ARIEZ

Ariez aims to bring Worcester hip-hop to the world
by Brian Goslow

While it’s been almost a decade since local rappers and hip-hoppers attached the name Wor-Town to their hometown, their music continues to remain largely under the mainstream radar despite the fact that MySpace currently lists over 400 of them, all within shouting distance of City Hall. Twenty-year old producer Atheer Soubhi, AKA the Iraqi-born Art Beats (who came to the United States in 1998) is working hard to change that.

Utilizing his mobile ProTools digital production studio, Beats has been producing local rap, R & B, reggae, and reggaeton over the sounds of his Korg Triton keyboard and Dunbek Arabic drums at studios in Worcester, North Brookfield (Longview), Boston, and New York City. His main artists are rappers Ariez, Rugged, and JussLu, reggae performer Pritty Boy, R & B singer Gigi, and Get Lit Entertainment, an Arabic rap group from California.

His biggest success to date has been the sale of over a thousand copies of his 2003 production of a mix tape by Main South-born MC Ariez, whose latest track “Wat U Gonna Do” snagged some late 2005 airplay on Boston’s influential JAM’N 94.5. That track, laid over Art Beat’s Arabic rhythms, features other members of the Art Beat stable chanting “What U, Wat U Gonna Do?” followed with a heavy response of “Nothing!” that slams the song home as a certified hit.

Not surprisingly, Ariez, who’s already had a taste of international living in St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands and Greece, raps about the day he’ll make it big; he’s been working with Beats on recordings for a CD aimed at doing just that. “Hey you, Beats - Trying to get rich, right?,” he asks at the start of “When I Get Rich,” after which he’s “gonna cop a mansion in the six,” be “swimmin’ in women,” “hitting on the daddy’s chicks,” and “chillin’ sittin’ on half a million.” He’s definitely got a little Donald Trump in him, stating that he’ll be “well-dressed with finesse,” “buy my mama a crib,” and “invest in a little real estate.”

Ariez, who started out as a poet before being encouraged to put his words to music, shoots out rhymes in a variety of ways without belting you in the face with them. On “International Player,” Art Beats’s music, rap or otherwise ~ produced with the high form multi-layers that set Eminem apart from all of his commercial contemporaries ~ sets the stage and scenery in your head. “Ride” opens with handclap-like beats and has intense lyrics that frighten and thrill at the same time. On “We Party,” Ariez, who’s got a sold-out show at Club Octaine on his growing resume, asks, “Now all my ladies throw your hands in the sky… All my gangstas throw your guns in the sky… get the bar poppin.’” Well-placed “ohhhhs” accent his boasts.

Ariez’s latest recordings don’t have a release date at this time, but you can sample them at myspace.com/theoneariez. Live performances at area colleges are in the works. Art Beats’s work can be experienced at myspace.com/artbeats1.
You don’t have to play air guitar all your life. If you’re one of those people who dreams of taking over a stage like your favorite musicians do, there are a number of top rate players in the Worcester area ready to share their knowledge with you. - Pulse Magazine