Think back to the end of 2011 and the beginning of 2012. Remember that song that you heard at every party, on every radio station and out of every car that drove by? It was one song and one song only: “N—-s in Paris.” The man responsible for bringing you that hit, along with A$AP Rocky’s “Goldie”; Kendrick Lamar’s “Backseat Freestyle”; and Big Sean, Jay-Z and Kanye West’s “Clique,” goes by the name of Hit-Boy, and he’s not just a producer. Last August, Hit-Boy released his debut mixtape as a rapper, titled “HITstory,” which showcased his impressive flows and lyricism. Shortly thereafter, Hit-Boy, 26, signed to Interscope Records in December 2012 and launched his own label, HS87, under Interscope’s imprint in January 2013. Hailing from California, Hit-Boy made his Philadelphia debut June 1 at the sixth annual Roots Picnic, where he, along with his signees, Audio Push, delivered an impressive, high-energy performance on the tent stage.

Hit Boy made his Philly debut at the sixth annual Roots Picnic June 1. The rapper has produced records for Jay-Z, Beyonce, Britney Spears and Eminem.

Following his set, I had the opportunity to sit down with Hit-Boy and discuss his rap and production careers. Even though his rise to fame came through his production, he actually began rapping at the age of 13. “I rapped way before I knew I could make beats. I always had the passion for it; I just had to put it off for a minute to get in the door with the beats, and then it just took off.” To say his career has taken off would be an understatement. Hit-Boy has now produced records for West, Jay-Z, Beyonce, Britney Spears and Eminem. He also has rapped alongside Wale, 2 Chainz and Rick Ross.

Despite his success, Hit-Boy has remained humble and said he still doesn’t feel like he made it. Not many people with a Grammy and multiple hit records would say the same. He did, however, share the highlight of his career thus far after producing “N—-s in Paris.”

“[I had] so many experiences with that one song. I got to meet all of my heroes because they all loved the song. Being able to be in Paris and be onstage with Jay-Z and Kanye was that moment,” Hit-Boy said.

Moments like this have helped fuel his passion and have motivated him even more for his bright future as a rapper, producer and executive. “Just seeing our own progress, I want to really have very successful artists and be a successful artist myself and have hits. That’s the name of my label, Hits Since 87.”

In March, Hit-Boy and his team released “All I’ve Ever Dreamed Of,” which includes the lead single, a remix of “Fan” that features 2 Chainz. The original track was a part of Hit-Boy’s debut project, but he brought it back and added the go-to feature rapper in hip-hop right now, which brought even more to fire to one of the strongest songs from “HITstory.” Other must-listens include “Enormous,” which features Travi$ Scott and James Fauntleroy, as well as “Cypher,” which features artists including Raekwon, Rick Ross and ScHoolboy Q.

No matter what Hit-Boy works on, he brings the same energy to his fans. “To me, it’s one and the same. Everything that I stand for is what I represent. Whether I’m writing a song or making a beat, rapping, whatever, I’m just trying to bring that quality,” he said.

And so far, all he has delivered is quality. His first two rap projects on top of his already abundant production portfolio have impressed fans and demanded the respect of every rapper in the industry.

Hit-Boy even offered up some advice for college students trying to pursue their dreams.

“Whatever the passion is, just stay focused on that. Everything else in between, that’ll just come, but just focus on what you’re passionate about,” he said.

For Hit-Boy, that passion is clear, as he is always trying to motivate and inspire his fans through social media every day.

With “HITstory” and “All I’ve Ever Dreamed Of,” Hit-Boy let the world know that he’s more than just a producer. During his impressive performance at the Roots Picnic, Hit-Boy commanded the stage and kept the fans wanting more after his 35-minute set, even though he has limited experience performing. His confidence and control onstage, when added to his hit-making ability, emerging rap career and the HS87 imprint he’s created under Interscope, prove that Hit-Boy is ready to become a star.

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We typically anticipate summer for the warm weather, weekends at the beach, and if we had attended a semester school, some real time off from classes. However, this summer in particular, there are a number of highly anticipated hip-hop and R&B album releases to await.

This summer, star hip-hop artists including Kanye West, J. Cole, Wale and Pusha T are all releasing new solo albums. Other notable new music coming this summer includes John Legend’s first solo album since 2008.

Starting June 18, hip-hop is prepared to take over the summer with the releases of Mac Miller’s “Watching Movies With The Sound Off,” J. Cole’s “Born Sinner” and most importantly, Kanye West’s “Yeezus.” While Miller likely won’t be able to compete with West and Cole in terms of sales, the battle between the latter pair will be one that is underestimated by many. Despite all the hype around West’s “Yeezus,” the lack of a radio single and “normal” promotion could end up seriously hurting his sales, as many fans might not be aware that he’s releasing a new album. However, J. Cole, who has been promoting his album very heavily and even pushed the release date up one week to battle West June 18, has his single “Power Trip” featuring Miguel shooting up the Billboard charts on its way to No. 1 as “Born Sinner” is about to be released. While the hype for the Cole vs. West sales battle is not nearly as hyped up as West vs. 50 Cent back in 2007 when West’s “Graduation” sold nearly a million copies in its first week, it will likely be a lot closer than many people expect due to Cole’s continuing rise to fame.

Just one week later, John Legend will release his first solo album in nearly five years, titled “Love in the Future.” The album’s lead single, “Who Do We Think We Are?” is one of the better rhythm and blues songs released this year, and it features a great verse from Rick Ross. On that same day, Ross’ signee Wale will release his highly anticipated album, “The Gifted.” Wale currently has a chart-topping single, “Bad,” which is hard to comprehend given the fact that the beat alone makes your ears want to bleed. However, his album is rumored to feature Rihanna, Wiz Khalifa, 2 Chainz, Nicki Minaj, Meek Mill and Rick Ross, among others. That alone should make this album worth the listen as Wale looks to build off of the success from his sophomore album, “Ambition.”

Other notable album releases this summer include Pusha T’s debut solo album, “My Name Is My Name,” due out July 16. With “Numbers on the Boards,” Pusha T showed that he’s ready to take over the summer with some big hits. On that same day, soul singer Mayer Hawthorne will release his third studio album, “Where Does This Door Go.” If you haven’t heard the lead single, “Her Favorite Song,” make sure you stop reading after this sentence and do so immediately. It will definitely be one of your favorites this summer.

If you love music that is actually supposed to be available for free, then you should be on the lookout for Meek Mill’s third installment in the “Dreamchasers” series, which will be available later this summer. Over Memorial Day weekend, Meek unveiled the project’s first single, “Levels,” which showcases a very new and unique flow that he has never used in the past. This is a sign of good things to come from the new mixtape.

Don’t look too far ahead, but Justin Timberlake will release the second part to “The 20/20 Experience” Sept. 20 following his summer tour. Also, rumors are swirling that the both Jay-Z and Beyonce will also release new albums this year, which is incredibly exciting. Jay has released a few songs recently, including “Open Letter,” where he rants about his relationship with Barack Obama and his trip to Cuba with his wife, among other things. Both Beyonce and Jay are on tour this summer and will be in Philadelphia July 25 and Aug. 13 (with Timberlake), respectively.

With an incredible summer lineup of new music, along with huge potential in the fourth quarter, 2013 is shaping up to be another amazing year for hip-hop and R&B. Be sure to save some of your co-op money, because there are a ton of albums that will be worth purchasing this summer.

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Marketing in the music industry has changed drastically over the last few years with the advancement of technology, with more power shifting into the hands of the artists. Some artists have used social media to break major news or release new music; others have released music videos or video blogs to build up hype for upcoming projects. However, Kanye West has taken a far different approach. By performing on well-known platforms across the world, including America’s own “Saturday Night Live,” West is forcing everyone to watch and listen to him. With his new album “Yeezus” set to release June 18, West has returned to the United States after recording in Paris and is making his presence felt across the country and the world.

Rapper Kanye West has begun a music marketing campaign that is forcing people to watch and listen to his music. He has done so through both mild-mannered and extreme methods, the latter including projecting his face onto 66 buildings around the world. West’s new album “Yeezus” will release June 18.

It all began May 6 at this year’s Costume Institute Gala (also known as the Met Gala) when West proclaimed, “I am a god,” during one of the songs from his performance. A series of Vines (short, six-second videos) were the only evidence of this performance happening, and it left fans wondering what exactly West had further planned. Then West performed again May 16, but this time at the Adult Swim Private Party at Roseland Ballroom in New York. There he performed a clip of a new song featuring EDM-style production, and also a song tentatively called “Awesome,” in which he talks about just how awesome his girlfriend Kim Kardashian is.  Videos from his performance were leaked onto the Internet, and for the first time since the G.O.O.D. Music compilation “Cruel Summer,” fans got to hear new music from West.

On Friday night, however, West did something unprecedented. At 9:34 p.m., he tweeted out: “NEW SONG AND VISUAL FROM MY NEW ALBUM BEING PROJECTED TONIGHT ACROSS THE GLOBE ON 66 BULIDINGS, LOCATIONS @ KANYEWEST.COM.” Within an hour, projections began across the world in 10 different countries. Some of the most interesting locations included Wrigley Field and Millennium Park in Chicago, the Prada store on 5th Avenue in Manhattan, and the Pompidou Centre and L’Arc de Triomphe in Paris.

After the projection flashed a few images of old price tags and signs from retail shops, West’s face appeared sideways and then turned and stared out onto the crowd as he rapped the lyrics to his new song, “New Slaves.” From the moment the song begins, it’s clear that West is angry and is letting everybody know with his vivid and powerful lyrics. “You see it’s leaders, and there’s followers, but I’d rather be a d— than a swallower,” he recites on the bridge. Later on, West comments on the prison system in America before saying, “See that’s that privately owned prisons, get your piece today, they prolly all in the Hamptons, bragging ‘bout what they made. F— you and your Hampton house, I’ll [expletive] your Hampton spouse, c— on her Hampton blouse and in her Hampton mouth.” West’s final verses close angrily with, “Y’all bout to turn s— up, I’m ‘bout to tear s— down, I’m ‘bout to air s— out, now what the f— they gon’ say now?” The anger, sincerity and emotion in West’s voice captivates listeners and takes hold of their full attention as he delivers two of his most powerful verses to date.

West followed up the guerilla-style marketing with a performance on “SNL” that couldn’t have made the executives at NBC very happy. Instead of performing something the audience would know first, West debuted “Black Skinhead,” which he apparently rewrote before the performance. The track samples Marilyn Manson and features West screaming throughout a few points of the record. It’s rumored that this is the track that Daft Punk collaborated on with West, which adds even more firepower to this impactful record.

On the bridge, West raps, “So follow me up, cause this s—’s about to go down. I’m doin’ 500, I’m outta control now, but there’s nowhere to go now, and there’s no way to slow down, runnin’ out of time — moving fast, so just close your eyes and then enjoy the crash.” Although during the show it was sometimes difficult to make out what West was saying due to the pace of his raps and the distortion on his voice, he tweeted pictures of the handwritten lyrics after the show. West managed to sneak quite a few curse words in under the NBC censors; however, he tried his hardest to hold back during an angry and spirited performance of “New Slaves” to bring his night to an end. Both performances left fans in shock and awe, which is exactly the impact that West hoped to have.

Right now, nobody can come close to the sound and powerful lyricism that West is currently displaying. He’s never been afraid of what the media or people think about him, and that’s clearer than ever after hearing “Black Skinhead” and “New Slaves” over the weekend. West is clearly annoyed with some of the racial issues in our society today, and he’s been able to display this passionately and powerfully through these two new songs. If these tracks are a true representation of what “Yeezus” will bring to listeners, then we’re all in for quite a treat.

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It’s been two and a half years since Kid Cudi released a solo album. During that time, he released an experimental album with producer Dot Da Genius under the group name WZRD and more recently disaffiliated with Kanye West’s G.O.O.D. Music label, where he had been signed since 2008. The news surprised the majority of the industry because West was instrumental in Cudi’s growth and commercial success over the years. However, the departure seems to have been on good terms, and now Cudi is back in the spotlight with his third studio album, “Indicud.” After a premature leak on the Internet, Cudi decided to push the release of his album up a week, so the album ended up hitting stores and iTunes April 16.

Kid Cudi’s third studio album “Indicud” hit the shelves and iTunes April 16. The album includes such songs as “Brothers” and “Immortal.”

“Indicud” is the first solo album Cudi has released outside of the “Man on the Moon” series. His first two albums followed similar themes and concepts, but with his third release, Cudi has really stepped outside the box sonically and continued to push his creative limits. Cudi’s style of rapping is so unique and unmatched by any other artist that he’s able to experiment much more. Cudi actually produced “Indicud” on his own, with the exception of “Red Eye,” which is co-produced by Hit-Boy. This is the first time he has done this, which makes this release even more special.

From the get-go, Cudi explodes with “Unf—wittable,” led by wild synthesizers that only he could make work for a great song. Other highlights early on include “Young Lady,” which features folk singer Father John Misty. While it’s a very odd pairing, the track is one of the more interesting songs on the album. “Immortal,” which was one of the album’s singles before its release, is a classic Cudi track that still shines on the album.

On “Man on the Moon: The End of Day,” Cudi had a song called “Solo Dolo (Nightmare),” which was one of the best songs on his debut album. On “Indicud,” Cudi teams up with the red-hot Kendrick Lamar for “Solo Dolo Pt. II.” The song sounds nothing like the original but references the original chorus. Lamar is featured on the new chorus before rapping a verse that includes lines such as “I’m proud of myself in a bad way.”

The second half of the album includes the album’s strongest song, “Brothers,” which features Cudi’s right-hand man King Chip (formerly known as Chip Tha Ripper) and A$AP Rocky. Rocky delivers his abstract flow for one of his best verses in recent memory. Cudi sings, “Ayo, this is how it’s supposed to be,” on the catchy yet simple chorus.

Other notables include “Red Eye” featuring female soft-rock group Haim, and “Afterwards (Bring Yo Friends),” which features Michael Bolton (yes, you read that correctly) and King Chip. “We should go to my home, afterwards, come on. Bring your friends, we should go to my home, afterwards, come on,” Bolton sings on the hook. This is definitely one of the highlights of this album.

“Indicud” is an incredible experiment with alternative music. His ability to extend the boundaries of his sound with each album continues to amaze me, and this project once again strikes gold. While this album doesn’t necessarily have the radio hits that his past albums have had, “Indicud” as an overall body of work is more impressive, especially because Cudi produced it entirely himself.

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Legendary DJ and music engineer Young Guru visited Drexel University’s URBN Annex April 8 to kick off his Grammy U “Era of the Engineer” tour. Grammy U is a program designed to enable college students to network with music industry executives and artists to enhance their education outside the classroom. Guru ran through his history in music, including how he achieved his success, and shared technical pointers for the engineers and producers in the room. Over the last 14 years, Young Guru has been Jay-Z’s go-to engineer, working with him on 10 of his 11 studio albums. Guru’s success has enabled him to work with other greats including Beyonce, Drake, Rihanna, Rick Ross, Snoop Dogg and many more. He has also served as an A&R executive for Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings and is currently Jay-Z’s tour DJ. The “Era of an Engineer” lecture series is designed to teach students about the importance of audio engineers and the record-making process in an insightful and educational way. While hip-hop isn’t taught at most schools, Guru said he believes it is something that should be more present in education today. When asked why he chose to do this lecture series, he said, “Number 1, I want my culture to be respected, plain and simple. Education is just important, period. But for me, every other musical genre is respected at a certain level, where hip-hop still isn’t to a certain degree.” Growing up in a musical household, Guru combined his two passions, music and engineering, and has become one of the most highly regarded engineers and DJs in hip-hop today. “I’ve always been into just regular engineering, like how things work. That was the main thing for me, was how systems work or how you put something together,” Guru said. Guru, whose mother was a teacher, said he would be interested in becoming a professor one day, similar to how producer 9th Wonder taught a class about sampling at Duke University. Having seen his mother’s passion for teaching and her students growing up, he said, “I see the intrinsic value now. You can literally, physically see when a kid doesn’t understand, and now they get it, you can see it in their face. It’s the ‘I got it’ moment. That’s really your reward. Or to have someone that you taught take whatever it is to a level above whatever it is that you were at. Every student should try to be better than the master.” His career began to take form when he started at Howard University, where he met Sean “Puffy” Combs, who went on to create Bad Boy Records. Guru also met Deric Angelettie and Chucky Thompson, whom he worked with early in his career. In 1999 Guru was working with an artist named Memphis Bleek, who was signed to Jay-Z’s Roc-A-Fella Records. One day, Jay-Z came by the studio to check in on Bleek and decided he wanted to record while the studio was booked. That was the first time that Guru ever worked with Jay, and the rest is history. Guru provided tips on compressing vocals and put an emphasis on the depth of a record, not just panning the sound from left to right. Guru displayed a vast knowledge of sound, specifically in hip-hop, and enlightened students with his advice. His story clearly inspired many in attendance, and he stayed after the lecture to continue answering questions and speaking one-on-one with students, giving them personal advice and even sharing his contact information. Guru’s dedication to hip-hop education could be considered admirable. The event was open to the community, Grammy U members, and music industry artists and executives. Local stars including former Drexel students Chiddy Bang, Freeway (who worked with Guru for a number of years), RJD2, Vidal Davis and Chill Moody were all in attendance for Guru’s lecture. The tour, sponsored by HP, Puma and Disk Makers, will hit 12 other cities, ending in Memphis, Tenn., on Sunday, April 28. For more information on the tour or Grammy U, visit www.grammy365.com.

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James Blake flew onto the scene with his incredibly unique sound and style in 2011. His self-titled album was one of the most highly regarded projects of the year, featuring amazing songs such as “The Wilhelm Scream” and “Limit To Your Love.” Now, the 24-year-old from London is back with his sophomore album, “Overgrown,” which was released April 9. While this album is far less musically adventurous than “James Blake,” Blake clearly honed in and continued to evolve and expand his electronic alternative sound.

Blake opens the album with the title track, “Overgrown,” in which he sings on the hook, “I don’t wanna be a star, but a stone on the shore.” Blake’s recent rise to fame has clearly affected him; his life has completely changed after the release of his debut album and impressive performances over the last two years.

The most surprising track from the album is “Take A Fall For Me,” which features RZA, formerly part of the Wu-Tang Clan. RZA raps, “I need you like I need satisfaction,” as the haunting keys and Blake’s looped vocals echo in the background. While it seems like an odd pairing, Blake recently mentioned that he’s been working in the studio with Jay-Z and Kanye West, proving that he not only has gained the attention of superstars but that his reach is far beyond his niche sound.

The highlight of the album comes with the lead single, “Retrograde,” which might be one of the best songs released so far this year. Blake’s vocals provide a calm chill throughout the record, which reaches its climax with masterfully orchestrated synthesizers that drive Blake’s lyrics into the ears of the listener as he says, “Suddenly I’m hit; is this the darkness of the dawn? When your friends are gone, when your friends won’t come. So show me where you fit.” The power and energy in his voice and the production make this an incredibly powerful song — one that should be talked about when Grammy season rolls around in 2014.

“Retrograde” is followed by the piano-led ballad “DLM,” in which Blake soulfully sings out about a dying relationship. On the chorus, he sings out repeatedly, “Please don’t let me hurt you more, it’s in your stare and at your core.” The emotion in this song bleeds out through the honest lyrics and gentle piano accompaniment. While it is the simplest track both musically and lyrically, it stands out over other tracks from the album.

“Digital Lion,” which features Brian Eno, is the only track on the album that Blake did not produce. However, it is one of the stronger records. Other standouts from “Overgrown” include “Voyeur” and “I Am Sold.”

The album, while short in length (only 39 minutes and 22 seconds), is filled with incredible production from front to back that shatters all genre barriers with its eclectic mix of sounds and synthesizers. Blake’s vocals and lyrics provide power and strong meaning to his elaborate production, and once again, he delivers a very impressive album. If Blake continues on this trend, he’s going to be a star for years to come.

If you want to see James Blake live, he will be performing Saturday, May 11, at the Theatre of Living Arts.

It’s been two years since Tyler, The Creator flew onto the scene with Odd Future. With articles in every major publication about their performance at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas, and praise from artists including Kanye West about Tyler’s music video for “Yonkers,” the group’s leader became a star in the hip-hop world. Now, he returns with his third solo album, “Wolf,” which was released April 1 on iTunes and April 2 in stores. The album features fellow Odd Future members, including rising star Frank Ocean, who appears on a number of songs even though he’s not always listed as a feature, along with Erykah Badu and Tyler’s idol Pharrell Williams.

 Tyler, The Creator’s “Wolf” was released on iTunes April 1 and in stores April 2. The album features Eyrkah Badu, Earl Sweatshirt, Frank Ocean, and Pharrell.

From the get-go, it is clear that “Wolf” is heavily inspired by the aforementioned Pharrell, who is part of alternative hip-hop supergroup N*E*R*D and producing duo The Neptunes. Tyler frequently uses similar chord progressions and synths as Pharrell while adding his own personal flair to the production of the album. Tyler’s talent shines on “Wolf” like it never has before, as the album is by far his best lyrical and production work to date.

While Tyler has been known in the past for his brash and frequently offensive lyrics (he threatened Bruno Mars on “Yonkers”), he seems to have matured (slightly) and taken huge strides as an artist on “Wolf.” Don’t get confused, though, because Tyler is still the same kid that took the industry by storm with his controversial lyrics. This time around he rips into One Direction in “Domo 23” when he says, “Now me and Justin [Bieber] smoke sherm, and been talking ‘bout freeing perms, and purchasing weapons, naming and aim them at One Direction.”

However, he dives into a number of personal issues throughout the album, including the absence of his father in songs such as “Answer.”

“‘Cause when I call, I hope you pick up your phone. I’d like to talk to you, I hope you answer,” Tyler sings in the chorus before diving into the impact that his father’s absence has had on his life. He speaks from the perspective of a regret-filled drug dealer in “48,” which includes excerpts from his interview with Nas and assistance from Frank Ocean on the chorus.

Tyler continues his introspection on tracks including “Awkward” and “IFHY” featuring Pharrell, in which Tyler discusses relationships with women over the years. The highlight of “Awkward” comes about halfway through the song, when the beat switches over and Tyler says at the end of his breakdown, “But when you realize it’s awkward, your name’s still my password, so I’m always f—ing reminded, you got a n—- sprung.”

One of the most impressive songs on the album is “Colossus,” where Tyler discusses a group of fans who approached him at a Six Flags theme park. He focuses on a fan’s overobsessive behavior toward him that he’s forced to deal with. Tyler delivers some impressive flows as he speaks from the perspective of the fan over light keys, drums and synths.

Other standouts from the album include “Slater” featuring Frank Ocean, “Rusty” featuring Earl Sweatshirt and Casey Veggies, and “Treehome95” featuring Coco O and Erykah Badu, who dominate the bulk of this jazzy jam.

“Wolf” is clearly Tyler, The Creator’s best work to date. His production has greatly improved, and his lyrics and song concepts have grown and are better than ever. After two strong albums, Tyler has delivered an incredibly impressive body of work with “Wolf.”

Hip-hop and education are two things that rarely go hand-in-hand. A large part of that is because the majority of rappers never went to college. The other reason is that hip-hop is still not fully accepted in the mainstream and is still some distance away from getting there. However, there is hope, courtesy of hip-hop producer 9th Wonder, who gave a lecture Feb. 21 at the University of Pennsylvania titled “These Are the Breaks.” The lecture ran for 90 minutes, with a 30-minute question-and-answer session after.

For those who aren’t familiar with 9th Wonder, allow me to briefly introduce you. He has produced records for Jay-Z, Destiny’s Child, Wale and Drake. He represented one-third of the hip-hop trio Little Brother through 2007, when the guys had a disagreement and decided to part ways to embark on new projects. Recently, 9th began teaching about hip-hop at his alma mater, North Carolina Central University, and then was asked to teach a course about sampling at Duke University. Now, 9th Wonder has been given a fellowship at Harvard University and is making his second documentary with director Kenneth Price about that experience. Clearly, in the hip-hop community, 9th Wonder is a legend, and that’s why the opportunity to see him give a lecture at Penn was one that I could not turn down.

As the lecture opened, he switched between Serato (a software program for disc jockeys) and PowerPoint, playing songs that he grew up with. He ran through the history of hip-hop dating back to 1973 and led up to present-day artists. During this time, he provided some incredible quotes, such as “Sam Cooke was Trey Songz to [his mother]; every generation has a Trey Songz.” He also joked that The Sugarhill Gang, known for its hit single “Rapper’s Delight,” was “the Spice Girls of hip-hop.” The most notable quote from the night came near the end, when 9th Wonder said, “The best music is made when Republicans are in office.”

A large portion of the lecture was dedicated to the art of sampling, which 9th Wonder is particularly known for. In hip-hop, producers “sample” a section of an old song and tie it into their beats. Hesaid that sampling enabled “hip-hop [to be] a bridge to reference the past to present.” He then began to speak about and show the record collections of legendary producers, including DJ Premier, Pete Rock and even Ahmir “?uestlove” Thompson of The Roots. His name for record collectors was “vinyl archaeologists,” and he called the process of finding records “crate digging.”

At this time, 9th began to wow the audience by playing the original records that artists such as Jay-Z, Kanye West and even Little Brother had sampled over the years, while sharing unique insights on the process. After the release of Little Brother’s album “The Minstrel Show,” 9th Wonder, along with emcees Phonte and Big Pooh, sent letters to every artist that 9th sampled on the album to thank them for their contribution to music and their impact on this body of work. 9th even shared some details of working with Jay-Z on “The Black Album.”

“When he says your name on a record, it’s time to go house shopping,” 9th said of Jay’s impact. He believes that no other rapper can make a producer somebody, and after working with Jay, 9th’s career took off.

Near the end of his lecture, 9th emphasized how music used to connect people in a time and place, and now with the “YOLO generation,” everybody is “socially independent.” This was one of the key components of the lecture that really stuck to me. The idea of “socially independent” is an oxymoron. However, when you think about our generation and how frequently we’re attached to our cell phones, computers, etc., it couldn’t be a more accurate description of our everyday lives.

At the end of the lecture, not a single member of the audience remained seated, as 9th received a well-deserved standing ovation. To an avid listener and passionate fan of hip-hop, an event like this is something special. Hip-hop’s importance in today’s culture is something that should not go unnoticed. It should be celebrated, studied and taught in universities across the country, just as rock and pop music are today. Hopefully, more iconic figures in hip-hop will begin to teach and spread this movement across the country to educate young intellectuals on the art, culture, and impact of hip-hop music.