hip-hop – The Sonic Stadium

I like almost all music. “Almost, you say, Slinger?” Yeah, I cannot stand country whatsoever. When you go to karaoke night at the bars every Wednesday night, the hicks in Nebraska love to sing their Garth Brooks. I’m rather open about rap and hip-hop, as the beats and grooves can prove to be rather cathartic at the end of the day. That, and it can really pump me up before I step onto the field. I have been talking a lot about Charles Hamilton lately, because I like his sound and he has been making news with the release of his new mixtape, “Sonic the Hamilton.” I have had a while to check out his new tracks and I urge you to give this Hedgehog-lovin’ rapper a shot.

As a mixtape, I expect a lot of songs to use sampling. A majority of this mixtape does that and it is rather successful. A well-executed sample can add new dimension to a song and allow people to relive the source material. Many of Hamilton’s samples are, of course, Sonic tunes and when I heard the familiar Genesis tracks, I could not help but not my head with the beat. Continue reading Sonic the Hamilton

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, DJ/musician Charles Hamilton spoke on his beginnings, his rise to fame through various mediums (most notably, the Internet), and his latest projects. The article comments on his presence, charisma, and revolutionary style of hip-hop. Most notably, he is a huge Sonic the Hedgehog fan and some of his tracks feature heavy sampling of the original game’s soundtrack and sound effects. On the topic of Sonic, Hamilton said:

“I always felt like there was no life without sound and Sonic obviously means sound, and hedgehog is buried underground. Which means that I’m buried into sound, music and it comes full circle, like a Sonic the Hedgehog loop.”

I have got my hands on his latest track and a lengthy freestyle session on a U.S. radio station, Power 106. Please, check them out, because you will definitely be entertained!

EDIT: Although the picture of the guy we had before is probably a very nice chap, it wasn’t actually Charles Hamilton. It was rapper ‘Papoose’. We got an email from ‘The Real Charles Hamilton’, who stood up and gave us a photo of himself. Sorry about that!

November 10th – Marble Zone remix, connections drawn between his life and Sonic. The best part is at the end when he says, “Where’s my fuckin’ Genesis?”

Freestyle on the DJ Green Lantern Show on Power 106 – Very impressive.