Heds & Dreds Archives - Page 2 of 2

Heds and Dreds: Remembering The Big Belly Gorgon, Heavy D

Words by Jesse Serwer Yesterday came the sad word that Dwight Errington Myers—Heavy D—died suddenly at the young age of 44. The news stings on several levels. Coming up on hip-hop in New York in the la... Read More...

Heds and Dreds: Bounty Killer’s Greatest Hip-Hoperas

Words by Jesse Serwer Bounty Killer is dancehall's king of beef. It's fitting that the man who calls himself the Warlord (and who has recently revived his longstanding and somewhat career-defining feud w... Read More...

Heds and Dreds: The Flatbush Flavors of Special Ed

Words by Jesse Serwer When Odd Future burst onto the scene last year, journalists and bloggers seemed amazed that kids not yet old enough to get into a club could make sophisticated rap records that were... Read More...

Heds and Dreds: DJ Quik’s Compton Fried Reggae

Words by Jesse Serwer The song "Babylon" on Book of David, the most recent album by DJ Quik, has Bizzy Bone of Bone Thugs N Harmony interpolating "Ring the Alarm" on the hook. It's certainly novel to hea... Read More...

Heds and Dreds: Uncle Murda, “Warning” Video + More

Words by Jesse Serwer Can't say I was much of an Uncle Murda fan, or had more than a passing familiarity with any of his songs, until his new single, "Warning" started gaining traction here in NYC recent... Read More...

Heds and Dreds: Ol’ Time Killin’ with Kardinal Offishall

Words by Jesse Serwer Kardinal, Nardwuar and Solitair The last time we heard from Kardinal Offishall, he was Toronto's best known rapper. Things have changed a little since then but one thing that has... Read More...

Heds and Dreds: Annotated Tribe Called Quest for the Unseasoned Patois Interpeter

Words by Jesse Serwer If you know your Jazz from your Rhime, you're probably aware of Phife Dawg's Caribbean roots. Sometimes thought to to be Jamaican due to his love for reggae and patois inflections, ... Read More...

Heds and Dreds, Pt. 2: Exclusive Interview with Smif-n-Wessun

Words and Interview by Jesse Serwer, Photos by Fubz Yesterday, we launched our new "Heds and Dreds" column by breaking down Smif-n-Wessun's contributions to the cultural exchange between hip-hop and regg... Read More...

Heds and Dreds: Smif-n-Wessun and the Caribbean Influence on Hip-Hop

Words by Jesse Serwer, Photos by Fubz For as long as I've been on the LargeUp team, we've discussed launching a column that would highlight Caribbean music's influence on hip-hop. It's a topic we've touc... Read More...