The room was charged the moment the doors opened. Richmond showed up ready—you could feel it in the air, like the bassline of a song you know by heart. And at the center of it all stood The Ghost himself: Styles P. Live at Ember Music Hall. A masterclass in presence,...
10:13 AM Vibrant sunrays peer through the blinds, illuminating the meticulously clean, yet homey Museum District apartment. As Roy Ayers’ Virgin Ubiquity 2 plays in the background, there’s a warm, yet comfortable greeting to the place. This article was featured in RVAMag #28: Spring 2017. You can read all of issue #28 here or pick it up at local...
10:13 AM Vibrant sunrays peer through the blinds, illuminating the meticulously clean, yet homey Museum District apartment. As Roy Ayers’ Virgin Ubiquity 2 plays in the background, there’s a warm, yet comfortable greeting to the place. This article was featured in RVAMag #28: Spring 2017. You can read all of issue #28 here or pick it up at local...
Back in August 2012, Richmond lost a community leader and voice when Darrell K. Durant, aka Kleph Dollaz, passed on at the age of 41. Dollaz was one of the first rap artists from Virginia to be signed to major record label Atlantic Records and went on to produce for other artists such as Talib Kweli, Black Moon, and Ol’ Dirty Bastard. But beyond...
Get ready to bob your head and break ya neck because hip hop star Busta Rhymes will make his way to Richmond this summer. From entertaining us in his early days by screaming "Woo Hah!!" to getting us hype with tracks like "Dangerous" and "Touch It" and "Break Ya Neck" his unique videos and stage presence always kept me bumping his jams from my...
As The Gemcutters Prism opens up, a warm string section welcomes you to an album that hopes to empower you with a positive message- a refreshing change of pace in the face of trap-heavy modern hip hop. Before long Cha$e Royale, the emcee who leads us on this musical journey, slides into your ears with the records opening verse. Born in Camaroon,...
As The Gemcutters Prism opens up, a warm string section welcomes you to an album that hopes to empower you with a positive message- a refreshing change of pace in the face of trap-heavy modern hip hop. Before long Cha$e Royale, the emcee who leads us on this musical journey, slides into your ears with the records opening verse. Born in Camaroon,...
Get ready to bob your head and break ya neck because hip hop star Busta Rhymes will make his way to Richmond this summer. From entertaining us in his early days by screaming "Woo Hah!!" to getting us hype with tracks like "Dangerous" and "Touch It" and "Break Ya Neck" his unique videos and stage presence always kept me bumping his jams from my...
In his forthcoming album, The Importance of Self Belief, Richmond rap/jazz musician McKinley Dixon broadens the scope of the challenging subject matter and sentimental dialogue indicative of his prior album, Who Taught You To Hate Yourself?. With an ensemble of gifted jazz musicians and an arsenal of talented collaborators, Dixon brings new...
When I first heard McChicken I knew there would be some challenges involved for some folks, but a new beat track record highlights the rapper and jazz musician's true talents. MC Chicken's "River Rat" days might be a bit in the past with a new full length, Grease Trap, that dropped earlier this year, but he hasn't slowed down. We picked up on...
