We’ve already put the Nas and Ghostface discography’s under the microscope, so it’s only right that the legendary Kool G Rap gets a turn, right? (more…)
I.U. can still kill it on the mic, as he demonstrated on ‘Da Veteran’ (available soon Marco Polo‘s The Stupendous Adventures Of Marco Polo LP).1 But don’t sleep on the man’s Twitter game – your man is dropping jewels all over this piece! Here are six of his finest moments: (more…)
1. 90′s Babies Note: You would have heard Grand Daddy I.U. on Big L‘s ‘Da Graveyard’ with Jay-Z.[back]
Forget the misty-eyed talk of hip-hop’s ‘Golden Age’ – the 80′s were responsible for more than their fair share of horrible trends in rap music. Here are just some of them…. (more…)
There are several things that can be expected when reading an interview with an established rapper or producer. Other than the obligatory wholesale abuse of the phrase, “you know what I’m sayin?’, approximately one in every three question and answer sessions will feature some kind of outlandish claim involving either innovations they haven’t been given credit for, or unique techniques that have been shamelessly plundered by their peers. Here are some of my favorites: (more…)
Gossip and rumor have always been a big part of the hip-hop game, but what was once confined to dumb rumors such as ‘Does Big Daddy Kane have AIDS’ has now become a cottage industry to itself. Every morning I have to trawl through a seemingly endless stream of emails announcing ‘Lil’ Wayne Is Pregnant To An Alien’ and ‘Diddy Sez He Didn’t Spill Egg Salad In Rick Ross‘ Beard’. I guess that kind of bullshit it to be expected from rap teenybopper gossip sites (the internets answer to Word Up! magazine?) but that mentality seems to have infected the majority of rap blogs as well. The 24-hour news cycle demands a high turn-over of content, but we really need to draw the line somewhere. Say word Drake copped a new pair of jeans? (more…)
Shan runs through his timeless classic at a live show/park jam, with DJ Hot Day on the decks. No idea when this was recorded though – I’m guessing late 90′s?
Henry Chalfant‘s often forgotten second hip-hop documentary called All City features some great moments, including a super high-tech video for T La Rock‘s ‘It’s Yours’.
I just found out that Markey Fresh, aka ‘The Mack of Rap’ passed away on the 15th of May, 2010 after suffering a stroke. Best remembered for his 45 King theme song ‘The King Is Here’ and his classic promos for Kool DJ Red Alert, he released the memorable single ‘The Mack of Rap’ on Jive Records in 1989, and an EP on The 45 King’s label in 1993. I was fortunate enough to interview Markey in February, and he really seemed to enjoy the feedback from everybody after all these years, as he made sure to respond to everyone’s questions in the comment section of the article and soon became a regular in the comment section of Unkut Dot Com. Markey recently emailed me expressing an interest in recording some new music and possibly releasing it through the site, and had left a comment here as recently as May 7, which makes the news of his death even more unexpected, as he had never mentioned any health problems. A sad loss for fans of dope New Jersey hip-hop.
I heard a snippet of this last night so I had to hit Doo Wop for the full version. As you might remember, Wop was GURU’s show DJ for a few tours, so had first-hand experience with the fuckery surrounding Solar, and on this song he let’s us know the science on this snake in no uncertain terms over the classic Gangstarr beat. He’s joined by T.O.N.Y. from Minnesota, “who actually sparked the idea”, according to the Bounce Master. I’ve got a feeling we’ll be hearing some more tracks with this theme in the near future…
This risked dragging on forever, so let’s quit while we’re ahead. I’ve taken the top two from each round and added a couple of wild card entries. I also can’t understand how only seven people voted for the perfection that is the beat for Big Twins’ ‘Wanna Be Down’…regardless, let’s get this get this over and done with.
In a rare case of the internet actually contributing something positive to rap music, it seems that the comment section of my old interview with DJ Johnny Juice and Son of Bazerk inspired Juice to get the gang back in the studio and recreate that ‘Change The Style’ magic for 2010. Produced by Johnny ‘Juice’ Rosado and released through Slam Jamz.
