He wasn’t kidding with the name. I love Christmas. I love hip hop. I love Jonwayne. So when I found out Jonwayne had made an album of Christmas beats, who do you think I reacted? The rap game St Nick has blessed us with his latest gift, Yuletide Bangerz and the title is free of hyperbole. Every song is packed with nostalgic wonder and Jonwayne’s trademark rhythms….
Germany’s Slim the Chemist keeps his jazz beats in order with his Silence EP. I found this in my bookmarks from a while back and thought I’d share it with you. Slim the Chemist is a producer from Düsseldorf in Germany and Silence EP was his first release with Roots of Society Records. I had high hopes when I discovered his origin as Germany isn’t…
Joy’s visuals are enriched with melanin and youthful exuberance, with dancing choreographed by The iDream Dancers. We all know bravado runs through the veins of hip hop and its culture, from the roots underground to the top of the tree. But James Gardin’s accolade, The World’s Most Encouraging Rapper™, conveys regular improvement. It’s also a positive streak he has continued with his latest video for…
Barcelona-based beatmaker Thijsenterprise drops mammoth beat tape, Stepbacks & Setbacks, dedicated to some important people in his life. “Old school hip-hop with soul and jazz samples, dusty breaks and raw chops.” With a description like that, I just had to listen when this dropped in my inbox. Thijsenterprise (real name Reinier Thijs) is a producer from Barcelona and Stepbacks & Setbacks is his latest project. 42…
Today is Madlib’s birthday. Here’s why I love his music and personality so much. In the mid-to-late 00s, I discovered a compilation by Zero 7. It was part of Late Night Tales’ mix series (then called Another Late Night) and it featured a song called Real Eyes by Quasimoto. I found it intriguing for many reasons but it took a few years before I discovered…
Power 106 Los Angeles got DJ VinRican to mix tracks from Champion Sound with the samples they used. It’s officially dope. Say what you want about WhoSampled but I’m sure many of us have searched through and marvelled at the samples used in our favourite tracks. I’ve done it with Jaylib before but there’s always a slight disconnect between the track and the sample when…
Ahwlee’s new tape, liteist., shows why he’s a paragon of drum grooving. Sometimes your day/week is hell and you’d like something good and pure to remind you what life should sound like. And Ahwlee came with this proverbial olive branch, even if it wasn’t for me personally. liteist. is a wonderful 14-track beat tape with fine drums and emotive loops and chops. The grooves come…
This edition of Leftover Links is all about beats and videos. Leftover Links is back once again with some beats and videos from the past few months so enjoy! Beats Bugseed – Fresh Jive EP One of our favourite Japanese beatmakers, Bugseed, dropped a fresh beat tape called “Fresh Jive EP” on Bandcamp a few months ago. The EP was intended for the “hottest summer from…
You’re now tuned into The Donuts Network, our new YouTube playlist dedicated to J Dilla. Have you ever needed a burst of inspiration and struggled to find it? That was me on Friday night. Then I noticed a saved playlist on my YouTube account. It was the Bling47 Dilla Edition series and it gave me the jolt I needed. Whatever your reason or need, Dilla…
Often a man behind the scenes, Imperial is now at the forefront with his debut album, Layers. Lord knows this project has been a long time coming. The Cambridge producer has been a frequent collaborator with K.I.N.E.T.I.K but now Imperial has a solo record to himself. The title represents Imperial’s life over the last few years. His family welcomed the birth of a baby daughter and…