Nate Turner

Tell the people who you are and the meaning behind your name?

Mind Grind Entertainment is a label that believes in the power of the
message of music. That's why we say that "Music is a movement!" Mind
Grind means that we come together as a collective power to make a
significant impact on our culture through artistry and music.

Nate Turner is the Runaway Slave. My aim is to help us break the
chains of oppression. Through my music, I aim to inform people about
history, spirituality, and the socio-economic issues that we all face.
Further, as a Black Man in America, I still fall victim to some of
these conditions, so my music is also a testimony of my own journey
going "From Niggas To Gods."

How long have you been an artist at what age did you notice you had talent?

I've been making music since I was about 8 years old. I was blessed to
be born into a family of musicians. My first rap performance was when
I was 11 years old, and I knew I would be a rapper for real when I
heard "Who's World Is This" by Nas a year later.

Everyone has a success story what's yours?

We are grinding from the bottom up. God told me when I was about
twenty or twenty one that I was supposed to go independent. I knew
that I wanted to always be in control of my creativity, and I knew
that I had to study this game so major labels wouldn't be able to make
me a slave.

Tell us about your mixtape?
"Mind Over Matter" is the new mixtape from the artists on the label,
Mind Grind Entertainment. Shinuh, Prophecy, Lost FirstBorne, Nate
Turner, and Big Sci come together as Mind Grind Music Group to give
the world a sound we call "Ghetto Gospel." Check out the first video,
"Straight Forward" on our YouTube page:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3hWQa996-7M

What's up Next for you?
We're performing throughout New York City, planning a tour for the
summer, and working on a movie, among other things.

Please inform us on your next project?
On top of the new "Mind Over Matter" mixtape, we're dropping a live
DVD, a documentary, and working on a movie.
Everyone has up's and down's in the industry could you tell us your
life struggles?

Do you belong to any foundation or charity?
Yes, as an educator in New York City I work closely with my school
community in addition to "No Kids Left Behind" in the East NY section
of Brooklyn, and "Project Beautiful" in Gainesville, Florida.

What where you doing before you became This success artist? I'm an
Educator and Entrepreneur. Music and entertainment is only an
extremely important part of an even bigger, divine purpose.


How can the Fan's reach you? Please check me out at:

MindGrindEnt.com
YouTube.com/MindGrindEnt
Facebook.com/MindGrindEnt
Facebook.com/NateTurnerMusic
Twitter.com/NateTheRunaway
Reverbnation.com/nateturnermusic

Read more: https://www.blackvibes.com/features/blogs/hiphopnewz-nate-tuner-hiphop-mind-grind-600493/#ixzz4noNba4iL
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Kirko Bangz has to be the most disrespectful name in hip hop today and when I heard the name Nate Turner I assumed it was in the same vein as Kirko Bangz. I soon realized the name can be considered a toast to Nat Turner after hearing Runaway Slave.

http://www.datpiff.com/Nate-Turner-The-Runaway-Slave-mixtape.519703.html Honestly the first thing I thought when I heard the title was "I hope this isn't another fake deep artist." I'm man enough to admit that I was wrong. This wasn't just a fake deep album where an artist tries to connect the Christianity to the Illuminati and connecting that to the holocaust.

I'm going to go ahead and give a warning. This album is not for everyone. From the first few seconds Nate wastes no time letting you know this is a heavy pro-black album. If I had to compare Runaway Slave to another album it would be Nas' Untitled album or Killer Mike's R.A.P. The album isn't bragadocious in any way possible. It tells the story of a man thinking of African Americans place in history, concerned with being a good father and attempting to educate others.


Runaway Slave is a fitting title for this album because it runs away from the stereotypical hip hop today. It's not something you ride to in the car or chill to, it's going to make you think. There's some heavy concepts throughout which make the album refreshing in a hip hop scene when people seem to be concerned mostly with sipping syrup, getting high and having a lot of sex all while sounding emotionless and painting themselves as the toughest artist they can be. Runaway Slave had zero drug references that I caught from my three listens before hearing the album. The only woman Nate seems to be concerned about is the mother of his children. Honestly, Nate can remove the parental advisory label from his album cover. He doesn't swear a lot and there's nothing explicit. Unless you find education and historical facts explicit it's something you can play around your children.

Nate seems to have a heavy influence from classic soul music. With the exception of 4 tracks the entire the album is relatively slow but each of the instrumentals manage to distinguish themselves from the previous. When you aren't getting a soul music vibe from the album you'll probably hear some funk and blues in there. The fact that Nate chose mostly slow instrumentals for songs shows that he knows his strengths well. While Nate's flow does vary from time to time the slow pace allows him to keep a flow he's basically mastered throughout the album. Seriously, he's mastered this flow so the subtle changes he makes throughout keep the flow fresh.

Lyrically Nate is amazing a deserves a round of applause. Most tracks he weaves a story through the verses and it's just cool to see an artist keep a consistent theme through not only a single song but entire album. The one low spot is most of the hooks and choruses are poorly written. Nate is an artist who can write 48 bars of greatness but may struggle with creating a catchy hook or memorable chorus. Not all of them are bad but they do leave a lot to be desired when compared to the verses.

Individually there aren't any bad tracks, however "I Want You" and "Face It" don't really fit the theme of the rest of the album. If these were just tracks released on their own they wouldn't be bad. The problem is they abruptly change the mood of the album from revolutionary to Drake, because Drake is an emotion now.

My favorite track would either be "Bi-Polar" "1831" or "Ethiopian." "Bi-Polar" is a track with a poor hook, but it makes up for it with the lyrics. The song isn't necessarily about being bipolar but the range of emotions when walking through the streets of his neighborhood. One moment he's enjoying the scenery and the next he remembers bad things that took place in that location.. "1831" has the best hook from any of the tracks. It's just a great track and paints Nate as a modern day Nat Turner. It displays his story telling ability, lyrical skill and is a tribute to Nat Turner. "Ethiopian" is one of my favorite because it's a track that shows that there's more to being a black person than what's shown every day on the news or the Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks lectures repeated every year for black history month.
Lyricism- 9
Flow-10
Production-8
Theme-8
Replayability- 8
Individuality- 9
The final score is a 8.67/10. This is really a good album. There's a few short comings here and there but it's nothing major that's going to turn anyone away. I've stated it's not an album for everyone. Nate isn't running around yelling "White Devil" like Jay Electronica but this is definitely a pro-black album and that may turn some people away but if you do listen you're going to enjoy it a lot. For a download you can click here.

You can check out Nate on Reverb Nation and Twitter



You can hear me on the CP Time Podcast and read me on Twitter - Blerds Online