Hip-Hop/Rap

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews new rap albums by Me Phi Me, Basehead and Arrested Development, all of which bring a cool, bohemian intensity to the genre.

Greg Tate is an African-American journalist who writes for the Village Voice. Under the guise of writing about a single subject, often a musician or artist, Tate's essays branch out and explore culture, politics and economic issues. He's written about topics as diverse as African musician King Sunny Ade ("ah-DAY"), the crisis of the black intellectual, and the cultural significance of writer Don DeLillo. A collection of his essays is now available. It's called "Flyboy in the Buttermilk: Essays on Contemporary America." (Fireside/Simon & Schuster)

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews the new release by the Beastie Boys, "Check Your Head. (Capitol Records)

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews the hip-hop hits of TLC (their current hit is "Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg" on LaFace Records' "Ooooooohhh...On The TLC Tip") and Kriss Kross ("Jump" on Columbia's "Totally Krossed Out").

Ice-T, the Los Angeles based rap musician.

Rock historian Ed Ward concludes his look at the last four decades of rock with a profile of 1982.

Rock critic Ken Tucker discusses the year in rock music, and he runs down his choice for the top ten records of 1991.

Rapper King Lou (Louis Robinson). He's one half of "The Dream Warriors," a rap duo out of Toronto. Lou and his partner, Capital Q, were both born in the Caribbean, and they bring Caribbean influences to their music. Their latest album is called "And The Legacy Begins." (It's on Island).

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews two current rap acts, Heavy D and the Boyz and 3rd Bass.

Rock and roll historian Ed Ward looks back on the music of 1981 -- a year he says was great for black musicians in particular, including Prince, Rick James, and Grandmaster Flash. British bands like Duran Duran dominated, too.

Rock critic Ken Tucker comments on the success of white rapper Vanilla Ice's debut, To the Extreme, and The Simpsons Sing the Blues, a compilation performed by the voice actors of the popular animated show.

Ken Tucker reviews Monie Love's Down to Earth and Shazzy's Attitude: A Hip Hop Rapsody. Ken says these women provide a solid alternative to the prevailing misogynistic lyrics in contemporary rap and heavy metal.

Village Voice rock critic Robert Christgau has a new guide to the best records of the 80s. He's also a fan of African music and rap, both of which he sees having a strong influence on new American music.

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews two albums representative of the new, technology fueled variation on the classic Jamaican style. He says its accessibility may give reggae the larger audience it deserves.

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews "Banned In the USA" by 2-Live Crew. Their previous album, As Nasty as They Wanna Be, was declared obscene, and they were later arrested for simply performing their music at a concert. Tucker doesn't find much merit in 2-Live Crew' often misogynistic songs, but he vigorously condemns the efforts to criminalize their music.

Davidson's act earned him a spot on the sketch comedy show In Living Color, starring the Wayans brothers. He grew up in Washington, DC and began performing at a topless club. Davidson's comedy special will soon air on the Showtime network.

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews "Fear of a Black Planet," the new album by the rap group Public Enemy.

Writer and critic Nelson George. George is one of this county's most prominent chroniclers of black music. He's the black music editor at Billboard, is a columnist for Playboy, and regularly writes for the Village Voice and Essence. George was the editor of a new book called, "Stop the Violence," a collaboration of today's top rappers working to end black on black violence. George's earlier books include a history of Motown called "Where Did Our Love Go?" and "The Death of Rhythm and Blues."

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews new albums from the rap acts "Jungle Brothers" and "3rd Bass."

Rock historian Ed Ward takes us back to 1980 for the birth of rap music.