Members only Features Winter, War, and The Warm-Up Lessons learned on the journey from age 18 to 33 with J. Cole.
The Scene Letter From Raleigh: For Onyx After an indelible night at The Pour House, Tab One reflects on parenthood, resilience, and the welcome sight of a community coming together as one.
Members only The Scene Live From The 828 Five new releases show off the talent pouring out of the (oft-overlooked) mountains of North Carolina.
Members only Album Reviews Sinopsis Brings Kooley High Back to Earth The Raleigh producer's third remix album is a warm, sophisticated, jazz-rap delight.
Members only Album Reviews Please Touch That Dial A pair of Durham EPs give credence to the idea that a yearning for a more tactile and terrestrial existence remains very real.
Members only Album Reviews Deniro Farrar Tends To His Flock On his contemplative and calm EP "The Shepherd," the veteran Charlotte emcee offers up clear-eyed enlightenment — and a "pay" button.
Q&A Arrest The President The hip-hop of the Dubya era, and a quick Q&A with Justus League member Edgar Allen Floe.
The Scene Khalil Nasim Makes An Appearance An intimate Tuesday night in Raleigh serves as the debut for a promising new album, a testament to perseverance, and a reminder of the enduring power of the listening party.
Features Month 101: January Ten independent NC hip-hop heaters to keep you warm between the false Springs.
Best Of 2024 Super Empty's Best Of 2024, Pt. 3 (Songs) Two dozen standout tracks that epitomized the year in NC hip-hop/R&B.
Best Of 2024 Super Empty's Best Of 2024, Pt. 2 (EPs) Six short-form offerings (hip-hop/R&B and adjacent) that packed a memorable, outsize punch.
Features WhoNoz. Flirts With the R&B Space-Time Continuum On their debut EP, the new Charlotte collective sculpts a futuristic sound born out of 90s/00s nostalgia.
Features Super Empty's Best Of 2024, Pt. 1 (Albums) Top albums from an emotive, soulful year of North Carolina hip-hop and R&B.
Album Reviews Album Review: shadowbox, by MAVI The precocious Charlotte rapper delivers a heartbreaking but hopeful album that's more concerned with survival than prosperity.
Album Reviews Album Review: the villain wins, by MESSIAH! On his first album in two years, Charlotte’s MESSIAH! balances light and shadow, and an identity as savior or villain.
Q&A Mez's Story is Still Loading Balancing a solo rap career with being a creative right hand to legends — writing songs for Dr. Dre and Ye, directing videos for J. Cole — has left the Raleigh native hard to pin down. He's (mostly) OK with that.
The Scene Genius Bars The 24th edition of the stalwart RDU hip-hop event "The Genius Party" gets everyone involved — from producers, to vocalists, to attendees themselves.
The Scene Dispatch From Wilmington: Bridge to Forever At Waterline Brewing, a night of wide-ranging music — from Georgia to New York, and from the 90s to the present day — along the Cape Fear River.
Features Appalachia Gets a Good Rap On the upcoming compilation album No Options, more than a dozen Appalachian hip-hop artists present a different side to an often misunderstood, oversimplified region.
Features Leroy Is Ready to Be Himself The Charlotte rapper, formerly known as WELL$, is back in his hometown and embarking on his most personal and mature work yet — starting with the reclamation of his childhood name.
Song Of The Week The Rest Is History "End Times," courtesy of Angelo Mota, leroy and Mez, is a somber reckoning with our overwhelming reality — and a late-2010s NC hip-hop family reunion.
The Scene Dispatch From Charlotte: Sudd, The Curator With its overflowing roster of talent from the Carolinas and beyond, No Stress Fest reflects the enduring role of the DJ — and specifically, the pull and influence of High Point native E.Sudd.
Song Of The Week The Foreign Exchange Are Still On Their Own Time “The Grey” propels us into the uncertainty of space through the coordinates of hip-hop’s sonic past.
Q&A The Restless Yet Unhurried Ambition of Ayinde Anderson The Los Angeles-based cinematographer talks about growing up in Raleigh, working with Vince Staples, honoring his love of music through film, and the self-imposed pressures that keep him growing.
Song Of The Week Godric Pops Out In Pink "Tiffany Mink" embodies the confidence and sophisticated extravagance that sets the Durham-based artist apart.
