"WHAT UP!" grins the affable, bearishly handsome gay rap star who goes by the rap name, Smut Stud, as he leans into the video camera. Seated at the console in his recording studio, Smut streams interactively on U-Stream live whenever the mood hits him for an hour or two, letting his audience in on his process of creating his brilliant and groundbreaking brand of OutHipHop. He talks about his love of cratedigging for 70s and 80s soul vinyl in flea markets and shares his discoveries with his viewers. He demonstrates how he samples sounds from these records to create his ingenious, clever and addictive beatz. He talks with the folks watching him create his music live, and he archives the shows so others can go back and access his generous spirit and creativity and learn his techniques. He plays keyboards over the samples, leaves for a minute to use the bathroom, and one memorable time spent the show playing his own songs and talking about them.
Smut Stud was well on his way to a big career in the music industry as a producer and beatmaker when he released his first mixtape in 2007, "Waiting for E-Male," by far the finest gay rap record since Deadlee's "Assault with a Deadlee Weapon," and chose to deal with the realities of being a young gay Chicano male as his subject matter. The music was compelling West Coast rap a la Death Row, the melodies were catchy as fuck and the lyrics were immediate and mind-opening. For a young gay man in the closet encountering this music, it must have felt miraculous. By having the courage to create music from his own pain, joy and experience, Smut Stud has undoubtedly helped scores of people he has never even met. Fittingly, none less than Deadlee himself hailed Smut Stud as the best gay rapper in the mix today.
"Waiting for E-Male" was so amazing because even though it traversed some of the same terrain of detailing marijuana use ("Smut Stud on chronic/munchies at Sonic") and the joys of a gangsta party ("This Is How We Do It," the type of irresistible party jam Montell Jordan wishes he could still sell credibly), for the most part Smut chose to take a hard left and talk forthrightly about his life as a homosexual man, so-called "warts" and all. Political correctness and straight-people-pleasing are both left in the dust as he sings about the pleasures of fellatio ("Going Down"), trade logic ("Take Away the Pain"), navigating complicated gay relationships ("Just A Friend" with its witty Biz Markie sample, "Mind Fucked"), and bear sensibility ("As Long," "Cheating"). He also details the rocky roads of coming out ("Coming Out"), love, heartbreak and depression ("Love," "Anniversary"), all set to rhymes, tunes and beatz I defy anyone who's breathing to resist. To make it even better, the whole genius Smut Stud first mixtape is available free for download here: http://www.outhiphop.com/ohh-free-downloads/2008/6/6/smut-studs-waiting-for-e-male-cd-download-free.html
For the last couple years, Smut Stud has been working on his next mixtape, originally titled "Step On Your Shadow," and doing his video blog on U-Stream. Songs currently playing on his My Space page are startling and original and display his burgeoning love of Philly Sweet Soul of the 1970s and 80s. He's originally from Philadelphia, now based in heavy music town Austin, Texas. His new stuff shows he's lost none of his sass or observation ("innercity slutz just hangin off my nutz...i ain't a gangsta, i just lean a lot"), sexual frenzy ("Bad Luck"), "Light Me Up" with its fierce TSOP flava, club insecurity in ("when your shorty's) Got You Guessing") and straight-up gay gangsta stance in "Step On Your Shadow." Remarkably, Smut revealed recently that none of these songs are likely to turn up on the new mixtape, now due in 2011. So for hardcore Smut Stud fans, his My Space page is the only place to hear these jams and not for long. Maybe we should lobby him to make them available for download so we can play them on our phones and in our cars.
Whatever Smut Stud ultimately comes up with for his next project, there's no doubt it will be forward-thinking, musically hot and candid. I can't wait to see what he comes up with next and look forward to his ongoing video blog "tutorials." Smut Stud got the real stuff of greatness. Check him out:
myspace.com/smutstud
twitter.com/SmutStud
Personal Note: One Saturday night I was participating in Smut's live video show, and after the show was over, he kept his camera on and listened to several of my songs and discussed them with me. He particularly liked "On the Internet." This generosity of spirit and willing open-mindedness is almost unheard of and I still smile inside when I think about that.
You can catch his video blog here as well as access his past shows archived here:
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/stud-tv---in-the-studio-live
