• News

    Blueprint feature in the Orlando Weekly

    Last week when i was in Orlando, their weekly paper The Orlando Weekly did a great feature on me and Adventures in Counter-Culture.

    Please check it out here: http://orlandoweekly.com/music/under-the-radar-1.1245038

    Here’s an exerpt:

    In 2005, Al Shepard stopped by the headquarters of Power 107.5 FM, a radio station in his hometown, Columbus, Ohio. Shepard had ties to hip-hop, and so did the station, but each had a vastly different idea of what makes the genre great. Traditionally, Shepard raps over self-made beats as Blueprint, keeping his work low on coolness and flash, and heavy on honesty. Slang doesn’t play into his verses much and he’s consistently willing to experiment with different moods and sounds in his beats. (He’s had albums issued by stately indie hip-hop label Rhymesayers.)

  • News

    Blueprint announces the “Sunshine State of Mind” Tour

     

    Hello Friends.  Although it’s officially winter I would like to announce the Sunshine State of Mind Tour, a week-long headlining tour that will be brought to the sunniest of sunny places, Florida.  If you live in the state of Florida, I would like to officially invite you out to one of the shows.


    Blueprint Tour Dates:

    Thursday December 15th – Tampa, FL @ The Orpheum: details & RSVP
    Friday, December 16th – Orlando, FL @ The Social: details & RSVP
    Saturday, December 17th – Jacksonville, FL @ The Phoenix Taproom: details and RSVP
    Sunday, December 18th – Orlando, FL @ Blank Space (Producer Showcase): details and RSVP
    Tuesday, December 20th – Lake Worth, FL @ Propaganda: details and RSVP

    Thanks for the support,

    Printmatic!

  • News

    I’m working on a new album

     

    It’s been a while since I’ve blogged, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have anything to say.  In fact it’s the opposite.  I’ve had a lot to say, I just haven’t had the time to sit down and say it.

    But I do want to say this: I’m currently knee deep into working on my follow-up to Adventures in Counter-Culture.

    It doesn’t have an official title yet, it doesn’t have any guest appearances on it yet, but trust me that it’s definitely underway and could possibly be finished by the end of this winter. 

  • Blog

    Columbus Producer Community

    To all my friends out there that do beats and are from the Columbus area, as the winter approaches we start to get close to that time that is typically the most depressing yet the most productive for us.  Since we can’t go out, we make beats.  If you are one of those people, and would like to get out of the house and share your work, I have an idea.  I would like to build a Columbus Producer Community.  Nothing even very formal, but just a place where we can all meet up and share our work (either weekly, biweekly, or monthly), at a spot with a nice PA, probably during happy hour or something.  If there’s enough interest I will get the spot.

    I think it would help build community and inspire us all, two things that are always needed.  I’ve never been one for beat battles myself, because I always felt like the beats had to fit a certain type of sound or style for a producer to be successful in that format, and also because they don’t really build community.  So I would like to try something different.  I’ve got a lot of cats in mind already, and you probably already know who you are.   If I don’t know who you are and you’re interested in participating in this please e-mail me at info(at)printmatic.net and send me the links to your work.

    Thanks in advance.

  • Blog

    Artists that have influenced me: Bjork

    More than ever, since the release of Adventures in Counter-Culture, one of the questions I get asked the most often is who my favorite artists are and what artists have influenced me. I guess back when my album 1988 came out it was pretty obvious, but now its not so clear since adventures is such an eclectic album.

    I realized the other day that while the people who hang around with me know that my taste in music is extremely varied, the people who listen to my music may not, so I always thought it would be cool to actually write about artist or songs that influenced and inspired me.

    The first artist I would like to talk about is Bjork.

  • News

    Blueprint News Update – September 2011

    Hey Friends.  It’s been a while since I’ve written so I figured I would write one post that summarizes all the stuff that’s been going on.  This will also be my first newsletter that I’m sending to those that subscribe to my mailing list as well. 

  • News

    Adventures in Counter-Culture is in stores now!

    Alright folks.  Today is the day.  My new album is in stores right now.  You can get it from itunes, pretty much any mom & pop store, on-line at fifthelementonline.com as well as chains like Best Buy.  I’m gonna spare you the sales pitch and just say that I’ve put a lot of time into it so obviously it would be great it you picked it up.  I’m going to be flying back to Columbus to do an in-store at Magnolia Thunderpussy at 7pm today, so I’m not going to be online a much until later, but feel free to hit this post up and let me know what you think of it if you’ve got it already.

    Pre-order Adventures In Counter-Culture now from Fifth Element Online! You can still pre-order today and get the bonus materials! Every pre-order will receive a bonus Weightless Radio CD for FREE, a 27 track instrumental album of previously unreleased beats produced by Blueprint and only available at Fifth Element. The vinyl features a custom limited and numbered double LP picture disc in a full color printed jacket. It also includes an 8 page booklet with lyrics, liner notes, and digital download card. You don’t want to miss out on this exclusive deal, only from Fifth Element!

    Pre-Order today: Fifth Element (with exclusive bonus instrumental disc) | iTunesAmazon

    Here’s the information on the inst0re today:

  • Blog

    Blueprint, MTV, and “Selling Out”

    The Adventure

    I started working on Adventures in Counter-Culture 5 years ago.  At the time I started working on it I was fed up with everything around me; television and its stereotypical and harmful images, commercial radio, the stagnation of the music (even in the hip-hop scene that I’m a part of), and society in general.  To me, there had become too many rules, too much routine, too much recycling of ideas and concepts.  So as far as I was concerned I didn’t want to be a part of of that anymore, even if it meant that I had to challenge even the things that I’m known best for as an artist.

    That’s what counter-culture is.

    So as I took on this task of trying to destroy everything I knew musically and socially, I immediately realized that there would be risk involved, but I made the journey primarily for me so I didn’t care.  I had to do it for myself.  Make the music that I wanted to make, become the person I wanted to be, free of expectations and rules, so that I would know that I’m not just another artist playing it safe like everybody else, making the same boring record over and over again just because it makes them money.

    When this entire scene that I’m a part of began to pop off in the early 2000s, it was because the music was different and progressive.  It expanded and inspired many.  Unfortunately, there came a point where it began to recycle itself and became stagnant, depending on the same ideas, styles, and concepts to stay successful, but not growing.  That’s what I’m fighting against.  I realize that everybody may not be with me on that, or even understand my desire to distance my music from what I consider to be formulaic and boring, but there’s no turning back for me.

  • News,  Video

    Blueprint “Radio-Inactive” video & single

    “Radio-inactive” is the first official single from the forthcoming Blueprint album Adventures in Counter-Culture, to be released April 5th, 2011.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bnKdnDS9KtM

    Shot, edited, & directed by Bangland Media

    Buy it now at iTunes: Explicit | Clean | Instrumental

    Critically acclaimed mc/producer and Soul Position frontman Blueprint, returns with his highly anticipated sophomore solo release Adventures in Counter-Culture. Experimenting with synths, keyboards, and drum machines, Adventures in Counter-Culture touches on Blueprint’s cynicism with the world, his disdain for pop culture, the state of politics and an apathetic, uninspired society. The album encompasses every facet of music Blueprint knows. It blurs genre lines and connects his hip hop pedigree with his early days in the church choir, to the R&B bands he was a part of in high school, to his new found interest in rock and electronic music.

    After a five year musical journey, Blueprint has emerged with his greatest effort to date. A culmination of self discovery and societal critique, Adventures in Counter-Culture is just that. The adventure begins March 1st, 2011.

    Word is blog

  • Video

    Greenhouse “Hello World” (Deconstructed) Video

    A few months back when we released Electric Purgatory Part Two I went on facebook and asked if anybody would be interested in us putting together some videos where we talk about the creative process and the making of the project.  Pretty much everybody was in favor of it, so Illogic and I started shooting.  Now that I’m home from tour I finally I was able to put the first video together.

    Our goal is to do one for each song on the EP assuming people like it or find it informative and/or entertaining.  If you haven’t checked out the EP yet, listen here: