DISGRACELAND

The Wu-Tang saga continues in DISGRACELAND, and it's got Jake wondering about the most memorable ways that you’ve discovered great music in your lifetime. Plus, top fives, your correspondence, and the questions: What's your favorite Disgraceland Halloween episode? What are your top five Halloween songs? Your top five Halloween music videos? Get in touch at 617-906-6638, disgracelandpod@gmail.com ,...

U-God was raised by the streets of Staten Island, where getting beaten up was a rite of passage that made you stronger. He was busted for driving a stolen car and assaulting a police officer. He dealt crack, and narrowly avoided a police raid on the apartment building he dealt from. He also dealt vengeance – he once came within seconds of killing a rival dope peddler. And when he finally put the v...

Cappadonna may have taught a lot of the guys in Wu-Tang Clan how to rhyme, but he wasn’t around when the group first formed and released their incredible debut album. Because Cappadonna was in Rikers Island, doing time for someone else’s crack rocks. When Cap was released, the Clan welcomed him as the honorary tenth member of the group. But he brought someone else into the fold, too. A shady chara...

At just 15 years old, Inspectah Deck had to learn how to hold his own against older, more dangerous convicts when he was sent to jail for selling crack to an undercover cop. It wasn’t the first time he did hard time. Multiple stints behind bars gave him nothing but time – to reflect, to strategize, to learn how to rap, and to take that new skill and use it to turn his life around on the outside. B...

The After Party returns this week while DISGRACELAND takes a break from our full season on the Wu-Tang Clan, and Jake is talking the Wu's influences, Ringo Starr, Bruce and Brandon Lee - and of course your voicemails, texts, and DMs. What other artists are worthy of a full season in Disgraceland? Let Jake know at 617-906-6638, disgracelandpod@gmail.com , or on socials @disgracelandpod, and come jo...

Ghostface Killah allegedly tried to steal three thousand dollars from a parking lot attendant. They said he was shot in the neck and shoulder in Steubenville, Ohio, shortly before the RZA went on trial for attempted murder. Or so the story goes. And it is true that he was busted with a .357 Magnum, hollow-point bullets, and a bulletproof vest during a routine traffic stop. It was stories and trans...

As a teenager, Method Man won $800 on a $5 bet in a dice game. He used those winnings to set himself up as a crack dealer on Staten Island. Dealing was dangerous. Meth was chased by drug squads and dragged down the street when a potential buyer stole his product. His life was saved by a friend who pulled him out of the wrong place at the right moment – a moment in which he literally dodged a bulle...

Corey Woods, aka Raekwon, was addicted to the styles, sounds, and crimes of hip-hop street culture in the 1980s. He sold weed, coke, and later crack to fund his expensive taste in clothes and parties. But that life wasn’t all glamor. He was shot four times and nearly killed when he was caught in the crossfire. And times were changing. The NYPD launched a street-level anti-drug task force to target...

Bobby Diggs (aka the RZA) grew up on a steady diet of kung fu movies and hip-hop music. As a kid he hung around junkies and prostitutes in Times Square. As a teenager he hustled dime bags of weed to day traders on Wall Street. But on Christmas Eve 1991, in Ohio, he was caught up in a shooting that landed him in a fight for his life. To see the full list of contributors, see the show notes at  www....

Jake dives in to the Wu-Tang Clan as DISGRACELAND embarks on a new season all on the group. Are they the best super group of all time? If not, who is? Plus, Bumblefest, Low Cut Connie, and your correspondence. Get in touch at 617-906-6638, disgracelandpod@gmail.com , or on socials @disgracelandpod, and come join the After Party. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: ht...

Wu-Tang Clan made history with some of the most compelling hip-hop music of all time. They also made enemies with the NYPD, the ATF, and the FBI – the latter of which classified them as a "major criminal organization." The story of Wu-Tang's rise from the streets of New York to the world's stage is full of hustle, paranoia, bad drug deals, police shootouts, federal informants...and it's also the s...

This week's re-release of the second part of the Notorious BIG episode comes along with somenew developments in Tupac's murder case - and maybe related to BIG's murder. Who do you think killed BIG? What about Tupac? Jake also talks Prince's acting career, nü metal, new metal, and non-biopic music movies. Drop Jake a line about these topics at 617-906-6638, disgracelandpod@gmail.com , or on socials...

In this installment of the After Party, we kick off our 50th anniversary of hip-hop by revisiting the two-part episode on The Notorious BIG. Jake asks about the biggest musical beefs of all time, he wants to know what job you're NOT doing while listening, and about your tattoo regrets. Let Jake know at 617-906-6638, disgracelandpod@gmail.com , or on socials @disgracelandpod, and come join the Afte...

It's Velvet Underground week in Disgraceland, and Jake is wondering if they are the most influential rock band? Plus voicemails, texts, Keith Jarrett, FIDLAR, and the question: what are your favorite end-of-the-workday songs? Let Jake know at 617-906-6638, disgracelandpod@gmail.com , or on socials @disgracelandpod, and come join the After Party. To learn more about listener data and our privacy pr...

The Velvet Underground put a spike in the status quo. They sang candidly about heroin, speed, and S&M. Their members included drug dealers and junkies. Their stage show was so perverted that it offended even the most liberal of peacenik hippies. Their benefactor and so-called manager, Andy Warhol, was nearly killed in an assassination attempt that shocked the country. But their songwriter, Lou...

In Sonny Rollins week, Jake ponders the powers of talent and craft, and what makes musicians great. Plus, your voicemails, texts, and DMs. Who is the GOAT musician? What are the best duets? What's your desert island Dead album? And is talent or craft more important? Jake wants to know at 617-906-6638, disgracelandpod@gmail.com , or on socials @disgracelandpod, and come join the After Party. To lea...

Sonny Rollins did time at Rikers Island twice: first for armed robbery and again for using dope. He was a fiend and a pickpocket. He nearly got himself killed when he ran to Miles Davis’ defense after a bloody scuffle with a cop outside Birdland. At the same time, Sonny Rollins was universally acknowledged as the greatest living tenor saxophone player. But he wanted to get better. He knew he could...

Jake connects his a-ha moment with country to the greats, specifically this week's DISGRACELAND subject Merle Haggard. Jake takes voicemails, texts, and DMs, and offers his best post-punk bands list. What are your top five music movies of all time? Introduce yourselves! Hit Jake up at 617-906-6638, disgracelandpod@gmail.com , or on socials @disgracelandpod, and come join the After Party. To learn...

Merle Haggard was what authorities liked to call a “repeat offender.” He was arrested for riding trains, for skipping school, for stealing cars, for robbing gas stations, and for attempting to knock over a restaurant – during the Christmas Eve rush. He was committed to juvenile halls, correctional facilities, and reform schools 17 times, and 17 times he escaped. When he was...

On this week's After Party, Jake is talking the classic film Almost Famous, John Lee Hooker's baseball song Grinder Man, and taking your voicemails and texts. Who are the greatest English groups of the post-punk era? Does New Order make the cut? Jake wants to get to know you. Plus, what is "it" about your favorite artists? was 1994 the best year for music? Is Almost Famous the best movie about mus...

New Order proved that a rock band could make dance music and actually become cooler in the process. The musical hybrid they created helped define the sound of the 1980s. It also defined the growing subculture in their hometown of Manchester, England, specifically at the Haçienda, the nightclub they owned. But beyond a fine time, the club scene brought gang violence, a notorious crime family, cocai...

After a week's break from the After Party, Jake catches up on voicemail, wraps up our musical mashup conversation, and explores Billboard's top rap groups kerfuffle. We get into season two of The Bear, Fourth of July songs, and Jake offers some insight into his own history. What is your favorite hip hop group? Can you recommend some weird, obscure 90s hip hop? Leave a message for Jake at 617-906-6...

On May 22, 2017, a terrorist detonated a bomb outside Ariana Grande’s performance at Manchester Arena. The blast killed 22 people. It injured over a thousand more. The attack remains one of the most heartbreaking events in music history. Parents were terrified. Younger fans suddenly feared going to concerts. But Manchester’s story doesn’t end on May 22, or in the days that follow...

On this week's After Party, Jake is digging into why he loves and hates Aerosmith with a dive into a personal story from his way back machine. We ask the question: is it worth it to meet your heroes? More Hüsker Dü, more Fidlar, and more of your voicemails, texts, and DMs. Leave a message for Jake at 617-906-6638 or on socials @disgracelandpod and come join the After Party. See omnystudi...

At their peak, Aerosmith was sex, drugs, and rock and roll in the flesh, wrapped up in spangly scarves and jumpsuits. They crossed target practice with black tar heroin. Trained roadies how to feed them cocaine onstage. Frontman Steven Tyler claims he spent $6,000,000 on coke alone. Their chemical highs launched them to career highs that were equally staggering, until addictions and attitudes spli...