In 2013, King Kirk posted a thank-you note to fans after the new Sporty Thievz mixtape, Speak Ya Mind pt. 1, reached what he said was more than twelve thousand downloads from the group’s own website. The figure comes from the artist’s post and has not been independently checked.

The message

He thanked listeners for feedback and said the aim was to show that classic hip hop and originality still exist, and he credited fans who reposted the release on social platforms.

Release choices

Some fans had asked why the mixtape was not posted first on popular mixtape sites. The explanation was that the group wanted it exclusive to its own site at the start, with wider posting to follow.

Technical hiccups

Users on phones and tablets had trouble with the site’s Flash-based music player, since many mobile devices did not support Flash at the time. The post acknowledged the problem and said a fix was in progress.

A tribute

The note closed with a short remembrance of Marlon Brando, the group member who died in 2001.

Related pages include the release announcement and the track listing.