2009

<!--[if gte mso 9]&gt; Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE &lt;![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]&gt; &lt;![endif]--> <!--[if gte mso 9]&gt; Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE &lt;![endif]-->The delay between the release of a single track from Comic Books: Unlimited – “Superfriends” – and the rest of the proper disc was roughly three months. That’s a pretty long time in terms of internet releases. But while considering that, this release also calls into question what distinctions there actually are between mix tapes and albums released via the web. To me…there isn’t a difference. Read more

<!--[if gte mso 9]&gt; Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE &lt;![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]&gt; &lt;![endif]--> Busdriver, apparently, at some point said something to the effect of, underground hip hop happened ten years ago – but he said that five years ago. So he meant the mid-‘90s. Maybe. The Gravediggas, Black Moon and other New York acts already had discs out for a few years by that point – and to me that really should be the demarcation point. 1991-92? Maybe.

Anyway, what Busdriver was specifically referring to – since he’s an Los Angeles dude – is the fact that the Goodlife open mic night began around ’93 or so. And without that outlet, the LA rap scene – or the west coast underground as a whole – just wouldn’t be the same. Read more

<!--[if gte mso 9]&gt; Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE &lt;![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]&gt; &lt;![endif]--> As Mr. Lif continues his quest to get every aspect of American politics off of his chest, he’s seen fit to release a mix of greatest hits as well as a few tracks from his upcoming disc I Heard It Today. Slated to be released at the end of April, it seems that the time this album is ready to hit the streets could serve to give it an even more important position within the political discourse that hip hop as undertaken. I Heard It Today might not end up being a new age Public Enemy disc, but not too many things are. Read more

<!--[if gte mso 9]&gt; Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE &lt;![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]&gt; &lt;![endif]--> Guru (Gifted Universal Rhymes Unlimited) is gonna be remembered in the future for a great number of things. In my mind, though, he’s the dude that coined the term ‘positivity.’ And while that doesn’t mean a whole lot seeing as I haven’t heard folks use the word too much, in the emcees determination to create something good out of hip hop, Guru’s worked with various groups in vastly different settings. Read more