Thursday, May 25, 2006

The Adventures of Dura Hale

By Blair Lovern

Rapper newcomer Dura Hale stopped by the TexasGigs world HQ recently to talk about his love for old school, new school and the curious school - like how the new Outkast song kinda, sorta, maybe sounds like something he did before they did?

Hmmm....

Now just to be clear, Dura is not saying "Mighty O" by Outkast is a rip-off of his "In The Kitchen". Both songs allude to the "Hi De Ho" of Cab Calloway, and the Outkast rhymes repeatedly bump up mighty close against the sound of Dura's last name. Hale said he just finds it interesting that a while back, before signing with a record label, he had the opportunity to present his music to the Outkast inner circle, apparently before "Mighty O" was a ever a glint in Andre 3000's eye.

His new CD, The Adventures of Dura Hale, is out and the whole matter at hand is actually playing into Hale's favor. "In The Kitchen" is getting heard by radio stations curious about Dura Hale since the Outkast song is now getting airplay. Would they have given him the chance otherwise? Perhaps, although if I were running a small percentage of the world I would proclaim by judicial fiat that Dura Hale should be listened to. (I'd also sign an executive order that you are allowed to end a sentence with a preposition without grammar teachers freaking out.)

Check out "In The Kitchen" for yourself on Dura's TG page. Then compare it to the "Mighty O" here.

You may listen to our interview with him here, in which Dura talks about how he got started and his thoughts on music in general. He's a personable, down-to-earth guy and his dad sang sang background vocals on "Lady, You Bring Me Up" by the Commodores. Wish I could have sung background on one song with the Commodores. Dang. I just think that's cool and had to toss that in there.

You may also get extra super-duper double bonus coverage here about Dura clarifying his thoughts about the new Outkast song.

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