Underground Hip-Hop

Best 2007 - Miami: DJ I-Dee's Tracks to Relax

The Friday Rap-Up: DJ Low Key, Jay-Z, KRS-One, Buckshot, Dr. Dre

Friday Rap-Up: The Pirate Signal, Remy Ma, Tupac, Diddy, 50 Cent

Over the Weekend... Kool Keith, ManeLine and the Americans @ the Oriental Theater

Over the Weekend...Paid Dues Festival @ Fillmore Auditorium

Black Power

The Bay Area's Gift of Gab and Chief Xcel make hip-hop that's magically Blackalicious.

Zevolution

There's more to Z-Trip than the mash-up phenomenon he helped make famous.

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

There's more to Z-Trip than the mash-up phenomenon he helped make famous.

Madvillain

Madvillainy (Stones Throw Records)

Little Brother

Monday, October 29, Fox Theatre, Boulder, 303-443-3399; Tuesday, October 30, Bluebird Theater, 303-830-8497.

Peanut Butter Wolf

Friday, October 10, Vinyl, 303-860-8469.

Nationalistic

Our music writers pick the year’s national bests.

Del tha Funkee Homosapien

Wednesday, November 1, Fox Theatre, Boulder, 303-443-3399.

Dr. Octagon

The Return of Dr. Octagon (OCD International)

Boot Camp Clik

Friday, July 21, Fox Theatre, Boulder, 303-443-3399.

Cannibal Ox

Thursday, July 13, Fox Theatre, Boulder, 303-443-3399.

Murs and 9th Wonder

Thursday, April 20, Larimer Lounge, 303-291-1007.

MF Doom

Tuesday, December 6, Fox Theatre, 303-443-3399.

Conversation Peace

The Perceptionists are holding out for a better tomorrow.

DJ Z-Trip

Shifting Gears (Hollywood)

Lyrics Born

Saturday, March 12, Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom, 303-297-1772.

On the Down-Low

Shovel away all that Usher, Prince and Lil Jon you've been jamming and dig this year's buried black-music treasures.

Doom's Day

Daniel Dumile isn't having an identity crisis. It just seems like it.

Soul School

After fifteen years of the grind, De La Soul is still schooling folks.

Love the Player

Okayplayer.com is more than just a website. For some, it's a way of life.

Rock Steady

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

Club Scout

Del tha Funky Homosapien

Critic's Choice

Atmosphere

Madlib

Shades of Blue (Blue Note)

Mercy Mercy Me

MURS is already a legend. Now if he can just get folks to stop thinking of him as the new guy.

Mash It Up

Z-Trip turns the tables and elevates the art of the DJ.

Critic's Choice

Mr. Lif

Peoples Get Ready

As part of underground hip-hop's newest dream team, Dilated Peoples are at the top of their game.

Critic's Choice

Scene & Heard

Murs

Friday, May 29, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, 303-830-8497.

Dead Weather top seller at Wax Trax

Dead Weather's debut, Horehound, was the top seller at Wax Trax while Cage's Depart From Me came in second for the week ending July 19. Clutch's Strange Cousins From the West, J Dilla's Dillanthology 2 and Tortoise's Beacons of Ancestorship rounded out the top five. See the full breakdown after the ... More >>

Over the Weekend: Atmosphere at Red Rocks

​ Atmosphere, Aesop Rock, Murs and Eyedea & Abilities Red Rocks Friday, August 14 Red Rocks giveth, and Red Rocks taketh away. The sprawling amphitheater is so storied at this point that it tests performers playing it like few venues in the country -- and not everyone passes. That was certain ... More >>

2MEX

Tuesday, November 2, Casselman's Bar and Venue, 720-242-8923.

Aloe Blacc, Harry Nilsson, Kid Cudi fill our playlists this week

​As people who think about, talk about, listen to and make music, the most common question we encounter is, "What are you listening to right now?" Whether you're looking for recommendations, trying to get a feel for our individual sensibilities, or are just curious, we've compiled a list of al ... More >>

Denver's emerging hip-hop producers speak out

​As people who think about, talk about, listen to and make music, the most common question we encounter is, "What are you listening to right now?" Whether you're looking for recommendations, trying to get a feel for our individual sensibilities, or are just curious, we've compiled a list of al ... More >>

Cut Chemist

​As people who think about, talk about, listen to and make music, the most common question we encounter is, "What are you listening to right now?" Whether you're looking for recommendations, trying to get a feel for our individual sensibilities, or are just curious, we've compiled a list of al ... More >>

Cut Chemist on crate digging, Jurassic 5 and Boyd Rice

​Cut Chemist (real name Lucas MacFadden) has been constantly redefining the art of turntablim for the past seventeen years as a member of Jurassic 5 and Ozomatli, in addition to being an innovative solo artist. Blending everything from funk and soul to hip-hop and bossa nova, Cut Chemist's sty ... More >>

Cut Chemist at the Gothic, 12/10/10

Paul LukesCut Chemist on Friday night at the Gothic Theatre.​ CUT CHEMIST J Flash • Skwared 12.10.10 | Gothic Theatre DJ Skwared took the stage at 9 p.m. Surprisingly, the kid in the Tap-Out hat knew his hip-hop. He started his set with Newcleus' "Jam On It," went into Juan Atkins' "Clear" ... More >>

BLKHRTS, Wu-Tang top our weekly playlists

​As people who think about, talk about, listen to and make music, the most common question we encounter is, "What are you listening to right now?" Whether you're looking for recommendations, trying to get a feel for our individual sensibilities, or are just curious, we've compiled a list of al ... More >>

Kraddy: Dubstep is just slow hip-hop

​As people who think about, talk about, listen to and make music, the most common question we encounter is, "What are you listening to right now?" Whether you're looking for recommendations, trying to get a feel for our individual sensibilities, or are just curious, we've compiled a list of al ... More >>

Five reasons Dilla's still missed five years later

​ The hip-hop purists among us are very familiar with the story and legacy of James Dewitt Yancy, better known as J. Dilla. Having come up in the hip-hop underground scene in Detroit and later emerging as one of the most influential producers in hip-hop, it was Dilla's death at the height of ... More >>

A first look at "Hooliganry," the brand new video from Catch Lungs and One Be Lo

​Catch Lungs is doing his thing with the video release for "Hooliganry, directed by Vital Films and featuring One Be Lo. The track is a single from Catch's EP, Awake in a Dream, and finds both MCs getting lyrically descriptive with the ways they keep it "hooligan." One Be Lo opens this joint a ... More >>

Madlib

Saturday, November 12, City Hall, 303-832-8628.

Celebrate the life of J. Dilla at Beauty Bar on Tuesday night

​Celebrating the life and legacy of J Dilla, the super producer from Detroit, has become a yearly occurrence since his passing from Lupus in 2007. Started by New York DJ Dee Phunk, the Donuts are Forever parties have been going strong for the past five years. Recent Denver transplant, audio en ... More >>

Sounds of Blackness: J Dilla

Happy birthday, J Dilla!​Ah, J Dilla. His influence and production style brought forth beatmakers carrying their backpacks filled with treasures from the basement into the mainstream. Even more so after his death. A cult-like following surrounds his legacy. Born James Dewitt Yancey in February ... More >>