Ah, Ras Kass. He started off so well with his first solo records, the Golden State Warriors projects and all those other great features. Then came all the legal drama, and those promising albums that never saw the light of day. All that seems to be in the past now though, with Rassy back making … Continue reading Album Review: Blasphemy – a record of two halves from Ras Kass & Apollo Brown
That old line about how movie sequels rarely live up to the original has always applied to music too. The so-called sophomore jinx has ruined the career of many an artist, never quite hitting the same heights as a classic debut. With Run the Jewels 2, El-P and Killer Mike have gone and pulled a … Continue reading Album Review: Why RTJ2 is the Godfather Part II of hip-hop
DJ Premier and Royce Da 5’9″ have released an extended version of the teaser for their collaboration project PRhyme. This time we get a phoney interview, extended vocals of the track U Looz, and more goofing around in the record store with Adrian Younge. It follows the release of the certified-Preem-banger Courtesy a few days … Continue reading Primo and Royce keep on teasing us
Heavyweights Talib Kweli, Pharoahe Monch and 9th Wonder today announced a new collaborative venture named Indie 500. It’s not clear yet if it’s set to be a record label, a group or just a movement, but with these three involved, only good things can come from it. The aim seems to be to uphold the … Continue reading Legends of the game combine as Indie 500
Writing about an album made from cat sounds probably isn’t the best way to start a new hip-hop blog, but fuck it. Cats and hip-hop go way back anyway. Just ask Naughty by Nature. And even today, Tyler, the Creator can’t get enough of Photoshopped felines. Now though, with the Meow the Jewels Kickstarter hitting … Continue reading Why Meow the Jewels is more than just a gimmick
Grown Up Rap is a blog about intelligent and independent hip-hop, with news and reviews, plus long-form essays on the history of the music and where it stands today. The blog is curated and edited by Ben Pedroche, a hip-hop fan for 23 years and counting. He has written extensively for a range of magazines, … Continue reading About
