Chingo Bling is an up-and-coming rapper in the Houston-based Hip Hop scene. With  catchy beats and rhymes on songs such as "Masa & Da Flour", "She Wants Chingo’s Tamale", and "American Pie" featuring Mike Jones and Paul Wall from his newest self-distributed album The Tamale Kingpin, he is steady making noise in both Houston and now nationally. Frank151 had a chance to sit down with Chingo Bling, covering everything from the tamale hustle to politics. Check the full article here.

Shout out to everyone in So. Cal: Be sure to check out Skate Or Die, which displays the art of 50 artists asked to design original artwork on blank skateboards, the difficulty being that they must incorporate a skull symbol into their work. All of the skateboards will be for sale with the proceeds going to Faribault Skatepark Association. Opening reception is July 30 from 7-10 pm at New Image Art in Santa Monica. If you can’t make it that day, no worries, because the show runs until August 14. For more info on the exhibition check the site  here.

aNYthing and SSUR teamed up to throw a good ol’ fashioned block party downtown on Spring Street.  Madness ensued as thousands of heads rolled through.  Peep the full photo album here.

Frank151 curated Chad Hogan (www.nuyorktricity.com) for one of the
Rubik’s Cube designs on which six artists worked on. Artists included
Sonar Project (Tokyo) (www.sonarproject.com) , Machine (Ams)
(www.ourmachine.com), Call of the Wild (London), Erik Haze (LA)
(www.intehaze.com), and David Flores (SF) (www.davidfloresart.com).
Frank also had a successful Rubic’s cube exhibit in Tokyo,  generating
a lot of interest from Japanese press. View the full photo album here.

For all you wannabe assassins out there, Frank has hunted
down the craziest, largest, city-wide water gun assassination tournament that’ll
take place in New York City and Vancouver.
Developed from the insane mind of New Yorker Franz Alquio and extended to Vancouver via agent Yutai Liao, StreetWars is a 24
hour/7 days a week round-the-clock game that will turn you instantly into a “killer�
hunting and preying on your assigned victim. But you better be careful because
while you’re stalking your victim, someone has been assigned to get you! The
deadline to sign up is July 25 for a discounted entry fee so make sure not to miss out on what looks like
to be the most fun you’ll ever have…and the cash prize isn’t so bad either. The
games begin August 1. For more details check out the
site here.

Attention West Coasters and riders…..you now have something new to bump in your trunks.  Sickside Stories, the forthcoming album from LA-based group Sick Symphonies, is fourteen tracks of straight-up West coast anthems, perfectly suited for rolling with your windows down.  Consisting of Cynic, Crow, DJ FM, and Sick Jacken (known for his previously acclaimed work with Cypress Hill frontman B-Real in the group Psycho Realm), the group rhymes about the gritty LA streets, politics, and women over some rock-solid production of both live instruments and samples, sounding somewhere between a cross of Cypress Hill, Beatnuts, and CnN.  For more info on Sick Symphonies, peep the group’s website at http://www.psychorealmonline.com.  Stories drops in stores July 26th. 

As Frank digs even deeper into its Rock roots, we’ve decided
to compile a list of our favorite songs to kill to with the Top Ten Murder
Movie Soundtracks. So if you’re looking for a good playlist of songs to get
pumped up to before you go stab, shoot, murder, maim, set someone on fire, etc.
be sure to check these out here.

If you’re one of the few who hasn’t seen Book 16 contributor
SWOON’s paper-cut collages of people riding bikes or sitting on stoops pasted
on decaying walls on the streets of NYC, check out her lasted exhibition at the
Deitch Projects Gallery, located on 76 Grand Street. SWOON has transformed the gallery
into a maze of a city  that is filled with drama and darkness. Influenced by the
Hong Kong slum Kawloon Walled City before it was destroyed in 1993, her powerful cut outs of trains, crooked
scaffolding, angular fire escapes, and deep corners create an irregularity and
an imbalance that is sure transmit you into another dimension. It will be on
display July 7-August 13 so be sure to see this one-of-a-kind installation
before it disappears…For more info check out the Deitch Gallery website here.

Ladybug Mecca, 1/3 of the recently reunited Grammy award-winning group Digable Planets, is on her own with the release of her debut solo album Trip the Light Fantastic. The album covers the entire music spectrum with her melodic, soulful voice laid against an eclectic mix of beats ranging from hip-hop to rock and blues all the way to bossa nova rhythms. This record is on its way to becoming one of this summer’s classics. Check out some of her songs on her website here.

In celebration of the Rock Issue, Frank151 tracked down Cynthia Plaster Caster, formerly of professional groupie fame. Known for casting models of band’s members, she has turned her groupie hobby into a profession. Check out our exclusive interview to read about all of her crazy dressing-room adventures here.