Dr. Dre

Five Punk Goes... Songs That Don't Suck

Last time in our "things that don't suck" series, we looked at some educational songs ( ) that our children could learn from without being bored to death. This week, we're looking at the Punk Goes... series, and some of the worthwhile tracks to grab from the series. Punk Goes... has long been the ... More >>

Music That Will Officially Be Old In 2013

One of my favorite pastimes is reminding my friends how old we are all getting, partly because I am cruel, and probably because even I am astounded that actor Steve Guttenberg is now three years older than Wilford Brimley was when they filmed Cocoon together in 1985. We can all think of things tha ... More >>

ScoreMore Stoked For Saturday's Sold-Out Kendrick Lamar Shows

It's no great secret that the live-music scene around Houston can be a little, well, dead around the holidays. There are enough "thank God we're off tour" shows by local and regional acts to make it worth fans' while, but because the music business is generally among the first to shut down for the y ... More >>

Kendrick Lamar

Six Songs That Should Be On Nine Inch Nails' Greatest-Hits Album

Recently Trent Reznor announced the reactivation of Nine Inch Nails as an active studio project, along with a greatest-hits record scheduled to be released in 2014 with two new tracks. Of course, as a major NIN nerd, this is exciting news. NIN hasn't released one single compilation CD in Reznor's l ... More >>

A Very Pawny Christmas: What Pawn Shops Buy and Sell Around the Holidays

So you've got a million Christmas gifts to buy for family, friends, acquaintances, acquaintances' cousins, the mailman, Roger Clemens (we're not the only ones to send the Rocket a gift each year, are we?) and various and sundry pets. You have a limited budget and a limited amount of time. It's best ... More >>

C.I.T.Y.'s Top 6 Geographically-Based Rap Songs

The hip-hop world is a less than sensible place -- lots of times, you're even required to clarify when bad means bad and when bad means good -- so once a week we're going to get with a rapper and ask them to explain things. Something you always wanted to ask a rapper? E-mail sheaserrano@gmail.com. ... More >>

HPMA Showcase: DJ Afterparty at Jet Lounge

HPMA Showcase: The 12 Best Artists of 2012 HPMA Showcase: Rocks Off's Top 7 Discoveries HPMA Showcase: Sunday's 11 Best Random Moments SLIDESHOW: HPMA Showcase -- The Bands SLIDESHOW: HPMA Showcase -- The Crowds "After the show it's the afterparty..." -- Jay-Z Another year, another successful ... More >>

Top 10 Musical Moments on The Arsenio Hall Show

One of the greatest late-night talk show hosts of all time was Arsenio Hall. He was the quintessential Ed Sullivan for the '80s and early '90s. He featured all kinds of musical artists, but most importantly, he helped introduce rap music into the mainstream. Hall, who won Donald Trump's most recent ... More >>

El-P and Killer Mike Collaborate

"Mad Old Men" rejuvenates underground rap.

Bonna-What?: How 7 U.S. Music Festivals Got Their Names

This whole week, the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, featuring the Black Keys, Radiohead, Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg, Pulp, At the Drive-In, the Shins, AVICII, David Guetta and maybe one or two others, will be all anyone who follows music these days will be talking about. Then early next week, it' ... More >>

Alert: SXSW Coverage Ahead -- 50 Cent And Much More

"What I want from each and every one of you is a hard-target search of every gas station, residence, warehouse, farmhouse, henhouse, outhouse and doghouse in that area." -- Tommy Lee Jones, The Fugitive You don't have to spend much time at South By Southwest to know that all of the above building ... More >>

We Tell You Who Will Win Grammys So You Don't Have To Watch Them

SPOILER ALERT​The best thing about the annual Grammy nominations and awards shows is the clamor of anger that rises up when the mere mention of the event even comes up. Immediately people begin calling it a travesty, trotting out all the people who have been snubbed -- Jethro Tull beats Metall ... More >>

10 Rappers As Movie Villains

​Cunning criminals, violent geniuses, charismatic characters. Villains give us chills and keep us on the edge of our seats. With more rappers now dabbling in acting, we decided to cast some of your favorite hip-hoppers as movie villains. Here are ten rappers and their evil alter-egos.

Snoopcounters: Snoop Dogg Knows A Lot Of People

​This week, rapper Snoop Dogg turned 40 years old. Tha Doggfather actually seems ageless to us, and we don't mean his 1996 album. Like, we fully expect him to become the hip-hop Willie Nelson: Rapping into his late 70s, relentlessly touring, smoking people a fraction of his age out in tour bus ... More >>

Top 10 Hip-Hop Album Intro Tracks

​Before iTunes and Amazon gave us the luxury of picking and choosing which tracks we want off an album, we had to buy the entire CD or cassette tape to listen to everything we paid for. The intro tracks are usually what help us decide if the album is something we were going to love start to fi ... More >>

Dear Penis: 20 Songs About The Tube Snake Boogie

prince.orgGuess who turns 53 today?​Good Lord, what would we do if not for Weinergate? It's hot as hell outside, the Astros are terrible and Rick Perry might run for president next year. But as long as there are congressmen tweeting pictures of their junk to women they barely know, Rocks Off h ... More >>

April 29, 1992: Ten Songs About The L.A Riots

​It was 19 years ago today that the Los Angeles riots began after four white police officers, caught on videotape beating the African-American Rodney King after a drug-fueled high-speed chase, were acquitted by a Simi Valley, Calif. jury. The rest of the world watched in shock and sadness as ... More >>

Last Night: Das Racist At Fitzgerald's

Photos by Jim Bricker​Das Racist, Fat Tony, Simple Success Fitzgerald's March 22, 2011 With tickets at the door a surprisingly steep 18 bones, Fitzgerald's was packed tighter than we expected Tuesday for the extensive, diverse lineup featuring Queens, N.Y. weed/joke-rap duo Das Racist. Before ... More >>

The Woodlands, Arcade Fire Win Album Of The Year Grammy

city-data.com​ Congratulations to The Woodlands, that emotionally icy burb up I-45, for helping Arcade Fire when this year's Album Of The Year Grammy at Sunday night's awards show for their sprawling The Suburbs LP. The band, led by former Woodlands residents Win and William Butler, won over a hi ... More >>

Bun B's Seven Most Obscure Guest Features

Photos by Marco TorresBun B at House of Blues, August 2010​From coast to coast, Bun B is one of the hardest working man in hip-hop. In the course of his century-long career, he's managed to collaborate with nearly every artist in the universe, including some you've probably never heard of. Wal ... More >>

Does Being An Actor Compromise Your Rap Career?

Some rappers happen to be thoughtful, intelligent people. Every Monday that isn't a national holiday, Rocks Off will have some of them discussing issues relevant to their culture. This Week's Panel: Paul Wall, Damien Randle, Sam Sneed Not Invited: Freekey Zeekey, for getting Dipset back together ... More >>

How Important Is It That Rappers Be "Real"?

Some rappers happen to be thoughtful, intelligent people. Every Monday (that isn't a national holiday) Rocks Off will have some of them hear discussing issues relevant to their culture. This Week's Panel: Paul Wall, Fat Tony, Sam Sneed and Yung Redd Not Invited: Plies and Rick Ross Photo illustra ... More >>

Lil' Flip, Devin the Dude, Texas Board of Education vs. Hip-Hop, Wu-Tang Clan, Death Row Records, Z-Ro, Dr. Dre, Etc.

Welcome back to Turning the Screw, Rocks Off's weekly rap post. It probably won't rhyme, at least most of the time. E-mail tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. Thanks, homies. Anti-Single of the Week: "Garage Sale Rap," Random White Guys From A Garage Sales Company That Might Actually Be A Real Thi ... More >>

Turning The Screw: All the Way, Z-Ro, Devin, Lil' O, UGK, Nicki Minaj, Ras Kass, Lil Wayne, Beyonce, Dre, Aziz Ansari, Wu-Massacre and More

Welcome back to Turning the Screw, Rocks Off's weekly rap post. It probably won't rhyme, at least most of the time. E-mail tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. Thanks, homies. Single of the Week: "Bring The Kush Back Freestyle," ATW Attn: Houston's Underground Rappers: You are on notice. These two ... More >>

Turning The Screw: New Hollywood F.L.O.S.S. Track, Mixtapes Galore, Kid Cudi, LeBron, Diddy, Weezy, Sade, Pink and More

Welcome back to Turning the Screw, Rocks Off's weekly rap post. It probably won't rhyme, at least most of the time. E-mail tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. Thanks, homies. ​ Single of the Week: "She Said...," Hollywood F.L.O.S.S. Wire To Wire Slim Thug released that Welcome 2 Texas mixtape. Do ... More >>

Tricky, with Natalie Stewart

Five Spot: Eminem Is Clever, But K-Rino Is Just Sick

Welcome back to Five Spot. Every Friday, we'll examine a recent bit of music news and list five reasons why it's either brilliant or dumb-assed. Send tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. So the expected hip-hop sites recently all went crazy for "Crack A Bottle" (above), an annoyingly catchy Em ... More >>

Huntzville's School-Shooting Song Raises an Even More Disturbing Issue

Turning the Screw: Dustin Prestige, Lupe Fiasco, Katy Perry/Travis McCoy, Dr. Dre, DJ AM, Lil' Kim, Damon Dash/Jay-Z, Talib Kweli and More

Welcome back to Turning the Screw, Rocks Off's weekly rap post. It probably won't rhyme, at least most of the time. E-mail tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. Thanks, homies. Single of the Week: "Funny Valentine," Dustin Prestige Wire To Wire Lupe Fiasco, whom you'll remember recently announ ... More >>

Houston, Texas, America, Meet Huntzville...and Watch the Eff Out

Hard to believe it's been 20 years since gangsta rap went overground with N.W.A.'s Straight Outta Compton. Through Dr Dre and Snoop Dogg to Tupac and Eminem, it launched most of hip-hop's biggest stars for a good decade, but these days even artists like T.I. and Lil Wayne have sacrificed serious st ... More >>

Turning the Screw: B L A C K I E, Dizzee Rascal, X-Clan & Bun B, Eminem, Pitbull, T.I., Common, Snoop Dogg and More

Welcome back to Turning the Screw, Rocks Off's weekly rap post. It probably won't rhyme, at least most of the time. E-mail tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. Thanks, homies. Single of the Week: B L A C K I E, "I Write On Money" Wire To Wire Dizzee Rascal was released from custody following ... More >>

Turning the Screw: D. Rose, Rap City, Beastie Boys, Marilyn Manson, Paris, Lil Kim, Ice Cube and More

Grand Theft Auto X: The Screwston Chronicles

Dooney da Priest: "Pull Your Pants Up"

Dallas struggles with saggy drawers

Digital Underground

Digital Underground performs on Thursday, May 3, at Meridian, 1503 Chartres, 713-629-3700.

Snoop Dogg

Tha Blue Carpet Treatment

El Presidente

El Presidente

Murder by Numbers

Mourning the latest hip-hop casualty in two easy steps

The O.G. of Love

Johnny "Guitar" Watson gets his due with a terrific two disc set

Can't Touch the MMMBop

A new boxed set excavates the '90s

Mellow, Chilled-Out Fellow

The wonder that is Devin the Dude

Eminem

Encore (Interscope)

Emvisible

D12 looks to get out from underneath Eminem's shadow

This Week's Day-by-Day Picks

50 Cent

Get Rich or Die Tryin' (Shady/Aftermath/Interscope)

K-Otix / The ARE

The Black Album (Self-distributed) / K-Otix Entertainment Presents the ARE: Hustler's Theme (Self-distributed)

Frost, with Angelina and NB Ridaz

Sunday, July 14

Rotation

The Playa

With partner/producer DJ Quik, Suga Free preaches Street Gospel