TOUR FOOTAGE WITH SOULUTIONN!! First stop HOUSTON, TX! ~D&A SPONSORED AND CERTIFIED GOOD MUSIC

CHECK THE D&A SPONSORED AND CERTIFIED GOOD MUSIC CREW ON THE "KNOW PRESERVATIVES BLOG SPOT!"

http://www.knowpreservatives.com/page/3/

New Banksy painting at MOCA "Art in the Streets"

One of the new paintings Banksy is showing as part of the MOCA ‘Art in the Streets’ show is a reworking of a single frame from the video of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) brutally beating Rodney King back in 1991 in which Banksy has substituted King with a Pinata. Has Banksy finally gone too far?

Favor Botique : Botique X Barber X Salon

Just wanna give a quick shout to Favor Botique, Jessie, and everyone else out there at Favor. If your in Tennessee, i suggest you swing by for a quick cut and some fresh gear before you head out for the night! Pretty soon you might even be able to walk out with some Drive & Ambition on your back! Check em' out at http://www.shopinfavor.com/

Friday April 29th : D&A x CanRock x Skele

Friday, April 29th at Chicho's Chesapeake: were showcasing Skele Clothing & Paintings. Our last party was a HUGE turnout, let's pack this one out even more!

Genesis the Greykid - Music/Braille & Sign Language...(D&A SPONSORED, D&A APPROVED "GOOD MUSIC")

"Speak Easy" Episode 1...This is HIP HOP! Directed by D&A's own Samuel Rogers

Soulutionn... An Introspective Look (D&A sponsored and D&A approved music)

New D&A Sponsored group...SOULUTIONN!!

If you know us, you know Drive & Ambition won't deal with the usual nonsence music and we certainly won't put our name behind it unless it's hot! This is SOULUTIONN one of the few groups we sponsor and support...Check out their site and listen to their music...let us know what you think... www.soulutionn.com

Nigo Sells Bape

” WWD have caught up with NOWHERE CO., LTD. and A Bathing Ape founder NIGO in the wake of the news of him selling his company to Hong Kong’s I.T. Providing the greatest insight into the reasons as to why he had no choice other than to sell to allow the brand to stay alive. NIGO goes ito detail about his own inability to manage the business of NOWHERE CO., LTD. as to how he envisages the future of A Bathing Ape…… “

Corey davis and I just had a mini discussion on this interview, he brought up a good point on how he felt Nigo could have just lowered Bapes price points instead of selling the whole thing.. Reading this interview got me thinking about the other businesses that are flopping out as well, this economy is no joke smh…

sidenote: Does this mean I can buy my Bape at TJMaxx now?

Nigo, the fashion and music impresario who founded Japanese street label A Bathing Ape, openly admits he’s never really had a head for business. That partially explains why Hong Kong-based retailer I.T Ltd. managed to snap up 90 percent of his company Nowhere Co. for just 230 million Japanese yen, or $2.8 million at average exchange rates. The company, which owns the brand known as Bape, has posted losses for the past two fiscal years and has racked up its share of debt.

Although Nigo downplayed the severity of Nowhere’s financial situation — even to the extent that he denied the company is actually losing money — he acknowledged that dealing with the administrative side of running a business has never been his strong suit.

“The company itself wasn’t in a very dire situation, but in the end I spent so much time looking after the management side that I wasn’t really able to do design,” he told WWD during an interview at his personal atelier, packed with what is only a portion of his extensive collection of vintage toys, art, pop culture artifacts and designer furniture. A statue of Colonel Sanders greets visitors at the entrance, and the space downstairs houses no less than a vintage Coca-Cola vending machine, a jukebox, a giant Apple Computer logo sign in neon lights and a series of paintings by New York-based artist Kaws featuring the Simpsons characters with missing eyes.

“Basically, I can’t do business. I’m not suited for it. I wish I had had a partner on the business side from the beginning,” said a surprisingly upbeat Nigo, whose real name is Tomoaki Nagao. The music and fashion impresario said he always thought he would sell the company he incorporated in 1995.

“I turned 40 [last December], there was the turning point of the brand reaching nearly 20 years since its establishment, and I think I made a forward-looking choice,” he said, acknowledging the brand’s popularity in Japan has faded in recent years. “About two or three years ago the brand and the company got too big for me to handle, plus there was the problem with the economy, and the number of things I wasn’t able to control on my own increased, so I started looking for a partner.”

Nigo said sales for the year ended Aug. 31 totaled about 5 billion yen, or $55.5 million. He said sales peaked in the 2006 to 2007 period, when Nowhere was registering an annual volume of about 7.5 billion yen, or $63 million.

In April 2009, Nigo stepped down as president and director of Nowhere in an effort to bring in more formal management, but that was a short-lived arrangement and he resumed his role at the helm of the company only a few months later.

I.T has said Nowhere posted a loss of 267.43 million yen, or $2.78 million, for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2009, and a loss of 119.05 million yen, or $1.32 million, for the year ended Aug. 31, 2010. Dollar figures were converted at average exchange rates for the periods to which they refer.

But Nigo expressed a different take on the numbers. “The accounting base is different, so I don’t think we made a loss. It’s difficult [to say]. But I never missed payments or delayed paying employees’ salaries,” he said, adding he’s kept his personal fortune and the company’s coffers separate.

Nowhere had net liabilities of 1.25 billion yen, or $13.88 million, as of Aug. 31. Also, I.T is taking on about 4.31 billion yen, or $52.79 million, of Nowhere’s outstanding bank loans and shop leases.

“I definitely didn’t want to file [for bankruptcy] under the Civil Rehabilitation Law, and I didn’t want to damage the brand,” Nigo said. “I had a strong feeling that I wanted the brand to survive, so the main thing was thinking what to do about that. I spent 20 years building it up, so it would be a real shame for it to disappear.”

As for the future of Bape, Nigo thinks I.T is the best company to grow the brand. Over recent years, Bape’s popularity has grown tremendously in China, even as the buzz has died down in Japan.

Nigo has agreed to serve I.T as Bape’s creative director for an initial period of two years, but he said he hopes his involvement continues beyond that.

In addition to his new role in I.T’s Nowhere, Nigo said he would continue working on his other projects, including his partnership with singer-producer Pharrell Williams on the Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream brands, which are part of a separate venture. “

CMND/CTRL Presents: Battle Axe

CMND/CTRL presents: BATTLE AXE DJ BATTLE

KID ICARUS x DSTRYD
vs
MISSILE COMMAND (HIP HOP DAN x CHAD HUGO)

Doors Open @ 8pm
Show Starts @ 9pm

$10 Entry Fee
TICKETS ON SALE @ TICKETMASTER.COM
and on TheNorva.com STARTING FRIDAY MARCH 11th

ITS GOING TO BE A CRAZY NIGHT.. WHO KNOWS WHAT WILL GO DOWN.
THERE WILL BE GIVE-A-WAYS OF FLESH, SWEAT AND SWEET SHIT!

PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD THIS IS OUR FIRST BIG EVENT!
COME PARTY WITH US!

D&A PARTY AND ART SHOW WAS A SMASH!!!

Genesis The Greykid : Here We Are

Our boy Genesis is doing big things again. Here's his second music video off of the upcoming Grey Skies 2 Mixtape. You've all heard and seen his first video "A note to Pharrell" now go check his newest video out "Here we are" on the creative control website. http://creativecontrol.tv/www/#/music-videos/genesis-the-greykid/here-we-are

Genesis Interview

Miles Beyond sits down with Genesis the Greykid for Rail Road Hip Hop. You can follow Genesis on twitter@hi_im_genesis and on Facebook: Russell Genesis McGee.

BE THE CHANGE YOU WANT TO SEE IN THE WORLD!

The Fountain of Youth Program, founded by Sanura Harris and Cymandye Russell, is a teen empowerment program for young tween/teen girls in the hampton roads area. On 2/3/11 Andrea Castleberry a.k.a. M$ Blendz and I had the honor of guest speaking at The Boys and Girls Club in Virginia Beach to a group of young ladies about the importance of self esteem. We shared stories of past and present. We laughed...I cried LOL but more importantly, the lesson learned was that self esteem is the foundation to your success! These young ladies were such an inspiration to me! Make sure you remember these faces because I have a feeling we have some future stars in the making! ; ) And to the young ladies who left early and were not in the picture, you have not been forgotten and you all are stars too!!! Remember, NEVER let anyone tell you that you can't fulfill your dreams! Believe in yourself and work hard towards your goals and YOU WILL make it!

*THE CHILDREN ARE OUR FUTURE*

Extreme Home Make Over - Virginia Beach!

I think this is simply amazing. It's always awesome to see what they do on the show to help families in need out, but it really hits home when there doing it in your community! The people helping out with this project embody everything Drive & Ambition is about. I will keep everyone updated on the progress of the build which should be completed this weeked.

The Extreme Makeover: Home Edition team, partnership with local builder Trademark Construction and hundreds of area volunteers, is in Virginia Beach and over the next week will build a new home for this family, who live in a modest ranch house at 3020 Gentry Road, located just off South Lynnhaven Road behind Lynnhaven Mall.
Team leader Ty Pennington and his talented designers surprised the family Sunday morning while they were in church.

The Hill-Burdette clan has earned it.

Beverly Hill has a heart of gold, and she's been sharing her love for life for more than 15 years, caring for more than 35 foster kids.

After raising her two biological children, Beverly and Fred formally adopted six foster girls, who today range in age from nine to 18. Their charitable spirit reaches far beyond the foundation of their home and into their community. Now the "Extreme Makeover" team will honor them with the same generosity they have shared with others.

The Hill-Burdettes have inspired their daughters to give back to the community, and now they routinely help make meals and deliver necessities to those in need. Unfortunately their home is not as giving as they are, and its failing construction is jeopardizing their passion for giving back. Faulty electrical wiring, a sagging ceiling, and a floor that is crumbling are a recipe for disaster. With only one working bathroom in a house of seven ladies, the house is overdue for a renovation.

D&A X ATE BEACH BOYS MOVEMENT...We hold our city down like an anchor! VIRGINIA BEACH STAND UP!

Exit Thru The Gift Shop

This is the inside story of Street Art - a brutal and revealing account of what happens when fame, money and vandalism collide. Exit Through the Gift Shop follows an eccentric shop-keeper turned amateur film-maker as he attempts to capture many of the world's most infamous vandals on camera, only to have a British stencil artist named Banksy turn the camcorder back on its owner with wildly unexpected results.

One of the most provocative films about art ever made, Exit Through the Gift Shop is a fascinating study of low-level criminality, comradeship and incompetence. By turns shocking, hilarious and absurd, this is an enthralling modern-day fairytale... with bolt cutters.

2 LIES & A TRUTH

Lets start with a Truth:

Cat & I were out at the MacArthur Mall on a crazy guerrilla marketing blitz when I stumbled upon the new Polo Boots.

...theses boots are the Truth!

Lex Luger : Beatsmith

Last year, Virginia native Lex Luger emerged on the scene as a producer on the rise with a pair of breakout numbers: Waka Flocka Flame's rumbling "Hard in da Paint" and Rick Ross' industrial-strength banger "B.M.F. (Blowin' Money Fast)."

This year, however, he's already showed a more diverse approach to projects, a full-length effort with Three 6 Mafia's Juicy J and the first single from Jay-Z and Kanye West's Watch the Throne joint LP.

The young beatsmith — who, like Big K.R.I.T., learned how to produce using the PlayStation video game "Beat Generator" — expects to showcase his range in 2011.

"My sound is hard, but I want people to hear another side," Luger said. "I got R&B, pop, everything, and I want people to see that and hear that. I feel like I could do that now because of this Kanye West and Jay-Z record. I feel like I can go where I want to go."

Bow down.

Directed by Samuel Rogers. Edited by Christopher Schafer.

Lex Luger | Interview from Samuel Rogers on Vimeo.

The story behind Skillz "Rap Up"

Its that time of year again where everyone is impatiently waiting for Skillz to drop his year end Rap Up. Our media mastermind Samuel Rogers just shot this video with the story behind the Rap Up. Check it out, the video speaks for itself.

Skillz | Rap Up from Samuel Rogers on Vimeo.

CHECK OUT ONE OF VA'S HOTTEST ARTISTS...JEFF SHEELY! ARTSHOW TONIGHT AT THE JEWISH MOTHER IN NORFOLK, VIRGINIA!