Helio-Tropes
sometimes we talk about music
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SAD PRT
04/14/2025
SAD PRT
On this week’s episode our guest is the founder of SAD PRT, a platform based on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube that showcases emerging underground artists. We talk about how the platform highlights artists and storylines that often don’t appear in traditional media, and the ways in which they’ve successfully built a community of passionate followers around niche music. We get into the rise of 2Hollis and his polarizing major label debut album star, the intentions behind how albums are crafted, and how clips of crowd reactions at live shows have become a critical marketing tool in breaking new artists. We also talk about buzzing UK rapper Fakemink, the sonic world he’s built, the art of actually writing down raps, and how he’s become a mystical figure to fans, with a dedicated following that continues to grow worldwide. Genre-bending artist Crucify April is also is discussed and we explore the influences and sounds that shape his music, from video game samples to Crystal Castles. And of course, we dive into the current SAD PRT Top 5, featuring tracks from Ghost Mountain, Feng, LUCKI, Eric Aharzoth, and Stiffy & PILF (Zell, Turrobaby, Agus). Banger.
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Kieran Press-Reyonlds
03/31/2025
Kieran Press-Reyonlds
Kieran Press-Reynolds is a writer with a weekly column at Pitchfork called "Rabbit Holed," exploring songs and scenes at the intersection of music and digital culture. He has written for publications such as The New York Times, Business Insider, No Bells, and more. This episode of HT is a journey into the sprawling world of ASMR, as documented in one of Kieran's latest stories on the topic. Yash admits he is an ASMR truther, while Kieran expands on the many layers and complexities of the styles he has encountered in his everyday life—and those thriving beneath the surface. We also discuss how music relates to ASMR and the bright future of this potential billion-dollar industry. Kieran shares his Top 5 picks, including Crucify April, Kurtains, Playboi Carti, Smerz, and EQ (Estratosfera, Qiri).
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Andrew Matson of Finals
03/18/2025
Andrew Matson of Finals
Andrew Matson is the co-founder of Finals, a music blog that is rumored to be among the best. He joins us to talk about J Critch and long-time producer cohort Laron's expansive collaborative album titled Plus Ultra and the evolution of both their sound and chemistry, which has history that pre-dates college and record deals. We go deep into contemporary New York rap and how pre-drill artists have had a hard time staying relevant as rap shapeshifts in the city. We also get into Fish Narc's excellent new album Frog Song and how his GothBoiClique roots with Lil Peep don't define him but inform a not-so-completely-new, authentic sound. We also talk about Andrew's website Finals as a publication that is irreverent to the status quo, how blogs are back, and Andrew shares his Top 5 songs by Oklou, 1010benja, Steph X, Ksuuvi, RealYungPhil, and more. Lotta gems.
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Will Schube of The Hobbyist
02/25/2025
Will Schube of The Hobbyist
Will Schube is The Hobbyist—a writer and music critic based in New York with bylines in GQ, FLOOD, Pitchfork, Passion of the Weiss, and many more. He joins us from Austin following the launch of his aptly titled newsletter, The Hobbyist, to talk about the best hobby we both indulge in: Golf—with a capital G. We discuss how the culture has co-opted golf in the fashion space while somehow leaving music out of the equation. We also dive into Life Is Beautiful—the new album from Larry June, The Alchemist, and 2 Chainz—and how 2 Chainz steals the show by design. We explore the "playlistification" of our lives in relation to Apple Music's newly launched radio show and playlist called… wait for it… Chill. The show is hosted by none other than the legendary Brian Eno and Apple Music’s resident therapist, Zane Lowe. Will shares insights from his conversations with both hosts about using the show as a means to find peace in the chaos of our lives. We also attempt to get to the bottom of the eternal debate: art vs. commerce under the guise of wellness. Will shares his Top 5, featuring music from Venturing, Skrilla, Eiko Ishibashi, Ghais Guevara, and EBK Jaybo.
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Steffanee Wang
02/10/2025
Steffanee Wang
Steffanee Wang joins us today to talk about 67th GRAMMY Awards that aired earlier this month and more. She is a New York City-based professional editor, writer, and reporter who currently is an associate editor at The FADER. She previously served as the music editor at NYLON, has written for Teen Vogue, The FACE, Billboard, NPR Music, and other notable publications. We talk about the best looks at the GRAMMY's, Kanye and Bianca's shenanigans on the carpet, Rap Album of The Year nominees, Chappell Roan's controversial speech, world-building via performances, YouTube's algorithm vs Spotify's, and Steffanee's Top 5 songs of the moment including heat from Theodora, YHWH Nailgun, Yves and more.
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Jane Marie
01/28/2025
Jane Marie
This is the first podcast of 2025 and we're calling it Monetizing Hope with Jane Marie, an award-winning podcaster, podcast producer, writer, and author of Selling The Dream: The Billion Dollar Industry Bankrupting Americans. Jane joins us from her home in LA, just after the devastating wildfires had somewhat subsided. This episode was recorded a few weeks prior to its release. Jane shares stories from her formative years in Michigan where she grew up, including her experiences seeing Nirvana live at The Blind Pig, watching LL Cool J hump women uncontrollably on stage, Insane Clown Posse, and her close encounter with a vertically challenged Eminem. We also get into her book, which pulls back the curtain on MLMs (multi-level marketing companies) and the origins of pyramid schemes. We dive into the companies that continue to thrive by preying on people looking to make an extra buck, using mind control tactics, empty promises of future wealth, and celebrity and political endorsements to bolster their deceptive pitches. Press play.
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Gary Suarez of CABBAGES
12/26/2024
Gary Suarez of CABBAGES
Gary Suarez is a writer and podcaster who founded CABBAGES, a media outlet and podcast dedicated to covering independent artists. A Queens, New York native, Gary has contributed to esteemed publications such as The Quietus, Forbes, Rolling Stone, The New Yorker, The New York Times, NPR, and more. In this special two-hour year-end finale, Gary joins us to share his favorite albums of 2024—including standout projects from Cavalier, Roc Marciano, Vayda, and Your Old Droog—and reflect on the journey of launching his own publication and podcast via a newsletter during the pandemic, back when having a Substack wasn’t as common for journalists as having a cellphone. We explore his experiences breaking into music writing in the days when advance copies arrived by USPS, his perspective on covering independent artists, the use of samples in Jersey club and drill music, the “rap trap” that is pain music, and his Top 5 songs of the moment. Come for the year-end album breakdown, and stay for the tangents on cringe vulnerability in hip-hop and the legacy of Jay-Z and more.
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Aurielle Sayeh
12/16/2024
Aurielle Sayeh
Aurielle Sayeh is a mom, creative director, brand consultant, strategist, creator, and DJ based in Los Angeles. A true multi-hyphenate, she shares how she got her start in culture through modeling and DJing in Paris and Amsterdam back in 2013. As an Atlanta native who hustled her way through the global zeitgeist, Aurielle reflects on her journey of tapping into different creative scenes and building relationships and collaborating with brands like Adidas and VFILES. To be in the club—or not to be in the club—north of 30: that is the question. We also dive into topics like patriotism, how it’s kind of like an ex, as well as the differences in creativity between LA and NY. Aurielle talks about her work in the wellness space, while Yash shares his own self-care regimen and more in this soothing episode—arguably the closest thing to a sound bath we’ve ever had.
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Yak Ballz on 'YOUNG YASHAR'
11/18/2024
Yak Ballz on 'YOUNG YASHAR'
Yash breaks down the newly released Yak Ballz EP titled 'YOUNG YASHAR' produced by longtime collaborator Mondee. This marks the first official Yak Ballz music in over a decade. Listen to 'YOUNG YASHAR' Follow Helio-Tropes - Follow Yash - Follow Yak Ballz -
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Cambrian "Bam" Strong
10/29/2024
Cambrian "Bam" Strong
Cambrian Strong can't be boxed in. The Memphis, TN native and co-CEO of Drumatize Music Group with Tay Keith, whom he also manages, comes on the show to talk about how he figured out being of service in the music industry is the way he would build his brand. He tells us how being an athlete in high school gave him his work ethic and despite having a family who all pursued music as a career, he never saw being an artist as a viable path for himself. Instead he explains that his pursuit of advertising, graphic design, and media lead him to where he is today. He tells about Memphis' love for Gucci Mane and how his relationship with Tay Keith developed. We talk about how they took it from the local scene in the city to the masses with BlocBoy JB's "Look Alive" in just one year as a team and then to the moon. He also gets into how they were early on Sexyy Red which blossomed into a partnership with her team. Tap in for all of the above and much more game on this banger.
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Joseph Pepin of Pepin.Works
10/14/2024
Joseph Pepin of Pepin.Works
Joseph Pepin is a music manager extraordinaire and A&R consultant from New Jersey. He joins us from Austin, Texas where he is based to talk all things music industry related; from his background as a kid enamored by bands and shows happening in Asbury Park to street teaming and managing bands which lead to his days as a plucky A&R at Island Def Jam Mercury. We talk about the differences between being a music manager and an A&R person and how he helps Primary Wave's catalogue music get re-imagined by contemporary artists. He tells us about his management clients including Kumo99 and Goldford, how Johan Lenox adds the sauce to huge songs and albums, and the not so secret weapons that are producers Donny Bravo and Charlie Heat. We talk about him co-founding 'Nowhere Coffee Club' coffee company, the ritual that involves making French Press, and Yash's fastidiousness about barista blend almond milk consistency. Capping off the episode is Joe's Top 5 featuring songs from Quadeca, Jamie XX, Maruja and more.
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Yash Mega Mix
09/23/2024
Yash Mega Mix
This week Yash returns with a solo pod mega mix featuring 10 songs to cruise to in your car or commute. Let it rock.
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Alaska & Steel Tipped Dove
09/03/2024
Alaska & Steel Tipped Dove
This episode features Yash’s friend, rapper and co-host of 'Call Out Culture' podcast Alaska and producer Steel Tipped Dove. Their new album titled ‘Reverberations of a Dead Man’s Ego’ is out now on Fused Arrow Records. We talk about the relationship between bandcamp and selling merch hand to hand, the divide between what is considered real hip hop vs contemporary rap, Stan Van Gundy’s ball handling, and getting better at rap with age. We go in on day jobs influencing art, how spreadsheets have revolutionized Doves’ process, the album concept’s dark humor, developing a figurative mid-range rap style like Jordan, and that an aging Fat Joe continues to cap in his rap. We wax poetic about the 90's underground rap scene at the Nuyorican Poets cafe in NYC and how certain songs on the album represent the artists and spirit of that time. Dove tells us where he gets his samples from and Alaska lists a few new rappers and pop songs he can rock with and much more. This one is for the heads. All praises due.
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Drew Millard
08/19/2024
Drew Millard
Drew Millard is a writer, editor, podcaster (co-host of Nersey) and author of a very good book called 'How Golf Can Save Your Life.' On this episode we delve into his time at VICE's music website 'Noisey' and an unprecedented time of stunt blogging in the blog era. We also get into Drew's new blog called 'Media Events' and his recently posted story that takes a deep dive on The Black Eyed Peas in a way that you or Yash (or anyone) has never seen before. Yash also shares his experience with BIP when they attempted to take it back to the essence on one of their albums and dropped a forgettable dud. We also talk about Drew's book, the game of golf and how it can change your life for better or worse; but mostly for the better after it gets worse. Drew flips the script and questions Yash about his time as a rapper in New York. We also discuss the new Denzel Curry album being indebted to Three 6 Mafia and conclude the show with Drew's Top 5 songs of the moment including highlights from Skrilla, Cavalier, Sematary and more. banger.
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Kyle Ng of Braindead
08/12/2024
Kyle Ng of Braindead
Back to our regularly scheduled program. This week we are joined by none other than Kyle Ng, vibe curator, co-founder and creative director of the cutting edge, trippy, music forward, and multi-product clothing brand Braindead. He tells us about his trip to Paris for the Olympics with Oakley and goes on to break down the culture-first ethos of the brand. His passion for indie rock, hardcore and punk is still one of the driving forces behind everything that happens at Braindead and there are no plans to deviate from his personal taste any time soon. From sponsoring Sound and Fury Festival in Los Angeles, to collaborations with Dickies, Magic The Gathering and musicians like Toro Y Moi, Morbid Angel and Devo, Braindead is subverting the subculture. Yash tells him how he discovered the brand after stumbling into an NTS Radio x Braindead event one night out drinking and Kyle breaks down 7 songs he's rocking to right now including bangers from Faye Webster, Big Boy, Clairo, Julia Holter, Thom Yorke and more.
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Sissòn
07/15/2024
Sissòn
This week Sissòn joins us to talk about some of the influences that shaped his identity and the things that inspire him most. Hailing from Arizona and now based in Los Angeles, Sissòn is a multi-disciplinary artist whose paintings and works have graced galleries and museums worldwide over the past decade. In our conversation, he discusses the intrinsic relationship between art and music in his world, particularly with how he depicts the Black experience. He tells us about Arizona being more gangster than people are aware of, and his personal transition from a life of crime to fine art. From portraying Sociopolitical subjects to capturing the spirit of 4PF on canvas, his range knows no bounds. We talk about how lack of representation in his youth was a driving force in the development of his subject matter, and the overlooked importance of Lil Baby personifying the American dream. He explains how French composer Eric Satie along with Philip Glass provide the soundtracks to concentration, and describes Jay-Z's significance in his life and work. He also breaks down how 'fake humble' is the least genuine form of humility and a lesson he may have learned from Mk.Gee. instagram.com/helio__tropes instagram.com/roodnewyork
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Suzy Exposito
07/03/2024
Suzy Exposito
Fresh off the scorching BET Awards red carpet Yash is back with special guest Suzy Exposito AKA Brujacore. Suzy is a New Jersey born, Miami raised, and LA based freelance writer and editor who has bylines Rolling Stone, LA Times, Vogue, Elle, NPR, Remezcla, Revolver and more. We get right down to business about all girls band camp, how Goth is no longer exclusive to Goths and abuelas with crazy visions. We get into Charli XCX's return to form on 'BRAT,' her PC music past, and the time it takes for popstars to bake. We also talk about Coi Leray twerking herself out of her XXL Freestyle and Lana being a Larp Goddess. Of course we get into At The Drive In's impact and the lack of a contemporary post-hardcore wave — but we remain hopeful. Spotify raised its prices again? the rich get richer, the artists don't, and Suzy explains why she switched sides. We dig in on Nourished By Time, Eyedress, Lil Yachty and James Blake plus Suzy shares her Top 5 songs of the moment including entries by Girl Ultra, Omar Apollo, Nia Archives, Angelíca Garcia, and Juggler on this holiday week episode. instagram.com/helio__tropes instagram.com/roodnewyork
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Yash
06/25/2024
Yash
Smack in the middle of a heatwave Yash returns from a trip to New York with even more flames. We talk about a forthcoming Clipse reunion album and the prospect of a Re-up Gang come back, opting out of Kendrick's 'The Pop Out' show, 2Hollis' excellent 'boy' album, Wu Tang's long lost album that has now somehow been converted to an $1 NFT, and the the factors at play when an artist/band cancels an arena tour due to low ticket sales. We talk about major labels WMG, UMG and SONY taking legal action against artificial intelligence companies Suno and Udio for alleged copywright infringement by using licensed music as source material to train their models. As AI start ups continue to hatch their insidious plans with big funding in attempts to usurp real human creativitiy, we at Helio-Tropes are welcoming the AI revolution with open arms and pockets. Yash also lets his Top 5 songs ring off with entries from Chicken P, MCVERTT, Lucki, NXCRE & The Villains, Joanne Robertson, and Lelo.
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Matthew Ritchie
06/10/2024
Matthew Ritchie
Matthew Ritchie is a music, culture and sports writer who is also a contributor at Pitchfork and has written stories for GQ, Chicago Reader, Rolling Stone, Passion of The Weiss, and others. In this episode we try our damndest to focus on one body of work and cannonball directly into Mach-Hommy's #RICHAXXHATIAN album which Matthew reviewed for Pitchfork. We talk about how an 8.0 is the "peoples champion" score even if it's not given the Best New Music championship belt. We break down why the title track is the most streamed song on the album and how streams aren't indicative of the qualitative factors that must be considered when it comes to Mach Hommie lore. Could this album have come out on the now defunct, storied Rawkus Records label? Definitely. are we talking Grammy album? possibly. Is the bar low in the 'real hip-hop alert' space? probably. We discuss. We also break down how Mach enlists the top dogs in this lane to deliver guest verses including features from Roc Marciano, Black Thought, Your Old Droog, The God Fahim and more. We tap into the urgency and revolutionary nature of the music fueled by pointed lyrics on the current social and political turmoil in Haiti. We conclude that it's totally fine to like what hasn't aged well like the 1989 cult classic Wrestling movie No Holds Barred. And before it's too late Matt gives us his top 5 songs of the moment, which turn out to be in the name of love (for the most part) with choice cuts from Ghostface, Crime Mob, Michael Urbaniak, and more.
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Vivian Medithi
06/03/2024
Vivian Medithi
Vivian Medithi is resident rap corrrespondent at The FADER who has bylines at Pitchfork, NoBells, HipHopDX, Los Angeles Review of Books and more. We talk about Milwaukee rapper Myaap whose excellent song "MLK" and new project produced by Nedarb of Gothboy Click fame is a hidden gem (for now). We break down the details of Atlanta rapper Slimesito and Surf Gang honcho/producer Evil Giane's collab tape titled 'Evil Slime.' Is Lazer Dim 700 commercially viable? Does he need to be? We have the answers. The Atlanta phenomenon is taking the internet by storm and we go in on what makes him so captivating to his rapidly growing, rabid audience like self-deprecating bars, and recording songs on his phone via the Bandlab audio app. We debut a new segment called 'Drafts' and get into Vivian's Top 5 songs of the moment including heat from Tomu DJ, ZAYALLCAPS, Baby Osama and more. Listen and maybe learn.
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Jayson Buford
05/20/2024
Jayson Buford
Jayson Buford is a journalist from Harlem, NY covering culture, music, and sports who has written for publications like Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, Vanity Fair, Stereogum, and more. He joins us today to talk about our beloved Knicks and all things endemic to the greatest city in the world. Our expert analysis leads us to the conclusion that Donté DiVincenzo could have easily been Jackie Junior's mans in The Sopranos or sold ecstasy in real life. We discuss a story he wrote on Cap USA, a black-owned storefront that sells a plethora of hat styles including fitted hats and streetwear in the heart of Harlem — which also serves as a longstanding cultural hub despite a myriad of uncontrollable challenges negatively impacting family-owned businesses. We talk about Ghostface's new album, Chief Keef's excellent 'Almighty SO 2' album, and a buzzing Atlanta rapper with a seemingly encrypted name, 2Sdxrt3all (2S-Dirtball). Jayson also lists his New York restaurant recommendations including where he would split a chicken with anybody. He breaks down Trump's unintentional low-brow, chaotic sense of humor and graces us with his Top 5 songs at the moment, including highlights from Detroit's Baby Money and Future. Go New York Go New York Go.
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Franz De Los Reyes
05/13/2024
Franz De Los Reyes
Franz De Los Reyes is a music executive and Senior Vice President of Marketing at SALXCO (The Weeknd, Nav, Metro Boomin and more) who has previously held positions at three major labels including Def Jam, Epic and Warner Records. He shares how he broke into the music industry by being the squeeky wheel and building lasting relationships along with some digital savvy that major labels were farming in the blog era. He stayed down to come up and now lives in Los Angeles attempting to perfect his golf swing at the range at the Wilson Harding Golf Club in Griffith Park where I coincidentally ran into him this morning as he was taking his golf lesson before mine —straight out of an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm. We talk shop about the marketing campaign for Metro and Future's 'We Don't Trust You Album' (which he worked on) and how the ripple effect of the #1 single "Like That" led to a beef between two raging, aging rappers that we pray is over by now. We dissect how a good rap diss track functions differently than a great song, and how the latter may not matter if one of them becomes a hit i.e. Kendrick's "Not Like Us." We talk about comedian King Willionius' AI song "BBL Drizzy," the original sample source for Metro Boomin's viral diss-beat with the same title, and corporate America's cringey effort to get in on the action. All of the above and more on this one.
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Alphonse Pierre
04/28/2024
Alphonse Pierre
Alphonse Pierre is a music critic and journalist at Pitchfork. He joins us from home base in Canarsie, Brooklyn where an ice cream truck soundtracks our conversation about the Knicks and the 76ers round 1 playoff bloodbath. We talk about Ice Spice's timely verse on Cash Cobaine's "Fisherr" remix and how an independently released song can get ratcheted up with the help of a huge feature and some major label muscle. We talk about Tupac's estate issuing a cease and desist to Drake (when it's convenient) for the AI powered "Taylormade Freestyle," and just how much Future is too much sauce across multiple albums. He breaks down his review of rapper Xaviersobased's latest mixtape which received the coveted "Best New Music" status at Pitchfork, and why a healthy dose of outside influences on the internet coupled with real life uptown swagger make for a thrilling ride. We also get into the wild and emerging Milwaukee rap scene comprising unhinged twerk, slap, and low-end subgenres. All of which are underscored by the song of the moment, JP's "Bad Bitty," to go along with Alphonse's experience in the Wisconsin city's underbelly with several rappers including Munch Lauren and 414bigfrank. Of course we had to shake him down for his Top 5 songs right now (all of which came by way of SoundCloud links) as we proceed to bring you what you didn't know you needed on this special episode.
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Yash
04/15/2024
Yash
Fresh off of Coachella weekend and his day of birth Yash is back with a solo pod talking about the rare sites that the annual festival has to offer with takes on performances by Lana Del Rey, Peso Pluma, Lil Uzi Vert, Justice's return and more. He also gets into the lame rap "beef(s)" of the moment and the dominoe effect Kendrick's "Like That" verse on Metro and Future's 'We Don't Trust You' album has had on the industry; including J. Cole's boring apology, Drakes halfway decent clap back and Rick Ross's hilarious and very good "Champagne Moments." He also gets into why Dune 2 was simultaneously cool and annoying along with sharing some new heat by Roc Marciano, MIKE & Tony Seltzer, and Big Moochie Grape.
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Sowmya Krishnamurthy
04/01/2024
Sowmya Krishnamurthy
Sowmya Krishnamurthy is an accomplished journalist based in New York, originally from Michigan. She is the author of ‘Fashion Killa: How Hip Hop Revolutionized High Fashion,’ available now from Simon and Schuster / Gallery Books. Her work has been featured in Rolling Stone, XXL, Essence, Complex, Highsnobiety, Playboy, The Village Voice, and Time. We dive into the intersection of fashion and hip-hop and the impact they have had on each other, starting in New York City over the past 50 years. She breaks down the importance of Harlem’s own Dapper Dan, luxury laws, how the hustlers were the first street fashionistas/micro-influencers, what 'Ghetto Fabulous' meant, and rap's relationship to luxury. We explore the questionable but undeniable sartorial impact of Jay Z along with Yash's Rocawear velour jumpsuit era...all the way to rappers wearing dresses, the Lo-Life’s, Polo, Tommy Hilfiger’s fall from grace, Karl Lagerfeld, and Lil Kim’s 'Hardcore' provocative fashion influence. We take a closer look at Tupac's Versace drip, the irony of Camron's pink fur, and Biggie's lowkey hypebeast roots as one of the first rappers to be photographed wearing BAPE. All of the above and more on this special episode.
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Claire Bogle
03/18/2024
Claire Bogle
Claire Bogle is a music manager, entrepreneur, and hypnotherapist from New Mexico with exquisite taste. She is the co-founder of Scoremore Productions which is responsible for throwing the first-ever tours and shows for artists like Kendrick Lamar, Mac Miller, J. Cole, Wiz Khalifa, and more. We talk about her rise to success behind the scenes driven by pure passion; including volunteering to drive her beat-up Lincoln and used 5 Series for artist tours in the early days of the blog era. She elaborates on how she and her partner Sascha Stone took the legendary Illmore party at SXSW from a poppin' house jam to one of the most lit events at the festival where peak-Lil Wayne and the entire Young Money would eventually perform for free. She breaks down the evolution from promoter to a music manager role and her client roster as co-founder of Art Dept. (her artist management company), and drops many more gems on the subjects of finance and why she rides so hard for mental health. She lays down exactly what every artist needs to do with their money immediately upon signing a record deal and what kind of bust-down diamonds are actually an investment. She also brings her Top 5 songs of the moment to the table from artists like Pale J, Holy Other, and Dear Cupid, and describes why the energy in the music is right and exact.
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Peter A. Berry
03/11/2024
Peter A. Berry
Back at it with Peter A. Berry, writer and editor at large who has bylines in XXL, COMPLEX, Pitchfork, Okayplayer and more. We talk about how we connected via my reaction to an Uncle Murda video clip that Peter put a wild spin on and how it lead to this unique episode diving into one album that has made a significant impact this year already which is Schoolboy Q's 'Blue Lips.' We expand on Peter's review of 'Blue Lips' for Stereogum and the singular themes that show up on the project (that typically don't show up on rap albums). We break down what makes it special on several levels; whether or not the lack of an anthemic single matters, and Peter flexes his basketball-stat expertise to make a case for how Q is the rapgame Jimmy Buckets. We also get into how Q is a weirdo in the best way possible and why an album of this caliber is a biproduct of time in the game without becoming a crotchety old man.
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Chris Atlas
02/26/2024
Chris Atlas
Chris Atlas is more than meets the eye. An extra popped episode with the accomplished music executive and Bronx-native who tells us about his earliest hip-hop memories running around NYC including a life-changing performance from Public Enemy at a small club in the meatpacking district. We dive into his first opportunity in the music industry as an intern at the legendary Tommy Boy Records where he cut his teeth in College Radio promotion before moving into A&R. He tells us about his time at the label promoting tracks at radio from seminal artists like House of Pain, De La Soul, Naughty By Nature, signing Tony Touch and his involvement in working with Penalty Recordings artists like Capone N Noreaga under the same umbrella. We chop about his time at Cornerstone Agency, Buzzfeed's recent sale of COMPLEX to NTWRK and how his near decade-long tenure at Def Jam was basically graduating with honors from the school of hard knocks. From SVP to EVP of Marketing at Def Jam, he waxes poetic on career-defining album roll-outs and marketing campaigns from the biggest boss Rick Ross and a young Kanye. And even gives us the scoop on the reference for an iconic Earl Sweatshirt moment during his time as EVP of Urban Marketing at Warner Records. As if his resume isn't deep enough, he tells us how he diversified his bonds outside of the music game by becoming a partner in a lifestyle boutique in NJ selling apparel and sneakers called Hush Life. And was generous enough to share his keys to maintaining a healthy work-life balance. Now if he only shared the keys to the G-Wagon...
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CAL-A of Free Bread Intl.
02/20/2024
CAL-A of Free Bread Intl.
CAL-A is a Grammy Award-winning producer, artist manager, and DJ from the Bay Area who owns and operates Free Bread Intl., a company helping brands and businesses create experiences to benefit their communities and the kids in them. He breaks down his contribution to Killer Mike's album 'Michael' which received three Grammy's including Rap Album of The Year. We get into South by Southwest's fall from grace and its potential resurgence, his recent trip to the Phillipines with P-Lo, his penchant for vacation flexing, and the 2022 documentary 'We Were Hyphy.' He explains the impact the Bay Area's countercultural mentality had on rap in the city (and the country), and how copping both the G-Unit sneakers and the S. Carters exemplify his unwaivering loyalty to the game. We also talk about Free Bread's recent collab with Rodericks Barbecue in Oakland and his latest top 5 songs of the moment including tracks by SPIRITSAVER, Zach Frenes, Bast, Wyatt Woodley and Swank Mami.
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Yash
02/12/2024
Yash
Yash is back with another solo episode in the thick of Super Bowl Weekend, the Waste Management Phoenix Open and Kanye's 'VULTURES 1' album release. He unveils how Usher is just another guy in the bathroom, breaks down uncleared samples and estate-beefs elicited by Ye's album combined with the intricacies behind its second-rate distribution and problematic rollout. He also get's into A$AP Rocky's Puma pump fake, Eric Sermon eating well off Metro Boomin and Abel's royalty checks, plus Schoolboy Q's anticipated return. Party in the front, Top 5 songs in the back.
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