Nas (Rapper)

Method Man and Redman at Cervantes', 4/20/13

METHOD MAN & REDMAN @ CERVANTES' | 4/20/13 Appearing to a sold out crowd, hip-hop and weed icons Method Man and Redman turned Cervantes into a backyard house party as the MCs delighted the crowd with classic hits and an energetic stage show that showcased their timeless music. The ballroom served as ... More >>

The ten greatest Midwest rappers of all time

The Midwest is the bastard child of the American rap scene at large -- unsung and independent, with a massive chip on its shoulder. The most talented artists from the Midwest have succeeded each with their own unique style and flavor, regardless of what was making money elsewhere in the country at a ... 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 >>

Fresh local hip-hop from Pries, SP Double, Myke Charles, Molina Speaks, AG Flux and more

Another week, another batch of fresh hip-hop from the Mile High City. Pries draws all eyes to him with The Lonely Kid Show, the tireless SP double shows his proficiency on "The Mission Statement," Myke Charles, FL and the ReMINDers take on some G.O.O.D. music in "The Mourning," Black Mask member AGF ... More >>

Action Bronson on how he and Alchemist wrote Rare Chandeliers underwater while scuba diving

Before he gained notoriety as an MC with his 2011 studio debut Dr. Lecter, he was well respected as a New York chef (his lyrics are still garnished with references to foods of all sorts). But while he shares a profession with Raekown, another well known New York Chef, the Wu-Tang member he most freq ... More >>

The ten best movies featuring rappers

Wu-Tang has been immersed in kung-fu for so long, it was inevitable that one member of the Clan would make a major appearance in a martial arts movie at some point. The RZA appeared briefly in Ghost Dog in 1999, but only for a passing moment, though he did produce the soundtrack. In The Man with the ... More >>

New shows: STS9 and String Cheese NYE runs, Fun. at 1STBANK, DeVotchKa and more

New Year's Eve is shaping up to be an epic night of shows, with the String Cheese Incident pulling into 1STBANK Center for a three-night NYE run (tickets on sale this Saturday, September 29), STS9 plays three shows at the Fillmore (tickets on sale Friday, September 28), and the Motet's Beginning of ... More >>

Logistixx of Drop Switch on his lyrics: "I wanna draw a picture in the listeners' mind..."

Quote/Unquote is our periodic feature in which we hunt down noteworthy lyrics, examine the best lines and then get the story behind the song. This week, we got some insight from Logistixx of the rap-fusion group Drop Switch to find out what he had in mind while he was crafting his music. In most of ... More >>

Five acts with more taxing problems than you

See Also: • Tax Evasion: How to live like a rock star -- and pay taxes like one, too. As the saying goes: There are only two things that are certain and unavoidable in this life -- death and taxes. And while both might be causing folks to lose sleep these days (you didn't forget tax time is upon ... More >>

The Worst Moments from SXSW 2012

The last few days, Village Voice Media's indefatigable music staff has been regaling you with stories of the best from SXSW 2012. In the midst of these discoveries, we've been culling another list: the worst shit. The acts that ranged from huge bore-fests to downright lame. Below, you'll find our cr ... More >>

Alert: SXSW coverage ahead

"What I want from each and every one of you is a hard-target search of every gas station, residence, warehouse, farmhouse, henhouse, outhouse and doghouse in that area." -- Tommy Lee Jones, The Fugitive You don't have to spend much time at South By Southwest to know that all of the above building ... More >>

As Black History Month comes to a close, we reflect on the influential Sounds of Blackness

Black History Month 2012 has been a doozy. Beginning with the tragic and shocking death of Don Cornelius to dealing with equally troubling news of Whitney Houston's passing as the month wore on. Most interesting about this time is the ways in which the music healed us. When Whitney died, DJs played ... More >>

Re:Generation strives to break down barriers

This past Sunday during his acceptance speech on behalf of his band the Foo Fighters for Best Rock Performance at the 54th Annual Grammy awards, Dave Grohl made some comments that stirred the ire of some folks. Lauding the fact that Wasting Light, the album in question, had been recorded in his gara ... More >>

The best national music releases of 2011

John Vanderslice on White Wilderness, photography and how he receives criticism

Autumn De Wilde​In the middle to later half of the 1990s, John Vanderslice (due tonight at the hi-dive with Damien Jurado) was a member of the respected Bay Area alternative rock band, MK Ultra. When the band split in 1999, Vanderslice took the delicate intensity and experimental edge he had b ... More >>

Five rap albums to take on the mothership when the government shuts down at midnight

​Tonight when the clock strikes midnight, you should expect calamity, destruction, and famine to sweep the nation, because word on the street says the government is shutting down. Word to Chicken Little: A bunch of awful things are supposed to happen...we think. They don't pay us the big bucks ... More >>

Top 5 songs nodding to Notorious B.I.G

​Ah, Christopher Wallace, aka the Notorious B.I.G. There hasn't been -- and as long as hip-hop is a genre, won't be -- a quiet passing of March 9. Similar to when Buddy Holly took the fateful flight that inspired a nation to observe the day the music died, the day Biggie Smalls was slain is fo ... More >>

Hip-hop's ten most impactful deaths

​Today marks the anniversary of the day that the world lost the greatest rapper of all time. Christopher Wallace's untimely death on March 9, 1997, had a significant impact on the rap game. If Biggie had lived, for instance, his presence would have essentially erased the need for Jay-Z. Unstop ... More >>

Catch Lungs is a breath of fresh air for Denver

Lil' Jon's tax woes: He's not alone. Here's five of the biggest celebrity tax evaders

​The IRS loves leaning on rich people for tax evasion. Case in point, reports have surfaced that Lil' Jon (whose house was just foreclosed on in August) is on the hook for $638,000. It's certainly not easy to do taxes if you're a musician -- or any type of entertainer for that matter -- which ... More >>

MTHDS to their madness: Heighten your senses with MTHDS at the Bluebird

A Q&A with young Colorado rapper Catch Lungs

Michael Franti, Santana, Blonde Redhead top sellers at local stores

​Michael Franti & Spearhead's The Sound of Sunshine , released last week on Capitol, grabbed the top spot at Albums on the Hill and checked in at number three at Twist & Shout for the week ending September 26. Santana's new Arista release, Guitar Heaven: The Greatest Guitar Classics of All T ... More >>

Mile Highlights: Five must-see acts at Mile High Music Festival

Memorial Day Playlist: Ten patriotic (and vaguely patriotic) songs that don't suck

​ As we all prepare to take time out from our hurried lives to remember the brave men and women of the armed forces who fought (and continue to fight) to keep us all free to live our lives as we please, we came up with a list of ten tunes to cue up this Memorial Day as you fire up the grill. ... More >>

The 'French Scorsese' arrives stateside with the gangster epic A Prophet

Q&A: Meet Bianca Mikahn of Paradox

Which came first, the poet or the MC? Broaching the philosophical debate implies the two are not one in the same. History shows us otherwise, whether the funky notes of blues rattled off the tongue of greats like Billie Holiday, or, more recently, the appearance of the Last Poets on Nas's [Untitled] ... More >>

Friday Rap-Up: ManeLine, Hip-Hop Stars React to Obama win, Shakir Stewart Suicide, Mos Def

Friday Rap-Up: Black Hollywood, Lil Kim, Naughty By Nature, Eminem

Live Review: Common, N.E.R.D. and Chester French at Fillmore Auditorium

Friday Rap-Up: Bionik Brown, Ozone Awards, Large Professor, DMX

Friday Rap-Up: Julox, Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Aftermath Records

Over the Weekend...Atmosphere, DJ Rare Groove and Abstract Rude @ the Ogden Theatre

Friday Rap-Up: Dent, Ice Cube, MC Serch, Yo-Yo, Eminem

Westword Music Showcase 2007

Saturday, June 16

Amy Winehouse

Back to Black
Universal

Reuben Wilson

Thursday, February 8, Mount Vernon Country Club, Golden, 303-526-0616.

Coke Dreams

In Scarface, slinging yayo is the name of the game.

Listen Up

Fast reviews of recent releases

Westword Music Showcase 2006

Be there or be square!

Critical Fatwa

Cam’ron

Hip-Hop Trends in 2005

Rock Steady

Don't call Aesop Rock the savior of hip-hop. He's just trying to be original.

That's a Wrap-Up

Backbeat writers sound off on a few of their favorite musical things from 2002.

Mr. Natural

Olu Dora mixes his musical styles easily.

Diamond in the Rough

Three urban luminaries make Lucy Pearl an R&B trio with star -- and staying -- power.

Playlist

Playlist

Feedback

Our Gangstas

Is gangsta rap getting more profound? Well...no.