El Che, Chi-town wordsmith Rhymefest’s sophomore album, has been an album yours truly has been looking forward to since his freshman set Blue Collar overtook my iTunes playlists back in 2006. Unfortunately, the album has had enough leaks to make Timbaland’s camp look airtight. If that’s not enough, more than one of his album tracks have been given to other artists. Needless to say, Mr. Smith has since left the Hip-Hop graveyard that is J Records for greener pastures (which has not been determined as of yet). Read the rest of this entry »

Andrew sent this over the morn but I was too busy living life offline to give it a spin. Yet, the track’s title was magnetic enough that I knew it was going to be worth the three minutes.

“Even before Wale bricked, I tried to pull him to the side and say ‘the white boys won’t sell your shit.‘”

Dudes forget that ‘Fest can battle and drop a sharp punchline. On this track featured on DJ V-Dub’s upcoming Brick Season mixtape, he pulls no punches, mixing proselytizing and poetry. Read the rest of this entry »

You know something is terribly wrong when Leslie Hindman Auctioneers can sell some of Elvis Presley’s locks for fifteen large, while four thousand miles away in Venice, 97-year-old Bessie Mae Berger and her two sons live in a dilapidated ’73 Suburban. Read the rest of this entry »

Grinding to make a name for yourself by releasing a mixtape shows one a noble level of dedication but delivering an actual album to the people proves you’re really in it to win it. Such as the case of the Chicago young’n A.J. Crew as he sucks you into his R.E.M. mode with his debut Nightmares & Daydreams. Read the rest of this entry »

You should already know Mick Boogie & Co. are no strangers to remixing some of our alternative favorites. So it should give you great pleasure that The Press Play DJ aligned some of the Hip-Hop’s rawest talent to remix & revamp Peter Bjorn & John’s latest album Living Thing. They say the best things in life are free so it would behoove you to take advantage because the tracklist speaks for itself. Without further adieu, Mick Boogie presents Re-Living Thing.

Dowload — Mick Boogie x Peter Bjorn & John – Re-Living Thing Mixtape

Slaughterhouse? That bloody mess is an afterthought for Nino Bless since he’s found a new group of veteran wolves to run with — for the time being. This is the first taste of his upcoming project The Nomads, dropping next month. Who’s the winner? Who’s got the NQ? Only one way to find out… Read the rest of this entry »

Mick Boogie’s back!  Sporadic with his mixes due to his busy schedule, his projects still get an automatic listen from me due to his near impeccable track record.  In the vein of 1988 & Viva La Hova; Peter Bjorn and John’s Living Things gets the boogieman’s mash-up touch in the form of Re-Living Thing.

For the first taste of things to come Mick enlists the services on The Kickdrums for the beat and Wale, Young Chris & Rhymefest to handle the mic duties for a reinterpretation of “Nothing To Worry About.”  I’ve never heard the original, but I have no qualms for Mick’s version after hearing this.

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Download – Peter Bjorn and John Feat. Wale, Young Chris & Rhymefest – “Nothing To Worry About” (Kickdrums Remix)

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This is Drew’s deal so I’ll let him explain this:

Yes, I know it’s been a long time coming, and I’ve seemingly been talking about it forever, but today is the day that Tim and I are unleashing it to the world. Ladies and gentlemen, I bring you The Fake Shore Drive Mixtape.

Now you can finally see what actually made the final cut, and how Tim sequenced and mixed the mixtape, that blends and cuts nicely. We have new and unreleased material from Bump J, The Cool Kids, Lupe Fiasco, Mikkey Halsted, GLC, Naledge, Twista, Rhymefest, Really Doe, Sly Polaroid, Pugs Atomz, J. Ivy, Que Billah, Big Wiz, Skooda and more.

Unfortunately, we lost a couple of these exclusives to various internet leaks, but there are still some incredible gems on here that you’ve never heard. I mean, it does feature a Bump J x Twilite Tone collaboration, so what more could you want?

I’d like to thank all of the artists that jumped down on the project and submitted music, Timbuck2 for orchestrating the music, The Cool Kids for hosting, Mike Kolar for MASTERING the project, Marc Moran for the dope visuals, and John Seyferth for his help with everything.

Link & track list after the jump Read the rest of this entry »

Presumably the first single off El Che, Rhymefest drops enough punchlines & barbs @ others (guess who?) to leave you dizzy. The shameful fact is, no matter what, this cat goes completely unheralded. I’m not saying there’s not a solid percentage of the population that isn’t aware of who he is and his material. It’s not as if his style is too “heavy” for the average fan either.

Enh, whatever. El Che, coming soon.

As a prelude to his upcoming album, Rhymefest gets together with Scram Jones to Read the rest of this entry »

New music from El Che off the upcoming FSD Presents The Chicagorilla Ape Tape Vol. 1 and Rhymefest’s The Manual. Check Andrew’s spot for more info.

Rhymefest – Exodus 5.1

**Shots Fired** Read the rest of this entry »

I asked my esteemed colleague, who listened to this before me, “Who won Round 1?”

He said “neither.”

Saigon – “Under Achiever” (Joe Budden Diss)

I’ll let you decide.

Propers due to Legend

Previously Posted — “The Letter Opener” – Saigon Responds To Joe Budden | Joe Budden – “A Letter To Saigon”

The letter opener as in one of these.

Disappointment best describes Saigiddy these days. After last year’s shoulda/coulda/woulda “Believe It,” antics dominated most of his viral fame, leaving fans wondering if it was the actual Saigon or the one from Entourage they were dealing with. Read the rest of this entry »

El Che is on the way.