Raw Video: In The studio with Andrew Nack of Cali Nation

Above is video of Andrew Nack of Cali Nation, showing off new tracks from the Cali Nation album. This is a rough version of the song "Let Your Love Lead The Way." Knack shares some of the raw vocals while playing the music tracks that have been pre-recorded.
Cali Nation performs March 6 @ Casa Sorrento in Salinas.

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Buckley Radio announces launch of Z97.9, ESPN 630

Buckley Radio announced the launch of Z97.9 FM and ESPN 630 today in a press release.
The official announcement closes the chapter on Jammin' 97.9 FM, which was a hip-hop and R&B station prior to the reformat. In the press release, Buckley Radio VP Kathy Baker did not directly address pulling the switch on Jammin' 97.9.
Z97.9 FM is being billed as the new home of “Greatest Hits of the '60s and '70s.” ESPN 630 will air local sports highlights as well as syndicated ESPN Radio programming.
A copy of the full press release is viewable after the jump.


Buckley Radio Brings Back Two Popular Radio Formats To The Central Coast.
Buckley Radio, Owner of Radio KWAV 97FM, Launches Two New Radio Stations

Kathy Baker, Executive Vice President Buckley Radio announced today the launch of two new radio stations: Z97.9 FM is the new home for the "Greatest Hits of the 60's and 70's and ESPN 630 "Sports Radio for the Central Coast.

The Z97.9 announcers Kevin Kahl morning drive, Don Murray middays, Floyd Wright PM drive and Tom Kent nights, play your favorite artists like the Beatles, Beach Boys, Fleetwood Mac, Supremes, Stevie Wonder and Elton John. ESPN 630 "Sports Radio for the Central Coast "debuted on February 15th. It has been over six years since this area has had a local sports station. ESPN 630 is at 630 on the AM band. Featured sports shows include the popular Mike and Mike in the morning, Colin Cowherd, Jim Rome, Dan Patrick and all the great ESPN programming. Local sports highlights will be covered by ESPN630's local reporter Fredo Fontanez. Fredo can be reached at Fredo@ESPN630.com. ESPN 630 is also the new local home for the San Francisco Giants Baseball Team. Beginning April 1st ESPN630 will air all regular season games.

Kathy Baker, Executive Vice President Buckley Radio said, "We are very excited to bring to the Central Coast two new popular unique radio formats. Buckley Radio has owned stations in the tri county area for 30 years and has had many requests from radio listeners to play music from the 60's and 70'sand also for a local sports station. We are pleased that we were able to make that happen."

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E Sik: Interview Transcript

“The Beat” recently caught up with E Sik of Realization, who will be performing this Friday at Blue Fin in Monterey. Below is a complete interview transcript.

I grew up here. I was raised here in Seaside. Lived in the projects until I was 16. Those days, I learned not to revolt. In the PJ's, or whatever, (I would think to myself) what if we actually correct ourselves, you know what I mean? What would that look like?
Because I've always seen the dark side of things. That helped influence my music with that mind set. When I see a lot of bad things happening, I think what's the best way to correct it? The best way is music.
A lot of people are very in tune with music. Whenever someone gets in an argument with their girlfriend or boyfriend, they go in their car and drive away and blast whatever music they can sing to. Or maybe someone in the morning has to hear a certain song every morning to feel good on the drive to work. A lot of music triggers you in a lot of ways, emotions you never thought you had until that moment.
If you could imagine a world with no music? You'd go crazy. It keeps our sanity. But the important thing about music is to bring out truth, honest expression. To help correct things in life so people correct themselves first and then they can go correct other things.
Sometimes there's music out there, and it's just ‘Me, me, me, me, me. I'm a thug, I got a gun, this that.‘ A kid can take that and listen to a person over and over and turn into that person, without even meeting that artist. They can say ‘Oh, that's me. He's saying that's me.’ And then they really grow up to be that way. There's some kids that can do that. It just shows you how much control the music has over a human.
Inside of us, our spirit is the one that hears the music, and our flesh form is just robots. You can tell the soul is nice. The soul is feeling it.
My way of music is trying to correct things and hopefully the message is clear for healing. We're in this constant world wide awareness. There's a lot of problems out here, but it's not as big as out there.
Third world countries in general, I like to speak on that a lot, because most people don't really understand the different struggle besides their own. The gangsters out here, they're saying it's hardcore, whatever. But if you go to Africa, you might see a little kid, nine-years-old, who will shoot you in your back, check your pockets for a wallet, then walk away. So what's hardcore?
The genre in music that I've always been into, that helped me see things clearly message wise, was reggae. Reggae was pretty much, almost my religion. I would say it's my culture. To live positive, be free and not have any hold on you. It's very liberating.
I really got deep into that. Then I turned into hip-hop, which was more about expressing yourself in a way of who you are, versus, singing songs of freedom and reggae. I mixed that in with the speech pattern of hip-hop, trying to tell people to unify. It's beautiful to put it all together like that.
I started working on that and I got into bands. I started writing music and everything. When I was 18, I moved up to San Jose. That was when I really wanted to take the challenge and I did. I started a cypher on downtown Santa Clara Street, which is still happening now. It was at Johnny V's. That was like 2002.
Before all that, I was trying to challenge my hip-hop. They didn't have too much reggae (in San Jose). I would see these battle sessions, and I'm broke, 18, coming from Monterey. I noticed a lot of battle rappers didn't rap too on beat. I practiced every time to stay on beat, stay on beat. When you sound like you're on beat, people respond. They don't know what you're saying most of the time, but they'll catch those lines here and there. I'd win a lot of them, lose a lot of them, but I knew that was a potential way to make money as a musician with no job. It helped me get up in the music scene.
I know all of San Jose. I know a lot of people in San Francisco, the East Bay, all just because of the music. A lot o f people would trip off that. I would take friends up there with me, and see people out there and just be like, ‘Hey, hey, hey.’ And my friends that I would bring with me would be like ‘How do you know everybody?’
You can't be an MC all the time. You got to be cool with everybody. You've got to be a person. I'm not going to sit here and say I'm a better MC than you, whatever. It's all about respecting your grind. You got to respect the hustle.
As far as 40831, I was affiliated with Undahoggs because I came back here and I was planning on doing a scene down here. I was thinking about ‘Okay, who do I look for?’ I didn't see anybody. But I saw Undahoggs, and I knew those guys from a long time ago. I got in contact with them and I saw them at a show. I had their number. I contacted them, and they were down for it.
Then, I said ‘I'm gonna do my own thing. Whoever's down, come with me on it. And it's Realization.’
That was important to me, that name. Because everyday, you realize something. You have to go through life realizing something everyday. You have to realize something every day, and whatever the consequences for certain things you realize, you've got to remember it. That's the realization.
You don't repeat the same failures or refuse to accept things that are not good in life that you have no control over. You've just got to balance yourself and be at peace with yourself. I'm very critical with that. All my spare time, I'm hanging out, I'm goof ball. But with music, I get really serious.
In 2008, I told myself that I am not going to sit around for anybody anymore. I'm going to take this and move it. I'm going to push myself in a way I've never pushed myself before. I did my own fliers, my own photos, everything to make it happen. Certain members who were in it at the time helped me out. It got to the point where the (local media) called me and certain people called me like ‘Hey, I want to know more about your show.’ I was like ‘Who is this?’ and they were like ‘I got your number on a flier.’ I'd be like ‘Oh yeah.’
A lot of people would tell me (about the first Realization songs) ‘There's so many styles here and there, where is everybody going with it?’ I just said ‘Hey, I got to focus on this album.’ The “Mind Shipped” album, that was very conscious. That was something I liked to work with. But we never had a band, so I told myself we have to get a band to play as Realization. So we scooped up a band as well. The band is active right now. They've been doing live stuff for the Realization project.
Then I started thinking, I want to put a solo album out and that leads into the Central Coast Underground. I decided to put the band together and we did shows with PLG. I did everything and we went everywhere. We went from San Mateo to Santa Barbara. I did everything.
So I said, ‘You know what, I'm going to do my solo album.’ Because if I could do my solo album and book my own stuff wherever, I could create something where it would be an alliance in a bunch of places. To let them know I'm down here in Monterey, with everybody in CCU, and see if (outside artists) want to network down here with people as well.
Its a cemetery down here. But I'm not going to give up on it. I said I'm gonna put out this solo album and let it speak for Monterey, to bring out the swag we have over here.
The songs are all different. You have the political (song), one that's dark, one that's all swag and let me do my thing. To throw that all around everywhere, people are hearing that. It's kind of like medicine.
To have those guys (CCU) come and be involved, and do whatever I want to do makes it 100 percent better. It just makes it better because then you see a movement. Monterey never had a hip-hop scene with San Francisco artists coming down on a periodical basis. That's what I'm trying to do.
With that solo album and that idea going, I said CCU, Central Coast Underground. I said ’Nan, I want to build an alliance out here to represent in the Bay Area.‘
I called Joint Venture. I said ‘Hey, you mind doing a show so I could check you out, because I'm starting this CCU thing.’ That night, literally, I was impressed because there's nobody out here that sounds like them. Because they're way too undergorund for anybody to be listening to (out here). Right away I said they got to go to San Jose with me. I said okay, we'll rock a couple more shows. It was them and Solis Cin from San Jose that I called at the same time. I called him to come and do this because I wanted him to come out and make his name in Monterey. He's been taking full advantage, coming to shows.
The more exposure they get, and now a lot of people are starting to know. Solis Cin started playing Mortimer's. That place was so empty before, but now it's like crackin'.
The business loves it, they say we love this energy in there, you guys have to do this more often. I said yeah, this is CCU.
I said I'm taking these two guys who helped me start CCU. Everybody loved them. I proved myself wrong, that there was nothing out here? That was nonsense. There's a lot of stuff going on out here as far as talent.
For those guys to believe in me, I'm glad they did that. They saw the Pep Love, Heiroglyphics, Z-Man and Tash and Realization play out there (in San Jose). They realized that's where they want to be. It's bigger than what it is out here. We just have to get out there.

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Cali Nation performs live in concert March 6.

My old band, Cali Nation, has emerged with an amazing lineup and a planned album in the works.
I talked with band leader Andy Knack last week about the new album, which he said is just about finished. He also said that while him and band members Mony Lujan and James Moore have been working on the album, it has given them all a chance to tighten up the sound and inject CN with a fresh new flow.
The March 6 show is free and starts at 9 p.m. at Casa Sorrento in Salinas. For more info, go here.

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Aivar, Central Coast Underground live in concert this weekend

The good folks at Central Coast Underground are hosting a very live show Friday night at Blue Fin in Monterey.

San Jose reggae band Aivar (www.aivarmusic.com) have a nice little buzz going after getting a spot on the 2009 Van's Warped Tour stop at Shoreline Amphitheater. They have earned a loyal following in their hometown and bring that vibe to Monterey, sharing a bill with CCU stalwarts Realization, Joint Venture, Solis Cin and Oneself DiVinci. $5 cover. Show starts at 9 p.m.

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Monterey Bay Reggae Fest moves to July 30-Aug. 1, 2010

Monterey County reggae fans will be getting their annual festival fix a bit earlier than normal this year.
Monterey Bay ReggaeFest organizers announced this year's event will take place July 30-Aug. 1. The event was previously held on Labor Day Weekend at the Monterey County Fairgrounds in Monterey.
The reggae festival was bumped to make room for the re-scheduled Monterey County Fair, which will be held Labor Day Weekend.
Kelly Violini, CEO/general manager for the Monterey County Fair, said the switch was made as a result of the re-scheduling of the California State Festival in Sacramento to July 14. The Sacramento state fair was normally held Labor Day Weekend.
Because the state fair circuit relies on the same traveling carnival each fair, the move adjusted about 60 percent of the fair schedules in California.
“When they move, we all move,” said Violini.
Andre Smith, head organizer for the Monterey Bay Reggae Festival, said when the switch was announced, it came as a shock.
“We were kind of angry, and then more hurt, then angry,” said Smith. “We felt slighted a little bit.”
Violini said Smith and the event's organizers were notified of the impending move by certified letters, phone calls and e-mails.
She said the fair was sympathetic to the reggae festival fans.
“I would say on behalf of the fair itself, situations like this do arise and we do apologize for the change in dates,” said Violini. “But we hope everybody gets the word that Monterey Bay Reggae Fest will be held at the end of July this year, and we hope the fans come out and have a great time anyways.”

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Junot Diaz: Interview Transcript

Junot Diaz's book “The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao” is probably my favorite of the last decade. For those that have read it, you will understand some of the references in my interview, including the references to “Watchmen” and the questions about the ultra-long, ultra-loaded footnotes that accompany the main text.
For those that have not read it, all you need to know is that Diaz's book touches on themes that noted American literature has not spent enough time on, namely ghetto, geek, and Dominican culture. Everything is there in Diaz's bent universe.

What did you think of the “Watchmen” movie?
Besides (that fact) that it's terrible, I didn't think much about it. It was one of those movies that you walk out of the theater and you never think about again, which is always a bad sign.

This book took 9 years to complete?
About that.

What was the lion's share of that work? Character composition? Story line? Can you explain to me where your main energies were focused?
Most of the energies were focused on invisible structures of the book, in that no one's going to pay much attention to but which add to the unconscious enjoyment and unconscious imagery of the text. One of the examples, and a simple example, but just to give you the sense of how some stuff does really show itself, (is that) I organized the book in one way, on one pattern, along the lines of the Fantastic Four. I plotted that because I thought it would help readers who perceived the pattern to read the book in a different way.
The family, of course, is organized like the Fantastic Four. You have Oscar being this big, hideous, in his mind monstrous Thing. You have Belicia. described throughout her chapter as simultaneously being invisible or having these incredibly powerful force fields. You have Lola always described as being on fire, and you have Ablalard, who was the doctor, considered the smartest man in the Dominican Republic, and kind of described as the rubber man, constantly flexible bending this way and that way. And so you have this kind of Fantastic Four frame. And that will invite the reader to ask who the hell (is) Junior?
If they're into the Fantastic Four, well what character is Junior sort of an archetype for? If you answer that question, based on the prose and text of Junior, you have a very kind of specific reading of the book, and it gives you a lot of information about the book that could be useful. So that's one example of the novel's inner architecture that I kind of wasted a lot of time on.
This was just part ot it. I think that there's a lot of mysteries in this book. They're sort of proven when one starts reading the book against the book, which is that, Junior, the narrator, wants you to read the book in a very specific way. But there are clues throughout the book that there are many ways to read this, and that disobeying Junior and disobeying where Junior points his finger to look and looking elsewhere can be very productive for the reader. There was less that I was trying to map out stories with the family and the Fanstastic Four, and more to use the Fantastic Four in a very important text that would lend information if you kind of viewed it as something relevent, valid.


Was the story meant as an oral history of the Dominican Republic?
The book is really not an oral history. The book is so much about writing and the power that writing has, both over individuals and in may ways over nations. I didn't see the book as, in any way, about the political, cultural history of the Dominican Republic. I thought that there was a lot of poloticial and cultural history of the Dominican Republic in the book, but essentially in my mind, there were darker and deeper things that I was interested in.

What did the publishers say about the footnotes?
I think that some of the people who saw it sort of got a sense of where I was at, and some people didn't get it at all. But in the end, you gotta go with your instincts. You got to go with what you think is right, and I went with what I thought was right. With the help of my current editor, I fought to have the foot notes and the foot notes stayed in and I think it was a very smart move on my part.

Out of all the characters, who was your favorite to write? Who did you fall in love with?
It's not a lie, I cant' imagine this family as pieces. This family was always one unit. That's really important. I think that I love the family as a whole. I couldn't imagine them as separate. They don't make sense as individuals. I would argue either the family or the mongoose. I'm a big fan of the mongoose.

Your collection of short stories, "Drown," got a lot of attention.
It is what it is. To be honest, I don't think I spent too much time thinking about those things. One of those things I know is when my novel came out, there were a lot of people who loved the first book and basically thought my novel was a failure. And there were a lot of people who fell in love with the novel and went back and read the short stories and did not like the short stories. In the end, a piece of work is a very unique thing. You never know how people are going to fall in love with it. You never do.

Any current projects.
Right now, I'm not really working on much. I'm trying to do the best I can to try and figure something new out. To be really honest with you, it has not been an easy haul. I'm trying to figure out something new. The best way to describe it is just trying to see what I can come up with.

Is it difficult trying to match expectations?
Not really. I think it's just trying to basically, in my mind, I'm trying to find something that's going to hold my attention for any length of time. That to me is more important than any of this. You just really trying something to hold your attention.

Maybe you could try to rewrite the screenplay for “Watchmen?”
I don't think I'd be that bored.

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Gabriel Iglesias Interview Transcript

Remember a couple weeks ago when I said I'd post an interview with Gabriel Iglesias? Well, I finally got around to that today (late pass).
I've posted this several times, but Iglesias is truly the nicest subject I've interviewed since I got this gig. Always engaging and open, eager to work with me and really give me whatever I need for my story. And this interview was further proof of what I mean by all of that.
Iglesias opened up to me like only a few other subjects I've had before. Tech N9ne was one, 2Mex another. Guys who weren't afraid to speak on their personal lives and share something beyond their public image.
Enjoy the interview. It's a long read, for sure, but well worth it. And by all means, check out Iglesias' shows and specials. He is a truly remarkable talent.

On his current road schedule:
Pretty much since I got into comedy, I've been on tour. There's been no down time. I think the most time I've taken off has probably been two weeks.
I'm non-stop bro. I work hard man. I'm on the road, 46-47 weeks of the year.Last year, easily, I want to say (I performed) close to 350 shows. I perform almost every day. Some days I do two shows, some days I do almost three. This is year two (of 200-300 shows a year). I 'm going on 13 years doing stand up, 12 years of hitting it hard.
For the tours themselves, because of the magnitude of it, and because there's a sponsor and a network and people backing it, it's not one of those shows where you can go out and practice new material. Don't get me wrong, there's going to be about 20 minutes of stuff that I've been working on the last year and it will definitely come into the play, but I let the audience after that.
Basically, I take requests from the audience. Kind of make it interactive, where if they want to hear an old joke, I let them yell it out from the audience. It's been working pretty successfully, to where if anybody has a request, then boom, they yell something out and I do it. The crowd gets happy, I almost feel like a comedy mariachi.
They know what they like. They'll listen to my new stuff, then they get a chance to get into some of the older stuff they like in TV. Sometimes they'll bring people who have never seen me before and they want to have that experience of saying ‘See, that's the joke I was telling you about.’
I'm lucky. Most of the time with comedians, once you've heard a joke once, that's it. What do you got now. I'm lucky. I'm a fairly young comic and I already have classics, which is great.

On building his dedicated fan base:
Small and bigger, it's all the same, especially after the shows when I get to talk to people. I get people that'll come out dressed like me or they'll come out and tell me they have these parties. They'll have Gabriel parties. They'll have 10 friends come to the house and everybody wears a Hawaiian shirt and everybody's drinking Diet Coke and eating cheese and chocolate. I'm like wow, really? That's hardcore. that's almost like Trekkies. I almost feel like my fans are that hard core.
My fans, I tell people, I have the greatest fans ever. They're very loyal, very supportive. I don't have mean fans, or people at my shows getting all pissed off or getting weirded out by what I'm saying. But then again, I never really crossed the line with anything, I just try to keep the shows really friendly. Everybody gets to have a good time.
Don't get me wrong, in Salinas I will be throwing down a little Spanish, for obvious reasons.

On coming back to Salinas and smaller venues:
Honestly, you got to take care of the people that take care of you. I know that sounds like cliche, or borderline phony, but that's the case. The reason I've had the fans that I have is because I've been consistent over the years and kept coming back and doing the same runs. I'm never going to stop doing the cities I've gone through. I'm only going to add.
I'm still going to go to all the same markets, big or small. This tour is kicking off in Bakersfield. I could have kicked it off in New York, L.A., Houston or Chicago, but I chose Bakersfield to kick it off. I try to keep it so that I don't forget. I constantly get people telling me ‘Don't ever forget us.’ I say ‘Okay I won't.’
All of this, bro, can go away tomorrow. I'm very realistic about that.
Some comics will say ‘I made it.’ I say, you didn't make it, the people made you make it. They're the ones who made it all happen.
You have to keep it very realistic, because you see people rise and you see people fall. That's why you have to take care of people on your way up, because if you take care of people on the way up, when you're on your way out, they'll make your landing a little bit softer.
For the Salinas date, I'm bringing the same group of guys I've always had with me, just because I got a network backing me now doesn't mean I got a whole new crew (laughs). Just because there's more money involved, I didn't cut all my guys loose and start off with a bunch of new guys. I got the same group of knuckleheads.
Martin Moreno, Noe Gonzalez, and Alfred Robles. It's very historical, it's the first time a major tour has ever been done like this with all Latinos on it. We're going outside the box. We're not just going to be the southwest, we're going to be coast to coast. Come June, we're going to go international. I got tour dates set up for Europe, Australia and Canada.

On playing a gig in Amman, Jordan:
Ooh, nombre! When I went out there, I was scared bro. I was like ‘Are these people going to get it?’ I did not give them enough credit.
The people who came out to the shows not only got it, they were bilingual, and they were super hip on everything. They watch YouTube over there like nobody's business. And apparently, I'm pretty popular on YouTube.
When I walked out on stage, nombre, it was like Menudo in the 1980s.
When I walked up and I said there's five levels of fatness, they roared. I didn't even get to say the whole joke, they were already roaring.
Over here in America, when I say the jokes and they like it, they'll say the punchline with me. Like I'll say ‘There's big, healthy, husky, fluffy and the whole audience will say “Damn!” Over there, they were saying every single part of (the joke) I would say ‘Big’ ,and I would hear all these people in the room saying “Big” with me, and then ‘Healthy’, and then ‘Husky,’ they'd say the whole freaking joke over.
It was great man, I felt like royalty, literally. The shows went really really good. The fans over there really love American comedy over. Anybody who came out to the show was bilingual, so they had their own language, and they understood English.
Then I had a chance to hang out with the King of Jordan. We had a chance to go to his house. It was a comedian named Russell Peters and myself and our entourage of people, and we had a chance to visit the king.
When you think of the King of Jordan, you think of someone who has a very strong Middle Eastern sounding (accent) and not at all man. He went to school in Boston, so he has a sort of an (American) accent to him.
It was beautiful. His house was almost like a casino in Las Vegas, minus the slot machines. When you pull up in front of it, you're like ‘Okay, where's the valet?’ It's huge. It looks really, really big. Inside, there's gold, marble, you name it. There's just, no words to describe it. It's really really pimp.

On 2009 being his most successful year:
Definitely, this was the best year. Financially, it was the greatest year. Career wise, the greatest year. As far as like the relationships with the fans, greatest year.
Personal life, probably one of the worst ones. Personal life, it was definitely one of the worst ones.
It's like, it's kind of a weird balance bro. Really, really weird. And I tell people sometimes it's a curse, the ability to go out on stage. You make people laugh, you entertain people, smile, and feel good. But my curse is not being able to do that at home.
Don't get me wrong, with my girl and my kid it's okay, but with my mom and siblings and other members of the family, it kind of sucks bro. Because they see me as something else now. I got a brother who calls me ‘Hollywood.’ Sisters kind of keep their distance. Even my mom is kind of like ‘ahhh’ with me.
Yeah dude, it really sucks . And I wish things were different. Unfortunately, they don't understand everything I go through on a day to day basis to be able to maintain what I'm doing. They think oh no, se la pasa bien, he just goes out there, puro party, puro party, puro party. They don't see the work that goes behind it. That's kind of tough for me. It's hard to explain because they don't want to hear it.
Sorry, to make it sound like a downer bro, but you want to keep the story, and I want to keep myself as realistic as possible.
And I put all this stuff out there. Remember I said there's 20 new minutes (of material)? The 20 new minutes is me talking about how life is great as a comic, but life at home as regular Gabriel, esta cabron hombre.
Now I understand why people do drugs, why people drink, and why people go crazy. As the success level goes up and up and up, the further detached I get from everybody else. Luckily, with my girlfriend, everything is gravy because I brought her into it. I brought her in and she's very hands on with my career. I got her involved with all the managerial side. She sees all the tour dates, she does all the processing of the money, she oversees a lot of things. Right now, she's down stairs in an office, working on deals and transactions while I'm on the phone.
She understands. She sees whats going on, therefore she doesn't give me a hard time. At the end of the day she goes ‘You know what baby? You're out there, you're working, you're doing what you got to do.’ She's just happy that I took her and her son on. Luckily with her, it's perfect. If I could only get that with the rest of the family, I'd be okay. But unfortunately, I've hired family members in the past and they make shitty employees. They get comfortable man. No quieren hacer nada. It's like ‘Ahh, I don't got to take this serious. He's my brother.’ Oh yeah? Then when they get fired, they're like ‘What happened. No dices nada?’
To me, it's okay at Christmas, because I don't have to buy nothing. And then the rest of the year, it gets a little tough.
I don't know if this is the interview you wanted, Marc. Pero, cabron, you wanted to get personal, hay se va guey.
I have to vent, If I don't vent, I'm gonna go postal (laughs). Seriously,man, I understand now how people can go crazy. I'm not as quick to judge. When people show up on TMZ, or you see those “E Hollywood Stories,” or you see them on “Snapped,” you see they're doing drugs, or this and that, I understand. I was very quick to judge in the past, but now, nombre, I get it. I get it. I'm not doing it, but I get it.
It has compromised (my show) a little bit in that I don't enjoy myself as much, and that does effect me on stage. Because there's some times where I wind up going off in another area, or I start worrying more about myself, as opposed to making sure that the fans have a good. time.
There was one show that I did where I started venting a little too much, and after the show, I had people hugging me and it was like ‘It's gonna be okay.’ I was like ‘Are you kidding me? That's how bad it was?’ I'm like ‘Oh my god.’
They still stuck around (after the show), but they wanted to meet me and take a picture, and they still laughed, but they totally felt me, and they were like, ‘Dude, it's alright.’ I had people inviting me to restaurants afterward. ‘Ve te comer,’ or telling me ‘I have a dad, he's a counselor.’
I can laugh about it man, because I put it out there. That's one thing about my shows. I tell people, I'm not a comedian, I'm just a really funny reporter. I put my life out there and make it entertaining. By putting it out there, it helps me to deal with it, you know, so I don't snap and so I don't go off the handle when I get home.
Growing up, I was the last of six kids. I had a different dad than everybody else. Everyone else had their dad, I had the dad that was the mariachi. I didn't realize growing up that I was the half-brother. For me, I always was just the brother. I didn't realize there was all this drama and animosity until I was older. Then it was like ‘Oh wow, okay.’ It's a little different.
This past year, it was a great year for the career, but my mom and I were really tight. She had a stroke and she recovered from it, but at the time it got really. really tense. Everyone was trying to come to the rescue, but nobody was really there. There were all these issues from the past, before I even got into the picture. And my mom got mad at my girlfriend because my girlfriend was apparently telling her too much what to do.
I appreciate you listening to me right now, you know (laughs). Nombre, you put it out there. This way, if something happens to me, it was documented (laughs). Then you can say ‘We had a chance to save him and nobody did nothing’ (laughs).

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Sincere & Nima Fidavi get HipHopDX.com love, prep "Calm Before The Storm"

Here's a promo video for local favorites Sincere & Nima Fadavi's recent feature on www.hiphopdx.com. You can view the full feature here.
It's very cool to see these young guys getting the credit and respect they deserve. Getting the Hieroglyphics co-sign is also working wonders for them as well. Nice work fellas.
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Flashback: "The Beat" interviews Drew Brees (Feb. 2008)

A couple years ago, I got to interview Drew Brees at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Golf Pro-Am. Very cool guy, was nice enough to talk to me as I shoved a mini-cam in his face.
At one point, I asked him whether he was going to get his team back to the NFC Champiohship. "No," he said. "We're going to the Super Bowl." I admit, I subconsciously rolled my eyes at that one. I mean, I've been a huge fan since Brees was at Purdue, but no way could he take the Saints to the promise land. No way. Right? Wrong.
And here I am now, publicly apologizing for ever doubting him. The good thing is I can say I've interviewed a Super Bowl Winning quarterback. Congrats to Drew & them 504 boys, aka the New Orleans Saints.

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Mistah FAB, Jacka/Husalah (Mob Figaz), D-Lo perform Friday night, 2.05.10, in Salinas

The newly re-united Mob Figaz featuring Jacka and Husalah will perform Friday night at Fox Theater in Salinas.
Tickets are $25 and can be purchased at www.foxtheatersalinas.com. Interview with Jacka coming shortly as well. Stay tuned.
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Willie Barcena this weekend at Planet Gemini in Monterey

Comedian Willie Barcena has become a favorite of Jay Leno. Barcena has appeared on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” 10 times. Barcena's comedy special, "Deal With It” also debuted on Comedy Central in May 2009.
Barcena will headline this weekend at Planet Gemini in Monterey. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. and show starts at 8:30 p.m. Visit www.williebarcena.com for more info.

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Jamie Lee Darley sightings: Carl's Jr., 831 Mag

Carmel native Jamie Lee Darley, who walked the runway at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in December, has not taken much time off since the event.
She graces the cover of 831 Magazine, set to hit the pavement shortly. And watch the video below and get a quick Jamie Lee fix courtesy of Carl's Jr. Bon Apetit.

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