Son of Bazerk, Leaders of the New School, JVC Force members at Long Island Music Hall of Fame, June 11

Hip-Hop, now 50 years old, will be partying like a 50-year-old Long Islander this weekend. Which is to say partying hard at 2 p.m. on a Sunday. There will be performances by Son of Bazerk,  Bomb Squad/Public Enemy DJ Johnny Juice, DJ Jazzy Jay, and Fat Boy MC Kool-Rock Ski. There will be a panel discussion featuring JVC Force MC AJ Rok, Leaders of the New School members Dinco D and Milo In De Dance, and Video Music Box's Ralph McDaniels. The event is "free with admission" to the Long Island Music Hall of Fame at 97 Main Street in Stony Brook: $15 for students with ID, $17 for veterans and seniors, and $19.50 for everyone else. Additional details here. See you there?

Nyah'Zo - Flourish

According to a recent study, young and old people's perceptions of time flipped during COVID lockdown, with young people feeling time flying, and olds imagining it slowed to a crawl. Normally, children, young adults, and even some middle-aged folks tend to think time drags while seniors by and large see time speeding by in front of their eyes. I have a theory about this. Maybe humans have evolved to experience time moving slowly for the sake of productivity. We perceive a lag so that all of us may get more done in the relatively little time we have on this planet. Time and space being so closely related, this might help explain how we're able to walk just a few years after we're born. For the sake of energy efficiency, the same genetic knowledge that lets us quickly adapt to our spatial environment also renders us relatively ignorant of our inherent temporal limitations. Life on Earth constantly multitasks so that it might one day flourish.

Nyah Zo's Flourish EP dropped about 10 months ago. She'll be performing at Lithurgy Brewing Co. in Farmingdale on March 31. Use promo code NYAH with your ticket purchase to support her.

Chow Lee & Friends

The shiny suit era peeked some 25 years ago. Conceivably then, today former-would-be-shiny-suit rapper grands trade remember-back-in-the-days over sips of Cristal. Meanwhile, drill. Chow Lee and Cash Cobain's 2 Slizzy 2 Sexy landed an honorable mention in The New York Times' Best Albums of 2022. Lee and friends have a show coming up at Baby's All Right March 22 and a sticky new label compilation called Welcome To The Dollhouse out now. Being an 80-year-old man (see last post), I came up on Chow Lee via PDF-form EPK. More to come from that in the weeks and months ahead.

Kai Fortyfive Live in Brooklyn Friday, July 9

Kai Fortyfive, the rapper/producer behind Long Island Rap Records' latest release, performs live at The Living Gallery in Brooklyn (1094 Broadway) Friday, July 9. Also in the house will be Kai's Lowcaste LXRD$ ensemble. Tickets are $8 in advance via Eventbrite or $12 at the door. Merch will be sold at the show, including the newly released SLUGSMOKE & MIRRORS cassettes. Speaking of which, these arrived from the plant looking and sounding lovely. Check them out and order yours via the Long Island Rap Records Store or Long Island Rap Bandcamp.

"I had to give the audience more than just words. I had to give them an experience."

The title for today's post comes from Rakim's memoir/writing guide, Sweat the Technique, specifically the chapter "From High School to Rap Star," in which Rakim talks about going on tour for the first time. We'll continue to discuss the book later this week, but in the meantime check out these concert flyers, which span nearly two decades, from what must be one of Rakim's earliest NYC shows in 1986 all the way up to an ill-fated 2004 date. While you browse, here are some "thoughts to guide."

• Between the first and second flyer above, Eric B. & Rakim's debut album, Paid In Full, dropped on July 7, 1987. What the posters won't show you is that Rakim would've still been in high school when he and Eric B. set off on the Def Jam Tour. There's a great passage in the book where Rakim talks about getting the blessing from his parents to leave school to hit the road.
• The October 4, 1987 show featured a then-21-year-old Too Short in an early slot on the bill.
• The November 21, 1987 bill is for Rakim's first show in Toronto, Canada (more on this later in the week).
• The series of July 1988 concert flyers shows how stacked Eric B. & Rakim's schedule was at the time; it appears on July 24 they were either double-booked or did shows in both Stockton, California and Las Vegas, Nevada.
• July 24, 1988 also happens to be the eve of the Follow the Leader album release, which along with the rising sales of Paid In Full, helps explain how Eric B. & Rakim jump from second or third billing to the headline slot around this time.
• The August 4, 1988 concert flyer for Freeman Coliseum in San Antonio, Texas shows that Rakim was swinging through the Lone Star State when DJ Screw was coming up, as suggested earlier, though we can only speculate as to whether Screw made it to one of the Dope Jam Tour dates.
• The lack of any posters between 1992 and 1998 is perhaps not insignificant; listeners will remember that The 18th Letter dropped in November 1997 following a five-year hiatus during which time Rakim was entangled in a legal battle over his and Eric B.'s contract with MCA.

Tommy Wright III Live at Amitvyille Music Hall Tonight

Adventureland Release Party & Pop-Up Shop

The Stones Throw debut from Grandmilly & Shozae is out August 24, but you can get it a day early  by heading into NYC for the 8/23 pop-up, or connect with the artists at their album release party in West Hempstead this Saturday. Also, don't miss their feature on Tiny Mix Tapes.

Big Breakfast - "Sade Joint" & AMH Show

Big Breakfast will be performing live at Amityville Music Hall, Friday, February 24, with support from Karma Kids and co.

Just a few hours ago, he shined the first light on his next tape, rapping:

"Rappers yapping about the latest Baco's soy beef substitute / Boy what's up with you? / Put the tool to your noodle like a cup of soup / I'm a fool when I doodle with the number two pencil / You just doodle like a number two, mental / But maintain my cucumber cool / Got my hand on my balls like bumper pool."

Bars below...

Grandmilly & SHOZAE - Advertureland (Grand Opening)

Adventureland, the followup to Grandmilly and Shozae's 2 Stoopid Dogz EP, is slated to open February 10, one week from today. In anticipation of it, the team has dropped a video for the album's opening track, the aptly titled "Adventureland (Grand Opening)." In other news, Milly has been added to the bill for a March 5 show at Amityville Music Hall. Video, album cover, tracklist and show flyer are all below.

Tafari Performing at The West End, NYC 12/17

Tickets run $14.25 online. Click the flyer to purchase.

John Coltrane Jazz Festival - July 23

It looks like there's only one hip-hop act on the bill (peace to The Constituents) for this all-day festival taking place at Huntington's Heckscher Park, but regardless, this is an event that's not to be missed.

Festival hours: 11:30 a.m. - 10:30 p.m.

Admission is free, though a $10 donation is suggested to help restore the Coltrane home in Dix Hills (where he wrote A Love Supreme in case you didn't know).

Tentative event schedule here.

Workshop registration here.

Roy Haynes headlines.

Clarity - One Heroic Dose

Co-founder of Conceptual Elements and New Muse Productions, Clarity is the Long Island hip-hop Aldous Huxley, opening doors of perception in the house of genre clash, a kaleidoscopic Kool-Aid Man crashing through the walls between rap and spoken word poetry, with One Heroic Dose.

This album was recorded live at East Setauket's Velvet Lounge in 2014. Another was recorded there June 11 (when Clarity opened for Kool Keith!!!) and should be coming soon.

Kool Herc Dance Party in Huntington Friday

Hip-hop inventor and innovator, the legendary DJ Kool Herc will be making his glorious return to the Cinema Arts Centre in Huntington this Friday, April 29 at 9 PM.

"Glorious return, you say?" Yes, he previously appeared at CAC to DJ the Long Island premiere of 2015 documentary Rubble Kings (see photo at left).

"Cinema Arts, you say?" Word. While you might not immediately associate Long Island's home of independent, foreign and art-house film with hip-hop, truth be told, CAC is by its very nature a multicultural hub. Tickets and details are available here.

Bone Thugs-N-Harmony in Patchogue Tonight

Bizzy Bone, Wish Bone, Layzie Bone, Krayzie Bone and Flesh-n-Bone will be at The Emporium in Patchogue for a performance celebrating the 20th anniversary of "Tha Crossroads."

"Damn man, I miss my Uncle Charles yall!"

Doors will open at 8PM, the show will begin at 9PM, tickets will cost $30 at the door ($20 in advance via Ticketfly), dress codes will be strictly enforced, fast-raps will be delivered ... fast.

"See you at the..."

The Most Beautifullest Thing In This World 20th Anniversary Presented by Earwaxx

  It's a celebration.

Tickets go for $13.65 via Eventbrite.

Don Cash at Oceanside's Club Heat / "Boom Bap Gods" / Qa'Seem Brennan - "Hunger Pains"

This isn't the normal format for show posts, but I've been meaning to get this new Don Cash track up anyway, so boom:


Also featured here are Rome Streetz and Dris, who represent Elmont and Hempstead, respectively, I believe. As you can tell, Don Cash continues to show love to talented locals. In fact, his Facebook page is becoming something of a Who's Who for Long Island hip-hop. That's where we found this video for "Hunger Pains" by fellow Long Beach MC Qa'Seem Brennan, who will also be performing at the show.


Be there, and look out for Don Cash's Working After Work EP coming soon, with artwork by Mike Mosley a.k.a. Mike Mozart, who also did the poster for the show and will be painting live there.

Diabolic to Rock Amityville Music Hall 9/11/15

It's kind of fitting that Diabolic will be performing on 9/11, as government conspiracy and social control are topics he's been addressing since making his debut.

Of course, 'Bolic was active in Long Island's hip-hop scene and proved himself a vicious battler even before gaining wider attention by bodying a hidden cut on Immortal Technique's Revolutionary Vol. 1, so those attending can expect more than insurrectionist poli-sci.

Also on the bill for the evening are locals Status631, Midnight Grahmmer, L.I. Nation, The Brotherhood, Davon King, Jeff Wesson and Stephen Yannone.

Tickets run $13 and are available via Ticketfly.

2nd Annual Legends of the Fall Jam w/ Rakim, EPMD, Biz

Friday, October 2 at the NYCB Theatre at Westbury, Long Island legends Rakim, EPMD, and Biz Markie will be joined on the bill by Doug E. Fresh, Mister Cheeks of the Lost Boyz, Rob Base, Onyx and Black Sheep. Tickets don't go on sale to the general public until Friday, August 21, but you can get yours early via Live Nation's pre-sale by entering password CROWDSURF. Pre-sale begins tomorrow, August 19 at 10AM, and runs until Thursday, August 20 at 10PM.

Busta Rhymes Got Patchogue In Check

That's right. The dungeon dragon himself, the mighty Busta Rhymes will be performing at The Emporium in Patchogue this Saturday, August 8.

The party starts at 10PM and goes all the way until 4AM.

Advance tickets are still available via ticketfly for $22 or $60 for Express Entry. Come Saturday, they'll cost a minimum $35.

If you'd rather "Pass the Courvoisier"  than "Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See," call 631-275-6200 to reserve your VIP table.

Yes, this is our first Busta Rhymes post to date.

Earwaxx One-Year Anniversary Show

Tomorrow, July 28, 2015, Long Island's premier creative expo, The Earwaxx Sessions, celebrates its one year anniversary at the Amityville Music Hall (198 Broadway, Amityville, NY 11757) with performances by D.A. The Future, Skinny Rapture, Boom Side, Dud Music, Sight Set High, Self Made Fresh, Dane Lawrence and Eli Groves. The event will be co-hosted by Chad Law, Dark Kent, Its Bizkit and The He-Man Woman Haters Club. Barring unforeseen circumstances, LongIslandRap.com will also be in the building. Doors open at 8:00. Follow @TheEarwaxxSessions on Instagram for updates. See you there.