News // page 11

In a crowded field of hip-hop MCs and music producer hybrids, the one who’s equally talented in both arenas, keeps audiences guessing with collabos showing range, all while putting on a dope live show, gets my respect AND hard earned money nowadays. One such rarity consistently meeting all my criteria is Black Milk. Dropping quality project after another including 2014’s brilliant “If There’s A Hell Below” and 2013’s “No Poison No Paradise”, his trademark sound’s unmistakable. Resuming his Play Like Hell Tour this week, hitting the East Coast, Midwest and Europe, his live band Nat Turner experience bumps hard.

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After a long work week, nothing’s better than dancing the stress away. Para vivir, necesitamos bailar. Bomba Estéreo’s intimate session at Red Bull Studios in Santa Monica last week proved the ideal hype venue to do so. The Latin Grammy nominated group Bomba Estéreo returned to Southern Cali with cuts including the perfect summer song “Fiesta”, off their new fourth album ‘Amanecer’. With assistance from Wallpaper artist and producer Ricky Reed, the album blends the trademark B.E. fusion cumbia, Afro-Caribbean folk sound with a harder electro edge. With plans to play multiple continents the rest of the year, they’ll be seeing sunrises all over the U.S., Europe and Latin America pronto.

As I attempt to start this morning, I realize I’m still recovering from a musical hangover D’Angelo’s “Second Coming Tour” dealt a few hours ago. I can barely open my eyes and my head’s still pounding from Chris Daddy Dave’s drums. All of this a small price to pay for what I, sitting in the front row of a sold-out crowd, witnessed last night. After experiencing the wonderful unexpected whirlwind of the “Black Messiah” surprise drop in December after 14 years (and laughing at all the critics who’d locked down their top album lists too early), I thought I’d be ready. I should have known better.