Pushermania Network Podcasts

Once again Talk So Real is back with yet another episode highlighting the people who really make the Austin music scene tick tick boom, and this is a big one. I finally got my brother Boris Wright in the studio and pon di mic to discuss his long and illustrious career in the music business and more. Boris has been a formidable person behind the scenes at many of your favorite events. His logistical skill and care for the art of music and culture makes him one of the realest people you will ever deal with in this world. He keeps it real and truly cares about you, me, everybody who is really trying to make things happen for music. He has worked heavily behind the scenes at Coachella, SXSW, ACL, Fun Fun Fun Fest and just about every major event you can mention. We talk about a lot of things including how he likes big festivals and I don't, how we both love free jazz but also a lot of other things. We keep it positive but there may be a couple of moments where some heads get cut. This is a really real one y'all and as always I ask you to tell a friend to tell a friend to check out Talk So Real with Matt Sonzala. We have a lot of episodes with some seriously fun and insightful stories and we really try to keep it real. Like, subscribe, do whatever it is you people do on the internet. @borismusic2020

Another big one for the record books! This should have happened a long time ago! I finally got my brother Doug Mecca up in the studio for some real talk. Doug is a pioneer in Austin hip hop and beyond. He and his Hip Hop Mecca Crew revolutionized the game back in the 90's when they started promoting hip hop shows on the regular with both national and local artists at a time when it was even harder to get stages for hip hop than it was in the 2000's. Austin has come a long way and Hip Hop Mecca and their work played a huge role in legitimizing hip hop within the Austin music scene. Trust, it was a lot of work. They also booked some of the coolest hip hop showcases at SXSW in the late 90's/early 2000's. They are the crew who brought crews like the Living Legends, Hieroglyphics, Rhymesayers, Project Blowed and way more to Austin and to SXSW. Their events were always fun and also always loaded with local artists. They built a ton of bridges and Doug has tons of stories. Word to Mike Henry (who also needs to come on the pod). Born in New York, he came to South Austin in the 3rd Grade and has seen it all. Catch him any night at the coolest club still standing on 6th Street, Flamingo Cantina. Enjoy this episode and as always Tell a Friend to Tell a Friend to tune into Talk So Real with Matt Sonzala! @douglasmecca

This weeks show is another huge one! We have my brother Victorious in the house. Victorious and I go way back in this Austin hip hop world, I'm talking back in them Andre Walker/Sociopath Left daze (#IYKYK), and we have a lot to talk about. From our early days on the scene in Austin, to a couple trips to New York, to him being saved and becoming a leader in the Holy Hip Hop World and the beginnings of Christian Hip Hop at SXSW and more. We really go in on this one. As always like and subscribe and tell a friend to tell a friend about Talk So Real with Matt Sonzala. It's a movement. @victorious52

Talk So Real with Matt Sonzala is back for the 2 0 2 4 y'all! And this one is a BIG ONE! I finally got to sit down and have a real talk with Austin's own Alesia Lani! Alesia is an incredible singer with a dynamic energy who has taken the city by storm in recent years and just released her debut album (though I have had so many jams from her over the years I really don't believe that!) Self-Titled and it's a banger. True to form, Alesia slays in a wide range of sounds on this album from a rockin' banger with Jackie Venson, to a cool out jam with John Deas on the track and Gary Clark Jr. on the hook, to going back to her roots in hip hop on songs with The Teeta and Megz from Magna Carda, this album is a real journey and I think you will love to trip we take on these mics as we Talk So Real. Tune in and have a listen and tell a friend to tell a friend that Talk So Real with Matt Sonzala is BACK! @alesialanimusic New Album “Self-Titled” available now

I know that I say this all the time but THIS IS A BIG ONE! I've been down with Robert Gabriel, nee, R2G2, since the mid-90's when we were both writing for the Bay Area hip hop magazine 4080. The publisher Lauchlan Eugene Sampson McIntyre told Robert and I that we should meet each other as we were both in Austin at the time. So we did and we became friends for all these years. He has always been super supportive and in my corner and I have always loved learning about hip hop from his perspective as well. He has really studied the things that he loves, Austin and The Good Life era hip hop in LA in particular. But he of course is not limited to that. We talk all sorts of things from our history and travels and life etc. And I bust out one of his early tapes he made for me and others that I have on my shelf to this day. Like I say this is the podcast where I talk to my frennnzzz and Robert is one. Y'all have a listen and as always tell a friend to tell a friend about Talk So Real with Matt Sonzala

Word to Richard Whymark and Chepo Pena and every person who ever watched a band play in Austin when it was cool, today's guest is Greg Beets! Greg has been covering and playing music in Austin since the late 80's and had a front row seat to all that was happening in the Austin music scene that gave life to so many of us! The 90's in Austin were a special time and his new book A Curious Mix Of People drops today! You may have seen the zine previews over the past couple of years and those have all been super dope so I can't wait to dive into the book straight away. On this episode we discuss all sorts of things and I promise I don't cry about how Austin has changed (much). We also talk about Houston and Dallas as he has lived in both and really just have a lot of scene talk and memory sharing. Music nerds UNITE this one is for you, me, everybody. @beetsolonely Get your copy of “A Curious Mix of People” published by @utexaspress now! Support his band @rontitterband

Maaaaaaan once again we may have outdone ourselfs with the realness. I have a lot of history with my man Wayne Donowho. He was actually my "Promotions and Publicity" teacher back in the days and from right when we met we hit it off and became family. I don't him or his lovely wife and sons nearly enough so I was real lucky to have a couple extra days in Houston recently where we were able to spend some time and really catch up. And you know I had to get him on the podcast. On this one we talk about his days running a Christian record label and being in Christian bands to his life now and most all things in between. Basically we get a lot of Wayne's philosophies on this one and the world just may need some of this. Take a moment to give this one a listen and a share, you will not regret it!

MC K PEOPLE CALL HIM KWAM! My brother Kwame Anderson joins us for today's edition of Talk So Real with Matt Sonzala. Our history runs way back to the early 90's and the days of the Hip Hop Coffee Shop at Hoi Polloi on White Oak which is now Onion Creek and also to the days of Strictly Hip Hop Sunday's on KPFT when he was with a very forward thinking rap group called Seeds of Soul. I was a huge fan of theirs and felt like they were really ahead of their time. I used to hang out with Seeds of Soul and um, enhance our minds and listen to bands like Sonic Youth and Jesus Lizard and Kwame really got into experimental music on all levels real heavy. When Seeds of Soul ended, he and DJ Spaceghost started a group called Freedom Sold, which was Kwame on vocals and noisy ass guitar and Spaceghost on the beats and turntables and they really took things to a whole nother level. Talk about being ahead of their time, Freedom Sold was making noisy conscious raps before really anyone. Now everyone is noisy, though maybe not so conscious. (Word to B L A C K I E who is also a leader in this realm). Anyway now Kwame is a teacher and he has no shortage of things to say. We talk a lot about our history and friendship and travels and hip hop in Houston and all sorts of things. It really goes down on this one, tune in and have a listen and as always please tell a friend to tell a friend about Talk So Real with Matt Sonzala.

Today is a really special edition that is for sure. I always say that Talk So Real is the podcast where I talk to my friends and I literally have talked to some of the people closest to me in this series. But DJ Chill is different! What we have done together over the years changed our lives big time and without his support who knows where I would be. We talk about our early days when we first met while doing promotions for a commercial radio station and of course about doing Damage Control Radio together on KPFT in Houston. We talk about his early days rolling with DJ Screw and even sharing turntables with him. We reminisce on our trips to Europe and around the US celebrating the Houston rap sound and tradition and get into what he is up to these days. This whole week is gonna be crazy, this is the first of three episodes I will be dropping so please subscribe on your favorite platform and don't miss a thing! @djchillhouston @cowboyworldtv

We close out the week with a huge announcement! You may know Gabe Vaughn as one of the owners of Breakaway Records and you may know him as DJ Dangit and have amazing memories of Sock Hop DJ nights and you may even know him from his time in Arctectonics, whatever way you know him you know that Gabe has been a huge part of the Austin music scene. He's been in Austin all of his life, collecting and selling records, making beats and DJing super cool dance parties, but on today's podcast he has something to tell the world and I am not going to spoil it here. If you follow him on social media you probably have an idea of what is going on, but he's been pretty hush hush about it until now. No, he is not pregnant, you are going to have to listen to find out the real deal. I for one am really happy for my dude and I will be even happier if you give this one a listen and a share. This has been a fun week, maybe I will start being consistent, maybe.

We are back in Texas for Season 4 of Talk So Real with Matt Sonzala and today's guest is yet another great friend of mine with a lot to say, Audrea Diaz! If you are doing ANYTHING in Austin hip hop you have for sure at the very least encountered Audrea more than once as she is the biggest supporter of everything Austin hip-hop that I have ever met. She is always in the place and forever repping for the scene that she loves (and loves her) so much. For years Audrea has been witnessing and covering the happenings around Austin. We cover a lot of ground on this one including but not limited to her work getting Austin's CapMetro transit system to expand their services for the disabled, her writing for the Texas Observer and her plans for her book that she has been working on about, take a guess, yup, Austin hip-hop. She also promises to start her own podcast like, very soon. She is a unique and treasured voice in our community and I personally feel as though she needs to be heard far and wide. Definitely have a listen there is some super real talk on this one! @audrea_diaz

We continue on with the stories of kids in the van traversing the country with my other brother Pete Stadtmueller. Pete played drums in the first band I ever booked, Lost from Erie, PA and has always been a great friend of mine. He is a teacher on the university level now and is also a deep sea diver but in our youth he was just another miscreant punk rocker on a mission. We all were. Honestly Pete was one of the more stable dudes in the crew, he could be trusted to drive us through the night blasting Fugazi and Ice Cube tapes at equal volume as the van backfired through tunnels and on country roads. He won't get the band back together but we won't hold that against him. We share a lot of musical memories on this one for sure. Give it a listen and tell a friend to tell a friend to check out Talk So Real with Matt Sonzala (all of them) the podcast where I just talk to my friends.

Continuing on in Erie, PA today we present one of my oldest and closest friends, Mike Krusewicz. When I first met Mike he was a crazy, mouthy skater type who did not hold his tongue at all (nothing's changed). I remember being taken aback the first time I met him, like "Who is this dude?" Then we got some beers and became best friends. Mike is the one who pushed me to do many things, with him having my back we were unstoppable in our youth. We also criss crossed the US together on those early punk rock tours. Mike has always had a van, and iykyk having a van can lead to some crazy times. I have always admired Mike as he started his own business straight out of high school and never looked back and always kept it real. He is my brother in this world for real. We started in radio together, booking shows together and touring the US as well. Word to Rich Mudge too. I hope you enjoy listening to this one as much as I enjoyed making it.

SEASON 3 BONUS WEEK HAS BEGUN! Well three days at least. Today starts the ERIE EDITION of Talk So Real. I spent a good part of the summer in my hometown of Erie, PA and meant to do way more podcasts, but I did get with three of the people who were HUGE in the formation of who I am today. These are LITERALLY my day one dudes (Day one starts after I got out of high school because school was a TRAP) and in those daze right after High School man, I accomplished A LOT with this particular dude. Brian Diplacido aka A Bullet for Fidel was the singer for the first band I ever booked a tour for, Lost from Erie, PA. I will never forget the first time I saw them live at the Continental Ballroom in 1989 on a local bill with My 3 Scum and Backwash (Alex Lewinger from Submachine's old band also RIP Danny Perry). Lost was way more my speed than a lot of things happening those days. I love pure punk rock and the old school and all that but in my late teens I was way more Touch & Go/Amphetamine Reptile/Sub Pop than I was like, for lack of a better term, pure punk. Actually I'm tripping I liked everything but let's just say seeing a band like them hitting like that coming out of Erie (nee, Harborcreek) was huge for me. (And they were really not like T&G, AmRep, etc I don't know what I am saying. As the kids say today, they hit different). I approached them after the show and probably bought a tape and a shirt and if memory serves me right I ran into the drummer Pete at Record Country and we talked and all became friends. It was at that show that I decided that I wanted to try my hand at throwing shows, and on these Erie podcasts we talk about how all that went down. I toured the US multiple times with Lost, sometimes for six weeks at a time, and then in 1991 Brian and I backpacked around Europe for the first time which changed my life in a major way as well. So much to talk about. Later in life Brian became a solo songwriter called A Bullet For Fidel and released records on the excellent label SCAT RECORDS. And in 2023 he has some new music about fin to drop! Also on Scat Records. Man the way life moves is really crazy man for real for real. Here we are 30 years later still doing thangs and having some real talks!

Been a long time, I shouldn't have left you... but I have a bit of an explanation and a preview of what is to come with Talk So Real with Matt Sonzala. Check this out and give me some feedback please...

Oh man here we are back again with another episode of Talk So Real with Matt Sonzala and this is a big one, we finally got YellaStud in the house! We go way back and reminisce about all kinds of Austin hip hop memories. YellaStud, I still call her Lolo, and I did a lot of shows together for SXSW and just in general and have always been fam. A pivotal human in this Austin rap ecosystem, you won't find a person that is more supportive AND motivating for real. We talk about the launch of the Never Enough Brand and the meaning behind it and all sorts of thangs! Tune in and tell a friend to tell a friend! @yellastud @never.enough.brand Vote for YellaStud in the @austinchronicle #BestOfAustin TODAY! https://vote.austinchronicle.com/arts-and-entertainment/graphic-artist

Man it felt really good to do this one for sure as I got to get my man Bak on the other side of the mic! Bak is one of the most thorough podcasters that I know personally, he is definitely an OG in the city of Austin where he has been covering nightlife and more for years. He has literally interviewed everyone, including me a few years back. These days he is focused on his comedy and mostly talking to fellow comedians on his show, but if you go back into his archives you will hear some real talks with so many of the people who truly made/make Austin the Live Music Capital of the World. And more. Born in Senegal, raised in France, and reared in Austin, the man has stories and insights for days. I hope you enjoy listening to this one as much as I enjoyed making it and as always please tell a friend to tell a friend to like, follow and subscribe to Talk So Real with Matt Sonzala. @thefeedbak @recordplaylive https://www.thefeedbak.com/

Maaaaaaan it finally happened. I've BEEN meaning to sit down with the legend OG Ron C and chop (no pun intended) it up about all sorts of things, and on this episode it finally happened with a bonus appearance by DJ Hollygrove. We talk about the beginnings of the Swisha House, The Chopstars and how they have evolved over the years. We discuss how both of us started out driving the promo van for a radio station in Houston, and later get into Ron's new career as a filmmaker/actor. It was great to see The Chopstars all around #SXSW2023, they definitely held it down all over the city. I even got a literal candle from @DJCandlestick. Crazy! There is a lot of real talk on this one as you know neither I nor OG Ron C are known to hold our tongues so be sure to tune in and tell a friend to tell a friend about this podcast. Audio available on all platforms it really goes down! @ogronc @iamdjhollygrove @thechopstars

Special shout out to my brother Gregory "Beef" Jones (@ogbeefjones) for inviting me to the Group Black party during SXSW IA last week. Group Black is a company founded by industry legend Bonin Bough to dramatically transform the face of media ownership and investment. Beef and I had been trying to link all day, when he ended up at this party and told my wife and I to come meet him there. He said "They have free drinks, a DJ and some Afrobeats artist will perform." Neither of us knew who we were about to see. Then Yung D3mz hit the stage, straight outta Ghana. It was so refreshing for me to hear this kind of music being represented at SXSW and by a young up and coming talent who has not jumped on the hype train as of yet. I truly felt as if I was witnessing something special. Possibly his first show in the USA, and for a crowd of highly enthusiastic - mostly women - who were dancing and singing along. It was a really special moment for me as ten years ago when I worked for SXSW I took a couple trips to Johannesburg to meet more people from the African music industry and hopefully see SXSW expand into booking more from the continent. That is all easier said than done but in recent years Africa's presence at the conference has grown for sure. So props to SXSW for that. I approached Yung D3mz and talked to him about his music and told him that I was a fan of Fokn Boiz from Ghana and knew their manager, Panji Anoff, and from there he could tell that I knew a little something about this music thing. I met his manager and his crew and invited them to come over and do a podcast, and they actually showed up and this talk is the result. It was a real pleasure to get this young persons perspective on Afrobeats and just life and culture in general. His music can be streamed anywhere you stream music and you should check him out. We are also joined on this episode with his producer Uche B, a force in his own right. Please tune in and tell a friend to tell a friend to subscribe and listen to Talk So Real With Matt Sonzala. @yung_d3mz @uche_b

Maaaaaan I am finally getting back to the podcast game and this one is a good one! I finally got to sit down with Shu of IITight Music (2 Tight) from Japan! Shu is a huge supporter of real rap music and one of the truest fans I have ever met. I love meeting people from around the world who appreciate and work to help and progress our culture and Shu is very much so one of them. Listen to the story of how he has been coming to the US multiple times every year for 20 years to buy music to take back and distribute in Japan, mainly independent real rap music. He goes from hood to hood in search of gems on CD, cassette, vinyl etc and he even licenses music from underground artists. I even have a vinyl copy of a Southern Merchandise album he put out. Southern Merchandise were a group in San Antonio in the 90's and here in Austin I felt like I was the only person who knew of them. I loved that CD and somehow this dude found them and reissued it on vinyl. Crazy! Tune in for some real game and maybe you have something to offer him in the way of unreleased music to release in Japan, or some old cassettes you have in a closet. He also has brought artists like Bun B, LE$, Lil Keke and PKO to Japan for concerts. The story is amazing tune in and let me know what you think! @2tightmusic_mcd