Redman has had a storied career in hip-hop, releasing some of the best albums the genre has ever produced, including the classics Whut?!? Thee Album and Muddy Waters. But the rapper that prided himself on being “raw like Reservoir Dogs” has found it challenging to transition from “The Headbanger” era to that of “I’ll Be [cont.]

The legendary Sam Sneed has had a rough career, despite the cult success of his debut single, “U Better Recognize” with Dr. Dre, from the Murder Was The Case soundtrack. While Sneed, along with partner J-Flexx, were integral to helping craft some of the early Death Row classics, shake-ups at the label (which you may [cont.]

It seems like its been years since MC’s hooked up with one producer exclusively for their LP. Artists like DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, Guru & Premier, and Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth joined together, creating some of the best albums in hip-hop ever. But lately we’ve seen the trend reinvigorate itself, with [cont.]

When the topic of underrated emcees comes up, people often mention Lloyd Banks or Pusha T. Left out of the discussion is Talib Kweli. Overshadowed by his one time (hopefully soon to be two time) partner in rhyme, Mos Def, Kweli has continuously fed hip hop heads healthy helpings of good music. However, as most [cont.]

One late night a few weeks back, Statik Selektah and Termanology conducted an experiment. That being to record a full EP, live via UStream, and then release it the next day on Itunes. Hot off the heels of their critically acclaimed 1982 project, released at the tail end of 2010, the big question is whether [cont.]

After Statik Selektah and Termanology successfully knocked out The Evening News EP in 24 hours live via Ustream, the next challenge was to see if Statik and Freeway could do the same. Freeway had already made magic using one producer exclusively for his last LP, The Stimulus Package, with Jake One. Could Statik do the [cont.]

As the third member of The Lox, Sheek Louch often gets overlooked. While he is the bigger than life, bombastic character of the group, lyrically, Jadakiss and Styles P take all of the shine. With that said, Sheek has carved out a niche for himself, putting his personality on display while making the kind of albums [cont.]

By now, hip-hop fans are very familiar with the man formerly known as Mad Skillz. Widely recognized for his knack for sick punchlines, Skillz has created a place for himself in hip-hop with his year end  “Rap Up” series and has gained notoriety as a renowned ghostwriter. The Virginia native has done his bit for [cont.]

One of the most buzzed about artists overseas is Tinie Tempah, a 22 year old British rapper that has exploded onto the scene in the last few years, with a grime-influenced style similar to Wiley and Dizzee Rascal. His official debut album, Disc-Overy, has seen massive success overseas, with four chart topping singles and an [cont.]

On Christmas Eve, Rick Ross dropped his third official release of 2010, the Ashes To Ashes mixtape-album, which followed his critically acclaimed Teflon Don LP, and preceding Albert Anastasia EP. The collection is a bit of a mixed bag – a handful of tracks obviously not strong enough for his album tracklists, and a few [cont.]

When Pharrell, Chad, and Shae stepped on the scene with their debut album, In Search Of…, it was looked at as sort of a vanity project. After all, The Neptunes had the hottest beats money could buy at the time, so for them to do a “rock album” in an era when mash-ups were hot [cont.]

Sampling The Beatles for the purposes of hip-hop sounds like a great idea. If you listen closely to something like Sgt. Pepper’s, you’ll find some amazingly raw beats. Their music is so transcendent and hip-hop is so nimble in its ability to absorb musical influences from any genre, it seems like a perfect marriage. Perhaps [cont.]

As two of the more respected producers in the game, 9th Wonder and David Banner have each crafted a different sound in hip-hop. 9th Wonder was part of the movement that brought sample based production back to the forefront, while Banner crafted hits for himself, Ying Yang Twins and T.I., to name a few. 9th [cont.]

Apollo Kids is Ghostface Killah’s ninth solo LP, and that does not include the several albums he’s collaborated on, such as a handful of Wu-Tang LP’s or anything with his numerous affiliates. After Ghostdini: The Wizard Of Poetry In Emerald City, longtime fans were a little disappointed at the album’s R&B focus, especially dropping right [cont.]

Regardless of how you feel about his music, nobody can deny the business man and walking promotion machine that is Diddy. Truth of the matter is, many out there don’t really love Diddy musically, beyond the original Biggie Bad Boy era, but we follow him regardless to see if he will strike gold once again. [cont.]

Since the record industry effectively imploded, sales might be down, but music is still being made. More importantly, it seems like things are more interesting and bizarre than ever before. Gangrene is a group project between Oh No and The Alchemist, the former a Stones Throw stalwart, the latter being one of the most seasoned [cont.]

There really isn’t a bad DJ Premier beat. There might be some that aren’t as strong as others, but you aren’t really going to hear a Preemo track and say that it’s wack. So at the end of the day, when Premier drops a compilation like Year Round Records: Get Used To Us, it’s up [cont.]

Detroit hip-hop group, The Left was formed after a simple phone conversation between producer Apollo Brown and emcee Journalist 103. The  group’s LP Gas Mask initially started as a few random songs, but turned in a full-length, 17 track opus. Talks about humble beginnings. The Left debuted on “The Real Detroit” off of Apollo Brown’s [cont.]

Some artists make the best music during the most trying periods of their lives. Ready to write the next chapter in the “troubled artists” book of history is one Clifford Harris. After riding a wave to crossover status that included critically acclaimed albums and a number one movie (“Takers”), TI and wife Tameka “Tiny” Cottle [cont.]

Rap sequels are rarely good, nor or cover albums (In The Beginning…There Was Rap, anyone?), but sometimes artists feel the need to do these types of things to remind their audience of their classics. AZ never really fell off – despite Doe Or Die being his strongest release – he’s continued to release solid indie [cont.]