– Stephen Stickler

The post Photo of the Day: Legend STEPHEN STICKLER Ran Deep appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

To set it off, “Like a Dream” eases you in with its laid-back, bluesy production from longtime collaborator, Havoc. It sets the tone for the Mobb’s Big Twins, Ty Nitty, and Godfather Pt. III to spit their raw, realist bars about life as they know it in Queensbridge. “Like a Dream” is also the first single off their upcoming new album, IM3, that will include production from The Alchemist, DJ Muggs, Twiz The Beat Pro, DirtyDiggs, and more.

But before we hear IM3, the three-piece also has a new EP in the works. That’s where you’ll find the menacing “Queens Get The Money,” a hard-hitting banger that could be the soundtrack to a bank heist. It also sounds like a new anthem for the Infamous Mobb, who waste no time firing off warning shots to their enemies in their verses. The track is produced by Quiet Genius, but the rest of the EP (currently untitled) is predominantly produced by Twiz The Beat Pro.

Both tracks are available now for stream through all major DSPs via Grimey Records, and can be streamed right here courtesy of RESPECT. Be on the lookout for more music from the Queensbridge veterans as they make their long awaited return.

Linktree: https://linktr.ee/infamousmobb

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/infamousmobb_im3

Twitter: 
• Big Twins: https://twitter.com/BIGTWINSQB
• Ty Nitty: https://twitter.com/TYNITTYMOBB
• Godfather Pt. III: https://twitter.com/Infamous_G3
• Havoc: https://twitter.com/mobbdeephavoc
• Quiet Genius: https://twitter.com/GeniusQuiet
• Infamous Mobb: #InfamousMobb

The post QB’s Infamous Mobb Is back with 2 New Singles – “Like a Dream/Queens Get the Money” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Queensbridge’s own Big Twins heads to sunny L.A. to visit his collaborators, production duo DirtyDiggs, in their appropriately grimy new video for “No Hesitation.”

Directed by Diggs themselves, the visuals center on Big Twins, his rhymes, and his fly outfit, particularly his dope Muhammad “The World’s Greatest” Ali snapback. Thanks to this direction, you’re able to fully digest exactly what the rapper formerly known as Twin Gambino is spitting on here, which is that he’s not here for the bullsh*t. But if you do bring that noise around him, well, we’ll let him tell you: “You see Big Twins shinin’/ Target on my head so I keep the iron/ Real life, different situations/ Shoot my gun with no hesitation.”

“No Hesitation” stems from the emcee’s collaborative EP with Dirty Diggs, whose past work includes credits with Roc Marciano, Westside Gunn, Conway The Machine, and Camp Lo. The project, Queensbridge, features guest appearances from Planet Asia and Godfather Pt. III, among others, and serves as the followup to Twins’ great 2018 album, Grimey Life.

Check out the video premiere right here courtesy of RESPECT., and head over to your preferred digtial retailer or streaming platform to support the track. The six track EP drops Tuesday, Feb 18 through all major DSPs, and is available now for pre-order via iTunes, Amazon Music, and Google Play through Twins’ own Grimey Records.

Smart URL: https://smarturl.it/queensbridge

Tracklist: 
01. No Hesitation
02. Infamous Chain (feat. Godfather Pt. III, Tristate, Killer Ben & Planet Asia)
03. Do It Big, Do Em Dirty
04. Multi Million Art Collection (feat. Planet Asia & Willie The Kid)
05. Smell Like Blood (feat. Hus Kingpin & Planet Asia)
06. Cash In

Big Twins Online:
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bigtwinsqb
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/BIGTWINSQB
• Spotify: http://bit.ly/SpotifyBigTwins
• Bandcamp: https://drumsetmusicworks.bandcamp.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/officialbigtwins

Dirty Diggs Online: 
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dirtydiggs
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/DIRTDIGGS
• Spotify: http://bit.ly/SpotifyDirtyDiggs
• Bandcamp: https://dirtydiggs.bandcamp.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DirtyDiggsGCM

The post RESPECT. Premiere: Big Twins & DIrtyDiggs Announce Collaborative ‘Queensbridge’ EP | Debut Visuals for “No Hesitation” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

The Gangstagrass Classic Hip-Hop MIxtape features Rench mixing Hip-Hop classics with a country twist.

”There are a lot more people out there with Jay-Z and Johnny Cash on their playlists than you think.” Rench said, who had previously made a name for himself as an in-demand Brooklyn country and hip-hop producer and singer/songwriter in the early 2000’s.

The idea for the mixtape was born from a Gangstagrass rehearsal and the discussion of our doing versions of classic bluegrass tunes. It stuck in R-SON’s head that there was no real treatment like that of classic Hip hop songs. Choosing songs with very recognizable samples that were also easily translatable with the band’s instruments, the tape began to take shape.

The new project is definitely guaranteed to keep your head bobbing and your toes tapping as you walk down memory lane with these tripped out classics.

Check out the tracklisting and stream the Gangstagrass Classics Mixtape below.

MY BROTHER, WHERE YOU AT?

3. SHAKEN NOT STIRRED [SHOOK ONES (PT II) – MOBB DEEP (produced by Mobb Deep)]

4. DOZENS [TRIED BY 12 – EAST FLATBUSH PROJECT. (produced by Spencer 4 Hire)]

5. BOOM GOES THE DYNAMITE [BOOM! – ROYCE THE 5’9″ (produced by DJ Premier)]

6. WE FLY[AKA PASSIN ME BY – THE PHARCYDE (produced by J-Swift)]

7. PASSIN ME BREAKDOWN

8. WHOADOWN [WHOA! – BLACK ROB (produced by Buckwild)]

9. GET YOUR CUTS UP [SIMON SAYS – PHAROAH MONCH (produced by Pharoah Monch)]

10. ENRAGED [WRATH OF KANE – BIG DADDY KANE (produced by Big Daddy Kane and Marley Marl)]

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The post RESPECT. Premiere: Gangstagrass Gives Hip-Hop Classics a New Twist with New Mixtape appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Photo by Chi Modu

Today makes one year since the passing of the legendary Prodigy of Mobb Deep.  Although he isn’t with us, in physical form, his legacy lives on, and hip-hop continues to keep the classics in rotation.  P is well known and beloved for his voice, bona-fide street tales, sharing his personal life through music, and overall, being one of the illest emcees to ever pick up the mic.

His untimely death, at the young age of 42, still hurts the hip-hop community, and we hope his family, friends, and fans all across the globe continue to remain strong and keep the memories alive.  Here are 5 of our favorite Mobb Deep tracks.  Feel free to let us know your favorites in the comments section.

P LIVES FOREVER

R.I.P. Prodigy

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The post #RESPECT. The Legend: Paying Homage to Prodigy of Mobb Deep 1 Year After His Passing appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

While you’ve been paying attention to Van Jones and Jay-Z’s interview yesterday, with U.S. President Donald Trump’s follow up on Twitter, here’s a quick hip hop fact for you:

To this day, Big L and Jay-Z’s exclusive 1995 Stretch and Bobbito freestyle is the most viewed hip hop freestyle on YouTube.

That’s pretty significant for hip hop which will be graced by multitudes of hip hop overtures in this evening’s awards show. 

Before the internet, did you ever wonder where some of your favorite lyrical emcees got their huge break?

Stretch and Bobbito introduced the world to a multitude of unsigned artist in the 90s. 

I mean, we’re talking:  Big L, Nas, Biggie, Wu-Tang, Big Pun, Jay-Z, Eminem and the Fugees!!

Many of your favorite lyricists rocked the mic on NYC’s Stretch and Bobbito Show, which aired Thursday nights from 1-AM – 4 AM out of a basement studio with an old operating board from the 60’s.

According to Bobbito their underground rap show “put the street corner in a box.” The impact of that show was the subject of “Stretch and Bobbito: Radio That Changed Lives.”

So how did that come about?

“This is actually my second film, my first was titled Walk In The Park: Pick Up Basketball in NYC,” Bobbito Garcia told me on Scoop B Radio.

“I co-directed and co-produced that project which aired on PBS in January of 2014. A young producer by the name of Omar Costas was blown away by it and reached out to me by way of mutual contact and asked me about my next film. I told him that I just had a child and that my first film had aired on public television, so I wasn’t even trying to think about another film. He told me that he used to listen to me and Stretch and a lightbulb went off in my head. So I looked up his reel and knew that we needed to explore and literally three days later we were filming.”

The rest was like logical clockwork.

“I met Omar on Wednesday and on Saturday we were shooting. Riggs Morales who is the former editor of The Source Magazine and Noah Callahan, the Editor In Chief of Complex. 18 months later is when we started getting the big names like Jay-Z, Nas and Eminem because it took a long time to get them on camera. They were all willing and happy to be apart of it because they all premiered on our show as unsigned up and coming artists and that list runs long.”

The long list included Nas, Biggie, Wu-Tang, Mobb Deep, Eminem, Big Pun, Mase, Cam, Big L and more. As a matter of fact, total record sales for all the artists that premiered on their show exceed 300 million. The late-night program had a cult following in the art/fashion world and prison population.

Stretch and Bobbito: Radio That Changed Lives from Saboteur Media on Vimeo.

As to the infamous Jay-Z and Big L freestyle, Bobbito says folks are still in awe. “I actually mentor a couple of kids in Harlem and they’ll talk about the freestyle,” said Bobbito.

“And I’ll tell them you know that’s me saying “ooh wee” on the freestyle right and they don’t believe me at first, but they go back and listen to it and tell me: ‘yo that’s crazy, I heard you on the freestyle.’”

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The post Scoop B: Before the Grammy Awards, did you know Jay-Z’s big break came from a 90s NYC radio freestyle with Big L? appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Photo Credit: DJ Concept

This past June 20, the world lost one of its most talented and influential voices of all time when Albert Johnson, better known as Prodigy, lost his life-long fight with sickle-cell anemia. And as we all learn how to cope with such a huge loss, artists like DJ Concept are dealing with P’s passing the only way they know how: by providing art that pays tribute to the rapper’s incredible legacy.

For the Long Island, NY deejay/producer, this meant taking to his turntables and record collection to put together this brand-new mix, the fittingly titled RIP Prodigy. It’s a non-stop, 23-minute live mix that Concept recorded shortly after learning of the Queensbridge artist’s passing. It pays homage to the legendary emcee by showcasing many of the original samples that he rapped over, either as a solo artist or as one half of Mobb Deep.

“It’s my homage to Prodigy and his soundscape, which was very influential to my sound as a producer,” Concept explains. “Banging joints like ‘The Realest,’ ‘Keep It Thoro,’ ‘HNIC’… I remember thinking, ‘This is the sound I wish I could make.’”

RIP Prodigy kicks off with a chills-inducing a cappella recording of Prodigy rapping his opening bars of “Shook Ones Part II.” Then, you’re treated to more audio from P that pops up in between a slew of soul and funk originals that’ll leave you revisiting his and Mobb Deep’s catalogue all over again. Press play, and take a trip down memory lane of Bandana P’s infamous catalog, right here courtesy of RESPECT. #InfamousForever

DJ Concept  Online:
• Website: http://www.crisiscentercollective.com
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/concept1200
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/concept1200

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The post #MusicMonday: DJ Concept – RIP Prodigy (A Live Mix of Dusty Infamous Originals) appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.