Episode 39 - Girl Talk

My guest this week is Gregg Gillis, aka Girl Talk. Gregg is an electronic musician from Pittsburgh, PA. We’ve known each other since I played a show in his parent’s backyard in 2000, and I was excited to get a detailed breakdown of his career.

We talk about his early Pittsburgh-based noise band, The Joysticks, and his background in the noise world. He tells me about the first two harsher Girl Talk albums, and the new direction he forged on 2006’s Night Ripper. His breaks down his new ventures as a hip-hop producer, including his recent collaboration with Freeway.

Mike Riley’s art this week is a mashup of Big Daddy Kane’s Long Live The Kane, Ice Cube’s AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted, 2 Live Crew’s Nasty as They Wanna Be, and Cypress Hill’s self-titled debut.

Episode 38 - B-Rich

My guest this week is B Rich, aka Brendan Richmond. Brendan is a tight MC based in Kingston, Ontario. We’re bandmates in the group Shark Tank, and we’ve been friends since 2004.

He talks about growing up in a small town of 500, and his early hip-hop ventures in rural Canada. We discuss the viral success of his song “Out For A Rip,” and the cross-country adventures that followed. He tells me about his recent bout of writer’s block, and how he’s trying to kick his writing back into high gear.

Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Digital Underground’s Sex Packets. This episode is hosted by Splicetoday.com.

Episode 37 - Chris Sand (Sandman The Rappin' Cowboy)

My guest this week is Chris Sand, aka Sandman The Rappin’ Cowboy. He’s been on a rapping/cowboy poetry mission since the late 80s, and he’s released twelve albums since 1996. We met during my tour stop in Missoula, MT, and he was nice enough to lay down an impromptu interview.

He talks about growing up on the Flathead Indian Reservation in Western Montana, and how hip-hop captivated the young kids on the reservation in the early 80s. He tells me about starting out doing rap sets in Missoula in the late 80s, and learning to work folk music into the mix. We discuss his three year hiatus from music, and and how he returned to the DIY touring world with a new way of operating.

Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five’s The Message. This episode is hosted by Splicetoday.com.

Episode 36 - Speak 'n Eye

My guests this week are Speak ’N Eye, a.k.a. Unspeakable and M.C.N.eye of Bookhouse. They’re a hip-hop duo based in Winston-Salem, NC. I originally knew them as wild audience members at Greenville, NC house shows, and I’ve been a fan of their music since M.C.N.eye started sending me homespun EP’s in the mail in 2010. Josh tells me about the inspiration he got from the Greenville, NC DIY scene of the early 2000’s, and his early experimental projects. Aaron tells me about his early rock bands, and how he started rapping. They talk about how they decided to team up as duo, and what they’ve got on deck for the future. Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to The Beastie Boy’s Check Your Head. This episode is hosted by Splice Today.

Episode 35 - Paulie Think

My guest this week is Paulie Think. Paulie is a great MC and a true road warrior on the indie hip-hop circuit. We’ve been friends since 2008, and I was happy to get a chance to learn about his past. He tells me about his wild childhood in Chicago and Memphis, and the chaos of being left to his own devices at an early age. He breaks down his entry into rap in the early 90’s, and his rebirth as a one-man DIY touring act in the 2000’s. We talk about his lifelong struggle with addiction, and his journey toward sobriety.
Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Fu-Schnicken’s Nervous Breakdown. This episode is hosted by Splicetoday.com.