Chaz Kangas

Snoop Dogg has, for over two decades, consistently been an icon of hip-hop. One of the most visible and outspoken emcees, his prolific discography has added to his legacy as a mass media figure — especially over the past three years, when he's branched out into funk and reggae. For......

This Wednesday, Sept. 9, innovative funnyman and multifaceted musician Tim Heidecker brings his melodic Heidecker-ness to the Troubadour. Even if you're only familiar with Heidecker through one of his Adult Swim programs with comedy partner Eric Wareheim, or his podcast work, or maybe even his cameos in films like Bridesmaids......

Ever since Mackelmore’s rise to national prominence in 2012, he and partner Ryan Lewis have had their detractors. Criticisms ranging from allegations of appropriation to accusations of plagiarism to questioning certain bizarre clothing choices (and we’re not talking about “Thrift Shop”) have made them controversial figures in hip-hop. But the latest......

Tomorrow, Dr. Dre releases Compton, his first album since 1999’s 2001. If you had told anyone over the past 16 years that Dre’s long awaited third solo album was finally going to drop on Aug. 7, 2015, you would have been met with a dropped jaw, followed by a “Wow,......

Wrestling fans the world over are in mourning as veteran wrestler/actor/comedian “Rowdy” Roddy Piper (real name Roderick Toombs) died in his sleep due to cardiac arrest Thursday night at the age of 61. Piper, who competed in the main event at the first Wrestlemania and remained one of the industry’s......

This past weekend’s Gathering of the Juggalos in Thornville, Ohio was the 16th consecutive year of Dark Carnival debauchery, as Insane Clown Posse’s annual festival brought in loyal ICP devotees from all over the world to see a lineup boasting artists from the Clowns' Psychopathic Records roster past and present......

Saturday night was a first for hip-hop: Police shut down a rapper’s hologram performance. Chicago MC Chief Keef was set to perform via a hologram projected from Los Angeles at a concert at Hammond, Indiana’s Wolf Lake Pavilion. Keef's appearance at the concert, called Craze Fest, was intended to raise......

This August, 10 years after the first Documentary — an album whose success he hasn’t let us forget on any of his recordings since — Compton rapper The Game releases The Documentary 2. It's by no means rap's first album sequel. Whether MCs have wanted to continue an artistic vision, revisit......

Pulitzer Prize-winning, bestselling novelist John Sandford has delighted readers for years with his Prey series, which follow the adventures of fictional Minnesota detective Lucas Davenport as he plays by his own rules to solve tough cases. The charismatic Davenport often delves into some pretty dark stuff, tracking serial killers, uncovering......

Hip-hop as an educational tool goes back to the some of the genre’s most important moments in its first decade. From Public Enemy’s Chuck D and Boogie Down Production’s KRS-ONE bringing political awareness to their lyrics, to Furious Five’s Melle Mel and Run-DMC enlightening listeners about the struggles of inner-city......