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How Biggie Went From Ashy To Classy: By People Who Styled Him Feb 28, 2023

Show notes

Biggie Smalls was the illest…Big had a top-notch flow, a booming voice, and lyrics drenched in authenticity and humor. The all-time great MC born Christopher Wallace said it was all a dream, and then he took us on a ride from his time as a stressed-out kid in the streets of Bed-Stuy…to when he made that dream a reality by becoming one of the biggest stars on the planet. And he did it all through sheer force of will and talent.

As metamorphic as Big’s life was, his iconic style shape-shifted too. Heads watched Biggie’s fashion transformation play out in real time. In five short years, The Notorious B.I.G. went from wearing bandanas and t-shirts to rocking tailored suits and silk shirts. As Biggie himself said on “Sky’s The Limit,” his style went from “ashy to classy…” And, it turns out, that was by design.

Behind the music videos, the Source magazine covers, and the unforgettable red carpet looks were two people who helped transform Biggie Smalls into Big Poppa. One husband and wife team helped turn a man who described himself as “far from handsome”... and who sewed fake logos on his clothes as a kid…into an international sex symbol whose fashion influence was generational. This is the story of how those two people helped take Biggie from ashy to classy.

Remembering The Life & Legacy Of Dave From De La Soul Feb 20, 2023

Show notes

On this week's episode of Ambrosia For Heads' What's The Headline, we discuss the life and legacy of Dave from De La Soul. We also talk about Billboard's recent list ranking the top 50 rappers of all-time, debate whether Drake has surpassed Lil Wayne, and more. We also breakdown the sale of Quality Control, Pharrell's new position at Louis Vuitton and more.

0:00 Intro
3:48 Remembering the life and legacy of Dave from De La Soul
8:50 What De La Soul has meant to us as fans of Hip-Hop
14:54 How De La Soul was different than any other Rap artist
20:50 Is it possible for De La Soul to continue without Dave
23:55 Celebrating Dave as an individual
31:20 Our personal interactions with De La Soul
36:08 Dave spoke about his health problems before his passing
41:14 Our favorite Dave verses
44:28 Billboard and VIBE published a joint list naming the 50 greatest MCs of all-time
47:43 Has Drake surpassed Lil Wayne
57:20 Should Drake be #2 on the list
1:03:54 The most questionable rankings on the list
1:09:48 Do these lists do more harm than good
1:13:50 The biggest omissions from the list
1:23:00 The Quality Control record label was sold for $300MM
1:26:50 Black-owned record companies have been undervalued historically
1:33:10 Pharrell Williams has been named the Creative Director of Menswear for Louis Vuitton
1:38:31 The New York Times refers to Pharrell as “the American rapper and producer”
1:45:49 50 Cent has signed a development deal with FOX

The Highs & The Lows Of The 2023 Grammy Awards Feb 06, 2023

Show notes

On this week's episode of Ambrosia For Heads' What's The Headline, we breakdown the highs and the lows of the 2023 Grammy Awards, with deep dives on the year's biggest surprises, best performances and the most important Hip-Hop moments.
0:00 Intro
5:08 The lead up to the 2023 Grammy Awards
13:40 Slick Rick is honored with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award
15:36 The Roc Nation Brunch experience
17:30 A famous star mistakes Reggie for Stevie J
19:04 Grammy party gift bags
21:50 How Will Smith’s slap changed comedian behavior at live events
24:30 Were Kendrick Lamar and Beyoncé sending messages by being late to the show
28:00 Is Kendrick Lamar preparing to release a new album
31:20 Why did JAY-Z and Beyoncé come back to the Grammys after years of absence
33:35 Quavo’s in memoriam tribute to Takeoff
35:30 Beyoncé is now the artist with the most Grammys
37:00 Most surprising Grammy wins of 2023
46:00 Chris Brown throws shade toward Robert Glasper for Glasper’s win
50:50 Kendrick Lamar dominated the Rap categories
53:00 Stevie Wonder performs in honor of Berry Gordy and Smokey Robinson
1:00:15 Did the performance of DJ Khaled’s “GOD DID” ft Rick Ross, Lil Wayne and JAY-Z live up to expectations
1:08:52 The Questlove curated Hip-Hop 50 tribute featured 5 decades of Rap legends
1:12:30 The 17-song playlist was mind-blowing and truly for Hip-Hop heads
1:15:30 The Grammy Awards finally gave Hip-Hop its proper respect
1:22:20 Songs of the Week

Black Sheep Is Suing Universal Music For $750 Million Jan 17, 2023

Show notes

On this episode of Ambrosia For Heads' What's The Headline, we discuss De La Soul's announcement that music they recorded for Tommy Boy is coming to streaming services, as well as Black Sheep's lawsuit against Universal Music Group for $750 million. We also talk about Dr. Dre's impending sale of his music catalog, as well as new music from Skyzoo and Dr. Dre.
0:00 Intro
2:56 RIP Gangsta Boo
3:56 De La Soul’s music is coming to streaming services after years of battling
6:48 A timeline of De La Soul’s history with Tommy Boy Records
19:20 The legal barriers to putting De La Soul’s music on streaming services
24:00 Part of De La Soul’s older music has been re-recorded
29:20 Why having music on YouTube is not enough
37:00 Black Sheep is suing Universal Music Group for $750 million
45:20 If Black Sheep wins it will fundamentally change the music business
51:00 Dr. Dre is selling part of his music catalog for $200 million
1:00:40 RIP Laylaw
1:01:50 Boldy James is recovering from a very serious car crash
1:03:05 Slick Rick is getting a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award
1:06:18 Skyzoo has released an album The Mind Of A Saint rapped from the perspective of Snowfall’s Franklin Saint
1:11:07 Black Thought is releasing a new album with El Michels Affair

The Best Rap & Hip-Hop Albums Of 2022 Dec 20, 2022

Show notes

On the final episode of the year for AFH's What's The Headline, we run down Ambrosia For Heads' 15 Best Rap Albums of 2022, and discuss why each one made the list. 0:00 Intro 3:40 Our process for reviewing albums for this list 7:00 Key trends in Hip-Hop in 2022 13:20 Why we don’t rank our year end list 16:00 The 15 best Rap albums of 2022 (in no particular order) 16:12 Black Thought & Danger Mouse - Cheat Codes 20:36 Joey Bada$$ - 2000 26:55 Lupe Fiasco - DRILL MUSIC IN ZION 32:28 Black Star - No Fear Of Time 39:14 Ab-Soul - HERBERT 46:32 Roc Marciano & The Alchemist - The Elephant Man’s Bones 50:05 Open Mike Eagle - Component System With Auto Reverse 55:50 JID - The Forever Story 1:00:47 Elzhi & Georgia Anne Muldrow - Zhigeist 1:05:16 Apollo Brown & Philmore Greene - Cost Of Living 1:08:02 Nas & Hit-Boy - King’s Disease III 1:12:44 Denzel Curry - Melt My Eyez See Your Future 1:16:53 Cormega - The Realness II 1:21:26 Pusha-T - It’s Almost Dry 1:25:32 Kendrick Lamar - Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers 1:30:40 Our personal picks for Rap song of the year

The 10 Best Rap Verses Of 2022 Nov 30, 2022

Show notes

On this episode of Ambrosia For Heads' What's The Headline, we discuss the best Rap verses of 2022 and which ones made our top 10. Check Spotify or the site to follow along with a playlist on our page.
0:00 Intro
5:40 The criteria for what makes a great verse
9:30 14 verses are contending for the 10 best verses of 2022
10:30 JAY-Z - “GOD DID”
19:00 J.I.D. - “Crack Sandwich”
24:10 Kendrick Lamar - “Mother I Sober”
28:08 J. Cole - “Johnny P’s Caddy”
34:11 Lupe Fiasco “On Faux Nem”
38:30 Kendrick Lamar - “The Heart, Pt. 5”
43:52 Drake - “Middle Of The Ocean”
50:33 Black Thought - “No Gold Teeth”
53:48 Conway The Machine - “Stressed”
57:26 Remy Ma - “Remy Rap”
1:01:47 Symba - “GOAT”
1:05:05 Coast Contra - “Never Freestyle”
1:08:51 Joey Bada$$ - “Head High”
1:12:59 Elzhi - “King Sh!t (Say Word)”
1:17:00 Honorable mention: Coast Contra - “Scenario Freestyle”
1:20:14 The 10 Best Rap Verses of 2022

Reviewing Nas & Hit-Boy's King's Disease III, Song By Song Nov 16, 2022

Show notes

Nas has released King's Disease III, the third in his series of KD albums produced entirely by Hit-Boy. In this episode of Ambrosia For Heads' What's The Headline podcast, we review the album song by song and rate it on a scale of 1 to 10. We also rank the albums in the King's Disease series.
0:00 Intro
1:55 The problem with hot take reviews
7:15 Attending the release party for Nas’ King’s Disease III
11:45 Reviewing Nas’ King’s Disease III song by song
11:48 “Ghetto Reporter”
14:54 Hit-Boy has Nas sounding like he’s in his prime in his 40s
27:30 21 Savage recently said Nas was not relevant
32:01 “Legit”
35:30 “Thun”
39:42 “Michael & Quincy”
43:30 What producer should Nas work with next
47:26 “30”
51:10 “Hood2Hood”
53:57 “Recession Proof”
55:30 “Reminisce”
56:11 What are Nas’ 7 best albums
1:00:50 “Serious Interlude”
1:02:47 “I’m On Fire”
1:04:08 “WTF SMH”
1:05:41 “Once a Man, Twice a Child”
1:10:17 “Get Light”
1:11:06 “First Time”
1:14:20 “Beef”
1:16:17 “Don’t Shoot”
1:18:05 “Till My Last Breath”
1:21:34 How we rate Nas’ King’s Disease III album on a scale of 1 - 10
1:22:55 Ranking the album in the King’s Disease series

The 2023 Grammy Rap Nominations, Predictions, and Snubs Nov 16, 2022

Show notes

The nominations for the 2023 Grammy Awards are in, and they are not without controversy. Some of Rap's best artists have been snubbed, and the stage is set for an epic clash of the titans between JAY-Z and Kendrick Lamar. On this episode of Ambrosia For Heads' What's The Headline, we break down each of the categories featuring Rap artists, assessing the nominations, discussing the snubs, suggesting who should win and predicting who the eventual winner will be.

0:00 Intro
3:57 Best Rap Performance
6:38 Was “The Heart Pt. 5” Kendrick Lamar’s best song this year
19:52 Who will win the night between Kendrick Lamar and JAY-Z
24:34 Best Melodic Rap Performance
28:40 Best Rap Song
34:40 If "GOD DID" were to win, should this count as a first Rick Ross Grammy
36:05 Song Of The Year
41:20 Kendrick Lamar and JAY-Z are competing in four categories. There is a lot of history and a Grammy rivalry here
42:40 Could Kendrick Lamar’s The Heart Part 5 take Music Video Of The Year
44:10 What’s the difference between Record Of The Year and Song Of The Year
45:00 Record The Year
46:40 Song Of The Year
48:00 Album Of The Year
52:20 Will Kendrick Lamar attend the Grammy Awards this time
53:25 Best Rap Album nominations
54:40 Does Kanye West’s role in Pusha-T’s It’s Almost Dry album make it a Grammy liability
55:00 Predicted winner of Best Rap Album
57:00 Joey Bada$$’s 2000, Black Star’s No Fear Of Time, JID’s The Forever Story were snubbed by the Grammys
59:05 Tobe Nwigwe, Freestyle Fellowship, Questlove, Boi-1da, DJ Dahi, Robert Glasper, Terrace Martin, Dave Chappelle, and others received noteworthy nominations
1:05:50 Song Of The Week from a Grammy-nominated project

The History Of Violence In Hip-Hop: 6 Years Changed Everything Nov 07, 2022

Show notes

Last week's death of Takeoff from the Migos marks more than 60 Rap artists who have been lost to gun violence. The latest episode of AFH's What's The Headline examines the history and evolution of violence in Rap music. The conversation, which draws from actual statistics, also looks at why 1987 - 1993 marks a turning point in the musical content and imagery that is very much still driving the consumption of Rap music.
0:00-2:00 intro - More than 60 rappers have died from gun violence
2:01 - 6:10 - AFH’s coverage of Migos and our personal relationships to the music
6:11 - 9:30 - There is a history and evolution of violence in Rap music. This is not preaching, but analysis and commentary from two Hip-Hop Heads
9:31 - 12:30 - Rap music has always possessed the power to influence in many ways
12:31 - 17:30 - Violence is one of the ways that Rap music can influence. Trick-Trick makes the point that music can put a spell on the listener
17:31 - 21:40 - There was a time in recorded Rap music where violence themes were barely existent
21:41 - 25:50 - Boogie Down Productions, Schoolly D, Ice-T, and N.W.A. changed things substantially, especially by 1987
25:51 - 29:30 - Shortly after BDP releases “9MM Goes Bang,” Scott La Rock is killed. It is also their most-streamed song on Spotify
29:31 - 36:30 - N.W.A.’s Straight Outta Compton began a time when violence in Rap music went from being the exception to the norm. That coincides with the crack epidemic
36:31 - 40:00 - The Geto Boys’ “Mind Of A Lunatic” took violence in Rap music to that other level
40:01 - 45:50 - N.W.A. raises the stakes again with Efil4zaggin and that album goes to #1 on the pop charts
45:50 - 47:59 This trend continues with Dr. Dre’s The Chronic, a critically-acclaimed, commercially successful, radio-embraced albums
48:00 - 49:50 In a five-year span Rap music has gone from barely cursing to glorifying violence and misogyny
49:51 - 53:10 - Art imitates life with Snoop Dogg, the death of Philip Woldemariam, and Murder Was The Case
53:11 - 58:30 - The mid-‘90s emergence of Horrorcore and a whole movement built are violence and death
58:31 - 1:01:40 - The movement continues, into Tupac, Drill music, and beyond. People are addressing real violence in the music
1:01:41 - 1:09:00 - Some powerful statistics about murders in America, and the relationship those figures have to what is happening in the lyrics
1:09:01 - 1:16:00 - A history of anti-violence Rap songs involving KRS-One and H.E.A.L., We’re All In The Same Gang, Heather B, Organized Konfusion, Black Star, Gang Starr, Kendrick Lamar, Main Source, and more
1:16:00 - 1:19:00 - Beyond Rap music, there is an increasing prominence of violence in film, television, and video games
1:19:00 - 1:21:00 - Some powerful statistics about the murder rates and gun homicides of Black Americans versus white Americans
1:21:01 - 1:29:00 - What is the role that we, as Heads, and AFH play in this carnage?
1:29:00 - 1:33:00 - What role do record labels and digital streaming platforms play in this?
1:33:01 - 1:36:10 - Is art really imitating life for some Rap artists?
1:36:11 - 1:40:20 - What can society do to be better with our appetite for destruction?
1:40:21 - Song of the weeks from Heather B and Ab-Soul featuring Zacari

The Game Says Dr. Dre Has Never Produced A Song For Him Oct 11, 2022

Show notes

0:00 Intro
3:00 Coolio’s Rap legacy
9:20 Do people think of Coolio as an LA artist?
11:15 The Game names his top 5 LA Rap albums
13:20 What are the top 5 Rap albums of all-time?
29:00 How 50 Cent clowned Ja Rule for making pop records, while making pop records
32:20 The Game says Dr. Dre has never produced a song for him
39:28 Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre are releasing a new album in November
46:30 Why was there a two-year delay between the video shoot for Kendrick Lamar’s "N95" and the release of his Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers album?
49:24 Kanye West’s self-destruction should no be televised
1:05:28 The Virgil Abloh exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum is a great tribute to him
1:07:38 Roc Marciano & The Alchemist put on a show for a star-studded audience in Brooklyn
1:11:18 New music from Open Mike Eagle, Cormega, Freddie Gibbs, Kid Cudi, YG, Rome Streetz, and more

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