You know how you’re always hanging out, wondering out loud, ‘I wonder what Eric B. is up to these days?’ No? Maybe it’s just me. But thanks to the wonders of Wikipedia, this question has been answered: Eric is now the owner of 47 restaurants throughout the U.S. including New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida,…
Author: Robbie Ettelson
Dr. Butcher – The Unkut Interview, Part 2
Continuing my talk with Dr. Butcher, we discuss Rakim, LL Cool J and the legendary Silver Fox. Robbie: Have you got any DAT’s of G Rap, Ak or Grimm songs that were never heard? Dr. Butcher: I think Grimm has released a lot of the material on his indy label. G Rap, a lot of…
Dr. Butcher – The Unkut Interview, Part 1
You might know the name but there’s a lot more to Dr. Butcher‘s story than I ever imagined when I first tracked him down for a talk. This first part focuses on his production and DJ work with Kool G Rap, Akinyele, MF Grimm and more. Robbie: What was the difference between what you and…
The Return of Rapsloitation
If you’ve ever had the misfortune of having to sit through Breakdance 2: Electric Boogaloo, Rappin’ or even Posse, then get ready for more cinematic horrors in the not-too-distant future. Yeah, you guessed it – they started shooting the effin’ Biggie Smalls movie. After holding a nation-wide audition for the lead, the producers (I’m assuming…
T La Rock Interview Pt. 2 – The Lost Tapes
Continuing my talk with “Super Rapper” T La Rock, we discuss the origins of his name, working with Mantronik, bootleggers and unreleased recordings. T is currently developing a biopic called ‘The T La Rock Story’ with “a very powerful producer from Hollywood” named Bonnie Timmerman (who was the Casting Director on Man On Fire, Carlito’s…
T La Rock Interview Pt. 1 – The Story of It’s Yours
T La Rock is so entrenched into the history of hip-hop that he actually attended Kool Herc‘s first parties. After nine years of deejaying, breaking and emceeing locally in The Bronx, as well as introducing his brother Special K of the Treacherous Three to rap, T finally decided to take the next step and begin…
Joe Fatal Sighting!
If you’re not checking The Meaning of Dope you’re missing out on the best source of original rap footage out there right now. This in particular caught my attention – vintage footage of the ever-elusive Joe Fatal, who also appeared in Main Source‘s “Just Hangin’ Out” and Kool G Rap‘s “Erase Racism” videos.
Video: Kidz In The Hall Respond To Unkut Dot Com Poll
So I get an email today from a guy from Underground Hip Hop dot com letting me know that the Kidz In The Hall gave Unkut a fair amount of airtime in this new video. Amusing to say the least. As I’d originally mentioned in the post, I only really included them to make up…
Ten Reasons Why H.N.I.C 2 Might Be The Album of The Year
No doubt you’ve been following Prodigy ‘s antics in recent times. In between his usual antics, “Field Marshal P” has gone and followed-up the surprisingly enjoyable Return Of The Mac with H.N.I.C. 2, which I assumed was gonna be a pile of steaming horse shit. Turns out it’s one of the most entertaining records I’ve…
DJ Vicious Lee (Def IV) – The Unkut Interview
Even though Rap-A-Lot Records is closely associated with Houston’s 5th Ward, most of the groups on the early roster were originally from New Jersey or New York, which resulted in some interesting blends of styles. The Def IV’s Nice & Hard album is a perfect example, as it introduced an upbeat, sample-heavy sound that was…
Hipster Rap Fans Catch Feelings
Looks like there are some hurt feelings out there. Some humorless prick over at The Chicago Reader attempted to lick some proverbial shots back at ya boy after I shat on his hometown heroes. “Don’t Hate Them Because They’re Hip” The hack that put this piece together makes several incorrect assumptions – primarily that I…
Rappers Can’t Blog
It’s fair to say that the internets have not been kind to rappers. While DJ’s and producers have been able to use the new avenues to their advantage, most MC’s just end-up playing themselves when they get online. It all started with message boards, where ‘underground’ rap dudes trying to kill time until Fat Beats…