| P.O.W Fall Mixtape: Windy City Rap Blended By Max Bell | November 14, 2014 |
For his Fall Mixtape, Max Bell blends his favorite Chicago rap songs from Da Brat to Chief Keef.
| Saba Rides Into the “ComfortZone” | August 5, 2014 |
Kyle Ellison loves the Top Gun soundtrack A breakout hit on the scale of Chance’s Acid Rap doesn’t just burn bright and fade away, its embers continue to crackle and spark. Eventually they’ll settle, but in the meantime it’s just as likely that the wind will change and reignite flickers into flames. Before I run […]
| With a Pledge of $50 or More, You Can Have Chance the Rapper & Wyclef: “Wonderful Everyday: Arthur” | August 4, 2014 |
Peter Holslin ghost-wrote the music to Rugrats I know the lyrics to the Reading Rainbow theme by heart. And while it’s been a long time since I’ve watched that show, I can still dig the tripped-out synths and funky drums featured on the original recording from the series premiere in 1983. But, alas, PBS children’s […]
| Drake Suarez: If Rappers Were Footballers | June 20, 2014 |
Somehow the rap game, reminds Dweez of the beautiful game. Art by Ben Bjelajac. Drake featuring Drake. We’ve now seen all 32 teams play in this tournament. Google searches are 10x higher for the World Cup than they were for the NBA Finals this last week. The game done changed and here is a guide […]
Brad Beatson is Grand like Puba Treated in black and white, this documentary chronicles the duo of DJ Rashad and DJ Spinn during a trip to Mexico as they find kush, encounter Spanish slang and gain intimate knowledge of the Monterrey sewage system. TEKLife is and will always be the best life.
| Chance the Rapper Channels Elton John | April 16, 2014 |
Kyle Ellison lives his life like a candle in a wind tunnel Chance the Rapper is the kind of clumsy-ass Sesame Street rap name that we all wish we didn’t have to say out loud. For the most part you can get away with shortening it to Chance, but on a scale of 1 to […]
| The Blogger, the Engineer, and the Future of Chicago Hip-Hop | January 29, 2014 |
Tosten Burks deserves a day off. The Blogger and the Engineer The living room is not a living room – overstuffed couches swapped for 50 thousand dollars worth of studio equipment, tile floor crowded with new friends and old. A funky smoke lingers. They line up for the dining room that is not a dining […]
| Word…Life with James Blake & Chance the Rapper | September 17, 2013 |
If you’re keeping track of the James Blake rap collaborations, his union with Chance the Rapper is superior to his one with RZA. But the RZA told me earlier today in an interview that “the world has the power to make it bong bong for everyone.” I was feeling sick and now I am healed, […]
| It’s a Jazz Thing: Nico Segal Becomes Donnie Trumpet (With Accompaniment from Chance The Rapper & Vic Mensa) | June 27, 2013 |
Matthew Schonfeld is a classically trained theremin-rap master. Chicago’s Save Money crew is way more than just Chance The Rapper. The collective encompasses the sweeping diversity of Chicago’s arts culture. There are rappers, singers, painters, videographers, producers, and jazz musicians. Nico Segal fits somewhere in between — originally sitting as trumpet player for the defunct […]
Tosten Burks prefers root beer. I don’t think Vic Mensa thought his best friend would blow up before him. There’s just something about the way he goons around backstage at Chance shows waiting to spit his Cocoa Butter Kisses verse, not smiling, not really dancing, not even during the obligatory all-of-SaveMoney-wilds-out-on-stage moments. He’s still getting […]
