Thug Life Army

Thug Life Army Records, a newly formed hip hop, rap and R&B label based in Hollywood, California; is searching for the next artists to appear on the second volume of ‘In The Shadow of an Icon’ series.

The first volume is being re-issued May 11^th nationwide, with distribution thru Fontana/Universal/Thug Life Army Records and is also available thru the Thug Life Army Records web site.

The series is devoted to the ‘mindset’ of hip hop legend Tupac Shakur (2Pac) and although there is no music or verses by Tupac himself, the series hopes to promote hip hop artists who grew out of Tupac’s ‘shadow’ and learned their craft and enlightened their thinking thru the verses, words and knowledge that Tupac tried so hard to expose not only the hip hop community, but society at large.

Today most of the hip hop music industry has become a waste land of mindless dribble and catchy hooks, without any real meaning or purpose to the music. Few artists who rap in hip hop today take the power of the mic seriously.

The ‘corporate’ take over of hip hop has led to an atmosphere of everyone (including artist) just out to get theirs, not really caring about the culture or the real people connected to it. In these times everyone is a ‘gangsta’ or at least a want-a-be ‘gangsta’. Inter-coastal rivalries and inter-click hate brews discontent and the music and the real people suffer from it.

Political hip hop or hip hop with a true meaning or a true relationship to the street can not be found in the ‘boardroom’ at some major label. The perception we are given thru today’s mainstream hip hop music is that everything is ok out here and we all know that is not so.

Topics like hurricane Katrina and the aftermath of that tragedy, Sean Bell, the Iraq war, racism, police brutality and of course just the daily struggle of living are rarely touched by today’s hip hop artists. There are a few great artists in hip hop who spit truth in their rhymes but they go unnoticed by the ‘majors’ because they will not fit the mold that the majors have set for what their vision of a hip hop artist is.

On Vol.1 of ‘In The Shadow of an Icon’, the attempt was made to stay away from all the gangsta stuff, the shoot em up, spinning rims and drinking all night and touch on things, (the label thought); that Tupac would have cared and touched on. From the R&B track from Ebony Burks ‘Choice’ which deals on abortion to 1223 and their track ‘Wish I Knew’, which deals with if we could turn back time and live with the knowledge we have gained; the In The Shadow of an Icon project deals with the real side of the hip hop culture.

Seems every hip hop artist now a day wants to be like Tupac. They shout out his name, they mention him on tracks and some even write about him, but on the track from Jasiri X and Franchise ‘2 Pacs More’; which was produced by Paradise Gray (X Clan) and GM3; it says how everyone wants to be Pac till the cops are at the door – then you don’t want to be Pac no more – and that’s REAL TALK.

When Herbie Hancock won the 2008 Grammy Award for Album of the Year that showed us that people want and deserve REAL MUSIC, something they can relate to.

Check out the project ‘In The Shadow of an Icon Vol.1’ at http://thuglifearmyrecords.com and if you get where and why the project is headed in the direction it is taking, and if you are an artist or know one who is headed in this direction have them hit up Thug Life Army Records for a possible spot on Vol.2.

Thug Life Army Records is taking submissions for volume two of "IN THE SHADOW OF AN ICON". Go to: http://www.TLARecords.com to learn more or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it