I love H-Town; pray for my city when my knees hit the ground;
I pray you find a Savior like I did, H-Town, ‘cuz when He come through,
[chopped and screwed effect] man, it’s goin’ down.

Verse 2: (Lecrae)
I was born in H-town, starched down, way back,
When them slabs in the city, beat that Screw off in the back
Pokin’ out, keep them spinners, eatin’ Frenchy’s chicken dinner
Family came from 3rd ward, Scott Street on up to Ennis,

Hangin’ out in Sunnyside, with my cousin Corey,
They was on that purple Sprite, I was still sippin’ 40s,
Keke’s “Still Pimpin’” stories as I’m passing by Yates, stop and wonderin’ if I'll land at heaven’s gates,
I told my cousin D at TSU while smokin’ trees,
“I think the Lord is calling me”; both of us agree.

And man, I love the city of my birth, that’s why I plead
That God would change the “H” same way he’s changing me.

(sung, from 1st version of song):
‘Cause All I cared about was ridin’ clean, a pocket full of green,
And find a bad yella I can put up on my team,
My bros ridin’ dirty, you know your soul ain’t clean—
Go on, let the Lord intervene.

(sung refrain, from 1st version of song, Von Won w/Shei Atkins):
Welcome to H-Town, yeah [Lecrae speaks over the singing, “What up H-town? I still love you, baby”];
Welcome to H-Town, whoa, yeah;
They say them boys ridin’ clean, fresh up on the scene, but without the King, what does it really mean?
Cup full a lean, Sweet full of green, wake up, boy, this ain’t a dream!
Welcome to H-Town, yeah ; welcome to H-Town, whoa, yeah;
I’m prayin’ for H-Town, yeah, yeah; welcome to H-Town, whoa, yeah

Verse 3 (Dre Murray)
I had a dream on the plane that I was sitting in the slab
Seat back, bass up, chuckin’ deuce and giving dab
Talkin’ to my partners ‘bout these plans that I have,
When I told ‘em Oklahoma, man, dem boys just laughed, like,

“Where dat at, folk? Man, stop the joking! Yeah, you hoop, but you ain’t that dope!,”
It’s like they couldn’t understand me having that hope,
Tryin to serve God, they want me serving fiends with that dope,
A job where we flat broke. Pass the kill

And as I got higher, death is what I started to feel—“Dawg, we smokin’ kill!”
Hah. I backed away from The Killer, and as He picked up my life, and my vision got clearer
Destiny is screaming; it’s faint, but I hear her;
Things are bad right now, but the man in the mirror
Is tryin’ to make a change, rearrange some things. H-town, I still love ya, hold up mayne

(sung refrain, from 1st version of song; Shei Atkins only)
Welcome to H-Town (4x)
(sung refrain, from 1st version of song; Von Won only)
Welcome to H-Town, yeah; welcome to H-Town, whoa; yeah
Said ‘em boys ridin’ clean…but without the King, what does it really mean?
Got a cup full a lean, Sweet full of green, wake up, boy, this ain’t a dream!
Welcome to H-Town, yeah; welcome to H-Town, whoa; yeah
I’m prayin’ for H-Town, yeah, yeah; welcome to H-Town, whoa, yeah

(sung refrain, from 1st version of song; Shei Atkins only)
Welcome to H-Town (4x)

HP2 - Episode 2: Welcome Home can be purchased through iTunes or at invisiblegorilla.net.

Thoughts on Rootbeer's remix album

Fun loving hipster duo Rootbeer (Flynn Adam and Pigeon John) recently posted a six-track remix EP of “Pink Limousine” and “Girlies.”

I enjoyed the full “Pink Limosuine” EP when it dropped a few months ago and always love a fresh take on a familiar song. Add in the facts that two remixes are done by notable Christian hip hop figures Ohmega Watts and Theory Hazit and that this thing (appears to be) FREE and you’ve mos def got my ear.

Here are my thoughts on the reworks:

Pink Limousine (Ohmega Watts Lil’ Havana ’83 Remix)
- Enhanced drums and breaks, but still sounds a little bit like a Track-A-over-Track-B remix.

Pink Limousine (Ugly Zombie Remix)
- Lots of energy and feels like a brand new song. Something you might suspect to hear in an alien night club.

Pink Limousine (Eligh Remix)
- A more emotional, dirge-like interpretation. I can imagine this playing in a tape deck of a pink limousine driving me to a funeral.

Girlies (Theory Hazit Remix)
- Fun and poppy. Gets the toes tapping for sure.

Girlies (Remot Remix)
- Gives the song a soulful, European flavor. The lyrics are cut and chopped like an H-town title, but the samples will make you think you’re sitting in a trendy French café.

Girlies (Daedalus Remix)
- This one seems too technical and robotic to me. Its sterile aesthetic robs the great humor of the original.

So obviously, my faves are the “PL Ugly Zombie” and “Eligh” remixes along with the “Girlies Remot” flip.

Listen to clips and download your own copies here.

Cop the first run at either iTunes or Shockhound.com.

Footnote: On “Pink Limos,” Pigeon John’s lyric is “got no time for silly ducks clucking with the fake looks.” It’s clean y’all!

Vidz: Cam "Platform" / Tre9 "Rise to the Top" video & audio mashup

My man DJ Primo (one of the better mixers in CHH) has a nifty little audio AND video mashup of Cam's "Platform" and Tre9's "Rise to the Top" lead single. Peep it below.


Tre9 - Rise To The Top Feat. Von Won **DJ Primo Platform Mahsup Video** from DJ Primo on Vimeo.

Catch the originals at the links below:

Rise to the Top

The Platform

KJ-52 features CY’s remix of “I Got It Got”

Best-selling Christian rapper KJ-52 recently selected CY’s remix of “I Got It Got” to be the third song offered to his fans in the Freestyle Friday Free Download part of his “Remix the Remix” contest.

CY’s remake, dubbed “Bottom of the Charts,” is an audio lesson in humility and was recorded on Sunday, February 8, 2009. KJ-52 posted it to his website on just five days later and mentioned it in his weekly video podcast the day after he received it.



“I’m honored to have someone of KJ’s caliber offer my remix to his broad and dedicated audience,” CY said. “When I went through the tracks he offered for the contest ‘I Got Got It’ really grabbed me. It’s a monstrous beat I really enjoyed rapping over.”

KJ-52’s most recent album (titled “The Missing Pages”) is, in itself, a remix of his previous work – “The Yearbook.” As an artist with deep connections to his fan base, he released several instrumental and vocal tracks from that album as free downloads and is currently holding a contest for his supporters to re-interpret the songs for themselves.

In addition, KJ has sought out remixes from other established Christian hip hop artists and promoted those versions via his website. The two previous remixes in this vein have come from R-Swift and Everyday Processes’ Mac the Doulos of Cross Movement Records and Pettidee of Soldier Sound Records.

The first round of KJ’s remix contest ended on February 13 with a second round commencing right after. There will be three rounds total and KJ plans to offer an additional six instrumentals and vocal tracks for fans.

“I love CY’s remake of ‘I Got It Got It’ and the message it holds,” KJ-52 said. “And part of my goal with the Freestyle Friday Free Downloads program was to introduce my fans to other Christian rappers whose work I respect and enjoy.”

Dove award-winning rapper KJ-52 is undoubtedly one of Christian hip hop’s most prolific artists, having sold more than 500,000 units for his career and being known for his constant tour schedule.



In addition to the KJ-52 site link, “Bottom of the Charts” has also been released to record pools and radio DJs. In 2009, CY’s album Circus World Event: The Ringleader will be distributed nationally and be on store shelves on July 14.

You can download your copy of “Bottom of the Charts” here.

To hear the original version of “I Got It Got It” and learn more about KJ-52, visit www.kj52.com

For more information on CY please visit www.dasouth.com/complex or www.myspace.com/cyofmuchluvv.

Leak video: Redd Lettaz remixing Mahogany Jones' "Morphed" album

I love it when I see Christians embracing the innovative aspects of hip hop and our modern "remix" culture.

Check out some samples of Redd Lettaz' remixes of jawns off of M-Jones' "Morphed" album.

Remix vid: Jesus Music/Godly Life - DJ Primo

The king of Christian rap's chopped and screwed game has always been good at blends and remixes. Now DJ Primo's steppin' into the video mash-up biz.

Peep the hotness when Lecrae's "Jesus Muizk" meets Jacob Izreal's "Godly Life."


Jesus Musik Feat. Trip Lee DJ Primo Godly Life Remix from DJ Primo on Vimeo.