What is The Daily Note’s origin story?
This is a question we always enjoy answering!
Back in high school, Coog was always talking about music (Hip-Hop, in particular). It was to the point that a friend jokingly said for him to just make a blog already … so he did. In 2010, he created The Daily Note on Tumblr where he wrote about, featured and posted local artists that he enjoyed listening to. As a close friend of his I always supported the blog to encourage him to pursue his passions. Before even becoming part owner, I believed in it and enjoyed being a consumer. There wasn’t much of this in Rhode Island at the time and I spent countless hours on the internet looking for great music so someone spotlighting artists who were five minutes away from me was exciting.
After about a year of supporting as a fan, the bond we grew as friends and his appreciation of my writing skills led him to asking me to help run the blog. He was also grounded for an absurd amount of time, so he asked me to take over in his absence. I didn’t think twice about it and we’ve been building the brand ever since. It could’ve ended up as “just a blog” but he had a bigger vision.
He used the The Daily Note for his senior thesis project, and to me, that turned the blog into a brand. This inspired us to invest in our own domain in 2013 and we’ve constantly been evolving. In addition to the blogsite we also curate events, host shows, cultivate artists, advise and market businesses, provide writing services, create merchandise from time-to-time, and anything under the sun we enjoy doing. We couldn’t do any of it at the capacity we do it at without our team full of creative people.
How does The Daily Note‘s Hip-Hop blog site work?
The meat and potatoes of the brand is the content we post on the blogsite, TDN401.com. We’ve always paid attention to artists around us, whether in Rhode Island or when we both spent time away in different states. Constantly reaching out to artists and writing about their music helped us build rapport while growing the blogsite. We’re both genuinely passionate about music so it comes natural to us to find the next song or project. Whether it is an article about an artist, a review of an album, or a post about our thoughts on a song/video, we aim to share music we enjoy listening to.
Now we have many group members blogging with us, so it opens room for all kinds of different sounds and perspectives since we each have our own preferences.
Tell our community about #TheNoteCast. What inspired The Daily Note team to move into podcasting? How did you prepare for each episode? How did you make the most of your time with your guests?
With constantly evolving, we immerse ourselves into all kinds of avenues to express ourselves. We started a college radio show where we played music, interviewed artists and gave our opinions on the culture. After a while, we were approached with an opportunity from B08 Studios in Pawtucket to take what we were doing and put it into podcast form. That is when the name, #TheNoteCast, came about. Having more control over the show improved it and allowed us the freedom to create more content on our time.
In the first season, we would primarily interview all kinds of entrepreneurs, whether they were an artist or a business owner, and have conversations about everything. To prepare we researched their work and anything happening in life at the time we may have thought interesting to get their perspective on. We’d rarely prepare questions since Coog and I built our chemistry so much we were able to flow off each other’s cues to make it feel as conversational as possible. This made every guest comfortable and provided many conversational gems.
Part of #TheNoteCast’s journey is it also turning into another show featuring only Coog as the host called “Kickin’ It”. Personally, my love for podcasting lessened and I shifted my focus more on the other outlets The Daily Note was involved in.
How does The Daily Note give back to the community through mentorship?
We value what the local community has grown into so we’re always more than happy to contribute as much as possible. In 2016 As220, a non-profit organization, welcomed us as community curators, which gives us the privilege of a monthly home for events at their main stage in downtown Providence. We’ve been doing shows for so long that we started to reach out to young creatives to provide an opportunity to collaborate on a vision they’ve had. The community hasn’t always been as abundant as it is now, so we like to “reach back while we climb” and provide to people what wasn’t easily accessible to us. The events curated through this have been amazing and it has been rewarding to see other creatives materialize their ideas.
We also speak to many artists we’ve built a connection with to provide input on their music. Another set of ears tends to be helpful and we always attempt to be as constructive as possible.
How has COVID-19 affected The Daily Note? Do you have any “quarantine projects” in the works?
Since late 2015, we’ve been highly involved in curating events. That has been the aspect of The Daily Note that’s been most impacted by this crisis. With Gina Raimondo’s orders, it is going to be a while before we can create events at the capacity they were before. It is disheartening since we enjoy it as much as we do but it is the best decision for the well-being of everyone. We’ve been preaching positivism and the idea that everyone will be ready to fully support once we’ve all passed through this!
In the meantime, it’s given us time to focus on the blog site while brainstorming for growth. We’ve been working on music with a handful of artists as well! Since quarantine began, we have released three projects spotlighting an artist with production created by in-house producers. We used Instagram Live at the release of one of the projects so that may be something we leverage more moving forward as other creatives have been doing so as well.
What is one thing that you wish more Rhode Islanders knew about the local Hip-Hop scene?
Like the national landscape of Hip-Hop, the scene in Rhode Island is constantly evolving and full of all kinds of talent. There is a plethora of different sounds, which allows for continuously changing and unique listening experiences. If you’re a fan of the genre, this is the perfect time to find someone to listen to and support!
How can our community connect and / or collaborate with The Daily Note?
The best way to reach us is to attend an event and speak to us! Chances are if you’re there, we’ve probably personally greeted you at the door already, so that is one opportunity to get the conversation started. Another great way is to email us at [email protected] to open the door for further connection! This is also the email we accept submissions for music to post on the blogsite. Other than that, we’re easy to reach, as messaging The Daily Note social media accounts is another way to get in touch with us. We like to be as accessible as possible, especially in this information age of media!
Links
The Daily Note blogsite: TDN401.com
Linktree with continuously changing links: Linktr.ee/TheDailyNote401
Social Media
Instagram: @TheDailyNote401
Twitter: @TheDailyNote401
The Daily Note, under the leadership of Cøøgi and Louie. continues to look forward while remaining consistent with original content. Community involvement and mentoring has also become a key pillar of the brand. There is always an opportunity to reach back to help others progress in their passions.
