Midas Touch, Dub Watson, Ted Liebowicz, Moppyz, Royal T.  The names may not be familiar, but after one listen to 'Number.Sessions', they will be. The new record, scheduled for release December 1 2009, is the brainchild of Midas Touch and long-time collaborator 80am, as well as Everybody Else's Entertainment Co-founder Grant Gatsby.  He explains the concept: "We wanted to create a platform where we could showcase some of the most talented people we personally know while also being able to display the amazing production skills that Midas and 80am bring to the table."  80am says of the project: "we really feel like we have created something that captures the essence of gritty, untainted underground hip hop.  There are no bells and whistles on this record. No intros, no skits, no outros, just the music.  We feel like this is the way hip-hop is supposed to be.  We didn't go the mixtape route and try to trick the audience into thinking our record was backed by the biggest names in the industry.  We're sticking to the essence of what hip-hop is all about: beats and rhymes."          
In 'Number Sessions' songs are allowed to have their own voice.  Midas explains the philosophy behind the album: "We produced it, picked the track-list, etc., but we really didn't get involved with the artist's songs.  This record is all about letting these emcees be themselves and giving them their time without any outside involvement."  Gatsby explains the result: "What you're getting is raw, unfiltered hip-hop straight from the heart of five of the coolest emcees that I know."
Midas Touch and 80am of Illa'strations Instrumentals produced 'Number.Sessions'..  80am talks about how the record came together: "We made a ton of beats and it took a while to get the artists paired up with something they liked.  Sometimes the beat you hear a certain emcee on is not the beat that they hear themselves on.  It can be a challenge matching an artist with a certain sound at first".  For this record, the two enlisted the help of some of their favorite emcees: local legend Dub Watson, lyrical powerhouse Ted Liebowicz, hip-hop purist Moppyz, and the incomparable Royal T.
Columbus, Ohio natives all, 80am tells how the 'Number Sessions' cast of characters came to be: "We have all been working together for close to ten years.  We used to have a friend who hosted Saturday nights at this little hole in the wall campus bar called Café Bourbon Street, and we would go in there and tear it down for hours."  Midas picks up the story: "that's how I met most of these guys, those Bourbon St. sessions.  We used to go in there with zero prepared material and just rock the mic for hours."  Since then the group has always talked about making a record, but it wasn't until recently that the pieces fell in place to make it a reality.  "About a year ago, I started throwing some beats around to the guys" Midas says, "trying to get a feel for where they were at lyrically and what kind of a record I wanted this to be."  He adds, "I have always felt that I was surrounded by some of the most talented people in hip-hop and that they weren't getting enough recognition.  'Number.Sessions' gives me the perfect vehicle to show the world that these guys are talented musicians."
This is the highly anticipated product of six creative minds coming together to make quality music.  This is a departure from the norm and an introduction to the new.  This is Innovative production, original rhymes, distinct personalities and no gimmicks.  This is 'Number.Sessions', presented by Midas Touch & Grant Gatsby, out December 1, 2009.  Beats and rhymes.  No more, no less.
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If you'd like more information, or to schedule an interview, please call Zach Ziybol at (614) 738-1156, or Email at zach@614hiphop.com
