The Vault: Classic Music Reviews Podcast

After a lengthy absence, B. Cox returns to review hip-hop legend T.I. 's explosive fourth album King as it turns 20. After stepping onto the scene and making himself known with his debut album, 2001's I'm Serious , the Atlanta rap star made further waves and saw larger success with his sophomore and junior albums, 2003's Trap Muzik and 2004's Urban Legend , respectively. He was...

B. Cox reviews Common 's classic sixth album Be as it turns 20. In light of the commercial failure and mixed critical reviews, Common found some common ground in aligning with fellow Chicago hip-hop royalty Kanye West and his GOOD Music imprint on Geffen Record. A former pupil of No. ID , who produced the majority of Common's second and third albums ( Resurrection and One Day It'll All...

B. Cox returns with a look back at Common 's landmark fourth album, Like Water For Chocolate as it turns 25. After his breakthrough sophomore album 1994's Resurrection and his acclaimed third album 1997's One Day It'll All Make Sense, the Chicago emcee picked up his roots and moved to New York City and linked up with Questlove , The Roots and other creatives who were working within...

As we open 2025 to continue Season 7, B. Cox reviews The Game's debut album The Documentary as it turns 20. After coming up with a rough upbringing which led him to gang life, the drug game and shooting that left him in a coma, the Compton native embarked on a journey to become a rap star, studying the classic albums of his youth and adolescence as a blueprint to pattern himself after. After h...

In the long awaited premiere of Season 7, B. Cox kicks things off by going "Back To the Vault" and looking back 25 and 30 years to four original album reviews covered in the first season: 1994's Notorious B.I.G .'s debut classic Ready to Die and Scarface 's classic third album The Diary as well as 1999's Mos Def's (nka Yasiin Bey) Black On Both Sides and Pharoahe Monch...

In our Season 6 finale, B. Cox is joined by Mac from MacTasticTV to review Chicago lady emcee Da Brat 's debut album Funkdafied as it turns 30. Hailing from the west side of "The Chi", Da Brat got her chance at a deal when she won a Chicago rap contest and met the teen group Kriss Kross , who were signed to Jermaine Dupri 's So So Def record label based in Atlanta. At the urging of...

B. Cox is joined by Mac of MactasticTV to review Bone Thugs N Harmony's debut EP Creepin On Ah Come Up as it turns 30. Follow MacTasticTV on Youtube Follow MacTasticTV on IG MacTasticTV LinkTree Visit The Vault Classic Music Reviews Online www.vaultclassicpod.com Buy Exclusive The Vault Podcast Merchandise! www.vaultclassicpod.com/store Support The Vault Classic Music Reviews on Buy Me A Coffe...

B Cox reviews Jeru The Damaja's classic debut album The Sun Rises In The East As It Turns 30. Visit The Vault Classic Music Reviews Online www.vaultclassicpod.com Buy Exclusive The Vault Podcast Merchandise! www.vaultclassicpod.com/store Support The Vault Classic Music Reviews on Buy Me A Coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/vaultclassicpod Build Your Own Amazing Podcast Website In Less Than 5...

B. Cox reflects on OutKast 's classic debut album Southernplayaisticadillacmuzik turning 30 in the aftermath of the passing of Rico Wade , Dungeon Family leader and 1/3 of the production trio Organized Noize , which produced the album in full. He also examines how OutKast's emergence in the Atlanta rap changed the scene of the city and the region forever and also how the industry and the a...

B. Cox is joined once again by Miguel and Christina of TROY Podcast to discuss Nas 's iconic debut album Illmatic turning 30. They discuss its standing among hip-hop's all-time great albums, how it affected Nas's career in the aftermath, some of the most memorable bars and their favorite songs. To listen to our 2019 review of Illmatic at 25, please listen here! Follow Miguel & Chri...

B. Cox is joined by special guests Christina & Miguel of TROY (They Reminisce Over You) Podcast to discuss the cult-classic basketball film Above The Rim as it turns 30. Written by Barry Michael Cooper and the late director Jeff Pollack, the film starred the likes of Duane Martin, Leon, the late Tupac Shakur, Marlon Wayans and the late Bernie Mac among others in a tale a high school basketball...

B. Cox and Domo review Usher 's Confessions as it turns 20. After his successful third album 8701, Usher underwent a number of changes in his life including his breakup from his girlfriend Chili from TLC and he was soon to become a father. In crafting his follow up, he wished to craft an album that was a well rounded album that touched man influences: from traditional classic R&B, throwbac...

B. Cox reviews Gang Starr 's classic fourth album Hard To Earn as it turns 30. After the critical success of 1992's Daily Operation , Guru and DJ Premier took a brief hiatus to pursue individual projects. Guru launched his Jazzmatazz series and Premier became one of the most sought after producers in industry, working with the likes Jeru the Damaja, The Notorious B.I.G., Nas and KRS-One ....

B. Cox and Domo review Eminem 's sophomore album The Slim Shady LP as it turns 25. The now legendary emcee was just a little know upstart white rapper from Detroit when he blew up the underground scene by tearing through the '97 Rap Olympics. Despite losing in the finals, the word was out. After recording The Slim Shady EP, the tape made its way around the circuits and found its way on the...

B. Cox is joined once again by Van Everette of The Scenario Radio Show to review 90s R&B duo Zhané's debut album Pronounced Jah-Nay as it turns 30. The two vocalists, Renee Neuville and Jean Norris , met each other while students at Temple University and while they had two different backgrounds when it came to singing, they would find a medium that would make them a cohesive act. After lin...

In our premiere of Season 6, we welcome Van Everette from The Scenario Radio Show review Kanye West 's debut classic album The College Dropout as it turns 20. After serving in the background as a producer for many of Roc-A-Fella Records best albums through the early 2000s, the Chicago-based producer took his turn as a feature act. The album was recorded over a four year period from 1999 to 200...

In the last episode of the year, B. Cox and J.Owe give their personal rankings and honorable mentions for hip-hop and R&B albums for the 1993, 1998 and 2003. A reminder that next year, we will be moving to a seasonal format. The new season launches February 2024! Visit The Vault Classic Music Reviews Online www.vaultclassicpod.com Buy Exclusive The Vault Podcast Merchandise! www.vaultclassicpo...

B. Cox and J Owe look back at the late DMX 's second studio album Flesh of My Flesh, Blood of My Blood as it turns 25. After setting the industry on fire during the previous year and a half and the explosive success of his debut It's Dark and Hell Is Hot earlier in the year, the Yonkers emcee was taking full advantage of his star while on fire. Less than seven months from his debut's r...

B. Cox reminisces about Jay-Z 's eight album The Black Album as it turns 20. Heading into this album, it was being touted as Jay-Z last album as he was to "retire" to take up the mantle of president of Def Jam Records after the album was released. The news and fallout from it lead to a acrimonious split of the three founders and owners of Roc-A-Fella Records: Jay, Damon Dash and Kareem...

B. Cox and J. Owe look back at at the momentous occasion of Snoop Doggy Dogg' s classic debut album Doggystyle as it turns 30. Fresh off the heels of his breakthrough performance on several tracks on Dr. Dre 's The Chronic released not even a year prior, he set to set the game on fire with what was, to that point, the most highly anticipated debut for a new hip-hop artist. Working hard wit...

The crew reviews A Tribe Called Quest 's classic third album Midnight Marauders as it turns 30. Off the heels of their groundbreaking sophomore debut, 1991's The Low End Theory , the group rebounded to put through what many to believe to be their most cohesive work yet. After famously making the low end of bass their calling card and backdrop of the jazz sampled beats, the momentum continu...

The crew reviews the almighty Wu-Tang Clan and their iconic classic debut album Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) as it turns 30. After doing what seemed the impossible to assemble a supergroup of emcees hailing from Staten Island and Brooklyn, the collective gained major notoriety with their debut single "Protect Your Neck". Word and a buzz began to grow. The group, which was lead by creati...

B. Cox and J Owe look back at Black Moon 's debut classic album Enta Da Stage as it turns 30. The Brooklyn trio made up of DJ/producer DJ Evil Dee and emcees Buckshot (fka Buckshot Shorty) and 5ft began their journey in high school, shopping around demos and looking for a deal. Impressed by the group, they signed with Nervous Records and was given the green light to record their first single &...

B. Cox and J. Owe look back at OutKast' s classic third album Aquemini as it turns 25. After the success of their sophomore album, 1996's ATLiens , Andre and Big Boi both had major life events that affected their outlooks and artistry, included breakups and the start of fatherhood. Given more creative license, the group sought to take even more control of the production of their third albu...

B. Cox and Domo review Jay-Z 's third album Vol. 2...Hard Knock Life as it turns 25. Looking to improve on his commercial success from Vol. 1...In My Lifetime , Jay-Z looked to bring on new producers to give his album the commercial shine without the sound being overglossed. In for this album, production wise was the likes of Swizz Beats and Timbaland to go along with mainstays DJ Premier, Irv...