We’ve covered many of Ninja Tunes’ Solid Steel Radio shows and podcasts over the years, because frankly the Ninja Tune team is peerless. Everything from their tribute to De La Soul’s legendary 3 Feet High and Rising to Herbaliser’s War Of The Worlds mixtape to their 25th anniversary Genesis of Coldcut recap, the team always puts out immaculately conceived and executed musical […]

As is the case almost every year, 2013 was loaded with amazing music put out by the most creative artists of our age. We posted mixtapes from some of the biggest names in hip-hop like Pusha T, Gucci Mane, Lil Wayne, J. Cole, Killer Mike x Big Boi, Jay-Z + 9th Wonder and then other tapes by […]

Sometimes shit just has weird timing. Yesterday we posted the amazing How High’s the Water Mama tribute mixtape of De La Soul’s 3 Feet High and Rising debut album, and the day before we posted Rebels Without A Pause: The Induction Celebration of Public Enemy into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame documentary. In […]

You remember last year when Solid-Steel Radio did a tribute to The Beastie Boys’ timeless Paul’s Boutique album? We posted the Caught In The Middle Of A 3-Way Mix by DJ Food, Cheeba and Moneyshot (with cover illustrated by the great Food One), and it ended up being one of our favorite mixtapes of the year […]

In collaboration with adidas, Jay-Z ‘s culture site Life + Times premiers a new mixtape created by hip-hop beat veteran DJ Neil Armstrong. Mixing for eclectic hip-hop legends like The Roots, De La Soul, Kanye West and even formerly the Jigga himself, the Adidas Global Ambassador carries a deep knowledge of musical history and impeccable turntable skills. With a musicologist’s touch, Armstrong has […]

The once great Slum Village return with The Dirty Slums mixtape, their first piece of original music since Village Manifesto in 2010. After losing the legendary Jay Dilla (aka Dilla, aka Jay Donuts, aka Jay Dee) to blood disease, and then later original member Baatin, the Detroit rap heroes return to the plate for another […]

UPDATE: Dan Black’s album ((un)) drops today, available from iTunes or Amazon for $8. Moreover, today he also released his video for “Symphonies” with Kid Cudi, so we’re re-posting his Q&A from a couple weeks back along with the new video… After years of languishing around in London cover bands, Dan Black dumped the slackers […]

Using kid’s television theme songs, games, nursery rhymes, playground chants and, yes, actual children’s choruses has been a staple in hip-hop for almost as long as the genre has existed. Whether it’s Method Man proclaiming he’s “rubber” and “whatever you say rubs off me sticks to you” on “Wu-Tang Clan Ain’t Nuthin to F**k Wit”, […]