This episode, author Adam Mansbach (Go the Fuck to Sleep, Rage Is Back) returns to the show to talk about his new book, a thriller called The Dead Run. He’s joined by Chicago poet Kevin Coval who, in addition to his awesome poetry, also runs the largest youth poetry festival in the nation, Louder Than A Bomb. Join us as we talk rap, race, Judaism, Chief Keef, which KRS album is the greatest, and what “hackles” really are.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/52/ for full show notes and comments.

This episode, we talk the best of old-school NYC life and hip-hop with two folks who know it better than almost anybody. MC Serch is best known for his work with 3rd Bass, but has also executive produced classic albums (including a little one called Illmatic), hosted TV shows, and more.

Blake “KEO” Lethem is a true hip-hop Renaissance man. From being an influential graffiti artist to arguably the first white rapper to designing album covers for the likes of MF DOOM, Blake has seen and done it all, and shares much of it with us here. We talk nightlife, stardom, graffiti’s TRUE relationship to hip-hop, and that time Hammer put out a hit on 3rd Bass.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/55/ for full show notes and comments.

Grand Mixer DXT’s invention of the turntable as a musical instrument changed hip hop forever. His background as a jazz drummer gave him not just great rhythm, but inspired him to use the turntables to create pitch. These kinds of innovations brought DXT to the attention of Herbie Hancock, who used the DJ in his 1983 album Future Shock. The single from that album, “Rockit”, launched DXT to worldwide attention. He toured all over the world with the Rockit band, and continued innovating with the turntables. Since those days, DXT has continued being a influential DJ and artist. Most recently, DXT and a group of pioneering DJs were inducted into Hollywood’s Rock Hall of Fame.

We talk with DXT at Rap Genius’ office in Brooklyn. About 40 minutes into the conversation, DXT is joined by Infinity Emcees member Rahiem, who has worked with DXT for decades. We talked New York DJ history, what the turntable did to hop hop, Herbie Hancock and “Rockit”, and much more.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/68/ for full show notes and comments.

This episode, we have a two-fer. We begin with a really awesome interview with a true West Coast legend, DJ Quik. He has a new album, The Midnight Life, and we talk to him about that, his relationships with longtime collaborators Suga Free and guitarist Robert Bacon, “Hitler microphones,” that time Dr. Dre broke his speakers, and a lot more.

In the second half of the show, we introduce a new artist. Eric Biddines is a Florida-based rapper whose new project, Planet Coffee Bean 2, came to our attention recently. Eric’s futuristic, imaginative, and caffeinated music — and personality — are not to be missed.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/77/ for full show notes and comments.

Our special 100th episode finds us with a flood of special guests. We have Metermaids, an NYC rap duo signed to Sage Francis’ Strange Famous label. Their newest album We Brought Knives is a powerful examination of fatherhood, legacies, changing times, and the awesomeness of Bruce Springsteen.

They’re followed by Gabriel Roth. Roth is the co-founder of Daptone Records, a Brooklyn-based label that has released some of the finest soul, funk, Afrobeat, and other roots music of this generation. The band he leads, The Dap-Kings (who normally back the powerful singer Sharon Jones), played a key part in one of the most popular records in recent memory, Amy Winehouse’s Back To Black.

This being an anniversary party, we start the show with a special surprise guest.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/100/ for full show notes and comments.

Allah B is a longtime member of the Nation of Gods and Earths, formerly known as the Five Percenters. He grew up in Harlem in the 1950s and 60s, a time when the Nation of Islam had huge influence thanks to its minister, Malcolm X. Clarence 13X Smith was an NOI member who became disenchanted with the group around 1963, and formed his own organization the following year. Clarence quickly became known as “Allah” or “The Father,” and most of his early disciples were teenage boys, Allah B among them.

The group, originally known as the Five Percenters and now as the Nation of Gods and Earths, grew steadily until Allah’s murder in June 1969. It would have a rebirth in the 1980s and 90s, as many of the young children raised in the group’s beliefs would go into hip-hop and spread Five Percenter beliefs, slang, and practices far and wide.

If you’ve ever listened to Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, or the Wu-Tang Clan, said “Peace” or “word,” or stood in a b-boy stance, you owe a huge debt to the Gods and Earths, whether you realize it or not. Allah B has been there for the group’s whole history, and shares it with us in this interview.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/151/ for full show notes and comments.

Stretch and Evan are the co-authors of the new book No Sleep: NYC Nightlife Flyers 1988-1999. The book, as its title suggests, is a collection of flyers from the prime years of New York City nightlife, mixed with recollections from people who were there.

But both guests are known for far more than the book. Evan was the driving force behind Evil Empire mixtapes, and currently runs the popular Up North Trips, which has a website, Twitter, and Instagram devoted to hip-hop memorabilia, anniversaries, and history.

Stretch, of course, was the co-host of one of the most influential radio shows of all time, the Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito show. The show, co-hosted by Bobbito Garcia, ran on WKCR starting in 1990, and defined the sound of underground rap. Just a short list of artists who appeared on that show in the early years of their career would include Nas, Common, Jay Z, Eminem, Busta Rhymes, Big Pun, Big L, the Notorious B.I.G., and the Wu-Tang Clan. Many of those artists, and a ton more, revisited their experiences in the 2015 documentary Stretch and Bobbito: Radio That Changed Lives.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/188/ for full show notes and comments.

Mid90s, which opened this past Friday, October 19th, is a film Hill wrote and directed about a group of skateboarding friends in—you guessed it—the mid-1990s. The incredibly authentic period piece features plenty of nods to the skateboarding scene and the music of the time period, including songs from the Pharcyde and the Gravediggaz, and a memorable cameo appearance by Del the Funkee Homosapien.

This is Jonah’s first film as a writer/director. He has, of course, starred in tons of films, from Superbad to Moneyball to The Wolf of Wall Street. For this interview, Hill was joined by Sunny Suljic, who plays Stevie; Na-kel Smith, who plays Ray; Olan Prenatt, who plays Fuckshit; Gio Galicia, who plays Ruben; Ryder McLaughlin, who plays Fourth Grade; and Alexa Demie, who plays Estee. To rap fans, Na-Kel Smith’s name and voice may sound familiar—he has a music career of his own, and has appeared on songs with Tyler, the Creator and Earl Sweatshirt.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/248/ for full show notes and comments.

Masta Ace is a legendary rhymer whose career began with the Juice Crew and has continued through a series of beloved solo and group albums. Marco Polo is a Toronto-born producer who moved to New York City in the early 2000s, and took his adopted hometown’s traditional boom-bap aesthetic to heart. Marco has brought his rugged sound to Torae, Pharoahe Monch, Ruste Juxx, Sean Price, Vinnie Paz, Rah Digga, and many more.

Now, Marco and Ace have joined up for a new album. A Breukelen Story combines a set of incredible songs with a series of skits that follow Marco’s journey from Toronto to NYC—an Ace-written storyline that both mirrors and features people from the producer’s real life.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/250/ for full show notes and comments.

As many of you know, The Cipher is going on an indefinite hiatus following this episode. For more information about why, visit us on Twitter or Facebook, or just listen to this episode. But in short, we have no plans to make any more new episodes after this one. Our archives, however, will still be available and free on our website, on iTunes and other podcast apps, and on SoundCloud.

For this goodbye episode, we called up our friend and episode 201 guest Jay Smooth to interview The Cipher’s host Shawn Setaro and its producer Josh Kross. Jay, as you’ll hear, did an amazing job, and got us to touch on so many aspects of the show’s history, and of ways we thought about it over the years.

So here’s the end of the road, for now. Thanks for listening.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/252/ for full show notes and comments.

The University of Birmingham is set to host its first Arts & Science Festival to showcase the wealth of ideas, research and collaboration across its campus.

With the age of literary correspondence dying, it seems more important than ever to provide spaces of warmth and comfort in which writers can not only retreat

Financial advisers from across the West Midlands attended a course on auto enrolment yesterday – the new regime for workplace pensions that has begun to roll out.

A Birmingham based medical charity is giving you the opportunity to double your donation and help save lives around the world

Jiu Jitsu Master Eddie Bravo joins Joey and Lee in studio for a special edition of The Church Of What's Happening Now. Eddie is preparing for his rematch against Royler Gracie.

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MMA writer Ben Fowlkes calls in to talk about TRT and the future of MMA.

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Recorded live on 03/24/2014.

Joe Kenyon from World of Rock Records calls in to promote putting You Cant Eat Pussy With Asthma on Vinyl.

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Jiu Jitsu Coach John Evan calls in to break down Eddie Bravo's Match in Metamoris 3.

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Recorded live on 03/24/2014.

Emilio Rivera joins Joey Diaz and Lee Syatt in studio to talk about his new film Water and Power.

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Recorded live on 04/02/2014.

Comedian Felipe Esparza joins Joey Diaz and Lee Syatt live in studio.

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Recorded live on 04/07/2014.

Director Peter Segal calls in to talk to Joey Diaz and Lee Syatt

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Recorded live on 04/08/2014.

Joey Diaz and Lee Syatt solo!

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Recorded live on 04/14/2014.

Joey Diaz and Lee Syatt talk with Ed Soares, manager to UFC fighters Anderson Silva, Lyoto Machida, and Glover Teixeira.

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Recorded live on 04/23/2014.

Joey Diaz and Lee Syatt talk to Joey's friend Timmy Holloway about where they thought they would be 30 years ago as drug addicts and where they are now.

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Recorded live on 04/28/2014.

Joey Diaz and Lee Syatt welcome Justin Fortune to the podcast. Mr. Fortune is a boxing strength and conditioning coach most notably for Manny Pacquiao.

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Recorded live on 04/30/2014.

Joey Diaz and Lee Syatt do the first remote Church podcast. They welcome guest Alder Hampel to the show for the first time. Alder is the owner and coach at 10th Planet Jiu Jitsu Van Nuys. 

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Recorded on 05/04/2014.

Joey Diaz and Lee Syatt are joined by Comedian Steve Simeone for the second remote recording of the Church.

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Recorded live on 05/07/2014.

Joey Diaz and Lee Syatt are joined by supplement specials Bret Teck.

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Recorded on 07/07/2014.