| Blue Scholars | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Blue Scholars | ||||
| Released | 2004, Re-released in 2005 | |||
| Genre | Alternative hip hop | |||
| Length | 55:49 | |||
| Label | Self-released | |||
| Producer | Sabzi | |||
| Blue Scholars chronology | ||||
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| Alternate album covers | ||||
Original Cover | ||||
Blue Scholars is the self-titled debut release by Blue Scholars, a Seattle-based hip-hop duo. It was originally only available in the Seattle area in 2004 before being given a national release in 2005.
Blue Scholars is an American hip hop duo based in Seattle, Washington, created in 2002 while the members, DJ Sabzi and MC Geologic, were students at University of Washington.
Seattle is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With an estimated 730,000 residents as of 2018, Seattle is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region of North America. According to U.S. Census data released in 2018, the Seattle metropolitan area’s population stands at 3.87 million, and ranks as the 15th largest in the United States. In July 2013, it was the fastest-growing major city in the United States and remained in the Top 5 in May 2015 with an annual growth rate of 2.1%. In July 2016, Seattle was again the fastest-growing major U.S. city, with a 3.1% annual growth rate. Seattle is the northernmost large city in the United States.
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop or rap music, is a music genre developed in the United States by inner-city African Americans in the late 1970s which consists of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted. It developed as part of hip hop culture, a subculture defined by four key stylistic elements: MCing/rapping, DJing/scratching with turntables, break dancing, and graffiti writing. Other elements include sampling beats or bass lines from records, and rhythmic beatboxing. While often used to refer solely to rapping, "hip hop" more properly denotes the practice of the entire subculture. The term hip hop music is sometimes used synonymously with the term rap music, though rapping is not a required component of hip hop music; the genre may also incorporate other elements of hip hop culture, including DJing, turntablism, scratching, beatboxing, and instrumental tracks.
Contents
- Track listing
- 2004 Pacific Northwest release
- 2005 National release
- Credits
- "Freewheelin" video credits
- References
The 2004 release of the album contained tracks 2-11 (the original release had a different introduction, track 1; it was called 'Solstice intro') and came in a jewel case with a cover resembling a spiral-bound notebook. This version of the album was voted "Best Album of 2004" by the Seattle Weekly . [1]
The Seattle Weekly is a freely distributed newspaper in Seattle, Washington, United States. It was founded by Darrell Oldham and David Brewster as The Weekly. Its first issue was published on March 31, 1976, and is currently owned by Sound Publishing. The newspaper will publish its final print edition on February 27, 2019, and transition to web-only content beginning March 1, 2019.
The 2005 release of the album added three new tracks to the end of the album: "The Ave," "Life & Debt," and "No Rest For The Weary." The re-release comes in a digipak-style case with revised cover art, featuring a silhouette of the Seattle skyline with the band's more common graffiti tag logo.
Digipak is a registered trademark for a patented style of optical disc packaging. A digipak case consists of a rectangle cardboard package with one or more plastic trays capable of holding a CD or DVD attached to the inside. Variations include where the discs sit on a hub or spindle inside. Among commercial audio CD releases, Digipak-style cases are one of the few common alternatives to the somewhat brittle jewel case.
Graffiti is writing or drawings made on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from simple written words to elaborate wall paintings, and it has existed since ancient times, with examples dating back to ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, and the Roman Empire.
A video for the track "Freewheelin" was produced in the summer of 2004. It features Geo and Sabzi walking with an increasing group of followers through a number of Seattle neighborhoods, including the International District, Beacon Hill, and Capitol Hill. The final scene of the video features the duo performing in Hing Hay Park to their crowd of followers. The video is available on the 2005 version of the album and can be viewed at YouTube. [2]
YouTube is an American video-sharing website headquartered in San Bruno, California. Three former PayPal employees—Chad Hurley, Steve Chen, and Jawed Karim—created the service in February 2005. Google bought the site in November 2006 for US$1.65 billion; YouTube now operates as one of Google's subsidiaries.
