Beyond the Lyrics 604

Episodes

• 
  Ascension: Mike Wiald vs Danny Myers, plus LOCA on Getting Sober 24.07.2026 1h 51m

  The fullest room the show has had — seven voices, and it moves through three distinct halves.First the card. Trewth on how the Neighborhood Kids video blew up and turned into a tour, then Red Shirt Mike arrives to break down Set the Bar's Ascension event: why the battlers aren't trash talking this time, the undercard, the rookie class, and what the league needs to get from 80 people in a room to 200. Mike Wiald talks facing Danny Myers in his first Canadian battle — a year off, the Ellipsis battle behind him, and what it means to be the face of a league. His message for Danny is twenty seconds and worth the whole segment.Then LOCA returns, and the episode changes register completely. Raising a teenager, caregiving, 'Low Again' and the song she wrote coming down. Sobriety, step work, writing down resentments. Learning to sing after a mother who told her she couldn't. It is the most open anyone has been on this show.Tiago Vasquez closes it — the DJ Slink single, the EP with Evan Smith, playing bass, starting his own business, sobriety and mindset, parenting teenagers, and wanting to make a Spanish and dancehall record.Recorded at B-Side Radio, Vancouver BC.0:00 Intro: breaking into the studio1:50 New album, and an F on promo2:43 An entrepreneur course; Skillmatic4:47 Bib Gang merch and Ascension5:33 Trewth on the Fortune cypher6:51 How Neighborhood Kid blew up9:08 Tickets and a four-hour cypher12:00 Red Shirt Mike arrives13:11 Why battlers aren't trash talking14:30 Ascension card: Little Q vs Bear15:54 setthebar.com and filling the Turf18:09 Tangent: entrance music20:06 Why Mike Wiald vs Danny Myers21:51 Vancouver's battle rap talent pool24:21 The atmosphere of a live battle event26:50 What Set the Bar needs next28:53 Scaling from 80 to 200 people31:31 The website and who's next35:25 Mike Wiald on facing Danny Myers36:59 A year off, and being the face41:58 Prep, angles, no low-hanging fruit44:02 'Have Mercy' EP and the Kolka feature48:47 Undercard: Gobi and A.A. Ron51:30 Beach Tits, Dully Nuff, Bossman59:09 Bear vs Lil Q; the rookie class1:02:02 Shiva, Tobin and Snow Leopard1:05:13 LOCA returns, and 'Low Again'1:07:24 The Real Ones EP1:12:47 Sobriety and step work1:15:10 Youth work up north, and nature1:19:50 Learning to sing; Limerence1:26:31 Dating another artist1:30:17 LOCA's shows and where to find her1:33:46 Tiago Vasquez and the DJ Slink single1:36:30 The EP with Evan Smith1:39:26 His own business, and mindset1:43:11 Parenting teenagers1:44:25 Spanish and dancehall records1:45:58 Writing on the road: Barcelona, Egypt1:49:08 Tiago's custom builds, and closing
• 
  Kavawon & Tobin: Battle Rap, Cameras, and Using AI Without Wrecking It 19.07.2026 1h 13m

  The guests cancelled, so Kavawon starts solo and turns it into the most personal opening the show has done — how he preps, the ten-year gap in the Chasing Destiny trilogy, starting young, the vices, and the album versions that got shelved. The FOMO that cost him a record.Tobin joins at 15:05: Set the Bar battler, cameraman, and the person who shoots and edits the whole event. Longboard videos to film school to freelance, discovering battle rap at 15, and filling in for a dropout. The stretch on Dizaster vs Canibus — and what that collapse cost Canibus — is the best thing in the episode; Kavawon's read on it is that the man was never the same again.From there it is craft. How acting training helps performance and memory, why non-fans need the beat, what shooting a full battle event actually involves, and how every shot keeps getting shorter. Then a genuinely level-headed conversation about using AI as a tool without wrecking your brand — testing beats with Suno, hearing another voice on your own work — that avoids both the hype and the panic.Recorded at B-Side Radio, Vancouver BC.0:00 Technical difficulties and solo start2:43 How Kavawon preps the show4:51 Chasing Destiny: a 10-year gap5:56 Starting young; shelved albums9:30 The Destiny series and 'No Cap'13:25 K-Ski's 'From Barcelona With Love'15:05 Tobin joins: battler and cameraman16:53 Longboard videos to freelance film18:45 Discovering battle rap at 1520:01 Formative battles: Dizaster, Rone22:25 How acting training helps battling24:44 The Canibus collapse27:48 KOTD peaks: Pat Stay, Daylyt29:16 The Vancouver scene and Icon32:21 Callouts: A.A. Ron, Chiva, Billy Shakes34:11 Weddings, screenplays, short films37:25 Shooting a battle event; the venue39:03 Growing Set the Bar with promo41:27 Battling Shadow Eclipse43:18 Pitching a Vancouver hip-hop doc46:32 Why non-fans need the beat49:04 Tobin Media goals50:59 Using AI without wrecking your brand53:26 Testing beats with Suno56:03 The Okanagan and Big Valley Battles58:18 Matchup ideas: Channel 5, Raptor1:01:53 DAWs, Final Cut and FL Studio1:05:31 Hooks that work; film school1:07:18 Beach Tits, Droleen, the Jubiles1:10:01 Comedy sets and variety formats1:11:47 Closing: Bib Gang is a heel faction
• 
  Mike Wiald & Red Shirt Mike: Writing, Burnout, and the Draft 30.06.2026 1h 56m

  Three conversations in one, and the first is the one people will send to each other.Kavawon opens on creative burnout — the funk after a big push, peaks and valleys, giving yourself grace, and the argument that anxiety is trapped energy that needs somewhere to go. Procrastination, self-worth, notification overload, and 'Eat the Frog'. K-Ski turns up with a broken hand from a slip outside the Falafel Spot and does the show anyway.Mike Wiald takes the middle. 'I Feel Nothing' — two sides of addiction — plus how writing a battle round differs from writing a song, competition versus therapy, thirty-two bars with no editing at eight bars a day, and why he now stacks singles rather than forcing an album.Then Red Shirt Mike, for the longest and most argumentative stretch the show has run. Why an Icon vs Set The Bar card will not happen, why cypher shows do not pay, and a real defence of battle rap against its reputation — media literacy, camaraderie inside competition, and what Jay-Z gets wrong calling it negative. It widens into Kendrick vs Drake, the UMG distraction theory, Occam's razor as an antidote to conspiracy thinking, and self-censorship versus the 'woke mob'. It closes on the draft, Vancity Eras, and the question underneath running any scene: if I got hit by a bus, does Set The Bar survive?Recorded at B-Side Radio, Vancouver BC.0:00 Kavawon's creative funk after burnout1:58 Humble the Poet: you need fun too5:52 Peaks, valleys and giving grace6:58 Anxiety as trapped energy9:14 Procrastination and self-worth10:38 Notifications and negative self-talk14:14 Turning knowledge into a course15:01 'Eat the Frog': hard task first17:13 K-Ski's broken hand19:41 650 emails after two weeks off20:47 Handing the mic to Mike Wiald22:39 Mike Wiald: 'I Feel Nothing'24:17 Love Force gallery and merch26:27 Engineer chemistry: Coach K vs Eugene30:09 Battle rounds vs writing songs33:29 32 bars, no editing36:28 Sitting on a beat, writing diagonally38:52 Stacking singles, not forcing an album41:40 Vancouver battle highlights43:27 Stepping back to build the platform44:40 Merch: Team Wild and Bib World Order47:27 'I Feel Nothing': two sides49:11 Song: 'I Feel Nothing'50:41 Naming the project; the Cobalt show54:36 Red Shirt Mike: come to a battle56:17 Why Icon vs Set The Bar won't happen58:48 Why cypher shows don't pay1:02:39 Limited energy, needing organizers1:05:00 Why he rarely battles at home1:07:36 Battle rap's reputation and literacy1:11:05 Jay-Z calling battle rap negative1:12:48 Kendrick vs Drake and the UMG theory1:18:25 Occam's razor for conspiracies1:21:24 Self-censorship vs the 'woke mob'1:24:12 Call Up Season 10: Mike vs Aaron1:27:22 Shine 9, Shiva, Eclipse and Drolene1:30:59 Bringing back Rivals1:32:29 The draft and a coaching season1:39:22 Why Vancity Eras 3 keeps falling apart1:41:46 A year-long draft season idea1:44:56 Turning down 85% of ideas1:46:22 Booking months ahead1:50:14 Why BC's pipeline outlasted Alberta1:53:04 If I got hit by a bus1:55:29 April 11 at the Turf, and outro
• 
  Hogan's Alley: The Black Vancouver History Nobody Taught You 23.05.2026 1h 38m

  A Black History Month episode that turns into the best history lesson this show has recorded. K-Ski and Kavawon host Aisha and Miselta of the Hogan's Alley Society — the organisation working to rebuild Vancouver's displaced Black neighbourhood.Aisha went from UBC marketing student to Hogan's Alley staffer and explains what it is like to ask "where are the Black people?" in this city. Miselta came through kinesiology and sport into community engagement. Together they lay out the whole arc: the Memorial Project, the working group, the viaducts that went through the neighbourhood and who pays when they finally come down, the garden, Nora Hendrix Place, and the 100+ social housing units planned for Main and Union — designed, they say, like a baobab tree.The history runs wider than most listeners will expect: hip-hop as a griot tradition, the Cross Bronx Expressway running the same playbook in New York, Black soldiers who defended Victoria, and Salt Spring Island. And it lands on something practical — the Community Land Trust, a Black cultural centre, the Blackathon, and what listeners can actually do.Jimi Hendrix's grandmother lived here. Apache was recorded here. Most people in Vancouver do not know either.Recorded at B-Side Radio, Vancouver BC.0:00 Back from UBC: radio and cyphers1:10 2026 plans and a different year2:09 Dip Clothing: 25 years in Vancouver3:57 Copping gear on Delancey Street4:42 Hip-hop as a griot tradition5:46 Mas B on drums and shared ancestry7:46 Introducing Hogan's Alley Society9:18 Meet Aisha: betting on yourself10:59 UBC student to Hogan's Alley staff13:51 Unfiltered truth for the youth15:54 Memorial Project to Hogan's Alley18:28 Cross Bronx Expressway, same playbook20:06 FIFA 2026 and the Downtown Eastside20:53 Black history on Vancouver Island24:43 Oral history and why isolation hits29:07 The viaducts: who pays, and when30:58 The garden and Nora Hendrix Place32:57 Main and Union: 100+ housing units36:46 Miselta on community engagement39:14 Sports and the team concept41:37 Five-year vision: the Land Trust43:50 A Black cultural centre48:54 The Resurgence Planting and Party52:15 The co-share collective55:08 BC Black history in schools59:14 Upcoming: the Cultch and Blackathon1:02:24 bside radio's 2026 expansion1:04:04 The Nora Hendrix house events1:10:22 Juneteenth with the longshoremen1:14:16 Aisha's hopes and how to help1:19:03 Divide and conquer vs the table1:22:01 Blackathon: Black youth and AI1:23:54 World Cup and the African diaspora1:29:29 The Vancouver hip-hop docuseries1:33:23 Nardwuar stories and reconnecting1:35:38 Community archives and closing
• 
  Ten Years of Spotify, ODB Backwards, and Finding 1,000 Real Fans 30.12.2025 1h 18m

  K-Ski and Kavawon close out 2025 by taking stock — of the year, the scene, and what being an independent artist is going to mean next.It opens loose: fantasy football misery, load management and fans paying to watch stars sit, Ronnie Lott's finger, the Herschel Walker trade, Philly fan brutality. Then it turns. K-Ski's 2025 — his wife's injury, a trip back to Trenton and Philly, and how the guns arrived back home. Kavawon's producer year, a finished EP, and ghostwriting.The middle is the best part. Kavawon asked an AI for twenty Vancouver artists and had never heard of any of them, which starts a genuinely uncomfortable conversation about how tapped-in the scene actually is — and lands somewhere hopeful, on Detour, Dipt's 25 years, and the Hogan's Alley Society. Community builds culture.Then the veterans: Nas, Clipse, Slick Rick, De La, RZA's Juice Crew project. MC Shan vs Big Daddy Kane. ODB storming a session and recording it backwards. Wu-Tang in Hawaii. Why veteran MCs get paid more overseas, Daz Dillinger's direct-to-consumer math, and ten years of Spotify saturation — ending on the argument that a thousand paying fans is a career, and why Kavawon is releasing four EPs instead of one album in 2026.Recorded at B-Side Radio, Vancouver BC.0:00 Intro: upcoming shows1:12 Kavawon's producer year and an EP2:22 Fantasy football and basketball misery3:50 Load management and the fans paying5:38 Ronnie Lott's finger7:19 Rooting against your family's team9:41 The Herschel Walker trade11:30 Eagles at 8-4 and Philly fan brutality12:47 Astrology and Kavawon's cocoon year14:00 K-Ski's 2025: back to Trenton15:41 Sidewalk rules in tackle football17:32 How the guns arrived back home18:40 Beats Blues and Bars gets recognized20:29 20 local artists we'd never heard of23:21 Taking the podcast mobile25:10 Vancouver's drama-free scene26:47 Community builds culture32:36 Beaumont Studios and a give-back plan34:04 2025 headlines and the Diddy docuseries37:48 Veteran MCs return: Nas, Clipse, De La39:14 MC Shan vs Big Daddy Kane42:48 ODB records it backwards45:48 Wu-Tang in Hawaii: 'It's Yourz'47:54 Playing your role in a group50:27 Telling your real story51:55 Why veterans do better overseas53:11 Daz Dillinger's independent math56:00 Disenchantment with celebrity57:27 Ten years of Spotify and saturation1:00:32 Everyone's a musician now1:03:28 Finding your 1,000 paying fans1:05:06 Four EPs instead of one album1:10:53 2025 losses: Ozzy, Sly Stone, and more1:13:22 AI in music and fake artists1:15:58 Closing: reminders and into 2026
• 
  Music Medicine: Jessaii, Karma Sounds & the Money Nobody Tells You About 30.10.2025 1h 53m

  K-Ski hosts without Kavawon, and Jessaii co-pilots the whole episode — vocalist, songwriter, producer, vocal coach, music educator, and a mother.The first hour is hers. Writing her first songs in Regina, discovering reggae in Calgary, and then seven years of accidents and knee dislocations that took her income, her mobility and very nearly the rest. Single motherhood, food banks, and the slow work of picking yourself up. She explains AuDHD as gas and brakes pressed at the same time, why she now writes accommodations into artist contracts, and why she calls it music medicine — on stage the pain disappears. Queen Level Productions has pivoted to supporting artists with disabilities.Karma Sounds — Karina Morin — arrives at 40:26. Painfully shy sax player to singer, Montreal to Vancouver, the two years of keys behind 'Wings', and how she sprinkles healing into a pop hook. She opened the stage for Lauryn Hill.Then Tracy Pequin, a financial coach with 19 years at Primerica, explains the Registered Disability Savings Plan, the Disability Tax Credit, and the Canada Disability Benefit — what qualifies, how to apply, why almost nobody knows they exist, and which firms take a cut of your refund for filing the form you could file yourself. If you or someone you love is disabled in Canada, that hour is worth real money.Recorded at B-Side Radio, Vancouver BC.0:00 Welcome: intros and who's missing1:50 A summer of rest and festival prep2:36 Stevie Wonder and a cassette coincidence5:26 First songs in Regina: 'Freedom'6:31 Discovering reggae in Calgary8:30 Vancouver's reggae scene and 'Rise'9:54 Gilt & Co. and pacing while healing10:55 A neuroaffirmative kids arts camp11:44 Vocal coaching and IDEO Studio12:36 Queen Level pivots to disabled artists14:19 Making resources accessible17:14 School with no supports in Saskatchewan18:01 School districts cutting music20:14 The kids who only fit in music class21:52 Seven years of accidents and fallout24:12 Single motherhood and food banks26:29 Put your own mask on first28:28 'Start Again': survival into medicine29:30 How to actually organize support32:38 On stage the pain disappears33:46 AuDHD: gas and brakes at once36:35 Accommodations in artist contracts40:26 Introducing Karma Sounds42:17 Karma Sounds' origins: art as refuge44:51 Shy sax player to singer48:40 The story behind 'Wings'50:59 Melody first, healing in the hooks55:08 ADHD, time blindness, perfectionism58:29 'Disability' vs 'diverse abilities'1:02:37 Opening the stage for Lauryn Hill1:05:39 New single, and Bandcamp vs Spotify1:09:12 Karma Sounds' Gilt & Co. show1:12:28 Meeting Tracy Pequin1:14:18 Tracy's path: three jobs to licensed1:15:46 The RDSP and Disability Tax Credit1:18:03 Canada Disability Benefit and finders1:20:02 MAID, poverty, and asset limits1:21:12 Predatory firms taking a cut1:23:15 Why nobody knows these programs exist1:24:52 What qualifies for the credit1:26:47 Finding money people didn't know about1:30:57 How to reach Tracy; the wealth transfer1:36:59 Limiting beliefs and low expectations1:39:50 Music: 'Getting Better', Karma Sounds1:45:05 Closing with Jessaii: unmasking, dharma1:49:47 What's next: 'Big Love' and festivals
• 
  Nige on The Imperfectionist: Therapy, Divorce, and Rapping at 39 12.10.2025 2h 1m

  The most personal episode the show has done. Nige is releasing The Imperfectionist — named for a superhero who ruins everything he touches — and he came to talk about what is actually on it.He retired the "Young" from Young Nige at 39. He came up a punk kid on Epitaph Records before hip hop, started rapping late at 19 after a house party freestyle, and spent years freestyling in cars at the beach. The record is about divorce, therapy, aging in rap, and unlearning the stories you tell about yourself. His writing method now is one line per hour-long walk.K-Ski matches him with his own history: the record deal his mother refused to sign, YZ getting signed instead, the Navy sending him to Japan, teaching slang there, and the Ice Cube security story.DJ K-Rec is in for the first hour on drumless beats, Roc Marcy, and why depression makes upbeat beats — then leaves to feed the dogs, and the last forty minutes go somewhere else entirely: why mental illness rises as comfort increases, what a cop stopping your eldest son does to you, AI and job loss, marketing as an unhappiness-generating machine, and what success might look like if it were not a big house and five cars.Recorded at B-Side Radio, Beaumont Studios, Vancouver BC.0:00 Going live: who's here tonight2:03 B-Side Radio at Beaumont Studios3:19 Meeting Nige, and the therapy question4:14 From Young Nige to just Nige6:41 'Young' as a state of mind, not an age8:10 Punk kid: Epitaph before hip hop8:57 The house party freestyle10:24 Freestyling in cars at the beach11:59 Why punk and hip hop were cousins13:01 ATLiens, Brother Ali, burned CDs15:11 Coming to rap late, at 1916:18 Mixtapes, stamped covers, $8 AI masters17:52 Battles in a Trenton school bathroom18:50 Rappin' Duke and Beat Street20:34 G-Unit, Eminem, the Diddy problem21:57 Thinking 'My Name Is' was a comedy song24:02 Much Music as an entry point24:57 From technical multis to freestyle feel28:24 Finding your voice; the K-Rec beat pack29:37 How K-Rec completed the sound30:48 Albums made on a phone32:49 The Imperfectionist cover reveal35:13 Release plan: album and Wise Lounge36:43 Where the album title came from38:17 Divorce and rapping about therapy41:06 The deal K-Ski's mom refused to sign42:30 YZ signed instead; the Navy, Japan44:02 Teaching slang in Japan45:59 The Ice Cube security story47:16 Love, but no unified sound50:34 American ideas about Canada51:27 Ten months, eight songs53:13 What pulled Nige back to rapping55:30 The stories we tell about ourselves58:40 One line per hour-long walk1:00:04 K-Rec on drumless beats and Roc Marcy1:02:46 Dropping the high-energy persona at 391:03:43 Depression makes upbeat beats1:06:51 Who gets the best beats1:07:36 Forgotten songs and stomp-clap1:10:02 Day jobs and rap1:13:04 Mental health, then and now1:15:18 Mental illness rising with comfort1:16:50 Substance use work after COVID1:18:12 Comfort erodes your tolerance1:19:51 K-Rec heads out to feed the dogs1:24:31 Passing lessons to your kids1:25:49 Feeling bad doesn't mean it is bad1:28:22 Radical acceptance vs reality1:30:54 A torn ACL and a Seattle record deal1:33:06 The two girls who loved 'Sunshine'1:34:25 The neighbour that forced a move1:35:52 Young people losing hope1:37:23 A cop stopping his eldest son1:38:32 AI, job loss and uncertainty1:42:32 Community as the answer1:44:49 51st state talk and buying Canadian1:46:46 Reimagining success1:49:28 Online friendships: different, not worse1:50:23 Marketing as an unhappiness machine1:55:02 Measuring growth instead of happiness1:56:45 Oligarchs and the French Revolution1:58:45 Release details and where to find Nige
• 
  Crabs in a Bucket: Estea Elements & DJ K-Rec on the Vancouver Scene 14.08.2025 2h 5m

  K-Ski starts solo with Paul — 22 years of guitar and teaching kids at the Roundhouse — before Estea Elements arrives and the episode finds its subject: what it costs to build something in a city that doesn't help you build it.Estea Elements came from Jersey to Carolina to the Navy to Seattle before landing here. He works in addictions counseling and teaches curriculum through rap, and he is blunt about the crabs-in-a-bucket habit of the Vancouver scene and what a scarcity mindset does to people. The stretch on losing a rap contest to Wise Intelligent in Trenton, meeting Kid N Play and Salt-N-Pepa, and the Fat Boys coming to Vancouver in 1988 is the best oral history the show has recorded.Then DJ K-Rec, who made a record a year with him — including one made while K-Rec had cancer. K-Rec talks pause tapes, quitting rhyming for engineering, his beat-making routine, and the cold DMs to Sadat X, Kurious and Percee P that actually worked. The email that got them opening for De La Soul at the Commodore is worth the whole segment.It closes with three live performances and a run of fall show dates.Recorded at B-Side Radio, Vancouver BC.0:00 Intro: solo hosting, guests on the way1:30 Paul: 22 years of guitar, teaching kids2:53 Mexico, recharging, and unplugging3:44 ST Elements arrives: from STL4:50 Recognized at a White Rock gas station5:51 Jersey to the Navy to Seattle7:58 When family isn't impressed10:16 Brains built for lyrics11:27 Teaching curriculum through rap13:36 The crabs-in-a-bucket Vancouver scene15:14 Scarcity vs abundance mindset17:42 Getting a batch of K-Rec beats19:37 Leslie's artwork and record covers21:00 Meeting K-Rec at the art gallery23:19 Era of the DJ: Mantronix, Just Ice25:39 New releases: Slick Rick, De La, Big L28:58 Blueprint's Vessels29:51 Langley when there was no industry31:24 The Surrey b-boy scene36:39 Battle rap in Surrey: Set the Bar39:59 Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, late-80s balance41:07 Losing to Wise Intelligent in Trenton43:20 The groups Vancouver is missing45:10 Meeting Kid N Play and Salt-N-Pepa46:33 Fat Boys '88, BDP '89, cyphers by '9451:27 Skateboarding and not caring54:47 The yearly record cycle with K-Rec57:38 Making a record through K-Rec's cancer1:00:25 One purpose behind all of it1:05:00 The Stan Lee method1:08:21 Islands Cafe release and 50th birthday1:13:05 DJ K-Rec: pause tapes to engineering1:15:29 K-Rec's routine and the SP-303 videos1:20:03 Cold DMs that worked: Sadat X, Kurious1:26:12 Emailing to open for De La Soul1:28:15 Langley high school: boombox in a locker1:33:04 Miami bass and instrumental hip hop1:34:33 Beyond boom bap: electronic and stems1:35:54 K-Rec signs off1:38:11 Paul on Here and Now1:42:58 Fall dates: Aperture, Fox Cabaret1:46:32 Performance: 'Idols of the Temple'1:48:58 Performance: 'It Was All a Dream'1:52:19 Performance: 'Wake Up Call'1:54:50 Show dates and the CITR block party1:56:46 Beats, Blues and Bars: 2019 rehearsals1:59:49 Shout-outs to partners and support2:03:53 Closing: merch and where to catch shows
• 
  LaSparka on Love Force — and the Biggest Battle in Vancouver History 07.05.2025 1h 51m

  Kavawon hosts solo and gives LaSparka most of two hours. It is the widest-ranging conversation in the catalogue.The first stretch is a life: discovering hip hop through NWA tapes and border runs in the 80s, Spleen and the Hard Luck Band, the For Love store, and what Love Force actually stands for. Then it goes somewhere most music podcasts don't — religion and politics, going from atheist to believer, God as the motherboard, a Hungarian refugee family and Indigenous teachings, and a manifesto built on free energy and no borders. LaSparka's line about the world having enough for everybody is the one people will quote.The back half turns competitive. Mike Wiald arrives at 50:15 to explain the rematch, Ellipsis joins at 58:40 — twelve years after their first battle — and the three of them run the entire Rivals card: the draft, the seven-judge panel, the judging horror stories, and DDSS's undefeated run. It ends on Mike Wiald vs Ellipsis and the question underneath it: is a team win worth more than a personal one?Recorded at B-Side Radio, Vancouver BC.0:00 Kavawon welcomes LaSparka2:13 Battle rap Mount Rushmore4:34 80s hip hop: NWA tapes, border runs5:47 Spleen and the Hard Luck Band7:53 The old LaSparka Show archives9:01 For Love store and Love Force Films10:21 What Love Force stands for12:35 Religion, politics and man-made books14:05 From atheist to believer15:20 God as the motherboard16:51 Refugee family, Indigenous teachings19:26 Conspiracy theories and science21:08 Inside For Love: partners and shows23:07 How LaSparka got into battle rap25:33 Where the Love Force name began27:01 Politics, voting, breaking the system31:35 The manifesto: free energy, no borders32:41 DJing plans and Vancouver artists36:40 Golden eras of Vancouver battle rap37:53 COVID and the Aldergrove farm39:21 Family and respecting women42:48 Solving problems with words44:28 Battle rappers who make the best music46:09 Favourite battlers and touring plans50:15 Mike Wiald arrives: the rematch54:09 Rivals: the draft and judged battles58:40 Ellipsis joins: 12 years on1:01:27 Draft strategy and Billy Shakes1:05:50 Dysfunctional vs AA Ron, Shine 91:16:28 Gobi vs Stevie P: seven judges1:21:01 Shiva vs Malice, Channel 5 vs Nelson1:27:57 Judging horror stories, DDSS undefeated1:34:46 Mike Wiald vs Ellipsis: the legacy1:39:33 Team win or personal win?1:44:53 Team merch, shout-outs and closing
• 
  Naa Sheka on Building One Love — plus Spy vs Spy in Three Months 07.03.2025 1h 18m

  Naa Sheka of One Love Retail & Fashion takes the first half. Ghanaian fabrics and Adinkra symbols, launching the brand at 25, two Vancouver Canucks jersey collaborations, and She Got Shea. She explains what her name means, what the racist comments under the Canucks post were actually about, and gives the most direct advice on this show so far for young entrepreneurs: ignore the critics, and start.The second half is K-Ski and Kavawon on their own material. Trusting your engineer and catching lightning in a bottle, music as a team sport versus an ego-driven track meet, the complementary duos that lasted and the groups that split. Kavawon explains Spy vs Spy — eighteen songs in three months, made largely out of spite — and the Pudfluff battle track he gave away every copy of.It closes somewhere heavier: passing out at reflexology, diabetes, pharma money, Dr. Sebi, and cures that never seem to arrive.Recorded at B-Side Radio, Vancouver BC.0:00 Welcome: Naa Sheka of One Love0:48 Roots: 90s hip hop, family, FUBU2:04 Ghanaian fabrics and Adinkra symbols4:29 Two Canucks jersey collabs6:32 She Got Shea and shopping local8:43 Advice for young entrepreneurs12:33 The White Rock store and pop-ups13:37 Next goals: more sports collabs15:47 Racist comments on the Canucks post17:43 Ghana trip, HBCU days, fans in her gear23:39 A signed Clippers jersey gift26:03 Eagles champs and recording with Def28:27 Trusting the engineer32:47 Team sport vs ego-driven track meets35:52 Duos that work and groups that split40:08 Spy vs Spy: an album in three months44:11 The Pudfluff battle track48:41 Passing out at reflexology51:37 Switching lanes as an aging artist53:51 Set the Bar Call Up Season 71:01:04 Quarterly cypher episodes1:04:22 Dr. Sebi and cures that never arrive1:06:53 Diabetes, pharma money, poison food1:12:49 Sunset Cypher, DJ Goodspin, closing
• 
  The Kids Are Listening: Trap, Drake vs Kendrick, and Battle Rap 15.11.2024 1h 46m

  K-Ski and Kavawon are back after a month, and this one covers a lot of ground before the guests even arrive — Team USA snubs, the Biden-Kamala switch, Netanyahu at Congress, and a pointed run at double standards and who gets to stay quiet.Then Nakio, on his upcoming project and the case for engineering yourself. He builds beats from guitar chords before drums, writes with intention, and makes the argument that gives this episode its title: Vancouver has no sonic stamp, and blooming at home is harder than leaving. The state-of-hip-hop stretch — trap glorification, what kids actually consume, Drake vs Kendrick as culture versus corporate — is the strongest part of the episode.Red Shirt Mike arrives at 50:09 with the card: Spud vs Creative, the rookie battles, and why Set the Bar deliberately has no title belt.Coleslaw closes it out. The Rupert Common mirror match, beating AA Ron with the ball cap line, slam poetry to her first battle at the Peacock Lounge, the Oakland work ethic, and what it takes to take up space as a woman in battle rap.Recorded at B-Side Radio, Vancouver BC.0:00 Intro: back after a month2:29 Why artists release for themselves3:53 Hardbody Dreams and Method Man/Redman7:06 KRS-One and learning from hip-hop8:05 Team USA snubs: Jaylen Brown9:56 The Biden-Kamala switch12:34 Netanyahu, Brittney Griner, hypocrisy14:41 Calling out double standards16:39 Show business: sponsorships and plans18:10 Preseason football and Troy Vincent19:29 Guest: Nakio on self-engineering24:17 Capturing the sound of Vancouver27:16 Nakio's producers and collaborators28:54 Guitar chords before drums30:23 Trap glorification and what kids hear32:20 Drake vs Kendrick: culture vs corporate35:48 Why big artists stay quiet38:52 Vancouver's missing sonic stamp43:43 School, nutrition, knowledge of self46:32 Skill Lab Vancouver and coaching kids48:58 Nakio's shout-outs and release plug50:09 Red Shirt Mike enters: free Sudan52:08 Spud vs Creative: comeback stories56:24 Time limits and Rocky Nelson vs Mike1:00:19 Fuller, AA Ron, and Pauly Freeze1:03:41 Rookie battles: Nevaeh and Vito1:09:49 Why Set the Bar has no title belt1:16:49 Guest: Coleslaw on the mirror match1:21:25 Beating AA Ron: the ball cap line1:23:36 Slam poetry to Coleslaw's first battle1:25:05 The grind and the Oakland work ethic1:27:09 Taking up space as a woman1:29:13 The Billy Shakes storybook1:33:05 Dream opponents and women in the scene1:35:53 Comedy, ukulele, and swim lessons1:37:04 Coleslaw's shout-outs and sign-off
• 
  Queen Level, Artist Development, and Who's Best in Vancouver 01.10.2024 1h 23m

  Two halves, two very different conversations.First, the business of being an artist. Jessaii of Queen Level Productions and industry veteran Deshawn — 25 years in, from church drums to the business side — get into why artist development disappeared and why you now have to do it yourself. Treating yourself as a business, three-month plans, leaving breadcrumbs before a release, why college radio and the Exclaim charts still matter, and the case for promoting your own website instead of the platforms. Deshawn's line on 3,000 subscribers being a career is the one worth writing down.Then Red Shirt Mike brings the Fully Reloaded card in, and it turns competitive. Mike Wiald and Shine 9 argue their co-main event to each other's faces — who is actually best in Vancouver, who belongs in the top five, storytelling versus overpowering defense, and how many BC names deserve a spot in Canada's top 10.Recorded at B-Side Radio, Vancouver BC.0:00 Intro: tech trouble and the lineup3:11 Welcoming Jessaii and Deshawn3:57 Why Queen Level Productions exists6:13 Upcoming: Calabash and Guilt & Co.7:35 New single 'You Delight'9:57 Deshawn's 25 years: drums to business12:43 Why artist development disappeared14:28 Work ethic over talent15:42 A Google search to a consultation17:43 The task list and three-month plans20:48 Breadcrumbs and posting with purpose23:51 College radio and Exclaim charts25:21 Building a team after injury26:29 Music as medicine27:42 Press releases and local media29:59 Burnout, parenting and music34:36 Queen Level services38:01 Promote your website, not the socials42:48 Monetizing beyond streaming46:10 Where to find Jessaii and Queen Level48:51 Red Shirt Mike on Fully Reloaded52:00 Mike Wiald vs Shine 9: who's best56:58 Ranking Vancouver's top five1:03:12 Storytelling vs overpowering defense1:10:33 Clowning Red Shirt Mike1:15:23 Canada's top 10: how many BC names?1:17:17 Raising the standard: honest rankings1:20:49 Card rundown and Ellipsis vs G-Show
• 
  Red Shirt Mike on Building BC's Battle Rap Scene 17.07.2024 1h 53m

  K-Ski sits down with Red Shirt Mike — organiser of BC's Set the Bar battle league — for a two-hour education in competitive rap. It starts with the thing casual fans get wrong: battle rap isn't freestyle. From there it runs back through the roots — the dozens, 80s Jersey, Kool Moe Dee vs Busy Bee, the Roxanne Wars, KRS-One vs MC Shan — and into the question that gives this one its title, whether battlers can actually make records.The middle is Mike's own history: trumpet to online tournaments, his first live battle at King of the Dot Vancouver in 2010, hosting Smoked Out Battles until it fell apart, then launching Set the Bar directly into COVID. How a card actually gets built, how battles get judged, and why a promo run like Hard Body Dreams vs Save the Whales pops off when a straight battle wouldn't.Channel 5 closes it out with the Cleveland Browns angle he used on Dan's Madigan, the railway qualifier that changed everything, and ten years of BC hip-hop friendships that started at a cypher in Nanaimo.Recorded at B-Side Radio, Vancouver BC.0:00 Intro: no co-host, no engineer1:32 Battle rap isn't freestyle3:11 Roots: the dozens and 80s Jersey5:21 Pauses and comedic timing6:58 Can battle rappers make good music?10:18 Kool Moe Dee vs Busy Bee11:05 Roxanne Wars and KRS-One vs MC Shan13:04 Competition vs beef14:42 Winning a hostile crowd mid-battle16:37 Sonny Bonahoe and shock value18:40 K-Ski's worst performer habits23:34 Red Shirt Mike's pet peeves26:52 Mike's origin: Nas, Immortal Technique28:57 Running into Shad on Main Street30:02 From trumpet to online tournaments31:52 First live battle: King of the Dot34:36 Smoked Out Battles and how it ended36:49 Set the Bar launches into COVID39:55 The stranded finale, the novelty check41:44 Rebuilding the fan base post-COVID43:59 Watching battlers grow: Gobi, Creative45:34 How a card is built47:37 Why battling earns respect50:11 Kavawon joins; Shine 9 vs Revron53:26 Battle at the Bridge and Rent Money54:45 East vs West: Toronto and Vancouver59:43 The four-league Canadian summit idea1:01:08 Could battle rap tour like AND1?1:06:35 Coleslaw vs Caustic: Cinderella dress1:09:07 Fully Loaded and 'Fully Reloaded'1:12:18 Judging battles: Nameless's system1:16:34 Hard Body Dreams vs Save the Whales1:21:46 Channel 5 joins the show1:23:53 Cyphermatic days: Kavawon vs Shakes1:25:03 Channel 5 vs Dan's Madigan1:27:07 Street rapper vs studio rapper1:30:07 Where's the line? Family bars1:34:01 Props, volume and first round energy1:36:09 Prepping per opponent1:38:08 The railway qualifier1:41:17 How the name Channel 5 came from radio1:42:35 Kelowna to Nanaimo: the Motton cypher1:44:13 The cypher's journey across the city1:46:44 Ten years of BC hip-hop friendships1:48:23 Busking on Granville1:51:56 Outro: April 27 at Bully Studios
• 
  Inspire, Inform, Empower — the 2024 Season Opener 18.05.2024 1h 36m

  K-Ski and Kavawon open the 2024 season of Beyond the Lyrics 604 — the Vancouver podcast about the business behind the bars.This one is a state of the union for independent artists. K-Ski tells the story of the record Clear Channel quietly buried. The pair launch "Breaking Bread," a new segment on the money side of music, and get into follow-through as the artist's Achilles heel, why Northwest talent stays slept on, and the difference between an alley-oop and a track meet when you're building a team.The second half is unreleased music. Kavawon premieres "Trust the Process," K-Ski plays "Blues of a True Believer" and "Invisible," and the conversation turns to Roc Marciano, the boom bap revival, and the weight words carry — why spelling and casting spells share a root, and what it means to tell your story without glorifying it.Recorded live at B-Side Radio, Vancouver BC. Beats by Ryze Def Beats.0:00 Mic check — who's in the room2:28 Mint lemonade, yoga, and the lotus5:28 What "Join Us In The Struggle" means6:46 Remembering Uncle Mickey8:24 What's changing on the show in 20249:09 The Katt Williams interview11:24 The Michael Jackson pivot14:25 Why K-Ski never signed15:38 "Breaking Bread" — new business segment19:31 Follow-through: the Achilles heel23:32 Collaboration then vs now in the scene25:38 They'll rob you blind — and silence you26:58 Homegrown, Teos, and getting low-balled28:28 2024, the age of collaboration30:26 Northwest talent that's slept on32:38 Inspire, Inform, Empower33:27 Booking his own Portland-to-Van tour34:50 KUBE 93 and the payola ceiling36:15 The "almost tier"37:18 Finding your voice as an artist38:18 Team roles and the sports analogy42:39 Alley-oops vs track meets43:58 The Sphinx, ego, and what outlives you45:15 Wu-Tang, community, and shared resources50:15 Segment 2 — unreleased music57:31 Punchlines, concepts, and learning trap1:01:44 Music: "Trust the Process" — Kavawon1:05:03 K-Ski's upcoming releases1:06:03 Music: "Blues of a True Believer"1:09:25 Beats, Blues and Bars1:10:12 Music: "Invisible" — K-Ski1:13:32 The story behind "Invisible"1:14:37 Roc Marciano and the boom bap revival1:15:39 Tell your story — don't glorify it1:16:41 Casting spells: the weight of words1:19:35 Drill, Chicago, and the prison pipeline1:22:35 Who gets called a sucker1:23:47 Follow the money1:24:23 Why hip-hop went silent1:26:04 Why they do this1:29:03 Just be authentic1:30:46 Music that feeds the soul1:33:26 Outro and shout-outs