Tag: Jose (Liquor Talkin)

Baltimore’s Shot By Swish Directs 4Da Streetz Tribute to Wiz Khalifa’s Kush & OJ

This ain’t just a mic drop. It’s a love letter to Kush & OJ. Directed by Shot By Swish. Inspired by legacy. Alissa Fere returns.

Donte Hutchins, a highly talented director and videographer known in Baltimore’s underground arts scene as Shot By Swish, was the perfect choice to craft the visuals for the 4Da Streetz music video. His lens doesn’t just capture moments. It translates legacy.

Swish and I go back over a decade. I can say our creative chemistry is unmatched. It’s rooted in trust, rhythm, and a shared hunger to elevate Baltimore’s voice. So when it came time to craft a visual tribute to one of my all-time favorite rappers, Wiz Khalifa, I knew Swish would bring the grit and reverence this project demanded.

I pitched the idea to Swish casually. This will be a mic drop video, not a full music video. He insisted on calling it a treatment once we agreed to collaborate. It’s my love letter to Kush & OJ. I told him this was a tribute to the master of Taylor Gang, inspired by my favorite song and mixtape.

“It’s the 15th anniversary of Wiz Khalifa’s Kush & OJ. I need to do something to show my appreciation,” I tell Swish during one of our weekly meet-ups in my art studio.

“Knowing how much and important Wiz Khalifa is as an influence to Alissa, I know for this to be her stepping out visuals, it’s extremely special to her,” Swish said.

Kush & OJ shaped many memories, inspired the song Jose (Liquor Talkin), and left fingerprints all over Alissa Fere’s story. It deserved a tribute that felt personal and cinematic.

Read: The Essay I Never Wrote—Until Now

This mic drop video had to stand apart because mic drop videos are everywhere. Most artists perform in front of a mic, delivering verses with raw energy. But I didn’t want to replicate what’s already been done on platforms like The Floaters or SpitCam University’s Instagram. I wanted something that felt like a moment, a moment similar to when Alissa Fere was recording in the Underground Dojo. A statement. A visual exhale.

4Da Streetz Mic Drop, 2025

Swish isn’t foreign to shooting these types of videos either. He immediately understood the assignment. His Instagram is a living archive of Baltimore’s creative pulse, recaps of milestone moments, portraits of ambition, and collaborations that turn ideas into impact. He’s not just a videographer; he’s a memory keeper. His work turns fleeting ideas into lasting visuals, and his journey reflects a belief I share: with vision and perseverance, anything is possible.

DJ The Rapper Int’l Players Anthem Freestyle

Shot By Swish

Shot By Swish Logo, 2025

Shot By Swish is the brand name for Donte Hutchins, a photographer and videographer with over 8 years of experience in visual media. He’s collaborated with legendary artists like Mary J. Blige, Gucci Mane, SZA, and Kendrick Lamar, and contributed to projects with major platforms including ESPN. His work alongside influential figures such as DJ Quicksilva and Lil Mo further cements his reputation.

But Swish’s heart is in Baltimore. He’s committed to elevating local talent and embracing opportunities that push the boundaries of his craft. His work on 4Da Streetz isn’t just a video — it’s a mic drop for a Baltimore creative culture. 

If you’re looking to book a shoot with Swish, hit up Shot By Swish on his Instagram. Whether you’re a seasoned artist or just getting started, Swish’s visuals can shape your legacy.

Have you heard 4Da Streetz by Alissa Fere? Watch the lyric video below.

Alissa Feré Releases Title & Promo Art For Spring 2015 Project

Something new had to be brewing in the Doc’s Castle Media kitchen for there to be such a long and lasting silence. It’s been almost a month since my last blog post….sorry, guys.

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My silence is partially justified with the new goals I’ve acquired throughout the last two quarters of 2014. While I’ve aspired to become a master resumé and songwriter, I’ve neglected my original hobby for writing blogs. But as you can see, I always come back of course.

Since May 2014, I took on a mission to complete my bucket list, which I thought would be easy to do. I was sadly mistaken, and since then, I’ve even added more tasks to my bucket list. I can’t help the feeling I get from accomplishing a new goal. Though sooner or later, I’ll have to set limitations on these goals because I don’t know how much of my list I’m willing to take on now. Haha.

One of the tasks I’ve added to my lengthy list is the release of my 2015 mixtape. It began another duty on my list the moment after I released “José (Liquor Talkn).” Eight months later, I give you the promotional art for my project!

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Songs From Da Dugout is as general as it sounds. It’s a project compromised of multiple tracks about my life, or emotions I’ve experienced, between the time period of May, when I released José (Liquor Talkn), and January. All the songs were recorded in Baltimore city studio The Dugout Dojo with head producer and artist FLuX.

Songs From Da Dugout is an EP formulated to speak on the thoughts and emotions of a woman in heartache. Feel the agony and scornful words of Alissa Feré as I speak upon situations every girl can relate to, and every man probably heard of before. Listen to a new rhythmic style only sure to be found in underground Baltimore hip-hop.

Are any of your favorite indie artist releasing any projects that you’re anticipating? Let us know about it in the comments below.

Have you seen my Bucket List? Read “Bucket Listing It Up” on Doc’s Castle Media.

Behind The Music: Jose (Liquor Talkn)

Jose (Liquor Talkn) is my first recorded song, which addresses what many may call a “situationship.” It’s a personal excerpt from my life that I changed into a personification about my favorite alcoholic beverage, Jose Cuervo. The song was produced by a good friend of mine who goes by the name of Doowy Lloh.

The idea for writing Jose came from being surrounded by a bunch of people who are constantly submitting to me their music. I have an interest in independent works. It’s great content being sent to me on a regular basis and I’m not going to front, I believe I can compete alongside quite a few people who send me music. I’m humble, though. Ha-ha.

I’m a frequent visitor of local recording studio DugOut Dojo Studios in Baltimore. The art that comes out of there is absolutely amazing! If you’re a recording artist, I recommend you stop by to record and check out other artists’ work while you’re there.

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Back to talking about my song…During the week of writing this song, I basically drank Jose every night before bed. It’s my go to drink if anyone who wants to know what I prefer. I don’t know why I was drinking so much. It might be because I’m young and young folks do stuff like that sometimes. Haha.

I woke up one day and thought to myself, Hey, I haven’t written a poem in a while. I usually write poems when something heavy is on my mind and I want to express my thoughts creatively. Jose (Liquor Talkn) appeared to be the product this go around because I thought if I made a song about what was going on in my life to conclude all the feelings that I had for a guy I absolutely knew didn’t feel the same for me, it would wipe away every unwanted emotion I had about him. Did it work? It damn sure feels like it.

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A new form of creativity entered my realm and now I can say I feel like making music is the cure to what’s been buried inside of me for years. It’s only for fun that I’m choosing to make music. I don’t want to take the fun out of doing it. It’ll drown away every innocent speckles left in it if I made it into a job. But music always brought me joy. For some reason, I knew there had to be a reason why I’m so fond of being involved with it. I’m not saying that composing a song is my calling. But for some reason, I’m drawn to anything that deals with music. I’ve always loved it.

What’s it like to have a career writing music? What’s it like to be a music publisher? What’s fulfilling to me when I learn how to make beats? The possibilities are endless for me because it’s what I’m looking into doing while I’m bored out of my mind because I’m not enrolled in school. Ha-ha. I just want to learn more about anything within the musical culture.

When I made the song, I was lost out of my mind, trying to figure out what would sound right. I still believe my song needs some work done to it. But it’s my first song, whoever likes their first song? There isn’t too many people. So I consider it decent.

Brianna Ragler from RebelliousRebel backed me on the vocals. FluX, producer at the DugOut Dojo, “whipped my sound into shape.” The track became something of  good potential. Others have told me they like it. (Hear José on Doc’s Castle Media.) It’s cool. You know, the artist is always their worst critic.

Music is love. A person can join it’s marvelous culture if they’d dedicated their time to it. If you enjoy the arts, you’ll know that music  more than what people hear. It’s a lifestyle for many and I encourage more people to learn more about it before they judge it.

The Music Highlight: Jose (Liquor Talkin) by Alissa Fere

Parental Advisory Apply!

Alright, everyone is a rapper. I know, I know. I guess you’ll throw me into the mix after you finish hearing my track that was released Friday evening May 30, 2014 (My Birthday).

When it comes to expressing myself, I sometimes need to find new ways of  releasing how I feel about something. I have to let things be known creatively. I’ve always experimented with different techniques. While growing up, it can be said that I could be caught journaling, drawing, dancing, writing poetry, writing songs, creating clubs, or joining clubs. I’ve always had to stay active. As you know now, I’ve made a bucket list of tasks to complete.

These past two weeks, I’ve been dabbling in writing a song because it was a task on my bucket list. I’ve always wanted to write my own song, as if I was making a  soundtrack for my life. I watch music videos on television sometimes and think that I have the skills to create something like it. So I made a song so that I could make a music video, too. Yay!

Jose (Liquor Talkin) is a page out of the diary of Taylor Walker, a song about an event in my life that I wanted to creatively express my thoughts about. There was no biting my tongue when it came to writing it. It was exactly how I felt about something I believed to be inhuman. It was my first time recording a song and I discovered talents about myself I didn’t know I had.

I have bars! That was surprising.

I may be writing more songs. I have a lot of things that I want to get off my chest that blogging won’t be able to fulfill. So, I guess, I’m making music until I find something new to experiment with. It’s fun.

One thing off of my bucket list is complete. Time to move on to the next!

Check out the last Music Highlight. Read the interview with The Mighty Third Eye on Doc’s Castle Media.