KEXP is proud to partner with Seattle’s coffee roaster Caffé Vita and over 30 other local businesses for the GIVE music and video compilation to benefit Arts Corps and area food banks. Starting today, November 17th, 30 downloadable tracks are available from a wide variety of Seattle artists, all of whom have donated songs for this benefit.

The compilation is available online at www.giveseattle.org for a mere $7 (a huge bargain with so much great music) and 100% of the go directly to GIVE beneficiaries: Arts Corps, Seattle’s largest nonprofit arts educator, along with Ballard Food Bank, Rainier Valley Food Bank, University District Food Bank and West Seattle Food Bank.

Among the many KEXP-friendly tracks are unreleased songs exclusive to this compilation from The Cave Singers, Grand Archives, The Blakes, Le Loup, The Maldives, The Moondoggies, Visqeen, and more!

1. Arthur & Yu: Magic Mountain
2. The Blakes: Parking Lot
3. Sera Cahoone: Love’s Gonna Live Here
4. The Cave Singers: Growing Palm
5. Champagne Champagne featuring Fences: Victim of the Modern Age
6. Common Market: The Picture of My DeLorean Gray
7. D.Black: On the Go
8. Fatal Lucciauno: Gangsta
9. Fences: Sadie
10. Fleet Foxes: Mykonos
11. Fresh Espresso: Gettin Money
12. Grand Archives: Wake Up
13. Head Like a Kite: Director’s Cut
14. Hey Marseilles: From a Terrace
15. Kinski: Whatever Happened to Madeleine Stowe
16. Le Loup: Forgive Me
17. The Lonely Forest: I Don’t Wanna Live There
18. Mad Rad: Love in a Strange World
19. The Maldives: In the End
20. Gabriel Mintz: Safeway
21. The Moondoggies: Side of the Road
22. Joshua Morrison: Mammoth Cave
23. Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band: Bitter Cold
24. Pearly Gate Music: Big Escape
25. The Pica Beats: Durian Shakes
26. The Saturday Knights: Go!
27. Talbot Tagora: Ichthus Hop
28. Tea Cozies: Corner Store Girls
29. J. Tillman: Earthly Bodies
30. Visqueen: Hand Me Down

If you’d like to purchase a gift card for a music-loving loved one, head into any Caffé Vita shop, Easy Street Records, Sonic Boom Records, University Book Store, The Crocodile, EMP, Neumos and Sorrento Hotel to pick up a GIVE package, including a physical card with a redemption code for the download.

Also, there will be a benefit concert featuring Grand Archives, D.Black, Grant Olsen of Arthur & Yu, Kinski, Gabriel Mintz, Tea Cozies, and M.C. Tilson from The Saturday Knights will be held at the Crocodile on December 3. Tickets for the show are on sale now at www.thecrocodile.com.

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Each and every Friday we offer songs by local artists. Today’s featured selection, chosen by Afternoon Show Host Kevin Cole, is “Yah Have Mercy” by D.Black from his latest album Ali’yah available on Sportn’Life/MYX Records.

At 22, today’s artist belies his youth and shrugs off stereotypes with ease. In addition to leading a small ministry that explores the Hebrew roots of Christianity, local hip hop artist D.Black (born Damian Black) is an up-and-coming producer and emcee in Seattle’s tight-knit hip hop community, where he rubs elbows with the likes of Jake One, Vitamin D, and labelmates Fatal Lucciauno and Spaceman. His roots go back — his parents and uncle were pioneers of Seattle rap in 70’s having been the groups The Emerald City Boys and The Emerald City Girls — but D.Black made his own way and earned partial ownership in his label, Sportn’Life, which is partnered with Bay Area label MYX Records. The Cause & Effect, D.Black’s 2006 debut, came out when he was just 18 and was met with much acclaim but never made it much outside the Northwest. With his strong sophomore release, produced by Jake One, who first featured D.Black on “God Like” from his own release White Van Music, and by D.Black’s mentor and Seattle hip hop veteran Vitamin D, D.Black is now ready to take the national stage.

Like much of the hip hop coming from our city, D.Black’s music is soulful and socially conscious, but on the new album he takes it a step further and incorporates his strong spirituality into the mix which is a driving force in his life. The album title Ali’Yah is Hebrew for “ascend”. His religious beliefs and the predominantly violent and flashy hip hop culture he finds himself in are constantly at odds and the contradiction is often reflected in his lyrics. “Yah Have Mercy” is a diatribe on violence he’s experienced and the youth culture that is hell bent on imitating what they see in much of hip hop culture today. He writes: “Yah please have mercy on me. It’s hard to overcome everything I see.”

D.Black has few performances scheduled in support of this album, but he does have a showcase at CMJ on October 24th at The Suffolk. Keep an eye on his MySpace page for future dates. For now, here’s a video for two songs, “Bring It Back” featuring Grynch and “Yesterday”:

by Chris Estey

Long-time, legendary, much loved Seattle hip-hop label Sportin’ Life is about to put out D.Black’s second album with the Bay Area-based MYX Music Label midway through this month (September 15 is the exact drop date).

Chatting with inspiring SL founder DeVon Manier at the Capitol Hill Block Party earlier this summer, it seemed his partnering with Damian Black is going to give him plenty to do this season, as a pre-release buzz has been more like a full-on roar of anticipation for Ali-Yah. Catching his talents during the Sportin’ Life set only confirmed it.

Featuring production from Vitamin D and Jake One (White Van Music) D.Black is bold about life changes in faith on new tracks like the deeply impressive “God Like,” which breaks many boundaries of confession and storytelling for a NW hip-hop emcee. Thus the title of the album, which translates to “ascend” in Hebrew (appropriately).

D.Black was born in Seattle and was raised into the art of hip-hop by parents active in the milieu, and his growing legion of followers only amped out with his appearance on the critically-acclaimed White Van Music (which got national distro through Rhymesayers last year). His collaborations with Young Buck and 50 Cent showed how respected his production skills already are, as it all helped to get a San Francisco label with a great rep and a fresh hit (Keelay & Zaire’s Ridin’ High) to co-sign the full-length.

When curious new listeners hear elevated tracks like “Let It Go” and “Closer to Yah,” it will all seem like a master plan. Come hear and see D.Black give a strong message of redemption and rhythm to the crowd at Bumbershoot the night of Sunday, September 6, at 8 PM at the EMP/SFM Sky Church.