Atmosphere – Caved In

Happy Halloween

If you’re looking for something to get you into the Halloween spirit, K the Conjurer‘s 2012 EP, Spoken in a Sepia Tone is a good listen on days like this. Love this joint! In a spooky kind of way. Peace.

Sareem Poems – Hard Labor feat. LMNO and Scarub

Shad – Another Year feat. Ian Kamau and Eternia

Insight The Truncator and Damu The Fudgemunk – Rather Unique

Scienz of Life – Culture Feat. Marvelous Mag & Eddie Bayard (OG Mix)

This reminds me of that super-soulful sound that Scienz of Life gave us on The Blaxploitation Sessions, and it really takes me somewhere, not sure what else to say.

Hell Razah – Dr. Razah

Rakim – Guess Who’s Back

I’m not gonna lie. Up until now, I’ve kind of felt like Rakim has been overrated. And to a certain extent, I’m still waiting to hear more of his greatest music. I know that this is not a popular view, but hey, I’m just being real with it.

But this track makes it undeniably evident that Rakim is a next level emcee. The sort of flows we hear on tracks like “Paid in Full” (1987) seem to fit with the times, but they don’t necessarily stand out today as the pinnacle of emceeing. So many up-and-coming emcees would hear and idolize Rakim during that era, not just because of his rhyming, but because of what he was actually saying. But still, I think that their admiration was separate in a way from the level of emceeing that he would eventually display on tracks that were recorded 10 or more years later. So when you think about it, some of the most acclaimed emcees, many of whom only debuted in the mid to late 90s, would look at Rakim as both an idol and a serious contender. He could have just fizzled out and kept getting paid off of his earlier hits. But by continuing to evolve his style and push the limits, the heavy hitters of the late 90s couldn’t really take the crown he had earned.

In other words… this is dope!! Enjoy.

The Grouch & Eligh – All In ft. Pigeon John & Gift of Gab

Del The Funky Homosapien – Ahonetwo, Ahonetwo