Harold Stallworth would like to thank his connect. If I hadn’t already submitted my fall mixtape to upper management, I’d probably reserve my newfound obsession with go-go bands for the next round of seasonal compilations and offer up a collaborative history of Busta Rhymes and Q-Tip instead. “Thank You,” the lead single from Extinction Level […]

Harold Stallworth came to boogie. As a D.C. transplant and newcomer to the conga-driven sound of go-go, I’m certainly not qualified to encapsulate the genre’s last 40-odd years into a 63-minute playlist. So consider this mixtape to be a haphazard collection of odds and ends rather than a definitive canonization. I was introduced to jazz […]

Harold Stallworth has selective hearing. Kev Brown had one hell of a Christmas vacation. Last year, the hip-hop producer spent the better part of two months gallivanting around eastern Brazil, soaking up the warm tropical sun and programming beats featured on his latest instrumental album, Brazil Dedication. More than eight months removed from what Kev […]

Harold Stallworth is in the club singing off-key. Sometimes a go-go cover sounds absolutely nothing like the genuine article, and more often than not, we’re all better for it. When the TOB Band—former home to up-and-coming D.C. rapper Yung Gleesh—repurposed Ron Isley’s “Contagious” and The Fugees’ “Killing Me Softly” during a performance at Gary’s Cafe […]

  Harold Stallworth is dating Kitana. In the days before CD-R technology, retail albums were unalterable works of art, ironclad in their vision or lack thereof. For better or worse, tracklistings now serve as little more than reference points for neurotic fans masquerading as seasoned A&Rs. Migos, Atlanta’s latest brand of hip-hop antichrist, orchestrated an […]

Harold Stallworth is washing money at the Laundromat. Numbers may not outright fib, but more often than not they only tell half the story. Soundscan can’t explain why Meek Mill is far more likely to be heard blaring in god-awful D.C. traffic than most of his RIAA-certified contemporaries. The closest thing we have to a […]

Harold Stallworth is throwing rappers in the Boston Crab. J Cole is Fayetteville, NC’s quintessential hip-hop success story. But a full decade before his raspy voice blared from black college dorms across the country, an obscure rap duo known as Bomm Sheltuh was projected to be his hometown’s vessel for national exposure on the music […]

After a nearly four-year hiatus, AZ is finally gearing up to release his ninth studio album, tentatively titled “Doe or Die II.” His impact on the ever-evolving world of rap is difficult to quantify by hard statistics and direct influence. Despite never being the brightest star or biggest draw, even within his own freakishly talented […]

Despite having spent most of his formative years far beyond the Capital Beltway, Tracey Lee’s name rings out in Washington, D.C. Like thousands of other transplants, the city welcomed him with open arms, functioning as a springboard for an admirable career and livelihood. His 1997 debut single, “The Theme (It’s Party Time),” is still one […]

Harold Stallworth curbs your enthusiasm. For all the technological advancements that have altered the ways in which musicians have earned their keep over the last three decades, one constant has remained: Rappers, by in large, still generate the bulk of their income via live performances. Over the last few years, Freddie Gibbs, Big Krit and […]