AFH Ambrosia for Heads

LL Cool J Remembers Knocking Out MC Hammer With A Diss & Explains Why (Video)

On his "I Shot Ya (Remix)" LL Cool J reminded music fans that his victories included wins against Kool Moe Dee, Ice-T, and M.C. Hammer. Five years prior, on LL Cool J's fourth album, Mama Said Knock You Out, he seemingly left the ring victorious with a TKO title track aimed... Read more

Cypress Hill Recall Filming A Video With Ice Cube & Tim Dog On The Same Set (Video)

It's been nearly a decade since Cypress Hill released a group studio album, but that changed late last month with their new LP Elephants On Acid. That effort restores the production to DJ Muggs, a welcomed shift both for the group and its legions of fans. In honor of the project,... Read more

D.I.T.C.’s O.C. Recreates The Year In Hip-Hop That Was 1988 In His New Video

1988 was a special year in Hip-Hop. EPMD, DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, Big Daddy Kane, N.W.A., Eric B. & Rakim, Boogie Down Productions, Ice-T, Slick Rick, Jungle Brothers, and Biz Markie all released landmark albums. O.C. was listening, as was P.F. Cuttin. Both artists made their critical... Read more

LL Cool J Has Been Nominated For The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame

A foundational figure in Hip-Hop history is eligible for nomination into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a milestone reached in past years by Beastie Boys, Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five, N.W.A., Public Enemy, Run-D.M.C. and Tupac Shakur. This year, LL Cool J is among the list of... Read more

Homeboy Sandman & Edan Make An Anthem For Going Offline (Video)

Earlier this year, Queens, New York native MC Homeboy Sandman and Big Apple-based producer/DJ/MC triple-threat Edan teamed up to drop a sleeper single just before summer: "#NeverUseTheInternetAgain." The two connected on the banging track to drop facts on the dangers of social media, and their efforts in rejecting internet usage.... Read more

Do Remember When King T Toasted Tha Alkaholiks & Spilled Great Lyricism (Video)

When West Coast vets are being discussed, King T’s name does not come up nearly enough. The Compton, California native released a robust major label debut, Act A Fool, in late 1988. This puts him in scarce company indeed, as Ice-T’s essential first album Rhyme Pays had dropped only a... Read more

The D.O.C. Sings Beautifully In A Video That Shows Anything Is Possible.

For decades, Hip-Hop Heads have known that The D.O.C. has a golden pen. The Dallas, Texas native MC is credited with writing songs and lyrics for Dr. Dre and other artists on Death Row and Ruthless Records. However, in the 1980s, the artist born Tracy Curry was a rapper with... Read more

John Singleton Reveals He Wanted N.W.A. To Star In Boyz N The Hood

Thirty years ago today, on August 8, 1988, the N.W.A. released its proper debut album, Straight Outta Compton. Bursting onto the scene with rawness and aggression fueled by the Reagan-era Compton climate and lifestyle, Ni**az Wit' Attitudes presented an LP that would shape the sound and narrative in Rap for... Read more

The Last XXXTentacion Suspect Surrenders. It’s A New Era For Solving Rap Star Murders.

Just over six weeks after 20-year-old rapper XXXTentacion was fatally shot during a robbery in Deerfield Beach, Florida, all four of his suspects have been arrested and indicted for murder. The incident took place on June 18 just outside of a motorcycle dealership while the #1 charting artist Jahsey Onfroy... Read more

A Report Suggests Beyoncé & Kanye’s TIDAL Streaming Numbers Were Inflated (Video)

In recent weeks, several of the major streaming platforms have been under public fire for some of their hate speech policies and excessive marketing. While JAY-Z's Tidal service has avoided those headlines, an ongoing investigation into the platform raises some other questions entirely. VICE News has published a video that... Read more

Kendrick Lamar Will Make His Acting Debut On Power

Some legendary Rap artists have launched acting careers while at the top of their music game. Tupac Shakur, Ice Cube, DMX, Queen Latifah, Eminem, Ice-T, and Mos Def are just some of the examples. One of Hip-Hop's reigning kings is now taking that next step. Kendrick Lamar will make his... Read more

Suga Free’s Kitchen Table Verse Shows He’s 1 Of The Best In The West (Video)

Pomona, California representative Suga Free is a cult-celebrated figure in Rap. The lyricist with the rant-rap delivery made a name for himself through a close association with DJ Quik. Like other, earlier affiliates such as AMG, Hi-C, 2nd II None, and the Penthouse Players Clique, Suga is a ruthlessly raunchy... Read more

Too Short Explains How Tupac Almost Kept Pimp C From Working With JAY-Z (Video)

With 2000's guest spot on JAY-Z's Top 20 hit "Big Pimpin'," UGK scored their most visible collaboration to date. Produced by Timbaland, it appeared on Jigga's triple-platinum Vol. 3... Life and Times of S. Carter and is easily one of the rapper's biggest commercial successes. At the time, Underground Kingz Bun B... Read more

Warren G’s Documentary Trailer Shows How The G-Funk Era Is Forever (Video)

Nearly a year and a half ago, Warren G's G-Funk documentary made waves at the 2017 South By Southwest Film Festival. A partnership with filmmaker Karam Gill, the movie examines how a sub-genre of Hip-Hop largely credited to Warren, half-brother Dr. Dre, as well as an artists and producers such... Read more

The NFL Throws The Flag At Players Who Kneel. Freedom Of Speech Is Not Free.

Ice-T partially named his third album, Freedom Of Speech...Just Watch What You Say! The gold-certified Sire/Warner Bros. Records release was Tracy Marrow's way of fighting censorship he experienced on the road. One of the biggest rappers in the genre at the time felt he was penalized for making statements in... Read more

Freddie Gibbs & Mozzy Update “Colors” For 2018 & It’s Even More Gangsta (Audio)

Thirty years ago, Ice-T released "Colors" as a companion to Dennis Hopper's film of the same name. Both the song (which climbed up the Top 100) and the movie starring Sean Penn and featuring early appearances by Don Cheadle, Damon Wayans, and Leon were timepieces of 1980s gang culture. Ice-T... Read more

30 Years Ago KRS-One Carried BDP’s Torch By All Means Necessary

In the late 1980s, Boogie Down Productions was one of Hip-Hop's most exciting new groups. KRS-One and DJ Scott La Rock carved their lane with early 1987's Criminal Minded. The B-Boy Records LP was combative to Mr. Magic and Marley Marl's Juice Crew (especially MC Shan) and planted a flag... Read more

Suge Knight Defense Attorneys Charged With Conspiracy

Death Row Records co-founder Marion "Suge" Knight is currently on trial for the vehicular hit-and-run murder of music executive Terry Carter, among a list of other charges. If convicted the Compton, California native and onetime music mogul could face life in prison. Despite his incarceration for more than two years,... Read more

Eric B. & Rakim Announce First Tour Dates In 25 Years

Last July, Eric B. & Rakim reunited on stage for the 30th anniversary of Paid In Full. At Harlem's Apollo Theater, the Hip-Hop legends added a new chapter in their history, performing a plethora of hits from their early catalog. Ambrosia For Heads filmed from the audience as more than... Read more

The Book of Ra. Rakim Confirms His Memoir Is Coming This Year. (Audio)

Many of Hip-Hop's best-known and greatest MCs have released autobiographies and memoirs. JAY-Z published Decoded. LL Cool J (I Make My Own Rules), Ice-T (The Ice Opinion), Snoop Dogg (Tha Doggfather), Prodigy (My Infamous Life), Eminem (The Way That I Am), Common (One Day It'll All Make Sense), 50 Cent... Read more

Wu-Tang Clan To Perform 36 Chambers At 2018 Soundset Festival

Rhymesayers Entertainment's 11th annual Soundset lineup is announced. For 2018, the Minneapolis, Minnesota Hip-Hop festival will feature some of RSE's founders and quite active artists. Event co-organizers Atmosphere will perform on the heels of reissuing their 1997 debut Overcast!. Slug, Ant, and company will be joined by Evidence, following last... Read more

Quincy Jones Details How Michael Jackson Stole Some Of His Best Material (Video)

Quincy Jones turns 85 years old next month. The musician, arranger, producer, and celebrity is showing a side of himself that may be new to most of the public. Q is speaking fearlessly about some of his most sacred collaborators and peers. The creator of 1989's Back On The Block... Read more

A News Traffic Team Thinks Of A Master Plan To Celebrate Rakim’s 50th Birthday (Video)

Yesterday, Rakim celebrated 50 years since being born to be the soul controller of the universe. As a tribute to the God MC, the WSB-TV Atlanta news team of Fred Blankenship and Mark Arum incorporated a number of The R's lyrics into their traffic reports throughout the morning. The dynamic... Read more

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

Public Enemy Are Being Inducted Into The Grammy Hall Of Fame Because They Fought The Power

Public Enemy is a legendary Hip-Hop act that never received a Grammy Award. The Long Island, New York-based collective joins icons such as Eric B. & Rakim, Scarface, Nas, and Snoop Dogg with that distinction. Ahead of this month's 60th Grammy Awards (January 28), it has been announced that Public... Read more

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

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

20 Years Later, Rhyme & Reason Remains Rap Music’s Ultimate Backstage Pass (Video)

During the late 1990s, Hip-Hop was a seismic force that garnered mainstream recognition as a billion-dollar industry. The culture had invalidated scores of critics who dismissed it as a fad during the previous two decades. Hip-Hop achieved this while rewriting the rules of the music business and redefining the American... Read more

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

Jay Rock Shows Again Why He’s One Of The Best Guest MCs Of His Generation (Video)

Although he was the first artist on the powerhouse record label that is TDE, Jay Rock's output has been relatively sparse, compared to that of Kendrick Lamar, ScHoolboy Q and others in the family. Rock has only released one album in the last six years, 2015's stellar 90059. The Watts... Read more

All Eyez On The Score: A Breakdown Of The Beef Between Tupac & The Fugees (Video)

On February 13, 1996, two of the biggest, and best-selling Hip-Hop albums of all time were released. That Tuesday, Tupac Shakur made his Death Row Records debut with double LP All Eyez On Me. The Fugees followed a tepid response to 1994's Blunted On Reality with a critical and commercial... Read more

Kool G Rap Explains How Record Label Politics Made Him Lose Like The Ill Street Blues

Twenty-five years ago today, Kool G Rap & DJ Polo released their third album, Live & Let Die. Featuring singles "Ill Street Blues" and "On The Run," the Cold Chillin' Records release marked a shift for the Queens, New York MC and DJ team. The release would be the final... Read more

See The Evolution Of Hip-Hop From 1979 To The Present In 30 Minutes (Video)

Over the years, there have been a number of vehicles that show the transformation of Hip-Hop from its inception to the present. The vast majority of these tend to be either hyper-kinetic mashups that showcase 2-3 second snippets of songs, or exhaustive documentaries that unfold over hours, showcasing years of... Read more

Say It Ain’t So. DJ Cash Money Is Hanging Up His Turntables (Video)

DJ Cash Money is one of Hip-Hop's greatest innovators behind the wheels of steel. Today (November 7), after well over 30 years in the music and culture, the artist born Jerome Hewlett has announced that he has retired. "It's official...I'm out the game. Thank you guys for all of the... Read more

Ghostface Killah’s “Worldwide” Gets An Official Remix Featuring A Soulful Live Band (Audio)

In 2016, Ghostface Killah released video single "Worldwide" with French DJ/producer Wax Tailor. Always prolific, Tony Starks made a song about acquiring stamps in his passport as he kicks science and rugged raps while trotting the globe. Some a la carte singles come and go for any artist, but "Worldwide"... Read more

A Near 500-Song Mix Showcases The Magnificent History Of West Coast Hip-Hop (Audio)

West Coast Hip-Hop is incredible. So many of its pioneers are still making albums, doing shows, and adding to their legacy. As a tribute to the Left Coast immense contributions to Hip-Hop, Take It Personal Radio has compiled a four-part episode dedicated to gangsta and underground Rap classics from the... Read more

Ghostface Killah’s Mighty Healthy Was Inspired By A Divine Force That Brought Wu Together (Audio)

Earlier this month, Wu-Tang Clan released The Saga Continues. Charting at #15, the album is produced entirely by DJ Mathematics—creator of the Wu logo, and longtime touring mix-master for Method Man as well as Meth & Redman. Originally, in 2016, RZA—who executive produced the project and raps—stated that the next... Read more

The D.O.C. Speaks About Idolizing Rakim & Making Plans To Work On New Music Together (Video)

On August 1, 1989, The D.O.C. released his debut album, No One Can Do It Better. The Ruthless/Atco/Atlantic Records album was the solo debut from the Dallas, Texas MC, formerly of the Fila Fresh Crew. Produced by N.W.A.'s Dr. Dre, it was not only an important mainstream representation of Southern... Read more

Eminem Was A Political Rapper Years Before The BET Cypher. Here’s The Proof (Video)

Tuesday night (October 10), Eminem spit what already appears to be the most talked about freestyle verse of all-time. At Detroit's First Street Parking with Shady Records artists and friends looking on (some would later get their turn to rap), Marshall Mathers went off the rails on an a capella... Read more

Prince Paul Remixes An Album Featuring Guru, DOOM & More And Gives It Away For Free (Audio)

Prince Paul has a legendary career in Hip-Hop. A member of Stetsasonic, Gravediggaz, Handsome Boy Modeling School, BROOKZILL! and many other projects, the Long Island, New Yorker revolutionized the way producers approached sampling in the 1980s. He mentored and produced De La Soul, in addition to work with Chris Rock,... Read more

An Argument For Why Snoop Is The Greatest MC Of All-Time (Video)

Despite the fact that he is one of Rap music's most widely recognized faces, voices, and outright brands, somehow many overlook the lyrical merits of Snoop Dogg. For 25 years, Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. has given Hip-Hop Heads different looks within one of the genre's most sprawling and versatile catalogs.... Read more

Big L’s First Verse On Wax Showed Heads That He Was A Rookie MVP (Audio)

Big L lived to see just one of his albums release. 1995's Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous has become something of a cult classic. The Columbia/Sony Records LP has early JAY-Z and Cam'ron appearances and lethal D.I.T.C. production from Lord Finesse, Showbiz, as well as Buckwild. However, all of... Read more

Parrish Smith Discusses LL Cool J Dissing EPMD ON THEIR OWN SONG (Video)

For decades, LL Cool J has been known as one of the most ferocious MCs ever to pick up a microphone...or ink one on his arm. Long before 50 Cent, LL Cool J was the bully from Queens, taking on all comers, old and new. LL's beefs with Kool Moe... Read more

LL Cool J Wanted To Do A 2nd Collabo With Canibus To Avoid Their Beef (Video)

LL Cool J and Canibus put their beef to bed back in the closing days of 2014. What started out as a rhyme battle (on the very same song) expanded into 17 years of feuding that involved tattoos, subliminal album titles, and a feature on QDIII's Beef DVD series. In... Read more

More Than 20 MCs Join Eric B. & Rakim In Celebrating Their 30th Anniversary (Video)

Yesterday (July 7), marked the 30th anniversary of the release of Eric B. & Rakim's classic album, Paid In Full, and they celebrated it in grand fashion. The two were joined on stage at Harlem's famed Apollo Theater by by more than 20 artists from eras both before and after... Read more

Hip-Hop Notables Support Havoc As He Does His 1st Show Without Prodigy (Video)

Last November, Q-Tip, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, and Jarobi took the Saturday Night Live stage, A Tribe Called Quest's first major appearance since the death of Phife Dawg in March of 2016. For many, watching a beloved group perform new material for the first time in decades without one of its... Read more

Public Enemy Release Their Free Album 5 Days Early. Listen Now. (Audio)

AUGUST 16 UPDATE: The YouTube post of the album has been added below. ORIGINAL JUNE 29 STORY: Earlier this week, it announced that Public Enemy's 14th album Nothing Is Quick In The Desert (Except Death) would be releasing on July 4. Perhaps basking in the day of their own independence,... Read more

Puffy Explains How He Landed On Tribe’s Midnight Marauders Cover Before Fame (Video)

The week of Puff Daddy's 24th birthday, the would-be mogul ended up on his first album cover. In late 1993, before Bad Boy Records ever released a single, and No Way Out was a distant dream, Sean Combs appeared on the outer artwork to A Tribe Called Quest's third album,... Read more

Mobb Deep’s Havoc Speaks About His Devastation Over Losing Prodigy (Video)

This week will go down as one of the hardest of 2017 for the Hip-Hop community, as it brought the unexpected and tragic death of Prodigy from Mobb Deep. Together, with his musical partner Havoc, the Queens MC was one of the most influential artists in defining Rap's New York... Read more

DJ Premier Releases The Official Version Of His 1992 Collabo With Mobb Deep (Audio)

As Hip-Hop continues to mourn the sudden loss of Prodigy, who passed away on Tuesday (June 20) in Las Vegas, tributes are beginning to surface that celebrate the man and his musical legacy. As was the case with many Hip-Hop legends like Nas, Biggie and JAY-Z, DJ Premier was one... Read more