Phonte knows you all love The Foreign Exchange. Phonte also knows you miss his humor, wit and lyrical dispositions hitting your eardrums on the regular. With that, there’s only one solution. Hit the studio and spill your guts out with your first studio solo album, you say? Read the rest of this entry »

Before Weezy tape dropped, Zo!’s Just Visiting Three was going to be my listening focus today and I think I’m going to stick with it. The latest release in his Just Visiting series of covers features the extended +FE Music family and comes fully produced by Zo! and Phonte for Chapter 3hree Verse 5ive Music/The Foreign Exchange Music. Read the rest of this entry »

The B-Girl’s back but don’t expect any simplistic rhyme cadences from Rapsody. North Carolina’s lyrical Wonder Woman lives up to her name because she ensures that her bars won’t be taken in vain. And with that, some congratulations and a healthy round of applause are in order. This MC is spitting at the notion of the sophomore slump and saving it for the microphone so you can Thank H.E.R. Now. Read the rest of this entry »

Director Terrence Nance brings the empowering words of Pharoahe, Styles P and Phonte to life with the video for “Black Hand Side.” The visual’s masterfully put together and goes a long way to remind us all that when the the two mediums snap together like puzzle pieces, the effect of the overall project is amplified. Read the rest of this entry »

If you’re unfamiliar with who Focus is, it’s probably because you haven’t bought an album in order to read liner notes in the past few years. Don’t feel bad because I fall somewhere between those two categories and the stacks of unopened CD’s laying around the house will attest to that. Read the rest of this entry »

“Pump up the world!”

These are tears of joy and laughter rolling down my face. And I imagine Mark Morrison probably has a similar visage. Read the rest of this entry »

Tomorrow, I’ll be boarding a super-early flight en route to Princeton, NJ for the “Hip-Hop 2.0″ event and now my literary OG Maurice Garland will be joining me as well. Lucky dog, he does actually appear on the same panel topic alongside Dr. Cornel West Read the rest of this entry »

Mac Miller’s title for his latest mixtape, Best Day Ever, could qualify as understatement of the year because this Pittsburgh native has been having a best day every day for the better part of seven months now. His K.I.D.S. tape woke up everyone from your 15-year-old sister to old Hip-Hop heads concerning the young gun’s potential and Best Day Ever–coupled with an XXL Freshman ’11 cover appearance–only provides further supporting evidence. Read the rest of this entry »

This summer, when we figured out why Based God was so damn strange, half of us realized there would be a point in time where his gimmick would work and the attention would lead to legitimate connects with legitimate artists. Then, with money in tow and opportunities to shine present, the Pack man’s lyrics would become less cooked and more bearable. Read the rest of this entry »

More new music from Pharoahe, “Black Hand Side,” and this time featuring Styles & Phonte. The track’s production credit goes to Mike Loe and set to be included on Monch’s upcoming album W.A.R. (We Are Renegades) in stores March 22nd on W.A.R. Media/Duck Down Music. Read the rest of this entry »

North Carolina may be one of the best centralized locales for Hip-Hop. Deep enough to encompass the South’s idealogy but still able to keep up with the lyrical curve, King Mez and his right-hand soundman Khyrsis join forces with DJBooth, Herfection, and Nahright for the proper introduction to King Mez’s talents with The King’s Khryris. Read the rest of this entry »

Ahh, the first track on my “R&B Sh*t” playlist since it first released many moons ago today gets a video. Anthony David with Phonte & Algebra for “4Evermore” and it’s all love. Read the rest of this entry »

In the night, Torae hears ‘em talk the coldest story ever told and the Coney Island champ wants to send all jilted lover’s into cardiac arrest with his new freebie, Heart Failure. More than just another Valentine’s Day playlist, Torae examines all cardiology matters from the hot to cold and lukewarm emotions. Presented by Honey Mag & Flud Watches and mixed by the lovely DJ Blazita, Read the rest of this entry »

As fans of many Hip-Hop purists’ favorite trio from the past decade, it’s been a shame to see Little Brother fall apart for whatever reason, especially since we here @ TSS have grown up alongside them, to a certain extent. However, via the wonderful Twitter wire, ‘Tay shares proof he and 9th Wonder have worked out their personal kinks Read the rest of this entry »

When Phonte sends a mailout, it’s so concise that there’s no need to paraphrase or alter it. Give it, just as it’s received because the content is too beautiful to be presented in any other way. Read the rest of this entry »