AFH Ambrosia for Heads

Search Results

Maseo Details How Beats Stetsasonic Rejected Helped Form De La Soul’s 1st Album (Video)

Maseo Details How Beats Stetsasonic Rejected Helped Form De La Soul’s 1st Album (Video)

De La Soul's 3 Feet High and Rising is a benchmark Hip-Hop album. The introduction of Posdnuos, Trugoy (nka Dave), and Maseo proved to be a crucial link in the evolution of Native Tongues. It also showcased the producer who Maseo today credits as De La's "fourth member." Following the... Read more
March 8, 2018 Video
Roxanne Shanté’s Biopic Trailer Shows A True Survivor In The Rap Game (Video)

Roxanne Shanté’s Biopic Trailer Shows A True Survivor In The Rap Game (Video)

In just over one month, Roxanne, Roxanne will be available to the public via Netflix. On March 23, the film produced by Pharrell Williams and Forest Whitaker will tell the story of MC Roxanne Shanté. The first Rap star of Marley Marl and DJ Mr. Magic's Juice Crew (according to... Read more
February 22, 2018 TV/Film, Video
Jermaine Dupri Will Be The 2nd Hip-Hop Artist Inducted Into Songwriters Hall Of Fame

Jermaine Dupri Will Be The 2nd Hip-Hop Artist Inducted Into Songwriters Hall Of Fame

Last February, JAY-Z was announced as the first Hip-Hop artist headed to the Songwriters Hall Of Fame. In mid-June, when the New York City ceremony took place, former President Barack Obama was among those who affirmed and celebrated Jay's lyrical contributions to music. The major moment was followed by peer... Read more
February 6, 2018 News
50 Cent Now Denies Bagging Up On Cryptocurrency

50 Cent Now Denies Bagging Up On Cryptocurrency

UPDATE: In documents obtained by TMZ, 50 Cent has denied his previous claims that he profited greatly on cryptocurrency. The G-Unit head denied income from the investment in his bankruptcy filing documents. "[I have] never owned and [do] not now own, a Bitcoin account or any Bitcoins," stated the rapper... Read more
January 24, 2018 News
Melle Mel Explains Why He Didn’t Think “The Message” Would Be Successful (Video)

Melle Mel Explains Why He Didn’t Think “The Message” Would Be Successful (Video)

Grandmaster Melle Mel is regarded as one of Hip-Hop's first generation MC icons. The lyrical front-man of Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five helped move the fledgling genre of Rap from the party to a reflection of street reality. In his staggering discography, Melvin Glover was successful in both realms.... Read more
January 18, 2018 Exclusive, Video
Happy 50th Birthday To LL Cool J. Celebrate The Original G.O.A.T. (Video)

Happy 50th Birthday To LL Cool J. Celebrate The Original G.O.A.T. (Video)

Today marks the 50th birthday of James Todd Smith, best known as beloved Queens, New York MC, LL Cool J. Born January 14, 1968, "Ladies Love Cool James" has always had an undeniable impact in Hip-Hop. As an adolescent, LL Cool J reportedly recorded his own demos using a mixer... Read more
January 14, 2018 Fresh
Your Old Droog & Conway Kick Rhymes That Are Hard Like Cement (Audio)

Your Old Droog & Conway Kick Rhymes That Are Hard Like Cement (Audio)

Brooklyn, New York's Your Old Droog has in the past labeled a lot of his songs as "Outsider Music," not Hip-Hop or Rap. However, his latest single, featuring Conway the Machine, is an exception: he has categorized “Cement 4's” as Metal. Music of this kind is often called “gritty" or... Read more
January 11, 2018 Audio
Kendrick Lamar & Big K.R.I.T. Are Battling For Best Rap Album Of 2017 & It Is CLOSE

Kendrick Lamar & Big K.R.I.T. Are Battling For Best Rap Album Of 2017 & It Is CLOSE

For more than two weeks, Ambrosia For Heads has asked readers and fans to determine the "Best Rap Album Of 2017." With AFH's Top 15 provided, readers were offered a Wild Card option to vote in an album pick that may have been overlooked. With the resulting "Sweet 16" in place,... Read more
January 2, 2018 Best Rap Album 2017
Who Had The Best Rap Album Of 2017 (Battle 12): JAY-Z vs. Joey Bada$$

Who Had The Best Rap Album Of 2017 (Battle 12): JAY-Z vs. Joey Bada$$

We have our opinions on the best albums of 2017, but rather than simply list them, we thought it would be more interesting to hear what you, the readers, believe is the Best Rap Album of 2017. With that in mind, we decided to make our Best Rap Albums Of... Read more
December 29, 2017 Best Rap Album 2017
Busta Rhymes, Black Thought & MC Lyte Give A Knockout Tribute To LL Cool J (Video)

Busta Rhymes, Black Thought & MC Lyte Give A Knockout Tribute To LL Cool J (Video)

Earlier this month, LL Cool J became the first Hip-Hop artist to be celebrated as a Kennedy Center Honoree. Last night (December 27), the full ceremony aired on CBS, and LL’s tribute was one fit for a GOAT. While it is customary to have a celebrity introduce honorees at these... Read more
December 27, 2017 Video
Who Had The Best Rap Album Of 2017 (Battle 7): JAY-Z vs. CyHi The Prynce

Who Had The Best Rap Album Of 2017 (Battle 7): JAY-Z vs. CyHi The Prynce

We have our opinions on the best albums of 2017, but rather than simply list them, we thought it would be more interesting to hear what you, the readers, believe is the Best Rap Album of 2017. With that in mind, we decided to make our Best Rap Albums Of... Read more
December 24, 2017 Best Rap Album 2017
What Is The Best Rap Album Of The Year? You Decide. Here Are Our Top 15.

What Is The Best Rap Album Of The Year? You Decide. Here Are Our Top 15.

It’s that time of year where “best of” lists abound and, in a year that featured stellar music from artists young and old, 2017 has proven to be one of the finest of the decade. We have our opinions on the best albums of 2017, but rather than simply list... Read more
December 15, 2017 Best Rap Album 2017
Salute To LL Cool J. He Is Now Hip-Hop’s First Kennedy Center Honoree

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
LL Cool J Couldn’t Live Without His Radio. Now He’s Getting His Own Station.

LL Cool J Couldn’t Live Without His Radio. Now He’s Getting His Own Station.

LL Cool J's debut album Radio released 32 years ago this weekend (November 18, 1985). The Def Jam Records classic featured the pride of Farmers Boulevard rapping about women in his life, his promises of Rap stardom, and telling other MCs why they were inferior in so many ways. Radio... Read more
November 17, 2017 News
The Pharcyde Release A Deluxe Edition Of Their Debut Album With 16 Bonus Songs (Audio)

The Pharcyde Release A Deluxe Edition Of Their Debut Album With 16 Bonus Songs (Audio)

Next week (November 24) marks 25 years since The Pharcyde released debut album Bizarre Ride II The Pharcyde. With that milestone, a new "deluxe edition" box-set emerges to celebrate the gold-certified Delicious Vinyl LP with 16 bonus songs. Crate Recordings assembles the material, which is available for stream (below). The... Read more
November 13, 2017 Audio, News, Playlists
Why Eminem Is His Own Toughest Critic (Video)

Why Eminem Is His Own Toughest Critic (Video)

After great anticipation, Eminem began his Revival yesterday (November 10). "Walk On Water" is a single with a fitting title. Until the song released, no one knew that Beyoncé would be on the track, or that its production would be unlike anything Marshall Mathers ever rocked from Dr. Dre, the... Read more
November 11, 2017 Exclusive, TBD, Video
Lyor Cohen Explains How Redman Led Def Jam’s Comeback (Video)

Lyor Cohen Explains How Redman Led Def Jam’s Comeback (Video)

During the 1980s Def Jam Records reigned supreme. The label, which burgeoned in co-founder Rick Rubin's New York University dorm room, issued several classic albums from legendary artists. These include LL Cool J's Radio, Slick Rick's The Great Adventures of Slick Rick, Rock & Rock Hall of Fame inductees Beastie Boys and... Read more
October 30, 2017 Video
This Mix Salutes 1987’s Def Jam Tour With LL Cool J, P.E., Eric B. & Rakim and Whodini

This Mix Salutes 1987’s Def Jam Tour With LL Cool J, P.E., Eric B. & Rakim and Whodini

By 1987 Def Jam Records had solidified a foothold in the Hip-Hop music landscape. While labels like Sugar Hill, Enjoy, Jive, and Profile Records had released some truly incredible singles, Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin's three-year-old outfit was fast embracing the Rap album format. Moreover, they had a diverse roster—in... Read more
October 20, 2017 Audio, Mixes, Throwback
Meet Eminem’s Newest Signee In The Rawest BET Cypher Of 2017 (Video)

Meet Eminem’s Newest Signee In The Rawest BET Cypher Of 2017 (Video)

Last night (October 10) Eminem's BET Hip Hop Awards cypher shook the universe, in what stands to be the MC's most political moment in a career that's never shied away from dissing public figures of all kinds. The previous time Marshall Mathers blessed the BET cypher stage, he brought his... Read more
October 11, 2017 Video
Rapsody Says Forget Best Female MC. She Wants The Top Spot (BET Hip Hop Cypher)

Rapsody Says Forget Best Female MC. She Wants The Top Spot (BET Hip Hop Cypher)

Cypher Season is upon us, as the 2017 BET Hip Hop Awards is ahead. With one of the most lauded and overall talked about albums of the moment in Laila's Wisdom, Rapsody sets off a grouping of MCs who happen to be women—and DJ Premier resumes his post as cypher... Read more
October 7, 2017 Video
Kendrick Lamar Is Now A Part Owner Of His Record Company

Kendrick Lamar Is Now A Part Owner Of His Record Company

Kendrick Lamar and Anthony "Top Dawg" Tiffith have a different relationship than most label founders and artists. That was clear to any listeners of 2017's "DUCKWORTH.," a spellbinding revelation that these two had intertwining paths even ahead of Lamar's 1987 birth. For the last 14 years, these two men from... Read more
September 14, 2017 News
Lloyd Banks Assists As Conway Campaigns To Prove That He’s The Grimiest, Ever (Audio)

Lloyd Banks Assists As Conway Campaigns To Prove That He’s The Grimiest, Ever (Audio)

That highly distinctive deep-atmosphere, kept so twitchy and tense, that defines the Griselda Records sound is on full display in “Bullet Club” – the first single taken from Conway The Machine’s upcoming G.O.A.T.  The track sees him paired up with G-Unit MC Lloyd Banks and fellow Griselda affiliate Benny. DOOM &... Read more
September 9, 2017 Audio
A New Video Shows Why Kanye Was Hip-Hop’s Most Promising Student Upon His Graduation

A New Video Shows Why Kanye Was Hip-Hop’s Most Promising Student Upon His Graduation

Marking a dramatic shift in his career from successful producer to stadium star, Kanye West’s third album Graduation celebrates its 10th anniversary this coming Monday (September 11). Proven with time, the Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam Records LP with the upcoming birthday ushered in a new era in Hip-Hop. With Graduation, 'Ye positioned... Read more
September 5, 2017 Video
Women In Rap Are Back & They Don’t Dance. They Make Money Moves (Video)

Women In Rap Are Back & They Don’t Dance. They Make Money Moves (Video)

2017 may prove to be a watershed year in Hip-Hop. Kendrick Lamar's DAMN. married concept and advanced technical lyricism with commercial dominance in a way that forced the mainstream to conform. As recently as last week, artists from Logic to Bun B to Trae Tha Truth are taking action on... Read more
September 2, 2017 Exclusive, TBD, Video
Kendrick Lamar Set The VMAs On Fire & Then He Humbly Won 6 Awards (Video)

Kendrick Lamar Set The VMAs On Fire & Then He Humbly Won 6 Awards (Video)

Last night (August 27), the 34th annual MTV Video Music Awards took place at Inglewood, California's The Forum. The 2017 VMAs (and its reformatted list of categories) opened with the focus on Kendrick Lamar. The MC who has enjoyed #1's, platinum certifications, and other televised awards this calendar year kicked... Read more
August 28, 2017 News, Video
AZ, Redman, Erick Sermon & DJ Premier Make D’Angelo’s Brown Sugar Even Sweeter (Audio)

AZ, Redman, Erick Sermon & DJ Premier Make D’Angelo’s Brown Sugar Even Sweeter (Audio)

When D'Angelo's album Brown Sugar was released in 1995, it did not sound like anything out at the time. Hip-Hop was enjoying what many see as its golden age, with music by Nas, Biggie, Wu-Tang Clan, Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre and more lighting up the charts. On the R&B front,... Read more
August 25, 2017 Audio
Scarface Has A New Album Coming & He Shares Exclusive New Music (Video)

Scarface Has A New Album Coming & He Shares Exclusive New Music (Video)

It's been a busy month for Scarface. The Houston, Texas legend closed July with footage of himself and longtime producer N.O. Joe in the studio. The MC/beat-maker pair responsible for “The Diary,” “Seen A Man Die,” “Smile,” and “Mary Jane” (co-productions) is at work on what appears to be 'Face's... Read more
August 19, 2017 Exclusive, TBD, Video
LL Cool J Tells The Full Story Of When He Knocked Out Jamie Foxx (Video)

LL Cool J Tells The Full Story Of When He Knocked Out Jamie Foxx (Video)

Over the last couple of years, Drink Champs, hosted by N.O.R.E. and DJ EFN, has become one of the most popular podcasts, and with good reason. The show, fueled by the hosts' familiarity and respect for their guests, along with a healthy amount of alcohol, often leads to some of... Read more
August 4, 2017 Video
LL Cool J Will Be Hip-Hop’s First Kennedy Center Honoree

LL Cool J Will Be Hip-Hop’s First Kennedy Center Honoree

For nearly 40 years, the Kennedy Center Honors have celebrated people in the performing arts who have made significant contributions to American culture during their lifetimes. Unlike the Grammy Awards, Academy Awards and other such award shows, the Kennedy Center Honors do not focus on a single art form. Instead,... Read more
August 3, 2017 News
Diggin’ In The Crates Meets The Artifacts As A.G. & El Da Sensei Join Forces (Audio)

Diggin’ In The Crates Meets The Artifacts As A.G. & El Da Sensei Join Forces (Audio)

In the mid-1990s, two of the most exciting duos in East Coast Hip-Hop were Showbiz & A.G. and The Artifacts. In June, JAY-Z shouted out his former Payday Records label-mate Andre The Giant in some of the songwriters he most respects. Sadat X & El Da Sensei Form New Group.... Read more
August 3, 2017 Audio
LL Cool J Wanted To Do A 2nd Collabo With Canibus To Avoid Their Beef (Video)

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
July 28, 2017 Video
Scarface Is In The Studio With A Key Producer. Rappers Are “In Trouble.” (Video)

Scarface Is In The Studio With A Key Producer. Rappers Are “In Trouble.” (Video)

One never knows what Scarface's status is until he decides to push the button on music. The Houston, Texas legend has claimed retirement multiple times in his decorated career, only to come back and make some incredible music after the hiatus. In what he considers his 30th year in the... Read more
July 27, 2017 Video
Last Of A Dying Breed: Why Scarface Is The Greatest MC Of All Time (Video)

Last Of A Dying Breed: Why Scarface Is The Greatest MC Of All Time (Video)

Scarface is an MC who is a keystone within a legendary group, the Geto Boys. However, he also maintains a solo catalog that is arguably even more impressive. Brad Jordan's career expands nearly 30 years, and the Houston, Texas legend has made a powerful impact with the fans, the critics,... Read more
July 22, 2017 Exclusive, Food for Thought, TBD, Video
2 Live Crew’s Fresh Kid Ice Has Died At Age 53

2 Live Crew’s Fresh Kid Ice Has Died At Age 53

After more than 34 years in Hip-Hop, 2 Live Crew founding member and author Fresh Kid Ice died yesterday morning (July 12) in Miami, Florida. The MC and artist born Christopher Wong Won was 53 years old at the time of his death. TMZ confirmed the news after speaking with... Read more
July 13, 2017 News
Producers Rejoice: Legal Sampling Is Now As Easy As Online Shopping (Video)

Producers Rejoice: Legal Sampling Is Now As Easy As Online Shopping (Video)

A potentially game-changing new service is about to hit the digital streets, one that could theoretically help usher in a new golden age for sample-based Hip-Hop. Swedish startup Tracklib has created a one-stop online “crate-digging” marketplace, on which producers can find, buy (at $1.99 a track) and eventually license existing... Read more
July 7, 2017 Exclusive, News, Video
JAY-Z’s 4:44 Album Has Gone Platinum In Less Than A Week

JAY-Z’s 4:44 Album Has Gone Platinum In Less Than A Week

Less than one week after JAY-Z released his 13th solo album, 4:44 is platinum. That Roc Nation LP was available June 30. As was the case with its 2013 predecessor Magna Carta...Holy Grail, the 10-track offering was accessible on a limited basis. In this case, only Tidal subscribers and Sprint... Read more
July 5, 2017 Fresh, News
How Losing His Father Helped JAY-Z Escape A Hard Knock Life (Video)

How Losing His Father Helped JAY-Z Escape A Hard Knock Life (Video)

"Momma loved me. Pop left me." JAY-Z's life is as interesting as his art. The Brooklyn, New Yorker walked a line between hustling his way out of the 'hood and pursuing a talent that he has called "God-given." By the mid-1990s, those worlds would masterfully intersect on Reasonable Doubt, giving... Read more
June 24, 2017 Exclusive, TBD, Video
A Harvard Student Made A Rap Album Thesis. Sway Puts Him To The Test (Video)

A Harvard Student Made A Rap Album Thesis. Sway Puts Him To The Test (Video)

Last month, Obasi Shaw graduated from Harvard University. For his thesis, the English major submitted a 10-track Hip-Hop album, Liminal Minds. He wrote and recorded the album for more than a year. Shaw's resulting work tackled the issue of what it means for a young man to be Black in... Read more
June 19, 2017 Video
JAY-Z Officially Announces His New Album & Shares A Preview (Audio)

JAY-Z Officially Announces His New Album & Shares A Preview (Audio)

JUNE 20 UPDATE: It has now been confirmed that No I.D. is producing JAY-Z's 4:44 in its entirety. Billboard confirmed the news. No I.D., a co-founder of group Cocaine 80s, and is best known for his work with Common, Vince Staples, and Jhene Aiko. He is a longtime Def Jam... Read more
June 19, 2017 Audio
An Argument For Why Black Thought Is The Greatest MC Of All Time (Video)

An Argument For Why Black Thought Is The Greatest MC Of All Time (Video)

For almost 25 years, Black Thought has been putting his raspy voiced verses to record. The constant MC for The Roots crew has made a dozen albums, seemingly performed as much as any Rap artist, and is now typically on television five nights per week. More than just simply hard... Read more
June 17, 2017 Exclusive, Food for Thought, TBD, Video
Jay Z Is Celebrating Father’s Day By Bailing Out Dads Who Can’t Afford Their Freedom

Jay Z Is Celebrating Father’s Day By Bailing Out Dads Who Can’t Afford Their Freedom

If you're from neighborhoods like the Brooklyn one I grew up in, if you're unable to afford a private attorney, then you can be disappeared into our jail system simply because you can't afford bail. Millions of people are separated from their families for months at a time — not... Read more
June 16, 2017 Lifestyle
Scarface Says Jay Z Is The Best Songwriter Of All-Time

Scarface Says Jay Z Is The Best Songwriter Of All-Time

Today (June 15) Jay Z is being inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Announced in February, the moment marks the first time a Hip-Hop artist will receive the prestigious honor. In celebration of the achievement, Tidal has compiled some remarkable peer praise for the Roc Nation MC. Common (who... Read more
June 15, 2017 Fresh
DMX Punching Chris Lighty Drew Blood Money From His Album (Audio)

DMX Punching Chris Lighty Drew Blood Money From His Album (Audio)

This spring, the life and death of acclaimed record executive Chris Lighty has been the subject of an investigative podcast series. Combat Jack has created and hosted Mogul, a weekly look at the evolution of the man who managed A Tribe Called Quest, LL Cool J, Busta Rhymes, 50 Cent,... Read more
May 19, 2017 Audio
20 Years Later, Timbaland, Missy Elliott, Aaliyah & Magoo Still Boogie Down (Video)

20 Years Later, Timbaland, Missy Elliott, Aaliyah & Magoo Still Boogie Down (Video)

With their platinum-selling 1997 debut LP Welcome to Our World, Timbaland & Magoo invited millions of music fans into their native Norfolk, Virginia, a city (not to mention, a state) that had not made the kind of splash in the culture as had other Southern cities. With Timbo's innovative, electronic style... Read more
April 27, 2017 Do Remember
Killer Mike Interviews George Clinton. They Keep It All The Way Funky (Video)

Killer Mike Interviews George Clinton. They Keep It All The Way Funky (Video)

Killer Mike bought and launched the SWAG Shop when his music career was gaining momentum as a retail and real estate investment. Once an admitted hustler, Mike Bigga saw he and his wife's shop as a lasting, legal venture that would also keep him connected to his Atlanta, Georgia community.... Read more
April 25, 2017 Video
Joe Budden Says Kendrick Lamar & Royce 5’9 Are The 2 Best MCs In The World (Video)

Joe Budden Says Kendrick Lamar & Royce 5’9 Are The 2 Best MCs In The World (Video)

The release of Kendrick Lamar's latest album has triggered discussion of where he stands in the Hip-Hop pantheon of MCs. Many consider him to be 4 for 4, in terms of outstanding LPs, including Section.80, good kid, m.A.A.d. city, To Pimp A Butterfly and, now, DAMN. As untitled.unmastered. was simply... Read more
April 20, 2017 Video
A Breakdown Of What Makes Big Daddy Kane A Superior MC (Video)

A Breakdown Of What Makes Big Daddy Kane A Superior MC (Video)

Big Daddy Kane has not released a solo album in nearly 20 years. However, when Antonio Hardy said "Nobody's Equal" in spelling out the acronym of K.A.N.E., the statement was (and remains) irrefutable to many. Big Daddy Kane is one of the greatest MCs to ever touch the microphone, and... Read more
April 9, 2017 Video
Drug Addicts Today Are Getting More Love & Compassion, Especially If They’re White

Drug Addicts Today Are Getting More Love & Compassion, Especially If They’re White

With the so-called "War On Drugs" so clearly a political and moral failure, Americans suffering from addiction today live in a more compassionate climate. More and more, drug addicts are seen as struggling with a public health issue, rather than one based on notions of crime and moral ineptitude. As... Read more
April 7, 2017 Lifestyle
10 Years Ago, Rakim, Nas, Kanye West & KRS-One Made A Classic (Video)

10 Years Ago, Rakim, Nas, Kanye West & KRS-One Made A Classic (Video)

This week, a new video with D.M.C. revealed how telling his verse on "My Adidas" truly was. The Hollis, Queens superstar MC pointed back to the lyrics claiming he took the beat of the street and put it on TV. In doing just as Darryl McDaniels said, the world followed,... Read more
March 23, 2017 Do Remember
You’ve Decided. DJ Premier Is Hip-Hop’s Greatest Producer Of All-Time (Video)

You’ve Decided. DJ Premier Is Hip-Hop’s Greatest Producer Of All-Time (Video)

Today (March 9), the winner of Ambrosia For Heads’ Finding The GOAT Producer competition, the quest to name Hip-Hop’s Greatest Of All-Time Producer, was determined. In the championship round, DJ Premier defeated J Dilla 63.41% to 36.59%, meaning that Preemo is the GOAT Producer, as decided by AFH readers. DJ... Read more
March 9, 2017 Finding the GOAT, Video
1 … 9 10 11 12 13 … 23
  • ADVERTISEMENT