“I don’t know if you don’t know, don’t care or can’t see
Every time something up in the hood, it ain’t me
And I ain’t always up to no good and on the creep
So we ain’t always gotta pass through the hood without speaking Read the rest of this entry »

Songs like Zion’s I’s “Birds Eye View” are necessary, for the simple fact they remind listeners how vital hip-hop can be to those using it properly. Not monetarily either, but in a therapeutic sense. Read the rest of this entry »

Here’s how this song entered my life: Archer ends with an allusion to a movie I’ve never seen. That movie is The Graduate. I watch the movie to get the reference. Read the rest of this entry »

Hey, look, man. It’s the weekend. The weather’s about as great as it can be for the second weekend in March. So the question is, why don’t you have Project Pat blasting at the most ignorant levels out of your car? Read the rest of this entry »

“State your name gangsta….Where you representin’?…You gonna hold it down?”

Last week on Twitter, someone asked whatever happened to Yung Wun. While most responded with answers like “He grew out braids and changed his name to Ace Hood,” I just sat there scratching my head, wondering where the hell I even knew that name from. Read the rest of this entry »

“And now I’m like a major threat/’Cause I remind you of the things you were made to forget…”

Lines like the one above a.) provide ammunition for Tupac conspiracy theories and b.) reiterate the idea Read the rest of this entry »

I’m almost positive Chris Brown has reggae legend Sizzla’s “Solid As A Rock” on his “Hating Ass N*ggas and B*tches” playlist. Read the rest of this entry »

If you haven’t untubed a Garcia Vega and stuffed that bad boy to the brim with Grimace, you can’t consider yourself completely versed on loud. If you haven’t heard of 11/5, the under-appreciated San Fran rap group from the 90s, we wouldn’t be surprised. Short-lived, but funkier than a pair of week-worn gym socks, Taydatay and the crew were huge on sampling old school R&B dance joints, but never big anywhere other than The Bay. Read the rest of this entry »

When Slim Shady returned from a prescription-pill-induced absence back in May of 2009, the Hip-Hop world welcomed the always outspoken icon back with open arms. Then, when he donned the infamous accent and proceeded to bludgeon his way back into people’s hearts with Relapse, those same folk slowly retracted their steps and then sprinted the other way. Read the rest of this entry »

O Beans, Beans! wherefore art thou Beans? Read the rest of this entry »

Back when I was casually growing my vinyl collection for no real reason, I bought a box of used records from a former friend who’d found them outside an evicted apartment. Although I felt bad about the way I’d gotten them, the exquisite selection I’d come up on for a measly $30 bucks was unfathomable. Read the rest of this entry »

Go ahead. Listen to Soul For Real’s “Candy Rain” and not sing along. I dare you. In fact, I triple dog dare you so you know it’s real. I heard this Friday night at a spot called Fishbowl and it’s been stuck in my head ever since. Read the rest of this entry »

The irony in this post is the fact I literally haven’t heard this 313 classic since iPods or YouTube came into existence. While chumming it up with the homie yesterday, I began flipping through a dusty, old CD book that was buried in his basement, when I came across an almost two-decade-old copy of Dice’s Black Monday. The best album from the sometimes-satanic, always-gangsta, neighborhood sh*t talker was not only an extremely rare find Read the rest of this entry »

Prior to Big K.R.I.T. winning over the hearts and ears of Hip-Hop lovers everywhere, David Banner was the pride, joy and face of Mississippi rap. Read the rest of this entry »

Time hasn’t been kind to Memphis Bleek, but that doesn’t detract from one of the best group cuts of the 2000s. On “Round Here,” Bleek, Trick Daddy and Tip douse a Just Blaze beat in gasoline Read the rest of this entry »