UGK (Band)

Don’t Fight It! featuring Dave Wrangler, Piss Heavy and Young $quaddy

Don’t Fight It! featuring Dave Wrangler, Piss Heavy and Young $quaddy

Midtowners meet the Montrose on the dance floor

R.I.P. Pimp C

Remembering a Down South Legend

Underground Kingz

CD review

Houston Hip-Hop

Mike Watts and his stable of northside rappers take a southside legend's style to the masses

Five Spot: Flying the Mddl Fngz

Welcome back to Five Spot. Every Friday, we'll examine a recent bit of music news and, sometimes awkwardly, tie it to a bit of Houston rap. It's five videos and occasional cussing. Send tips to introducingliston@gmail.com.Mddl Fngz is a hard hitting (and totally texter-friendly) rap group that forme ... More >>

Five Spot: The Illustrious Dustin Prestige

Welcome back to Five Spot. Every Friday, we'll examine a recent bit of music news and, sometimes awkwardly, tie it to a bit of Houston rap. It's five videos and occasional cussing. Send tips to introducingliston@gmail.com.We suspect the goal of every music writer is to be able to answer "Who are you ... More >>

Turning the Screw: Chamillionaire & Z-Ro, UGK, Slim Thug, Trae Day, Chris Brown, Meth & Red, Diddy, MCA, O.G. Style 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: Chamillionaire feat. Z-Ro, "Denzel Washington" Wire To Wire Slim Thugga cut off his braids. Not sure ho ... More >>

MP3 of the Day: H-Town Underground All-Stars

Mark C. AustinB L A C K I E holds court at Dean's on Showcase Sunday.​ We heard a rumor bubble up a while ago about how a couple of the Houston Press Best Underground Hip-Hop nominees were supposed to be working on a group track together. There was even supposed to be a co-sign from Bun B worked i ... More >>

The H-Town Countdown: Setting the Table

Roughly 84,000 rap albums have been released in Houston since 1989. For the next six months, we'll be counting down the 25 best of all time every Thursday. Got a problem with the list? Shove it. Just kidding. Friendship. Email it to sheaserrano@gmail.com.​For the last few weeks we have pored over ... More >>

A Musical Guide to Post-Secession Texas: Houston and "Brazoria"

The final installment of our Five States of Texas project brings it all back home, to the new state of Brazoria, encompassing all of Southeast Texas from the Brazos Valley to Sabine Pass. ​Patron Saint: Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown. A master of rock and roll, country, Cajun/Creole, blues and jazz, n ... More >>

High-Fiving T-Pain, Wondering Why We Can't Quit Plies' "Plenty Money"

[Note: Thursday night T-Pain, Wale and DJ MOS performed a private concert at downtown nightclub Venue. Our man Shea Serrano was on the red carpet and inside.] Photos by Larami Culbertson"Is it true what they say about the size of a man's chain?"​ 9:17 p.m.: Yo, the PR camp from Heineken, that comp ... More >>

Ask a Rapper: Scooby of G.R.I.T. Boys Gives Us the Three Greatest Houston Rap Groups Ever, Including His Own

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 >>

Five Spot: A Crap N.O.R.E. Track Reminds Us of Bun B's Better Days

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.Marco Torres​ Yesterday, N.O.R.E. released "Set Trip," a wispy, "Look How Tough I Am," available-via-Internet tr ... More >>

Five Spot: The First Annual Pimp C Hip-Hop Health and Wellness Fair

Welcome back to Five Spot. Every Friday, we'll examine a recent bit of music news and, albeit sometimes awkwardly, tie it to a bit of Houston rap. It's five videos and occasional cussing. Send tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. ​Today marks the two-year anniversary of Pimp C's death. Quick a ... More >>

It Was What It Was

Amid a wash of national phooey, plucking Houston rap's pivotal 2009 moment is easy.

Five Spot: The Kanye Is Not Going To Act Like A Dick In 2010... Until He Does

Welcome back to Five Spot. Every Friday, we'll examine a recent bit of music news and, sometimes awkwardly, tie it to a bit of Houston rap. It's five videos and occasional cussing. Send tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. ​We take in a ton of music each week... turns out that's actually a major p ... More >>

Aftermath: Goodie Mob at House of Blues, With a Completely Unexpected Bun B Cameo

Photos by Marco Torres / Click here for a slideshow​9:25 p.m.: Standing in line to pick up tickets with the photographer, Bun B happens to walk up right behind us. (The Bun B Law of Inevitability is infallible.) I turn around and tell him hello and that we've spoken on the time several times ... More >>

The H-Town Countdown, No. 2: UGK's Ridin' Dirty

Roughly 84,000 rap albums have been released in Houston since 1989. We're counting down the 25 best of all time every Thursday. Got a problem with the list? Shove it. Just kidding. Friendship. Email it to sheaserrano@gmail.com. UGK Ridin' Dirty (Jive, 1996) ​When UGK first came into focus with th ... More >>

The H-Town Countdown, No. 1: Mike Jones' Who Is Mike Jones?

Roughly 84,000 rap albums have been released in Houston since 1989. We're counting down the 25 best of all time every Thursday. Got a problem with the list? Shove it. Just kidding. Friendship. Email it to sheaserrano@gmail.com. Mike Jones Who Is Mike Jones? (Asylum, 2005) ​Before you fire off some ... More >>

The Hot Seat: Lee-Coc, Richmond Revolutionary

Every Friday, Rocks Off will beam hip-hop artists into our demented, imaginary, incredibly witty, fantasy world of pretend scenarios. We predict it'll soon be known as a feared interrogation of hip-hop artists, revealing their most-inner thoughts and desires. In reality, it's just a fucking cool Q&a ... More >>

Five Spot: Five Obscure UGK Features, With Downloadable Links

Welcome back to Five Spot. Every Friday, we'll examine a recent bit of music news and, albeit sometimes awkwardly, tie it to a bit of Houston rap. It's five videos and occasional cussing. Send tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. ​Yo, maybe you heard, maybe you didn't, but there's some concerts an ... More >>

Aftermath: Paul Wall & Chamillionaire, Together Again At House Of Blues

Photos by Marco Torres​ For more pictures from the show, see our slideshow here. 11:03 p.m.: This place is pretty well packed. 97.9 FM's G.T. is on stage. It's unclear whether he's the opening act or is just up there to fill time. He leans on a bunch of Houston classics to gain the support of the ... More >>

Help Rocks Off Adjust This Year's HPMA Categories

Jay Lee2009 HPMA Best Blues, Best Guitarist and Local Musician of the Year Little Joe Washington​Rocks Off is about to take the first steps down the long and winding road to this year's Houston Press Music Awards in late July, but we'd like our readers' help with something first. We will be revisi ... More >>

Remember Crime Boss' All In The Game?

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. Crime Boss All In the Game (Suave House, 1995) ​Crime Boss was Suave House Records' most vin ... More >>

Is The National Recording Registry Ready For The Geto Boyz?

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 introducinglisto ... More >>

The Year of Magical Thinking

How Bun B dealt with Pimp C's death.

Hollywood F.L.O.S.S.'s Xperiment: Build Your Own Mixtape

kevinnottingham.com​Recently, Hollywood F.L.O.S.S., or as we've unofficially taken to calling him, The 135-Pound Smile, set to work on promoting Xperiment 2, a hybrid mixtape/self-marketing ploy. Rather than simply sending out a completed mixtape to various media outlets, he sent out a sort ... More >>

What Is The Best Pimp C Verse Of All Time?

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, Trae,Yung Redd, Lil' Flip, Fat Pimp, H-Kan ... 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 >>

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 >>

The Rap Renaissance

Genre's local and national acts came back hard in 2010.

The Ten Oddest Crimes Of 2010, Southeast Texas Style

Hard as it may be to believe, the criminal element of Southeast Texas did dumb and weird things in 2010, continuing a tradition that dates back to the creation of Southeast Texas. Here are ten of the oddest and dumbest: 10. Two former EMS employees in Santa Fe were arrested after they allegedly p ... More >>

Last Night: Too Short & Devin The Dude At House Of Blues

Photos by Marco Torres​Too Short, Devin the Dude, DJ Kid Capri House of Blues January 16, 2010 The truly legendary lineup of DJ Kid Capri, Devin the Dude and Too Short came together Sunday night for Houston's first major hip-hop show of 2011. The term "legendary" is often just a synonym for " ... More >>

Ask A (Producer For) Rapper(s)

Chris Rockaway​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? Email introd ... More >>

The Southern Way: UGK 's Top 12 Disciples

​On April 26, 1988, 23 years ago today, UGK kicked off a long and influential career with the release of their cassette-only debut, The Southern Way. It's impossible to overstate the duo's Texas-sized influence on Southern rap. The slow-rolling, tough-talking grooves showcased on seminal albu ... More >>

UGK's Top Five Most Underrated Songs

​UGK has churned out tons of hits over the last couple of decades, with more promised. Still, there's a bunch of notable songs that never gained the recognition they deserved. In the second installment of our Southern Way celebration, behold UGK's most underappreciated cuts. We decided to kee ... More >>

Bear Hug

Life is sweet for Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears.

New UGK/Big K.R.I.T. Song Holds Fast To That Wood

smokingsection.uproxx.com​It's not quite up to Tupac-level proportions yet, but UGK keeps pouring out that prime Southern rap unencumbered by Pimp C's untimely December 2007 demise. The latest track, leaked by the Smoking Section this morning, is the expertly sculpted ode to steering wheels " ... More >>

Bun B Discusses Pimp C's New Song, Rally Races And "The Sheik"

Marco TorresBun B at Free Press Summer Fest, June 4, 2011​Yesterday, we linked to "Grippin' On the Wood," a churchy squish that unfurls into a snapshot of one of Southern rap's most engrossing talking points: Wooden steering wheels. Beyond simply being an enjoyable song, it's extra interesting ... More >>

Forrest Gump & Other "Generation-Defining" Soundtracks

​The Forrest Gump soundtrack debuted on June 28, 1994, a week ahead of the film itself, which would go on to smash box-office records, win numerous awards and become one of the most beloved movies of the past 20 years. It is still endlessly quotable, emotional, and entertaining, and the soundt ... More >>

Five Posthumous Rap Albums Up For Debate

​Recently, and with a certain amount of controversy, Rap-A-Lot made available a bundle of previously unreleased songs disguised as a new Pimp C album. Posthumous records are unsafe footing. It's entirely capable that they can be built into capable, glorious, heartbreaking goodbyes; in 2009, ... More >>

Rappers Onstage: Who's Dramatic Enough For Broadway?

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. Have something you've always wanted to ask a rapper? Email sheaserrano@gmail.com. Photo illustration by John Seabor ... More >>

UGK's Top 10 Most Insightful Songs, Part 1

blastro.com​There's a big difference between being a fanatic and fan of someone's music. We all know this, but let's spell it out for the slow kids in class. For instance, Rocks Off is a fanatic of Death Cab for Cutie. We love their deep cuts as much as the widely known "Soul Meets Body." We ... More >>

UGK's Top 10 Most Insightful Songs, Part 2

​As Rocks Off continues our countdown of UGK's Most Insightful Tracks, it's important to point out that this isn't a "best of" list. Perhaps this is a safer route, but it doesn't make the list any less important. Especially as we break into the Top 5, the joking in Part 1 subsides and things g ... More >>

Rap Boom Reload

In 2005, rappers put Houston on the map. Then the spotlight moved on. Some musicians are working hard to turn it back this way.

7 Houston Rap Tributes by Non-Houston Rappers

Photo by RizohBun B: I wonder if this is how you do the presidential wave​Are you happy with your current city? Yeah? Then feel free to ignore this list of rappers from other cities drooling over all things Houston. It's likely to breed envy. Some of these come from gushing fans and some are r ... More >>

Tips For A Successful NYE from David Anderson, Houston's Party King

photo by Marco TorresHaving a great time? Probably thanks to this guy.​ Remember that one awesome party, the invite-only one with the open bar that was sponsored by a liquor company, where everyone was beautiful and hip, and you got to mingle with Big Boi or Pharrell Williams or Bun B? Either ... More >>

The Space City Beat Battle & The Best H-Town Producers Ever

​Despite a venue conflict, the championship edition of the Space City Beat Battle will go on Saturday evening at the Mercury Room. If you've never been to one it's almost like watching a ritualistic rite of passage where cocksure arrogance and chest pounding reign supreme. Sample based produce ... More >>