Her voice rings similar to Adele, and pierces through as both graceful and full. Her arrangements spread over various genres. “Lil Darlin (feat. The O’My’s)” offers a painfully soulful voice on top of soft piano and a strong hip-hop beat. In “Blues Eye Blind” Ward mixes an electronic hum with a hip hop bump. And “If I Could Be Her” combines a standard country blues guitar with a danceable pop beat. Regardless of which influence is stronger, each song is irresistible to move to.

With the blues-stricken vocals and the dangerously soulful beat, Till the Casket Drops is a genuine neo-soul album that sets fire the second it starts to play. Do not miss ZZ Ward this Saturday, November 10^th at Bulldog Alley, featuring Snuhgie and our very own Tate Tucker. Tickets only $3.00. Hold on to your Fedoras ladies and gents.

And it’s coming up in just a few days!

The concert, sponsored by the Georgetown Entertainment and Media Alliance, is not only a great representation of musical ability and a rocking good time, but is a great networking opportunity for any WGTB DJs (or fans!) interested in a career in media or entertainment.

The show will feature a variety of songs written by alums and students as well as covers, including a really fantastic cover of Bon Iver’s “Holocene”. WGTB’s own Tate Tucker will be performing as well.

Check out the list of performers and this year’s trailer below, and get your tickets before they sell out!

Buy tickets here (only $10 for students)

RSVP on Facebook

Join GEMA (a good idea if you haven’t yet – membership is free!)

GEMA Rocks 2012 will feature performances by:

Mike Zakarin (C ’05, MBA ’13) of the band The Bravery; Michael Pearsall (B ’06) and Evan Field (I ’98) of the band Honor by August; Marcel Arsenault (C ’07); Rochelle Ballard (B ’05); Rich Battista (B ’86); Emilie Bogrand (C ’07); Aaron Broadus (faculty); Greg Capone (B ’06); Bill Danoff (I ’68); Yean Do (student); Anatole Doak (student);Walter Egan (C ’70); Greta Gaines (C ’89); Kiran Gandhi (C ’11); David Hendrickson (B ’07); Gary Kearns (F ’79); Kimon Kirk (C ’00); Lance Langston (F ’82); Chris Murphy (F ’07); Eric Rigaud (C ’90); Brittany Sonnichsen (C ’08); Patrick Sullivan (B ’07); Teddy Svoronos (F ’08); Kirsten Thien (B ’93); Richard Trent (F ’10); Tate Tucker (student); John Zambetti (C ’70); Johnny Zambetti (B ’09); Teddy Zambetti (C ’80)

SPECIAL VIDEO APPEARANCES BY:

Stand-up comedian Mike Birbiglia (C ’00)

Actor and comedian Nick Kroll (C ’01) of FX’s The League

SNL writer and stand-up comedian John Mulaney (C ’04)

Make sure to get your tickets today! We’ll see you there.

Most Georgetown freshman spend their time worrying about the next accounting test (or econ or human bio), making merry at Leo’s and thinking of innovative ways to play drinking games in dorm rooms. I don’t know to what extent Tate Tucker does any of these things, but I’m profoundly impressed that he found the time to put together Blue Dreams, his debut mixtape that dropped Monday. It spent most of the day shooting up the charts on the download site Datpiff, and deservedly so. Replete with fun samples, hooky beats, diverse rhyme schemes and thoughtful lyrics, Blue Dreams appears to be the beginning of something special. Its not as if this tape is just “pretty good for a freshman rapper from Georgetown,” its just really good.

♫ Listen to “Blue Dreams” by Tate Tucker

While this tape is certainly precocious, and Tucker’s lofty ambitions are apparent throughout, there is also an appropriate, refreshing dose of humility to it. He continues to rep his hometown of L.A., the “city where they love weed,” and gives numerous shout-outs to his new home. I think we can all appreciate the cover art of a West Georgetown favorite, the “Wave House.” I also thoroughly enjoyed the various nods to hip-hop classics like Souls of Mischief and the late Old Dirty Bastard, not only because of their timeless beats that Tate raps over but because it demonstrates a knowledge and respect for his craft that isn’t necessarily shared by every up-and-comer these days.

♫ Listen to “Shimmy Ya” by Tate Tucker

Even more important than where he’s coming from, however, is where Tate Tucker is going; and wherever it is, it’s going to be big. First off, it helps that he chose some great songs to flow over, my personal favorites being Fleet Foxes’ new single, Frank Ocean’s “Swim Good,” and the Radiohead classic “House of Cards.” The beats don’t come close to telling the whole story though, as Tucker flashes a full repertoire of flow, from the choppy staccato on “Swim Good,” the triplets that punctuate “Blue Dreams,” and his occasional forays into an impressive double-time. Finally, while Tucker spends plenty of time ruminating on everyone’s favorite topics of ripping shots and blowing green, he also reveals an ample social conscience. He focuses a lot of energy on the themes of corporate and political greed, inner city crime and violence, and racial iniquity, all of which are especially salient in both DC and Tucker’s native Los Angeles.

♫ Listen to “Swim Good” by Tate Tucker

All things considered, nobody could have expected much more out of this debut: on a first listen you are hooked by the samples and the lighthearted party-friendly side of it, and upon closer examination it holds up as a genuinely thoughtful work by a talented kid. On the lead single, “Clueless,” Tate even predicted my reaction, “n***** downloaded my tape and now they fittin’ to recommend it.” Download Blue Dreams here.

– Mike Taintor, host of Transatlantic Waffles, Tuesdays 11am-12pm.

Stream and download the track after the jump.

Tate Tucker – Clueless

See Tate’s Abditum feature:

–Igor German

Weird things always happen in New South. This place was my home for a year, and though the details are hazy, I know weird stuff happened. Over-eager introductions, muted drinking games, romantic exploits. Not a bad breeding ground for creativity.

Tate and I agreed to meet Saturday morning, so naturally he shot me a text at around 1PM, announcing that he just woke up. Escorted in by this lethargic freshman from Los Angeles, I did my best to avoid the wise, Senior role, “Ah yes, how I too remember this very drinking fountain. She sated me well, she did.” His room, not unlike most rooms in New South, was benefited by the luxury of a sink and decorated with a few clumsy posters.

But when Tate raps, it’s the sound of a hard worker. Careful, deliberated lyricism and punctuated, emphatic delivery. He cares just as much about what he’s saying as how he’s saying it. His writing is born out of impulsion and perfected by patience. He sounds eerily professional spitting into my mic with solo cups and wet towels in the background. He’s excited about his art, really excited, and he’s happy that there are people listening. He’s got plans for a recording session in NYC and a music video in LA. We’re ready for more.

Read about the project Abditum here.

If you want to get involved, email ig52@georgetown.edu and ask for Igor.

–Igor German

NB: Beat Credit on ‘No Future’ goes to Avila Santo