Dope Sh!t Podcast

On this episode Uncommon Nasa reacts to an article about conscious rap that Samurai Banana came across.  Nasa breaks down the origins of the term and the different perspectives people have on it based on the era and region they may be from.

Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana discuss the recent acquisition of Bandcamp by Epic Games.  They talk over what this might mean for the future of the platform, the pending lawsuit vs. Google and debate Bandcamp's current pay structure.  

It's with a heavy heart that we present this episode of the Dope Sh!t Podcast.  Uncommon Nasa talks with Samurai Banana about working with Gajah, both on the road and in the studio and the guys offer a set full of Gajah's music.  If you are able, please contribute to Gajah's family for their memorial costs here:https://www.gofundme.com/f/nicks-loveGajah Tribute Set:Acid Reign - SosaGajah (w/King) - Duly NoticedLunar Pistols - Mija Lady (Awkward Remix)Gajah & Mute Speaker - Enough is EnoughGajah & Mute Speaker - I Grew UpUncommon Nasa - Origin Stories (w/ Gajah, Duke01, Short Fuze, Shortrock & Furious P)Gajah - Little Too MuchGuillotine Crowns - Horseman Armour (w/ Duke01 and Gajah)Arkyve - LOST IN THE ARKYVE (feat. Ellay Khule, Destruct, Bëond & Gajah)White Horse - Crossed Roads

Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana have a passionate discussion about youth driven music fandom and how it's evolved and changed over the years, from the early to late 90's, up to today.  

On this episode Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana go down the deep dark youtube rabbit hole of semi-scamsters pushing MIDI Chord Packs as a "Cheat Code" for Music Production and Beat Making.

On this episode of the Dope Sh!t Podcast, Uncommon Nasa talks to Samurai Banana about the business of pressing vinyl and what's behind the massive delays, extended pre-order periods and higher prices for albums today.

Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana talk though the hype wave, purposes, successes and failings of Rap Genius aka Genius.  This conversation took place a few days before the news came out about the sale of the company and further layoff of workers at Genius.  Best of luck to all of those effected by the changes.  

Sigh.  On today's episode, Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana talk about the Anti-Mask (and Vax) movement within the music business.  This applies to venue owners, famous musicians, rappers, bartenders and beyond.  They get into the motivations for such positions by folks in entertainment and urge safety taking precedence over all.

The post-seasonal era has begun for the Dope Sh!t Podcast!  On episode 141 the guys discuss whether the world has gotten to dark for dark themed music and/or hip-hop.  Are we living in the times we were warned about?  Find out what Nasa and Banana think during this episode.

On this final episode of the 7th season we mark an end to the "seasonal era" of the show, moving to a standard "we post it when it's ready numbered format".  Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana dive back into tour discussion as Nasa felt like he needed to add some more context to last week's talk.  This episode really sheds light on the process that is booking a DIY tour and is essential listening to anyone planning such a thing in the future or anyone interested in hearing about the nuts and bolts.  Nasa mistakenly recorded with his fan running and window open, so enjoy the background sounds of motorcycles, sirens and possible UFO landings in the background as processed by Zoom's noise filters.  We'll be back in a few weeks for Episode #141!

In this first part of what needs to be a larger discussion, Uncommon Nasa tells Samurai Banana about his new-found comparison of the creative arts vs. the performing arts and how both relate uniquely to musicians.  

Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana take a deep dive into Mashups, the history and evolution, the do's and don'ts and the differences between mashups and remixes.

Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana talk about the source of talent, how it's valued, evaluated and thought of by the public. Loosely based on the episode of Netflix' "Pretend It's a City" which focuses on the same subject but comes to a very different conclusion.

Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana give their praise and love to the man behind the mask, MF DOOM. Talking about the storied artists' career and breaking down their collective 5 favorite albums from his catalog.

Spotify made the news again with their new promo campaigns for artists which some online have deemed "pay for play" campaigns. Samurai Banana and Uncommon Nasa felt obligated to discuss it, presenting some reasoned opinions, facts and plusses and negatives of the new policy.

Uncommon Nasa tells Samurai Banana about one of his experiences recording standard pop music in the late 1990's.

Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana talk through the affects a President can have on overall music and culture, even inadvertently.

The guys discuss the meaning behind the word "freestyle" and how it's evolved over time.

Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana have a wide ranging conversation that gets into what youthful rebellion looked like in the 90's compared to today, activism and generational shifts.

Samurai Banana and Uncommon Nasa discuss the phenomenon of paid online live shows including their own level of interest, the positives and negatives and it's effects on the post- covid musical landscape.

The guys try to explore and cope with the phenomenon of "Lof-Fi" being tossed around so liberally in music.

The guys finally put to rest any further discussion that can be had around a debate between whether Illmatic or It Was Written is the best Nas album.

This week Daniel Ek, CEO of Spotify, gave some "advice" to aspiring musicians, stressing that they needed to release music "more than once every 3-4 years" if they expected to be "successful". There's been a lot of reaction to this statement online since and Samurai Banana and Uncommon Nasa take this episode for their own reactions, some of which might surprise you.

This week Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana talk about how much they aren't into indie hip-hop anymore. Yes, a strange topic for a show like this, but the guys lay down some of their own truths about the sub-genre, which touch upon their passions for it as well.

Uncommon Nasa tries to rationalize the seemingly sudden rise of Youtube content creators in the landscape of entertainment online, Samurai Banana guides him through it delicately.

Samurai Banana and Uncommon Nasa talk about the ethics of sampling. Can you ask someone what they sampled in order to use it yourself? What about sample snitching? It all gets broken down. Know the rules, so you can break the rules.

Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana give their thoughts on the, at times, awkward support shown by the music industry for BLM via the posting of black squares on IG and other social media accounts.

As stated with the extra recorded message on the podcast, this was recorded before the protests against police brutality and in support of George Floyd began in the country, thus they are not mentioned here. What we did discuss, was the recovery and possible landscape of the indie musician in a post-Covid world (whenever that may be). What changes will take place in producing and selling music, touring and more. Please be safe.

The guys are back! With Uncommon Nasa hunkered down in his apartment and Samurai Banana tucked away at his escape retreat in Vermont, the guys connect virtually to kick off Season 7. This episode gets into the Instragram battles and online shows that have been taking place during the Covid-19 lockdowns and their effects on music scenes. As has been planned for a while, the show is now bi-weekly, so we'll be back in TWO Mondays for now on.

Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana check in during the Covid19 crisis to talk about the isolating steps they've taken for themselves and navigating being a musician during these times.

We close out Season 6 by focusing on a group that dominated the last decade, Death Grips. A personal favorite of both Samurai Banana and Uncommon Nasa over the years, do they still feel the same about the group after a decade of releases? The guys talk over their first experiences hearing the group, what it's like to be at their live show and the evolution of their sound. This one officially wraps up Season 6. We'll be back in a few months for Season 7, see you in the Spring!

As we close in on the end of Season 6, before the break, the guys got in a chat about the current field of Democrats running for President. The conversation mostly made fun of them, one of the candidates actually gives Nasa real life nightmares. Nasa & Banana end up giving endorsements by the end.

The surprise sequel (to us) of our Favorite Movies of the last decade! Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana discuss their favorites, alphabetically. This one starts with L and goes to Z.

Samurai Banana and Uncommon Nasa run through their favorite dozen movies of the last decade. The list contains a dozen choices for each host and runs in alphabetical turns, no doubles between them. Hmmm...they may need some more time for this, we'll see.

On this episode Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana take a deep dive into their understandings of rap flows and how they can often be misunderstood.

In this episode of DSP, Uncommon Nasa has two competing dreams/nightmares back to back that pose a conundrum of how to navigate his music career. The weird and rare event of Nasa dream-telling is saved for Samurai Banana's patient ears, and now yours.

Uncommon Nasa celebrates more then a year away from Twitter (and Facebook) with Samurai Banana as the two examine the pluses and minuses of social media in 2019. Nasa talks about what he's gained being away from SM.

At long last Uncommon Nasa has finally caved and gotten a Spotify account. He tells Samurai Banana why he had a change of heart about streaming (to a certain extent) and talks about how the service is working for him so far.

Samurai Banana and Uncommon Nasa both had differing experiences during the Summer involving mosh pits, of all places. Sit back and take in the tales of two mosh pits.

The guys talk over Jonah Hill's nostalgic coming of age tale about mid 90's skateboarding and hip-hop culture set in Los Angeles. To put it gently, they disagreed on the film's results.

It's been a long time, we shouldn't have left you. But we did. Technology strikes as Nasa's entire studio seems to implode. Nasa and Banana break down the long road back to making podcasts and balancing real life events. But we are indeed, effing back in the place to be.

Sorry folks, we have been away due to technical difficulties at the studio. We will continue Season 6 as soon as we can, hopefully within a month or so. For details listen to this brief announcement.

Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana discuss the state of Rock music and the changes in the music business over the last two decades.

In this episode Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana talk about the dirtiest word in indie hip-hop.....Money. How do you know what to charge people when you want to charge and how do you know how to approach people when you're paying them? The conversation no one else is having on the Dope Sh!t.

Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana talk about the pop song sensation that is "Old Town Road". Because, why not?

Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana talk about finding the balance between taking in art (whether it's music, film, visual art, etc) and putting in the time on your own art, regardless of medium. And they eat Ralph's Ices.

Who's the most popular music figure that you are a hardcore fan of? This question might seem easy, but for two hardcore underground music fans it's a challenge.

Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana talk about whether it's good or bad to get feedback on your music before you release it. They go into depth on their personal experiences on letting people in early in the process.

On this episode the guys do a deep dive on Spotify, some pluses, some minuses, how Banana uses it, how Nasa doesn't and whether he should.

Uncommon Nasa and Samurai Banana lay out the case for tracking out beats and talk about how that should be the norm, not the exception when mixing a record.

SURPRISE! We're back for another season of DSP! What started out as a conversation about how producers are often not credited on digital services somehow built into a debate about the value of a producer, the rules of engagement on Soundcloud and the overall devaluation of producers in hip-hop.