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DJ Quik is a giant of West Coast hip-hop. With his fourth album Rhythm-Al-Ism he created his masterpiece, a perfect hip-hop album. As Quik explains, “the name Rhythm-Al-Ism alone tells you what I was doing. I was mixing up rhythms. I was meshing R&B with hip-hop and jazz. And a little bit of comedy”. It’s absolutely sensational and as with a lot of mid-90s albums those original vinyl copies are now rare so here’s the Be With re-issue. A preternaturally gifted producer/rapper, DJ Quik has produced scores of LA gangsta rap classics. He’s released platinum and gold records of his own, as well as helped craft them for the likes of Tupac, Snoop Dogg, and Dr Dre. Quik has always been quirkier and more interesting than his gangsta rap peers, both musically and lyrically. An old-school funk producer at heart, he’s also incredibly nice on the mic. His raps often deal in boasts, jokes and good times but also cover his beefs, his trials and his trauma. Partying and pain, all mixed up. DJing and producing hype beat tapes from age 14, Quik’s tracks blended the languid funk and rubbery synths of Zapp and George Clinton with a gangsta aesthetic, creating a more danceable foil to Compton’s more typical nihilistic hedonism. Ultimately, his records sound custom engineered to drift out over sun-soaked barb

2021 double vinyl re-issue, 140g vinyl, includes “Pure Thought” bonus track from the original CD version, original picture sleeve and printed inner sleeves based on the original one. Innercity Griots, the second album from Freestyle Fellowship, is perhaps *the* essential West Coast left-field rap album of the early ’90s. Released in 1993 on 4th & Broadway, it’s a towering, progressive hip-hop masterpiece that expanded rap’s boundaries through lyrical elevation and production innovation. Their talent was ahead of everybody else by light years. This is pure b-boy jazz. The original single vinyl LP is now hideously scarce, and of course the sound suffers from not being officially released as a double. This Be With re-issue fixes both problems, and for completeness also includes “Pure Thought” from the CD version of the album. This incredible display of imaginative hip-hop sounds better than ever. Freestyle Fellowship were some of the earliest technically dazzling rappers to come out of California. Mikah 9, P.E.A.C.E., Aceyalone and Self Jupiter - along with DJ Kiilu - forged their famed lyrical dexterity in the ultra-competitive crucible of the Good Life Cafe. Founded in Leimert Park, South Central LA in December 1989, this earthy health-food store and cafe was where the city’s finest microphone fiends would gather to showcase their freestyle skills at the Thursday night open-mic.

Minneapolis' own Muja (formerly known as Muja Messiah) teams up with producer Dub Sonata for a collaborative album titled Break The Stereo. Spanning 11 tracks, the rapper-producer duo takes you on a journey from the Twin Cities to the Five Boroughs, calling on frequent collaborators Slug, Nejma Nefertiti, Nazeem (of Blood $moke Body), Bobby J From Rockaway, Tone Spliff, and Queensbridge legend Tragedy Khadafi to appear on the project. Muja’s discography includes releases with Atmosphere, Black Thought, Raekwon, and Brother Ali, while Dub has produced songs for Sage Francis, Rhymefest and Sadat X. The two first connected when Muja released his 2017 EP Saran Rap, produced by and featuring Roc Marciano, on Man Bites Dog Records. After gracing a song on Dub's Tranquilizer Dart album, Muja locked in on Dub's production, resulting in their joint offering Break The Stereo.

Rappin' Ron & Ant Diddley Dog a.k.a. Bad-N-Fluenz, are from Oakland, CA. Originally released in 1994, this limited edition 7" single re-release comes on clear vinyl and is limited to 300 copies online & 200 copies reserved for the streets.

Transmitting live from the Cosmic Shores...



'Phantom X', the collaborative album by Philadelphia-born Iamisee and Belgium's DJ Iron, was initially started back in the summer of 2013 and was finally completed shortly after the pandemic hit the world back in 2020.



Sonically DJ Iron fuses classic hip hop with elements of 60's psychedelica and bits of acid rock, while also further experimenting with vintage organs, phasers, analog filters and tape echoes, resulting in a truly unique, tripped-out sound that provides the perfect backdrop for Iamisee's gritty voice and dense lyricism, bound to take the listeners to an other-worldly realm…

Nobody Planning To Leave is the new album from Curly Castro and PremRockaka ShrapKnel, fully produced by Controller 7. Featuring Open Mike Eagle, Onry Ozzborn, Lungs, Breezly Brewin, D-Styles (of the legendary Beat Junkies), and Elucid. The title represents a duality. Both a boastful claim and also a resigned recognition. Sometimes you’re planting your flag and sometimes you’re acknowledging that it’s all ultimately out of your control. With the exception of a few cases, nobody plans to leave. Nobody plans to abandon their passion either. Usually the slow grind of necessity chooses that for you. What started as a few DMs between Castro and Controller 7 in 2021 slowly morphed into a fully fleshed opus. Close your eyes and imagine De La Soul is Dead if the Plugs were steeped in the murky tea of the early aughts independent scene. It’s a propulsive, cohesive listen, that finds the rappers forging new ground both sonically and stylistically. The first ShrapKnel LP was wind, a self-titled sheer force that awoke the masses to the New. The second album was fire, forged in a Metal Lung, seasoned by smoke and libation alike. This third offering is earth, rooted in our influences, from soil-turned-vines-turned blades that scale the highest of structures.

Pharoahe Monch is one of the most revered and influential emcees in the history of hip-hop, and 2024 marks the 10th anniversary of his fourth studio album "PTSD: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder".

In PTSD, Pharoahe Monch continues the story he began telling in his previous LP, "W.A.R. (We Are Renegades)" from 2011. The Queens emcee narrates, in both literal and metaphoric ways, about the trials and tribulations of an independent artist who is at war with the music industry and the struggle of the black male experience in America.

In 2012, during an interview with Shawn Setaro, host of the podcast The Cipher, the rapper explained the connections between the two projects, beyond their titles. “The W.A.R. album was like, I’m going to battle against the machine, I’m doing this independently. I’m putting some things out that I learned and I’m going to expose about the music industry. PTSD is the result of me doing that, where I am emotionally now. It’s similar to how someone comes back from war and is stricken by re-adjusting to a regular situation.”

Monch told MTV Hive that PTSD is “more mental, emotional and personal” because it came out of the depths of a period of depression. He also gave the internal and external factors that helped him create the album. “I was working on the title track, which took me to a point in between Internal Affairs and Desire, where I was heavily depressed. Through the waiting period, the industry period, and going through a lot emotionally. Then there was the physical [problem] with asthma. It was the worst. So I started off with that title track and my manager was like, ‘Yo, let’s really dive into that state and how you got to where you are now, and how this follows what people go through to get back to a so-called ‘normal’ situation’.”

The concept album follows a veteran through combat experience, his return home, relationship dissolution, drug addiction, painful depression, and, finally, a triumphant but realistically rendered decision to keep living and struggling.

Holy grail hip-hop alert! Superstar Quamallah's Invisible Man was never released on wax so, to celebrate the 15th anniversary of this astounding record, we present the first ever vinyl edition. A stunning record which gained accolades upon its initial release, such as a prominent feature on Gilles Peterson's renowned Best Of 2009 show, it's one of the most essential jazz rap albums of all time. Cut across double vinyl, it’s exceedingly limited, with just 500 pressed for the world.

Deep jazz rap on that mellow-melodic tip, Invisible Man is an unforgettable album with nothing but dope beats and dope bars. There's a strong chance this album has passed you by but we truly believe it to be a lost hip-hop masterpiece. It supremely captures the essence of a golden age classic without being slavish to the past. No, this ain't some facile throwback rap. It's a fresh and deeply soulful, original album shot through straight from the heart. Perfect to chill to, Invisible Man is profoundly jazz-oriented and captures with simplicity and sincerity the essence of hip-hop circa 1983-1994. It sounds like vibing with your nearest, dearest and oldest friends on a long hot summer night as the tantalising thought that anything is possible fills the air. You know what, we can just call this "magic hour rap" and we think you'll know what we mean. It's just beautiful. Just Listen.

Brooklyn-born, California-based emcee, DJ, and producer Superstar Quamallah was active in the West Coast underground scene throughout the 90s and recorded extensively with such revered names as Defari and Tajai. His parents were some serious artistic heavyweights, too; his father was soul organist Big John Patton, a giant in the jazz world known for his releases on Blue Note whilst his mother was an active designer. However, he remains relatively unknown. Invisible Man, named ostensibly after the classic Ralph Ellison novel, could also refer to how he is viewed by the public at large. With close affiliations to the Hieroglyphics, Dilated Peoples and Likwit crew, his debut EP "Don't Call Me John" arrived in 1999 on ABB Records, after which he took a sabbatical from recording which included graduate school, travelling, teaching at Inglewood High and eventually a professorship of African Studies at Berkeley.

With a laidback flow and deep, relaxing presence on the mic, Superstar Quamallah is equal parts Big Daddy Kane, Rakim and Guru. Invisible Man is refined, soulful, feel-good hip-hop of the old school. Its wise, spiritual and literate sound, combined with the summertime vibes projected by the smooth beats and the nostalgia-inducing samples and vocal scratches, created jazzy boom-bap rap reminiscent of prime De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest and Gang Starr.

Irresistibly bouncing opener "You Need Knowledge" loops sparkling pianos, horns and a nagging whistle refrain with scratched vocal refrains from Slick Rick, Mobb Deep and Guru. The super-smooth head-nod classic "88 Soul" also utilises a beautifully swelling piano line and dusty breaks whilst Quamé reminisces about his childhood in NYC. Deeply moving, the silky, sultry "Black Shakespeare" is built around an elegant piano loop and goes hard on the superman lover tip whilst "For My People...It's Spiritual" is transcendental rap in conversation with Rakim and older gods. The "Moment Of Truth"-sampling "Lonely At The Top" is striking for its undiluted boom-bap stylings and the staccato flute-hop of "Just Listen" is riddled with soulful refinement. The deeply-affecting, wistful-yet-triumphant bells and horn-drenched single "California Dreamin'" is top-tier rap of unimpeachable quality. What a flow!

Another highlight is the rich melodic piano-rap of "Purity", a beautiful ode to the foundations of rap and those keeping the culture authentically alive. Beautifully played instruments and spiritual jazz samples elevate the deep thinking present on "Kunta Kente" whilst the darker jazz-tinged battle-rap of "93 Shit" goes super hard both in a lyrical sense and with its no-holds drum punches. The breezy Rhodes and string loops that serve as the sonic backdrop to the slinky jazz rap of "We Got Plots" are just gorgeous as our hero evokes Common's "I Used To Love H.E.R." with a head-spinning tale of crime, deception and double crossing. And some twist! "Do Win-Dis" has a tense crime-funk backing and rolling beats which complement Quamé's flow perfectly before the record is rounded out by the tough yet jazzy brilliance of rap confessional "Hope She Remembers Me". Just sensational.

Upon its original release, Quamallah himself declared: "My favorite time period for Hip Hop music was definitely between 1983 and 1994 with 1988 and 1993 being two years that standout as extremely impressive years musically and culturally. The fashion, slang, movies, TV shows and vibe during those years was incredible. While totally submerged in the feelings and music of that entire time period, I went to work on Invisible Man and I am excited for people to hear the result! It is an album that I would want to hear from some of my favorite artists of the past and present today. This is not a RETRO trip for me; this is me at my best lyrically and spiritually using the accessories of the 80s and 90s to fuel me. I am a 88 soul as the song states!"

This album goes deep. It goes all in. When Invisible Man first came out it had a real hold on us here at Be With HQ. We couldn't stop listening to it. We'd venture to say it's one of the top 25 rap records of the 2000s. In the years since its release, it has remained a criminally underrated record, an increasingly hidden gem. We sincerely hope this first time double LP release will go some way to correct this. It's been mastered for vinyl by Simon Francis, cut by Cicely Balston and pressed at Record Industry. Finally available on the format it should always have been on, it must never be rendered invisible again.

The first signs of Spring: snow melting, sunshine peeking through the clouds, and new plants starting to sprout. While we love all four seasons equally, there's something hopeful and optimistic about the beginning of Spring. Here to enhance that feeling is Chillhop Music's Essentials Spring 2024. 28 new instrumentals in 2xLP form to help you welcome a new season and a new year.

With help from 38 artists in our ever-growing Chillhop community, this Springtime compilation is one for exam season, Spring Break, road trips, late nights with friends, and more. Featuring some of your favorite Chillhop familiars like Ian Ewing, SwuM, Arbour, Cygn, Misha, Leavv, Evil Needle, Yasper, and many others.

We hope you vibe with this 73 minute compilation. A new year, a new season, and a new chapter for us here at Chillhop.

Professor Creepshow presents his newest LP - Dreamcast. At 17 tracks, this album is a soundscape of the dimension between dreams and reality. Enter the journey in the defined experience of Playawave.

The original Jazz Playa from New Mexico, Mackjunt. returns with Sonic Motions

YELLOW COVER: 2xLP, Widespine Jacket, Black & White Cookie SplitVinyl, Alternate Yellow FrontCover, Marketing Sticker. Ltd to 50 copies.

With help from Jerry Seinfeld himself, one of the classics from the mixtape era, Wale’s More About Nothing sees its first official release on CD & Vinyl. Originally released in 2008, the album is nothing short of a masterpiece in his celebrated catalog, and features appearances from then-budding artists Wiz Khalifa & Fat Trel, among others. True fans of the musician will undoubtedly know how crucial this project is to the culture; a Jerry Seinfeld collaboration with Wale finally available for all.

The Midst of Things is a multi-layered expression of my views on the state of the culture in America today. The album explores ways our humanity is being impacted by rapid globalization and technological shifts. The paradox of social media's ability to both connect us and cause us to be more disconnected than ever.

This album questions what our priorities are. What are “American values” in 2023? “Who can I trust in a world of deep fakes?” I ask in the song Bliss. Is there any objective truth in a world with “alternative facts”? Is there one true reality or is it all subjective?

This album is also the culmination of my processing of the trauma and hardship I experienced over the pandemic and civil unrest in Minneapolis over the last few years. The deep levels of depression that come with living in a black body in this country. The rejection, the anger and frustration, and the fear of having my body destroyed simply for expressing that anger in the presence of the wrong white body.

My goal with this album is to provoke conversations and create engagement around these questions and themes. but also to give you something new and inspiring while opening you up to the full spectrum of my sound and voice.

I decided to release this album independently. Mainly because I wanted to get it to you all sooner and not have to fit it into a label calendar. However, because I’m releasing independently I couldn’t afford to pay upfront to produce vinyl with all of the other expenses surrounding the album’s production and release. Because many of you have been asking if vinyl will be available for this project and I really want to make it happen, I’m humbly asking for your support in funding the production of The Midst of Things vinyl. This album represents a very important milestone for me. I haven’t released a full album since ‘Trouvaille’ in 2018 and I have yet to release a full album on vinyl.

With your help and contributions, I know we can make it happen!

I am forever grateful for your love and support!

Introducing Volume Four from the popular series "32 Bit Breaks" By Professor Creepshow - crafted with meticulous care for Lofi Beat enthusiasts and gamers who cherish video game soundtracks. Dedicated to those that relive the joy and escapism found in racing, rpgs and fighting games.

7 Shots in a Neon Violet pressing with full color OBI strip 38 Spesh has quietly become tastemakers’ top pick for “next to blow.” Just ask LeBron James, Kevin Durrant, DJ Premier, Sway, Method Man, or Lloyd Banks, all of which have co-signed this Upstate New York emcee. His 7 Shots EP, the third and final instalment in his fan-favorite “Shots Series,” marked the moment that many caught on to the Trust movement. The 8-track offering gives underground Hip-Hop fans exactly what they want, hard bars over soulful beats. The project features guest verses from Freeway, Ransom, Eto, and Che Noir, as well as production from Streetrunner, The Heatmakerz, LT Beats, Thanos Beats, and more.

After a brief pause in the Medicine Show series, Madlib returns with a 28-track, full-length hip-hop album of collaborations with AG, Guilty Simpson, MED, Oh No, Strong Arm Steady and others. Karriem Riggins pops in for a short Supreme Team session, Madlib & Oh No debut their group The Professionals, and we hear for the first time a Jaylib-era track from Madlib & Dilla's never-realized second album. Limited edition 3LP contains 14 additional Madlib beat instrumentals.

This album is about influence, inspiration, perception & reality. Every song was written in an outside environment, so that I could observe the subjects that would become my subject matter. All too often in Hip Hop, reality is limited to that of the artists own, actual experiences. People Hear What They See is my attempt to liberate the MC from those constraints & allow reality to be penned other than my own. Listening to congressmen & lawyers converse on the steps of the supreme court inspired 'American Greed', Watching a couple argue over the phone in a bar inspired 'Maybes'. By having a visual representation of my subject matter, my hopes are that the listener will see them through the worlds & melodies of my songs.

* This 10th Anniversary Edition will be one pressing and then gone, the album is remastered, pressed on Transparent Red Vinyl, features new sleeve art by Cold War Steve, comes with a fanzine and a flexi disc featuring an unreleased track. **

Limited to 500 copies, only available at HHV! Only 2 per customer!

Following his most commercially and critically successful year to date, Conway the Machine returns with his first full length offering of 2024, “Slant Face Killa.” Long teased as the second half of the chart-topping 2023 album, “won’t HE DO IT,” fans see Conway the Machine embracing his killer instincts on the mic, and doing so with versatility - rapping over the familiar gritty, dark beats fans remember discovering him on during his come up (Milano Nights, Pt. 1) to more unconventional beats, showcasing his ability to adapt and grow (Raw!). With an impressive feature list including Method Man, Raekwon, Joey Bada$$, Larry June, Key Glock, Jay Worthy & more, and production from heavyweight producers such as The Alchemist, Daringer, Conductor Williams, Cardo, Swizz Beatz & more, The Machine illustrates both his reach in today’s rap game, as well as his ability as a tastemaker. Known for consistently delivering quality music for his die-hard fans, The Machine is back to put his stamp on 2024. 2xLP Vinyl, includes Gatefold Jacket.

Attention: This copy comes with a bent corner. There is no other damage. As this is a rare record, we decided to offer you these copies.

Larry June & prolific producer Cardo have joined forces once again to bring you their latest masterpiece: "The Night Shift," a nocturnal adventure that takes you on a ride through the vivid and pulsating streets of Larry's life, as brought to life by Cardo's distinctive production. Larry June, the San Francisco native known for his smooth, laid-back flow and his unwavering commitment to living a healthy and prosperous lifestyle, seamlessly blends his distinctive style with Cardo's signature production, creating a sound that's as crisp and refreshing as a glass of cold-pressed orange juice. "The Night Shift" is the soundtrack to those late-night drives, providing the perfect backdrop for contemplation and cruising. "The Night Shift" is more than just an album; it's a testament to the chemistry between Larry June and Cardo, two artists at the top of their game. This project is a reminder that, in the still of the night, when the city's lights are aglow, and the world is asleep, Larry June and Cardo are hard at work, crafting music that transcends time and place.

Chicago hip-hop outfit Angry Blackmen made up of Quentin Branch & Brian Warren (abm) have been stretching their arms and tapping into different sounds since they smashed onto the scene with their debut single “OK!” in 2017. A prime introduction starring two emcees showing they deserve to wield the microphone and do so with good cause. Then barely a month later ABM released sophomore single ‘Riot!’ a complete shift in sound that still housed the foundation set in ‘OK!’ A few years later the duo would drop their debut project ‘Talkshit!’ which saw them amass the following they have today. ‘The Legend of Abm’ immediately smacks the listener in the eardrum leaving no second wasted and jumping straight to the point. The 11-track adventure truly presents an expression of hip-hop that we haven’t seen before, infusing multiple sounds with the 50-year old genre. To go even deeper, Quentin Branch & Brian Warren are teaching a masterclass in top-notch poetic lyricism, creating both accessible and mind-bending music. “Stanley Kubrick” has both heroes shattering the beat with their braggadocio for what is just the appetizer to prepare the listener for what’s to come in the next ten tracks. ‘Sabotage’ tells the story of two Black men hustling through the trenches of capitalism and the effect that this journey has on them. While the album exudes catchy wordplay and spine-splitting production, if you lift up the hood, ABM is spinning a tale of depression, existentialism and self-reflection that isn’t always pretty. “Dead Men Tell No Lies” is another mutation in sound for the duo, where the industrial sounds clash, violently yet perfectly together with a blistering hook harkening to the end of time. Warren & Branch’s raw poetry educates the listener of the pre-apocalyptic world we’re already living in throughout this project. ‘The Legend of Abm’ is not an excursion for the weak, the production is meant to snap your spine in half, the lyrics from Quentin & Brian are pathos infused and relatable to anyone simply trying to survive.

2024 Repress!

2024 Repress!

Jenova 7 emerges once again as a beacon of auditory innovation with his latest opus, Lost Sci-Fi Movie Themes. Released under the banner of Cold Busted, this collection of 16 tracks serves as a time machine, whisking listeners away on a journey through dimensions both familiar and uncharted since his last foray with 2019's Dusted Jazz Vol. 3. Jenova 7 has meticulously crafted an album that resonates with the essence of ‘90s trip hop nostalgia while propelling us into the cosmos of futuristic soundscapes. The album's standout tracks—“The Future 1995,” “My Zero G Love,” and “Downtown Lost In The City Of Lizards”—are masterclasses in genre-blending and atmospheric storytelling. "The Future 1995" envelops one in a nebula of boom-bap beats, cosmic sound effects, and b-movie vibes, creating a sonic experience that feels like intercepting radio signals from a distant, funk-infused galaxy. Meanwhile, “My Zero G Love” floats the listener through the velvety darkness of space with its sexy lounge feel, portamento synth lines, and the undeniable funk that glimmers under starlight—evoking the sensation of grooving in weightlessness. Then, there's “Downtown Lost In The City Of Lizards,” a track that saunters through the urban jungle with sparkling keys, evocative guitar spurts, and strutting jazz bass, painting a picture as vivid and surreal as its title suggests. Jenova 7's skill lies in his ability to fuse moody, jazz-inflected samples with grooves that draw one into a distinctly atmospheric sound—a cinematic journey through time, space, and emotion. His tracks are experiences, wrapping the listener in a cocoon of vibrant soundscapes that are both introspective and expansive. Lost Sci-Fi Movie Themes is an invitation to explore the unknown, to lose oneself in the depths of imagination and emerge on the other side transformed. For DJs looking to transport their audience to another dimension and for music fans yearning for a taste of nostalgia wrapped in the allure of the future, Jenova 7's latest release is a must-discover treasure. Dive in and let the odyssey begin

In listing the greatest albums in hip-hop history, one title never seems to stray from the upper echelons, no matter how many years pass: Boogie Down Productions’ undisputed classic from 1986, Criminal Minded. Released amidst a battle between BDP and MC Shan that would redefine the New York rap landscape as it was then known, the album, which features the songs "South Bronx," "Criminal Minded" and "The Bridge is Over," captures the excitement, urgency and raw power that embodies hip-hop culture as we know it, with KRS-One’s aggressive yet intelligent lyricism backed by Scott La Rock’s hard-hitting, stripped-down beats. A true classic, Criminal Minded has been recognized by Vibe Magazine, The Source and Rolling Stone as one of the most important albums of all time.

Dan-e-o’s hard-hitting 6th solo album “Vigilante” is equal parts lyricism clinic and seething social commentary. From the graphic novel album cover to the unapologetic lyrical content, “Vigilante” harshly critiques social media misuse, gun violence, anti-black racism, self-hatred, jealousy and self-doubt. Inspired by both the “Dexter” and “Death Note” series, Dan-e-o’s new album title represents his commitment to “kill” all of the negativity mentioned above. Well-known for his classic debut 1996 single, “Dear Hip Hop”, Dan-e-o is every bit as punchline-heavy as you would expect on “Vigilante”. The album is also the veteran Toronto lyricist’s most provocative project to date. Taking zero bars lightly and sparing no feelings, Dan calls out such personalities as Kanye West, Donald Trump and Candace Owens while condemning Fox News, murderous police officers and the Ku Klux Klan. He even finds time to address a past toxic relationship while not missing a beat tearing into talentless rappers. The soundscape of “Vigilante” can best be described as “heavy neck-snapping boom bap”. The head-nodders are supplied by Toronto’s Big Sproxx (Freedom Writers) and frequent collaborator Charisma a.k.a. Skizzz (Monolith) as well as Japan’s S-ky THE Cookinjax. With an impressive list of featured guests including such legendary artists as Masta Ace, Saukrates and even comedy superstar, Russell Peters, Dan-e-o has created a recipe for hip-hop perfection. “These are the best 12 songs in the history of my catalogue,” insists Dan-e-o, “Period.”