Billboard asked me to parse the recent comeback singles by Rakim and Sean Paul, “Holy Are You” and “So Fine.” Click their respective hyperlinks to read what I had to say about each. Rakim is Rakim and Sean is one of the nicest guys in the music business, so I’m pulling for both, but, considering the long waits involved, I think they each could have come with something a little stronger. Not that I’m looking forward to The Seventh Seal, any less, though. Imperial Blaze, Sean’s fourth album, drops next week, and it’s pretty good.

In other news, Rakim was on Good Day New York yesterday, shouting out the ‘Danch no less:

After catching Kane at Prospect Park Saturday night (and suggesting the possibility in this brief article), I thought I might take a stab at answering the unanswerable. Mostly ’cause I don’t see the man getting the respect he deserves for being 40 + 20 years past his commercial peak + 11 years away from his last album, and still tearing down every show he does in a manner that is straight up disrespectful to whatever rapper you last saw perform. I’m not trying to turn this space into a journal of whatever live shows I just saw, though, so I’ll let the photos I took on Saturday and some attendant footage do the talking. Read the rest of this entry »