By Britt Robson, eMusic ContributorPianist Robert Glasper has jazz chops sophisticated enough to satiate diehard purists and an affinity for hip-hop and R&B that has resulted in collaborations with Q-Tip, Maxwell and Mos Def. Black Radio scrambles these influences,… more »
By Hua Hsu, eMusic ContributorThe late '90s was the heyday for a certain kind of purist: values-driven, anti-crossover, anti-shiny things, New York-centric rappers, and few albums capture this moment quite like Rawkus's Lyricist Lounge compilation. "All commercial cats gettin'… more »
By Hua Hsu, eMusic ContributorOn September 7th, a federal appeals court in Cincinnati, Ohio, all but closed the book on sampling in hip-hop. A three-judge panel ruled that recent federal laws pertaining to the piracy of digital recordings also… more »
By Hua Hsu, eMusic ContributorFor those of us who regard art as an index of ideas, hopes and anxieties over time, there is a mystique to things that were never able to see the proper light of their respective… more »
By Jeff Chang, eMusic ContributorIf fellow travelers De La Soul were the giddy braniacs and the Jungle Brothers the funky eccentrics, A Tribe Called Quest were the artful romantics of the vanguard Native Tongues hip-hop crew in the mid-'90s.… more »
By Hua Hsu, eMusic ContributorThere's a disarming effervescence to Maureen Yancey as she shares memories of her late son, the Detroit producer and rapper J. Dilla. It has been over three years since Dilla passed away from complications related… more »