1999’s Internal Affairs thrust underground veteran Pharoahe Monch into the spotlight, imbued with the might of Godzilla and a vocabulary like none other. Twenty years on, we’re looking back at the Organized Konfusion emcee’s classic solo debut, exploring the feud that all but erased it, and celebrating the anniversary that brought it back from the brink!
Sample Dives
Organized Konfusion’s Stress: The Extinction Agenda – Inside an Underground Hip-Hop Classic, 25 Years Later
It’s been 25 years since Organized Konfusion––that’s Prince Po and Pharoahe Monch––released their sophomore record, “Stress: The Extinction Agenda”. Not only is it one of the greatest underground hip-hop records of all time, it’s a crowning achievement of the genre’s richest decade. In celebration, we’re exploring the stories behind every beat and every sample––at least the ones we know about––that make up the classic Queens LP!
Dissecting Madlib’s Production on Bandana: Every Sample, Every Beat
It’s been five years since we last heard from MadGibbs, one of hip-hop’s most revered emcee-producer duos. Their triumphant return comes in the form of Bandana, a sophomore record that averts the slump with unbridled excellence. There’s a lot going on in there – let’s take a look at the samples underpinning Madlib and Gibbs’ […]
Behind Doggystyle: The Singles that made a West Coast Classic
As the sun rotates and his game grows bigger, it’s now become easy to forget just how Snoop Dogg became a pop culture legend. It was Doggystyle, his Death Row debut, that catapulted him to the forefront of mid-’90s hip hop. In celebration of a quarter-century of G Funk, we’re breaking down all the samples […]
Behind Warren G’s Regulate… G Funk Era: Every Sample, Every Collaborator
The ‘G’ in Warren G stands for Griffin, but it might as well be shorthand for “G Funk”. Warren’s distinctive production chops and romantic vision of gangsterism made him one of the most indispensible voices of the G Funk era and, in the years since, they’ve enshrined him as one of the West Coast’s most […]
25 Years of Illmatic: The Producers and Samples that Created a Classic
If 1994 is one of hip hop’s greatest years, then Illmatic is one of the richest cherries atop the proverbial cake. Whilst it might not have been the most immediately impactful of the year’s debuts, it still stands as one of the greatest hip hop albums of all time. We’re breaking down the samples throughout […]
How Kanye Made “The College Dropout” – Every Sample, Every Beat
It’s hard to imagine the world without Kanye West, and it’s hard to imagine Kanye West without The College Dropout. Fifteen years on, we’re breaking down the sampling on Ye’s triumphant debut and talking about the creation of a classic. Things were different in 2004: 50 Cent was a musical titan, Jay-Z had retired from […]
Behind “The Black Album”: Production & Sampling Deep-Dive
November 14, 2003: with nothing left to prove, Jay Z releases The Black Album, a project billed as his last. Fifteen years on, we reflect on the production throughout the LP, breaking down the sampling, examining the sonic palette and looking at the collaborators Jay chose to score his classic curtain closer. Fifteen years ago, […]
Dissecting No I.D.’s Production Masterclass on “4:44”
In a genre often preoccupied with youth culture, an album exploring the trials of adult relationships and responsibilities is like a breath of fresh air. That goes double when it’s the work of a veteran producer and a legendary emcee. We’re celebrating their excellence with this, an in-depth exploration of No I.D.’s incredible production work […]
Dissecting Jay-Z’s Forgotten Classic Album “Vol 2… Hard Knock Life” [20th Anniversary]
Today marks 20 years since the release of Jay-Z’s third studio album, Vol 2… Hard Knock Life. While the album’s legacy is often overlooked in favor of other Jay classics, Hard Knock Life still remains Jay’s commercial peak to this day, and represents the beginning of hip hop’s invasion of the mainstream. On Pusha T’s […]
