Dad Bod Rap Pod

This week we speak to Beans, one of the most original and unique MC/producers in hip-hop. I never do this but I am actually going to quote his own description of himself since it is so perfect: Accomplished abstract poet. Early architect of electronic-infused beatscapes. Founding ex- member of legendary left-field rap act Anti-Pop Consortium The interview takes a few unexpected turns, and he actua...

This week we are joined by the intriguing young rapper Mavi, who dropped a very good album called Let The Sun Talk recently and appears on the new Earl Sweatshirt EP Feet of Clay. He’s got a bright future ahead of him, it’s always interesting to talk to someone right when they are at the outset of a promising career.

This week we have an hour-long sit-down in-studio interview with the great MC R.A.P. Ferreira, formerly known as Milo, currently also known as Scalllops Hotel and half of the group Nostrum Grocers. DBRP co-host and producer Nate LeBlanc sat down with the elusive and artful MC to discuss his life and career, his process, and poetry.

This week we are joined by two special guests with long histories in the rap game. First up is friend of the program Uncommon Nasa, who has an new album entitled City As School out today. Then we talk to legendary producer Psycho Les of The Beatnuts, who has produced some the freshest beats in the genre’s history and most recently produced a full album for Kool Keith. Beats for this week’s show we...

This week we are joined by author Ben Merlis. His new book Goin’ Off, The story of the Juice Crew and Cold Chillin’ Records will be available on November 5th. We are such huge fans of Marley Marl and the Juice Crew, and it was great to discuss their impact on hip-hop with a careful researcher like Ben.

This week we discuss the Tekashi 69 case with Shawn Setaro, who has been attending and reporting on the case for Complex.com since the beginning. We also touch on the “stop snitchin” ethos and the ramifications of using rap lyrics and videos to convict people of crimes. It’s more fun than it sounds.

This week we are joined by one of the most interesting people in hip-hop culture, the host of Comedy Central’s The New Negroes, unapologetic art rapper Open Mike Eagle. Mike talks to us about his life and career, his mentors at Project Blowed, and we get deep into the intersection of comedy and hip-hop, an often uncomfortable pairing.

This week the fellas ruminate on Kanye’s album (?) rollout for the supposedly upcoming Jesus Is King and talk about whether or not cancel culture is a real thing. Then we interview Homeboy Sandman, who has a new album called Dusty dropping October 18th. Homeboy Sandman is know as an MC’s MC, a very productive and unique rhymer. We dig into his writing, his career, and Dave gets a new nickname.

We are such huge Kool Keith fans. Ultramagnetic MCs changed the game in the golden era, Sex Style is an underground classic, Dr Octagon blew our minds, Dr Dooom and Black Elvis made us laugh and admire the continued lyrical dexterity. He’s one of the best MCs who ever lived, a pioneer in non-rhyming but still dope verses, and just an overall interesting person. This week we talked to him about his...

We have very special guests this week, all the way live from North Carolina, Rapper Big Pooh and Phonte, who are of course collectively known as Little Brother. Their career spans the backpack rap era to the present day, and we talk about all of it. Phonte has hilarious stories about the times when they were being courted by major labels in the 2000s that you won’t want to miss. Beats for this wee...

Nate, Dave, and Demone are joined this week by Philadelphia-based MC Curly Castro. The loquacious rapper shares stories about his childhood in Brooklyn, some funny encounters with rap royalty, and his dream of becoming the world’s greatest hypeman. Stay tuned til the end where we share new music from Castro and his collaborators PremRock, friend of the program Zilla Rocca, and Open Mike Eagle. Fir...

This week we are joined by very special guest Nathaniel Friedman of GQ Magazine, Victory Journal, and formerly of revolutionary basketball blog Free Darko. We go deep on Madlib and Freddie Gibbs’ Bandana album, which Nathaniel covered in his brilliant Gibbs profile for GQ. We also talk about the NBA, record collecting, and having your takes, good and bad, memorialized on the internet.

This week we spoke to Mr. Len, a gifted DJ and producer with a long career in hip-hop that started as a member of underground legends Company Flow. We dig deep into Len’s catalog, starting with Funcrusher and moving forward into his solo work with Jean Grae and Breeze Brewin, his emo-rap project Roosevelt Franklin, and then we all giggle talking about his time in the Prince Paul project The Dix. I...

This week we are discussing sequels, especially rap album sequels. What are the best rap album sequels, what makes an album an official sequel, and some of our faves. Then we have a very special interview with Jazz, best known as Roc Marciano’s manager, who oversaw a groundbreaking release strategy for Roc’s sequel album Rosebudd’s Revenge 2. Jazz drops tons of knowledge about Roc’s many releases,...

Slightly different format this week. Dave and Nate spoke with friends of the program DJ Cutso and Bay Area MC Big Hongry about their forthcoming collaborative project. Cutso is on a hot streak right now, having just released the Rapp Nite project with Lyrics Born. This is you opportunity to get to know Big Hongry, a skilled rapper with a wide variety of interests and life experiences.

In the first segment the guys do a brief run-through of some of the new rap releases. The second segment is an interview with rapper, producer, comedy show DJ, podcast host, hip-hop head, and extremely grounded self-aware person Donwill! He’s got a good new album out now called One Word No Space and an illustrious career as a solo artist and with his group Tanya Morgan. Beats for this week’s episo...

The legendary record store Fat Beats, also an extremely important record label and indie distributor with a huge influence on hip-hop culture, recently celebrated their 25th Anniversary. We spend the first segment talking about hip-hop record stores in general, sharing some tweets from listeners, and Nate has a pretty dope story about an afternoon he spent at Fat Beats Amsterdam back in the day. T...

This week we talk about the role of personas, aliases, and characters in hip-hop. Some of the genre’s greatest figures like Kool Keith, RZA, MF DOOM, and others have released entire projects in character. What does it all mean? We cap it off with a chat with an MC who is quite a character himself, Thirstin Howl the 3rd. Thirst is an MCs MC, a sharp rhyme writer and spitter who also brings a lot of...

This week we have a Gravediggaz focused episode. The guys discuss their classic debut album 6 Feet Deep and interview The Gatekeeper, Frukwan, who was in Stetsasonic and still reps Gravediggaz.

Special episode this week, we have a sit-down interview with Jon Sklute who details his journey from Bay Area underground  MC and producer to NYC record store owner to re-issue label owner and major label musicologist. He worked hard, stayed true to the game, and took care of his family, a great example for all of us. He’s got great stories, especially about the customers at his former shop, the a...

This week we launch an ongoing series dedicated to Ghostface’s classic albums, with a deep dive on his debut Ironman. The second segment is an interview with author Dean Van Nguyen on his new book Age of Iron: The Art of Ghostface Killah. Dean joined us from his native Ireland for a fascinating conversation on how he approached Ghost’s career for his first book.

Many people involved in hip-hop culture are collectors. We know many record collectors, people who specialize in photos, memorabilia, toys, etc. This week on the show we interview Brian from RapZines, the world’s foremost collector of hip-hop magazines. He’s got a great story to tell and some obscure knowledge to drop. In the first segment we discuss recent controversies surrounding Genius and oth...

This week we reflect on the legacy of the recently departed Bushwick Bill of the Geto Boys (RIP) and then interview the extremely dope and productive producer Daringer. Perhaps best known for his work with the Griselda crew, he just released his first instrumental album, part of Fat Beats’ Baker’s Dozen series. Daringer provides insight on his minimal gear setup, his approach to sampling, and how...

At the mid-point of the year, we check in on which rap and R&B albums have been the best of the bunch so far. We also interview Vic Spencer, who just released his new album “Things Change I Don’t” direct to fans. Vic has some very insightful things to say about fandom and the fan’s role in shaping an artist’s work, making this episode a must-listen. *DISCLAIMER* The audio on the interview is not t...

We are joined this week by the delightful Gifted Gab, an up-and-coming MC who played the Soundset festival in Minneapolis over Memorial Day weekend along with her partner in rhyme Blimes. She joins us to break down her surging career, her latest release Cause & Effect, and her experience playing Soundset for the first time. The fellas also talk about the NBA finals, and weirdly, deep voice rappers...