We're joined by Nosaj from New Kingdom who blessed us with jewel after jewel from his 30 years in the music industry. We talked about the process behind his writing, his approach to making music after a lengthy break from releasing projects, his recent project Acid is Groovy Kill the Pigz, and his album pick for this episode - Check Your Head from the Beastie Boys. Honestly can't say enough about the nuggets of insight you're gonna find here. Be sure to listen until the end to hear an exclusive ...
Mar 02, 2022•1 hr 54 min
Jesse Ferguson is the owner and head brewer at Interboro Spirits and Ales in Brooklyn. Jesse also has a background in the music industry, having served as the label manager for Definitive Jux for its entire ten year run. He joins the pod to talk about his efforts to combine craft beer and hip-hop, including collaborations with several artists such as Run the Jewels and most recently Bernadette Price (the wife of the late great Sean Price) to release rap inspired brews. Of course, we also talk wi...
Feb 16, 2022•1 hr 8 min
Philadelphia native Small Professor joins us to talk about his production on the latest Career Crooks album Never at Peace, his Jawn series of instrumentals, BLUu Edwards with Curly Castro, and ‘86 Witness with the late Sean Price. Then he gives us his take on DOOM’s masterpiece MM...FOOD.
Jan 26, 2022•1 hr 30 min
Rapper/producer J Scienide chats with us about his upcoming project called KAPUT as well as 2021 projects “Somebody’s Paradise,” “Enough to Plague a Saint” with Body Bag Ben, and “Stray From the Pack” with Kev Brown. Then J Scienide tells us why Organized Konfusion’s second LP “Stress: The Extinction Agenda” is one of his favorite albums.
Jan 12, 2022•1 hr 36 min
Let’s do this End of Year episode! Continuing a tradition we started last year, when we teamed up with the good dudes at Serious Rap Sh*t, we’re bringing you a super duper pod collab. This time around Kam from the Crate 808 Podcast joins us to talk about our favorite albums of the year. No rankings. No awards. No “Bests”. Just some of the music we loved (because it’s impossible to talk about it all!)
Dec 22, 2021•2 hr 6 min
Fun conversation with Blockhead, the prolific producer who recently dropped a full length LP called "Garbology" with long time collaborator Aesop Rock. We talked with Blockhead about his working relationship with Aesop, and the process of creating Garbology as well as Blockhead's approach to making his solo music. Then we discuss Blockhead's album pick for this episode - Done By The Forces Of Nature - the underrated sophomore album from the Native Tongues founding Jungle Brothers.
Dec 15, 2021•1 hr 1 min
Producer/visual artist and West Philly native Pecue joins us to talk about his recent instrumental project “Excursions” and the design work he’s done over the past couple of years for other artists such as Skrewtape, Zilla Rocca, Brainorchestra, Eddie Kane and more. Then we reminisce over Pecue’s album pick for this episode - the 1993 masterpiece from A Tribe Called Quest - Midnight Marauders.
Dec 08, 2021•1 hr 35 min
Artist Semiratruth joins us to talk about her most recent project I GOT BANDZ FOR THE MOONLANDIN’. And of course we talk about her album pick for this episode, which is from an artist that we had never heard of before but we hope you’ll find as entertaining as we have - J’Von and his project “potato” are the subject of the second half of our episode.
Nov 24, 2021•58 min
Producer maticulous joins us with a behind the scenes look at his new album “no caps” which features an incredible lineup of emcees including Kev Brown, J. Scienide, Skyzoo, Justo the MC, Breeze Brewin’, Guilty Simpson, Uptown XO, yU, Ill Conscious and more. Then maticulous gives us his take on a Soulquarian classic and Common’s breakthrough success - Like Water for Chocolate.
Nov 10, 2021•1 hr 9 min
Alaska and Jason Griff join us to talk about their dark take on pandemic America “Human Zoo”. You know Alaska from Atoms Fam, Hanger 18, and co-host of the Call Out Culture Podcast. And you know Jason Griff as the producer behind the late Scorcese, Alex Ludovico, Insubordinate Records, and the full length “Fireside Chats” from earlier this year. We talk with the two of them about what went into Human Zoo and one of their favorite albums - Killer Mike’s R.A.P. Music.
Oct 27, 2021•1 hr 14 min
On the three year anniversary of the pod we welcome back our very first guest, South Philly native Zilla Rocca. The emcee, beat maker, Wrecking Crew member, and Call Out Culture Podcast co-host talks with us about his latest project Vegas Vic and breaks down one of his favorite albums - Camp Lo’s Uptown Saturday Night.
Oct 13, 2021•1 hr 55 min
Author Matteo Urella joins us to discuss his recently published book “Deep in the Dark with the Art” - a collection of conversations with the creators behind the best cover art of Wu-Tang Clan and their affiliates. We’ll talk about the process of compiling this book, some of the stories that were revealed by its contributors, and we’ll ask Matteo about one of his favorite non-Wu affiliated albums - J Dilla’s opus Donuts.
Sep 29, 2021•1 hr 11 min
A rare interview granted by Philly native QThree AKA Ear.Drum. The producer/emcee talks with us about Deaf Wav (the latest installation in his instrumental series), Perseverance (his third full length LP), and his contributions to Unlearning, Vol. 1 from Evidence. In addition, we talk about the influence of skate boarding on QThree's music, his involvement with the Attack of the Killer Cops merch, and a most influential album on his life and creative approach - Gang Starr's Moment of Truth.
Sep 15, 2021•59 min
Brooklyn emcee/musician Amani joins us to talk about the past year of his creative endeavors, including the excellent An Unknown Infinite with KING VISION ULTRA, the instrumental album From Gratuitous Latters We Fell, his solo project A Constant Condensation, and his guest spot on Armand Hammer's Haram. Then Amani schools us on K-Dot's mixtape catalogue and gives us the story behind his love for Kendrick Lamar's debut album.
Sep 01, 2021•53 min
The multi-talented YUNGMORPHEUS joins us to talk about his upcoming album with producer Eyedress called Affable with Pointed Teeth, as well as one of his favorite albums of all-time - Muddy Waters from Redman. Somewhere in-between he also touches on the importance of addressing issues facing the Black community in his lyrics, his decision to sample testimony from the MOVE commission on his album States of Precarity, the emphasis of album art on his projects, and some thoughts on the recent Verzu...
Aug 18, 2021•1 hr 15 min
Rob and E. take a look at an undisputed classic and an album that is near and dear to Rob's heart. The Low End Theory was released in 1991, as A Tribe Called Quest attempted to ride the wave created by their debut. Q-Tip's production, particularly his use of jazz samples and live players (including the legendary Ron Carter) along with the dynamic rhyme styles of Tip and Phife made the album instantly adored. But you could read about the album's legacy anywhere. Tune in here to get our stories ab...
Aug 04, 2021•38 min
The one and only Homeboy Sandman talks with us about his upcoming project Anjelitu, produced by Aesop Rock. And we get the full story from the Mello Music Group artist on how He's the DJ, I'm the Rapper from DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince made hip-hop more relatable and influenced his approach to writing songs.
Jul 14, 2021•59 min
Brooklyn native Skyzoo joins us to talk about his new album All the Brilliant Things, which focuses on cultural appropriation and gentrification, particularly in the neighborhood where he grew up. Then we get Skyzoo's perspective on his album pick for this episode, the undisputed classic Ready to Die. Having grown up just one block from where Biggie lived on St. James Place, Skyzoo brings a personal and insightful view to the conversation.
Jun 30, 2021•1 hr 6 min
It's a Bruiser occasion! Detroit veteran Fat Ray has surrounded himself with talented artists for several years, developing relationships with folks like Danny Brown, Black Milk, and J Dilla. He joins us to talk about his most recent project Santa Barbara, which is of course one of the three excellent projects to come from Danny Brown’s Bruiser Brigade so far in 2021. Then we talk about another excellent album that helped Fat Ray get through a difficult time - Mobb Deep’s fourth album Murda Muzi...
Jun 16, 2021•1 hr 5 min
Gifted wordsmith AKAI SOLO joins us to talk about his project with Navy Blue entitled True Sky. AKAI also shares thoughts about the importance of honesty in his work, as well as the process behind his writing, and his love for Kid Cudi and the first installment in the Man on the Moon trilogy.
Jun 02, 2021•1 hr 29 min
Julian Alexander is the founder of Brooklyn based design studio Slang, Inc. and has a rich history of artistic design within the music industry. We talked with Julian about his approach to design, the powerful work he’s doing with the Supremacy Project, and heard stories about some of his past projects with artists such as Ghostface Killah, Jeru The Damaja, Nas, M.O.P., and Mobb Deep. Then we spoke about Julian’s personal relationship with the platinum selling album Get Rich Or Die Tryin’ and ho...
May 19, 2021•1 hr 21 min
We present a thoughtful and introspective convo with emcee, writer, and educator Defcee. His latest release “ceenick Deluxe” with producer Nick Arcade, has become one of our favorite things and we asked about some of the personal details behind the album. Then the three of us nerd out over Defcee’s album pick, ELUCID’s 2016 LP “Save Yourself.”
May 05, 2021•1 hr 37 min
Photographer T. Eric Monroe is known for bringing us iconic moments from the 1990s. His ability to casually slip into green rooms, video shoots, and studio sessions has allowed him to capture rare behind the scenes photos in a uniquely candid way. We talk with him about his early contributions to Thrasher Magazine, his experience working as the Photo Editor at The Source in the mid-90s, and we ask him to share stories behind some of our favorite photos. And course, we ask Monroe to pick one of h...
Apr 21, 2021•2 hr 10 min
Nappy Nina joins the show to talk about creating during the past year of the pandemic, including the struggles with mental health that informed much of her work on her latest project Double Down - a collaborative album with producer JWords. Nina also shares some of her early influences and talks about her relocation from Oakland to Brooklyn. Then she helps us dive into one her favorite albums - Isaiah Rashad’s sophomore effort The Sun’s Tirade.
Apr 07, 2021•46 min
Rap duo Armand Hammer, comprised of billy woods and ELUCID, have teamed up with living legend The Alchemist for their latest album, Haram. Days before the release, Armand Hammer sit down to talk about how the collab with The Alchemist came to pass, the process of recording the album, the unique experience of working with a single producer through a pandemic, and we ask them to reflect on one of their favorite albums, Capone-N-Noreaga’s 1997 debut The War Report.
Mar 24, 2021•1 hr 14 min
Max Ochester is the owner of Brewerytown Beats, a record shop in Philadelphia. But Max has also used the shop and his Philly connections to preserve the city’s rich music history. From reissuing previously unheard jazz and soul recordings to organizing efforts to save local institutions such as Sigma Sound Studios and the Coltrane House, Max has put in some work and has mesmerizing stories about it all. He gives us a behind the scenes look at last year’s Sotheby’s hip-hop auction and a report fr...
Mar 10, 2021•1 hr 35 min
Breeze Brewin’ graces us with insight into his life, the arch of his career, his new album - Hindsight - while also dropping gems about Black Sheep’s debut. Just like A Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing we think you’ll find this interview a bit different.
Feb 24, 2021•1 hr 53 min
Fatboi Sharif talks about Gandhi Loves Children, his recent project with producer Roper Williams. In the process he also touches on influences, his interest in film, his creative approach, not releasing 12 albums per year, and helps us examine the oddity that is Prince Paul’s solo debut - Psychoanalysis: What Is It?!
Feb 10, 2021•1 hr 4 min
Chris Maestro, founder and principle owner of BierWax in Brooklyn joins us to talk about the overlap between hip hop and craft beer, the diversity (or lack thereof) in the craft beer industry, the trials and tribulations of owning a small business during COVID, and a bunch of opinions about Nas and The Lost Tapes (2002).
Jan 27, 2021•1 hr 52 min
Rapper/producer HooksArthur discusses his latest project Wave Form Fluent, its emphasis on art in all its forms, working with Influence Prod, and the chance encounter that led to an unlikely friendship with his mentor/engineer Zesto Q. Then Hooks helped us unpack the legacy of DOOM and the brilliance of Madvilliany. RIP DOOM. Metal Face forever.
Jan 13, 2021•1 hr 10 min
