I dug-up some old radio tapes the other day so I thought I’d throw this interview with Nas on here (as you can see form the photo, God’s Son also pioneered Nelly‘s band-aid gimmick). It’s from Tim Westwood‘s Radio 1 Rap Show in the UK, back in 1996 before his musical tastes went out the…
Author: Robbie Ettelson
Forgotten Beefs Part 4 – Dismasters vs. Kool DJ Red Alert
Considering they named their group the Dismasters, it’s suprising that Raven T & Lord Mike Ski‘s album contained only one diss record. While they claimed a spot in rap history with the timeless "Small Time Hustler", and to a lesser extent with "Black and Proud", their most entertaining moment in the booth was “Act Like…
AJ Woodson (AJ Rok from JVC Force) – The Unkut Interview
Not only was AJ Woodson (aka AJ Rok) part of the JVC Force – the group responsible for the classic L.I. anthem “Strong Island” (before which, many groups from that area used to front like they were BK or BX residents to be accepted by New Yorkers) – but he’s also made his mark in…
Forgotten Beefs Part 3 – Freddie Foxxx vs. Ultramagnetic
This installment of “Forgotten Beefs” is also somewhat of a mystery to me, in that there is very little information on the basis of it. Freddie Foxxx has experienced many ups and downs in the rap game, but has maintained his position as one of hip-hop’s most enduring tough guys. Originally slated for vocal duties…
Forgotten Beefs Part 2: Choice vs. NWA, Geto Boys & Too $hort
Biting the hand that feeds you is never a good idea, but when you’re a foul-mouthed Houston broad struggling to get noticed, it seems like the only option. Such is the story of Choice, the first “lady” of Rap-A-Lot. Willie D gave her a break by generously allowing her to appear on his seminal Controversy…
Years To Build – DJ Ivory of the P Brothers
With all this talk of kids jumping on the ’88 rap bandwagon, it seems strange that nobody has bothered to ask DJ Ivory his views on the whole phenomonen, considering his two Hear No Evil mixes seem to have had a such a large impact (I somehow managed to resist calling this piece “Speak No…
Forgotten Beefs Part 1 – DITC vs LOTUG
Remember back to the days when annoying, gimmicky raps were flavour of the month? A time when groups like the Fu-Schnickens* were actually taken seriously, and you could dance around with a muppet in your video and still get respect (UMC‘s “Blue Cheese”)? In a similar vein, Marley Marl unleashed the Lords of the Underground…
Live At The BBQ – The Missing Link
Not content with being the second greatest posse cut of all time (nothing’s knocking “The Symphony” off the top, sonny), Main Source‘s “Live At The BBQ” is also responsible for launching the careers of Nasty Nas, Akinyele and…Joe Fatal? According to Grimm Reaper (bka MF Grimm), he and Fatal were driving to the studio when…
Revenge of the (Rap Record) Nerds
The rise of the Rap Record Nerd has, not coincidentally, coincided with the invent of the “online shopping revolution” (aka Ebay). While it’s by no means a new phenomenon, it’s far more widespread than I had initially realized. Before the internet age you’d find poorly-dressed weirdos skulking around record fairs and second-hand music shops, armed…
The U.N. – “Greater than great?”
A lot of people seem to be sleeping on this group. Some high-brow lyric fiends might consider the U.N. to be just more of the same old gun-toting, hoodlum-style rap (which is never a bad thing anyway), but don’t get put off by boring cuts like "Russian Hat Wear" (aka the "Money" remix). Sure, Dino…
Large Professor Vs. WWF
For anybody who bothered to pick up the Main Source Breaks The Atom 2LP reissue (gotta love a loud pressing of "Snake Eyes"), the inclusion of an unreleased cut (from the aborted sessions for their never-completed album The Science) was an exciting prospect. However, "Hellavision (Large Professor Vocal)" is not exactly what I was hoping…
Marxman Cinema Review
As a life-long M.O.P fanatic, the prospect of two CD’s/four LP’s worth of new and unreleased Mash Out material had me chaffing at the bit. When they connect with Premier, Billy Danze and Lil’ Fame transform into Brownsville’s aggravated answer to Run-DMC, and without him they still attain EPMD status. Their records pump adrenaline into…