This week we stagger in the gathering to discuss Common's classic 1994 release Resurrection. This is an important record for DBRP hosts David Ma, Demone Carter, and Nate LeBlanc, who collectively cannot believe this album is 30 years old. We discuss the incredible synergy between rapper Common Sense (as he was then known), producer NO I.D. and scratchmaster Mista Sinista, as well as the relative merits of Common's father's outro contributions, some of the samples used, and so much more. Common was on the rebound from the reception to his debut album Can I Borrow A Dollar when he was creating Resurrection, so we spend a bit of time discussing the reception to that misfire and how he came back hard with this album, which all of us view as an unimpeachable classic. Time has been pretty kind to almost all of this record, with the possible exception of its best known track, the narrative masterwork "I Used To Love H.E.R." We also get into Com's beef with Ice Cube, which is interesting to look back on given the current state of blockbuster rap rivalries at the moment.

As you will probably notice, we recorded this episode from the Harmony Hotel in District 1 of Ho Chi Minh City in the beautiful country of Vietnam. We will be rolling out a miniseries documenting more of our travels and experiences there soon, be on the lookout for that.

DBRP is mixed by Taylor Weng, contains a theme song by Cutso and DEM ONE and is produced by Demone Carter. You would not be hearing this without the efforts of Stony Island Audio.

To our comp we're a ton, we get amped like stones on an island. Our patreon is a commodity so buy it: www.patreon.com/dadbodrappod

T3 and Young RJ of Slum Village join us this week to talk about their new album F.U.N, their extensive history, their Detroit MC Mount Rushmore, and much more. Along the way we dive into the mythology of them rhyming to a click track early in their career, the musical fullness of the new record, and modern day roller skating jams.

In the banter segments, we talk about the new LL Cool J song produced by Q-Tip, which winds into a long digression about Tip's musical legacy and who may be hip-hop's version of Stevie Wonder, should such such a thing exist. We also get into the ideal grown man short length, beach activities, and the first of what is sure to be many breakdancing competitions at the Olympics. We also spend some time talking about dreadlock etiquette, cooking shows, and of course plug our Patreon, which you can find at www.patreon.com/dadbodrappod

DBRP is mixed by Taylor Weng. Theme song by Cutso & DEM ONE. Produced by Demone Carter. Brought to you by Stony Island Audio.

*Note: This episode originally dropped on June 18th, 2020*

This week we have a rangy interview with billy woods and Elucid, the members of group Armand Hammer, whose new record Shrines is among the year's best. They provide insight into the album's origins, artwork, and their trusted circle of collaborators among many other topics. In the second segment the fellas discuss the best rap records of the year so far, a check-in on the state of the art as we reach the halfway point of this chaotic but increasingly inspiring year. Beats for this week's show were submitted by Controller 7 and we thank him for the contributions. Our theme song is composed by DJ Albert Jenkins.

It's a tale of two halves on Dad Bod Rap Pod this week. In the intro segment we take a look back at The Fugees' first album Blunted on Reality, released 30 years ago in the thick of one of hip-hop's best overall years, 1994. For now, let's charitably call it an uneven debut from a group still finding its voice. Please click play on the episode to hear a lot more of our thoughts. This album is full of baffling decisions, yelling, and very few cool moments. After the break, hosts Nate LeBlanc, Demone Carter and David Ma turn our frowns upside down and discuss some of our favorite underground hip-hop releases of 2024 thus far, kind of a halfway through the year check in. We have nuanced takes on and praise for Heems' album LAFANDAR, Mach-Hommy's brilliant RICHAXXHATIAN, and Schoolboy Q's occasionally floaty Blue Lips.

If you're reading this please consider supporting DBRP by joining our Patreon, where for a few dollars a month you get exclusive access to a steady stream of bonus audio segments, eclectic and well-researched playlists, as well as tons of music recommendations from us as well as our community of homies.

www.patreon.com/dadbodrappod

DBRP is mixed by Taylor Weng, produced by Demone Carter, explained via theme song by Cutso and DEM ONE, has art by Dewey Saunders, is booked by David Ma, contains the high pitched and extra loud laughter of Nate LeBlanc, and is heard via the mighty Stony Island Audio podcast network.

You wanna see a dead body? All you need to do is listen to this week's guest, one of hip-hop's most unique MCs, Brotha Lynch Hung. Hailing from the under-discussed rap bastion of Sacramento, California, Lynch is the creator of his own unique brand of horror-centric rap music, which he calls Ripgut. Lynch's music is extremely popular in the Bay Area where we grew up, and while we may not be everyday listeners to the music, we certainly respect his consistency, hustle, and vivid writing style. For those unfamiliar with Lynch's output, be warned, it can be extremely graphic and maybe even a somewhat disturbing for the uninitiated. That said, we respect the fact that BLH has created his own musical universe, self-producing and releasing many of his landmark albums. This is one of our most unique interviews to date, and a must-hear for fans of Lynch's horror movie-inspired art.

Speaking of horror films, that is the topic for this week's intro segment, as DBRP hosts Demone Carter, Nate LeBlanc and David Ma discuss their takes on the ubiquitous genre, from formative experiences as kids, to a predilection for psychological thrillers nowadays. In the outro, we dig deeper into the so-called "horrorcore" hip-hop subgenre, a style that is often discussed but one that no prominent artists seem to self-apply to their music. Along the way we touch on such artists as Viper, ICP, Esham, and a few others you may not be expecting us old head classical rap fans to mention.

DBRP is mixed by Taylor Weng. Theme song by Cutso and DEM ONE. Brought to you by the letter 'S' which stands for Stony Island Audio, a gut-rippingly good podcast network.

There are few people who have contributed as much to hip-hop culture and received as little recognition as our guest this week, Breakbeat Lou. He was born in the Bronx, steeped in hip-hop culture from the moment it was created, and eventually went on to develop a record series called Octopus Breaks. That series morphed into the mighty Ultimate Breaks & Beats, a hugely formative series for DJs, Producers, and listeners to familiarize themselves with the canonical breaks, or open drum parts, on which hip-hop is built. Lou has some great memories to share, including stories about the legend Scott La Roc, Afrika Islam's role in break record history, and more recent tales about touring with Sous of Mischief. For true fans of hip-hop culture, this interview is not to be missed.

In the intro segment, DBRP hosts Demone Carter and Nate LeBlanc (David Ma is on assignment this week) discuss breakbeats and break culture. As an MC, Demone has been tracking down and trying to unlock the secrets of the breaks for decades. LeBlanc has an extensive record collection that includes some of the holy grail break records, though he is conflicted about hoarding them when perhaps they could be better used by someone who actually, you know, makes beats.

DBRP is mixed by Taylor Weng. DBRP has a theme song produced by Cutso and rapped by our very own DEM ONE. DBRP guests are booked by David Ma. DBRP is produced by Demone Carter. Most if not all of the puns on the show are provided by Nate LeBlanc. We are down with Stony Island Audio, the finest hip-hop podcast network in all the land.

This week we are going to the movies... actually we're discussing rap portrayals in the movies, a somewhat fraught subject. We were inspired to think about rap on the silver screen by our guest, Marv Won. Among other accolades, Marv was famously part of the movie 8 Mile. We enjoyed our conversation with this Detroit battle rap mainstay who recently signed with Mello Music Group and has a new album entitled "I'm Fine, Thanks For Asking. " One of the highlights of our chat was Mar's lightning-quick assembly of his all-time Detroit MC Mount Rushmore. In the intro segment, DBRP hosts David Ma, Demone Carter and Nate LeBlanc riff about rap movies, verisimilitude, decrepit warehouses, strange bedfellows, and much much more.

Big thanks to our theme song composer Cutso.

DBRP is mixed by Taylor Weng.

Dad Bod Rap Pod is probably the 4th or 5th most popular podcast on the Stony Island Audio network.

"you can tell that the East Bay was his home." 

Spice One doesn't have the wealth and accolades that some of his West Coast contemporaries like E-40, Too Short, and Snoop have, but he has maintained every bit of his respect in the rap game for over 30 years. The Hayward, California rapper came to prominence in the early nineties, pioneering a dark new gangster arch type that is still mimicked today. Tune in to hear him talk about rolling with Tupac, almost being cast in a major motion picture, and why he is still going so hard in 2024. 

The Dad Bod Rap Pod is a production of the Stony Island Audio Podcast Network. Shout out to the honorable Open Mike Eagle. The theme song was created by DEM ONE and DJ CUTSO. Taylor Weng is on the mix (c'mon, kick it!) 

So it's come to this... A Dad Bod Rap Pod mailbag episode. We are celebrating our 300th episode by fielding questions from some people we respect. Show hosts Demone Carter, David Ma and Nate LeBlanc are extremely grateful to have met and interacted with so many talented and cool people over the past few years and we reached out to a few of them to send in some open-ended questions about hip-hop music and culture. Underground rap luminaries such as rappers Open Mike Eagle, Illogic, Rob Sonic, and Fat Tony, as well as producers Blockhead, Roper Williams, Cutso, and Maker, as well as comedian and top tier podcast guest across genres Josh Gondelman provided some funny, insightful and in some cases rather odd opportunities for us to bring you the nuanced rap discussion we have been working on for the last few hundred recording sessions. For this special episode we are also layering in some extremely humbling voice messages from a colorful cast of characters who were kind enough to call in and tell us what they like about the show. We were blown away to receive entries from such great artists as Daedelus, Prem Rock, SKECH185, and Tajai from Souls of Mischief, among others.

We would like to thank everyone who has ever listened to this program, everyone who's ever told a friend about us, everyone that's ever written us a check, all of the folks behind the scenes who help us out every week, all of the people who gave us advice over the years, especially in the beginning, and all of our past contributors, whether they were interview subjects, contributed music, or just interacted with us online. This has been one hell of a ride and we are very grateful to hip-hop itself, especially the underground scene that birthed us and has taught us so much about life and provided us with so many great opportunities. We love making this show and contributing in a small way to the culture that we have been obsessed with our entire lives. It's an honor and a privilege to get these takes off and to examine this amazing music, and while we're not planning on stopping anytime soon, we are in a reflective mood since we reached a round number in the episode run.

Huge shouts out to Cutso and DEM ONE for our theme song, Taylor Weng for the audio adjustments, OME and the entire Stony Island massive for providing us a home. We hope you enjoy this week's episode.

If you like what you hear and would like to support the show directly please visit patreon.com/dadbodrappod for hundreds of hours of exclusive podcasts, playlists, discussion, and more.

Chuck Strangers has been making noise from the Pro Era to the current era. Originally known primarily as a producer, Chuck is also nice on the mic and has released several acclaimed solo albums. Today he joins Dad Bod Rap Pod hosts Demone Carter, David Ma, and Nate LeBlanc to discuss his most recent album, A Forsaken Lover's Plea. It's more fun than it sounds. We discuss his Brooklyn rap Mt. Rushmore, the absurdity of modern vinyl culture, his friendship with underground man of mystery Ka, and the importance of honesty in writing and delivering raps. In the intro segment, your hosts roll up for a magical mystery tour. That's right, we spend the segment talking about hip-hop's undisputed drug of choice, the mostly legal but slightly controversial marijuana. We often ask our guests whether they prefer indica or sativa, and we begin there before talking about the haphazard nature of national legalization, and how music and weed have intertwined in our lives.

Our theme song is spoken in a syncopated rhythmic manner by DEM ONE and the sounds were arranged in a slightly different rhythmic grid by our dear friend Cutso.

The podcast itself was mixed by Taylor Weng.

The podcast is available everywhere through access provided by Stony Island Audio, a super dope group of independent hip-hop commentators and practitioners to be associated with.