When Canadian MC Kardinal Offishall dropped Fire and Glory in 2005, he was primed for success.  You couldn’t find an album without a Offishall guest spot.  He was like Lil’ Wayne minus give or take 30 mixtapes.  Despite appearing seemingly everywhere, Offishall couldn’t maintain his own solo success.  Even if he doesn’t break through much [cont.]

DJ Babu’s Duck Season 3 is bittersweet. If you haven’t been paying attention to what is happening in the world of subterranean hip-hop as of late, Duck Season 3 offers the perfect snapshot of what’s currently hot in backpack land, and also, exactly what is currently wrong with the scene. More than just a mixtape, [cont.]

For years now, Devin has been delighting us with his southern syrupy tales of his way of life, one that consists of lots of weed, drinks, and women.  But this is mainly due to the fact that we all know a “Devin”, some of them are in our families, friends, or if you don’t know, [cont.]

Despite Todd Smith’s missteps over the last couple of years, you have look at the man as a legend.  He is a pioneer in hip-hop, and still an emcee at heart.  Since Phenomenon this writer hasn’t checked for Ladies Love in the slightest, but the new singles “Baby” (for radio) and “Rocking with the G.O.A.T” (for street) produced [cont.]

It’s been 8 years since we heard a compilation album from the one and only DJ Revolution.  Touted as maybe the best scratch DJ in the game, the anticipation was high for King of the Decks.  Before we get into the album itself, let’s talk about the demise of the DJ over the last 8 [cont.]

It is clearly evident that the economy is in dire straights.  With record breaking home foreclosures, unemployment rising, and not to mention fluctuating gas prices, it is obvious that things are bleak.  So this seems to have trickled into the hip-hop world by that now your favorite baller is even feeling the pinch.  This is reflected [cont.]

Kool Keith has always been one for reinvention, but also one to revisit the same concepts over and over again. On one hand, we’ve seen Keith perform under various identities and member to numerous groups, each of his respective projects coming with a different sound or style. However, the most successful of these offshoots was [cont.]

Back in the mid 90’s it was undeniable that Mobb Deep was one of the premier hip-hop groups emerging on the scene.  Albums like The Infamous, Hell on Earth, and Murda Muzik were stellar with great beats mixed with phenomenal lyrics.  Prodigy later went on to release H.N.I.C. in 2000 that was received very well [cont.]

After the release of King, one could say that T.I. hit a high point, perhaps even the apex of his career. The 2006 LP was his fourth release in five years, which saw the Atlanta rapper coming into his own, rather than just being the Southern flavor of the month. With a strong set of [cont.]

Detroit’s current resident soul singer, Dwele, is no stranger to the scene, having released three albums over the past eight years, prior to the release of his latest opus, Sketches Of A Man.  Sharing a long history within his local scene, Dwele collaborated numerous times with J. Dilla, on projects like Welcome To Detroit, as [cont.]

“Inspired by The Wire…the Brick City New Jeru Avon Barksdale…” First off, we have to give credit to any MC who references HBO’s The Wire.  There’s no reason for the hip-hop world not to be obsessed with the show (except maybe for it’s porous fifth season and difficult to get through second, but that’s another matter).  [cont.]

Any time you talk about AZ, you have to start by bringing up his unforgettable verse on Nas’ Illimatic some 14 years ago.  While that indelible verse is a classic hip hop moment, the mere fact that you have to reference it every time says something about what AZ has been up to since then. [cont.]

Undeniably, The Game is one of the premier hip-hop artists out right now.  Besides Lil’ Wayne and Kanye, who else has captivated fans, both positively and negatively, while putting out stellar albums that can arguably be called classics?  But with L.A.X., it seems as if the sophomore jinx waited one album late to rear its [cont.]

There was a time when Ras Kass was considered something like the West Coast Nas – a street, but cerebral and intellectual MC, naming albums after Eldridge Cleaver books (Soul on Ice) and doing songs about the history of slavery and religion (“Nature of the Threat”).  He also had major skills, making him a compelling [cont.]

Reks is yet another MC from Boston that has yet to blow up NYC big, despite having the talent and sound to do so.  With Grey Hairs he comes with interesting production helmed by the incredibly solid Statik Selektah, along with Large Professor and DJ Premier, making this is one of the top underground albums to [cont.]

Think back 8 long years ago. Like Masta Ace says on “Seasons”, “the bottom fell out in 2000”. To this writer, it was nearing the end of the underground era of hip-hop and ushering in the only made for the club era.  The plethora of underground releases was ungodly and to find something that stuck out [cont.]

With an album cover that is scarily reminiscent of LL Cool J’s Mama Said Knock You Out (that is, Nelly: buff, shirtless, oiled, and in black & white), it’s obvious Nelly has taken influence from James Todd Smith. Like a modern day Cool J, Nelly is less concerned with making classic records, and more focused [cont.]

J*DaVeY is a Los Angeles based collective made up of vocalist Jack Davey and songwriter/producer Brook D’Leau – Jack is the girl, Brook is the guy – who first got mainstream exposure via The Roots’ “Atonement” from the Game Theory LP. From there they released their mixtape-albums, Land Of The Lost and Beauty In Distortion, [cont.]

Anyone who’s been down with the Wu-Tang Clan since day one knows the legend that nobody wanted to follow GZA on posse cuts, ensuring that he always rhymed last. The Genius may not always run the anchor leg when the Clan gets together these days, but his gift for lyricism is still on display on [cont.]

From about 93-98, hip-hop was riding high, and Wu-Tang led the charge.  Albums by the Clan, Method Man, Raekwon, GZA, and Ghostface, among others, hit hard with critical and commercial success. However, the Clan as a whole seemed to have fallen off for a few years.  Albums were more dispersed from the crew as a whole [cont.]