Ever since he burst onto the scene in 2007 with the widely acclaimed Exile collaboration Below The Heavens, L.A. rapper Blu has been hailed as the most promising up-and-comer hip-hop has seen in years. With his cool L.A. demeanor and intricate lyrical musings, Blu blew a breath of fresh air into a stale SoCal hip-hop [cont.]

Blu drops this nice collabo joint with Exile. Enjoy ya’ll. Blu – “So Perfect” (MP3)

Fashawn comes through with his new Blu & Exile featured video for “Samsonite Man”, directed by Punit Dhesi, with visual effects by Josh Harding. Bonus interview with Out Da Box right under it.

Lupe Fiasco stopped by for a quick one on one with Nina 9 of Hip-Hop Nation to discuss the All City Chess Club. The first joint they’ll drop is the “I’m Beamin” Remix (it’s halfway done.) …He also said it’s not necessarily a group…it’s more like a movement. Lupe: “Blu is probably the only MC [cont.]

Our favorite emcee out west delivers new music into the wild this afternoon. Like a boss. Blu – “BossCo2″ (MP3)

Paten Locke “Ventilation” from tresrecords on Vimeo. Tres Records serves up the second single from Paten Locke’s Super Ramen Rocketship, directed by JeromeD, (director of Blu and Exile’s “So(ul) Amazing” and Diz Gibran’s “Truly Yours” music video). Paten had this to say: wadaaap yall…..so, here is my first official video…shot in LA, last year…this is [cont.]

Our favorite California emcee released this mysterious tracklist via Tumblr today for an as of yet untitled album project. A closer look at the tracklist suggests that details beyond the song titles themselves (and scratches) are scarce. But we’re excited…. 01_NoWorries(TheyGonnaLoveUBaby)WrittenByHerCry ProducedByMyNegligence RecordedBeforeCashAndSene 02_GoodGrace(LetUsThankHimForThisFood) WrittenByMyInspirition ContainsInfluenceFromJamesYancey ProducedAndRecordedInGrandpasLiqiourDen2007 03_RAw!(AsHardAsItGets) WrittenBySmokeyChops ContainsFakeScratchesFromTheThoughtsOf: Frank,Asia,LilFame,BustaBust&FieldMob Produced&RecordedByTime;GodSpeedTho 04_theRunAwaySlaveSong WrittenByMyReasonToLeave ProducedByMyReasonNotToWrite [cont.]

Latest visuals from our favorite Cali emcee of the the moment. Directed by LoveOnTheBeats.

The guys weigh in on The Big Lebowski, The Alchemist, The Low End Theory, The Root Down, and more. Update: Part two of this series added.

About a year ago, a virtual unknown Los Angeles based emcee, Blu, teamed with Emanon producer, Exile, to deliver Below The Heavens. This album was heavily argued as an underground classic, receiving spots on numerous year-end lists (this site not withheld), and even garnering props from XXL Magazine, who rarely salutes the backpack scene. The [cont.]