Jon Henry- “All U Touch & All U See” MUSIC VIDEO

Still keeping the theme from his latest EP “Young World Street,” being a proud Milwaukeean is the beat that Jon Henry steps to unapologetically. His off-kilter persona combined with quality visuals and camera work produced through the collaborative efforts of himself and another creates an artistic identity for Henry. Well, this Week he dropped a new video, shot all by himself, for his new song  “All U Touch & All U See.” Jon Henry is seen taking a drive in the night time, solo, and then there is an immediate switch to daylight where we see The Fiserv Forum behind him as well as other familiar downtown east side locations as a shout out to the areas where most of our artists are seen when it's time to perform.

The back and forth of night and day and loppy visual effects portrays the lifestyle of anyone, particularly in music, who is no stranger to working and hustling in the day time, alone most often, and coming alive artistically and socially at night, making sense for why the words “work hard” and ”play hard” show up on the screen at separate points in the video. The haunting melody of the chorus brings it all together with Henry singing “All you touch and All you see, is all your life will ever be..” Life is what we make it and one can either settle for the loop and delusion of the hustle life or be committed to the growth that comes from its consistency.  Tell me how YOU feel about “All U Touch & All U See” Milwaukee. /Naomi-Re’a for CW

Marijauana XO and Joe Pablo “Window Service 1&2”

When it comes to Milwaukee music, lately I’ve been hearing that everybody sounds the same. The Mil is known for “dumper music” in a rap scene that’s heavily dominated by males. Fans feel like a lot of our artists rap alike or talk about the same things, and I agree to an extent. But within the large ocean of Milwaukee rappers, even those who stick to the shallow side of music,  I’ve discovered two sharks. MarijauanaXO and Joe Pablo, in my opinion, are Milwaukee’s best rap duo right now. After the release of “Window Service” in 2021, they had us in a chokehold. From “Shake Back”all the way down to “Half a Book”, most of us had this album on replay. “My Brother”became one of the top songs in the city. Again….CHOKEHOLD! 

“Take the phones, it ain’t none call me when you get yo self together. If you got half I got half, we can split whatever. And if I got it then you got it, we in this sh*t forever. Get on his a** if he slacking but it’s for the better.”

I damn near started rapping as I was typing, literally. This past May, they dropped “Window Service 2”, a highly anticipated sequel to the first. My favorite song on this one is “Keep Grindin” or “Fire Brings Ice”. “Make a left, I just seen em at the lights, gotta make it home. Say my prayers every night, in that cell you on yo own so you better get it right. But i’m like how the f-in hell did this fire bring me ice?” When we talk about rap as a genre, some of the most important things that determine your success are content, rhythm, rhyme, cadence, tone, etc. Joe Pablo creates the cadence with his melodic rapping style, his hooks are always catchy. XO comes in on the verses with a completely different sound than Joe Pablo, but he always matches energy with whatever verse he spits. “They telling us to move outta town if we wanna make it, too many n-ggas that’s around that be slick hating. Told my brother watch my back hope he don’t stab me in it…” .“Quit Perpin” and “9 Times Outta 10” are the best examples of this rhythm and synchronicity between them. 

Granted, we all can’t relate to everything they talk about. We can’t relate to a lot of stuff that our favorite rappers talk about. But the thing about good music is, even if you can’t relate, you can understand. And if you’re anything like me, when you really “get in mode”, it doesn’t matter if you can relate or not, you’re gonna sing it like you do! Moral of the story, Milwaukee music has something for everybody. Tap in with XO and Blo! Let me know what y’all think! 

/Pam from CW

Clayton- “Tempting Fate” EP

 Ladies!! The Musical Men of the Mil Have been exposing their little hearts all ‘22! What’s in the air??

Clayton is quickly on his way to becoming the heart throb of the city with the drop of his new EP Tempting Fate. After quietly going through a break up this summer, Clayton went through moments of confusion and the war between moving on and what he thought made him happy made him conflicted. He took it straight to the studio and alongside Yogic Beats, Casey Soyk, and M&M Systematik, he produced a project that is “..most dear to my heart..” from his own words. The Cover Art is a scrapbook style collage of photos, both current and from his childhood- some are candids and some are from familiar moments of him as an artist. Clayton let us know that the first two tracks “Better Alone” and “I Wonder” were his two faves from this 4 track EP. He also gave them special attention on his insta with a couple of “Photo” Reels where he is styled to a ‘T’ in 5 looks and in the caption, gives brief insight on the context of each song; ”.. A song expressing pure confusion and frustration in regards to finding “true love”. No matter how good something may feel, it never quite feels right,” He wrote about “Better Alone.” I gathered the same on my first listen. The slow, consistent tempo of the instrumental allows the young vocalist to take his time and really deliver his emotions.

Only during the last minute of the song does the beat intensify in the slightest and Clayton compliments it with his vocalizing. For “I Wonder” he wrote “... A song about somebody who continued to run through my mind regardless of how badly I wanted to be alone.” This one had a tad bit of funk in it but still true to the R&B flavor. Through the remainder of this project, the young artist goes through highs and lows of convincing himself that it must not have been meant for he and his ex-lover to last while also acknowledging the things that he did receive from the relationship, making it real all over again. Tell me how YOU feel about “ Tempting Fate ” Milwaukee. /Naomi-Re’a for CW

OnlyDev “Badu Breakdown” VIDEO DEBUT

A stumble upon OnlyDev’s music has quickly turned into a solo discovery of underground talent. After the release of “GMN” this past June, “Badu Breakdown” off of his latest EP, “Se7en” has given me a new anthem. This is Dev’s first music video and it was definitely well executed. From the beginning of the video, I was intrigued by the shadow figures of the Black women. It foreshadowed the mood and tone of the single. Immediately after, I hear one of my favorite parts of the entire song which is the sample of Summer Walker’s “Stretch You Out” featuring A. Boogie. His beat selection is always on point, in my opinion. His cadence always aligns perfectly with the vibe of whatever beat he uses. The song is a serenade to his Black goddess, his “Badu”. The reference to the famed Erykah Badu alludes to his respect for her spirituality and divine essence. “She say she my new Badu, keepin’ it 3 stacks she probably is.” Andre 3000 and Erykah Badu reference, it’s giving power couple vibes. 

Throughout the video, there’s transitions between Dev spending quality time with his Badu and his friends. It personifies the idea that “even when there’s a room full of people, all I see is you.” I really loved that aspect, especially because the close ups of they’re eye contact show you that clearly it was vibe in the room. His four models that were featured in the video reminded me of the muses from Hercules. The entire video overwhelms you with Black beauty and creativity. “I’m just a libra, I bring balance, U bring the boat, I bring the paddle. We both stroke until we make it.” “My lil shawty do hoodoo, she like who do you think you is?” I have so many parts of this song that I admire but to sum I’ll say that once again, I am impressed. This is one of my favorite new love songs. Milwaukee has an amazing R&B scene, next time you think about checking it out, look up OnlyDev. 

“Badu Breakdown” should be on every Black girl’s playlist, this is a serenade to the girls! 

How y’all feel about it? 

/Pam from CW

John Henry “All About Our Love” SONG

After having been a part of the band Astral / Subastral for a while, Jon Henry held his own with another independent musical project with the drop of his EP “Young World Street,” A collaborative piece with producer Boost that was released late October of 2021. For one of the singles, the Milwaukee hip hop artist gives us vocals (and a jig???) with the release of the music video for the ballad, “All About Our Love.” With a similar groove to that of a Sade song, “All About Our Love” will make you swoon over the idea of romance as Jon Henry’s vocals flutter across the jazziness of the beat, reassuring his lover that their love will stand the test of time. Now the visual… The visual is a biiiiiit ‘1,3’ to the songs ‘2,4’ count if you know what I mean; it comes off as incompatible to the vibe and the lyrics of the song, yet to those who are perceptive, it is quite beautiful. From scene to scene, Henry is singing, at times, directly to his lover but she goes on as if he is not there. She performs house chores, dolls herself up, takes a hike, and even plays darts without acknowledging his presence. She is not angry nor being visibly deliberate about ignoring him. Meanwhile, Henry has a calm and patient demeanor, he even dances, while waiting for her to recognize that he is there and that this love requires cooperation from the both of them. It takes for Jon Henry to physically reach out and touch her for her to be reminded of how okay it is to give her heart and feel the love that he has wanted to give her for the entirety of the visual. Tell me how YOU feel about “ All About Our Love” Milwaukee. /Naomi-Re’a for CW