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…

In 1997, I wrote a small piece analyzing how these three had progressed. Seven years later, I thought I’d look at how things have changed since then, and do a quick update ………………………………………………………………………………………… “Time’s Up”, “Half Time” and “Come Clean”. These three tracks defined street-level hip hop in the first half of the 90’s. They…

While Rawkus Records has to be the most overrated label of the 90’s, Hydra Entertainment is easily the most overlooked. Dismissed by many critics as a purveyor of “mediocre thug crap” while they championed snooze-worthy Talib Kweli records, Hydra has been the delivering a stream of classic street material that rarely disappoints. And for those…

In my post about Akinyele’s classic debut album, I mentioned that “unlike Nas, Akinyele lived up to the hype”. While such a comment might seem to be a textbook example of attention-seeking behaviour, it’s a point that I’m more than happy to qualify.

Did anyone notice in that dope NORE interview that’s been doing the rounds lately (actually it’s old and was done by Life Sucks Die magazine) that amongst his promotion of anti-social behaviour and his own unique brand of straight-up Ignorance, he cited Akinyele’s Vagina Diner as his all-time favourite rap album? That comment alone was…