It’s now 2012, and while many of us are in the full swing of things with new music for the new year, some are still stuck in the notion that New York Hip Hop is either stuck in or should sound exactly like 1994.

Fortunately, the new crop of NY’s finest are marrying the home of hip hop’s traditions with a bold look toward the future. Here’s a quick playlist of names you either should know by now or need to know in 2012.

Action Bronson

Dining with Anthony Bourdain one minute and recording tracks with Meyham Lauren the next, Bronson’s taste for fine foods, 80s professional wrestlers and pop culture nonsequitors is only matched by his tireless work ethic and an almost unfair quality control. With two outstanding albums in last year’s Dr. Lecter and Well Done as well as several announced projects in the coming months, the eclectic Energizer Bunny of rap just keeps going as an excited audience keeps listening.

A$AP Rocky

With both a decade long stigma of rejecting outsiders as well as a genocide of its record stores, you wouldn’t expect an NY talent to wear the influence of other regions on his sleeve. Harlem’s A$AP Rocky stands as New York’s first child of the post-Napster generation to combine the hustle and sleekness of his hometown with, among other inspirations, Memphis’s brooding crawl and Houston’s spacey ingenuity. Not merely a revivalist, the tradition he most proudly carries is an unmistakable rugged boldness that only Harlem could manifest.

Brown Bag AllStars

Individually the members of Brown Bag AllStars could account for half of this list, but together they form a Castle Greyskull of boom-bap viciousness. As insular as they are talented, their work ethic and self-awareness allows for release after release of playing to their own strengths. Rappers Soul Khan and Koncept have both recently released projects entirely produced by fellow members and with both J57 and Audible Doctor producing on some of the year’s most anticipated releases, the crew’s upcoming debut album promises to be the best record the crew’s fallen nexus, Manhattan’s Fatbeats Records, was never able to stock.

Dollar Coffee

The duo of BS and Albert Rhymestein know what made you first love rap music and, on their debut Nice Things, bring you right back to that feeling. Catchy, complex and cunning, the duo are as skilled at earworms as they are at rocking a crowd. That includes most recently receiving the rarest of warm embraces from New York’s Apollo Theater. With enough punchlines and hooks to win a fighting championship, Dollar Coffee remain the tag team champions of good time hip-hop.

Homeboy Sandman

Although he now calls Los Angeles’ Stones Throw records home, it’s still same number, same hood for New York hip hop’s archangel. Not satisfied with his already astronomical heights, Homeboy Sandman continues to push boundaries conceptually and constructively with his Subject Matter EP. As bold as it is to base an entire project on the concept of touching topics rap has never covered before, it’s only the beginning. Sandman’s reliability for dope rap music doesn’t stem from his staying the same, but his desire to continue evolving.

Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire

Last year’s “Huzzah” turned heads both for how dope it was as well as the promise it held for dirty Fondle ‘Em style hip-hop to be made today. Mr. Muthafuckin eXquire doesn’t give the slightest of fucks about any of this, which makes his music all the more refreshing. The exact midpoint between Camu Tao and Method Man, eXquire’s keeping things progressively dangerous live and on record.

Silent Knight

Intelligent without being overbearing, outspoken without being heavy handed, and brave without being boring, Silent Knight makes the type of hip hop an entire generation of underground revivalists have unsuccessfully attempted to. One of the few MCs to emphasize subtlety over showcasing, Knight brings a fresh sound to the hallmarks of New York underground rap that have for too long been glossed over or forgotten. Along with a stellar album in Busy is My Best Friend, Silent Knight’s live show is among the best today. A showman capable of rocking a party while maintaining an unforgettable intimacy, he’s a rapper’s rapper who will only continue to excel throughout the new year.

New York hip hop is made up of a variety of style and substance that no other rap region can match. From street-styled thug raps to hipster-friendly wordsmithing, from vintage boom-bap sounds to live band instrumentation, this depth is, in part, a reflection of the region’s inhabitants. New York hip hop is uniquely positioned, true melting pot music, as diverse as New York’s never-sleeping city and open-air outlying suburbs. This range can be seen in artists’ music video counterparts, some low budget and artsy, some high-budget, ready-for-BET affairs. Once again, we decided to sift through the dozens of videos from New York-area hip hop artists that cross our path on any given month, sharing some we feel are notable. This batch contains a few videos from late 2011, and a couple that are fresh out of the oven, but all are fairly recent examples that we think do a great job at visualizing the dynamic range of New York hip hop.

Darq ft. Amy Davis – R.A.W.

Let’s start right with this. If you are an underground/indie artist, and you are going to put together a video in an attempt to set yourself apart from the pack, this is one helluva way to do it. Many videos attempt to self-proclaim themselves “motion picture,” and don’t live up to the hype. This project however, directed extremely adeptly by Kristian Kruz, gives Darq Raw, a heavily grinding Bronx MC, a pretty fantastic calling card that should get people asking “Who is Darq Raw?” and certainly should have artists who are looking to make videos asking, “Who is Kristian Kruz?” Well done.

Check out photos from Freestyle Mondays 10 Year Anniversary event, held at 116 in Manhattan, on January 9, 2012.

When we first named Freestyle Mondays one of our “5 Reasons Why New York Hip Hop Doesn’t Suck,” we said:

For anyone who needs a proper introduction to (or reminder of) the wonderful world of artistry, entertainment, passion, fun and respect for jam session lyricism that lives in hip hop’s heart, you could find absolutely no better place to spend a Monday night.

The location may be changing once again, but the message of that statement remains as true as the day we wrote it. Freestyle Mondays, the weekly, musician-backed, open mic haven for hip hop lyricists with a penchant for impromptu rap, celebrates a decade of nearly continuous weekly sessions, starting 2012 in a new location, but with many of the same participants expected to be in the house.

Freestyle Mondays is led by two longtime hosts and co-organizers: iLLspoKinN, an artistically macho, experienced and charmingly enjoyable artist who continues to tour worldwide, and Mariella, a glowing chanteuse who sounds as at home in a rap groove as she does when performing R&B and jazz throughout NYC and the rest of the country.

Freestyle Mondays' hands-on hosts iLLspoKinN and Mariella

The combination of iLLspoKinN’s expertise at off-the-cuff rapping and engaging interaction with the crowd, and Mariella’s shimmering personality and hypnotic vocals, is an effective enough selling point for the showcase. Add to this a steadily impressive cast of highly competent jam musicians backing the duo (along with DJ MilkMoney holding down duties on the wheels of steel), the mixed-demographic, friendly audience and respectful, talented and (usually) enjoyable freestylers, and you have a winning formula, proven by the mere fact that we are talking about a ten year anniversary.

The vibe favors wordsmithing and verbal craftsmanship over roughneck posturing, but MCs of all persuastions are able to repeatedly rock the mic throughout the night. In general, less entertaining rappers will take the audience’s tempered enthusiasm as a hint, and disappear into the night, leaving the more adapt performers behind to entertain and enthrall.

Freestyle Mondays has spawned sister chapters in the Czech Republic and France, and the original incarnation remains a must-see event for fans of hip hop’s off-the-dome ingenuity, and a must-do rite of passage for any MC who values the sometimes-lost artform of freestyle rhyme.

The Freestyle Mondays 10 year anniversary will take place Monday, January 9, 2011 at the event’s new location, 116, located at 116 MacDougal St., between Bleeker and W. 3rd, New York City. The events begin at 10 p.m., and are free, but well-deserved donations will be collected throughout.

www.FreestyleMondays.com – www.facebook.com/freestylemondays
www.ustream.tv/channel/freestylemondays

Hopefully you’re not too partied out, and enjoying the beginnings of a happy new year. One of the first releases of good ol’ 2012 comes from Raekwon, who delivers the 17-track mixtape Unexpected Victory, featuring the likes of Busta Rhymes, Fred The Godson, Vado and LEP Bogus Boys.

Raekwon’s Unexpected Delivery features production from folks like Scram Jones, 9th Wonder, Pro Logic & Moss, and Statik Selecktah, among other, lesser known beatsmiths, adding to the mix of known and less known artists, proving that The Chef is unafraid to use his platform to introduce new characters to the game, something many underground fans often ask of the more successful in the genre.

We haven’t gotten to listen to the project yet, so we don’t know how effective this is in this case, but it’s Raekwon, so we expect nothing less than another solid effort from one of Shaolin’s finest.

Download/Listen: Raekwon – Unexpected Victory [MIXTAPE]

Too many people, particularly those who long for New York hip hop to “come back,” waste too much time complaining about today’s hip hop, when they could be using that time to discover good hip hop music from today’s New York-area artists.

Instead, they grumble about the current style and substance of mainstream hip hop, the R&B-influenced sound of Drake for example, or the lyrically simplistic style of some Southern rappers and the overall lack of traditional New York flavored hip hop on radio, stating with repeated disgust that “real” hip hop is dead and gone.

They lament the loss of the New York sound, nostalgically pining for 1990’s boom-bap sound that many of them grew up on, screwing up their face and dismissing any “Top 5, Dead or Alive” list that doesn’t include Jay-Z, B.I.G., Nas and Jadakiss.

All of which are fine opinions, but let’s be real about real.

Saying you want “real hip hop” back, is stupid. There is no “real” hip hop.

What you really mean to say, is that you miss traditional, New York sounding hip hop, a mix of grit and poetry, over beats that utilize chopped up samples, or soul music loops, accompanied by hard hitting, crispy drum sounds, for the most part floating around 88-92 beats per minute. A type of hip hop that was a nod to rap music’s early days, but with updated storytelling, increased lyrical prowess and advanced musical complexity. A hip hop that you once enjoyed while laying back, puffing an L, feeling an emotional twinge of invincibility tied to a feeling that these slick-talking rappers and hard-hitting beatsmiths were just like you. Artists that somehow packaged and delivered the collective feeling of living in New York into sounds and songs that stuck with you then, and continue to evoke feelings of euphoric nostalgia ever since.

THAT was “real” hip hop, right? What you hear on the radio today, that’s not “real,” right?

Wrong.

The problem is, you are selfish.

But it’s understandable. You are focused on a very short amount of time in hip hop’s lifespan and because it was a particularly formative time for you musically, you feel a certain way about that time period, and the music contained therein.

Your assertion that 1990s New York hip hop is covered under the umbrella of “real” hip hop, whereas “today’s” hip hop isn’t, is wrong, and is created by a combination of your particular taste in music and your respect for hip hop history, but mainly because of your psychological bias.

To be fair, it’s an age-old argument. When asked to pinpoint the best decade for music, people overwhelmingly respond by choosing a decade from their youth. This generally holds true across all genres and generations.

Your prejudice toward 1990s New York hip hop exists because that was likely the time that you were fully immersed in music, when music not only was something listened to constantly, but something to connect to.

Since then, life got in the way, and while hip hop evolved, you held on to your personal tastes, your preferred style. You listened to vinyl and cassettes and CDs in your collection. You ported over your songs to your iPod and replayed certain albums you had forgotten about. Sure, you still listened to what was new, but the time that you previously dedicated to absorbing everything new, became fractured.

You lost the ability to connect to new music, partially because you grew older. Mainstream music of course is specifically engineered to cater to a younger crowd, and because your time and energy was being spent elsewhere, your inclination to seek out music more along the lines of your musical tastes diminished as well.

Plus, you still had your favorite joints up in the iPod.

But young people, entering their own formative music-listening years, were still being hand-delivered hip hop, though what was now on the radio sounded a lot different than just a few years ago when you were coming up.

To be real, this was just a continuation of the evolution of hip hop, beyond your personal glory days, just as it had evolved from the Sugar Hill Gang-style rap from half a generation before you.

Now, a new batch of kids started immersing themselves with the prevalent hip hop of the day, which to them, no less “real” than the music you got into.

I mean, before we can criticize today’s hip hop as any less “real,” we must take an objective look at how different Mobb Deep or Snoop Dogg was from the Treacherous Three or the Fat Boys.

Understand the point?

Look, I know what you mean. But you have to get over it. The fact is, Drake IS real hip hop. So is Waka Flocka Flame. So is Tupac. And Biggie. And Run-DMC. And MC Lyte. And Kurtis Blow. And Melle Mel.

But to a 15 year old who grew up in Atlanta his whole life, having been exposed to the type of hip hop he is regularly exposed to, there is no way you can contend that to him, and others like him, his hip hop is not “real” hip hop.

It’s all “real.” It’s not all “real good,” but not every New York rapper in the 90s was either.

And don’t forget that in the 1990s, there were many less distribution channels. Less geographical hubs of rap music. New York hip hop was dominant in the 1990s because there were few places labels were culling hip hop talent from in the 1990s.

Once they figured out that there was an entirely different, underserved and undercapitalized market, the distribution companies (labels, radio, media) flocked to these untapped markets.

While it is true that for the most part they have yet to return, it does not mean that New York hip hop is dead.

It also does not mean that good New York hip hop has to sound exactly like it did in the 1990s.

To 1990s New York hip hop fans: I feel you. I am one of you. I am as pro-New York hip hop as anyone, but to be pro-New York hip hop does not mean we have to be anti-everywhere-else hip hop.

I also came up during the New York hip hop “Golden Era” of the 1990s but I am not stubbornly stuck in the musical past. By being open-minded to the evolution of hip hop, not wasting time crying over spilled rap milk, I have found plenty of New York-area artists of today, who satisfy my purist, old-school hip hop soul.

New York has always been a progressive city in terms of music, from jazz to musical theater, from punk to hip hop, magically infusing its artistic residents with an ability to create or advance music in ways no other place can. This continues today, as the bubbling New York hip hop underground is the center of our entire journalistic effort, and in that effort, we continuously come across sparks of new talent, artists who possess that same nod to rap’s earlier days, also with an updated storytelling, increased lyrical prowess and advanced musical complexity.

They are in your city. Some live on your block. They perform at venues all throughout the city, and for a few dollars, you can see them perform. Sure you’ll have to sit through a lot of mediocre artists first, but at least, unlike the radio, there’s a payoff at the end of these efforts, delivered by an artist of today that will at the same time invoke a pleasant feeling of nostalgia, mixed with a feeling that you’re hearing something new and fresh.

And if you let it, it will feel very, very real.

The XXL Magazine Freshmen Class has become a buzz-worthy yearly event in hip hop, a perceived rite of passage for up and coming artists, presumably to reward the efforts of their achieving notoriety on the upswing of their career. Though the long-term predictive ability of the list has been questioned by many as being less-than-clairvoyant, and in recent years, the lack of viable New York artists (rectified only slightly by last year’s nomination of Fred The Godson, and to a much lesser degree, Diggy Simmons), it appears as if XXL, feeling the heat of their own selective process, has introduced a new way to include, but not include, many other candidates.

XXL has opened up voting for a “Reader’s Choice,” and allowing for 50 of the “most mentioned names”  among their deliberations to be voted on by the public in an online poll, the results of which will be added to the magazine’s 9 official picks.

That’s cute and all, makes the public feel involved, but it also doesn’t make much sense. Are the actual 9 official choices also going to from the same pool? If that’s the case, isn’t the likliehood going to be that the public will also choose one of the official 9? If THAT’S the case, then is XXL going to have one of their official 9, ALSO be the Reader’s Choice? Or (more likely), they will pick either the highest voted, non-top-9 pick to fill that “Reader’s Choice” slot, or, just pick their own anyway, in either case, rendering the actual voice of the people, unheard.

Whatever the outcome, the result is obviously simply a play for online page views and to encourage spreading the Freshmen Class word among social networks, and will do little to offer any real addition to a list that already exists largely simply to create controversial discussion among hip hop debaters. That being said, we noted a couple of New York-area representatives in the mix (Action Bronson, A$AP Rocky, Emilio Rojas, French Montana, Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire, Neako, Outasight, Reek Da Villian, Smoke DZA, The Kid Daytona among them), so we’ll see if any of our hometown folks make the cut.

If you feel like playing the game in advance of the April 2012 cover issue, swing on over to http://www.xxlmag.com/XXL-freshmen-2012/. Voting ends January 1st.

(And hey, vote for some New York cats just for the hell of it, even though we all know only A$AP Rocky and French Montana have any real shot.)

The Hip Hop TakeOver is a yearly radio event on New York’s WBAI, a 24-hour marathon of hip hop programming led by WBAI personality and behind-the-scenes architect, Ife Dancy. The last full TakeOver, held in June, featured programming blocks led by several New York-area DJs, radio and music personalities, delivering a true assortment of music, commentary and entertainment to the area airwaves.

Today, Saturday, December 10th, the Hip Hop TakeOver returns, in conjunction with the good folks at SunToucher Entertainment, for a “mini-thon,” a junior version of the full TakeOver that will begin at 4 p.m. and last until 1 a.m. Sunday morning. The planned schedule is below, and we imagine there will be several guests and unplanned moments of radio gold interspersed with the expected scheduling.

READ: WBAI was previously named one of Birthplace Magazine’s “5 Reasons Why New York Hip Hop Doesn’t Suck”

The Hip Hop TakeOver begins with Kangol Kid, of veteran group U.T.F.O., who will be speaking on the Mama Luke Foundation, an organization tackling the issue of breast cancer, while later in the evening, more legendary hip hoppers will be taking over the mic, including NYOil (formerly Kool Kim of the UMCs), DJ Johnny Juice, and beginning at 9 p.m., the Cold Crush Brothers. DJ Evil Dee closes the TakeOver out, starting at 11 p.m.

Be sure to support New York hip hop in one of its most treasured forms, radio, and tune in to WBAI 99.5 FM, New York City or online at www.wbai.org.

The Hip Hop TakeOver Schedule

4 p.m. – Kangol Kid from UTFO
5 p.m. – Crazy Legs of the legendary Rock Steady Crew
6 p.m. – NYOil aka Kool Kim of the UMC’s
7 p.m. – DJ Johnny Juice
8 p.m. – DJ Lady Love and RD Smiley
9 p.m. – The Cold Crush Brothers
11 p.m. – DJ Evil Dee

Andrew Kelley does a few things. He is an accomplished A&R, and producer, crafting tracks and remixes for the likes of Wu-Tang Clan, AZ and M.O.P., as well as serving as Senior Art Director at eOne Music. The latest in his string of remix projects, is Dope On The Table, a seven track EP which features “an exclusive collection of remixed cuts by Raekwon The Chef.”

The intro of leadoff cut “Two Brothers of the Corner” and the rolling bassline of the M.O.P. and Kool G Rap-enhanced remix to “Ill Figures,” Dope On The Table pretty much set the tone of the EP, as Andrew Kelley favors the basslines, synths and guitar sounds of classic soul tracks, pulling off the often-difficult feat of sounding nostalgic without sounding dated.

Additional verses are contributed by the likes of Big L, Notorious B.I.G., Ghostface Killah, Sean Price, Pusha T, Littles, Fabolous and Big Boi and Andrew Kelley’s soulful, smokey-vibed production generally works well throughout, orchestrated best on the reggae-influenced “Bricks” with the Notorious B.I.G. and fellow Wu-Tanger Ghostface Killah, and “Fool’s Paradise,” a funky, retro-sounding treat featuring Fabolous.

Raekwon himself just announced the impending release of his new mixtape UnExpected Victory, set to drop on Christmas, but in the meantime, definitely check out the free download of Dope On The Table over at DJBooth.net, to add to your undoubtedly-already-heafty Wu-affiliated archives.

Download/Listen: Andrew Kelley Presents: Raekwon – Dope On The Table [REMIX EP]

Raekwon ft. Fabolous – “Fool’s Paradise” (Andrew Kelley Remix)

Chicago-based producer Rediculus add to his “Masters of Conversation” production album series, delivering the New York area artist-heavy Punchlines and Parables, showcasing a litany of head-nodding beats and slick verses by the likes of Ruste Juxx, Craig G., Sadat X, Shabaam Sahdeeq, Sha Stimuli, Emilio Rojas, Brown Bag AllStar members Koncept and Audible Doctor, and many more.

To celebrate the release of Punchlines & Parables, Rediculus will be throwing a Brooklyn bash, with scheduled performances by several of the aforementioned artists, plus a few more, for good measure.

Though he’s been in Chi-Town, Rediculus has NY-area roots, and his production often hearkens to a familiar East Coast style, drum-heavy with soulful samples, while managing to avoid sounding dated. The result makes Punchlines & Parables “both a return to the ‘Golden Era’ and a glimpse into the future of hip hop.”

Scheduled to perform at the Brooklyn event will be Shabaam Sahdeeq, Ruste Juxx and the Brown Bag AllStars, with D-Stroy holding down hosting duties, and E Holla on the ones and twos, in what is bound to be a satisfying night for fans of lyrical MCs and boom-bap-styled production.

Birthplace Magazine is a proud media sponsor of the event, going down on November 19, 2011 at Club Insomnia at 1068 Fulton Street, in Brooklyn, and will be in the house covering the event as well. In fact, we’ve got our hands on a pair of tickets to give away! Simply fill out the info at the end of this post, and we’ll pick a winner at random. We’ll let you know if you won via email, a couple days before the show.

In the meantime, check out the third single from Punchlines & Parables, “Burners,” featuring Ruste Juxx, Shabaam Sahdeeq, Red Eye, DJ Ready Cee and the grimy-voiced, long-time-no-hear, veteran spitter, Nine.

The 17-track Punchlines & Parables can be previewed and purchased on iTunes.

Rediculus Presents: Masters of Conversation – Punchlines & Parables
at Club Insomnia, 1068 Fulton St., Brooklyn, NY
November 19, 2011
$10. First 100 people receive a free copy of Punchlines & Parables!

Rediculus – “Burners” (Featuring Nine, Ruste Juxx, Shabaam Sahdeeq, Red Eye and DJ Ready Cee

Enter to win 2 tickets to "Rediculus: Punchlines & Parables" November 19 at Club Insomnia, Brooklyn

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From the moment the dynamic rap duo Nice & Smooth explosively emerged on to the stage, to a reunited Brand Nubian, to CL Smooth standing nostalgically triumphant while a packed Canal Room sung along to “T.R.O.Y.,” concertgoers were immersed in old school rap revelry as “Hip Hop History” came to life on October 27, 2011.

Undeterred by a surprisingly bitter burst of arctic air whipping through Manhattan streets, fans of iconic hip hop groups Nice & Smooth, Brand Nubian and Pete Rock & CL Smooth found respite from the weather, warmed by Canal Room’s comfortable interior and clean sound system.

Leading off the night, sometimes Greg Nice and Smooth B rhymed slow, sometimes they rhymed fast, but all the while, the audience rapped and sang along, flawlessly reciting words to classics like “More & More Hits,” “Hip Hop Junkies” and “No Delayin’.” Further adding to the old-school-vibe, Greg Nice veered from their “Funky For You,” breaking into a beatbox exhibition, to the enjoyment of the audience.

Both MCs took advantage of the friendly crowd and wireless mics, and at several times, jumped from the stage to perform with the people, the energetically exuberant Greg Nice taking it one step further, performing several songs standing among partygoers in the VIP loft.

Toward the end of their set, a Gang Starr shirt was held aloft on stage, signaling both the highly anticipated performance of the anthemic “DWYCK,” and a time to pause to reflect on the passing of Guru, who famously shared a verse with the duo on the DJ Premier-produced classic. But in a display of remembrance that perhaps only hip hop can produce, the mood was immediately transformed from that of a lighters-in-the-air vigil, to a vibrant hands-in-the-air, head-nodding, sing-a-long tribute as the choppy beat and swift DJ cuts ricocheted through the venue.

CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE PHOTOS FROM
“HIP HOP HISTORY LIVE” AT CANAL ROOM

The promotional theme of the show was “Hip Hop History Live,” and when Brand Nubian hit the stage, it indeed felt like a historical moment, as all four members of the veteran group were present and accounted for, including Grand Puba, who also found post-group success as a solo artist. Joined by Sadat X and Lord Jamar, with DJ Alamo on the turntables, the group shuffled between Brand Nubian songs, as well as some of each member’s solo efforts, with the crowd reacting the most in response to seminal tracks like Puba’s “What’s The 411,” and “What Goes Around,” and Brand Nubian hits like “All For One,” and “Slow Down.”

Though Grand Puba took a few minutes to speak on more serious social-economic issues, the mood during Brand Nubian’s performance was generally nostalgic and fun, a solid effort that at moments truly transported listeners back to the group’s heyday.

With his sharp, distinctive voice, intelligent lyrics and charismatic flow, CL Smooth spent the peak of his career perfectly matched with his sonic counterpart, acclaimed DJ/producer Pete Rock, and despite a breakup years ago, the two headlined this occasion with precision and energy, as if Mecca and the Soul Brother dropped yesterday.

Rocking soulful, jazzy tracks like “Straighten It Out” and “Lots of Lovin” that made them one of hip hop’s most prolific groups, CL Smooth thoroughly engaged the crowd while Pete Rock effortlessly re-delivered an audio backdrop that helped define a decade.

Despite the onslaught of 90’s hip hop classics throughout, the song of the night clearly belonged to this duo. The crowd roared as the familiar horns and rumbling bassline of “They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)” echoed hauntingly through the speakers. As the drums kicked in, CL Smooth led those in attendance into the timeless jam, dedicated to fallen comrade-in-musical-arms, Trouble T-Roy, of Heavy D’s crew The Boyz.

At one point during CL Smooth’s delivery, an instructive “Rewiiiiind” was given to the crown, presumably to allow Pete Rock to restart the song from the beginning for another go-round, but the crowd wouldn’t let go, continuing to recite one of rap music’s all-time greatest hits word for word, while a stoic CL Smooth simply stood back watching in approval.

Classic flavors.

In all, three rap groups, years removed from being in the spotlight, were eagerly met by a hometown audience of enthusiastic fans, celebrating their collective legacy, remembering an earlier, some would say simpler time in hip hop history. As with other old-school themed rap shows in our area, it is clear that hip hop’s forefathers can still pull a crowd, and still rock the house.

CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE PHOTOS FROM
“HIP HOP HISTORY LIVE” AT CANAL ROOM

Nice & Smooth – DWYCK

Brand Nubian – All For One

Pete Rock & CL Smooth – T.R.O.Y.

(Videos Filmed & Edited by Nastee for 4word Productions – Courtesy of www.4wordproductions.org