Monica Lynch is a woman who truly was at the center of it all during hip-hop’s Golden Age.

Monica started out in late 1981 as the very first employee of a small record label called Tommy Boy, which was releasing early rap and electro singles by the likes of Afrika Bambaataa and the Jonzun Crew. She quickly worked her way up to becoming the label’s president, and oversaw its most fertile period during hip-hop’s golden age of the late 1980s and early 90s. Under her tenure, the label released classic albums by Queen Latifah, De La Soul, Naughty By Nature, Stetsasonic, Paris, Digital Underground, CNN, House of Pain, and many more.

Monica was a key part of bringing Tommy Boy to the attention of the masses. She oversaw the label’s clothing line, its successful compilation albums, and also played a key role in the development of careers of artists, executives, and more ranging from The RZA to Dante Ross to Prince Paul.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/171/ for full show notes and comments.

Jerome “J-Roc” Harmon is a Grammy-winning musician and producer best-known for his work with Timbaland. He got his start in Texas, playing gospel and jazz with people like Fred Hammond, Kirk Franklin, and Wayman Tisdale, while producing the occasional hip-hop record. But once he met Timbaland about ten years ago, his career took off.

Harmon has produced, co-produced, or performed on projects by Timbaland, Nas, Chris Brown, Robin Thicke, Jennifer Hudson, Justin Timberlake, Beyoncé, Jay Z, Michael Jackson, and many more. He has won Grammys for his work with gospel icon Fred Hammond, Chris Brown, Justin Timberlake, and Beyoncé, and was a key player in albums like Timberlake’s The 20/20 Experience, Jay Z’s The Blueprint 3 and Magna Carta…Holy Grail, and Beyoncé’s self-titled LP.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/175/ 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.

Martin is the brains behind the website Rap Analysis, and the author of the upcoming book The Artistry of Rap Music. He’s a trained composer and musician who looks at rapping from a perspective that should be common but sadly is all too frequently missing from discussions around hip-hop: as music.

Martin’s examinations of rappers’ deliveries, phrasing, and styles are second to none, and will have you listening to your favorite artists in a whole new way.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/197/ for full show notes and comments.

This is episode 200, and features a return from Kevin Coval. However, since it is our 200th, our producer Josh got Kevin, who’s also a big fan of the show, to turn the tables without us knowing and interview the show’s host Shawn. So if you’ll excuse a little self indulgence here’s the episode 200 with Kevin Coval, Shawn Setaro AND Josh Kross.

Kevin is a poet and educator who is the artistic director of Young Chicago Authors, and the author and editor of a whole bunch of great books. The latest of these is A People’s History of Chicago. The book, true to its title, covers the entire history of the city, while focusing on the experiences and victories of its working people and those struggling for justice. The book’s foreward is by a young artist who has learned a lot from Coval, Chance the Rapper.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/200/ for full show notes and comments.

Stevie Stone is an emcee who is part of the Strange Music family. However, his gravely voice and powerful vision make him stand out even among that talented crew. Stevie started out signed to Eazy-E’s Ruthless Records, but quickly joined the Strange family—an appropriate move, since for his very first show, he shared the stage with the label’s co-founder and flagship artist Tech N9ne.

Since then, Stevie has made a series of powerful and often experimental albums, including 2015’s Malta Bend, which explored his mother’s childhood in the small Missouri town of that name. His new album, out this past Friday, is Level Up.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/204/ for full show notes and comments.

Ernest Dickerson is a director, cinematographer, and writer who has played a key role in some of the best and most important film and television of the past four decades. He got his start in the mid-1980s as the cinematographer on movies by his NYU film school pal Spike Lee. Ernest show every one of Spike’s movies up through 1992’s Malcolm X—a historic run that included She’s Gotta Have It, Do the Right Thing, and Jungle Fever, just to name a few.

Ernest struck out on his own with a hip-hop cinema classic, 1992’s Juice. The film, about four Harlem teenagers who slowly get dragged into a perilous situation, featured Tupac Shakur in his first starring film role—and also had cameos from hip-hop figures of the time like Treach, Queen Latifah, Red Alert, and Yo! MTV Raps hosts Fab 5 Freddy, Ed Lover, and Doctor Dre. A 25th anniversary edition of the movie, with tons of never-before-seen extras including an alternate ending, is available now.

But that’s not nearly all of Ernest Dickerson’s story. He has directed other great films like Surviving the Game, Demon Knight, and the Snoop Dogg-starring Bones. And he has helmed notable episodes of great TV series like The Wire and The Walking Dead. His latest project, out now on the festival circuit, is Double Play.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/205/ for full show notes and comments.

Ron is a producer who is best known for his time as part of Bad Boy Records’ Hitmen production collective. Ron teamed up with Deric “D Dot” Angelettie, Diddy, Stevie J, and Nashiem Myrick to create iconic hits for Biggie, Mase, Diddy, Faith Evans, Mary J Blige, The Lox, and many more. After that run ended, Ron made beats for the likes of Beyoncé, Aretha Franklin, and Luther Vandross.

Ron is also a hip-hop historian and documentarian, and has made several films dealing with unjustly ignored aspects of hip-hop’s history. Most notable among these is the documentary Founding Fathers, which deals with the mobile DJ scene of the 1970s in Brooklyn and Queens. Any fan of the genre needs to see the movie in order to understand that there was a lot more to DJing in that era than just what was happening in the Bronx.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/207/ for full show notes and comments.

Welcome to a special episode of The Cipher. This is an episode dedicated to Houston. Like countless people around the world, we were devastated by news of Hurricane Harvey and its effects on the city. If you’re a regular listener, you’ve noticed that we have many episodes discussing Houston music and culture with the city’s artists, businesspeople, and authors.

So, because of that love for Houston’s music, culture, and most of all its people, we decided to reach out to three H-town rap legends and find out what’s really going on in the storm and its aftermath, and to find out what you can do to help. We caught up by phone with Trae tha Truth, Killa Kyleon, and Z-Ro. All three have been involved in recovery efforts —in fact, you may have seen Trae on the news, rescuing people by boat. And all three have seen first-hand the devastation the storm has caused.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/213/ for full show notes and comments.

Fred is a rapper who can say that hip-hop is in his blood, literally. Not only is he from the home of hip-hop, the Bronx, but his father also used to work at the NYC nightspot The Tunnel, whose hip-hop nights on Sundays, presided over by Funkmaster Flex, were legendary.

So it only makes sense that Fred would grow up to become one of the best rappers out there. His intricate punchlines and metaphors are the stuff of mixtape legend, and his talent has led him to collaborate with some of the biggest rappers, DJs, and producers in the game. Fred’s talent has also been recognized by XXL, who annointed him one of their Freshman class in 2011, alongside Mac Miller, Meek Mill, Yelawolf, and some guy named Kendrick. Fred’s newest project, out this past August, is Gordo.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/217/ for full show notes and comments.

Skyzoo is a fantastic Brooklyn rapper whose sophisticated lyrics and ear for soulful beats has long made him one of our favorites. Longtime listeners will no doubt remember that he’s been a guest on the show twice before. But this is different.

Sky approached us last month with the idea of having an in-depth conversation to tease out the themes and ideas in his awesome new record. In Celebration of Us, easily his most topical project to date, deals with police violence, gentrification, discrimination, validation, and ultimately what it means to be, as Sky is, a black man raising a black boy in America today.

He wanted to have the talk at a place near to his heart, so we met at Mike’s Coffee Shop. Mike’s is a Brooklyn diner that has been a staple of the rapper’s life since childhood, and remains one now that he has a child — his newborn son Miles — of his own.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/231/ for full show notes and comments.

Erick Sermon got his start alongside Parrish Smith as a member of the iconic duo EPMD. Starting with their debut single in 1987 and their first album the following year, the group released four classic LPs in a row - a nearly unprecedented run in a still-new genre - before splitting (for the first time) in 1993. At the same time, Sermon was instrumental in finding and introducing hit acts like Das EFX, K-Solo, Keith Murray, and Redman for his Hit Squad collective. After the breakup, Erick began a successful career as a solo artist and producer, culminating in his giant 2001 hit “Music.” As a producer, he’s helmed hits for LL Cool J, Jay Z, Illegal, Jodeci, and even Shaquille O’Neal. Most recently, Sermon completed a successful campaign to crowdfund a new album.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/233/ for full show notes and comments.

The Arsonists were a crew formed in Bushwick in the early 1990s. D-Stroy, who began his rap career in his early teens alongside famed DJ Tony Touch in the duo Touch and D-Stroy, helped to solidify a group that would come to consist of, among others, Freestyle, Jise One, Swel Boogie, and Q-Unique. After putting out several early singles, the group was the first hip-hop act to sign to Matador Records, a label better known for indie rock. They released their debut album As the World Burns in 1999.

An intense touring schedule and its attendant stresses put pressure on the crew, and it splintered after the 2001 follow-up Date of Birth. But the Arsonists are back with a new album, Lost in the Fire, and a reissued version of their debut. Lost in the Fire features a mix of old but previously unreleased material alongside new songs.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/235/ for full show notes and comments.

Phonte first visited us in early 2016, when we had a career-spanning interview. But now he’s back with No News Is Good News, an incredible new album that turns the rapper’s last several years of tragedies and triumphs into amazing art.

Phonte first came to most rap fans’ notice as a member of the critically acclaimed group Little Brother, and has since released an array of solo, duo, and group projects - most notably with Foreign Exchange. No News Is Good News finds Phonte reflecting on the deaths of close family members, the happiness brought by a new marriage, and what it’s like to possibly have more years behind you and in front of you. All of that, combined with Phonte’s incredible rhyming, makes for one of the best records of the year.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/237/ for full show notes and comments.

Nick, as you undoubtedly already know, is a musician, actor, comedian, TV executive, and all-around entertainer. He got his start doing stand-up comedy while still a teenager. He parlayed that into work at Nickelodeon, where he wrote for and starred in now-classic shows like All That, Kenan & Kel, and the appropriately-named Nick Cannon Show. He moved from that into starring in movies like Drumline and Love Don’t Cost a Thing, putting out several stand up specials, and even hosting America’s Got Talent.

But, as you’ll hear, Nick has always thought of himself as a musician first. He has released numerous albums and mixtapes, written and produced for other artists, and has worked with everyone from Biz Markie to Gucci Mane to the Neptunes to Kanye West. And, of course, he combined his loves of hip-hop and improv comedy into the long running hit TV show Wild ‘N Out. Nick’s latest musical project, released earlier this year, is Calling All Models: The Mixtape.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/245/ for full show notes and comments.

Jericho Jackson is a group made up of producer Khrysis and rapper Elzhi. Khrysis is best known for his work with the rap collective the Justus League, which counts among its members 9th Wonder. He is currently a member of 9th’s production team the Soul Council. In addition to his North Carolina crew, Khrysis has produced for Sean Price and Heltah Skeltah, Jean Grae, Evidence, Talib Kweli, Black Thought, and many others.

Dedicated Cipher listeners will remember Elzhi from our talk with him on episode 152. The Detroit rapper came to a lot of fans’ attention during his time as a member of Slum Village. He followed that up with a staggering series of solo albums, including the Nas reinvention Elmatic and the deeply personal Lead Poison.

Khrysis and Elzhi’s recent joint album is called Khrysis and Elzhi Are Jericho Jackson.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/247/ 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.

Mike “Heron” Herard is a record exec, producer, manager, label owner, and all-around music business legend. He first came to the attention of underground hip-hop fans when he was the co-founder of Hydra Records, which released music by Screwball, Godfather Don, and many others. He then moved over to Rawkus Records, where he played a key role in Big L’s posthumous album The Big Picture. He has also managed Joell Ortiz, and is currently the Vice President of A&R at Shady Records. In addition, he runs the company BeatHustle, a firm that manages composers who compose music specifically for rap producers to sample.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/249/ for full show notes and comments.

What better way to celebrate the potential arrival of warmer months than with a Halfmoon Walking & Writing Workshop over Cannock Chase.

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.

Leaders from some of Europe’s largest companies will be gathering in Birmingham to discuss the role that open innovation and collaboration can play in boosting the economy

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.

The Midlands based rail champion, Campaign for Rail will be holding its inaugural Annual General Meeting tomorrow at the Atrium, Moor Street Station

Birmingham conference aims to improve arts access for disabled youngsters.

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

A charity concert has raised £700 for the Edgbaston-based charity Ammalife.

Donors needed at Birmingham Donor Centre due to low stocks.

This is the first episode of The Church of Whats Happening Now. I got together with my friend Lee Syatt and we talked about whatever was on our mind. Everything from weightloss secrets, to cats, to music and movies. This will only get better as it goes so stay tuned momo's!

Stay Black!

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

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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.

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