Brandon Soderberg’s 25 Best Albums of 2013
To finish out the year, we'll be offering the top 25 albums from various SPIN staffers. Today, Contributor Brandon Soderberg.…
View ArticleReview: Mysterioso DIY Rapper Ka Becomes Dr. Yen Lo on ‘Days With Dr. Yen Lo’
Brownsville MC Ka is a man among Shmoney-dancing boys, but by historical accident, he’s never gotten to enjoy dignitary status. Instead, the rapper (and senior fireman) has often been treated like a...
View ArticleThe 50 Best Hip-Hop Debut Albums Since ‘Reasonable Doubt’
In honor of the recent 20th anniversary of Jay Z’s debut album, Reasonable Doubt, we’re publishing a series of pieces looking at the rapper’s singular career and achievements. Welcome to Jay Z Week....
View ArticleKa Teases New Album on Twitter
Brownsville poet Ka has been mostly quiet since dropping the underrated Days With Dr. Yen Lo last year. It's looking like the MC's silence will end next month. Today, Ka sent out a tweet that appears...
View ArticleKa Drops New Album ‘Honor Killed the Samurai,’ Releases Animated Video for...
Brownsville DIY champ Ka released Honor Killed the Samurai, his fourth solo album, over the weekend. Those who've been following the veteran know what to expect here: laser-focused raps over addictive...
View ArticleReview: Ka Is Calm Like a Bomb on ‘Honor Killed the Samurai’
Brownsville rapper Ka’s voice commands close listening. It’s somewhere between a wheeze and a snarl, dead-eyed and cold — dragging with it a street-weary stoicism. His words are to be pored over, often...
View Article‘The New York Post’ Just Discovers Rapper Ka Is a Firefighter, Gets Roasted...
Ka isn't making headlines because people have finally come around to embrace his lyrical gifts. He's making headlines because of obnoxiously branded dog mats — known to many as the New York Post. Last...
View ArticleKa and the Hidden Lineage of Brownsville Hip-Hop
Ka uses a minimalist’s palette — haunted instrumental loops and laconic delivery — to color his songs' brutal realism and serrated wit. The 44-year-old New York MC doesn't deviate from that formula on...
View ArticleMobb Deep’s Prodigy Remembered By AZ, DJ Whoo Kid, Mister Cee, Roc Marciano,...
Mobb Deep's Prodigy passed away on Wednesday, June 21--his death has left a hole in hip-hop that was immediately felt by members of the community. He wasn't just a respected lyricist within New York's...
View ArticleThe 30 Best Albums of 2020 (So Far)
On one hand, who can think about stuff as trivial as this? On the other, what else is there to do? If art was made to fill a cultural vacuum, well… now’s the fucking time, buddy. Hopefully, you’ve been...
View Article