Tag: Rap

Flashback Friday Flop: “Beats, Rhymes and Life”

Post author By Christopher Pierznik
Post date November 20, 2015
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Welcome back to the latest edition of Flashback Friday Flop, a weekly feature in which I examine a hip-hop album from years ago that was considered a flop, either critically or commercially or both, when it was released and see if it has gotten better – or worse – over time.

**This week: A Tribe Called Quest’s Beats, Rhymes and Life (1996)**

Last week, one of hip-hop’s greatest groups, A Tribe Called Quest, reunited on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and, with help from The Roots, performed their classic “Can I Kick It?” All four original members – Q-Tip, Phife Dawg, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, and Jarobi – performed together.

That song comes from their debut, People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm, which came out 25 years ago (the reason for the reunion). They followed that up with two undeniable classics, 1991’s The Low End Theory and Midnight Marauders in 1993.

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Tags A Tribe Called Quest, Hip-Hop, J. Dilla, Rap

Hip-Hop Nostalgia

Revisiting the Hip-Hop Class of 1998

Post author By Christopher Pierznik
Post date November 16, 2015
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“Class of nine-eight, my fellow graduates / Well-known savages”
– Nature, “Fire”

A seismic shift occurred in hip-hop in 1998.

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Tags Big Pun, Cam'Ron, Canibus, DMX, Hip-Hop, Kurupt, Rap, The LOX, Where are they now?

Week in Review

Week in Review (November 13, 2015)

Post author By Christopher Pierznik
Post date November 13, 2015
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It’s felt like a weird week.

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Tags Confessions, Family, Hip-Hop, NBA, NBA Draft, Parenting, Rap

Flashback Friday Flop

Flashback Friday Flop: “Can-I-Bus”

Post author By Christopher Pierznik
Post date November 13, 2015
4 Comments on Flashback Friday Flop: “Can-I-Bus”

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**This week: Canibus’s Can-I-Bus (1998)**

Towards the end of 1997, hip-hop was entering a transition phase, digging itself out of the rubble left behind in the wake of the East Coast-West Coast war that altered the genre forever. The deaths of 2Pac and B.I.G., Snoop’s decline, and the dominance of Puff’s shiny suit army left an opening for new artists.

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Tags Can-I-Bus, Canibus, Flop, Hip-Hop, LL Cool J, Rap, The Firm, Wyclef

Greatness Hip-Hop Rap

An Appreciation of Missy Elliott Videos

Post author By Christopher Pierznik
Post date November 12, 2015
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To celebrate the release of “WTF,” the new video by Missy Elliott, I decided to compile some of my favorite Missy videos. She is a trendsetter that changed hip-hop when she entered the game. She can do it all – rap, sing, write, produce, dance, direct, whatever. One of the most innovative artists in rap history, here is just a small collection of Missy’s best visuals.

Tags 50 Cent, Hip-Hop, Innovative, Jay-Z, Ludacris, Missy Elliott, Playlist, Rap, Timbaland, Trendsetter, Videos

Hip-Hop The Musical Outcast

The Best Three Album Runs In Hip-Hop History

Post author By Christopher Pierznik
Post date November 11, 2015
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Making a great album is not easy. Making another one is even tougher. However, the task of making three great albums in a row is a rare feat indeed, one that the vast majority of hip-hop artists, even the great ones, have failed to do.

Tags Consistency, Hip-Hop, Music, Rap

Flashback Friday Flop

Flashback Friday Flop: “The Best of Both Worlds”

Post author By Christopher Pierznik
Post date November 6, 2015
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This week: Jay-Z & R. Kelly’s

The Best of Both Worlds (2002)

In May, 2001 Jay-Z kicked off the remix to R. Kelly’s “Fiesta.” It was a great record, one that became the most popular R&B/Hip-Hop song of 2001 according to Billboard. The two had worked together several times before that. First, they had linked up, along with Changing Faces, for “All of My Days” off the Space Jam soundtrack in 1996, as well as a posse cut, “We Ride,” alongside Cam’Ron, Noreaga, and Vegas Cats on Kelly’s 1998 double album, R. before working on “Guilty Until Proven Innocent” from Jay’s 2000 album, The Dynasty: Roc La Familia album.

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Tags Hip-Hop, Jay-Z, R. Kelly, Rap, The Best of Both Worlds

I Was There

I Was There: Drinking Wu-Tang Beer with Inspectah Deck

Post author By Christopher Pierznik
Post date November 5, 2015
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The Wu-Tang Clan has been referred to as hip-hop’s answer to The Rolling Stones. From their classic output to their logo to their lasting impact to their longevity to their popular live shows to the lukewarm response to their later albums, they are rap’s version of older rockers.

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Tags Craft Beer, Hip-Hop, Inspectah Deck, Moments, Philly, Rap, Wu-Tang Clan

Greatness Hip-Hop

Collaborations of Busta Rhymes, Jay-Z, B.I.G. & DMX – All of Whom Went to High School Together

Post author By Christopher Pierznik
Post date November 3, 2015
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There have been a multitude of studies and stories done on the connection between geography and success. In the history of hip-hop, one of the most fertile grounds for superstars has been Brooklyn. For proof, think about the fact that Busta Rhymes, Jay-Z, The Notorious B.I.G. and DMX all went to George Westinghouse Career and Technical Education High School together.

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Tags Busta Rhymes, High School, Hip-Hop, Jay-Z, Memories, Playlist, Rap, The Notorious B.I.G.

Flashback Friday Flop

Flashback Friday Flop: “Blood in My Eye”

Post author By Christopher Pierznik
Post date October 30, 2015
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**This week: Ja Rule’s Blood in My Eye (2003)**

From 1999 – 2002, Ja Rule released four albums, all of which went platinum with two of them reaching triple platinum status. He mixed the street with the charts and became a hit machine, breaking through into the mainstream with 2000’s “Put It On Me.” His combination of singing and rapping helped bridge two separate styles that often needed a collaboration to pull it off. Ja could do it on his own.

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Tags 50 Cent, Blood In My Eye, Eminem, Hip-Hop, Ja Rule, Rap