South African hip-hop act and Internet sensation Die Antwoord have signed to Interscope, according to Boing Boing [via the Daily Swarm]: “And that’s what I did to Jimmy Iovine,” he says. “He didn’t seem to like it, but nobody told me it wasn’t cool to do that. And then I kissed him on each cheek, because we … [Read more…]
Since The Roots’ Questlove took to Twitter with a blog post that reported Gang Starr’s Guru is in a coma, the word has begun to spread around the Internet. Here’s what the original post from the T.R.O.Y. blog/Philaflava said: If anyone has info about this please let us know. We’re told his sister Tricia said … [Read more…]
Yesterday, comedian Aziz Ansari dropped a little gem from his forthcoming mixtape collaboration with TV On The Radio‘s Dave Sitek entitled “Aaaaaaaangry (with eight A’s).” Rather, it’s an almost-gem. Ansari’s rhymes are surprisingly solid and flow with ease thanks to his delivery. The production is sweet, as Sitek has proven to have one great ear for … [Read more…]
Last week, Milwaukee’s Juiceboxxx dropped his first mixtape, Thunder Zone Volume One. Topping out at 20 tracks, the mixtape could be a turning point for the oft-misunderstood rapper from the heartland. Often mistaken for a nerdcore artist because of the color of his skin and nasaly flow or met with confusion by concert-goers struck by … [Read more…]
Words cannot describe the act of David Hyde Pierce rapping about the big movies at this year’s Sundance to the tune of Black Eyed Peas’ “Boom Boom Pow.” Thanks to YouTube, there’s video evidence of such an event [via videogum]: [youtubevid id=”gdMsTUGhVJI&feature=player_embedded”] Enough said. Really. Let’s see will.i.am and co. top that one. Be it … [Read more…]
Rumors were flying around the Internet earlier today about the demise of indie hip-hop label Definitive Jux. Those rumors have turned out to be false… kind of. A few hours ago, Founder and the face of Def Jux, El-P, released the official word: This means change for JUX. Of course we’ll still have our website, … [Read more…]
PBS aired an hour-long documentary on sampling about an hour ago, featuring one very odd talking head. “Copyright Criminals” had a fantastic array of characters involved in sampling music, including a pretty interesting discussion with Clyde Stubblefield, who’s “funky drummer” beat has provided countless hip-hop hits with one intense breakbeat. Stubblefield’s inclusion in the doc. … [Read more…]
Hot indie bands, one hilarious comedic-actor and a hip-hop mixtape. Great combination, right? Well, almost. Childish Gambino’s new mixtape, I Am Just A Rapper, has so much potential. Yet, the results are a little mixed. Childish Gambino, otherwise known as Donald Glover, is someone to watch out for. When it comes to rhymes, Glover’s got … [Read more…]
Will Kanye’s new album have a riff about I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings? Well, West made reference to Caged Bird author Maya Angelou today on his blog while announcing his return to the studio: IT’S FUNNY HOW SO MANY RAPPERS GET WORSE AS THEIR CAREERS STRETCH OUT BUT TRUE POETS GET BETTER. Â WE … [Read more…]
It’s hard to sum up an entire year of pop music in one concise “best of” list. Instead, here’s a tidy little look at some of the highs and lows in pop music over the past year: Hip-Huh?: The New Yorker‘s Sasha Frere-Jones declared that hip-hop was dead and upset a lot of hip-hop heads. … [Read more…]