Chicago spitter Mick Jenkins has been an elite talent since he showed up. That’s a serious achievement in one of the most spooky stacked talent pools in the world. The vision & work ethic of Andrew Barber is what propelled…

In an industry that runs on bullshit, there’s no greater sin than being boring. Lying, cheating, stealing; all par for the course, but nothing can save you if the product is undercooked. He had a wild ride, but in the…

Central Cee is hard to avoid right now. That’s because he’s the latest doomed attempt to make UK grime blow up here in God’s Favorite Country. This time, it’s the Sony Music borg burning USD trying to turn anthems about…

Few rappers are more deserving of a caps-lock moniker than ANKHLEJOHN, a pure spitter who brings a superhuman intensity to the booth every time. People who don’t like that are objectively incorrect. The man is straight dope; there ends the…

New York City has never needed champions. Mecca is the sun around which all other scenes & cities spin; nobody has to advocate for Ground Zero. That’s never stopped anyone from crushing themselves under the weight of putting all five…

Wish I knew what the real, secret name of this song was, but I can’t figure it out. Some things are better left mysterious. This is art, after all. 6LACK is often dismissed as an “industry plant,” but the reality…

Summer 2024. I was coasting into a Walmart parking lot a few miles from the Canadian border when I decided that rapper/producer Mike Shabb was a genius. Unambiguously. No qualifiers. That word has been abused mightily in the past decade,…

“If you still sleepin’ on Sleep then you smokin’ crack,” as AJ Suede puts it on the second track. Taste is subjective, but his diagnosis rings true: Sleep Sinatra has built himself a modest empire in the independent rap scene.…

Back around January, I was catching up with an acquaintance in the publishing space and mentioned I was contemplating writing reviews again, purely for fun. “Nobody is running album reviews anymore,” he generously corrected me, “that’s all happening on video…

Only one question matters: if you’re a fan of Da Beatminerz legacy, will this new compilation album disappoint you? The answer is “Fuck no.” Go cop it & enjoy it all summer long. That said, there is much to unpack…