8/28/17

1st Class Dro: Long Island Rap interviews Lisaan'dro

Who is Lisaan'dro? For a while, his rap resume was limited to an uncredited guest appearance on the outro of Roc Marciano's "Ridin Around" off his proper solo debut Marcberg, a memorable contribution but one so minor compared to the monumental impact of that album that a name may have never been attached to it had Roc not mentioned Lisaan'dro when asked about the song in an interview with Nah Right.

About a year after Marcberg, Lisaan'dro's name resurfaces with a solo track called "Foam Cups & Foamposites," on which, as one critic said, Lisaan'dro "pitches his voice higher and more nasally, and absolutely rips shit over a No ID instrumental." The rapper gave us a high-end Nike over a pair of huge breasts, three high-quality verses over a huge beat, and then...

Over the next five years, not a line was heard from Lisaan'dro, until in early 2017 he released "Something Greater," a song which definitely lived up to its name. Soon thereafter, he dropped four songs in about as many months, each every bit as exciting as, arguably even better than, the last. Why the disappearance and sudden resurgence? Where had Lisaan'dro been, and for that matter, where had this remarkable MC, who'd debuted on a bonafide classic, come from in the first place?

The answers to these questions and more in LongIslandRap.com's first long-form interview, below.

8/27/17

BP - "Stacking Ammo" ft. Frukwan & 9th Prince

There's a common misconception about the Wu, that the entire movement fell off when the quality of the nine generals' solo work started to wane a bit. That might be true if you're weighing the impact with Billboard charts and radio play, but to some ears, the mid-'00s were every bit as fertile a period for the Wu, predominantly on the strength of the combined output of Wu's Killa Bee offshoots. To those ears, albums like 9th Prince's Granddaddy Flow, from 2003, are seminal works of la Wu familia.

With BP having cut his teeth toward the tail end of this era, working with acts like Black Market Militia and Timbo King, as well as 9th, "Stacking Ammo," which features he and former Gravedigga Frukwan, is a perfect entry point for the leadup to Timeless Music, BP's upcoming album, which also features guest appearances from RZA, Killah Priest, Shyheim, and the late Sean P and Prodigy, among a host of others.

8/25/17

TrueFreedom - "Champpain" (prod. by Grandmilly)

ALLAN and Keef of TrueFreedom dropped off another video, this one for a song off VooDoo, their project with Grandmilly on the boards. Long Island Rap advises you drink responsibly.

8/15/17

Lisaan'dro - "For You and Yours"

Ask and ye shall receive. Interview in the works, coming soon.

8/14/17

time keeps on sLIppin'

Steve Miller, who Miles Davis famously called a "sorry ass cat" and "non-playing motherfucker," is also known for giving the world "Fly Like an Eagle," which is the sample source for Puff Daddy's "Watcha Gon' Do," featuring Rick Ross, and for EPMD's "You're a Customer." Interestingly, it was EPMD's Erick Sermon who in 2000 put out one of Ross's earliest recordings, the Def Squad song "Aint Shit to Discuss," which featured Ross rapping as Teflon Da Don. Also worth noting, "You're a Customer" wasn't the only "Fly Like an Eagle"-sampling song from 1987 by a Long Island-based hip-hop artist; Patchogue native Biz Markie's "Nobody Beats the Biz" also flipped the Miller tune that year. Which song was recorded first? Which was written first? Or is time actually even linear in the first place? Tik tak toot-toot-toot-tooroom.

8/6/17

Conway - "50 Shots" (prod. by X-Ray da Mindbenda) /
Mobb Deep - "Hoodlum" ft. Rakim (X-Ray Remix)

As a Griselda Gang co-founder and recent signee to Shady Records, Conway the Machine has one of the hottest brands in hip-hop right now, and it shows with the rate at which his physical releases go from "limited edition" to "sold out." Fifty or $100 for a CD or vinyl is far from unheard of this world. One piece of wax, which you can still get your hands on at an affordable price, is the 50 Shots 12" released by the UK's Heavy Crates label, featuring Conway over a beat by X-Ray da Mindbenda, with remixes by George Fields and Part Time aka Figure 42. X-Ray was kind enough to break us off with the stream, and as a (sadly) timely bonus I'm including a Mobb remix he dropped four years ago.

URBVN ARCHITECTS NYC - "I Got the Call" ft. Smerk

URBVN ARCHITECTS NYC, the breakout crew comprised of Josh Alias, Blaq Kush and Yung K, has released the first visuals from their debut project, Mutual Understandings. In "I Got the Call," scenes of cyberpunk sprawl eerily recall the architectural and overall aesthetic of the Nassau-Queens border vistas of Elmont, Floral Park and Bellerose, where the squad resides.

8/3/17

Public Enemy - Live on FM Tokyo 80.0 (March 17, 1989)

Here we have a live in-studio performance by Public Enemy, which aired on FM Tokyo 80.0 on March 17, 1989, one day before their concert at Club Citta in Kawasaki.

On a program called Tokyo Radical Mystery Night, Chuck and Flavor kick live renditions of "B Side Wins Again," "Cold Lampin' with Flavor," "Fight the Power," "Prophets of Rage," "Party for the Right to Fight," "Rebel Without a Pause" and "Bring the Noise," with some beat-boxing, crooning and break beats thrown in for good measure.

8/1/17

Theravada & Marlo DeMore - "Told My Girl Don't You Switch Up Like the Verizon Man"

About, I don't know, three or four years ago, I had the pleasure of not only meeting Marlo DeMore and Theravada but watching them perform together at the same Bellmore pool hall at which I spent a good chunk of my mid-20s. A couple weeks later, the place closed. Ever since then, I've been waiting for them put out songs together. Welcome as this is, the chemistry is almost frustrating, as it only furthers my impression these two might be sitting on an album's worth of the best material either of them has ever done.