Articles tagged "hip-hop"

Sources Say

Why won’t rappers rap about marriage?

by Diepiriye Kuku

[16.Nov.09] :. “He’s the most influential rapper in the world. If anyone can change young black men’s attitudes about marriage, all fingers point to Hov,” charges Jozen Cummings on The Root.com, a candy store for the politicized hip-hop junkie.

Sources Say

Capsule Reviews

Kosha Dillz: Beverly Dillz

by David Amidon

[13.Nov.09] :. East Coast Jewish MC embarks on West Coast vacation to record his solo debut.

Capsule Reviews

Music Review

Beastie Boys: Hello Nasty

by Richard Elliott

[30.Oct.09] :. If Hello Nasty seems less unusual than it did on its appearance in 1998, its inventiveness should not be overlooked.

Recent Music reviews

Music Review

Twista: Category F5

by Chris Catania

[27.Oct.09] :. Twista can slice and dice words like a razor-sharp Ginsu knife. But F5 finds him getting twisted by the torque of his own tornado.

Recent Music reviews

Sound Affects

Verse-Chorus-Verse: An Interview with Meshell Ndegeocello

by PC Muñoz

[19.Oct.09] :. Artist/producer PC Muñoz mines for gems and grills the greats.

Sound Affects

Column: Busted Headphones

The Messengers

by Quentin B. Huff

[12.Oct.09] :. K'naan's The Messengers series is a trilogy of episodes designed to highlight the genius of Nigeria's Fela Kuti, Jamaica's Bob Marley, and the United States' Bob Dylan.

Recent columns

Jay-Z: The Journey of an Icon

by Roland Laird

[29.Sep.09] :. We can debate this greatest rapper business from now until the end of time. Let's just say Jay-Z is the greatest hip-hop icon ever, and call it a day.

Robert Glasper Loves the Groove

by Thomas Hauner

[27.Aug.09] :. On the eve of his third Blue Note release, Double Booked, jazz pianist Robert Glasper discusses his stylistic bifurcation, MC skills, and -- inevitably -- Michael Jackson's legacy.

Kill The Record Labels

by Liz Colville

[16.Aug.09] :. The words of people like DJ Lazy K, a grateful and hardworking mixtape creator, illustrate how well underground hip-hop is doing, if the RIAA would just leave them alone.

It Ain’t Hard to Tell: The Legacy of ‘Illmatic’

by Quentin B. Huff

[20.Jul.09] :. The "half-man, half-amazin'", Nas' persona is part myth and part "everyday kid" from the Queensbridge projects.

Potluck: Pipe Dreams

by Quentin B. Huff

[11.Jun.09] :. Why so serious? Have a grab bag of weed, love, politics, and laughter.

Big Quarters: From the Home of Brown Babies & White Mothers

by Quentin B. Huff

[28.May.09] :. An excellent album from the state of Minnesota and a shrewd hip-hop duo.

Postcards from the edge: I was in a cell phone commercial

by Diepiriye Kuku

[12.Feb.09] :. The cell phone company found the biggest, blackest group of loud bling-wearing, “wife-beater and jeans” thugs in American hip-hop to rock the crowd in order to promote their brand. The...

Watching Rap

by Erik Nielson

[9.Feb.09] :. Somewhat lost in the glamour of fame, money, and recognition that typifies hip-hop success is the fact that "all eyes on me" includes the police and the feds. Yet surveillance of rappers is very real, and the result is a strange case of artists hiding in public.

Concert Overload

by Ben Rubenstein

[3.Feb.09] :. Free-for-all shows are like a "cool" parent trying to be your friend, instead of your authority figure. While it seems like a good situation at first -- no curfew, no rules -- you realize, eventually, that what it really needs is some structure.

Sweatshop Union: Water Street

by Alan Ranta

[29.Jan.09] :. These are the words of the street, not those trying only to milk it for profit, and they will survive the collective's move from Vancouver to San Francisco.

Moka Only: Carrots and Eggs

by Andrew Martin

[28.Jan.09] :. Moka Only, aka Mr. Prolific, never stops recording. And hopefully, if this album is any indication, he never will.

These Are the Breaks: The Motown Sound’s Influence on Hip-Hop Sampling

by John Bohannon

[28.Jan.09] :. For any influential group in the hip-hop game, specifically in the early 1990s, Motown's stamp of approval and its variety of subsidiaries were undeniably influential.

Is Obama’s presidency the change hip-hop needs?

by Glenn Gamboa [Newsday (MCT)]

[20.Jan.09] :. President Barack Obama will have his hands full dealing with the economic downturn, the Gaza Strip conflict, terrorist threats in Afghanistan and any number of relentlessly pressing matters. But...

Sen Dog: Diary of a Mad Dog

by Quentin B. Huff

[20.Jan.09] :. Legendary Cypress Hill veteran goes solo with bouncy beats and streetwise lingo.

Will Obama’s victory force hip-hop to change its tune?

by Greg Kot [Chicago Tribune (MCT)]

[14.Nov.08] :. Barack Obama was in his last year of high school in 1979 when hip-hop broke out of the ghettos of New York on its way to becoming a national phenomenon. He is in many ways a child of hip-hop, but...

Ave.To: Three Way Intersection

by Alan Ranta

[3.Nov.08] :. A hip-hop record bolstered by a plethora of live instrumentation shouldn't be this forgettable, but there is real promise here that you don't have to try to hear.

Khia: Nasti Muzik

by Quentin B. Huff

[6.Oct.08] :. If there's an album that can mark a new era for women in hip-hop, this isn't the one.

The Nightmare and the Dream by Dax-Devlon Ross

by Marijeta Bozovic

[22.Sep.08] :. Author Dax-Devlon Ross reminds us that the personal is -- still -- political. And music is terribly personal.

KRS-One: Maximum Strength 2008

by Quentin B. Huff

[17.Sep.08] :. Maybe surprises are overrated. You can probably guess KRS-One's subject matter before he delivers it, but his overall consistency is enviable.

Ise Lyfe: Prince Cometh

by Quentin B. Huff

[16.Sep.08] :. One small step for Ise Lyfe might one day mean one large leap for hip-hop.

The Streets: Everything Is Borrowed

by Mike Schiller

[15.Sep.08] :. Happy and healthy aren't really adjectives normally associated with Mike Skinner's output as the Streets thus far, and perhaps that's enough to make Everything Is Borrowed worth a listen.

Tanya Morgan: The Bridge EP

by Quentin B. Huff

[3.Sep.08] :. Is it possible that hip-hop's best female emcee is: (a) fictional, and (b) not a woman but really a crew of three male emcees?

We Don’t Die, We Multiply: Hip-Hop Groups

by Quentin B. Huff

[20.Aug.08] :. Group identification creates interesting scenarios within hip-hop culture, from the formation and maintenance of group identity to the difficulties of promoting the lyrical skills of a group's various members.

K’naan: The Dusty Foot Philosopher

by Alan Ranta

[15.Aug.08] :. In a market dominated by criminal sociopaths, this Somali-Canadian refugee rapper took the road less traveled.

Azeem: Air Cartoons

by Quentin B. Huff

[13.Aug.08] :. Experiments are good for hip-hop. Sometimes the success is in the attempt.

Dame Grease: Goon Musik

by Alan Ranta

[4.Aug.08] :. The solo debut from DMX's beatsmith ends up being messy rather than dirty.

Yes We Can Can

by Dan Nishimoto

[5.Jun.08] :. The recent "censure" of The Boondocks demonstrates the difficulty art faces in raising a critical converation in a corporate setting. Considering hip-hop's deep embedding into corporate culture, how can radical change happen?

Foxy Brown: Brooklyn’s Don Diva

by Quentin B. Huff

[22.May.08] :. The good news? Foxy Brown is back! The not-so-good news? The homecoming party isn't as hot as it should be.

The blockbuster Jay-Z/Mary J. Blige tour shows off hip-hop’s savvy showbiz evolution

by Brian McCollum [Detroit Free Press (MCT)]

[23.Apr.08] :. Hip-hop had a problem. By the early 1990s, the style born in the Bronx had become a bona fide national phenomenon, a cultural force with the hits to match. Key moments in the evolution of...

Rocko: Self-Made

by Quentin B. Huff

[17.Apr.08] :. Cash, expensive clothes, cars for each day of the week. Wanna see how it's done? Watch him "do him".

Hip-hop’s Cuban connection: ‘El Proyecto’ parley offers lectures, music and films

by Steve Siegel [The Morning Call (Allentown, Pa.)]

[16.Apr.08] :. From its modest roots in the South Bronx in the 1970s, hip-hop culture has become an international, multi-billion-dollar phenomenon. Originally a tool for social expression, rap music opened a window...

ScholarMan: Soul Purpose

by Quentin B. Huff

[27.Mar.08] :. The lesson from this Maryland emcee's journey shows that hard work is inspiring, but progress is divine.

Kool G. Rap: Half a Klip

by Quentin B. Huff

[3.Mar.08] :. Legendary emcee returns with what we hope is an appetizer for a larger and more satisfying meal.

How hip-hop stumbled, and how innovative new talent might brighten its future

by Cary Darling [McClatchy Newspapers (MCT)]

[7.Feb.08] :. The plea hit YouTube two weeks ago like an IED. Ghostface Killah, one of the rappers from the acclaimed and groundbreaking rap crew Wu-Tang Clan, took three minutes to rip into fans who had...

A hoops lineup is scoring big

by Elizabeth Wellington [The Philadelphia Inquirer (MCT)]

[11.Jan.08] :. For a certain segment of young men, basketball culture goes way beyond the court. It’s hip-hop. It’s playing late-night video games while eating dry cereal right out of the box....

Beanie Sigel says he has ‘The Solution’ for hip-hop

by Dan DeLuca [The Philadelphia Inquirer (MCT)]

[13.Dec.07] :. The first song that Beanie Sigel wrote after getting out of jail in August 2005 was “Return of the Bad Guy.” Philadelphia’s foremost gangsta rapper had served 10 months in the...

Arrested Development: Since the Last Time

by Quentin B. Huff

[7.Nov.07] :. Celebrate this hip-hop band's return, but let's do it for the right reason: skills.

DJ Spooky’s hip-hop splices, dices music and images

by Otis R. Taylor Jr. [McClatchy Newspapers (MCT)]

[22.Oct.07] :. COLUMBIA, S.C.—If hip-hop is the CNN of urban culture, as Public Enemy’s Chuck D has said, then Paul Miller is the genre’s revered global correspondent. “In hip-hop,...

Musab: Slicks Box

by Quentin B. Huff

[16.Oct.07] :. Experience? Check. Humor? Check. Lyrical skill. Double check. Putting these ingredients together? Well, that's where the album falls short.

Theory Hazit: Extra Credit

by Quentin B. Huff

[12.Oct.07] :. Check this out: a solid hip-hop album about life, love, and God (and it's not corny).

Prince Ali: Curb Side Service

by Quentin B. Huff

[12.Oct.07] :. A creative, sometimes experimental hip-hop set that reaches for "spectacular" but settles for "good".

Megaforce Will.i.am is no longer ‘Ordinary People’

by Jim Farber [New York Daily News (MCT)]

[26.Sep.07] :. He dreamt up one of the world’s biggest groups (Black Eyed Peas), penned and produced songs for some of the top albums of the last year (from Justin Timberlake, the Pussycat Dolls, John Legend...

Three-part ‘Hip-Hop Vs. America,’ beginning Tuesday on BET

by Cary Darling [McClatchy Newspapers (MCT)]

[24.Sep.07] :. After coming under intense scrutiny for being nothing more than a showcase for music videos that some people consider demeaning, BET is in the midst of trying to alter its image. The network’s...

Lotus Tribe Presents S.E.L.F.: The Art & War of Misanthropic Philanthropy

by Quentin B. Huff

[21.Sep.07] :. The recipe looks good, the ingredients are all there, but it still doesn't taste quite right. What's up with that?

“Not Because I’m Conscious”: An Interview with Talib Kweli

by Steven J. Horowitz

[19.Sep.07] :. The rapper says, "I just try to write songs," but he's tackling difficult subjects while trying to launch a business.

Showdown between 50 Cent and Kanye West is no contest

by Greg Kot [Chicago Tribune (MCT)]

[10.Sep.07] :. Two of the biggest-selling artists of the last four years go head-to-head Tuesday in the record stores with new albums: Kanye West’s “Graduation” (Good/Roc-A-Fella) and 50...

50 Cent talks about all the names on his new CD

by Jim Farber [New York Daily News (MCT)]

[10.Sep.07] :. NEW YORK—The most menacing man in hip hop has the eyes of a lamb. In striking contrast to his linebacker’s frame and sinister backstory, 50 Cent goes out of his way to project an image of...

‘Graduation’: Kanye West’s journey to adulthood

by Greg Kot [Chicago Tribune (MCT)]

[10.Sep.07] :. CHICAGO—Kanye West was sipping a mixed drink through a straw, and his loose tongue was even friskier than usual. The occasion was a listening party a few days ago at a Chicago recording studio...

Serengeti & Polyphonic: Dont Give Up

by Quentin B. Huff

[7.Sep.07] :. Waltzing electronic hip-hop fusion in all its glory.

Infinito 2017 & Unagi: You and Eye

by Quentin B. Huff

[6.Sep.07] :. Excellent hip-hop that merges a California beat technician with an Illinois lyricist. Brevity is its only flaw.

Aesop Rock: None Shall Pass

by Gentry Boeckel

[31.Aug.07] :. With Bazooka Tooth retired (or dead?), Ian Matthias Bavitz, now in his 30s, wonders what to do with Aesop Rock?

Ariano: Music2BreakUp2

by Quentin B. Huff

[22.Aug.07] :. Warning: This is not a Valentine's Day album. This is about (some of) the ups and (most of) the downs of romance.