The solo debut of Shockwave, the double a-sided This Generation with DJ Precise and Ya Heard A Him with Tommy Tee, makes a lot of noise in the underground. It was released in
November 2000. The record can be bought in the specialized vinyl
stores and ordered at Walboomers (the distibutor), Sandbox Automatic and Concrete Echoes live on internet. The whole pressing is sold out. Shockwave:
“We’re talking about pressing another edition.”
On his shelf there are at least a dozen songs ready to be released.
His music, released and yet unreleased, is slamming. The future
looks very interesting and hopefully bright for this man.
This Generation
Jump in da metal speed-box,
roll by dem coffee weedspot
niggaz be adorin' sensi like it Jesus
some are lost ones residin' inna metro subway
chollers pon da base like weez ridin' alley trains
waitin in vain fo' da pain to be released
but da beast got 'em grounded
its hard to get dem chainz
and dem shackles dismounted
when we gon see ghetto niggaz run elections
mash up di place with fashion statements
and dancehall selections
rude boy protection with gold teeth
ebonic speech for alla yall,
ya came ta brawl? we backspacin' alla yall
As independent unsigned solo artist this release is the work of
more than only one. It’s the achievement of people working together
without being together. “I try to help with building up the scene more”, says Shockwave. Everybody wants to help building up the Dutch scene, the products are there. But still something strange happens,
or better yet, doesn’t happen. How come Dutch DJ’s are not spinning
Dutch releases? It’s an essential tool that is lacking the Dutch
artist and those potential buyers interested in them. The question
remains while being asked by a lot of Dutch artists, as we sit
around the table to check out other issues.
This Generation
ya gon fi get it, the essence of this hiphop spirit
(talkin'bout) ya done did it but yo we did first
strike ya inna chest wit flowz,blow backs out with a verse wordz
admit it hurts,
fifty thousand volts to jolt and bolt ya ass up
tag weak niggaz down, my '99 throw-up,
hold up, I'm blastin poems like cold crush
pon ya po butt, peeps gone get krunk when flow buss
niggaz on the corners and they all march like soldiers
coz...
Doing the mathematics
One of the things you keep on running into is the image your making
a lot of money as soon as you release something or are in the
spotlight. Shockwave: “I keep on explaining to people that all glitter ain’t gold.” As you can say Cologne and Acken were not build in one day, it takes blood, sweat and tears. Ofcourse
there is also a lot of fun, education and relaxation while working
at it. And when you see the finished product, it’s a fullfilment
and satisfing achievement. Doing the mathematics you will know:
making a living, in a decent manner, out of doing art is not possible.
Having an international connection with Tommy Tee, a great logo
by Shake (The Hague) and a full advertisement campaign on ART12. The big secret why Shockwave is in the picture and success in
getting it done is very simple: doing it. “I stay focused. You figured something out and than you just start
doing it. It is a lot of hardwork. It’s was a big and still is
a big struggle. But you have to do it.”
That is networking
In Groningen he started out as a dancer for the United Street Artists. “We had different elements united in our crew.” Later he joined the HellwayZone Dancers. Which lead him in being one of the two rappers of Zombi Squad. What made the success of Zombi Squad? They released Rough And Poetically. And made a lot of noise in Europe. “At that time there was a lot of negativity going on. Amsterdam vs. Rotterdam, city against city. We (Zombi Squad) were tired of it. Although
it kept the competition tight. We wanted to do more. So we started
to network. It’s all a network. You get a show, make sure it’s
tight. You meet another people. We crossed the border and want
to spread our music. At any party there is always someone who
is a promotor or something else, that you come in contact with.
You got to have an open mind and character. Otherwise they wont
approach you. That is networking.”
This Generation
Mi chant ya brains inna headzpin
my vision a widescan
the all seeyin lyrical, bringz drama to da spiritual
shit's universal, black verses out to hurt you
niggaz voices switch from high pitch to low bitch
enchantement fo' da wicked mindz
trapped in the ring of time
with hate pon da thinnest line
wipe out with rhymeloadz, nocturnal killa flowz
juggle thoughts with rhyme pros
the illest combos exposed to youth genna massiv
blaze trackz till death
nah mah people can't knock it
slide with waves pon stage and pride in mah pocket
shoot flames from mah left arm
with the right mic-rockin'
poplockin' boggledance
da way mi speak, da way mi chant
Make something
With every person you meet there is a new door that opens. “If you have the wrong character. If you are in Germany e.g. and
acting like you are the best. And having an attitude. Those people
will not come up to you. While those people can be a lot of meaning
to you.” Just to be open minded and have a positive vibration getting you
to more places than locking yourself down. “It’s a lot of hard work. It’s never being easy and it’s always
a struggle but people tent to forget that a lot of people are
hard working because they like to work. They doing it because
of the plessure of doing it. A Shake likes to make something,
he likes to make a logo. You (Boombox AQ) like to make photo’s
and to create an advertisement for… for the sake of creating.
You like to explore, experiment and to do things. That is how
things get done. By doing them.”
This generation…
Black I rising... the upcomming sun
establish my position, ghetto operation
movement smooth black LI-ON with severe pressure
shoot the stars out the sky phucc mah navigation
groovin' fluent-ly dance-hall control
I'm like heavens energy, strike pure lightnin' boltz
flowz rapidly, ya outro composed inna second
got twice the domination of all s&m fetish
Learn how to deal with them
In conversations as friend to a friend we talked about how many
haters there are. On how you can ignore them, learn how to deal
with them. Still their negative vibes have an impact on you. Shockwave:
“It makes me stronger, though. What doesn’t kill me makes me stonger.” It still takes a lot of energy away that could be better spent.
Shockwave: “In The Netherlands there is a lot of talent and a lot of good
artists. E-Life making a lot of good music. Postmen, some peeps think it’s not HipHop, still they have the same background.
(Not even to mention that HipHop came from Reggae, ed.) Believe it or not there are still haters. Hating out of… just
to hate. Kind of frustrating. But I learned that you can’t please
them all.” And, by the way, why should you? “Compared with Sweden, they are a lot more advanced in their business with even the
half of thepopulation (9 million) that we have here (15 million).
They do not act up before doing it. With ‘How is the buisiness,
where is the record company?’ Etc. etc. They just start doing
things if they find it’s good to do. They just do it.”
Your school career
As the phrase goes: if it is worth doing, it’s worth doing good.
“You have to focus. On school I had a lot of problems, always
dancing and performing. That is not very good for your school
career.” A common experience and a generaly known fact. “But I focused on having a good education. So I could have a good
job. Cause I had to provide myself a living and a shelter. I have
to feed my family. I have a beautiful daughter and a lovely girlfriend.
Ofcourse I would like to make a living out of music, but I can’t
right now. With being focused, I now can invest money, the money
that I make with my job, into releasing my own material. With
being focused and doing things it all comes around. You meet people
that are also struggling, but are doing there thing. And love
doing it. You have fun. There are always moments you have to do
things what you don’t like to do at the moment. But without it,
live would be a lot less colourful.” Sitting (while writting) next to Mickey, I had to illustrate the fact that in general graff artist never
make money out of it. It cost them a lot. But still they love
to express themselves.
This generation…
Enter the left heart chamber
then exit thru out the right one
Excite millions of people with tight songz
when the night come
Boogie-dancin' pythons
twistin spins with my icon
Next to strike on y'all
with lightnin'a whole life long
Execute planned orders by Jah
conquer the borders
My voice is my instrument
It makes live diverse. As in his music Shockwave raps and sings
like RollaRocka (Postmen). At the editorial office we have a whole cd with unreleased
songs. Shockwave: “RollaRocka is a real singer, I’m not. I try to experiment and
to explore. To check out borders. Like DMX, it’s almost that he’s singing when he does the backing vocals.
I can get a hook or a line and get that melody in it.” He says with a smile of enjoyment. "In the past I used to sound the same, always. I came to the conclusion
that my voice is my instrument. I started to use my voice and
working with my voice.” As he is now solo, he really matured with his sound compared
with the Zombi Squad days.
This generation…
Delete these wack niggaz
their essence as weak performers
Blast upon these cats then cast 'em outta the orbit
mublin' stumblin', definitely cock/coke distorted
My graffiti consist of pyramid hyroglyphics
to be specific
I bombed ya planet coz you was bitchin'
I keepz rhyme switchin'
my thoughts on trackz be rhyme-upliftin'
I love the riddlin'
connect right wordz in position, my sound-system is hot tah keep
ya listenin'
break the sound barrier
the carrier of all
That ain’t no song
“In a group you’re always have to compromise, you have to stand
behind what you deliver, but all other members too.” Ofcourse a lot of time passed that gave growth to the artists.
“I got a diverse sound, I’m a complexed man. Got a lot of different
emotions.” People quickly refer it as eating from more kitchens than one.
“Not every producer matches the flavor. Precise gets a lot different
flavor than Tommy Tee, it both still are Shockwave songs. A song
is also a result of beats and lyrics matching together with the
flow and mixing. It’s a result of more artist amplifing each other.
Not like lyrics are just put over a beat. That ain’t no song.”
This Generation
Travel at the speed of thought
spit flames when I brawl
my voice causes solar friction
eclipse one sun
shook the earth at mah birth
with a flip of mah tongue
This generation rules the nation
we vibin' with da soundstation
About the lyrics of Shockwave, they are refreshing. Not that always
irritating 'I, I and I'. And you have listen to them more than
once to get the picture he’s drawing. To this generation, they
heard of you. The older generations saw you coming, and still
you are refreshing. “You live your life, you learn and you want to expand.” Lot of times you speak about Jah aka God. Shockwave: “He’s the Allmighty. He’s what it is all about. He’s always talking to me, although
I’m not always listening and do stupid things, sometimes.” You are giving your gifts by Jah, do you see your self as a medium for the message of Jah? Shockwave:
“He makes everything possible.”
Boombox AQ
Aftershockz Entertainment
Aftershockz Entertainment
Fax: +31-(0)20-7774262 |
