Fresh Archives

Remy Ma & Rapsody Are Rap’s New Dynamic Duo

Last month (July 15), DJ Premier released an exceptional five-song collection. Hip-Hop 50, Vol. 1 kicks off Mass Appeal's series marching towards Hip-Hop's 50th anniversary in 2023. Today (August 11) marks the culture's 49th birthday as many Heads and historians celebrate it, honoring the day that DJ Kool Herc through a Saturday... Read more

August 11, 2022 Video

KRS-One, AZ & O.C. Represent Real Hip-Hop With Style

UPDATE: Stylistic Murder has released the music video for "Represent The Real," featuring AZ, KRS-One, and O.C.: ORIGINAL AUGUST 11 STORY: Today (August 11) marks Hip-Hop's birthday. In celebration of the date, three elite MCs who have stood for the culture come together for a special collaboration premiering at Ambrosia For... Read more

August 11, 2022 Exclusive, Video

Royce 5’9 Says He Regrets Making His Lupe Fiasco Diss Record

In the summer of 2021, Royce 5'9 went from podcast cohosts to adversaries trading diss bars in songs. The two Midwestern veterans abruptly ceased The Lupe & Royce Show, which was one of many successful podcasts created by talented MCs. This week on The Breakfast Club, Royce addresses the year-old... Read more

August 9, 2022 Video

Megan Thee Stallion Regulates The Competition With A G-Funk Freestyle

In early 2019, Megan Thee Stallion's career was taking shape. The Houston, Texas MC had cracked the pop charts in late '18 with her Tina Snow EP. Meg had also previously worked with Wale. However, the 1501 Certified/300 Entertainment artist would use the year ahead to crack the code, and... Read more

August 9, 2022 Video

Irv Gotti Describes The Night Nas Stood Up JAY-Z

Irv Gotti has been a close associate of JAY-Z for decades. As a DJ, producer, and record executive, the New Yorker worked with Jay during his ascent to stardom. In 1995, DJ Irv produced "Time To Build" for his artist Mic Geronimo. The song from The Natural featured JAY-Z, DMX, and Ja Rule.... Read more

August 8, 2022 Video

DJ Premier & Benny The Butcher Have Made A Rough & Tough New Song

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

August 5, 2022 Audio, Video

Ma$e Releases A Video Announcing He’s Signing To Death Row

It has been just six months since Snoop Dogg announced he acquired Death Row Records, and there has been newfound excitement around the record label originally founded by Dr. Dre and Suge Knight. Tha Dogg Pound announced that they have returned to Death Row after more than 20 years away and are working... Read more

August 4, 2022 Fresh, News, Video

Death Row Records Investor Says Dr. Dre & Snoop Are Making An Album

In the early 1990s, Michael "Harry-O" Harris was as an alleged financier of Dr. Dre and Suge Knight's Death Row Records. An early iteration of the label was named Godfather Entertainment, in the incarcerated Harry-O's honor. Michael's then-wife, Lydia Harris, was to have a hand in the musical direction of... Read more

August 1, 2022 Fresh, Video

The Pharcyde Have Reunited On A Song About Their Regrets

Since the mid-2010s, there have been several unexpected Hip-Hop reunions. Earlier this year, Black Star released its highly-anticipated sophomore album after nearly a quarter-century since Talib Kweli and Yasiin Bey's debut. A Tribe Called Quest's founding four members secretly reconvened for 2016's chart-topping We got it from here...thank you 4 your... Read more

August 1, 2022 Audio, News

The Game’s Freestyle Shows He’s 1 Of Hip-Hop’s Most Underrated MCs

Tupac and Ice Cube are often cited as 2 of the greatest MCs of their generation, as is Kendrick Lamar. However, the man who bridged those generations, and put West Coast Hip-Hop back on the map, is often omitted from those conversations. When The Game released his debut album, The... Read more

July 30, 2022 Video

Will Smith Finally Makes The Real Apology He Owes Chris Rock

This March's Academy Awards became one of the most talked about events of the year. During "Best Documentary Feature," Will Smith slapped presenter Chris Rock over a remark about Smith's wife, Jada Pinkett. The consequences of that stage-rushing and ensuing slap have been grave to one of Hollywood's most respected... Read more

July 29, 2022 News, Video

Chuck D & KRS-One Have Launched A Hip-Hop Union

At a time when labor unions are making a resurgence among companies like Starbucks and Amazon, Hip-Hop is proving no different. Some of the leaders in the culture have established The Hip Hop Alliance, dubbed "Hip-Hop's first official union." The organization, founded by Chuck D and Kurtis Blow, defines itself... Read more

July 27, 2022 News, Video

Ali Shaheed Muhammad Reveals The Hidden Meaning Of Low End Theory

A Tribe Called Quest co-founder Ali Shaheed Muhammad recently released Katalyst JID013 on his Jazz Is Dead imprint. It's Ali's latest partnership with Jazz band Katalyst and producer/musician Adrian Younge. Shaheed spoke about the new LP while on The People's Party With Talib Kweli. The two Hip-Hop artists spoke about ATCQ's sophomore LP, The Low... Read more

July 26, 2022 Video

Ras Kass’ Sons Destroy Mics Just Like He Does

This summer, the Hip-Hop quartet Coast Contra is on a rapid rise. The collective of Ras Austin, Taj Austin, Rio Loz, and Eric Jamal has been releasing songs alongside Tobe Nwigwe, Ciara, and BJ The Chicago Kid amid the release of their LP, Apt. 505. Dave Chappelle also personally requested... Read more

July 26, 2022 Video

Joey Bada$$ Has Released The Best Album Of His Career

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

July 22, 2022 Audio

Conway The Machine & Funkmaster Flex Release A Freestyle But Have They Made Peace?

Earlier this month, Conway The Machine called out Funkmaster Flex on Instagram Live. The Buffalo, New York MC demanded new Hip-Hop gatekeepers. This came after the artist reportedly saw Flex publicly say he was not a fan of Griselda while speaking to Wallo, the high-profile podcast host who recently appeared... Read more

July 22, 2022 Audio, Fresh, News

Westside Gunn Says Jay Electronica Might Be Griselda

In recent years, Griselda Records has been expanding. Westside Gunn's label has put out acclaimed, charting releases by himself, Benny The Butcher, and Conway The Machine. The imprint has also released product by Boldy James, Mach-Hommy, and Armani Caesar. Last year, WSG reportedly added Brooklyn, New York's Rome Streetz to... Read more

July 20, 2022 Fresh

Pete Rock & Funkmaster Flex Are Battling Over The Future Of NY Hip-Hop

In the last week, a battle has been going on surrounding Hip-Hop radio in New York. The series of events began with an Instagram Live monologue from Conway The Machine, one of Rap's most promising and acclaimed MCs as of late. The Machine vented frustrations with media gatekeepers, especially on the radio.... Read more

July 19, 2022 Video

JAY-Z & Kevin Hart Discuss What Would Happen If Black Celebs United

There are few names that are bigger in entertainment than JAY-Z and Kevin Hart. Both men are at the top of their respective crafts, and each is a business unto himself. Hart is a comedian who is selling out arenas, shepherding multiple companies and has generated more than $5 billion... Read more

July 17, 2022 Video

Lil Wayne & Slick Rick Show Lyricism Is The Root Of Hip-Hop

Yesterday (July 15), DJ Premier released his five-song Hip Hop 50: Volume 1. The five songs feature Preemo beats with an array of MCs from different generations, regions, and styles. The last song on the Mass Appeal Records release unites Slick Rick and Lil Wayne. “The Root Of It All” bonds... Read more

July 16, 2022 Audio

Remy Ma & Rapsody Go Scorched Earth Over A Preemo Beat

Today (July 15), DJ Premier released his first solo project in years. Hip Hop 50: Volume 1 is a five-song EP from the Gang Starr legend. Each cut features top MCs representing over 35 years of rapping greatness. Along with appearances by Nas, Run The Jewels, Lil Wayne, Slick Rick, and others,... Read more

July 15, 2022 Audio

Nas & DJ Premier’s New Song Takes Hip-Hop Back To Its Golden Era

It has been over a decade Hip-Hop Heads received a Nas song produced by DJ Premier. In late 2011, Nas connected with Premier and The Berklee Symphony Orchestra for "REgeneration." Four years prior, in 2007, Preemo supplied Nasir Jones, KRS-One, Rakim, and Kanye West with "Classic," a promotional video single for... Read more

July 15, 2022 Audio, Trending Stories

Funkmaster Flex Accuses Pete Rock Of Snitching On C.L. Smooth

Earlier this week, Conway The Machine criticized New York City DJs in an Instagram Live video. In particular, the Griselda lyricist and Drumwork Records founder knocked DJ Suss One and Funkmaster Flex by name for their failure to support Hip-Hop music like his—despite being reported fans. As Funk Flex responded... Read more

July 15, 2022 Fresh, News

Pete Rock Blasts Funkmaster Flex For Not Supporting Real Hip-Hop

At the top of this week, Conway The Machine spoke out against several gatekeepers of Hip-Hop at radio. In particular, the Buffalo, New York MC named Funkmaster Flex and DJ Suss One in an Instagram Live monologue venting frustrating with what gets played on radio. Funk Flex responded to Conway... Read more

July 13, 2022 Fresh, News

Eminem Has A Chance To Add An Emmy To His Grammy & Oscar

Eminem is having a banner 2022. The Detroit, Michigan MC/producer will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this November. Marshall Mathers is also currently preparing a second collection of Curtain Call, a forthcoming volume of greatest hits that was announced with the arrival of his latest Snoop Dogg collaboration. He... Read more

July 12, 2022 Fresh, News

Funkmaster Flex Is Trying To End Conway The Machine

In mid-2019, Conway The Machine stopped on Funkmaster Flex's HOT 97 radio show to deliver a high-profile freestyle. The Buffalo, New York MC was having a pivotal year at the time. That year, he released Everybody Is F.O.O.D. 3 and Look What I Became before eventually teaming with brother Westside... Read more

July 12, 2022 Fresh, News

Many Of Hip-Hop’s Greatest Rappers Name Their Top 5 MCs

Note: Jadakiss recently appeared on ESPN’s Jalen & Jacoby podcast and was asked who his top 5 Hip-Hop groups of all-time were. This article has been updated below with his response, as well as The Game’s top 5 LA Rap albums. A few days ago, during a podcast appearance, Ice... Read more

July 12, 2022 Video

Redman Explains Why He Used To Keep A Tissue In His Nose

Redman is known for keeping it real. The New Jersey veteran MC/producer/DJ had a moment over 20 years with arguably the most memorable MTV Cribs episode. Reggie Noble invited audiences into his modest Staten Island, New York home—complete with a box of dollar bills, fish sticks in the freezer, and... Read more

July 11, 2022 Video

The Tracklist For DJ Premier’s Upcoming EP Features Nas, Slick Rick & More

UPDATE: DJ Premier has confirmed the project arriving July 15. DJ Premier: Hip Hop 50 features five songs, all produced by Preemo, arriving on Mass Appeal. The Gang Starr O.G. works with everlasting voices from the '80s, '90s, 2000s, and 2010s. The tracklist is as follows: Tracklisting: 1. "Lettin’ Off... Read more

July 11, 2022 Fresh, Video

Scarface & Freddie Gibbs Blackout On A DJ Muggs Beat For The Streets

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

July 10, 2022 Audio

Joey Bada$$ Celebrates Capital STEEZ With Some Of His Best Work

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

July 9, 2022 Audio

Ice Cube Explains Why Lil Wayne Is The Best Rapper Of All-Time

Late last month, Ice Cube made a podcast appearance on On The Guest List. There, the legendary MC was asked about his opinion of other great MCs. Shortly after the 31:00 mark, the hosts ask the onetime member of N.W.A. and Westside Connection his opinion on the best rapper of... Read more

July 7, 2022 Fresh, Video

Killer Mike’s Video Is A Powerful Statement About Protecting Black Art

In the 2010s, Run The Jewels became one of the most exciting Hip-Hop groups. Across four albums, Killer Mike and El-P reignited their careers with a boisterous sound, hard rhymes, and amazing beats. However, before 2012, Mike had a successful career as a solo artist. Ushered in by OutKast, Killer... Read more

July 5, 2022 Video

The D.O.C. Explains The Real Elements Of The Rap Formula

On his 1989 solo debut, No One Can Do It Better, The D.O.C. had a highlight single with "The Formula." The Dr. Dre-produced Ruthless/Atlantic Records track begins with the lyrics, "High energy flowin' with the wisdom / Sense of a rich man, knowledge and the rhythm / This is what... Read more

June 30, 2022 Video

DJ Jazzy Jeff Says Will Smith Would Have Slapped Mike Tyson

In 1989, DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince released the song "I Think I Can Beat Mike Tyson," the Rocky-inspired lead video single from their aptly-titled And In This Corner... album. Iron Mike appeared in the Jive/Zomba music video, and according to Jeff some years back, was not above... Read more

June 29, 2022 Video

Kanye West & Sway’s Legendary Fight Is Mashed Up With Kendrick Lamar

On November 26, 2013, Kanye West appeared on Sway In The Morning for one of the show's most memorable episodes. While promoting that year's Yeezus album, Kanye got into an argument with host Sway Calloway that led to yelling, trembling, interruption, flared tempers, and an enduring catch-phrase, "How, Sway? You ain't got the answers!" The... Read more

June 28, 2022 Fresh, Video

Kanye West Praises Diddy As A Hero While Dressed Like A Supervillain

Twenty-five years ago, Diddy released No Way Out, his first album as an artist after serving as an executive and producer for others throughout the decade. Puff Daddy & The Family, his crew at the time, included The LOX, Ma$e, the late Black Rob—all featured on the cover art, and... Read more

June 27, 2022 News, TV, TV/Film, Video

Brandy & Jack Harlow Make Peace With A 1st Class BET Awards Performance

For weeks, Jack Harlow and Brandy have been in a playful war of words. It all began when, during a May 10 interview with HOT 97's Ebro, Peter Rosenberg and Laura Stylez, Harlow did not know who and artist was on a song that the hosts played while quizzing him.... Read more

June 26, 2022 Video

Why Michael Jackson Refused To Be On Tupac’s Makaveli Album

In the final weeks of his life, Tupac Shakur prepared an album, The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory. Having already dropped a chart-topping double album earlier in 1996, Shakur was fast at work following up his Death Row Records debut. Don Killuminati was a pioneering idea, originally intended to... Read more

June 26, 2022 Throwback

Digable Planets Predicted This Week’s Supreme Court Decision 30 Years Ago

On Friday morning (June 24, 2022), the United States Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, eliminating the Constitutional right to an abortion after nearly 50 years. In a 6-3 ruling, the presiding court reversed a decision made in 1973. "Roe was egregiously wrong from the start," Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote... Read more

June 25, 2022 Do Remember, Lifestyle

Jill Scott Goes Bar For Bar With Conway & Holds Her Own

One of the better Hip-Hop albums of 2022 is Conway The Machine's God Don't Make Mistakes. Years in the making (with plans to arrive in late 2021), Conway's Shady Records solo debut is one of his most complete albums in an impressive and extensive catalog. Along with Griselda cohorts Westside... Read more

June 24, 2022 Video

Eminem & Snoop Celebrate Their Peace By Battling EVERYBODY

A year and a half ago, things seemed bleak for Snoop Dogg and Eminem. Two of Dr. Dre's superstar proteges, who had made huge records together in the past, appeared to be at odds. The two artists used the media and verses to take shots at each other. A beef... Read more

June 24, 2022 Video

Chance The Rapper & Joey Bada$$ Are Back In Mixtape Mode

A decade ago, in 2012, two of Hip-Hop's most exciting new voices were Chance The Rapper and Joey Bada$$. From Chicago, Illinois and Brooklyn, New York, respectively, these two MCs each brought something fresh to Hip-Hop, while honoring time-tested traditions. In the decade since his mixtape debut 10 Day, Chance... Read more

June 23, 2022 Video

French Montana Shows He Can Really Rap On A Song With Jadakiss & Benny

French Montana has been a powerful force over the last decade-plus. The Moroccan-born, New York City-raised MC has released platinum and gold albums, and dropped a plethora of major singles alongside the likes of Drake, Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, Diplo, Swae Lee, The Weeknd, and others. French has achieved commercial... Read more

June 22, 2022 Video

The Top 20 Rap Albums Of All-Time As Determined By Millions Of Fans

Earlier this month, the Hip-Hop community reacted to the latest high-profile lists ranking the greatest Rap albums of all time. Rolling Stone magazine and a team of journalists and writers ranked 200 Hip-Hop LPs, prompting plenty of reaction. It was not the first list of this kind, and it certainly will not... Read more

June 21, 2022 Video

AZ Drops Another Vintage Verse On A New Song With Logic

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

June 17, 2022 Audio

Eminem Raps About How He & Elvis Are Alike While Blasting His Haters

Twenty years and one month ago, Eminem's single "Without Me" spoofed the late singer Elvis Presley. In the Bass Brothers-produced song, he rapped, "But it's just me, I'm just obscene / Though I'm not the first king of controversy / I am the worst thing since Elvis Presley / To... Read more

June 16, 2022 Audio, News

Black Thought Freestyles Over Benny’s Beat & Butchers It

Earlier this month, West Philadelphia played host to the 20th Roots Picnic. There, The Roots crew shared the stage with Mary J. Blige and welcomed artists including DJ Jazzy Jeff & Rakim, Freddie Gibbs, Masego, Babyface Ray, and others to their two-day event. On Saturday (June 4), Black Thought and... Read more

June 14, 2022 Video

Eminem’s Mind Is Blown As He Raps The D.O.C.’s Lyrics

This week, Hip-Hop veteran The D.O.C. has been in New York City promoting his eponymous documentary film, a debut feature from director David Caplan. The 94-minute doc' is currently screening at the Tribeca Film Festival. The piece covers The D.O.C.'s rise to Rap stardom, his tragic 1989 car accident, his... Read more

June 13, 2022 Video

Pharrell Has Made The Most Creative Video & Beat Of The Year

While it has been five years since he or his groups have released an album, Pharrell Williams' 2022 is ramping up. In spring, he competed (and collaborated) with Kanye West in producing Pusha-T's chart-topping album, It's Almost Dry. Now, Skateboard P delivers a video single that shines within his incredible 25-plus-year music... Read more

June 13, 2022 Video