What We Are

First off, I want to welcome you to your guide to Midwest Hip-Hop. A lot of you are probably only aware of the mainstream acts that have flashed across BET, VH1, and MTV over the last few years. This is more than that. This is more than Kanye, BTNH, Da Brat, Eminem, Nelly, Twista, and the rest. This is about a region of talent that has been overlooked and underappreciated for WAY too long. I mean, WOW. I'm sitting here typing this on my Sidekick® in amazement of what is being accomplished. I mean, this isn't the first hip-hop blog devoted to the Midwest experience. Hell, I wasn't even the first one in my hometown (shouts 2 Midwest Leak™, Scoop™, AMPS®, and INfocus) to attempt something like this! But, I am amazed at WHY this came to be. A while back, I flirted with the prospect of doing a mag... as an EIC. I talked to the proper people, then the proper people stopped talking. Then friends and family started encouraging (and you can read their influence in our tagline), and after wrestling a few demons, the idea was set in motion. What you're reading (and WILL hold in your hands... soon!) is the culmination of a work ethic birthed in 1981 and nurtured by the circumstances of my environment. I know it's cliché, but my intentions are not to do this blog (and magazine) for my own glorification (I pay people to tell me how great I am and how wonderful my ideas are), but to TRULY give recognition to a part of this culture that has gone, for the most part undocumented, due to the fact that our sound can't and hasn't been defined.
I know that there are people that are going to pick up on this issue and ask why I'm choosing to solely cover the Midwest. It's simple, really. We get bombarded with news about Jay-Z, and Lil' Wayne, and Soulja Boy, and T-Pain... Where's the connection to home in that in cities like Rock Island Illinois? Terre Haute, Indiana? Omaha, Nebraska? No disrespect to Wayne, or Jay, or any of my/your/everybody's favorite rapper(s), but, if it's not Midwest, there won't be a huge fuss made. This blog that you're reading is the launching pad for a new future, period. It's for the cats grinding homemade mixtapes on bus stops. For basement, garage, and closet producers finding new ways to freak Fruity Loops®. For the battle cyphers and freestlye sessions in schools with only fist, locker, and desktops acting as percussion. Scribbling bars on notepads while waiting on a train or metros. For those unsigned hypes, next to blows, just need a shots, and independent hustlers. To the kid in Davenport, Iowa who wants to be Jay, or the girl in Madison, Wisconsin who needs an outlet for her voice. Middle of Da Map is finally here.

Check back frequently for stories and interviews with various Midwest artists, dancers, djs, promoters, ANYBODY that helps make the Midwest the Mid-BEST.

Peace