Returning guest Bill Adler is many things — music archivist, gallerist, head of PR for Def Jam at its creative apex — but he’s also a well-known Christmas music nut. After marrying into a Christian family, he started finding the best, most under-appreciated Christmas music he could, and putting it together into a compilation. He’s been sending his Christmas Jollies mixes to family and friends every year since the early 80s.

His mixes, despite having a relatively small circulation, have gotten tons of attention over the years. So we decided to talk to him about seasonal tunes, including his very important role in creating a certain holiday standard. He gave us insight into some key Christmas samples (Run DMC’s “Christmas in Hollis”, to name one), his own Christmas favorites, and more.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/58/ for full show notes and comments.

We talk to author Robert Greene, who’s famous bestseller, The 48 Laws of Power, took ideas from students of legends like Machiavelli and Sun Tzu, and distilled their teachings into simple principles anyone can follow. The book became beloved by rappers like Jay Z, Kanye West, and even 50 Cent, who loved Greene’s work so much that the two ended up writing a book together.

Greene’s latest book, just out in paperback, is Mastery. It focuses on how one can discover and excel at their “life’s work” — the skill that one is uniquely good at. Greene engages with problems in modern day society, thought, and practice through a multi-disciplinary approach, taking each issue on a variety of playing fields — this multi-faceted perspective is part of what makes his opinions so hard-hitting. We talk that magical 10,000 hours moment when the master bypasses logic, the similarities between Napoleon Bonaparte and 50, the decline of empathy in today’s society, his feelings about that famous Richard Sherman interview, and much more.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/61/ for full show notes and comments.

Gangsta Boo joined Three 6 Mafia when she was only a teen. To this day, she is still the first and only female member of the group. After a successful run with the group, she left and embarked upon a flourishing solo career. One of the most active and consistent MCs in the game, Gangsta Boo has worked with some of the South’s best over the course of her career. Memphis born and bred, her sound will be forever engrained in the traditions and classic sound of the city. Honest, hard-hitting, and forever unafraid of her competition, Gangsta Boo has a sound that will continue to be influential for years to come. These days, you can find her working on a new project, Witch, with fellow MC La Chat and producer DJ Paul.

We talked how the Memphis sound is taken without homage paid, the influence of bounce music on her own style, the origins of “get your broke ass out of the club”, some of her most iconic lines, and more.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/69/ for full show notes and comments.

From Broadway stars to legendary DJs to the best of the battle rappers, OTL has hosted a spectrum of voices — each with an individual story to tell. This episode takes us through the very best of OTL — its highs and lows, its most memorable soundbites, and its most resounding voices. Join us as we take you through Part 1 of OTL’s best.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/74/ for full show notes and comments.

From Broadway stars to legendary DJs to the best of the battle rappers, OTL has hosted a spectrum of voices — each with an individual story to tell. This episode takes us through the very best of OTL — its highs and lows, its most memorable soundbites, and its most resounding voices. Join us as we take you through Part 2 of OTL’s best.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/75/ 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.

This episode, we talk to author Brian Coleman. Coleman has written three volumes of what he calls “invisible liner notes” — blow-by-blow accounts of the making of classic hip-hop records from the people who were there. The newest entry in the series is Check the Technique, Vol. 2, which you can (and should!) cop here.

We discuss KMD, the differences between the two emcees in Black Star, the reason Licensed to Ill never made it into his books, why first or second albums are always a group’s best, and plenty more.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/80/ for full show notes and comments.

Nino Bless got his start in the NYC mixtape scene in the mid to late 2000s. He first came to many fans’ attention with a killer verse on Joe Budden’s 2008 song “Slaughterhouse.” From there, he released a string of increasingly personal and powerful projects that revealed a true artist with a unique vision. His R.O.A.M. series of records, three albums deep, are complex, varied, and like nothing else out there. His latest project is Illuminati Reject.

We talked to “the Chomsky of Ebonical speech” about getting encouragement from your idols; how he made “Rhyme of the Year (MK Ultra),” his epic “response to the response” to Kendrick Lamar’s “Control” verse; how New York City has changed; how Drake is truly the realest rapper out; and much more.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/82/ for full show notes and comments.

Live from Bed Stuy’s Restoration Plaza, we bring you a very special event with Buddha Monk and Mickey Hess, authors of a new biography of the Wu’s Ol’ Dirty Bastard. Occurring only blocks from Dirty’s childhood home, this conversation features not only the authors, but also special appearances from the Wu member’s family and friends. Buddha Monk was Dirty’s close friend since they were children, and had a front row seat to the artist’s rise and fall. His book, co-written with Rider professor Mickey Hess, is The Dirty Version: On Stage, In the Studio, and In the Streets With Ol’ Dirty Bastard, published by Harper Collins. You can buy it here.

If you like this episode, be sure to check out our recent article on the Wu for Radio.com

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/83/ for full show notes and comments.

Most people know author Adam Mansbach from his 2011 “children’s book for adults,” Go the Fuck to Sleep. It became a sensation and led to readings by Werner Herzog and Samuel L. Jackson, a movie deal, a popular GTFTS-themed Obama ad, and countless morning show appearances. Now he returns with a sequel, You Have to Fucking Eat — a funny and realistic take on a whole new parenting challenge.

Regular listeners know that Adam does much more than write books with curses in the title. We discussed his literary novels and life in jazz in our first talk. This time, we talk screenwriting, thrillers, middle grade books, and the best child rappers of all time.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/85/ for full show notes and comments.

Our 2nd annual Christmas episode features former Def Jam exec and noted Christmas music obsessive Bill Adler. We discuss the 30th anniversary edition of his yearly Christmas mix (available EXCLUSIVELY from us — visit here) and his part in the new holiday music documentary Jingle Bell Rocks.

We also find time to talk about the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, protest movements past and present, and plenty more. Happy holidays from The Cipher! Again, you can listen to Bill Adler’s 30th anniversary Xmas Jollies mix ONLY on our Soundcloud page.

P.S. We’re honored to have been chosen as one of Slate’s “Best Podcasts About Music” this year. You can see the complete list here. And, as mentioned in the show’s introduction, you can find Cornell University’s online exhibit of Bill’s Def Jam materials on the university’s website.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/86/ for full show notes and comments.

We speak to the rapping team at the head of the powerful rap/rock group ¡Mayday! – Ben “Wrekonize” Miller and Bernardo “Bernz” Garcia. Since the early 2000s, the band has been delivering powerful music to a growing legion of fans. That fan base was dramatically increased when the Miami group teamed up with Tech N9ne’s Strange Music label a few years ago. The most recent album released by the hardworking collective is a joint project with West Coast legend Murs called, appropriately enough, Mursday.

Wrek and Bernz talk about their career and songwriting process, but also find time to discuss their famous relatives, partying with Lil Wayne, and which group member is best with a slow cooker.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/93/ for full show notes and comments.

Bishop Lamont is one of the West Coast’s premiere lyricists. He first came to rap fans’ attention with his 2004 mixtape Who I Gotta Kill To Get A Record Deal. The title proved prophetic, as shortly afterwards he was scooped up by Dr. Dre.

During his time on Aftermath, Bishop released a ton of fantastic free “street albums,” but not a proper debut, and he left the label after several years in limbo. His latest release is The (P)Reformation, and his long-awaited album The Reformation will be out later this year.

We talked to the often-controversial rapper about his relationships with Dilla and Proof, how he was rhyming about Selma before it was cool, his pre-rap life as a stuntman – and, of course, cartoons. Plenty of cartoons.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/96/ 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.

Rapper Big Pooh got his start in the critically beloved North Carolina trio Little Brother. But over the past decade, he’s made a series of excellent and increasingly ambitious solo records, culminating in the new EP Words Paint Pictures.

We talked to Pooh about Little Brother’s early success and major-label stumbles; the truth about radio; the demise of the middle class; and the bizarre cease-and-desist letter that put one of his albums on hold for almost three years.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/101/ for full show notes and comments.

Janette Beckman has taken some of the most iconic photos out there not only of hip-hop, but of music and youth culture as a whole. She got her start in Britain in the late 1970s, using her art-school education to take photos of the then-burgeoning punk movement. But in 1983, she saw the very first international hip-hop tour, and was so taken by the music and culture that she hopped on a plane to New York City and never left.

She has taken classic photos of LL Cool J, Salt N’ Pepa, NWA, Slick Rick, Big Daddy Kane, Afrika Bambaataa, and tons more. She’s also shot famous album covers for the likes of EPMD, Ultramagnetic MCs, Run-DMC, the Police, Gang Starr, and others. And if that wasn’t enough, she’s also done popular photo series on Mexican street gangs, Harlem bikers, and underground fight clubs.

We talked to Janette about the entirety of her life and career, and got the inside stories behind tons of her iconic photographs and album covers. You can see her hip-hop work for yourself through September 13th at the Museum of the City of New York in Manhattan, as part of the exhibition Hip-Hop Revolution: Photographs by Janette Beckman, Joe Conzo, and Martha Cooper. On June 3rd at 6:30 PM, Janette, past Cipher guest Bill Adler, and upcoming Cipher guest Cey Adams will be part of a panel called “Hip Hop’s Visual Style: A Look Behind the Scenes” at the Museum.

NOTE: To see Janette’s photos that we talk about on this episode, you can scroll through the pictures on Imgur or watch the episode on YouTube.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/109/ for full show notes and comments.

Al “Blueprint” Shepard is a Columbus, Ohio-based emcee and producer. He got his start in that city’s vital scene in the late 1990s, along with talents like RJD2, Copywrite, and Camu Tao. However, most rap fans first heard his unique voice, freestyle skills, and creative, melodic beats either via his work on the influential Rhymesayers label, or in his duo with RJ called Soul Position.

Blueprint has been all over the map musically – from straight ahead boom-bap to electronic experimentation to jazzy instrumentals to full-length tributes to his favorite bands. But he’s brought his unique musical sensibilities and inquisitive, ever-searching nature to all of it.

His latest album, released this past April, is King No Crown.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/110/ for full show notes and comments.

This week, our guest is Benjy Melendez, founder, President, and singer of the Ghetto Brothers. He is joined by his co-author and friend, Amir Said.

The Ghetto Brothers were one of the largest and most powerful street gangs in the Bronx in the late 1960s and early 70s - a time when the borough, and New York City as a whole, had plenty to choose from. At its height, the organization had around 2,000 members city-wide.

But after one of their key figures got killed by rival gangs, Benjy devoted his efforts to peace, and held a now-famous peace treaty meeting at the Hoe Avenue center in the Bronx in 1971 - a gathering that set the stage for the ending of the gang era and the beginnings of hip-hop.

In addition to being a powerful organization, the Ghetto Brothers were also a rock and roll band. They only released one album, 1971’s Power Fuerza, but it became a prized collectors item, notable for its surprisingly sweet lyrics and Beatle-esque melodies, Latin percussion, and unique backstory.

While parts of Benjy’s story have been shared in the new documentary Rubble Kings and even in a graphic novel, the new book by Benjy and Amir Said, Ghetto Brother: How I Found Peace in the South Bronx Street Gang Wars, is the first place Benjy shares his entire life story.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/114/ for full show notes and comments.

Luther Campbell needs no introduction. Since starting his career as a DJ in Miami in the late 1970s, he’s been an innovator musically, culturally, business-wise, and even legally. As the mastermind behind 2 Live Crew, Campbell guided the group’s change from a California-based conscious rap group into a pioneering Southern crew who popularized Miami bass music, and whose raunchy lyrics were often imitated.

It was those same raunchy lyrics that would land Campbell and the group in repeated legal hot water. Luke fought and won legal battles not only for his group’s right to be, as his most popular and controversial record would have it, “as nasty as they wanna be,” but also for record stores’ right to sell his work. He also took a battle to parody songs all the way to the Supreme Court - and won. Simultaneously, he was running the fiercely independent Luke Records, which was for a time the largest black-owned record label in the country, and discovering acts like Poison Klan, Trick Daddy, and Pitbull.

Luke has also been fiercely devoted to the children of his native Liberty City neighborhood, starting a popular youth football league, coaching teams himself, and even running for Mayor of Miami in 2011. His latest venture is a memoir (with Tanner Colby) that covers his wild life and times, as well as the history of his hometown. It’s called The Book of Luke: My Fight for Truth, Justice, and Liberty City, published by Amistad.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/116/ for full show notes and comments.

This week, we have a two guests for you. In the first half of the show, we talk to Baje One, the rapping half of the long-running underground duo Junk Science. And in part two, we sit down with NIKO IS, a Florida-by-way-of-Brazil rapper whose world-class freestyling skills put him on the radar of none other than Talib Kweli, who signed Niko to his Javotti Media label.

Baje One and his group’s producer, DJ Snafu, first met in in their native NYC in the mid-1990s and have been making smart, funny, and ambitious music together since 2003. The success of their 2005 debut album Feeding Einstein led to a deal with El-P’s seminal Def Jux label, which put out their 2007 follow-up, Gran’dad’s Nerve Tonic. The album, in the first of a long run of packaging innovations from the group, came with its own beer, brewed by Sixpoint Craft Ales. Since then, Baje has released three more albums with the group, and several solo and collaborative projects.

NIKO IS was born in Rio De Janeiro, but has spent his rapping life in sunny Orlando, Florida. He made a name for himself in his adopted city as a teenager with his almost supernatural freestyling skills, and started releasing mixtapes in 2012 with Chill Cosby. The following year, he would cross paths with Kweli, and eventually sign to the rapper’s label. NIKO’s first album on Javotti, Brutus, was released earlier this year.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/121/ for full show notes and comments.

This week, we talk to Thembisa Mshaka. Thembisa is an author, journalist, copywriter, filmmaker, and pretty much anything else you can imagine. In her career, she’s given the likes of Common and D’Angelo their first magazine covers as the rap editor of The Gavin Report; helped people like Nas, Lauryn Hill, and Beyonce sell over 150 million records during her time writing ad copy at Sony; and wrote and directed multiple film projects, from shorts to documentaries to features.

As if that wasn’t enough, she also found time to write the definitive how-to book for women in the entertainment business, Put Your Dreams First: Handle Your [entertainment] Business. Her latest film, Biscuit, has its New York City premiere this Saturday, October 3rd, at NYC’s Ocktober Film Festival.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/122/ for full show notes and comments.

It’s that time of year! We sit down with Bill to talk about this year’s edition of his world-famous Christmas music mix Xmas Jollies 2015, which you can stream EXCLUSIVELY from us here.

We also discuss how Bill’s extensive hip-hop archives ended up at Cornell University, despite the wishes of his pal Lyor Cohen; why you’ll soon see his photos at the Smithsonian; and the story of how a noted civil rights activist was outed as an FBI spy.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/134/ for full show notes and comments.

This week, we talk to Kevin Coval and Nate Marshall. Kevin and Nate, along with Quraysh Ali Lansana, are co-editors of the new poetry anthology The Breakbeat Poets. The book is billed as being “the first poetry anthology by and for the Hip-Hop generation,” and features the work of 78 different poets, representing several different generations of hip-hop fans and practicioners. The book is a first step in creating a Breakbeat Poet movement – a way of bringing the poetics and aesthetics of hip-hop into the world of poetry.

Kevin, who longtime Cipher listeners may remember from his appearance on Episode 52, is the author of many book including Schtick, L-vis Lives: Racemusic Poems, Everyday People and Slingshots: A Hip-Hop Poetica. He is the founder of Louder Than a Bomb: The Chicago Youth Poetry Festival, Artistic Director at Young Chicago Authors, and teaches at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Nate is the author of NAACP Image Award-nominated book Wild Hundreds. He is a founding member of the poetry collective Dark Noise, and is also a rapper.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/137/ for full show notes and comments.

Beans is an underground rap legend, best known for his time as a member of the group Antipop Consortium. He grew up in White Plains, New York and developed a unique abstract, wordy style that made him equally suited to both rap and the thriving New York City spoken word scene of the mid-1990s. Antipop released their debut album Tragic Epilogue in 2000, and followed it up with several other influential and critically beloved releases, including their best known, 2002’s Arrhythmia.

After leaving the group, Beans kept on releasing solo records, while also continuing a career-long habit of collaboration. Over the years, he has worked with the likes of Vernon Reid, DJ Shadow, Arto Lindsay, and many more.

To see a playlist Beans made exclusively for The Cipher of songs that influenced him heavily when he was growing up, click here.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/140/ for full show notes and comments.

Cambatta was born in New Haven, Connecticut. He decamped for Florida at 18, and quickly released several successful mixtapes, The Visionary and The Visionary 2, shortly afterwards. They showed off his incredible writing skills and already top-notch wordplay.

But it wouldn’t be until 2013 that Cambatta would really come into his own. He changed his way of thinking – with some chemical help – and created the powerful and trippy Smoke & Mirrors series, a three-mixtape collection that was released between 2013 and 2015. The trilogy took on mystical themes and melded them with reflections on childhood to create a voice that didn’t sound like anything else.

Cambatta’s latest release is Smoke & Mirrors DMT: (Definitive Metagod Trilogy), a collection of some of the best songs of the series plus previously unreleased material.

As we said in the episode, to enter the contest for the Cambatta t-shirt and USB business card, write the answers to the three questions we gave you in the intro and email them to contest@theciphershow.com by noon EDT on Monday April, 11, 2016.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/149/ 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.

Sput is a drummer, keyboardist, and producer who consistently plays with the top acts in the world. Hip-hop fans have heard his work with Snoop Dogg, Timbaland, and Kendrick Lamar. But in addition to that, the Dallas native has played with everyone from Erykah Badu to Celine Dion to his main gig, the instrumental powerhouse band Snarky Puppy.

But back before all that, Sput got his start as a part of Kirk Franklin’s Grammy-winning group God’s Property, which he played in as a teenager - and whose lineup, incidentally, was a who’s-who of future star musicians.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/155/ for full show notes and comments.

F.A.B. is a Bay Area rapper who has been a key part of his region’s scene for well over a decade. His albums like Son of a Pimp and Da Baydestrian, as well as his successes as a freestyle rhymer and a battle rapper, have showed him to be an incredibly versatile artist. He’s equally at home writing tearjerking songs about his family, improvising for ten minutes at a time to whatever beat is thrown at him, or attacking an opponent with a vicious battle rhyme. He was also a key part of the Bay Area’s hyphy movement, which had a moment in the national spotlight in the mid to late 2000s.

Mistah F.A.B.’s brand new album is Son of a Pimp, Pt. 2.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/157/ for full show notes and comments.

Adisa Banjoko is the founder of the Hip-Hop Chess Federation, a non-profit organization that fuses music, chess, and martial arts to promote unity, strategy and non-violence. He has a new book about the history and philosophy behind the organization called Bobby, Bruce & the Bronx: The Secrets of Hip Hop Chess. The book was originally titled Bobby, Bruce & Bam, but Adisa changed it – and very publicly resigned his years-long membership in the Zulu Nation – in light of the accusations of sexual abuse against Afrika Bambaataa.

With the Hip-Hop Chess Federation, Adisa has put on tons of workshops, seminars, and lectures to help children learn not only chess, but entrepreneurship, performing arts, and more. He has even worked with the World Chess Hall of Fame to put on one of their most successful exhibits ever.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/160/ for full show notes and comments.

Robert Aguilar, a.k.a. Rob Swift, grew up in Queens, New York and was already DJing by the age of 12 thanks to the influence of his father and older brother. In 1991, he was recruited to join a prestigious Harlem-based DJ crew called The X-Men. In 1992, Swift won the prestigious DMC East Coast title, and gained recognition within the DJ community. He soon started recorded with artists like Fat Joe, Akinyele, and Chi-Ali.

The X-Men eventually changed both their personnel and their name. They became The X-Ecutioners and narrowed down to Rob, his longtime friend Roc Raida, and Mista Sinista. That lineup released successful albums like Built From Scratch and Revolutions, toured the world, and worked with artists like Linkin Park, Big Pun, Everlast, Rob Zombie, and even the Blue Man Group.

Since leaving the X-Ecutioners, Rob has continued his experimentation. He’s worked with jazz artists like Herbie Hancock and Bob James, released an album inspired by classical music, and even started teaching DJing at the New School in New York City.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/161/ for full show notes and comments.

David Banner is a Jackson, Mississippi-raised rapper who started in the duo Crooked Lettaz, but first came to most peoples’ attention with his 2003 solo hit “Like A Pimp,” and the record that contained it, Mississippi: The Album. That LP, which also contained the hit “Cadillac on 22’s,” cemented Banner’s name and style in the minds of rap fans nationwide.

But there’s a whole lot more to Banner than a couple of hits. He is an accomplished producer who has made beats for T.I., Trick Daddy, RZA, and Lil Wayne. He’s also an actor who has been in the films Black Snake Moan and This Christmas. He has even recently hit the lecture circuit with his “God Box Lecture Series.” But most importantly, he has continued to challenge himself and his listeners with thoughtful, important music. His new album The God Box is coming soon.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/164/ for full show notes and comments.

Jarobi White is the mysterious fourth member of A Tribe Called Quest. He was a founding member of the group with his childhood best friend Phife Dog. Jarobi appeared on the group’s debut album People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm, introducing the world at large to the group’s revolutionary vision. After that, his role in the group was intermittent - contributing ideas in the studio, showing up for some performances, and generally keeping people guessing about what he was up to.

During that whole period, and continuing until today, Jarobi was also pursuing his other passion, food. He is an experienced cook who has worked as a private chef and in Michelin-starred restaurants. He currently runs an events company called Eats, Rhymes & Life that brings together his passions for food and music in live events.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/165/ for full show notes and comments.

Joe Budden first came to prominence in the mixtape scene of the early 2000s, due to an affiliation with DJ Clue’s Desert Storm crew, which also included Fabolous, the A-Team, and more. His 2003 debut self-titled album yielded a smash hit with “Pump It Up,” but the record’s sales didn’t match expectations, and led to problems between Joe and his label Def Jam - problems that would play out across the rapper’s increasingly popular and well-regarded Mood Muzik mixtape series.

Joe’s introspective, heavily personal style won him a devoted fanbase – one that he reached out to directly via the Internet, well before that became the standard thing to do. He nurtured those fans by continuing to release superb projects like Padded Room, A Loose Quarter, and No Love Lost. But he also expanded into new realms by appearing on the TV shows Love & Hip Hop and Couples Therapy. He has also moved into podcasting with his popular show I’ll Name This Podcast Later.

Joe’s new album, out this coming Friday, October 21st, is a collaboration with the producer AraabMuzik called Rage & the Machine.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/172/ for full show notes and comments.

Robert is a pianist and producer who has straddled the worlds of jazz, r&b, and hip-hop his entire career. He has toured and recorded with the likes of Q-Tip, Kanye West, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar, Lupe Fiasco, and countless others. He has also been a key collaborator with his college buddy, the singer Bilal, and has won several r&b Grammys. But he first earned his musical stripes as a jazz player, releasing albums on the iconic jazz label Blue Note Records.

But no matter what genre he’s playing in, or what band he’s working with, Glasper brings his unique style, knowledge, and passion to anything he’s working on. His most recent album, with the Robert Glasper Experiment, is ArtScience.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/174/ for full show notes and comments.

Ben Westhoff is an award-winning journalist and hip-hop contributor who has worked for almost every major media outlet: the Guardian, Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, Vice, NPR, L.A. Weekly, the Wall Street Journal, and more. He wrote the 2011 book Dirty South: OutKast, Lil Wayne, Soulja Boy, and the Southern Rappers Who Reinvented Hip-Hop.

But none of that is why we wanted to talk to him. Westhoff’s new book is Original Gangstas: The Untold Story of Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, Ice Cube, Tupac Shakur, and the Birth of West Coast Rap. As the title implies, it tells the whole story of rap in Los Angeles and beyond, from the birth of the scene in the 1980s through the tragic deaths of Tupac, Biggie, and Eazy-E over a decade later. The book is fascinating and exhaustive, with tons of never-before-reported information about the lives and careers of the scene’s key players.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/177/ for full show notes and comments.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year—if you love soulful Christmas music! We sit down with Bill to talk about the 2016 edition of his world-famous ‘Xmas Jollies’ mix, which you can stream EXCLUSIVELY from us here.

We also discuss Paul Simon, vaudeville, Atlanta, record shopping in Bayou country, the raunchiest Christmas song of all time, and much more.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/181/ for full show notes and comments.

Adam Mansbach is a novelist and, of course, the author of the “children’s book for adults” Go the F to Sleep. But his new project is not a book—it’s a screenplay. Adam wrote the new movie Barry, available now on Netflix. The film is a fictionalized examination of Barack Obama’s first months in New York City, as he arrives at Columbia University in 1981.

The film stars Ashley Judd, Anya Taylor-Joy, Jason Mitchell, Ellar Coltrane, Avi Nash, and the fantastic newcomer Devon Terrell as Obama. It’s been getting rave reviews and has garnered a bunch of award nominations, including NAACP Image Award and Independent Spirit Award noms for Adam. We talk to Adam about writing and filming Barry, but we also catch up about the election, his new TV show, Henny Youngman’s joke-telling philosophy, and a whole lot more.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/182/ for full show notes and comments.

Saba is a young rapper and producer from the West Side of Chicago who has been making a huge impact with his latest album, Bucket List Project. He got his start at open mics around Chicago thrown by Young Chicago Authors and YOUmedia, a scene that also produced talents like Mick Jenkins, Vic Mensa, Noname, and Chance the Rapper.

Saba really came into his own with his 2014 album ComfortZONE, a project that saw him get away from standard brags and boasts and develop a more personal and intimate style. Bucket List Project finds that style fully developed, and people have noticed. Rolling Stone even chose the record as one of its top rap albums of the year.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/184/ 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.

Boldy James is a Detroit rapper who first came to many peoples’ attention in 2009 after appearances on songs by his cousin Chuck Inglish’s group, The Cool Kids. But Boldy took that initial burst of interest and ran with it, releasing a slew of mixtapes and guest appearances leading up to his 2013 debut album My 1st Chemistry Set, produced entirely by The Alchemist.

Just over a year later, Boldy was signed to Nas’ then-new label Mass Appeal Records. Boldy’s latest project, out this past February, is House of Blues.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/194/ for full show notes and comments.

Bill Stephney grew up playing in bands, but found his real intro to the music business in college, when he got involved in Adelphi University’s radio station WBAU. He became the music director as well as an on-air personality, overseeing a crew that included a young Chuck D, Flavor Flav, Doctor Dré, and more. Out of those connections, he became a key member of the legendary production collective The Bomb Squad, best-known for their game changing work with Public Enemy.

After college, Bill went to work as the first employee of a new record label called Def Jam, co-founded by his longtime friend Russell Simmons. Bill’s job was to get the label’s artists on the radio—something that sounds comparatively simple today, but was bordering on impossible back in 1985.

After his time at Def Jam, Bill went on to found two record labels, produce albums for comedy legend Paul Mooney, act as music supervisor for movies like CB4 and Boomerang, and even partner with Chris Rock on a humor newspaper.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/195/ 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.

Rocky is the head of the Universal Hip-Hop Museum, a new and exciting project to share the history of hip-hop both in real life and in the virtual world. But his history goes way deeper than his current efforts.

Rocky learned to DJ in the Bronx of the 1970s, as hip-hop was coming of age. His cousin, the great Pete “DJ” Jones, gave Rocky his start, and Rocky ran with it. He moved from DJing to promoting parties to getting into the record business, discovering talents like Teddy Riley and Grand Puba.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/202/ for full show notes and comments.

Alan is the head of rock and urban at Entertainment One Music, a record label you may know better by the name it had until 2009, Koch Records. Koch is a label that had hits with veteran artists like Fat Joe’s Terror Squad, KRS-One, The Game, and Snoop Dogg; while also breaking new artists like Unk, Rich Boy, and even a then-new DJ Khaled. Hip-hop fans will remember the period in the mid-2000s where they had huge hits with Jim Jones, the Ying Yang Twins, Unk, Khaled, and more.

But Entertainment One is only a part of Alan’s story. He started out at Sony getting the Fresh Prince his first millions, and then worked at Relativity Records in the early 1990s just as the label was first getting into hip-hop, with artists like Fat Joe, the Beatnuts, and a young guy out of Chicago who called himself Common Sense. Alan was also responsible for helping to make then-regional acts like Three 6 Mafia and 8Ball & MJB rise to national prominence. He even played a key role in Eazy-E’s Ruthless Records during the period of its greatest success.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/203/ for full show notes and comments.

Bobby Brown is one of the foremost stars of modern r&b. Starting out with his childhood pals Ricky, Michael, Ronnie, and Ralph, he formed New Edition, one of the biggest groups of the era. But that was only the beginning. Bobby became a megastar with his 1988 solo album Don’t Be Cruel, whose hits like “My Prerogative” and “Every Little Step” helped usher in the New Jack Swing phenomenon. Following several years of nearly non-stop touring, his followup LP, 1992’s Bobby, continued the streak with the hits “Humpin’ Around” and “Good Enough.” Today, following years of New Edition reunions, reality TV, a memoir, and much more, Bobby is back to his first love—performing.

We talked to Bobby about growing up in Boston, highlights of his time with New Edition, finding his footing as a solo artist, his relationship to hip-hop through the years, and much more.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/212/ for full show notes and comments.

Kurtis Blow was the first rap superstar. He was the first rapper to be signed to a major label and the first one to have a gold single with “The Breaks.” But his career is a whole lot more than just that song and “Christmas Rappin’.” Even before stardom, Blow was a busy DJ and performer who was sharing bills with the likes of old-school legends DJ Hollywood and Eddie Cheeba.

And after he broke big—with the help of his manager Russell Simmons—Blow stayed on top, releasing a long string of albums through most of the 1980s and also producing for other artists like the Fat Boys and Oran “Juice” Jones.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/219/ for full show notes and comments.

Bill Adler is…well, you probably already know who Bill is. Publicist, journalist, author, gallery owner, archivist - Bill has done it all. From helping to popularize acts like Run-DMC and the Beastie Boys to defending free speech alongside Luther Campbell to boycotting the Grammys with Public Enemy and the Fresh Prince, there’s very little Bill hasn’t done.

But most importantly, Bill Adler is a Christmas music obsessive. Every year since 1982, he’s created a mix of seasonal music that he actually likes, called the Christmas Jollies. And the past five years, we’ve been lucky enough to sit down with him to discuss the music on it.

You can find this year’s collection here, and several other past volumes can be found elsewhere on our SoundCloud page.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/228/ for full show notes and comments.

Reggie “Combat Jack” Ossé was a lawyer, a blogger, a music executive, a father, and much more. But most people will remember him as a podcasting legend. The host of the eponymous Combat Jack Show raised the bar throughout his time as a media figure, becoming the most influential hip-hop podcaster and even the co-creator of an entire podcast network.

Ossé died on December 20, 2017. To celebrate his life, this is a revamped version of an interview we first did with him that aired in early 2013. It also includes tributes to Combat from some of the people who worked closely with him over the years.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/229/ 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.

Sage Francis and B. Dolan are both from Providence, are both rappers who have roots in spoken word, have toured and sporadically recorded together for years, and even share a label—the Sage-founded Strange Famous Records. But it has taken them until 2018 to release a full project as a duo: the Epic Beard Men.

Sage is a beloved underground rap veteran who has been releasing albums of his smart, introspective, and emotional music consistently since 2002, and touring the universe maniacally to support them—all while running Strange Famous. B. Dolan is an equally talented wordsmith whose solo work is as likely to give new life to old union hymn as it is to pay tribute to the Ol’ Dirty Bastard. The group has a new EP, Season 1, and an album on the way.

See http://theciphershow.com/episode/234/ for full show notes and comments.