Am I Crazy, or Can kGb Really Rap? Check Out “In Living Color” & Decide (Listen & Download)

Posted by Nathan S. on 09/28/11 | Filed under Downloads, Underground, kGb

I know this makes me sound like a grumpy old rap blogger, but I get sent a shit ton of new music every day, and as a general rule if I've never heard about you, the chances are excellent that your music sucks. But this dude kGb? I think it's fair to say that even most of the rap connoseiurs in RefinedHype Nation aren't familiar with the man. Listen and download...

Swayze Jones Makes Extraordinary Music for “No Ordinary Love Song” (Listen & Download)

Posted by Nathan S. on 09/07/11 | Filed under Downloads, Underground, Swayze Jones

For the record, everything sound better when Sade's involved. Moving the lawn while listening to Sade? Fucking amazing. Doing your taxes while listening to Sade? Not so bad. So it's no surprise that even though it doesn't share much more in common with Sade's classic of the same name beyond a title and spirit, Swayze Jones' latest release "No Ordinary Love Song" sounds smoother than a freshly Zambonied ice. See more...

From Iraq With Love: Carl Roe “We Own the Night” (Video)

Posted by Nathan S. on 08/11/11 | Filed under Top Stories, Videos, Underground, Carl Roe

Both through RefinedHype and the mothership I get approached by a lot of people looking to run music contests and I almost always say no. Why? Because you're forced to dig through so many Tiffany Green face worthy submissions to find that one hidden piece of dopeness it's barely worth it. But I've never seen a piece of unexpected dopeness like this. See more....

Thurz Starts a Rap “Riot” With Black Thought (Listen)

Posted by Nathan S. on 08/05/11 | Filed under Top Stories, Underground, West Coast, Thurz, Black Thought

I don't even really know what else to say. Everything I've heard from Thurz, formerly of U-N-I, and his upcoming "L.A. Riot" album has been doper than a package of raw Malaysian white tiger. (It's actually too much dopeness to list, click here if you need to catch the fuck up.) And it sounds like he might have just saved the best for last. "Riot" featuring Black Thought. Boom. Listen.

Let’s All Count How Many Times Jelani Says “Ex” in “Extravaganza” (Listen & Download)

Posted by Nathan S. on 08/04/11 | Filed under Downloads, Underground, Jelani

While I enjoy my fair share of ignorant rap, at heart I'm really a lyrical head at heart (if that makes sense). There's really nothing I enjoy more than hearing an emcee truly push their pen game (ok, almost nothing more) and that's why I've had Jelani's "Extravaganza" on repeat. Listen and download...

Let’s End the Day on a Dope But Depressing Note - Rittz’ “Geronimo” (Listen & Download)

Posted by Nathan S. on 08/02/11 | Filed under Downloads, Underground, Rittz

I spent most of my day fighting off powers that be at Universal (warning to my fellow bloggers, they're on the war path), but I've got time to squeeze in one final download and I wanted to go back to Rittz' "Geronimo". When I first heard Rittz I'll admit I was skeptical, but since then he's done nothing to prove his dopeness: "Let's Ride", "White Jesus", the list goes on. Listen and download...

STS’ “Cliche” So Cliched It’s Dopely Original (Listen & Download)

Posted by Nathan S. on 08/01/11 | Filed under Downloads, Underground, STS

Underground raps about how conscious you are really aren't that original - we've all heard them a thousand times. What's really dope is when a rapper's good enough to take every cliched, tired line in the book and flips them into something actually dope and brand new. Welcome to STS' aptly-named "Cliche". Listen and download...

Yo, This kGb “Casey” is Actually Pretty Damn Good (Listen & Download)

Posted by Nathan S. on 07/27/11 | Filed under Downloads, Underground, kGb

By now y'all know the deal. I get a lot of emails from rappers, and most of them are get the Tiffany Green face. But every so often a track breaks through the noise and really catches my ear - that's exactly what happened with this "Casey" joint from kGb. Listen and download...

Buck’s “Far Apart” is Dope, You Should Listen to It (Listen & Download)

He's given you one of our better My City interviews, he's given you the non-winning anthem "Unfortunate", but since I know there are still plenty of people out there who don't know Buck (even loyal citizens of RefinedHype Nation) let's keep pushing. Buck's latest release, "Far Apart", is another display of his lyrical depth and style over Kendrick Lamar's "Growing Apart" beat. Listen and download....