Yo so ask anybody that pays close attention. They'll all say the same thing. The Tucson Hip Hop scene is Doooope! With a capital D. Artists - they got them. Shows - check. And since I've been following there's hardly ever a week, if ever, that some dope show isn't happening. Plus because it's a smaller scene, it's more connected and anybody that follows us knows we got mad respect for connected communities. As with any festival, I will be digging into the artists discographie

Eddie Wellz forces us to review a second video in as many weeks! This time around dude drops Nature and it's a banger. Like breathtakingly good as the Phoenix, AZ rapper nevers let's up on this simple beat with booming bass. And bars!! Was it really possible for Eddie Wellz to level up? Cause I feel like it's happening. He describes himself perfectly when he raps, "I'm where passion and intellect should intersect." In verse two the alliteration is insane and goes on for somet

Rubix ft. Jaca Zulu - More Than Meets the Eye Holy rap power ballad, Batman! I want to hear this track live and sing along, loud as hell, with that infectious chorus. Jaca Zulu rides this rock beat perfectly. It is summed up perfectly when he eases through the verse that goes: "Let me be the space that surrounds your burning beams I was in a colder place, but you keep me alive/Stay aware of your supply, everything ain't what it seems/Love's easy to disguise/More than meets th

This post should actually be titled [videos] because really Dan Louis and Doni have been hard at work promoting their new album, Vacant Memories, with multiple videos. First was the Garbage Bidness video with psychedelic filters showing the duo hanging out in a backyard. The most recent video was the Louis Interlude video, which features the rapper spitting a verse while hanging out with some cacti. The best video, in my opinion, is Yesterday's Goodbyes. Filmed in the same al

Everyone is saying it. When I listen to podcasts, talk to artists, and definitely when I pay attention to what people are talking about - 2017 is going to be a very good year for the Arizona Hip Hop scene. There's just too much talent out here to ignore. Plus, we got artists who have strong momentum. Futuristic, Mega Ran, RoQy TyRaid, and Injury Reserve, to name a few, all had huge years in one aspect or another. This hopefully will carry over into this 2017 and help spread t

To spoil the ending, Emmitt Dupreee is asked why he's been running. He casually states because he likes running. Dupree has been grinding since the end of 2016. And the conclusion is like a metaphor for Dupree's grind as a rapper. Change the question, and the answer would surely be cause I like rapping. On Marathon, it's dope to hear Emmitt Dupree go all ill eat a rappers lunch. More often than not, he's a nice dude rapping. But here he gots lines like "I'm gonna hit em with

Rapper. Producer. Engineer. Director. DJ. These are the roles we've seen Tok Sik. On YDGTS, now add crooner. Using Autotune, Tok Sik spits melodic verses about letting go of someone he loves. It's super dope when he spits, "we are both in our prime, let's not ignore that" as rationale for why they should split. The video is again directed by Tok Sik and shouts out to the performance of the female. She really sells the finale. Check it out: Tok Sik - YDGTS

This was a special one. Mega Ran, arguably one of the most successful rappers to come out of Arizona, joined us and yo.....it was a fun conversation! He has toured worldwide, and continues to. His last album, RNDM, was considered for a Grammy and his Wikipedia page has seven different sections!! en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raheem_Jarbo First, let me tell you that he spits a dope unreleased, exclusive verse!!! ***Exclusive unreleased verse @ 1:45:26*** And he knows a little someth

The Legal Trap is another part of Arizona's dope hip hop ecosystem. Host Big Al interviews rappers, producers, graphic artists, among others to flesh out why they do what they do. It's always an informative show. It's always dope at the end of the podcast when he asks his guests whether they make art for the legacy or the money. The Tomahawks are a step-brother production duo of AJ and Jalen. Both college students, the duo discuss how they got started with FL Studio and ultim

Eddie Wellz spits energetic, passionate raps on real deep topics. On display in this video for the track off Amina Soul is that trademark energy and passion. The backdrop for this video: alleys, neighborhoods, parking lots, back yards, front yards, and shopping centers all devoid of humanity except for Wellz spitting raps about the pain and struggle of living in America. The affliction detailed in Wellz verses, however, isn't mentioned as a complaint but as lessons in life me