South Florida isn’t generally known as a hip-hop Mecca but Seven Star is looking to change that. A city mostly known for Luke dancers and booty music may be a difficult place to break through, but Seven Star is hellbent on making the average hip-hop head look towards the south for real lyricism. With [cont.]

Compilation release, no rating given     Whatever happened to the great benefit compilations? From raising awareness of AIDS to helping fight gun violence, not too long ago hip-hop artists would gladly unite for a noble cause. While this may seem like a thing of the past, the Impeach The Precedent compilation is a return to [cont.]

     Longtime heads know the name Madlib from his classic production on Tha Alkaholiks’ seminal debut album, 21 & Over, on songs such as “Mary Jane” (the more things change, the more they stay the same). He later solidified his name as a producer as a  member of The Lootpack, with one incredible debut album, [cont.]

    Many hardcore Anticon fans have suggested that the crew has “fallen off” since the glory days of 1999 and early in the millennium. In their defense, we have seen good things come out of the house that Sole, Alias, Pedestrian, and the rest built, however for reasons unknown to the general public, many of [cont.]

    So where is the next place that will be recognized as a hip-hop mecca? Of all the places one would guess, the last location to breed any amount of talent would probably be Delaware (check the look on many people’s faces who say “Is that even a state?”) Hezekiah is from Delaware and draws [cont.]

        While Lyrics Born’s official jump-off into the world of underground hip-hop was part of the Solesides duo Latryx (along with Lateef The Truth Speaker), after years of putting it down on various 12inches, remixes, and compilations, he didn’t see his full-length solo debut until 2004′s Later That Day. Riding off the buzz of that [cont.]

     The last time we heard from Grand Agent he was overseas doing his thing on the lyrically inclined Fish Outta Water album. Although Grand Agent is a gifted lyricist, his album was marred by inconsistent production and less than stellar hooks. So what is an Agent to do? Go find the best accomplice to [cont.]

     It was inevitable. Vast Aire and Mighty Mi just had to do an album together. The styles just fit together. Mighty Mi’s incredible work behind the boards coupled with Vast Aire’s lingering flow sounds like a good fit, right? Well, that is the attempt made here with a cool collection of scathing taunts coupled [cont.]

     ”Live from Oakland, California,” as they state on the opening track, “True,” rap and production duo MC Zion and Amp Live have, respectively, outdone and spitkicked their way above their 2 previous releases, Mind Over Matter and Deep Water Slang, with their third collective release from the Bay Area, True & Livin’. Set against [cont.]

       What is a classic hip-hop record? As the Living Legends phrase it on the “Intro” track to their collective disc Classic, the term “classic” is something that is “generally recognized as excellent or authoritative, defying time, criticism, and fashion.” And with that firmly entrenched in their back pockets, the Legends, comprised of Murs, Sunspot, [cont.]

     Around five years ago, just around when Jay-Z was settling into New York’s throne and Roc-A-Fella was barely getting off the ground, there was a whole lot of hype surrounding the as-of-then album-less Philly lyricist, Beanie Sigel. Around this time, Beans had just set fire on The Roots Things Fall Apart disc, and was [cont.]

Remix project; no rating given.       If you are J-Zone, critically acclaimed asshole of hip-hop, what do you do after you have released four solid albums and are taking a year off before the fifth? Well, if you are J-Zone you sure the hell aren’t doing anything considered normal. Many would think that Zone would [cont.]

     While the late 90′s / turn-of-the-millenium independent hip-hop scene produced a lot of duds still collecting dust on record store shelves (ahem), there we’re also a handful of diamonds in the rough. Sure, artists like MF Doom, Atmosphere, Aesop Rock, and Madlib have become household names to underground fans (and mainstream haters), but there’s [cont.]

    Dizzee Rascal’s Showtime, starts with its title cut; a dissonant, sparse beat that feels like an intrusive hangover, over which his breathless flow ricochets in squeaky strange fashion. Oh God, not again. Why the hell do the press boost this guy over Brits like Skinnyman or RZA-collaborator Blak Twang? But then “Stand Up Tall” blasts [cont.]

      Always one to go his own way rather than join the masses, Bryan Hollon marked himself out as a unique talent with his very first record, the 2001 Dose One collaboration Circle, which took hip-hop to a genuinely anything-goes place that was as likely to employ gonzo metal and bizarre essays on the human condition [cont.]

      As a founding member of the now dissipated Greenhouse Effect crew, as well as his own indy imprint, Weightless Recordings, the ambidextrous Blueprint has paid his dues in the underground for the past few years, but has never released a true solo album. Sure, we’ve seen him produce entire albums for other people (Illogic’s [cont.]

Mix CD / Compilation; No Rating Given         The Purple City Byrd Gang, consisting of underground veteran Agallah, Shiest Bub and Un Kasa, is an offshoot of Harlem’s super group The Diplomats.  For the past two years, Purple City has flooded the scene with eight mixtapes, selling close to 80,000 copies.  Road To Riches is [cont.]

     Defari and DJ Babu have paid a great deal of dues to the LA underground scene and hip-hop as a whole. So why shouldn’t the two link up for an album? Because of their close contact with each other through the underground scene and the Likwit Crew/Beat Junkies inner circle, a collaborative album is [cont.]

    Every now and then a quality album will fall between the cracks, going largely unnoticed. This usually occurs due to a lack of marketing and promotion, but not for Grayskull. They have an obstacle on their hands that is likely only to be cured by word of mouth: being a new group comprised of [cont.]

      Some people may remember Emanon from MTV’s The Cut. Some may have heard of Aloe Blacc and Exile around the good ol OC (not the TV show) with their Acid 9 EP back in 1998. Either way Emanon are planning to branch out further than the experiences mentioned and tap into a whole new [cont.]