I discovered Tech N9ne in the same way I imagine a lot of suburban kids did in 2006: drinking crappy beer in a friend’s bedroom, laughing while a friend butchered the staccato machine gun chatter and the bombastic call-outs from Tech N9ne’s first certified gold record “Caribou Lou.” “Get the party jumpin’/Keep the hotties humpin’/I like ‘em thick and juicy /So don’t pilate nothing,” my friend would be shouting, sloshing his beer out onto the floor, his eyes far away, envisioning bouncing around on a stage somewhere. And I think that was it. We weren’t drinking Caribou Lou (the rum-based cocktail referenced in the song), we weren’t at a jumping party, there were no hotties humping and we certainly weren’t famous rappers. But with that song shaking the walls and likely annoying the hell out of his parents, it felt like everything in the song was possible. It felt real, tangible, and now, 10 years later, the world is starting to catch onto the reality Tech N9ne has been weaving.

Riding high off the success of the radio-smash party banger “Hood Go Crazy” —a collaboration with Two Chainz and B.o.B—Tech N9ne is yet again embarking on a national tour and will be playing in Sacramento at Ace of Spades on Sept. 27, 2016.

The single can easily be defined as the spiritual successor to “Caribou Lou.” Tech N9ne even drops a shout out to the old “Boulou.” The difference here is that “Hood Go Crazy” has a music video with Lamborghinis, the finger snaps are crystal clear and the production has been buffed to a glossy sheen. Tech N9ne roars on the last verse, “This Kansas City, shit’s ran gritty/In the summer time, the chicks be damn pretty/Born in the projects, then to the ‘Ville /Then I did a deal with Travis and made mills/This is celebration, this is elevation.”

It’s Tech N9ne’s delivery that pulls the verse up from simple rap bravado to a real chest-thumping moment of triumph. While a lot of rappers rap about the money, guns, bling and girls, Tech is rapping about celebration, about sharing his victory so other people can experience it and join in. It comes from a real place and it’s something he acknowledges himself.

“You know, when you’re weird like me to a lot of people, you think that nobody is listening,” Tech N9ne said, speaking by phone from the recording booth in Kansas City. “But then when Lil Wayne says something out of the blue like, ‘I’d like to work with Tech N9ne,’ and I’m like ‘What? Who? He knows me?’ it lets me know that real music always shines man.”

But it’s obvious by now that the Missouri-based rap mogul is not just coasting on weird, off-kilter theatrics to become successful. In 2015, Forbes estimated Tech N9ne’s net worth at $8 million and valued his label Strange Music at $20 million. There are a couple surface reasons for why he’s done that well. Things like he tours endlessly; his fans still buy his merchandise; his painted face image is cool, but deeper than that; there’s this infectious energy and passion that bleeds through his lyrics and into everything he does. In our interview, there were moments where the rapper would break into some of his verses, or simply rhyme his words together like he was a scatting beat poet. It’s an affectation that would come off as grating or disingenuous if Tech N9ne himself wasn’t such a genuine force of energy and good nature.

“I feel like real music is your real life,” Tech N9ne said. “Write what you know and people will forever feel you. What we have in common are our emotions. So if you know how to let loose your emotions in your music then that’s what real music is. Everyone’s reality is different but you’re going to have people who connect with you because we are one human race.”

Even from just skimming Tech N9ne’s big hits, it’s obvious that he raps from a very real place. Even though his radio hits are big club bangers, cruising through the jazzy, bluesy groove of “Fragile,” it’s easy to feel the tension and fire bubbling over toward the borderline incompetent music critics (well, hello there). There are deeper emotions here instead of the same old tropes. “Fragile” went gold and not just because of Kendrick Lamar’s verse (though that certainly didn’t hurt). It went gold because of the production, the delivery and the endless passion streaming off of it.

There are the obvious pitfalls to unleashing these kinds of forces, especially when, as an artist, you are unafraid of delving into the deeper and darker elements of the human experience. Even his stage name itself seems to act as a kind of deterrent against people who are only going to scratch the surface of the art.

“I’m the complete technique of rhyme, I’m Tech N9ne,” he said. “Nine is the number of completion: nine months of pregnancy, cat has nine lives, the whole nine yards; it’s completely everything. But when MTV and BET got what we were trying to do, and we were trying to get our videos on their stations back in the day, they were like, ‘No, your name is a gun, sorry.’”

Which is maybe for the best. People who can’t handle the complex anguish of an artist reeling from the loss of his mother or the dissolution of his marriage might just be better off listening to Drake. There is aggression in the music—violence in his words—but these are means to an end. In the same way that American Psycho’s Patrick Bateman uses violence as a substitute for connection, Tech N9ne uses the symbolism as a pathway to connection, empathy and personal catharsis.

When asked about how Wikipedia has him listed as a “horrorcore” artist, Tech N9ne said, “No no no, it’s like my song called ‘Fear,’ about my mom dying from Lupus. It sounds really creepy. Evil brain, angel heart, it sounds like something horror, but it’s talking about me. It’s me; I’m good and bad. I just sum it up with music is my life, no fiction, you know? No smoke and mirrors, yaddida?

“The darkest song I had on my last album was called ‘Shroud,’ I did with Joseph Bishara. But this darkness is happening because my angel died, my mom. So I’m like, ‘Darkness black as ever like shabba/Thick and oozing like lava/See this room like my Prada, dadda/Must’ve came from my father/Cause my momma was an angel/But this thang grow insane bro.’ Ya’ know? It sounds real mad and dark and horrific, but it’s real.”

His passion and this commitment to writing about the reality of life have brought Tech N9ne huge success and now he’s focused on giving back. He’s currently involved in a project called the “Warrior Built Emcee Contest,” where he put out a song called “PTSD” and left the last verse open. Now, people from all over the United States are sending in their verses and the winner will be flown out to Kansas City to record their verse professionally and do a professional rap video, with all of the proceeds going to the Warrior Built program, a program providing support to war veterans.

“This is how we give back,” Tech N9ne said. “Do this song with me, who’s the hardest? Come to Kansas City let’s record it, let’s shoot a video. It’s about sharing and finding new people I mean, I started my label and it was just me and now I’ve got over 14 artists on it because we’ve steadily tried to help others go forward as well. So why not somebody not even in our circle? Why not do it for the troops as well? People who make it possible to live safely, while we’re over here frolicking while they’re over there fighting. It’s just such a beautiful thing to offer this much to these people because they gave us so much.”

At the end of the day it’s about sharing this human connection however and whichever way you can. If you wanna drink beer and shout about thick women, do that. If you wanna shout down the critics, do that. If you wanna rap faster and better than anyone else in the world, you should give Tech N9ne’s contest a go. Like he says at the end of “B.I.T.C.H,” “Extreme, you know what I’m saying, like fuck what everyone is doing, we’re doing this. Fuck you, you on bullshit. We’re going this way.” Stevie and Tech N9ne have it right, sometimes you just gotta go your own way and don’t Pilate nothing.

Tech N9ne, with special guest Optimiztiq, returns to Sacramento on Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2016 at Ace of Spades, located at 1417 R St. Presale tickets for the all-ages, 6 p.m. show are $38 ($42 the day of the show) and are available at Aceofspadessac.com.

The number of records that 2015’s Star Wars: the Force Awakens shattered is simply mind-boggling: It’s the highest-grossing film of all time, surpassing Avatar; it was the fastest film to gross $1 billion (it took just 12 days!); it had the biggest worldwide opening weekend and single weekend gross ($529 million!); it had the widest worldwide IMAX release (937 IMAX screens!); it’s the highest-grossing Star Wars film of all time; and the list just goes and goes. And it’s no surprise, really, it’s an amazingly entertaining piece of cinema best viewed on a large screen surrounded by friends and fellow Star Wars fans. Luckily for us here in Sacramento, the beloved art house Crest Theatre is bringing this bad boy back to the big screen on Friday, Sept. 2 for one show only at 7:30 p.m. So if you somehow missed it in a theater the first time around, or just want to see it on a big screen for the 12th time (hey, we’re not judging!), snag your tickets starting at just $8 now at Crestsacramento.com. There will also be a fun costume contest with great prizes so bust out your best Kylo Ren, Han Solo or Rey outfits and dress to impress. Crest is located at 1013 K St. You can reach them by phone by calling (916) 476-3356. Their box office is open Monday through Friday from 11:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m. and tickets can be purchased during this time as well as on any event night.

The second annual Sac Ladyfest is just around the corner, set for July 15–16 at Cafe Colonial, located at 3520 Stockton Boulevard in Sacramento. Ladyfests are annual non-profit events that take place all around the world. Organized mostly by women, they usually feature live bands, lecturers, spoken word, art and more. Sacramento’s very own grassroots version of Ladyfest launched last year to rave reviews, and organizers are excited to bring it back this summer. The two-day event will feature well over a dozen bands, many of them local, with quite a few touring in from out of town as well. Friday, July 15 performers include Chico’s Pink Bandana, Grass Valley’s Slutzville, Oakland’s Introflirt, plus locals Lights and Sirens, Spacewalker, Ghostplay, Apri Foolzz and Katmonkeys. Then on Saturday, July 16, you’ll get heavy doses of rad tunes from Australia’s Divide and Dissolve, San Francisco bands Queen Crescent and Quaaludes, Los Angeles groups Period Bomb and Trap Girl, plus locals Destroy Boys, The Bottom Feeders, Ani Maul and (Waning). It’s just $22 for a two-day pass, or $12 for individual days. The event kicks off at 6 p.m. each night and all ages are welcome. A portion of proceeds will go to Wind Youth Services, Sacramento’s only homeless youth center. Visit Sacladyfest.com or Facebook.com/sacladyfest to learn more and to hear a mixtape of Sac Ladyfest artists.

Cask and Barrel
1431 Del Paso Boulevard, Sacramento

Situated on the triangular corner of Del Paso Boulevard and Arden Way like a shorter, rounder art deco version of the Flatiron Building, Sacramento restaurant Cask and Barrel gives off a funky vibe.

The orange building once belonged to the restaurant Enotria, which last year transitioned into a catering/events company in partnership with Cask owner and chef Gabriel Glasier. Weddings and parties have ample indoor and outdoor space behind Cask and Barrel, but the front of the building is reserved for the restaurant.

For happy hour, take a quick Lyft ride or hop on the Blue Line after work, because you only have from 5–6:30 p.m. Take your pick of the bar in the back of the room, the long and wide communal table directly in front of the bar or the plushy outdoor front patio seating for happy hour service.

Given the place was empty at 5 p.m. on a Wednesday and it was more than 100 degrees outside, our party of four chose the communal table.

A few things that catch the eye include small wooden barrels behind the bar holding drinks like the restaurant’s Old Fashioned with house-made whiskey.

Before continuing I should probably mention that this is a serious meat and whiskey shop. For someone who loves menus, it was extremely difficult to put down the well-used booklet of 100 varieties of whiskey that are available to try in wee drams (half-ounce pours) or drams (one-ounce pours).

The 79-hour slow-cooked meats include everything from pork shoulder and sausages to beef brisket and turkey legs. The cocktails and food menu follow the seasons. This particular evening’s offerings showcased watermelon, strawberries, lavender and light IPAs.

Back to reality and the happy hour menu, we settled on $6 daiquiris and strawberry margaritas, the $5 house-made whiskey, and $4 drafts of Jackrabbit Oatmeal Stout. And maybe a few other non-happy hour drinks, but I’ll keep this under $10 per person.

The cocktails tasted tart and frothy, and not too sweet, which can sometimes be the case when ordering anything that pink.

The fruity pastels of the cocktails dotted with lime slices sat in stark contrast to our smoky brown wee drams and stouts, but everything was worth trying. If you like whiskey, the happy hour includes a couple bucks off flights, which can range from around $15 to $30 for wee drams.

Our waiter was helpful in narrowing down a whiskey and explaining our happy hour food picks, which included coffee-braised pork tacos with strawberry salsa, fried deviled eggs, fried mixed pickles and chicken liver mousse with mulberry jam on sourdough. Each was $5 except for the tacos, which were $6 for two.

Most items are locally sourced. A few meat items come from nearby farms, but Cask and Barrel strives to use Sacramento for all its produce and herbs.

The tacos had a dark flavor that didn’t totally fit well with strawberry, though my husband, who also had a house scotch from a peated sherry cask to pair, loved them.

The deviled eggs, with their whites lightly enclosed and fried in batter, tasted bright and vinegary, holding up well to the cocktails and whiskey. The only downside was the plate came with three halves. What happened to the other half of the second egg?

The fried mixed pickles ended up being my favorite happy hour dish because of the mix of hefeweizen tempura-fried items. We tasted pickles, super juicy tomatoes, zucchini and green beans. Fried red tomatoes dipped in that bourbon hot sauce aioli should be a dish on their own. What a great way to showcase a Sacramento farm staple.

Finally, the chicken liver mousse also lacked in amount, with three small toasts on a plate, but the dollops of mousse on top of jam on perfectly toasted sourdough was a great way to serve. The mousse needed to be slightly colder, but was fluffy and light to the taste.

What wasn’t on the happy hour menu but is totally worth getting over any of these $5 small plates: the pork belly with grilled watermelon for $12.

The dish comes beautifully plated with large charred chunks of pork that are soft on the inside, shoestrings of cucumber and piles of pulverized cashews that stick to the watermelon for a unique flavor. On a hot day, when you don’t feel like doing your own grilling, order this dish.

Several of the dishes coming out of the kitchen caught our attention, so I definitely want to give Cask and Barrel another shot. I’m looking forward to trying their meats and macaroni and cheese, as well as their desserts, made by pastry chef Kristel Flores, Glasier’s partner at the restaurant and their business, Chef and Baker Events and Catering. The chocolate fried pie with salted duck fat caramel sounds intense.

If you can get a half-pound of ribs for $14, paired with a beer for $4, you have yourself a much happier hour.

Cask and Barrel is open Tuesday to Saturday 5–9 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m.–2 p.m. Happy hour is 5–6:30 p.m. at the bar, the communal table and the patio. Call (916) 922-6792 for more info.

On Amtrak one very early morning from Sacramento to the Bay Area, the train rolled by pastures dotted with grazing cattle along Interstate 80 in Yolo County, and for the first time I wondered if the animal I’d eaten that week had also ruminated in these hills.

After visiting Eric Veldman Miller and his whole-animal butchery in East Sacramento, it’s a thought I’ll have more often before biting into a piece of meat.

V. Miller Meats opened last November and has quietly—but overwhelmingly—taken over kitchens of even the most novice of neighborhood cooks. The shop focuses on home cooking, not offering catering or large restaurant orders because of the limited quantity. For now, Miller orders one full steer a week (but is going up to two for the summer), along with four pigs, two lambs and one flock of chickens.

Miller, a longtime local chef and former Le Cordon Bleu chef instructor, has always subscribed to Sacramento’s farm-to-fork mantra but didn’t really see the same attention given to meat as he saw being given to vegetables.

“People ask, ‘When was that carrot picked? Where was it picked? Is it a heritage breed carrot?’ But, for me, that’s not the most memorable part of a meal,” Miller says. “I thought, we can do this, too. Tie meat into farm-to-fork. So I started meeting other butchers from around the country and it’s working in places that aren’t even as ag-central as Sacramento.”

Miller chose just a few farms from which to purchase whole carcasses, making sure the farms were small, humane, located within 100 miles of Sacramento and raised heritage breeds that are grass-fed and grass-finished.

For now, V. Miller is the only butchery of its kind in Sacramento, and Miller says he isn’t trying to compete with anyone. He even compares his shop more with restaurants than he does grocers.

“The main difference between a restaurant and a butcher: How often does someone go into a restaurant and ask what’s in the sausage?” says Miller, who, along with his three-person staff, makes sausage, hot dogs, bone broth, and several other products to ensure the whole animal is used in-house and never frozen. And he’ll tell you exactly how he did it. He might even show you, as he did with regular customer Keith Bisharat, a longtime River Park resident.

On this morning, Bisharat came in just as the shop opened to pick up items for dinner and says he hasn’t found anything comparable in taste, or anyone who can talk about the cuts and process as it’s happening.

“The chicken reminds me of the chicken I ate when I was a kid,” he says, noting he’s told all of his friends and family about V. Miller. “One of the challenges they’re going to have is that people are used to the taste from big names like Foster Farms and Tyson.”

V. Miller’s head butcher is Cindy Marlene Garcia, a 25-year-old UC Davis grad who started in the veterinary program and ended up loving her meat lab courses so much that she switched careers.

“We aren’t reinventing the wheel, we are simply reconnecting everyone to where food comes from,” Garcia says. “I like thinking we are working toward a future where people know that their food lived a natural and healthy life.”

Garcia remembers how proud she was the first time she brought home a steak after slaughtering and processing at the UC Davis Meat Lab. She originally signed up for the 10-week course for anatomy practice as a pre-vet student, but couldn’t get enough.

“The feeling was incredible—I told my parents all about how it was raised and how it came to their plate,” she says. “The simple feeling of bringing home meat for my family is primitive but so fulfilling. I have stayed with the profession because I love talking about meat with people and love helping people understand the anatomy and physiology of the animal and why certain cuts require different techniques to cook them. I also really enjoy explaining why the care and treatment of the animal is so critical in achieving the optimal flavor.”

Garcia adds that in East Sacramento’s tight-knit community, she and Miller have formed a lot of bonds with people because they now see them every week. She admits to even having ruined people’s meals because her instructions weren’t clear enough or the execution went awry, but she works together with her customers to try again, noting some cuts are out of people’s comfort level, but she wants to push the boundaries to use the entire animal.

Miller adds that a lot of the fun, and also some aggravation, comes when trying to determine what to do with all the animal parts.

“This weekend we had 13 different types of sausages going,” he says. “Even our hot dogs are Stemple Creek Ranch. It took a while to make a really good hot dog but we’ve done it. We always have two to three new projects going as test batches.”

The shop also offers cooked rotisserie chickens for $18 on Tuesdays and boxed meals for two, complete with sides and ready to eat, for $25 on Thursdays.

Potential customers may have preconceived notions that the shop’s prices are out of range given the type of product, but in fact, Miller says, he’s kept prices comparable to the area, and less than full-priced organic meats at Whole Foods.

“This sounds counterintuitive, but I would prefer people buy less meat,” he says. “A big part of your plate should be vegetables, and that’s also more affordable. But we are stuck on this idea that if you are throwing a party, everybody needs a ribeye. I’d say, just get a roast that you can cut into slices and you’ll still have leftovers.”

Miller also hired chef and former instructor Dave Nelson to assist with the shop and cooking, and Matt Davis to help with cleaning. Now, all four can handle different levels of the operation as business picks up, and Miller is looking for a second experienced butcher.

“People think, as we all here did, that we’ll just become butchers, no problem,” he says. “But you’re always cold, you smell like smoke and meat, you’re cutting things all day, and it’s physically very taxing.”

But Miller also tries to have the same mentality he did as a chef—if the chef is having fun, everyone else in the kitchen will, too. If a team member has an idea, they’ll try it out. Some of the quirkier ones have included tongue pastrami, rump roast jerky and ghost pepper hot links.

“You walk in the back door, welcome to nirvana,” he says, and smiles. In the background, Nelson has just skinned a cow tongue and is about to marinate it.

V. Miller Meats is located at 4801 Folsom Boulevard and open Tuesday through Sunday. Find out more at Vmillermeats.com.

Zyah Belle may be steeped in soul, but make no mistake—her days of soul-searching are over. For now, she has no doubts about the path before her, and she’s just beginning to stretch for the long run. Her album New Levels, out on June 21, 2016, is a document of her moment in time, full of possibility and bubbling with confidence. The Super Nintendo-inspired artwork on the surface slyly reflects her willingness to play with the old school, but the music within all points to the future. The release marks a continuation of a banner year-and-a-half for Belle in Sacramento, with a Sammie award win back in March for best R&B/soul artist, and a featured spot at Concerts in the Park downtown. In between, she’s shared the stage with everyone from hip-hop acts like Rasar to indie-popsmith Joe Kye, showcasing a style defined by emotional connection, and not limited to any single genre.

What does New Levels mean for you?
It’s almost a euphemism for what I compare my life to. When it comes to accomplishing new things, making it through things that I face, I like to compare it to a video game, or to the idea of The Odyssey—the hero’s journey. Anytime you go through something, you might gain some armor, or you might get to pass onward. In a video game, you’re always reaching a new level, having to face a new boss, a new monster, finding that new achievement. I wanted that to come through in my artwork and show that I want to reach a new level in more ways than one, not necessarily just remaining a local artist, but actually being able to compete with what’s going on in the industry, and taking my music to another level.

When was the first moment you realized you wanted to pursue something big with your talent?
Just this past year. For a long time, I sold myself short out of the fear of failure. I would tell myself I wanted to be content and comfortable with just local achievements or little things here and there. Eventually, it got to the point that within one whole year I accomplished every single goal I had made. I wanted to do Concerts in the Park; I wanted to win a Sammie; I wanted to have a song on the radio; I wanted to start working on an album. When all of these things started coming to fruition, I started to think, “Why am I selling myself short? If I feel like I can actually accomplish this huge dream through constant work and effort, and through the law of attraction, why not try it?”

You’ve mentioned before that “Zyah” derives from a Hebrew term “selah,” which is a musical direction included in Psalms meaning “listen.” Is this an important concept for you?
One thing I always say when I interact with new fans and people that come to my shows for the first time is just “Thank you for listening. Thank you for taking the time to listen to me.” You don’t even have to like what I’m saying or like what I’m doing, but because you took the time to listen, that means everything to me. Another meaning of that word, selah, is “reflect.” And that’s huge for me too, because I want them also to be able to reflect. I want it to be something that they can remember. Everything that’s a part of art is to create conversation, so that’s a huge element of what I want people to feel when they listen to my music.

What have been the most important records in your life?
My favorite record of all time would have to be “Funkin’ for Jamaica” by Tom Browne. That song is just everything to me. It feels good, it’s natural, it’s free-form, yet structured at the same time. It’s like organized chaos. Also, I would say “Bag Lady” by Erykah Badu has always been a huge part of me, as well as “Are U Still Down” by 2pac. It’s such a wide range of music that has registered for me, but definitely, being able to put myself in the emotions of the song and the artist has always been something I enjoy doing.

How has your experience been performing with a wide array of other musicians in the Sacramento area?
It’s knocked down a lot of barriers in more than one way. For me, it’s been a beautiful experience just meeting people of different backgrounds, different genres. Also, I think for my fan base, it’s been extremely important for people to see that, because myself, being labeled as an R&B artist—it’s not something that’s only marketed to the urban community. I’ve got to be on stage with Joe Kye, a violinist who composes contemporary jazz; I’ve been on stage with Rasar and The Lique, who do hip-hop and some neo-soul; I’ve also played with Hans! and the Hot Mess. I’ve gotten to do so many things with many different kinds of artists, and it really shows that, for people, music is just one language. I’m truly a part of this family among Sacramento musicians, and outlying areas, and they’ve all helped me in many ways, whether it’s my growth as an artist or just introducing me to other people and venues on the scene.

What has had the most impact on your vocal style?
Most of my influence in vocal training came from my music teacher in high school. I wasn’t really fortunate enough to be involved in my jazz vocal program at Sac State as much as I wanted to be. Around that time I actually ended up being without a home, which has been a huge part of driving my music career as well. Throughout my life, singing has always played a big part—my mom was a choir director, so I was already being trained in a choir from a young age. Then, as I grew up I started being classically trained to sing in Latin and to sing old jazz standards. Those things helped me use my voice as an instrument, to alter the sound like any musician would. It makes a difference in how my structure songs, how I evoke emotion in them.

You were without a home? How did you make it through that time?
Shortly after I graduated high school, I ended up enrolling in the vocal jazz program at Sac State. I was still a teenager, living with my mother, and she had to move back to the Bay Area. I had the choice of staying in Sacramento or moving back too, and that didn’t seem like an option for me. I wanted to make things work on my own, and I did, for a couple of weeks. Then it became overwhelming. I was sleeping on my sister’s couch for a very long time, trying to find a job, busing myself from South Sac to Sac State to take classes, and eventually I ended up dropping out of school for a while. Of course it was depressing to go from the comfort of your home and being a new undergrad and then having to drop out and get a 9-to-5 while sleeping on your sister’s couch, so for me, the most exciting part of my day was being able to sing. Nothing else at that point was making me happy, so I thought, why not pursue it?

Has that experience made you more courageous when it comes to music?
Yes, I really have no fear as to what’s going to happen in my life, how it’s going to happen or when it’s going to happen. I think that over time, just gaining wisdom, I’ve learned that, for the things I can control, I just put my all into it. And for the things I can’t control, I just have to find peace with it. All I can do is sing my heart out at every single show, be genuine, have integrity, talk to people, network, do all the business things that I’m supposed to do. More than anything, I’m excited about the things that are going to happen, the things happening right now.

What do you most want to bring to the audience or have them understand?
The main thing that I want my audience to feel is the sincerity in my voice. It’s not all the time that the audience is going to be able to relate—it’s not all the time that an audience will like the music—but I want them to at least feel that real emotion is being evoked, and that I believe what I’m singing. That’s a huge thing about being an artist that can stifle an artist, especially when in the industry and having to face media—the fact that they want to be liked by everybody. I understand that this isn’t realistic. Not everybody will like me, not everybody will like every single song that I put out. They may like some, they may only like one. But at least they can say, “When she sang that, she really felt it.” That sincerity in music is so necessary. That’s what creates timelessness.

Hear Zyah Belle perform the songs off New Levels live July 8, 2016 at Harlow’s, located at 2708 J Street in Sacramento. This 21-and-over event will also feature The Lique and DJ Rock Bottom, with doors opening at 8 p.m. for the 9 p.m. show. Tickets are $12 in advance and available at Harlows.com.

–Photo by Natho Photography

Honestly, not many artists make it out of my part of town. Carmichael is an idyllic suburban soccer mom paradise, which is not the most conducive for music of any emotional weight. This is why I’m especially thankful there are still artists like Michael Ray (not to be confused with the hunky yet ultimately mediocre Nashville country singer), who can throw down deep, technical blues like nobody’s business, instead of the usual bevy of white 18-year-olds on Ableton rapping about how much they like rapping to their Abletons at their parent’s house.

We met recently at an Insight Coffee shop, where he took pity on a young man with a crippling hangover (me) and laid out his plans for world domination, his early hip-hop career as a rapping evangelist and his beef with Taylor Swift.

When and how did you get started playing music?
I started playing harmonica when I was 8. My parents were kind of splitting up around that time. I don’t know if that had anything to do with it, but my dad gave me a harmonica right around then. He said, “Start messing with this,” and he played some. So I played blues and stuff and played a few performances at churches and things like that. I’d sometimes do this thing where I’d rap. I used to do this Jesus rap thing.

You did some Jesus rap? Did you kill it?
When I was like 10 or something. I mean I was terrified but it was kind of cool because I got to get that out of the way when I was young. So I did a couple performances.

So you did the church thing and then you started playing guitar?
Yeah I started playing guitar around 12. It was a “fake it until you make it,” kinda thing. Like if you had asked 13-year-old me I’d be like, “Oh yeah I’m one of the best guitar players ever!” When I didn’t know shit, I was trying to work out a blues scale or whatever. So I just dove into it. I went to the high school I did because of the music program, and at that point music was all I did. For the most part, I didn’t really go to too many of the other classes, you know? I played guitar in the jazz band and then played trombone for a year or two too for the concert band. I’d play three to five hours at school every day and then go home and play for another five or something. I got experience gigging and how to be a professional. It’s no joke over there, Rio Americano has a better band than some college bands. Then after high school, I started producing making beats and rapping.

You stayed with the rapping?
Yeah I got into rap after high school I guess. I mean as cool as all the jazz and stuff I was learning at Rio was, if you asked that guy sitting over there what he knows about jazz, it’s not going to be much. A lot of people know hip-hop. You want music that’s going to be able to speak to people about something they’re going to understand. Like, a lot of people don’t get tritone substitutions over rhythm changes, you know?

Yeah, I’m one of them.
[Laughs] So yeah, I started getting into that. And basically I was just practicing doing my thing, recording and about a year and a half ago I just really dove into it. I decided I was just going to be a musician no matter what. I spent the first four months … hungry, trying to pay rent the best I could. Then things finally started to click. It took a lot of grinding and a lot of meeting people, getting out there, playing every gig and open mic I could. I just found a way to make it happen. After six months or so, it became a viable way to make money. But like, don’t get me wrong, I don’t have a car, I rent a room in an apartment and I’m moving real soon, it’s just kinda crazy.

Well can you go into what you’re working on for your upcoming album?
It’s kind of a quirkier sort of …

Quirky?
I mean like, this live one, like I said it’s really raw. You’ve heard it, you get a feel for it. It’s not like Taylor Swift songs. [Pauses] Not to say that this next one is like Taylor Swift songs or anything, but there’s a little more humor in it, little more wordplay. Kinda silly, pop-y I guess, for a blues album. There’s these little contradictions in the lyrics sometimes. For instance there’s a song on there called “The Flame Club Song,” and the idea is that I wrote it after going to the Flame Club one night with my friend—feeling the way you were feeling this morning—the next day. The lyrics at one point are like “I’ll tell you right now/I’m never going to the Flame Club again,” tongue-in-cheek kind of stuff, like I’m never drinking again. It’s a blues album, but it’s not a gut-wrenching, scream-your-soul-out kind of blues. A little more pop-y, I’m not doing like “Shake it Off” covers or anything like that.

So you’ve really got something against Taylor Swift, huh?
Don’t know why I keep bringing her up, it’s just an accident I swear … No, no, she’s good. Yeah, it’s blues, there’s guitar solos, harmonica and uh all kind of bluesy stuff, but at the same time it’s a little lighter. I’m just really stoked about it.

I’ve interviewed some artists who kinda complain that there wasn’t enough places to play or not enough attention in Sacramento, what do you think about the scene here in Sacramento?
Yeah, I’ve heard a lot of that, too. It’s one of those things that comes up over and over when you talk to musicians or on Facebook or whatever. I couldn’t disagree with it more. Even this morning I was playing that farmer’s market thing and they hired two musicians themselves. Myself and a guy playing keyboards and singing within a block of each other. But between us, there’s a friend of mine who’s busking and then when I’m playing my set, City of Trees Brass Band comes marching right up through the middle. Then I just found which key they were in, so I started jamming with them because what are you gonna do? You can’t overpower a brass band. And I know a couple guys in the band so I say what’s up and they go marching on doing their thing. I mean, if you were there walking on that block, you would’ve seen four different musical acts outside for free for the public. I mean, it’s a beautiful town for that.

Join Michael Ray to celebrate the release of his EP Live at Old I at Old Ironsides (where else?) in Sacramento on July 1, 2016. The show gets underway at 8 p.m. and will also feature performances by Honey B. and the Cultivation and Century Got Bars. If you pay your entrance fee in advance, you’ll even get a copy of the album. To purchase a presale ticket, check out Michael Ray on Facebook at Facebook.com/michaelray916.

My only boba tea experience is a bit embarrassing. I was 16 years old and hanging out at the mall—as one does when they live in the middle of nowhere, Alabama, and have no social life—and I’d just purchased yet another Nine Inch Nails CD from Sam Goody (I’m really dating myself, here), when I saw a new kiosk next to the escalator: Bubble Tea. I was instantly intrigued by the vibrant colors of these new beverages; they appeared to have little orbs of pure joy at the bottom of the cup. How fantastically exotic! I thought to my 16-year-old self, I must have one! So I ordered a tea, popped the straw in the cup, and sipped the sticky sweet drink into my eager face, ready to experience this new world. But at the end of my sip was the surprise: that colorful, mushy orb.

It was not good.

Dear reader, 16-year-old Mollie was not prepared for bubble tea. Was I supposed to chew the bubbles? What were “bubbles,” anyway? Why were they so slimy? Are we sure it wasn’t really boogers in the bottom of that tea? They looked like boogers. So into the garbage it went, and so swiftly, too, did I place “bubble tea” into the “Nonsense” folder in my brain, right next to chicken liver and boy bands.

However, you’ll be happy to know that with age comes wisdom, and I’m now happy to say I have a great sense of adventure and curiosity when it comes to culinary pursuit. So when I heard that there was a new boba tea joint near my workplace, I was pretty excited to try it again, and maybe the mysterious appeal of bubble tea would finally reveal itself to me.

Located on Fair Oaks and Howe Avenue next to Bandera, Pearls Boba is a refreshing addition to the part of town populated primarily by Sac State students, Kaiser employees and commuters trying to get to the freeway. The parking is bountiful, and the first thing you notice about Pearls is the large side patio with inviting chairs, seeming like the kind of place that would welcome groups and readers alike. The inside is much the same—with cozy lighting, charming wooden tables and electrical outlets aplenty, Pearls is set up much like a coffee shop. As it turns out, that’s exactly what the owner had in mind.

Grace Lee, along with her partner Nanlin Chiang, aren’t your typical café owners; they’re oral surgeons. A Sacramento native, Lee said she lived in the neighborhood and was irritated that she couldn’t find quality boba within a reasonable distance. And it’s true—a quick Yelp search for “boba tea” in Sacramento leaves one with few options. We love our craft coffee in this town, but what do we really know about boba tea?

Also known as “boba juice,” “bubble milk tea” or “pearl milk tea,” boba tea originated in Taiwan in the 1980s. It traditionally consists of a tea base shaken or mixed with milk or fruits, then fancied-up with tapioca balls made from the cassava root. There are countless flavor combinations to choose from, and the quality of the tea base and ingredients speaks volumes about what make a darn good cup of boba.

“I’ve tasted hundreds of teas … and after we selected which ones to use, I modified the recipes to what I think is healthier,” said Lee, noticing that a lot of other boba shops used high fructose syrups to sweeten their teas, whereas she uses a syrup made from raw sugar. They make their pearls hourly to ensure freshness, and their imported teas are loose-leaf and processed through a machine that is, in essence, an espresso machine just for tea. They also have a regular espresso machine for coffee drinks; Lee teamed up with local roaster Terranova Coffee to offer a curated selection of lattes, Americanos and mochas.

As a newbie to the boba tea world, I found the menu to be a bit overwhelming (boba and toppings, oh my!), so I asked Lee to tell me a bit about their pairings and what they were excited to offer.

“We have some unique drinks that nobody has. One of them is a rice drink … it’s brewed for about 24 hours. It really brings out the flavor of rice and pairs really well with boba,” she says, mentioning that it was similar to a traditional Korean rice drink as well as the Mexican horchata. In addition to the traditional milk and premium teas, they also have “Dr. Smoothies” and “Icy” drinks made with fresh fruits.

Pearls also offers a unique shaved ice menu with a variety of toppings (the first 3 are included!), from Oreo cookies, to pudding, to mochi, to red bean. In fact, I’m a bit ashamed to say that I ate a large portion of the taro-flavored shaved ice topped with almonds, mochi and red beans, so fast that I gave myself a good ol’ fashioned brain freeze. Lee said that she loved their avocado shaved ice, but they didn’t have it that day. But I wasn’t worried; it’s clear that it’s the kind of place you can see yourself visiting often, each time trying something new. Lee is hoping it will catch on, much like the craft coffee scene in Sacramento. Temple Coffee is a mere few blocks down the street, after all.

“We really tried to make it a nice place to hang out,” she said, “I want it to be young … I want it to be a high-energy kind of place.” And if it’s caffeine you’re seeking, they’ve got you covered. The serving sizes are quite large, and after trying their traditional chai tea (made in-house), I have to say that these teas are no joke; they pack a punch! They have something for everyone, whether you prefer fruity or more savory, they have you covered. In addition to the rice boba (my favorite of all that I sampled), I also tried the osmanthus tea with a splash of mango (the gal at the counter said it was her favorite)—and I’ll just say it tasted like summer: light, fruity and a dash of whimsy. I’ll give it a gold star. And in case you were wondering, I found the texture of the boba to be a bit more charming at 30 than at 16. Better late than never, right?

If you want to dive into the world of boba tea, where should you start? Keep it simple. “Our most popular drink is the Thai milk tea; people are very familiar with that … and I find that with this business, people tend to order the same things,” she said. I admitted that I am very guilty of this with coffee. Boba is so versatile, Lee explains, because you can add so many different things to change the flavors and have fun with it.

Fun is what Pearls hopes to bring to Sacramento, and Lee is enjoying the ride. She imagines a future where more shops are open that support the local scene, and are less franchise-based, comparing it to Starbucks and Temple Coffee. “I want to be like the Temple of boba. We’re more local and we have our own style,” she said. Her niece designed their logo and she said that her kids enjoy helping her out with the shop. Moving forward, she hopes to offer more things like macaroons and other small bites that compliment tea—she’d bake them herself because, like seeking out a fine coffee or tea shop in a city, it brings her great joy.

So perhaps Pearls has convinced me take boba tea out of that pesky filing cabinet in my brain marked “Nonsense.” I can’t say the same about chicken liver or boy bands. Yet.

Pearls Boba is located at 2264 Fair Oaks Boulevard, Sacramento. Their business hours are Sunday–Thursday, 11 a.m.–9 p.m., and Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m.–10 p.m.

Ryan Sollom’s name might ring a bell. His former band Shortie had quite an impact on the 2000s music scene in Sacramento, and at the time it seemed whether someone liked them or not, everyone had an opinion on the matter. Sollom was much of what made their sound unique, and his talent was evident.

However, in 2006, the group abruptly parted ways, with some members going on to the project Will Haven, while Sollom continued on his own path, first with the band One Dying Secret, and most recently in 2014 with Surviving the Era.

Surviving the Era is due to release their second album, Parallax, the follow-up to their self-titled debut, on June 18. The album, recorded at Little Russia Recordings with Dryw Owens behind the controls, includes the recently dropped first single, with subsequent video, “Queen of the Sea.” Other than Sollom, the group currently consists of Kyle Newton and Kevin Cortez on guitars, Seth Borges on bass and vocals and Jake Cooley on the drums.

When discussing the transition from their self-titled debut to the upcoming release during a phone interview with Submerge, Sollom regarded the prior release as not really being representative of the band as they exist now. “The self-titled [album] … really the first five or six songs, the first batch we ever wrote,” said Sollom. “As we were recording it, we were writing other songs.”

“Pretty much the day it came out it was outdated,” he continued. “We were coming into our own. Our identity was already changing by the time that EP was back and we were putting it out. It was hard to push on people because it wasn’t who we are … It was who we were the first couple of months as a band. Our identity naturally changed. We knew what we wanted to be as far as style of music we wanted to portray and what we wanted as individuals, so [Parallax] is an exact representation of Surviving the Era.”

When listening to the various tracks that make up Parallax, it’s not difficult to find both similarities and differences between the style of Surviving the Era and Sollom’s prior work. His vocals and the recording are far more polished, while the music that backs his vocals has softened a bit, giving off more of an early 2000s emo/power pop feel than the more pop-punk vibes featured in many Shortie tracks. At the same time, Surviving the Era’s tracks are still drenched in guitar-driven goodness, and there are definitely tracks from the old days that line up with Sollom’s most recent work. A good example is “Queen of the Sea,” which would pair nicely with Shortie’s “Every Single Word” off of their 2005 album, Without a Promise.

“I think that naturally with life you change, you adapt. I think Surviving the Era, as individuals, have grown and changed. Circumstances around my life has changed too. The writing has changed. As an older person I can not shun any happy feelings, where when I was younger I was like, ‘Oh, this is happy … I don’t want to write about that,’ where now I’m like it’s a happy-vibing song and happy things come up when I’m writing lyrics, I’ll embrace that. Of course, yeah, things have changed, life has changed, writing songs have changed a little bit, but as far as inputs go for myself, I’ve always been influenced by the same stuff. That’s who I am.”

Prior to Surviving the Era, Sollom was in a project called One Dying Secret, which ended in 2013. He had actually left Shortie to join the band, and while he is no longer involved in the project, they did make it a healthy seven years of existence, which in band years is almost an eternity. Unfortunately, the group tasted minor success, but in the end Sollom was only left wanting more.

“We released one EP officially, put one EP out for free and we ended up going out to Los Angeles and recording, doing some demoing for John Feldmann [Goldfinger, producer for Panic! at the Disco, Atreyu, The Used], and we ended up doing two songs and putting those out for free as well. That was in hopes of landing something for John Feldmann on his record deal, and that went really well. Then, things just kind of fell apart after we got back from Los Angeles. The people in that band just kind of ‘lost their fire,’ if you will.”

If you track the timeline of Sollom’s various projects, from Shortie to the present, you will only find one year where he is not officially in one of the three projects previously mentioned. When it comes to music, this really isn’t an alternative option: “If I found myself not being involved with music, I felt off-kilter,” says Sollom. “I’ve always been involved with something, as an individual I have to be. It’s everything to me.”

When asked whether or not he has ever considered working apart from a group atmosphere, Sollom says he prefers the company of others. “I don’t have enough balls to [work as a solo artist], I don’t think. I love creating with other individuals, because of the aspect of what they bring. I have nothing against the Justin Timberlakes or something like that, but I like creating with people, because that’s how things blossom and take different shapes. You can have an idea and work with someone else and that thing will change to something even better. It keeps things fresh, you get different perspectives. I love creating with other people, it’s just a much better fit for myself.”

Sollom has spent his entire life in Sacramento, with all three of his projects performing a majority of shows in the area. While this does not make him an expert on the local music scene, he definitely has perspective on the subject. When asked about the state of the scene, Sollom echoed other musicians in the area that have recently felt frustrated with the current environment.

“I feel the [Sacramento music] scene is really bad right now,” said Sollom. “A decade ago it was thriving … there was lots of all-ages clubs, lots of bands that would play together and help each other out. I think it was a much more vibrant scene. Now, with how things are ran, from local bands having to sell tickets to draw people to shows … that sucks. People should be able to make up their minds if they don’t want to see you day of [the show]. They shouldn’t have to commit in advance. It’s been ridiculous, and a lot of bands feel that way. So, I think that has hurt the scene. I think the lack of clubs, the lack of all-ages venues hurts the scene. It seems like there’s not a whole lot of bands … I mean, there’s a fair amount of bands, but compared to what it was back in its heyday, it’s definitely a dying scene.”

“I love Sacramento … born and raised,” Sollom continued. “I think even if there was a level of success with Surviving the Era, I still probably would want to live here. I love the fact that Sacramento is not far from the Bay, not far from the mountains … It’s always good weather. The city itself, we have an arena coming in, and that brings possibilities for new music stuff. I love it. I’m a loyal guy.”

The band, due to drop their new album, will continue to develop their live sound as they work toward a full-length album, which Sollom said he would like to do in the coming year. In the years they have been active, they have been quite active in the live scene, essentially playing any place that will take them.

“Last year we played over 100 shows,” said Sollom. “There’s a lot of bands I know that won’t play unless it’s a big show, and that is totally not our motto. We play everywhere and anywhere because we want the experience. We’re trying to build our show ourselves and get as good as we can. There’s no show not good enough or too small. No house shows yet. We would play a house show in a heartbeat. I love house shows. It’s cool because it’s so not formal. We’re down to play, send us a message if you want us to play your house show.”

Parallax will be released on June 18, and you’ll be able to celebrate with the band when they play live that very day as part of a stacked lineup at this year’s First Festival. The mammoth two-day music festival runs from noon to 10 p.m. at Southside Park in downtown Sacramento on June 18 and 19, 2016. Just a few of the other bands performing will be Epsilona, Death of Reason, Sun Valley Gun Club, Tell the Wolves and Drop Dead Red. To purchase tickets in advance, go to Firstfestivalsacramento.com, and to learn more about Surviving the Era, go to Survivingtheera.com.