Dem Southern Folkz

- by Carson Barker, Open Labs Staff Writer 

If meditation is the act of concentrating on one's own thoughts, by mentally blocking out the sounds of our physical world, then Thomas Benjamin is a Zen master. While other hip-hop producers around the globe are working inside insulated sound booths, Benjamin is trying to mentally defuse the sounds of car bombs blasting in the streets outside his studio. That, and rapid gunfire from M-16 and AK-47 automatic weapons showering the city in which he dwells. When dealing with this kind of static noise, the only soundproofing that Benjamin has is his inner sanctuary.

"You don't necessarily have to see it, you can hear it. I mean it's happening ...