With Sore Losers’ “We Are Sore Losers” EP recently making it’s premiere
on to the hip-hop scene, Sore Losers are making their mark in history and redefining the genre

On Saturday, 2/4, Sore Losers celebrated the recent release of their highly anticipated We Are Sore Losers EP . Hosted by NFL player Martellus Bennet and DJ Drop, Sore Losers fans new and old came out to be a part of the We Are Sore Losers EP Release Celebration Show at Trees. The standing room only crowd was treated to a great lineup that included The Boombachs, Zawcain (BET Music Matters) and Fly Union.

Shortly after midnight, Sore Losers guitarist K Cooks led the band processional on to the stage with a dramatic guitar solo entrance followed by King’s signature drum solo then one by one the rest of the band appeared on stage before the appearance of Brown. Once Brown gave the signal, the band immediately went all in on new song “Feedback”. Over the course of the next hour and a half, Sore Losers fans were taken on a high energy experimental hip hop musical adventure, an emotional soul stirring journey through the new We Are Sore Losers songs and popular fan favorites. Music artists Dustin Cavazos (featured on new single “Baby Wanna Roll”) and Charlie B (CMG/Bungalo/Universal Music Group artist featured on new singles “Laugh Now Cry Later” and “if I Was Rich”) joined Sore Losers on stage. French producer and harmonica maestro Frédéric Yonnet, also featured on Sore Losers new single “If I Were Rich” made a special trip to Dallas to perform with Sore Losers. Yonnet who regularly plays with Prince, Stevie Wonder, and Dallas own Erykah Badu graced the stage instantly mesmerizing the crowd playing harmonica throughout Sore Losers show. The rest of the night was filled with the roaring crowd of supporters rocking to Sore Losers phenomenal music captivated by every note and lyric coming from the stage.

At the end of the last song, Sore Losers gave heartfelt thanks to the fans before leaving the stage. However the fans wouldn’t have it. The crowd immediately began chanting Sore Losers commanding the group back on stage once again for an encore performance. Sore Losers returned to the stage to give a powerful performance of their Grammy.com featured lead single “Euthanasia”. All throughout Trees, the crowd could be heard passionately chanting in unison Euthanasia’s powerful hook:

“MONEY, MURDER, LIES, GUNS, DRUGS, SEX…Maybe mankind just has a GOD complex”

The musical journey finally comes to an end. An incredible night that will forever be remembered as a great moment in Dallas hip hop music for many years to come…

Trees has cultivated and planted seeds in the Dallas grassroots movement for about two years strong. This past Saturday at the “We Are Sore Losers” EP Release show was no different.

Discovering authentic musicians whom play actual instruments is similar to finding Waldo in the Emperor’s new clothes—virtually impossible. Hard to find, but a great feeling of accomplishment once you do.

The honorable mentions were The Boombachs, Fly Union, and Sore Losers, whom all showcased divergent sounds that ultimately and cohesively made for a great string of performances.

The Boombachs emulated an edgier Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street band. They reminded me of Tran-Siberian Orchestra minus the holiday cheer. The saxophone, trumpet, drums, bass, keyboard, and even maracas all served as vital parts to every single note articulation. The singer’s voice had a Caribbean style which strangely complemented the constant jumping and alternative texture from the rest of the band.

Fly Union took flight after a group called, The Moonshine Kids who should be prohibited like the alcoholic substance after rapping about “say[ing] hello to Mr. nice guy” as opposed to nice music—makes sense. It is hard to rate Fly Union off this performance alone. It was great to finally see the three perform the “Girls these days ain’t nothin’ but trouble” track, I just wish that I would have liked something more original that didn’t rely on Will Smith’s initial song.

The main attraction, Sore Losers finally took the stage in a dramatic fashion.The guitarist, K. Cooks brought an aura of Guns ‘N Roses, Slash, and Jimi Hendrix strung into one while he ripped up his first of man guitar solos. The atmosphere was similar to the excitement and anticipation built up before the drum entrance on “Welcome to the Jungle.” There were definite highlights that stood out musically. The track, “Work” from the “Get a Life Mixtape,” released late 2011, was amazingly crafted with a 311, late 90′s jam session feel. Records such as, “Laugh Now Cry Later” featuring the up-and-coming pop singer, Charlie B., pulled away from the past Sore Losers with a darker sound. “Baby Wanna Roll” featuring Dustin Cavazos was a smooth track that could accompany a calm drive with the sun setting in the background. Cavazos has an interesting sound, and I look forward to hearing more. “If I were Rich” took the crown for the best performance of the night. The song is beautifully articulated with warmth in the instruments and in Brown’s voice alongside the superbly talented harmonica player, Frederic Yonnet, who has played with the likes of Erykah Badu, India Arie, and Stevie Wonder. Sore Losers has obtained a more complex and alternative sound compared to their days as “freeloaders,” but is growing into the development of their new musicality and representing Dallas the best way they know how. Congratulations to them for the exposure from the Grammys and Sundance; the world can finally see a masterpiece.

By Nic Hernandez Thursday, Feb 2 2012

The unofficial turning point for local hip-hop came with the late 2009 release of Sore Losers’ Free Loaders, a free mixtape that gave Dallas artists like The Mohicans, A.Dd+, Tunk and -topic room to explore new territory.

At the time, the freeloaders were emcee Vince Brown and producer Brandon Blue, a couple of hyper-ambitious hip-hop kids who slaved over the release while suffering parental pressure to get a job, hence the mixtape’s name. Free Loaders was something that just had to happen, the ultimate overflow of creativity neither of them could hold in, but Brown and Blue seemed hindered by the emcee/producer dynamic from the start.

Colin McDermott
Sore Losers at Sundance
Sore Losers celebrate their EP release Saturday, February 4, at Trees”Even when we were a hip-hop duo, we always wanted to be a band,” Brown says of the early Sore Losers days. “We just weren’t actual musicians at the time.”

That wish came true in the summer of 2010, when Sore Losers played a packed house at The Lounge on Elm. They surprised the crowd by playing their set backed by relatively new band HelloeARTh, who’d essentially learned the whole album. This combination proved to be magic, fulfilling their desire to be a band and getting them attention from ESPN execs who promptly hooked them up with the chance to play VIP events during the 2011 Sundance Film Festival and the 2011 ESPY Awards. It only made sense for the band — a five-piece outfit consisting of K Cooks on guitar, Matt Curtis on bass, Sir Tim on keys and percussionists King Robinson Jr. and Jordan Hughes — to become a permanent fixture. Sore Losers now had seven members.

But for Blue, who has been creating some of the most innovative beats in hip-hop over the past couple years, producing tracks for Schoolboy Q and Kendrick Lamar, the whole setup was a bit of a disconnect. By June 2011, he had decided to go solo, a move that was misunderstood by the public. Rumors spread quickly, and no one seemed quite sure the five musicians behind Brown were actually Sore Losers reincarnated.

“I’m a producer, that’s my career path,” Blue says. “It didn’t work out because they wanted to do the live band thing and I wanted to do my own thing and create a new sound.”

It seems to have worked out for him, as he’s now head of local outfit Brain Gang. His recentNumb EP has gotten plenty of buzz on the underground circuit, which earned him a spot opening Kendrick Lamar’s Texas dates last month. “It hurt, but now looking at what he’s accomplished and how he’s recreated his sound, I’m glad it happened,” Brown says of the split. There are even some Brown/Blue collaborations in the works.

The lineup provided Brown with a new set of challenges and opportunities. For one, he’s taken to learning guitar, a huge step toward legitimizing Sore Losers as something beyond hip-hop. It’s also changed his approach to writing songs, as he now collaborates with five other people before he puts pen to paper. The result on new EP We Are Sore Losers, the first collection of original music from the band’s current incarnation, is a more serious, conscious tone, showing maturity in handling his newfound visibility. The upside is the band now naturally appeals to a wider swath, something any group of musicians would embrace.

It’s almost not fair to keep calling it hip-hop, since the new sound is so driven by HelloeARTh’s influences, which range from Foo Fighters and N.E.R.D. to classic funk and jazz. At times the only connection comes from Brown’s lyrical involvement, as Sore Losers exist between hip-hop and live band, which will no doubt draw comparisons to The Roots.

Any questions as to whether they made the right decision should be directed toward the national exposure Sore Losers have gotten. They’ve seen Grammy.com run an exclusive debut of the song and video for “Euthanasia,” the first single from the EP, and last month the band hit Sundance in Park City, Utah, as guests of AT&T U-verse, their second trip to the festival. They played shows at the ESPN Lounge during the NFL Conference Championships and were interviewed by Vibe magazine.

On the local front, January saw the band open up for hip-hop legends Wu-Tang Clan at House of Blues and their Saturday EP release includes another unbelievable co-sign, as French producer and harmonica maestro Frédéric Yonnet is set to be the band’s special guest. Yonnet has played with both Prince and Stevie Wonder, and his local tie is Erykah Badu, with whom he’s shared the stage on a number of occasions.

Given the success of the Free Loaders mixtape, it proved a receptacle too small to house the creative energies of Vince Brown and Brandon Blue. So now that they’ve reinvented themselves as a band, Sore Losers have the room to explore some new territory of their own.

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Our good friends of Sore Losers have wrapped up their opening performance at the Wu-Tang Clan Rebirthed Texas tour. It open doors to an incredible night of enchanted fans and supporters grasping their ears around a new Dallas hip-hop sound. We tagged along with Sore Losers to document their performance and behind the scene preparations. With constant joking, teasing, and brotherly love moments being shared between all the members of Sore Losers, it was easy to see how well this crew gelled together when it came down to put on an extraordinary show for their audience. Now that Sore Losers is taking a major leap into the scene with their upcoming “We Are Sore Losers” EP release this February 4th in Dallas TX, this was a great way for Sore Losers to create a rumble in the hip-hop community for their upcoming EP album drop! Read the Article here

This video is our short film recap of Sore Losers opening up for the renown Wu-Tang Clan tour through Texas for their “Rebirth” 2012 tour. The Sore Losers crew opened up an energetic and incredible performance to thousands of supporters and hip-hop enthusiasts.

Be sure to catch them at their “We Are Sore Losers” EP celebration and release party at Trees Dallas on February 4th! (More info in the video)

This video was filmed and edited by Loyal K.N.G.’s Mauricio Lopez (http://twitter.com/dacoconut)

Be sure to attend Sore Losers’ Celebration Party for their EP release this February 4th at Trees Dallas!

Read the Article here.

EXCLUSIVELY ON THE GRAMMYS YOUTUBE CHANNEL AND GRAMMY.COM

January 11, 2012 — 11:15 am
GRAMMY.com
Dallas-based hip-hop six-piece Sore Losers are set to release their debut studio album, We Are Sore Losers, this month. Ahead of the album’s release, in November 2011 GRAMMY.com gave you an exclusive first listen to the lead single, “Euthanasia.” Today, GRAMMY.com has your exclusive first look at the video for the song.

Sore Losers’ self-described experimental hip-hop sound draws on influences such as Gnarls Barkley, Lupe Fiasco, Foo Fighters, MGMT, Nas, and N.E.R.D. The collective is comprised of Vince “Encyclopedia” Brown (lyrics), K Cooks (guitar), Matt “Big Kuntry” Curtis (bass), Jordan Hughes and King Robinson Jr. (percussion), and Sir Tim (keyboards). In 2009 Sore Losers released a digital EP entitled Free Loaders – The Soundtrack featuring “Dope,” “Birthday 8587″ and “The Epic Outro.” The group has performed throughout the country at events including the Sundance Film Festival, South by Southwest and the 2011 ESPY Awards post-party.

The video for “Euthanasia” was directed by Capital Agent Media co-owner/partner Walu Mwalilino, who has directed videos for artists including Joe Budden, Busta Rhymes, Sean Paul, and Wale, among others. “The main inspiration behind this video was finding a way to create a metaphor, using a viral affect to spread information and knowledge across the world,” said Mwalilino. “And if you notice throughout the video, the message continues to get bigger and bigger as it spreads globally.”

The group describes “Euthanasia” as “mankind’s ultimate quest to understand reality while attempting to use science to manipulate and control his destiny on Earth. The constant struggle we experience as individuals; the quest for control over our lives while yielding to a higher power.”

Tracks featured on We Are Sore Losers will focus on “functionalist and conflict theories” as well as topics that impact middle and lower class demographics in the United States. The album will mark the group’s first studio recording and will feature original tracks entirely written, composed and arranged by Sore Losers. Sore Losers are currently on tour, with several dates scheduled through March.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE GRAMMY.COM ”EUTHANASIA”  FEATURE STORY ON EXCLUSIVE MUSIC VIDEO DEBUT

Read the Article here.

• Time: 5:00am
• City: We Are Sore Losers in Austin, TX
• Venue: DATE, TIME & LOCATION (TBA)
• Country: US
• ShowNotes: SXSW MUSIC FESTIVAL 2012!!! Sore Losers Showcase date, time and venue TBA soon…
  Sore Losers recently announced in the SXSW 2012 first round of bands confirmed to perform at the prestigious SXSW Music Festival as showcasing artists
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After celebrating 25 years as the world’s leading music industry event, the SXSW® Music and Media Conference is back to continue the tradition in 2012. Reaching a quarter of a century of being the biggest and most anticipated convergence of all things music, SXSW is ready to keep the reputation alive by programming an even better event each year. SXSW showcases roughly 2,000 musical acts from around the globe, representing well over 50 different countries, on over 90 stages in downtown Austin. All this, and so much more, combine to make SXSW one of the most revered music events, year after year.