Kendrick Lamar moves differently than most rappers. He’s soft-spoken with a humble confidence that’s refreshing. He’s from Compton, but is hell-bent on giving that Los ...

WORDS MICHAEL A. GONZALES **THIS STORY ORIGINALLY APPEARS IN THE MAY 2011 ISSUE OF XXL ON SALE NOW** When Nathaniel Dwayne “Nate Dogg” Hale died on March ...

WORDS BY THOMAS GOLIOANOPOULOS **THIS STORY ORIGINALLY APPEARS IN THE MAY 2011 ISSUE OF XXL ON SALE NOW** Back ...

When I heard, the other day, that Gucci Mane had been committed to a mental institution, and Charles Hamilton is currently undergoing a mental evaluation ...

It's easy to pick a great Dr. Dre beat. Picking 50 of them isn't too difficult either. Where the task gets hard is in sorting ...

For the 20th anniversary of his debut album, AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted, West Coast veteran Ice Cube is putting out a strong reminder to those who might ...

More than ever, rappers are giving fans short, compact pieces of music, rather than full-lengths LPs. The format, formally known as an EP, or “extended ...

What’s hip-hop music if not an outlet to combat life’s hardships? Since its early days, the culture has acted as a platform for oppressed and ...

Though the music video medium isn’t as prolific as it once was, that doesn’t mean that all rap artists have thrown in the towel. Just ...