AltWeeklies Wire
Damaged Good$ Arrives Just in Time to Right the Ship of Dallas Hip-Hopnew
It's not exactly a secret that Dallas hip-hop is enjoying a serious high at the moment. But if there's an Achilles heel to this burgeoning superpower, it's in the fact that it lacks a serious self-awareness, a sense of humor about its absurdity.
Dallas Observer |
Pete Freedman |
03-09-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
K’naan: The 'Dusty Foot' 'Troubadour'new
The 30-year-old artist is one of the most buzzed-about figures in hip-hop, based on the strength of his latest album, Troubadour. K'naan's sound is rooted in East African rhythms with lyrics so vibrant and piercing that it's as if Bob Marley and Che Guevara were ghostwriters on the project.
Seattle Weekly |
Jonathan Cunningham |
03-09-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Grandmaster Flash's 'The Bridge'new
Hip-hop has changed dramatically since "The Message," but many believe not for the better. Flash would do well to follow his own vision instead of attempting to keep up with the inferior producers and DJs whose careers he made possible.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Ben Westhoff |
02-25-2009 |
Reviews
Baltimore Hip-Hop Vets Offer a Way Forward For The Scene--Looking Backnew

If you follow hip-hop journalism, you've heard this story before: Once there was a grassroots movement that established criteria for what made hip-hop matter. Now it's just people repeating the same old nonsense about big-screen TVs, money, and bitches.
Baltimore City Paper |
Bret McCabe |
02-24-2009 |
Music
What Makes Cornbreadd Runnew
If Cornbreadd didn't already exist, some MTV programming executive would have had to make him up. On record, he can be as grimy and ghetto as they come, but he delivers even his harshest rhymes with the kind of charisma that elicits a chuckle instead of a gasp.
Houston Press |
Chris Gray |
02-10-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Aether's 'Artifacts'new
San Antonio hip-hop producer Diego Chavez’s first solo outing creates a MacBook-powered soundscape that falls quietly between Handsome Boy Modeling School (minus humor) and Brian Eno (minus sleepiness).
San Antonio Current |
Matt Ramos |
02-04-2009 |
Reviews