Best Rapper Alive? No Krs-1, no Rakim, but Scarface is there. No MF Doom, no Pharoahe Monche, but Lil Mama is there. [via] Voting starts July 21st.
posted on Jul 15, 2008 - View this thread

El-P, founder of Def Jux, is not your average rap artist. His themes and style are frequently lush and apocalyptic. While Deep Space 9mm launched 'El-Producto', cleverly futuristic works like Stepfather factory, Flyentology with Trent Reznor or the darker Tasmanian Pain Coaster are his hallmark. He recently released a new mixtape free online, along with the lyrics pdf for his album. He also recently remixed a song from MTV's TRL, warping it into a chaotic police state jam, mirroring other songs of his with themes of authority and control.
posted on Jul 10, 2008 - View this thread

The kids today sure do love the hip hop music, so let's be sure to cram as much of it into our movie as possible. Thrill as MC Hammer jams with the Addams family, Bobby Brown preaches the word of the Ghostbusters via bluescreen, Rodney Dangerfield cuts loose, Ronald McDonald busts a move, and Tom Hanks & Dan Aykroyd dance their way through a criminal investigation. [Previously]
posted on Jul 7, 2008 - View this thread

The Kanye West Beat Drop. A number of the web's best rap blogs get together to post and chronicle the best of Mr. West's impressive and extensive history of producing, ghost producing, and the stories around many of the songs.
posted on Jun 15, 2008 - View this thread

Akon Call T-Pain
posted on Apr 28, 2008 - View this thread

Haven't got your fill of awkward rap? Well there's Bill Cosby's upcoming rap CD and a new dance joint about a beat down. Or you can reminisce and revel in 13 awkward rap commercials of old. Not enough? Okay fine, how about a freestyle battle.
posted on Apr 16, 2008 - View this thread

IDE the Shanty One is the front man for the Creative Juices crew out of NYC. He raps and produces. His 2007 production Force Fed is a great listen for fans of hard, New York rap artists like F.T. and Wu-Tang Clan. IDE is interviewed about how the crew formed. Listen to any of 148 solo tracks from him or 55 from Creative Juices. Already a fan? He just announced his new album Snapped.
posted on Apr 7, 2008 - View this thread

The SEO Rapper (a.k.a. The Poetic Prophet) spits rhymes on such topics as Design Coding, Link Building, Paid Search, and Conversion Closing for all your marketing campaign and web design needs.
posted on Mar 27, 2008 - View this thread

Help the police (youtube).
posted on Mar 18, 2008 - View this thread

Go way back into time with a deliciously analog collection of mastermixes from 1980s-era soul radio from London.
posted on Feb 29, 2008 - View this thread

Tony Silver, the director of the groundbreaking hip-hop documentary Style Wars passed last night. He was a family friend of mine, and had been sick for several years with a irreversible brain condition. Style Wars is considered by some to be the best hip-hop film ever made, and by everyone to be the first. It was shot at the very start of the 1980s, when graffiti was still hip-hop's dominant form, and the idea of graffiti as art was brand new. I recommend checking out the deluxe DVD edition of the film Tony put together a few years ago after many years where it was only available as an expensive educational-only VHS, but you can also check out the 1hr 10m version on Google Video.
posted on Feb 2, 2008 - View this thread

Black Steel In The Hour Of Chaos
posted on Dec 5, 2007 - View this thread

Roxanne Shanté may be the only person whose Wikipedia entry lists her occupation, truthfully, as "rapper, psychologist." In the credits for the Beef 3 DVD she explains how her record contract's throwaway education clause paid for her to get her PhD. She also shares the backstory of Roxanne's Revenge. Some more classic Shanté: with a skinny Biz Markie in 1986, BDP vs. Juice Crew, an old Wack It video. [via]
posted on Oct 22, 2007 - View this thread

2007 is the year of Weezy. In just 10 months, Lil Wayne has recorded more tracks than many artists will in a lifetime; beat Radiohead to the punch by giving away not only the best rap album of the year, but some runners up as well; found a spot on MTV's "Hottest Rappers" list and become the darling of street-heads, hipster fanboys and even highbrow cultural pundits across the nation.
posted on Oct 19, 2007 - View this thread

Record your bad (or good) raps, share them with the world and add to other people's raps at RapHappy. Via Projects.
posted on Sep 26, 2007 - View this thread

Socially conscious rap and hip hop may be making a comeback, but it seems to be doing so at the expense of stereotyping and bigotry. Videos like Read a Book (hilarious) and Serve Below Zero may be intended to send a “good” message to the black community, but it’s hard to ignore blatant racist undertones (or overtones) in the lyrics and images.
posted on Sep 17, 2007 - View this thread

The Pardoner's Tale - adapted to rap by Baba Brinkman, who has been rapping Chaucer tales for a few years now. He's also released The Rap Canterbury Tales, a book that presents raps side by side with Chaucer's original Middle English. Both video and book are illustrated graffiti-style by his brother Erik. Discussed in a previous post by fatllama on hip hop classics.
posted on Aug 12, 2007 - View this thread

VDoubleOrapsreallyquickly. Geezah!
posted on Jun 19, 2007 - View this thread

Hearts and minds?
posted on Jun 6, 2007 - View this thread

Hip hop history— It's the Rub! Along with a handful of other shows, Brooklyn hip hop lovers The Rub compile a history of hip hop. Eleven parts through 1989.
posted on Apr 28, 2007 - View this thread

Wordsworth... for the YouTube generation is a rapped version of ' Wandered Lonely As A Cloud' The squirrel is the stuff of nightmares
posted on Apr 11, 2007 - View this thread

The 50 most underplayed and under-appreciated rap tracks according to ohword.com, all in one download. Some of my favorite hip-hop music blogs. For those who aren't hip-hop fans, an exhaustive list of MP3 blogs.
posted on Feb 18, 2007 - View this thread

Talib Kweli and Madlib have released a free album (zip). It fucking rocks.
posted on Jan 6, 2007 - View this thread

Kill Dash Nine by Monzy, the next big thing in Nerdcore. Wired interviews some of the figures, including the better known MC Plus+ (previously). Monzy's latest clever, well-informed lyrics stand in stark contrast to Weird Al's latest proof that he wouldn't know a geek if he bit one's head off.^[1]
posted on Dec 14, 2006 - View this thread

50 cent disses Oprah ...says chat show host is insufficiently "street".
posted on Dec 5, 2006 - View this thread

A new documentary on the Jonestown Massacre (YouTube) raises a few key questions about The People's Temple and mass suicide; yet the most pertinent quandary at the moment (posed by New York Magazine) has little to do with tainted Kool-Aid and instead focuses on an unfortunately named rapper from Harlem. This week, it's Jim Jones versus Jim Jones.
posted on Nov 9, 2006 - View this thread

When was the last time your country's minister of Justice expressed his policies in rap form? Here's the Dutch justice minister's Piet Hein Donner's debut on the mic (mp3). [more inside]
posted on Feb 27, 2006 - View this thread

Rap Producer J-Dilla Dies; Kidney Failure Suspected J-Dilla, born James Yancy, was a member of Slum Village and worked with various Hip-Hop artists including Kanye West, Busta Rhymes, A Tribe Called Quest and Common's Grammy-nominated album, BE.
posted on Feb 10, 2006 - View this thread

Everybody knows that gangsta rap promotes sexism, homophobia... and fascism. Take Bushido, for instance - the Berlin rapper of Tunisian descent that all the neo-Nazis love. Confused? (nyt) Well, so are the Germans. And then we're not even talking about Fler, whose "This is black-red-gold, hard and proud!" nationalist lyrics never fail to piss off the German papers (in German), and who likes to pose in his videos with a nice symbolic eagle. (Then again, Helmut Kohl didn't mind.) Still, Fler's flag-waving, eagle-loving rhymes are no match for Bushido's "Salute, stand to attention, I am the leader like 'A'". The A stands for Adolf, you know.
posted on Jan 12, 2006 - View this thread

Werner Von Wallenrod's Fun Page of Novelty Rap Records [Warning: animated jellybeans & embedded audio] • Includes reviews of albums by: Joe Piscopo, Rich Little, Rappin' Granny, Rappin' Principal, Rappin' Rambo, Joe Pesci, 2 Live Jews, Rodney Dangerfield, Arsenio Hall aka 'Chunky A', The '85 Chicago Bears, Mel Brooks, Elvira & more.
posted on Oct 19, 2005 - View this thread

Rappers I Know - FMJU presents 31 days of the "best shit you've never heard" for download. Featuring Talib Kweli, De La Soul , Oh No (Madlib's brother), J-Zone and the Kanye West "George Bush Doesn't Care About Black People" Gold Digger remix, a response to Hurricane Katrina from The Legendary Knock Out Boyz. ...and much, much more.
posted on Sep 8, 2005 - View this thread

Found in translation: Much more than / Hip hop Chaucer, and it don't stop / Hip hop Aeschylus, and it don't stop / Hip hop Shakespeare, and it don't stop / Yeah [3.4MB .wmv], and it don't stop, and it don't quit.
posted on Aug 5, 2005 - View this thread

Hip-Hop Legends Digable Planets Reunite! Word, and they're touring.
posted on May 25, 2005 - View this thread

Roots Manuva's "Ventriloshiznit Machine" Recombine rhymes as you please and hear them spit back via Mr. Manuva with this flash toy/promotional item for his new single "Colossal Insight." Helpful for the flow-impaired or those who would like those magnetic poetry things more if they were recited to them by a bobble-head MC. [Flash + Audio]
posted on Jan 12, 2005 - View this thread

Fix Up, Look Sharp With stateside hip hop in an unprecedented doldrum, the torch has been snatched up on this side of the Atlantic by 18-year-old Eastender Dizzee Rascal. He's recovering from a stabbing carried out rival fans of a rival garage collective in Ayia Napa, Cyprus. The attack took place a few days before being nominated for the Mercury Music prize. Guaranteed not to be everybody's cup of tea, but he's an interesting character and challenging music make it, and his album, worth a look.
posted on Jul 29, 2003 - View this thread

Footage of a young Jay-Z freestyling. You gotta start somewhere (From trickology.com if you care).
posted on May 23, 2003 - View this thread

You can find me in the club, bottle full of bub
Look mami I got the X if you into taking drugs
I'm into having sex, I ain't into making love
So come give me a hug if you into to getting rubbed

Lyrics from crack dealer/rapper 50 Cent's "song" "In Da Club", this week's most popular single according to Billboard.
posted on Feb 27, 2003 - View this thread

"Yo, homeboy, are you hungry for some mad hip hop flava? Sink your grill-piece into Master P's Platinum Bar-B-Que. Want somethin' sweeter? Lil' Romeo's Bar-B-Quein' with Honey! If cheese is the flava you need, try Warren G's Cheezie Nacho!"
The most bizarre niche snack marketing since Arafat's cheese puffs.
posted on Nov 26, 2002 - View this thread

Sup, G? The Five Percent Nation: A splinter group from the Nation of Islam, they have contributed quite a bit to the hip-hop scene -- and to the English language. Phrases like "Break it down", "word", and even "peace" (as a form of salutation) can be traced back to their teachings. The Wu-tang Clan and Digable Planets are among the artists greatly influenced by the unique, sometimes inspiring, and often unsettling, worldview of this religion. It ain't all smiles und sunshine, but whatever you think of it, one thing's for sure: This is one fit and fecund memeplex.
posted on Nov 2, 2002 - View this thread

Banning hip-hop. Police in San Francisco control the kinds of music clubs may play and promote. In key parts of the city, rap music has basically been outlawed.
posted on Oct 27, 2002 - View this thread

First there was L. L. Cool J vs. Kool Moe Dee and the Bridge Wars. Then came Biggie and Tupac with the west coast, east coast rivalry. Now rap battles have transcended mediums, I give you Ludacris vs. Bill O'Reilly. Word.
posted on Sep 27, 2002 - View this thread

Snoop Dogg kicks the chronic, gin and juice.

Will sobriety spoil Calvin Broadus?
posted on Sep 10, 2002 - View this thread

Who Killed Tupac Shakur? More importantly, does the L.A. Times run the risk of re-igniting an east-coast/west-coast rap "war" by implicating a certain notorious indivdual in a feud that was virtually nonexistent until the media hyped it up the first time around?
posted on Sep 6, 2002 - View this thread

Ever wondered what happens to kids who takes those "So you want to be a rockstar..." books seriously? Kcool 2002 - Move over Lil' Bow Wow, this 10 year old 'multi instrumental' musician is set to take over. He has the skills, the 'tude, and the um... songwriting abilities (scroll down) to take the world by storm.
posted on Apr 7, 2002 - View this thread

Interview with an Ol Dirty Bastard. This is the first interview with ODB I have seen since he was thrown in the slammer. ODB's first two releases were crazy brilliant and full of life. Now he sits in one of the worst prisons around, depressed and unmedicated, for parole violation. Reading this, do you think the court succeeded in breaking his spirit? Is he doomed to flame out when he gets out? Is it wrong that his new cd seems made without his input, and is weak compared to his amazing first two? Would you want to get out of prison and find someone made a book out of your throw off writings? Finally, do you like ODB?
posted on Mar 28, 2002 - View this thread

Has anyone noticed the lack of hip-hop stars from flyover-country? There seem to be thriving scenes in Gary, Indiana, Philly, and other cities. (Oddly, there's a dearth of info on Chicago.) Aside from a couple of well-known white rappers from the Motor City, the Geography of Hip-Hop remains fixated on NYC and LA and to a lesser extent, Miami and Atlanta. Now there's plenty of urban life going on between the coasts, and I can't believe it's because there's no talent in the breadbasket country. So is it record company stupidity, bad promotion, what?
posted on Feb 19, 2002 - View this thread

White Rap Revisited: Following up on last month's discussion, here's the reader blowback from "N. Bedford Crouch's" article, featuring confirmation of the put-on and a tip of the pen to Metafilter.
posted on Dec 17, 2001 - View this thread

Fighting Words on White Rap: but not what you'd expect, especially from the Village Voice:

Our children—are in crisis, trapped in the grip of a culture that glorifies drug use and debauchery, slovenly dress, and lack of respect for authority. A culture whose worship of antisocial behavior and debasement is rivaled only by its amoral concessions to the dictates of mammon.

This can largely be attributed to the unfortunate dominance of black popular culture, and—more specifically—hip-hop. In the past, mainstream culture refined raw black cultural materials, resulting in musical zeniths such as the recent neo-swing movement, which briefly presented a viable outlet for young dancers unwilling to subject themselves to the degrading influence of rap and rave music. This has got to be a put-on . . .
posted on Nov 29, 2001 - View this thread

Benoit's article on hip hop slang and mass media poses some interesting questions, albeit briefly. There's certainly no reason the two can't coexist...
posted on Aug 14, 2000 - View this thread

Chuck D vs. Lars Ulrich, tonight on PBS' Charlie Rose Show. I can't wait.
posted on May 12, 2000 - View this thread