YEEEEEEESSSSSS…..

This is what I have been waiting on for over two decades- A little more insight into the life of one of my favorite slept on MC’s (BLACK I)….Unfortunately he passed away before his time, but the material he dropped was light years ahead of his time…

His producer DRK sat down with the “Views Before the 6 Crew” and dropped nonstop jewels about the early Canada Hip Hop scene, BLACK I, history, life as a Maestro Fresh Wes back up dancer, production, and all types of heavy jewelry…

**BIG UP TO UNIK ONE FOR THE HEADS UP ON THIS PODCAST-

MF GRIMM – WESTSIDE GUNN – CONWAY…..

GRISELDA – VENDETTA VINYL (BAD BOYS MOVE IN SILENCE)….

BLAM,BLAM,BLAM, BLAM……

Three days ago PRINCE PAUL dropped a free project entitled “The Redux”…..This isn’t your ordinary bullshit, free give away joint – this is a bonafide album that actually is worth some decent bread….Nuff respect to you PAUL for keeping those flames up for all these years….

TRACKLIST-

1) The Redux – Breeze Brewin , MC Delite

2) Uff It – Horror City , Jean Grea

3) Drama Mama – Trugoy , Truth Enola

4) I told you once I told you twice – Guru , Planet Asia

5)Twinkle Twinkle – Bumpy Knuckles

6) Lola’s Boy – Zakee

7) Girls wanna do me , Guys wanna be my friend – Youngman

8) Horror City Baby – Horror City

9) Rhymes and Chrymes – Tash , Tony Touch , Beatnuts

10 ) I dont care – De La Soul , The Good the Bad and the Ugly

11) Chinese Spare Ribs – Rza , Feat Horror City

12) People and Places / No I didnt – Chubb Rock , Wordsworth , Mf Doom

13) I need what I need – Kardinal Official , Sly Boogie , Socrates

14) Just cant give up – Buckshot , feat J Zone on drums

15) So what N…. Always talk – Master Ace , Pretty Ugly , Kokane

16) Teach You the Sounds – P.P.

17) Make more Room – Def Squad

18) 5000 Boomin watts – Dirty Disco Squares Featuring Chill Rob G

19) *Bonus remix track
Lola’s Boy (got jazzy grits mix)
Remixed by DCee and Johann Sebastian

Reduced , Deranged and Mixed up by Prince Paul at Paul’s Coffee Shop LI
Photo by Milkcrate kid
Artwork DJ A.VEE

By the looks of things BACK TO THE LAB by Raph Rashid deserves a spot in my library…

“Independent producers and DJs have been busy creating world class music in bedrooms, kitchens and garages for years. Meanwhile, photographer Raph Rashid has traveled the globe, gaining access to these inner sanctums, one by one. The tremendous variety of set-ups and layouts used by in-home producers is artfully documented in the pages of Back to the Lab. Intimate photos of the creators amongst their instruments, gear, record collections and ephemera offer unprecedented access. Notes about the producers, their environment and “essential” releases round out this love-letter to the undergound. Rashid has been checking his list since the publication of his bestselling Behind the Beat, making sure to document the old-school producers he’d missed, meanwhile keeping an eye out for fresh new talent. Featured artists and producers include: Alchemist, Ant, Babu, EL-P, Georgia Anne Muldrow, Jazzy Jeff, Kenny Dope, Lord Finesse, Oh No and many more”.

COP HERE….

LISAANDRO is affiliated with another Strong Island MC (Roc Marciano), matter of fact he closed out “Riding Around” on the Marcberg album with an array of sinister bars….

His rhyming style is truly unique with heavy emphasis on certain syllables, boulevard tales, and a dense no nonsense flow that will keep you following his patterns….On “EPMD” he goes for broke over a Flashius Clayton backdrop…

PEEP…

If your in the tri-state area this weekend head out to Connecticut on Saturday to witness a very monumental situation…MFGRIMM will be holding court at YALE university as part of a lecture series on the prestigious campus…

WHEW!!

Nuff respect to the warlord- the whole squad is extremely proud…

A few years ago I was at my dude PEZO’s lab and he broke out a album by a dude named DAN-E-O that I never heard before…”Dear Hip Hop” dropped back in 1996 but it never received a proper vinyl release until 2014 on the SERGENT label (Not sure if those dudes are around any more)…..When PEZO put the slab of wax on the decks I was very intrigued by what I heard…

WHY ?

1..How is it possible that I never heard of this cat before – I have been a straight up Hip Hop fiend ever since I can remember so it was surprising that something this fresh bypassed my radar…

2..DAN-E-O had a ill flow…A sprinkle of Nas, a dash of Hiero, with a splash of old era Common Sense….I really do not like to make comparisons because he definitely brought his own flavor to the mix, but I can hear his inspirations throughout this album….

3..Canada has a long history of fresh MC’s and it’s unfortunate his name doesn’t pop up more when it comes to Hip hop from our brothers up north….

“Mic Surgery” is my top ranking cut, give it some decent burn if your unfamiliar…

PEEP-

I can vividly remember the days when you were considered some type of outlaw if you were a B Boy….It was hard to find outdoor places to practice without calls to police, neighborhood hysteria and all types of unnecessary bullshit just for wanting to dance and express yourself…

HA..

I can also recall my parents supporting my creativity with the dance, but they would often tell me, “Son this breakdancing thing is just a fad it won’t be around forever, you need to concentrate on other things”….Parents will be parents, so I fully understood where they were coming from – but I paid their words no mind because I knew deep down that a dance this explosive would never fade away…..

HA.

FFWD to 2017 you can now sit in the privacy of your own home and watch B-Boys from across the GLOBE duke it out for world supremacy at the recent U-Def battles, that took place last weekend (7 HOURS OF NONSTOP BATTLES)….

PEEP

London rhyme slinger M9, is on the verge of releasing another project in the very near future- “Old Pictures” on October 23rd….”Morla” is the first leak..

CHECK IN…

Tired of hearing the same played out breaks over and over ? Are you on the hunt for more breakbeat fire power ?

Look no further cuzzo- Bronx bomber DANNY DANN has the remedy for all those underwhelming breakbeat sessions dudes try to rock these days…On “Soundtracks & Grooves” he keeps it lively….

There are all types of cornball podcast out there these days…Dudes trying to parlay traffic into future endeavors, dudes that played the sidelines back in the day trying to front in 2017 like they was LIVE, all types of commentary from cats that was never really on the field with all types of “back to the future” schemes that should be banished from any true B-Boy’s circumference…

One of the LO-LIFE founders SHILLZ DA REALZ has a podcast that goes deep into depth about grimy old NYC- pre-internet, pre gentrification, pre RL reissues, pre- corporations taking Hip Hop over…..Truth be told, this is some of the illest shit you will see on the net so don’t snooze….

PEEP…

*SHILLZ has been known to shoot off a few bars as well…On “Medicaid” he goes for broke over a sinister backdrop that will perk your ears up!!!

On the latest podcast of SUPER DUTY TOUGH WORK (Blueprint & Illogic) they ask the public ‘Who killed The DJ?”..This particular question has been on my mind for many years at this point..

WHY?

I have witnessed acclaimed beat diggers play “Footloose” at jams…

I have witnessed cats that started DJ’ing 5 years ago travel the world and spin their bullshit sets to PACKED crowds…

I have witnessed “celebrity” types get booked coast to coast that do not even know how to blend / mix….

I have witnessed “keep it real” dudes defend playing top 40 rubbish under the guise of “playing what the people want”…..

Personally, I could give a fuck how low the bar has gotten – I’m going to stay focused on the foundation: Skills, practice, refinement, digging (past and present), and staying away from real live suckers (fuckery is contagious)…If you think along similar lines you should give this a listen….

**DISCLAIMER – I DO NOT AGREE WITH ALL OF THE VIEWS STATED ON THIS PODCAST..

With the P-WING & STADIUM re-issues it is painfully obvious RALPH LAUREN has his eyes on the LO-LIFES and the entire Hip Hop nation in general….I never thought that in 2017 these prized pieces would be reintroduced but with the current so-called “retro mania” state of affairs, your going to see a lot more classical shit pop back up…

The Polo godfather RACK LO takes us on a journey of boosting flashbacks, 80’s recklessness, and all that other wild shit that will hold your attention…

PEEP-

My cuzzo ARCHITECT & BYRDLAND link up once again for more of that 2017 rawness on “Halal Chopaz”…Out of all of their collaborations, this one gets the championship belt…

PEEP-

ROCKNESS links up with the CIPHER podcast for a heavy Q&A session that will hold your attention…

“Rock is best-known for being one half of the seminal rap duo Heltah Skeltah, along with his partner, the late Sean Price. The duo, also known as Rock and Ruck, released three albums and were a key part of NYC’s influential underground rap crew the Boot Camp Clik.

As a solo artist, Rock has released a number of great mixtapes – including our favorite, 2010’s Rockin’ Out West. But despite several record deals, he’s never released a proper solo album, until now. Rock has just released ‘Rockness A.P.’ on Digital Deja Vu Records. The “A.P.” stands for “after Price,” and the album shows Rock making his way in the world after the 2015 death of his partner”.

PEEP.