so I got a letter from Capcom...

and it said that Mega Ran is now OFFICIALLY LICENSED by the Big C!

this is pretty amazing news to me, I mean, the company responsible for Chun Li, has not only heard my stuff, but has approved.


So what does this mean? Hmmm... I don't have to worry about my myspace page being deleted :) Maybe we can see that Japanese tour with backing. Who knows?...but, knowing you are not gonna get sued has to be the best feeling in the world.

Some of yall heard the album already - purchased or downloaded. so if you haven't, do yourself a favor and help me celebrate!

Check sampler at:

http://www.zshare.net/audio/36387456abd630/

Purchase album at:

http://kunaki.com/sales.asp?PID=PX00T4AIJB

or

http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/random07

or iTunes at:

http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playListId=264591059



oh yeah, and KEEP VOTING on the Grow Up Remix!! so far Jonato 7's is in the lead.

The Grow Up Remix Blog.

A while back, I had a little search for the perfect "Grow Up" remix.

I got some good submissions.
I got some great submissions.
I got some submissions that should've probably stayed unsubmitted. :)

just kidding, I love all you guys.


So what I'll do is get my Simon Cowell on, and rate these bad boys and tell you why it is or isn't the one.


I'll put the best one on my player, so I need you guys' help!


The San Remix

Link: http://www.zshare.net/audio/7705075b6c1e2f

What I liked: that he probably never listened to the original.

What I didn't like: that he sampled...no drums..um.... everything. This just doesn't work. Thanks for playing, San.


The Ascension Music Remix feat/ Dan Poh

Link: http://www.zshare.net/audio/9313810963351b/

What I liked: Dan's verse. cool idea, I liked it.

What I didn't like: I can't shake the feeling that this one is off beat a little. I can't catch it.


The Fingaz Remix.

Link: http://www.sendspace.com/file/g3jlsx

what I liked: Those drums!! very nice!

What i didn't like: the same as most of them: the chorus just didn't work. but with some re-working, this could be it.




The AntiSoc Remix.

Link: http://www.sendspace.com/file/nbhguv

What I liked: Everything...very very nice.

What I didn't like: it was the chorus, but he fixed it... great stuff.


The Storyville Remix.

Link: http://www.sendspace.com/file/oe7srb

What I liked: very musical, really cool

What I didn't like: well, I don't know. I like this a lot.


The Jonato7 Remix.

Link: http://www.zshare.net/audio/931367324df605/

A very late submission, but well worth the wait.

What I liked: Awesome, kept the 8 bit feel intact.

What I didn't like: nothing. Down to the hook, he nailed it. nice job IMO.

American Gamer.

http://www.caeious.com/americangameralbum/americangamerDLcenter.html

American Gamer.

http://www.caeious.com/americangameralbum/americangamerDLcenter.html

Grow Up...Again.

There is a Remix to Grow Up out there, you just have to find it. here's a hint:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/megaran


you have to join to get it. :)


you won't regret it; Antisoc tore it up...

One Two Free Four.

In the midst of tragedy, there's always a triumph. So this is what's going on with me for 2008.



Hollywood Ran, 2.0- you might remember way back in the days when I mentioned my music being in an indie film...well, Ran's back..spreadin' like anthrax. A new indie film, called "Second Skin," chronicling the life of gamers, has tapped Mega Ran and his hit song "Grow Up."



here is a trailer of the flick:

















It's being pitched to HBO and some other big names as we speak, so cross your fingers.



I am looking to release 4 projects this year. in order:







Patches and Glue-

late Feb, 08



an EP of 9 tracks, to include such joints as "Inbox" and "Twice Over." Production by DN3, Ohene, Storyville , K-Murdock of Panacea (Rawkus) and more.



read up on it in this nice write up on ThaHipHop.com:

http://www.thahiphop.com/en/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=806&Itemid=140






RandomBeats presents AMERICAN GAMER-



so here's the deal... after I did this little "Mega Ran" album, mad folks have been sending me videogame beats, hoping I'll do some sorta sequel album....and I really don't think I'll do that....but i learned to never say never......

but that gave me an idea...I figured I'd put these beats to use.. myself and a few dope cats, K-Murdock and Pac0naut from Phoenix are working on a Jay-Z remix project called "American Gamer."

in what we all hope will be the final American Gangster remix project, we'll be sampling from popular and not so popular games on the mixtape, which will include about 9 of the album cuts.

This is one of my favorites, K-Murdock's Streets of Rage Remix of Jay-Z's "Say Hello"



take it and spread it...



http://www.zshare.net/audio/71339501fc1330




This'll be free for everyone...coming soon.
another preview is on Paco's page....
myspace.com/latenighthustle



they're EVERYWHERE!!





Marvin Gaye Tribute Album



if I had to pick just one musical influence, I'd hands down say Marvin Gaye. so, as a tribute to Marvin, I'll be recording and releasing a free album in which all of the tracks are sampled from Marvin Gaye compositions (sorry, no 'Sexual Healing'... I don't think). This'll be done just in time for Marvin's birthday in April.







The 8th Day



on August 8, 2008, or 08/08/08, the hip-hop world will begin anew. I'll be releasing a theme album based around the premise that on the day of new beginnings (the 8th day), everyone and everything must start fresh. I'm well into the recording process, and producers include http://www.myspace.com/samikg"> Samik, DN3, and MP Fiend of Baseline Ent.


and don't forget about
MEGA RAN!!


So, all in all, I got a lot of big stuff planned for this year... so stay tuned....

RIP Mr. Sunny

none of you probably knew Mr. Sunny, but he lived directly across from me on my mom's block.



He was my homeboy Art's dad.

ya know, out of all the homies from the block, Art was the only one who lived with a mom and a dad.


Art's moved on, he's got a wife and family in Florida, and Mr. Sunny was still on the block...



Till This past Thursday.



Mr. Sunny lost his battle with the big C.



Mr. Sunny and I used to have a lot of conversations, when I ran into him fixing his van, or watering his garden.



I'm gonna miss him... I'm gonna miss the way he always called me by my nickname, in a growling kinda way... "Raaah RAHH!"

Mr. Sunny hated hip-hop. He thought it was just a bunch of rascals yellin and cussin'.



I remember a great story, my homie bought a CD of young lady by the name of BOSS. she made an album, Born Gangstaz, which my then next-door neighbor bought and blasted on the steps of the crib.

now Boss had a nice little diddy on her album called "I Don't Give a F&%" which contained these quotable lyrics...

CHORUS-

I don't give a f, not a single f***
not a single solitary f&&& I don't give a fuck motherf***!

[Bo$$]
I don't give a f*** about none of y'all!
Big ballin' a** BO$$ takin' two to
Ya head with a sawed off shotgun
Give it up cuz I'm one crazed b****!
Rollin' thick, gang full of lunatics bailin
Runnin' through the mud
Escaped from the cell block searchin' for the g** d*mn judge
Cuz its simple to get revenge on a punk
Pop the trunk, grab the pump and pull the trigger my n***a!

now that's some indubitable sh*t, son (c) Thugnificent.



Now, Mr. Sunny, like anyone who heard this, immediately wrote hip-hop off as some stupid nonsense.



So ever since then, we'd have chats about hip-hop and what it was, and what it wasn't... and I don't think I ever convinced him that hip-hop was good, but he always was willing to listen, unlike most adults at that time.

No matter what was going on, "Pops," as the fellas called him, was always around...always cracking a joke, always smiling..with his signature cigar in his mouth. I never remember him being in a bad mood.

Imma miss you, Mr. Sunny.... Thanks for enlightening us young brothers. May God bless you and your family.

My Day off

since everyone wasn't off work today (i was, yay!) DN3 and myself decided to do some volunteer work with Habitat for Humanity over the weekend, so we helped to build a house.



now in that 6 hours of time, we did a lot, including helping to construct the 4 walls and put them in place.



I got to meet the woman who was going to be moving into the home, and she was ecstatic..



really felt good to do some good.



I highly recommend checking out www.makeadifference.org and finding something you can do in your community, it's very fulfilling.



So, what did you guys do on your 3-day weekend?



and don't feel bad if you didnt do anything, or if you didnt get a day off, you have every other day of your life to do something good for people.





Also, peep our special MLK day edition of RAHM Radio West at



http://rahmradio.mypodcast.com

with special joints by Common, Ohene, Freeway, Maja and more, and an interview w/ Haj of Dumhi.

Peace.

Crazy Eddie

DO you guys (particularly on the East Coast) remember Crazy Eddie?


well he was a dude who got on TV, selling electronics for cheap, yelling at you the whole time, and saying that if you didn't buy from him, you were..

INNN-SAAAANE!
so the story goes, Eddie and his company were doing some shady stuff, and the owner fled, and the feds brought the company down.
you can read the rest here.
but that brings me to my next point..

Have they gone craaaaaaazy?!?!

from RAHM Nation's newest Newsletter...>>
Peace RAHMs,As we set to close 2007, we'd like to offer our loyal fans a chance to take advantage special year-end savings. For a LIMITED TIME, all '07 RAHM Nation albums
(including Mega Ran)will be only $3.99.

2006 Releases (including The Call )are only $2.99.

As we look to clear some inventory and end the fiscal year on a strong note, this is a great opportunity to pick up a project you may have missed or make a gift of your favorite RAHM album. Click the links below to order. But do so soon. these projects will either be shelved or revert to their retail prices.
Thanks and look out for the 2008 albums!

1L


me.

visit our distributor for details on multiple orders....
http://kunaki.com/msales.asp?PublisherId=109585


so......... if you haven't got "One of the top 10 Albums of 2006" yet, or "One of the most creative releases this year" , Then there's no better time than the present.

Peace,

Ran

2 years later, still PUSHing.

today's 2 years to the day that I wrote PUSH... just found an old rhyme book, dated and all.

One of my more popular songs...hopefully you liked it... one of my favorite cuts.


for the next hour or so, it's free.


enjoy!


http://download.yousendit.com/9C00E3C64C96850E

Background on Push:

Produced by Storyville
myspace.com/deepscene

Saxophone by Frank Machos
myspace.com/frankmachos

I wrote this sitting in my '89 Blazer,with gloves on (because I had no heat) about to go to work at Toys R Us for the holiday season. The lyrics were flowing so well, I was 15 minutes late clocking in. Again, Storyville came through with a smash. This is probably my second favorite cut, and probably could've been the 2nd single. I heard it and wrote instantly. SV is such a perfectionist, he sent me 10000 remixes for the track when I told him I wanted to use it. But I'm stuck in my ways when it comes to music, and I wanted it as is. He even sent me a version with a verse in it, trying to weasel his way onto the album nah, I'm just kidding, but I had to stick with the original. I had a funky idea for the 3rd verse, something that hadn't been done before: to use a saxophone solo AS the 3rd verse. I met Frank Machos on myspace, and he was down for the cause. Strangely enough, I had met him before at my Fundamentals release party, but didn't know it. There were a lot of strange coincidences that made this album come together, that's what makes it so special. Samik (prod of "Raze The Bar") says this is the best beat on the album, it just might be.

RAHM Radio Episode #2

http://www.zshare.net/audio/5001854892d98d/

Peace and blessings...

It's about that time again!  Special thanks to all who
listened to our first show.  The feedback and response
was great! If you didn't feel it, trust me, we
wouldn't come back to embarrass ourselves a second
time. 

This week's show features a special guest interview
with Kev Brown.  Kev has produced for acts such as DJ
Jazzy Jeff, De La Soul, Raheem Devaughn, and various
other dope acts.  Also we threw in some other joints
from Ghostface, Ohmega Watts, and Freeway Featuring 50
Cent.  We even thew in a few old school classics that
will make you show your age!

Click here to check out the show!

http://www.zshare.net/audio/5001854892d98d/


If you missed the first show, check it out at this
link:

http://www.zshare.net/audio/4849428c220b7d/

Thank you for supporting the true Hip-Hop and have a
great week!

Our Mission:

The Reform and Healing Movement West Coast Radio Show
hosted by Random and DN³ - as the west coast
counterpart to RAHM Radio hosted by G, The Chancellor
at Virginia Tech University. RAHM Radio West (The
RandomBeagle Show) is produced entirely out of the
Phoenix, Arizona residence of Random and DN³. The show
is formatted to showcase current quality Hip-Hop music
by influential artists, classic joints, as well as
music by RAHM Nation affiliates. Current events,
movies, other entertainment, as well as community
uplifting issues will be discussed. The show will air
weekly with occasional special guest, varying themes,
and Hip-Hop junkies such as the RandomBeagle acting a
fool and having a great time spinning the hottest
Hip-Hop joints from all over the country. Be sure to
check out each show!

my students made a PSA (link)

I am a teacher.

have been for a few years now.

and I like my kids a lot.... maybe even love them.

when they're not giving me headaches, whining about assignments, making excuses or mistreating each other,

I love my students.

Well, heck, even when they are acting a fool,

I love my students.

So last week was Drug Free Week, and we had several activities involving the theme "I've Got Better Things to Do Than Drugs!"
we all wore these attractive buttons.



some did essays, some drew posters.

But two of my most....um, expressive 8th grade students, Tyrone and Travis, decided to record a Public Service Announcement about all of the things they could do instead of drugs.

It's way too hilarious to transcribe here, you just gotta hear it.

so, here it is:

Travis and Tyrone's PSA.


It's times like these where I forget about all the stress, and remember why I became a teacher.

just shows what these guys can accomplish with a little motivation.

Big ups to Mr. Lernor for editing and putting this to some great, mood-fitting music.

I had a feeling this week was gonna be good, just look at this pizza box I had over the weekend:


see the smiley face?


oh, dont forget if you havent heard the radio show,
Click to Hear RAHM Radio West

next week's show will feature an exclusive interview with:


Kev Brown.

so be here...or there...well, just get it.

Say What You Want about Soulja Boy...

but the kid is aight with me.

now, bear with me.

Check it, right, I was online one day after work, and I don't know how, or why, but I found my way to Soulja Boy's myspace page.

edit: one of his boys added me or something.

So, I was browsing and noticed 2 things..

a) that he was gonna be in Phoenix on the VERY SAME DAY that I was looking at the page, and in like 2 hours, at a school that was literally a mile from my house, where I was already going to watch one of my students from last year play football.

b) that he leaves his Sidekick 2 way address right on the page for his fans to email him.

Now, me being super curious, I 2way the kid..I figure it won't cost me a thing, and I was gonna be there anyway. so what the heck.

this is the conversation:

r*********s@tmail.com: what up. see you over at the school. Making any other stops in AZ?

Now, I didn't expect anything, I mean, the guy's page has 17 MILLION (yes, MILLION) hits on it, so he's gotta get sidekick messages like every..3 seconds at least.

but 10 minutes later...my sidekick alert goes off....new message!
souljaboytellem@tmail.com: pheonix (sic) college.

now granted, a few more trips to Geography class wouldn't hurt.... but hey, anyone can mess up on the spelling of Phoenix! right?

But the fact of the matter is, he took the time to type that message.


and if i was a little younger and more impressionable, I would've been on my way to BesT Buy, coppin that Soulja Boy Tellem.


dude is the epitome of the 21st century version of the American Dream... you MAKE yourself what you want to become.

you might know the story, might not...

dude makes beats at home on Fruity Loops , posts them on SoundClick. creates a catchy song that youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu mightve heard a few hundred times TODAY, and creates a video with dance moves and posts it to the 'net. a few hundred thousand hits later, record exec chases him down and signs him....sells a million ringtones before an album drops, and here we are.

He personally reaches out to his fans, giving them a personal connection that's never been seen on the mainstream level.
Record sales are down, and he knows it, so he goes the extra mile to reach out, I ain't mad at him.

hes even got a contest..the fan who buys the MOST copies of his album earns a spot on his top friends list FOREVER!!!!

so get your pictures in :)
man, I wish I worked at Best Buy so I could just pose with the whole shipment of CDs.

love it or hate it: This is the next level of music marketing.

now only time will tell if Soulja Boy becomes today's MC Hammer, or "Crank Dat" becomes the next Macarena,


(voted 1 one-hit wonder of all-time) or the guy that we'll always mention when it comes to DIY musicians...

But for right now, DeAndre Cortez Way is A-OK with me. He's having fun...don't take him seriously and you'll be OK too.

I'd rather hear a 17 year-old super-soakin' than much worse things, that's for sure.

and he doesn't seem to be a total doofus like the song lyrics may suggest, as he knows a lot about what the people want.

so, for the time being... Crank Dat... responsibly.

and enjoy some show footage from last night.





peep the 'shortest mic cord ever'




*sigh*

The Making of Mega Ran

This is a great read...enjoy!


http://www.hiphoplinguistics.com/reviews/albums/2007/megaran.php


oh, and order Mega Ran on iTunes..like, today.

http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playListId=264591059

9-11. 6 years later.

are we OVER 9-11?

don't know about you, but I'm not.

so while you're at the record store trying to figure out what to buy, don't forget about the folks who lost their lives.

This is a song, "Wings," that I recorded quite some time ago. it puts a different spin on that fateful day, through the eyes of 3 different people who are connected and don't know it... think "Crash," or more recently, my newest addiction, "Lost."

Wings (produced by DN3)
(click for free download)
http://www.zshare.net/audio/34671321760376/






well GET IN! join the blog here.

back from Florida

back from FLA..the love and hate blog.

I saw the things I love and hate about the south all in one short trip.

man oh man... where do I begin?

I guess at the beginning.

We stayed at the plush Grosvenor (if anyone knows how to pronounce that, let me know) Hotel in Lake Buena Vista, and the place was lovely...pools, karaoke, basketball courts a Wii..yup, a Wii... and a $10 a night activity fee to pay for it.

But we were right down the street from Downtown Disney, so we went there first. Had a great time, and saw a spectacular improv comedy show which gave me some great ideas... I'll get to those later.



first of all, the love was there. I played at Tim and Terry's for Nerdapalooza SE in Gainesville, FL (go Gators!)

and it was totally amazing. That campus is really impressive.
great crowd, great atmosphere (a little hot), and great times.

This was when the improv ideas came back. Back in the day, when me and Ohene were rhyme partners, during every one of our sets, O would end it off with a crazy freestyle session..all impromptu, off the head rhymes. He'd ask everyone in the crowd to pull something out of their
, and he'd incorporate it in his rhymes. So, after seeing the un-sketched sketch comedy show, I decided to alter my set at the last minute and take a page from the book of O.

This was the first time I had done it, and it worked very well..got a great reaction, and it was huge fun. We got it on tape, hopefully it'll get upped soon.
More improv fun--at the end of the night, myself, Zealous1 and Shinobi kicked a few freestyles over some sick beats, even creating an on the fly song with hook. I hope somebody got that on film!

Next day we hit up Disney World thanks to the free tickets from the timeshare presentation we went to the day before (These folks just don't know how to take NO for an answer!!) little piece of advice--if they say its a 2 hr presentation, expect 3.5.
pretty good time at Disney, I only wanted to go on one ride.


Space Mountain.

a ride that I'd heard sooooo much about since I was a kid...but had never gotten on.

Wait time.... 60 minutes.

but what the heck, right, this is the ride I've been waiting for!

20 minutes into the wait, something happened.

Announcer: Ladies and gentlemen, please bear with us, we're having some technical difficulties...we apologize to those of you on the ride at this time, please remain seated...

..on the ride??? stuck?? Awwwww Nawww! so eventually they shut the ride down and got everyone out of there. We came back 2 hours later and it was still down.

Oh well..maybe next time.

Who am I kidding, I ain't going back there again...unless I have kids.


And now.....for the hate. As I was coming back from an errand on Sunday night, I got pulled over by a police officer who SAID I ran a stop sign. Did I? I don't think so... we all do those California stops* every once in a while, right? right???

*FYI: ..>..>

a.	california stop
	AKA the california rolling stop The act of not completely stopping at a stop sign or a right hand turn, but rather 'rolling' through it by slowing down some. *sees stop sign* *looks for cops* *sees none* *makes a california stop* *hears sirens* says 'D'oh!'

well let me set the scene...smalltown area, after midnight, on a small road, not even a 4 way stop...totally secluded area.

or so I thought.

"Gotcha!" -Dave Chappelle

Anyway, the scene couldve been much worse, because I was driving a rental car...and when she asked for the papers, I checked the glove box....

they weren't there.

I checked the floor, the back...

nothing.

uh-oh.

I Texted Ida (sidebar--is it 'texted' or text'd?), and she tells me she doesn't have them either...

this could be bad.

now I have to convince this small-town beat cop who's dying to make her quota who just pulled over a young man with an out of state license that I didn't steal this car.

Well, luckily it worked, due to the Mega-Charm (c)* I managed to get out of this little jam with only a ticket....


for $122.50!

I almost cussed, and I don't cuss.

Again, I hate to pull the race card, but us brothers know of something called DWB: and that doesn't mean Doctors with Businesses or Donuts with Black Coffee...

it means Driving While Black.

Now DWB might be a myth, or a fabric of the vivid imagination of African American conspiracy theorists all over the world, but this is what the 'experts' say:

DWB: a word play on the name of a real U.S. crime, driving while intoxicated. The phrase implies that a motorist may be pulled over by a police officer simply because he or she is black, and then questioned, searched, and/or charged with a trivial offense. This concept stems from a long history of racism in the United States, United Kingdom, and other countries. The term refers to racial profiling, which is said to be used by police and other law enforcement officials.

see also: "walking while Black," "learning while Brown," Flying while Muslim," and "Speaking while Blonde." (I didn't make these up...well I did make up the last one.)

Anyway, the rest of the trip went very well, I auctioned the only existing Mega Ran shirt off this weekend (so if you see it on eBay, don't buy it! ), which was symbolic, because it's the last show on the specified Mega Ran Tour. I don't plan to do any specific Mega Ran dates after this, as I'm ready to grow up get to work on the next project.

What is the next project?

Stay tuned....

The pros and cons go like this:

Pros:
1- The Grosvenor, especially the jacuzzi
2- The Tim and Terry's crowd
3- The comedy show @ Downtown Disney
4- Quality time

Cons:
1- cops
2- cops
3- cops
4- humidity

have a spectacular evening. pics coming soon....


*Mega-Charm is a registered trademark of RandomBeats. any unauthorized use is prohibited.

What are folks saying about "Mega Ran?"

anyway, here are a few opinions about Random's Mega Ran album that are floating around the 'Net and media these days...all in one place for the lazy folks...


Above all, Random rises to the occasion by making an album that is both clever and effortless. Despite its lofty ambitions, the album's intent never overshadows the simple fact that the music is dope...anyone who ever kept a log of their continue codes is sure to geek out to what amounts to one of the most creative releases this year.
-Okayplayer.com, Aug 2007 (4/5)

Not only an interesting concept, Mega Ran is also an enjoyable trip down memory lane for many.
-Exclaim Magazine, July 2007

The bottom line is that Random manages to keep his hip-hop credentials in tact even while marrying underground battle raps to video game tracks.
-Rap Reviews, July 2007 (7/10)

In the past 20 years, Mega Man never sounded this good.
-Game Music 4 All, June 2007

Old school Blue Bomber fans are gonna hear these classic themes and flip.
-Scarlett (Capcom USA), July 2007

I guess the only question to ask now is..

Why don't you have it???



Oh...you didn't know how to get it?

Okay, I gotcha.





Or






choose your adventure!!

Cop that soon.. we are VERY CLOSE to my 'limited quantities' number, so I suspect these won't be around very long. get 2, and leave one in the plastic.


soon, you'll wake up, and the whole Mega Ran thing will have been a dream.




now if you'll excuse me, Madden is calling. I just got my first win, and that was luck. I need some practice........




PS- and don't worry, I plan on working on the Biggie video...I'm serious! soon as SOMEONE brings the videocamera over...lol

I'll post that footage fo'sho.

'Til next time, keep shining.

-Ran


PPS--this is hilarious! if you get a moment...peep it.
gives new meaning to "Karate Kid." Dude should get an Oscar.

Part 1.
http://www.b3ta.com/links/Child_Beater

Part 2.
http://www.break.com/rushhour3/man-vs-kids-part2.html

Back from Cali

What up everybody. Ya boy Ran is back from his California leg of the Mega Ran tour with some STORIIIIIIIES to tell! Where do I begin??


(disclaimer--this is a long blog. grab something to eat or drink, get a comfortable seat, and read.)



Well first I'd like to say that the pictures from this little excursion will be posted very soon. theres a lot of them...

Okay, so last week I was saying this would be the longest weekend of my life..so here's why.

I had to go to school for orientation/teacher traning..Then after that, drive to San Diego for my first show at the House Of Blues.

This show was with The Megas , who guest with me on the "Boss Battle: Metalman" song on "MEGA RAN."

also on the bill was Quarter-Circle Jab (yeah, a slow fireball if you're into Street Fighter), and they rocked it as well.

The Megas also called me back up to perform "MetalMan" with them live, and that was awesome (don't worry, we got video).

I got into San Diego with about 30 minutes before showtime.

and no matter where we went, parking was always a major issue, so I don't need to mention that anymore.


The show went well at the HOB, until a gentleman that worked there decided to speak to me on the side and ask me to 'tone down the language,'

because I was 'offending some of the guests.'

Well as we all know, I'm a pottymouth, so I wasn't having that!

no, not really. I tried to tell him as matter-of-factly as I could that they obviously weren't listening if they thought they heard inappropriate language from me.

and he's like "not even the N-word?" he said it as if he pulled the Trump card on me.

"no, not even the N-word, buddy."

"oh...Okay."

Now I'm not one to throw the race card around *reaches in pocket* but I know how these cats think...he sees a brother up there rappin...and assumes he's gonna hear those words.

anyway.. I was gonna leave after my set, but I'm glad I didn't, because I would've missed QCJ, and a lot of fans who wound up buying CDs and signing the mailing list.

So, after that, we run right over to the San Diego Sports Club for another show.

This show was more of an opportunity to meet and build with so many of the folks I've chatted with online for so long....Maja, IllGill, Zealous1,

and the man, YTCracker.

I'm not ashamed to admit that if I had never heard YTCracker's NERDRAP ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM in 2005, then Mega Ran wouldn't exist.



So I feel like he fathered that album and didn't even know it..it was a real pleasure to meet and build with him...and he even knew my Gov't name.. he does his research. That's the 1 difference between nerdcore fans and 'underground hip hop' fans and showgoers;

Nerdcore cats actually do some research.. folks were asking me about being a teacher, and about "Fundamentals," and RAHM Nation, and all types of stuff.

I usually have to introduce other crowds to who I am at other shows.


Anyway, I got there late (my bad fellas), but I still got on and had to cut my set short.

it was the first time I had performed "BubbleMan," a song I was afraid to do without a hypeman, because of the ridiculous breath control needed for it.

I heard someone say a while ago that you shouldn't record a song that you can't perform live the same way....

well I didn't listen.

But it went well. after a lot of practice, I learned how and when to breathe, and it worked.


That night, after performing twice in a night, I also made history.

DN3 had the audacity to challenge me in Street Fighter II, and I had to do him in in a 3 round battle. I had Ken, he had Guile. after repeated attempts to cheese me,

The Spin Kick prevailed.

So, i decided to take my undefeated record and retire...


forever.

DN3 tries to blame it on the Xbox controller (how come losers can't just lose?)
so I'm 1-0, unbeaten.

End of the longest day of my recent memory.

Wake up time: 7:00AM
Bedtime: 3:30AM


Saturday begins with a trip to a local Thai food spot... great great food!

Then we made the trek to Comic Con, at the San Diego Convention Center.


It was like Halloween and Christmas at the same time in there...


people in costumes and toys...everywhere you could see.

However, in a huge place like that, there's bound to be confusion.

See, Seth, who works for Capcom, and has been such a great sport with all the Mega Ran stuff,

sent me an email with his phone number on it, and told me to contact him when I got there and he'd bring the ID badges out.

He sent this email to my GMAIL account.

Before I left..I checked my email...my Yahoo account.

Whoops.


So DN3 (who was also a good sport in all this) lugs his turntable setup down a good few blocks to the Con,

and the guards send us to the wrong gate to check in...

not once, not twice... fee times a mady (if you remember old SNL, you'll get that)

so at this point, everyone's pissed off, and we just wanna get in. I found out that the buzzword around the Con was

"Exhibitor" (noun) a person who provides an exhibit for a display etc
Example: He is one of the exhibitors at the flower show.

once I learned that, they let me go wherever I wanted to...

I get my passes..and DN3's pass isn't in his name, but another name...

Rich Flyer.

you really couldn't make up a funnier name than that. so for the remainder of the trip, DN3 was Rich Flyer.

I still think he should use that as one of those AKA's.

But anyway....

when we finally get into the spot, it's crazy.. Capcom's booth is set up like a big wrestling ring...

Great time at the Con, once we finally got settled...saw some celebrities there;

-Andre 3000,
-Kevin Bacon (a fellow Philly-ite)
-Sgt. Slaughter
-LeVar Burton (Reading Rainbow, Roots...Star Trek!!!!)

um...and I'm sure I saw some others, just don't remember.

what sucked for me was that I didn't get a whole lot of time to actually walk around and see the booths

because I made a promise to myself that I wasn't gonna leave the autograph table until I signed and sold them all...or got kicked out for the next guy :)

so I did finally get to sell them all and explore, so I got some great pictures..again..will be uploaded ASAP.

Thanks to everyone who attended Comic Con and copped a CD!

OH-- and if you were there and have one of the flyers of all the daily events (yellow), I need a copy of one for my scrapbook!!! it's got my name on it :-P

seriously, mail it to me..contact me.




the rest of that day we just chilled out and recovered..hit up a nice Mediteranean spot, the Med Grill, and I had some great salmon.
Sidebar- San Diego is a BEAUTIFUL city! oh man... it's gorgeous. I really want to move there. ok, getting back--

DN3 rolled out the next day, which meant for the next 2 shows, in LA, I was on my own.

Before we left San Diego, we went to Imperial Beach (the most Southwesterly City in the US--literally a stones throw from Mey-hee-co) for a sandcastle competition. That was really interesting to see. they had some really cool sandcastles. there I had a funnel cake for the first time in almost a decade, and this thing was HUGE. (got pics)

We hit the road towards Tinseltown, and learned something about Mapquest and Los Angeles County:

Never pay attention to the estimated travel time.

you can almost always either a) triple it, or add an hour to it, which ever is greater.

example.. 22mins Mapquest= 66 mins real time.

I hear people talk about LA traffic, but seriously, it's no joke. I did some LA driving last year, but I really didnt remember it being this bad..

I mean, it doesn't matter what time of day, there's guaranteed to be some point of your drive which you're sitting still.

So that night, I had an event at Room 5, Elevation West with special guest DJ, DJ Houseshoes. if you don't know Shoes, all you need to know is that he was the DJ for the late great J Dilla.

Shoes is mad cool..a cocky dude...but he got skills...hey. It ain't braggin if you can back it up.

After the show, he was a little more concerned with a little Elevation of his own if ya know what I mean...

but I'll leave that alone..

but we chatted and he definitely was a nice dude.

I did my thang on stage, of course I had to do something for Dilla, so I broke out my rendition of "Shoomp" and that got the place going (again, we got video).

I also ran in to veteran MC and Stones Throw recording artist Percee P at the show, who was really supportive as well, we chatted for a good half hour about the business, and LA Hip-Hop culture...my grind, his grind...everything.
I gave him a few tickets to my show on Tuesday, and he came through and showed love.

Oh yeah and a quick plug, his album "Perseverance" drops in September.

After the show I spent a lot of time afterwards speaking to the event goers, mainly getting information on how to travel in LA without getting caught in traffic.

no dice on that. But, I did get directions to Roscoe's.

so the next day, Monday, we hit up Roscoe's for lunch, and we had (you guessed it) Chicken and Waffles.
Delicious.

So we drove around the Hollywood Hills next, just to see how the locals were living. We ran into some new houses they were building on the hills, and talked to a realtor who let us walk around inside the crib. Sick, Sick SICK! it was a 3 story built into the hill, only selling for 2.15 mil...not bad..



after that we hit Hollywood Blvd and decided to go on one of those stars' homes' tours. and that was actually fun! we saw Paris's crib (complete with paparazzi outside), Halle's crib (and the liquor store she hit), Babyface (who lives next door to Al Pacino)...um....Keanu Reeves, Tobey Maguire, Dr. Phil and some other folks's spots... most impressive was the dude who founded Guess, whose front yard is loaded with about 15 Ferarri's that he never drives.

man if i had that much money.... I don't really know what I'd have in my front yard..maybe an alligator pit.

Also that same day, the Rush Hour 3 premiere was going on, and although I didn't see anyone, I'm sure Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan were inside the Chinese Theater, right across from where we were.
..ucket.com/albums/i261/random2g/rushhour.jpg">

While we were waiting we got tickets to attend a taping of "Deal or No Deal" the next day, so I thought that would be pretty cool, so the next day's activities were planned.

Tuesday morning, we hit Culver City for the taping... and we picked the right show! This was a special NFL edition (its gonna air Sept 19th, I think I got some good camera time LOL), and it featured some retired players..some of the GREATEST players to ever play (Jerry Rice, Marcus Allen, Marshall Faulk) some very very good players (Eric Dickerson, Rod Woodson, Terrell Davis) and a few guys who started in the league (Kordell Stewart and Wayne Chrebet)

no Eagles, but it was all good. sorry NO PHOTOS of that.

don't know if you guys have ever been a part of a TV taping, but it's the most tedious thing ever. they make you applaud on cue, they make you laugh on cue, say "aww" on cue and if you don't do it right, they make you do it all over again.
so that was fun, but after 4 hours, it was really annoying.

some lucky schmoe (not me obviously) in the audience won a 2008 Denali! can you believe it?

I won't give away what happens in the show, but I can say that this was the most exciting episode of the show I've ever seen..then again its the only time I've ever seen it from beginning to end.... but when you watch it....you tell me.... cause I think there was something fishy about the whole show....

now with half the day gone, there wasnt much else to do...so we decided to visit Universal Studios' CityWalk, and that was nice... Man, one thing I really will miss about being in Southern California is the weather..it was sooooo perfect!

Next was the Knitting Factory event, which was pretty...interesting. Much love to the artists who came through, because there were a few no-shows. I got rid of all my Mega Ran CDs, and that to me always constitutes a successful night. Of course, Percee was up in the spot, along with folks from all over the country who I got a chance to build with.

We left early this morning to avoid traffic (yeah right), and got back to Phoenix sometime this afternoon, wrapping up the Summer portion of the Mega Ran Tour.

whew...that was a mouthful.. and yet I'm certain I forgot something.


So to anyone I met this weekend, thanks so much for your support! YOU made this possible :)

I get calls from the homies back home and they're like "You did it, man!"

Nah, I haven't done anything.....yet.



oh yeah:

Highlights:
rocking with The Megas at the HOB
Comic Con--wow
selling out of CDs
the crowd at the Sports Club singing along to "Grow Up"
Meeting Marcus Allen and Terrell Davis
Percee P showing up at the 2nd show
2 words...Rich Flyer.



Lowlights:
the runaround @ the Comic Con gates
weirdos on Hollywood Blvd...
traffic, traffic, traffic
DN3 leaving early (missed all the fun!)
clapping on cue..constantly







Oh and real quick, I'd like to say a prayer for the families of those injured or killed in the Minneapolis bridge collapse today... take a moment out of your busy day and say a word or two...cause you never know.

-Ran out.

The longest weekend of my life

first...the video.





This Friday, San Diego, CA.

8:00pm

House of Blues, San Diego:

The Megas, Random and Quarter Circle Jab

FREE!


Also at the same time..

Bossfight and NerdyMag's "The Next Level" at the SD sports club...

YTC, Zealous1, Super Barrio Bros, Maja, IllGill and a bunch more..

and Random.


so while I'm at The HOB, my clone will be at the SDSC...or maybe the other way around.


nah, not really. I go on first (8:15) at the HOB, and I'll be at the Sports Club right afterwards...hopefully I can stick around to perform "Metalman" with The Megas, but I don't know...

one things for sure, should be a great night in San Diego.


Double dipping has never been this fun.
But the madness doesnt end there...cause then it's off to Comic-Con, for a 1-hour (!) set on Saturday.

Then an interview Saturday night, then off to LA.
in LA- Shows on Sunday, and Tuesday.

This will mark the single most times I've performed in a 4 day span in my life..I'm used to 1, maybe 2 shows in a week...but this is wild! but I welcome the challenge.

Hey...it's the grind.

gotta love it.
_________________









Random presents
"Mega Ran."
http://kunaki.com/sales.asp?PID=PX00T4AIJB

Join the Club.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/megaran

Interview with Capcom

I usually don't blog this much, but what can I say, there are some good things happening these days.

1st- peep the Mega Ran Intro Vid:


Hot on the heels of my last interview comes a great new interview with Scarlett of Capcom USA. if you don't know who Capcom is, they're the great folks responsible for some of the most memorable games of all time...


Street Fighter (Ha-dou-ken!)


Resident Evil...remember the big ol' Playstation game boxes, sheesh!

and my favorite...

Mega Man.

well, here it is!!

Hey Everyone it's almost time for Comic Con! And that being said, I HAVE to tell you about one of the coolest things we're going to have at the Capcom booth: a celebration of Mega Man's 20th Anniversary with a live performance by rapper Random (aka: Random Beats) performing his latest creation, Mega Ran!

"So what's Mega Ran?" I hear you ask. And I answer: only the coolest Mega Man music you've ever heard! Seriously, no joke. He took classic Mega Man themes and turned them into kick-butt tracks, complete with lyrics following Mega Man's adventures or in the words of someone like Mega Man. Old school Blue Bomber fans are gonna hear these classic themes and flip.

..

I was able to interview Random (or as the kids that he teaches know him, Raheem Jarbo), so you'll get a chance to meet the man before you see the magic live at Comic Con.

Scarlett: Where are you from?

Random: I'm from Philadelphia, born and raised. cue the "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" music Just under a year ago, I decided to uproot and move to Phoenix for a teaching position, so here I am.

..

S:What made you decide to do this album?

R:As a huge videogame fan, and being a "random" guy, I one day was reading a website about Mega Man, and realized that 2007 made the 20th year anniversary of Mega Man's release, and went online searching for some of the old theme songs to hear them. Somewhere along the way I got a crazy idea to sample a tune and do one song about Mega Man. Then I had such a hard time picking a song, so "Mega Ran" was born!

S:When did you first play Mega Man and which game was it? 5th grade?

R:I don't want to show my age, but I may have to (laughs). Yeah, I believe it was the 4th or 5th grade when I played Mega Man for the first time. I had a subscription to Nintendo Power magazine, and Mega Man 2 was a cover story one issue, and it made me so excited about the game, that I went back and begged my mom to buy the first Mega Man. That was the most challenging game that I remember playing in those days, and so I was hooked. I even made up and drew my own Mega Man bosses in my sketch books in those days.....

read the rest here....and you know the drill, come on back and comment