WKNC 88.1 FM - North Carolina State University Student Radio
Artist Record Label
1 EARTHGANG Mirrorland Dreamville/Interscope
2 TUAMIE Emergency Raps, Vol. 5 Mutant Academy
3 ASAP FERG Floor Seats RCA
4 SUPA BWE Just Say Thank You Freddy Got Magic/Empire
5 TOBI LOU Live On Ice Empire
6 YOUNG RJ AND MEGA RAN 2HANDSUP Ne’Astra
7 YOUNG THUG So Much Fun 300/Atlantic
8 SOLANGE When I Get Home Saint Records/Columbia
9 CASHINOVA Big Dragon Stophouse
10 KASH DOLL Stacked Republic
Artist Record Label
1 CARIBOU Suddenly Merge
2 LONE Not Seeing Is A Flower [EP] Ancient Astronauts
3 YVES TUMOR Heaven To A Tortured Mind Warp
4 GRIMES Miss Anthropocene 4AD/Beggars Group
5 JAMES MASSIAH Natural Born Killers (Ride for Me) [EP] Levels
6 COWGIRL CLUE Icebreaker Vada Vada
7 JESSY LANZA “Lick In Heaven” [Single] Hyperdub
8 CHRISTINE AND THE QUEENS La Vita Nuova [EP] Because/Capitol
9 INDIA JORDAN DNT STP MY LUV [EP] Local Action
10 BUSCABULLA Regresa Ribbon
Father’s day was last weekend, so I hope you treated the father’s in your life to some good food. The best way to do this: buy from one of these black owned restaurants in the area. I’ll list a few here, along with a short description of what kind of food they serve. A longer list, containing more locations in North Carolina, is linked below.
Bestow Baked Goods located at 4208 Lassiter Rd, Holly Springs, NC 27540 – Since Bestow is known to make desserts for a special occasion be sure to place an order for that special father in your life. Cakes, cupcakes, cookies, breakfast and pies: all your desert needs can be met here.
Boss of Vegan located at 2161 S. Wilmington St., Raleigh, NC 27603 – If you’re looking for a vegan burger look no further. If anyone in the family enjoys eating vegan this is a great spot to order from.
Chick-N-Que located at 420 S. Main St., Rolesville, NC 27571 – This restaurant serves 100% N.C.-raised ostrich burgers, I’ve never had one myself but I sure want to try…but if you aren’t ready for it they also have a large variety of other chicken dishes to choose from. And they have a food track that goes around town.
Dame’s Chicken and Waffles located at 1823 N. Harrison Ave., Cary, NC 27513 – A personal favorite of mine, you can never go wrong with their unique chicken and waffle dish. Dames is a one of kind experience, with their various waffle spread flavors and a menu full of various vegan and vegetarian options. Anyone in the family can find something to eat here, making it the perfect place to order from for a special occasion.
Joyce and Family Restaurant located at 129 S. Main St., Fuquay-Varina, NC 27526 – This family offers some of the best home style country cooking in the area. Everything is made fresh and daily, they put their hearts and love into every dish. They also offer catering services.
As I said these are only a few of the great black owned restaurants in the area, links to find more are located below. If you order out anytime soon, these all make fantastic choices~
More Black Owned Restaurants:
Google Sheet of black owned restaurants
Black owned restaurants in Raleigh NC
Until next time
Let’s stay psyched and support the Black Lives Matter Movement,
DJ Psyched
Artist Record Label
1 AVERSIONS CROWN Hell Will Come For Us All Nuclear Blast
2 BENIGHTED Obscene Repressed Season of Mist
3 JUSTICE FOR THE DAMNED Pain Is Power Self-Released
4 END Splinters From An Ever-Changing Face Closed Casket Activities
5 VADER Solitude In Madness Nuclear Blast
6 MINDFORCE Swingin Chords Choppin LordsTriple B
7 SEED OF PAIN Flesh, Steel, Victory… Plead Your Case
8 CURRENTS The Way It Ends SharpTone
9 BEHEMOTH A Forest [EP] Metal Blade
10 UPON A BURNING BODY “Built from War” [Single] Seek & Strike
After hearing the artists newest single ‘Sick of Feeling Useless’, released May 7th, I decided to look into the artists a bit more. I absolutely loved the anthem styled tune and it’s message. It seemed to me that this duo is full of heart and on a mission to spread truth and shed light on what it feels like to live in the modern world. It only took a quick visit to the artists Facebook page to see that that is definitely the kind of artists they are.
The artist’s music can be described as blending elements of pop, rock, and hip hop. The theme of the music, as stated by the artists, is ‘I’m gonna do my best to make music for people to heal to’. The duo, from Nova Scotia, had a change of heart a few years ago on the kind of music they wanted to create. This was following a life changing retreat Kadillace went on, after which he said ‘they helped me understand who I am’. The singer, Frank Kadillac, said he didn’t want to make music that just made people feel sad or worse, so he decided to change the style and use his music to try and help people instead. Kadillac said music was an outlet he always used for healing, and it makes him feel good when people reach out and let them know that their music is having the same effect on them as it had on him.
You can definitely hear this in the track I mentioned above. The headbanging chorus ‘Sick of feeling useless’ is simple, but punches right in the relatable feelings. Anyone who relates to the sentiment will likely enjoy the artists other similarly themed music.
The duo is really rising right now, as their most recent album landed them a Juno nomination for Breakout Group of the Year. The artist also had their cinematic debut with the track ‘Shape of My Mind’ which played in the opening scene of the movie Dangerous Lies. The artist has also been featured in Spin magazine and is continuing to grow in popularity. I can’t wait to see what they come out with next.
Until next time
Let’s Stay Psyched about Music,
DJ Psyched
DJ Psyched’s Youtube video on Intermittent Fasting
DJ Psyched’s Instagram
Get Psyched intro music was created by PME, used by permission. Find PME on Spotify
ALBUM PLAY BY PLAY: SEBii – VVV
BEST TRACKS: Racing, MeMe, Data Looting
FCC Dirty
Arguably, the most notable element separating SEBii from his contemporaries is the pitch of his voice, which he addresses in the first song on this album, Bingo. SEBii claims that despite what people think, his vocals aren’t pitch-bended and that it comes from practice. I appreciate that these bars are self-aware, original, and personal. I think he sounds better singing with a thinner, lower, strained pitch. When he sings quieter, his voice gets really soft, losing any grit and intonation, and everything he sings blends into an unappetizing mush.
Track two is MeMe. SEBii does a good job varying his pitch between soft and gritty in this song, which keeps it interesting. I love the way he says “I be looking super clean”. I love the raspy whisper of the outro, yet another pitch change. The bars, the flow and the beat is all here. This track is my second favorite on the album.
Moving on to the next track, Winter. Despite it being one of SEBii’s most popular songs I was underwhelmed. It has a solid beat, but this song has no notable lyrics, and sebii maintains a very soft pitch throughout the entire song, which gets monotonous and melds everything into a bland mass. This song is lacking intensity.
The next track is BahBahBah. Even the mystic strings couldn’t save this track. Again, the vocals are monotonous, lacking intonation and inflection.
Racing is the top track for me on the album. The intro has impeccable buildup, leading to a satisfying beat drop. We get to hear both the deeper, rougher side as well as the soft side of SEBii’s unique voice on this song, the variation of which keeps the listener invested. As far as instrumental goes, the sparking piano trills are charming.
Data Looting: This one is pretty catchy. Despite it sounding slightly repetitive, I’m not mad at it. At times though, the lyrics sound rushed and crammed into the bars.
The last track VVV is a cute outro. I can’t get past the soft, high pitched voice though, it sounds like there’s a mosquito in my ear it gets on my nerves.
I respect that SEBii is unapologetically himself, unashamedly making anime and pokemon references, and owning his unique voice. I wonder what he sounds like when he’s just having a normal conversation.
Safia
As I said before, it is important to support black creators and let their voices be heard. Supporting black artists is something we should always do, and I love this idea of celebrating Juneteenth by blacking out the best seller lists. I have provided some links below to the Amistad Books tweet and other articles that provide resources to find books by black authors, so if you want more information be sure to check below. I’m going to highlight the books I decided to purchase, but I highly encourage you to check out more resources and choose some books that appeal to you!
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett – This is the New York Times best selling authors second Novel. Brit Bennett’s first book is also a finalist for the NBCC John Leonard Prize for the best first book. The basis of her newest novel tells the story of two twin sisters who grew up in a small, southern, black community who ran away from home at age sixteen and lived very different lives after the fact. One sister lives with her black daughter in the town she tried to leave, while the other lives among her white family, that knows nothing of her past. The story is not just one that speaks on issues of race, but focuses on how a person’s past can shape their future and the choices they make, and why a person may be interested in living in a way that is not of their origins.
Deacon King Kong by James McBride – Award winning and Best-selling author James McBride brings forth a thrilling story about what happens to a group of eye witnesses of a shooting. The reason for this shooting and its effects make up the basis of the novel as we follow the lives of those who witnessed it and how it changed them. Through this journey we find out that these characters’ lives overlap more than we may have expected and the author teaches us that not all secrets are meant to be hidden. He also teaches us that in order to grow we must face the reality of change without fearing it.
To Live Woke by Rupert W. Nacoste, Ph. D. – Dr. Rupert Nacoste, the Social Psychologist who created the term ‘Neo-diversity’ and teaches the one-of-a-kind ‘Psychology of Interdependence and Race’ course at NC State University, brings us his fourth novel. In this novel, much like his teachings, he shares stories of his past experiences, having grown up in the Jim Crow legally segregated south and serving in Navy during a time that involved Race Riots, to give the reader some real life understanding and make the call to action for all people to truly embrace neo-diversity. Dr. Nacoste says ‘We can save the soul of America.’ and he uses this book as a way to really show us how we can contribute to this effort and actually understand what it means to ‘live woke’.
I haven’t read these books just yet, but I will be reviewing them on my podcast in a couple weeks after they arrive (so pick up your copies if you want to read along with me!).
Durham Tech Library Blog
More Book Resources:
https://www.vogue.com/article/25-new-books-black-authors
https://people.com/books/blackout-bestseller-list-books-black-authors/
https://www.oprahmag.com/entertainment/books/g26187205/best-books-black-authors/
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/the-read-down/books-by-contemporary-black-authors
Until next time
Let’s Get Psyched about Reading,
DJ Psyched
ALBUM REVIEW: Hollywood Park – The Airborne Toxic Event
BEST TRACKS: All The Children, Everything I Love Is Broken, Come On Out
FCC violations: Brother, Everything I Love Is Broken, The Common Touch, Carry Me
Here’s something you don’t hear about every band: the lead singer of The Airborne Toxic Event, Mikel Jollett, was born into a cult. Along with this album, Jollett released a memoir of the same name in which he relates his experiences growing up in, and later escaping into poverty, the infamously dangerous cult Synanon. Jollett’s harsh life experiences, which taught him about family, loss, and resilience find their way into the lyrics of his songs to make for a truly grounding and profound listening experience. However, this Los Angeles band isn’t just notable for their frontman’s shocking history. I was enchanted by the sense of intimacy, jangly acoustic guitar, and superior melodies on Hollywood Park long before I ever found out about any of the cult stuff.
Hollywood Park exhibits several lively, electric and acoustic riffs and satisfying melodies. Songs on this album range from flourishingly cinematic to minimalistically acoustic. My favorite track on the album, ‘All The Children’ has an exciting buildup that erupts into a cathartic, folksy chorus. A sparking piano and a cinematic violin make an appearance on track 9, ‘The Place Where We Meet A Thousand Feet Beneath The Racetrack’. Jollett effectively uses a country-folk drawling vocal approach at times, coupled with garage rock shouting, to create a unique dynamic. These songs have the brutal honesty of an Iron & Wine song and the infectious rhythm of a Killers song.
This album feels like something you would hear sitting around the bonfire in the fleeting summer nights after highschool. It inhabits a world of sunsets, dusty roads, and big blue lakes. Hollywood Park truly captures the ever-tenacious all American spirit. Spin this record this upcoming Fourth of July. I highly recommend this album to fans of The Killers, Bruce Springsteen,The Wallflowers, The National, or My Morning Jacket.
Safia