Talib Kweli

Nas & Ms. Lauryn Hill Playing Bayou Music Center October 31

Rapper Nas and Ms. Lauryn Hill today announced their tandem Life Is Good/Black Rage tour, with an October 31 Houston date inluded. The duo will be at the Bayou Music Center on Halloween Night. Nas just released a new disc, Life Is Good, this past July and Ms. Lauryn Hill -- as she is now being bill ... More >>

Bun B's Birthday: "Murder" Still Kills

​Some rappers happen to be thoughtful, intelligent people. Each week, Rocks Off will have some of them here discussing issues relevant to their culture. This Week's Panel: Slim Thug, Lil O, E.S.G., Delo, hasHBrown, Medicine Girl, Mac, Chane, more. Not Invited: Marcus This Week's Prompt: King ... More >>

DJ EQUE: "Bad Azz Red Gurl" Etches Her Name In Wax

Photo by Marco TorresDJ EQUE at the launch party for Pharrell's Qreme liqueur, Las Vilas, September 23, 2011​DJ EQUE has been making her mark in the industry for more than 10 years, but it was never something that came easy for her. The Houston-bred beauty had a lot to prove before she was tak ... More >>

Last Night: Black Star At House Of Blues

Photos by Marco Torres​Black Star feat. Mos Def & Talib Kweli House of Blues September 8, 2011 Mos Def knows how to make an exit. With the lights dimmed and the curtains dancing toward the middle, Mos Def stayed on stage and shimmied to the beat of Archie Bell & The Drells' "Tighten Up." The ... More >>

Black Star

10 Great Instances Of Rappers Honoring Other Rappers

​People often forget that hip-hoppers are humans, too. They breathe, sleep, eat, and salivate at the sight of buttermilk donuts just like us. And, every now and then, they'll geek over other rappers, just like us. It would have been so much easier to compile a list of rappers dissing other ra ... More >>

More Local Music News Than Angry Easter Bunnies

Good Friday? How about great Friday? Here at Rocks Off we try to ensure that each and every Friday our readers get a full and healthy dose of local music news set to tide them over until we return. So without further ado, we present the newest installment of Magnolia City Mixtape. ​The soundt ... More >>

Bun B Panel Debates Rappers' Social Responsibilities

RizohTuesday's panel (l-r): Tre9, Malice, Lupe Fiasco, Talib Kweli, Trae Tha Truth, Bun B​There was a time when everyone either wanted to be hip-hop or sleep with her. Hip-hop, in her nascent days, was akin to that hot chick everyone wanted to take to the dance. But now that hip-hop is old and ... More >>

Will Mainstream Rap Ever Stop Objectifying Women?

Some rappers happen to be thoughtful, intelligent people. Every Monday that isn't a national holiday, Rocks Off will have some of them here discussing issues relevant to their culture. Photo illustration by John Seaborn Gray​This Week's Panel: Bun B, Lil Flip, D-Risha, Renzo, Kyle Hubbard, Do ... More >>

Raw Fun

Zake Sushi Lounge hosts hot weekend parties.

Wu-Tang Clan's Best Pop-Culture References

​Rocks Off can't rightfully remember the last time the whole Wu-Tang Clan was ever in Houston, if they ever have been. For some reason, we keep wanting to think they came once with Rage Against The Machine around 1997. In 2007, they came to Dallas on the Rock The Bells summer tour with Nas, Ta ... More >>

Cory Mo's Star-Studded It's Been About Time Mixtape

Photos via myspace.com/corymoCory Mo and Bun B in Europe​We've been writing about Houston rap for nearly three years now, and have yet to hear someone - ANYONE - say a bad thing about Cory Mo. Not once. That's remarkable. Given the sometimes irritable nature of Houston's rap scene, that's like ... More >>

Top Five Rap Duos That Will Probably Never Happen

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. Have something you always wanted to ask a rapper? Email it to sheaserrano@gmai ... More >>

Saturday Night: Talib Kweli At House Of Blues

Photos by Marco Torres​Talib Kweli House of Blues September 4, 2010 Once upon a time, Talib Kweli was poised to become a mainstream hip-hop success. His blend of conscious rhymes with accessible beats made him a force in rap. Peers, from Jay-Z to Kanye West, constantly showered him with adula ... More >>

Talib Kweli

V-Zilla, Shunned By HPMAs, Has A Lot To "Talk About"

The monster's been quiet. We haven't heard from V-Zilla in a good while, but the other day when the HPMA ballots hit the streets, we got an interesting text message. It was from Zilla. "There should be a "Best Lyricist category." Yeah, we won't argue. And if someone were to say that V-Zilla ... More >>

Y'all Musta Forgot: K-Otix's Universal

Houston's history is dotted with albums that, fairly or not, have been swept aside. We'll examine them here. Have an album that you think nobody knows about but should? Email sheaserrano@gmail.com. K-Otix Universal (Bronx Science, 2001) ​K-Otix are the Hawk and Animal of Houston rappers, a seeming ... More >>

Distant Early Warning: Athlete, The Bangles, Cypress Hill, Imogen Heap, MGMT, O'Jays, Rush, Talib Kweli, Etc.

​Athlete, Carney: Sat., June 26. Walter's on Washington. All Leather, Balaclavas, Yip-Yip: Sat., May 15. The Mink. The Bangles, Tonic: Sat., May 29. Moody Gardens Outdoor Amphitheater. Tyagaraja, Black Queen Speaks, Peekaboo Theory, Robert Ellis & The Boys, The Tontons, VerseCity, Wayside Dri ... More >>

2009 Concert Rewind, June: Roky Erickson, David Byrne, Heartless Bastards, Santigold, Clapton & Winwood, the Jenny Lewis Shushing and '90s Alt-Rock Back from the Dead

Daniel Kramer​ New York Dolls, Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears, House of Blues, June 4: "What we got last night at the House of Blues was an hour-long set of sporadic and confounding re-workings of their bedrock material, and a whole helluva lot of middle-of-the-road bar rock from two dimming ... More >>

Ask a Rapper: Nosaprise on Building a Hip-Hop Brand

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. Have something you always wanted to ask a rapper? Email it to introducingliston@ ... More >>

Turning the Screw: Slim Thug & Friends, Bun B & Friends, 50 Cent & Susan Boyle(!), Kid Cudi, Chris Brown, OutKast, Kidz In the Hall, Lil Wayne, Eminem, Sade, 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. Single of the Week: Juicy J & Project Pat feat. Slim Thug & New Genesis, "Ike Turner Pimpin'" "I'm a motherfuckin' ... More >>

Turning the Screw: Chalie Boy, Royce da 5'9", Saigon, Soulja Boy, Jay-Z, Adam Yauch, 50 vs. Fabolous, Young Gunz, Method Man, Big Moe, 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. Single of the Week: "I Look Good" remix, featuring Bun B, Slim Thug and Juvenile Note: We initally hated Chalie Boy's "I Lo ... More >>

Bayou Beat: Cougars for a Cause at House of Blues, Mandy Moore Hearts Jandek, Bun B Orders Up Some PB&J, etc.

​Want to help fight breast cancer and possibly get pawed by some of Houston's hottest older ladies? Boy, is this the right weekend for you. Sugar Ray, pimping its new album Music for Cougars, headlines House of Blues' "Cougars for a Cause" show Saturday night with Austin power-pop heroes Fastball, ... More >>

Zin Balance

The Third Ward's favorite son produces his most important album to date.

Aftermath: Talib Kweli at Meridian

Photos by Ben BrennanHip-hop is a peculiar thing. Not only is it a genre of music, it's an art form as well. Unlike any other genre, when an artist makes a command, the audience immediately complies. When they spit rhymes, verse after verse, they take their willing participants on a journey to place ... More >>

Talib Kweli

Distant Early Warning: The Cult, Billy Joe Shaver, English Beat, Fall Out Boy, Talib Kweli and More

Asleep At The Wheel: Sat., Aug. 1. Sengelmann Hall (Schulenburg). Balaclavas, Cave, Twisted Wires: Thu., June 4. Mango's. Babasonicos: Thu., Aug. 20. House of Blues. Billy Joe Shaver: Tue., Aug. 4. Dosey Doe Coffee Company. "Sean Hannity Freedom Concert" with Billy Ray Cyrus, The Charlie Daniels B ... More >>

Five Spot: You Know His Name

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. How's this for a stretch: DMX, if you'll remember, was recently incarcerated for the 93rd time for, meh, it ... More >>

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 >>

Aftermath: Nas and Talib Kweli at Warehouse Live

Erykah Badu: New Amerykah, Part One (4th World War)

Lupe Fiasco

Lupe Fiasco's The Cool

2007 Music Year in Review

Chamillionaire, Ultimate Victory

CD Review

Mail Call

A Different Breed

Laptop Battles

Blogging: Hip-hop's new element?

Talib Kweli

Eardrum

SXSW Preview

Downloading Music

Linking you to the best in legitimate, artist-approved exclusives

DJ Chicken George

Monday, May 29, at The Flat, 1701 Commonwealth, 713-521-FLAT

Tag, He's It

Rockin' Renewal

The imminent launch of new venue Warehouse Live makes it official: Downtown is now Houston's live music hot spot

John Legend, with De La Soul and Rahzel

Saturday, August 13, at HUSH, 15625 Katy Freeway, 713-330-HUSH.

The Roots, with Floetry

Wednesday, June 8, at HUSH, 15625 Katy Freeway, 713-330-HUSH.

The Perfect Rhyme

The lyrics flow at the Starving Poets Poetic House Party 3

Playbill

Mouse Rap

Okayplayer -- the Roots' home on the Net -- is more than just a Web site. For some hip-hop heads, it's a way of life.

Dead Prez

RBG: Revolutionary But Gangsta (Sony/Columbia)

Fade to Black

Jay-Z previews his latest opus, The Black Album