What's The Headline - TopPodcast.com

Latest Episodes:

Andre 3000 Has The Best Verse Of 2021 Sep 13, 2021

Show notes

Andre 3000's has made the best verse of 2021, and one of the finest of his career, and it may never be officially released. We discuss that, Common's new album, and more on episode 61 of AFH's What's The Headline:
0:00 Intro 1:09 Drake has the best first week sales of 2021, with Certified Lover Boy
1:40 Which album between Certified Lover Boy and Kanye West’s Donda will better stand the test of time
11:40 The critical reception for Drake’s Certified Lover Boy has been mixed
13:20 Why Drake dissed Swizz Beatz on Certified Lover Boy’s “You Only Live Twice”
15:00 Was Swizz Beatz upset with Drake for not accepting an offer to battle Kanye West on Verzus
16:54 Who would win Kanye West Verzuz Drake
20:48 The reception to Kanye West’s Donda is becoming more favorable over time
24:10 Kanye West’s “Life Of The Party” featuring Andre 3000 was removed from Donda
27:00 Andre 3000’s “Life Of The Party” performance is the best verse of 2021
28:50 Unpacking Andre 3000’s “Life Of The Party” verse
36:23 Kanye West’s verse on “Life Of The Party” is filled with controversy
41:00 Who between Andre and Kanye caused “Life Of The Party” to be removed from Donda
42:24 Will “Life Of The Party” ever be officially released
47:00 Common re-established his MC roots with one of the year’s best freestyles
52:00 Should artists market their albums before they have been released in the era of streaming
56:30 What is Hip-Hop’s best outlet for freestyles in 2021
1:00:22 Reviewing Common’s new A Beautiful Revolution, Pt. 2 album
1:11:59 Will Common when a Tony award to complete his EGOT
1:13:47 Has Common’s Hip-Hop credibility been diminished over the years
1:19:40 Afrika Bambaataa will face trial for alleged sexual assault
1:29:04 Freddie Gibbs attacks Kendrick Lamar, BET and the Grammy Awards on his "Champagne Poetry" freestyle
1:32:30 Kendrick Lamar has a new verse on Baby Keem’s “range brothers”
1:37:20 AZ has released his Doe Or Die 2 album
1:39:20 Blackalicious’ Gift Of Gab’s posthumous album Finding Inspiration Somehow has been released
1:42:40 New music from Damu The Fudgemunk, Bronze Nazareth, and Wiki

Reviewing Drake’s Certified Lover Boy Sep 07, 2021

Show notes

The battle between Kanye West and Drake has reached a fever pitch, with the release of Drake's Certified Lover Boy less than a week after Kanye's Donda reached DSPs. On this week's episode of Ambrosia For Heads' What's The Headline, we review Drake's CLB and discuss why he may never have a classic album [Note: this episode was recorded prior to the news of Michael K. Williams' passing.

0:00 Intro
0:20 Several of Hip-Hop’s super powers—Kendrick Lamar, Kanye West, Drake and Andre 3000—have been active in the past few weeks
0:56 Kendrick Lamar’s first verse of 2021 was packed with revelations 3:44 Baby Keem’s “family ties” with Kendrick Lamar is the best Hip-Hop video of 2021 so far
6:50 Kendrick Lamar is waving the pgLang flag now
9:00 Kendrick Lamar has declared himself the GOAT MC
10:30 Releasing “family ties” the day when Kanye West’s Donda was supposed to drop was a statement
12:50 Our first impressions of Kanye West’s Donda album
17:30 Should Kanye West’s Donda and Drake’s Certified Lover Boy be considered double albums
19:00 Why both Drake and Kanye released such long albums
24:00 The ongoing war between Kanye West and Drake has escalated in the last few weeks
30:28 The history of Drake and Kanye West’s beef
36:00 Reviewing Drake’s Certified Lover Boy
38:50 Drake has been using the same formula for his last few albums
40:10 Why Drake does not have a classic album
45:20 How Drake could make a series of classic albums
47:50 Drake disses Kanye West throughout Certified Lover Boy
59:00 Drake’s music has a recurring theme of distrusting people in the music industry
1:04:20 The complicated relationship between JAY-Z and Drake
1:08:00 Evaluating JAY-Z’s 2021 guest verses
1:14:50 Drake and Rick Ross reunite on You Only Live Twice, but Lil Wayne steals the show
1:19:40 How Kanye West influenced Drake’s style
1:21:00 Drake teams up with Kid Cudi; Is this another dig at Kanye
1:23:10 Melodic Rap is the most prominent genre on Drake’s Certified Lover Boy
1:28:00 Drake uses his albums to showcase relatively unknown artists
1:29:00 Drake often ends his albums with autobiographical records
1:31:45 Does Drake care about critical acclaim and making a classic album
1:36:13 Where Drake’s Certified Lover Boy ranks in his catalog
1:39:10 Which album is better, Certified Lover Boy or Donda
1:41:48 Why Kanye West does not rap as much anymore on his albums
1:43:14 AFH rates Certified Lover Boy and Donda on a scale of 1 to 10
1:44:22 Andre 3000 is unknowingly dragged into the beef between Drake and Kanye West
1:53:10 Does this beef benefit either Drake or Kanye West
1:55:00 New music of the week from Gorilla Nems, J-Tek, Saigon & Benny The Butcher, Kota The Friend, Blackalicious' Gift Of Gab and more.

Kendrick Lamar Is Leaving Top Dawg Entertainment Aug 23, 2021

Show notes

Kendrick Lamar has announced that his next album will be his final one for Top Dawg Entertainment, the label he has been on for his entire career. Although both Kendrick and TDE will have success in the future, it is the end of a magnificent era. On this week's What's The Headline, we provide a celebratory timeline of how TDE became the greatest Rap label of the 2010s.

Blu & Mickey Factz Discuss Their New Narrative EP With Nottz Aug 17, 2021

Show notes

Blu and Mickey Factz join episode 58 of AFH's What's The Headline to discuss their new Nottz-produced EP The Narrative, Mickey's battle with Royce 5'9, their 2009 XXL Freshman cover, Below The Heavens and more:
0:00 Intro
1:59 Blu & Mickey Factz have an EP produced by Nottz called The Narrative
2:35 Why Blu and Mickey decided to do a project together
4:40 Mickey Factz’s father was a rapper in 1983
7:00 How Blu’s family influenced his pursuit of music
7:50 Mickey breaks down how he and Blu put The Narrative together
9:53 Blu and Mickey Factz speak about negative encounters they’ve had with the police
13:30 Mickey speaks about performing in front of Kool Herc’s building where Hip-Hop was born
18:48 Blu speaks about his earliest Hip-Hop influences
19:36 Mickey Factz and Blu discuss how their record labels folding changed their careers
25:24 The impact being 2009 XXL Freshmen had on them
27:56 Blu and Mickey Factz name the rising MCs they believe are shining today
29:24 Blu recalls rocking a show once after the power went out
30:01 Mickey Factz discusses the reaction to his WRAITH record dissing Royce 5’9
33:31 How Mickey got pulled into the war of words between Royce 5’9 and Lupe Fiasco
34:36 Mickey Factz confirms the boxes he checked with WRAITH
35:29 Blu gives his opinion of the diss records by Royce, Lupe and Mickey
36:16 Mickey explains why he impersonated RJ Payne and Ransom on WRAITH
37:44 Mickey discusses the impact this battle has had on Hip-Hop culture
39:26 Nottz’s role in making The Narrative with Blu and Mickey
40:38 Decoding the artwork for The Narrative
41:16 Blu speaks about his work as a producer
42:56 Mickey Factz details how he found the beat for WRAITH
45:00 Why Blu and Mickey decided to have Nottz be the only producer on The Narrative
46:20 Blu breaks down some of his heaviest bars on the project
48:46 Mickey discusses leaving his job at a law firm to pursue music full-time
52:56 Blu and Mickey reveal their hidden talents
55:26 Blu and Mickey discuss how death shapes the way we live
57:16 Mickey Factz explains the strategy he used in his IG Live discussion with Royce 5’9
58:51 Mickey would have released a different record if his conversation with Royce on IG had gone differently
1:00:56 Blu discusses making Johnson & Jonson
1:03:26 What’s next for Mickey Factz and Blu

Reviewing Nas' King’s Disease 2 Song By Song Aug 09, 2021

Show notes

On the latest episode of AFH's What's The Headline, we review Nas' King's Disease 2 album song by song, and rank it in his catalog:
0:00 Intro
2:05 The Hip-Hop community is still buzzing about The LOX Verzuz Dipset
5:10 Kanye West’s second listening party for DONDA included new music featuring The LOX, Griselda and Jay Electronica
16:30 Nas owned the weekend in Hip-Hop with the release of his King’s Disease II album
18:00 Overall reactions to Nas King’s Disease 2 album
21:30 Comparing Nas’ King’s Disease II and Life Is Good albums
24:55 Is the King’s Disease series Nas’ best 1-2 album punch since Stillmatic and God’s Son?
29:30 Nas released King’s Disease II with no hype and let the music speak for itself
30:43 Nas and Hit-Boy have found a special chemistry. What other great MC/producer combos have arisen later in their careers?
36:53 Nas is in the second prime of his career. What other MCs have done this?
40:12 Nas is unafraid to have guest verses from MCs that might outshine his verse
42:30 Reviewing Nas’ King’s Disease II song by song
42:40 “The Pressure” sets the tone for the entire album
49:23 Nas gives a masterful history lesson about his relationship with Tupac on “Death Row East”
57:46 “40 Side” is the weak link on King’s Disease 2
1:00:04 Nas, EPMD and Eminem all shine on “EPMD 2”
1:03:20 Is Eminem’s verse on this song getting the respect it deserves? 1:06:40 Eminem names his list of great MCs on “EPMD 2” and includes Drake but not Kendrick Lamar
1:11:46 “Rare” is a sleeper cut on Nas’ King’s Disease II
1:13:35 “YKTV” may be the most polarizing song on King’s Disease II
1:16:46 “Store Run” is the most “traditional” Nas song on King’s Disease II
1:19:30 Nas showcases his incredible wisdom on “Moments”
1:26:00 “Nobody” featuring Lauryn Hill is the best Rap song of the year, so far
1:29:40 Lauryn Hill’s verse reminds that she is one of Hip-Hop’s greatest MCs
1:32:30 Lauryn Hill is the perfect guest for a song about the serenity of anonymity
1:38:20 Nas details a failed relationship on “No Phony Love”
1:40:40 “Brunch On Sundays” and “Count Me In” are 2 of the least memorable songs on King’s Disease II. Would the album have been better without them?
1:44:15 Hit-Boy shows he is a legitimate producer/MC double threat on “Composure”
1:45:54 “My Bible” is Nas at his finest over production that is reminiscent of another legendary producer
1:48:55 “Nas Is Good” is the “cool down” for King’s Disease II
1:50:38 Which is better, King’s Disease or King’s Disease II?
1:51:24 Where does King’s Disease II rank in Nas’ catalog?
1:53:23 How does King’s Disease 2 fare in the race for best Rap album of 2021?
1:55:00 Discussing new music from Pink Siifu, The Black Soprano Family, G Perico, Tanya Morgan, and Flying Lotus.

Scoring The LOX Verzuz Dipset Round By Round Aug 04, 2021

Show notes

On this week's episode of AFH's What's The Headline, we score the supremely entertaining LOX Verzuz Dipset battle and recap all the trash talk, round by round. This was by far the most lively Verzuz yet, and, at times it seemed the trash talking was going too far. In the end, it was New York Hip-Hop at its finest and most ferocious:
0:00 Intro
4:00 Key themes from The LOX verzuz Dipset
7:20 Which group was the favorite going into the battle
10:30 Do The LOX and Dipset represent the same era of Hip-Hop
14:45 How Verzuz has evolved since it launched in 2020
16:20 Round 1: The LOX - “F*CK YOU” vs. Dipset - I’m Ready”
20:50 Round 2: The LOX - “Banned From TV” vs. Dipset - “Crunk Muzik”
22:30 Round 3: The LOX - “Ni**az Done Started Something” vs. “Touch It Or Not”
23:58 Round 4: The LOX - “Mighty D-Block (2 Guns Up)” vs. Dipset’s “Santana’s Town”
27:00 Round 5: The LOX - “Who Shot Ya” vs. “Get Em Girls” + “Live My Life”
29:13 Round 6: The LOX - “Reservoir Dogs” + “Blood Pressure” vs. Dipset - “357” + “Just Fire (The Roc)”
31:52 Round 7: The LOX - “24 Hours To Live” vs. Dipset - “G’s Up” + “Byrd Gang Money” + “Purple City Byrd Gang”
36:00 Round 8: The LOX - “Next Level Clue Freestyle” vs. Dipset - “Bout It, Bout It 2”
39:12 Round 9: The LOX - “Dope Money” vs. Dipset - “Welcome To New York City?”
42:40 Round 10: The LOX - “New York” vs. “Certified Gangstas”
45:25 Round 11: The LOX - No Ideas Original Freestyle” vs. Dipset - “We Fly High (Ballin’)”
48:17 Round 12: The LOX - “All About The Benjamins” vs. Dipset - “Dipset Anthem”
50:00 Round 13: The LOX - “Wild Out” vs. Dipset - “Killa Cam”
51:55 Round 14: The LOX - “Kiss Your Ass Goodye (Remix)” vs. Dipset - “Salute (Remix)”vs. “848”
53:39 Round 15: The LOX - “Felony Ni**az” vs. Dipset - “Oh Boy” + “Hey Ma”
56:55 Round 16: The LOX - “Ride Or Die Chick” + “Honey (Remix) + “Jenny From The Block” + “No More Drama (Remix)” + “Good Love” +“Knock Yourself Out” vs. Dipset - “Summer Wit Mami”
59:45 Round 17: The LOX - “Good Times (I Get High)” vs. Dipset - “SANTANA”
1:00:33 Round 18: The LOX - “All For The Love” + “Ruff Ryders Anthem (Remix)” + “Get At me Dog” + “Last Day” vs. Dipset - “Down”
1:01:40 Round 19: The LOX - “Money Power Respect” + “By Your Side” + “Come Thru” + “Put Ya Hands Up” + “Blackout” + “We Gonna Make It” vs. Dipset - “I Really Mean It”
1:04:50 And the winner is…
1:06:24 What to expect from The LOX x Dipset tour

Inside The Battle Between Royce 5’9 & Lupe Fiasco Jul 26, 2021

Show notes

Episode 55 of AFH's What's The Headline podcast unpacks the evolution of the discord between Lupe Fiasco and Royce 5'9:
0:00 Intro
0:58 Kanye West faked us out again by not releasing his Donda album
1:50 Hip-Hop has its first major beef since 2019 3:46 Is the disagreement between Royce 5’9 and Lupe Fiasco real or staged
7:25 How did Royce and Lupe go from hosting a podcast together to dissing each other on records
10:20 A detailed timeline of how fun and games between Lupe and Royce turned into personal insults
10:28 June 25 - Royce posts about Lupe on his IG and the two have a testy debate on IG live
15:30 Lupe starts to clean his gun during their discussion
19:05 July 15 - Royce and Lupe escalate during a conversation with Young Guru & Mickey Factz
21:06 Royce calls Lupe a b…..
22:40 July 15 - Lupe does a 15+ minute freestyle on IG live about Royce
26:39 July 15 - Royce goes back on IG and says Lupe may be “taking advantage of their friendship”
28:50 July 16 - Lupe says he and Royce have had tension for months
32:20 July 21 - Royce releases “Silence Of The Lambda” dissing Lupe; less than 24 hours later, Lupe releases “Steve Jobs: SLR 3 1/2” in response
32:50 Breaking down the 2 diss records; 1 got really personal
42:20 July 22 - Royce tweets he will not attack Lupe personally
42:50 July 22 - Royce and Mickey Factz verbally spar for more than an hour; Joe Budden joins
51:10 Will Mickey Factz release a record dissing Royce
58:25 July 23 - Lupe says his podcast with Royce is over
1:00:00 Will this battle continue
1:01:50 Was it appropriate for either Royce or Lupe to mention Biz Markie on their diss records
1:04:50 More on Kanye’s delay and The LOX verzuz Dipset, and talking new music by Page Kennedy and Rasheed Chappell

Kurupt Details The HRSMN Album & Death Row Songs That Began As Freestyles Jul 13, 2021

Show notes

After 20 years, the HRSMN—Ras Kass, Canibus, Killah Priest and Kurupt—have released their long-awaited The Last Ride album. Kurupt joins AFH's What's The Headline to discuss the making of the project, his Death Row Records history, battle rapping and more:
0:00 Intro
1:15 How the HRSMN (Ras Kass, Canibus, Killah Priest and Kurupt) were formed
3:30 What each Horseman represents
5:30 Why Kurupt decided to join the super group
7:14 How they were able to complete the album after 20 years of setbacks
11:25 How The Last Ride album by the HRSMN was created using new and older material
14:30 The HRSMN’s desire to make their album a reality for the fans
17:20 The knowledge Kurupt got from Snoop Dogg, Daz Dillinger, Dr. Dre, Suge Knight and more
21:50 What inspired him on “Believer”
23:45 Kurupt on which classic Death Row songs that were freestyles
26:50 Kurupt on a HRSMN battle with Black Hippy, Slaughterhouse or four members of Wu-Tang Clan
28:38 Kurupt’s history with battle rapping
32:00 Kurupt’s favorite battle rappers 33:50 HRSMN rapping over Pat Benatar music
36:23 Rapping on Snoop’s “Doggy Dogg World”
36:50 Ricky Harris’ impact on Kurupt, Daz and Snoop
38:50 The MC who brought the fun to HRSMN’s The Last Ride album
40:00 How it feels to finally release the HRSMN album
41:17 The new projects Kurupt will be releasing soon, including a new album from Tha Dogg Pound

Biz Markie Is Much More Than Just A Friend To Hip-Hop Jul 06, 2021

Show notes

On episode 53 of AFH's What's The Headline, we discuss the incredible career of Biz Markie, JAY-Z's lawsuit against Jonathan Mannion, the potential Rap battle between Conway The Machine and Jim Jones, and more:
0:00 Intro
6:34 False reports of Biz Markie’s death were published recently
9:33 The responsibility and care that comes with covering celebrity deaths 15:10 Celebrating the incredible career of Biz Markie
20:10 Remembering Blackalicious’ Gift Of Gab who passed away on June 18, 2021
25:28 JAY-Z is suing Hip-Hop photographer Jonathan Mannion who shot the Reasonable Doubt album cover
26:55 The lawsuit could forever change the law regarding who owns the copyright in celebrity photos
39:32 JAY-Z has bought part of a company valued at more than $500 million
45:46 Logic makes his return to Hip-Hop
48:10 Snoop Dogg is now a creative consultant for Def Jam Records
50:37 De La Soul’s Stakes Is High, Nas’ It Was Written, and JAY-Z’s Reasonable Doubt turn 25 years old
52:56 Jim Jones and Conway The Machine want to have an old-fashioned Rap battle
1:00:14 New music from Evidence, Tyler, The Creator, The Roots, Kay Slay and more

Evidence Discusses Unlearning His Musical Process For The New Album Jun 29, 2021

Show notes

Evidence has released his album Unlearning, Vol. 1 and it's a masterpiece. He explains how he unlearned everything about making music to create some of the best work of his career:

0:00 Intro

1:36 Evidence on deciding to share the process of working through the loss of his son’s mother on Unlearning, Vol. 1
3:06 Evidence discusses unlearning his old ways of making music in order to create something new
5:20 How music has changed since Evidence released Weather Or Not
7:38 The changes Evidence made in his approach making Unlearning, Vol. 1
9:20 How Evidence stays true to himself when collaborating with other artists
13:14 How spending Summers in Brooklyn shaped him
14:49 Evidence explains the meaning of the cover artwork for Unlearning, Vol. 1
16:40 Wanting the album to be one track and making it sound like how he performs
18:27 Evidence breaks down his process for making albums
20:00 The impact DJ Premier had on his ear for production
23:37 Having to start over in his career when he went solo after a Dilated Peoples run
26:36 Evidence on his admiration for Sean Price
28:20 How Evidence finds the courage to put his most personal life experiences in his music
31:13 How his son has inspired him to keep going
32:13 What Evidence values more than money
35:00 Things outside of music that inspire Evidence to create
37:39 What it felt like to work with DJ Premier in D&D Studios
39:20 Why he writes his rhymes in the morning
40:10 How Evidence balances being an artist and a single parent
41:50 His plans to start touring again

Press photograph by Stephen Vanasco by Rhymesayers Entertainment

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

What’s The Headline

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected