AFH Ambrosia for Heads

Joell Ortiz & Kxng Crooked Rap About The Fall Of Slaughterhouse

Life is too short to listen to bad music. So…let Ambrosia For Heads sift through it for you and only supply you with that great stuff. Despite the reports, Hip-Hop is alive and well and, in many ways, it’s better than it’s ever been. Not only can we go back... Read more

Eminem Tells Kxng Crooked About His Deep Love For The Craft Of Rapping (Video)

"What I would say to any up-and-coming rapper? I would say that it is hard to get it, and it's even harder to maintain it." Eminem shares those words in the closing minutes of a one-hour-plus interview with Kxng Crooked on Crook's Corner. The video interview takes place in Dr.... Read more

Kxng Crooked Explains Why Slaughterhouse Needs To Release One Last Album

It was nearly a year-and-a-half ago that Kxng Crooked suddenly announced his exit from Slaughterhouse. In April of 2018, the group's co-founder disbanded from the collective formed a decade earlier by Joe Budden, Royce 5'9, and Joell Ortiz. Although the Shady Records act had been relatively idle since 2014's House... Read more

Snoop Dogg Previews His Upcoming LP For KXNG Crooked & Details Suge Knight Song

After more than 25 years in the game, Long Beach, California MC/producer/DJ Snoop Dogg is gearing up to release his 17th studio album, I Wanna Thank Me, later this year. A few weeks ago, Snoop released the single and a video to the title track of the album. In the... Read more

Royce 5’9 & Kxng Crooked Discuss Who Was Better On Renegade: JAY-Z Or Eminem (Video)

Kxng Crooked is the latest respected Hip-Hop lyricist to segue into driving dialogue in the music media. Recently, the Long Beach, California lyricist also known as Crooked I launched Crook's Corner. Taking a concept from his hashtag of longstanding Hip-Hop discussions on social media with peers and fans, the MC... Read more

Kxng Crooked Reworks An OutKast Song With A Message About Being Driven

Throughout his extensive career, KXNG Crooked may have seemed like a music industry outcast. The Long Beach, California native weathered the storm of "Ringtone Rap" while remaining deeply rooted in his ways of dazzling lyricism. During the 1990s, he was an artist on Death Row Records at a time that... Read more

Kxng Crooked Discusses The Times Hip-Hop Tried To Cancel Eminem & Defends Him

Kxng Crooked is having a very busy year. He has brought back his Hip Hop Weekly series and has vowed to feed his fans with at least one song per week for 2019. Additionally, the MC also known as Crooked I has rebranded a group including his younger brother. Involving some... Read more

Kxng Crooked Is Inspired By The X-Men & Attacks A Cube Beat Like A Wolverine (Audio)

While many Heads may have become fans of Kxng Crooked (fka Crooked I) during his time with Slaughterhouse, the Long Beach, California native had a significant fan-base as a solo artist all the way back to 1995. In fact, for a time he was the flagship artist of Death Row... Read more

Kxng Crooked Is Brutally Honest About The Breakup Of Slaughterhouse (Video)

Today (March 15), Drink Champs released its episode with Xzibit. Notably, another Southern California-based lyricist also guested on the show. Kxng Crooked (aka Crooked I) joined N.O.R.E. and DJ EFN's round-table alongside Mr. X-To-The-Z. In a two-hour discussion, the show played host to some of Crook's most revealing thoughts surrounding... Read more

Kxng Crooked Takes Nas’ Beat & Shows It’s His World

More than a decade after launching his online series "Hip-Hop Weekly," Long Beach, California MC KXNG Crooked (formerly known as Crooked I) is in the throes of its revival. The original series was pivotal in his gaining career traction, giving him that proverbial "buzz" during what many Hip-Hop heads remember... Read more

KXNG Crooked Puts His LBC Roots On Display & Tells The Story Of His Come-Up

KXNG Crooked is in the midst of reviving his "Hip-Hop Weekly" series. It is happening more than a decade after the online series was an inflection point in Crook's independent career. While many people associate the MC with Joe Budden, Joell Ortiz, and Royce 5'9, the artist formerly known as... Read more

Ain’t No Such Thing As Halfway KXNG Crooked Verses. He Goes All In With Mobb Inspiration

KXNG Crooked has always been nice on the mic, but he's not above paying respects to the greats who shaped his style. The Slaughterhouse MC formerly known as Crooked I just released a freestyle that would make Mobb Deep proud. Titled "Halfway Me," the song is an homage to the Queensbridge... Read more

Joell Ortiz, Royce 5’9 & Kxng Crooked Reunite To Stomp Out Weak MCs (Audio)

In the last decade, Detroit, Michigan producer Apollo Brown has compiled a pretty impressive resume of Rap acts he's produced. The Motor City native has been behind the instrumentals of some of Hip-hop's best spitters. Whether it be younger talents like Chance The Rapper and Westside Gunn or more seasoned... Read more

Ghostface Killah & Kxng Crooked Claim Rap Royalty In A New Video

Ghostface Killah recently announced that he's dropping a new album. With that news, came “Saigon Velour," a trademark Tony Starks-esque single that featured Snoop Dogg and E-40. October 5's The Lost Tapes appears to be an opportunity for Ghost Deini to reach back into his Ironman/Supreme Clientele bag and provide... Read more

Ghostface Killah, KXNG Crooked & More Find Their Chemistry On A “Lost Tapes” Track (Audio)

In preparation for his upcoming Lost Tapes project, Ghostface Killah just dropped a new single. “Buckingham Palace,” which features Benny The Butcher, KXNG Crooked, and 38 Spesh. Previously, the Staten Island MC hinted at the release of the new project (not to be confused with Nas’ album of the same... Read more

Royce 5’9 Reacts To KXNG Crooked’s Surprise Disbanding Of Slaughterhouse (Video)

Many Hip-Hop fans were shocked to learn of KXNG Crooked's exit from Slaughterhouse last weekend (April 20). The Long Beach, California MC once known as Crooked I released a video thanking his brothers, Eminem, and Shady Records, as well as fans. In the video, Crook' explained that the collective is... Read more

KXNG Crooked Has Left Slaughterhouse. Here’s Why (Video)

For the last decade, Slaughterhouse helped set a trend of MCs raising their profiles through forming a super-group. The cross-country collective of Royce 5'9, Joe Budden, Joell Ortiz, and KXNG Crooked (fka Crooked I) released two albums, an EP, and two mixtapes between 2009 and 2014. Slaughterhouse's future appears to... Read more

DMX, KXNG Crooked & Royce 5’9 Show King Kong Ain’t Got Nothin’ On Them (Audio Premiere)

For those who favor rugged, confrontational Rap, drenched in wordplay Forever M.C. knows how to assemble exciting lineups. The March 30 compilation-style album arrives on March 30, and involves some of the most aggressive lyricists of the last 20 years. Having previously showcased "Terminally Ill," (featuring Tech N9ne, Chino XL,... Read more

KXNG Crooked, Tech N9ne, Rittz & Chino XL Go Berserk On A Killer Collabo (Audio)

Nearly 20 years ago, Sway & King Tech released their major label debut compilation album, This Or That. With DJ Revolution behind the Technics 1200s, the album, which nearly broke the Top 100, was a crucial launch-pad in the careers of Eminem, Tech N9ne, Planet Asia, and a Long Beach... Read more

Kxng Crooked’s New Album Artwork Is Provocative & So Is His Latest Lyricism (Audio)

Spinning off the current political scene this year has been a wave of politically-charged Hip-Hop. Eminem’s BET cypher verse (now known as "The Storm") may have commanded the most attention. But 2017 also saw highly respected, veteran MCs such as Ras Kass, Scarface, Snoop Dogg and others putting out music... Read more

Kxng Crooked & Royce 5’9 Are More Than Enough To Slaughter Most MCs (Audio)

As fans eagerly await a third Slaughterhouse album, Kxng Crooked (fka Crooked I) and Royce 5'9 get ready for Halloween with a bloodbath of bars. "Truth (Why You Mad)" is the first glimpse of Crooked's Good vs. Evil 2: The Red Empire (December 8) the follow-up to 2016's RBC Records... Read more

Page Kennedy, Elzhi, Kxng Crooked, Cassidy, King Los & Mickey Factz vs. EVERYBODY (Audio)

Earlier this month, Page Kennedy dropped jaws when he added an unofficial (but very compelling) new chapter to JAY-Z's "The Story Of O.J." The Detroit, Michigan actor/MC is clearly out to keep his profile buzzing and pushing this year's Torn Pages LP along. This time, he rallies up a crop... Read more

Kxng Crooked Freestyles On Jeru The Damaja’s “Come Clean” And Does It Dirty (Video)

Kxng Crooked is a monster. There's no other way to say it. For more than 20 years, the MC formerly known as Crooked I has done things that are absolutely grisly to microphones. Whether as a Death Row records artist who never had the opportunity to release a project or... Read more

KXNG Crooked, Elzhi, Rapsody, Nick Grant & More Will Take The AFH Stage At SXSW

On Wednesday, March 15, Ambrosia for Heads will be cohosting its first official showcase at the South by Southwest (SXSW) Festival in Austin, Texas. The Ambrosia For Heads x My Executive Room Showcase will feature headlining appearances from Kxng Crooked, Elzhi, Rapsody, 9th Wonder and Nick Grant. The event will... Read more

Kxng Crooked Cuts Loose With Another Razor Sharp Freestyle (Audio)

Kxng Crooked is on a relentless streak of music. The Long Beach, California veteran fires up freestyles like he enjoys his stogies. This Friday (March 3), he revisits an early Slaughterhouse instrumental (the Mr. Porter-produced "Cut You Loose") for some detaching bars. He uses addresses alcoholism, hunger pains and poverty,... Read more

Kxng Crooked Reps For J Dilla On A Freestyle That Breathes New Life Into Hip-Hop (Audio)

Half of Slaughterhouse has been heating up 2017 with a barrage of freestyle displays. As Royce 5'9 has smashed Mondays by tackling several popular Rap tracks du jour, Kxng Crooked (fka Crooked I) has been putting in work on more esoteric tracks. In a month that honors J Dilla's life... Read more

Kxng Crooked Says Kellyanne Conway Should Rap Since She Lies Like Most MCs (Audio)

It's been a particularly unusual first week of a new president's tenure. Since being sworn in on January 20, Donald Trump and his staff have said and done things that have angered millions of Americans. Entertaining as some of it may be, under all of it lie serious implications, with... Read more

Kxng Crooked Is Coming After The #1 Spot. There Are No Friends In Rhyming (Audio)

In 2016, Kxng Crooked (fka Crooked I) released a stellar EP with Statik Selektah in the form of Statik Kxng. But that was last year. In his own words, the Long Beach, California MC is holding himself to a much higher standard in 2-0-1-7. Hopping on Kanye West's "Real Friends"... Read more

Termanology & Kxng Crooked Bring Out The Best In Each Other. Let’s Go! (Audio)

For lovers of lyrics, wordplay, and flow, one of 2016's must-listen-to Hip-Hop albums is Statik Kxng. Kxng Crooked (fka Crooked I) and Statik Selektah made a 10-song EP that is some of the finest work from either. Termanology, Statik's 1982 band-mate made the lone guest appearance on "Let's Go." Now,... Read more

Kxng Crooked Pulls a Fast One On Killer Cops To Teach Them a Lesson (Video)

They say the best way to understand another person's pain is to walk a mile in their shoes, but history has proven time and again that empathy is not a lesson easily taught. When it comes to solutions to the problem of police violence, many say hiring officers to police... Read more

Kxng Crooked Shoots Back At Racist Police With A Lyrical Demand For Justice (Audio)

For many this election season, the issues of police brutality and the militarization of law enforcement in this country are front-and-center, as racially charged discourse continues to emerge. Police versus citizens has become a prominent theme in music today, with Hip-Hop artists like T.I., Big K.R.I.T., and Nas making the... Read more

Mistah F.A.B., Kendrick Lamar & KXNG Crooked Come Together for a Survivor’s Rallying Cry (Audio)

Oakland, California's Mistah F.A.B. is prepping for the release of his sixth studio album and first since 2012's Da Yellow Bus Rydah. Son of a Pimp Pt. 2 drops May 27 and is a follow up of sorts to 2005's Son of a Pimp, which featured fellow Bay Area icons... Read more

Kxng Crooked Tears Into A Statik Selektah Soul Creation (Audio)

Statik Kxng was more than just a one-off for Kxng Crooked (p/k/a Crooked I) and Statik Selektah. The Showoff Records/Penalty Entertainment, Long Beach-to-Brooklyn duo exists beyond their early 2016 10-track EP. "Street Music" appears on Mike Epps' forthcoming Meet The Blacks soundtrack, but stands taller than a typical peel-away track.... Read more

Kxng Crooked Celebrates Those That Came Before Him As He Plots His Future (Video)

On Februay 12, Kxng Crooked and Statik Selektah released their collaboration album, Statik Kxng. The album was filled with Statik's hard beats and Crooked's complex rhymes, as they took Hip-Hop back to the basics. "Let's Go," featuring Termanology, was one of the album's standout tracks, and now Statik Crook' have... Read more

Xzibit Cast As Crooked Record Executive In Upcoming “Empire” Episodes

Veteran MC Xzibit has made a solid career out of acting. In addition to his hosting on series such as MTV's Pimp My Ride, the onetime Loud Records star lyricist has appeared in XXX: State Of The Union, 8 Mile, and TV reboot Hawaii Five-O. According to Deadline, Mr. X-to-the-Z... Read more

Kxng Crooked & Statik Selektah Are Winning Against All Odds With Pure Hip-Hop (Video)

Over the last several weeks, Kxng Crooked (pka Crooked I) and Statik Selektah quietly have been releasing one amazing release after another. Rather than stir up controversy with Twitter beefs and other distractions, they've simply let the music talking, and it speaks LOUDLY. Today, they have released their album Statik... Read more

Kxng Crooked Nods To Eric B. & Rakim As He Destroys Another Statik Selektah Beat (Audio)

Real recognize real. Even though he says he hates the term "Real Hip-Hop" (as do we...) at the end of his new song, Kxng Crooked is most definitely a fan of choice beats and raw raps. As he and Statik Selektah near the release of their joint album, Statik Kxng,... Read more

Kxng Crooked & Statik Selektah Are Ruthless With This Music. Let’s Go (Audio)

The MC formerly known as Crooked I has been on a tear in early 2016. The same week he unleashed a beast of a freestyle at Tony Touch's radio show, Kxng Crooked returns with a fully-produced bar massacre. "Let's Go" teams with album partner Statik Selektah on the boards, and... Read more

Kxng Crooked Is A MONSTER. This Acapella Freestyle Is Downright Scary (Video)

Kxng Crooked has been lyrical royalty, long before he dubbed himself a King. The MC, formerly known as Crooked I, has been abusing microphones for more than 20 years, both as a solo artist and as a member of the fearsome foursome known as Slaughterhouse. In fact, it was his... Read more

Kxng Crooked Takes A Rare Jay Z Beat & Gets Absolutely Savage (Audio)

2015 has been a relatively quiet year for Kxng Crooked (pka Crooked I). The part-time Slaughterhouse member and full-time wordsmith did not have a full album or mixtape release, though he did drop a few poignant raps about police brutality, trying circumstances he overcame and other substantive messages. As the... Read more

Pusha T Creates A Crooked Carnival Of Dark Images & Chilly Perspective (Video)

Entering a release week, Pusha T drops the video to "CCC." The song also known as "Crutches, Crosses, Caskets" makes no bones about its ominous vibes, as the Clipse star chronicles the decay of careers around him. For the visual, it's an eerie amusement park, featuring model nuns. This horror-inspired... Read more

Kxng Crooked’s “Dead Or In Jail” Verses Demand A Lyric Video

Over the Thanksgiving holiday, Kxng Crooked (f/k/a Crooked I) and Statik Selektah gave Heads some food for thought. "Dead Or In Jail," which features Jessica Quintero, examines the skewed justice system, and how institutional racism is very much around, in the United States and beyond. Less than one week later,... Read more

Kxng Crooked & Statik Selektah Serve Up That Good Food For The Soul (Audio)

Ever have someone say you wouldn't accomplish something? Kxng Crooked did, and boy were they wrong. The sometimes Slaughterhouse member (formerly known as Crooked I) links with Statik Selektah on "Dead Or In Jail" with a message to all those who said that's where he would be when he got... Read more

Slaughterhouse’s Kxng Crooked Exposes His Vulnerabilities & Struggles with Depression (Video)

Back in July, a demo version of a track called "Don't Close Your Eyes (Ashamed)" was released, and with it came one of the most emotionally wrenching releases in Hip-Hop this summer. A painfully personal tale of personal demons, the song is a single from Kxng Crooked (fka Crooked I),... Read more

Yelawolf, Kxng Crooked, Royce Da 5’9″ & Rittz Host a Lyrical Clinic. MCs Take Note…(Audio)

Rittz is a confident MC--so much so that he invited three of Hip-Hop's fiercest spitters to join him on his remix. The result? Six minutes of nothing but rapid-fire BARS. Yelawolf, Royce Da 5'9" and Kxng Crooked (pka Crooked I) join the remix to Rittz's "LAF," and it plays like... Read more

Kxng Crooked Remakes A 1990s Rock Power-Ballad (Audio)

Slaughterhouse MC Kxng Crooked (a/k/a Crooked I) and Shalé pair up in “I Didn't Mean to Treat You Bad”, a single from the recently dropped collaborative effort When Music Worlds Collide. In this experimental jam, producers DJ King Tech (The Wake Up Show) and company create a fresh interpretation of... Read more

Kxng Crooked Goes Hard Over a Beat That Recalls Vintage Dr. Dre (Audio)

Kxng Crooked, formerly known as Crooked I, returns with a new banger than shows why he deserves his new title. Producer, Jonathan Elkaer, is a Denmark-native whose style on "I Don't Give a F**k" can be compared to a Chronic 2001-era Dr. Dre, which only adds to Crooked's delivery. While... Read more

Killer Mike & Crooked I Run Their Mouths Eloquently For DJ EFN’s Album (Audio)

DJ EFN is a Miami music scene mainstay. From his work with N.O.R.E. to his legendary underground tapes, EFN gets Hip-Hop on a global level. This is evident from EFN's Crazy Hood platform too. "If U Run" is the critical first look from March 3's Another Time. The LP spans... Read more

Crooked I & King Tech Are Masters At Their Crafts…But Graffiti Isn’t One Of Them (Video)

King Tech is one of the true masters of Hip-Hop radio, thanks to his and Sway's Wake Up Show, which lives on today. Along the way, Tech has produced albums, coordinated freestyles, and shined the light on legends, while giving way to emerging voices including Eminem, Tech N9ne, and Crooked... Read more

KXNG Crooked Releases the Powerful and Reflective I Can’t Breathe (Audio)

KXNG Crooked (formerly Crooked I) is the latest to step to the forefront of Hip-Hop and speak out against the failure to indict officer Daniel Pantaleo in the choking death of Eric Garner. Crooked starts off softly, meditatively rapping about what he feels is a complete devaluation of the lives... Read more