Steel Pulse has been added to the already stellar line up UCLA JazzReggae Fest. The festival is on its 25th year and has already welcomed artists such as  The Roots, Q-Tip, Nas, Damien Marley, Erykah Badu, Barrington Levy, and  Buju Banton among others. This year, for Jazz Day, Lupe Fiasco returns to the JazzReggaeFestival stage [...]

Words:  Alex “Dweezy” Dwyer Photo: Marlon Ross For many a music project redux, anticipation can wane over the course of a decade. Artists take risks, try on new styles (and/or names) and by the time that initial winning formula is revisited, it’s barely recognizable. Reflection Eternal might not have birthed the stripped-down, intelligent hip-hop that [...]

  Talib Kweli made a surprise appearance at the House of Blues during a performance by Mos Def on Grammy night 2009. They performed their classics “Definition” and “Respiration.” From YearoftheBlacksmith.com

Idle Warship (Talib Kweli, Res & Graph Nobel) wsg/ BLU & Exile 9pm BB Kings 237 West 42nd Street Times Square NYC

Words by: Chase Belief is a producer who thinks music is progressive. He uses it as a means to infiltrate and inspire the public consciousness around the world. For him, his name “evokes nothing but good things” and, when coupled with faith, is a force to be reckoned with. While that’s still open to interpretation, it’s [...]

  What is that old saying? Set something free and it will out-hustle you? Whatever the phrase, that is exactly what Set Free does—he outworks you. Set Free is a product of his I-95 upbringing, and as a kid traveled back and forth from Southwest Philly and Queens. Free grew up under legends like Run-DMC [...]

  The anti-American sentiment around the world is a lot like the anti-hip-hop sentiment in music: composed mostly of misunderstood generalizations. Like an American president, a president of hip-hop should be able to recognize this and act for the betterment of the culture and the spread of its authenticity. Murs’ platform for fixing home encompasses [...]