Raekwon’s thoughts on storytelling in hip-hop

This Friday, Raekwon of the Wu-Tang Clan is teaming up with DJ Premier to celebrate 4/20 at the 420 Extravaganja this Friday, April 19, at HoodLab. This show marks the first time Raekwon and DJ Premier share a bill. We spoke with Raekwon about the prospect of performing with one…

Meet Cicely O’Kain, burgeoning R&B sensation

Cicely O’Kain is a magnetic singer with incredible vocal chops. Her first album, Ms. Understood, which came out last October, is filled with feelings of infatuation, joy, pleasure and pain. Every note O’Kain sings is delivered with such conviction that she turns what would normally be a standard R&B jam…

Led Zeppelin’s Houses of the Holy turns forty

Led Zeppelin was already a record-setting global powerhouse when Atlantic Records released the band’s fifth album, Houses of the Holy, on March 28, 1973. The English quartet had laid down the basic tracks for the record in the spring of 1972 at the Rolling Stones’ mobile recording studio at Stargroves,…

Dizaster on his controversial battle with Arcane

The battle-rap scene has grown tremendously over the past few years, thanks to video battles like Smack DVDs and Fight Klub, and leagues like King of the Dot, Grind Time and the UW Battle League springing up everywhere. Dizaster — in town this weekend to battle Detour as part of…

The Beatles’ Please Please Me turns fifty

Fifty years ago today, the Beatles’ electrifying debut album, Please Please Me was issued in the U.K. Designed to reproduce the manic intensity of an early Beatles’ live performance and hastily produced to meet demand after the group’s song of the same name rocketed to number-one on the British singles…