So as soon as we board the plane, who is sitting alone in first class? None other than my old buddy Nas. As in Nasty to Esco? As in, "Whaddup Fam? Can we holla at you on the plane?" Which turned into the Animal having to come to the Blaqman's rescue. He had his recorder and camera on him. GREAT THINKING PAUL!

I owe you a gang of one's for that alone! Funny thing is, no one except one Brotha flight attendant knew who was on the plane besides us. Suffice it to say that by the time we landed, every attendant on the plane was not only dick-ridin' Nas for autographs (on the Prodigy cover of Kron, no doubt!), but also giving the Blaqman a box of Godiva choclate, a bottle of Grandin champagne, a couple of joints of Courvoisier, a champagne & sugar handscrub (Word!), and some Mrs. Field cookies for the Animal. Ahhite!! A Noogie felt like a major celeb my-damn-self!

Getting off the plane was a whole `notha story altogether. The shorty's backpack came up missing! I could give two fucks about a backpack, some chips, a recorder, and some fucked up `zines. But those tapes had the whole next issue and parts of the one after that on `em and were irreplacable!!!

Invaluable even!! Priceless almost...

But the goshdern bag was on the next flight and this story has a happy ending after all. The lesson learned? Always keep the the jewels close to your person- NEVER trust anyone with your ish but Dolo. Naamean? Delf, Kid.

Do you realize how blessed we actually are??? N-A-S. Ya Smell?

"3X Dizzope!"

03.15-03.18.99

OK, so I've been away for a few days. What? You wanna pop shit, Kid?

Don't be tryin' ta Sun me, Son. You forget who gave you power? And you used to look so cute in diapers, Nukka! Yea, I took a few days off due to the general fatigue that comes with running around in an attempt to get more done than humanly possible in a city stacked as high as it is long & wide. Therefore, allow me to backtrack. First of all, I'm disappointed at the lack of folks tuning into yours truly. The guestbook is looking quite janky with crazy-old entries. My people's if ya wit' me, where ya at!? Seems as though the self-promoting website Ad in the mag was more effective at first and strait null & void in it's absence. Starting off with Monday morning, our last-minute Sponsor picked us and our luggage up in grand style. No sooner than we checked out of the Ameritania dookey-pit we were off to the Bronx in a towncar. Our lovely publicist (who in herself is a work of art; an unfinished masterpiece, no doubt!) had us whizzed up the Westside Hwy to Jimmy's Bronx cafe. And let me be the first to tell you guys back home: Jimmy's is THE PLACE EVERYONE stops by when they visit the Bronx. You name it, from the entire New York Yankees, to Vice Pres. Gore, to every known MAJOR Playa in Hip Hip, Jimmy's Runs T'ings in the BX. It was an eye-popping display of Boriquan Pride and I'd have to say that the Blaqman & Chan felt like no less than delegates from the West breaking bread with our NY Latino & Black brethren. We were treated like Fam, to say the least. And who did we do the sit-down with, you ask? None other than all 6 members of the Terror Squad. If you ain't be knowin', I WILL NOT tell!

After filling our bellies with more appetizers and Puerto Rican cuisine than all of us could muster, along with some practical jokes along the lines of, "go over there and check the picture of me when I was skinny". That little setup had us drinking vinegar beer when we returned, on some "spike the drink, spill the salt in your plate" ish. That and a little lacing of gear for back home made eyeethang quite "Official".That's the new top-dog term reserved for when something is only the "Johnniest". Alright, I give up, I can't really shout-out FJ560 without giving thanks to Armageddon (Set-it-off or End-it-up , you choose) Young Prospect (the Angry Black Youth), Triple Seis (the Devil made him do it), Cuban Link (take your bitch, then kill you), Big Pun (a Lover & a Joker) and Fat Joe (the Don Cartagena fa REAL!!)

After that, our sweet Publicist took us to our new & improved locale. Namely the "W" Hotel which is located right accross the street from the Waldorf Astoria, where incidentally on the night we arrived, someone was murdered in that piece and the murderer caught a plane to Brazil before Anyone found the body. Sick, huh? So we checked into our palace that had some very-close-to-the-Paramount standards with BIGGER ROOMS. Word! But even though they had a mini-bar (with no lil' bottles of the hard-hol) and a vee-cee-are-a, they DID NOT HAVE MTV!!! But no complainin' happenin' ova here... No Sirreee! Later that night we went t o the DJ Premiere B-Day bash at the Spybar downtown in Soho. Shit was Madd-asthetical with the whole interior design thang jumpin' off to the max. Only problem was, it was bananas with all the damn swordsmen. There just weren't enough cups to go around for everyone. Nice eye candy though, and I did get to link with Mami from the Redman video. You know the one who flips over the car off her bike? BUT IT WAS STRICTLY ON SOME BUSINESS SHIT. I swear! I'll be the first to admit that time has a way of catching up to you in the form of fatigue, especially when you ain't used to runnin' on 3 hours of sleep and janky assed NY deli food. $5 bucks a pound, G! I'm sayin'...Anywhat, we bounced `round midnight and got a good night's rest. That is of course, after I took mad party pics of all the celebs I ran into in the speeznot. The next day we got up and had a meeting with a clothing line at the Empire State Building. Up on the 65th floor, we really got to see why that muglie is called the "Empire State". You can pretty-much see everything for miles in each direction. Shiz iz ridiculous! After that we had to meet Guru & Primo in an half an hour up at D&D. When we got there, we were told that the interview would be on that day and the Cover photos would be the following day. Why? I still don't know. So I did my part and after the obligatory waiting game (that consists of anywhere between 2-4 hours of "hurry up & wait") we were out: 1/2 of our 2nd Mission Accomplished. That's when we ran into our usual NYC snafu- no matter how much Laa we may bring, we always seem to run out with just over a day left to work out the kinks. So what did we do? Well, it seems that everytime I'm in the city that never sleeps, I run into an old friend. In this case, it was my man Alchemist, formerly of the Whooligans. He was up at D&D tightening up some tracks he's got coming out the gates for `99.He blessed us and we blessed him back! Naamean? In the process of building with Al, we linked with 8-Off at the same time. Once our Kulcha Cipha was Borne and the tape was on record, the outcome will soon hit our pages. When we got back in for the night, it was already 4:20 A.M. again!

From all indications our last day seemed to be the easiest ; all we had to do was a Photo Shoot. And my part was for the most part done. Or so we thought... First, we hit up Wu Wear. They laced us with a little somethin-somethin' and we were out. Or so we thought. When we got to D&D an hour & 1/2 late, the artists still weren't there. So I bounced to pick up our Esco gear. Or so I thought. When I got there, the cupboard was almost bare from all the Rappers that showed up unannounced and ran thru our shit like it was an after-Xmass sale. Good lookin' though! Like everything else, this is just the beginning. By the time I got back to D&D, shit was ready to happen and the Animal went to work with Gang Starr for that Cover piece. In the Meantime, there were madd hungry Hip Hop heads in that joint. So me & P interviewed & shot em. By the time we left the building, Afu Ra, Group Home, and M.O.P. all got touched by the Kronick. But it ain't over yet! No sooner than we had stepped off the train and grabbed yet another random deli meal, our friend from Wu Wear was waiting outside the Hotel with a car destined for Jersey. We had one more interview to complete with a well-established up-&-coming Producer by the name of Grease. His stats were highly impressive, so we came, saw, and conquered. Now I'm here in my room finishing this Daily, and packing all my goodies to go home in the morn. A 7:20 wake-up call and a towncar waiting outside are what I most look forward too. My comfortable, but cold floor back home as well as my sweet Kali Kronick await me...

See ya in L.A.!

"Easier Said Than Done"

03.13.99

Sometimes I think this shit is too easy! What I mean is, when else can you e-mail somebody you never met or spoke to before and end up with a free gourmet meal at one of NYC’s finest eateries?

But allow me to digress... I said before that I wouldn’t complain about my last-minute Sponsor, so I won’t. But as I hold my nose and avoid inhaling the fonkee aromas from this janky-ass Ameritania Hotel, I just gotta tell this story. It has to do with the SHIT I went thru today, LITERALLY! See, I don’t usually share my doo-dew tales with the general public, but this is one I just cannot resist.

OK, yesterday when I woke up in the morning I had these terrible cramps from all the Becks & Heineken the night before, not t mention the day-old fried fish I ate that Midnight before retiring. So I wake up with the shits and eventually miss my flight due to the crappy disposition I was in. So as soon as we step off the elevator to enter our Hotel rooms last night, something in the air made me wanna go grunt; as in bowel movement. It wasn’t until this morning when I woke up with the same dookey cramps from all the beer, pizza & fries I had eaten that previous day & night that I started to notice the fragrance of Stankitude permeating my room. Surely the dump I took the night before couldn’t still be lingering, could it?

To make matters worse, my just-below-the-penthouse toilet wasn’t functioning properly which caused me to call down to the reception-desk and ask for another "smoking room" because my toilet wasn’t working right. I was told to move from the 12th to the 3rd floor. FUCK THAT! No way was I gonna be 8 floors below Paul. I’m the Neeya in charge!! So what I did was go downstairs and take the room key on some, "I’m gonna look at the room and if I don’t like it, I’ll stay where I’m at. Just send up a maintenance guy to fix the unflushing toilet." So what did I do? I took a shit in the new room and returned the key, that’s what!!! To make a bad situation worse, Paul asks me if I smell something strange in the hallways. My response was, "Yea, it smells like backed up plumming in the worst way!!"

Now back to tonight. We interviewed The Controls at a restaurant called Clementines right by Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. Shit was Dizznope! The food that is. The kids from The Controls consist of a guy & girl, both 21, with broad eyes and low expectations from this Industry: perfect for Kronick! So we interviewed `em and had `em come back to our Hotel. After puffin’ a bean with their label GM, and having him damn-near collapse from the Kali-Kron, we took pics of the kids and sent them on their way. The lesson learned? It’s twofold: 1) make sure that you have a backup plan for accomodations WELL IN ADVANCE, and 2) NEVER get a suit from a RECORD COMPANY high. You may get caught up in a cesspool of shit either way. In your nose or all over you ass like a bad lawsuit. Naamean?

Talk to you kiddies tommorrow. We’re off to some downtown Hip Hop spot called The Front.

Late’s

"Everyday is Saturday"

Early 03.13.99

Oh my goodness, only in NYC can I sleep in `til 3:00 PM on a weekend and not feel guilty. I mean, in a town that just gets going when everything back home shuts down, is not exactly our cure for jetlag. I was fucking exhausted after staying out `til 4:20 in the morning. And when we left Twilo, Roni Size was just midway thru his set with Jumping Jack Frost awaiting his turn on those emblazoned decks of steel. I’m sayin’, these muh’fuckas in NY know how to Party!!!

Lemme just recap the recap- Everything moved so fast once we got off the plane that by the time we looked up and caught our breath, we were once again walking in the wrong direction to the club at 12:30 AM. We ended up at the spot where Stretch Armstrong spun when we were supposed to be at the Roni Size show. So, six blocks up the street we walked , got in the line that wasn’t wrapped around the block (good looking Backspin Media!), and sneaked the camera into the venue. A little fast-talk and handover of the Ghostface issue got me thru without so much as a patdown. And believe me, they were runnin’ thru fools pockets like thieves. On top of that, they were runnin’ an inquisition that would’ve made the Spanish proud. Somewhere between three spilled beers, a gang of Hip Nips (Read: Asians in the “Know”), and some English dude named Paul buying my replacement beers, security tried to rush Animal and confiscate our digicam. So a lot more lyrics were reqired to stay in the spot. You’ll have to wait for the gallery or Road Fools to see the shots though. Ain’t nothin’ like this in L.A.!

Lastly, I promised my last minute sponsor that I wouldn’t bitch about the accommodations, so I won’t. But I could. Then again, I’ve got a lot to be thankful for. We ain’t paying for no Howard Johnsons or Days Inn. Then again, we ain’t at the Paramount. Alls I got to say is the rooms are twice the size but not half as nice. And I’ll leave it off at that, B. Tonite we have din-din with The Controls at a place called Clementine’s Downtown. WORD! I’m lookin’ forward to our first real meal in the NY. Not Mickey D’s and definitely NO PIZZA! We had both yesterday (hopefully the first & last time). Why does a meal out here cost no less than a dime-piece?

Lates...

"Meshack's Law"

03.12.99

So I’m sitting here in a NYC hotel room reflecting on the past day’s events. First of all, we missed our 9 A.M. flight at LAX and didn’t leave until 11:30. But the good thing is that our last minute hookup came thru with Hotel rooms for the weekend! Good looking, Terror Squad. So we arrived with a driver waiting for us at the airport. He whips us into town (in the towncar) while me & P puffed a half-a-blunt in the backseat talkin’ bout how it feels to be “Made Men” in NY. We get to the Ameritania Hotel and the baldheaded Blackman at the front desk gives me the old, What are you doing here?” vibes before we could check in. Once we did check in, no MTV, no ashtrays, and no mini-bar? Oh well, that’s what happens with less than 24 hour’s notice. I ain’t madd!!

But not to worry. Airport security notwithstanding, we made it to the rotten apple without a worry, nor care. $300.00 a piece spending money, and a lotta work ahead makes us look forward to any challenge. I mean, all expenses paid except meals and cab fare? How would you feel? So with Blunt in hand, let me recount the ways of the day... All the shit that coulda went wrong, didn’t happen! Once again, the Blaqman made a miracle out of a potential disaster. I had to knock myself out on the plane due to all the turbulence of that nasty winter storm we passed over. Kinda reminds me of the Roni Size show tonite at Twilo: partially wack before DJ Die & Roni set it off, and heavily thunderous once we got to the point of no return.

So once we got to our destination, it was all about setting up shoppe. Hot 97 says Funk Flex and Biggie still run the NYC airwaves. Atlantic Records came thru like champions, and Fat Joe gets the big ups for the weekend for setting us up like Kings! Word up until tomorrow,
Mr. Blaq

"Kronick Delay" guest starring Animal Chan

03.12.99

It never fails I tell ya. It was 8:45 and we were jetting down LaBrea blvd towards LAX to catch a 9:00 flight bound for the NY. I could tell from the back seat that Meshack was an unstable mixture of fatigue, anxiousness, and just plain early mornin’ crankyness. I pride myself on my accuracy in time management, and with 15 minutes and counting I could tell we weren’t gonna make our flight. With about 7 minutes before the scheduled takeoff I started letting out sighs of frustration while Meshack’s mom put the pedal to the metal. I’m sorry dude, I was just a little irate due to the Blaqman’s delinquent habits. Oh well, I guess it just wouldn’t be Kronick if we were on time.

After we boarded the 11:30 flight, we were both konked out from being mad at ourselves. The flight was bumpy, but we both managed to get some rest. I can’t describe the feeling of walking into the baggage claim area and then being flaged down by a paid chouffer waving a sign with your name on it. That’s what I love about coming to NY. Nobody over here knows who I am. Nobody over here knows about the Coolio issue, I’m just faceless photographer with dope skate shoes to them. When the publicists take us out for drinks and dinner at the Shark Bar, they don’t necisarilly know that back in LA I only order from the 99 cent menu at Jack In The Box.

Anyways, after we checked in and smoked our traditional “we’re in NY!” blunts we went to some crazy club near the Tunnel to see Roni Size and Jumping Jack Frost. Speaking of Jack Frost, it’s fucking cold out here! I’m talking about bubble goose and long Johns, kid! But back to that DJ thing; I’m begining to be able to tell the difference between a good and a bad Drum & Bass DJ. It’s hard for me to explain because it’s not my forte (likeJohn), but the first 2 fools who were spinning sucked big time. I felt like I was on bad E at a rave in the Inland Empire for about an hour and a half. We were just about to leave the techno-hell-hole when Roni came on. We had to stay, no matter how sick I was of seeing extreme glow stick maneuvers. One t hing I have to say is that NY heads seems more receptive to that ol’ progressive D&B / Jungle thing than LA. That’s not always a good thing though. To me the scene here looks more mainstreamed out. I don’t know, ask Raymond Roker or someone.

That’s it! I’m tired. Must sleep in.
Paul

"Bon Voyage"

Early 03.12.99

Hi, my name is... I got MTV on and it's 2:14 AM on Friday. I'm going to board a plane in less than 7 hours and I always get the jitters flying, no matter how many times I've done it before. I try to think about it as a long Car ride in the air without the other cars. But after that last trip form the Bay on Southwest with those four F-16 fighter escorts didn't make me any more comfy than I was already un.

Then again, the anticipation and excitement of going back to NY for the third time in 9 months has got me giddy like a little kid. After all, I can't help but think we get the full-on Rock/Rap star treatment with the hotels and towncars waiting at the airport, not to mention plane rides here and there and everywhere. Everything but the sex & drugs. Well maybe not...

So I haven't been online in a few days. That's because I have business to take care of! We're trying to meet something called deadlines which are our lifeline to revenue. In case you didn't notice, the cost of living is always on the rise and quality is the name of the Game in 2000. So take notes. By the way, thank you Fresh Jive. Thank you DVS & Matix. Thank you Axion. And thank you Osiris. This Road Fools belongs to you! We'll rep the Gear with pride and warmth in that freezing-ass weather!

So yea, we'll be broadcasting to you live online from New York for the next week. And yes, I will be giving you all an entry per day, everyday. OK? Now get off my back, you ravaging pack of wolves, you!

"Weekend Siesta"

03.08.99

OK, I'll be the first to admit that everyday ain't Saturday. But when it is and my Girl comes to town, I'm ghost like Casper! I just had to take a break from you guys in cyberspace for a minute and get my druthers and carruthers together before entering into a new set of weekdays. This is a BIG day indeed (as are all the others), for tonite The Roots shall perform at the House Of Blues. And I already know after a Lauryn Hill 3 Day weekend (Yes I got Tickets!) that Niggaz are gonna be swingin' from they vines tonite! So screw a Monday/slavery begins-day because I actually look forward to Mondays a lot more these days. That's the day Payday begins!! Anyhow, I actually transcribed the Kid Rock interview last night and was it a doozie! The guy has more pull quotes and surprises than the average whiteboy Hipster. And uh, you'll be pleasantly surprised to know that yours truly has an unduly largess scope when it comes to my musical knowledge spectrum. Just call me the Black Matt Pinfield sans the skee-ball dome.

Manyways, we got a lotta travellin' we finsta do this weekend comin' up. And a little bit of time in this week to cover a lot of ground and get a lot done. WORD! So I'll be checkin' in wiff ya from all over the place, fa Really!! Talk blaq later...