PoH-Hop
5 takes place Friday-Saturday, Aug. 13-14 at Berbati's
Pan and the Roseland Theater. See the Music
& Clubs listings and HeadOut
for information.
In the spring, Portland's cultural climate began to warm with
the sudden appearance on the airwaves of Jammin' 95.5. The
station shook the town's hallowed rock 'n' roll foundations,
pumping popular R&B and hip-hop 24-7. In a city where
another station, Rosie 105, has aired racially offensive TV
ads featuring a white man acting out stereotypes of black
youth, the switch drew bitter complaints from some listeners.
"This music scares me," one woman caller stated in a quivering
voice. Jammin' 95.5 turned her cultural ignorance into a
humorous promo spot.
Slowly but surely, though, things are changing in the great
white Northwest. On the last weekend in July, three events--95.5's
Summer Jam at the Rose Garden, the legendary Gil Scott-Heron's
appearance at the Aladdin Theater and a street-corner freestyle
session in Old Town--made the shift clear.
Even though Jammin' 95.5's format has spiced up Portland's
airwaves, the station has irritating flaws. The on-air personalities
on Jammin' 95.5 are wick-wick-wack, lacking the skills to
keep it all the way live because they have no flavor. It's
comical and ironic to hear a cat spit out a Jeff Spicoli-like
"Awww-right, dude" before he launches a rough DMX track.
The station's playlist is even more annoying. The same
eight songs rotate through every hour and a half, broken
up by a plethora of tracks that were hot prior to 1998.
After days of tuning in to 95.5, a listener could conclude
that one person's personal taste dictates selection. The
four-alarm tracks hitting right now in the hip-hop landscape,
especially Puff Daddy's "PE 2000," are heard only as instrumentals
supporting voice-overs. This subliminal censorship keeps
the people behind the times--a state of affairs indicative
of Portland's music scene in general.
However, these defects are minor compared with what the
station has done culturally for the Rose City. It is the
only major FM station to include daily advertisements for
businesses and community events occurring in North and Northeast
Portland. The upcoming PoH-Hop, the largest hip-hop festival
on the West Coast, is receiving mad recognition from 95.5,
giving much-needed validation to a showcase blatantly ignored
by other high-profile radio stations.
Beyond the airwaves, Jammin' 95.5's larger impact on the
metro area has been seen in grandiose events like the inaugural
Summer Jam, held July 29. This was no Tonic Lounge "hip-hop"
party where a $2 cover gets you $2 worth of entertainment
from DJ Tremor and Mach-One. Summer Jam was the real ghetto
shit, presenting Portland with a lengthy, multi-act concert
headlined completely by black artists.
Ja Rule, K-Ci & JoJo, Krayzie Bone, Tha Dogg Pound
and Keith Sweat tore the roof off the Rose Garden. The audience,
from young to old, became caught up in the rapture of the
performances. Portland was given a mighty healthy chunk
of hip-hop history when Naughty By Nature, the gritty
nuhs from New Jersey, rocked the crowd with jams from
their extensive catalog. Ginuwine turned the ladies out
with his emphatic pelvic thrusts, earning the many panties
and bras thrown at him.
The night after Summer Jam, the script was flipped at the
Aladdin Theater, where the mere presence of Gil Scott-Heron
countered the ultra-conservative status quo of Portland.
Mr. Heron is notorious for missing performances, so Direct
Productions sent an emissary to Harlem, U.S.A., to "escort"
him to the Northwest. The love that drove DP to ensure Mr.
Heron's attendance at his own show saturated the evening's
festivities.
The opening acts all descended directly from Heron's steelo,
delivering spoken-word pieces as ill-ass bands got down
in the background. Source of Labor trekked from Seattle
to provide a very energetic set that had several heads nodding
vigorously to the beats. Unfortunately, the group was accompanied
by the suspect chickenheads of Piece of Soul, a duo that
had something to say but didn't deliver its tale well at
all.
Needless to say, after a scorching set by Burning Monks
Lullaby--featuring half of Portland's Hungry Mob--Gil Scott-Heron
touched the minds of the attendees with his moving, sarcastic
poetry. His theme of the uprising beginning in the streets
came to life late the next night as I witnessed the dopest
freestyle session in Old Town, right across from Hung Far
Low. Dazzy DuPhrane from Philly, the brother Wise from the
Bay Area, Refine Allah from Los Angeles and Toni Hill of
Hungry Mob united to put on a musical showcase that had
passersby and me dancing in the street.
Daz and Wise went back and forth on the beatbox, dropping
banging beats made mo' better by the lovely melodies of
Miss Hill, while Refine chopped up everything from sucka
MCs to the political system with pieces crafted on the spot.
As we continued into the wee hours of the morning, no one
tried to break up the cipher--it was too black and too strong,
coming purely from the love we have for one another. Now
how could you possibly fear love?
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Willamette Week | originally
published August 11,
1999
|
