Every time San Jose rapper Righteous Reg goes to 7-Eleven, he says he fears for his life. In his tracks, the outspoken artist wrangles with his reality of being young and black in a time when the news features men who look like him getting abused and killed on a frequent basis.
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When he was 19 years old, pianist Kenny Barron got a call from Dizzy Gillespie. Based on myriad recommendations, the legendary band leader wanted Barron to join his ensemble, even though he’d never heard him play a note. On the taxicab ride over, Gillespie’s bass player gave a snap rehearsal, demonstrating the…
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A decade ago, rapper, Blu, and producer, Exile, caught lightning and bottled it on Below the Heavens. Over Exile’s soul-sampling, boom-bap beats, Blu packed tracks with intricate storytelling and unpretentiously profound insights. The album has rightfully endured as a stellar example of the era’s style, and this summer, the pair are capitalizing…
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During their breakout year in 2008, when they debuted mega-hits “Sex on Fire” and “Use Somebody,” the Kings of Leon took home a Grammy for their sound that blended huge, affected guitar riffs, a brooding aesthetic and the hoarse, twangy vocals of lead singer Caleb Followill. They took a brief hiatus after…
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This year, Kendrick Lamar ran away with the title of best rapper alive. Drake may be richer, Young Thug may be bolder and the Migos may better reflect the modern sound of the genre. But since Kanye West cut his show short in Sacramento, no hip-hop artist feels more important than Lamar, a…
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Last weekend, the Napa Valley Expo hosted BottleRock, the most gastronomically gourmet music festival in California. With five stages of live acts, multiple “gardens” devoted to wine, beer and upscale food as well as three days of the most idyllic weather on the planet, BottleRock tacitly promises a level of indulgence that…
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As the crowd waited for Rihanna to take the stage at the SAP Center last year, the opening DJ put on Too Short’s banger, “Blow the Whistle.” Being a local anthem of sorts, Short’s song got people out of their seats to dance and sing along—never louder than when the East Bay…
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Like an ever-increasing number of Americans, Matt Toth and Julio Mejia met online. Toth produced tech house and Mejia focused on hip-hop-centric dance music before a mutual friend introduced them on Facebook—linking them to each other’s SoundCloud pages. The day they met in 2010, the two took their first step towards becoming…
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Years ago, vibraphonist Jason Marsalis flew up to Seattle to play a studio session with Christian Fabian and Ed Littlefield. Months later, while on an Alaskan radio show, he learned from Littlefield’s answer to the host that they had recorded modernized versions of folk songs by the Tlingit Native American tribe.
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A pair of sneakers hangs from the rafters in Dirtbag Dan’s studio. He won them years ago at the Wednesday night Cypher, then held at Johnny V’s. At the time, another emcee had been challenging Dan for his title as the best battle rapper in San Jose.
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