“I can’t be everything to everyone at the same time”    That line from the Madlib produced intro “Everything Man” epitomizes the career of Talib Kweli. Before any of the celebrity that Kweli has garnered over the past few years, Talib Kweli was a starving artist making a name for himself alongside Mos Def and [cont.]

          First, Madlib teamed up with J. Dilla to make Jaylib. Then, Madlib teamed up with the super-villain MF Doom to create Madvillian. Next, Doom took it even a step further with Danger Mouse to form Danger Doom – and now, Madib teams up with Talib to form….uh….Lib-Lib? Nah? Thankfully they abandoned the mash-up names [cont.]

    Talib Kweli has been on the verge of stardom for quite some time now. After establishing himself as an elite lyricist on Mos Def and Talib Kweli Are Black Star, he proved his brilliance and ability to make a complete album with Reflection Eternal. He was an underground darling that’s star glowed so flawlessly [cont.]

      2004 has been a big year for Talib Kweli. It got a jump-start when ’03 ended with Jay-Z’s The Black Album, where the Jiggaman immortalized his fellow Brooklyn brethren on “Moment Of Clarity”, where he stated “If skills sold, truth be told, I’d probably be lyrically, Talib Kweli”. From there, the hype for Talib’s [cont.]

“If skills sold, truth be told/ I’d probably be, lyrically, Talib Kweli.” - Jay-Z  “Moment of Clarity” For the ignorant hip-hop listener, hearing Jigga show his praises for fellow Brooklyn native Talib Kweli may have been the first time Kweli’s near-flawless lyrical abilities were made crystal clear. A veteran behind the microphone, Kweli has gone from [cont.]

While many of Rawkus’ former starting line-up have departed the label, each with their share of very public pot shots (Company Flow, High & Mighty, Shabaam Sahdeeq), Talib Kweli remains one of the Rawkus originals during the label’s transition from rusty to platinum razor-logos. As the first post Soundbombing 3 release, it’s evident that Talib Kweli’s [cont.]

HipHopSite: Explain the meaning of the name Reflection Eternal… Talib Kweli: Basically, “Reflection” has to do with the reflection of our ancestors, or things that came before us, as well as reflection of where hip-hop is at now. “Eternal” is like forever, and that is just what we are trying to represent. HipHopSite: That’s interesting. [cont.]

After releasing a handful of essential 12″ singles, on various Rawkus projects, Talib Kweli & Hi-Tek were on the verge of becoming one of hip-hop’s best-kept secrets. Yet, they’re original incarnation (Reflection Eternal) was momentarily thwarted, as the duo expanded into a triumvirate with the inclusion of Mos Def; and their eventual manifestation as Black Star. While [cont.]