Talin Khechoomianmonkyfacedqt@yahoo.com
For those who plan to view the youtube.com sensation My Big Fat Armenian Family, should prepare themselves for Allen G, aka Allen G of Psychotic Productions’ unique music style.
After having viewed the movie at a press release, the credits rolled, and immediately my attention went to an incredibly catchy and distinctive beat.
After being asked about the tune, Allen shrugged it off as something he just whipped out for the movie, as if it was no big deal.
What gives his beats an edge is his different taste in music. Despite producing beats for rap artists, Allen G. has never been a fan of hip hop.
"I used to sell rock beats, but it was hard because rock bands make their own music," Allen said, "I’ve always been a rock fan."
Though extremely talented on his own, with an obvious knack for his profession, the Psychotic Production CEO has an accomplice who goes by the name of Gino Slik.
Gino Slik compliments Allen G because Allen’s main genre is rock. Slik occasionally catches Allen making excessively long rock-type segments in rap songs and immediately calls him out on it.
When first introduced to the rapper, what initially caught my eye were the two identical chains hanging from his neck representing Lockdown records, the record label he is signed with.
What also stood out were his numerous tattoos, indifferent demeanor and by the way he was leaning on the lamp-post I thought to myself— "Typical hard guy."
I predicted his vocabulary would consist of about 20 words, nine of which would be profane. I also expected a lot of awkward silences followed by "hard guy" stares.
However, after a brief introduction, the jokes started rolling. Almost every comment made was followed by a punch line, a funny impression or just an incredibly real anecdote.
So many sparks came out of this character, that it became obvious what an important, creative asset he is to the team.
"My heart is as big as my gut," Slik joked pointing to his belly. Besides his sense of humor, Gino puts a lot of effort into his lyrics, putting double meanings into his songs to the amazement of listeners.
"Pick up two broads/ then we dash/ U C I’m LA/next day we drop them off to class" he wittily raps in one of his songs.
Gino Slik was raised in Texas among African-Americans part of his life, and has absorbed not only the music, but the hip-hop culture as well.
"I started when I was 13 years-old," Gino said, "I wrote lyrics everyday." Not surprising then is the fact that he has written over 400 songs in his life.
Though he has numerous tracks under his belt, he is not yet ready to release his album. Slik, along with his production team is not willing to settle for less than perfect, and as a result spend countless hours re-recording and re-writing his music.
"There’s a reason people look forward to Dr. Dre’s album, because it’s not like Hurricane Chris’ one-hit wonders," he explained, "Every song has to be different than the other one."
The mixtape entitled The Appetizer is due out a month. The album, Bon Appetit, will follow in about four months and includes collaborations with the likes of One-2 and Crooked I.
The choice of name for the mixtape and cd was no accident. Allen G pointed out that rap has no theme today. If the appetizer is the mixtape, then the album, which Slik describes as being about his hardships, is the main course.
With Allen G’s unique beats and music style, and Gino Slik’s vision, the album is sure to be a hit, not only in the Armenian community, but across the nation.
Gino nicely summed it up, "I don’t want just an Armenian to buy my cd, I want someone in Mississippi to bump my music, ‘cuz then I’ll be accepted."
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