nomasterbacks!

Check out the new blog!

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 12:36:00 +0000

We've moved the blog recently--so for all new updates and news regarding the NMB family, check out our new blog home at http://nomasterbacks.wordpress.com/

Big ups to everyone for reading our posts! We'll see you at the new site!

Hawaii International Film Festival

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 08:07:00 +0000

Come out this coming Tuesday night, the 14th of October, as the Hawaii International Film Festival showcases the best LOCAL music videos of the year!

NMB was tapped for our first music video--"New Rules," directed by none other than Ajax Starglider (Future Shock).

We'll be on hand for this FREE show, starting at 8:00pm at The Loft (115 Hotel Street)....so come out and support! Also on the bill is the homie Bless'dchil's video for "I Found You"....big ups to Bless for doing it big this year!

Come out and don't sleep!!

http://hiff.org/

From the Groundup we pound up...

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 08:31:00 +0000

The groundup family was kind enough to let us do a set at their recent "Bound for Greatness" art/fashion/music show at the Hawaii Design Center----and it blew our minds! No offense to the groundup family, but usually Hawaii events don't attract more than 20 people at any given time....hahaha...so, imagine our surprise walking into a room with CHOKE folks....big ups to groundup for putting on a good show with incredible support. We all could learn a thing or two from these guys!
Mr. Elephant Armada himself....none other than DJ Eelz, aka Illstar, aka Mana! Former NMB beatsmith and DJ doing big things now with the groundup crew....congrats to Mana as he makes his way over to Kuwait---no kidding...dude is moving up there soon! What brah....one more beat for the road?!
We got up and had a fun time with the crowd---Wade had no idea that we'd be performing in front of such a large crowd so he came straight from the UH game..shorts and slippers style. I felt overdressed like a mo'...

Fun set overall--with a killer DJ battle in between...featuring some of the funniest ish I've seen in a while...between none other than the two Reyes brothers---DJ Memoirs and DJ Ligre.....

NMB's own DJ Memoirs came out on top for this one---killing it on the cuts and adding enough humor to take out his older brother...hahahaa..good stuff....
Peep the fresh visuals by the homie Shaun Castro---he's heading up to the PI soon...dude is on a mission! Also in attendance that night were Koak (GN, Earth Movers!) and Eukarest doing some ill painting....can't wait to see what the groundup fam has in store for us all the next time around. Big ups to the pirates!!! (http://www.groundupmovement.com/)

And a big thank you goes to the homie Aaron Yoshino who provided these incredible photos (http://www.honozooloo.com/)

Until next time.....

Well.being, Wade and DJ Memoirs---this Saturday!

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 08:01:00 +0000

Come out to watch 3/4 of NMB perform at the latest installment of the GroundUp Family, "Bound For Greatness"...this coming Saturday, September 6th at the Hawaii Design Center from 8pm-midnight!

Dope new venue, tons of live art, photography, live music, DJ's, and yours truly (NMB!) will be holding it down with the GroundUp crew (http://www.groundupmovement.com/). Should be a dope night, so come out and support!

Big ups to Noa, Koak, Elephant Armada and the crew for the invite! Wish Temper could be here for this one!

Siq of Lazy....

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 07:39:00 +0000

Last Saturday night, I had the pleasure of checking out the record release party for the homie Creed Chameleon (http://www.creedchameleon.com/) for his latest album, "Siq of Lazy." Been a while since I've been out and about, and it was good to reconnect with the folks!

Big ups to Memoirs, Atypical Living, Honozooloo, RDSP, Blessd'chil, Perfect Median, Audible Lab Rats, T-Qron, Kimo's Braddah, and everyone else I ran into that night!

As usual, Blessd'chil and Perfect Median came with the heat---on the real, I am more and more impressed by both of these groups as time goes by....every time I see them do their thing, they make me glad to be a part of this underground scene. And, to top it all off, NMB affiliate and all-around sound-provider, DJ Memoirs, was on hand to rock the tables for both of these crews...big ups to Mems!

Finally, Creed hit the stage with DJ Revise and Educated Guess and rocked the crowd with some of his latest bangers....I still haven't heard the whole album yet, but from what I did hear, sounds like Creed has again set a new bar for Hawaii hip-hop. Dope energy, sick beats, and fresh writing....can't wait to see how far Creed can take this! Much respect Creed..thanks for a killer show..

SEXY BEAST RECORDS....hahaha....

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 00:05:00 +0000

Well, the homie Lofa (aka Brian Leialoha, aka Mad Lofa, aka Half-a-lofa kung fu, aka Seifu of Wackness....honest, these are real aliases!) has finally made his dream a reality! He's putting out his first album--a mixtape composed by Jabba of the Armory entitled "Poked in the eye by love..." Be sure to support the Lightsleepers by picking this up everywhere!

Lofa's vision is to take these proceeds and start funding future Lightsleepers records.....all under the Sexy Beast label!

Big ups to Lofa--we've known this kid since high school--down since day one, and still putting in work!!

"Some things never change...rearrange" (while some things change like crazy..)

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 00:24:00 +0000

Been a while since I've posted anything on here...but life has changed a lot during the last few weeks! My wife and I had our first baby--an incredible baby girl born on June 7th....

Emma has been a blessing for us---and it's a trip to realize how much things have changed. Seeing your life change before your eyes is a crazy thing, but it has made me a better person and I wouldn't have it any other way.

So....here's the headcount on the babies so far----Wade, check. Kavet, check. Vessel, check. Well.being, check.......dang...lightsleepers getting old!

Here's to the future. I for one am excited to see it unfold....

bring it back...

noreply@blogger.com (Temper T) — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 08:35:00 +0000

I remember when hip hop shows used to be a lot of fun. I hate to sound grim or pessimistic, but it's true. It seems that "performers" are lacking that connection with the crowd, are disinterested in engaging the onlookers, or don't understand that you are supposed to be entertaining. There's been a number of shows where emcees really feel that the crowd owes them something for their blessing them with a show and that entitlement makes for subpar performances. Frustrating.

End rant...this weekend I had the pleasure of seeing some "stay-hungry" homies. From Spokane, we had Gun of the Sun ( www.myspace.com/gunofthesun ). This is a two man crew made up of Freetime Synthetic and Quiz 10.

Heat. I have performed with Freetime before but never heard G.O.T.S. together. Sickness. They bring some much needed freshness to Spokane. Check their tracks out...good stuff.

From Portland & Eugene, OR we had DJ Wicked ( www.myspace.com/dj_wicked or http://www.justplainterror.com/ ), Mic Crenshaw ( www.myspace.com/miccrenshaw ), and Animal Farm ( www.myspace.com/animalfarmrecords ).

I met Wicked trying to set up a show in Portland in like 2001. He helped us (NMB + KTC) out with shows, took us around P Town, and was just an awesome dude. He holds it down in Oregon, has paid dues, and does everything he can to put others on. He's the homie. He got on stage and KILLED it. He is a purist and a real hip hop head. Pick up one of his mixtape cds.

Then Mic went up. I like Mic because he is always trying to say something. I respect him because that seems pretty rare nowadays. Music with a message is kind of a novelty but Mic has had mad message for a long time now. We met him on the Vegans Want Beef Tour with BLX and and he was doing it then and is still making it happen.

Finally, Animal Farm went up and crushed. Hanif, Gen. Erik, and Fury reminded me of how heads used to be...they were about hip hop before image, were still fans, and were having fun doing their thing. They had so much energy that you wouldv'e thought they were performing in front of a HUGE crowd. They brought it to the crowd instead of depending on the crowd to get them going. Good breath control, stage presence, and support of each other. Two thumbs waaaaay up!

Thanks to the homies for putting on a good show. Big up to Miah for checking it out. Shouts to all those who are inspirational and remind us that hip hop can still be fun.

Love what you do and do what you love. PEACE!

NMB at the Na Hoku's!!

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 10:23:00 +0000

Well, well....no surprise here, but NMB didn't take home the Na Hoku award this year! Can't say that we didn't expect to lose, but I can say that I for one was disappointed on how it went down. Not to sound like a broken record, but it sucks that TRUE Hawaii hip-hop gets the shaft once again. Creed got beat out last year--same scenario! I think it's funny that the winner this year has been a no-show in Hawaii's hip-hop scene, hasn't held down a single gig (as far as I know) and rode the sympathy vote to victory. No insult intended, but seriously---when will the industry actually listen to the records and reward folks putting in work?! Alright....diatribe's aside....here's my take on an otherwise incredible evening!The scale of these awards was nothing short of incredible---to be honest, I kind of downplayed the magnitude of the Na Hoku's for such a long time, that I didn't expect much. But, walking into the Hawaii Convention Center and seeing all the media and the legends of Hawaiian music really made me feel blessed to be a part of it all.

Lucky table number 77 was our post for the night...good food, good views of the stage, and good folks to hang with. My brother Kris (who produced our album, 'At Your Door' and the Earth Mover's 'Build' album) flew in from California to support, and brother Keone (of One Groove--our CommonGround labelmate) was there as well. Big ups to these guys for their support and hard work. Sidenote--the new One Groove album is on the way, and it's sure to be another classic...

The moment of truth----I gotta say, seeing the album posted on the screen (and on live TV) and hearing "Aloha Mahalo" blast through the sound system was a pretty unreal experience. Definitely one of the highlights of the evening for me. Afatia (last year's winner in our category) was the presenter this year, and made the announcement that ????!?!?!?! was the winner of the evening! What can I say...it was an honor being nominated, but I can't say that we weren't a little bummed. I was ready to rep Lightsleepers in our acceptance speech....hahahhaa..

My personal highlight of the night came when none other than Cyril Pahinui sat at our table and talked story with us during the ceremonies. The Pahinui's have long been legends in Hawaiian music, and I don't know too many people that didn't grow up on Gabby's music. Uncle Cyril was super cool, and had nothing but positive insight to offer us that night.

Life goes on.....hey, we didn't win, but the experience was incredible...and hopefully one day, the voters will recognize real. Too many other folks should have been on the ballot this year (Hunger Pains, Tempo Valley, Jonah, KTC...) but hopefully someone will get their chance to rep and WIN for our scene soon!

Temper T...

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 20:17:00 +0000

This brother has been putting in mad work for us in the Northwest, and we're looking forward to some more shows up in the mainland U.S. shortly! As hard as it is to have 1/3 of NMB over 2,000 miles away, it's also been a blessing to have someone expanding our reach to a broader audience, and Temper has been incredible at doing that! ALSO...last but not least, I think all of us out there need to start demanding that this dude get his solo album out to the masses ASAP...so start up your protests, riots, petitions, whatever it takes! Big ups!

Super Supahh

noreply@blogger.com (Wade) — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 07:45:00 +0000

I have to admit that I (along with every other teeneey bopper in america and beyond) am SUPER stoked for this season's ABDC. The westcoast definitely had it on lock once again. I wish they cut one of the eastcoast or south's crew to make room for all westcoast crews to advance but so goes life.

It was SUPER fresh to see Do-Knock's crew Super Crew (in the words of lil mama) Did Yall Thang. Im curious to see if they can come widdit with all the different styles and challenges gonna be thrown their way. I imagine that one day we'll have a hawaii rep in future seasons. I'm hoping my five year old will be on it since he's small and working on his headspin. that's just a SUPER dream that over zealous dad has when it comes to passing the hip hop culture to the next generation.

Busy weekend....

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 09:19:00 +0000

Another crazy weekend full of fresh performances and some memorable moments......first off, we had a great gig at Higher Ground Cafe, opening up for the LA-based Ceschi Ramos. I didn't get a chance to snap any photos of that, but it was a dope night nonetheless....then, less than 24 hours later, I had a chance to hit up Nextdoor for Jake the Snake's last 'Next Movement' event! Jake's been the homie for a long time, first with his groundbreaking radio show, 'GenuineHi' on KTUH and then with this incredible series of 'Next Movement' events....he's on the move up to the Northwest, so best of luck to him!
Dude...all I gotta say about these cats is...wow. On the real, I was super impressed with these guys--the Perfect Median. Two emcees that are relatively new to the Hawaii scene, but controlled the stage like the best of them. Incredible style, dope stage presence, and non-stop energy---don't sleep on these dudes....gonna be making major moves in the near future, garans! Look for a future NMB collab with these guys??!?
The night belonged to Jake the Snake...choke folks came out to support him, and it was dope to see people paying respect to someone who has made it a point to spread the word about Hawaii's music & fashion scenes....
Last but definitely not least, Tassho Pierce (aka Emirc) hit the stage for a dope set of both his old and new stuff---be on the lookout for his new single, "Return to the Basics" featuring Evidence....this was the first time I had a chance to check out Emirc perform, and I was definitely impressed...looking forward to his new album....Big ups to everyone that I ran into this past weekend--two back to back dope shows, and more to come!

Lightheaded Meets Lightsleepers....

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Sat, 24 May 2008 09:31:00 +0000

It's been an incredible couple of days! We were fortunate enough to be contacted at the last minute by Othello of the infamous Lightheaded crew, who asked us to rock a show with him in Waikiki. Needless to say, we were honored to be in the same room as this dude---homie has been hard at work spreading the truth with his music, and he honestly was one of the coolest cats I've had the pleasure of meeting up with. Big ups to Temper T for hooking up this connection....look for a future Temper T/Othello track in the future?!
There was a lot of drama behind the scenes of this performance---cancellations, moving venues, and a lot more! However, the homie Kent was able to pull things together to make it happen. Hopefully the next time, we can get Othello and crew out here for more shows! The audience at the Banana Patch Lounge was not a good reflection of the Hawaii scene....but everyone made it work!
We were stoked to see Keoki (Siq Records) supporting the show, and I just had to snap this photo. Cool Hawaiians making music.......Wade and I were talking about how Keok's has been down since day one....always positive, always supportive, and a super talented brother..
Lightsleepers meets Lightheaded! Props to In4mation for Othello's dope shirt...Fybes, we missed you bro! Before we called it a night, Wade was able to get Othello out for a youth event on Friday night.....
House Party!!?! Othello was kind enough to come out to the Leeward side to rock a small set for the youth of Grace Bible Church.....he absolutely killed it. High energy, incredible lyrics, and a positive message to back it all up. The kids were going nuts! I just wish they could comprehend the degree of freshness they got to see up front and personal....for a lot of them, this was their first exposure to Othello's music......but, for others......
...like Stutterin Stan, Memoirs, Kavet the Catalyst, Observ and Lofa, this was a chance to see Othello live and direct....Memoirs even blessed the kids with a short tutorial on the art of the scratch..dope stuff!
Memoirs doing his thing....he even dropped a freestyle later on in the evening.....too funny man..
Othello rocking the crowd. Dude was a pleasure to meet, and hopefully we'll get to do more shows with him in the future! Respect out to Temper T for forging this newfound friendship, and thanks to everyone who pulled together to make it all happen!

SIQ Records 1 Year Birthday Bash...

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Tue, 20 May 2008 00:23:00 +0000

Saturday night was the 1 year birthday bash for Siq Records---homies of ours that have been putting in work in the hip-hop scene out here in Hawaii! We were blessed to have been asked to rock the stage with some of Hawaii's finest---Creed, Hunger Pains, Jonah the Whale, Tempo Valley, the Spacifics, Brainstorming Weather and more! All in all, a great night filled with good people and incredible music....read on!!

The homie Aaron Yoshino was there snapping photos the whole evening--his site, http://www.honozooloo.com/ is an awesome blog on the scene and nightlife here in Hawaii, and it's a must see! I've known this dude since the good college days at USF...and he's still putting in work!

One of my personal highlights of the night was watching these dudes perform--Brainstorming Weather are some of the dopest emcees in Hawaii--hailing all the way from the sleepy town of Hilo....they absolutely killed it. Everybody Knows (Fat Soul) is shown here rocking a verse with them...
We had a tough act to follow going on right after the Hilo boys, but we still had a fun time rockin the crowd...doing shows without Temper T is never an easy thing, and hopefully we can get him out here for some Hawaii shows soon! You were missed brother!!
Once again, DJ Memoirs was there as our sound provider, absolutely killing it on the Serato...as always, he's a ham for the cam...kind of sucks that he wasn't able to be on stage with us (Lotus has their tables off to the side) but he killed it anyways!
Last but not least, fellow Earth Mover member, DJ Kid Koak was there as well...all I gotta say is, his hair gets more and more nuts everytime I see him! Koak was there supporting the art homies of GroundUp...

Once again, big ups to Siq and all the homies that came out! Also, much respect to Aaron for snapping these dope photos!

SUPPORT THE HOMIES AT SIQ RECORDS AND PEEP NMB!!

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Wed, 07 May 2008 09:52:00 +0000

Come spock us out on May 17th at Lotus Soundbar in Waikiki for the 1 year anniversary of the homies at Siq Records....much respects to these guys, always putting in work for the Hawaii hip-hop scene!

NMB Nominated for a Na Hoku Hanohano Award!!

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Mon, 05 May 2008 21:06:00 +0000

Whatsup ya'll....we were stoked to find out the other day that NMB's album, "At Your Door" has officially been named as a nominee for 'Hip-hop / R&B Album of the Year' at this year's Na Hoku Hanohano Awards! For those of you that don't know..the Na Hoku's are the most prestigious awards given to Hawaii musicians, and we're honored to have made their list.....keep your fingers crossed and your prayers going....hopefully NMB will get the nod!

I'm trying to imagine us as the ceremony...dressed in t-shirt and jeans...while everyone else rocks the Maile Lei's.....regardless of what happens, we're just stoked to be considered for this!!!

Keep your eyes and ears open for more news on this....the award ceremony will be on June 17th!!

Finally..THE SHOW!!!

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 00:00:00 +0000

An awesome crowd came out to support us at Whitworth College….free show, cool weather, great sound..can’t ask for more than that!
After a sick set from Kavet the Catalyst (droppin new joints from “Television Head” and a few classics), Locke and DJ Parafyn showcased Spokane hip-hop at it’s finest…much respect to them for always blessing us when we come through Washington….

Much love to Ali for manning the merchandise table…..for the first time, we had a full lineup of merch---NMB shirts, KTC CD’s, 2 Sentr1c beat CD’s, and even a CD from the homies Vitalsee!!! Be on the lookout for these shirts..coming online soon!
Full table set ups for our tables and MPC’s….the backbone for everything we do!

NMB rocked a 45 minute set..and hopefully we’ll have pics of that soon…all in all, a great show, lots of love, and I hope we can make it back on the road again!!

T Pau in the building...

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 23:57:00 +0000

Temper T hooked it up and opened up his home for us…dope pad on campus fully decked out….I kept mentioning to him how big his kitchen was….large enough for us to rock some practice sessions in.

Jeremiah blessed us with some vocals for the live version of “Silly Girl.” Dude was the truth..much respects Miah!

Give it up for the DJ...

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 23:49:00 +0000

So…we found out quick that DJ Memoirs is most definitely a warm-blooded creature. The temperatures in Spokane definitely had him trippin---but hopefully he’s recovered by now..hahaha…gotta get you some road-legs sooonnnnnn!!!

Is it just me, or does Memoirs with a large hat on look like Stutterin’ Stan?!?!

Sentric and Memoirs…aka The Brothers Grimm... “And it’s like that….cause it’s the Reyes’s!!!”

Hittin' the road with NMB -- day one...

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 23:40:00 +0000

After a cramped plane ride aboard NWA in seats D-E-F (how's that for some hip-hop acronyms?) Wade, well.being and Memoirs arrived in Seattle and headed straight to NECTAR...a dope venue in town. As luck would have it, our 12 hour layover in Sea-town didn't seem so bad once we found out that Braille, Omega Watts and Pigeon John would be rocking it that same night!

Kavet the Catalyst joined us a short while later, and it felt just like home again….strange how we can be 2500 miles away, but it still feels like we never left….took this ill pic that looks like KTC’s camera has a camel-mounted lens…hahaha..

Braille took the stage with a dope live band, singers and fellow-Lightheaded emcee/DJ Omega Watts…dope set overall…and the homie Braille even hooked up the audience with free CD’s…gyeah..
Last but not least, Pigeon John stepped on stage and absolutely killed it. Dude has one of the best live shows I’ve ever seen..and he continues to amaze me. We rocked a few shows with him in the past, and it was good to hook up again and snap a few photos---peep the NMB CD in hand!
After a late-night stop at IHOP, it was back to Sentric’s pad for a few hours of sleep, and then on to Spokane!

I gotta Love Like This for this shirt

noreply@blogger.com (Wade) — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 07:30:00 +0000

it's kinda funny that this NMB shirt helps me go to sleep even though it's a Lightsleeper. Don't miss out on your opportunity to get this fresh tee. as for the show, it was sick. I wish we could have gone to another spot in the northwest, but patience is a virtue. Mahalo and Aloha for all that made this trip possible. peace.

That's right!

noreply@blogger.com (Temper T) — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 08:26:00 +0000

LARGE shouts to all the peeps who came to check out the show in Washington. The crowd was on point and really made the show fun. Mahalos to Vi, Miah, Ajax, Locke, Parafyn, and all the Warren delegates who kept it live.

Now, to build anticipation...we got the sneak preview of the BRAND NEW nomasterbacks tees! We only have a few of these shirts left after the Spokane show (big ups to everyone who supported at Whitworth!) and we are going to make them available for online order soon. At this point, we only have these two colors but could be (probably will be) working on new ones. Stay tuned for more infomation about getting your hands on these limited tees. Gyeah!

THANK YOU WHITWORTH!!

noreply@blogger.com (well.being) — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 10:12:00 +0000

Yes, yes...I realize it's a generic picture of Whitworth University, but hey..I was pressed for time and didn't get to upload my own pics (which will be up in the very near future!). ANYWAYS...just wanted to send a HUGE thank you to everyone at Whitworth University for the support and love they showed to NMB last night! The show was incredible, and we owe you guys the world....much blessings! More details on the show and visit to Spokane are on the way! Just wanted to say THANK YOU before we hopped on a plane back home!

snowing in spokane in APRIL!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Wade) — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 07:17:00 +0000

we are anticipating a freak snow fall here in Spokane, wA. I'm sure the heat that is brought tomorrow at the show will melt the snow away. blessings from the Big Big Island. NMB!!!

enter the new chamber of lightsLeeping

noreply@blogger.com (Wade) — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 06:01:00 +0000

I call him Zealy Boy. Zeal's his name. One of the many new LS peeps to enter earth this year, koltrane came, and well's sweetie coming soon. This kid has to sit through some time frames of practicing lyrics or just listening to beats, constantly. Hopefully he catches the bug for the music I love. If not, it's all good. I respect my dad's music: beattles, simon and garf, james taylor, Kalapana. Hope zeal feels our genre....pause: just had to pick him up cuz buggah is crying.....game on: I'm not sure what his ear will find appealing, just as long as it's not predominantly that radio beezwax. anywhoski, getting ready for spokane in a few days, it's kinda my home away from home (whitworth college, what what). The show should be sick. Stay tuned for video clips of our journey to the BIG ROCK. payce.