Hip Hop Culture

Latest Articles

Rap legend Guru in a coma

"So whassup?" "Moment of truth." "Above the clouds?" "Credit is due." Those were just a few Gang Starr song-title sentiments that fans cried on social networks following the news that hip-hop legend Guru suffered a heart attack in New York City, where he
Shining Starr
By CHRIS FARAONE | March 05, 2010

Ivory and ebony

Hip-hop will never be post-racial. Pigment plays a major role at every level, and that's not always a bad thing.
Jake One and Freeway aren't hip-hop's first multi-racial tag team
By CHRIS FARAONE | February 19, 2010

Man at work

It's easy to manufacture illusions of rap stardom. Any MySpace whiteboy with a few grand can fill a mixtape with big cameos, and for a little more, guests will even shout his name out. But though such pay-for-spray practices have kept established artis
Statik Selektah is so busy, it bugs him out
By CHRIS FARAONE | January 22, 2010

RJD2 | The Colossus

RJD2 has fallen prey to self-doubt — having decided, it would seem, that sample-based music lacks authenticity, he's embarked on an ill-advised attempt to become a "performer."
RJ's Electrical Connections (2010)
By MICHAEL PATRICK BRADY | January 15, 2010

Of Doctor Tremendanus and the giant furry jellyfish

It was New Year’s Eve and in the belly of the Roxy nightclub, away from the teeming Bright Night crowds, there were monsters on the loose: creatures with protruding noses, googly eyes, and spindly legs.
Monsters, Inc.
By ABIGAIL CROCKER | January 08, 2010

Taking the B-boys to School

You may have noticed, hip-hop dance has gone legit — or at least slightly commercial.
The Other MIT Crew
By LISA SPINELLI | April 24, 2009

Cheer of a black planet

It's hip-hop week at Harvard University. And while that statement is far less ironic than it would have been 15 years ago, it's still relatively humorous.
Hip-Hop Worldwide: More Than a Nation conference
By CHRIS FARAONE | March 11, 2009

Hope for the Nation

Pick up the latest issue of XXL magazine and flip to the "Show and Prove" section and you'll spot Providence hip-hop artist Jon Hope — and rightly so.
Jon Hope's Mass Appeal
By CHRIS CONTI | February 25, 2009

Flipping out

Jayjion Greer runs up a wall and flips over back onto the floor.
One local dance crew has stolen the spotlight . . . and pissed off a lot of people in the process
By LISA SPINELLI | January 28, 2009

Word to the mother

As a prepubescent thug, I often complained about the audio rotation on my father's car stereo, which primarily consisted of a steady mix of Moody Blues and books on tape.
Hip-hop moms serve waaay more than dinner
By CHRIS FARAONE | January 28, 2009

Starting from Scratch

If the hip-hop generation ever calls for martial law, the revolution will be sponsored by Scion. The rectangularly adventurous car company is our closest corporate ally, bankrolling a large segment of the low-slung-pants community, and providing the res
The Upsetter screens at the Coolidge
By CHRIS FARAONE | November 25, 2008

Reks in effect

Since jumping skills-first onto Boston’s rap scene seven years ago, Lawrence-born MC Reks has earned a variety of reputations.
Lawtown MC bounces back
By CHRIS FARAONE | July 28, 2008

Breakdancing is fun

Check it out!
Your mamma breakdances.
By WEB TEAM BREAKDANCERS | July 28, 2008

Experiment illness

The good news is that it doesn’t appear RJ’s insistence on artistic challenge will be his undoing.
RJD2 at Paradise Rock Club, May 3, 2008
By CHRIS FARAONE | May 06, 2008

Breaking it down

There are so many things wrong with this review, both factually and in his dismissal and apparent ignorance of the whole culture of hip-hop.
Letters to the Boston editor, April 18, 2008
By BOSTON PHOENIX LETTERS | April 16, 2008

Planet B-Boy

Breakdancing seemed over and done in the ’80s, but hip-hop culture has pumped it alive, combining the original head-spinning street maves with rap, gymnastics, kung fu, MTV, and Broadway.
Retire the breakdance, already
By GERALD PEARY | April 02, 2008

Mash-up your prejudices

The work of DJ Spooky demonstrates through art the kind of philosophical progress Obama calls for.
DJ Spooky remixes The Birth of a Nation
By CHRISTOPHER GRAY | February 04, 2008

Subliminal cruelty

In any experiment, failure isn’t the greatest risk — cruelty is.
DJ Spooky at the Institute of Contemporary Art, January 26, 2008
By MICHAEL BRODEUR | January 29, 2008

Beyond illbient

When I get DJ Spooky on the phone a week ago Tuesday, he’s fresh home in New York City from Antarctica.
DJ Spooky goes global
By JON GARELICK | January 14, 2008

Going on sale: November 16, 2007

Moe., James Blunt, Chapel/Chapter, and more
Breaking news from the concert ticket trade
By GOING ON SALE | November 13, 2007

Sound and silence

The RISD exhibit reminds us that filmmakers at the forefront of the medium have been consistently drawn to the novelty of the medium.
Old and new images meet at the RISD Museum
By GREG COOK | September 18, 2007

Skill ride

All it took was a Godzilla sample and a simple, forceful “Simon says get the fuck up” for Pharoahe Monch to leave his mark on hip-hop history.
Pharoahe Monch’s timely return
By MATTHEW GASTEIER | July 17, 2007

Orchestral maneuvers

On stage, Paul had saluted scratching in early hip-hop culture by manipulating a 12-inch record briefly and then holding it up for the crowd to see.
Paul Oakenfold and Hem with the Boston Pops
By JIM SULLIVAN | June 29, 2007

Saying the unspeakable

Former quarterback turned activist Byron Hurt brings to light gender-stereotyping views in mainstream hip-hop culture and those perpetuating them, in hopes that light will prove cleansing.
Filmmaker calls out hip-hop’s latent misogyny and racism
By SONYA TOMLINSON | May 23, 2007

Kickin' It Old Skool

Eighties nostalgia and breakdancing get sent up in this feeble Jamie Kennedy comedy.
Revenge of the Nerds did it better
By TOM MEEK | May 02, 2007

The Constantines + Sontiago & Dilly Dilly + Kid Koala

An interstate concert-going misadventure...
Music Seen, at Hampton Beach Casino and SPACE Gallery, April 21, 2007
By CHRISTOPHER GRAY | April 25, 2007

Boston music news: April 27, 2007

For its 10th-anniversary finale, Boston Modern Orchestra Project is pulling out all the stops.
Notes on the Boston Modern Orchestra Project and Haunt
By JIM SULLIVAN | April 23, 2007

Kool Koala weekend

On Kid Koala’s new album we hear a sample of the Kid’s mom speaking to her favorite son.
SPACE hosts the weird worlds of hip-hop
By IAN PAIGE | April 18, 2007

Facing up

“ Facing off over Facebook ” contained some very valuable information about university administrators’ increased role in monitoring students’ online activities.
Letters to the Boston editor, March 9, 2007
By BOSTON PHOENIX LETTERS | March 07, 2007

The IFC Soundtrack

The bridge between independent film and indie rock has been getting easier and easier to cross with the rise of a new generation of directors weaned on music videos and the multimedia underground.
Indie rock for indie movies
By MATT ASHARE | December 04, 2006

Friends' Activity

Popular