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De La Soul’s New Single Makes The Pain Of Waiting Well Worth It (Audio)

De La Soul and Snoop Dogg have enjoyed constant careers since their introductions. While both acts have overlapping collaborators (B-Real, Slick Rick, Devin The Dude, Redman, etc.), they have never cut tracks together. August 26's And The Anonymous Nobody, De La Soul's forthcoming album changes that. As a parting shot... Read more

Da Beatminerz Show How They Made Those Thunderous Boot Camp Clik Beats (Video)

DJ Evil Dee and Mr. Walt are one of the most successful brotherly groups in Hip-Hop. As Da Beatminerz, the Brooklyn, New York record clerks-turned-DJ/producers have laced ageless knocking beats for Smif-n-Wessun, The Roots, Mos Def, and of course Black Moon (which Evil is one-third of). From Academy Records to... Read more

Mistah F.A.B. Slam Dunks His 5 Fingers Of Death Freestyle Like A Warrior (Video)

Tonight (May 26), the Golden State Warriors aim to strike back against the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 5 at home. The 9:00pm EST match-up prompted Bay area native Sway Calloway to bring some home-team turf talk into Sway In The Morning. Mistah F.A.B., who also has an album dropping... Read more

The Mystery of Madlib Revealed In His Most In-Depth Video Interview

Certain Hip-Hop artists go to an extreme to avoid the media. Dr. Dre and Eminem are two of the more selective artists, who often shun easily-available press, even during album cycles. Kanye West, Drake, and even DOOM will do interviews more regularly, albeit when convenient for themselves. One artist, who... Read more

Easy Mo Bee Confirms Tupac Was Trying To End The East/West Beef

Easy Mo Bee is one of the artists who worked with Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G. the closest, during the mid-1990s. While acts like Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Method Man, and Buckshot would record with both MCs, the Brooklyn, New York producer was deeply responsible for the soundscapes of Biggie Smalls'... Read more

De La Soul’s Guest-Packed “And The Anonymous Nobody” Tracklist Is Revealed

One of 2016's most anticipated albums is De La Soul's And The Anonymous Nobody. The August 26 LP is the Long Island, New York trio's first proper studio work in more than 11 years. Further, this marks the first time in their 27-year history that Posdnuos, Dave, and Maseo are... Read more

Havoc & Alchemist’s Joint Album “The Silent Partner” Is Available For Full Stream (Audio)

Tomorrow (May 20), Havoc & Alchemist release their first joint album, The Silent Partner. Whereas Hav's other half in Mobb Deep, Prodigy, has released two full-length projects with ALC, this is a first for the MC often praised for his own production skills. The 11-track Babygrande Records effort includes appearances... Read more

Greg Nice Reveals Details About The East/West Peace Album Tupac Was Recording When He Died (Video)

In the month of May, the unreleased music of Tupac Shakur has been the topic of discussion. The reported 152 songs belonging to the estate of the slain Hip-Hop superstar are said to now be in the hands of the music executive who signed him to Interscope Records in the... Read more

DOOM Remixes Some Definitive Method Man With His Own Brand Of Herbs (Audio)

Renowned as an MC, DOOM (a/k/a MF DOOM) is a highly accomplished producer too. Even before his reinvention on Operation Doomsday, the K.M.D. front man was producing tracks for 3rd Bass' Pete Nice and others. In the last 10 years, the masked villain has laced songs for Ghostface Killah, Masta... Read more

De La Soul Bring Their Classic Back From The Dead, With An Unreleased Song

Twenty five years ago, De La Soul Is Dead released. The sophomore album from the Long Island, New York trio of Posdnuos, Trugoy (n/k/a Dave), and Maseo would be a distinct mood-shift from 1989's 3 Feet High And Rising. However, thanks to its frontier sound, imagery, and creativity—which can also... Read more

King Harris II Colors His Own West Coast Reality Into An Ice-T Classic (Audio Premiere)

Oxnard, California (by way of Long Beach) MC King Harris II is gearing up for the release of his Nightmare On Wolff Street album tomorrow, on "Friday the 13th" no less. After making impactful appearances on albums by Tech N9ne and E-40, the diligent MC (who also happens to be... Read more

25 Years Later, This Rare De La Soul Performance Keeps Heads Ringing (Video)

On May 14, 1991, De La Soul released their sophomore LP, De La Soul Is Dead. The Tommy Boy/Warner Bros. Records release was strikingly more irritable than the first, with Posdnuos, Trugoy (n/k/a Dave), Maseo, and producer Prince Paul shrugging off the labels that the media, Rap fans, and everybody... Read more

Showbiz Recounts The Trauma Of Seeing Big L Moments After He Was Killed

Big L would make one of his first album appearances care of 1992's "Represent" on Showbiz & A.G.'s Runaway Slave album. Appearing alongside Show, A.G., Deshawn, and mentor Lord Finesse, Lamont Coleman proved to be an unsigned, teenage MC with great promise. Three years later, on Big L's 1995 debut... Read more

Masta Ace Premieres “Young Black Intelligent” & Champions The Art Of Storytelling (Audio)

This week (May 13), Masta Ace will release his fifth solo album, The Falling Season. Although the LP follows the conceptual storyline of 2012's DOOM-supported MA_DOOM: Son Of Yvonne, it also reportedly also stands in the cult-championed lineage of 2001's Disposable Arts and 2004's Long Hot Summer. Released on Ace's... Read more

Token Recaps The Week In Hip-Hop News In A Hard-Hitting Freestyle (Video)

Salem, Massachusetts MC Token has made quite a name for himself over the last year. From an incredible collaboration with Joell Ortiz and Snow Tha Product to a show-stopping Sway In The Morning freestyle, the 17 year-old is one of the most exciting MCs to burst on the scene as... Read more

R.O.T.’s MuGGz & Tay Dayne Are Out To Reclaim Manhattan’s Hip-Hop Roots (Audio)

The island of Manhattan has been instrumental to Hip-Hop culture. Since the late 1970s, the top DJs from the Bronx, Queens, and Brooklyn would play at and party in the clubs, from Harlem to the Village. By the time commercial Rap was pressed to wax, acts ranging from Beastie Boys... Read more

Jakk Frost Has 1 Of The Year’s Best Freestyles. This Is How It Should Be Done (Video)

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania veteran MC Jakk Frost has worked extensively with guys like DJ Premier, Freeway, Sean Price, and Jedi Mind Tricks' Vinnie Paz. While Frost has showered the mixtape game for more than a dozen years, the Beard Gang bully has not released a studio LP. For more than two... Read more

Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth, Nice & Smooth Each Announce Tour Dates

Spring and summer concert season is officially upon us. Two acclaimed Hip-Hop duos who have not released albums together in decades have each announced tour dates. Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth have announced a series of West Coast dates for their 2016 All Souled Out Tour. HipHopDX announced the concert... Read more

Here’s Why G-Jet Is The Latest Artist On A Roster That Includes GZA, Grand Puba & Freeway (Video)

In late May and June, the Smokers Club Tour crosses the United States. As fans pack venues to see the likes of Cam'ron, Smoke DZA, The Underachievers, Pro Era's Nyck Caution, and others, they will encounter G-Jet, likely for the first time. A product of Columbus, Texas, G-Jet (an abbreviation... Read more

Tupac’s Mom, Afeni Shakur, Has Died At The Age Of 69

Afeni Shakur, mother of 1990s Hip-Hop superstar Tupac Amaru Shakur, has died early this morning (May 3). She was 69 years old. While a cause of death has yet to be released to the public, the onetime Black Panther and inspiration to 1995 Interscope Records single "Dear Mama" has been... Read more

Latyrx Finally Visualizes One Of Hip-Hop’s Best Songs About A Femme Fatale (Video)

Out of Davis, California's Solesides movement emerged Blackalicious, DJ Shadow, and author/scholar Jeff Chang. Another key part of the mid-1990s wave would be Latryx. Heard on Blackalicious' 1994 Melodica EP, the pairing of Lyrics Born and Lateef The Truthspeaker would blend melodic Funk with Hip-Hop for a sound all its... Read more

Russell Simmons Crowns Def Jam’s Greatest Album & His Favorite Artist (Video)

Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin began releasing Def Jam Records singles in 1984. Started in a New York University dorm room (occupied by Rubin), the company would expand to become a reported $115 million property by the late 1990s. From original flagship artist LL Cool J, Def Jam would play... Read more

Anderson .Paak’s “Malibu” Visuals Are Worth Every Bit Of The Wait (Video)

Anderson .Paak's Malibu is far and away one of 2016's most-talked about albums, especially in terms of acclaim. Now signed to Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment, the Californian opened the year with an Empire-backed release that features ScHoolboy Q, Rapsody, Game, and others. Independently released, Malibu shot into the Top 100,... Read more

Freeway & Scholito Freestyle On Sway In The Morning (Video)

Today (April 29), Freeway releases his fifth studio LP, Free Will (which is available for full stream). The North Philadelphia, Pennsylvania MC appeared on Sway In The Morning to celebrate the Babygrande Records release. With him, he brought his New Rothschilds protege, MC/producer Scholito. Freeway comes from the State Property... Read more

De La Soul Move “And The Anonymous Nobody” Release Date & Give Fans A Snack.

De La Soul has changed the release date of the group's eighth album. The 2015 crowd-funded And The Anonymous Nobody... album is now said to be arriving August 26. To hold over fans for the nearly four months of waiting, the veteran Long Island, New York trio gave some late... Read more

Freeway Celebrates His “Free Will” By Sharing His LP, Early! (Album Stream)

Tomorrow (April 29), Freeway will release his fifth studio album, Free Will. The Philadelphia, Pennsylvania MC's latest is his second on the New York City-based Babygrande Records, and features Young Buck, Raheem Devaughn, and latest MC/producer protege Scholito. Girl Talk and L.E.S. are among the LP's producers. On this album,... Read more

Royce 5’9″ Announces Layers North American Tour Dates

Earlier this month, Royce 5'9" released Layers, his first solo album in more than four years. Executive produced by Mr. Porter (D12) and Royce, the album earned the MC his highest charting placement of any solo album in his 15-plus-year career. Featuring Pusha T and Rick Ross, the LP is... Read more

Willie D Reveals The Origins Of Geto Boys’ “Mind Playing Tricks On Me” (Audio)

In the last three years, Scarface has had at least two very memorable interview conversations with the Combat Jack Show. In his latest episode, Combat sits down with another high profile Geto Boys member in Willie D. The Houston, Texas native and onetime Rap-A-Lot Records star discusses his views on... Read more

Prince’s Vault Of Unreleased Recordings Is Detailed By Jimmy Jam & Close Associates (Video)

It has been less than one week since Prince Rogers Nelson died (April 21). As information releases about Prince's cause of death and last days, fans and historians are trying to understand the life—often private—of the 57-year old pop icon. One of the biggest questions lingering is what will happen... Read more

Producer Mike Mosley Reveals Several MCs Who Witnessed Tupac Record “Hit ‘Em Up” (Video)

In the mid-1990s, Tupac Shakur revamped his production personnel. While 1996's All Eyez On Me would be his first album at Death Row Records, working extensively with the label's production staff, those changes started taking shape even prior. On 1995's #1 LP, Me Against The World, 'Pac maintained a close... Read more

Black Thought Recites The Verse Of His Lifetime…Literally (Video)

Last week, The Roots' Black Thought appeared at Harvard's Innovation Lab. The South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Grammy Award-winning, platinum-selling MC reportedly kicked a freestyle in the Cambridge, Massachusetts  lunchroom. Afterwards, during an audience with the Hip-Hop veteran, he was asked to reprise his verse. Instead, Thought chose to do a nearly... Read more

“Me & Mrs. Jones” Philadelphia Soul Icon Billy Paul Passes Away

In the rich canon of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Soul, Jazz, and R&B music, Billy Paul is one of the most esteemed writers, and most powerful voices. Born Paul Williams, the Grammy Award-winning singer a native of the City of Brotherly Love, died yesterday (April 24) at his home in southern New... Read more

KRS-One Explains Why Drake Is “Underrated” & Says Some The Best MCs Have Writers (Audio)

KRS-One is the latest guest on N.O.R.E. & DJ EFN's Drink Champs Podcast. There, the iconic Boogie Down Productions MC sipped hand-crafted mai tai's and discussed a litany of topics, at incredible length. Known for lecturing at some of the most prestigious universities around the globe, publishing books, and educating... Read more

The Beatnuts Confirm Onetime “Secret Group” Including Q-Tip, Posdnuos & Juju (Audio)

For 25-plus years, The Beatnuts have been Hip-Hop multi-threats. The Queens, New York duo of Juju and Psycho Les (that also at times included Fashion and V.I.C.) have stories to go with their hits. Beyond their own prominent recording career, the pair has made beloved songs for Ghostface Killah, Fat... Read more

One Of J Dilla’s Most Respected Collaborative Peers Makes A Beat From Scratch In His Style (Video)

Nottz and J Dilla had a colorful history. Both production purists, these MC/producer double-threats each benefited from the support of Busta Rhymes, Skillz, and Ghostface Killah placements at critical career junctures. Thereby, the artists from Norfolk, Virginia and Detroit, Michigan (respectively) ended up on a few albums together. More than... Read more

Rittz Opens A Vividly Clear Window To The Drama In His Life (Video)

Rittz' upcoming album Top Of The Line (May 6) includes the gripping single, "My Window." The track appears to be an autobiographical look into the Georgian MC's world, beneath the high-profile tours and touted chart placements. For the video, Heads can see the 2010s independent Hip-Hop success in a no-tell... Read more

Prodigy & Alchemist Give “Albert Einstein” Album Away For Free

After giving away three different bundles of music in March, Mobb Deep's Prodigy is still in a generous spirit for April. The Queens, New York veteran MC and author has decided to liberate his 2013 collaborative album with Alchemist, Albert Einstein. Released on P's Infamous imprint, the Top 200-performing LP... Read more

Masta Ace Announces His Latest Concept Album & Gives A Glimpse

From Masta Ace Incorporated to Disposable Arts, Brooklyn, New York veteran MC Masta Ace has been known for cohesive album-length concepts. His latest, in a career that dates back to the mid-1980s is upon us, as the Juice Crew and eMC alum announces The Falling Season. Releasing May 13, the... Read more

From Kanye To Pete Rock, Get The Story On J Dilla’s “Diary” Over 15 Years (Audio)

Today (April 15), J Dilla's The Diary releases. The album featuring contributions from Nas, Snoop Dogg, Pete Rock, and many others has come a long way since its early 2000s plans to be an MCA Records release. Sadly, that never happened as planned. In 2016, it has been more than... Read more

Smoothe Da Hustler & Trigger Had An Unbreakable Lyrical Bond In Broken Language (Video)

In 1994, when The Notorious B.I.G. began promoting Ready To Die on the road, his opening act was a fellow Brooklyn, New York MC not often associated with Biggie Smalls or Junior M.A.F.I.A. Christopher Wallace welcomed Brownsville's Smoothe Da Hustler open up, a fellow hard-nosed lyricist who seemed to enjoy... Read more

On A Great Night For Cali, Planet Asia Is Another Agent Of State Pride (Video)

Planet Asia's career benefited greatly from Sway & King Tech's The Wake Up Show. When P.A. (along with Jurassic 5) were Interscope Records label picks from the West Coast Hip-Hop Underground, they got massive spots on 1999's This Or That, the hallmark album from Sway, Tech, and DJ Revolution. In... Read more

Daz Explains Why Lady Of Rage & Inspectah Deck Verses Did Not Make “All Eyez On Me” (Video)

Daz Dillinger produced five of the 27 tracks on Tupac's All Eyez On Me double album. Tha Dogg Pound MC/producer was a close affiliate of Shakur during his year with Death Row Records. The blockbuster album would eventually reach diamond certification, with Daz producing singles such as "I Ain't Mad... Read more

Nas & J Dilla On A Madlib Track Is A Powerful Bookmark In “The Diary” (Audio)

In two days (April 15), J Dilla's posthumous album, The Diary, will finally release. With its beginnings dating back to the opening of the 2000s, the then-MCA Records solo artist and current Slum Village member plugged away at the LP that would never see release before his February 2006 death.... Read more

Asian MCs Have A Tougher Road In Rap. This Documentary Shows Why (Video)

Hip-Hop has long been considered a cultural melting pot. While the culture was established by Black and Latino men and women in 1970s New York, it has since grown to include nearly every racial, socioeconomic, age, and religious background across the globe. A new full-length documentary film, currently screening at... Read more

Native Tongues Father, Brothers & Affiliates Come Together For Phife (Audio)

Following the March 22 death of Phife Dawg, Black Sheep Dres has been deeply instrumental in raising awareness of the life of Malik Taylor. Both members of the Native Tongues movement, these MCs rolled together in the '90s and 2000s. After being a key organizer in last week's memorial event... Read more

Logic & Tech N9ne Competitively Compare Notes On How To Rap Incredibly Fast (Video)

Some of Hip-Hop's greatest MCs have earned their place by sometimes rhyming slow, and sometimes rhyming really, really fast. Artists such as Eminem, Jay Z, Big Daddy Kane, Andre 3000, and Kool G Rap are among the elites who can tear into a beat, and turn their mandibles into automatic... Read more

Royce 5’9″ Reintroduces Himself At The Top Of His Game On “Layers” (Album Stream)

Royce 5'9" album Layers is planned for April 15 release. However, the Detroit, Michigan gold-selling MC shares his self-released sixth LP four days early. Layers is the first Nickel Nine album since 2011's Success Is Certain, and unlike previous albums, seemingly covers every facet of Ryan Montgomery's life and career.... Read more

Krizz Kaliko Reworks His Sound. This Elite MC Is Also A Showman (Video)

For more than a decade, Krizz Kaliko has been one of Strange Music's dedicated weapons. Although he charts higher than many of his peers, the Kansas City, Missouri MC/singer has not nearly been embraced in the mainstream like so many in his position. Kaliko's sixth album, Go, is out to... Read more

Between Jay Rock & Ice Cube, King Harris II Has Serious Westside Connections (Audio)

From Snoop Dogg to Daz Dillinger, Ice Cube to Del The Funky Homosapien, Hip-Hop has some crafty cousins that prove that dope rhymes can be part of a family tree. The latest example, as it were, comes from Jay Rock and cousin King Harris II. The artist formerly known as... Read more

Kareem “Biggs” Burke Reveals Roc-A-Fella Secrets Regarding Big L, Scarface & Ma$e

Roc-A-Fella Records' 1990s and early 2000s' reign is credited to three businessmen. While Jay Z has become one of, if not the biggest artists in Hip-Hop history, Dame Dash is one of the highest profile Rap executives. Third owner of the original Roc, Kareem "Biggs" Burke was (and remains) less in... Read more