In Search of The New Sound (Goose Bump Music)
In Search of The New Sound (Goose Bump Music) I cant put into words how much I am enjoying playing the new album from the roots, How I Got Over with headphones on. The experience gives me an excuse to write about something Ive been working on for some time. Perhaps you can help […]

I Aint A Killer, But Dont Push Me
Coincidentally or maybe not, AllHipHop.com and theGrio.com partnered to discuss Hip Hop and Politics during the same week that many recognized the day of birth of arguably one of the most influential artists of a musical genre; he who may have well been the last rapper thus far, who simultaneously displayed the ability to successfully […]

Jay-Z, Rich Righteous Teacher (Part II)
Click here for Part I Jay-Z can market just about everything but a breakfast cereal because hes got huge talent and a savvy business manager, John Meneilly, a former Provident Financial executive. – New York Post; May 16, 2010; Jay-Zs 99 problems Please, can we stop being so spooky about Jay-Z, for just a few […]

Hip-Hop Has Always Been Political-But Will That Legacy Continue?
Whenever we talk about Hip-Hop and Politics its always done from the standpoint with us going to the ballot box as the ultimate goal. Dont get me wrong, voting and participating in the electoral arena are important, but Hip-Hop is so much bigger and so is politics. For many of us politics is more than […]

The Politics of “Gettin’ Money”
Jasiri X is one of the most vocal rappers making Hip-hop with an overt message in the spirit of Public Enemy, X-Clan and Boogie Down Productions. The Pittsburgh emcee tells AllHipHop.com and the Ill Community how such a Hip-Hop artist can make politically-minded music and still get to the money. When I wrote the song […]

Hip-Hop and Islam: Intersections and Parallels
Seandra Sims contributed to this report. Rappers Loon (r) and Freeway (l) during their pilgrimage to the Muslim Holy Land (Nov. 2009). “Deep like the mind of Farrakhan” – Notorious B.I.G.“Make your wife get on the horn call Minister Farrakhan / so he could persuade me to squash it (beef)” – Canibus Im headstrong / […]

Hip-Hop: Evolve Or Die
David Banner has been to the left of the spotlight for a few years, but quietly the rapper/producer has been mastering his craft in other ways. First, is Death of a Pop Star, his upcoming collaboration with producer 9th Wonder. Another is his self-produced song Evolve, which was included in a recent campaign for Gatorade […]

Is Obama The First Hip-Hop President?
During the 2008 presidential election, many from the political left and right insisted a straight line be drawn from Barack Obama directly to the “hip-hop community.” These folks, regardless of their political affiliation, often pointed to Obama’s race, his age, his claim to have Jay-Z in his iPod and his infamous brushing the dirt of […]

Tupac’s Code Foundation:Revisited
From June 1994 to April 2002, Ms. Erica Ford ran Tupac’s Code Foundation even after the rapper had passed away. Erica, Tupac, and his stepfather Mutulu Shakur, established The Code in 1994. The mission was simply to keep young people out of jail and to decrease Black on Black crime. Ms. Ford tells her taled […]

Whos Carrying the Political Torch in Hip-Hop Today?
Gina Torres and Chuck Jigsaw Creekmur contributed to this report. WHAT HAPPENED? An interesting thing happened to Styles P in 2005. The rapper released Im Black, a song that lit a fire in the heart and minds of hip-hop fans of all colors and cultures. Fans waited and waited for a video and a […]

Hip-hop and Politics Have a Long History Behind the Mic
This weekend one of hip-hop’s hottest acts, Drake, lent his talent to protest offshore drilling. On Sunday, the 23-year-old rapper performed at the ‘Stop The Offshore Drilling” rally at the 9:30 Club in Washington D.C. In May, hip-hop veteran Talib Kweli released a single about another hot political topic. It’s called ‘Papers Please’ — and […]

Jay-Z, Rich Righteous Teacher (Part I)
Jay-Z, Rich Righteous Teacher (Part I) (Ive) never read the Quran, or Islamic scriptures The only Psalms Ive read was on the arms of my n*****s – Jay-Z, Intro off of the The Dynasty: Roc La Familia If there were any track in the universe of Jay-Zs catalogue, which I think represents the powerful puzzle […]

Will Hip-Hop Return To Its Activist Roots? (w/ @TOUREX, @icecube, @kevin_powell, @chuckcreekmur)
WATCH THIS ORIGINAL REPORT ON THE EVOLUTION OF HIP-HOP AND POLITICS Before hip-hop became the multi-billion dollar industry it is today, there was a group of young lyricists who were ahead of their time. Telling unfiltered truths about the struggles of blacks in the late 1960s and early 70s, they called themselves The Last Poets.”When […]

Top 20 Top Political Hip Hop Songs
The relationship between Hip-Hop, community action and politics is a volatile and symbiotic relationship with all working with and against each other seemingly at the same time. Hip-Hop has typically been critical of the powers that be, but also been driven by a desire for those in power to improve the environment. Hip-Hop to the […]

Hip-Hop & Politics: From The Beat to The Ballot (@icecube, @UncleRush, @realtalibkweli & more)
NEW YORK TheGrio.com and AllHipHop.com, in partnership with NBC News, will debut Hip-Hop & Politics: From The Beat to The Ballot starting June 14. The weeklong series will run on both websites as part of Black Music Month. Chuck Creekmur of AllHipHop and David Wilson of TheGrio discuss the series on MSNBC in the video […]

Talib Kweli Responds To Slim Thug’s Black Women Comments
Normal 0 0 1 785 3220 68 15 5497 11.0 0 0 0 Im the type of person who is always defending artists and what peoples expectations of them are because of the type of artist I am, and the type of stuff that I put out, because people expect certain things from me and […]

Album Leaks: The Record Spill: Hip-Hop Reform
Id like to start off by saying that the term Hip-Hop Reform has been a baby of mine for the past three years. It is not a movement, its a revolution. Hip-Hop began as a form of expression between urban youth. Then it grew into a way to feed families. Now it is a billion […]

Open Letter To Slim Thug
In a recent interview, rapper Slim Thug unleashed a very disturbing attack on Black women, here’s an excerpt: …Most single Black women feel like they dont want to settle for less. Their standards are too high right now. They have to understand that successful Black men are kind of extinct. Were important. Its hard to […]

“Moving On From The Industry (In Order To Mature It)”
You may think this is a strange title for an article at a website devoted to the culture and industry of music. But it has everything to do with the future of Hip-Hop. Let me explain. One day, in 1998, within 6 months of my no longer serving as a GM of Wu Tang Management, […]

Slim Thug Says Black Women Need To Support Black Men More…and then some.
Editor’s note: The views expressed inside this editorial DO NOT and ARE NOT reflective of the views of AllHipHop.com.The way Black people think in general is messed up. Both men and women need to change their way of thinking. Its hard to trust a Black woman [sometimes] because a lot of Black womens mind frame […]