Hardware Hypnosis - 4.5.25![]()
There are certain moments in music—events, albums, or beefs —that become unforgettable for the ones that had the opportunity to experienced it. They're the moments in time you can't fully understand unless you were there, living through it. For me, one of those moments happened in 2001. I can still picture myself at my dad's house downstairs, tuning into 93.9 on the radio when Nas dropped "Ether." The station ran it back at least five times that night. I scrambled for a tape to pop in the deck and hit record. I had to get this on tape.
“Fuck Jay-Z....I still whip your ass, you thirty-six in a karate class
You Tae-bo hoe, trying to work it out, you tryna' get brolic?”
Fucking classic! These bars were always funny to me. Honestly, Ether was a moment in time that I’ll never forget. Play that for me while i’m in the retirement home and watch me light up!
Another music experience I would’ve loved to witness in real-time? The debut of "Planet Rock" by Afrika Bambaataa & the Soulsonic Force. Hearing that new electronic sound in the 80s, while at club—there's just no way to describe the feeling of hearing new music for the first time.
“Fuck Jay-Z....I still whip your ass, you thirty-six in a karate class
You Tae-bo hoe, trying to work it out, you tryna' get brolic?”
Fucking classic! These bars were always funny to me. Honestly, Ether was a moment in time that I’ll never forget. Play that for me while i’m in the retirement home and watch me light up!
Another music experience I would’ve loved to witness in real-time? The debut of "Planet Rock" by Afrika Bambaataa & the Soulsonic Force. Hearing that new electronic sound in the 80s, while at club—there's just no way to describe the feeling of hearing new music for the first time.
But enough nostalgia. Let’s jump to the present. April 5, 2025—mark it down, because it was one of those nights that will live rent free in my memory palace. The venue? A restaurant tucked away on the north side of Richmond. Inside, an unassuming back room became the setting for something much bigger: a gathering of multi-talented producers who had come together to showcase a vignette of their creative worlds. I didn’t know most of the producers performing, but by the time the night ended—and the days that followed—I was soaking up all of their publicly released productions.
I could attempt to describe what took place during those performances, but honestly, some experiences defy description. This was one of those. Talent didn’t just rotate through the lineup—it was everywhere, in every corner of that resturant. The crowd itself was made up of more creatives than your average joe. You could feel something in the air, that thing, you just had to be there. Whatever it was, you could feel the creativity of each artist. They all had a special way of massaging the eardrum. Truly a one-of-one experience.
I could attempt to describe what took place during those performances, but honestly, some experiences defy description. This was one of those. Talent didn’t just rotate through the lineup—it was everywhere, in every corner of that resturant. The crowd itself was made up of more creatives than your average joe. You could feel something in the air, that thing, you just had to be there. Whatever it was, you could feel the creativity of each artist. They all had a special way of massaging the eardrum. Truly a one-of-one experience.
What stood out to me even more was the community these producers had built. Many were based in Richmond, but there was something bigger at play—a collective, a family of musicians and producers who were genuinely cheering each other on. The vibe was inspiring: collaboration, camaraderie, and an unspoken drive to elevate each other. As I dove deeper into their catalogs over the next few days, I felt that same fire—like, if these guys could motivate and challenge each other, why couldn’t I do the same with photographers and videographers? A place where “steel sharpens steel,”...
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