90's week: DJ Premier

You can't possibly have a reputable discussion about 90's hip hop and not mention the architect of the entire east coast sound, mr. boom bap himself, DJ Premier. No rapper from the early 90's could truly be validated until they passed the hip hop rite of passage and spit a few bars over a Primo beat. Luckily for Guru, as a member of Gangstarr, he had first dibbs on these heaters. Hence, the creation of such classics as "Mass Appeal", "Code of the Streets", "DWYCK" and many more.

My Top 5 Premier Beats:
1. "Mass Appeal" Gangstarr (My all time favorite beat EVER)
2. "Come Clean" Jeru the Damaja
3. "Unbelievable" Biggie
4. "Supa Star" Group Home
5. "D'Evils" Jay Z

Honorable Mention "NY State of Mind" Nas

90's week: Smooth da Hustla

Before I speak about Smooth da Hustla, let me first explain why I love 90's hip hop. It's simple; lyric-driven hip hop. In the brief history of hip hop, the early 90's stand alone as the only era characterized and driven by both strong lyrical content and beat production. The golden era of the late 80's solidified hip hop as a reputable genre of music and developed true "fans" of the culture. But it wasn't until the 90's that hip hop really took off. Unfortunately, the days of good lyrical content are over. Today, artists that used their lyrical prowess to thrive in the early 90's, (Redman, Wu Tang, etc.) struggle to find success in an industry driven by radio-friendly, forumalic hip hop. Which leads me to Smooth and his brother Trigga. This "Broken Language" would eventually prove to be their only hit but damn was this shit hot. To be honest I don't remember much about these two and I'm not really in the mood to do any research but I will say that 90% of the "rappers" today
couldn't pull off a flow anywhere close to this.

90's week: Black Moon

So I've been doing some thinking and decided it would be a good idea to make this week, 90's week and relive a few of my favorite moments, albums, and events from the 90's in hip hop. Today's jog down memory lane comes courtesy of Black Moon. Black Moon and Duck Down Records (Smif-n-Wesson, OGC, Helter Skelter) were responsible for a slew of underground hits during the early 90's and my personal favorite "I Gotcha Opin" Remix. Here's a clip of the opening bars to this underground classic.

A word from our sponsors...

So I couldn't let Black History Month escape without me saying a few things. Sadly enough, the Anna Nicole Saga and Britney Spears' crazy ass has garnered much of the media attention for the month of February. But lets face it, it's not like media outlets are fighting to cover anything related to Black History month anyway. I'll spare the entire "every month is black history month" argument and instead promote my idea of making history. Ironically this month has been a great month for making history. Tony Dungy and Lovie Smith's Superbowl appearance, Barack Obama's entry into the dirty game of Presidential politics and even Jen Hudson's big win last night are all events that deserve acknowledgment. So I challenge everyone to make history. In other words, whatever it is that you do, be the best at it. Now go out there and make history!

Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...

Ever since I picked up that new Redman mixtape Live from the Bricks, I've been in a very nostalgic mood. So I've reached into the archives to relive '94 with one of the greatest hip hop "tapes" of all time. We all know that Ghostface is without a doubt the most prolific of all the Wu tang members but OB4CL is the best effort ever produced by Wu tang. Now if we could only get the sequel. Here's a rare video from the classic purple tape.

Juice '06?!

Ok so you can hit me with a major late pass on this one but I just came across this video on youtube a couple days ago and I can't stop watching it. I saw this Curtains dude in a XXL mag a while back but never checked for him. He performed at the "Leaders of the New School" show in NYC a few months back with one of my favorite groups, Supreeme. Its not that he's the best lyrically but his swagger on this Rakim remake is undeniable.

A Cure for AIDS?!

It has long been speculated that Magic Johnson used his NBA pension check to buy the cure for HIV. But now it looks like you can add Tommy Morrison's name to the elite list of people who have the "cure". According to an article on msn, Morrison is looking to return to the ring this year after his career was ended by a positive HIV test in 1996. Apparently he was "misdiagnosed" with HIV and now is perfectly healthy and ready to return to boxing. Misdiagnosed?! Sounds a little fishy to me! If I had been living the past 10 years of my life thinking I had HIV and I was as big as "Tommy Gun" Morrison, I'd be paying a visit to that clinic that tested me! I guess it pays to have the "Duke" in your bloodline.