It’s been a very busy last two years… between designing, fabricating and filling studio gear orders, and managing the radio station I’ve barely had time to breathe. There is so much stuff I want to do, but it’s hard to keep up with everything. Just about a year ago we completed an interview with Victor aka KVBeats from Denmark. In the early days he went by Konscious-V back in the 90’s (K-V for short). As Victor’s trajectory evolved, he decided he needed a producer name that signaled he was a beatmaker and renamed himself KVBeats. He’s connected with some amazing talent within the hip-hop comm ..read more

Sometime in 2021… it all started when Detroit music producer and audio equipment aficionado, Justin Merritt aka Killa Smuv showcased his Roland 808 themed, custom Akai MPC 2000XL on Facebook. Justin has been making beats for rap artists in the Detroit area since way back. His passion for studio gear and audio engineering lead to the creation of a music studio for Killa Smuv Productions LLC. He has been collecting and restoring audio gear for the last decade or so. I connected with Justin on eBay when he inquired about our SCSI SD card readers. After that he purchased custom MPC parts from our ..read more

Good music never expires. That goes for Statik Selektah’s “The Balancing Act” just as well. In his ninth studio album, Statik Selektah reminds us why he is revered as one of the best beat makers and mixtape deejay. The album features some of the biggest names in Hip Hop. Originators like Nas, Method Man, Jadakiss, Styles P, Joey Bada$$, Black Thought, Bun B, Paul Wall, 2 Chainz, Dave East, Killer Mike, Benny the Butcher, Conway the Machine, Evidence, Blu, Lil Fame, Marlon Craft, Smoke DZA, Termanology, Rome Streetz, Havoc, the late-great Sean Price, the 2020 XXL Freshmen Jack Harlow and many ..read more

In today’s economy, more than ever, having a grip on financial literacy is essential for everyone. For musicians and musical artists, building your empire starts with the financial know-how to make and manage that hard-earned dough. If you’re a musician or musical artist breaking into the world of financial literacy and working towards financial independence, you probably have lots of questions. Luckily there are plenty of resources from players in the game who have been where you are standing today. But, before we break down some different financial literacy strategies, let’s talk about what ..read more

Don’t Sleep Records is a new age jazz infused hip-hop record lable. Don’t Sleep Records is the underground record company founded by an amazing hip hop producer and emcee, Phoniks and Awon (pronounced A-1). The label kicked off in 2012, since that time it’s been dropping nothing but hip hop heat. It’s roots are in Newport News Virginia and Portland, Maine. The producer emcee duo came together to curate and produce several incredible independent artists. Some of the artists on the label include Anti-Lilly, Tiff The Gift, Mz Boom Bap and Dephlow. Don’t Sleep Records is a self-proclaimed modern ..read more

Audio transformers are vintage audio components that were used in many commercial and consumer audio products. These passive audio components bring color, detail, improved sonic image, spatial separation and harmonics to audio signals. Their heyday was between the 40’s and the 80’s, even in the 90’s they were a critical component within pro audio gear, used by many professional recording studios, engineers and musicians. They convert electrical audio signals into magnetic signals, then back again to electrical signals. The sonic and electrical advantages gained by this conversion are m ..read more

Phoniks dazzles with the Time Goes By album… We’ve seen Phoniks produce tracks alongside his Don’t Sleep’s label mates Awon and Tiff The Gift. However, “Time Goes By” is special as it lets him show off his raw production skills. The first track Time Goes By opens with soft jazzy tones, even though it’s not a holiday record, the feeling it gives is so warm. It creates a mood similar to sitting in a living room sipping hot cocoa and watching the snowfall. The album’s vibe is calm and mellow in true Phonik-form. It’s riddled with soundbites and samples that are long enough to make an impact, b ..read more

You may know eLZhi from his affiliation with his former rap group Slum Village, giving us hits like Selfish. Perhaps, you’ve followed him from his early days in Detroit’s rap circles, his first independent release Witness My Growth produced by Nick Speed. Check out the CD’s below, some of the first music purchased via Myspace Music for spins on Big Noise Radio, Detroit stand up! Or, you are in the rare audience that hasn’t yet had the pleasure of listening to eLZhi, the rappers rapper. Whichever category you fall under, Seven Times Down Eight Times Up is a stellar project! Trust us, your ea ..read more

One of our favorite artists here at Big Noise Radio is Skyzoo. He’s released another project this year, as usual it contains notable tracks all around. Poetic is one of many words that can be used to describe Skyzoo and his work. Skyzoo’s style is rooted in Black history and culture, particularly his personal history, a story which we’ve seen him describe on previous albums and projects. It’s that connection to his personal history and blackness that sets him apart from many other mainstream rappers. Skyzoo operates “in his element” when speaking his truth. Anti-establishment rappers like S ..read more

Doctor Henry Louis Gates Jr is an amazing black literature archaeologist… Henry Louis Gates is a notable American literary critic, professor, historian, and change-maker. Born in West Virginia in 1950, Dr Gates is a true African American ambassador, born on the same soil farmed by slaved of past president Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson coincidentally fathered many children with his slave turned mistress Sally Hemmings. This makes Henry Louis Gates’ work with DNA tracing and ancestry that much more interesting. Raised by hardworking parents who often took on more than one job at a time to provi ..read more