Hip-Hop/R&B http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=10005&ft=1&f=10005 Urban music and features from NPR news, NPR cultural programs, and NPR Music stations. en Copyright 2013 NPR - For Personal Use Only NPR API RSS Generator 0.94 Tue, 21 May 2013 15:00:00 -0400 http://media.npr.org/images/npr_news_123x20.gif Hip-Hop/R&B http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=10005&ft=1&f=10005 Kanye West Stands Alone On his new songs, the rapper points fingers in every direction, including back at himself. Tue, 21 May 2013 15:00:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/05/21/185781341/kanye-west-stands-alone?ft=1&f=10005 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/05/21/185781341/kanye-west-stands-alone?ft=1&f=10005 On his new songs, the rapper points fingers in every direction, including back at himself.

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]]> Marques Toliver: An R&B Crooner With Strings Attached Toliver's music is anchored by the violin, on which he is classically trained. He says he discovered the instrument in fifth grade — and that in a way, it chose him. Sun, 19 May 2013 05:41:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/2013/05/19/184852129/marques-toliver-an-r-b-crooner-with-strings-attached?ft=1&f=10005 http://www.npr.org/2013/05/19/184852129/marques-toliver-an-r-b-crooner-with-strings-attached?ft=1&f=10005 Toliver's music is anchored by the violin, on which he is classically trained. He says he discovered the instrument in fifth grade — and that in a way, it chose him.

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]]> First Listen: G&D, 'The Lighthouse' On <em>The Lighthouse</em>, Georgia Anne Muldrow and Dudley Perkins engineer an overstuffed, idea-packed collision of funk, soul, hip-hop, jazz, psychedelic space-rock, spoken-word poetry, protest music and more. Along the way, they examine innumerable intersections of love, politics, spirituality, healthy living, parenthood and world citizenship. Sun, 12 May 2013 22:30:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/2013/05/12/182912777/first-listen-g-d-the-lighthouse?ft=1&f=10005 http://www.npr.org/2013/05/12/182912777/first-listen-g-d-the-lighthouse?ft=1&f=10005 On The Lighthouse, Georgia Anne Muldrow and Dudley Perkins engineer an overstuffed, idea-packed collision of funk, soul, hip-hop, jazz, psychedelic space-rock, spoken-word poetry, protest music and more. Along the way, they examine innumerable intersections of love, politics, spirituality, healthy living, parenthood and world citizenship.

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]]> LL Cool J On 'Accidental Racist' And Authenticity "The last thing that I want to do is be a hack," says the rapper and actor. His latest album, his first since splitting with the record label that launched his career, is called <em>Authentic</em>. Sat, 11 May 2013 16:54:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/2013/05/11/182956651/ll-cool-j-on-accidental-racist-and-authenticity?ft=1&f=10005 http://www.npr.org/2013/05/11/182956651/ll-cool-j-on-accidental-racist-and-authenticity?ft=1&f=10005 "The last thing that I want to do is be a hack," says the rapper and actor. His latest album, his first since splitting with the record label that launched his career, is called Authentic.

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]]> On Two New R&B Albums, An Old Soul Sound That Glows New York's Charles Bradley and London's James Hunter Six both mix inspiration and replication. Wed, 08 May 2013 15:55:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/2013/05/08/182310396/on-two-new-r-b-albums-an-old-soul-sound-that-glows?ft=1&f=10005 http://www.npr.org/2013/05/08/182310396/on-two-new-r-b-albums-an-old-soul-sound-that-glows?ft=1&f=10005 New York's Charles Bradley and London's James Hunter Six both mix inspiration and replication.

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]]> 20 Years Ago Biz Markie Got The Last Laugh <em></em>After the rapper lost a legal battle with far-reaching consequences over sampling, the mere existence of <em>All Samples Cleared! </em>was a triumph. Mon, 06 May 2013 12:50:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/05/01/180375856/20-years-ago-biz-markie-got-the-last-laugh?ft=1&f=10005 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/05/01/180375856/20-years-ago-biz-markie-got-the-last-laugh?ft=1&f=10005 After the rapper lost a legal battle with far-reaching consequences over sampling, the mere existence of All Samples Cleared! was a triumph.

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]]> First Listen: Music From Baz Luhrmann's Film 'The Great Gatsby' The soundtrack to <em>The Great Gatsby</em>, Baz Luhrmann's latest high-end refurbishing of a lived-in classic, doesn't try to re-imagine Jazz Age tunes in a modern context. Instead, it attempts to transplant the sensibility of the 1920s to the hip-hop era, with genre-busting collaborations overseen by Jay-Z. Thu, 02 May 2013 09:43:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/2013/04/30/180098344/first-listen-music-from-baz-luhrmanns-film-the-great-gatsby?ft=1&f=10005 http://www.npr.org/2013/04/30/180098344/first-listen-music-from-baz-luhrmanns-film-the-great-gatsby?ft=1&f=10005 The soundtrack to The Great Gatsby, Baz Luhrmann's latest high-end refurbishing of a lived-in classic, doesn't try to re-imagine Jazz Age tunes in a modern context. Instead, it attempts to transplant the sensibility of the 1920s to the hip-hop era, with genre-busting collaborations overseen by Jay-Z.

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]]> 'The Talent Comes First': Roc Marciano Takes An A&R Gig The New York rapper on his new role, Lil B's brilliance and doing business with good people. Tue, 30 Apr 2013 15:30:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/30/180065166/the-talent-comes-first-roc-marciano-takes-an-a-r-gig?ft=1&f=10005 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/30/180065166/the-talent-comes-first-roc-marciano-takes-an-a-r-gig?ft=1&f=10005 The New York rapper on his new role, Lil B's brilliance and doing business with good people.

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]]> The Tyler Interview: Silly, But With A Purpose In front of a paying audience, Tyler answered the questions of rap journalist Elliott Wilson. Tyler's buoyancy contrasted with Wilson's laid-back style, and resulted in a conversation that was at turns intimate and crude. Fri, 26 Apr 2013 14:00:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/25/179044243/the-tyler-interview-silly-but-with-a-purpose?ft=1&f=10005 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/25/179044243/the-tyler-interview-silly-but-with-a-purpose?ft=1&f=10005 In front of a paying audience, Tyler answered the questions of rap journalist Elliott Wilson. Tyler's buoyancy contrasted with Wilson's laid-back style, and resulted in a conversation that was at turns intimate and crude.

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]]> Talib Kweli On Mainstream Hip-Hop And Honoring The Old School The New York rapper's political and layered rhymes have been pegged as "conscious rap," a label that has now become pejorative. His latest album challenges that image, paying homage to old-school hip-hop and working with the present. Wed, 24 Apr 2013 17:30:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/25/178844118/talib-kweli-on-mainstream-hip-hop-parenting-and-honoring-the-old-school?ft=1&f=10005 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/25/178844118/talib-kweli-on-mainstream-hip-hop-parenting-and-honoring-the-old-school?ft=1&f=10005 The New York rapper's political and layered rhymes have been pegged as "conscious rap," a label that has now become pejorative. His latest album challenges that image, paying homage to old-school hip-hop and working with the present.

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]]> The Ghostface Killah Rises Again A high-concept collaborative album by a veteran rapper and a film composer knits together hip-hop and soul music. Mon, 22 Apr 2013 06:00:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/22/177334335/the-ghostface-killah-rises-again?ft=1&f=10005 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/22/177334335/the-ghostface-killah-rises-again?ft=1&f=10005 A high-concept collaborative album by a veteran rapper and a film composer knits together hip-hop and soul music.

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]]> This Was 1993: 20 Years Ago I Heard The Perfect Rap Song Writer Kiese Laymon says back then he would have sworn on everything he loved that hip-hop would never be the same after The Coup's "Not Yet Free." Wed, 17 Apr 2013 12:00:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/17/177326079/this-was-1993-20-years-ago-i-heard-the-perfect-rap-song?ft=1&f=10005 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/17/177326079/this-was-1993-20-years-ago-i-heard-the-perfect-rap-song?ft=1&f=10005 Writer Kiese Laymon says back then he would have sworn on everything he loved that hip-hop would never be the same after The Coup's "Not Yet Free."

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]]> Tall Glass Of Rock Star-Ness: A Q&A With Questlove Questlove, drummer and co-founder of The Roots, is coming out with a memoir in June called <em>Mo' Meta Blues, </em>co-written with Ben Greenman. The musician spoke with NPR intern Lidia Jean Kott about why the movie <em>Spring Breakers </em>made him feel like less of a rock star, and whether you can ever outgrow being a dweeb. Mon, 15 Apr 2013 07:00:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/2013/04/15/176061633/tall-glass-of-rock-star-ness-a-q-a-with-questlove?ft=1&f=10005 http://www.npr.org/2013/04/15/176061633/tall-glass-of-rock-star-ness-a-q-a-with-questlove?ft=1&f=10005 Questlove, drummer and co-founder of The Roots, is coming out with a memoir in June called Mo' Meta Blues, co-written with Ben Greenman. The musician spoke with NPR intern Lidia Jean Kott about why the movie Spring Breakers made him feel like less of a rock star, and whether you can ever outgrow being a dweeb.

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]]> The Wu-Tang Clan's 20-Year Plan The group's 1993 debut was the opening shot of an audacious plan to open the music industry to hip-hop made way outside the mainstream. Mon, 08 Apr 2013 06:00:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/08/176519640/the-wu-tang-clans-20-year-plan?ft=1&f=10005 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/08/176519640/the-wu-tang-clans-20-year-plan?ft=1&f=10005 The group's 1993 debut was the opening shot of an audacious plan to open the music industry to hip-hop made way outside the mainstream.

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]]> First Listen: Ghostface Killah And Adrian Younge, 'Twelve Reasons To Die' In the grand tradition of the Wu-Tang Clan, this collaboration is brash and Technicolor and heartfelt. Mon, 08 Apr 2013 03:28:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/2013/04/08/176043665/first-listen-ghostface-killah-and-adrian-younge-twelve-reasons-to-die?ft=1&f=10005 http://www.npr.org/2013/04/08/176043665/first-listen-ghostface-killah-and-adrian-younge-twelve-reasons-to-die?ft=1&f=10005 In the grand tradition of the Wu-Tang Clan, this collaboration is brash and Technicolor and heartfelt.

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