Canadian rapper Shad comes through with a new single featuring a snappy beat from Skratch Bastid and a soaring hook from Saukrates. As usual, Shad comes through with clever, self-aware lyrics that are thought-provoking and hilarious. This guy continues to be one of independent hip hops most class acts.
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Despite his quiet demeanor, Ka might be one of the most intense, thought-provoking, and creative MCs you run across this year. WATCH THE REVIEW
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During a recent performance at The Stables in celebration of Sub Pop’s Silver Jubilee, recent signees clipping. performed two new tracks: “Jump” and “Or Die,” which are tracks I’m hoping make it to their first album on the famed Seattle label. Give a live to those live renditions
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Mick Jenkins releases this song with fellow Chicago rappers Chance the Rapper and Vic Mensa. If you needed more evidence that Chicago is the scene of more than just drill, but thoughtful rap with with elastic flows, here it is. Over an orchestral sample and metronomic hi-hats, Mick breaks out
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Milo’s latest mixtape sees the Wisconsin rapper working again with producer Riley Lake. While I think Milo’s verses are worthwhile, it’s really the instrumentals that surprise me the most. WATCH THE REVIEW
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This video is for “Off the Record”, off of Ka’s new record The Knight’s Gambit. The song is a minimal ode to rap music, employing classic album titles as fuel for his wise-man on the corner sermons. The video is equally minimal, as Ka explores the biggest record
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Mac Miller, the world’s most unlikely rap-critic’s pet, has released a fittingly psychedelic video for this cut off of his recent LP Watching Movies With the Sound Off. The video cycles between images of Mac rapping in a room of mirrors filled with lightbulbs and of a pretty
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Hieroglyphics is one of the West Coast’s longest running hip hop outfits, and their 90s roots show up in a big way even on their latest record, the Kitchen, which the group has seen fit to upload in full on their YouTube channel for all to stream. Stream the
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Cakes Da Killa is a New York MC whose latest mixtape, The Eulogy, caught my ear earlier this year. I loved the tape, really. Cake came through on most of the tracks with a blistering flow, high charisma, hilarious lyrics, and more personality than most. I’m happy to see
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A new single from Atmosphere that’s loaded with Bob Seger references. While the tips of the hat to Bob revolve mostly around his hit song “Night Moves,” it actually turns into a pretty cool metaphor for the song. Slug comes off captivating on his two verses here, but I
