This is prime mixtape exclusive shit right here. I’m assuming that Erick Sermon had put away a few stiff drinks before recording this, as he actually raps with some moxy, pep and conviction here, as opposed to the lackadaisical delivery on his first two solo LPs. Taken from DJ EV and Stretch Armstrong’s Back To…
Paul Nice – The Unkut Interview
It’s been a tough week, with Mr. Cee, Patti Astor and Paul Nice all leaving us. I’ve revisited and re-transcribed the interview I did with Paul in January 2015 for my Ultimate Breaks and Beats feature for Cuepoint so that I can share his personal reflections on the series that changed everything, and the inspiration…
Download: A Salute To DJ Clark Kent Productions
From deejaying for Dana Dane to founding the Supermen crew, hosting the NMS DJ and MC battles to producing basically anyone who’s so much as glanced at the Brooklyn Bridge, DJ Clark Kent has been deep in the music game for as long as I can remember. Here are twenty tracks that he produced or…
Keith LeBlanc Tells The Story Behind ‘No Sell Out’
Keith LeBlanc died this week, leaving behind an extensive catalogue of music as a member of the Sugar Hill house band, Tackhead and Litle Axe. I interviewed Keith in 2015 for the Past The Margin book, so I thought I’d share this excerpt where he discused the making of his ‘No Sell Out’ single on…
Biz Markie Working Blue and Bawdy While Playing Records
The late, great Biz Markie was sometimes referred to as The Clown Prince of Rap, which isn’t the greatest nickname because clowns generally get a bad…erm…rap. Later in his career, I believe Biz was getting a lot of DJ work at fancy parties and whatnot after he hit the mainstream as a regular on Yo…
CRC Early Chicago Rap Mix
Here’s 47 minutes of old Chicago rap records. Track listing to follow soon. Download: CRC Early Chicago Rap Mix
Who really made the beat for Biz Markie’s ‘Just A Friend’?
From what I’ve been able to piece together, Dan The Beatman (aka DJ Danny Dan who made a record for Select with his girlfriend, The Female Dream) made the original beat and recorded it with Paul C. at 1212 Studios (as told to Big Daddy magazine for issue 12): Could this YouTube upload of an…
The Townhouse Three feat. Chucky D and Butch Cassidy – N41
When The Bomb Squad’s Keith Shocklee told me about this song in 2008, I was thinking I didn’t have a snowflake’s chance in hell to ever hear it. Luckily, Long Island resident Lloyd Means has taken the time to upload his extensive collection of Spectrum City / The Mr. Bill Show recordings from WBAU, featuring…
Eric B. Interview from Blitz Magazine [UK, 1988]
Eric B. is not one of the most talkative characters I’ve encountered in my days as a bloke who rings up rap music legends. Considering that I was unable to verify anything he told me, the whole thing was an exercise in frustration and bewilderment. Our conversation in 2009 included a declaration that Queens invented…
Ultramagnetic MC’s – Ain’t It Good To You [Remix]
Bootlegged in 2013 from an acetate that Red Alert sold on ebay…or just taped off of someone’s Walkman. New music, new raps and an incredible new chorus. Can we blame Eddie O’Loughlin for ditching this in favour of the hip-house remix of ‘Travelling At The Speed of Thought’? This was on my Destroying All Germs…
That Time The Source Magazine Asked The Rap World Their Top Five of LPs of 1991
Everyone who put their own album on their list needs to take a long, hard look at themselves, with the exception of Greg Nice who took it to another level. If I’d been asked to list my own Five Favourite Albums of 1991 in January of 1992, based on what I listened to the most…
Pre-Order: Unkut Dot Com 20th Anniversary T-Shirt
The first cab off the rank to celebrate this site surviving twenty years is a one-off run of t-shirts, designed by Aeon Hand (f.k.a. Theotis Jones) and featuring some of the illustrations from Past The Margin. Pre-order the size you want by the 23rd March 2024 and it will be sent out in early April….