After watching many Snapchat and Instagram stories of his UK tour, I had very high expectation seeing all this euphoria in the arenas. During his two-hour set, Abel Tesfaye, a.k.a. The Weeknd, spoilt us with […]
Polo @ the Lending Room, 26/2/17
In support of their upcoming debut E.P. Alice, Polo took to the Lending Room on Sunday evening to bring to conclusion a four date mini tour that included Glasgow, Newcastle and London. Having stepped on […]
Preview: De La Soul @ O2 Academy, 28/2/17
The legendary hip hop trio De La Soul are coming to Leeds o2 Academy on the 28th February. This UK tour follows the release of Grammy nominated And The Anonymous Nobody, featuring collaborations with Damon […]
The Irish Invasion
British representation has always been an issue in hip hop. It’s a genre that, over the past thirty years, has become synonymous with the streets of urban America, whether it be the neighbourhoods of Brooklyn, […]
The Abstract Orchestra playing the music of J Dilla @ The Wardrobe, 4/2/17
The impact of J Dilla’s music can hardly be overstated. An idol to legions of bedroom hip-hop producers, many see his ability to cut obscure parts of obscure records over crunchy, offbeat drums to create […]
“Awaken, My Love!” by Childish Gambino
Childish Gambino recently changed his name on his social media pages to his given name, Donald Glover. A seemingly insignificant move, but it signals something wider; with the release of his fourth album, “Awaken, My […]
Preview: Samiyam @ Headrow House, 17/11/16
Sam Baker, the L.A. based artist also known as Samiyam, is renowned for his pioneering instrumental hip-hop beats, synths and samples. Going way back as one of the first artists to be produced by FlyLo’s […]
Making Black History
A few months after its release, Jessie Jones reflects on the impact of Frank Ocean’s ‘Blonde’. If you speak to any hip-hop fans about 2016, somebody, and something, will almost definitely be the first thing […]
Preview: São Paulo’s Criolo set to rock Belgrave Music Hall, 23rd April
Achieving an ever growing amount success and recognition in his native Brazil, Criolo brings his unique sound of adventurously infused hip-hop to the UK for the very first time. Born to migrants in the North […]
Farewell to the Five Foot Assassin – Phife Dawg Obituary
‘Yo! Microphone check, one two what is this? The five-foot assassin with the roughneck business.’ The immortal opening line of A Tribe Called Quest’s ‘Buggin’ Out’ from their seminal 1991 record The Low End Theory […]
Dance Exposé: Exposed
What happens when you put contemporary, commercial, ballet and break-dancers together in one society? Although the initial response might be “chaos”, Dance Exposé, an eclectic dance society that combines all forms of dance, has changed […]
In The Middle with Loyle Carner
While comparisons have been drawn between Loyle Carner’s mellow, sample-heavy hip-hop and that of American artists such as J Dilla and Slum Village, his warmth of tone and lyrical directness keeps his sound firmly rooted […]