Jesse Abraham – Bars & NoBull Mixtape Release Party – 10/11/10

One of the earlier entries in the e-pages of Birthplace Magazine was a writeup on a free album dropped by MC Jesse Abraham and producer Spills, named Alphabutter. We were still early in our reconnisance of the NYC underground hip hop scene, but Jesse Abraham’s name had popped up a couple of times, as had some of the other names featured on the Alphabutter effort, so we gave it a listen. At the time, we praised Alphabutter as “a slightly eclectic, but enjoyably knocking soundtrack, with a slightly more eclectic and linguistically entertaining mix of emcees,” and have since written up several of the co-stars from that effort.

This is one of the qualities about Mr. Abraham. His entertaining and jovial nature, both on and off the mic, encourages others to pay attention, evidenced by the support and collaborative efforts he receives from a variety of his peers in the scene. But it’s not just a pleasant demeanor, Jesse Abraham can very capably put words together over beats, often with a humorous slant, with a mixture of intellect and diction that make him quite the entertaining MC. Perhaps even more so when freestyling, as we have seen him do in street ciphers, and stage appearances, including, notably, the yearly Rapathon, held at the Hip Hop Culture Center in Harlem. In fact, not only did Abraham scoop up this year’s Best New-Comer Award from the Rapathon (cited as one of our “5 Reasons Why NY Hip Hop Doesn’t Suck“), but the collective effort achieved a Guinness World Record.

Recently, Jesse Abraham has begun the run up to the October 12, 2010 release of Bars & NoBull, sprinkling several tracks out into the atmosphere, including the playful and bouncy “Yoga,” and “Spiderman on Vitamins,” both produced by Spills, and the sonically and lyrically charming “Little Bit Of Everything,” produced by KO Beatz. These after having dropped a mixtape earlier this year (XS) and a track or two since, such as the cacophony of underground hip hop characters cited in “Harvest of Names“.

Jesse Abraham told BirthplaceMag.com that his new project “holds great significance to me. The title, Bars (meaning musical measures or lyrics) & NoBull (implying sincerity in content & dignity in form) is a play on Barnes & Noble, implying that the work contains some literary substance.” He goes on to describe the mixtape as “literally a mixture… A mixture of styles; light-hearted tracks, heavy songs, party joints… A mixture of production work; KO Beatz, Spills, Willie Green, Panjabi MC, Ill Mind and Trace Thomas… And a mixture of energies, as it was written and recorded over a span of eight months, splitting my recording time between Jamaica, Queens and Orlando.”

Jesse Abraham plans on releasing his “debut official solo inaugural significant EP, tentatively titled The One,“ on 1/11/11. In the meantime, the Bars & NoBull release will be celebrated the evening prior to its release, on October 11, 2010, at Public Assembly in Brooklyn, with the official Bars & NoBull Mixtape Release Party (of which BirthplaceMag.com is a proud sponsor). “Rocking at that show,” Abraham told us, “are a slew of humans who I’ve been fortunate enough to grow close to as both people and artists.” Among those expected, are DJ Sosa, Premonition, Sleepwalkas, Brown Bag Allstars, Mohammad Dangerfield, Albert Rhymestein, with surprise guests promised.

The event will be hosted by Q of GoodFella Media and Albert Rhymestein. Abraham will also be debuting his music video for “Little Bit of Everything,” filmed by Noisemaker Media, and promises a “special” performance of his song, “Yoga”.  The show is free, and the first 30 people in attendance will receive a free copy of the CD.

Bars & NoBull will be available for download on October 12, on www.DJBooth.net.

Jesse Abraham – Little Bit of Everything
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Jesse Abraham – Yoga
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Jesse Abraham – Spiderman on Vitamins
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