We’ll keep it all the way 100 with you, TSS Family. Reviewing albums this year has been bit of a chore because rappers these days only care about first week numbers instead of managing the number of the tracks on their albums. Notice how half of the industry’s 3rd quarter releases magically got delayed in time to catch the holiday buyer’s eye, no matter the cost? However, that’s another story for another day. Read the rest of this entry »

The Ghostface Killah comparisons that have followed Action Bronson ever since he hit the national radar with this spring’s breakbeat-fueled digital release, Dr. Lecter, are reasonable, but ultimately lazy. While the two emcees’ vocal similarities are uncanny, and their colorful personalities bloom from the same twisted tree, Bronson’s Anthony Bourdain meets Kool G. Rap lyrical approach is unique and virtually impossible to categorize. Read the rest of this entry »

There’s a sort of Norman Rockwell quality to Yelawolf. Not because his work paints a cheery sense of nostalgia; but rather it provides a striking portrait of modern rural America. Included in these exposes are the following: empty PBR bottles, souped-up (and, some times, rusted-out) Chevrolets and meth lab double-wides. It’s grisly stuff, especially for those who expect the South to be all SEC football and scenic beaches. Read the rest of this entry »

Phonte’s not the only former Little Brother member going stag on an album this year. With the release of Dirty Pretty Things, the levelheaded Rapper Big Pooh also makes his solo status known. In dropping this 18-track behemoth, Pooh crafts an expansive LP with mixed results. Read the rest of this entry »

Sure, it’s a man’s world but it wouldn’t be a damn thing without a woman’s touch. With more and more female rappers trying their manicured hands at juggling an occupation in the mic booth, North Carolina’s Rapsody puts the contents of her name first and details about her measurements dead last, proving she can conceive witty one-liners and linear subject matter just like everybody else. Backed by 9th Wonder and his production cohorts The Soul Council, the ambitious emcee’s For Everything looks to make believers out of the entire Hip-Hop community. Read the rest of this entry »

As the irreverent devil on the shoulder of The Clipse, Pusha T’s blizzard cold street narratives always raised susupicions what he would do without his brother Malice present as his conscience. Earlier this year, the world received the younger Thornton’s first missive with his first solo outing, the mixtape Fear Of God. A mix of We Got It For Cheap free-for-alls and more refined attempts at establishing himself as a viable solo entity, the first iteration of Fear Of God was proof that Neighborhood P was not playing and the rest of the world should be afraid. Read the rest of this entry »

By dropping a producer album, Lawrence, MA’s DJ Statik Selektah automatically inherited both the advantages and disadvantages of such records. Yes, on one hand they have a whole slew of artists from all walks of life, but they also tend to be unfocused and lack a centralized theme. However, on Population Control, his fourth on the subject, Statik tactfully is able to maximize his sound, while smartly directing the album’s bearings. Read the rest of this entry »

One of Hip-Hop’s more unique (and occasionally detrimental) qualities is an artist and sound being largely associated with its regions. And more so than that, its individual states. For North Carolina, one of the northern most southern states, the DNA of the music has largely associated with soulful sounds as opposed to the bass-driven music some of its Southern contemporaries have made insanely popular. Read the rest of this entry »

To be successful in music’s current digital age, you have to be a veritable Jack of all trades. DJ Drama has mastered his ultimate hustle in recent years with the store distribution of two glorified mixtapes bearing the Gangsta Grillz moniker and he’s back to christen the charm with Third Power. Read the rest of this entry »

From the metropolitan concrete universe of the East Coast to the utopia battlegrounds of the West Coast to the integrated cities boasted by the South, there’s plenty of love spread throughout the Hip-Hop community these days. Two denizens who aren’t strangers to sharing their respective spotlights – Murs and Ski Beatz – take their matters of the heart seriously on their first full length pairing, Love And Rockets Vol. 1: The Transformation. Read the rest of this entry »

Words By Samir S.

It’s been a bit of a dry spell for Evidence since the release of his last solo LP, the quietly impressive Weatherman LP, in 2007. He’s dropped an EP and a Beatles-inspired mixtape to hold fans over in the meantime, but judging by the poise of his new album, Cats & Dogs, Evidence has been using his time wisely: he’s come through with a cohesive and personal set of songs that is sure to satisfy fans of quality, no-frills Hip-Hop. Read the rest of this entry »

Despite a mostly favorable reception to his debut album, Attention Deficit, lowly sales and an inability to see eye to eye with Interscope led to Wale parting ways with the label. Going back to what he knew best, Wale hit the Internet hard with new material and parlayed that into a new recording home at Rick Ross’ Maybach Music Group. Read the rest of this entry »

Bottling up the sounds of the most popular season to create a hit with emeritus status is probably on the bucket list for nearly every artist doing it. For tabi Bonney, the D.C. mainstay with dreams of seeing his artisnal value grow with every public appearance, he takes 12 stabs at it with The Summer Years, a digestible but otherwise inchoate project owed to tabi’s inability to match his lyricism with the broad instrumentation on hand. Read the rest of this entry »

To be young, rapt in Hip-Hop and gifted can be an extremely resourceful if you’re trying to pursue a career in…well, rap (ya think?) and within the impassioned American prototype town of Pittsburgh resides Mac Miller, a levelheaded rhyme pugilist of the Caucasian persuasion who neither plays to a stereotype to gain leverage nor shies away from his blue-collar background. Read the rest of this entry »

Dream teams aren’t having much success this year. While it often looks good on paper to combine the top talent available in a quest for the elusive championship ring, problems with chemistry, personality conflicts and differences in style are frequent roadblocks to success for these types of arrangements. Thankfully, Brooklyn emcee Torae doesn’t encounter these issues on his latest release, For The Record. Read the rest of this entry »