Droppin' Science 1st Anniversary (Video Killers)

I had the pleasure to attend a innovative weekly event that takes place in uptown area of Washington, DC. Thanks to promoter Molly Ruland, I have been honored to attend an event called Droppin' Science which infuses DJs using videos to mix with their music by a group called Video Killers. And they are managed by Molly Ruland's entertainment group, One Love Massive Entertainment. The event took place last year and has been running every Thursday at Science Club (1136 19th St. NW) ever sense. It is free of charge and no dress code but it is 21 and up with your ID required. The main DJ, John Bowden, takes classic videos from rock/hip hop/reggae/dance music genres and remixes the audio and visual parts of each song. For example, an acapella of a Young Jeezy song could be heard over an instrumental reggae track by Peter Tosh as a mash-up. Tons of examples of these kind of remixes has made this event stand out within the Washington, DC area. Along with good marketing that involves such logos seen below which currently there are t-shirts for.

One thing that I have discussed with Molly Ruland about setting up this event is that the planning process for completing takes a long time. One thing she has told me is that it started slow and that when the event first began, it started in the fall season when the weather was pretty rough. She had to prepare with her team for that aspect and make sure that she secured the location to hold Droppin' Science at this venue. The planning to development event relied on expansion of the event and outreach to other people to assist with putting the event together. One Love Massive Entertainment has made a deal with another company, Ugo 1st Productions, in bringing in talent every other work. Mostly emcees to host the event. Ugo 1st has been planning acts at least 5 to 6 weeks in advance which has been working in their favor.

Financially, Molly and her company had to make sure that even though the event is free, the bar, the DJ, and the staff at the event get paid. Just like a lot of events like these, Molly's company takes percentage at the bar. Depending on the turnout and how the bar makes it sales will determine how much she is able to distribute amongst her team after she settles her payout with the venue. Earlier, Molly indicated that it did a take a financial hit a few times where coming out of pocket was the only way to maintain stability for this event. But now, the pace has improved for this event and Droppin' Science has gain more notice over the years.

I think most important lesson to pull away from what Molly Ruland, John Bowden, and the rest of the people who have helped developed Droppin' Science is that, persistence pays off in the end. The marketing and packaging of the event has helped developed the name of it more so than ever. Also, it gave Molly's company a chance to connect with other who would like to help out with event. And yes, I will be involved with helping this event and I am one of those people whom she reached out to. And I will end this post out with video of me showing the event some love.

Ardamus Showing Birthday Love! from OneLoveMassive on Vimeo.

The Power Of Teamwork: Doomtree (Minneapolis, MN) and Living Legends (Los Angeles, CA)

One thing about the entertainment industry is that teams are key to any success. No matter if it is a full team of colleagues backing one person or the playing field is even with everyone involved, it is key that the support is there. For music labels, groups, or crews, you will have various folks focus on different aspects. You will have a mastermind that can support marketing (especially in multimedia), a talented ear that can support the audio production as well as the mixing and mastering, and then you have the performance talent. This is the real importance of having a team support you. The combined efforts of people completing a big project can help more than what one person could attempt to do. Lets look at a few examples.

There's a hip hop crew by the name of Doomtree out of Minneapolis, MN. A newer group to the scene that has punk rock ethics tied to how they put their music out and support each other on their projects. You can even see it in the videos.

For example, we have one of the crew members, rapper Mike Mictlan, with his own video, "Prizefight". In support of one of his projects. Now, in the background for this you have one of the producers (also vocalist) of the group, Lazerbeak, supporting him. And you see Mike's shirt that reads "Doomtree" which indicates the support of the group as a whole even though he is enduring a solo effort.


In Lazerbeak's"Let It Go" video, you will see Mike Mictlan to the side of him in the beginning of the video. Which indicates initial peer support for the group.

Lazerbeak "Let It Go" Music Video from Doomtree Records on Vimeo.

Now, it is a small task just to appear in someone's video but honestly this proves one thing: a project can be a continuous process overall with constant support from the group. The project management here is that you are not stopping with one album as the project and are to be done with the group. The catalog of the group begins to develop as time goes on with the help of people of talents behind the scenes. Producers of the group, P.O.S., Cecil Otter, Paper Tiger, and MK Larada, often handle more than one aspect of the group's appearance and output of releases. It also helps them to become more noticeable as a unit throughout the release of their projects when people hear of them as one. Its funny because I happen to stumble upon this promotional tool of more of the artists in the Doomtree group. A website by the name of Daytrotter has created a free download of some of the crew members music to show their diversity as a musical group and overall unity as artists together (http://www.daytrotter.com/dt/doomtree-concert/20030911-37381997.html). This following write-up points out the social commonalities that the other crew members, Dessa, SIMS, Mike Mictlan, and Cecil Otter share with each other musically and in the form of the message.

To take it back a few years, lets look at indie hip hop group, Living Legends. The one thing about this group that has stuck over the years if the DIY theory they have maintained and supported one another with over the years. And as a result they have been able to grow and gain successful fame from it. Which goes back the idea of the project overall does not stop with one project but several projects. And the overall outcome is a group with a consistent sound that has a catalog.

Take a look at this video from one of the last Living Legends video.

This a song taken from their project "The Gathering". In an interview with rapper MURS, formally signed to Warner Bros., it was admitted that "The Gathering" was made once there was an opportunity for the group to use professional studios as opposed to the studios in other group members's houses. And after touring with another for so many years and not being able to put anything as a group for a while, it was seen as a good project to bring the group back together.

They have achieved their goal and it seems that the catalog of they've done is very much proof of it (click here). Doing a lot production, recording, and marketing themselves has not only garnered them a good reputation but it has financially kept them sound from project to project that they put out on an independent level. Whether it is collaborative efforts amongst each other, with outside artists from different labels, or as a crew together, Living Legends has exemplified the importance of project management many times over and over. They are all supportive of one another which has helped them endure sponsors from different companies such as clothing line LRG and Reebok to put limited edition shoes attributed to the hard work put forth by the Living Legends crew.

Overall, the point is that the team work involved in the projects that both crews have put out get recognized and they become seen as one force. Maintaining individuality with respect to everyone's craft and giving support to each other when it is most needed. And the results from these continuous collaborative efforts set the standard for unity, discipline, balance, and persistence.