SD & PDP Bumrush the 2nd Annual WYDU Awards!

In the summer of last year, the hiphop blog wakeyourdaughterup.blogspot.com (one of Vibe Magazine's "Dirty 30: the Top 30 hottest spots for Hip Hop on the Internet", October 2007) named the title track off of Storm Davis' Kegstand Poetry to its own Top 30 Songs of the First Half of 2007 (#16).

This past December, WDYU mastermind Trav invited SD to be a panelist for their year-end awards, and SD (along with 8 other contributors) provided nominations for the categories that would be awarded when the list was published.

After wrestling with his "conscience" (such as it is), Storm submitted his albums and artists with as little a degree of bias as possible (that is, without listing a single release by self or Poorly Drawn People, save for naming Dox's "Buying Back Your Past" on his subjective-by-definition list of Top 10 Favorite Songs of 2007).***

On January 14, 2008, Wake Your Daughter Up unveiled its Second Annual WYDU Awards. Despite Storm's lack of tampering with the voting process, PDP made out quite fine, appearing on the positive side of multiple categories:

Storm Davis was named twice on the Top 100 Songs of 2007 - "Bethany" (produced by Entity) at #85, "Kegstand Poetry" (produced by Dox) at #25.

Kegstand Poetry (the album) was named as one of 3 to receive Trav's Late Pass Award (given to records released the previous year that slipped through the cracks).

Poorly Drawn People's Nothing Stays Gold mixtape received an Honorable Mention in the Best Mixtape category, losing out to Mick Boogie & Little Brother's And Justus For All.

You can view the full listing of winners and charts here. Selected write-ups are published below for your convenience.

Big ups to Trav and all of the WYDU mind squad for the support. Check out the rest of their excellent work while you're over there.

Top 100 Songs of 2007

85. Storm Davis of Poorly Drawn People - Bethany (from Nothing Stays Gold)

Storm Davis is another example of an artist that I enjoy because I can relate to his subject matter. Storm released his "Kegstand Poetry for the Recovering Alcoholic" in 2006, but I didn't discover the music until earlier this year, thanks to Krooked over at HHB. This track might be a little "emo" in nature, but I've never been one to shy away from that. A lovely piano sample accompanies Storm as he displays a tightened up flow about a girl, of course. I look forward to hearing more from Storm in the coming year and I'm sure I'll be pimping his music to the rest of you.
http://www.myspace.com/stormdavis

25. Storm Davis - Kegstand Poetry (from Kegstand Poetry for the Recovering Alcoholic)

How can you not like someone who took their name from a 1980's major league pitcher? Alright, most likely, 90% of you don't know who the original Storm Davis was, but don't make that same mistake twice. The hip hop version of Storm Davis is a New England MC that released his creatively entitled "Kegstand Peotry for the Recovering Alcoholic" (one of the best names for an album ever) in 2006. Like Rip Van Winkle, I was fast asleep on it until a blog posted the album up in May of '07. On the strength of the name alone and Krooked giving it his approval, I downloaded the album. It would become my second favorite album of the year that wasn't released in the year 2007 (Juggaknots take home the first place prize, being mentioned as first on my blog). The anchor song for the album would "Kegstand Poetry", a fun sing-a-long song that would be great in any karaoke bar after nine to ten cold frosty ones. There were multiple nights this past year that I would be singing at the top of my lungs along with this song in my apartment after a trip to the bars. Would have liked to seen this released as a single or further up in the track listing and this could have been every drunken b-boy's theme song.

Trav's Late Pass Award: Favorite Albums From the Past Couple Years That I Discovered This Year

2. Storm Davis - Kegstand Poetry for the Recovering Alcoholic

I downloaded this earlier in the year strictly off the fact the dude took his name from an old 80's Major League Baseball pitcher I used to like. I also think Krooked from HHB gave it the seal of approval as well. I ended up liking it so much that I tracked it down as a used copy at a local CD store (sorry Storm, hopefully the press this year made up for it...haha). Armed with a cool voice and subject matter that was easy for me to relate to, Storm Davis dropped the soundtrack of my summer with the track "Kegstand Poetry" along with other quality tracks. Now I'm just waiting for the new album...dammit!

***Full Disclosure Regarding Favoritism:

SD may have abstained from self-specific promotion, but friends and collaborators were a different story altogether: Storm nominated Prolyphic's Times Table Scraps for the category of Best Lost & Found / Unreleased Album of the Year; and Jon Hope & Statik Selektah's The Audacity for both Best Mixtape and Best Free Album. Alas, the Kegstand Poet's influence was less than impressive; neither release made the cut for the final awards. But you should still seek them out and give a listen.

An Event of Monolithic Proportions.

Finally, membership in the forum of fans and friends of SD & PDP reaps rewards:
you and yours are (quite possibly) invited to a hush-hush performance of Storm Davis & Poorly Drawn People at a birthday party for Labeless Illtelligence's ESH THE MONOLITH!

This FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 2008
The Gemuse Gallery
131 Washington St 4th Floor
Providence RI
FREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

performances by
POORLY DRAWN PEOPLE
(Storm Davis / Reason / Dox / DJ Sterbyrock)
AWKWARD LANDING (Boston)
VICE VERSAH (Boston)
NEED NOT WORRY (Formulatin' Fathers)
SNEAKY PETE (00Agents)
and more to be announced

with sounds from
DJ AL BUMS
DJ SAVE1
DJ STERBYROCK
SWERVE ONE
and CAS UNO as DJ I-Want-My-Money-Back

BYOB or $5 Cups for the Pabst Blue Ribbon kegs (for the hipsters) and hard liquor beverages available.
Starting around 9PM and running till the breakadawn or the lackalikka.
PDP will perform somewhere between 11-1.

If you've seen PDP live these past couple of years, odds are you've witnessed Labeless Illtelligence rocking before we go on. They're the ones cussing out the soundman, hurling pieces of the stage at the crowd, and occasionally challenging that same crowd (or other artists on the bill) to fistfights during their sets. So obviously, we refuse to stop booking them, and work with them every chance we get.

This Friday, we get to celebrate the chaos caused by these ultimate rap warriors as one of their own turns 26.

Come on, people: This is a birthday party for a guy named "ESH THE MONOLITH." Just think of the possibilities.

Come before the bar, come after the bar, or join us for the long haul, but don't complain no one throws good parties anymore. If you received this invite, you may bring or invite whomever you'd like, cuz we know you only roll with good people, right?

Email stormdavis@gmail.com to confirm your status, RSVP, or with any questions.

Hope to see you there to help us kick off the 2008's musical mission properly.

peas,
SD

Storm Davis & Poorly Drawn People ink sponsorship deal with APLOMB Clothing!

Providence, RI-based hip hop collective Poorly Drawn People (emcees Storm Davis and Reason, producers Dox and Entity, and DJ Sterbyrock) have joined forces with Washington D.C. fashion upstart Aplomb Clothing!

PDP's Storm Davis first met Aplomb's chief designer Matt Corrado (AKA Chew) in Providence in 2005. Maryland native Chew had approached Storm about collaborating on a musical project (Corrado, in addition to being a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, is a talented producer). Although the duo made some initial progress, the project never materialized. Davis and Corrado stayed in touch after the latter moved to the District.

Three years later, with each entrenched in new and promising artistic projects, the relationship was renewed with a different slant: Davis' Poorly Drawn People crew have agreed to act as walking billboards for the adventurous designs of Corrado's Aplomb line, and PDP will be infused into the soundtrack that accompanies some of the most promising and exciting street gear on the East Coast.

What does this mean to SD & PDP fans?

"You'll be blessed to see us in more new t-shirts than ever before, which I'd imagine is incredibly exciting for many people, as only about 50% of our fans have expressed interest in seeing us perpetually nude," says Davis. "And we'll be harassing you to buy even more products than we do now. We're still the same questionable sellouts you've come to love and/or tolerate, but now we give advice on which gear you should rock. Because, frankly, they're remarkably fresh."

Why join forces with Aplomb?

"We identified with them, an artistic camp coming from out of nowhere and laying it all on the line without any guarantee they'd be received positively," Davis explains. "Plus, they asked."

You can check out Aplomb's line of men's and women's nudeproofing at www.aplombclothing.com or in PDP's top friends section at www.myspace.com/poorlydrawnpeople.

Keep an eye out for PDP/Aplomb collaborations in 2008!

More about Aplomb, from the company's site:

"One thing all three owners could recognize when they decided to start Aplomb was an overwhelming need for creative commerce in the D.C. area. Specifically, our nation's capital had no nationally recognized apparel companies to call its own. And so, Aplomb Clothing began to take root…Throughout the preliminary years we received numerous expressions of doubt primarily because of our roots in the D.C. market. At the time, everyone seemed to disregard Washington as a unique city with its own creative hub.
We started as, and remain, three different yet cohesive owners with a vision to create clothing that reflects our style and experiences. We don't want to be an indie, urban, or skate company..we want to be us. Throw out boundaries because we are never completely dominated by one trend, one movement, or one style.

In the beginning the three Aplomb pioneers consisted of a hopeless entrepreneur on his 5th job that year, a Georgetown graduate student working corporate finance, and an artist whose job required 4% of his awe-inspiring talent. Back then our main goal was simple, to exceed our peers' expectations, and hell, even our own. We have made sacrifices, talked shop with our loyal customers, linked up with D.C. visionaries who share our perspective and strived to bring Aplomb to you. There is a sweet feeling of accomplishment when you put everything on the line, struggle, and succeed.

Aplomb continues to represent the style and experience of its architects with a passion. Hailing from D.C., we are a brand that everyone can relate to and be a part of. Keep an eye out for our aggressive expansion nationwide, showcasing our vision that spawned from the land of politics. Inspiring apparel, inspired by you…"