(October 28, 2010) Bay Area rapper Erk Tha Jerk is proud to announce the release Nerd's Eye View. The album, which serves as the official debut for Erk, who also produces and directs videos for himself and others, will be released November 9th as a joint venture between Bay Area staple SMC Recordings and Erk's own label Red Planet Music Group.
Erk, born and raised in Richmond, California, is part of a supremely talented rising class of rappers coming from the Bay. He also holds the distinction of being one of the rare few from that class with the ability to appeal to the underground while at the same time receiving mainstream radio play. "Right Here," the self-produced melody and synth-filled sex anthem released earlier this year as the lead single from Nerd's Eye View, is one of the most played songs on Bay Area powerhouse radio station 106 KMEL in the past year; the song subsequently broke into Billboard Magazine’s Hot 100 R&B/Hip-Hop chart, has been added to rotation on MTV Jams, and amassed hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube, asserting Erk as a force to be reckoned with both in the cipher and on the radio.
For Erk, Nerd's Eye View was a long time coming. Crafting the album over a two and a half year period, Erk released a handful of mixtapes of EP's during that time – Erk was in no hurry to rush out lackluster product. "Long nights, weed, and honesty is my formula," says Erk. "I just tried to zone out and capture moments. I didn't want to make 'party' music or 'goon' music. I wanted to capture what I felt at the specific moment in time." The result, a 13-track album on which Erk produced six songs (Traxamillion, Bedrock, and The Invasion handle the rest), finds Erk discussing the failed relationship with the mother of his child, while attempting to explain the situation to his young daughter ("How Do You Love Me") with the same ease, maturity, and lyrical clarity as making braggadocios boasts ("Can't Stop Now").
With Nerd’s Eye View, Erk, who will be featured in XXL Magazine's upcoming Show & Prove section, shows great range; Erk has spent time in higher education, holding down 9-to-5's, holding down corners, and the multitude and variety of those experiences are reflected throughout the album. "I wanted the title to be clever yet familiar enough for people to relate to," says the bespectacled rapper, whose cleverness extends throughout the album. "The concept was 'music from my point of view;' not nerd as in 'I know how to do math well,' but nerd as in 'not part of the in-crowd'."
Erk Tha Jerk's Nerd's Eye View will be available November 9, 2010 via Red Planet Music Group/SMC Recordings.
The Background:
Debunking the stereotype of what a West Coast rapper should be is what got a very fickle hip-hop audience to initially notice Erk. His streetwear heavy fashion sense, trademark black eyeglasses and hood nerd persona all worked in his favor. Being from a “bad place” yet knowing that there are non-hood things out there is what has shaped Erk’s approach to life and music. “I went to college for a couple years, I’ve worked 9 to 5 jobs and I’ve sold weed and none of those things quite worked out so I’m kinda like a hood nerd.” His satirical anti-hyphy anthem "I'm So Dumb" and "Plane in the Air" featuring Too $hort defined him as an artist but it was 2009's "Right Here" that put him on the map. The censored version became one of 106 KMEL's (San Francisco) most played songs, charted on Billboard's Top 100 Hip Hop/R&B, and the video is currently in rotation on MTV Jams. In addition to producing and directing videos for other artists, Erk is currently working on his first full length album titled Nerd’s Eye View due on November 9th.
Want to hear and learn more about Erk Visit these sites:
"I Know"
http://media.audibletreats.com/Erk_Tha_Jerk-I_Know.mp3
Ozone Magazine Cipher:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqBKNLxwT8I
"Anything":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6gi8PO7vM0
The Prelude EP:
http://media.audibletreats.com/Erk_Tha_Jerk-The_Prelude.zip
"Perfect Mistake":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQmlibt4MyM
Hood Nerd 2: Memoirs Of The Invisible Man:
http://limelinx.com/files/260fdd79d68a0c5c7f2fab5d99d842da
"Summer":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mp58fsRUadg
Bio, pictures, and streams available here:
http://www.audibletreats.com/download/erkthajerk/
Twitter:
http://twitter.com/erkthajerk
MySpace:
http://www.myspace.com/erkthajerkmusic
Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/erkthajerk
Official Site:
http://www.erkthajerk.com
Label Site:
http://digital.thinkindie.com/search/?label_id=5090
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