Earlier in the week, Nas openly admitted that his procrastination and laziness was the prime factor in some of his beat selection being less than…well, Illmatic. Quite understandable as The N usually has a lot on his mind (with weed being 75% of the problem). But his lollygagging has cost him a classic album–or three. As one of the remaining vets who can still sell records off the strength of his lyrics Read the rest of this entry »

Politically, economically and culturally, a lot has changed since December 31, 1999. In terms of music, the past ten years has seen a seismic shift in the way we consume music and in turn has profoundly influenced how music is made. In ‘99 we were still in the midst of the compact disc era (although I was snagging tunes off shared dorm room drives for the first time and had just installed WinAmp on my computer).

But in terms of content, has Hip-Hop music really changed much since 1999? Take a look at what the TSS Crew would have been debating as the 90′s closed.

The all-time low of Pop music — Seriously. If you think shit’s bad now, then maybe you should check out this Top 100 list from 1999. Cher’s “Believe” at number one? Sugar Ray and Ricky Martin in the top 10 and the rise of teen pop? No wonder people thought there was going to be an apocalypse. Read the rest of this entry »

Featuring Ben Folds Five, Talib Kweli & Spree Wilson, this vid is a nice change of pace in the Rap game where a dose of reality is always welcome. Read the rest of this entry »

The late 90’s weren’t kind to Nas as he was forced to re-record his third album I Am…The Autobiography because it was leaked onto the internet. Rather than release the supposed double album as is, Nas scrapped the original track list and dropped just one disc. I Am… was still a commercial success thanks to the controversial “Hate Me Now” featuring Puff Daddy and the DJ Premier laced “Nas Is Like.” When it was time to release the second half of the disc, which was now called Nastradamus, he went against Columbia’s wishes to release Read the rest of this entry »

It’s always good to see a talented artist finally catch a break. While I can’t say I fully understand Missy’s role in this video, I’m glad she’s gotten behind Jazmine because it’s about time someone did.

I can remember falling for Jazmine when I heard her version of “Resentment” (go back to 2006 yo). So in the past few weeks & months, as her buzz has grown & I’ve been seeing her name popping up on other sites & in magazines, I’m not resentful (pun intended lol). It’s good.

Too often, music people like to hoard & cradle an artist’s material as if it were their child, scared that when others get ahold of it, it won’t be “new” any more or worried that a label might put their dirty hands into the mix & make the sounds impure. Honestly, I never really thought Jazmine would blow. Then again, I thought there were only so many even following her until recently. R&B artists who don’t sell sex seem to never make it to the forefront, but cultivate a loyal following that supports their work, heralds it often & to as many as possible. It would be a disservice to label JS as neo-soul because when that happens, as that seems to punch their ticket to purgatory for an R&B artist. Read the rest of this entry »