Lowkey, the voice behind YouHeardThatNew.com is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to obtaining exclusive tracks on the internet. Pegged one of the most popular mp3 blogs online, YouHeardThatNew.com is the source to go to when it comes to getting new music weeks before radio has a chance to get their hands on it.

In this exclusive interview, he talks candidly about his site youheardthatnew.com, the impact of blogs and how his site resulted in a job from BET.com.

Tell us a little about your blog.
YouHeardThatNew.Com is a website dedicated to music, news, videos, parties, sneakers and my unorthodox commentary about issues pertaining to the hip hop community.

Exactly how long has your blog been up and running?
It was conceived on August 12th, 2006.

What inspired you to start blogging?
Inspiration came from having my back against the wall. I graduated from Howard University a year prior to starting the blog, and during that year I had a plethora of industry interviews, but couldn’t land a job, nor find a place where I feel I would be comfortable at. Since I had access to TONS of music, and a bevy of industry connects I had to think of a way where I could present it to a mass audience, but still have total creative control over it. I remember specifically how it started….I was in my kitchen, thinking about my next move (If I didn’t think of this, I was ready to give up on music and get a regular job) and the idea just popped in my head. What do people in the streets, barbershops, radio stations, or anywhere else a conglomerate of people meet up say when a hot song surfaces???? Yo, You HeardThatNew (insert name here)? As soon as I uttered those 5 words, I picked up the phone, ran the idea past several of my close friends and got to work.

What exactly did you set out to accomplish with your blog in the beginning and have you succeeded? Has your goals changed?
There really weren’t any set goals when I started, I just new if I had something that kept me busy and actually had a passion for, then the goals would align themselves.

Do you make money off of your blog? If so, what forms of advertising do you use and what makes you the most money?
I haven’t made any money off advertising because I never looked at blogging as a cash cow, and I still don’t (lose the funny look off your faces please lol). However, when I do the artist spotlight, we charge $30 an artist. The package includes 3 songs max, and a biography posted on the page. I know posting ads can make you a grip of dough, but when you look at other sites, all you see is pop up ads, and all sorts of other bullshit plastered all over the place which can annoy you and turn you away from the actual content, but that’s just my opinion.

What are some lessons you have learned about the blogging game since you started?
Ummmm, fact checking of course and how EXTREMELY sensitive people online are.

Some have pegged blogging the “new hip hop”, do you consider it a culture?
It’s not the new hip hop from my perspective, but just another element added to hip hop and how it’s presented to the public. For the past 3 years, blogging has shown Hip Hop and many other facets of the music industry in a new light. The music, the people, the elements have all become more accessible than they EVER were.

With a site of your caliber, how do you manage to stay in good standing with the music labels?
I think it’s because they’re FINALLY starting to realize how vital it is to have us on their side. Speaking for the music blogs I’m associated with like NahRight, RealTalkNy.Net, DaJaz1.Com, and many others, we are promoting their products whether it be video or audio….FOR FREE!! Several labels have reached out to me to promote projects for their artists because they see how much of an impact I have on their core demographic, but that’s also not to say I haven’t pissed a majority of them off [laughs]. I’ve gotten my share of warnings, and I’m sure I’ll be receiving more in the future, but hey…it comes with the territory so I welcome it at all times.

Why are you still on blogger?
Because I’m lazy, but I’ll be switching to WordPress in the next coming months. I see you’re trying to embarrass me….THANKS!

What was your first reaction when a site similar to yours (Kevipod Music) was shut down?
I mean, at first I was shocked, but seeing what happened and who it was dealing with, I can understand. It’s messed up, but I understand. Certain things you just have to know to stay away from. A song and artist of that caliber is really nothing to f*ck with….which is probably why I won’t be leaking her album, but then again, It depends on how early I get it and where I get it from, so stay tuned!

You are now an online producer at BET.com, was that a result of your blog? How did that offer come about?
Yes, that was a direct result of my blog. A friend of the UHTN referred my site to the executive editor of BET.com and the same night he told me about it, I basically had a phone interview with the editor for about 20 minutes . From that point on, we were in constant communication with each other. One thing led to another and before I knew it, I was sitting at a desk cranking out stories [laughs]
What were you doing before you were offer the BET.com job?
I was in the hospitality industry and I HATED it because I was miserable. I made a promise to myself after I quit my first hotel job that a year later I would have a media job in NYC, and I kept that promise because I was determined to never have a job hating what I do!!
Why do you believe blogs have made such a huge impact online?
Basically because before ANYTHING we are fans and advocates of the content we write about. We’re saying what other people don’t say, or don’t know how to say. Journalism is not sugar coated, but it restricts you from saying but so much. So of course, when a reader see’s YBF comment on I Love New York’s dumb ass antics, or NahRight call 50 Cent, Boo-Boo or C-Pain, they’re intrigued by that because XXL, The Source, Vibe, or other major publications won’t put it that way when they distribute their issues. Do you notice how EVERY major media outlet now has a portion on their online sites dedicated to blogging??? They’d be STUPID not to incorporate it, and if it’s not incorporated already, SHUT YOUR SITE DOWN NOW!

Perez Hilton, who owns the biggest blogsite on the internet, is in negotiations to have an A&R deal under Warner Brothers Records. Do you think this deal makes sense?
No it doesn’t make sense…AT ALL! Not to take anything away from PerezHilton because homey has turned him self into a household name, but it wasn’t because of his expertise in music, it’s because he knows about any and everything before it happens (EXCEPT MUSIC) and applies his unorthodox commentary to it. Are you going to give me a job at Nike as a Marketing Director because I post sneakers on my site?? FUCK NO! He post music, but mocks or downplays it…tell me how that warrants any type of A&R position at Warner or any other label? C’mon, go to his page now and out of the 6 pages you can click on you’ll see 3 music posts, IF that. If he deserves an A&R position at Warner, then I should have an offer letter in my email tomorrow morning from LA Reid asking me to fill Jay’s position.

What is your prediction for the future of blogs?
Blogs will be your NUMBER ONE SOURCE for anything and everything…it’s just that simple! Music, fashion, technology, politics, TV, Movies, Sex….anything the public shares a common interest in, it will be blogged about…TRUST ME! I advise ALLLL of you to adapt to this new phase in New Media and find a way to partake in the festivities.

What is your advice to up and coming bloggers?
My advice is to find your own lane and RUNNNNN fast as hell in it. I hate the fact that everyone is doing the SAME exact thing! I mean I didn’t start the wave of blogs regarding new and exclusive music, but I damn sure know I’m one of the go to sites. If you see someone already has a specific lane locked down, attack it from another angle. Don’t name your site YouHeardItFirst when my shit is called YouHeardThatNew?!??!? Do you really expect to get shine and credit for the work you do, when everything is an exact replica of my site? Add your own twist to what you do and blog about. I feel like half the sites I visit, I don’t know who they are or what they’re about. Apply your personality to your work; believe it or not, that intrigues people more than whose sex tape is on the net and who’s vacationing with whom! You can find that on the next site, but your personal commentary is going to make your site stand out from the rest

One last question, where do you get your music from?
The Pro Tools session that hasn’t finished recording, the album that doesn’t have a title, the label that didn’t know it was ACTUALLY being conceived, an instant message buddy who only signs on to transfer music to me and the email address you’ll never recieve an email from! Cocky?? Yea, but you asked, so I told you. YOUHEARDTHATNEW.COM FOR LIIIIIIIIIIIFE
Contact Lowkey at LKMuzik@gmail.com

Check out his profile on The Urban Blogger 

Tags: Bet.com, Lowkey, YouHeardThatNew.com

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