Rehabilitating the Download Outlaws; Rapper Ryan Leslie's innovation of the Hybrid-Artist

Through Artist empowerment Rap/Hip-Hop & R&B artist, Ryan Leslie, is seeking to rehabilitate 100,000 download Pirateers with an approach which is as much avant-garde as it is independent and labour-intensive.

'Outlaws', 'Junkie's' or 'modern era, land-fairing pirate's of the cyberspace autobahn's'; whichever your preferred title, illegal downloaders have comprehensively lay siege to the once largely impregnable business model of the entertainment industries channels of consumption. Be it due to not wanting to further line the already luxurious silk, hand-stitched pockets of Simon Cowell and Co. Or simply not seeing the logic in paying for something you could take for free, isn't that important. Whatever the driver, music artists of all tiers of popularity, have felt the kickback of these pirates who continue to fiscally devalue the art they produce. 

Solutional efforts are primarily targeting stricter law enforcement and the pursuit of facilitators to such downloading. However, before such a course of action can be ratified, there are two seemingly unnavigable minefields which instil apprehension. Foremost, how do you undertake such a process of prosecuting hundreds of thousands of individuals, under potentially hundreds of different national jurisdictions? And as a stand off to this, what affect will the artist prosecuting the fan have on their future marketability and potential for commercial success? 

With such unnerving obstacles to recouping lost revenues, one man endeavours to independently rehabilitate and recruit his fans, and in the process, overhaul the music industries methodologies. Imagined in the mind's eye standing tall in a blustering gale under grey skies; a caped crusader with the functionally obsolete, yet stylistically paramount black shades of all great rapper's, Ryan Leslie is taking on the issue in a decidedly more mutually beneficial, if a little unorthodox, manner.

Forging a musical career from behind the black and white keys from whence so many greats have stepped, Leslie's indubitable and multifarious virtuosity saw him fulfil the role of a producer and music writer. Producing for the likes of Fabolous, Cassie, Red Café & Booba, this would seem a natural progenitor to a solo career. Although, in a career which has yielded 6 solo albums to date, with a labour intensive work ethic he continues to produce, recently seen with California hot shots YG and Nipsey Hussle.

As an independent in an industry saturated with contracts, legal jargon and a scarce enough availability of get-out clauses that Lil Wayne still cannot escape Cash Money Records, R.Les has defined his success. 100,000 units sold whereby he, or an artist he works with, personally knows each of those 100,000 people. 

The offensive strategy for such a challenge spotlights three converging avenues of fan-rehabilitation. Call the first 'WhatsApp Ave', and remember to be open to new concepts as you approach it. It gleans its hypothetical title from Ryan's publicly shared cell digits, and subsequent place in thousands of loyal fans WhatsApp contacts; or if you prefer, email lists. Derived from the mind of a Harvard graduate of just 19 (yes, we're still talking about Ryan here), he has sought out the inherent loyalty in relationship. Remaining hypothetical then, imagine a situation in which you could communicate briefly once in a while with your favourite artist. Then remember that you only just read it was actually possible.. If Les happens to be your favourite that is. After establishing a rapport akin to that of a friendship with a slight distance, he releases his new album (MZRT, to be released March 2015). But how can the outlaws set sail in their pirate ships in search of an illegal download? You can't steal from friends..from homies..

Shift laterally a couple of blocks and you'll meet with 'Experience Avenue'. An avid proponent of a live performance > studio record hierarchy, and a believer in artists as performers first and foremost, he's a champion of the tour lifestyle. Maintaining the recurring theme of access, and reaping the added impact of a capacity crowd with a tinnitus-inducing speaker system. Catch a stop on his world tour and you'll witness the personal level aspect which defines his hustle. Glimpsing faces and regurgitating the name of opposite-side-of-the-Atlantic Renegades ('Renegades' being his fan base). Conversing with the crowd for views on a track, demonstrating perfect posture seated at his keyboard and laying down the melody before rattling your brain with an energised performance to a self-composed, self-produced instrumental. The albums are outputted to bring you to the concerts, as opposed to the concerts being a way to sell more albums, even if this occurs as a direct result.

Sandwiched between these two is his 5th Avenue; Independence. Facilitator to freedom of action, and from red-tape. A construct conducive to such experimentation, testing of avant-garde theorems and environment to affirm his tautologies. Hence, no longer can you purchase his previous album from iTunes, 'Black Mozart', or from any other retailer for that matter. Access to download can only be granted with a $12 Renegades membership on his personal website. This being a means to create acquaintance, with a similar structure for purchasing the new album, MZRT, being sold solely from the same website. Independence is his gravitational source around which all other foci are birthed and revolve.

From this same central gravitational hub however arises his obstacles to success. Could it be that this hybrid approach will only work at his plane of popularity? And is his degree of independence only facilitated by his broad skill base which spans through all compositional elements of music production, marketing and business acumen? The kind of skills which many label-reliant artists simply won't posess. Even despite such musical proficiency, does this approach contain within it a capability to grow with a growing fan base? And at what point does the personal contact element shift from being labour intensive to simply being impractical? Such a take on change is as much organic as it is hybrid. Maintaining a system by which thousands of wannabe artists are attempting to come up in the industry every day, only scaled-up a few hundred times. 

As a first generation 'hybrid artist' it may appear to be a system that is functional under specific circumstances, but which will not cope well with growth.  However, surely the mind which conceives and believes in ventures through previously only dreamt up solutions is the most powerful, and contains within a capacity for self-assessment and self-correction. Look at Apple; you can bet your last chip that they'll sell millions of their smart watches, but more through beautiful marketing than through product necessity. The likelihood of a perfect product first time out is inconceivable. Beginnings for great minds are always small when compared with their endings. And so we can witness the growth process of both of these potential greats..

A Legacy instigating feature-length; To Pimp a Butterfly - Kendrick Lamar

It would seem that, like his fans, Kendrick got too excited to wait and decided to drop his album a week early. Then again, released at midnight on the 15th, this may have been a case of seizing opportunities. With the 14th marking 20 years since the release of 'Me Against The World' by 2Pac, perhaps releasing on the 15th was a means to symbolically signify continuation of his legacy; referencing again the message delivered by Tupac when confronting Kendrick in a vision; "Don't let my music die".

Such unravelling of unforetold circumstances then gives rise to a decision in need of making; available on Spotify from its early release for free, is there any need to wait and fulfil payment for a pre-ordered hard copy? Of course this can only be decided with listening. Loop after loop of the latest conscious audio clips from the soul of K-Dot.

Not having read the reviews of the fastest analytical journalists, I can't imagine there being many 'first thoughts' articles which usually follow up new albums within hours of their release. 'To Pimp a Butterfly' always promised microscopic-grade detailing. Unique calibre lyricism, riddled with teachings, preachings, messages and lessons. An opportunity then to exercise my own analytic lense, and see how much I can decipher before everybody has read mass media reviews, understands it inside out in 10 minutes or less, and has moved on to the next new hype source.

In the same vein as 'good kid, m.A.A.d city', if more analogised, the record espouses a story in a masterful fashion. A life cycle infused with consumption, pimping, poetry, drug dodging and answer searching, with an eventual arrival at welcoming actualisation - the Butterfly. Inaugurated with 'Wesley's Theory', beholding an intro whose black pride vocals easily lend itself to imagery of the likes of Curtis Mayfield, the beat breaks and Kendrick proceeds to itemise stereotyped hood dreams of wanting and spending wealth. 

Followed up with 'For Free', we recognise this as the outset of the caterpillar phase, and are introduced to the concept of pimping the Butterfly. Consuming his environment as a caterpillar, he learns to pimp the butterfly which, "represents the talent, the thoughtfulness and the beauty within the caterpillar". To use it as a means of survival and as a path to selfish gain. Cajoled by the city of Compton into the choice of 'Halle Berry' over 'Hallelujah', and resulting in the becoming of 'King Kunta'. Lyrics, wrapped up in smooth and sweet cut-a-rug funk licks, portraying his view atop the world; the women who used to walk on by during the process of climbing. And the haters trying to, like Kunta Kinte, keep him from running (the rap game) - previously defined by another King as "Mo' Money, Mo' Problems". 

'Institutionalized' marks the encapsulation of the cocoon. A closing off to the bullet-punctured city atmosphere and focus on internalisation. A King with unfilled potential and explorational urges to discover and search for answers to the problems of the gang scarred city and beyond. Girl problems, the goodness of God and the 'evils of Lucy' (LSD). Following full metamorphosis is the comforting relaxed tones of 'Momma', and the declaration that "this feeling is unmatched, brought to you by adrenaline and good rap". No drugs necessary, and a encyclopaedic-style complete knowledge of the world exist with the second birth which sees the Butterfly for the first time. 

With a capacity to be wise in glorious abundances similar to that of a Shaolin monk, Lamar comes back to the city. Despite his 'survivors guilt' from being cocooned away from his hood, he returns with the enlightenment of those same enclosed walls. Speaking on equality in 'Complexion', advocating an attention to the politics of the hood, and not to those of the rap industry on 'Hood Politics', and addressing the dangers of selling your soul on 'How Much A Dollar Cost', as he references Exodus 14; the story of Moses leading the Israelites to freedom from the Egyptians. 

Perhaps most poiniently though are his words pertaining to hypocrisy on 'The Blacker the Berry'. With the recent killing of unthreatening, unarmed black males by white police officers who were cleared without indictment, he highlights the resulting unity of the community, and yet at the same time, how the west coast culture of 'gangbangin'' will have a male like himself killing another black male just because of an affiliation to blue or red; Crip or Blood.

Upon release last September, people were surprised at the sounds of Kendrick's single, 'i'. Now a chapter nestled in the context of his grand story, we see clearly. A celebration of self, following the comforting words of 'You Ain't Gotta Lie (Momma Said)'. A celebration of truly realising the Butterfly's form. Coming to a close, we hear the entirety of Kendrick's poem which he had been making a way through throughout the record. A blueprint for his tracks and their content which he recalls to 2Pac on 'Mortal Man'. 

With the voice of 2Pac taken from a rare 1994 interview on 'p3 Soul' (a swedish radio show), this created dialogue between Shakur and Lamar is compelling at the utmost following Lamar's latest feature-length. Acting to remind in many ways the consciousness and fighting of 2Pac for the betterment of conditions for the African American community. To fight for equality and against the double standard of life in America. With this, Kendrick rediscovers the value of music, but not in a fiscal context as is being sought out by Wu-Tang Clan. Rather, the kind of value which does not lend itself easily to quantifying its effects, and yet has unbounded potential to instigate change. 

Despite it's multi-layered genius, it's not a record with a mass-consumption musical focus. Although with more licks than a nice cream truck it may well find favour with more mature generations. Especially those with an ear for Jazz. At numerous points it evokes imagery of Diz & Bird, and Miles Davis with it's very Bebop feel. This being said I can't imagine there being too many more singles being released from it. With the exception of 'King Kunta', many of its tracks wouldn't naturally stand alone that well. Perhaps from a beat-consumers perspective then it's not really that commercial. It's prominence is most definitely in it's content and originality of methods used. It's comprehensive capability to challenge and thought provoke.

As if it needed stating, I'm keeping my pre-order and will pay with pleasure. Even without a computer or CD player it will stand for now as an objet d'art. It's cover art conveying the duality in America. Part of its beauty is in an imagined lack of interest in record sales and revenues. It's primary importance being in its acting as a kind of public announcement. A pin prick in a nations conscience, that the American dream, remains a dream. The influence of this album however has had me personally thinking long, researching life cycles, appreciating poetry and opening a bible (at Exodus 14). With this influence in mind here's something to mull over; Barack Obama is the most powerful man in the world, but with regards to African Americans at this time maybe Kendrick Lamar is more so.