Chaz Kangas

Snoop Dogg; Credit: Photo by TImothy Norris

Snoop Dogg's Second-Best Album Is …

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......
Tim Heidecker (right) with his musical partner-in-crime

Tim Heidecker's 10 Funniest Musical Moments

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......
No matter what Macklemore does

Why It's Time for Everyone to Quit Hating on Macklemore

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......
"Rowdy" Roddy Piper 1954-2015; Credit: Techarrow via WikiMedia Commons

The Time Roddy Piper and I Discussed His Music Career

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......
Nova Rockafeller; Credit: Island Records

What's It Like to Be a Female Rapper at Gathering of the Juggalos?

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......
Raekwon got in on the sequel action in 2009; Credit: Ice H20/EMI

The Top 20 Rap Album Sequels of All Time

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......
Dr. Elliot Gann Teaches Children How to Make Beats; Credit: Today's Future Sound

Today's Future Sound Helps Kids by Teaching Them How to Make Beats

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......