Kendrick Lamar

Meet Kev Kash, a promising new local rapper

Kev Kash is a rising talent from the local scene who has songs with the likes of Innerstate Ike, Myrical and Mr. Midas. Kash says 2Pac his biggest influence, but he says his style is comparable to Lupe or Kendrick Lamar. We recently caught up with rapper, who has a new record coming out titled Moon ... More >>

JRebelZ on female MCs finding their own voice instead of playing second fiddle to men

JRebelZ is steadily making a name for herself in the local hip-hop scene. Known otherwise as Jaqueline Rodriguez, JRebelZ came to Denver from El Paso more than a decade ago, and says Nas is the one who sparked her passion for rhyming. We recently caught up with the MC, who just dropped a video for h ... More >>

Boston Marathon bombing suspect was a rap fan: Ten song lyrics Dzhokhar Tsarnaev tweeted

Time and distance provide prospective -- isn't that what they say? Sure enough, the further removed we are from the recent Boston Marathon bombing, the more the picture appears to be coming into focus of the two brothers alleged to have conducted the terror plot. From analyzing their online presen ... More >>

New Denver shows: Steely Dan, the Geto Boys, Brad Paisley, Selena Gomez, Ride Festival

Steely Dan is making its way back to Colorado for a show at Red Rocks this August, and there's a bunch of other new shows to let you know about, including Brad Paisley at Fiddler's Green, the Geto Boys at Summit Music Hall, Ride Festival and Selena Gomez. Keep reading for the full rundown on these s ... More >>

New Denver shows: Kid Rock's $20 tour, Muse at Pepsi Center, 311/Blues Traveler at Red Rocks

Ever the equal opportunity rocker, Kid Rock is bringing his Best Night Ever tour to Fiddler's and every seat in the house is $20. "Everyone knows the economy is still hurting people across the country," he says, "but I didn't want that to be a reason why everyone couldn't get out and enjoy themselve ... More >>

Ab-Soul

Saturday, April 6, Vinyl, 303-860-8469.

The ten best hip-hop shows in Denver this April

SAGE FRANCIS @ FOX THEATRE | THU, 4/18 When evaluating an artist like Sage Francis, the question inevitably arises: Should a musician be cherished for the values they hold and their loyalty to said values or their ability to make enjoyable and listenable music? If it's the former, then Sage Francis ... More >>

New Denver shows: Keith Urban, Lamb of God, John Mayer, Ke$ha and Pitbull and more

The biggest show announcement this week actually came last week -- talking about Prince at the Ogden, of course -- but there's a whole bunch of other new shows to let you know about this week, including Keith Urban at Red Rocks, Lamb of God at the Boulder Theater, John Mayer at Red Rocks and Ke$ha a ... More >>

New Denver shows: P!NK, Matchbox Twenty, Goo Goo Dolls, Barenaked Ladies, Guster

It's March 2013 -- at least according to the calendar. If you went by the concert calendar for the past few weeks, however, you'd swear it's the mid to late '90s. P!NK, Matchbox Twenty and Goo Goo Dolls, Barenaked Ladies, Ben Folds Five and Guster, Darius Rucker. If you're already nostalgic for the ... More >>

Menswear Mondays: Business student Jiadong Qiu on his Asian-inspired style

St. Patrick's day weekend has come to a close, ending the sea of green on the streets. Many people went over the top, drowning themselves in the emerald hue (and beer), but a few sported green subtlely. This week we spotted Community College of Denver business student Jiadong Qiu rocking green in a ... More >>

The 50 best rap lyrics of all time: Complete list

Last week, we took a look at the fifty worst rap lyrics of all time. Going through all the dreck and drivel to get to the crème de la crème of crappiness was tedious and rather exhausting. This week, we even things out by taking a look at the other end of the spectrum and examining rap lyrics to f ... More >>

The best concerts in Denver this weekend

ALABAMA SHAKES @ OGDEN THEATRE | SAT, 3/9/13 A number of bands are returning to a Southern-rock sound these days, but much of the music they're making is too derivative to be interesting. Alabama Shakes, fresh off a date warming up for Neil Young, bucks that trend. The group's members, who met in hi ... More >>

Snowball Music Festival

Friday, March 8, through Sunday, March 10, Winter Park Resort, Winter Park, 800-979-0332.

The SnowBall Music Festival 2013 survival guide

The third edition of the annual SnowBall Music Festival kicks off tomorrow night in Winter Park. Seasoned veterans that we are, we've put together an exhaustive survival guide for you to ensure that you have the best possible experience and don't become a human popsicle. We know what to bring, how m ... More >>

Womenswear Wednesdays: Visual art student Haley Swenson on her Tank Girl- inspired look

With the wacky weather this past week mixing snowflakes and sunshine, many people dressed for one season or the other. One stylish Denverite we spotted among the crowd is Haley Swenson, a visual art student at Metropolitan State University of Denver who dresses with flair and packs a punch. Continue ... More >>

Soccer moms of the world, unite: New Kids on the Block are coming to 1STBANK Center!

So this one summer before New Kids on the Block made all the girls (who are all middle aged moms now -- meditate on that for a minute) swoon like no other, the dudes did an in-store at the mall in Cheyenne. I was there. My best friend was a DJ at the station presenting the meet and greet, and so we ... More >>

The best concerts in Denver this week

SNOWBALL MUSIC FESTIVAL @ WINTER PARK | FRI-SUN, 3/8-3/10 If the idea of standing outside in the cold and snow sounds positively unappealing to you, either you're not from Colorado or you're new here. Whatever the case, don't let any of that dissuade you from heading up to the mountains for the apt ... More >>

The ten best hip-hop shows this month

The hip-hop, as you know, doesn't stop. It's a new month, which means there's another fresh batch of dope shows for you. And trust: March has plenty of freshness on tap, from revered elder statesmen like De La Soul, Naughty By Nature and GZA to newer cats like Tech N9ne, French Montana and Kendrick ... More >>

OMFG! Turbonegro is coming to Denver! So's Bassnectar and Soundgarden. See who else...

Turbonegro is finally coming to Colorado! Granted, it's with the new frontman -- whose name I haven't even bothered to learn yet because, well, he's got some big shoes to fill taking over for Hank von Helvete -- but it's still Turbonegro! Last time I saw these dudes, they literally rocked my face of ... More >>

New Denver shows: Rush, Rodrigo y Gabriela, the Postal Service, Death, Danzig and more

Bunch of new shows to let you know about this week, including Rush, who's coming to the Pepsi Center in August, plus new dates featuring the Postal Service, Rodrigo y Gabriela with the Colorado Symphony, Death, Danzig and Deer Tick. Keep reading for the full rundown of all those shows, including tic ... More >>

Bonnaroo lineup includes trio of Colorado acts

If you missed the hour-long live-stream a bit ago in which "Weird Al" Yankovic announced the headliners for this year's edition of Bonnaroo, rest easy. We've got you covered. We took notes on all the acts announced thus far. Prepare to be overwhelmed. There's roughly ten billion on the bill, includi ... More >>

New shows: Alabama Shakes/Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, Paramore, Jim James

There are a ton of new shows to tell you about this week, including a co-headlining date at Red Rocks featuring Alabama Shakes and Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, plus new shows from Paramore, a solo date from Jim James of My Morning Jacket, the Gaslight Anthem, Marina & the Diamonds and Charli ... More >>

The 25 best concerts this winter/spring

As the winter chill finally thaws (work with us here -- we know it's still below freezing right now) and gives way to the hopefulness and fertility of spring, the upcoming concert season is likewise bursting with promise. Coming off one of the best years for live music in recent memory, the lineup i ... More >>

Backbeat's top five spins: This is what we're listening to this week. What's on your playlist?

As people who think about, talk about, write about, listen to and make music, it's not surprising that the most common (and favorite) topic of conversation among us is the same: "What are you listening to right now?" Stick a quarter in us, and, boy, wouldn't you know it, off we go, on and on about t ... More >>

SnowBall 2013 full lineup revealed

Just before Christmas, the folks behind SnowBall Music Festival began revealing the lineup for the third edition of their annual mountain music festival, which is moving to Winter Park this year from its previous location in Avon. Pretty Lights, Big Gigantic, Kendrick Lamar and Zion I were among the ... More >>

New shows: Lotus three nights at Boulder Theater, Crystal Castles at the Gothic and more

A perennial favorite in Colorado, Lotus is making its way back to the Centennial state for a trio of shows at the Boulder Theater, while Crystal Castles is set to return for a date at the Gothic Theatre and Anthrax tops the Metal Alliance tour, a stacked bill at the Summit Music Hall this April that ... More >>

The ten best hip-hop lyrics of 2012

1. 2 Chainz - Birthday Song "She got a big booty, so I call her Big Booty." Don't freak. We're just kidding. Every year, people say hip-hop is dead, but every year it keeps expanding -- commercially, sonically. thematically -- pretty much in every way imaginable. Although the radio may lead you to ... More >>

New shows: SnowBall Music Festival adds STS9 and other acts, the Pharcyde at Fox and more

New week, new year, new show announcements -- the biggest one this week involves STS9. Fresh off a three-night New Year's Eve run at the Fillmore comes word that the outfit has been added as a headliner at this March's SnowBall Music Festival. We've got the full run down on that below, as well as wo ... More >>

Backbeat's top five spins: This is what we're listening to this week. What's on your playlist?

As people who think about, talk about, write about, listen to and make music, it's not surprising that the most common (and favorite) topic of conversation among us is the same: "What are you listening to right now?" Stick a quarter in us, and, boy, wouldn't you know it, off we go, on and on about t ... More >>

Backbeat writers sound off on the year's best national albums

See also: Moovers and Shakers 2012: Backbeat writers praise the year's best local albums

The thirty best concerts of 2012

While 2012 will be remembered as they year that Red Rocks hosted the most shows in its history, it's also going to go down as one of the best years for concerts in Colorado in general. As we reflected on all the incredible shows we took in this past year, there were an astounding number of what we'd ... More >>

9th Wonder on how hip-hop is like pills in the applesauce, a gateway to knowledge and history

A revered hip-hop producer who got his start with Phonte and Big Pooh in the North Carolina-based group Little Brother, 9th Wonder has worked an array of top shelf artists from Jay-Z and Destiny's Child to Mary J. Blige and Ludacris, among many others. Known as one of the best samplers in hip-hop, w ... More >>

SnowBall 2013: Kendrick Lamar, Pretty Lights and Big Gigantic among first acts announced

Ah, yes, with Denver looking like the inside of snow globe right now, it seems only fitting for the folks at SnowBall Music Festival to reveal the first part of the lineup for the third edition of their annual mountain music festival. EDM and hip-hop heads will be stoked. Pretty Lights and Big Gigan ... More >>

New shows: Cat Power, Lucero, Mike Cooley of the Drive-By Truckers solo show and more

It's less than a week now until Christmas. Did you get all your shopping done yet? Ah, don't beat yourself up. Neither have we. If you're like us, you've probably got some people on our list who are just impossible to buy for, yes? If so, here's an idea, one that won't require you to brave the masse ... More >>

The twenty best hip-hop shows of 2012

As much of a stronghold as our town is for EDM, Denver is also a hotbed of hip-hop. Although we've always held true to the assertion, and such a declaration would seem perfectly reasonable to even casual observers, the point was never driven home more definitively than when we took a look back at th ... More >>

New shows: Justin Bieber adds another date at the Pepsi Center, Imagine Dragons and more

Did you totally blow it? Did you dawdle and miss your chance to pick up tickets to Justin Bieber's now sold-out concert at the Pepsi Center next month? Is your darling niece bummed with you beyond all recognition? Good news for you: You get a do-over -- well, sort of. The Biebs just announced anothe ... More >>

New Shows: Furthur at 1STBANK, 420 show at Red Rocks with Slightly Stoopid, Cypress Hill

Big news on the concert front this week: Furthur, always a local favorite, returns for a series of dates in Colorado, one at the Ogden, followed by three back-to-back nights at 1STBANK Center. Equally as big is word of a 420 show at Red Rocks featuring Cypress Hill, Slightly Stoopid and Tribal Seeds ... More >>

New shows: Sigur Ros, Carrie Underwood, Bloc Party, Big Head Todd, Divine Fits and more

It's not Christmas yet, but you'd certainly be excused for thinking otherwise, what with the radio already playing round-the-clock holiday tunes and the new shows we've been gifted with. Looks like somebody's been on their best behavior (god knows, it wasn't us). Whatever the case, we're now being r ... More >>

Sole on the perils of pushing boundaries: "If I go to jail on some bullshit, I'll do a correspondence course and come out a professor."

For an artist whose career has been built espousing the virtues of DIY self-reliance, it's been a long time since Sole (born Tim Holland) has done a record all by himself with no producers or label people listening over his shoulder. And while Sole confides that this was nerve-wracking at times as h ... More >>

Backbeat's top five spins: This is what we're listening to this week. What's on your playlist?

As people who think about, talk about, write about, listen to and make music, it shouldn't be surprising to find that the most common (and mutually favorite) topic of conversation among us is the same: "What are you listening to right now?" Stick a quarter in us, and, boy, wouldn't you know it, off ... More >>

New shows: Disco Biscuits, Passion Pit at 1STBANK, the Walkmen at the Ogden Theatre

As reported yesterday, the Disco Biscuits are playing three shows in Colorado after the first of the year at the Boulder Theater, Ogden Theatre and 1STBANK Center. And while that's arguably the biggest concert announcement of the week, it's not the only one. After cancelling its co-headlining date w ... More >>

New shows: Taylor Swift, Public Enemy, Hot Water Music; Morrissey, Green Day postponed

Tons of concert news for you this morning: You've already heard about the Morrissey show this weekend being postponed and about Taylor Swift coming back to Denver next summer, but we've also got word of Green Day's 1STBANK show in February being postponed, K'nann show at the Gothic being cancelled, ... More >>

Backbeat's top five spins: This is what we're listening to this week. What's on your playlist?

As people who think about, talk about, write about, listen to and make music, it shouldn't be surprising to find that the most common (and mutually favorite) topic of conversation among us is the same: "What are you listening to right now?" Stick a quarter in us, and, boy, wouldn't you know it, off ... More >>

Kendrick Lamar at Ogden Theatre, 10/8/12

KENDRICK LAMAR @ OGDEN THEATRE | 10/8/12 The stage was set by an erupting smoke machine, thundering bass, a massive light spectacle, all in preparation for a dynamic, five-foot, six-inch MC in old-school knee socks and a voice that seems too powerful to come from such a little body. The second the ... More >>

The five best concerts this week: October 8-12

Happy Monday, amigo! Another great batch of shows this week to help you get through the work week. We've got all this week's shows listed in our concert calendar if you're so inclined. Otherwise, keep reading to get a full rundown on the five best concerts this week, the ones we think are worth stay ... More >>

Kendrick Lamar

Monday, October 8, Ogden Theatre, 888-929-7849.

Backbeat's five most listened-to songs and albums, week of September 5, 2012

As people who think about, talk about, write about, listen to and make music, it shouldn't be too surprising to find that the most common (and our mutually favorite) topic of conversation among all of us is the same: "What are you listening to right now?" Stick a quarter in us, and boy, wouldn't you ... More >>

The five most listened-to songs and albums of the week, August 20 through August 27

Well, lookie here. What you do know? It's the return of Heavy Rotation. Longtime readers of Backbeat will remember this feature as one in which we shared our weekly listening habits in hopes of giving you some insight into our individual sensibilities. It's been dormant for a while, but starting tod ... More >>

Macklemore on his new record and what rap album he'd take with him on the mothership

The last time we caught up with Seattle rapper Macklemore (due tomorrow at the Westword Music Showcase on the mainstage), he was working on his latest album with such fervor, he chose to skip SXSW. That, combined with having been inducted into XXL's prestigious 2012 Freshman class and performances a ... More >>

The best national music releases of 2011