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EDITOR’S WORDI overheard someone recently describing the mag-azine to their friend or associate. I believe the label they put on it was an “ethnic magazine.” I wasn’t quite sure how to take that, I was, to say the least, perplexed. I was simultaneously happy and disap-pointed. When we set out to create this magazine, we did recognize that most publications in town lacked images with people of color, and with the col-legiate atmosphere ever diversifying, people of color need to be able to see images they can identify with. So in that sense, I’m happy that we’re recognized for our diversity. On the other hand, we also created this magazine to empower EVERYONE who feels they don’t have a voice, needs a little inspiration, or wants to pursue their goals but don’t know how to start.With this being the third edition of our “Hustle and Flow” series, we strive to recognize those individ-uals working hard to be the best at what they love, in this case, music, of all genres. I urge you, despite what genre or crowd these artist might cater to, to support them by listening to their music or going to their shows. I don’t say this for any other reason other than the fact that these are men and women who represent Colorado, your state, and from a magazine that works to empower EVERYONE, we encourage you to do the same in supporting your local artist.

Make it happen,

Garrett HayesEditor-in-Chief

DETERMINED NATION STAFFBusiness Analyst and Event Planning: Perez Ansah-Mensah, Justin Jones-Frazier, Niyankor Ajuaj

Marketing and Advertising: Keenan Bender

Writers: Danielle McConnell, Susanne “Zuzu” Wheeler, L.A. Harden, Niyankor Ajuaj, Dustin Huff, Ty Reeves, Jessica Fish

Editing: Zuzu Wheeler

Photography: Perez Ansah-Mensah, Danielle McConnell, Marray Napue, Route Ro-driguezGarrett Hayes

Wanna help with writing, graphics, photos or events? Have art, poetry, or music you want featured? Feel free to e-mail us.Submissions/Contact Us:[email protected]

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DETERMINED NATION MAGAZINE VOL. 3 ISS. 3

12opin ion

“There are two primary choices in life: to accept conditions as they exist, or accept

the responsibility for changing them.”-Denis Waitley

INSPIRATIONAL QUOTEcon t e n t s

3www.determinednationmagazine.comwww.determinednationmagazine.com

Best

Dope(in no particular order)

The

Worst Nope

and Songs of 2013

Lyrical creativity seems to dwindle as each day passes.

Pharrell makes me hap-py, that’s a good song too by the way.

When you have the toughest of fellas sing-ing out “Pretty girl, pretty girl, pretty girl” in falsetto in the club, you deserve to be on the list.

Justin, like fine wine, seems to get better with time.

You had my curiosity at Ken-drick, after his verse you had every rapper’s attention, espe-cially if they weren’t named or claimed New York. Oh, and the other two guys were pretty dope too. Who keeps letting this

child near a microphone. If Friday was terrible what the hell made you think the next day would be better?

I could really reach into a bag full of Miley Cyrus songs with my eyes closed and pull out a terrible song, just saying. Miley, you should stop.

Ain’t that Brandy’s brother? Get off Kim’s jock sir, between her and Kanye alone, there’s enough egos al-ready on it.

The name of the song de-scribes Future’s discog-raphy, and not in a good way.

Not that it was the best year for music anyway, but here are some songs that make you wonder

why these artist get paid.

I’m sure I missed a lot of good stuff, but here’s some songs that

stood out from last year.Daft Punk ft. Pharrell:

Get Lucky

Bruno Mars:Treasure

Justin Timberlake: Mirrors

Big Sean ft. Kendrick Lamar and Jay Electronica: Control

J Dash/Sage the Gemini:

Wop/Gas Pedal

Future:Sh!t

Ray J:I Hit It First

M i l e y Cyrus:

We Can’t Stop

Rebecca Black: Saturday

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a dose of dope

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Nope

I could really reach into a bag full of Miley Cyrus songs with my eyes closed and pull out a terrible song, just saying. Miley, you should stop.

The name of the song de-scribes Future’s discog-raphy, and not in a good way.

Sh!t

We Can’t Stop

Nothing’s gonna change I’m a sould survivorUplifted everyday thanks to Krooked Drivin’ /

Through the definition of pain my outlook’s brighterThan any sky lit night on the fourth of July/You’re going through inequities that force a tidalWave of revolution in the form of violence/The wars and prices do unfortunately riseUntil the populations stands to finally open its eyelids/I’m so sick and tired of growing in my worldSearching for hope and just hoping to find it/Sinful desires and cope with diseasesBut the eye of Osiris stays focused on me/And his wife known as Isis keeps holding the keyTo the paradise island that floats in the sea/To clarify where I’ve been I’m soakin’ the sunThat burns through the flesh to digest his love/Anatomy is gathering the stars and astronomyThrough sacred geometry music is our astrology/

Cubes and symbolic sounds surround the whole dichotomyNow what goes up must come down; the golden

philosophy/Prophecies were written forget if you can stop the peaceSocrates said change was bringing raw energy/

UntitledDustin Huff

Got poetry? Send it to [email protected]

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xpressions


Gentle i press brush to wallDamp and thickPick colors, to cover allBlues to cover woundsReds to clear the headSink into pink and purpleI Paint andYou see the worldOr maybe beyond thatYou see starsI grip your canvasYou grab my brushThrust into a bucket of loveVivid visuals on the inside of your eye lidsStrong Strokes cloak the wallsYou fall deeper, Let your mind goI’m Van Gogh or.. Picasso andI can make you smile for awhileMona Lisa..So abstractSubtract your negativeNo codes to get close to meMiss Da VinciCan i be Michelangelo, And go slow asI Float on your canvasAnd Turn your appealing ceilingInto the Sistine chapelYour box is my frameAnd i picture us togetherWords fall apart but a painting stays forever..My brush speaks storiesAs i Glaze over your heartAnd shade in your emptiness See.. I see your beauty..You are a master piece Paint art to reach your heartStart to make you fall......Strokes of this love....And I love to paint the walls

Can forgiveness be found in me?

In wrong, I cry for mercy.

When wronged; I demand justice.

Does patience dwell in me?

Indebted, I beg for more time.

When owed; it must be now.

Can understanding be found in me?

In wrong, I cry for mercy.

When wronged; I demand justice.

Does wisdom dwell in me?

Indebted, I beg for more time.

When owed; it must be now.

~The beloved~

Paint the WallsEvan Taylor

Forgiveness and Understanding

Isaiah Kakule

UntitledDustin Huff

Got poetry? Send it to [email protected]

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www.determinednationmagazine.com

MICHAL MENERT

By Dustin Huff

Huff’s Dank Danish ( o r g a n i c h o m e g r o w n m u s i c s p o t l i g h t )

“The struggle is real.” Recent mantra from Michal Menert’s SpaceJazz tour that has been orbiting the galaxies from New York to California over the past two months. It’s also a phrase that has been trending on Twitter from the dawned “Godfather” of electro soul, jokingly describing the life of one of music’s hardest grinders. Hailing from Colorado, (FOCO!) most know Mike for being partial founder of Pretty Lights music, where his friend Derek, (Pretty Lights), has emerged as one of the biggest names in the entire Elec-tronic Music Circuit. Pretty Lights recent success in the last 5 years has allowed more success and exposure for everyone on his label including OG Mike. When the Space com-mander isn’t busy opening hearts through music, satisfying bellies with his five-star cu-linary, or inflating imaginations through his paintings, he has brief moments to answer

random #spacejazz dispatch.

Huff: Your music really moves people’s hearts and I hear it from the fans all the time how intimate and close they feel con-nected to you and to the surroundings during your sets. What’s that power feel like?

Michal Menert: It feels amazing. I mean that’s what you hope for as an artist. My music is not that heavy EDM that is going

to be introduced to new EDM listeners. My music is more organic, but it brings out quality, lifelong fans and it’s such an incredible feeling. I am in a spot in my music where I don’t have to be insecure about any aspect; I can just unwind and bring out the best in the genres of music I blend to give listeners and fans that real experience they will remember. Not just a party to be forgotten.

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Huff’s Dank Danish ( o r g a n i c h o m e g r o w n m u s i c s p o t l i g h t )

Mike has been performing for over a de-cade and his progression from instruments to production and music compositions truly shows a passion for the art. The skills and growth of Michal’s talents have resulted in upper level eargasms.

Huff: You have performed all over the world. Your talents have blessed you with being able to travel to even India to dis-play your art. Is there anywhere left where you would want to perform?

MM: Paradiso. It’s in Amsterdam. The venue is gorgeous. I think it used to be a cathedral. There’s stained glass in the back that shines through on the performers on stage.

Huff: That sounds transcending, and very fitting for your sounds. Dead or Alive. 3 artists you would want to collab with? Go!?

MM: David Bowie, Coner O’berst, and Frederic Cho-pin

Side note, if Frederic Chopin was reincarnated in today’s music he probably would come back as Michal Menert. Both keep it fresh in the jams and facial hair.

Huff: What legacy are you trying to leave and what are your goals this upcoming year both musically and per-sonally?

MM: I want to expand my audience of course and get the organic music that is Pretty Lights Music to more ears. I want to get better at all levels of my art. Music, painting, and culinary, I want to open up a restaurant and show Denver what’s up. I

want to continue to create great music and gathering the compassion from my loving fans. (Mike has that Polish background and dude can cook some legit dishes)

You can check out Michal Menert at Pret-tylightsmusic.com or on his sound cloud.

www.soundcloud.com/michalmenert Four MUST LISTEN TRACKS are Tomorrow May Never Come, Electric Touch, The Keep On, and You Are Ghost

Michal Menert is set to release a new album in 2014 that fans have been anticipating more than Cheba Hut at 2am on April 20th. His last album “Elements” uniquely paints a bright supernova and from beginning to end as the music sere-nades the galactic transformation from birth to cosmic death.

If Frederic Chopin was reincarnated in today’s music he probably would come back as Michal Menert. Both keep it fresh in the jams and facial hair. 9

music

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A s the winter season quickly approaches, ladies have been using more than just the common chapsticks to coat and protect their lips. Lip-

sticks and liners are currently taking over the makeup mar-ket. With celebrities like Nicki Minaj and Rihanna brand-ing hot pinks and reds, the market for lip beauty has surely increased. Popular brands like MAC and Maybelline have almost tripled their lipstick stock in the past year and expand-ed lipstick collection lines greater than ever before. What is it about lipsticks that appeal to the college woman population? Well, it’s versatility of course! If you’re a busy college student, working, interning and enjoying the fast life, lipstick can be worn to complete an “on the go” look with a simple eye liner and foundation like K. Ashley (first upper left). If the errands unexpectedly turn into a stop by Happy Hour with the ladies, a deep plum and addition of blush and a natural shadow can take your casual look to the max in seconds similar to the look of Mi-Kayla S.! (second).

What We’re WearingK. Ashley, University of Denver, Senior MiKayla S., Metro State, Junior

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What We’re WearingBy Tyreesa Reeves

For most college women, education comes first. In the midst of classes, all-nighters and midterms, life gets exhausting! However, a simple addition of lipstick, like the baby pink worn by Sade M.F (third) can make you classy, elegant and give you a fresh look to start the day. Lastly, after a long, draining week of quizzes, finals, work, organizations, interning, ladies just want to unwind and have a good time! With a sophisticated but edgy look, you can throw on a leather jacket, grab some hoop earrings, throw your hair up and wear your favorite color for a night of fun and relax-ation! We’re taking notes from Ressie A. wearing her burgundy lip with a light gloss (last). No matter the occasion, lipstick is there to save the day. The multiple colors, variety and versatility of the product go far beyond the classic red we are so familiar with. It’s customizable, there’s literally something for everyone. My color is MAC’s “Fixed on Drama”, what’s yours?

MiKayla S., Metro State, Junior Sade M.F, Colorado State, SeniorRessie A., University of Denver, recent graduate

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There seems to be a sad, unfortunate truth in our society today, which is if I threw a rock into a crowd I could hit a rapper or a DJ. It is as if the art of rapping and DJing has been so depreciat-ed that people feel anyone can do it. Don’t get me twisted, if you have a true, unfaltering passion for music, especially rap and the art of DJing then by all means this article is not for you.

This is a public service announcement for the people who are diminishing the value of hip-hop’s stock. Let me explain what I mean. While I know that rap/hip-hop has constantly been evolving throughout the years, I am a firm believer in re-specting history because, as I’m sure you know, you can’t know where you’re going until you know where you’ve been. To become the best at anything you do, you learn what the people before you did, and you don’t just learn it, you master it AND THEN put your own flavor on it. I could be completely wrong, but the men and women who say they are rappers and DJs aren’t interested in competing to become the best, but rather inter-ested in the “fame and glory” or “money, clothes, and #@$% that come with it. But in this capitalist society that we live in, healthy competition begets wealth.

Unfortunately not too many wannabes recognize that rich and wealthy are not synonymous with each other. Apparently as long as you rhyme and smoke weed you too can be a famous rapper, nev-er mind the work that goes in to it. Never mind standing on the corner passing out mixtapes any-more or working tirelessly from sun up until sun down promoting yourself and finding gigs (and staying humble while doing so), fame will just fall out of the sky at some point in time. The Beatles used to play in strip clubs and hole-in-the-wall bars for years before being noticed, in fact they

The INConvENient Truth

A Public Service Announcement to Aspiring Artist

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put in over 10,000 hours of performanc-es before becoming famous. What’s more is that because these artist (if you want to consider them such) are so in-terested in the fame and glory over hon-ing their talent to become the best, they refuse to go back to the roots and learn how things used to be done.

Let’s take the concept of freestyling/freestyle battling. While on the search find artist who battle, it seems as though no rapper is willing to freestyle battle, participate in a written battle maybe, perform their song live definitely, but run the risk of being embarrassed by another rapper who is probably twice as talented . . . hell no. What many of these “up-and-coming” artist don’t realize is that freestyle battling is the roots of hip-hop/rap. When DJ Kool Herc orig-inated hip-hip back in ’73 (and the DJ was more important than the rapper), rappers would freestyle. If you were to list the top ten best rappers ever, I can guarantee at least eight of them started in freestyle battles. Let’s be honest, you don’t enroll in a karate class to get your ass kicked, but be famous for it, well maybe some people do. Maybe we’re just a generation content with medioc-rity though and there’s no need to prod your way into that top ten list. Or maybe the game has evolved to the point where freestyle battling is no longer a revered art in the community. Even if all of this is so, I do feel there is a need to always remember who came before you and paved the way for you by paying hom-age to them, just out of respect. May-be this is wishful thinking for living in Colorado, but is this all too much to ask, especially if it’s the craft that you claim to love?

Speaking of remembering history and paying homage, it seems like more and more modern day DJs are losing respect for the art as more and more technology enables them. Case and point, Flo Rida’s

new DJ product called “Beamz.” If you don’t know what I’m talking about go look it up. It is an insult to true DJs who carried crates of records to their gigs or have worked vigorously to perfect their scratching abilities. If you’re an aspir-ing DJ, by all means do your thing, but for the sake of the art and those who’ve grinded to get where they are, crawl be-fore you walk and learn the basics of the art. Don’t be the DJ that just downloads a program (via torrents) and becomes a “DJ.” DJs in the past spent their whole careers on wax. It forced them to au-dibly beat-match, forced them to carry crates and crates … and crates and more crates full of records every night into the club. Have you tried carrying a crate of records? Now times that by like ten, since that’s how many times you would have to go in and out of the club to car-ry in your crates. Now, take everything I just said above. Spit on it, crumple it up, and throw it away. Because that is what these new ‘DJs” are doing with their pi-rated DJ software and the sync button. I understand that times and technology is changing, but is this not just taking an art form and flipping it on its head?

Anyone who is truly, truly working hard to perfect there craft, keep working hard. If you feel offended by everything I just said however, I’m probably talking to you. Colorado doesn’t get respected for a reason, and this is not to say that people that fall into this category are the problem, but they are part of it. At the end of the day, my main point is, if you’re doing something you claim to love, you should be in it striving to be the best every single day. Do not be-come content with mediocrity

Share your opinion about this issue at face-book.com/determinednationmagazine.

Also check out more thoughts on the state of DJing at DJ-Nunez.com

A Public Service Announcement to Aspiring Artist

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Say what you will about Saturday Night Live (and there are many

critics out there). The sketches are lackluster; the cast is almost entirely white; all the ‘good’ people have left the show and gone on to bigger and better careers; the writing isn’t funny; yadda, yadda, yadda.

In spite of these canned ‘critiques’ of the show, Sat-urday Night Live (SNL) has improved in one major area; the show has surprisingly

weaseled its way into the foreground of the music industry. SNL has be-come the ‘go-to’ launching point for major (and up-and-coming) artists to promote new albums and singles. So far, this season—SNL’s 39th Season, mind you—has already showcased

The Music Show with Comedy on the SideBy Grant Campbell

Music has become so influential to not just cultural but the show, that many SNL skits are musically based, such as the

popular “In A Box” song.

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pop culture


The Music Show with Comedy on the Side

modern music royalty in Katy Perry, Eminem, and Lady Gaga. SNL’s abil-ity to attract the attention of these artists—or at least their production managers—signifies that maybe the show isn’t so ‘out of touch’ with pop-ular culture after all.

To put this in perspective, The Lady Gaga episode, which aired on November 16th, 2013, was the Num-ber One ranked telecast of the night, beating out ABC, CBS, and Fox—yes, it did beat out both primetime Col-lege Football matchups. This viewer-ship was also the highest achieved by SNL since the Justin Timberlake epi-sode of the previous season. With ratings that seem to be

returning from the vast wasteland of fourth place (out of four), the scheduling of not-as-well-known artists, such as Janelle Monae, Arcade Fire, and Haim, indicates SNL has also embraced the role of a music platform aimed at kick starting musical careers. While the remaining SNL schedule has not been released as of Novem-ber 2013, last season’s schedule might act as a guideline for fore-casting upcoming musical guests.

During the 38th Season, SNL scheduled relatively new artists—Fun, The Lumineers, and Ne-Yo—between the likes of Bru-no Mars, Rihanna, Maroon 5, and Paul McCartney. And look how that turned out. If SNL follows suit this season, the show will definitely be worth watching. And who knows, there might even be a funny sketch or two.

The Lady Gaga episode, which aired on No-vember 16th, 2013, was the Number One

ranked telecast of the night.

Janelle Monae performing this season on SNL. Though Monae has a pretty loyal fan base, the performance helped

boost her material.

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D ynamic Duos (SUPER FOODS IN PAIRS)

By Dustin HuffIf you want to really revamp your body try adding these combinations to your diet twice a week and notice the charge in your energy and health after a month. Your body is not just a temple but it’s a vehicle. How do

you want your vehicle to run?

#1 ◊ You can add these to a dinner at

night. The leafy greens such as ar-tichokes and legumes are iron rich-es and will be absorbed more effi-ciently through the peppers to your body. You can even use tomatoes. Spaghetti and a spinach salad could work. #2

◊ Adding lemon juice to your green teach increases the DNA repairing throughout the body and the lemon juice helps the green tea speed up dramatically. #3

◊ Research done at Ohio State Uni-versity discovered that the huge saturated fats found in avocados boosts the cancer-fighting proper-ties lycopene found in tomatoes.

#4◊ Apple are rich in the anti-inflammato-

ry that is crucial heart health, (hence an apple a day) ,but mixing an apple with the strong antioxidant super food will supercharge the circulation and heart health, preventing chances of heart at-tacks and diseases. Don’t be afraid to have a dark cocoa candy bar in the gym bag. True headies of body-training will know what’s up!

Vitamin C and Iron – Peppers & Artichokes

Green Tea with Lemon

Avocados and Tomatoes

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#4◊ Apple are rich in the anti-inflammato-

ry that is crucial heart health, (hence an apple a day) ,but mixing an apple with the strong antioxidant super food will supercharge the circulation and heart health, preventing chances of heart at-tacks and diseases. Don’t be afraid to have a dark cocoa candy bar in the gym bag. True headies of body-training will know what’s up!

#5◊ This pair essentially amplifies the muscle

repairing glucose and amino acids. After a grueling training session or even a light jog, pop the top to some Noosa and chop up a banana and feel your body thank you as it regenerates.

Also try to get the chia seeds, flax seeds, coconut oils, and fish oils in wherever you can to help maximize superior nutri-tion for your body.

Bananas and Yogurt

Dark chocolate and apples

Green Tea with Lemon

health

5 WAYS TO MAINTAIN YOUR

NEW YEARS RESOLUTION

5 WAYS TO MAINTAIN YOUR

NEW YEARS RESOLUTION

WRITE IT DOWN

Post it

Be Real

GOYA: Get off Your ASS

Tell Someone

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4One of the biggest problems with anyone’s goals is the fact that they don’t write it down. When you write it down, you commit it to memory and have something tan-gible to adhere to. And don’t just write down your resolution, write your plan to attain it.

I’m not saying post it on twitter or facebook, that’s dust in the wind. Post what you wrote down somewhere in your home, a place that you’ll pass everyday. This might be your bath-room mirror, refrigerator, or even the ceiling above your bed. Posting it will remind you everyday what you need to do, this is if you’re really serious.

Make realistic resolutions. Saying you’ll make a million dollars is cool, but saying you’ll make a mil-lion dollars this year when your bank account has never seen 10k before, c’mon man. Making realis-tic goals however, to get to that ul-timate goal, is realistic. Start with one step as your resolution verses leaping the whole stair case.

Life and death is in the pow-er of the tongue. Speak life to your resolution by tell-ing someone. Don’t just go around telling everyone though, and once again don’t just post it on FB or twitter, unless you don’t really want to be taken seriously.

Pardon my French, but GOYA. The biggest reasons for missed goals is a lack of discipline, laziness, and a lack of persistence. When you get knocked down, get up. When you’re too tired, get up. When you think you don’t have time, make time, I’m sure you’re making time to party right?

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The promise of a Bold New Era is be-ginning to unfold with the comple-tion of the 2013 football season. If

you are still complaining about our foot-ball team losing and not attending home games, you’re clearly not opening your eyes. This year, CSU became bowl eligible for the first time since 2008 and won the game by scoring 15 unanswered points in the last three minutes, forcing two fum-bles and completing a two point conver-sion to tie the game with a field goal to win it. In 2013, the Rams finished with 8 wins which hasn’t happened since 2002. CSU had a winning record against their rivals, bringing home the Bronze Boot for the first time in five years with a win against Wyoming and putting up the sec-ond highest score in CSU history against rival Air Force with 58 points. Quar-terback Garrett Grayson broke the CSU single season passing record in 2013 and was 24 of 38 against the then number one team in the nation, Alabama. Running back Kapri Bibbs is just the third player in CSU history to be named Walter Camp All-American. He was also named first-

team All-Mountain West, held #1 (312) and #3 (291) single-game rushing perfor-mances in CSU history, and finished the season at #2 in the nation for rushing and total touchdowns (28) and #8 in the na-tion for total rushing yards. The best of all is he’s only a sophomore and he didn’t even start the first 7 games of the season. Attendances at the home games are still lackluster, but I don’t think fans can blame the team’s poor perfor-mance any-more. It’s time for the CSU fans to meet the team half-way and help carry the pro-gram into the Bold New Era.

t h e b i r t h o f a NEW ERAOur first issue in this volume highlighted the “big three” collegiate football programs in Colorado as they were all working to turn around falling programs and put Colorado teams back on the map. One of those three programs made an unprecedented turn around

that had a story book ending. Here is their follow up.

Photos by Dan Byers/Story by Keenan Bender

Shaq Barrett was a big reason for the Ram’s suc-cess this year, especially in the New Mexico Bowl

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The world of hip-hop has always highlighted the hustle, but as the consumers, I think I can speak for a majority of us when I say we don’t see it. The grind for success often is swept under the rug and replaced by in-stant Gucci bags and fancy cars. We read about it occasionally from the powerhouses already at the top preparing to write their memoirs, but all the others just magically

got money one day. For those that are underground “mainstream”, their glamour looks far different, and their struggles are seemingly more real. After talking to some up-and-coming hip-hop artists, it is clear waking up in a new Bugatti is far less likely. These artists are more on

the started from the bottom track.

RHYMERS

cover

HUFF KEENN

Huff and Keen are two men that start-ed their passion for hip-hop in two different areas that eventually would collide. Their pas-sion stemmed early, as it seems many artist’ do, developed through the independence and originality that they both possess. In the small towns of 500, Huff and Keen found their outlet in the lyrical genius of Tupac and Eminem, as well as the smooth R&B sounds of some popu-lar artists. Huff, with a passion for poetry, writ-ing, and intertwining those with music began to write lyrics of his own. Keen, as a background beat boxing, turned battle rapper took interest in Huff ’s skills and they joined forces to create lyrical genius of their own.

As the two took more interest in the world of hip-hop, more talents began to catch their eye. Tech-nine, admired for intensely creative tech-nique and use of harmony, opened the door to a new meaning of what it meant to be an art-ist. There also were underground groups that emphasized the “conscious tip of hip-hop”, as

Huff describes. The conscious artist is one

“Content will never run out because we are always growing, and al-ways living.”

THE TENACIOUS TWO

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HUFF KEEN

that opens your mind to the questions of the world. You are no longer focusing on the mainstream, the materialistic, or the mind-washing views of popular hip-hop, but instead the powerful stories of culture, strug-gle, and growth. When you tell real stories you find the positive outlooks on life, within those struggles. It is those stories that create the real realm of hip-hop. Not to say that the mainstream storytellers are not real, but they are telling a story that some just can’t relate to.

The most important understanding that Huff and Keen have come to within their jour-ney is that as an artist you have the right to choose your path and it’s not always the easy one that is best. Sometimes choosing a cer-tain path means turning down shows, going against the grain, and being unpopular. In that same frame, all those pieces can make you the force to be reckoned with and the new demand for the world of hip-hop, the new lyrical genius’ of our time.

“It’s not just about being fast and consistent, but

also the way one uses harmonies.”

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KentWASHINGTON

THE PRODIGYKent Washington is one prime example of what the hustle in this game looks like, and he hopes to just keep the grind moving. Starting of the cassette tapes of Run DMC and the lyrical inspirations of Nas, Kent desired to reach a point where he held that much talent. To him the strongest piece of the hip-hop game is being able to tell a story, and that’s why he looks up to Nas.

Beyond learning from the best, the hip-hop journey takes a strength that not all possess. In some cases individuals have been too influenced by YouTube viral success to try the hard route. Kent on the other hand knows that the success he wants has to be worked for. There is a business savvy that has to exist. Kent spends his time making sure that the brand is what he wants it to be. The No Coast brand was started by Kent and his band of brothers that all have the same goal in mind, perseverance. The brand is entitled No Coast because it is representative of Colorado. There is no east coast or west coast here. The No Coast brand is one that be-lieves Colorado stands as the capital of perseverance and if you can make it big out of this state in the hip-hop game, you can make it anywhere.

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WASHINGTON

As Kent and the No Coast brand con-tinue to grow the most important fact around staying motivated is surround-ing yourself with the people that want it. They say if you surround yourself

with success, you too will reach it. There is no stopping No Coast because they believe having faith in themselves and being backed by those around them leads to the ultimate victory.

To be the best, you have to learn from the best.-KENT

WASHINGTON

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SPEED ROUNDQ:Finish this sentence: “My flow is _________.”A: “Eclectic”

Q:How’d you decide on your name?A:You can’t be more real than your real name

Q:What separates you from other rap artist in Colorado or even the country?A:My drive and determination, I don’t sound like anyone I have my own sound and its dope

Q:Where can we find your work?A:Facebook.com/DIYyouthSoundcloud: DIYradioHot New Hip Hop: Do. It. Yourself. Twitter: @DIYNOCOAST @ATIxKW3rd

Q:Finish this sentence: “I wish _________.”A: “I was a little bit taller.”

Q:Would you say you out ‘Hustle’ the competition and how so?A:Yes, out grind everyone by being everywhere but still having a quality product

Q:What do you say to people who doubt that anything good (rap wise) could come from Northern Colorado?A:They must be sleeping on real music

Q:What group would you compare yourself to?A:Atmosphere

Q:Where can we find your work?A:Soundcloud.com/huffnkeenreverbnation.com/huffnkeenfacebook.com_huffnkeendelcorecordings.com

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Gender CONDUCTT H E G R E A T D E B A T E

I feel like there is an unspoken rule that women just should fart in front of their man. But if it does just so happen by “accident,” I’ll start making the noise with my mouth or something to make it seem like it wasn’t what it really was. As far as the smell, you know what they say, whoever smelt it, delt it. I wait for him to notice first.#GenderConduct

--Jean

I really don’t care, I rip one off in front of my dad, brothers, and even my boyfriend. My only rule is no “letting one off ” within an hour before or after sex. That’s just nasty, and then the smell of genital juices, sweat, and left over enchi-ladas mix and believe me, it’s not a good scent. But I do think you need to be comfortable enough with your significant other to do the deed, and I don’t mean sex. #GenderConduct

--AllisonI make a game of it with my partner: One of us will fart, then the other one will try to do it louder. Call me imma-ture but I think it’s hilarious, especially the bubbly ones. I sure wouldn’t do it around another man unless they were in my family, but I think it would be stupid to be in a relationship with any-one you’re not comfortable enough to fart in front of. It’s not like our gas is carried away by the fart fairy, we fart just like men, some men need to stop putting women in a box. #GenderConduct

--Lady J.30

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Farting in front of the opposite sex? The way I see it, it all depends on context. The first thing I need to know is how appealing she is because if she isn’t I might even fart mid conversation while look-ing you dead in your face. But if she is appealing/attractive, I’ll fart directly on the President before I fart in her presence………..well maybe not the President but you get what I’m saying #GenderConduct

--L .A. HardenI'm against double standards...most of the time. Men are expect-ed to fart but women have a very important illusion to uphold that they do not fart or go number two and that the booty is just a magi-cal globe of beauty. This illusion should remain at least until we have been together long enough that I have woken up with the smell of your fart under the cov-ers or gone to the bathroom to en-counter the lingering scent of your bowel movements. At that point, the curtain is down and we can go about our business as usual. #GenderConduct

--Van B

It depends on the relationship the male and female have with each other. If the male or female are brothers and sisters or related then we all know the rules (anything goes). If you are a male or female trying to impress the opposite sex then normally both genders will hold back from doing so. If you are in a relationship then the rules should be the same as if they were brother and sis-ter but in a respectful way. There needs to be openness in the relationship but the individuals need to be respectful about it and excuse themselves after letting one go. No matter what kind of situation you find yourself in, if you let one go by accident so WHAT! EVERYONE FARTS!! It's not the end of the world! It's makes us hu-mans men and wom-en alike! #Gender-Conduct

- - T h e Ansah

Gender CONDUCTT H E G R E A T D E B A T E

FL ATULENCE IN FRONT OF THE OPPOSITE SEX

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