Last Friday (April 9), family, friends, and millions of Hip-Hop fans mourned the loss of DMX. The 50-year-old rapper born Earl Simmons passed away at age 50. For the previous week, X had been on life support in White Plains, New York hospital, following a cardiac arrest. Decades into a... Read more

Earlier this month, De La Soul's episode of Drink Champs featured an extensive and newsworthy preview. N.O.R.E. and DJ EFN released the part of the discussion where Posdnuos, Dave, and Maseo addressed their ongoing, and sometimes public negotiations with Tommy Boy Music surrounding the digital revenue and rights to the... Read more

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

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

Warren Griffin, III is revered as a  Hip-Hop underdog. The MC/producer/DJ better known as Warren G came up as the shy half-brother of Dr. Dre. Raised in Long Beach, California Warren is the man many believe is responsible for the introduction of Snoop Dogg. Warren, keeping the music going at... Read more

Last week, Epic Records CEO Antonio "L.A." Reid made a bold revelation. The seasoned executive and TV personality confirmed that a sixth album from A Tribe Called Quest is coming soon, and is both "great" and "something special." The news broke care of a Rap Radar Podcast episode, with limited... Read more

Known for bringing some of the most historic and livest performances to New York City's Brooklyn borough, the Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival is not just a place to catch memorable moments in music. Now in its 12th season, BKHHF (and Brooklyn Bodega) continues to organize and host panels, workshops, exhibitions, and... Read more

As part of its Hip-Hop documentary, The Message, BET conducted the last ever televised interview with Chris Lighty, prior to his death in 2012. As part of that session, Lighty spoke on how he made the transition from working with Russell Simmons and Lyor Cohen at Def Jam/Rush Management to... Read more

It was a year ago today that Hip-Hop lost Chris Lighty, manager to Nas, 50 Cent, Missy Elliott, LL Cool J, Q-Tip, Busta Rhymes and more. Busta Rhymes has released a heartfelt and candid tribute to honor is mentor and friend. Check out Chris Lighty featuring Bob Marley. Related: Chris... Read more

The legendary Kool DJ Red Alert gives a detailed first-hand account about the early days of Chris Lighty's career. Check out the video. Related: 2012 BET Hip-Hop Awards Chris Lighty Tribute (Video)... Read more

If there were any questions about the impact Chris Lighty had on hip-hop and music, generally, last night's stirring tribute to him at the Hip-Hop Awards answered them. The late mogul was celebrated by performances from some of his biggest clients including Busta Rhymes, 50 Cent, Fat Joe, Missy Elliott... Read more

The hip-hop community is still reeling from the sudden and tragic loss of Chris Lighty on Thursday. Here are links to 2 of the better articles written about both the impact Lighty had on hip-hop culture and the man, himself. First is an article written by Rob Kenner of Complex... Read more