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Born Day EP

Vitamin D has a thing about holidays. His group Sta Hi Brothers, made up of himself and Maneak B, has put out three Christmas albums, and a Valentine’s Day album. In 2010 Vitamin dropped the classic Born Day EP, which is all about celebrating a birthday. On Bandcamp, Vita wrote a quick note to accompany the release. “I recorded and produced most of this s*** on my b-day, didn’t have time to mix it tho, but enjoy it anyway!”

The Born Day EP opener “Begin” starts with the traditional version of “Happy Birthday,” but then suddenly switches to a different melody, the beautiful 1980 Stevie Wonder version of the song. “Worse Burfday” effectively samples the classic Biggie line, “Birthdays was the worst days,” and contains difficult memories about growing up poor. For that familiar Vitamin D musical ear-tingle, “Twist It Till It’s Gone” brings the magic in my opinion. Vitamin chops his samples so carefully that even small sounds take on huge significance in the final beat. The track is slow and leisurely, and he drops some hilarious, weed-inspired lyrics.

“Nga Plz” features Vitamin D’s son Yung Rebel, who had a strong solo run as Malcolm Rebel until sadly passing away in 2020. Vitamin and guest emcee The Note from Narcotik break down how dating and relationships have been affected by technology’s changes over the decades in “Who Dat _____.” From landlines, to caller ID, to cell phones, to the internet, the lyrics explain how all these different gadgets make it hard for a player to keep their peccadilloes secret. This was only the first of the Born Day series, the second installment appeared in 2014. Written by Novocaine132

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Hip Hop Kitchen Mixtape

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Momma's Basement

Hmmm... There's not a lot of information about this project in the museum encyclopedia. We'd love your help! TOWN LOVE is maintained by an awesome community of passionate volunteers who keep it all up to date.

Do you know something about the history of this record? Do you have a favorite lyric or a favorite memory? Send us an email on why this is one of the great hip-hop albums from the Northwest. Thanks!

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Funk On Sight

Good god man, Seattle’s godfather of all things hip-hop has, in typical Vitamin style, unceremoniously released this handcrafted fonk mix: “A blend of funk classic and not so classic selections blended the way I do it! This is a REAL mixtape (no funny rapper shenanigans) for lovers of good music. done from vinyl with a touch of Serato. I promise you can’t front.” (This review originally appeared on the Bring That Beat Back blog and was written by Jack Devo.)

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No Good

Seattle hip-hop renaissance man Vitamin D put out this lone 12″ on Rhymesayers back in 2003. Handling beats, rhymes, and scratches, Vita brought an updated sound to his murky, stoned production work that was Tribal’s signature. Cleaned up and jazzy, with thinly sliced guitar samples, vintage dialogue, and spare percussion, this release takes a few steps towards Madlib’s sonic territory. The title track is all Vita, while the B-Side, “Touch Da Sky” has a guest appearance by Sinsemilla’s H-Bomb. The bonus joint, “Enstramental”, is produced by Jake One. This 12″ was to be the leadoff in Vita’s illustrious career on Rhymesayers, but unfortunately, nothing more came of it. Their loss. I believe other tracks from these sessions eventually surfaced on his free Bornday EP from 2010. (This review originally appeared on the Bring That Beat Back blog and was written by Jack Devo.)

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Born Day 2

Seattle hip-hop blog 206UP picked this record as one of the “Top 10 Albums of 2014,” saying that:

This year marked the second time Vita has used his birthday as an excuse to bless us with a new set of tracks. Born Day 2 is all hard slaps, irreverent rhymes, and well-placed guest shots wrapped in the producer-MC’s trademark soulful compositions. Shoot this album (and its part one predecessor) into space as the be-all, end-all example of what Seattle hip-hop has to offer the universe.

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Table Manners 2

Last weekend I was thrilled to pick up a copy of Vitamin D’s Table Manners 2 on wax at The Big Dig event at Vermillion. Here’s a truly unique gem in the long canon of Seattle hip-hop: It’s from 1999 and it plays like one long, uninterrupted 45-minute jam, Vita on the decks sampling and scratching his way through the crates, while a revolving door of late-90s emcees takes turns freestylin’ over top. (Are there any other Seattle hip-hop record so devoted to the art of Turntablism?) Many of the Tribal gang are featured on this record: Samson S, Silas Black, B-Self, H Bomb, Wordsayer J. Moore, and there’s even a short segment of rival scratching, called “Jake’s Breaks,” starting Tuxedo’s Jake One. Table Manners 2 is such a fun record from start to finish. It’s easygoing and raw and loose. You feel like you’re in the studio, hanging out with our Town’s top talent at the turn of the millennium. Local music rag The Rocket said this album “breathes new life into classic breaks like the Headhunters and Kool & The Gang, and still manages to mix it up with lesser-known gems for the record nerds… featuring guest MCs busting over the breaks.” In their review, The Stranger described Vita as “a compulsive scratcher who is inclined to funk and soul beats… Table Manners 2 is like being taken for a wondrous tour through a museum of sounds.” This record is a uniquely rare treasure in the lineage, and everyone should own a copy. It’s a joy from start to finish.

Here’s another take:

Table Manners 2 is a NW classic: One of the few examples of exemplary turntablism to come from Seattle. It’s a Robin Williams-style “come inside my mind” for local hip-hop legend Vitamin D. Vitamin invites the listeners to get on a roller coaster full of old soul, jazz, and funk breaks. Table Manners 2 is a history lesson with dozens of classic musical arrangements from every decade flawlessly woven together by a hip-hop-scratching real-live human DJ. Mixed throughout the melodies are several freestyles from local Seattle rappers such as Samson S, B-Self, and the true legend: Wordsayer from Source of Labor. Vitamin has an encyclopedic knowledge of breaks and the history of hip-hop sampling, which makes this record such a fun listen. He knows just which parts of the track to use in order to let the famous sample sneak up on you. If you want to get a picture of what it looks like inside Vitamin D’s head, all you have to do is pick up a copy of Table Manners 2 and you can find out. It’s a pretty cool place. (Written by Novocaine132.)

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