Voting Now Opened For 3rd Annual Twin Cities Hip-Hop Awards

Those readers who want to show their appreciation for Twin Cities hip-hop acts--other than buying their records, of course--can do so now over at the MySpace Page for the Twin Cities Hip-Hop Awards, which is entering its third year. Leading the way nominations wise is Muja Messiah, with 8. But if you want to change that, go here. Voting itself ends on Jan. 24th, with the awards on the 29th. Here are the categories:

2009 Categories:
TC Best Knowledge Spitta
TC Best Band
TC Best Hustler
TC Song Of The Year
TC Best Video
TC Mixtape/Compilation Of The Year
TC Album Of The Year
TC Best Latin Rap
TC Best Promotion Team
TC Best Producer
STP Mayor
MPLS Mayor
TC Best Solo Act
TC Best Kept Secret
TC Next Up
TC Most Slept On
TC Best MC
TC Best Group
TC Best Label
TC Best Crew
TC Best R & B
TC Best Live Show
TC 1st Ladies
TC Best DJ
TC Best Hip-Hop "Documentarian"- (Bloggers, Photographers, Magazines, Webzines)
TC Best EP
TC Best Freestyle
TC Best Radio Show

Kristoff Krane Announces Hip-Hop Residency @ The Depot

Saint Paul hip-hopper Kristoff Krane has announced a special residency of shows during the month of January. The residency will take place at The Depot, and will include special guests Big Quarters, Kill The Vultures, and Mike Mictlan, amongst others. Check out the show information at the top of the post.

Mini Hip-Hop Playlist

Hey there neighbors. I'd thought I'd make a little hip-hop playlist of some tracks I've been really into these past few days. First off is a remix of Erykah Badu's "The Healer", featuring Pharaohe Monch, who last year released one of my favorite record of 2007, Desire; next up, shit-hot rappers The Cool Kids with an unreleased Bake Sale track called "Unos". Finally, two local tracks: Dodi Phy's "The Truth", featuring Muja Messiah; and electro-hip-hop act Mux Mool, with a track called "Insecure Drum".

All of these songs are fan-frickin-tastic.

Buy Mux Mool's Drum EP here

Thanks to Nah Right and reader Jon Jon for pointing these out.

Dodi Phy MySpace Page
Mux Mool MySpace Page

(Jonathan Graef)

Minneapolis Hip-Hop News Roundup: Brother Ali, Toki Wright, Muja Messiah, Big Quarters

There's been several little bits of news regarding some of Minneapolis' best hip-hop acts, so I would figured that I'd consolidate them into one big post, as opposed to several little ones. Here's the info:

Brother Ali

MFR-reader favorite Brother Ali has been touring his nuts off since March's "Truth Is Here Tour". Now that festival season is finally upon us, the rapper sure doesn't show any signs of slowing down. This August, Brother Ali will be spitting the truth for Pacific Northwesterners at Seattle's Bumbershoot Festival, an all-day fest which helps promote sustainability. Looks like Ali has got some great company, both in terms of indie and hip-hop: check out the line-up here.

Toki Wright

Mr. Wright keeps plugging away with his "Best Week Ever" series, and the entry for June 20th is as strong as his last installments were. Addressing current events as the R. Kelly verdict, the planned RNC convention, and wiretapping (both in the case of Fiddy and the Supreme Court), Wright delivers another knockout, with adept flow and profound insight. Listen to it here, then check out the Soundset freestyle at the top of the post. More of those here.

Muja Messiah/Big Quarters


(Big Quarters - "August" Feat. Alicia Steele)

Rapper Muja Messiah is so nice, he made the tracklisting of indie music comp Rock The Dub Lighthouse Project 2 tracklisting twice. Also making it were Minneapolis rap duo Big Quarters. Check out the tracklisting here, then watch the video for Big Quarters' "August" jam straight above. The cover album for Lighthouse is down below.



(Jonathan Graef)

Tonight: Hip-Hop For The Homeless At The Triple Rock

Download: Dessa - "Mineshaft"
Download: Heiruspecs - "5ves"
Download: Muja Messiah - "Get Fresh" (ft. Real Spit Rio)
Download: Big Quarters - "Lou Diamond"
Download: M.anifest - "Gentleman"
Download: Sha Cage - "Amber People" (ft. Truthmaze)

Even though it's tempting, even inevitable, for one to complain about the cold weather, at least most of us have a permanent place to stay where we can seek refuge from sub-zero temperatures. However, it goes without saying that there are those who are less fortunate: namely, the homeless. It may be tempting to dismiss the beggars we all see on the streets as being too lazy to work. But the simple matter is that statistics paint a vastly different picture. According to the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, 23 percent of the national homeless population are veterans, the vast majority of whom have received honorable discharges. Additionally, it is estimated that one-third of the nation's 744,000 homeless have untreated psychiatric illnesses.

Most of these statistics concern adults. However, there are also numerous teenagers and young adults who, because of broken homes, have no place to turn to when they are in need of help.

With this information in mind, as well as the demands of modern day society, one might feel overwhelmed and not think that they're able to help those who may need the help. But that's where you'd be wrong. Tonight at the Triple Rock, Radio K is sponsoring Hip Hop For The Homeless, an event hosted by I Self Devine featuring many of the Twin Cities' best, and most socially conscious, hip-hop artists such as Deena, M.anifest, Big Quarters, and Muja Messiah, amongst many others (listen to MP3s of most of the artists involved at the top of the post).

Tickets for the event are $8 in advance, $10 at the door. Doors are 9 p.m. and the show is 18+. Proceeds from the event will go to YouthLink, an organization which is "one of the largest and most experienced nonprofit youth service providers in the Twin Cities."

Buy tickets here.

Dessa MySpace Page
Heiruspecs MySpace Page
Muja Messiah MySpace Page
The Chosen Few MySpace Page
Maria Isa MySpace Page
Big Quarters MySpace Page
M.anifest MySpace Page
Sha Cage MySpace Page

(Jonathan Graef)

The Cool Kids Featured In The Chicago Reader

Download: The Cool Kids - "Mikey Rocks"
Download: The Cool Kids - "Gold and Pagers"
Download: The Cool Kids - "One Two"
Download: Flosstradamus - "Act A Fool"
Download: Flosstradamus - "Overnight Star"
Download: Kid Sister Feat. Kayne West - "Pro Nails"
Download: Kid Sister - "Control"

The Chicago Reader has an article about the burgeoning Chicago Hip-Hop sound which you can read right here. The article mainly focuses on the MySpace success of The Cool Kids, but the article also mentions groups like Flosstradamus and Kid Sister. Definitely check it out, it's a great read.

Speaking of Flosstradamus, here is a video for their remix of Matt and Kim's "Yea Yeah" which was just posted on the Floss's MySpace bulletin:



(Jonathan Graef)

Chicago F'in Rocks: Chicago Rocks

No, I'm not being redundant. This past weekend (6/8 and 6/9) was the 5th annual Chicago Rocks Hip-Hop Festival, with the first night being held at the excellent Abbey Pub and the second night being held at the Metro. The show is a two-day all hip-hop extraveganza, and all of the artists involved are based in Chicago. This year included The Cool Kids, Flosstradamus and Crucial Conflict, amongst others, and years past have included the likes of Rhymefest and All Natural. Below you will find video clips of past performances from the festival. Enjoy!

(Jonathan Graef)



(Immortal Technique, Chicago Rocks 2005)



(Capitol D, from All Natural, Chicago Rocks 2005)



(The Primerdians, Chicago Rocks)



(Rhymefest, Chicago Rocks 2005)