B.Cox looks back at Mobb Deep's 1995 landmark album The Infamous, which launched the duo to the forefront of the reemergence of East Coast Rap and the New York hip-hop scene and continued the tidal wave with gritty tales of street life and the ills of ghetto. Show Notes: Mobb…
B.Cox looks back at Public Enemy's politically charged third studio album 1990's Fear Of A Black Planet and how its production, lyrics, themes and ideologies built on their predecessor classic It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back.
B. Cox reviews A Tribe Called Quest's debut classic People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm as it turns 30. He explores the innovative production and the genesis of Tribe's flow & style that would carry them through to a decade of success.
In this episode, B. Cox and J. Owe look back at Bell Biv Devoe's 1990 party-starting classic Poison which signaled a shift in urban music by marrying multiple genres together in a project that still resonates with those who remember it well.
B. Cox & J. Owe take a look at 2 Pac's breakout third album 1995's Me Against The World, a portrait that painted a picture of a conflicted poet, revolutionary and artist that found himself at crossroads in a life that would be gone far too soon.
B. Cox and J. Owe take a look back at Black Rob's 2000 debut Life Story, a gritty tale of hardships, street life and opportunities at hand that had great potential -- save for a few missteps.
The crew revisits the revolutionary group Dead Prez's 2000 debut Let's Get Free and discuss its themes of Pan-Africanism, self empowerment, anti-establishment, holistic eating and knowledge of self that are still cautions to the ills of Black America a generation after its release.
B. Cox reviews Ghostface Killah's transcendent effort 2000's Supreme Clientele; how its themes, lyrics and virtuoso production made it a stand out among Wu Tang's solo efforts and helped push the group back the forefront as hip-hop entered a new era.
Source: https://www.podbean.com/eau/pb-whx4k-d21c04 B. Cox looks at 1990's Lord Finesse & DJ Mike Smooth Funky Technician, a forgotten diamond in the rough among a slew of classics released in 1990 and how its quality has maintained despite its relative journey in obscurity.
Source: https://www.podbean.com/eau/pb-kqi59-d13089 The crew reminisces about D'Angelo's incredible second album, 2000's Voodoo; a R&B, soul and funk masterclass and how it dared to change the constructs that traditional R&B and neo-soul albums were created within going forward.
Source: https://www.podbean.com/eau/pb-wg46j-d03e0d The crew reflects on The legendary Roots crew major label 1995 debut Do You Want More?!!!??!, their experimentation with fusing jazz & hip-hop and how their creativity lead them down a road where they would stand out among a genre where status quo was the safe way forward.
Source: https://www.podbean.com/eau/pb-ta59q-cf40a8 The crew discusses the Boot Camp Clik's duo Smif-n-Wessun and their 1995 gritty debut album Dah Shinin after 25 years. They speak about the influence that Tek and Steele had on other music groups outside of their sphere of influence and how the sound of the Duck Down…
Source: https://www.podbean.com/eau/pb-2b6v9-cb7f73 The crew discusses the second and final offering from Pete Rock & CL Smooth, 1994's The Main Ingredient. A laid back virtuoso effort by the duo is often overlooked and underappreciated. They discuss how, as grown men, they can appreciate its brilliance.
Source: https://www.podbean.com/eau/pb-s9wwq-ca97d2 The crew reminisces about the 1999 Rawkus compilation Soundbombing II. In the midst of their rise as a great collective, crew and record label, Rawkus teamed up with their roster of skilled emcees and a select choice of guest wordsmiths over classic boom-bap, gritty but soulful head nod…
Source: https://www.podbean.com/eau/pb-qtcpb-c8d249 The crew looks back at Common's second album Resurrection to see how his partnership with No. ID and improvement on his debut album would lead him to an impressive run through the rest of the 90s and the early 2000s.
The crew looks back at Queen Latifah's landmark 1989 debut album All Hail The Queen: how she set the standard for Female MCs for years to come and how it launched her career as an entertainment powerhouse and icon for the next 30 years.
The crew reminisces on Dr. Dre's follow up to his classic debut, 1999's 2001 and how it sparked the beginning of a decade of dominance for his label Aftermath Entertainment and their affiliates.
The crew takes a look back at Scarface's 1994 album The Diary: how it helped solidify Scarface as a solo artist, painted vivid and explicit pictures for listener and started him on the path to hip-hop greatness for the next two decades.
The crew discusses arguably the most critical acclaimed hip-hop album of all-time Nas' historic 1994 debut Illmatic, and how it continues set the standard lyrically and production-wise 25 years later.
The crew takes a look at the highly anticipated 1999 debut album of Pharoahe Monch, Internal Affairs, on the cusp of it being made available digitally and otherwise for the first time on its 20th anniversary.
The crew discuss Mos Def's (nka Yasin Bey) timeless 1999 debut Black on Both Sides, which came at a critical times in their lives. They discuss the lyrics, production, themes and the prophetic nature of its message that still rings true to this day.
The crew discusses The Notorious B.I.G's exceptional 1994 debut album Ready to Die on its 25th anniversary, its genius production work, hardcore and smooth lyrics and how it shaped an hip-hop icon.
The crew discusses De La Soul's historic 1989 debut 3 Feet High And Rising, its impact and how it shaped other projects released within the genre in the following year and years to come.
The crew takes a look at Outkast's groundbreaking debut Southernplayaisticadillacmuzik: it's impact on Atlanta, Southern hip-hop and the hip hop scene overall 25 years after it's release.
