Blood is The New Black Free.  This t-shirt from Urban Outfitters made me laugh pretty damn hard.  I remember the days when people used to say this sort of message about someone and a) actually mean it and b) the person actually deserved it.
Still, good work, whoever thought this one up.

The NYTimes wrote a fairly unremarkable piece on hip hop beefs in 2009.  The focus of the article was on some simmering beef between Joe Budden and half the Wu-Tang nation.  The story goes that Joe Budden wasn’t too happy when Method Man beat him on a poll by the defunct-and-reborn Vibe Magazine.  He made a couple of brash statements, and the Wu responded.
It seems like Raekwon took it the most personally, and tensions simmered between Joe and Rae, culminating in an alleged assault on Joe Budden.  Budden made the …

I’m a big fan of this track, which is something that landed in my lap from one of the far reaches of the internet.  It’s totally possible that many of you out there have heard this, in which case feel free to throw some heat my way in the comments below.
Six emcees (by my count), organized by Skiggy Rapz.  Master Surreal, Pete Philly, The Proov, Skate the Great and Phreke.
Listen to it here:
[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
It’s got a very laid back and jazzy beat assembled by Skiggy, …

If you’ve got a couple of hours to spare, check this out.  Complex presents the 50 Greatest Samples in Hip Hop History.  Kon and Amir, the authors of this mega-post, do a pretty good job of keeping things simple.  They present the original track (full length) give their opinion on it and how it emerged into hip hop, then present an example of a new track that sampled it.  They let you listen to all the full-length stuff, so I’m pretty stoked about it.
Check it out here.

On this track, Gil Scott-Heron and Nas drop what Pitchfork calls “Basically the opposite of "Empire State of Mind"".  Now, keep in mind that this is a remix that Nas did of Gil’s track, but the result is something that has a strong juxtaposition.  Scott-Heron’s gravely tone sounds pained and laboured, really convincingly sounding like he’s feeling burned out. 
“Oh the doctor don’t know, but New York is Killing me”. – Gil Scott-Heron

Nas’ verses are intriguing.  He focuses mainly on the fast-pace of NYC and the fact that the ladies …

Omar Epps can somewhat rap.  Who knew? The track below, titled Definition, was by a crew called Da Wolfpack.  It’s a pretty 90’s name, but they do alright and the song is actually listenable.  The rumor is that this group never dropped a full album, just released this single.  But hey, they made a video for it so check it out below.

The Toronto Sun (one of the papers I rarely quote from) just ran an article highlighting K’Naan’s big win at the Junos.  The Junos, for you non-Canadian readers, is an award show much like the Grammy’s and is designed to celebrate the best in Canadian music.
It’s not without it’s own controversy, of course, since some people just dismiss the Junos as being irrelevant.  This year, I think they actually did a good job of awarding talent over album sales.  After all, how else can you justify snubbing Justin Bieber?
But …

A little over a month ago, we reported that Guru had slipped into a coma.  This awful news was followed up positively when AllHipHop claimed they had a source saying that Guru had successful surgery and was expected to make a full recovery.
Unfortunately that was not true.  Apparently, Guru had been suffering from cancer for some time, and never made it out of the hospital.  After two months, he passed away.
This is an unimaginable loss for hip hop.  Guru was an inspiration to many and made some of the most …

Granted this is not a question most people would think about.  And I guess it also must be acknowledged that since you’re reading this post on the internet, you’ve got a little bit of geek in you.  Gizmodo  (the gadget blog with a lack of hip hop credentials) has posted an interview with RZA.
RZA, the techno-guru of the Wu-Tang Clan, is a hell of a talented producer.  He did a whole electronic concept album as Bobby Digital that was a definite departure from his previous work.   In fact, back in …

It’s one of the most unanticipated collaborations of 2010, the great Quincy Jones has decided to make a track with Akon.  Titled Strawberry Letter 23, the track has a surprisingly beautiful video.  Full of vibrant colours and a nicely funky beat, it’s actually tolerable.
I still have no love for Akon, but I have to admit that it makes me like him more to know that he’s got enough taste to do a track with QJ.  I mean, if I was an artist and Quincy called me up, I would …