The author talks about the songs that have defined him, five years at a time.
El-P and Killer Mike talk about the pursuit of hope, liberty, and rap glory in the Trump era.
Jeff Weiss details Drake’s two high-profile rap wars this year—the hot one with Meek Mill and the cold one with Kendrick Lamar—and how his flouting of traditional hip-hop ethics runs parallel to our accelerating world of nihilist-flavored capitalism.
Coming out of the same collective that birthed OutKast, Goodie Mob played an essential part in the rise of Southern rap. Jeff Weiss pays tribute to their 1995 debut, which overflows with the darkness and joy of a culture blossoming in spite of oppression.
Following the 10th anniversary of Madlib and DOOM's telepathic mind meld of an album, Jeff Weiss traces the history of Madvillain and details how these two perpetually mystifying artists came together for an uncanny hip-hop classic.
The story of G Funk linchpin Warren G, from his fated break at a bachelor party hosted by Dr. Dre to his debut LP, which soundtracked the summer 20 years ago.
A B-boy stoner met a blind wunderkind at a talent show in 1989. Five years later, Devin the Dude, Rob Quest, and Jugg Mugg released the overlooked rap classic Fadanuf Fa Erybody. Jeff Weiss recounts the Houston group's unlikely story.
In late 1993, Eazy-E was deep into a vicious musical and personal battle with Dr. Dre—and he was losing. But the incendiary It’s On (Dr. Dre) 187um Killa—Eazy's last album before his death—had the gansta-rap originator fighting back hard.
The mid-90s saw the release of an incredible number of important hip-hop albums—Rolling on Dubs revisits one of these records each month, around their 20th anniversary, and retraces the past through a contemporary vantage point.