News Archives

Chris Rivers Pays Tribute To His Father Big Pun With A Crushing Freestyle (Video)

Tuesday (February 7), marked the 17th anniversary of Big Pun's passing. Though Pun only released two studio albums, his dextrous rhymes and impeccable flow left a mark that allows him to still be widely considered one of Rap's all-time greats, nearly 20 years after his debut album, Capital Punishment. Fat... Read more

February 9, 2017 Video

Ice Cube Announces 25th Anniversary Edition of ‘Death Certificate’ With New Songs (Video)

Ice Cube was a recent guest in Sway's Universe, where the legendary MC and celebrated actor discussed his many careers: silver-screen star, Hip-Hop icon, and basketball executive. Currently promoting his upcoming comedy film Fist Fight, Cube also shared some insider information about one of the classic LPs in his discography... Read more

February 9, 2017 Video

Jim Jones Gets Teary Detailing His Sacrifices For Cam’ron & Dipset (Video)

Yesterday (February 8), it was announced that Jim Jones signed to Jay Z's Roc Nation. The same night, the Bronx, New York native and onetime The Diplomats mainstay appeared on Funkmaster Flex's show. There, Jim sat for more than an hour, and cleared the table on his frustrations with Cam'ron—a... Read more

February 9, 2017 Video

Larenz Tate Joins The Season 4 Cast Of “Power”

The actor behind such iconic roles as O-Dog in Menace II Society and Anthony Curtis in Dead Presidents is bringing his talents to one of television's most successful shows. Larenz Tate has been cast as a recurring character on season four of Power, executive produced in part by 50 Cent.... Read more

February 9, 2017 News, TV, TV/Film

Main Source Are Joined By Pete Rock, Just Blaze & More For Their 25-Year Reunion (Video)

Last week (February 1), the founding three members of Hip-Hop group Main Source performed together for the first time in more than 25 years. Large Professor, as well as John Browne high school classmate, K-Cut, plus guest DJ Rashad Smith (of Bad Boy Records fame) blessed Lower Manhattan's S.O.B.'s stages... Read more

February 8, 2017 Video

TDE’s SiR Could Be A New Soul Sensation & His Latest Video Is Proof

Singer/songwriter SiR has announced that his forthcoming EP, Her Too, will drop on Friday, February 10. It will be the first project the Inglewood, California artist releases since he was signed to Top Dawg Entertainment, the label that's home to Kendrick Lamar, Ab-Soul, ScHoolboy Q, Isaiah Rashad, and Lance Skiiiwalker.... Read more

February 8, 2017 Video

CyHi The Prynce Is Releasing His Debut Album But He’s Already A Legend (Audio)

Taking to social media yesterday (February 7), CyHi The Prynce announced the impending arrival of his long-awaited debut album. Arriving in the Spring or Summer, No Dope On Sunday signals his official arrival in many ways. The Grammy-nominated rapper has been releasing mixtapes since 2010, and has been an essential... Read more

February 8, 2017 Audio

Foe Turned Friend. Jay Z Signs Jim Jones To Roc Nation.

At the height of Roc-A-Fella Records, a number of interviews have suggested that co-founder Jay Z was not always thrilled with Cam'ron and The Diplomats. From Dame Dash's impromptu promotion of childhood friend Cam' to label VP, to reports of wrongly parked cars in the mogul's designated spot, to reportedly... Read more

February 8, 2017 News

The Post-Information Age Is Here & It Is Drowning Us In Straight Garbage

For every moment we live in the Information Age, we live two in the Misinformation Age. The Internet has both democratized and degraded information, providing us with all we could ever want to know about the world, and a lot of stuff that is untrue, misleading, offensive; in a word,... Read more

February 7, 2017 Lifestyle

Mark Steele Is Vowing To Gain Your Attention. He’s Prepared at Every Turn (Video)

As a former pupil in 9th Wonder's Hip-Hop in Context 101 class at North Carolina State University, Mark Steele is quite literally a student of the game. In fact, the North Carolina MC has already collaborated with his former professor, as well as Rapsody and Cory Gunz. Perhaps best recognized... Read more

February 7, 2017 Ready Or Not

Scarface Reminds Life Isn’t A Fairytale But We Can Write Our Own Endings (Audio)

On a long-awaited collaboration with Nashville, Tennessee rapper Starlito, Scarface contributes some bleak "Reality Rap" on a record all about the dark days in his rearview mirror. Luckily for the two artists, those days are now replaced with happier, fruitful times but as Hip-Hop is always emphasizing, remembering where you... Read more

February 7, 2017 Audio

For Those Feenin’ For More R&B Biopics… The Story Of Jodeci Is Coming (Video)

In the last month, New Edition's biopic set ratings records during its three-night television mini-series. The New Edition Story aired on BET, and told the story of Bobby Brown, Michael Bivens, Ricky Bell, Ronnie DeVoe, Ralph Tresvant, and later member Johnny Gill with the group functioning as producers. The event... Read more

February 7, 2017 TV, TV/Film, Video

This Oral History of ‘Rap City’ Follows The Show From The Basement To The Top Floor

For nearly 20 years, Rap City brought Hip-Hop in its various forms into the lives of millions, helping elevate the once-fledgling culture into the mainstream. Easily the longest-running Hip-Hop show in television history, it lived on BET from 1989 to 2008 and showcased music videos Rap fans couldn't see anywhere... Read more

February 7, 2017 Throwback, Throwback

Stat Quo Reveals The Disagreement With Eminem That Destroyed His Shady/Aftermath Career (Video)

At the top of the 2000s, Eminem was building Shady Records into a juggernaut of a label. From D12's double-platinum, #1 debut Devil's Night to the 8 Mile soundtrack, Shady expanded from simply Eminem's efforts into a multi-faceted force. In 2003, through a joint venture with Dr. Dre and Aftermath... Read more

February 7, 2017 Throwback, Video

Kool Keith, QBert & Dan The Automator Will Perform Dr. Octagon Live For The First Time

In 1996, Kool Keith and his career were at a crossroads. For the last decade, the Bronx, New Yorker had been pushing the envelope of technical rhyme patterns, cadences, and crafty lyricism as the defacto figurehead of the Ultramagnetic MC's. As the group would disband for hiatus (resuming a decade... Read more

February 7, 2017 Exclusive, News

Diamond D Passes The Torch To Kev Brown For A Thumping Remix (Audio)

In addition to producing his first full album for Sadat X, Diamond D is hard at work on his upcoming sequel to 2015's The Diam Piece. That album earned the D.I.T.C. co-founder some of the greatest accolades he's received in the 2000s and 2010s. Still a double-threat extraordinaire, the self-proclaimed... Read more

February 7, 2017 Audio

Page Kennedy Is The Boogeyman & Mumble Rap Is His Prey (Video)

Detroit's Page Kennedy will be releasing Torn Pages on March 10, an album featuring Royce 5'9, Kxng Crooked, Elzhi, Marsha Ambrosius, and more. The celebrated television actor has also amassed adulation for his rhyme skills, and he's out for more blood. Today (February 3), he drops "The Boogeyman," a verbal... Read more

February 6, 2017 Video

Dizzy Wright Leaves The Funk Behind With New Teammates & A Volume Of Bars (Video)

At the beginning of 2016, Hopsin announced that the label he founded, Funk Volume, was closing shop. At the time, Las Vegas rapper Dizzy Wright had been with the label for nearly four years and the announcement cast a shadow of uncertainty over his future. In the months following the... Read more

February 6, 2017 Video

48 Laws Shows That Dreamville’s Omen Is Patient But Powerful (Video)

J. Cole has proven that patience pays off. The MC/producer has collected his props with four consecutive #1 albums, following years of cultivating a small following into a multi-platinum empire. Cole has built Dreamville around artists who can relate. One such act is Omen. The Chicago, Illinois native is a... Read more

February 6, 2017 Video

Producer David Axelrod Has Passed Away. He Leaves Massive Legacy In Hip-Hop.

This evening (February 5), it has been reported that David Axelrod has died. The Roots' Questlove took to social media moments ago to announce the death of iconic music producer, songwriter, and arranger. A native of South Central Los Angeles, California, Axelrod's own music, as well as his productions for... Read more

February 5, 2017 News

New Edition’s Story Of Growth & Evolution Is Told Through This Mister Cee Mix

Last month, New Edition was the talk of television, thanks to a three-night film chronicling their beginnings, meteoric rise, and current state of the group. In conjunction with The New Edition Story, an offshoot of the group, Bell Biv DeVoe also released their first album in more than 15 years.... Read more

February 5, 2017 Audio, Mixes

T.I. Appoints Trae Tha Truth To Vice President Of Grand Hustle Records (Video)

For more than 30 years, MCs have held executive positions at records labels. From the days of Eazy-E's Ruthless imprint or Schoolly D Records, it is not uncommon for artists to control the music they makes and others'. Over the last 20 years, some of these labels have subsequently empowered... Read more

February 5, 2017 News, Video

DMX Is Mentoring Quadir Lateef. This Ruff Ryders MC Absolutely Stunts On The Mic. (Video)

Ruff Ryders Entertainment may not get the comparable mentions of a Roc-A-Fella or G-Unit, but they should. The label launched as an offshoot of the party promoting by the Dean siblings in the late 1980s would be responsible for an artist with five consecutive #1 albums in DMX. Moreover, the... Read more

February 5, 2017 Video

The Jigmastas Have New Music & They’ve Got Something To Say (Video)

The Jigmastas was a prominent 1990s and early 2000s duo of DJ Spinna and Kriminul (aka Krim). With Underground Hip-Hop history with Eminem, Talib Kweli, Pharoahe Monch, and the late Guru, this Brooklyn, New York collective has been quiet for much of the last decade, since their days with Tommy... Read more

February 4, 2017 Video

J.U.I.C.E. Defeated Eminem In One Of Rap’s Greatest Battles. He Offers A Rematch (Audio)

In 1997, at Cincinnati, Ohio's annual Scribble Jam Festival, Eminem and MC J.U.I.C.E. faced off in what is often considered one of Hip-Hop's greatest battles. At the time, the two Midwestern lyricists were both independent artists looking for a title, and some shine to boot. J.U.I.C.E., the Chicago, Illinois native... Read more

February 3, 2017 Audio

EPMD Reveal Eric B. & Rakim Used The Rhythm To Hit Them With A Diss (Video)

Last Fall, Rakim spoke before a special live event with the Juan Epstein Podcast. There, the lyrical half of Eric B. & Rakim told Peter Rosenberg and Cipha Sounds about a number of highlight moments surrounding his 30-plus-year career. To fans of 1980s Rap rivalries and supreme lyricism, one section... Read more

February 3, 2017 Video

Ab-Soul Bares His Soul In An Extremely Personal New Video

In "Evil Genius" off his 2016 album Do What Thou Wilt, Ab-Soul says "I study theology, ancient philosophy, astronomy, astrology," and in its video released today (February 3), all of those topics and then some appear. However, it's actually two highly conceptual storylines interwoven into one and is his most... Read more

February 3, 2017 Video

50 Cent Pays More Than $22 Million To Close Bankruptcy 3 Years Early

In July of 2015, 50 Cent filed for bankruptcy. It was a surprising headline for many, given Curtis Jackson's meteoric 2000s rise as a rapper and businessman. Despite his stake in electronics, a Starz network series, a record label, line of spirits, and previous investment in soft drinks, 50 Cent... Read more

February 3, 2017 News

Ball So Hard: Raekwon Is Putting The Rap Game On Notice That He’s Back (Video)

At the top of February, Raekwon The Chef unleashed the first call from The Wild album, coming March 24. The Wu-Tang Clan lyrical assassin examines the jungle around him, and ambushes the attributes in the culture he doesn't like on single "This Is What It Comes Too" (as it is... Read more

February 3, 2017 Video

Big Sean Has Radio Hits, But His Freestyle Game Is Still On FIRE (Video)

Today (February 3), Big Sean released I Decided, his fourth solo album and the first since 2015's platinum-selling and Grammy-nominated Dark Sky Paradise. Supported by the hugely successful singles "Bounce Back," "Moves," and "Halfway Off the Balcony," I Decided features Eminem, Jeremih, Migos, The Dream, as well as a choir... Read more

February 3, 2017 Video

Leaders Of The New School Are Recording New Music With Comeback Plans (Audio)

It has been nearly 25 years since Leaders Of The New School released an album, care of 1993's T.I.M.E. Mentored by The Bomb Squad, especially Chuck D, Long Island, New York's L.O.N.S. would create a launchpad for Busta Rhymes, along with Dinco D, Charlie Brown and DJ, Cut Monitor Milo.... Read more

February 3, 2017 Audio, News

Detroit vs. Everybody: Eminem & Big Sean Refuse To Be Outdone On “No Favors” (Audio)

Two of Detroit's most successful rappers have teamed up on a phenomenal duet, in the form of "No Favors." The most exciting song from forthcoming album I Decided features none other than Eminem, Motor City's King of Rap. Premiering January 18 on Zane Lowe's Beats 1 Radio show, the song's... Read more

February 3, 2017 Audio

Cash Money Records Vows To Release 500 Songs From The Vault

In the '80s, '90s, and early 2000s, record labels could largely control what fans heard. Music was recorded, and the best of it...according to artist, producer, or label A&R, anyway... is what the public received in stores or online. Even if a project was promoted through an interview, advertised in... Read more

February 2, 2017 News

Wale Uses Groundhog Day To Show J. Cole He Walks In No One’s Shadow (Video)

In the closing days of 2016, J. Cole shocked the Hip-Hop stratosphere with his song "False Prophets (Be Like This)." While not included in the final cut of 4 Your Eyez Only, the music video did first appear in the album's corresponding documentary. Within, the Roc Nation star, approaching his... Read more

February 2, 2017 Video

Hackers Are Playing YG’s “F*** Donald Trump” On Stations Across The Country (Video)

In the days leading up to Donald Trump's inauguration, Compton rapper YG offered to perform at the event for $4 million dollars. Specifically, he was referring to his anti-Trump anthem "FDT," which he originally released last March. Featuring Nipsey Hussle, the song was given the remix treatment a few months... Read more

February 2, 2017 Video

Locksmith Attacks Racist Agendas In An Incredibly Powerful Video

Northern California has always been a bastion of progressive Rap. From The Coup to Souls of Mischief to Locksmith, MCs from the Bay Area have a storied history of incorporating knowledge of self and social consciousness (some of it no doubt inspired by the energy of the Oakland-based Black Panthers)... Read more

February 1, 2017 Video

Donald Trump’s Muslim Ban Happened Without GOP Leaders Even Knowing About It

Donald Trump has been in office for less than two full weeks, and there is already incredible fallout from the executive orders he's signed thus far. His controversial immigration policy banning travel to the United States from seven of the world's most predominantly Muslim countries has elicited massive blowback from... Read more

February 1, 2017 Lifestyle

Beyonce & Jay Z Are Expecting Twins As Music’s Royal Family Expands

Beyoncé and Jay Z's 14-plus-year journey together has been something that music fans have watched transpire and develop, in real-time. Dating back to their early 2002 courtship, both music giants were guarded about the details of their private life. Their 2008 wedding was a testament to that. Eventually bringing that... Read more

February 1, 2017 News

Raekwon’s New Single Is Here & The Chef Is Cooking With Extra Fire (Audio)

In announcing his forthcoming solo album The Wild earlier this month, Raekwon told fans it's inspired by "all the s**t that's goin' on today," suggesting the LP will be a no-holds-barred reflection of the social and political climate of late. That proclamation has been proven true today (February 1) with... Read more

February 1, 2017 Audio

Faith Evans & Biggie Celebrate Both Coasts On Collabos With Jadakiss & Snoop (Audio)

Faith Evans had a momentous year in 2016. She and Lil Kim made peace, she joined Puff Daddy on a nationwide Bad Boy & Family tour, celebrating 20 years of the venerable label, and she announced she would be releasing a new collaboration album featuring her vocals alongside rare verses... Read more

February 1, 2017 Audio

Nas To Executive Produce “Street Dreams” Biographical Television Series

Approaching 21 years after he made his second album, It Was Written with top single "Street Dreams," these titles remain powerful statements in the life and career of Nas. After production and writing involvement in recent Netflix series The Get Down as well as film The Land (and its corresponding... Read more

February 1, 2017 News, TV, TV/Film

I.O.D. Is a Brownsville Villain, But Does This Video Make Him a Hip-Hop Hero?

READY or NOT?? You decide. We’re putting you in the A&R chair. Brownsville, Brooklyn's I.O.D. is an artist whose music is a direct reflection of the surroundings in which he came up. One of the most impoverished neighborhoods in the U.S., Brownsville is notorious for its status as a hotbed... Read more

January 31, 2017 Ready Or Not

Wyclef Jean Freestyles While Playing Guitar In One Of The Illest 5 Fingers Of Death EVER (Video)

By all accounts, Wyclef Jean is one of the most unique voices in Hip-Hop. The Haitian-born, Brooklyn-raised MC, singer, musician, and songwriter helped elevate the influence of Caribbean music in American culture, and his multilingual heritage has always been a hallmark of his work. With all of that diversity, it's... Read more

January 31, 2017 Video

Roxanne’s Revenge: Roxanne Shanté’s Biopic Causes A Bidding War

More than one week ago (January 22), the biopic of MC Roxanne Shanté, Roxanne Roxanne, screened at the Sundance Film Festival. Produced by Shanté, Pharrell Williams, and Forest Whitaker, the film starring Mahershala Ali and Nia Long traces the story of the prodigious Juice Crew member born Lolita Gooden, and her... Read more

January 31, 2017 News, TV/Film

Sadat X & Diamond D Are Releasing A Joint Album. The 1st Song Is A Warning (Video)

Brand Nubian's Sadat X and D.I.T.C.'s Diamond D go back a long way. From "Punks Jump Up To Get Beat Down" remixes to Wild Cowboys, these two veterans from Uptown make some great music together. In April of this year, they will release a whole LP together, The Sum of... Read more

January 31, 2017 Video

A Tribe Called Quest & Anderson .Paak Will Rock The Grammy Stage Together

In just a couple of weeks, the 59th Grammy Awards will broadcast on February 12. While De La Soul, Chance The Rapper, Fat Joe & Remy Ma, Kanye West, Drake, and other Hip-Hop stars are nominated in various categories, performances have begun to announce. One particularly exciting stage show will... Read more

January 31, 2017 Fresh

Jay Lonzo Spits More Knowledge at 17 Years Old Than Many Do In a Lifetime (Video)

On January 16, J. Cole acknowledged Martin Luther King, Jr. and the ongoing fight for equality and freedom in the U.S. with "High For Hours," a poignant record that compares 2017 America to chapters in its dark past. As he says in the song, not much has changed, and slavery... Read more

January 31, 2017 Video

These Immigrants Became U.S. Citizens The Day Trump Was Inaugurated. Their Stories Are Filled With Hope (Video)

With 30 minutes to go until Donald Trump is sworn in as the country’s 45th President, I am saying the Pledge of Allegiance for the first time since I was ten. Not for the inauguration, mind you — I have no way to watch, since they took my phone at... Read more

January 30, 2017 Lifestyle

A New List Declares Who’s Been The Best MC Every Year From 1979 to 2016

2017 is still too young to have its best MC crowned, but a new list has named the best MC in each year, since 1979. From Grandmaster Caz to Chance the Rapper, MCs of all generations have found themselves mentioned in the comprehensive list generated by a team of writers... Read more

January 30, 2017 Fresh

Dave East’s “It Was Written” Details The Journey That Led Him To Nas (Video)

One of the true jewels of Dave East's patient career is "It Was Written." The opening track to 2016's Top 40 Kairi Chanel album showed that Dave did not need to write a story to make convincing raps. The Harlem, New Yorker looks within and traces his journey from hustling,... Read more

January 30, 2017 Video