Jay-Z

The Antidote to Dallas' Love Affair with Shiny New Things

In a town that pays actual respect to the glitteriest, shiniest new thing on the block, it's easy to take the classics for granted. I generally regard my distaste for nostalgia as a positive thing, but the test of time is not easy to pass and must therefore be honored. Like a worn-in t-shirt or a f ... More >>

Chadrick Honore is The Youngest Player in the Legendary Rebirth Brass Band: Get Familiar

At 25 years old, Chadrick Honore has lived the life of a man at least twice his age. The New Orleans native and esteemed trumpet player for Rebirth Brass Band has traveled the world, won a Grammy, and contributed to the critically acclaimed HBO series Treme. But the devoted father & true music fan i ... More >>

G.I. Joe: Retaliation's a Battle of Dumb Pleasures Versus Your Higher Brain Function

Justin Timberlake and Kanye West's Feud And Avoiding Famous-Guy Backlash

The foundation of Justin Timberlake's fame--broad-based and consistent and weirdly resistant to automatic internet backlash--is that it came, originally, from looking this ridiculous, and he seems to accept that. That's the only thing I can come up with to explain just how many people I heard talkin ... More >>

A Moment With J. Rhodes

Dallas Rapper J. Rhodes On How Oak Cliff Huxtable Is His College Dropout

Dallas rapper J. Rhodes will join Playdough on October 26 at the Prophet Bar to celebrate the release of his new project, Oak Cliff Huxtable. We shot him a few questions about the new release. See also: -The philosophy of Playdough Name a few hip-hop artists who've had a lasting effect on you. ... More >>

If Delonte West's Twitter Rant Doesn't Bring Deron Williams to the Mavs, Nothing Will

So the Mavs have a very legitimate shot at landing the NBA's top free agent, current New Jersey Net Deron Williams. This is his hometown. His mother lives here. The entire city would go apeshit if he took his talents to Victory Park. That hasn't yet definitively tipped the scales in our favor, what ... More >>

Wayne Coyne Is Not An Ageless Vampire Who Drinks Ke$ha's Blood For Energy

There's been an ambient awareness of the Flaming Lips this year, and frontman Wayne Coyne has been the source. He's taken on the role of social media's merry prankster, most recently Tweeting potential nudie photos of Erykah Badu on the set of their recent video shoot. There's also the matter of Hea ... More >>

Doomtree's Group Think at Dan's Silverleaf

Deb Doing DallasP.O.S. ​Doomtree Dan's Silverleaf Tuesday, February 7 In a year spent throne-watching, Doomtree's 2011 release, No Kings, was an interesting comment on hip-hop's climate. Excessive in its own right, the Minneapolis collective has no less than seven official collaborators contr ... More >>

Get To Know Your DOMAXXIII Nominees: Best Cover/Tribute Act, Best Label, Best Producer

​Welcome to our 2011 Dallas Observer Music Awards breakdown, wherein we'll use the weeks leading up to the DOMA showcases on Saturday, October 15 (which is also when voting ends), to explain the nominees in each category Today, we look at the nominees in the Best Cover/Tribute Act, B ... More >>

Bonus MP3: A.Dd -- "Insomniac Dreaming (Produced by Black Milk)"

​Ever since the release of the free When Pigs Fly album back in March, we've been consistently fed with new tracks from the fellas in A.Dd -- "loosies," they're calling them, tracks that didn't quite fit When Pigs Fly and aren't quite in line with the band's next planned release, an EP set to com ... More >>

The Ten Best Music Videos Banned by MTV

​MTV has gotten some flack for censorship over the course of its 30 years on the air. The station, in addition to helping proliferate the music video concept, is equally known, it seems, for bleeping words, playing only censored versions of certain videos, relegating racy videos to late-night pla ... More >>

Kid Cudi, Chip Tha Ripper

Sunday, July 17, at Verizon Theatrein Grand Prairie.

Beyonce Releases Official Video For Symbolyc One-Produced "Best Thing I Never Had"

​Unlike the subject of Beyonce's new single, "Best Thing I Never Had," we're thinking that it hardly sucks to be Dallas' Own Symbolyc One right now.It was back in April that the local product, also a member of The Cannabinoids and Strange Fruit Project, revealed to us that, in addition to acts suc ... More >>

Which Of Your Texas Rangers Has The Coolest Intro Music?

​Last week, the Morning News' Rangers beat writer/columnist Evan Grant shared the music being used at the start of this baseball season by most of your Texas Rangers players -- either at-bat music or welcome-to-the-mound stuff, naturally.The best news that wasn't? Grant reported that catcher Mike ... More >>

Symbolyc One Goes Platinum with Kanye, Collaborates with Jay-Z, Beyonce and 50 Cent.

Symbolyc One's platinum display for his work on Kanye West's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Family.​There was no doubting that it would happen eventually, but late last month, it finally did: Kanye West's brilliant 2010 release, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, went platinum.And, OK, while that's may ... More >>

Watch: Que P -- "Ain't No Mo Love (feat. Slim Gravy of A.Dd )"

Que P​Less than two weeks after the premiere of their debut music video (for their lead When Pigs Fly single "Likeamug"), Dallas-based hip-hop duo A.Dd once again has the Internet on fire today, with various hip-hop-focused sites posting download links for the just-leaked second single from the g ... More >>

Listomania: The Five Best and Five Worst Alter Egos in Music

​Tonight, groundbreaking experimental rapper Kool Keith will be gracing The Loft with his presence. And we're hella stoked. Not only is the rapper one of our favorites, but his skill set is undeniable and his advancements in the "horrorcore" and "porncore" genres are fairly irrefutable. Plus. he's ... More >>

Pedestrian Playlist: What Does Dallas Maverick DJ Whiz T Listen To?

Welcome to a new recurring feature here on DC9 where we talk to people of interest in the metroplex about their taste in music, including likes, dislikes, and guilty pleasures. We're calling it Pedestrian Playlist -- because, hey, everyone listens to music.DJ Whiz T at work.​The Dallas Maverick ... More >>

Listomania: The Songs That Give Thanks, a Field Guide

Not a song, but we sure are thankful for this.​It's hard to argue with Charlie Brown: Thanksgiving is here, man (paraphrased). Over on our on food blog, City of Ate, the writers are counting down to Thanksgiving with odes to their favorite T-Day foods. DC9's thinking: why can't we join in on t ... More >>

DC9er Mixtape, Vol. 29: DJ Fishr Pryce

​ DJ Fishr Pryce thrives off spontaneity -- and, as has been made clear in the past, he doesn't like to take himself too seriously."I'm not afraid to be goofy," he says. "And I think that makes me a little different [from other DJ's in town]." Fittingly, the experienced hip-hop DJ, who has been sp ... More >>

Listen: Kanye West's "Power" Remix Featuring Jay-Z and Swizz Beatz

​We here at DC9 have been salivating over Kanye West's new single, "Power," pretty much all summer long. Why? Well, for a few reasons--namely, because the song is a beast, one of the best hip-hop tracks we've heard all year, but also because, yessir, it was produced by Dallas' own Symbolyc One, a ... More >>

Staff Trax: Titus Andronicus, Off With Their Heads, Basia Bulat, Jaydiohead, Manic Street Preachers and Love Spit Love

Welcome to Staff Trax, the weekly feature here on DC9 where we shed some light on the music we've been enjoying of late, regardless of the touring or album release schedules that tend to bear the focus of most of our coverage. Consider it a chance for you readers to get some more insight into ou ... More >>

The Problem With... Usher's "DJ Got Us Falling In Love"

Take it from someone who's been there: DJs have great power if they do their job right. They can get people to shake, sweat, and pick invisible apples. But I can't remember ever getting people in the crowd to fall in love. I guess it wouldn't hurt to get back on the turntables and try doing that som ... More >>

Erykah Badu Lends Rick Ross His Latest Hook--And She'll Be Directing The Song's Video, Too.

Ms. Badu, if you're nasty.​Rick Ross introduced his so-called "epic trilogy" to hip-hop fans back in 2008 when he first released "Maybach Music" with Jay-Z on his sophomore album, Trilla. He released the second installment last year on his Deeper Than Rap album with some help from T-Pain, Lil Wayn ... More >>

Gig Alert: Evan Dando Solo Gig at The Prophet Bar Tonight

Hailing from the same town myself, I may be a biased, but, man, do I love Boston's The Lemonheads. Have ever since the first time I heard the band's fifth release, 1992's It's A Shame About Ray, actually--which, OK, probably made me a late adopter, but, sue me, it was the band's big breakthrough rel ... More >>

Ballers and Shotcallers: Play-N-Skillz and Def Jam's All-Star Weekend Finale at PM Lounge

Steven VisneauPlay-N-Skillz​Play-N-Skillz and Def Jam's All-Star Weekend Finale PartyPM LoungeFebruary 14, 2009For Grammy-winning hip-hop producers Play-N-Skillz, Sunday night--the last night of a jam-packed, celebrity- and part-filled weekend--saw the brothers Salinas hosting not one, but two par ... More >>

Ballers and Shotcallers: Zo & Magic's 8-Ball Challenge

Mattie StaffordAlonzo Mourning lines up a shot. For a whole slideshow from this event, click here.​Zo & Magic's 8-Ball ChallengeCentennial Building in Fair ParkThe red carpet walks kicked off at 7.30 p.m., with Mourning's appearance leading the way. Early attendees were held in a "reception ar ... More >>

Year in Review: Way Down South With the Best Rap Albums of 2009

Yeah, it stirred the Yankees to the World Series championship, but was there a more boring album this year than Jay-Z's The Blueprint 3? Perhaps it was a geographic thing; with a few exceptions like Raekwon and Kid Cudi, most of 2009's exciting, innovative rap records came from Southern artists. Sur ... More >>

Year in Review: The Worst Lyrics of 2009 Aren't Trying for Funny, But Get There Just the Same

​The lowest common denominator having been achieved in 2005 with the release of the Black Eyed Peas' Monkey Business, popular musicians have had to work extra hard in recent years to find new and inventive ways to be inane. They found great success in 2009, with artists as varied as Lady Gaga, Bru ... More >>

Jay-Z

The Blueprint 3 (Roc Nation)

10 Questions: Mickie Crockett

She's worked in some of the city's most respected kitchens, including Cafe on the Green, Mediterraneo and The Riviera. As executive chef at Trader Vic's, she picked up a spot in the Dallas Morning News' list of top new restaurants in 2007.Crockett now serves as general manager for Cadillac Ranch, th ... More >>

Today In Music News: Lily Allen Threatens Katy Perry; The Stooges' Ron Asheton Dies; Jay-Z Meets Radiohead

Your daily dose of national music news for Wednesday, January 7, 2009... Finally, a music feud we can all get behind: Lily Allen is still mad at Katy Perry for referring to herself as "the skinny Lily Allen." So Lily said that if Perry says one more thing about her she's going to post her phone nu ... More >>

Hitsville: The Year in Music, by the Numbers

You don't need a half-wit music critic to tell you it's been a remarkable year for America, one historians will be discussing and researching for centuries to come. War, financial collapse, politics, technology: All have been dinner-table topics for many Americans. Racial barriers in 2008 were de ... More >>

MURS, Kidz in the Hall, Rapper Big Pooh, Isaiah

Wednesday, November 19, at Hailey's in Denton

With R. Kelly, It's Thrill-a-Minute

Hang on while we take you on an up-and-down history of R. Kelly's life

Ne-Yo

Because of You (Def Jam)

Sage-in' Mad

Sage Francis is a hip-hop jerk, but not in your usual way

Blow Average

You, too, could be a star...but please don't try

Mast at the Helm

Ratatat is all that

In With the New

Despite doom-and-gloom predictions, 2006 wasn't at all bad

The Legend of Billy Hicks

Or, why sax player is no longer a viable occupation in rock and roll

Jay-Z, R. Kelly

Wednesday, October 13

Odds & Ends

Deep Friday, Edgefest and a jumpin' giveaway

The Album Leaf

July 23-24

Down With the Ship

"Big Steve" Shein ready to make his departure

Hip-Hop Hooray

Final Friday's growing fan base sends showcase to a larger venue

Nap Time

Straight outta Kentucky, the "Country Boyz" of Nappy Roots are on the rise

Hip-Hop Family Feud

Legendary Fritz, Headkrack square off

Lauryn Hill

Starplex Amphitheatre