Madison hip-hop magazine 608 drops its first issue
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Local journalists' coverage of Madison hip-hop artists (hell, even ours here at The A.V. Club, we'll admit) tends to be a bit passive, perking up around shows, CD releases, and unfortunately, the occasional police incident. (You know, the one that inevitably sparks a quickly fizzling "dialogue" about hip-hop and race in our community.) Part of that's just the nature of covering music in a town this size, but either way, it's a wide-open opportunity for more consistent coverage of Madison's hip-hop scene. Will 608, the new local magazine subtitled The Madison Hip Hop Experience, be able to fill that void? Publisher Andre Linzmeyer tells The A.V. Club in an e-mail that 608 will be a bi-monthly (the January issue drops mid-December, he says), and that its not-yet-active website will be "developed incrementally" to include print stories and "goodies exclusive to web."
The first issue, which dropped this week, has a cover story on Dumate, who recently put a new CD out and are the best evidence lately that local hip-hop's worth caring about. Profiles on a few other locally connected hip-hop artists (including P-Wol & Duce Dilliotto and MC Smokes) have a bit of a national-talent-scout vibe. The Fashion department includes a profile on local fashion-design outlet E.g.o., and column about how all you women out there can attain "a nicer booty." (Tips include "wear high heels" and "put that cheeseburger down." This might be tongue-in-cheek?) There's also a piece on Gus Doyle (Governor Jim Doyle's adopted son) and his interest in hip-hop and work on the Obama campaign. Plus "Hip Hop Muse"--a column about women in hip-hop--and "party pix," which is just a spread of photos of people at a party. The tone is hit-and-miss, but the emphasis on local, lesser-known, and even lesser-known-to-locals artists is a good first step.
Linzmeyer doesn't seem too stuck on the first issue's format: "We also plan on making it more dynamic, playing with the style, breaking content into smaller pieces, bringing some more talent into the mix to add to the flavor. Now that we exist, people are starting to come out of the woodwork and we will really be able to mix it up and make it diverse." 608 shows an enthusiasm for supporting and digging around in Madison hip-hop, and I'll look forward to seeing it find its voice.
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