MASTER
ASSAULT : TYPE 2 (1998)
(The following passage was entered 04.10.01)
It looked to be quite the uphill battle to get an independent
video onto major video network television. But Hiero had the
advantage of having once been collectively signed to major
record labels. It was now late 1998, and Hiero had 3 years
of independent, & online experience tucked neatly beneath
their belt. A massive community of online Hiero Heads were
flying high with the successful release of "3rd Eye Vision";
Hiero's first independent record which dropped 5 months, and
2 singles prior. When Jacob Rosenberg, the video's director,
completed the edit of "You Never Knew", Hieroglyphics
called upon it's online "Soopa Troopas" in a devastating
media attack which would prove not only revolutionary, but
successful.
The video was sent to all major music video TV channels. At
the same time, Hiero collected the names, phone numbers and
email addresses of every major TV netowrk and posted
the information online. The Hiero Heads gathered as the
call was given: Go out and BOMBARD these request lines with
nothing but, "Hieroglyphics, 'You Never Knew'. And it
worked! The video skyrocketed to Number 2 at sonicnet.com,
which was arguably one of the net's most powerful music portals
at the time. The video received major rotation on BET, Much
Music and even graced MTV a few times late at night. For an
independent music video, at a time when hiphop's "Do
It Yourself" movement was just starting to grow pubes,
it was quite the accomplishment not only for Hieroglyphics
as a collective, but for the true power of the internet and
its communitive force.
A number of months passed and the video's rotation on stations
began to fizzle out. A 2nd last-ditch effort was staged online,
this time focused at nationwide radio stations. However, it
came at a time when interest in the single had already depleted
and the 2nd attempt, dubbed "Master Assault: Type 2"
proved to be too little, too late. Here is the page as it
originally appeared.
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