If you'd like to see full video of this and other episodes, join the Reel Notes Patreon at the Homie ($5/month) tier or higher. Each episode is also available to buy individually for $5 (Buy it through a web browser and not the Patreon app. You'll get charged extra if you purchase through the app.) You also get early access to episodes, an invite to our Discord server, access to the Reel Talk archives, and more!

My guests this week are Dan-O and Keith Rollins, the co-hosts of Freemusicempire’s State of The Game podcast. We spoke about the Billy Joel documentary, Fantastic Four: First Steps, Superman, Megalopolis, Terminator, Ikaru, how Dan-O built Freemusicempire into a blog, meeting Keith and developing State of The Game, their growth, being a part of the indie rap podcast community, their creative process, and their upcoming New York showcase, happening at Young Ethel’s in Brooklyn on Friday, August 15. Come fuck with us.

Meet Freemusicempire live in New York at their debut showcase, featuring Nappy Nina, SKECH185, August Fanon, shemar, & more. Tickets are $10 and are available at the door of Young Ethel's in Brooklyn the day-of starting at 8:30PM. Listen to State of The Game wherever you get your podcasts, and join the Freemusicempire Patreon for access to exclusive articles and episodes about all things music. 

Reel Notes stands in solidarity with American immigrants against ICE and the oppressed peoples of Palestine, Congo, Sudan, Tigray, and Haiti. Please consider donating to the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, the Palestine Children's Relief Fund,  The Palestinian Youth Movement, The Zakat Foundation, HealAfrica, FreeTigray, and/or Hope For Haiti.  For information about contacting your representatives to demand a ceasefire, finding protests, and other tools, check out CeasefireToday!

Follow me on Instagram (@cinemasai), Twitter (@CineMasai_), Bluesky (@cinemasai.bsky.social), TikTok (@cinemasai), Letterboxd (@CineMasai), and subscribe to my weekly Nu Musique Friday newsletter to stay tapped into all things Dylan Green.   

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Join me and special guest Navy Blue on Saturday, August 30 at Loudmouth in Brooklyn, for the ninth iteration of Reel Talk, a Reel Notes movie night. We'll be screening the 1999 animated sci-fi drama The Iron Giant and talking about his latest album, Memoirs in Armour. Tickets and more info here.

If you'd like to see full video of this and other episodes, join the Reel Notes Patreon at the Homie ($5/month) tier or higher. Each episode is also available to buy individually for $5 (Buy it through a web browser and not the Patreon app. You'll get charged extra if you purchase through the app.) You also get early access to episodes, an invite to our Discord server, access to the Reel Talk archives, and more!

This week’s episode is a bit different than usual: it’s a playback of my conversation with California visual artist Brian Kwon held during the opening week of Genius Loci, his first-ever art exhibit. We spoke about his upbringing, musical tastes, entrance to the world of indie rap, the process of drawing rap shows in real-time, and a handful of the pieces that lined the walls that night, including work featuring billy woods, ShrapKnel, Conductor Williams, and more. Brian and I will be recording a more traditional episode of Reel Notes sometime down the line, but for now, come fuck with us.  

Follow Brian on Instagram (@beekay.art), subscribe to his Substack, and check out his Linktree to stay tapped in with all things Brian. 

Reel Notes stands in solidarity with American immigrants against ICE and the oppressed peoples of Palestine, Congo, Sudan, Tigray, and Haiti. Please consider donating to the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, the Palestine Children's Relief Fund,  The Palestinian Youth Movement, The Zakat Foundation, HealAfrica, FreeTigray, and/or Hope For Haiti.  For information about contacting your representatives to demand a ceasefire, finding protests, and other tools, check out CeasefireToday!

Follow me on Instagram (@cinemasai), Twitter (@CineMasai_), Bluesky (@cinemasai.bsky.social), TikTok (@cinemasai), Letterboxd (@CineMasai), and subscribe to my weekly Nu Musique Friday newsletter to stay tapped into all things Dylan Green.   

Support the show

Join me and special guest Navy Blue on Saturday, August 30 at Loudmouth in Brooklyn, for the ninth iteration of Reel Talk, a Reel Notes movie night. We'll be screening the 1999 animated sci-fi drama The Iron Giant and talking about his latest album, Memoirs in Armour. Tickets and more info here.  

If you'd like to see full video of this and other episodes, join the Reel Notes Patreon at the Homie ($5/month) tier or higher. Each episode is also available to buy individually for $5 (Buy it through a web browser and not the Patreon app. You'll get charged extra if you purchase through the app.) You also get early access to episodes, an invite to our Discord server, access to the Reel Talk archives, and more!

My guest this week is Virginia rapper and co-founder of Divine Council, $ilkmoney. We spoke on his 29th birthday about our mutual love for Black sitcoms like The Wayans Bros., The Parkers, and Living Single, the legacy of Bernie Mac, Cam’ron’s roles in Paid In Full and Killa Season, not feeling pressure from Andre 3000 and Tyler, The Creator cosigns, and the creative process behind his latest album Who Waters The Wilting Giving Tree Once The Leaves Dry Up And Fruits No Longer Bear?, out now via Lex Records. Come fuck with us.

Who Waters The Wilting Giving Tree is out now wherever music is sold, streamed, or stolen. Consider copping directly from $ilk's Bandcamp. Follow $ilkmoney on Instagram (@silkbooty), Twitter (@CUUMMONEY), and TikTok (@silkmunyun). 

Read my Best New Music review of $ilk's last album, I Don't Give A Fuck About This Rap Shit, Imma Just Drop Until I Don't Feel Like It Anymore, on Pitchfork.

Reel Notes stands in solidarity with American immigrants against ICE and the oppressed peoples of Palestine, Congo, Sudan, Tigray, and Haiti. Please consider donating to the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, the Palestine Children's Relief Fund,  The Palestinian Youth Movement, The Zakat Foundation, HealAfrica, FreeTigray, and/or Hope For Haiti.  For information about contacting your representatives to demand a ceasefire, finding protests, and other tools, check out CeasefireToday!

Follow me on Instagram (@cinemasai), Twitter (@CineMasai_), Bluesky (@cinemasai.bsky.social), TikTok (@cinemasai), Letterboxd (

Support the show

If you'd like to see full video of this and other episodes, join the Reel Notes Patreon at the Homie ($5/month) tier or higher. Each episode is also available to buy individually for $5 (Buy it through a web browser and not the Patreon app. You'll get charged extra if you purchase through the app.) You also get early access to episodes, an invite to our Discord server, access to the Reel Talk archives, and more!

My guest this week is California rapper, producer, one-third of Dilated Peoples, and head of Bigger Picture Recordings, Evidence. We spoke about the phenomenon of watching whatever’s on TV at the moment, The Godfather Part II, White Chicks, the romantic sports coming-of-age movie Lucas, movie theaters as cultural hubs, growing up before and during the rise of hip-hop, his love for producing and photography, moving on from the Weatherman character, and the creative process behind his upcoming album Unlearning Vol. 2, out August 15 on Rhymesayers. Come fuck with us. 

Unlearning Vol. 2 is out August 15 on Rhymesayers. Pre-order now on Bandcamp and the Rhymesayers site. Follow Evidence on Instagram and Twitter: @Evidence

Read my review of Domo Genesis and Evidence's album, Intros, Outros, & Interludes, on Pitchfork.  

My first book, Reel Notes: Culture Writing on the Margins of Music and Movies, is available now, via 4 PM Publishing. Order a digital copy on Amazon.

Reel Notes stands in solidarity with American immigrants against ICE and the oppressed peoples of Palestine, Congo, Sudan, Tigray, and Haiti. Please consider donating to the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, the Palestine Children's Relief Fund,  The Palestinian Youth Movement, The Zakat Foundation, HealAfrica, FreeTigray, and/or Hope For Haiti.  For information about contacting your representatives to demand a ceasefire, finding protests, and other tools, check out CeasefireToday!

Follow me on Instagram (@cinemasai), Twitter (@CineMasai_), Bluesky (@cinemasai.bsky.social), TikTok (@cinemasai), Letterboxd (@CineMasai), and subscribe to my weekly Nu Musique Friday newsletter to stay tapped into all things Dylan Green.       

Support the show

If you'd like to see full video of this and other episodes, join the Reel Notes Patreon at the Homie ($5/month) tier or higher. Each episode is also available to buy individually for $5 (Buy it through a web browser and not the Patreon app. You'll get charged extra if you purchase through the app.) You also get early access to episodes, an invite to our Discord server, access to the Reel Talk archives, and more!

My guest for the 200th episode of Reel Notes is California-via-Chicago rapper, producer, writer, creator of The New Negroes, founder of Auto Reverse Records and Stony Island Audio—Open Mike Eagle. We spoke about the pros and cons of independent music and journalism, the films of Ari Aster, Spike Lee, Wes Anderson, Paul Thomas Anderson, and the MCU, how Nirvana and Ol’ Dirty Bastard kicked off his deep dive into music, finding himself in Project Blowed, surviving and thriving in a do-it-yourself world, and the creative process behind his latest album Neighborhood Gods Unlimited. Thank y’all so much for fuckin’ with us for 200 episodes. Hope you enjoy :)

Neighborhood Gods Unlimited will be out everywhere music is sold, streamed, or stolen on Friday July 11. Consider buying it on Mike's Bandcamp. Follow Mike on Instagram (@open_mike_eagle), Twitter (@mike_eagle), TikTok (@openmikeeagle0), and Twitch (@open_mike_eagle). 

My first book, Reel Notes: Culture Writing on the Margins of Music and Movies, is available now, via 4 PM Publishing. Order a digital copy on Amazon.

Reel Notes stands in solidarity with American immigrants against ICE and the oppressed peoples of Palestine, Congo, Sudan, Tigray, and Haiti. Please consider donating to the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, the Palestine Children's Relief Fund,  The Palestinian Youth Movement, The Zakat Foundation, HealAfrica, FreeTigray, and/or Hope For Haiti.  For information about contacting your representatives to demand a ceasefire, finding protests, and other tools, check out CeasefireToday!

Follow me on Instagram (@cinemasai), Twitter (@CineMasai_), Bluesky (@cinemasai.bsky.social), TikTok (@cinemasai), Letterboxd (@CineMasai), and subscribe to my weekly Nu Musique Friday newsletter to stay tapped into all things Dylan Green.       

Support the show

If you'd like to see full video of this and other episodes, join the Reel Notes Patreon at the Homie ($5/month) tier or higher. Each episode is also available to buy individually for $5 (Buy it through a web browser and not the Patreon app. You'll get charged extra if you purchase through the app.) You also get early access to episodes, an invite to our Discord server, access to the Reel Talk archives, and more!

My guest this week is New York rapper-singer-songwriter Sumaya Nazar. We spoke about Love Island, The Princess and The Frog and all things Disney, the animated films Muhammad: The Last Prophet and Persepolis, growing up in a Haitian-Tunisian household in Washington Heights, how spending time in Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates changed her perspective, recently embracing Islam, finding her voice as an artist, and the creative process behind her latest EP 1446. Come fuck with us.

1446 is available wherever music is sold, streamed, or stolen. Follow Sumaya on Instagram (@sumaya.nazar777) and TikTok (@sumayanazar)

My first book, Reel Notes: Culture Writing on the Margins of Music and Movies, is available now, via 4 PM Publishing. Order a digital copy on Amazon.

Reel Notes stands in solidarity with American immigrants against ICE and the oppressed peoples of Palestine, Congo, Sudan, Tigray, and Haiti. Please consider donating to the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, the Palestine Children's Relief Fund,  The Palestinian Youth Movement, The Zakat Foundation, HealAfrica, FreeTigray, and/or Hope For Haiti.  For information about contacting your representatives to demand a ceasefire, finding protests, and other tools, check out CeasefireToday!

Follow me on Instagram (@cinemasai), Twitter (@CineMasai_), Bluesky (@cinemasai.bsky.social), TikTok (@cinemasai), Letterboxd (@CineMasai), and subscribe to my weekly Nu Musique Friday newsletter to stay tapped into all things Dylan Green.  

Support the show

If you'd like to see full video of this and other episodes, join the Reel Notes Patreon at the Homie ($5/month) tier or higher. Each episode is also available to buy individually for $5 (Buy it through a web browser and not the Patreon app. You'll get charged extra if you purchase through the app.) You also get early access to episodes, an invite to our Discord server, access to the Reel Talk archives, and more!

My guest this week is Chicago-via-Maryland-via-Virgnia rapper, producer, and animator McKinley Dixon. We spoke about the Scream and Final Destination franchises, our definitions of what makes a scream queen, Snow Dogs, Tekkonkinkreet, being inspired by Toni Morrison and the late Japanese director Satoshi Kon, the pros and cons of live-band hip-hop, and the creative process behind his latest album Magic, Alive! Come fuck with us. 

Magic, Alive!  is available wherever music is sold, streamed, or stolen. Consider copping directly from from Bandcamp page. Follow McKinley on Instagram (@freemckinley), Twitter (@mckinleydixon), and TikTok (@mckinleydixonn)

Read my review of Magic, Alive! over at Bandcamp Daily. 

My first book, Reel Notes: Culture Writing on the Margins of Music and Movies, is available now, via 4 PM Publishing. Order a digital copy on Amazon.

Reel Notes stands in solidarity with American immigrants against ICE and the oppressed peoples of Palestine, Congo, Sudan, Tigray, and Haiti. Please consider donating to the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, the Palestine Children's Relief Fund,  The Palestinian Youth Movement, The Zakat Foundation, HealAfrica, FreeTigray, and/or Hope For Haiti.  For information about contacting your representatives to demand a ceasefire, finding protests, and other tools, check out CeasefireToday!

Follow me on Instagram (@cinemasai), Twitter (@CineMasai_), Bluesky (@cinemasai.bsky.social), TikTok (@cinemasai), Letterboxd (@CineMasai), and subscribe to my weekly Nu Musique Friday newsletter to stay tapped into all things Dylan Green.  

Support the show

If you'd like to see full video of this and other episodes, join the Reel Notes Patreon at the Homie ($5/month) tier or higher. Each episode is also available to buy individually for $5 (Buy it through a web browser and not the Patreon app. You'll get charged extra if you purchase through the app.) You also get early access to episodes, an invite to our Discord server, access to the Reel Talk archives, and more!

My guest this week is South African rapper Yugen Blakrok. We spoke about Severance, Black Mirror, Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind, our mutual fascination with horror, martial arts, and samurai films, making a name for herself as a rapper in South Africa, recording her guest verse for Black Panther The Album, her relationship with longtime producer Kanif The Jhatmaster, and the creative process behind her latest album The Illusion of Being. Come fuck with us.

The Illusion of Being is out now wherever music is sold, streamed, or stolen. Consider copping it directly from her Bandcamp. Follow Yugen on Instagram and Twitter: @yugenblakrok 

My first book, Reel Notes: Culture Writing on the Margins of Music and Movies, is available now, via 4 PM Publishing. Order a digital copy on Amazon.

Reel Notes stands in solidarity with American immigrants against ICE and the oppressed peoples of Palestine, Congo, Sudan, Tigray, and Haiti. Please consider donating to the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, the Palestine Children's Relief Fund,  The Palestinian Youth Movement, The Zakat Foundation, HealAfrica, FreeTigray, and/or Hope For Haiti.  For information about contacting your representatives to demand a ceasefire, finding protests, and other tools, check out CeasefireToday!

Follow me on Instagram (@cinemasai), Twitter (@CineMasai_), Bluesky (@cinemasai.bsky.social), TikTok (@cinemasai), Letterboxd (@CineMasai), and subscribe to my weekly Nu Musique Friday newsletter to stay tapped into all things Dylan Green.  

Support the show

If you'd like to see full video of this and other episodes, join the Reel Notes Patreon at the Homie ($5/month) tier or higher. Each episode is also available to buy individually for $5 (Buy it through a web browser and not the Patreon app. You'll get charged extra if you purchase through the app.) You also get early access to episodes, an invite to our Discord server, access to the Reel Talk archives, and more!

My guest this week is Chicago-via-Detroit rapper, producer, singer, and songwriter Imani Nichele. We spoke about Babygirl, The Wiz, our current tolerance for musicals, the Temptations, Ray Charles, New Edition, and N.W.A. biopics, being a poet laureate, moving from Detroit to Chicago, fine-tuning her sound, working with Detroit rapper-producer Nolan The Ninja, the idea of jesters and clowns, trusting her artistic vision, and the creative process behind her debut project MERRY&RUE. Come fuck with us.

MERRY&RUE is available wherever music is sold, streamed, or stolen. Consider copping directly from her Bandcamp page. Follow Imani on Instagram (@imaninichele_) and Twitter (@maniduhmixer).   

My first book, Reel Notes: Culture Writing on the Margins of Music and Movies, is available now, via 4 PM Publishing. Order a digital copy on Amazon.

Reel Notes stands in solidarity with the oppressed peoples of Palestine, Congo, Sudan, Tigray, and Haiti. Please consider donating to the Palestine Children's Relief Fund,  The Palestinian Youth Movement, The Zakat Foundation, HealAfrica, FreeTigray, and/or Hope For Haiti.  For information about contacting your representatives to demand a ceasefire, finding protests, and other tools, check out CeasefireToday!

Follow me on Instagram (@cinemasai), Twitter (@CineMasai_), Bluesky (@cinemasai.bsky.social), TikTok (@cinemasai), Letterboxd (@CineMasai), and subscribe to my weekly Nu Musique Friday newsletter to stay tapped into all things Dylan Green.  

Support the show

If you'd like to see full video of this and other episodes, join the Reel Notes Patreon at the Homie ($5/month) tier or higher. You also get early access to episodes, an invite to our Discord server, access to the Reel Talk archives, and more!

My guests this week are New York rapper and engineer blackchai and Tennessee-via-North Carolina rapper, producer, and engineer Illohim, who record together at the duo Pathfinders. We spoke about The Rehearsal, Peacemaker, Friendship, Jet Li’s Fearless, their respective solo careers up to this point, meeting as members of the collective No Clue, their chemistry, and the creative process behind their self-titled debut. Come fuck with us.

Pathfinders is available wherever music is sold, streamed, or stolen. Consider buying directly from blackchai's Bandcamp. Follow blackchai on Instagram (@blackchai19) and Twitter (@blkchai). Follow Illohim on Instagram (@illohimshymns) and Twitter (@illohim). 

My first book, Reel Notes: Culture Writing on the Margins of Music and Movies, is available now, via 4 PM Publishing. Order a digital copy on Amazon.

Reel Notes stands in solidarity with the oppressed peoples of Palestine, Congo, Sudan, Tigray, and Haiti. Please consider donating to the Palestine Children's Relief Fund,  The Palestinian Youth Movement, The Zakat Foundation, HealAfrica, FreeTigray, and/or Hope For Haiti.  For information about contacting your representatives to demand a ceasefire, finding protests, and other tools, check out CeasefireToday!

Follow me on Instagram (@cinemasai), Twitter (@CineMasai_), Bluesky (@cinemasai.bsky.social), TikTok (@cinemasai), Letterboxd (@CineMasai), and subscribe to my weekly Nu Musique Friday newsletter to stay tapped into all things Dylan Green.  

Support the show