Rakim tells a Kool G Rap story

Wild Style - Busy Bee

Grand Wizzard Theodore doing a DDJ-SX demo

R.I.P. DONALDSON TOUSSAINT L’OUVERTURE BYRD II (DECEMBER 9, 1932 – FEBRUARY 4, 2013) Guru Featuring Donald Byrd - Loungin'

Donaldson Toussaint L'Ouverture Byrd II (December 9, 1932 – February 4, 2013) was an American jazz and rhythm and blues trumpeter. A sideman for many other jazz musicians of his generation, Byrd was best known as one of the only bebop jazz musicians who successfully pioneered the funk and soul genres while simultaneously remaining a jazz artist. Read More


Dr. Donald Byrd's deeply rooted jazz background never stopped him from constantly pushing jazz forward, opening the minds of his listeners in the process. Produced by Larry Mizell in 1973, Black Byrd is filled with beautiful music that captures his passion for sound. The sophisticated, uptempo instrumentals are funky and danceable, but also extremely smooth. Byrd's impeccable trumpet meshes perfectly with the African-influenced beats and rhythms. Jazz purists may want to look into earlier Blue Note recordings such as Royal Flush and Byrd in Flight. --Shane Hunt


You can almost feel the heat off the Harlem (or neighbourhood) pavement from these tunes. There's a sultriness to these vibes that recalls hot summer breezes, just hanging out, and the natural horniness that days like that arouses. A very outdoor groove abounds here, with instrumentation and chord progressions that recall blaxploitation soundtracks, but with greater flair and always with the lightness of spirit and sheer delight in life that Byrd exhibits so flawlessly in his more upbeat offerings. Easy perhaps to overlook as a funky background music, it's actually an accomplished affair and another example of Byrd's mastery of creating atmosphere.


Donald Byrd & Pepper Adams produced some of the greatest hard-bop albums in the 60's that there ever was, comparable to some of Lee Morgan's best efforts. If you want to one album to buy, check this one out!! It is unfortunately one of their last albums in the studio and also the last featuring Duke Pearson who would go on as Blue Note's a&r man and also lead his own big band. In fact Pearson along with drummer Philly Jo Jones provide the spark that Byrd-Adams needs!! From the title tune to the late Neal Hefti's classic "Cute" (a drum piece for the great Philly Jo), this album will leave you smiling. Their next album with a young newcomer by the name of Herbie Hancock would feature more modally based tunes rather the usual hard bop repetoire but you should check that out as well. Recommended for hard boppers and Byrd/Adams alike!!


DONALD BYRD is truly a music-master. He has done numerous great albums over the years. This CD is undoubtedly one of the best ways to appreciate the 'Godfather of JazzFunk'. Not only is this disc packed with cool, funky and deep timeless trax (buy this disc and it will never go out of date), it also provides the blue-print for future jazz and dance-orientated music. In other words, THE BOMB! The majority of the tracks are produced by the wizard-like production duo the MIZELL BROTHERS, who are responsible for JOHNNY HAMMOND's and BOBBI HUMPHREY's best material. The collection of tracks will move your body (eg. CHANGE, DOMINOES) as well as your soul (WIND PARADE, YOU AND THE MUSIC, LANASANA'S PRIESTESS). Which is why you can't fail. I'd put this disc up there will the best of my Soul/Jazz/Funk collection, and believe me my collection is big.

Diamond D ''The Man Behind The Music'' [ HQ ]

Nas 92Y Interview With Anthony DeCurtis

Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones is an American rapper and actor. He is the son of jazz musician Olu Dara. Since 1994, Nas has released eight consecutive platinum and multi-platinum albums and sold over 13 million records in the United States alone. Aside from rapping, Nas is also an occasional actor.
His musical career began in 1991 when he was featured on Main Source's track "Live at the Barbeque". His debut album Illmatic, released in 1994, received universal acclaim from both critics and the hip hop community. It is frequently ranked as one of the greatest hip hop albums of all time.His follow-up album It Was Written debuted at number 1 on the Billboard Charts, stayed on top for four consecutive weeks, went platinum twice in only two months, and made Nas internationally known.
From 1996 to 2005, Nas was involved in a highly publicized feud with rapper Jay-Z. In 2006, Nas signed to Def Jam. In 2010, he released a collaboration album with reggae artist Damian Marley, donating all royalties to charities active in Africa. His tenth studio album, Life Is Good was released in 2012.
Nas is often named as one of the top rap artists. MTV ranked him at number 5 on their list of The Greatest MCs of All Time.In 2012, The Source ranked him No. 2 on their list of the Top 50 Lyricists of All Time. Read more


Always controversial and uncompromising in his role as hiphop s most influential MC, and often its most severe critic, Nas has completed his first new studio album in four years, LIFE IS GOOD, scheduled to arrive in stores July 17th on Def Jam Recordings. The album s new advance track, The Don, produced by Da Internz, Salaam Remi and the late Heavy D, made its premiere earlier last month on New York DJ Funkmaster Flex s Hot 97 radio show. Response to The Don has been nothing short of rapturous. Rolling Stone raves on his new single, the Queens rap godfather spits vicious rhymes over a rugged, island-flavored beat...if Nas keeps up this level of quality, his new album is going to be like Illmatic all over again.


Nasir Jones made this debut album at the age of 20, already armed with the calm perceptiveness and been-there-done-that attitude of a much older ghetto vet, though sometimes his inner callow youth shows itself. Illmatic is a look back at a life spent in the culture of the projects, acknowledging joy as much as pain and taking note of violence as a fact of his environment rather than a focus of his life. It's enlivened by Nas's kicky, deep-threaded multiple rhymes--you can tell he grew up listening to Mr. Magic's rap show and internalizing the secrets of everybody's flow--and by tracks from a bunch of all-stars, including the Large Professor, DJ Premier, and, most memorably, Q-Tip ("One Love"). --Douglas Wolk