Hip-Hop and Rap

Pete Rock

10 p.m. Friday, March 30. Lola, 500 North 14th Street.

"The Sweet Escape" Showcased Akon's Cooperative Mentality

Akon hasn't been perfect throughout his career, but it's hard to accuse him of being selfish. The St. Louis native developed a propensity to share the spotlight with other artists, even if it means his presence isn't always noticed. That cooperative mentality allowed Akon's behind-the-scenes career ... More >>

It's a Man's World

Alert: SXSW Coverage Ahead

"What I want from each and every one of you is a hard-target search of every gas station, residence, warehouse, farmhouse, henhouse, outhouse and doghouse in that area." -- Tommy Lee Jones, The Fugitive You don't have to spend much time at South By Southwest to know that all of the above building ... More >>

Raekwon Showed up at the Gargoyle at 10:55, Ten Minutes After Wash U Faculty Pulled the Plug on His Show

Last night, the Wu-Tang Clan's legendary Raekwon the Chef was scheduled to play Washington University's on-campus music venue, the Gargoyle, alongside Indiana rapper Freddie Gibbs. The small club filled out nicely by 9 p.m., and a packed room waited anxiously to see some of hip-hop's best artists do ... More >>

Tonight: Gucci Mane at Posh Nightclub in East St. Louis

Gucci Mane is playing a recently announced show tonight in East St. Louis at Posh Nightclub (657 E. Broadway, East St. Louis), which has also hosted Lil Kim and Young Jeezy in the past year. Tickets are $30 for general admission and $50 for VIP, and doors open at 11 p.m. So not exactly an early star ... More >>

Curren$y, Method Man And Big K.R.I.T At The Pageant, 10/25/11

Method Man: Show stealer​Curren$y | Method Man | Big K.R.I.T The Pageant October 25, 2011 The 2011 Smoker's Club tour hit St. Louis last night, leaving in its wake both fond memories and irreparably damaged brain cells. The all-ages crowd wasn't quite a sellout -- the balcony remained closed ... More >>

Bowling, Gummy Punks And Blunt Flips: Your Guide To Method Man And Friends Tonight

Courtesy of Curren$y​Tonight, the Smoker's Club Tour (headlined by Method Man, Big KRIT and Curren$y) comes to the Pageant. Calvin Cox wrote about the show in this week's print edition, saying, "The Smoker's Club Tour returns to St. Louis this month, once again featuring two of the most popula ... More >>

Curren$y/Big K.R.I.T./Method Man

8 p.m. Tuesday, October 25. The Pageant, 6161 Delmar Boulevard.

Win Tickets To Curren$y, Method Man And Big KRIT At The Pageant

​The Smoker's Club tour returns to St. Louis for a stop at the big stage, headlined by Curren$y, Method Man and Big KRIT. A formidable lineup, to be sure -- and the bill's rounded out by Smoke DZA, Fiend, The Pricks, Corner Boy P and more. Tickets for this bad boy are $26 in advance or $31 day ... More >>

Prince Ea's "Make 'Smart' Cool" movement picks up steam

Pharrell Williams Introduces Qream -- Now w/ Photos!

UPDATED October 11 with photos of the event. You can now add Pharrell Williams into an exclusive group of hip-hop artists with their own booze brands, joining Ludacris, Jay-Z and Sean "Diddy" Combs. The award-winning producer/artist was on hand Wednesday night to promote his new brand, Qream, a 12. ... More >>

Meet P.R.E.A.C.H, St. Louis' Own Romanian-Born Rapper

Egan O'Keefe​Erik "P.R.E.A.C.H." Bothazy is a 26-year-old local rapper originally from Oradea, a city in western Romania about seven miles from the border of Hungary. P.R.E.A.C.H., along with his parents and sister, immigrated to south St. Louis in 1991. After moving to St. Louis, P.R.E.A.C.H ... More >>

DJ Needles On Growing Up With Vinyl And His Gold Records

Photo by Jon Scorfina​On the verge of the release of the RFT "Best of St. Louis" 2011 issue, Last Collector Standing decided to meet with last year's winner for "Best Club DJ," DJ Needles, to discuss what it takes to make a great DJ. Of course, vinyl was involved. Needles (a.k.a. Nodzill, a.k. ... More >>

Tupac Shakur, Fifteen Years After His Death: Not Just A Thinker, Not Just A Thug

​Fifteen years ago today Tupac Shakur died. In the time since, his legacy has been shaped by a ubiquitous moral contradiction: the man who wrote "Keep Ya Head Up" and "Changes" also wrote "How Do You Want It" and "Hit 'Em Up." As such, Tupac seems to embody the escalating internal conflict of hip- ... More >>

Prince Ea's Video For "Backwards Rappers" Turns a Gimmick Into a Symbol And Goes Viral

Image via​In this YouTube clip, titled, "Prince Ea Says He Has The BEST Video of 2011!!!!!!," you can find the innovative local rapper talking about his new music video, an admittedly and admirably innovative video that finds him taking a gimmick, making it work and simultaneously making a sta ... More >>

Phife Dawg Graces Tivoli for St. Louis Beat, Rhymes, and Life Premier: "Ya On Point Phife?"

Albert Samaha"All the time, Tip."​The crowd stood up and clapped when Phife Dawg strolled into theTivoli theater on Friday night. "Beats, Rhymes, and Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest," had ended twenty minutes before, but more than fifty people were still in their seats, waiting for P ... More >>

St. Louis' Own Thi'sl, a Christian Rapper, Tops iTunes Hip-Hop chart

Image viaThi'sl: The number one rapper on iTunes right now.​It might be a misnomer to call Thi'sl a Christian Rapper. Like many other artists, he just raps about his life. And God happens to play a big part in his life. Well, Thi'sl is one of the hottest rappers coming out of St. Louis. In ... More >>

Local Rapper Trey Wright Earns a Spot on MTV's MADE

Via Trey Wright's Facebook​On Monday, the latest in a string of St. Louis residents to make it (or at least MADE it) debuted on the MTV show. Local high school rapper Trey Wright took a turn on the moderate reality hit in the pursuit of becoming a rapper and was paired with Brand Nubian emcee ... More >>

Tef Poe On What The Scene Needs, Where He Is In Life and His New Song "Satellite" (Listen)

Courtesy of Tef Poe​"I'm trying my best to introduce a new Tef Poe sound every time I release something. My goal is to make some of my misplaced aggression sound beautiful," says Tef Poe. His undiluted honesty and clarity of vision have always made Tef one of the most arresting rappers in St. ... More >>

Midwest Rapper Frankie Flowers Turns Struggles Into Stories

Frankie Flowers has a story to tell. ​In January 2008, Frankie Flowers could either put the little money he had toward rent or studio time. He had moved down to Los Angeles from his hometown Milwaukee a few months before to pursue his hip-hop career. He lived with his uncle, who worked at Univ ... More >>

Ten Biggest Musician Death Conspiracies

wikimedia commons​There's always been a sense of glamour in the blur of all that is sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll, and it doesn't end when the music's done, or even when the rock stars die. Instead, an eerie feeling of mystery and unfinished business surfaces when the demise of a music icon is ... More >>

Wugazi: Five Mashups We Hope End Up on the Finished Project

​Wu-Tang mashups are nothing new - from The Beatles to Warren Zevon, the Shaolin collective has been and remains one of the ripest sources for remixing and reconextualizing. However, when word dropped last week of Doomtree's "Wugazi" project - a Fugazi/Wu-Tang mashup - the Internet went abuzz ... More >>

Waka Flocka, Wiz Khalifa, Ludacris, Keri Hilson Nelly and more at Superjam 4: 6/12/11

Nelly makes a guest appearance to snuggle with Keri Hilson. Photo by Kiernan Maletsky​Super Jam 4 Mindless Behavior | Rockwell Knuckles and Tef Poe | Block Boyz | MoTre | Ruka Puff | Gena | Travis Porter | YC | Lloyd | Yo Gotti | Keri Hilson | Wiz Khalifa | Waka Flocka Flame | Ludacris Verizo ... More >>

Raekwon at the Firebird, 5/16/11: Review, Photos, Setlist

Photo by Jon Gitchoff​ Raekwon/Steddy P and DJ Mahf/Safety Words The Firebird May 16, 2011 Safety Words, heretofore most commonly known for mashing eight-bit video game samples with rap tracks, officially retired those songs last night. You will never again hear "Biggie, Rae, Ghost, Rash, Zi ... More >>

Tonight at Left Bank: Former RFT Writer Ben Westhoff Discusses New Book Dirty South

Ben Westhoff tonight at Left Bank.​Former RFT staffer Ben Westhoff is out with a new book exploring the artists who helped popularize the southern style of hip hop that has dominated airwaves for much of the past decade. Tonight at 7 p.m. Westhoff reads from his work Dirty South: Outkast, Lil Wayn ... More >>

Dirty South author Ben Westhoff on his time covering St. Louis hip-hop and the new book

​What y'all really know about the Dirty South? Enough to write a book, apparently. Congratulations are in order to RFT alum Ben Westhoff, whose second book will be officially released on May 1. The book, entitled Dirty South: Outkast, Lil Wayne, Soulja Boy, and the Southern Rappers Who Reinven ... More >>

Talib Kweli at Pop's, 4/19/11: Review

Photo by Jon Gitchoff​ Talib Kweli/Fred the Godson/Dusty Wallets/Earthworms Pop's Nightclub and Concert Venue Tuesday, April 19 Not to be discouraged by the lightning, hail and winds that tore through the area last night, fans of alternative hip-hop ventured out to see one of the genre's pre ... More >>

Talib Kweli/Fred the Godson/Earthworms

Doors at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 19. Pop’s, 401 Monsanto Avenue, Sauget, Illinois.

Lyrics Born/Skins & Needles/Nato Caliph

9 p.m. Thursday, April 14. 2720 Cherokee, 2720 Cherokee Street.

Lil Wayne and Nicki Minaj at the Scottrade Center, April 10: Review

Todd Owyoung​ Lil Wayne/Nicki Minaj/Rick Ross/Travis Barker/Mix Master Mike The Pageant April 10, 2011 Better Than: Whatever the hell else went on last night. They came in jacked-up ghetto cruisers and sensible Hondas; they came in glute-hugging tube dresses, crisp white T's and homemade sh ... More >>

Nicki Minaj/Lil Wayne/Rick Ross/Travis Barker/Mix Master Mike

7 p.m. Sunday, April 10. The Scottrade Center, 1401 Clark Avenue.

Review: Salt-n-Pepa and the Legends of Hip Hop Tour, The Chaifetz Arena, Saturday, March 12

Todd OwyoungSalt-n-Pepa​This year marks the 25th anniversary of Salt-N-Papa's groundbreaking debut, Hot, Cool and Vicious - and the ladies seem to be finding their second wind. Building on the success of 2010's Fresh Fest tour, the assiduous femcees headlined another all-star roster featuring ... More >>

Constellations

9 p.m. Wednesday, March 16. The Firebird, 2706 Olive Street.

Kool Keith Coming to the Firebird

Hip-hop shapeshifter Kool Keith - a.k.a. Dr. Octagon, a.k.a. Dr. Dooom, a.k.a. Black Elvis, a.k.a. many other aliases -- is coming to the Firebird on April 6. Tickets are on sale today at noon; no word yet on prices. It's hard to describe Kool Keith's legacy, not to mention this insanely huge catalo ... More >>

Tef Poe fights against complacency, and defies pigeonholing, with War Machine

Review: Ms. Lauryn Hill at the Pageant in St. Louis, January 16

Todd Owyoung​Ms. Lauryn Hill's difficult reputation precedes her. She shows up for most shows way past the scheduled start time. (And that's if she shows up at all.) She's been known to berate crowds which heckle her -- and she's radically reinvented many of her best-known songs, so much so th ... More >>

Saint Louis: State of Emergency Concert with Rick Ross

7 p.m. Monday, January 17. The Chaifetz Arena, One South Compton Avenue.

Interview: Tef Poe on War Machine, His Fantastic New Album

courtesy of Tef Poe​Tef Poe's War Machine is a nineteen-track tour de force. The Force member's musical versatility has always been his calling card, and so it's not surprise that Machine embraces diversity and defies pigeonholing. Genre-wise, it touches on warm R&B, ominous hip-hop, celebrato ... More >>

2010: The Year In Music

Top Sellers at Area Record Stores: Week of October 11

* = coming to town, = local ​Euclid Records 1 Belle & Sebastian - Write About Love 2. Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest 3. Of Montreal - False Priest* 4. John Legend/Roots Wake Up! 5. Neil Young - Le Noise 6. Old 97's - The Grand Theatre 7. Eric Clapton - Clapton 8. Fistful Of Mercy - As I Cal ... More >>

Last Collector Standing: DJ Mahf on the Relationship Between Hip-Hop & Art, His Formative Years and His Brother Jim Mahfood's Influence

Jon Scorfina​When not out competing in national DJ tournaments, DJ Mahf (a.k.a. Dan Mahfood) can be found scouring local record stores for hours on end, sometimes with a portable record player by his side. A life-long fan of funk, soul and hip-hop, Mahf used to use a fake I.D. to sneak into Bl ... More >>

Drake/Tyga

7:30 p.m. Tuesday, October 12. The Fox Theatre, 527 North Grand Boulevard.

Devin the Dude

7 p.m. Friday, September 17. Pop's, 401 Monsanto Avenue, Sauget, Illinois.

Hip-hop jack-of-all-trades Black Spade is the force behind local rap collective the Force

Black Eyed Peas unfurl an electro-pop spectacle of epic proportions

Last Collector Standing: DJs Crucial and Agile 1, The Coolest Young Parents in St. Louis

Jon ScorfinaDJs Agile 1 and Crucial with their twin boys​Rob and April Fulstone might be the two coolest young parents in St. Louis. For over ten years they've been staples in the St. Louis hip-hop scene under the monikers DJ Crucial and DJ Agile 1. Following the birth of their twin sons, Linc ... More >>

Homespun: Academy Hill

Jewelry
(self-released)

Preview Interview: Big Boi's Album Listening Party at Shock City Studios, Tuesday, June 22 2010

​In anticipation of his new solo album, Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty, Big Boi has been holding private listening parties in select cities across the country. Last night St. Louis got a sneak peek at the upcoming project, as local entertainers and media personnel came out to ne ... More >>

R.I.P. Sex Pistols Manager, Fashion Visionary Malcolm McLaren

Malcolm McLaren, the wily manger who guided original punks the Sex Pistols to infamy, died today after a battle with cancer. He was 64. After outfitting the New York Dolls with outrageous stagewear in the mid-'70s, he became more notorious for coordinating the Sex Pistols' outlandish publicity stunt ... More >>