#WESEEIT DAILY: JULY 5, 2018 – 4TH OF JULY IN THE EAST END, CAM COOPER’S SOMETHING FOR THE KIDS, & NEW RVA MUSIC PICKS

I hope everyone had an amazing 4th of July. I know the weather was scorching but I hope you stayed hydrated and made it through. The Cheatham clan braved the over hour-long traffic jam and made it into Dorey Park sometime after 7 PM. It was great to see so many people out in the East End. I talk a lot about “the two Richmonds,” in many ways, Henrico is even more challenged because of the distance between the East End and West End, not to mention all of the other factors that we often talk about. I live in the West End of Henrico. It was important for me to give the Dorey Park celebration a try.

The drive is about 25 minutes either way so I was prepared for the road.  I was not prepared for the traffic entering the park which was over an hour. My mother came with us so we had a handicap decal for my mother to avoid long walks, that decal was a huge blessing, not just for my mother, but for all of us, as the walk from most parking spaces to the festival area was long and pretty grueling for young kids, the elderly, and any parent carrying a bunch of picnic items. Also, it did stand out to me that only people in the festival area were able to see the full fireworks and light show. The park is huge and, as I mentioned, the walk to the festival area of the park is long. A lot of people stopped early and set-up in other areas in the park. The tree line didn’t allow those people to see the full spectacular, which is disappointing. I was told, due to the proximately to the airport, the fireworks could not be launched higher than the tree line. I’m not sure if that is true, but if it is, that is a huge challenge for the record-setting event.

With all of that said, I’m very happy for the East End. I read that an estimated 20K showed up in Dorey Park, which is unreal. The challenges were not due to no one showing up or people shunning the East End. The challenges came from so many people wanting to enjoy the evening. That’s dope!

I’m sure I will hear a few more complaints from my West End friends about how the old location in Meadow Farms was better but we have to put in perspective: Meadow Farms has been doing the 4th of July event for nearly 40 years (maybe longer) this was year one for Dorey Park, and a record number of people. I’m certain that the event and the experience will better (and better) in the years ahead.

Moving On:

Last Saturday, I was out at the Southside Community Center with the good homie Cam Cooper (iPower92.1) for Family Day. Here are a few photos from the event. Cheats Movement (and Cam) are for the kids. Cam, along with the U.S. Army, brought a special guest, Jim Jones of the Diplomats and co-owner of the Richmond Roughriders.

Since I took yesterday off, I didn’t give you any music picks. Here are a few for you to check out:

Cole Hicks “May Day”

Cole Hicks is quickly becoming one of my favorite independent MCs. Her album “May Day” album is a breath of fresh air for hip-hop fans wanting something different from woman MCs in our culture. Cole moves in the vain of a Rapsody: an MC that gives you bars and first-hand stories from a woman’s perspective, but – her approach is from the perspective of an MC first. Over the years, I’ve grown concerned about the role of women in hip-hop. MCs like Cole provide the inspiration that I need to give that aspect of the culture hope. Not to mention, she’s just flat out dope. None of this talk about perspective and culture would work if she were wack. Lucky for us – she gets busy.

Joey Gallo X Cole Hicks “Golden Chariots” 

Cole Hicks is a new MC to the blog, Joey Gallo has been a mainstay since I started writing in 2011. He linked up with Cole, earlier this year, and dropped a surprise project “Golden Chariots.” The back and forth bars between the two is special. I need to see a video for “6495” but until then, I’m posting the video for “Rollin'”

Nickelus F “Stuck”

There is not much I can say about Petey, he long hit legend status in Richmond. His new album “Stuck” is out and he welcomed the album with a sold out concert, on Mother’s Day, following his college graduation, with Lil Ugly Mane. That’s sh*t legends do. I’m excited about the project because, in my opinion, Nick will now have the flexibility to do more with this album than previous projects (you did peep he just graduated from VCU). In years past, promo and tours would have taken him away from graduation and other things. With “Stuck”, his flexibility will allow him to move this project even beyond “Trifflin'” which charted on Billboard, as an independent project. Legend Sh*t.

Nu3era Ness – Crown Series

Nu3ear Ness has created three videos in a series called “Crown.” The Fredericksburg based MC is known for slick wordplay and thought-proking rhymes. Check out the 2nd video in the series “Best Foot Forward” directed by By dev. Also, take a listen to Ness’sfull-length projects “Lights” and “Success Story” on all streaming platforms.

Finally, a little free agency fun. I’ve been doing this with my friends since the NBA free agency period started, this video captures us perfectly. Enjoy.

Until next time, #WESEEIT.