Their breakthrough album was called “3 Years, 5 Months and Two Days in the Life Of …,” a nod to the long struggle fledgling rappers Arrested Development faced between the day they formed and the day they signed a record deal.

Now, it’s been 13 years since their last U.S. release. And the Atlanta group that topped charts and earned a pair of Grammys with their upbeat, socially conscious brand of rap in the early ’90s is back — hoping to again find a place on a drastically changed musical landscape. (more…)

Washington, D.C. – More than 40 GW students and D.C. residents gathered at Jack Morton Auditorium Friday to listen to panelists support the social and political movement within the hip-hop community.

The United Nations Association – a nonprofit U.N. support group – and The Hip-Hop Association – a nonprofit organization endorsing hip-hop music – hosted “Hip-Hop Ambassadors Bridging the Gap!” (more…)

  Rating:
  Review Date: October 29, 2007
  Website: Little Brother Website
  Label: ABB Records

Little Brother “Getback” Album Review
They say that which doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger. Kanye recently made a song about it in “Graduation.” But the saying applies much better to Little Brother, who has been through some major setbacks in the past couple of years. “The Minstrel Show” didn’t sell well. The group lost their deal with Atlantic Records. And then they parted ways with 9th Wonder. But I guess that’s what makes it all the more curious that “Getback” is the best album Little Brother has ever made. (more…)

He was doing what he loved most in a neighborhood recording studio any other hip-hop star would have abandoned long ago – but Jam Master Jay always did his own thing.

And that October night in 2002, the pioneering Run DMC deejay, whose real name was Jason Mizell, was doing what he did best – mixing beats – when he was shot in the back of the head in a Queens studio full of people. The execution-style murder of the hip-hop legend remains one of the most notable of the city’s unsolved homicides.  (more…)

Hip-Hop is not dead, at least not in Africa. That was the consensus after a recent screening here of the forthcoming documentary, “African Underground: Democracy in Dakar.”

The documentary, due to be released by Christmas, focuses on the role of the youth hip-hop movement in the Senegalese elections of 2000 and 2007. (more…)

Michael Eric Dyson, perhaps the world’s leading authority on hip-hop music, says that hip-hop culture is under assault in America.

“It is said to be the cause of all manner of evil in society and is blamed for rising rates of homicide in certain cities,” Dyson told an audience of about 700 Wednesday night during his Distinguished Lecture Series talk at the Union Theater. (more…)

Class is about to start and the students gather in a circle. Someone cues the music and the beat flows through the room. The teens sway, bop their heads to the rhythm and the lesson begins. “Yeah, yeah, yeah,” they chant in unison as one of the students attempts the first assignment — an improvisational rap to introduce themselves to the group.

The class is called Hip Hop 101, but it’s designed to do more than teach metro Detroit high school students about hip-hop. Another objective is to provide a safe haven from the crime and drug scenes teens sometimes get into after school. The class is held twice weekly at the Heilmann Community Center and the Williams Recreation Center in Detroit. It started this month. (more…)

Underground hip-hop legend Sage Francis will embark on a month long tour starting with the October 30th album release party for labelmate Buck 65. The Buck 65 album release show will make stops in Rhode Island and Massachusetts before hitting Baltimore with Lyrics Born and Hangar 18.

From there, Sage will spend the month of November touring with Florida rock band Against Me! Tickets are available at Strange Famous Records (http://www.strangefamousrecords.com/). Check below for tour dates in your area. (more…)

In a tribute to her son, east coast hip hop notable Notorious BIG, Ms. Voletta Wallace will unveil a wax figure of hip hop legendary Biggie Smalls aka Notorious BIG (born: Christopher Wallace) on Thursday, October 25th at 11:00 a.m. at Madame Tussauds New York, 234 West 42nd St. (b/w 7th & 8th Aves.), Manhattan. (more…)

  Rating:
  Review Date: October 22, 2007
  Website: Random Website
  Label: RAHM Nation Recordings

Random “Mega Ran” Album Review
If there’s one album I regret never getting around to reviewing, it is Random’s “Mega Ran.” When the album dropped on July 19, I was caught up with a site redesign and a stack of CDs I could barely see over. So we did an interview with Random instead. Nonetheless, “Mega Ran” has become one of my favorite albums of 2007 – it is a ridiculously creative concept album based on the Mega Man video game. In addition, Random gave it away for FREE! (more…)