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Eddie Murphy Is Starring In & Producing Beverly Hills Cop 4

As a sequel to Coming To America is currently being filmed in Atlanta, Georgia, Eddie Murphy confirms that he's reprising another role from his 1980s string of blockbuster movies. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Murphy is producing and starring in Beverly Hills Cop 4 in a partnership between Netflix and... Read more

RZA Breaks Down 10 Kung Fu Films That Wu-Tang Clan Sampled (Video)

It's on the introduction of Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) that listeners first hear a vocal sample that heeds a threat: "The Shaolin and the Wu-Tang could be dangerous." The rough and unpolished sample, taken from the martial arts movie Ten Tigers from Kwangtung, presents a taste of cinematic flavor that... Read more

James Ingram Has Passed Away At The Age Of 66

UPDATE: According to TMZ, James Ingram succumbed to a lengthy battle with brain cancer. ORIGINAL STORY: Grammy Award-winning R&B/Pop singer, keyboardist and producer James Ingram has died. Debbie Allen, Ingram's longtime creative partner, confirmed the news this afternoon (January 29), according to Consequence Of Sound. A native of Akron, Ohio,... Read more

The Making Of The Self-Destruction Video Shows The Power Of Hip-Hop Unity

In the late 1980s, Rap music had a problem. At the time the genre was exploding with national and overseas tours, incidents were taking place at some of those concerts that were smearing the reputation of the Hip-Hop culture. As the safety of show-goers was a significant concern, mainstream media... Read more

50 Cent Announces He Is Producing A Prequel To Power

Fifteen years after launching one of the biggest Rap careers of the 2000s, 50 Cent has found a new source of artistic and commercial success through Power. Since 2014, the Starz series has become a top draw for the network and premium cable shows of its kind. Following its fifth... Read more

Eminem Becomes LL Cool J’s Stan In A Conversation Between Two GOATs (Audio)

Eminem tends to offer impassioned anecdotes when crediting his multiple Rap music influences. For the first episode of LL Cool J's new show, The Influence Of Hip-Hop on Sirius XM's Rock The Bells Radio channel, Eminem tells LL that he is one of the main reasons that he began rapping as a child. "I... Read more

30 Years Ago, The Source Set A New Standard For Hip-Hop Journalism

This week, Hip-Hop culture is celebrating its 45th anniversary. The first documented South Bronx rec room party with DJ Kool Herc behind the wheels of steel was on August 11, 1973. Like the origins of the culture, that event's significance would live by word of mouth if Hip-Hop had no... Read more

The First Look At The Bobby Brown Story Is Absolutely Crazy (Video)

Bobby Brown's life story is an inspirational and cautionary tale. The Boston, Massachusetts-bred "Every Little Step" singer who achieved worldwide fame as a solo artist following his departure from New Edition in the mid-1980s. By the '90s, Brown also played a hand in molding Top 40 radio to accept more... Read more

Video Music Box Is Celebrating Its 35th Anniversary With A Concert Packed With Legends

It is an obligation for music historians and Heads alike to acknowledge the evolution of music video shows largely began with "Uncle" Ralph McDaniels and his pioneering TV show Video Music Box. The Queens, New York-born McDaniels is the founder and host of the show, which first aired on New York... Read more

Finding The GOAT Group: Fat Boys vs. Run-D.M.C. Who Is Better?

“Finding the GOAT Group,” the fourth installment of Ambrosia For Heads’ annual competition series features Hip-Hop’s greatest collectives vying for the #1 spot. Sixty-two groups have been pre-selected by a panel of experts, and one slot will be reserved for a wild-card entry, including the possibility for write-in candidates, to... Read more

Finding The GOAT Group: Brand Nubian vs. Jungle Brothers. Who Is Better?

“Finding the GOAT Group,” the fourth installment of Ambrosia For Heads’s annual competition series features Hip-Hop’s greatest collectives vying for the #1 spot. Sixty-two groups have been pre-selected by a panel of experts, and one slot will be reserved for a wild-card entry, including the possibility for write-in candidates, to... Read more

Finding The GOAT Group: Public Enemy vs. Stetsasonic. Who Is Better?

“Finding the GOAT Group,” the fourth installment of Ambrosia For Heads’s annual battle series features Hip-Hop’s greatest collectives vying for the #1 spot. Sixty-two groups have been pre-selected by a panel of experts, and one slot will be reserved for a wild-card entry, including the possibility for write-in candidates, to... Read more

PMD Discusses Yo! MTV Raps’ Ed Lover Being One Of The Best Freestylers On The Planet (Audio)

From its inception in 1988 to its final episode in 1995, Yo! MTV Raps was a top springboard for Hip-Hop artists. It was an opportunity to showcase skills and unique styles on one of the largest platforms available to the genre. In an interview with HipHopDX, Parrish "PMD" Smith spoke... Read more

Finding The GOAT Group: Boogie Down Productions vs. Ultramagnetic MC’s. Who Is Better?

“Finding the GOAT Group,” the fourth installment of Ambrosia For Heads’s annual battle series features Hip-Hop’s greatest collectives vying for the #1 spot. Sixty-two groups have been pre-selected by a panel of experts, and one slot will be reserved for a wild-card entry, including the possibility for write-in candidates, to... Read more

Finding The GOAT Group: Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five vs. Whodini. Who Is Better?

“Finding the GOAT Group,” the fourth installment of Ambrosia For Heads’s annual battle series features Hip-Hop’s greatest collectives vying for the #1 spot. Sixty-two groups have been pre-selected by a panel of experts, and one slot will be reserved for a wild-card entry, including the possibility for write-in candidates, to... Read more

Herbie Hancock Will Rock It With Kendrick, Snoop & Common On Next LP

Herbie Hancock is a 14-time Grammy Award recipient (as well as an Oscar winner) that many cite as a provider of their introduction to Hip-Hop and DJ'ing on television. Although the Jazz impresario's recording career began at the top of the '60s, Hip-Hop and Hancock helped each other achieve mainstream... Read more

Jadakiss & Styles P Revamp A Whodini Classic To Show That Loyalty Is Timeless (Audio)

Whodini's biggest hit "Friends" has proven itself to be an ageless Hip-Hop song. The standout single from 1984's Escape album has a message that has endured more than 33 years and a beat (thanks to late keyboardist/producer Larry Smith) that seemingly never went out of fashion either. Rap superstars Tupac... Read more

Sweet Love: Why Andre 3000 & Kendrick Lamar Are Infatuated With Anita Baker (Video)

Several high profile R&B acts like Whitney Houston, Bobby Brown, Loose Ends, and Soul II Soul made music in the 1980s that, through sampling, reference, and homage, can be heard in contemporary Hip-Hop. Babies of the 1980s, '90s, and early 2000s were inevitably raised on Urban Contemporary radio which housed... Read more

The Kennedy Center Is Celebrating Rap’s Pioneers With A Concert Series

The John F. Kennedy Performing Arts Center has gradually created a bona fide space for Hip-Hop within its gates over the past year. It has appointed A Tribe Called Quest's Q-Tip as its First Artistic Director of Hip-Hop Culture in 2016 and is awarding LL Cool J as the first ever... 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

EPMD Detail The Night Their Beef With Eric B. & Rakim Almost Got Physical (Video)

Earlier this year, EPMD joined Flava Flav, Large Professor, Bumpy Knuckles and more than 20 MCs at the 30th anniversary concert for Eric B. & Rakim's Paid In Full. Rakim and Eric's first concert together in years, also marked a historic armistice in 1980s Hip-Hop folklore. On this week's episode... Read more

Actor Bernie Casey Of “I’m Gonna Git You Sucka,” “Revenge Of The Nerds” & More Passes Away

The entertainment world is mourning the death of actor and former professional athlete, Bernie Casey. On Tuesday (September 19), Casey passed away at the age of 78 while being treated for an unknown illness at Los Angeles' Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Casey starred in a number of cult classics in multiple... Read more

Jada Pinkett Smith Reveals She Left The Thug Life Right As Tupac Entered (Video)

Actress Jada Pinkett Smith met Tupac Shakur at Baltimore School For The Arts in the mid-1980s. While Pinkett would graduate in 1989, Pac and his family relocated to Marin City, California in 1988. While Shakur paid his dues as a roadie, dancer, and eventual MC with Digital Underground, Jada made... Read more

Teddy Riley Reveals Some Of Heavy D’s Biggest Hits Were Meant For Wreckx-N-Effect

UPDATE: Teddy Riley's full Red Bull Music Academy Festival lecture video with Jeff "Chairman" Mao: ORIGINAL MAY 15 POST: Earlier this month, artist/producer Teddy Riley appeared before a live New York City audience as part of the Red Bull Music Academy speaker series. There, the Harlem, New Yorker spoke about... Read more

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

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

Yo! MTV Raps Host Doctor Dré Calls Straight Outta Compton “Straight Outta Fiction” (Audio)

Hip-Hop is big enough to have some artists with multiple names. Notably, Mobb Deep and South Central Cartel were each compromised of duos Prodigy and Havoc (or "Prodeje" in S.C.C.'s case). There have been two Guru's, a couple Jay Dee's, and several Mike D's. Perhaps no tandem is more famous... Read more

The Roots & Phil Collins Made Us All Feel It In The Air Last Night (Video)

Phil Collins' 1981 hit "In The Air Tonight" has been covered by Lil' Kim (with Phil providing vocals). The Face Value single was also referenced in Eminem's "Stan" lyrics, sampled on Nas's definitive hit "One Mic," and interpolated by Tupac & Tha Outlawz. Collins appeared on The Tonight Show Starring... Read more

The New Edition Story Pulls No Punches. This Clip With BBD Throws Them.

To say that New Edition has a cinematic history is an understatement. The Boston, Massachusetts group has had a few high profile personnel shifts, reunions, and plenty of hits in its several carnations. Starting in the late 1970s, Bobby Brown, Michael Bivens, and Ricky Bell formed a singing group on... Read more

A Founding X-Ecutioner Moves The Crowd With Dance Hits That Can’t Be Faded (Mix)

Mista Sinista (f/k/a Joe Sinista) made a name for himself working as an elite scratch-master alongside Common, the Beatnuts, and dead prez. Since 1989, the DJ/turntablist (and onetime MC) was part of X-Ecutioners, alongside the late Roc Raida, Rob Swift, and DJ Total Eclipse. There, the group would become mix... Read more

This Mix Of 1980s Hip-Hop Travels A Road Of Riches That Will Leave You Paid In Full (Audio)

When we look back in Hip-Hop, our gaze often hones in on the 90s, and rightfully so, as that era spawned Nas, Biggie, Wu-Tang Clang, Tupac, Jay-Z, OutKast, Snoop and so many other all-time greats. However, each of those legends will say it was MCs from the 80s who inspired... Read more

These 1980s Hip-Hop Albums Reach Round 2, With One Battle Left To Be Decided

Last month, Ambrosia For Heads returned to "Finding The GOAT," our annual voting series that polls readers and fans to determine the Greatest Of All-Time. Following 2014-2015's quest to use votes to determine the GOAT MC, we are asking readers to determine the greatest of all-time Hip-Hop album. “Finding The... Read more

Snoop Dogg Drops ‘Em & They’re All Hot In This ’70s & ’80s DJ Set (Video)

The same August 20 night that DJ Quik tore down a Los Angeles, California roller-disco party, Snoop Dogg jumped behind the wheels too. "DJ Snoopadelic," with 7 Days comrade Dam-Funk in tow as well as Tha Dogg Pound's Daz Dillinger, spun nearly an hour of relaxed, groovy joints. Snoop used... Read more

This Heavy D Performance Was In A Vault For 30 Years…Until Now (Video)

Today (May 24) is Heavy D's birthday. The MC/producer/singer born Dwight Myers would have been 48 years old. Sadly, family, friends, and Hip-Hop Heads worldwide lost "the overweight lover" on November 8, 2011 to a pulmonary embolism. Just one month prior to his death, Hev' reunited with Heavy D &... Read more

Rest In Peace Larry Smith, Run-DMC & Whodini’s Iconic Producer

Hip-Hop has lost another pioneer. Yesterday (December 18), iconic producer and songwriter Larry Smith has been confirmed dead. Smith, who was 63 at the time of his death, produced early records for the likes of Run-DMC, Whodini, Jimmy Spicer, and Kurtis Blow. Smith's death comes more than six years following... Read more

Planet Asia Pops Off Over Beats That Sound Straight Outta The Rhyme Pays Era (FreEP)

When Planet Asia eloquently stated "My mind shine harder than your chain" back in 2000, on Dilated Peoples' "Ear Drums Pop," it was clear that the Fresno, California MC was special. Trading an Interscope Records deal for full creative control, this Cali Agent has achieved strong independent success. Late in... Read more