Aceyalone, Zion-I Compete For MTV Exposure
By Clover Hope
Date: 11/9/2004 6:55 pm
Hip-Hop underground acts Aceyalone, a founding member of Freestyle Fellowship, and the spiritual Hip-Hop trio Zion-I will compete in "MTV2's Dew Circuit Breakout," amongst 12 unknown bands battling in a weeklong tournament to gain valuable exposure.
Zion-I will appear on "MTV2's Dew Circuit Breakout," November 22 and Aceyalone on November 24, with MTV2 VJ Jim Shearer hosting in-depth
interviews and performances.
The winners of the semi-finalist rounds advance to the final competition December 4, when each band will perform a song from their current album before a live audience at MTV2's Times Square Studios.
The winner, voted on by viewers, receives $50,000, a weeklong appearance on "MTV2 Rock" and their own "Bands A to Z" page on MTV.com.
Aceyalone contributed to the evolution of literary Hip-Hop on the West Coast at a time when gangsta rap was prominent. After the Freestyle
Fellowship disbanded, the Bay Area artist launched his solo career and remained venerated in West Coast underground Hip-Hop.
Zion-I, consisting of Oakland's MC Zion and DJ/Producer Amp Live, made their mark in the Bay Area by merging Hip-Hop and spiritualism, with
unity and spiritual awareness as the central message in their rhymes.
The trio opened for rap pioneers like Run-D.M.C, Rakim and De La Soul following several indie hits.
Aceyalone's All Balls Don't Bounce Revisited was released earlier this year on Decon as an updated version of his debut album, and Zion-I's
latest album Curb Servin' was released in 2003 under Raptivism.
The 24-hour MTV2 music network provides a platform for breaking artists, new music and underground Hip-Hop.