Hip-Hop and Rap

LL Cool J's Kings of the Mic tour at Target Center, 5/30/13

Kings of the Mic TourWith LL Cool J, Ice Cube, Public Enemy and De La SoulTarget Center, MinneapolisThursday, May 30, 2013LL Cool J is 45 years old, and wearing it well. As he stalked the stage at Target Center as the final performer of the Kings of the Mic Tour, he seemed keenly aware that his powe ... More >>

Kings of the Mic Tour

Soundset 2013: A music and photo timeline

Ah, Soundset. The sixth installment of the Rhymesayers Entertainment hip-hop festival had a breakout year in terms of attendance -- a reported 28,000 fans came out -- and talent, with a lineup including Snoop Dogg, Mac Miller, Tech N9ne, along with the host artists Atmosphere. Many folks pegged A$AP ... More >>

A peek behind Soundset 2013

From Snoop Dogg to Atmosphere, the festival boasts a variety of talent

Kool G Rap

T.I. at Epic, 4/19/13

T.I. Epic, Minneapolis Friday, April 19, 2013 Some nights you walk into a club wondering if an MC is still relevant. Then you watch a 32-year-old pro blast through more than two dozen songs in a little more than an hour, flaunting a nimble flow and basking comfortably in the familiarity of his hits ... More >>

Prof: If I can justify it and be smart enough, I can say anything

Minneapolis rap troublemaker Prof has pushed all our buttons for over a decade now. A mixture of party-starters, gross-out tales, and personal exploration fills the three volumes of his Kaiser Von Powderhorn mixtape series, his King Gampo album, the Recession Music collaboration with St. Paul Slim, ... More >>

Bernie Worrell Orchestra

Top 10 Twin Cities hip-hop venues

It's hard to believe with the reputation it now holds that there was a time when the Twin Cities wasn't booking too many hip-hop acts. Once we were still flyover country to many of the national touring acts, and the local underground scene had yet to rise to prominence and prove the power of homegro ... More >>

Haphduzn: I've kind of got a lot of experience with struggle

Haphduzn recently dropped his debut album Whittier Alliance, a collaboration with Wide Eyes' producer Dimitry Killstorm, and it sits comfortably in the pantheon of the Rhymesayers artists with whom he recently got off tour. A brutally honest and personal record, the straightforward raps come from a ... More >>

Soundset 2013 lineup: Atmosphere, Snoop Dogg, Mac Miller & more

"If we keep outdoing ourselves, who am I going to be playing after next year? Kanye?" was what Atmosphere rapper Slug said about last year's impressive Soundset lineup. Well, Soundset 2013 didn't get Mr. West, but it did land the G-funk legend Snoop Dogg. (Although, isn't he going by Snoop Lion thes ... More >>

Meek Mill

Murs: My creative work doesn't seem organized to me

One of the icons of independent hip-hop for over a decade, Murs returns to the Twin Cities this Saturday for a show at the Fine Line with fellow West Coast natives Fashawn, Kosha Dillz and Black Cloud Music. The fearless leader of the Road to Paid Dues Tour, Murs is traveling coast-to-coast to sprea ... More >>

Murs

Too $hort: I've actually disappointed people by being polite

Gimme Noise got a rare, behind-the-scenes look at Bay Area rapper Too $hort this past weekend when he rolled through town with E-40. After a performance at Epic, B Fresh Photography's Rebecca McDonald got to hang backstage with the $hort Dog and ask some questions one-on-one. Watch her exclusive vid ... More >>

Get Cryphy turns five

The DJ crew that taught local hip-hop heads to love club bangers celebrates half a decade

Cam'ron

Jennifer Lawrence and SNL remind us Minnesota radio still lacks hip hop

Saturday Night Live still thinks the state of hip hop radio in the Twin Cities is laughable. Over the weekend, we returned to the fictional studios of B-108 in Shakopee, "Minnesota's home for blazing hip hop," for another early morning joke at our scene's expense. This time, guest The Hunger Games s ... More >>

Yo Gotti

Greg Grease's Cornbread, Pearl, and G album release

Public Enemy at First Avenue, 12/6/12

Public Enemy's Hip Hop Gods Tour with X-Clan, Monie Love, Schoolly D, Leaders of the New School, Wise Intelligent, Son of Bazerk and No Self Control, Awesome Dre, Davy DMX and DJ Johnny Juice Thursday. First Avenue, MinneapolisThursday, December 6, 2012 The Hip Hop Gods Tour, the brainchild of Pub ... More >>

Public Enemy's Chuck D: Yeah, I voted in the 2012 election

Rap music is an omnipresent sound in the country's earbuds today because acts like Public Enemy refused to fold. With two albums released this year, Most of My Heroes Still Don't Appear on No Stamp and The Evil Empire of Everything, this has been a vital time for the 25-year-old group and its mercil ... More >>

Big Boi at Epic, 11/9/12

Big Boiwith Get CryphyEpic, MinneapolisNovember 9, 2012"One more?" the DJ asked. He stood there awkwardly at the corner of the stage, not sure what to do with himself. "Big Boi, one more?"For an uncomfortably long couple minutes Friday night, it looked like Big Boi's DJ hadn't gotten the memo about ... More >>

Big Boi

Raekwon at First Avenue 11/4/12

Raekwon First Avenue, Minneapolis Sunday, November 4, 2012 For the closing of the afterparty of the first annual Twin Cities Sneaker.Art Exchange (TCS.AX) Wu-Tang Clan member Raekwon the Chef was the main draw. Still, First Avenue only had maybe 75 people in it Sunday night and Raekwon was clearly ... More >>

Kevin Beacham on Get Out to Vote and when politics meet hip-hop

This Sunday is the Keith Ellison-sponsored Get Out to Vote concert at First Avenue. The incumbent Representative of Minnesota's Fifth-Congressional District has put together quite the bill, including performances from Brother Ali, Slug, Dessa as well as a DJ set from noted hip-hop historian and Rede ... More >>

Picked to Click 2012: #10. Audio Perm

#10. Audio Perm: 32 points"We haven't done one photo shoot where every member has been in it," says Audio Perm rapper 80H20 with a laugh. That's because the AP crew, which has risen to prominence putting in work and a fresh approach to the Twin Cities rap sound, is more than 10 members deep. Each Au ... More >>

Picked to Click 2012: #1. The Chalice

#1. The Chalice: 83 points "Our ladies' nights are really dope," asserts the Chalice's queen-bee rapper, Lizzo. "We get together and drink. That's how it started -- with red wine. If it were liquor, it wouldn't get done. Making tracks, turning tracks into a song, and turning tracks into a banger is ... More >>

Five of our favorite DMX moments

If you're taking part in the Zombie Pub Crawl this weekend, get read to stop, drop, shut 'em down, and open up shop as DMX is rolling into town to get at you, dog! X is gon' give it to ya at 9 p.m. Saturday at Midway Stadium, AKA Zombie Island. Unless you're slippin', you know the combination of zom ... More >>

Raekwon tops Twin Cities Sneaker.Art Exchange in November

The Wu loves coming to the Twin Cities. This year alone has featured three visits from Ghostface (including Soundset with Raekwon the Chef), a RZA show, and a GZA performance just a couple weeks ago. Now, Raekwon is coming back in early November as the featured guest at the first annual Twin Cities ... More >>

Lil B

GZA at First Avenue, 9/20/12

GZA with Bear Hands, Sweet Valley and Killer Mike First Avenue, MinneapolisThursday, September 20, 2012Without a word to the cheering, three-quarters full audience, dressed simply in baggy jeans and a grey, Pringle of Scotland sweater, Wu-Tang Clan heavyweight GZA (neé Gary Grice) stepped onstage a ... More >>

Hip Hop Harambee at Nomad World Pub, 9/15/12

Hip Hop Harambee With Talib Kweli, Sims, Big Zach, and moreNomad World Pub, MinneapolisSaturday, September 15, 2012Saturday's Hip Hop Harambee, an all day hip-hop block party held in the parking lot of the Nomad World Pub, was by all measures a success. You couldn't have asked for a better day to ha ... More >>

Five Brother Ali classics you've probably never heard

See Also:Cover Story: Brother Ali in His Own WordsBrother Ali: The day I met Cornel West This week, hometown hero and indie rap superstar Brother Ali unleashes his new album Mourning in America and Dreaming in Color. Declaring that it's not only a new album, but a new chapter in his career, we decid ... More >>

Carnage the Executioner comes into his own

The best rapper from Minnesota you've never heard

Wiz Khalifa/Mac Miller

Summer Set Music & Camping Festival

Talib Kweli to headline Hip-Hop Harambee Block Party

See Also: Talib Kweli talks about his new tour, album, and role models in hip-hop The name of the festival might be a bit unfamiliar, but for local hip-hop fans the stellar lineup certainly won't be. The Hip-Hop Harambee Block Party is set to take place on Saturday, September 15 in the Nomad World ... More >>

Ice Rod leaves Minnesota

Michael Gaughan takes his rap act to San Francisco

Smokers Club Tour featuring Juicy J

El-P/Killer Mike

Claire de Lune’s New Lion establishes her as more than just a “hook girl”

Album release at 7th St. Entry

Sadat X

Too $hort

Iggy Azalea brings her edgy Australian attitude to the Fine Line tonight

Australian hip-hop artist Iggy Azalea's "Pu$$y" has made her famous (calm down, it's just a song, guys). But if you take the striking blonde's raunchy subject matter at face value, then you've got it all wrong. At just 21 years old, the eager artist is surprisingly self-aware amidst the hip-hop game ... More >>

Soundset battled extreme weather at Canterbury Park, 5/27/12

By Reed Fischer and Ian TraasSoundsetWith Atmosphere, Lupe Fiasco, Ghostface Killah & Raekwon, Astronautalis, Big K.R.I.T., and moreCanterbury Park Festival Field, ShakopeeSunday, May 27, 2012Related:Soundset 2012 evacuated amid tornado watchSoundset photos 2012Up until about 7:20 p.m., the fift ... More >>

Top 20 best Minnesota rappers: The complete list

Related:Cover Story: How Rhymesayers set up the Soundset FestivalTop 20 best Minnesota musicians: The complete listTop 20 best Minnesota songs: The complete listIn 2012, rap music is as definitive a part of Minnesota lore as the Mall of America -- or anything else Muja Messiah name-checks in "Leech ... More >>

Chuuwee on Watching the Throne, his Soundset approach

By Mike MaddenRelated:Bambu on the L.A. riots' 20th anniversary, his Soundset debutTraveling from his native Sacramento to take over Shakopee, Chuuwee might be the best bet among this year's Soundset freshmen to blow up by the time May 2013 rolls around. Not long removed from his excellent Wa ... More >>

Truthbetold on Tribe & Big Cats! next record, Soundset strategy

By Mike MaddenRelated:How Rhymesayers set up the Soundset FestivalOne of the groups set to make their Soundset debut this year, the duo of the Tribe and Big Cats! was born out of a somewhat unlikely relationship. MC Chris "Truthbetold" Hooks spent parts of his youth in Chicago's south side and began ... More >>

Bambu on the L.A. riots' 20th anniversary, his Soundset debut

Related:*How Rhymesayers set up the Soundset Festival*Danny Brown on XXX, almost signing to G-Unit*Big K.R.I.T. on country rap, dream cars, and playing SoundsetBy Mike MaddenRealizing Bambu deliberately released his debut album, self untitled..., 10 years after the 1992 Los Angeles riots, it's ... More >>