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Happy New Year, everyone! I figured it’d be a good idea to start the year off with some new music, so here’s an arrangement I recently completed. I was in a bit of a bind when I didn’t know what vg song I wanted to arrange next. I listened to the (awesome) Mega Man X5 soundtrack and fell for the end credits music. I expanded on the atmosphere of the original, and tried to give it a trip-hop flavor. Definitely one of my favorite arrangements to date.

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Oh boy…what can I say about Joe Cam? If you hear a song where he’s doing vocals, chances are that it’s not for the kiddies. And when it comes to Chico Ray, it’s definitely not for the kiddies. This song was originally going to be part of a larger Animal Crossing arrangement project, but that project was eventually cancelled. I had a lot of fun turning the 7am BGM into a rap beat, and it sounds like Joe and Chico had a lot of fun writing vocals to it.

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Yes, that’s true, but obviously I haven’t done it in about a few weeks, and I figure I owe it to the people who come here – no matter how many or few there may be – to at least keep you up to date on what’s been going on:

So that’s where I’ve been since September 25th – we should be back in business soon….oh, if I may do a little promo, Skyzoo, whose song I remixed a track for on The Preview, just released his debut album entitled The Salvation. If you’re a fan of hip hop music, click that link and buy it; you will NOT regret it.

Around the time I was getting ready to launch the Urbanizm site, I was trying to write a song that would be a good kick-off for the label. Joshua Morse was cranking out EPs at the time, so I ended up doing a piece that was a tribute to the jazz fusion style he was doing at the time – with my own personal touches, of course. He dug it, so mission accomplished!

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This song’s sctually quite old; I think I made it around 2006. That being the case, it’s still one of my favorites. I wanted to make a more somber mix to go with the sadness of the video, which had Eminem’s best friend Proof die in a shooting (talk about life imitating art, eh?). Lot’s of folks tell me the addition of Ja Rule and Biggie’s voices added a lot to the piece; let me know what YOU think.

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Skyzoo is one of my favorite rappers and I loved his 2007 mixtape Corner Store Classic. Ghetto America was my favorite song on the tape, so you could imagine how excited I was to see that Sky was having a remix contest for it! Now if only I’d have found out about the contest BEFORE the deadline…

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Hey everyone, I know I got kinda backed up on posting songs and videos, but I’ve been working on a lot of things, one of which I’m ready to unveil. My friend and labelmate Noodle the Innocent Child will soon be releasing his album It’s a N00 Day, and to celebrate, we’re holding a contest. Check the info:

ATTENTION PRODUCERS, DJs, AND REMIXERS: Urbanizm Music wants to hear your remix of Noodle the Innocent Child’s “Ride Wit Me.” The 5 best submissions will appear on a special EP presented by Urbanizm Music, with the very best submission appearing on the Urbanizm Music website, the Urbanizm Music and Noodle the Innocent Child official MySpace profiles, and the iTunes release of Noodle’s upcoming album It’s a N00 Day. Additionally, the 5 best submissions will all receive iTunes gift cards!

The selected tracks will receive the benefit of the full weight of Urbanizm Music promotion. This is not only a great opportunity to remix a great performance off of It’s a N00 Day, it’s also an opportunity for aspiring producers, remixers, and DJs to get exposure for their often-underappreciated work. Good luck to all entrants!

More info is available on http://sonicskillz.com/ridewitmecontest.html – hope to hear lots of entries!!!

Eminem is definitely the artist whose songs I’ve remixed the most. This is definitely one of my favorite tunes of his, and story of how this mix came together is kinda funny. I was working on an instrumental when the When I’m Gone video came on MTV – yes, MTV used to play music videos. Anyway, his vocals meshed so well with the track I was working on that I found the acapella and put them together!

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In 2005, you really couldn’t go anywhere without hearing I’m a Hustla on the radio or seeing the music video on MTV (back when they actually played videos). My version of the track is pretty different from Swizz Beatz’s original; where his was drums and synths only, I went for a more piano driven mix. This is still one of my favorite tracks that I’ve produced.

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If you’re not familiar with the Bad Dudes, they are a collective of musicians who put together video game remix albums. Some are good friends of mine, and some are even Urbanizm Music artists as well. When Joshua Morse recruited me to join in on a Castlevania: Symphony of the Night project, it was a no-brainer. JM and I teamed up to handle The Tragic Prince, for what became the first “Bad Dudes and Friends” project.

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