Bar none, Duck Down has to be one of the most impressive labels left standing from the 90′s. Their uncompromising commitment to releasing quality Hip-Hop deserves a round of applause, along with support from fans, both new & old. Forever keeping their supporters in mind, they put together this free download as a precursor to the label’s upcoming CMJ showcase, aptly titled Download The Right Thing. Read the rest of this entry »

Words By Khalid Strickland

The last time Ruck (a.k.a. Sean Price) and Rock (a.k.a. Rockness Monstah) released a full album together as Heltah Skeltah, the world was different.

The Twin Towers were still standing. CD was the most popular music format. Only chicks wore skinny jeans. And people may have scoffed at the notion of a Black man occupying the Oval Office. It was 1998 when Heltah Skeltah dropped Magnum Force, an album which produced the hit single “I Ain’t Havin’ That.”

Although the times have changed, the duo of Ruck and Rock are still making potent, adamantium-hard music. Heltah Skeltah’s new album, D.I.R.T. (Da Incredible Rap Team), will be released by Duck Down Records on September 30th. That’s not to say that Ruck and Rock haven’t been keeping themselves busy since Magnum Force. Both emcees have been featured heavily on compilation albums and various projects released by their crew, the mighty Boot Camp Clik. Sean Price has earned a massive, die-hard following with his exceptional solo releases. Rock, who’s facing charges for an alleged attempted murder, recently locked the streets down with his latest mixtape, Shell Shocked. As the Hip-Hop nation becomes increasingly glitzy, the time is right for Heltah Skeltah to haul it back into the gutter.

TSS: How long have you guys been working on D.I.R.T.?

Sean Price: A couple of months.

TSS: What are you looking to accomplish with this new album?

Rock: First of all, we love Heltah Skeltah. We are Heltah Skeltah forever. It’s always fun to do a Heltah Skeltah project. We’re gonna always want to do one. We’re just also solo artists and we were trying to get that established. It just feels like it’s time…time permitted it. We be around each other but we be on our own missions or whatever. But now it seems like the time to reintroduce niggas to that shit right there. We ain’t expecting to take over the world, even though we are. We just trying to spread the gospel and get it out there. Because it don’t stop here, we’re working on other projects right now. Re-familiarize niggas with it.

TSS: It’s been about ten years since your last album together. Did ya’ll approach the making of this album any different than the others?

Sean: Not really. We found a dope beat and tore it down. That’s how it always go.

TSS: You both have a lot of new fans with all of the recent projects that you’ve done. For those who may not be familiar with ya’ll as a group, what do you bring to the table together?

Rock: Basically, me and my boy, we’re from that school of thought when rappers used to rhyme to impress you with the rhyme, not with what they’ve got and this, that and the third. You know, we like nice things; cars and all of that. But that’s not what we’re trying to impress you with. We’re trying to impress you with the rhyme, you understand? What we do is, we basically body every beat we hear. We get a beat that we like and we just body it. We disrespectinize and say the hardest, toughest, most disrespectful shit and combine it with the best flow in the world and that’s what we give niggas. Me and son, basically together we give you the yin and yang so we don’t leave no stone unturned. Whatever I don’t touch, he touch…you understand what I’m sayin’?

TSS: Being that it’s been nearly a decade since you’ve recorded an album together, do you feel that this is a debut album to a degree? Read the rest of this entry »