So there was a free show the other night featuring Jean Grae and Pharoahe Monch, which isn’t really a big deal since I never really pay to get in anyways and I don’t really know a song that either of ‘em have done for the last five years, but eff it. First thing I noticed that were a lot of broads around, which is pretty unusual for a scumbag spot like this one but always a positive. Did all this gals roll up to hear ‘Simon Says’? On closer inspection, I noticed that 85% of these chicks appeared to be on some of that old rug munch status, and then the penny dropped. ‘Oh shit, Jean got this girl-on-girl rap audience in a headlock!’. There also seemed to be your usual fudge pudge of type-Emo rap fans and J. Bieber wannabes, which seems to be par for the course in this fruit basket we call hip-hop now. (more…)
With a career in the music industry spanning over 30 years, Mario ‘Not Rude’ Rodriguez has worked on a lot of records as an engineer and mixer. Amongst his hip-hop projects, he’s been involved with records from Mobb Deep, LL Cool J, Biggie Smalls and Public Enemy to name a few. For the first part of our discussion, Mario gives a little background to how he got started and his thoughts about music.
Robbie: You’ve lead quite a varied career so far, in terms of who you’ve worked with.
Mario Rodriguez: I’ve been around for a long time, so I’ve survived by being a little bit of a chameleon.
Do you prefer any particular style of music though?
If I can be really candid – I’m a bit of a whore, and I will turn wherever I can feed myself. In a business like this, if you do one thing you get stereo-typed very easily, and I don’t particularly like that. I like to have a variety of types of work. My musical taste is incredible eclectic – if you looked at my record collection you would probably call a shrink or have me committed. The gammut of music that’s in my collection is so extensive, so expansive, that you think that, ‘He must be out of his mind!’ If I’m working a project, I will not to listen to any other music. I don’t like to be thinking about somebody else while I do work. (more…)
The original grew on me after it got blasted every other week on the Combat Jack Show, so I figured I’d give this remix a little burn. Live From The Tape Deck out now.
Here’s the clip for the sequel to ‘Change The Style’. Gotta love Half-Pint‘s ear-shattering vocals. If her and Milk D made an album it would smash both speakers and ear-drums across the planet. Cop the Well Thawed Out album here.
Dallas Penn gets the scoop at the Meyhem video shoot for ‘Just Can’t Win’, while J-Love‘s ‘Contraband’ and Meyhem & AG Da Coroner‘s ‘Sound Boy Massacre’ get official clips. (more…)
It’s amazing that nobody has thought to remake Criminal Minded before, but the idea of hearing new raps over the ‘Elementary’ beat is not exactly the worst idea ever, especially when DJ Revolution is involved. Not familiar with the MC’s but I’m willing to give ‘em a shot since they didn’t try to cover Illmatic.
I still haven’t figured out if this guy is part of the M.O.P. crew or not, but since this another song with Lil’ Fame on the beat I’m going to assume that he’s at least a BK resident. Plus anything involving the under-appreciated Flushing techniques of Royal Flush is worth a mention in my book.
NYOIL (aka UMC‘s Kool Kim) has been working with a Youth Outreach program called P.E.M.G. [Proper Execution Makes Greatness], helping kids to get into the music biz the right way. Here’s a track featuring his daughter Big Nay and 17 year-old called S.I.T.H. [Sick In The Head]. This kind of thing usually leaves me cold but I’ve got to admit that they’ve got some potential.
It seems that every other week a new Rap Genre emerges from someone’s twisted imagination. Since it’s been almost a year since the first Unkut Guide on the subject, it ain’t no mystery that a lot of effed-up new styles have appeared. Without a doubt, the most prominent would have to be the Soap Opera Rap movement. This hideous new breed of cRap is the mutated step-child of Wrestlemania Rap, which was started by Melle Mel when he stole Mikey D’s NMS belt and finally perfected by Curtis aka 50 Cent and his endless beefs with other rappers who he eventually makes shitty songs with (see: 50 & Jadakiss’ appropriately named ‘Dump‘). (more…)
Two tracks from the new J-Love mixtape Acknowledge The Takeover Part 23, hosted by Meyhem Lauren. J was kind enough to lace me with the original, no DJ versions as well. Cop it here for $6.99 if you haven’t spent all your dough on that 4 LOKO.
Willie The Kid - ‘Before My Time’ [Produced By J-Love]
To help promote the re-launch of the NBA Jam video game, Mick Boogie put together this mix of classic 1993 remixes. Grab it for a little trip down memory lane, hopefully with a bottle of St. Ides you’ve had stashed away for such an occasion….
