International Hip Hop 55 Items

Legendary album, finally repressed. Japanese import. Better be quick.

The Silhouettes Project a new platform for up and coming Hip-Hop, Soul and Jazz artists from the UK. It is not a record label or management team, it is a community project. The Silhouettes Project provides an open space - a recording studio and live venue located within the Total Refreshment Centre in Hackney, London - where MCs, singers, musicians and producers can connect and create.The Silhouttes Project was founded by community organisers/artists Asher Korner (aka Kosher) and Jaden Osei-Bonsu (Eerf Evil) in 2019. When they told us about the project and played us some of the music we were instantly hooked and joined the collective as label partner. The art direction is executed by Sergio „SagaUno“ Alferez, an acclaimed designer and illustrator from Medellín, Columbia.Starting in September, we release a new single each Thursday from artists like Kofi Stone, Summers Sons, Enny, KeepVibesNear, Manik MC, Lex Amor, Louis The Hippie, Summer-Pearl, Joe Beard and many more.

Here is the story of the Silhouettes Project as told by its founders Jaden and Asher: „We started The Silhouettes Project in February 2019, to shine a light on the new generation ofunderground Hip-Hop, Jazz, and Soul music in the UK. Community is everything to us, and wewanted to show that with a proper support network, access to professional facilities, and theencouragement of a family of artists, our community could produce something incredible. We felt a joint frustration that the current music scene in the UK only had structures in placeto support talent of a certain genre whilst overlooking a buzzing alternative Hip-Hop culture.We wanted to unify artists who are making ground-breaking music but who are in need of asolid structure to work within - artists who we felt deserved more recognition. This led us tothe name ‘The Silhouettes Project’, as we wanted to shine a light on those artists in theshadows. The journey started by embarking on a collaborative album project which allowed us to bringtogether more than 30 artists on a single tape and to create a network of incredibly talentedartists of the same calibre. The album took more than a year, working almost every day at theRoot 73 studio, a community space in Hackney. We knew from the first few sessions that wewere on to something, and the energy around the project kept it moving. As artists ourselves we understood that the creative process can be challenging and sometimesisolating, especially when there is no clear support network to fall back on. This led us to bringour efforts into the physical realm by organising a series of free live music events for all ofthese artists to come to, showcase their work alongside our house band, and connect witheach other. These events take place at The Total Refreshment Centre in Dalston, anunderground studio complex and warehouse space, which gave the events an intimatecommunity feeling and the people a sense of belonging. There is a desperate need for spaces in which people can come together and develop theircreative potential, especially with the consistent withdrawal of funding from the arts sector inthe UK and with the constant threat of gentrification which has seen the closure of countlesscommunity and grassroots creative organisations. As we grew as a brand and organisation, webegan to fully understand the importance of what we were doing. From the studio sessions tothe events, we saw the impact on people’s outlooks on their own careers, we saw them growin confidence in performing and collaborating and even taking their own initiative to utilise thenetwork provided for them. We heard their feedback, we felt the excitement in theatmospheres at our events and studio sessions, and we saw the community grow every timewe brought it together.“

Black vinyl edition! I am thrilled to share with you the upcoming release of Live Life and Tell Stories, the new album by Figub Brazlevic & John Robinson set to release in the spring of 2023. This album is a celebration of John Robinson's love for storytelling, which has been evident since he was a young child, and his passion for hearing epic storytelling from many of his favorite emcees of the golden era of hip hop.

The connection between Figub Brazlevic and John Robinson is far from a fly-by-night or simply another international internet collaboration. The two met in 2009 during Robinson’s first time touring in Germany, and shortly after, Figub remixed J.R.’s group Scienz Of Life’s Leviathan album for the love and respect of the music. The remixes, which have yet to be released, impressed J.R. and his SOL crew, and he knew he would work together in the future with Figub. That time has come, and the message is clear: Live Life and Tell Stories is a seamless blend of Robinson’s thought-provoking narratives and Brazlevic’s abstract jazzy boombap soundscapes.

This album promises to take listeners on a sonic journey of dope grooves and ill storytelling, where Robinson's unique storytelling abilities are masterfully interwoven with Brazlevic's jazzy, boombap beats. From start to finish, Live Life and Tell Stories is sure to captivate audiences and keep them grooving to its infectious beats.

In an era where the music industry is dominated by short-lived trends, it is refreshing to see two seasoned artists come together to create music that is both timeless and meaningful. This album is a perfect example of what can happen when artists come together to create something truly unique, and I can't wait for its release in the spring of 2023.

So mark your calendars, because Live Life and Tell Stories is set to release in the spring of 2023. This is an album you won't want to miss, so be sure to push play and let Figub Brazlevic & John Robinson take you on a sonic journey of dope grooves and ill storytelling. Let's go!

Roof lifting new single from Nicole Willis! Pending between soul and essence of hip-hop this is the best of many worlds: warm, sexy, cool, deep, funky and powerfull. B-side with superb stripped bass-horn-vocal version. Excellent heat from Jimi Tenors new label.

Born in 1962 in Tokyo, DJ Krush is the internationally acclaimed producer, remixer and a DJ, who's produced music in vast variety of fields such as films, TV dramas and commercials. As a solo artist, he is greatly revered in the international club scene. His 8th album Jaku was released in 2004, and topped the RPM chart of CMJ for 3 weeks in the US.

Edition of 300 copies

Edition of 300 copies

The self-released 2003 album Shitten in the Park (Blunder in the Park) by ECD is as revolutionary as it is gutsy. In a country well known for its tendency to keep hushed on social issues, the late-great ECD defied all means of holding back as he delivered his empassioned anti-war, anti-discrimination, people-positive rush to the airwaves.

This album came at a time of transition for the rapper as he’d just ended his long-running major label contract with Avex-owned Cutting Edge, and there’s a rawness on display across these tracks; an experimental flavour to the sampling as he explores the freedoms of a self-released album. The penultimate track “Hinja no Koushin” (Poor People’s campaign) is a great example of ECD's grappling with different eras and sounds as soul and jazz records are subjected to different sampling techniques, and provide the vehicle for his socially-conscious rap.

Even as his state worsened in the grip of cancer, nothing could separate him from the microphone at protests with his rapping and creative impulses in full flow. Committed to his artistry until the very end, P-vine is excited to be reissuing the album on double gatefold LP for the first time in this deluxe package, and honor a true legend of Japanese hip-hop.

This collaboration by Tokyo producers/musicians Shintaro Sakamoto (Yura Yura Teikoku, Mesh Key) and Videotapemusic, was the first of two EM Records 12"-only "tribute releases", in support of the film "Bangkok Nites", produced by Kuzoku. Based on samples from Dao Bandon [em1131cd/lp], Hongthong Dao-udon [em1142cd/lp] and Phairin Phonphibun [em1147cd/lp], Thailand and Tokyo dreamworlds meet in these songs.

"Transcendent Hawaiian vibes, in a mind meld suffused with Thai stick" - Japan Blues

2021 repress. New mastering/cutting at D&M, Berlin.

Hardcore rap in Japan / originally released in 2003

Illmariachi is legendary Japanese HipHop unit who acitved in late 90's, formed by Hazu & Tokona-x. this is a single cut from their debut album "tha Masta Blusta" including two authentic classical tracks that are a high-concentration blend of the eccentric and crazy technique by Hazu and the hard-boiled hood rap by Tokona-x!

Record Store Day 2021 Release.

For the 30th anniversary of the release of the first single by Frankie HI NRG MC 'Fight Da Faida' Irma Records together with the artist have decided to pack an unreleased collector's version of the song. The new look is in 7-inch format (45 rpm) in a limited edition on white vinyl with a gatefold format cover containing, in addition to a photo of the artist of the time and one of today, the original lyrics of the song and a text by the well-known journalist and radio and television host Luca De Gennaro who was the first to notice the artist. The song Fight Da Faida has been seminal for the evolution of Italian Hip Hop. At the time, few such songs had come out and they were all known mostly on the alternative circuits. Fight Da Faida, despite its harsh and explicit text against the mafias, was the first to have real radio programming on national networks. It was also obviously the launching pad of the artist who later released his first album 'Verba Manent' which also contains this single. The new format contains the original version, the instrumental version and the 'famous' Sicilian nursery rhyme 'Tri Tri Tri Trinacria Breakdown' which over the years has been repeatedly sampled abroad for club music songs