vigoronline

Beamer, Benz or Fuji
I had the pleasure of helping Tabi Bonney promote his concert in Harrisburg two years ago. Hailing from Washington, D.C., Tabi makes left-of-center music. Therefore, he doesn’t take the obvious route by driving a $300,000 car in his most recent video for “Nuthin But a Hero.” Tabi flips the script by riding a state-of-the art bicycle through his hometown.

“I came up with the concept of riding a bike through the city,” he tells vigoronline.com. “It’s a Fuji bike built from scratch. It costs about $2,500. [I] always want to do something different. 6ix Shoota, the director, came up with the saving-the-planet idea [for the video].” Also read our interview (below) with Tabi that we wrote two years ago.

From nation Capitol to Pa. Capitol
It’s the evening of July 21, 2008. Raheem DeVaughn, a neo-soul crooner from Maryland is visiting BET’s 106 & Park to debut his new video for “Text Messages.” About an hour later, vigoronline.com holds a phone interview with rapper Tabi Bonney, a talented artist from Washington, D.C. Bonney has known DeVaughn for years because both artists have been regulars at Bar Nun, a D.C.-based club that caters to neo-soul music. And like DeVaughn, Bonney is becoming more of a household name in the urban music industry.

Local music fans, who are not familiar with Bonney’s music, can watch him perform on Aug. 9, 2008, when he headlines WRevolution, a car competition/festival at the State Capitol in Harrisburg. This will be Bonney’s first time in Harrisburg. His advice to upcoming artists in the area? “Be yourself,” he said. “Be original. Don’t look for any handouts.” Aside from cars, WRevolution will offer live graffiti, a performance from local rap group Beyond Comprehension and more.

Bonney may rep Chocolate City, but he has African roots (like D.C.-based rapper Wale). He said his exposure to other cultures allows him to think outside the box. Bonney applied this independent thinking to his first album, A Fly Guy’s Theme in 2006.  He plans to drop his second joint, Dope Meet Fresh … Fresh Meet Superstar, later this year. “I kinda held back,” he said about the creative boundaries on his freshman album. “I push the envelope a little more,” Bonney added about Dope Meet Fresh … “I take it back to when I fell in love with hip-hop.”

The rap artist has other loves: clothing and directing. Bonney couldn’t find his size when shopping for certain brands, so he launched a clothing line called Bonney Runway. “I like to shop a lot,” he explained. “I made [my line] more of a boutique label.” He also directed videos for his songs “Syce It,” “Beat Rock” and “Try Again,” a song from DeVaughn. Bonney said he admires how rap vet Ice Cube successfully got his directing and acting on.  Bonney’s other favorite rapper-turned actors include Mos Def and Andre 3000.