Frightened Rabbit @ T5, Nov. 2010 (more by Lionel Bergeron)

SXSW has just announced another round of bands for the 2013 edition of the annual music festival that will happen March 12 - 17. This brings the total current number of acts to around 1300. Someome of the highlights include Vampire Weekend, Frightened Rabbit, The Thermals, Black Lips, Camera Obscura, Merchandise, Bleached, Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire, Eagles of Death Metal, Parenthetical Girls, Indians, Night Beds, IO Echo, KEN Mode, Prince Paul, Pure Bathing Culture, Sepalcure, UK motorik post-punks TOY, Finnish instrumentalists K-X-P, Toronto's Moon King, UK indie rockers Splashh (not Brooklyn Splash with one "h") and loads more. Head to BV Austin for the whole Round 3 list.

Legendary Long Island hip hop trio De La Soul have a lone upcoming North American live date and it happens upstate in Clifton Park, NY at the Upstate Concert Hall on November 23. The date was rescheduled after initially being booked for tonight (11/9) and all tickets will be honored. (Nas plays that venue tonight instead.) De La Soul's only other upcoming show at the moment is New Zealand festival Coromandel Gold on New Year's Eve.

As mentioned, Prince Paul, who produced the first three De La Soul albums, is DJing at Santos Party House on Saturday (11/10) and Knitting Factory on Sunday (11/11), both of which are with comedian Hannibal Buress. The Knitting Factory show happens after the BrooklynVegan-presented screening of The Comedy, which doors open for at 5 PM.

De La Soul's Plug 1 and Plug 2 created the "fictional" rap group First Serve with DJ duo Chokolate and Khalid, who put out their first album this year via Duck Down. If you've yet to hear it, you can listen to the whole thing below via Spotify.

Speaking of Duck Down, we recently mentioned the upcoming show at Santos Party House on November 13 with Sean Price, Buckshot, 9th Wonder, and Murs. Tickets for that show are on sale now.

Sean Price is working on a new music video and he's looking for people in the NYC area with beards to be in the video this Monday (11/12) at 2 PM. All interested bearded folk can email mailto:todd1@duckdown.com. A couple interesting related videos. Check out Sean as "Seanwuar" (click here if you don't get it) interviewing Pharoahe Monch; and Sean also filmed a news reporter style video of himself on the scene during Hurricane Sandy on October 29, which you can watch below.

Continue reading "De La Soul playing upstate NY; Prince Paul DJing w/ Hannibal Buress; Sean Price wants bearded dudes for his new video"

"Whoever said sarcasm is the lowest form of wit, is a fucking idiot. Not only that, it stops me killing people" - Ricky Gervais last night at NYCF (via @newyorkcomedyfest)

John Hodgman and Ricky Gervais @ NYCF 11/07/2012 (via @yarp4cornetto)

The New York Comedy Festival got underway last night with Ricky Gervais shooting the breeze with John Hodgman at Town Hall. The fest keeps the laughs going all weekend.Tonight's (11/8) big event is the "Stand Up for Heroes" benefit for the Bob Woodruff Foundation at Beacon Theatre with Mike Birbiglia, Ricky Gervais, Patton Oswalt, Bruce Springsteen, Jon Stewart, Robin Williams, John Maher and Roger Waters. Would you be surprised to learn that it's sold out? Well it is, and was also really expensive, but the good news is you can watch it online for free at 8pm EST!

Other shows tonight include Artie Lange at Town Hall, and Shawn and Marlon Wayans at Carolines (and you can still get tickets to those shows).

Other events this weekend include Patton Oswalt at Town Hall and Aziz Ansari at The Apollo on Friday (11/9), not to mention the Ben Stiller Show reunion at the Paley Center; Jim Gaffigan at The Apollo, Rob Delaney at NYU Skirball Center and Kevin Hart at MSG on Saturday (11/10); and Robin Williams in conversation with David Steinberg at 92nd St. Y on Sunday (11/11). There are lots of other shows happening as well, and full schedule and tickets are at the NYCF2012 website.

Also part of the NYCF is Hannibal Buress at Santos on Saturday (11/10) with DJ support from Prince Paul and Mike Lawrence. Tickets are still available. Hannibal is also celebrating the 3rd anniversary of his Sunday night comedy show at Knitting Factory in Brooklyn with a special show this week (11/11) in the main KF performance space (his shows are usually in the bar). Prince Paul will also be DJing this, plus "special guests." While Hannibal's shows there are usually free, this is a ticketed one ("We need the money to buy all of the party soup" - Hannibal). We're guessing it will be well worth it.

Oh, and if you're going to Knitting Factory Sunday, we also have a very good reason you should get there a few hours early.

Continuing 6 years after Hip-Hop visionary J Dilla's death, the annual Donuts Are Forever tribute benefit is slated for this Sunday at Brooklyn Bowl (2/19). The concert includes DJ sets by TARA, Brina Payne, Ill Digitz, GETLIVE!, and returning act Parler, with producer Prince Paul and DJ Neil Armstrong headlining. Rap trio Tanya Morgan will share hosting responsibilities for the evening, following a performance Wednesday night (2/15) in iHeartDilla's "One Song" lineup at Southpaw. Tickets for the Brooklyn Bowl show are still available. Flyer below.

While "Donuts Are Forever" further solidifies itself as a tradition each year, new odes to the late maestro are still taking form. Questlove recently DJed an hour-long set for Hot 97 devised soley of J Dilla tunes, which is available for download here. The drummer also wrote an essay for XXL rhapsodizing J Dilla's singular talent, explaining his influence on Hip-Hop and his own work:

"The day after he recorded "Think Twice," for Welcome to Detroit, I look at the drum set, and I was like, "Wait, you recorded that on this?" And it was the most dingiest, dirtiest, not even second-hand. [It] looked like the Fat Albert junkyard gang drum set. Screws were missing; some of the heads were broken. Matter of fact, he didn't even use real drumsticks on "Think Twice." He used a vibraphone mallet, and he had a broken drumstick that he got some toilet paper from the bathroom, and some rubber bands. I was like, "You would rather go through this MacGuyver shit than buy new drumsticks?" He's like, "I didn't know where to get 'em this late at night; I had to make due." I was like, "Well, why did you hit the drums with the mallet?" He was like, "I didn't want the dynamic to be too aggressive. I wanted to sound muted, so I decided to play the drums with the soft cotton mallet." It looked like putting a marshmallow at the end of a toothpick [Laughs]. Next thing I know, I'm now flying to Philadelphia--I think the next week, [to work on] The Roots' Phrenology record [and] I tracked both "Quills" and "Pussy Galore" the same way. I went and got some orchestra mallets, and then I too started, just 'cause I seen how he got that sound."

In Detroit, J Dilla's mother, Maureen Yancey, organzied a "Dilla Day" concert and community celebration in the producer's hometown this past weekend (2/10-2/11). Performers for the Friday night show included Danny Brown, Busta Rhymes,, Jay Electronica, and A Tribe Called Quest's Phife Dawg (who has a NYC show coming up), while Saturday's free event included "hands-on beat-making exhibits for children" and a preview of a short-form documentary "Rebirth in Detroit," which followed J Dilla and other local musicians and is to be released later this year. Above photos of the Fillmore marquee via jmackhh.

Aside from his tribute duties, Prince Paul is reuniting with his erstwhile collaborators De La Soul for a new album. While the group's latest creative incarnation First Serve is still underway, two new videos were uploaded to their Youtube channel last weekend teasing new material. Check out "Life is Great" and "Mr. Big Mouph II" below...

Continue reading "Prince Paul & De La Soul working on LP; Questlove made a Dilla mix; 'Donuts are Forever' event is this Sunday"

by BBG

"Edan and Paten Locke last night at The Knitting Factory... the illest rap show I've seen in years..." -junksciencerap

"Edan at knitting factory, so dope." -moesuli

"I felt weird wearing a Mr. Lif shirt when Mr. Lif came on stage. I left as soon as the encore ended. I didn't wanna be #thatguy. #nogroupie" -greenspam

Edan and Mr Lif at Knitting Factory on Tuesday (via & via)

" In his finale set, Edan did it accapella, spitting a, what seemed like, infinite rhyming masterpiece without missing a beat or taking a breath. He brings a level of intellectualism to his lyricism and it shows with his fan base, many of who remained after the show ended in small clusters to discuss the performance." [DD172]

And another Edan Brooklyn show has been announced. This time he'll appear as part of a "Bowling for Beats" event at Brooklyn Bowl on 9/26 which will be co-headlined by Pete Rock and Prince Paul, with other sets from J-Zone, and J57 (Brown Bag All-Stars), and Psycho Les (of the Beatnuts). Tickets should be on sale soon.

And while we're "Bowling for Beats", why not get "Lyrics To Go", as DJ Evil Dee, Mr. Walt, the X Factor Boogie Blind, and New Beatminerz will spin at a Labor Day party at Brooklyn Bowl on September 5. Tickets are on sale.

Questlove will spin at Brooklyn Bowl every Thursday in September. On 8/31, he and his crew The Roots will be the focus of a listening party for their upcoming LP Wake Up! with John Legend. The event is free, but the upcoming Roots/John Legend live show at Terminal 5 on 9/23 is NOT. Tickets are on sale Monday (8/30) at noon.

Video of Edan at Knitting Factory is below...

Continue reading "Mr Lif joined Edan @ Knitting Factory, Edan joins Pete Rock & Prince Paul @ Brooklyn Bowl (and other upcoming events)"

De La DMC @ Nokia Theatre, NYC - 8/13/09 (by Tim Griffin)

As Del La Soul told the crowd when they took the stage at Nokia Theatre in NYC last night (8/13), their show was not going to be all music from 3 Feet High & Rising. Why would anyone think it would be? Probably because the show was billed as "20 Years High and Rising" (and everyone and their mother is playing full albums these days) (including Buckshot who opened the show, but didn't play a full album at this one either). I was more than okay with them not playing the full thing, though it would have been nice to hear a few more songs from that album. Specifically, I wished they played "The Magic Number" and "Jenifa Taught Me (Derwin's Revenge)".

I loved every second of the packed show, and the 10-piece backing band was an especially nice touch. That said, I was selfishly hoping for a few more special guests, not that there weren't any. I thought for sure that Q-Tip would show up, and the Jungle Brothers and Black Sheep, and maybe even Doom, and who knows who else. Ends up they sort of kept the guests to a minimum. Bumpy Knuckles performed a short unannounced opening set. Prince Paul was brought out for a second to say hello. Dres from Black Sheep and Ali Shaheed Muhammad from A Tribe Called Quest were watching from the side of the stage and were brought forward to dance for a minute during "Buddy". And then, the big, and maybe only real special guest moment came during a cover of Run DMC's "Rock Box" which was completed with DMC himself on stage as part of the group. They covered Rakim too, but he wasn't there, maybe because he was downtown playing his own show at Highline Ballroom the same evening.

This Sunday (8/16) indie rock leaves the Williamsburg Waterfront for one week (Central Park Summerstage stole it for the day), and another big (mostly) hip hop show happens in NYC, courtesy of JellyNYC, and it's free (and/or $50). The Sunday Pool Party lineup includes Gravy Train!!!, DD/MM/YYYY, Kenan Bell (who also opened for De La Soul on Thursday), a DJ set by Prince Paul (Plug Four), and a headlining set by DEL the Funky Homosapien.

We have a full set of pictures coming from De La Soul (more tour dates HERE), and we'll have some from Sunday too. In the meantime, here's a few videos from the show...

Continue reading "De La Soul (& DMC) played Nokia, Prince Paul DJing Pool Party Sunday (w/ Del da Funky Homosapien, Kenan Bell, others) "

* The Rub is at Southpaw
* Prince Paul is DJing the Delancey
* Joan as Policewoman is playing the Stone
* Chuck Berry is playing B.B. King Blues Club and Grill

AND everything else. What are you doing?

by Black Bubblegum

DOWNLOAD: People Under The Stairs - The Swan Fever (MP3)

PUTS

LA's crate-digging elite, People Under The Stairs, have their new record (and shout to the old school) Fun DMC coming around the corner on Sept 30th via Gold Dust. The beat kings are streaming four tracks and giving away one ("Anotha (BBQ)") at their FUN DMC site, but they also dropped one of those streamable joints, "The Swan Fever", for download above. Imagine early Jurassic Five or Rakaa Iriscience of Dilated Peoples rhyming over a beat reminiscent of Camp Lo's mid-nineties classic, "Luchini" and you get an idea of the party vibe on "The Swan Fever".... ear to ear smiles.

The crew recently finished a few dates on east coast and are set to play Denver, CO on 9/19, then work back to their native turf (Cali) by early October, and then back out to NYC for a show at the Knitting Factory on Oct 25th (part of CMJ) with the ORIGINAL hip hop band (sorry, ?uestlove and The Roots), the reunited Stetsasonic:

Stetsasonic was an American hip hop group formed in 1981 in Brooklyn, New York. It is remembered as one of the first hip-hop crews to use a live band, and their positive, uplifting lyrics have made the group forerunners of alternative hip hop and jazz hip-hop...... Frukwan and Prince Paul were founding members of the Gravediggaz, while the latter also became a well-respected record producer, as did Daddy-O, who worked with Mary J. Blige, Positive K, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, among others. -[Wikipedia]

Prince Paul WILL also be in the (Knitting Factory) house with Stetsa, as well as support from Mike G. & Sammie B of the Jungle Brothers (no Afrika Baby Bam guys), Zimbabwe Legit, YZ (yes, Mr. "Thinking of a Master Plan"), as well as the mighty DJ Babu of the once untouchable Beat Junkies (all members are busy with their own respective projects now) and (speaking of Rakaa) current member of Dilated Peoples as well. The entire night will be hosted by the Original Gangster of hip hop Just Ice. Tickets are on sale

Full PUTS tour schedule and video interview/tour diary below...

Continue reading "People Under the Stairs - new album, 2008 tour dates including CMJ w/ STETSASONIC (with Prince Paul)"

Advanced tickets HERE. A video message from Devin the Dude below.....

Continue reading "a message from Devin the Dude, a new mixtape & a Brooklyn show with Prince Paul"

DOWNLOAD Copperpot - Art of Rap feat. Masta Ace & EdoG (MP3)
DOWNLOAD Baby Elephant - How Does The Brain Wave? ft David Byrne [Produced by Prince Paul] (MP3)

NEWS

• Prince Paul has a brand new project by the name of Baby Elephant. David Byrne appears on one of the tracks. Download above.
• Tickets go on sale Saturday for the September 21st AllHipHop.com Finale concert featuring Lupe Fiasco, Cassidy, Hurricane Cassidy, and Talib Kweli at Nokia Theatre in NYC. Talib just played Nokia Theatre, and he has a free NYC show coming up too. he also just put out a new album. Rolling Stone gave it three stars.
• Miss Info went to the Kanye West/Graduation preview party. Tom went as well. I didn't go, but you and I can hear it too - the album leaked. In related news, Kanye - along with the Smashing Pumpkins - is set to headline Miami’s Bang! Music Festival (Nov 10-11).
• Diddy has confirmed there will be an 'I Get Money' remix featuring 50 Cent, Diddy, Jay-Z & Kanye West.
• The RIAA has shut down DJ Premier's Live from the HQ podcast, while Ludacris gets renewed on XM. See Ludacris when he plays Radio City.
• FromDaBricks wrote a great deconstruction of Jeru Da Damaja
• Ja Rule & The Game are going to be collaborating.
• Time Magazine comments on Hip Hop's decline.
• Much more exciting: GZA & Killah Priest will do an album together. MF Doom & Pharoahe Monch are performing together. Hopefully the real Doom shows up though. Still excited for GZA performing Liquid Swords in Brooklyn.

Continue reading "Wes' Weekly Hip Hop News Roundup (August 31st, 2007)"