The concept of a duo is an interesting one. You have one-time duos that catch a vibe and decide to make a project together. (The Throne, Drake & Future) You have homegrown duos that grow together (Eric B & Rakim, Mobb Deep, OutKast) and you have anomalies like Run The Jewels that just find the rare camaraderie that is as if they were homegrown. You also have the duos that rely on expertise. That's where the 1 MC, 1 Producer collabs come in. The DITD duo explores duos from all angles and ...
Nov 05, 2019•1 hr 6 min
Mixtapes, in the classic definition, is a thing of the past. But since the turn of the Millenium, Mixtapes have evolved to become more and more about the artist and nothing to do with the DJ/Producer anymore. So how did this happen? Did the DJ's fumble the bag? Has a fun essence of Hip-Hop gone away with the commercialisation of Mixtapes? Why does Charlie get so irked about Mixtapes sounding just like albums!? All will be answered in Episode 30 of DITD. TIMESTAMPS: Weekly Music Roundup - (1:58) ...
Oct 29, 2019•1 hr 18 min
Hip-Hop as a genre of music is always evolving, constantly changing, year by year. But what about those artists or those albums that kind of straddle the Hip-Hop sound but takes significant inspirations from other genres? The DITD duo talk about labels, (The things you stick on your chest, not the music ones...) genres and the foundations that Hip-Hop are built on. Is labelling something "Hip-Hop" too broad a term? Should services cater to sub-genres more? If so, how deep is too deep? And does t...
Oct 22, 2019•1 hr 13 min
Beefs are some of the greatest things about Hip-Hop culture, watching two (or more) artists go at each other on wax. It's a win-win for every Hip-Hop fan. Even more so if the tracks are genuinely fire. So the DITD duo looks at a couple of tasty rivalries that have produced some of the most ruthless tracks in music. We take a look at Ice Cube vs NWA (& Eazy vs Dre) and the recent beef that we still love to talk about to this day. Pusha T vs Drake. TIMESTAMPS: Weekly Music Roundup - (2:33) Top...
Oct 15, 2019•1 hr 21 min
Hip-Hop indulges in plenty of things we can consider negative. Money, sex, guns, gangs to name a few. But none of those has been as contentious as the conversation around drugs. Back in the day, Hip-Hop were the sellers of them because that's what Uncle Sam forced them to do. Some outright denounced it, some made positives out of the negative. Now, Hip-Hop are the buyers, the users, and people have died due to this tectonic shift. The DITD duo ask when did this shift happen? Why did it happen? A...
Oct 08, 2019•1 hr 14 min
In Part 2 of the DITD Mini-Series on "Dual-Disciplined Artists", the duo take a look at some notable D-DA's that have made the method their own. We create three designations: Producers who rap. Rappers who produce. "True Dual" Artists. This is a very fast-paced episode that tries to get through a lot of artists and we chop & change a few when we get to them so strap in and cover your ears when Ben gets on J.Cole... TIMESTAMPS: Weekly Music Roundup - (1:03) Topic Intro & Criteria - (13:24...
Sep 30, 2019•1 hr 21 min
In a 2-Part Mini-series of DITD. The duo explores the concept of the "Dual-Disciplined Artist". (D-DA) An artist that produces as well as raps. We all know that these days there are a plethora of artists that like to have a hand in the two most prominent stages of creating music. But what you might not know is that the late 80s/early 90s was stacked with D-DAs! Ben & Charlie take a little trip back to see how being a D-DA was a necessity for some, a huge success for a few then started to die...
Sep 24, 2019•1 hr 11 min
It's been over a decade now when in 2007, two of the biggest names in Hip-Hop literally went head-to-head, to see who was the commercial King. 50 Cent dropped "Curtis" and Kanye West dropped "Graduation". Kanye won in a landslide and at that moment, changed Hip-Hop. The DITD duo discuss the event in detail, looking at the albums themselves, the artists careers before and after the event and, of course, the statistics behind it all. TIMESTAMPS: Weekly Music Roundup - (1:39) Topic Intro - (14:06) ...
Sep 17, 2019•1 hr 7 min
"Trash" - Something that is of low quality. There's a lot of words in the Hip-Hop lexicon that are used freely & frequently. "Classic" & "GOAT" have been think-pieced to death in recent years, but what about "trash"? Whenever an album, EP or song drops, there is always somebody to label it "trash". But what do we really mean when we say "trash"? Do we mean it's the worst thing ever? The worst thing by that artist? The DITD duo dives into "trash" figuratively and literally. You're going t...
Sep 10, 2019•1 hr 21 min
The DITD "Retrospective" series continues with Chicago's own Common. On the back of his latest Studio Album "Let Love", Common has long solidified his place in Hip-Hop history. Multiple classics, iconic songs and a model of consistency. Now, in recent years, he's evolved to become the signature lyricist to *sound* like he's pushing 50. Themes of Love, introspection & life experience has always been in Common's wheelhouse but being an "elder statesman" in Hip-Hop has only made him better, or ...
Sep 03, 2019•1 hr 26 min
Storytelling is a foundation in how we communicate. It gives us the ability to inform others of the past. But past that very basic understanding, we can use Storytelling to however we see fit. We can tell the outright truth, we can give a completely fabricated recount. We can make it funny, make it sad. It's all up to the storyteller. So imagine that ability to mould a story and then throw some beats on it. Maybe stretch the story over an album? Maybe over several? The possibilities are endless....
Aug 27, 2019•1 hr 16 min
The DITD duo continues their "Retrospective" series with one of the most visible figures in Hip-Hop history. Snoop Dogg. There's plenty of ways to hail Snoop Dogg , from his music to his cultural ubiquity, to his business acumen, to his activism. Ben & Charlie cover all of these (In a "We are not worthy" fashion) and more as they figure out why Hip-Hop fans don't rate him as heavy in today's landscape. Is it because he's constantly evolved his persona? Is it because of his diverse portfolio?...
Aug 20, 2019•1 hr 12 min
Dr Dre is a consensus Top 5 Producer in Hip-Hop history. Where some try to cement their legacy by either being business geniuses or creative geniuses, Dr Dre has done both. A residency on Forbes' Hip-Hop cash kings and countless artists that have Dre to thank for their careers are testaments to that. Ben & Charlie continue their retrospective series with a breakdown of Dr Dre's accomplishments and trying to quantify how influential he is, how he's done what he's done and how is he still a cr...
Aug 13, 2019•1 hr 16 min
It's been a week since the release of Chance The Rapper's much-anticipated debut Studio Album "The Big Day". But the responses towards the album have been... Mixed, to say the least. There are people saying it's trash, (Ben) there are people that don't like it but can find positives in it (Charlie) and there are people that are ready to put on the capes to fight for their boy Chance. It's been a while since an album this highly touted has seen all sides of the opinion spectrum. So Ben & Char...
Aug 06, 2019•1 hr 9 min
If you're into Hip-Hop in any format, whether you follow certain artists, writers, YouTubers or even just your mate that's really into Hip-Hop, you know about the yearly content dump that is the XXL Freshman List. 10 artists who are on the come up get the opportunity to say "Hey World, I'm here!" They drop a quick freestyle, attend the Freshman Cyphers and of course, join together for a cover shoot. But why is this still a thing? Is the List simply moonlighting as something for Hip-Hop fans to t...
Jul 30, 2019•1 hr 10 min
Nas has recently dropped "The Lost Tapes 2", which is considered a breath of fresh air, especially after the terrible project that was "NASIR". So, in celebration of this, the DITD duo explores Nas' music that's not named "Illmatic". What are the best ones? Why doesn't Nas get respect from the "Genius Generation"? Is the tired "Nas picks terrible beats" comment the real reason why people don't put Nas in their Top 5? Ben & Charlie give a retrospective of Nasty Nas, Esco, Nastradamus, one of ...
Jul 23, 2019•1 hr 13 min
It's been a few months since Lil Nas X's explosion onto the mainstream. Since then, "Old Town Road" is now the longest-running No.1 Hip-Hop track on the Billboard Hot 100 and is quickly closing in on the All Genre record. Memes are the most fluid element of Social Media, which in itself is the most fluid form of communication. So what happens when that meme is based around an artist we've never heard of? Like a Lil Nas X or Blueface? Ben & Charlie explore Meme culture in Hip-Hop. How the vir...
Jul 17, 2019•1 hr 10 min
One of the most anticipated releases of 2019 has come & gone. "Revenge of The Dreamers 3", led by J.Cole, has been received very well. So well in fact, that it got Ben & Charlie thinking about the concept of "Label Albums" or "Collaborative Albums" to word it differently. If we look back at albums such as ROTD3, they're rarely remembered as being high-quality projects. They're more remembered as moments in time, moments in an artist's career, not as a great album that people will listen ...
Jul 09, 2019•1 hr 7 min
With the 2010s edging closer and closer to its end, it is a consensus thought to say that Drake has owned this decade from a commercial standpoint. He came around just before the start of the decade and the (commercial) rise has been at a steady upward trend. But you know the deal, commercial success isn't everything. But unfortunately, the commercial success, for some reason, has gotten people comparing Drake to Jay-Z. This prompted a collective shaking of heads from many people (Ben) but Co-Ho...
Jul 02, 2019•1 hr 5 min
In Part 2 of DITD's mini-series "Major vs Independent", we finally get to talking about the side that we cherish so much. The Independents. As independent writers and Podcasters, we value the fact that we don't have anybody to tell us what we should do because it helps the bottom line. The thing that we forget is that Hip-Hop is, was and forever will be a culture & lifestyle. NOT a business. With that in mind, we begin with defining "Independent". What is an Independent artist exactly? The d...
Jun 25, 2019•1 hr 11 min
Last year, Kanye West unloaded the clip. We knew that he was working on something, the hype train was picking up speed. He then announced three "albums" that we now know as "DAYTONA", "ye" & "KIDS SEE GHOSTS". A couple of weeks later, he announced two more! Nas' "Project That Shall Not Be Named" & Teyana Taylor's "KTSE". So since we're in the space of a year anniversary of the whole thing, Ben & Charlie decide to go through every project, give thoughts (& statistics) on them and ...
Jun 18, 2019•1 hr 13 min
In a 2-part series, DITD tackles the one topic that has been clouding over every other topic Ben & Charlie has talked about so far on DITD. Major Labels. In the 90s, the US "Big Three", Universal Music Group, Warner & Sony consumed Hip-Hop as soon as it became a cultural force. From '86 to '96, there were 17 No.1 Hip-Hop albums, 11 of them were under Major Labels. It's even more clear looking at singles. Moving onto now, the numbers of Major Labels owning charting artists are in the high...
Jun 11, 2019•1 hr 15 min
In the times we live in right now, it could be said that we're in a golden age of protest. All around the world, there are protests of large numbers being held. They're so prevalent now, you could probably name a few of them. When it comes to Hip-Hop, it too is on the frontline. From Kendrick's Grammy performances to Stormzy's BRIT Awards performance. Music has always been a place to protest and Hip-Hop is definitely no different. Ben & Charlie (The main subject starts @ 5:23) take a look in...
Jun 04, 2019•1 hr 7 min
Episode 8 of DITD is all about the women. In the '90s, there was a healthy contingent of women getting the job done in the Hip-Hop space. There were many female Hip-Hop artists to name, some of them got to the point where they had genuine, landmark chart success. But in the two decades since, the numbers have been cut by more than half. If we look at it from the broadest scope, there's only been six No.1 Albums from female Hip-Hop artists, it's even worse on the production side. Ben & Charli...
May 28, 2019•1 hr 14 min
The subject of Mental Health is a conversation that has been increasing in volume in the past decade. Not just in society, but in Politics as well. (Although most National Jurisdictions are way behind...) But it's not just in day-to-day life, it's also becoming more and more prevalent in the music we love dearly. Hip-Hop. Hip-Hop is historically been iffy when it comes to Mental Health, coinciding with African American culture & society not really knowing how to deal with such complexities. ...
May 21, 2019•1 hr 12 min
"Rap Unicorn" - Phrase - A Hip-Hop artist that rarely drops music, but when they do, everybody listens. E.g. Andre 3000 & Ms Lauryn Hill. Ben & Charlie explore another angle in the relationship between the artist and the fanbase. More specifically, is it right for the fan to demand an artist to drop music simply because they haven't dropped in a while? Ben gives statistics on the "Rap Unicorns" Andre 3000 & Ms Lauryn Hill and for context, gives numbers on artists on the other side of...
May 14, 2019•58 min
Out of the Five Elements of Hip-Hop, two of them are based on music. MC & DJ. Rapper & Producer. Both are important in equal measure. So why is it that in this age, where the Hip-Hop sound is bigger than ever and one could say that Hip-Hop production quality is as high at it has ever been... Why has the producer has taken the back seat in every facet of the game? Why do they get less money for producing in the Streaming age? Why does the consumer not tout Producers more, when (In an age ...
May 07, 2019•1 hr 4 min
Religion and religious content is a staple in music. And when it comes to Hip-Hop, it's no different. Since it's inception, there has always been a section of Hip-Hop culture that is dedicated to looking for meaning and purpose. And in some walks of life, Religion has been the key. For Episode 4 of DITD, Charlie & Ben take a dive into Religion & Hip-Hop. Specifically, Christianity and Kanye West's relationship with it. We get into the numbers for Kanye's mentions of religion, which may u...
Apr 30, 2019•40 min
In recent Hip-Hop news, Dave East hopped on Instagram to call the viral Country/Hip-Hop track "Old Town Road" by Lil Nas X "wack". Hip-Hop social media proceeded to swell up with defensive shots at Dave East. Shots like "NAME ONE DAVE EAST TRACK", "DAVE JUST SALTY HE DOESN'T CHART", you get the idea. People missed the chance to look at the context and the deeper conversation about inorganic fanbases. This is the catalyst for Ben & Charlie to dive into multiple topics, the main of which, Agei...
Apr 23, 2019•1 hr 5 min
For Episode 2 of "Diggin' In The Digits", we talk about music reviewing and music criticism. In a perfect world, the average music consumer and the professional music critic would always be on the same page and could even see each other's viewpoint clearly when both looking at a body of work. But obviously, that's a rare thing. We dive into several angles for this one. Starting with Ben's statistics on average review scores for a handful of artists and the disparities between professional critic...
Apr 17, 2019•56 min
