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I had the pleasure of co-hosting Mike Zombie’s second annual celebrity basketball game this year, featuring Joe Budden, Chill Moody, Tsu Surf, Chad B., Kazzie and many more!
It was such a great time (just like last year,) and I got to meet so many fans as well!
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At our first “That NJ Ish” meetup with this month’s spotlight, OVO producer, Mike Zombie, we got to see some new colors from the bold and brash South Jersey star! The only thing better than picking Mike Zombie‘s brain (get it? Zombie? Brain?) during a fun round of “This Or That,” is getting to know him in the best way he can tell his story — through his raps. Zombie opened his exclusive freestyle with an homage to Jay Z‘s verse on his own production, “They Don’t Love You No More.”
With his 609 chains prominently displayed, Mike Zombie let us know exactly what’s on his mind since entering his new career as a producer. “All my shit is massive, let’s get this shit to the masses,” Zombie raps. He continues, “Tired of playing beats for boys I’m better than.” We personally know Mike Zombie not for being cocky, but for knowing his own capabilities and going hard by his damn self, and so we love when talks that NJ ish!
Check out Mike Zombie‘s freestyle below.
Our podcast had a live show at SXSW this year, so I went down a few days early to catch some shows and have some fun! I had the pleasure of seeing Atlantic artist PJ perform a few times as well as NEF The Pharaoh, Tdot iLLdude, Mike Zombie and Chill Moody.
Thank you to Annie at Mass Appeal for taking care of me at the Mass Appeal BBQ (featuring Nas, Dave East, Mannie Fresh, Cipha Sounds, Yo Gotti and many more) and the Mass Appeal Brunch! Shout to Chuck Creekmur, DJ Carisma, DJ Damage, IAMSU!, P-Lo, Kehlani, Kamaiyah, Nineteen85 and everyone else I saw/met/got drunk with, LOL. So glad I got to see the Illmore in its last year! And the FADER Fort was dope too.
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Last week Marisa, Drewski, and myself launched That NJ Ish on LifeIsTremendez.com. The four-part series will put a spotlight on a different artist from New Jersey every month, and feature new music from them, exclusive interviews, freestyles and more. When Marisa and I decided to create That NJ Ish, she mentioned featuring Mike Zombie and it was almost a no-brainier. Many know him as “Zombie On The Track,” the mastermind behind instrumentals such as Drake‘s “Started From The Bottom,” DJ Khaled‘s “They Don’t Love You No More,” and more. Although he’s signed to Drake‘s OVO imprint as a producer, many fail to realize that Mike is also an unsigned rapper and he can actually rap. The Willingboro, New Jersey native released his first mixtape, The End Of The Beginning, in 2013 and Rebel Without A Cause in 2015. Since then, Zombie had liberated some heat including “Hella Crack 2” with Mir Trillz, “Autograph,” “You A Dub,” and more.
Mike Zombie is one of those guys that commands attention unknowingly. It’s not his height or his bright red hair that draws people in, it’s his aura. He’s not necessarily a “funny guy,” he’s not loud, or the type that necessarily wants to be center of attention but he is. Although this was my first time meeting Mike, it feels almost as if I’m catching up with an old friend. As we stand in Suvas in Jersey City, I asked him some questions about rapping verses producing, his dream collaborations, what it’s like growing up in South Jersey, his standing with OVO and more.
Interview by: Julie Aly
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Though I originally flew out to Toronto for All Star Weekend, I ended up in Los Angeles hours later to do Grammy weekend instead. I just couldn’t handle the cold!
It was such an amazing trip, from covering Power 106′s Valentine’s concert (featuring The Weeknd, Kehlani, French Montana, Kid Ink, Tory Lanez and more,) to French’s Grammy dinner, Kehlani’s Grammy party, Kendrick Lamar’s Grammy party, various events with Mike Zombie and Rosenberg – a dope trip all around!
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This past weekend was Willingboro, New Jersey‘s first annual celebrity basketball game, brought to us by our very own Mike Zombie! Since unveiling himself to the industry in 2013 by producing Drake‘s super-successful “Started From the Bottom” single, Zombie has put his town on the radar for many of music’s elite underground and mainstream leaders, and continued his momentum by hosting a charity event for the town’s community sports teams.
Taking place at Willingboro‘s John F. Kennedy Recreational Center, the Panthers basketball teams were split into the Blue team and the White team, consisting of some of the most prominent local celebrities that dominate both the music and sports industries. Just a few of those names include legendary battle rapper Tsu Surf, Big OOH!, Gillie Da Kid, NY Jets safety Calvin Pryor, Porta Rich, Empire‘s Black Rambo, Kazzie, Chill Moody and plenty more. Over 200 people packed the newly renovated JFK gymnasium, making for an excellent turn-out.
I’m not even going to pretend like I know how to describe a basketball game, so I’ll say that no one expected the Blue Team (Zombie‘s team) to come out with such a victory of 57-41. The most entertaining players to watch were Gillie Da Kid, who landed 3-pointers back to back accompanied by a smug smile and an energetic and warm attitude, and Calvin Pryor of the white team, who had a good start in the first quarter, weaned by the second, and came back to finish strong by the last quarter.
After a few months of letting the music video for “616” marinate on everyone’s TV screens, Mike Zombie has finally released his long-awaited debut studio album, Rebel Without A Cause. This is a landmark project for too many reasons to list in a simple blog post, but the main reason being that this is and will be one of the most critically acclaimed projects to release out of New Jersey this year alongside very few others.
Mike Zombie initially made waves by producing several of his own full length mixtapes, before becoming producer of Drake‘s “Started From The Bottom,” the lead single from 2013’s Nothing Was The Same album and DJ Khaled‘s “They Don’t Love You No More” featuring Rick Ross, French Montana, Meek Mill and Jay Z. Some time later, even Remy Ma came along for a memorable remix. Pretty star-studded names for a guy from a small town in NJ, but he’s been a left-field thinker for quite some time, so the accolades shouldn’t surprise anyone.
I’m most excited for this album, because with its undeniable east coast bounce, it gives me some new music to spin at the skating rink! The production is versatile, and the stories range from late nights around town with the homies, keeping it real through the industry and his new-found fame, and where he plans to go next. The project is definitely an upgrade from his last mixtape The End of the Beginning as far as beat selection and lyricism. Not many producers crossover well into rapping on their own beats (or just rapping well period), but with this body of work, Mike Zombie is proving that he’s more than just a producer.
Enjoy Mike Zombie‘s Rebel Without A Cause via iTunes.