James "Nocando" McCall

This generation of L.A. underground rap just took another blow. We lost someone that you may not know too much about. His name is Cadalack Ron or Robert Paulson. It's a shame that you have to be informed of him this way. This generation of L.A. underground rap isn't equipped......

I write this the day after playing a hip-hop show near Melrose and Vermont called Rhyme Fest L.A. The headliner was KRS-One and the bill included Haiku D’Etat, Planet Asia and many other hip-hop acts. I was the odd duck, young but not so young that I think real hip-hop......

Leimert Park on Thursday nights was the most diverse place ethnically and socio-economically that I'd experienced in this city at that very young age of 18. My peers and I have been known to affectionately refer to it as the Dojo later on. We were learning there, real time. It......

The year was 2004 and the general consensus was that I was the best freestyle rapper in Los Angeles. That was popular opinion, but I knew in my heart of hearts that it wasn't totally true. There was another guy. My nemesis was damn near almost my polar opposite. I......

Dear Morgan Freeman, I’d like to start off this letter by saying that I am a fan of your work and you are a master of your craft. The first time I can remember being emotionally affected by a movie that didn't have animated characters in it was Glory. I......

I consider myself a connoisseur of public transportation. My mother worked for MTA when I was a kid, which kept my young neck draped those in those yearly bus pass lanyards. I took the Red Line on the first day it opened; I was proud that my city had gotten......

From the early ’00s until the early ’10s I built a reputation for being very good at battle rapping. Mostly I’m proud of what I did, but sometimes I’m ashamed of it. For those unfamiliar with battle rap, imagine slam poetry mixed with insult game the Dozens, only about 10......