The305.com: Crazy Hood is a name that should be familiar to you if you’ve been a long time follower of The305.com and/or a longtime follower of the local Miami hip hop scene. They’ve dived deep into the music industry from the artistry side and in the marketing and promotions side. Well, you can add another notch to Crazy Hood as they are now jumping into film world with the launch of the Crazy Hood Film Academy, a subdivision focused on video production. Just recently they directed a few videos including one with Mayday and another with N.O.R.E. And earlier today, they released a behind the scenes they filmed at N.O.R.E.’s shoot for “Finito”. I recently caught up with DJ EFN and Garcia, both who run Crazy Hood Film Academy. Garcia was deep into the filming world years ago, and just now recently resurfaced via this new venture. Click below to see what we can expect from these guys and their new venture…
 

305: So explain what exactly is the Crazy Hood Film Academy?
DJ EFN: Crazy Hood Film Academy is the visual arm of C.H.P. (Crazy Hood Productions Inc.).

305: What inspired you guys to jump into the film side of things? And who’s part of the company/crew? DJ EFN: Over the years C.H.P. (Crazy Hood Productions Inc.) has worked closely with many of Miami’s top directors and film companies prior to their reaching a certain status. So early on we knew the importance of visuals to our business. Several years ago C.H.P. artist GARCIA went to film school and had directed early videos for Wrekonize, ¡Mayday!, Heckler and others. Garcia put down the camera to focus more on his music and family life and it wasn’t till recently that I told him it was time to pick it back up. I myself started dabbling in visuals and was working with Dre Films on a series I called “DJ EFN Visual Mixtapes”. The series consisted of high quality made for web street videos. Both myself and Dre got a lot of acclaim from the blog world for our work but not long after, Dre got the call from Maybach Music to join their team. So it was only natural for myself and Garcia to partner up in what we now call the Crazy Hood Film Academy. We both collaborate creatively but Garcia is the director and editor and I am the executive producer and producer on the projects. We are not closed to collaborating with other people or companies and have already done so. We also work very closely with another Miami film company by the name of Film Heads which people will start seeing a lot of their work soon!

305: Garcia, you’ve definitely stepped back from the film side of things for a few years, so glad to see you back. What’s your take on the state of the music video industry now and the whole expansion of filming in hip-hop and music in general?
Garcia: Thanks man I’m glad to be back. As far as the question, I think its a good thing that every artist has a camera by their side now. For marketing aspects that’s great. The flip side to that is this: does every guy with a camera know what their doing? I mean honestly some of the videos we have been seeing coming out, could be done with so much more taste and creativity. I like what Dre films has been doing a lot with Ross because I know he knows his camera and takes pride in the editing process. Its apparent in what he shoots, and I don’t say that because I know him. But a lot of cats think just because they buy a camera they can call themselves a director. It’s far from the

In this first installment of 'Behind The Hustle' Ace Hood takes you on a behind the scenes journey into his daily hustle. This video takes you from the gym to the studio with Cool & Dre, to the strip club, to a video shoot with ¡Mayday! (for the song "Highs & Lows" featuring Ace Hood) and back to the club. Ours truly and co-manager of ¡Mayday!; DJ EFN also makes a cameo appearance. Shout to Ace Hood, Kiko, Andy Boy and the entire We The Best Music Group family!

Today the world wide web gave me a gift, it gave me the gift to reminisce like I so love to do! In this video by TDK, Nas talks about the tape culture and how cassettes were important to him and an entire Hip Hop generation. Everything Nas says in this video is exactly what I did and felt about tapes. To this day I hold on to my collection of at least a thousand cassettes. I also started my musical journey on the backs of cassette tapes. While tweeting, reading and facebooking about this video and Cassettes in general, I remembered I was once sponsored by TDK. I was lucky to get in good with a rep at TDK and he use to send me packs of blank cassettes for me to copy my mixtapes to. There is no way to explain to someone now how important of a role cassettes played and what we truly lost. It seems that with every new technology the true essence of music culture is lost. Hit the jump for a pic of my TDK cassettes and to read what TDK had to say at press time.
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Here's another one off DJ EFN's recent project; "Diggin in the Tapes". This one is a Miami Beat Wave remix of a DJ EFN mixtape classic which features Pitbull, Dj Khaled, Flo Rida, Brisco, Gunplay (of Triple C's), Smitty, Garcia, Heckler and Cubo. Check out the entire "Diggin in the Tapes" project which features Cam'ron, Lil Jon, Capone-n-Noreaga, Wyclef, Redman, Bun B, Joe Budden and more for free download at djbooth. Dirty version available below, radio DJ's can get clean version HERE.

In celebration of 15 years in the mixtape game, Miami heavyweight DJ EFN has hooked up with DJBooth.net to drop a brand new compilation project, Diggin’ in the Tapes. Assembled over the course of an extensive search through his archives of DAT tapes, A-Dats., Mini Discs and 4-Track tapes, the set is a collection of both classic and unreleased freestyles, as well as original tracks recorded for EFN’s mixtape series. Included on the street album is Booth-premiered, reader-approved leak “Corleone.” Among the big-name artists to make appearances throughout DITT are Kanye West, Rick Ross, Bun B, Cam’ron, Ras Kass, Garcia, Heckler, ¡Mayday! and the late Guru. Beats come courtesy of The Alchemist, Miami Beat Wave, Plex Luthor, Hazardis Soundz, Da Riffs, Midi Mafia and many more! Hit the jump for the track listing and link to stream and download this project now!
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DJBOOTH: If there’s one thing mob movies have taught us, it’s that there’s no escaping from your past; no matter how far you run, family ties will pull you back into the fray. A Miami mixtape mainstay (and first-time featuree) well-versed in gangster cinema, DJ EFN and the suddenly ubiquitous Ras Kass draw inspiration from the Godfather trilogy’s Michael Corleone on this newly-leaked cut, a Booth-exclusive world premiere. Over the fittingly cinematic, string-laced boardwork of Nick Fury HD, the West Coast veteran does his best Mafia don impression, showing off his Italian vocab (plus a little French and Spanish) and his pop-reference game (that’s the first Chris Farley name-drop I’ve heard in a minute) as he details the trials and tribulations of life on the throne. Like what you’re hearing? You might not be able to kiss DJ EFN’s ring through the computer screen, but you can do the next best thing: pick up a copy of his Booth-sponsored Diggin in the Tapes compilation album when it hits our mixtape page for free streaming and download December 16.

Miami New Times: ¡Mayday! has a monthly gig at Transit Lounge where they host the night for one Friday each month. Well, that Friday is tonight. But this particular night at Transit will be extra special as the event will double up as a charity drive in support of Miami's homeless population. Live music featuring some of Miami's hottest hip-hop acts.

There is no cover charge, but event organizers are asking that you bring your old clothes, footwear, children's clothes, and/or school supplies to help the less fortunate of Miami. Its all for a good cause.

Crossfade caught up with DJ EFN, who helped put the night together along with a long list of other amazing contributors. We spoke a little about the goals for tonight's charity event at Transit. We also spoke about his company, his co-management duties with ¡Mayday! and the other artists he manages: Garcia and Heckler.

New Times: If you can introduce yourself and talk a little about what you do and about your company?

DJ EFN: My name is DJ EFN, I am founder of Crazy Hood Productions inc. and CHP Marketing & Promotions. Some know me as Miami's Mixtape King, which was a name given to me for being one of the first consistent mixtape DJs out of South Florida. I manage local artist such as Garcia, Heckler, and ¡Mayday! (which I co-manage with Kether of Latchkey and Drea of La Rue) as well as local producers Big Drain and Hazardis Soundz.

Through my marketing company I have worked with such companies and brands as Ecko, Def Jam, Bacardi, Ciroc, Atlantic, Tommy Boy, Epic, Sony, Gatorade, HP/Beats and many more. We manage regional and national campaigns as well as do consulting.

New Times: Like you mentioned, you're co-managing ¡Mayday!, who have been having an incredible year. How's everything looking with them?
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57Hoods (Crazyhood + 57thave = 57Hoods) present.. Another DJ EFN "Visual Mixtape Creation" & Dre Films video this time with Capone-n-Noreaga for The War Report 2 track "My Attribute". This shoot follows CNN through the streets (in an undisclosed city) at peak late hours of the night. This is when the city really turns on! Cameos by DJ EFN, Lil Rock (of The Bandits), Eddie Gigs, Imam T.H.U.G., Torch (of Triple C's), & Hazardis Soundz. Big shout out to all the street folks we were able to capture for this video. Ya'll have inspired a totally different project! Thanks for the eye opener!