Killings Must Stop

Look, I’ve never in my life considered myself an activist.. nor a “political” MC.. just a regular dude with integrity and morals. But with all the madness going on with our police departments, this song naturally came out. Took the instrumental from Japanese producers Typewriter&YMG, mixed by D-Wiz, and mastered by Sota Furugen.

 

Killings Must Stop

Kensho Kuma Verse 1: “Ignorant people think Asians eat cats/ I love eating pussy, please believe that/ we could joke around but these stereotypes/ are killing Black people in the dead of the night/ prejudiced Caucasians, perpetuate fright/ cops see the melanin, and pull weapons on sight/ (from the Bay Area) where we hella liberal/ yet Barbecue Becky think you’s criminal/ depending on your damn traits, phenotypical/ after Oscar Grant, most of us remained cynical/ ughh, still can’t believe they acquitted Zimmerman/ the mass media, don’t want us to remember him/ I’m down to go riot ’cause I like vengeance/ but I’d rather see a cop get a life sentence/ for taking the lives of these minorities/ some do believe in white superiority/ they known to be liars who commit forgery/ when they doing they dirt, we gotta record the scene/ ah! hold them accountable, in a court of law/ if that don’t work, we bringing war to yall/”

Chorus: “Too many people have been killed by the cops/ nobody can afford to chill and just watch/ protest, riot, or go and bust shots/ we gotta do whatever, the killings must stop/ too many people have been killed by the cops/ nobody can afford to chill and just watch/ don’t know what to do, but I’ve seen too much/ in the Bay Area, shit’s been too corrupt/”

Kuma Verse 2: “I’m hella racist like the world I was raised in/ get buck-fiftied if you disrespect Asians/ immigrants, Tibetans, or folks from Wakanda/ want more than cash, I need freedom and the honor/ forefathers proud, I’m a Japanese soldier/ some paying to be white, fuck a Sammy Sosa/ the European standards of beauty is wack/ in Hip Hop, what’s considered beauty is black/ ah, worst gang members are the agents of ICE/ what familias in Oakland be facing ain’t right/ it’s about the colored kids, not the hatred for whites/ but I’m not a pacifist, I can’t break up no fights/ at a damn Trump rally, stand with the refugees/ Latin youth in cages, cry out rescue me/ officers ain’t letting kids in the ghetto live/ people from the Middle East, get called a terrorist/ politic with doctors, and some gang members/ and learn from both groups, to further the agenda/ streets to the campus, we are making anthems/ if you down with POC’s, please put them hands up!/”

Chorus:

Return of the Cypher

If you know me from real life, you already know that I am one of the directors for the weekly Return of the Cypher party @the Boom Boom Room in the historic Fillmore district in San Francisco. I am proud to report that our event recently celebrated our 5 year anniversary!!

R.O.T.C. is an open-mic cypher accompanied by our in-house Get Down Band and legendary DJ Kevvy Kev. All emcees and vocalists are welcome to rock with us.. as long as they read the rules, acquire a wristband, and of course adhere to the guidelines stated in the rules. It is the most accurate representation of Hip Hop culture in the SF Bay Area.. and if you were raised by this culture, you will surely agree. Many of our patrons consider R.O.T.C. to be their temple/ mosques/ church , and religiously attend. Iconic legends that are in your iTunes right now regularly are in attendance. Large Professor, MC Akil of Jurassic 5, RZA, Killah Priest, Rappin’ 4-Tay, and Lyrics Born, have all stopped by and/or performed at R.O.T.C.!!

Our event features a special performer doing a set every week. We have had touring acts from every imaginable region of the U.S., as well as international artists that ventured from Japan, Mongolia, Bali, Vietnam, U.K., and Sweden. We also feature the monthly M.V.P (Most Valuable Poet) contest, where competitors go after the coveted R.O.T.C. dog tags, a beatsmith live production set known as the Boom Boom Bap Session, and guest hosts with varying flavors.

If you are a newbie emcee still mastering elementary skills, there doesn’t exist an environment more supportive than R.O.T.C. If you are a mid-tier flame spitter or veteran, our platform is the perfect place to try out new material, keep your bars sharp, and be reminded why you love rapping in the first place. If you are a veteran, please help us carry on tradition!! The essence of rap camaraderie is extremely powerful in our community; cats routinely cypher outside the venue after the party has ended.

 

R.O.T.C. TV Season 2 Episode 1

R.O.T.C. TV Season 2 Episode 1 is here!! Orchestrated by Return of the Cypher Director Unlearn the World and Boogie the Man, the debut episode for the new season accurately captures what our R.O.T.C. world has become. We will have ongoing episodes getting produced, so please stay tuned!! Photo credit: Sarah Arnold Photography

If you don’t know by now.. R.O.T.C. facilitates top-tier, organic cyphers powered by our in-house Get Down Band and songstress Jenna Medina. It goes down every Sunday evening at the Boom Boom Room in the historic Fillmore District of San Francisco. These cyphers are open to the public, and all MC’s, lyricists, rappers, vocalists, etc., are welcome to participate.. as long as they read our rules, acknowledge them, and receive a wristband. Our event also features a traditional dance party segment overseen by R.O.T.C. Commander DJ Kevvy Kev and a special weekly guest performer!!

R.O.T.C. Official Newsletter

I have started the Official R.O.T.C. Newsletter!! If you don’t know by now, Return of the Cypher is where Hip Hop culture resides in the SF Bay Area!! Every Sunday evening at the historic Boom Boom Room in the Fillmore District of San Francisco, we facilitate an organic, top-tier cypher, backed by our in-house live band. The event celebrated its 5 years anniversary this past summer, and the movement is showing no signs of slowing down.. please come through!! Please sign-up here!!

 

Kensho Kuma featured on Rikinish’s Debut Album

Rikinish is a Japanese MC, producer, nomadic teacher, and R.O.T.C. regular; this past week, his debut album Everyday, was released through Orikami Records in France. Please be sure to support the official release!! Yours truly is featured alongside R.O.T.C.’s Jane the Message on a song titled “the Game.”

I am currently working on the “Lyricist ov the Lineage” project, which features new, old, and collaborative tracks.. I am going to compile 60-70 minutes worth of music, and have my uncle DJ Kevvy Kev mix it.. this one is the latest addition to the line-up thus far. Please be sure to check out the whole playlist.

Kensho Kuma “the Game” verse: “Not a freestyler/ want my name mentioned in the same sentence as a legendary writer/ Ernest Hemingway/ cats get resentful that they could never ever step in Kensho’s way/ I’m like Marley Marl, dropping science and math/ a lotta obstacles, popping up in my path/ but we separate, propaganda and facts/ and decisions get made properly with the stats/ yeah, you know the vulture type/ decent at rapping, but always acting stupid and can’t rep the culture right/ scene’s fulla punks frontin’ like millionaires/ but the foul stench of poverty is still in the air/ Kuma! developers be the villains in here/ leaving families without homes and children in tears/ regardless of era, I’m doing my thang/ I’m remembering Oakland, before them bike lanes/ yeah, snitching, literally meant you died/ now everything is vegan and gentrified/ feeling like kamikaze, sent to die/ and fuck pain, ’cause your boy been desensitized/”

“the Game” Chorus: “The game that we playing, life that we living/ we’ll be spitting raw, ’til the very last inning/ the mics we are gripping, the crowds we control/ the rules and traditions, we vowed to uphold/ the game that we playing, life that we living/ we’ll be spitting raw, ’til the very last inning/ anytime you see us on the stage, we wreck it/ it’s Kensho Kuma, Rikinish, and Jane the Message/”

ROTC MC’s featured on Cloud NI9E’s 12 Sentence Story

A select infantry of Return of the Cypher MC’s, myself, Denero, Slice IX, Unlearn the World, and Spread Fox, are featured on Japanese producer Cloud NI9E‘s brand new 12 Sentence Story album. Cloud NI9E is one of my main producers, tour DJ, and frequent collaborators, and is stationed in Tokyo, Japan. The 12 Sentence Story has a jazzy, downtempo vibe to it, but of course my squadron of MC’s bring that Bay Area rawness!!

Cloud NI9E- 12 Sentence Story Puchase here from Introducing!! Label

Kensho Kuma x R.O.T.C.@Broke Buddha Day Party

My Return of the Cypher squadron was invited to perform at the Broke Buddha Day Party 10:30 AM- 7:00PM on 04/28/18! Please come down to Score! Bar and Lounge in San Francisco!! This event celebrates a diverse array of soundscapes, playing everything from Hip Hop, Tribal Beats, Latin House, and all sorts of other eclectic tunes. Broke Buddha also features 3-D light reactive tapestries, live painters, and local designers… and TACOS!! Myself, Jane the Message, and the Road Warriors, will be performing sets throughout the day, and of course cyphers are open to our R.O.T.C. troopers. Shout outs to our comrade MC Awokeone for inviting R.O.T.C and to Jane the Message for producing the flier last minute!!

R.O.T.C. x Strictly Business

As you hopefully know, Return of the Cypher has become San Francisco’s premier Hip Hop weekly.. I proudly serve as a R.O.T.C. Director and I am extremely excited that our event is about to celebrate our 5 year anniversary. R.O.T.C. is your rightful home in the SF Bay Area, if you were raised by Hip Hop culture. Welcome home. We continue to operate as a FREE weekly. Come visit us Sunday nights starting at 9:00 at the Boom Boom Room in the historic Fillmore district of San Francisco.

Oakland Legionnaire‘s weekly Strictly Business party will be joining forces with R.O.T.C. on a monthly basis starting on 03/14/18. Every second Wednesday from midnight to 1:00AM will feature a R.O.T.C. cypher overseen by R.O.T.C. Director Unlearn the World. Shout outs to Foreign Legion and DJ Saurus!

2nd Floor Samurais x Unlearn the World- 40 A Week

Before the 2nd Floor Samurais depart on this Asia tour, we wanted to leave you with a FREE track!! We did this song with our R.O.T.C. comrade Unlearn the World, who was also generous enough to mix the track. Production was handled by Cloud NI9E and the picture was taken by Kali Oraysion. Please download and share!!

Kensho Kuma Verse:

“待ちに待ってた金曜日の夜/ 仕事忘れて, Friscoに急ぐ/ 今夜のライブにホーミーズを呼ぶ/ 仲間がいなけりゃロンリーな僕/ 憧れてたあの娘も招待/ そわそわしてたら, もうすぐshowtime/ ステージに上がれば迷いはもう無い/ 音楽のおかげで不安な将来/ の事忘れ, バカになれ/ ハスラー気取りのはした金/ より友達集め, 派手なパーティー/ 綺麗なバーテン, 満員のフロア/ 酔tぱらったマイメンは, act like a fool with you/フリースタイルセッション, 見せつける凄さ/ 今夜は忘れろ, 日常の辛さ”