The Rap Music Plug Podcast

As today’s guest and I discussed in this episode, sometimes we throw around superlatives too easily in rap. Crowning certain lyricists as elite, when they’re respectable, but nothing close to great. Grouping the Matt Ryans of the world, with the Dan Marinos. Not every ball player, or rapper, is a true Hall of Fame, gold jacket type of guy. When it comes to lyrics and putting intricate rhymes toget...

Speaking to today’s guest genuinely moved me. I was feeling burnt out and uninspired, running on fumes as I hopped on the mic and pressed record, set to speak with the LA-based, Koreatown Oddity. But after hearing fascinating insight, as he guided me through the hallways of his mind with humour and remarkable perspective, spending 2+ hours with me, smiling through constant technical difficulties w...

Few albums pack in as much musical and lyrical diversity as Yaphet does, the latest Curly Castro album fully produced by Locust, released on Backwoodz Studioz. Castro is as dynamic as ever on this new album, slicing through Locust’s electric, drum-forward production with impassioned energy, delivering one of, not only his most dynamic albums yet, but his most personal. Delving into topics like his...

For all of my life, art that touches on relationships, and existentialism in general, have always been up my cup of tea. So I’m always heavily biased towards music that focuses on these subjects. This is why the latest album by today’s guests, Open Mike Eagle and Kenny Segal, titled DOOMED, contrary to what the title may suggest, was destined to be an album that would impact me greatly... and impa...

With today’s guest, from the moment his signature vinyl needle drops and the crackle is heard… you know you’re in for some hard, gritty, soulful, hip-hop s***. Apollo Brown is a Detroit producer extraordinaire who has caught my ear for over a decade, with amazing collaborations with the likes of Planet Asia, Westside Gunn, Skyzoo, Ghostface and more. Additionally, he has crafted incredible instrum...

Another day, another incredible duo dropping inspired rap music in 2026. The last two episodes of the RMPP highlighted great rap duos, and today’s episode is just another example of collaborative heat, provided by Brian Ennals and Blockhead. Blockhead’s layered melodic production has blessed many great MCs in the past, such as Aesop Rock and billy woods. But up until now, I don’t think he’s worked...

Musical collaborations can be successful for a myriad of reasons. The artists in question can have similar life experiences, musical influences, styles, or differ tremendously within those same categories, and complement each other in unique ways. But with today’s guests, Nappy Nina and Swarvy, their secret sauce revolves around their friendship, mutual trust, and a shared versatility that allows...

From the music, to the politics, to the bold aesthetic presentation that accompanies the music... Brooklyn-based producer/electronic musician DJ Haram and San Francisco MC SHA RAY were a match made in heaven. Their shared love for experimental, boundary-pushing sound, and radical political messaging coalesce beautifully in their amazing new album, Critical Thot, released on Backwoodz Studioz. In t...

Few artists have a career as unique and prolific as today’s guest, Richmond Virginia’s own, Nickelus F. Over multiple decades, F has dazzled listeners with his ridiculous technical skills as an MC, the authenticity and honesty in his subject matter, and his production chops that feature a degree of stylistic variety that was always impressively pulled off. With that said, he’s recently taken aim a...

Separating the art from the artist is a conversation that has bubbled up a lot lately, with the release of the Michael movie, as well as recent albums from ye, JPEGMAFIA, and the focus of this episode, Drake. A lot of this discussion revolves around the validity of separating the art from the artist, and I’m here to say that the conversation around this is a psy-op. Especially for artists that dem...

Today’s guest, New Jersey rapper, and co-host of radio show, Strangers LIVE, '89 the Brainchild, is as distinct an artist as they come - occupying a space in rap entirely of his own making. But despite his singular style, he embraces collaboration tremendously, bringing in different voices into his take on rap that integrates influences of jersey club, electronic, pop, and more. This all creates a...

When I first heard that two leaders in the experimental rap space, in rapper Fatboi Sharif and producer Child Actor, were joining forces on an upcoming album, Crayola Circles, the stylistic fit was obvious. I knew immediately that Sharif’s unique vocal style would pair well with Child Actor’s decadent psychedelia. But what I wasn’t prepared for was just how much of a beautifully tender emotional e...

Today’s guest, New York's yaya bey, is as talented as they come. Her unique take on R&B is propelled by a gorgeous voice, and the ability to shift to smooth effortless raps whenever she feels like it. But it’s the intangibles with her music that really make her art special to me. Throughout her entire catalogue, she carries a grounded, worldly perspective to her music that feels both intellige...

As soon as I first heard a beat from today’s guest, GAWD, off of MIKE’s Burning Desire… I was immediately intrigued. I needed to hear more of this nutty, oddball, and infinitely creative sound. So over the past few years since, I’ve dove into GAWD’s catalog as both a producer and a rapper and mined some real gold, within a stupidly prolific discography under various artistic monikers (GAWD, 65 Cen...

Today’s guests, E L U C I D and Sebb Bash may come from very different backgrounds. But they share one core thing in common. Both pulling from the fundamental tenets of the past, they push the art form to places it’s never been before. E L U C I D and Sebb were born to make music together. And luckily for us, they finally delivered their new collaborative album, I Guess U Had to Be There on Backwo...

The music of today’s guest, Birmingham, England-native, Tony Bontana, can be described in many ways: But to me, the simplest way I can describe Tony is creative… in any and every sense of the word. Tony’s music spans multiple genres from rap, to punk, no wave, harnessing an artistic ethos that is truly like none other. In today’s episode, we dig deeper into his creative ethos by discussing this “s...

In the current era of music and hip-hop, there’s gotta be more rappers than at any other point in human history. And so while that leads to a ton of amazing, creative rap music being made, as an artist, it’s increasingly hard to stand out. The market has never been more saturated. This is why artists like today’s guest, have impressed by immediately carving out their own lane as a rising star. Hai...

One of the best things to come out of rap’s rising global influence over the few decades is the proliferation of the art form in different cultures across the globe. Where artists can infuse their own influences into their take on the genre. Today’s guest, mary sue, is a Singapore-native who has thoroughly impressed me in recent years with a wicked degree of musical diversity, working on any kind...

Today’s guest is one of rap’s youngest rising stars. Atlanta-native FearDorian, has quickly established himself as a true innovator in the space of trap and cloud rap. Bridging the gap between Atlanta trap, cloud rap… and indie pop, alternative music through his eclectic sample choices into this gumbo of groovy, melodically catchy, moody, ethereal rap that is so one of one. It’s a whole lot of fun...

Around this time last year, the show was continuing to grow… but at a lesser pace than the super strong growth trajectory it had been on a few years prior. I was more than ok with this. At least the past hadn’t been a fluke. I established myself, and had some modest growth - I was grateful. But then in 2025, that big year-over-year growth came back, and I was so pleasantly surprised. I know this n...

If you’re a fan of the modern scene of indie rap, chances are you listen to artists that either have respect for, have collaborated with, or have been inspired directly by today’s guests, Tomorrow Kings. Ever since their inception in the mid-to late 2000s in Chicago, Tomorrow Kings - a rap supergroup comprised of SKECH185, Collasoul Structure and I.B. Fokuz of Jyroscope, Malakh El, Gilead7, and IL...

Simply put, today’s guests have been on a run for the ages. Ever since their debut album in 2013’s Race Music, Armand Hammer, NY-based duo of E L U C I D and billy woods, have been on an absolute tear. With every passing release, their chemistry has gotten tighter, and their artistic scope has expanded. In 2021, the duo elevated to another level of critical and commercial success, teaming up with...

I’ve been listening to the music of today’s guest for over a decade now. I have vivid memories of telling anyone that would listen, some variation of “Mick Jenkins is the TRUTH”. Ever since I first heard The Water(s), I was sold. So it’s such a full circle moment to welcome him on the show. Mick Jenkins is an artist who’s matured both on and off the mic. On the mic, he’s chiselled away at his craf...

With most artists that I have on the show, I’m more concerned with the “why” and the “what”. Why did they take their music in this emotional direction? What inspired their style? But with today’s guests, HUMAN ERROR CLUB, I found myself often asking “how”? HUMAN ERROR CLUB is a LA-based band comprised of drummer, Mekala Sessions, and two keyboardists in Diego Gaeta and Jesse Justice, who come toge...

Today’s guest, THERAVADA, has experienced a huge 2025 so far. Releasing his latest solo album, THE YEARS WE HAVE, producing half of Earl Sweatshirt’s Live Laugh Love, contributing a guest verse to Evidence’s Unlearning Vol. 2, and producing a bonus track off billy woods’ new album. You’d think, given the build-up of features and production credits that were released before his new album, that THER...