Jake Paine

M.O.P.’s Lil Fame Is Releasing His 1st Solo Album But He’s Still Mashing Out MCs (Audio)

Twenty-five years ago, M.O.P. asked "How About Some Hardcore?" They have been offering it ever since. Lil Fame and Billy Danze appear to have one of Rap's strongest group bonds. The Brownsville, Brooklyn duo has remained in tact through the independent grind, mainstream recognition surrounding 2000's Warriorz, and fruitless tenures... Read more

March 3, 2018 Audio

VERY Few People Can Rap With Method Man. Blimes Brixton Is 1 Of Them (Video)

Blimes Brixton is a versatile MC (and singer) from the heart of San Francisco, California. She has been putting in serious work throughout recent years, including a decorated Battle Rap career and some history with the region's pioneer: Too Short. The daughter of a Blues musician and granddaughter of a... Read more

February 22, 2018 Video

Common & Questlove Share Stories About Bargaining For Beats From J Dilla & D’Angelo

On January 25, Common was the guest for the first live audience recording of Questlove Supreme. At Manhattan's Gramercy Theater, Questlove, Laiya, Suga Steve, and Boss Bill interviewed Common for nearly two hours. Ambrosia For Heads was front and center for the event. Today (February 21), that interview is available... Read more

February 21, 2018 Fresh

Do Remember When AZ & Pete Rock Made A Gem That Was Rather Unique (Audio)

Almost exactly a year and a half after his show-stopping appearance on Nas' Illmatic, AZ Tha Visualiza released his debut album, Doe Or Die. In October of 1995, AZ carefully refrained from any further features between his 5-mic debut and his solo set-up. Fans were starving, and the East New... Read more

February 15, 2018 Do Remember

Elzhi & Khrysis’ 1st Collabo Single Shows What Jericho Jackson’s Got…FIRE (Audio)

In two weeks, 9th Wonder's Jamla Records is releasing the first collaborative project from Elzhi and Khrysis. The February 23 album takes its title from the Detroit, Michigan MC to Raleigh, North Carolina producer tandem's group name, Jericho Jackson. The name is a reference to Carl Weathers' character in 1988's... Read more

February 9, 2018 Audio

Jay Electronica, Obie Trice & Bumpy Knuckles To Perform At Dillatroit Tribute Concert

February 10 marks 12 years since the untimely death of J Dilla. In James Yancey's hometown of Detroit, Michigan the third annual Dillatroit concert will take place in his memory. On Sunday, several collaborators, peers, and admirers of the Slum Village co-founder are confirmed to perform at the event held... Read more

February 8, 2018 Fresh

Hip-Hop Pioneer Lovebug Starski Has Passed Away

Lovebug Starski is one of the Hip-Hop pioneers that Biggie Smalls shouts out in the opening verse to "Juicy." According to author/filmmaker Nelson George, the Bronx, New York MC, DJ and producer is responsible for coining the early 1970s youth culture as "Hip-Hop." He also was reportedly one of the... Read more

February 8, 2018 News

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

February 7, 2018 Audio

Scarface Rates The D.O.C.’s Rhymes Higher Than His Own (Video)

In the "Rate The Bars" series, guests on the video program are challenged when they are provided excerpts of verses from peers who often happen to be homies, band-mates, or nemeses. It is a test of objectivity set against the craft of MC'ing. This has led to some memorable appearances,... Read more

February 5, 2018 Video

Temptations Lead Singer Dennis Edwards Has Passed Away

Dennis Edwards was an unmistakable voice in R&B and Soul music. As a lead vocalist for The Temptations, he was greatly responsible for two of the Motown Records legends' #1 hits: 1969's "I Can't Get Next To You" and 1972's "Papa Was A Rollin' Stone." Today (February 2), Edwards died... Read more

February 2, 2018 News

Busta Rhymes Shows He Still Spits Fire From The Dungeon On A Collabo With Missy (Audio)

Busta Rhymes and Missy Elliott are two beloved MCs that transcend the Hip-Hop genre. Since the TV music video-era boom, these lyricists played to the mainstream with bigger than life stage personas and massive bursts of creativity. Pop peers wanted in, and Bussa-Bus and Misdemeanor became household names with catalogs... Read more

February 2, 2018 Audio

Skyzoo’s New Album May Be The Crown Jewel In His Catalog (Audio)

Brooklyn, New York veteran Skyzoo has self-released In Celebration Of Us. With "Baker's Dozen" (an homage to D'Angelo's "Devil's Pie") making great headway, "Crown Holder" is the perfect follow-up punch. Like the Apollo Brown-produced first single, this track is laced by a past full-LP collaborator. This time it is !llmind (who... Read more

February 1, 2018 Audio

PRhyme 2 Is Coming Soon & The First Single Signals A New Era (Audio)

In late 2014, DJ Premier and Royce 5'9 released PRhyme, an album that challenged all others that year as one of the best. Preemo launched his first group since Gang Starr, and Nickel Nine extended his exceptional collaborative stride that began with Slaughterhouse and Bad Meets Evil. The tandem used... Read more

February 1, 2018 Audio

Redman Says People Who Show Money Don’t Really Have It (Video)

For more than 25 years, Redman has built his public-facing brand as a blue-collar MC. Even as a superstar with How High presumably raking in box office dollars, a handful of platinum and gold albums, and arena tours, Redman still stands as a reflection of his faithful fans' lifestyle. Beyond... Read more

January 30, 2018 Video

An New Video Shows The Rise Of The Soulquarians & Why Things Fell Apart

During the week of special engagements leading up to last Sunday's Grammy Awards, The Roots held a four-day residency at The Gramercy Theatre in Manhattan. During the day, the three-time Grammy-winners programmed events that included the first live taping of Questlove Supreme with guest Common, as well as a Black... Read more

January 30, 2018 Throwback, Video

Murs Celebrates The MCs & Books That Taught Him He Is Powerful (Audio)

Murs is roughly six weeks away from his upcoming album, A Strange Journey Into The Unimaginable. Releasing on the veteran MC's March 16 birthday, the LP is a full collaboration with Missouri-based producer Michael "Seven" Summers, known for producing some of Tech N9ne's most celebrated work. The Strange Music album... Read more

January 29, 2018 Audio, Video

Black Thought & 9th Wonder Confirm A Collabo Project Is On The Way (Video)

In April of 2016, Black Thought and 9th Wonder released "Making A Murderer," featuring Styles P. Posted online by Jamla Records as a song by The Roots' MC, and premiered by Ambrosia For Heads, it marked a rarity in the South Philadelphia MC's catalog that has been tied to Roots... Read more

January 27, 2018 News, Video

Ice-T Reveals New Jack City Sequel Plot & Why The Film Was Never Made (Audio)

In March of 2016, Ambrosia For Heads celebrated New Jack City's 25th anniversary by examining its creation and legacy with revealing interviews with two men responsible (Barry Michael Cooper and Thomas Lee-Wright) for the film's story, development, and unforgettable characters. One of those conversations, an interview with film screenwriter Barry... Read more

January 25, 2018 Audio, TV/Film

Evidence’s Weather Or Not Album Forecasts A Great 2018 In Hip-Hop (Audio)

Evidence has not released a solo album in more than five years. The co-founder of Dilated Peoples and Step Brothers changes that this week with his Weather Or Not. The last in a trilogy of acclaimed LPs that dates back to 2007's The Weatherman LP and also included 2012's Cats... Read more

January 25, 2018 Audio

Keith Murray Kills This Freestyle Over A Classic Cypress Hill Instrumental (Audio)

Keith Murray seems to be up to something. The Def Squad MC has released a few freestyles in 2018. With DJ Gumba beside him, Keith did a rendition of Eric B. & Rakim's "I Ain't No Joke." After tackling one of Hip-Hop's most beloved 1980s records, Murray and Gumba go... Read more

January 24, 2018 Audio

Why Jay Rock Is The Unsung Hero Of Top Dawg Entertainment (Video)

In Hip-Hop, the first is not always the biggest. Just as football has its linemen fighting for every inch, Rap music often has its figures that blaze a trail, light a path, or move the boulders for another artist to shoot the resulting gap. This week, TDE announced its Championship... Read more

January 23, 2018 Food for Thought

Big K.R.I.T. & Caleborate Release An Anthem For Anyone Fighting For A Dream (Audio)

In the last month, Ambrosia For Heads readers decided by vote that Big K.R.I.T.'s 4eva Is A Mighty Long Time was "the best Hip-Hop album of 2017." Another artist made a really impressive effort last year, among the many. That was Berkeley, California's Caleborate, who is no stranger to that... Read more

January 18, 2018 Audio

Scarface & George Clinton Funk It Up For Parliament’s 1st Song In Nearly 40 Years (Audio)

To say George Clinton is a musical mastermind may be putting it lightly. The Funk O.G. is architect to a number of storied groups and unique outlets for his colorful music. On a major scale, the movement began with the Plainfield, New Jersey Doo-Wop product The Parliaments. Then came Funkadelic,... Read more

January 18, 2018 Audio

Superfly Is Being Remade & Future Will Curate The New Soundtrack

1972's Superfly is an important film for many. Gordon Parks, Jr.'s followed in his famed father's footsteps after 1971's Shaft. Whereas "John Shaft" was a private investigator, Superfly focused on the other side of the game. Ron O'Neal's portrayal of "Youngblood Priest," a cocaine dealer trying to exit the illegal... Read more

January 16, 2018 TV/Film

Master P’s Documentary Tells The Real Story Of No Limit. Here’s The Trailer (Video)

In March of 1998, No Limit Records purchased the contract of Snoop Dogg from Death Row Records. It was a landmark move in a time when veteran Hip-Hop stars like LL Cool J, Run-D.M.C., A Tribe Called Quest, Scarface, and Cypress Hill were franchise artists that stayed attached to the... Read more

January 16, 2018 TV/Film, Video

The 1st Look At Death Row Series Shows Suge Strong-Arming Eazy-E To Get Dre (Video)

The Death Row Chronicles is an upcoming six-part series on one of music's most successful and most controversial record labels. Airing on BET February 20 (beginning with part one and two), a two-minute video trailer released, featuring commentary from some of the people closest to Death Row Records' former CEO... Read more

January 16, 2018 TV, TV/Film, Video

Ambrosia For Heads Presents: G.O.A.T. Producers – The Pete Rock Edition (Playlist)

Ambrosia For Heads' G.O.A.T. Producers series takes in-depth looks at the production discographies of some of Hip-Hop and R&B's greatest of all-time producers. As part of an exclusive partnership with Pandora, each installment explores the hits, the deep cuts, the rarities, the remixes and more. This edition showcases the production catalog... Read more

January 16, 2018 Audio, Video

Nas & The National Symphony Are Taking Illmatic From QB To The Kennedy Center (Video)

Back in 1994, Nas' debut Illmatic peaked at #12 on the charts. The commercial performance was highly respectable for an emerging Rap artist, but Hip-Hop Heads who heard and loved the album knew those 10 songs meant so much more than any chart, music review, or record store display could... Read more

January 12, 2018 News, TV, TV/Film, Video

Evidence & DJ Premier Show They’re True Masters Of This Thing Called Hip-Hop (Video)

Evidence is just two weeks away from his third solo album, Weather Or Not. Coming January 26 on Rhymesayers Entertainment, the Dilated Peoples and Step Brothers member's first solo LP in more than six years already promises to be something serious. In 2017, Heads got a taste of the realness... Read more

January 12, 2018 Video

Londell McMillan Responds To JAY-Z’s Diss & Strongly Defends His Partnership With Prince (Video)

Following Prince's death on April 21, 2016, there has been a tug of war regarding the icon's music and assets. One month after the tragic news, JAY-Z made that battle both public and part of his own legendary catalog. On the Grammy-nominated 4:44, Shawn Carter took umbrage with the handling... Read more

January 10, 2018 News, Video

Skillz Sets Off 2018 By Dissing Uncle Murda For Copying His Rap Up Concept (Audio)

For Hip-Hop Heads, the last days of the year have long belonged to an annual Skillz song. For nearly two decades, the Virginia MC, DJ, and the University Of Richmond's Artist In Residence has deftly created his "Year End Rap" at the close of the calendar. Many followers of the... Read more

January 3, 2018 Audio, News

Timbaland Describes The Musical Chemistry Between Him & JAY-Z (Video)

Timbaland hopes that 2018 will signal a true comeback season. The four-time Grammy Award-winner recently revealed that he battled a nearly fatal Oxycontin addiction in 2014. Once a mainstay on the singles charts by way of his hit-making productions and collaborations, Tim Mosley had a much quieter 2017. Now the... Read more

January 2, 2018 Video

Elzhi & Khrysis Announce Their Collabo Group With A Musical Preview (Audio)

In the hours leading up to 2018, some Hip-Hop news was announced that Heads might have missed. Jamla Records' founder 9th Wonder revealed that this new year promises an exciting collaborative group from two esteemed veterans of Rap music and verse. Detroit, Michigan MC Elzhi and North Carolina producer Khrysis... Read more

January 2, 2018 Audio, News

The Coup’s DJ Pam The Funkstress Has Passed Away

In an already challenging week, Hip-Hop has learned that it has lost another veteran artist. DJ Pam The Funkstress (aka Pamela Warren) has died. A founding member of The Coup, Pam would also work with Prince on tour in recent years. After surviving a critical surgery in the last month,... Read more

December 22, 2017 News

Murs’ New Video Is For Those Who Are Down & Cannot Get Into The Holiday Season

Murs is not new to putting his life into his art. On those early DIY albums, the Los Angeles, California MC pulled no punches when talking about violence in the streets, the perils of love, or his frustrations with less-deserving rappers always getting more looks. Down the line, 2015's Have... Read more

December 22, 2017 Video

Scarface’s Life Story Is Told Against The Soundtrack Of His Latest Song (Video)

Plenty of Hip-Hop legends are living, but not nearly as many are releasing consistent, quality product. Scarface is approaching 30 years on wax, and his newest single, "Black Still," finds him spitting hard, political rhymes with fire in his belly. The just-released Deeply Rooted: The Lost Files contains six new... Read more

December 21, 2017 Exclusive, Now You See Me, Video

Hip-Hop Podcast Pioneer, Author & Attorney Combat Jack Has Passed Away

Reggie "Combat Jack" Ossé has died. This morning (December 20), the Hip-Hop community learns that we have lost a true champion of culture. Several sources close to the Brooklyn, New Yorker confirmed the news. In October, the father of four publicly revealed that he was diagnosed with colon cancer during... Read more

December 20, 2017 News

Joell Ortiz & Raekwon Join Forces For A Rap Tale Of Love & Revenge (Audio)

Five years ago, Joell Ortiz and Raekwon joined Pusha T plus Danny Brown on "Tick, Tock." The hard-hitting collaboration was just the right combination for The Man With The Iron Fists soundtrack. With Raekwon hailing from one of Rap's super-crews of the 1990s, and Joell as one-fourth of one of... Read more

December 15, 2017 Audio, Exclusive

Stezo Used Funk & Fly Dance Moves To Take Rap Music To A New Place (Video)

In 2017 Connecticut's Hip-Hop scene includes the likes of Apathy, Chris Webby, and Blacastan, among others. These MCs represent different towns in "The Constitution State." Not far from New York City is the city of New Haven. The home of Yale University and famed "clam pie" pizza made a statement... Read more

December 14, 2017 Do Remember

Black Thought Can’t Let The Year End Without Spitting Its Best Freestyle (Video)

Black Thought did not release an album in 2017, nor did The Roots. However, Tariq Trotter spent the year at the top of the MC class. He sizzled the mic on albums by Logic, Rapsody, and David Banner. There was a surprise MF DOOM collaboration released, and a deeply meaningful... Read more

December 14, 2017 Video

Nina Simone Will Be Inducted Into The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame

The 2018 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees have been announced. Following two consecutive years with Hip-Hop additions to the Cleveland, Ohio-based museum and hall (N.W.A. and Tupac Shakur), no Rap artists are selected. However, Jazz/R&B vocalist, arranger, and pianist Nina Simone is among the five honorees that also... Read more

December 13, 2017 News

DJ Premier Says He & Pete Rock May Be Exclusively Producing De La Soul’s Next Album (Video)

DJ Premier has had one of his busiest years in recent memory. The Gang Starr member released and produced albums by MC Eiht and Torii Wolf. He just followed those efforts with a video collaboration with A$AP Ferg, helping relaunch '90s Hip-Hop source Payday Records. Preemo is the latest guest... Read more

December 11, 2017 News, Video

Tyler, The Creator’s Best Rap Album Contender Sounds Even Better Live (Video)

Two weeks ago, Tyler, The Creator's Flower Boy album was nominated in the Grammy category for "Best Rap Album." The nod marks a first for the 26-year-old MC/producer. In 2013, Tyler was part of Frank Ocean's Channel Orange cast that received an "Album Of The Year" nomination. Looking into next... Read more

December 11, 2017 Video

Phonte & Elzhi Reunite On A New Song & They Are Razor Sharp (Audio)

When Little Brother released The Minstrel Show, it was a huge moment for many Hip-Hop Heads. The North Carolina-based trio that won the hearts of fans with 2003's The Listening joined Atlantic Records and seemingly represented a real chance for putting a disenfranchised side of the genre back on radio,... Read more

December 8, 2017 Audio

Puff Daddy Speaks On Working To Be A Living & Breathing Example Of Black Excellence

Sean "Puffy Daddy" Combs is the latest guest on The Touré Show. The founder of Bad Boy Worldwide recently sat before a live Manhattan audience and spoke about his family, his health, and trailblazing role in Black culture for nearly one hour. Unlike some recent interviews with Diddy, this conversation... Read more

December 7, 2017 Audio

Talib Kweli Recalls A Great Story Involving Freestyle Fellowship, Neo-Soul & Rent Money (Video)

There have been several memorable Hip-Hop roommates. During the early 1990s, Gang Starr members Guru and DJ Premier lived together at several New York City residences (one was a Brooklyn home owned by Branford Marsalis). RZA and Ghostface Killah were under the same roof in the days before Enter The... Read more

December 6, 2017 Video

Salute To LL Cool J. He Is Now Hip-Hop’s First Kennedy Center Honoree

Fans have waited four months since it announced, but Hip-Hop has its first Kennedy Center Honoree. LL Cool J was among the five artists celebrated at the honors this weekend in Washington, D.C. The MC, actor, host, and author born James Todd Smith attended the event at the John F.... Read more

December 3, 2017 News

A$AP Ferg Rocks A DJ Premier Beat As Hard As Anyone Has In Ages (Video)

Just under one month ago, DJ Premier and A$AP Ferg linked for "Our Streets." The hard-nosed Hip-Hop collaboration marked the relaunch of Payday Records, once home to JAY-Z, Jeru The Damaja, Showbiz & A.G., Group Home, WC, and more. Setting December off in style, Preemo and Ferg deliver the video,... Read more

December 1, 2017 Video

Scarface Updates A Powerful Public Enemy Classic For The Chaos Of 2017 (Video)

Back in August, Scarface previewed some new music for Ambrosia For Heads and TBD. Backstage at his concert with upcoming EP collaborator DJ Quik, the Houston, Texas Hip-Hop legend played a new song from his phone that showed the Geto Boys O.G. reworking Public Enemy’s 1988 video single “Black Steel... Read more

December 1, 2017 The Bridge, Video

Michael Rapaport Reveals Tupac, Leo & More Were Part Of The Original “Higher Learning” Cast (Video)

Michael Rapaport's acting career goes back nearly 30 years. In an array of roles, one of his most memorable is that of 1995's Higher Learning. In the John Singleton film about college and diversity, Rapaport played "Remy," a student who transforms into a skinhead. However, that role was first attached... Read more

November 30, 2017 TV/Film, Video