Trini Gladiator: How Phife Dawg Influenced Caribbean MCs From Here to Grenada
Bunji Garlin, Jillionaire + more reflect on how A Tribe Called Quest's Five Footer helped spread rap in the islands.
Meet Tish Hyman, the Bad Gyal From Puff Daddy’s “MMM”
Meet the soulful voice behind the tough chat on Puffy's surprise mixtape.
Heds & Dreds: Six Rap Tracks Featuring Sizzla
Words by Jesse Serwer—
Mavado's appearance on Rick Ross' latest, Mastermind, is hardly surprising. Now based primarily in Florida, the Gully Gad is signed to Ross affiliate DJ Khaled's We The Best stable, ... Read More...
Toppa Top 10: Kanye West’s Most Jamaican Moments
Words by Richard "Treats" Dryden and Jesse Serwer—
Discussing the musical tone of his new album Yeezus in a rare interview with The New York Times, Kanye West spoke of “trap and drill” and “old Chicago h... Read More...
Heds & Dreds: A Brief History of Jamaican Women Talking Smack on Rap Records
Words by Jesse Serwer—
Remember when having a Jamaican chick talking trash in thick patois was a thing in hip-hop? Dr. Dre kind of set it off on the intro to his classic "Let Me Ride" from The Chronic. T... Read More...
Heds & Dreds: A History of Funkmaster Flex + Dancehall
Words by Jesse Serwer—
New York radio don Funkmaster Flex recently dropped his first mixtape in a decade, Who You Mad At? Me or Yourself? and he saved the best for last, unleashing a pair of new danceh... Read More...
Heds and Dreds: Slick Rick The Yardie
Words by Jesse Serwer, Photo by Janette Beckman—
Slick Rick is easily one of the greatest rappers of Jamaican or Caribbean extraction. Unlike some of his yardie bredren, though, Rick didn't make many ove... Read More...
Heds and Dreds: Pusha T, G.O.O.D. Music’s Top Shotta
Words by Jesse Serwer—
Lately, G.O.O.D. Music rapper Pusha T has been quoting torrents of dancehall lyrics on Twitter (from Bounty Killer and Vybz Kartel to Chan Dizzy and Demarco) during what he calls... Read More...
Heds and Dreds: Sterling Simms, Nas, Kanye + ’80s Dancehall Samples
Words by Jesse Serwer—
This week we're reviving our long-dormant hip-hop x reggae column Heds and Dreds to discuss the growing trend of '80s dancehall samples in rap songs.
Remember a few years back w... Read More...
Heds and Dreds: Talking T-Dot Roots and Culture with Kardinal Offishall
Words by Jesse Serwer—
Four decades after Kool Herc brought mic chatter and other elements of Jamaican sound system culture to the funk-loving streets of the Bronx, Kardinal Offishall is the walking em... Read More...
Toppa Top 10: Busta Rhymes’ Biggest Bashment Tunes
Words by Jesse Serwer, Photo via UpNorthTrips—
Here's something you didn't know about Busta Rhymes: back when he was a schoolkid, he used to impress his friends by telling them that he was the Trevor S... Read More...
Heds and Dreds: The Beastie Boys’ Reggae Jones
Words by Jesse Serwer and DJ Gravy—
Being ambassadors for reggae music is not one of the things the Beastie Boys are well known for but the group's members—Ad-Rock, Mike D and the late, great MCA, Adam... Read More...