Grand Daddy I.U. - "P.I.M.P. Intro"

They don't call it Pimpstead for nothing. Before Roc Marciano and SmooVth brought the village's oldest trade into the 21st century, there was Grand Daddy I.U. A storied veteran of LI hip-hop, I.U. returned last month with a new solo album, his fourth in 25 years. It just goes to show that hip-hop, like pimping, is about quality, not quantity. Stream the album's Marco Polo-produced intro above and trick that physical specimen direct from Grand Daddy's own Steady Flow Enterprises.

Roc Marciano to Appear on Upcoming De La Soul Album

Just got off the jack with Roc. Allah keeps blessing us. Bout to be part of a legacy album with our LI brothers & legends. #FromTheSoul
— JAZZ (@JazzUNGang) April 10, 2015

De La Soul had already announced a few big features for their upcoming album, but UN manager Jazz just tweeted this amazing news that all but confirms Roc Marciano will be among the album's list of special guests. Maybe somebody from the De La camp heard Roc body the "Hey Love" beat a few years back.

Public Enemy's Fear Of A Black Planet on WBAUMarch 26, 1990

Today's date marks the 25th anniversary of the commercial release of Public Enemy's classic third album Fear Of A Black Planet. What you might not realize is that the album debuted, albeit to a much smaller audience, weeks earlier on Long Island college radio. (Public Enemy is of course in many ways a product of this scene, as Chuck D worked at Adelphi's WBAU alongside members of the Bomb Squad and actually met Flavor Flav [then known as MC DJ Flavor] in the studio there.) According to DJ WildMan Steve, Fear Of A Black Planet was played by DJ Jeff Foss on Hofstra University's 88.7 WRHU on Saturday, March 24, 1990 before its 90.3 WBAU debut on Monday, March 26.

Thanks to Long Island hip-hop icons Oxygen (aka Ox the Architect) and DJ WildMan Steve, the Internet now has a recording of this second local debut. To complement this long-lost radio set, we're posting it alongside the original Fear Of A Black Planet artwork by NASA illustrator B.E. Johnson.

Prince Paul Releases "Not the Size 3," Gives Extensive Interview

The crown prince of comedic hip-hop is kicking off the month in style, with the third installment  of his "Its Not the size of your Mix Its how you use it" series hitting the net just a day after April Fools, this coming just a little over a week after the second part of his Cipher Show interview appeared online.

The interview — which spans two webcasts, each over an hour long — finds Paul talking about everything from his high school days (year book photo at left) to his work with LI acts Resident Alien and Horror City.

The mix features tracks by KMD and Public Enemy among others.

Drink in all three streams below.

Kenny Orlando - "No Need for Sirens" (Premiere)

After dropping five mixtapes over the past three years, Kenny Orlando returns with Simply I, a three-track EP produced by mbj of Audio Assembly Productions. Long Island Rap Blog is proud to premiere track 3, "No Need for Sirens," which represents something of a change in pace for Kenny, who, though still kicking introspection and positive messages, now finds himself doing so at a much faster tempo over some heavy electro-hop.

Simply I is now available digitally via iTunes or on CD-R from CD Baby, and if you want to hear more of the EP, you can preview it on YouTube.

De La Soul's New Album Kickstarter

De La Soul recently launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund the creation and release of their next studio album, and the Anonymous Nobody, which is set to feature collaborations with Damon Albarn, 2 Chainz, Little Dragon and David Byrne. They've already surpassed their funding goal of $110,000, but pledges are still piling up, as fans are eager to round up rewards like the vinyl LP ($45, shipping in September 2015); an autographed 7" single with autographed vinyl LP, exclusive De La Soul t-shirt, CD + exclusive bonus track, and advanced digital download ($250); a fully functional autographed MPC from Posdnuos' personal collection ($1,750); or best of all, Trugoy's 3 Feet High and Rising platinum plaque ($10,000). Seriously, even if you aren't willing to shell out at least $15 for an advanced digital download, it's worth it to visit this Kickstarter page if only to check out the amazing De La documents like the rhyme book page containing Pos' "Oodles of O's" verse (at left).

Ra the Beat Archaeologist - no.5

Freeport's on3trackmind Executive Producer Ra the Beat Archaeologist has RZA's ear for movie samples but a production style all his own. With just three tracks, his latest beat tape runs the gamut from haunting to combative to jazzy. Dig it.

Megalon - One In a Million 12"

What we have here is easily one of the best singles of the Fondle 'Em era. The A side features Megalon a.k.a. Tommy Gun rapping over a beat by Metal Fingers a.k.a. MF DOOM. The B side was produced by G.M. Web D a.k.a. X-Ray Da Mindbenda, with singing by the elusive Pebbs a.k.a. Pebbles the Invisible Girl, who's best known for lending vocals to MF's "Doomsday." In fact, that seems to be her only other attributable credit, at least as far as the Internet's concerned. There's actually a singer on the A side as well, with a voice that sounds like it could belong to Pebbs but remains uncredited. Regardless, both sides of this single are Long Beach legend-status, instrumentals included. Which do you prefer? Download and let us know below.

The Winners - The New Leaders of the New School

If you're new to The Winners movement, this is a decent introduction, but what's new on the new Winners mixtape, The New Leaders of the New School? In terms of the tracklist, nothing. All of these tracks were already available in some form or another, which seems to be in keeping with the Digi Crates business model, but to be fair, this is just a mixtape. And no news is good news, I guess.

Actually scratch that, there are some class roster changes since 2013's #TheWinnersMixtape, as Sean Rosati, El Ay and Giallo Point have all been officially added to the team.

Misophonic - "Slow It Down" ft. Oh No

Misophonic, who you might remember from last week's Kenny Orlando post, just hit us with some real professional DIY material, as in not only did he produce and mix this infectious track, but he also shot and edited the gorgeous video on location in Oxnard, California, which is of course Oh No's base of operations. After streaming below, remember that this joint is available on iTunes as well.