Ill Street Grooves

On a cool spring night in the nation's capital the crew from Ill Street was visited by our good friend Munch (from Groove Gumbo), who slid by to rap about the upcoming Def Jam 25 Year Anniversary Celebration on Saturday, May 12th @ the Historic Lincoln Theatre in DC.  Joining in on the conversation were the lovely and talented Maimouna Youssef, and our big brother Asheru.  Plus, our good friend Sub Z hit us up with some info about some upcoming shows with his band Theo Bleu, as well as his martial arts training and fitness classes that he currently teaches.  

Be sure to tune in next week (5/7/12) for a special interview with some of the artists and label heads from Def Jam Records! 

Not only is Ill Street Grooves known to be on point with music, artists and culture.....but with food too!  The owners (and brothers) from Inspire BBQ located in the Atlas District of DC stopped by to drop some knowledge about the importance of community and empowerment, drop some opportunity offers for local area youth, and drop off some food for the crew to sample and enjoy (words can't describe how damn good it tasted).  Plus, our sister Triple Threat sat in to further discuss the book Koontown Killing Kaper and her roll in producing the highly-acclaimed soundtrack.  And to kick things off, comedian, actress and impersonator Sylvia Traymore stopped by to giveaway tickets to her upcoming show at the Riot Act in DC. Holding things down on the 1's and 2's was DJ RBI.  

On the eve of the opening of the historic Howard Theatre in Washington, DC the crew from Ill Street decided to pay their own tribute to more contemporary DC/MD/VA artists, both past and present, who have stayed true to their art despite their level of notoriety, monetary success or current trends by others.  One such artist from the area, Mello D (from Mello D & The Rados), joined us in the studio to rap with us about staying true to his art, how a strong legacy of music from the DC has influenced his work, and the great amount of success he's been able to achieve as an independent artist.  Plus, DJ 2-Tone Jones was on the decks pulling out gems by local artists from the past 10 years.    

Due to the overwhelming response of the fans (and gracious humility of our guests), we here on Ill Street extended our 3-part Hieroglyphics Crew dedication series to a 4th WEEK!  The homie Tajai (from Souls of Mischief) called back in along with one of his partners in rhyme, Phesto Dee.  They spoke about their move to become independent artists and what drove that decision, their mission behind the Hiero Imperium Record label, and new releases from the crew.  Before and after the interview DJ RBI mixed together an ill set featuring some of the most recent bangers from the Hiero Crew! 

Ill street returns with the third installment of our Hieroglyphics Crew series.  This episode features interviews with the mighty Tajai (from Souls of Mischief) and super lyricist Casual.  Both of them spoke with us about the crew's departure from Jive records, the influences the crew had on and recieved from Oakland culture, and the story behind the legendary battle between Hiero and the Hobo Junction w/Saafir.  And as always DJ's RBI and 2-Tone Jones laced the airwaves with classic cuts from the crew's catalog around the time they went independent. 

The crew from Ill Street is pleased to present a 3-part series dedicated to one of the illest, groundbreaking crews ever in Hip-Hop, the Hieroglyphics Crew.  At a time when Hip-Hop was depicted by the infectious boom-bap originating from the streets of New York and controversial/"in your face" content pouring out of the west coast, the Hieroglyphics helped lead the way of breaking the mold and coming out with a more humble, yet artistic approach to the genre.  On part 1 of our series we had A-Plus (from Souls of Mischief) call in to break down the origins of the crew and how they perceive their role in the overall leniage of Hip-Hop.  Plus, DJ's RBI & 2-Tone Jones trade off on the turntables with a collection of gems from the earlier part of the Hiero catalog.

This episode of Ill Street is part 2 of our 3-part series dedicated to the one and only Hieroglyphics Crew from Cali.  Once again we had the pleasure of rappin' with A-Plus (from the Souls of Mischief) about how the crew got put on, who some of their influences were coming from Oakland, the reason why they eventually got let go from Jive Records, rumors behind a beef with KRS-One, and more!  And as usual DJ's RBI & 2-Tone Jones served up some rare and classic joints on the 1's and 2's from the crew's extensive catalog.

Be sure to tune in next week as we talk with members from Hiero about their legendary battle against Saafir and the Hobo Junction!   

Ill Stret Grooves had the honor of having Sir Scratch, founding member of the highly acclaimed '90s Hip-Hop group Main Source, come on the show.  Not only did he talk about his Canadian roots and shed light on many of his production credits over the years with artists like Madonna, Micheal Jackson, Seal and more; but he also set the record straight about Main Source and everyone's role in the group.  On the 1's and 2's DJ 2-Tone Jones served up a set dedicated to Toronto Hip-Hop and the many artists who've represented from that area over the years.  

On Halloween night the crew from Ill Street whipped up a basket full of horror-filled Hip-Hop to help set the mood.  DJ's RBI & 2-Tone Jones traded off on the 1's and 2's to set things off just right!

The infamous duo from Queensbridge, Mobb Deep, came to DC to perform during Howard University Homecoming weekend.  But before they did the crew from Ill Street got a chance to rap with Prodigy on air about what they've been working on, their influences and they're take on the current state of Hip-Hop.  Plus, DMV's finest MC, Pro'Verb, joined us to talk about the release of his debut project entitled While You're Waiting.  And on the 1's and 2's was DJ 2-Tone Jones providing a mix of classic joints featuring the infamous Mobb Deep, Pro'Verb, Lyriciss and Ra the MC.

Alot of interesting things are brewing in the DC area, and as always the crew from Ill Street is there first to let the people know.  Helping us kick the night off were comedians Eddie Bryant and Lamont King who are gearing up for their event on Oct. 26th at the Riot Act Comedy Theater in DC called Trippin' on E.  Local promoter and MC, Von (a.k.a. Vendetta), stopped by to give away a free pair of tickets to the upcoming Mobb Deep show on Oct. 22nd (Howard Homecoming Weekend).  Also, Ill Street's own, DJ 2-Tone Jones, along with his creative partner, Gerald Watson, talked about the release of their new EP entitled The Gil Scott Suite: a SHAOLIN JAZZ tribute to the late Gil Scott-Heron.  Last but not least, the whole team took a moment of silence on honor of Sylvia Robinson (founder of Sugarhill Records) who recently passed away.

20 years ago A Tribe Called Quest released one of the most heralded hip-hop albums of all time; The Low End Theory.  On this episode of Ill Street we paid tribute in our own way to a Hip-Hop classic that influenced us all.  DJ RBI & 2-Tone Jones traded off on the 1's and 2's rockin' original samples, unreleased tracks, remixes and classic bangers from the album.  Check it out!

HE'S BACK!!!  DC Hip-Hop vet and still one of the nicest off the top of the dome, Black Indian, come thru Ill Street along with Judah on the Beats to pledge their support to WPFW, give their take on the legacy of DC Hip-Hop (past to present) and talk about Black Indian's new project entitled, I Tried to Tell Y'all.  We also had one of the best up-and-coming duo's from the Hip-Hop scene, DTMD, call in briefly to plug their debut album on the Mello Music Group label.  And as always, DJ's RBI and 2-Tone Jones held it down on the 1's and 2's.

On the 53rd bday of the King of Pop, Michael Joseph Jackson, the crew from Ill Street paid tribute yet again to his musical legacy.  DJ RBI put together an incredible set that highlighted many of MJ's collaborations with Hip-Hop artists.  Plus, we were paid a special visit by "The Mayor" Chris Thomas (former host of Rap City), Tony Woods and Alison Carney who all joined in on the conversation about the impact MJ made in music.  Enjoy!

On the eve of the anniversary of 2Pac's passing the crew at Ill Street along with our good friend JaySun pay homage to him and his Hip-Hop counterpart [in many ways], the Notorious B.I.G.  We were also joined by the homie J-Scrilla and VA MC, Sketch, as they hit us with some exclusives from their new mixtape (entirely produced by J-Scrilla) entitled VA-Tec9.  It's currently available for free download now.  And so is this show!

On this week's episode of Ill Street the very lovely and talented Alison Carney dropped by to talk about her journey thru the Rabbit's Hole in her debut album/mixtape Alison Wonderland.  Along with her was the multi-talented Jayne Kennedi of Studio 43.  Together they gave us an incite to some of their influences, their favorite artists from the area and more.  Check it out right here! 

On another Monday evening in the Nation's Cap, the fellas from Ill Street kicked off the week with a plethora of new joints and new area classics, including music by Edo G., Cornel West Theory, Jay-Z & Kanye West, Teflon, Gods'Illa, Rah Digga, The Package, Planet Asia, Elzhi and more!  DJ RBI held it down on the 1's and 2's, while 2-Tone, Toney and RNL kept things moving on the mic.  Check the flava right here!

A Hip-Hop trio from the DMV area is currently making alot of quality noise in the streets......and no, it's not Diamond District.  The superb street journalists, known as Gods'Illa, have recently released their much anticipated mixtape called CPR [Clothes | Promotion | Rapping] hosted by the one and only Erykah Badu.  The 3 brothers hit up Ill Street to explain the concept behind the title and to give us a chance to find out what they really think about some of their favorite Hip-Hop giants.  Also, DJ 2-Tone Jones dropped some cuts from the mixtape, along with some other gems by area artists including Alison Carney, Maverick, Kev Brown, DTMD, The Awthentik, DJ Roddy Rod, Apex, Asheru, Cy Young and Joe D.

Our globe-trotting cousins from Nomadic Wax returned to Ill Street along with our good friend and ill MC from Zimbabwe, Outspkoen [Alpha Intellect].  We got into a good discussion on the parallels of Hip-Hop from the US to Africa, and position he plays as an MC in the ever-changing rap game.  He also blessed us with some new music from his most recent project which involves a band led by him called Outspoken and the Essence.  But before we got into all of that, we gave our listerners a taste of what they missed out on at the The One, Two Beat Showcase this past Friday (7/22); presented by Ill Street Grooves, and The Home Stretch & Bum Rush Shows on 90.1fm WDCE in Richmond.  Shouts out to Kleph Dollaz, Kev Brown, The Unknown, Antagonist Dragonspit and Grap Luva for their participation in the event.