Lateef the Truthspeaker has had a long and successful career collaborating over the years with fellow Quannum brethren Lyrics Born (Latyrx), Chief Excel (The Maroons) and The Gift of Gab (The Mighty Underdogs) as well as artists such as Headnodic & Fatboy Slim.  Now, after years of recognition and respect as a notable and talented singer and MC, Lateef releases his first ever solo debut entitled FireWire.

Recorded over four months in Oakland, Lateef the Truthspeaker’s FireWire brings together some of the best producers in hip-hop on one album, including Chief Xcel, DJ Shadow, Dan the Automator, Somehow at Sea and Headnodic (Crown City Rockers, Mighty Underdogs). Bay Area stalwarts Lyrics Born, Del and The Grouch turn up as well, giving the album a congenial, familial feel.

The son of two Black Panthers – his mother was a roommate of famed activist Angela Davis – Lateef was part of an anti-apartheid group at the age of 4; the same age he first hopped on a mic. After co-founding legendary hip-hop collective SoleSides (later renamed Quannum Projects) in the early ’90s, Lateef became an integral component in the Bay Area hip- hop scene, co-founding Latyrx (with Lyrics Born), Lateef and the Chief (with Chief Xcel) and The Mighty Underdogs (with Headnodic and Gift of Gab) and collaborating with everyone from Z-Trip to Fatboy Slim. 2012 marks the 20th anniversary of the Quannum / Solesides family.

FireWire stands as Lateef’s most musically ambitious and diverse project to date; the musical equivalent of hip-hoppers, hipsters, dance heads, R&B lovers and unapologetic pop fans all doing shots at the same party. “We The People” opens with a Kraftwerk-style intro before morphing into a New Wave track that would make Gary Numan proud. “Oakland,” a heartfelt, candid tribute to Lateef’s native city, hits with dirty funk drums, while “Left Alone” fuses Steely Dan-esque ’70s rock with retro ’80s drum machines. Inspired by everyone from Toro Y Moi to Radiohead, it’s as if Lateef found his inner Rakim, Paul Simon, Juan Atkins and R. Kelly simultaneously.

“You have to make an album that you like and enjoy performing and that you like to listen to, I wanted a name that encapsulates the organic and digital aspects of the album,” Lateef says of the title. “The album’s sonic cohesiveness comes from the marriage of the two sounds. I wanted to showcase both aspects of my versatility in terms of singing and rapping. I’m not D’Angelo or Luther Vandross, but I can definitely carry a tune.”

“Social consciousness is integral to all my work. It informs my baseline moral values, politics and my attitude toward propaganda. A lot of those values are out of favor and not as popular as they once were but I’m not afraid to tackle more difficult subject matter or stuff other people may not feel comfortable speaking on.” On the DJ Shadow-produced “Say What You Want,” for example, Lateef imagines a revenge tale born out of the real-life shooting of his cousin and the death of the shooter at the hands of another cousin.

In the end, talent, intellect and charisma have allowed Lateef the Truthspeaker to stand on his own two feet; rising past all internal and external challenges.  Look out for the new album this fall and be sure to check out Lateef on tour with Latyrx for their reunion shows coming up.

“Before We’re Gone”

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A veteran of the West Coast underground hip hop scene and one of the most versatile and entertaining  MC’s around, Pigeon John, has been on absolute fire with his newest record, Dragon Slayer. The record dropped in October but praise from the press and continued buzz around the record refuse to let it fall out of the blogosphere’s thoughts.  John shows no signs of slowing down; he’s just premiered a Cassettes Won’t Listen Remix (which premiered over at streetdate.radio.com) and new music video for his track, “The Bomb.” Check out the remix over on their blog and the new video below:

“The original idea was to do a series of 12-inch records with different artists on each side, hence “sole sides.” And there would be no shortage of talent to pick from as the core of the crew quickly expanded.” -villagevoice.com

Among the next to join the crew were Gift of Gab and Lateef the Truth Speaker both of whom moved to Davis when word of Solesides reached them through pals Chief Xcel and Lyrics Born. Shortly thereafter in February 1993 they released their first 12-inch: Lyrics Born’s “Send Them, Tom” on the A-side with DJ Shadow’s “Entropy” on the B-side. “Entropy” would turn out to be the bigger success and paved the way for Shadow’s eventual release of Entroducing his groundbreaking debut LP on James LaVelle’s Mo’ Wax label.

Releases began steadily pouring out of Solesides and they started making a name for themselves. As Solesides gained momentum and more releases under it’s belt the fledgling label hit a wall: It had fulfilled it’s initial goal and needed a new directive. The guys decided the best thing to do was to dissolve Solesides and start a new collective with a new mission statement. Enter Quannum Projects.

1997 saw the official forming of Quannum Projects, but it would be two years before they actually released a new record. As they began to get the label off the ground it became clear they needed some help. In September 1999 Isaac Bess was hired as GM for Quannum bringing his indie label experience and savvy to the Quannum family. Over the next 9 plus years Bess helped build Quannum from a loose collective to a successful indie label. With releases like Blackalicious’ Nia and Lyrics Born’s Later That Day Quannum had succeeded in establishing themselves as a prominent voice in independent hip hop. As the years went on management changed and new artists were signed yet the mission remained the same.

Now host to a wider range of music Quannum serves as a home for artists such as Brazilian samba-funk maestro Curumin, LA rapper Pigeon John and electronic acts General Elektriks and ApSci. As they continue to grow and diversify one thing stays the same: The commitment made by a few friends almost two decades earlier to put out good independent music for all to hear.

Here are some Quannum faves to check out:

Blackalicious
“The Fabulous Ones” (mp3)
from “Nia”
(Quannum Projects)

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Curumin
“Compacto” (mp3)
from “JapanPopShow”
(Quannum Projects)

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ApSci
“Crazy Crazy Insane” (mp3)
from “Best Crisis Ever”
(Quannum Projects)

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Lyrics Born
“Callin’ Out” (mp3)
from “Later That Day…”
(Quannum Projects)

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